Title: This Year

Author: Angel Leviathan

Spoilers: None important or specific that I know of.

Disclaimer: Stargate Atlantis, characters, concept, etc, aren't mine.

Notes: Christmas fic escaped…

She loved Christmas.

…She hated Christmas.

Elizabeth swore the SGC was being sadistic, calling them back so close to Christmas and letting them go back on Christmas Eve, thanks to their new ZPM. She was sure it was so they could 'enjoy' the wonders of Christmas shopping and still go 'home' to celebrate. It still meant she had to shop and buy presents for everybody, without the 'I live in another galaxy' excuse. It had also meant she had to write Christmas cards, what she had spent most of yesterday afternoon doing. She was thankful she had no use for money in the Pegasus galaxy; there was buying stamps and there was spending more money on postage than on the actual present. Elizabeth loved buying presents for people, but hated the worry about whether they would like their gifts, if they were suitable, were they overdone, did they look like anything…the list went on…and on.

What was making the whole situation a little more bearable was the company she was keeping.

Who knew John Sheppard's mental age plummeted further around Christmas?

They both laughed as a group of small children ran right past them, nearly knocking them over, several chasing the child in the lead, yelling something about stolen candy, all screaming with laughter.

Elizabeth drew her coat more tightly around her and finished the waffle John had insisted they get. She shot him a grin, "Aren't you going to join them?"

"Hey, I got a waffle, who needs candy?" he answered, smirking.

She couldn't stop herself smiling stupidly back at him, looking away as she switched the shopping bags she held from her right to left hand

"I think we need more lights," John proposed.

She stated, "More lights? The crate back at the SGC isn't enough?"

"It's a big city!"

"That will glow from orbit with fairy lights!"

He paused, evidently picturing it, "…Awesome…"

"You're explaining why we were a shining target…!"

John grinned deviously, "'Well, Doctor Weir decided to go overboard on the purchasing of Christmas lights…'"

"Hey!" she swung for him with a roll of wrapping paper.

"Hey yourself!" he ducked, realising his only offensive weapon was the remains of his waffle, and he was sure she'd do more than hit him with a roll of wrapping paper if he threw that at her. He finished the waffle and decided to walk just a little closer to her, "Everyone's got a present, right?"

"Back at the SGC. That lucky dip kind of thing?" Elizabeth grimaced.

"What's wrong with that?"

"It just seems so impersonal…" she sighed.

"You wanted to do Christmas shopping for several hundred people?" John raised an eyebrow.

"God, no."

"Then it was the best thing to do. Everybody gets something. And a lot of us came back this time…you know its like one giant family, everybody's going to get something they'll love. We all had input into it, there's nothing anybody's going to hate. Not a pair of socks in sight!"

Elizabeth smiled, "Did you see how much alcohol they've given us?"

"If I didn't know better, I'd say they were trying to bribe us…"

"I think its nice they want us to have a proper Christmas."

"I'm not complaining," he nudged a little closer to her again.

Their first Christmas in Atlantis had been a near disaster. They barely had enough supplies, let alone luxuries. They had tried to make it bearable, and had had a lot of fun in the end, but the faces she saw that she knew was longing for home, for Earth, had really got to Elizabeth. In the end, she had spent an hour searching through the Atlantis intranet shared resources in desperate hope of somebody having something Christmas-y to play. She had only found a few songs, evidently just random tracks left over on people's laptops from previous years, but she had hooked the system up to the internal comms and speakers and suddenly blasted the city with 'All I Want For Christmas'. Then 'stolen' a DVD off one of her staff and declared that Love Actually was being played in one of the larger rec rooms. Standing at the back of the room, several hours later, seeing people laughing and smiling, really was all that she wanted for Christmas.

"I wonder what Ronon and Teyla are making of all this…" Elizabeth pondered.

"Shopping with Carson, Laura, Kate and Rodney?" John grinned, "God help them."

"Its Ronon I feel for! At least Teyla understands what this is all about this time round."

"And already had a taste of the madness."

She suddenly laughed aloud at a strange mental image, "Imagine somebody pulling mistletoe on Ronon!"

John frowned, bemused, then laughed, "I hope its Teyla!"

Elizabeth tilted her head at him, a question in her gaze.

"Oh come on. How have you not seen how they look at each other?"

She smiled, "True."

He was silent for a few moments, "…I think its great we all have someone special to be with this time round…"

Elizabeth looked up at him, fully aware of how close he walked to her, hips touching. She knew what he meant. He didn't need to say anything else. She always knew what he meant. She switched her shopping to her right hand again and slipped her left arm around his waist, silently.

He draped an arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to the side of her head as they continued along the highstreet.

"…John…?" she looked up at him again, "…Thank you."

John shot her a self depreciating smile, "For what?"

"…For everything," Elizabeth said softly, "…Just…for always being here…and being you."

"…I'll always be here," he drew her a little closer, if that was even possible, "I'm not me without you."

She smiled slightly and stared momentarily at the ground. When she looked back up, she caught the look in his eyes, like she was the most important person in the world. She hoped she conveyed the same in a single glance…and those few long moments of eye contact were worth more to her than any Christmas present. Elizabeth rested her head against his shoulder as they walked, smiling faintly.

He broke away from her side suddenly, running ahead, "Race you to the ice rink!"

"John!" she shouted after him, stunned, "What are you-"

"Race you!" he carried on.

"But, shopping bags!"

John hesitated and waited for her to catch up, then snatched one off her, running off again, "Come on!"

Elizabeth couldn't fight her smile, before she broke into a run and took off after him, laughing all the while.

Fin