Christmas Tales 1 : Memories and a Bright Future

by Zumkalt

A pregnant and in a playful mood Jane as Christmas Time approaches, a Weller late for a charity gala, and a few memories, especially about Sandstorm, that come back in this Christmas period. Set during season 2

Hello everybody. I hope you having a good Christmas time. This work is a bit particular, because with the end of season 2 and the starting of season 3, it became less pertinent. I have written it the past year, during the winter hiatus of the season 2. After seeing the mid-season finale, I wanted imagine Jane and Kurt in a better context, happy together and with their family. I have received a few PM over time, to ask me to translate it and I thinking it was a good idea for this period of the year.

There will be three parts, two in the Christmas time, and one which will take place 3 months later (you'll understand why after reading).

I hope you can enjoy this anyway, even if the plot concerns my vision of how the things could have be turn after the failure of the Sandstorm compound raid.

As usual for my stories translation, I thank very much my wonderful beta-reader, Reader-only76 for the proofreading.

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Disclaimer : I don't own Blindspot. The story and characters are the property of Martin Gero

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Memories and a Bright Future

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With a stifled sigh, the FBI Deputy Director, Kurt Weller, readjusted the knot of his dark blue tie, watching himself in the mirror of his bathroom. Along with the additional paperwork, his promotion came with a number of other hassles, such as extended budget meetings and mandatory attendance to certain social events. Although he understood the point of a Christmas charity gala and was quite ready to support the idea, the prospect of having to spend hours shaking hands with half of the city's influential figures didn't appeal to him… Especially when his other option would be to spend the evening with his beautiful five-month pregnant fiancée.

His smile faded slightly as he thought back to the last 18 months that had led to this state of affairs. After the failure of the Sandstorm compound raid, things had become a little crazy. Thanks to Nas's warning, most of the agents had been able to get out in time, and there were only two casualties. It was still two too many for his taste, but much better than what could have happened if the NSA agent had realized the trap too late. About fifteen other agents had been wounded, more or less seriously, including Reade. And even as he frantically searched for Jane in the rubble, a radio message informed the team that Patterson was found unconscious and shot in the abdomen at Borden's house following an anonymous call.

The news had caused a shock, since it was seemingly completely unrelated to the present situation. With Nas, he had gone immediately to the hospital, which fortunately was the same one where Reade had been evacuated to. There was confusion everywhere in the emergency room, with the arrival of so many wounded agents from the raid, in addition to the usual cases. Already on the spot, Tasha had been the first to camp outside the door of the operating room, waiting for news of their friend. After a time that seemed endless, the surgeon finally came to inform them that the bullet had caused significant internal damage but that he had been able to stabilize the young woman. For convenience's sake, Weller arranged for Patterson and Reade, who was also out of surgery, to be in the same room.

Then Reade had brought them back to reality.

Flashback: 18 months ago

- "Now that Patterson is out of danger, does anyone have any idea where Jane is? Do you think she's still at the compound?" The question froze the room in embarrassment. Tasha bit her lips in shame for not asking herself this, and even Nas looked a little confused at having forgotten the young woman. Weller himself felt lower than anything. The relief of finding a part of his team and the anxiety of having almost lost both Reade and Patterson had momentarily made him forget about Jane. What a friend he was being. After telling her that she wasn't alone, he had abandoned her.

- "I don't know, the latest news we had found no one from Sandstorm at the site, and the only casualties listed at the receptionist downstairs are our agents," sighed Zapata.

- "Before leaving I left strict instructions to rescue teams and capable agents on the site. If Jane, Roman or Shepherd had been found, Deputy Director Weller or myself would have been immediately informed," Nas replied categorically.

- "Okay, but… nobody thinks this is weird? I mean… we fall into a trap and Jane is nowhere to be found, like the rest of Sandstorm… "

- "Wait, you're insinuating that she would work together with them," began Weller looking at him furiously.

- "I don't know, but think about it. If this was a normal case, and the source whose news led the team into a trap was missing, what would you think first?" Said Reade, raising his hands defensively in the air.

-"This is not a normal case and we know it," Nas interjected. "I know you're still angry at Jane for what happened to Deputy Director Mayfair, but I assure you that her loyalty is to the FBI, I made sure of it."

- "What do you mean? How did you make sure of this?" Zapata asked with a frown, causing the NSA agent to notice that she had said too much.

- "Nas… listened in to Jane's conversations with Borden to get an idea of her state of mind," Weller sighed, knowing that the news was not going to fix things with the team with a crisis of confidence. And indeed Zapata and Reade looked shocked.

- "You did what?" Asked Reade not sure he understood properly.

- "Ok, I know that I was really a bitch to Jane since her return but… seriously! Doctor-patient confidentiality, does that mean anything to you? Asked the dismayed Latina.

- "That's enough," Weller growled. "What's done is done. The point is that Nas and I are sure of Jane's loyalty. Now we have to find her if… "

- "If what?" Asked Zapata.

- "If she's still alive," whispered Weller with a bad feeling, thinking back to their last mission.

- "What if she is still alive?" Asked Reade from his bed, looking suddenly more alert and perhaps even a little worried. With a sigh Weller decided to reveal to them his conversation with Jane.

- "When we were on the pier, in front of Marconi's yacht, Jane volunteered to sneak on the boat. She said it was dangerous and that I had a baby on the way. Then she said… she said that she had no family or friends and that no one would miss her if things went bad… and so she was better suited than me to get on the boat. So I made her believe that I had heard a guard, and by the time she finished checking, I was on the boat without her," Kurt whispered, his voice shaking slightly due to the shock he had felt when he heard her words.

- "Oh, man," said Reade, resting his head on his pillow. Even Tasha looked shocked and rather uncomfortable.

- "I see," said Nas thoughtfully. "That would explain what she tried to tell us before she had to cut off communication."

- "Sorry?" Weller asked a little lost.

- "Before the comms were cut, her last sentence started with "If I don't come back… " Given what we have just learned, she probably didn't expect to survive… "

-"A suicide mission," Tasha understood with horror. "She thought our intervention would lead to the death of Roman and Shepherd. And once her family died… she would be alone… she hadn't planned to survive the defeat of Sandstorm," she said in a strangled voice.

- " Yeah, probably. It seems… that I … much underestimated the impact the mission would have on her… " Before anyone in the room could react, voices in the hallway caught their attention.

-"Ma'am, ma'am, come back here! We have to watch… " And suddenly Jane entered the room, followed by a nurse holding a compress in her hand. Kurt stared at her for a moment, relieved to see her alive, before his brain registered the details, making him shiver with anguish. A gash on her left cheek, probably made by a bullet judging by the shape, was trickling a flow of blood, which had already slightly coagulated along her jaw and on her chin. Her right cheekbone was sporting a nasty bruise, and despite her black jacket, her blue T-shirt was obviously covered with blood in several places.

- "Jane, are you wounded?" Zapata asked, the first to recover from the shock, advancing towards the young woman before slowing down, looking at her right hand. A trickle of blood ran down from inside her sleeve and dripped onto the floor. But it was the Glock 17 clutched tightly between her trembling fingers that caught her attention.

- "Jane… " Weller called softly, approaching, hands held prominently in front of him. The dark-haired woman however, didn't seem to hear him, her eyes fixed on Patterson in her bed.

-"Jane," Tasha called again, also making sure her hands were visible and non-threatening. "We have to tend to you. But first you must give us the gun," she added, gently extending her hand. At these words, the young woman looked away from the sleeping blonde, alternately fixing on Zapata and her outstretched hand, and Weller standing next to her, looking worried. Her expression still looked lost, but slowly she raised her hand. The tension in the room fell quickly when the agents noticed that the breech, hitherto concealed by her sleeve, was pulled back, and the chamber empty. Obviously, the battle that had caused her injuries had also exhausted all her ammos.

Without a word, her eyes turning back on Patterson, Jane let Tasha gently loosen her fingers from the grip and retrieve the Glock.

- "Jane," Weller insisted, gently placing his hands on the tattooed woman's shoulders. "You have to let the nurse examine you." His touch seemed to bring her back to reality and she turned her head towards him, blinking like an owl as she tried to assimilate the information. The nurse, who had hitherto held back, stepped forward and rubbed the blood on her cheek with her compress. Then she helped the young woman remove her jacket and T-shirt, revealing a large bruise resembling a boot print on her stomach, visible despite the tattoos, and a deep slash on her right arm. Here again, the agents easily recognized a gunshot wound.

- "I'll have to take her for a full examination, and probably x-ray her chest as well. She must also be in shock," she said to Weller. Her remark provoked an immediate change in Jane, who drew back, folding her arms defensively over her stomach, her shoulders tense.

-"I don't think she'll be willing to leave the room," Kurt cautiously pointed out, noting her change of attitude.

- "Ask a doctor to come and examine her here. We'll see about the x-rays then," Nas offered, understanding that no one was going to change Jane's mind on the subject. The nurse pursed her lips for a moment, but the determined gazes of the agents in the room, three of whom still wore their black combat gear and weapons, convinced her to obey. She quickly disinfected the exposed wounds before bandaging them, then Zapata pulled a chair right beside the bed of the unconscious analyst. After putting a blanket from a drawer over her shoulders, she pushed slightly on them, and gently forced Jane to sit down.

- "She'll be fine," she said to the young tattooed woman. "The doctor said the anonymous 911 call saved her life."

-"It's my fault, it's my fault," Jane mumbled, staring at Patterson's face, strangely peaceful because of the painkillers and anesthesia.

-"Jane," Kurt gently interjected, kneeling in front of her to try to catch her eye. "You had nothing to do with this. It wasn't you who shot her."

- "Borden, the shooter was Borden" whispered the dark-haired woman still without looking at him. Her statement caught the attention of everyone in the room.

-" Can you repeat that? " Asked Reade, his tone clearly indicating that he thought he had misunderstood.

- "Agent Miller downstairs at the front desk… he told me Patterson was at Borden's home when the EMT's found her."

-" Yes. But that doesn't necessarily mean he's the shooter," Zapata said softly as she stood next to Weller. "Sandstorm could be targeting him because he helped us to… "'

- "Borden… Borden works for Sandstorm. He was responsible for evaluating me and making sure I did not deviate from the mission," Jane groaned, leaning over to grab Patterson's right hand, smearing the sheets with her own blood as she brushed against them, her hands were not cleaned. The shocked gasps of the rest of the team did not even make her look up.

- "Jane… are you sure of this?" Weller asked urgently.

-"Shepherd… Shepherd told me. After sending the photos, Roman drugged me. When I woke up, I was tied to a chair in a shed at the back of the farm. Shepherd told me that they had had doubts about me since the death of Oscar… They knew that Cade couldn't have detained me for months… She said that Borden was working for them and told them that I was loyal to the FBI… and after… after that they turned on a projector. And I saw… I saw images of the surveillance cameras with the agents… and then the explosion. They wanted… Shepherd wanted me to watch the team die, and I couldn't do anything to stop it," Jane stammered in a strangled voice. Even without seeing her face, everyone could easily feel the desperation that occupied her. Reade looked at Jane with a look full of sympathy, far from the suspicious one he wore a few minutes ago. Tasha, at her side, could feel tears in the corners of her eyes, imagining what Jane must have felt. Being forced to look on helplessly at the team she had chosen at the cost of her own family, falling into an ambush… It was then Nas's turn to approach, and ask:

- "Jane, I know this is difficult, but we need to know what happened to the rest of Sandstorm."

-" I don't know." Whispered the dark-haired woman, trying to contain her tears. "There was only me, Roman, and Shepherd in the warehouse."

- "How did you manage to get out?"

- "Shepherd… Shepherd gave a gun to Roman. She… she told him that he had to prove his loyalty and shoot me." This information provoked all the agents present to exchange a dismayed look. To ask her own son to kill his sister in cold blood was… just sick.

- "Roman… Roman couldn't do it, he pointed the gun at Shepherd and squeezed the trigger. But the magazine was empty."

-"It was a test," Nas understood, giving the woman curled up in the chair an understanding look, which she couldn't see because of her still bowed head.

-" Yes. And because Roman… failed, Shepherd decided to eliminate both of us. She took out a gun… and Roman flung himself at her. He was hit under the shoulder, and I threw myself at a desk to break the chair. We fought. Roman and me… against her. Roman recovered the gun and shot her in the shoulder. Then… then we fled while Shepherd's men tried to force the door. Roman… Roman told me he had a place with medical supplies. It was… it was there that they tattooed me and erased my memory. I… I tried to convince Roman to come with me to the FBI but… but he hates you. He said he had too many bad memories. So… so I filled a syringe with ZIP I found in a drawer and… and I drugged him while he was not watching," the dark-haired woman said, her voice breaking again.

Weller, shocked, stood up and nervously ran a hand through his hair.

- "Damn, this operation… the dice were loaded from the beginning."

- "It seems that Sandstorm has planned for all eventualities. Even the one where Jane turned against them," Nas nodded gravely, looking at the agents in turn.

-"Which means they've been fooling us from the beginning. Jane never had a chance to get any viable information from them, they just used her as bait," said Reade, looking pitifully at the tearful tattooed woman. At the same time, Zapata stood next to her, gently rubbing her back to comfort her.

-"If Borden was working for Sandstorm, and that we know for sure. It will be necessary to wait until Agent Patterson wakes up to have all the details, but according to initial observations on the site, his home had traces of a fight and several bullet holes on the staircase. He must have done or said something that betrayed him, and Patterson would have tried to stop him."

- "But why shoot her and call an ambulance? He could have let her die, it would have given him more time to flee before the alert was given." asked Reade with perplexity.

-"They were going out together," her teammate reminded him, continuing to rub Jane's back. "And I really think he loved her. If the shot was accidental, he couldn't let her die. He had to call an ambulance and leave just before they arrived."

-"That still doesn't tell us where Roman is. Nor how Jane got here? " Weller sighed, rubbing his temples to try to dispel the headache that was threatening him.

-"Jane," Zapata asked softly, bending over the woman. "Where is your brother?"

Her question seemed to draw Jane out of her contemplative state and she looked up from Patterson's bed to look around, as if she were looking for her brother in the room.

- "I… he is … I tried to take him to the FBI. But Sandstorm found us," the young woman suddenly became more animated as the memories came back. "Half a dozen men with assault rifles… they attacked the place where we were. I knocked out three, and maybe injured one or two more… but… Roman… Roman was shot in the chest. I got him in the car and drove to the nearest hospital as soon as possible."

-" Right here? Jane is Roman here?" Nas asked urgently.

- "Yes, in surgery, they wouldn't let me go with him. I had to wait for the doctor to come but then I saw Agent Miller and I… oh my god I have to go see if he's out. I need to know if he's okay," Jane panicked suddenly, realizing that the shock and her concern for Patterson, her only friend, had temporarily made her forget about her brother.

- "No Jane. You're hurt. You have to stay until the doctor comes to examine you. I'll go and see how Roman is and put him under… protection in case Sandstorm comes. Then we will decide what to do with you two." As soon as she finished her sentence, the NSA agent realized that she had phrased it badly when she saw Jane's panicked look.

-" No Please ! I know I failed to stop them… and now that Sandstorm knows I betrayed them I'm no longer useful to anyone… but please don't send me back to the CIA! Please I… I'll do anything you want… " Jane pleaded, looking at them with tears in her eyes, trying to get up despite her exhaustion.

Flashback end

At this last memory, Weller frowned as he remembered the despair in the beautiful dark-haired woman's voice. Her miserable look had broken the hearts of the whole team. She looked so sure they were going to send her back to the CIA to be tortured again…

- "Is the tie bothering you that much?" Asked a soft voice startling him with surprise. Kurt turned to his fiancée, grumbling.

- "Stop sneaking around like that, you sneaky little ninja," he scolded her gently, smiling towards the young woman, who had just finished decorating the Christmas tree in the living room.

- "It's not my fault that you're deaf, I have my alarm though," retorted Jane, coming closer to him and pointing to the bells on her Christmas hat, which jingled at every step. The complaints of many agents had increased substantially lately. In recent months, the dark-haired woman had had fun sneaking around the office, making unsuspecting agents jump by silently appearing near them. Even her stomach, which was gradually starting to show, didn't seem to interfere with her skills, to her great pride and the despair of her victims. Well, until Reade, exasperated at spilling his tea on his hands or shoes after being caught three times in a single morning, lead the revolt. For now, and since it was Christmas time, he had convince Weller to make the pregnant woman wear a red Christmas hat with bells on it when she was in the Office to warn of her approach.

Not offended, the young woman took this as a new challenge to her skills. And if he judged by the fact that he had not heard her approach, Weller expected to receive new protests from his agents soon. The situation was so amusing to her that Jane had even begun to bring it into their home, making fun of him by overly jingling the bell when she was in his field of vision.

- "What were you thinking about?"

- "Not much. Just… just some bad memories of the raid failure." Said Weller honestly, seeing the eyes of his beautiful partner dim slightly. Jane folded her arms defensively over her chest, which made Kurt notice that she was wearing one of his old shirts. A shirt that came down to her mid-thigh and showed off her long legs incidentally, tattooed. The dark-haired woman mind went back in spite of herself, when she had collapsed in the hospital in front of the team. The exhaustion, learning that Borden was working for Sandstorm and knew that she had betrayed the organization, the ambush, the wounds, her brother's injury, and then the news of Patterson's injury when she arrived at the hospital… all that in the same period time had just been too much to handle.

For a moment, she was really afraid that they would hand her over to CIA to punish her for her failure. The team's sudden concern for her, after weeks of coldness, had surprised her so much that she had at first thought it was a trick to make her let her guard down. Finally, the medical team who came to examine her had to sedate her to be able to treat her.

She then woke up in a hospital room, her brother in a bed near the door. Curiously, it was Zapata who had volunteered to wait for her awakening. Weller and Nas had many details to deal with after the latest revelations, including dealing with Director Pellington who had come to indirectly hold Nas and Weller accountable for the raid failure. The situation had made her feel a little uncomfortable, but had allowed the two young women to put things together. Jane felt like she was getting a second chance after hearing all the past events from Tasha's perspective, and her forgiveness of her past deeds made her heart leap for joy. The Latina then spent a long time talking to her. Beginning with news of Reade, who was bored in his bed, and Patterson, who still wasn't awake, she then proceeded to convince her that no one was going to drop her in another blacksite.

The situation had become a little more complicated when Roman awoke. The dose of ZIP had erased some memories but not enough and not in the way that Jane had hoped. In addition to remembering certain painful events of their childhood, the young man was angry with her for betraying the cause and drugging him. Tasha had quickly decided to watch the situation from the doorstep, leaving the brother, tied to his bed, and the sister arguing louder and louder. Finally, Jane had told him everything, starting with Oscar trying to erase her memory again, then her captivity in the CIA custody, and her return to the FBI with the details of the agreement that she had been forced to agree to with Nas. Roman had softened a bit after that. Nas, Weller, and Tasha, who were about to enter the room with Pellington before hearing the argument, were shocked to hear Jane's point view of the events.

It had taken time to convince him, but Roman had finally agreed to help Jane and the FBI. Shepherd had planted the seeds of doubt in his mind herself by asking him to execute his own sister. Knowing that their mother would never stop coming after them for what she considered as betrayal, he didn't have many other options to protect his sister anyway.

With Roman's information, shared in dribs and drabs, the FBI had made steady progress in disrupting Sandstorm's plans. But for weeks he refused to speak to the agents and Nas, reproaching them for the treatment of his sister, leaving Jane to serve as a liaison between him and the authorities. The only exception was Patterson, since during all those weeks she had been the only one to treat Jane as a human being. Jane smiled in spite of herself as she thought of Roman with her, but also with Patterson when she was out of the hospital, like a big protective teddy bear.

- "And you, what are you thinking about?" Kurt asked, seeing her smile and relax.

- "Roman following Patterson around everywhere after she was released from the hospital." Kurt chuckled at the memory. Whatever may be blamed on his future brother-in-law, he was unflinchingly loyal to those close to his heart. "And the fact that things got a whole lot better for me from that day on."

-" Really? What kinds of things, pretty lady?" The agent asked, approaching his fiancée to hug her with a large smile on his face

- "Well, let's see," said the woman, counting on her fingers: "I'm free, my brother is too, the CIA doesn't own me anymore, Sandstorm doesn't exist anymore, I don't have nightmares anymore, my mistakes have been forgiven, I have an interesting job that allows me to help people, I have wonderful friends, a nice place to live and I'm going to have a wonderful baby."

-" That's all? Not a word about the great man who shares your life? And incidentally is the father of this sweetie," asked Kurt with a falsely vexed look, placing a hand on her small stomach.

-"No more room on my list of priorities," Jane answered mischievously, waving her ten fingers in front of him as evidence.

-"I think Mommy needs a little reminder," Kurt leaned down to talk to Jane's belly, before straightening up to kiss her passionately. The kiss tore a moan of pleasure from the young woman, which turned into a disappointed sigh when it ended.

- "Sorry, but I have to go, I'm really late for this gala."

- "But the baby wants another of daddy's hug," moaned the dark-haired woman, clinging to him.

- "The baby, really?" Kurt asked, giving her an amused look, not fooled for a second.

- "Well… mommy would like a big hug too. Especially since her man is looking very, very elegant," Jane breathed with a charming air playing with his tie.

-"Of course I am," Kurt replied with a smug tone. "Just as I am very late," he continued, gently trying to free himself from her embrace.

- "But I really, really want you to stay here to keep me company," replied his fiancée pouting. Another thing she had picked up with Tasha and Patterson thought Weller. The first few moments of their relationship, after Nas had broken up with him once Sandstorm was neutralized, had been quite awkward, Jane had caught up well since then. And under the influence of her two friends she had become much more confident in her charms. Too much for his own peace of mind, Weller thought as he felt his manhood stir as his fiancée rubbed against him. In a supreme effort of will, however, the deputy director managed to get away from the sweet temptress.

-"I really have to go," he said grimly. "Pellington and the Mayor will surely be waiting for me. And then Tasha and Patterson shouldn't be long in arriving to keep you company."

- "Very well," sighed his fiancée with a falsely dramatic look. "If you love your job more than me… "

-"First seduction and now emotional blackmail," retorted Weller amused. "You're spending too much time with Tasha, her bad manners are rubbing off on you. If I continue to try to leave what are you going to do? Steal my car keys?" He added, reaching in his pockets, to find them empty. He looked up to find his fiancée staring at him with a look far too innocent to be true.

- "Jane… " he said warningly.

-" Yes?" She replied coyly.

- "I need my keys."

- "Oh, did you lose them again? Did you think to look in the chest of drawers in the entrance? That's where you usually put them," answered the pregnant woman while adopting a thoughtful air but was unable to hide her smile.

- "Very funny little pickpocket. I had them in my pocket just two minutes ago. Give them back, please," Kurt sighed, looking at his watch.

-"Did you just accuse me of theft, Agent Weller? I hope you have solid evidence, my fiancé holds a very important position, he could get you in a lot of trouble," said Jane, her smile widening.

-"Oh really?" Weller said as he approached, playing her game in spite of himself. "I'm going to have to do a body search in that case."

-"You'll have to catch me first," Jane told him before starting at a little trot towards their room. Surprised, Kurt started late, but caught her easily within a few steps of the door, taking care to grab her by her upper body so as not to risk inadvertently injuring the baby.

-" Very well miss. So we have robbery, attempted escape… and rebellion," Kurt added as his fiancée tried to nip his hand in play. "Give me back my keys now and you'll avoid the complete body search." Wrong thing to say to a pregnant woman with boiling hormones, he thought instantly as the tattooed woman squirmed in his arms to turn and look at him with lust, before she jumped on his neck and wrapped her legs around his torso, losing her Christmas hat in the maneuver.

-"Kurt," she moaned. "I want you." Reflexively, the agent put his hands under the buttocks of his lovely lady to support her, surprised to feel bare skin under the shirt that had rode up.

- "Did I forget to mention that I'm only wearing this shirt?" Jane whispered, nibbling on his ear. It did not take any more to make Kurt lose the little self-control he still had, and the FBI agent went to their bed and kissed the woman passionately in his arms. Jane's shirt didn't remain an obstacle for very long, and after gently laying her down on the bed, Kurt began to cover her body with kisses, making her moan with pleasure. They made love passionately, Kurt, however, careful to stay balanced on his forearms as to not crush the baby. Reluctantly releasing the wonderfully hot body of his fiancée, the FBI agent then began to get dressed. A glance at the clock on the bedside table told him that by the time he arrived, he would be almost an hour late.

But he had to admit, it was really worth it, he thought, admiring Jane's naked shape curled up around her pillow, looking at him with an almost dreamy air, tousled hair, and a very satisfied smile.

- "Can I get my keys back now?" Kurt asked, leaning down for a last kiss.

- "Thrown on the bed of the guest room when I passed by," yawned the young woman raising her head slightly to kiss him.

-" I need to go. See you later. Be wise tonight," he teased as he left the room.

- "No promises," replied Jane's amused voice, which had risen in his wake for a quick shower. Smiling to himself, Kurt retrieved his car keys and paused for a moment to contemplate his girlfriend's work in the living room. This year, she had wanted to decorate the tree alone, but they had spent the past weekend decorating the rest of the apartment together. Kurt left happily and rode the elevator down. Just as he was coming out of the lobby, he saw Tasha and Patterson coming in, their arms laden with bags of food.

-"Hey boss… you wouldn't so happen to be late would you?" Zapata hailed him smiling in response to his still rather unkempt appearance.

-" Very funny. In fact I have been assaulted and sequestered at home by a pregnant woman crazy for my body," Weller said, with a superior air.

- "I see that," chuckled the Latina. "It looks like you met a category three hurricane." Before he could respond, Patterson put her packages on the ground and began to readjust his shirt, biting her lips so as not to laugh. She then straightened his tie and smoothed the folds of his jacket with sure gestures.

-" There you go. Much better now. I'm sure you'll be a huge hit at the gala," said the blonde, her eyes gleaming with mischief. Beside her, Tasha was also biting her lips so as not to laugh.

- "What? Do I have something on my face?" Kurt asked suspiciously.

- "Not at all, you look very elegant," the two women assured him in chorus. Deciding to give up so as to not be late, he nevertheless turned to give a final warning.

- "Jane is in the shower, but she is probably still a little tired. Don't let her eat too much sugar. And stop giving her weird ideas."

-"No promises, poppa bear," Zapata said sarcastically, mocking him before the elevator doors closed.

…

Arriving at the gala, Weller gave his keys to a valet who gave him a curious look. Mentally shrugging his shoulders, the Deputy Director of the FBI decided to enter the arena and began shaking hands with representatives of the various agencies. The amused or curious looks he continued to receive made him suspicious, however. While heading to the Mayor and Director Pellington, whom he saw a little further away, Kurt quickly inspected his outfit, finding nothing wrong with it.

- "Mayor, Director, forgive my tardiness, I was slightly delayed."

-"I see that, Agent Weller," said Pellington, giving him a disapproving look, as the mayor laughed softly.

- "Deputy Director Weller, a pleasure to see you. I hope your wonderful bride is well?"

- "Wonderful, sir, thank you for asking. Pregnancy is beginning to tire her a bit but she is capable of surprising bursts of energy."

- "I can see that," chuckled the man before apologizing for having to talk to some other acquaintances, followed by Pellington who gave one last disapproving look to a perplexed Weller. As the agent started to wonder what was wrong, a familiar voice called out, "I know he doesn't like the delay, but it looks like Pellington is particularly upset tonight."

- "Yeah, and I have no idea why… " Kurt began, turning to Reade before seeing him snort, while the young woman who was accompanying him, burst out laughing.

- "What? Why has everyone looked at me funny since I arrived?" Grumbled the vexed agent.

- "I don't know, maybe because in addition to obviously being late, Jane left a small gift on you," said his friend clearly amused. In response to his puzzled look, Reade's companion took out a small compact mirror from her purse, and handed it to Kurt with a smile. The latter stared for a moment, before finally noticing the strategically placed hickey just high enough not to be covered by the collar of his shirt.

-"That sneaky little minx," growled Weller, annoyed at being so easily fooled. "I wondered why Tasha and Patterson were giggling when we met in the lobby." His statement triggered a sympathetic nod from Reade, accustomed to the shocking duo's pranking. The duo had become a trio since things went back to normal with Jane, and now she was under the bad influence of her two friends. And as much as he was happy that the situation had calmed down with the team, for his own tranquility he preferred not to face the three young women allied against him.

- "Stop smiling," scolded his boss throwing him a sour look. "Otherwise I will drop Jane on you with permission to make your office life hell."

-"As long as she is required to wear her Christmas hat, I am not afraid of anything," replied Reade with a victorious smile.

-"Well, as you'll soon learn, Agent Reade, my charming fiancée seems to have found a way to move noiselessly, even with the bells. And if Patterson and Tasha join her… " said Weller with a sardonic smile.

- "You're kidding I hope!" Exclaimed Reade. "Damn! Here is the end to my tranquility… " Then warned by the amused and a little insistent look of his companion, he added. "Oh sorry, Sonia, this is Deputy Director Kurt Weller, boss, this is my girlfriend Sonia."

- "Ah yes, Reade often talks about you," remembered Kurt. "You work in the Mayor's office, right?"

- "Correct, Deputy Director Weller, a pleasure to meet you," said the woman smiling pleasantly. " Although I must say that I am a little surprised that FBI agents know how to have fun," she added with a mocking look at her boyfriend.

- "Well, we are working with several very creative female colleagues, especially around this time of the year," replied Reade before being interrupted by his boss.

- "That's the least we can say, the three together are just… hellish right now. Especially the one whose hormones cause unexpected mood swings."

-"It was you who said it," the agent replied hurriedly, waving his hands in front of himself, as if to clear himself from any blame.

- "Oh please, they're ten blocks from here, how do you think they will know… " Kurt started before being interrupted by the buzzing of his phone informing him that he had a new text.

- "It's Jane," he said before reading the contents: "Not very nice to say bad things about us"

- "How did they manage to do that?" Asked an incredulous Reade.

- "Mole at the reception?" Kurt inquired. The response made him laugh and he showed the messages to Reade.

- "No, the superiority of the female brain. Patterson took into account your delay and the fact that you would go see Pellington and the Mayor first. Then she estimated the time it would take you to meet up with Reade and start complaining."

- "You see what we suffer every day," complained Reade, looking at his girlfriend, who just laughed. Weller, for his part, quickly typed a new message: "You will pay for the hickey." The response was almost instantaneous: "Patterson and Tasha say they don't see what you're talking about" with the smile of a little angel emoji, followed by another message "And I only marked my property," accompanied with a smiley sticking his tongue.

-" Property?" Kurt said amused. The answer was even quicker than the previous one: "Baby wants all those women in sexy dress at the reception to know that daddy is off the market."

- "So baby asked Mom to give daddy a hickey?" Jane's answer made him smile again: "Yes !" His fiancée was not really jealous, but the pregnancy sometimes made her a little emotional, which he found endearing. "Daddy agrees with baby. But mommy is going to be punished for making daddy get in trouble with his boss." Seeing Reade and Sonia watching him amused, Weller put the phone back in his pocket, trying to put on a serious look that did not fool anyone.

- "So Edgar tells me that your fiancée is pregnant?"

- "Yes, she will soon begin the sixth month. As stubborn as before, but with the hormones in addition," joked Weller.

- "I hope you don't let her go into the field anymore."

-" Certainly not. Not since the beginning of the second month. Now she uses her language skills to move from one team to another, doing translations of wiretaps, sometimes interviewing suspects who don't speak English in the office, that kind of thing… "

- "That leaves her with plenty of free time to sneak around everywhere in the building like a ninja, and traumatize unsuspecting agents," said Reade with a desperate comical grimace.

- "Jane prefers to call it "a surprise assessment of skills", she says a good agent must always be on his guard." Sniggered Weller.

-"It's a good point of view," Sonia replied, while Reade mumbled something about female solidarity. Before Weller could respond, his phone buzzed again. "Tasha and Patterson brought me gifts to help you forgive me." Attached to the message were two photos that nearly gave him a heart attack. The first was Jane wearing a very short red nightie that left little room for imagination. The second was Jane wearing a set of pale blue lingerie that matched wonderfully against her tattoos and left her little belly out, which Kurt found even sexier.

Zooming in a little on the photos, he noticed the large smile on his fiancée's face, but what caught his interest was the fact that her hair was still wet. The girls had to had taken the pictures right after Jane got out of the shower, and waited for the most opportune time to send them. That is to say, just before he had to make his speech, when he had only one desire, to go home to be with Jane.

-"Still alive?" beeped his phone again, the message being accompanied by a smiley with its tongue poking out.

-"It's very bad what you do to your fiancé Miss Doe," Kurt dismissed as he tried to recompose himself and return to a normal color under the amused eyes of Reade and his girlfriend.

- "Just to be sure you're thinking about me during your speech Deputy Director. And what we could do with our weekend tomorrow."

- "This girl wants me dead," Kurt mumbled trying to chase away the images that flooded his mind.

- "You should go make your speech now, sign your check, and get back home before Tasha and Patterson push her into doing something that will really drive you crazy," laughed Reade, seeing him nervously look at his phone. The agent and his girlfriend burst out laughing at the very serious assistant director of the FBI trying to get to the platform without his haste seeming suspicious. Following the advice of his friend, Kurt made his speech while trying to ignore the buzzing of his phone that informed him of the arrival of several new messages, then went to the urn to make his donation before leaving with as much control of himself as possible.

...

The return seemed like an eternity, and when he pushed open the door of the apartment, a chorus of chuckles greeted him. Tasha and Patterson were each sitting at one end of the sofa, Jane, wearing only an old T-shirt too big and black leggings, lying across. For some time, Kurt had noticed that she was abandoning her old clothes, probably finding her jeans too tight now that her stomach was growing. Her legs rested comfortably on Zapata's legs, and her head on a cushion on Patterson's legs. The three young women were absent-mindedly watching a comedy, while the coffee table was covered with various nibbles, crackers, and more or less empty ice cream containers. A few months back it was something she would never have allowed herself to do, but now that she had realized the affection her friends had for her, she was more demonstrative. That and the pregnancy hormones made her more affectionate.

- "Alright boss? You look a little tense," Zapata asked him with a mocking smile.

- "My revenge will be terrible," groaned Kurt before falling heavily into an armchair and glaring at his two agents. Not really impressed, the two young women just snickered before returning their attention to the screen.

- "I forgot to ask, do you have any plans for Christmas this year?" Patterson asked.

- "We're spending Christmas Eve here. Allie, Connor and the baby will be here, and we decided it would be better for her to have her first Christmas together." He and Jane had started dating together shortly after Allison's delivery, and he was afraid for a time that this would cause tension between the two women. But Jane had fully understood that he needed to spend some time with his daughter. Not to mention that Allison's relationship with Connor made her fear of seeing him leave for the US Marshal lessened significantly. After a few awkward beginnings, the four of them had found a rhythm of operation, and the baby regularly spent a little time with his father and his fiancée. Especially since Allie and Jane had become relatively close, in particular since Jane was pregnant and had innumerable questions about the pregnancy to ask.

- "Since their respective parents live far enough away and Connor is on duty on December 25th, it will be easier for everyone," Kurt continued, giving Jane an amused glance, gesturing to her with a small jerk of the chin to speak.

- "Roman will be there too," said the dark-haired woman, turning her head slightly to look at her friend's face above her. She knew that the two were getting closer, and that her brother helped the female agent to overcome Borden's betrayal. Patterson blushed slightly but did not take her eyes off the TV, trying to ignore the good-natured mocking looks of her friends.

- "I know you will not be going to see your parents this year, why don't you come and party with us?" Weller asked.

- "That's nice, I'll think about it," mumbled the blonde.

-"No way," Jane growled, staring at her. "Come and that's it!"

- "You're stuck now," taunted Zapata. "Never annoy a pregnant woman… "

- "It will be fun, there will be plenty of presents… "

- "Of which more than half are for Emma since Jane thinks that one gift is not enough for a 12-month-old baby," laughs Weller softly.

-" Really? How many gifts did you buy for the little princess?" Tasha asked curiously.

- "Two," the tattooed woman answered quickly before seeing the knowing glance of her fiancé. "Or maybe a few more…"

-" That is to say what? Three? Four?" Zapata insisted amused.

-"Rather five," Jane confessed, looking away.

- "Jane… " said Kurt in a warning tone, but an amused gleam in his eyes.

- "Just five I promise", unfortunately for her, her tone wasn't quite good enough to deceive an experienced agent. At a sign from her boss, Tasha suddenly held her right arm over top of her friend's legs, and began to run the fingers of her left hand under the soles of her bare feet. Jane's reaction was immediate and she burst out laughing, kicking her legs to try to break free.

- "Okay, okay, I give, I bought six presents," Jane squealed between laughter, before Zapata stopped her sweet torture.

-"Aren't you ashamed for picking on a pregnant woman?" Patterson scoffed at them, though her amused smile belied the severity of her words.

-"No," the other two agents answered in chorus before bursting into laughter.

- "Never mind if that's how it is, I won't tell you..." Jane started falsely upset before interrupting herself and placing a hand on her belly.

- "Jane, are you okay?" Zapata asked suddenly worried that in trying to escape her, her friend could have made a wrong move.

- "The baby," whispered the tattooed woman a little uncertain. "I think he just moved. It was very light but… "

- "It's normal, you've just passed the 22th week of pregnancy," Patterson informed her gently. "In a short period of time the movements will be stronger and you will be able to feel it move by putting your hand on your stomach." Seeing her look a bit dreamy, Zapata caught Patterson's gaze, and the two women declared loudly that it was time for them to return home. After quick hugs, Kurt and Jane found themselves alone in their cozy home. Seeing the woman yawn, Weller gently lifted her in a bridal carry, crossing the threshold, to take her to their room. The exhausted mom-to-be fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow, and Kurt quickly undressed to go to bed with her. Hardly in bed, he felt Jane unconsciously snuggle up against his chest, and he held her against him, putting his hand on her belly.

Oh yes, this Christmas will be fantastic, he thought before falling into the arms of Morpheus too.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The Christmas Tales 2 will take place a few weeks later, at Christmas Eve with the expanded family. In the meantime, merry Christmas to all of you.