Chapter 2

AN: Here we go! Thanks for the reviews, will answer as soon as I can...Posting quick before I go to work...Enjoy!...

Sunday, Penelope completely vegged out at home. She didn't do anything that required more than lifting a remote or a bag of chips. She felt she was justified; she'd run herself ragged over those two adorable little boys for a total of nine hours yesterday. She needed to relax her body. She'd also cleared her mind as much as she could, since she'd been feeling down...but she couldn't stop thinking about that Santa and what he'd said.

Late that night, she was wrapped in her slanket (Blanket with sleeves), all cozy, settled in for a long winter's nap, when the words St. Nick had said reverberated in her head yet again.

You make your own Christmas spirit...

She knew she had to admit it. Santa had been right. It was the week before Christmas, and she had been moping for far too long this season. It wasn't like her. She was usually the first person to wear a Christmas sweater or jingle bell earrings or a reindeer antler headband. She was the first to bring in some sort of Christmas cookie treat, and the first on to run the SSP (Secret Santa Program) at the BAU. She was definitely the first one to tune her radio in her office to Christmas music...starting shortly after Thanksgiving.

She snickered, thinking of Scrooge McMorgan, who was in the office next door. Derek was not really into any holidays—besides Valentine's, for the obvious reason!—and always teased her for her open festiveness. By the third day of the music, he'd usually pound on her adjoining wall, shouting, "Baby Girl! Enough Holly, Jolly Christmas already. Turn it down!"

She smirked to herself...and she'd thought she needed an attitude adjustment!

The words of Santa washed over her again...

Surround yourself with those you care about...and make their spirits bright, too..

Oh, no, she thought miserably. You do NOT want me to get Derek Morgan into the festive spirit! The word "festive" was not in Derek's vocabulary!

But the more she thought, the more she felt driven in that direction. She knew his Christmas was usually spent in Chicago with his family. This year, he wasn't able to head home. He was consulting on a particular case that didn't wrap up until far too late, and he couldn't get tickets. He was stuck in Quantico by himself, and more owly about the holidays than ever.

She thought about Derek, how he was always there for her, always a sign of love and support. He would try to cheer her up, if their shoes were reversed. She knew he would. That was just him—a downright good man.

Standing and stretching, letting her slanket hit the ground, she shuffled off to bed, knowing she was going to try and do the impossible tomorrow...and she was going to start with the obvious.

She was going to make Derek deck his halls.

Derek sat at his desk, wondering where the Christmas music was. He was used to hearing every bad version of Silent Night, White Christmas...even horrendous remakes in other languages, like Mele Kalikimaka and Feliz Navidad. He came to one conclusion after the noticeable lack of music this season...

Something was off with his Baby Girl.

He'd been especially mopey this Christmas season, feeling more introverted. He'd had a lot of tough cases; he wanted to wind down, and he was seriously looking forward to going home. When that didn't pan out, he'd grumbled worse than ever this year.

He wondered if his poor mood had made her miserable. He would never want to do that in a million years. He loved Penelope. She was a breath of fresh air, his relief and solace when things were rough. He felt like an ass, not really noticing until now, the week before Christmas, how she lacked her usual spirit.

That wasn't like her.

He made a split second decision…He was going to do whatever it took to make her cheer up this holiday season. She deserved his full cooperation.

"Derek Morgan, you are going to cheer up and become festive!"

He looked up from his desk to see his Baby Girl, complete in what had to be the ugliest Christmas sweater he'd ever seen. It was red and baggy, with a big Christmas tree on the front. It had working lights, which were flashing off and on.

The corner of his mouth quirked. "That's some sweater..."

"Thanks!" She grinned. "It plays music. Wanna hear?"

He grinned, but worried it looked more like a grimace. "Sure."

Squeezing a button on her sleeve, the sweater began to play a one toned version of O Christmas Tree.

He stood and walked closer to her, trying hard to stifle a laugh. "P...that is...that's—"

She was positively beaming now. "It's awful, isn't it? The perfect sweater to decorate a tree in!"

He couldn't figure why she'd said that, and he couldn't hold in his laughter, either. He laughed loudly along with her, until he his sides ached and he was panting for breath. He was holding his gut and shaking his head, when he said, "Damn, girl. That is the understatement of the year."

"Ah! Wait before you say that," she said, eyes twinkling with merriment as she handed him a gift bag.

"Oh...you shouldn't have," he replied, his voice a low growl. He had an awful feeling about this...

In the bag was a matching sweater in his size, from a nearby thrift store.

"You have to wear it. It would be rude to not wear a gift," she said, her eyes narrowing.

"You really shouldn't have," he said, but removed the tag and pulled the sweater on.

She blinked at him. "You...you're going to wear it?"

He nodded. "Since you went through the trouble..."

"Oh, Morgan, that is so sweet," she said, patting his shirt. She pressed a button near his shoulder, and the lights began to flash.

"Umm..baby...why did you buy these sweaters?" he asked, curious.

She shrugged. "I haven't been feeling very Christmasy this year. I decided I needed to get into the holiday spirit, and I wanted to bring my best friend with me this time, since you are stuck here with me this year." She smiled up at him, hopefully. "You game, Hot Stuff?"

He gave her his smile and cupped her cheek in his hand, letting his thumb brush over her cheekbone. "Yeah, Garcia. I am."

She grinned. "Good! I'm coming to your house to decorate and make cookies tonight! See you later, sugarplum."

He chuckled as she walked out of the office.

"Holiday nicknames...I like it," he said, sitting back down.

That got him thinking. He fired up his computer and did some research of his own...