A/N: Again, thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed this story so far. I really appreciate it. Also, special thanks to Goldleaf83, who gave me some helpful suggestions when I had a bit of writer's block. :-)
I originally was going to post this on Christmas day, but I'm going to be out of town, so I decided to post it a little early.
Here's wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a happy and blessed New Years!
Kitten's age in this chapter: Around thirteen weeks old, or three months.
It was Christmas day, 1943, about mid morning. Klink was in his office, trying to catch up on some paperwork he needed to finish. He was in a rather cheerful mood that morning, and as he worked he hummed "Stille Nacht."
He was just starting to fill out some blanks on a report when the door to his office opened and Hogan burst in. "Merry Christmas, Kommandant!"
Klink sighed as he looked down at his pencil. Hogan's unexpected entry had startled him, causing him to press down too hard on the pencil, and the tip had broken off.
Hogan noticed. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did I startle you?"
"No, I just break my pencils because it's fun," Klink replied sarcastically.
Hogan grinned at Klink's obvious annoyance, but then came to the point of his visit. "I just came in to invite you to our Christmas service. It's supposed to start in a few minutes."
"Hmmm. I suppose I could come," Klink decided. "It's been too long since I was at my last church service. It will be interesting to see how an American service is different than a German one."
"The men will be glad you're coming, Kommandant," Hogan smiled. "It was their idea to invite you."
"Oh, well, that was very nice of them. I'll have to thank them later," Klink grabbed his hat as he spoke, and Hogan helped him on with his coat. "Danke, Hogan."
As they exited the building, out of the corner of his eye Klink noticed Kätzchen dart out the door. He didn't really pay attention to it; he had been letting the kitten out to play in the compound during the day.
So Klink didn't notice the kitten following the two colonels as they made their way to the small chapel.
Upon reaching the building, both Klink and Hogan removed their hats, and the latter moved to find himself a seat next to his men. Klink tagged along, and came across an empty seat behind Hogan and the other four.
Once seated, Klink glanced around before the service started to see who else was there. A large amount of the prisoners had showed up, and Klink was surprised to note that several camp guards were there too, including Schultz and Langenscheidt.
Klink leaned forward to whisper in Hogan's ear. "Who invited Schultz?"
"I think LeBeau did – why?"
"I don't know if he should be here. He's taking up two chairs instead of one."
Hogan chuckled softly. "No one's complaining. Besides, he's on a diet."
"That's what he always says. But have you ever noticed any change?"
Hogan was about to answer – in the negative, by the way – when Foster walked up to the pulpit, and started his sermon.
As the men's attention turned to the chaplain, no one saw a little orange kitten softly wandering around under the chairs, looking a little lost.
As Foster continued to talk about the reason for the season, Kätzchen reached the front of the church where the pulpit was. Curiosity took the place of fright, and the kitten padded up to the human looming far above him.
It was then that Klink noticed his kitten.
Klink's eyebrows went to his hairline (or rather, where his hairline would have been). Oh, no. He replaced his monocle where it had fallen out, and started praying that the kitten would just leave without causing a scene. Praying hard.
But the kitten had different ideas. After sniffing at them for a few seconds, Kätzchen reached a paw out to tap Foster's shoe laces, and then pounced on them. Foster, who up till now hadn't noticed the kitten, gave a start. Upon looking down, he bit back a laugh and went back to trying to preach.
The prisoners had all noticed the kitten at this point. It was all they could do to stifle their laughter at the sight of an adorable fluffy kitten playing with their chaplain's shoelaces as he preached.
Klink wasn't laughing, however. Actually, he looked a little green.
But the worst was yet to come. The kitten, bursting with curiosity, had now tired of the shoelaces as he blinked up at Foster, trying to see what the chaplain was doing. Kätzchen decided to get a closer look, and gathered his hind legs beneath him just before he leaped onto the pulpit.
If Klink had looked green before, now he was positively neon.
Foster wasn't sure what to do as the kitten walked all over his notes and then sprawled down on them; the prisoners no longer contained their laughter. A grin slowly spread across Foster's face, and as Kätzchen gave an inquisitive meow, the chaplain also laughed.
Soon the whole room was bursting with laughter, and Klink found himself actually smiling a bit. Who couldn't, in a room full of people in hysterics?
Finally, Foster picked up the cat and scratched him on the head before handing him to someone on the front row with instructions to hand him down to Klink, while he went back to the pulpit.
The kitten didn't mind the many hands passing him down. Finally he got down to Klink by way of Hogan, who sniggered once quietly as he handed Kätzchen to Klink.
Klink frowned at the kitten, but just held him firmly in his lap while he tried to focus his attention back on Foster.
A while later, Foster wrapped up his sermon with a prayer:
"Lord God, we thank you that when we were far gone in sin and hopelessly lost, when there was no hope and we were doomed to eternal judgment, you came to us in the person of your Son, Jesus Christ. You did not forget us, and you did not leave us alone. We bless you for remembering us in our misery and coming to save us through Christ the Lord. You clothed your Son with human flesh so that he might be our Savior. Fill us with joy this Christmas season, even as we are so far from our loved ones, because if God be for us, and if God be with us, who can be against us? This we pray in the name of Immanuel, God with us, the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen."
Klink rose from his seat and headed for the exit, prepared to give Kätzchen a good talking to once he was back in his office. But he was detained while multiple prisoners stopped on their way out to pet the cute kitten and comment on the show he had put on for them.
Finally, Hogan's core group passed by on their journey to the door.
"Looks like Kätzchen needs to learn some church manners, Kommandant," Carter joked.
"That's a fact; I wonder why 'is mum didn't teach 'im," Newkirk smirked.
"But he's a great comedian," Kinch said.
LeBeau added something in French that Klink didn't understand, but he got the gist of it.
Hogan opened his mouth, as if to say something too, but at the look on Klink's face he thought better of it. Grinning to himself, he herded the others out, and finally Klink and Kätzchen were left alone in the building.
Klink set the kitten on the floor and looked down reprovingly at him. Kätzchen held his stare with those big blue eyes, before looking away, and then glancing back up, almost shyly.
Klink sighed and bent down to pick up the kitten. "Why must you be so cute?"
A little later in the day, Klink was back at his desk, working away, as Kätzchen lay sprawled out on the floor, sleeping. He had just begun to scribble on a report when the door burst open again.
Crack.
Klink looked down at the pencil, then up at the intruder. It was Captain Gruber, Klink's adjutant.
"Yes, Captain?"
Gruber saluted, then reached back into the outer office and pulled in a medium sized Christmas tree.
"Whaaa…?" Klink protested. "I don't need a Christmas tree."
"Of course you do. It's Christmas. And this will make you want it: it's got a swastika on top!" The Captain informed Klink, dragging the tree in front of the Hitler picture on the wall to the left of Klink's desk.
"That's the very reason I don't–" Klink cut himself off before he said anything that the gung-ho officer might use against him. "Uh, thank you."
Captain Gruber saluted Klink and then strode out.
Klink rose to get a better look at the tree. It had a swastika on top, with several swastika ornaments. No stars or angels or any traditional decorations. Klink sighed, then shrugged and went back to his desk.
However, the new item in the room attracted the attention of Kätzchen. The kitten cautiously approached the tree, sniffing at it. When he decided that it wasn't going to attack him, Kätzchen flopped down underneath it.
Klink smiled and resumed his work. For a few minutes the only sound in the room was the noise of Klink's fresh pencil scratching across the reports he was working on. Then Kätzchen jumped on his desk. Klink didn't think much about it, and just kept on writing.
Kätzchen sat on the desk, holding a staring match with the tree for a couple moments. Then he stood and readied himself to leap.
Klink started when he heard a startled meow as the tree was thrown to the ground by Kätzchen's weight.
Crack.
There went another pencil. But Klink's main concern was his kitten.
"Kätzchen!"
Klink hurriedly rose and moved to where the tree had fallen. Kätzchen lay on his back underneath it, blinking in surprise. Klink quickly moved the tree from on top of the kitten, and knelt down as Kätzchen rolled over and quickly rose to his feet. He still had a rather startled look on his face, as if he couldn't comprehend the reason the tree had collapsed.
Klink gently picked up Kätzchen and carried him back over to his desk. "Are you alright, Kätzchen?"
The kitten squirmed free from Klink's arms and leaped onto the desk. He sure seemed all right. After watching him closely for a few moments, Klink concluded that the kitten had only been surprised by the tree falling on him, not hurt. Klink sighed in relief.
"You must be more careful, Kätzchen."
Klink finally remembered the tree, and moved over to set it right side up again. Then he noticed that most of the glass swastika ornaments had been broken in the fall, and the large swastika on top of the tree had fallen off.
"Well, no one has to know it didn't break, also," Klink said aloud, taking it over to the trash bin, and smiled wanly as he dropped it in.
That evening, after gifting the prisoners with their Red Cross packages, Klink sat alone in his quarters, reading the Christmas story in his old and dusty German Bible he had found under some other books. Kätzchen sat perched on his shoulder, staring down at the book, almost looking as if he was reading it too.
As Klink read, he suddenly heard faint voices. He paused, straining his ears to try and make out what they were saying. But, they weren't talking – it sounded like they were singing. Singing?!
Klink got up and moved over to the window, with Kätzchen still on his shoulder. Klink opened it and peered out across the compound. It's the prisoners, and Schultz is with them! Klink realized. They're singing… it sounds like "Stille Nacht", but of course in English.
The German Colonel listened as the prisoners (plus Schultz) sang the traditional Christmas carol:
"Silent night, Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace."
The prisoners continued into the second verse, but Klink was already out the door and heading across the compound.
Hogan stood with the rest of the prisoners and Schultz as they sang. As he noticed Klink coming towards the caroling group, he nudged Schultz, who muttered quietly under his breath, "Oh, no. He'll spoil everything."
The other prisoners had also noticed Klink approaching, and they straightened as they ceased singing. Schultz saluted nervously.
Hogan spoke up first. "Kommandant, I know the men are supposed to be in the barracks at night, but since its Christmas—"
"That's alright. I'll make an exception this time," Klink offered, then warned them, "But just because it's Christmas. Don't think you can do it all the time; discipline must be maintained!"
"Oh, definitely, Colonel," Hogan agreed.
"Herr Kommandant, what's that on your shoulder?" Schultz dared to ask. In the semi darkness, it was rather hard to make out details.
"That's Kätzchen," Klink replied. "He's decided he likes riding around on my shoulder."
Carter grinned. "How does it feel being a taxi?"
"Well, it would be better if I could get paid for it," Klink quipped.
The men chuckled.
"At least you're not a yellow taxi," Carter added.
The other prisoners glared at him. Carter frowned and shrugged.
There was a moment of silence, then Klink cleared his throat spoke again. "Uh, yeah. I, um, heard you all singing 'Silent Night.'"
"Yes, we were," Hogan answered, and then added half-jokingly, "Would you like to join us?"
"Actually, I might," Klink said.
Hogan looked slightly surprised, and Klink noticed.
"Well, its Christmas," Klink defended himself. "I don't think there's anything wrong with Germans and Americans singing Christmas carols together. After all, we're singing about someone that's the same for people on both sides... or should be."
Hogan caught Klink's eye, and realized that, like Schultz, Klink was a German who was willing to go against the Fuehrer's changed version of Christmas, and celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. "We would be honored to have you join us, Kommandant."
Klink smiled back. "Thank you, Hogan."
Hogan nodded and then turned to the prisoners. "Well, now that that's settled, how about "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing?"
And so, for one evening, in that small, out of the way prison camp, there were no Nazis vs. Allies, Germans vs. Americans, bad guys vs. good. Just a group of men seeking to honor the birth of their Savior.
Just FYI, I have no idea whether a POW camp would have a chapel or anything like that. I'm just guessing they might.
I'm also not sure that Foster is the chaplain. I just remember reading an HH story on here once where he was.
Please correct me if I'm wrong!
Also, the 'yellow taxi' joke is meant to be a nod and wink at an HH episode, but I just can't remember the title right now. Anybody else remember?