This chapter is a bit shorter, but it ends at what I felt was a natural stopping point. Christmas fluffiness coming in this and the next chapter! I hope you enjoy. Please review and thank you for reading!

Hopper was awoken from a deep sleep by a loud crash and yelling. He sat straight up and instinctively reached for his weapon and jumped out of bed. The noise was coming from Jane's room. Running toward the commotion, he heard her screaming, "No!" repeatedly. Her cries were accompanied by the sound of furniture and windows rattling. When he got to her room, he saw that the crash he'd heard had been the lamp from her desk, which was now shattered in pieces on the floor. After a quick assessment of the room, he saw that there was no one there and she was in the throes of a nightmare. Her body was thrashing in the bed, her fists were pounding, and she was crying. The desk and bedside table were shaking, the window clattering. He reached for her, speaking softly but loud enough to hopefully wake her up.

"Jane, honey, it's Dad," he repeated. "Wake up, Janie, wake up." He wrapped his arms around her body in an attempt to calm her flailing.

After a few seconds, which felt to him like much longer, her eyes flew open and wildly searched around her. She saw Hopper holding her and began to relax, crying into his arms.

"Daddy," she sobbed, "So scary. Pa-papa was there. And bad men!"

Hearing her call him Daddy was almost more than his heart could take. He hugged her tightly and rocked back and forth, saying soothingly, "Ssshh, it was a bad dream. None of that is here. You're safe, here with me."

Her sobs eventually calmed down though she kept tight grip on his arms, still wrapped around her.

"Think you can go back to sleep?" He asked cautiously.

She shook her head quickly, saying, "No! Don't leave!"
"Okay, honey, I'll stay. I'll stay," he said, shifting so his back was against her headboard and she was leaning against him.

Her eyes were closing, even as she was mumbling, "Can't sleep. Don't leave me." They stayed that way for some time, until he could tell by how heavy she felt against him and how steady her breathing sounded that she was indeed fast asleep. He carefully laid her down on the bed and slipped out from behind her. Need to get the broken lamp pieces off the floor before she gets up, he thought. He didn't want her to get out of bed and step in the shards.

He swept the mess as quietly as he could, only hearing her roll over once and sigh heavily. After he was finished, he went back to his own room to try and get some more sleep.

A few hours later, he was once again roused from sleep by his daughter. This time, though, it was in a much more pleasant way.

She bounced on his bed, happily announcing, "Christmas Eve, Dad!"

He reluctantly opened his eyes, saying half asleep, "Sure is…"

"Time to get up! It's a special day!" She continued to jump up and down next to his head.

"Oh, kid, can I have a few more minutes? Go make you some Eggos. Check on Snowball."

That's all she needed to hear to run out of his room, saying, "Okay!"

He knew the surprise he had planned for later would take a lot out of him and he wanted as much sleep as possible. He rolled over, covering his face with the pillow. Yes, definitely need sleep before the craziness that was to come.

Hopper successfully dozed a while longer before deciding to get up for good. He went straight for the coffee pot, and checked on Jane.

"How are you?" He asked, wanting to be sure she wasn't still upset by her nightmare.

"Okay," she said, not adding any details.

"I'm sorry…" came Jane's quiet apology from the kitchen table, where she was sitting and coloring.

"For what?" He asked, turning on the coffee.

"Woke you up. Bad dream."

"That is absolutely not your fault," he said, crossing over to where she sat and hugging her. "You never have to apologize for having a bad dream, understand?"

"Yes, sir," she replied, then added proudly, "Manners, right?"

He chuckled a bit. "Very polite manners, kid."

"So, I think today would be just right for some more housework and school work, don't you agree?" He asked her, keeping his face stern.

She looked at him, slowly nodding, trying not to show her disappointment.

"I'm kidding," he let her off the hook, smiling and laughing a little. "Do you think I would make you do that on Christmas Eve? Besides, the place is cleaner than it's ever been! And school work can take a break for a couple of days."

"Dad," she said in mock seriousness, though she was smiling too, "Not nice to tease me." She crossed her arms and stuck out her bottom lip.

"I'm sorry, Janie," he said, putting a kiss on top of her messy curls.

"Since it is Christmas Eve, maybe we could do something together, how does that sound?"

"That sounds very good!"

"How about we make some hot chocolate and work on a puzzle together? I'll put on some Christmas music and I'll read you the cartoons from the paper. I know you love that."

"That's a great day, Dad!" She responded, her eyes lit up with joy. Just wait, he thought. If that gets you so excited, you will be jumping out of your skin in a few hours.

They passed the afternoon amiably, enjoying each other's company. Jane was surprised when he told her, "Time to go take a shower and brush your teeth. Put on something nice."

"Why?" She asked, looking up from the book she was reading to Snowball. It was a children's Christmas book that had been Sara's.

"Christmas Eve is not for asking why. It just may be a time for surprises. And no more questions," he answered mysteriously.

"One more question? Can I finish the book? Snowball wants me to."

"That was two questions, and yes. I'm sure Snowball needs to know what Santa brings the girl in the story."

"Santa isn't real," she stated matter of factly, directing the information to the kitten on her lap. "Holly believes in Santa because she's little."

Hopper felt a twinge of regret. After Mike's sister had brought up Santa, he had briefly considered telling Jane he did exist, to give her one Christmas with that magical experience. But in the end, he'd decided that it would be too difficult and confusing to explain to her the truth when the time came. One more aspect of childhood that would be lost to her, thanks to her upbringing, and he hated it. He told himself she was going to have a special Christmas, even without Santa.

He listened to her finish the book, his heart pained at the memory of reading it to Sara. He shook his head, clearing the sad thoughts, determined to focus on the present. He was proud to hear Jane only stumbling over a few words, then announced, "Okay, scoot. No more stalling."

She was not about to question anymore, so she told Snowball seriously, "Dad says I have to get up."

Hopper made a quick phone call while she was doing what he'd asked, to make sure his surprise was set to go. Everything seemed to be poised to arrive as he had planned.

When Jane emerged from getting ready, she looked around the cabin, halfway expecting some surprise to have appeared. But she knew that Christmas presents came during the night, when you were asleep. Hopper enjoyed seeing her wonder where the surprise he'd promised could be. She sat down on the couch, cross legged with Snowball once again in her lap and reached for another book. Before she could begin, she heard a knock at the door. Jane jumped up and looked to her dad, waiting to see if he would tell her to go hide.

She was confused because instead of looking worried, he was grinning as went to the door. He took a deep breath, mentally preparing for the onslaught that was on the other side, and opened it.

"Merry Christmas!" Came a chorus of voices, and suddenly there was a barrage of people coming into the cabin, lead by Mike Wheeler.

Jane squealed with delight and threw her arms around Mike, too stunned and happy to even speak. He was followed by Dustin, Lucas, Will, and finally, Joyce. Jane was still in shock as she hugged everyone. Joyce was loaded down with bags and boxes; Hopper hurried to take some of it to the kitchen.

"Look at her face," Hopper said to Joyce, and his voice hitched a little. He cleared his throat and sniffed.

"Why, Chief," Joyce said sweetly, "I do believe there's something in your eye."

"Just a bit dusty in here," he replied, turning around to unload the food.

"Uh-huh, definitely," Joyce agreed, although she had already noticed the place was spotlessly clean.

Hopper was startled to feel a pair of arms wrap around his waist and he heard Jane say, "Thank you, Dad! Thank you. Best Christmas ever!"

And after that, he couldn't even pretend it was dusty.