Title: Have Yourself a Marry Little Christmas
Author: Shannon (aka on Fanfiction.net, superCANDYgirl)
E-mail: slaygirl2000@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: Roswell is on the very top of my Christmas list (yes, I know it's July),
but sadly, no one is able to give it to me. Thus, I don't own it.
Rating: PG-13
Category: M&M (All Candy baby!)
Summary: Bounty hunters and drug lords and Dupes, oh my! Our Roswellians have had a busy season, and
could use a break. As could I, my head
hurts from trying to write actual plots! So, you know what this means. FLUFF! The kind of fluff with
semi-serious moments, and that will affect the rest of the season, but fluff
nonetheless. And what better format for
fluff than a Christmas episode! Yup
folks, this episode will be fluffy like a little white bunny! Yay, bunnies!
Spoilers: Everything that's happened so far in the
series, nothing that I write is based on anything I've heard for S3.
Distribution: If you want it take it, but let me know please.
Feedback: YES!!! Feedback would be the
best present you could give me! But
after reading the story, please read the end note before you do so.
Author's
Note: 1. I
did not misspell anything in the title. 2. It is fluff, you have been
warned. 3. There will be no bunnies in the story, I'm sorry if I've mislead
anyone.
Air
Date: December 25, 2001 (honestly, it's a Tuesday when a real episode could air)
♫ It's beginning to look a lot like
Christmas…♫
It was December 23, two nights before Christmas. Holiday music played in the Crashdown Café. On top of it's usual alien-themed décor, an assortment of festive decorations made the small restaurant look even gaudier than usual. Aliens with tinsel wrapped around their heads, and Santas in silver space suits showed to the world the unique Christmas spirit you could only find in Roswell, New Mexico. Unfortunately, it was only 2:00 in the afternoon, and right now the world consisted of Liz Parker, Kyle Valenti, and Max and Isabel Evans.
Kyle stared at one of the tacky Santas. "Do you suppose he's an alien?" he asked. Liz shook her head and smiled. Isabel looked up from whatever she was writing in her day planner to glare at him. Max however looked thoughtful.
"It's possible. Would explain how he manages to get around the world in one night," he joked. The holiday spirit had gotten to everyone, even Max who had spent Christmas last year haunted by a ghost and nearly getting busted for saving an entire ward of children suffering from cancer.
Isabel glanced at her watch. "Come on Kyle, we're going to be late," she said rising, and giving a Kyle a dirty look as he took time to finish his fries, savouring every bite. "Hurry up!" she commanded.
"Look, Is, I think the dogs can wait five minutes to be paraded around in those ridiculous costumes," he said. The Christmas Nazi was back in full force this year, and somehow Kyle had been recruited to be her second in command. Or her labour mule, as he thought of it.
"It's the puppet show for the daycare centre, and they can't wait. Now move it!" she shouted.
Kyle finally got up, receiving sympathetic albeit amused looks from Max and Liz, and trailed behind Isabel as she marched towards the door. Just as Isabel reached the door, Michael opened it from the outside. He saw Isabel, held open the door, and saluted. "Mein fuhrer," he said. Isabel glared, but continued on her way. Kyle shrugged, and followed her, wondering why he was doing so. When they were gone, a very distant looking Michael and Maria walked into the café and sat with Max and Liz. Liz got up and brought them both milkshakes.
Max looked at his friends with concerned. They both seem incredibly distracted, lost in worry, and been so for about the last week. Max knew what was going on with Michael, and he wasn't concerned. It was Maria that worried him. She seemed so preoccupied, almost fearful. And each was so lost in their own little world, they didn't seem to notice that the other wasn't really there with them. Liz had noticed this too, but figured it was just stress from the holidays.
"So do you guys need any help setting up tomorrow?" she asked the couple. Maria had decided that she wanted the entire group to be together on Christmas Eve, so she and Michael were having everyone plus Jim Valenti and Amy DeLuca over for dinner, then they would all go to Midnight Mass. Michael was still uncertain as to how they were going to fit 8 people for dinner in his apartment, but Maria had been insistent (before they both went into a perpetual state of distraction), and he could never say no to her.
Maria shook her head. "We're fine," she said absently. Michael finished putting the Tabasco sauce in his milkshake and place the bottle in the middle of the table. Maria took a sip of her shake, and made a face. Without thinking, she grabbed the bottle and poured a liberal amount of the spicy stuff in her own drink, more than Michael had in his. She tried it again, and, apparently satisfied with the taste, returned the bottle. The entire thing went unnoticed by Michael, but not by Max and Liz, who exchanged questioning looks with each other. Liz was about to question Maria about it, when Michael suddenly announced that he had to go.
Maria looked surprised for a split second, then nodded mindlessly. Michael leaned in to give her a quick goodbye kiss, seemingly more out of habit than anything else, but the moment their lips touched they both seemed to come alive. The kiss deepened, and their tongues tangled, and it was with great reluctance that Michael finally pulled away from her. He looked deeply into Maria's eyes for a moment, then sighed and walked out the door.
As soon as Michael was out of sight Maria returned to her near comatose state. She fidgeted absently with a straw, whatever was on her mind once again getting the better of her. Liz looked like she wanted to help, but heard her parents calling her.
"I have to go help my parents clean the house. Maria, are you going to be okay?" Liz asked, not wanting to leave her friend. Maria nodded, and Liz reluctantly walked away.
Once she was out of hearing range, Maria turned to Max, her
eyes filled with worry. "Max, I have to
talk to you about something."
Glad that she was finally willing to discuss what was wrong, even if he wasn't
sure he was the right person for it, Max replied, "Sure, what's up?"
"Not here," she said.
Max furrowed his brow, confused. "You want to go to the apartment?"
She shook her head vehemently. "Your house." She stood up and walked to the door, opening it. Max followed.
"Maria, is everything okay?" he asked, growing increasingly concerned.
"That all depends on what you have to say," she said cryptically and walked out the door. Max followed, both worried and intrigued.
Maria lay on her back on the Evans' sofa, her head resting on one of the softest pillows she had ever seen. Max sat on the coffee table in front of her with his hands resting on her stomach, his eyes closed, and a look of intense concentration on his face. He had been like that for some time now, and it was making Maria more anxious by the second. It shouldn't take this long, not if everything was okay, she thought nervously. A few minutes later, Max opened his eyes and removed his hand.
"Well?" Maria said impatiently.
He gave a kind of lopsided smile and told her somewhat apprehensively, "It's a girl."
"Is she human?" she demanded. Max nodded, and Maria let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Thank God, she thought.
"She's completely human physically and I suspect her DNA will be too. Anything alien will likely just be considered a biological anomaly. But I would have to do a blood test to know for sure, so I wouldn't recommend seeing a doctor yet," Max told her.
Maria smiled. "Who needs to when I have you."
Max smiled, again apprehensively, and told her, "But she has powers."
Maria frowned. "What kind?"
"I think she's healing you, from the inside. It's why you haven't been getting morning sickness," Max said.
"Really? I can live with that." Maria looked at her stomach. "Thank you!" she said, placing a hand on it.
"Maria, when do you think this happened? Because the baby looks completely human, and if I'm right about the human DNA, then you'll have a normal pregnancy term of nine months. And the baby appears to be about 3 months along." Maria looked thoughtful as she tried to figure out when it could have happened. Then it hit her.
"I'm on the Depo-provera shot. You have to get it every three months. I was supposed to get it a week ago, but forgot to schedule an appointment. My period never showed up, it's why I suspected I was pregnant. Three months ago I forgot, and got the shot three days later than I should have," Maria confessed, to Max's discomfort.
"You and Michael weren't protected? That was awfully irresponsible," Max scolded her.
Maria raised an eyebrow at him. "Number One: You, Mr. I-Got-My-Psycho-Alien-Lover-Pregnant-on-the-First-Try, are giving me a lecture about responsibility? And Number Two: We DID use protection. Apparently alien sperm is powerful stuff," she said dryly. Max conceded. He had no right to say anything about using protection, and it was good to know that condoms didn't work on people of his heritage, just for future reference.
Max's silence gave Maria a chance to let everything sink in. As it did, a look of terror came over her face. "Oh god, Max, how am I going to tell Michael? He'll freak out! He'll hate me, he'll leave! Oh god, what am I going to do?" Maria was looking around wildly.
Max placed his hands on the panicked girl's shoulders. "Maria look at me. I promise you everything with Michael will be fine. Trust me," he said emphatically, and gave her a look that said he knew what he was talking about. Maria was about to protest, but something in Max's eyes told her not to. She nodded, and continued crying quietly, as the weight of what had happened hit her. Even if Michael stood by her, nothing about this was going to be easy. Oh god, what am I going to do?
Maria had declined Max's offer for a ride to Michael's apartment, choosing instead to walk. She had wound up wandering around town for several hours before she worked up the courage to face Michael. It was with a great deal of trepidation that Maria unlocked the apartment door and walked inside.
Maria gasped in surprise, and looked around the apartment. A beautiful dinner sat hot and waiting for her on the table. Their were flower petals sprinkled around the room. The lights were off, but so many candles were lit that the apartment was filled with a warm glow. It was exactly like the first time they had made love, the first time Michael had let her see him, the night Michael told her he was leaving. Wait a minute, she thought, it's exactly like the night Michael told me he was leaving.
"Oh god," Maria croaked, spinning around the room. At the sound of her voice, Michael came running in. He stopped her spinning by holding on to her shoulders. He stared intently at her, but she refused to meet his eyes. "Oh god, no, not again. You're leaving. Oh god, no, you can't leave, not now. I can't believe you're leaving."
A quick glance around the room told him what would have given Maria that impression. "No, Maria, no, look at me." She was still ranting, but he stopped her by putting his hands on her cheeks and squishing her face together a bit, causing her mouth to resemble that of a fish. This also forced her to look him in the eyes. "Maria, listen to me, I am not leaving. No way in hell am I leaving. I promise you, I'm not going anywhere. Okay?" He looked her hard in the eyes. She nodded, and he released his hold on her face, pulling her against his chest. "Oh, Maria, I'm sorry. I just wanted tonight to be special, just like that night, only I guess I forgot about the whole leaving-for-another-planet-thing. I'm sorry." Maria looked up at him, and nodded her understanding.
"Special?" she asked. Michael gave her a half smile, and lead her to the couch.
"There's something I have to talk to you about," he began nervously, "and I'm kind of terrified, and I have a whole speech, so can you help and just let me get it all out, before you say anything? But when I'm done, please say something, okay?" Michael realized he was rambling, and so did Maria, judging by the amused look on her face. But she nodded dutifully, and looked attentive. Michael took a deep breath, then placed Maria's hands in his. He looked her straight in the eye, and began.
"Maria, when you came into my life two years ago I was lost. I was looking for a home that I wasn't sure existed, a family that had sent me away, any life other than this one. There was nothing I wanted more than to get off this rock, because I was so sure it had nothing to offer me. But I found you, and all that changed. You worked your way into my heart, which I know I didn't make easy. But you never gave up on me. You were the first person who ever believed in me. You were the first person who ever really loved me. Seven months ago, when we were standing in the Granolith chamber, about to leave for the home I had been searching for for so long, all I could think about was you. The way you look at me, the way you feel in my arms, the sound of your laugh, the way the rest of the world disappears when I'm kissing you. And I realized, that you were my home; that I belonged with you. I once told you that I thought there had to be something better out there for me than Roswell, New Mexico. But I know now that as long as you're here there's nowhere else in the universe I'd rather be. Maria, I am so lucky to have found you. I love you more than I ever thought would be possible. I love you with everything that I am, and I know that I will never want anyone else in this life, or all the ones after. Maria," Michael paused as he reached into his pocket. Through the entire speech, he had grown more choked up, but also more certain of his words. Maria's eyes were filled with tears, but her eyes shone brightly with happiness. Out of his pocket, he pulled a small red box. And he continued, "will you marry me?" Maria let out her breath as a choked half-laugh, half-sob and cried, "Yes!" before throwing her arms around him. Michael let out a huge sigh of relief and happiness and held Maria tight. But Maria pulled back, and looked him hesitatingly.
"Michael, there's something I have to tell you first." Michael frowned with concern, and pushed away the paranoid thoughts trying to enter his mind. Now it was Maria's turn to take a deep breath. "I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to say. I'm pregnant," she blurted out. Then she sat back to watch Michael's reaction.
Michael looked stunned. "Is it…?" he began.
Maria nodded, knowing what he was wondering. "Completely human. Probably even in blood too. It's a girl. She has powers. She's been healing me from inside, it's why I haven't been sick. She's due around the beginning of June. Max says I probably won't show too much, something about the baby being able to survive with less of whatever it is they need to survive." She said all of this in a rush, then paused. "I'm keeping her, Michael. And if you want to freak out and run away from me and our baby, then, well, I'll hate you forever, but I'll kind of understand." She bit her lip and looked up at him hopefully. She watched as the emotions flickered across his face. Many were there, but three came out strongest: fear, hope, and love. He remained silent for what felt like an eternity, but he never took his eyes off Maria. After a moment, he slid his hand down to Maria's stomach. She could tell by the look on his face that he had connected with the baby inside her. A minute later, he pulled his hand away and looked up at Maria's face. All she could see in his eyes was pure joy.
"We're having a baby," he whispered, in complete awe. Maria smiled, and nodded. He kissed her then and she saw what he had seen from their child. Apparently the little girl's strongest power would be clairvoyance, as Maria could see snippets of her future with Michael coming from the
child's mind. Their life wouldn't be easy, but they would be happy and in love, and that was all that mattered.
Maria pulled back, allowing Michael to place the beautiful ring he had bought her on her finger, then she grinned at him. "Wanna not eat dinner again?" she asked, waggling her eyebrows. He smiled, and recaptured her lips, and then they were lost in each other's arms.
Michael woke up the next morning to the sound of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" coming from the living room. He smiled at the appropriateness of it, and wondered how long Maria had been listening to it. Pulling on a pair of sweat pants, he stood in the doorway of the living room, watching Maria decorate the tree he had gotten for her while singing along to the recording. He knew Maria knew he was watching her, and was happy that she let him continue. The song ended as Maria put the last decoration in place. She went to plug in the lights for the tree, but when she did so, nothing happened. Frowning unhappily, she tried to figure out what was wrong, when the tree suddenly lit up, as if by magic. Or by an alien, she thought. Her suspicions were confirmed when she saw Michael grinning at her. She looked back at the tree, and realized that the lights were no longer ordinary tree lights. The glowed, like tiny stars, and were dozens of different colours, not just the original six. The star atop the tree shone like the north star does in all those specials about the birth of Jesus. Michael came up behind her, and wrapped his arms around her.
"It's beautiful," she said breathlessly.
"Close your eyes," he instructed. She did as she was told. She could tell when the change happened, because suddenly an assortment of holiday scents filled her head. She opened her eyes, and gasped at what she saw and smelled. The plastic candy canes and gingerbread men now smelled like mint and freshly baked cookies. All the chipped and faded decorations were now shiny and new, looking more alive than they ever had before. But most impressive was the plastic snowflakes and fake snow she had put on the tree. The fake snow had turned to real snow, soft and powdery, but wasn't melting. The snowflakes seemed to still be plastic on the inside, but were now covered in the real fluffy white stuff.
She turned around to face him. "Michael this is incredible!"
He smiled. "I thought you'd like it." She kissed him, then turned to look again at the tree.
"It's missing something," she declared, and ran into the kitchen. Michael went to grab something from the bedroom. They came back, and held up their retrieved items for the other to inspect. Maria held an ornamental ball which read "Baby's First Christmas". Michael laughed and held up his decoration, a similar ball, only it read "Our First Christmas Together". Both had the year on them. By mutual yet unspoken agreement, they placed the two new decorations front and centre on the tree.
"Perfect," she whispered. They stared at the tree in silence for a few moments, before Maria sighed. "Much as I hate to ruin the moment, I have to go over to my mom's. I figure I should tell her about all this now, so she doesn't freak out and try to kill you tonight at dinner. Speaking of which, you have a meal to prepare." Michael groaned, but nodded. He had agreed to cook, seeing as how Maria's culinary skills didn't really extend beyond microwave dinners. Maria grabbed her purse, and gave Michael a final kiss goodbye, before heading for the door.
"Maria?" Michael called as she left. "I wouldn't worry too much about your mom. I think she'll take it better then you're expecting." Maria gave him a questioning look, wondering what he meant. But he just went back to work, so she shook her head and closed the door. She would find out soon enough.
Maria stood on the porch of her mom's house, bouncing on the balls of her feet, contemplating whether or not she should ring the doorbell. On the one hand, it was officially still where she lived. On the other hand, she didn't usually spend more than two nights a week there. Why does my mom let me stay at Michael's so much? she wondered. Basically, she was stalling. Maria sighed, and pushed open the door.
"Mom?" she called tentatively. Amy DeLuca came running in from the kitchen, a look of hopeful excitement on her face.
"Did he ask you?" Maria blinked in surprise. How does she… "Of course he asked you. And you said yes right? Of course, why else would you be here. Let me see the ring." Still stunned, Maria held up her left hand. The ring which sat on her finger was white gold, with a diamond in the middle and a tiny emerald on either side of it. Maria suspected Michael had changed the molecular structure to make the gems real, but she wasn't complaining. "Oh, sweetie, it looks even more beautiful on you than it did in the box!" Amy exclaimed, pulling her daughter into a hug.
"Thanks, mom," Maria said slowly. "Wait, how do you know about all this? And why aren't you running off to beat Michael with every newspaper in town?"
Amy looked confused. "He didn't tell you?"
Maria looked more confused. "Tell me what?" The two women sat down on the couch, and Maria waited for her mother to explain.
"Honey, Michael came to see me yesterday afternoon," Amy began.
"He did? Why?" Maria had had a very long twenty four hours filled with surprises, and her brain was getting to the point where she couldn't process them anymore.
"He came to ask me for my blessing." Maria just about fell off the couch. "He told me that he loved you, and that he knew how much I meant to you, and that when you were finished school, he wanted to get married. My first thought was that you were pregnant, and I nearly did beat him with something a lot harder than a newspaper, but he assured me that wasn't it," Maria grimaced, knowing she'd have to correct her mom, "but I was still doubtful. Then we had a long talk, and he told me everything. He said that there shouldn't be any secrets in a family, and if we were going to be family, I had a right to know about it."
Maria was shocked beyond all high hell. "Everything, like…"
Amy picked up a little alien ornament. "Everything."
"Even…" Maria began.
"Max, Isabel, and Tess? Yes. And what happened to Liz, and with Jim, and to Kyle, and Alex, and Brody. Even your healing. You've had a very busy two years, from what I understand. I wish you could have told me," Amy said to her daughter.
Maria sighed. "I
wish I could have too mom. I'm glad I
don't have to lie anymore. But you can't
tell anyone about this."
Amy nodded. "I understand that, don't
worry sweetie." The two hugged, but
once again Maria found herself wondering about something.
"Wait mom, he told you all that stuff, all the danger, and that convinced you to give him your blessing?" It didn't make sense to Maria.
"No, what convinced me was when he showed me how he saw you. I have never seen so much love in one person, and I knew I couldn't say no to him. I did warn him that if he ever hurt you or left you I would kill him, alien or not. Congratulations, sweetie," Amy smiled at her daughter, who returned it.
"Thanks mom. But there's something I have to tell you. And I swear, Michael didn't know about this when he talked to you yesterday. I didn't even know until yesterday afternoon, he must have been here when I found out. I'm pregnant. Three months. She's human." Maria closed her eyes, and waited for the wrath of her mother, but was surprised when all she heard was a sigh.
"Maria, I can't say I'm not a bit disappointed in you, or that I didn't wish you had waited until you were older. Or that I wanted to be a grandmother at 35. But I understand the position you're in, and I wouldn't have given you up for the world. Michael's a good man, and I know he'll take care of you. So I guess I'm happy for you," Amy said. She smiled, though it was kind of a sad one, but Maria was still infinitely relieved.
"Oh thank god," she breathed. "I was afraid we were going to have to hide all the knives and forks at dinner tonight. I don't think you can eat turkey with a spoon." Amy laughed at her daughter.
"I promise, I will not cause bodily harm to anyone tonight, okay?" Maria nodded.
"Thank you mom, for understanding. I should probably get back and help Michael. I'll see you tonight?" Amy nodded, and hugged Maria one last time.
"I love you sweetie," Amy said.
"I love you too, mom."
Later that night, everyone sat around the table in Michael's apartment. Dinner was finished and had been enjoyed by all. Maria looked at Michael, who nodded his head, and they both stood up.
Michael cleared his throat, and got everyone's attention. "Maria and I have an announcement to make. Well, two actually." Everyone looked at him expectantly, and Max and Amy smiled encouragingly. They both knew what he was about to say. "Maria and I are engaged." Everyone began congratulating them, and getting out of their seats, but Michael held up his hands. "There's more." Everyone was now standing, but they quieted and looked him.
"I'm pregnant," Maria said. This came as more of a surprise to everyone.
"Don't worry, it's human," Michael said. Liz and Kyle looked at him in shock. They waited for Max or Isabel to say something about why wouldn't it be, but when they didn't Liz and Kyle both nodded towards Amy.
"Relax, she knows," Michael told them.
"And you're not killing him?" Kyle asked Isabel and Max.
"They know she knows. I asked them if I could tell her," Michael said. Kyle looked towards the two Evans', who nodded. Then the place erupted in noise, as everyone began hugging and congratulating the couple. Liz for her part looked slightly envious, but was happy for them all the same.
Amy DeLuca stood outside, looking at the stars, and wondering just when her little girl had grown up so much. She heard the door open behind her and looked to see Michael slip outside.
"Is everything okay, Mrs. DeLuca?" he asked.
She smiled at him. "Call me mom."
He looked apprehensive, but still kind of happy. "Look, uh, mom, I just wanted to thank you."
"For what?" she asked.
"Maria," he said simply, and she knew what he meant.
"Take care of her Michael," she told him. He nodded, and she hugged him. He was a bit taken aback, but returned it. He had never had a mom to hug before.
"Now, mom, you're boyfriend is right inside, so quit trying to steal mine," Maria called from the doorway. Amy laughed, and went back into the apartment. Maria walked up to Michael.
"Hey," she said.
"Hey." He kissed her softly, then she rested her head against his chest. He continued to hold her in silence for several minutes.
Finally, she asked, "What are you thinking about?"
"How I've never had a Christmas that I really liked before now."
She smiled at him. "Merry Christmas, Michael."
He kissed her. "Merry Christmas."
"A Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight."
END NOTE: Now, I am aware that this would probably never happen on the show. But before you go screaming at me for being completely insane, I would like to remind you that the spoilers for the actual series have Isabel getting married. So don't yell at me for being unrealistic. And don't worry, the rest of the episodes won't be so goopy, and will be more realistic. So stay tuned.