THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT
He sat there, his CD player on, and playing light Christmas music at a moderate volume. He was puzzled as he listened to the lyrics of one song in particular. In his mind, it created an image of fear, a figure looming in a window, spindly and evil, watching over all inside, which was not what he expected from a seasonal song such as this.
He picked up the case, and looked at the song list, tapping his pen on his notebook as he pondered.
"'Santa Clause Is Coming To Town'. sounds kinda creepy to me," he mumbled to himself.
Staring at the speaker as though it would give him answers, he narrowed his eyes in confusion, as the song continued, and the chorus repeated itself over and over. 'You'd better watch out, you'd better not cry'. he wasn't sure what to make of it.
"Not that's just scary," he concluded, skipping to the next track, something about a snowman named Frosty.
Jonas Quinn shook his head, and turned the volume down.
"What is it with this world and Christmas anyway?" he muttered, speaking to himself aloud as he often did, continuing to tap his pen on the notebook. He took to chewing the end of it shortly after.
Sam Carter had explained pretty much all there was to know about her favourite holiday, and still, Jonas was just baffled.
The Son of God was born. and not even on the day they celebrated, and they give each other gifts. Seemed like an excuse to merchandise.
Frosty The Snowman ended rather abruptly, and he found himself listening to something rather depressing in tone.
"Now what is this all about?" he grumbled, snatching up the case again, pen still in his mouth.
"'The Snowman'?" He raised an eyebrow, and looked around his office. Shiny ruffled decorations that went by the title of tinsel hung everywhere. Well, sort of. Sam had helped him with that too. Teal'c had handed them pieces, inquiring on the point of hanging such crude, useless material. Jonas had tried to explain, and had gotten confused, and so Sam had interjected, and in her own festive way, had told Teal'c what the point was. He wasn't allowed to leave before he agreed he understood entirely.
Sam really had a thing for Christmas.
And it was at that point in time that the same Major Samantha Carter walked in the room humming to herself, and wearing a red hat, with a white fluff ball on the end.
Jonas cocked his head.
"Hi, Jonas," she said, beaming, flicking at a piece of tinsel.
"Hi," he replied, pointing to the thing on her head. "What's that?"
"It's a hat, Jonas." She took it off her head, running her fingers over the soft material and smiling. "It's a Santa Clause hat."
"Okay," he mumbled, and picked up the Christmas case again. "Do you have any idea what these songs mean?"
The same sorrowful piece of music was still playing, so Sam took it upon herself to start with that one.
"Oh, this is from a film, called 'The Snowman'," she began, seating herself on the chair opposite Jonas. "It's about a boy who builds a snowman who comes to life, and flies him to all the other snowmen at Christmas. They have a party, and then they go home. In the morning, the boy goes out to see the snowman, only to find that he's melted."
"Seems pretty depressing," Jonas pointed out, even as the song ended.
Sam nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right." She sat there for a moment, saying nothing, before she finally added, "But, hey, it's Christmas. You can't possibly be sad at Christmas." She was grinning like an idiot, something Jonas found amusing.
He laughed. "Alright. You're the expert on this. I'll trust your judgement."
They fell into silence then, and Sam looked deeply pensive. Her smile had faded into something far more melancholy, and Jonas set the notebook aside, swinging his feet off of his desk.
"You okay?" he asked, turning the music down even further.
Sam looked to him suddenly. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." She smiled to back up her comment, but Jonas wasn't falling for it.
"Come on, tell me what's wrong. You might feel better." He smiled wanly. Jonas had a pretty good idea what this was all about.
Sam sighed, and looked at all the varying colours of tinsel in Jonas' room, and said, without looking at him, "Daniel used to love Christmas. I remember how excited he used to get, running around with decorations. I used to help him. We had so much fun."
Her smile disappeared entirely, and she fondled the soft fuzzy ball on the end of the hat.
Jonas didn't know what to say. He still felt responsible for taking Daniel away from everyone, and he was there as a constant reminder that Daniel wasn't.
He felt horrible.
Sam sighed again, louder. "Jack used to get so frustrated with him. But Jack loved it too; he would just never admit it. I remember how happy he used to look when he got presents. I got Daniel a wooden Ra statue one year."
"Where is it now?" Jonas found himself asking, and he closed his eyes afterwards, wanting to kick himself hard for asking such a sensitive question.
Sam looked him in the eye, and smiled weakly. "In my office. Jack said Daniel would have wanted me to have it."
"And I'm sure he's right."
Exhaling loudly, Sam slapped herself on the knee, and donned her Christmas hat. "I also know Daniel wouldn't want us to be sad at Christmas. Come on," she said, her happiness having apparently returned.
Jonas smiled. "Where we going?"
"To get some Christmas jello from the mess hall. It's got marshmallow in it, it's great," she said, hopping on her toes excitedly.
Jonas laughed then, and turned off the CD player, giving one final glance to the CD case, and the song titles displayed there.
For a moment, and only a moment, he thought he saw a different face staring back at him. And that face was smiling.
It couldn't be. could it?
"Hey, come on! If we don't hurry, it'll all be gone," Sam insisted, bouncing around near to the door.
Jonas smiled to himself for a moment, and walked towards Sam, notebook in hand.
"Hey, great snowman!" she said happily, noticing the doodle Jonas had drawn.
He looked down at his doodle, and smiled. "I don't know what possessed me to draw it."
"It's the Christmas spirit, Jonas," Sam told him.
Jonas handed her the notebook, which she gladly accepted. With that, she started leading the way to the mess hall.
Jonas gave one last glance to his office before turning off the lights.
"It was a spirit alright, but not what you think."
He sat there, his CD player on, and playing light Christmas music at a moderate volume. He was puzzled as he listened to the lyrics of one song in particular. In his mind, it created an image of fear, a figure looming in a window, spindly and evil, watching over all inside, which was not what he expected from a seasonal song such as this.
He picked up the case, and looked at the song list, tapping his pen on his notebook as he pondered.
"'Santa Clause Is Coming To Town'. sounds kinda creepy to me," he mumbled to himself.
Staring at the speaker as though it would give him answers, he narrowed his eyes in confusion, as the song continued, and the chorus repeated itself over and over. 'You'd better watch out, you'd better not cry'. he wasn't sure what to make of it.
"Not that's just scary," he concluded, skipping to the next track, something about a snowman named Frosty.
Jonas Quinn shook his head, and turned the volume down.
"What is it with this world and Christmas anyway?" he muttered, speaking to himself aloud as he often did, continuing to tap his pen on the notebook. He took to chewing the end of it shortly after.
Sam Carter had explained pretty much all there was to know about her favourite holiday, and still, Jonas was just baffled.
The Son of God was born. and not even on the day they celebrated, and they give each other gifts. Seemed like an excuse to merchandise.
Frosty The Snowman ended rather abruptly, and he found himself listening to something rather depressing in tone.
"Now what is this all about?" he grumbled, snatching up the case again, pen still in his mouth.
"'The Snowman'?" He raised an eyebrow, and looked around his office. Shiny ruffled decorations that went by the title of tinsel hung everywhere. Well, sort of. Sam had helped him with that too. Teal'c had handed them pieces, inquiring on the point of hanging such crude, useless material. Jonas had tried to explain, and had gotten confused, and so Sam had interjected, and in her own festive way, had told Teal'c what the point was. He wasn't allowed to leave before he agreed he understood entirely.
Sam really had a thing for Christmas.
And it was at that point in time that the same Major Samantha Carter walked in the room humming to herself, and wearing a red hat, with a white fluff ball on the end.
Jonas cocked his head.
"Hi, Jonas," she said, beaming, flicking at a piece of tinsel.
"Hi," he replied, pointing to the thing on her head. "What's that?"
"It's a hat, Jonas." She took it off her head, running her fingers over the soft material and smiling. "It's a Santa Clause hat."
"Okay," he mumbled, and picked up the Christmas case again. "Do you have any idea what these songs mean?"
The same sorrowful piece of music was still playing, so Sam took it upon herself to start with that one.
"Oh, this is from a film, called 'The Snowman'," she began, seating herself on the chair opposite Jonas. "It's about a boy who builds a snowman who comes to life, and flies him to all the other snowmen at Christmas. They have a party, and then they go home. In the morning, the boy goes out to see the snowman, only to find that he's melted."
"Seems pretty depressing," Jonas pointed out, even as the song ended.
Sam nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right." She sat there for a moment, saying nothing, before she finally added, "But, hey, it's Christmas. You can't possibly be sad at Christmas." She was grinning like an idiot, something Jonas found amusing.
He laughed. "Alright. You're the expert on this. I'll trust your judgement."
They fell into silence then, and Sam looked deeply pensive. Her smile had faded into something far more melancholy, and Jonas set the notebook aside, swinging his feet off of his desk.
"You okay?" he asked, turning the music down even further.
Sam looked to him suddenly. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." She smiled to back up her comment, but Jonas wasn't falling for it.
"Come on, tell me what's wrong. You might feel better." He smiled wanly. Jonas had a pretty good idea what this was all about.
Sam sighed, and looked at all the varying colours of tinsel in Jonas' room, and said, without looking at him, "Daniel used to love Christmas. I remember how excited he used to get, running around with decorations. I used to help him. We had so much fun."
Her smile disappeared entirely, and she fondled the soft fuzzy ball on the end of the hat.
Jonas didn't know what to say. He still felt responsible for taking Daniel away from everyone, and he was there as a constant reminder that Daniel wasn't.
He felt horrible.
Sam sighed again, louder. "Jack used to get so frustrated with him. But Jack loved it too; he would just never admit it. I remember how happy he used to look when he got presents. I got Daniel a wooden Ra statue one year."
"Where is it now?" Jonas found himself asking, and he closed his eyes afterwards, wanting to kick himself hard for asking such a sensitive question.
Sam looked him in the eye, and smiled weakly. "In my office. Jack said Daniel would have wanted me to have it."
"And I'm sure he's right."
Exhaling loudly, Sam slapped herself on the knee, and donned her Christmas hat. "I also know Daniel wouldn't want us to be sad at Christmas. Come on," she said, her happiness having apparently returned.
Jonas smiled. "Where we going?"
"To get some Christmas jello from the mess hall. It's got marshmallow in it, it's great," she said, hopping on her toes excitedly.
Jonas laughed then, and turned off the CD player, giving one final glance to the CD case, and the song titles displayed there.
For a moment, and only a moment, he thought he saw a different face staring back at him. And that face was smiling.
It couldn't be. could it?
"Hey, come on! If we don't hurry, it'll all be gone," Sam insisted, bouncing around near to the door.
Jonas smiled to himself for a moment, and walked towards Sam, notebook in hand.
"Hey, great snowman!" she said happily, noticing the doodle Jonas had drawn.
He looked down at his doodle, and smiled. "I don't know what possessed me to draw it."
"It's the Christmas spirit, Jonas," Sam told him.
Jonas handed her the notebook, which she gladly accepted. With that, she started leading the way to the mess hall.
Jonas gave one last glance to his office before turning off the lights.
"It was a spirit alright, but not what you think."