Christmas, Cartwright Style

Part Two: The Christmas Eve Party

DISCLAIMER: (sigh) No, I don't own them. I don't own anything, actually.


The party had finally arrived. Adam was waiting outside for his date, Belinda Walker, to arrive. She was new to the Eagle Station community, and was just about the prettiest girl there was. She had long, red hair and adventurous green eyes that seemed to sparkle in the light. Belinda was a small person, barely taller than Adam's shoulder, and had the most beautiful, delicate hands Adam had ever laid eyes on. All in all, the 22-year-old had been thrilled when Belinda accepted his invitation to the Christmas Eve Party.

Of course, when he had told Pa about whom his date was Little Joe hadn't been there. If he had, Adam would have had to endure a whole lot of ribbing about love, girls and 'mushy stuff'.

Meanwhile, another young man was standing anxiously on the porch. Hoss' date, still unknown to Adam, was Martha Bessamin. The two had known each other all their lives, but only recently had Hoss discovered how lovely she was. Martha was a slender girl with black hair, big brown eyes and a fair complexion. She was the complete opposite of Hoss—bold, daring and a little impatient—but she had liked the shy young man from the moment they met, and was delighted when he finally got up the nerve to ask her to the party.

And, sitting on the steps between the two, was Little Joe. He didn't have a date for the party, needless to say.

To pass the time, Joe started a conversation.

"So, can I have my dollar now? I've already told you Hoss hasn't eaten anything," were the first words out of his mouth. Adam glanced down at him and, with a dramatic sigh, pulled a slightly crumpled one-dollar bill from his pocket. He didn't look as Joe took the bill.

"Thanks," and the boy skipped inside to put away his new-found wealth.

With Joe out of the way, Adam began a different conversation.

"So who is your date, Hoss? The only one who seems to know is Little Joe, and he won't tell."

"That's 'cause I asked him not to," Hoss replied with a secretive smile.

"Strange. He promised he'd tell me if I told him who I was taking," Adam put in. Hoss started.

"And he looked like he meant it, too."

That was the final straw, Adam knew. Hoss was furious, and he stormed inside, shouting Joe's name the whole way.

"What's going on here?" Ben asked, coming downstairs.

"Where's that little rascal, Joe? He promised he wouldn't tell who my date was, and he went and almost told Adam!" Hoss yelled.

"You said not to tell," came a voice from the kitchen. "You didn't say anything about almost telling." Hoss turned, and saw Little Joe staring at him with big, mischievous eyes.

"Come over here, you little—" Hoss made a move to grab Joe, but the smaller boy was too quick for him and disappeared into the kitchen with a laugh.

"Hey, Hoss! The guests are arriving!" Adam called.

"Who is it?"

"Uh… the Bessamins, I think."

"Oh, boy," Hoss muttered to himself. He straightened his tie and said, "I'm comin', Adam!"

Ben walked over to the credenza and waited. No more than a minute later, Hoss came in with pretty Martha Bessamin on his arm.

Joe stuck his head out of the kitchen and watched silently as Ben greeted the Bessamins. He grinned. Now was a good time to make an appearance—either that or get into big trouble. So he trotted out of the kitchen and into full-view.

"…and you've met Joseph before," Ben added when he noticed Little Joe standing next to him.

"Hi!" Little Joe smiled at Mr. and Mrs. and Martha Bessamin.

"Well, hello there, young man. Good to see you again," Jacob Bessamin greeted with an amused grin. He extended his hand. Joe shook it as Martha and Clara Bessamin nodded at him, looking equally amused.

Greetings overwith, Hoss took Martha aside; they stood by the fireplace, discussing nothing in particular. Mr. and Mrs. Bessamin continued to talk with Ben.

"I hope we're not early," Mrs. Bessamin said.

"Oh, nonsense!" Ben replied, just as the sound of another wagon came from outside. Adam checked to see who it was.

"The Walkers are here, Pa!" he exclaimed. Joe saw the twinkle in Adam's eyes that only appeared when a special girl was near. He smothered a giggle as Adam went outside. I guess we all know who Adam's date is now, he thought. Little Joe had never seen the Walker family before, but he had heard a lot about them from Adam over the dinner table. He had also heard that Fred Walker had lost his wife when Belinda was born; Mr. Walker had a son about Hoss' age and a daughter.

She must be a real pretty one to get Adam so worked up!

Sure enough, a beautiful, red-haired girl with a green-and-gold (NOT BLUE) dress walked through the door. Her arm was linked with Adam's.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you at last, Mr. Walker," Ben said with a smile as he shook the hand of a man with silvery hair. "Adam has told me a lot about you."

"Likewise, my Belinda hasn't stopped talking about your Adam," Mr. Walker replied, and Belinda blushed furiously.

"This," began Mr. Walker. "is my family. My son's name is Peter," A tall brown-haired boy waved. "And, as you know, this is my daughter, Belinda."

"That's my other son, Hoss," Ben pointed across the room where Hoss and Martha were engrossed in a conversation all their own. "And this is my youngest son, Little Joe."

"Hi!" Joe said again.

"Hello there, Little Joe," Mr. Walker said, obviously fooled by the angelic smile that Joe saved for just an occasion. But Adam wasn't as easily duped, and whispered to Belinda, "Don't let that smile of my brother's fool you. He's a mischievous little so-and-so…"

"Don't be ridiculous!" she whispered back. "Joe looks like such an angel!"

Joe was now talking with Peter about something.

"Looks can be deceiving. Trust me. I've had to live with him for the past ten years," Adam finished quietly. Louder he said, "May I treat you to some punch, Miss Walker?" Belinda giggled and nodded eagerly.

"…and he's so polite!" Joe accidentally-on-purpose heard Mr. Walker say to Ben after hearing Adam's offer to Belinda. Joe rolled his eyes and managed to keep the giggles to a minimum.

Over the course of the next ten minutes, the remainder of the guests arrived at the Ponderosa. Finally, when the last of them came through the door (the family name was Peterson, and had come from New York last year), the dancing began. Needless to say, Hoss and Adam took their girls out onto the floor before anyone else could ask. Peter Walker took a girl named Lena Miller by the hand and led her out to the floor. There was something about her that the Cartwrights didn't like—perhaps it was her snobbish ways—but they had invited Lena and her parents out of respect. After all, her father was the preacher at Eagle Station.

Little Joe sat on the stairs and watched the couples twirl round and round, from the fireplace to the door and back. A few of them soon grew weary and sat down on some chairs Ben and Adam had set up against the wall. Another couple, who Joe identified as Adam and Belinda, discreetly slipped out the door and didn't come back for a long time.

Oooh, just wait till the party's over! I'm gonna have one heck of a story to tell Pa! Joe smiled at the thought.

It had been an hour since the party had started. By this time, Little Joe had grown bored of watching the couples dance to waltzes and fox trots, so he walked over to the table to get something to eat.

Hop Sing had really outdone himself this year. The gingerbread house was in the middle as a centerpiece. It was three-quarters of a foot tall, and it was covered in frosting, peppermint sticks and gum drops. It wasn't intended for eating by the guests, though; the four Cartwrights—with Rocky's help—would probably polish it off by the day after tomorrowor possibly sooner, if Hoss' appetite didn't fail him.

To eat, there were cookies, tea sandwiches with an assortment of fillings and 'petit fours', as the French called them. Being part-French himself, Joe had been very curious about the miniature cakes; he had asked Adam what 'petit fours' meant (and received an "I don't speak French, how should I know?" as the answer) and insisted that Hop Sing let him help. The cook had been a little skeptical about letting Little Joe help after the cookie incident, but had finally relented, and Joe proved to be very trustworthy—except that Hop Sing had caught Joe with some of the frosting on his fingers...

"Hey, little brother!" Hoss called out to Joe. Joe looked up and saw Hoss and Martha standing next to him.

"Hi," Joe said, helping himself to one of the sugar cookies and a glass of punch. Trying to be friendly, he asked, "Havin' a good time?"

"The best," Martha agreed with a huge smile. "How are you doing, Little Joe?"

"Fine. Great party," he responded vaguely with a smile and a gesture towards all the decorations and people. Martha, however, saw through Joe's brave smile. When he turned away to eat the cookie, Martha whispered in Hoss' ear:

"Can he dance?"

"Dance? Who?" Hoss whispered back.

"Joe."

Hoss was too flabbergasted to answer immediately. "Why?" he finally asked.

"Because… well, he looks a little bored… and lonely."

"Ain't he a little young fer you?" Hoss teased. Martha smiled at the joke.

"Just one dance. Maybe it'll help lift his spirits. Now, back to the original question—can he dance?"

"Yeah, a little. Me an' Adam taught him a few dances last year."

"Then may I?"

"Go right ahead."

Hoss let go of Martha's hand with a big smile.

Boy, is Joe ever gonna love this! But I get the feelin' that Adam's gonna say a few things about this lovely couple… well, iffen he does, I'll bop 'im one—fer Joe, of course.

Martha walked over to Little Joe and tapped him on the shoulder. Joe turned around and saw Martha's lovely dark eyes looking at him.

"I know it's a little unusual for the girl to ask the boy, but I would be honored if you'd share a dance with me, Mr. Cartwright," Martha beamed, curtsying a bit.

At first, Joe thought she had either lost her marbles, or was talking to somebody else. But when he saw Hoss nodding at him with a twinkle in his eye, Joe caught on.

"As you wish, Miss Bessamin," Joe giggled back, bowing as best he could. "Let's go! But first…"

Joe walked up to Hoss and shoved the half-empty punch glass into his hand.

"Hold this for me, will you, brother? I have a girl to please and a dance to dance!"

Without waiting for a reply, Joe and Martha went out onto the floor and began to dance. Hoss had to chuckle a little to himself at the sight of his baby brother dancing with Martha.

Adam, who had been sitting with Belinda, glanced towards the dancing couples and noticed the odd pair of 10-year-old boy and 15-year-old girl. He stared for a minute. Then he pointed the two out to Belinda. She giggled quietly.

"That's so sweet!" she whispered. Then, Belinda got an idea. "Adam, do you mind if I give it a try too? Just one dance, of course?"

"Okay," Adam agreed, a smile playing around his lips. "It should be very interesting to see what happens." Belinda giggled again and waited for the dance to end. When it did, Joe went back to the food-covered table. Belinda smiled at Adam and followed him.

"Excuse me," she said to Joe. He turned around and looked at Belinda.

"I couldn't help but notice how beautifully you danced just now," she continued.

"Thank you." Little Joe gave her a big smile. He liked getting praise.

"And I was just wondering if you'd do me the honor as well?"

Joe was a bit stunned. Here he was, only ten years old, and the girls were already paying more attention to him than to both his brothers combined!

"Of course, Miss Walker." Joe bowed with another huge grin spreading across his face, and the mix-matched couple waltzed out onto the floor. Hoss, who had been ready to give Little Joe his glass back, smiled to himself and put it down on the table.

"Looks like all the girls are takin' pity on my 'poor, lonely brother' tonight!" Hoss said to Martha. He offered his arm to her, and they began to waltz as well.

Adam, who had been watching the whole exchange, couldn't help but laugh just a little when he saw Joe out on the dance floor. In all his years, he never expected to see Joe dancing with a girl until he was at least 15. But there he was, dancing his heart out, and having a great time.

All this time, Ben had been conversing with some of the guests, including the Walkers and Bessamins. They had talked about everything from cattle to the Ponderosa to their sons and daughters, who were greatly enjoying themselves on the dance floor. At that moment, Ben was telling Mr. Bessamin about Little Joe.

"…he has a dog upstairs, too. Rocky—that's the dog's name—was actually a stray, but Joe brought him here and raised him—without my knowledge, of course," he was saying. Mr. Bessamin laughed.

"It sounds like that youngest boy of yours is quite a handful!" he said. "He's done everything from bringing wolf pups home to falling through the ice in Lake Tahoe to—"

"—to dancing!" Mrs. Bessamin put in. She pointed to all the couples and, right in the middle, was Joe, dancing with Belinda! Mr. Bessamin laughed again.

"Ben, you didn't tell me Little Joe danced! And so well, too!"

"I didn't know myself," Ben admitted, still staring at them. "I wonder who taught him…"

"Hoss and I did," Adam informed them all. "As you can see that was a big mistake; he stole my girl!"

Everyone laughed, and the music stopped.

"That was most delightful. Thank you," Belinda curtsied again, Joe bowed again, and they went their separate ways. When Little Joe picked up the glass of punch again, Hoss began to laugh. Joe gave him an evil look and took a drink.

All the Cartwrights had a pleasant time that evening. Ben had some very interesting conversations with most of the guests, and had even been persuaded to dance a couple of times. Adam had spent most of his time with Belinda, except when she had danced with Joe. If the room hadn't been filled with people, Adam probably would have laughed right out loud. Hoss, meanwhile, had made good progress with Martha. She danced nearly every dance with him and they had learned a lot about each other's interests and ideas. Little Joe had had a good evening, too. As soon as people had seen Martha dancing with him, Belinda had asked for a dance, and before he knew it, almost every young girl at the party had danced with him. All in all, it was a very satisfying evening.

As soon as the last of the guests had gone home, Hoss stood by the table quietly.

"Something wrong?" Adam questioned.

"Nothin'. Just thinkin'."

"In that case, there is definitely something wrong. What is it?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Ben added, coming over from where he had been moving the furniture back into place.

"Me, too!" Joe chimed in. He hopped onto the now half-empty table and waited, staring intently at Hoss.

"Well…" Hoss started, looking at Ben. "Well, I'm jist mad 'cause that dad-blamed brother of mine did better with the girls than I did!" Hoss pointed an accusatory finger at Little Joe. He wasn't really angry, just a little surprised at how well his brother had done with the ladies.

"Me?" Joe asked innocently.

"You know something," Adam spoke up. "I agree with you. Joe got more dances than both of us combined!"

"Me?" Joe said again.

"Yes, me—I mean, you. All ya had ta do was look all lonesome and sad-like, and all them purty gals was jist beggin' ta dance with ya!" Hoss continued.

"Me?" Joe repeated, once again.

"Well, maybe this will teach us two things," Adam said, draping an arm across Hoss' shoulders. "One: don't teach our younger brother any more dances, and two: look 'lonesome and sad-like' if you're desperate for a dance!"

"I can't help it if all the girls thought I was cute!" Joe protested. Adam grabbed Joe around the middle and slung him over his shoulder.

"I don't know, Hoss. Do you think we should annihilate the competition? Dump him in Lake Tahoe, maybe?" Adam asked jokingly. Hoss nodded his head rapidly, although he wasn't exactly sure what 'annihilate' meant.

"HEY!" Joe cried. "Put me down! Pa, HELP! HEY!"

Joe's screams were drowned out by the laughter of his family. Little Joe, however, saw nothing funny in the situation and continued yelling.

"Okay, Adam," Ben finally panted. "You can put Joe down now."

Adam did as he was told. Little Joe glared at the both of them and stormed upstairs to let Rocky out. Adam and Hoss started laughing all over again. Rocky heard the happy sounds from downstairs and ran towards them to join in the fun. By the time Joe came down as well, he had found the humor in what had just occurred and was laughing too.

"Alright, it's pay-back time!" Joe cried as he leapt down the last few stairs. "Hey, Pa, I saw Adam and Belinda leave the house and not come back for a long time!"

"Yes, I noticed that too. What was going on between the two of you out there?" Ben asked, folding his arms across his chest. Adam looked a little uncomfortable.

"Thanks a lot, blabbermouth," he muttered to Joe with a glare. Joe just gave him a huge smile. It looked as if he had a banana stuck in his mouth.

"Well, Pa, it's like this… you see… we were kind of… you know…"

"Yes, I think I know what you were kind of doing," Ben said with a note of disapproval in his voice. "But never mind that now. It's Christmas Eve, after all. How about a story?"

"Yeah!" Hoss and Joe shouted in unison. Even Adam looked pleased at the idea. Their father always read a story to all three of them on Christmas Eve. Adam would sit in the red chair, Hoss would stretch out on the settee, and Little Joe would sit on Ben's lap while he read. Then, just as he was about to get up, Ben would discover that Joe had fallen asleep and would carry him up to his room.

"Okay, but just a short one. It's already 11:00, and Joe should really be in bed…"

"PA! I'm not tired!" Joe yelled in agony. He hated being embarrassed in front of his brothers like this. Adam and Hoss snorted at Joe's outburst. Ben ignored it.

"So, shall we stick to old Cartwright tradition and read The Night before Christmas?"

"Of course," Adam said.

"I'll get the book then." Ben made a move for the stairs. He kept The Night before Christmas in an old trunk in his room. None of the boys knew where it was kept.

"Pa, can Rocky listen, too? He's a Cartwright now, isn't he?" Joe asked, holding up the little dog, which was wagging his stubby tail furiously. Ben laughed.

"Yes, Rocky can listen too," Ben agreed, and went up to get the book.

When he came back down, Adam was already sitting in the red chair, Hoss was stretched out on the settee, and Little Joe was standing next to the big, blue chair, waiting for his Pa to take him on his lap and begin reading. Meanwhile, the newest addition to the family was lying comfortably in front of the fire, tongue out, lips pulled back in a doggie-smile.

Ben sat down in the chair and pulled Joe onto his knee. The boy smiled and snuggled closer to his father. Everyone—even Rocky—looked at him, waiting for the story to begin. Ben opened the book and started to read:

"'Twas the night before Christmas

And all through the house,

Not a creature was stirring,

Not even a mouse…"

-

"…And I heard him exclaim

As he drove out of sight,

'Merry Christmas to all,

And to all a Good Night.'"

Ben closed the book and glanced around. Rocky's eyes were half-closed, as were Hoss'. Adam was smiling a little to himself, possibly at the memory of a past Christmas. And Joe, as usual, was sound asleep. Ben put the book quietly on the coffee table in front of him, and picked up Little Joe. Rocky noticed that his master was being carried upstairs, so the dog followed loyally.

"I'll bet Joe doesn't even know half the story," Adam commented once Ben was out of sight. "He always falls asleep about half-way through it!"

"Yeah," Hoss replied sleepily. He stood up and stretched. "Well, g'night, Adam. I'm goin' to bed so Santa Claus kin come and leave me my presents."

"G'night, Hoss. Tell Pa I'll be up in a minute," Adam said.

"Okay." Hoss yawned again and trudged upstairs.

Adam looked around at the bare living room. He remembered a similar Christmas five years ago, the last Christmas they had had with Marie…

Adam could see Pa reading the same story in the same chair with five-year-old Joe on his lap. Hoss had been sitting on the floor, one elbow on the coffee table, listening intently. Adam had been in the same red chair, and Marie was sitting, totally relaxed, on the settee.

Joe had tried so hard that year not to fall asleep before the story ended. Whenever his little eyes would start to close, he would open them up wide again. But he failed in the end, as he did every year, and was sleeping soundly as Pa finished the book. Everything had been so perfect then…

The wind scraped a tree branch against the window, bringing Adam back to the present. He walked upstairs to his room.

-

Ben lay in bed, thinking. It had been such a wonderful Christmas Eve! Even Little Joe's constant whining about presents and baths hadn't put much of a damper on the cheerful attitude of the day.

Then he thought of the Christmas Day before them. He just knew that Adam, Hoss and Little Joe would like the presents he had gotten them. For Adam, he had bought a new book from back East, Uncle Tom's Cabin, by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Adam was the big reader in the family and was also the smartest, as a result of all the reading.

Hoss' present was a new scarf, which he had been in need of but had patiently waited for ever since one of the wolf pups that Joe had brought home used it as a chew toy. Ben couldn't remember his name exactly, but it was something from Shakespeare. Montague, was it?

Little Joe wasn't as fond of books as Adam but would receive a novel by Dickens—A Christmas Carol. Ben had glanced through it at the store and learned it was about an old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge who learned about the True Meaning of Christmas from three spirits. It was supposed to be funny and scary at the same time, which Ben knew Joe would like.

He smiled to himself. Although he had rebuked Joe about whining so often about his presents, Ben couldn't wait to see what the boys had gotten him as well.

Unable to stay awake any longer, Ben closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

End of Part Two