Chapter 114
A Tree With Lights and a Star on Top

With Thanksgiving now behind them, it felt as though they only had one thing left on their minds, one all powerful thought demanding their attention at every turn.

"Today?" Lucas asked, the breath still returning to him as he lay with her that morning.

"Today," Maya nodded. She was still very much dizzy with a smile in that moment, but not so much that she wouldn't know exactly what he was thinking. And she was right there with him. "But not yet," she whispered as she stretched up to kiss him. Lucas welcomed this approach and responded by wrapping her in his arms and taking them in a spin. They didn't have to get up just yet, did they? It was a beautiful day, and their time was all their own just for a while longer. It would be such a shame to waste it…

And when they'd get up at last and go to greet their sons on this new morning, they would get to tell them how this would be the day their house became a winter wonderland, all ahead of another day, when they would be visited by a jolly man in red and white.

It would be their second Christmas with both boys, their third with Elliott, although it could be said to be their fourth. Three Christmases ago, he'd been growing steadily along, so even though he wasn't in their arms he was absolutely in their hearts and minds. That was also when they'd gone and told everybody about him, and when they had gotten engaged and told everyone about that, too. It was the first Christmas that really felt part of their family story, the one that changed everything. The year before that, and every last one which preceded it, they'd just been Lucas and Maya, but since three years ago…

"We have got to figure out how we're going to dress them for tomorrow," Maya shook her head, the thought coming to her as they went and got dressed themselves.

Shawn would be coming by, to take pictures of the family together in full Christmas regalia. The tree, the mantle, Lucas and Maya and Elliott and Noah in their holiday best… and the dogs… and the cats… They would have had Pappy Joe, too, but as he told it, he had a different photo opportunity in his future. Either way, it was going to be something they'd get to look back on, as years went by and their little ones weren't so little anymore. They wanted to get it right, and even if there really wasn't a wrong way so long as they all sat there together… They would have done it all together, the decorating and the pictures, too, but they knew better than to assume that the boys would be up to doing all of that in the same day. All they'd get in return would be several shots of the two of them giving anything from grumpy faces to pitching wails. They were good, sweet boys, yes, but they were tiny, and they had their limits, and their parents recognized that.

"We've got some that match, yeah?" Lucas tried to conjure up the clothes back in the nursery as he tugged his shirt down and fixed his sleeves. These days, Elliott and Noah were very much of a mind that if they got to be the same then everything was infinitely better. They didn't have to be wearing the exact same things, but they had to have the same colors, or patterns…

"Of course, so we just need to… Oh! I know, I know, I know…" she kept mumbling to herself as she opened the door out of their room and then the one into the nursery. Her progress was stalled at what she found, or what she didn't find, for a split second, until she looked to the other side. She'd barely registered the empty crib before she looked to the little bed and discovered both her sons sitting there. Noah held the Otto plush while Elliott had the book in his lap. They both looked at their mother now, like this was the most natural situation and not at all puzzling. "How did you get over there?" Maya pointed from the crib to her younger son. He just smiled at her. "Oh, is that how we're playing it?" she couldn't help but laugh now. "Lucas?"

"Yeah?" he walked over. She turned to look at him, let him take in the scene for himself. "How did he…"

"That would be the big question," Maya sighed as she approached the crib. The teddy bear and blanket had been stuck at one of the corners, and from there she could just about conjure up an image, wherein Noah – their great discoverer – would have been able to climb his way out, with his big brother's assistance. Maya turned back to Lucas and pointed this out.

"Right…" he bowed his head.

"Yeah…" she nodded to herself before moving over to the bed. "Morning, fellas," she crouched and knelt. At once, Noah moved to stand and throw his arms around her neck, and Maya embraced him. "Hey there, little bee, or should I call you little monkey now, huh?" she asked, kissing his golden curls.

Sitting nearby, Elliott was looking to his parents in turn, and maybe he didn't know what was causing it, but he definitely was getting to a point where he understood that he'd done something he wasn't supposed to do, and now he would get punished for it. He took up the abandoned octopus and held him in his arms, close under his chin. Lucas came over and sat on the floor near the bed, and after a moment the older boy climbed off the bed and approached him. Maya turned toward them with Noah, so they might share in this early morning talk.

"Did you help him get out of there?" Lucas asked, his voice hopefully showing both boys that they weren't in trouble. Elliott nodded. "You like doing story time with your little brother, huh?" Another nod. "You know he's small, smaller than you, and getting over the top there, it's high. If he fell, he could get hurt, and that would be bad. You don't want that, right?"

"No," Elliott shook his head even as he looked at Noah.

"How about tonight we try something," Lucas told Elliott before looking to Maya. They were pretty good at communicating without words. She was on board. "You two can stay together, right here," Lucas indicated the bed. "No need to climb. But you have to look after him, alright? Show him how to do it," he suggested, knowing that was right up the big brother's alley. Already, he was excited at the prospect. "Think you can do that?"

"Yeah!" Elliott nodded before leaning to hug and be hugged by his father. Lucas didn't leave him hanging. He kicked it up to some big cheek kisses, which got the boy laughing.

"Hey, guess what we're doing today," Maya spoke up now, the better to take them from one subject to another.

By the time they all sat around the table with Pappy Joe for breakfast, there was anticipation in the air. Neither of the boys were old enough that the concept of Christmas had been made it into 'this is a thing I remember and I now look forward to it' territory, but maybe now, like with Halloween, it would start to get there. When Elliott told his great grandfather about how they would put a tree in the house, the old man had started telling him and his little brother all about what they would do once they had said tree in the living room. As ever, Elliott and Noah would sit and listen to their grandfather for as long as he'd speak, regardless of whether they understood what he was going on about or not.

While they were enraptured by him, their parents took the opportunity to consult one another on this new development back in the nursery. They just knew that Noah would keep scaling out of his crib if given the chance, so maybe they needed to change things up for him? Was he big enough to get his bed already? They'd waited longer with Elliott, but that didn't mean that Noah would evolve at the same speed. The best they could do for now was to try and see what happened. They'd share the one little bed for tonight, maybe tomorrow night as well. They'd need to get that second bed, and once they did, well… They might as well move that crib back in their room, right?

Operation Christmas House would take a while, between the outdoors with the lights and other decorations, and then indoors with the tree, and the stockings, and everything else they'd deploy in the effort to get this house 'Santa ready.' Luckily, they would have assistance, 'helpers,' as some would insist on being called as they showed up with festive hats of various kinds on their heads. Clearly, they had understood 'the mission' and were successful. Elliott and Noah saw them all and felt the first touch of December magic.

"Messrs. Friar and Friar, a jolly morning to you," Zay proclaimed as he knelt before the pair of them and set a matching set of smaller hats atop their heads. Elliott and Noah both reached up at once and felt at the hats with curiosity. "Now, who is going to help us decorate that tree?" he asked.

"Me! I do it!" Elliott raised his hand high, like he'd been shown. Noah saw him do this and immediately did the same.

"Yeah? Both of you?" Zay reached over and took hold of those extended hands, gave them a good shake. The boys laughed.

"Hey, what about us? Hogging all the best helpers, come on, man, not cool," Asher came up behind him. His hat had pointed ears, as did Dylan's.

"Elves," he added, in support of his best friend's claim, as he pointed to their 'ears.' "That means we're in charge of delegating the tiny help."

"No, it just means the store… at the North Pole…" Zay briefly turned back to the boys, who watched this scene with clueless delight, "… was all out of my ears." He finished this statement by encircling his face with his hand.

"Not true, you just didn't like the pattern," Nadine cut past him with a smirk. Her hat also had ears. "Now you must suffer your stubbornness. Come on, fellas, wait until you see what we have," she escorted Elliott and Noah away, and the boys went with her at once. They did love their Auntie Nadine so very much. Not that the margin between her and their uncles was that wide, but if they had to choose…

"Betrayal!" Zay called out in a half whisper.

"Too bad, human, too bad," Asher clapped his shoulder as he and Dylan passed him.

"You're getting coal, all of you."

"What about me?" Riley came up to him. Her hat had no extra ears either.

"No, you're cool," Zay smirked.

Their two 'humans' would be dispatched in order to find and purchase the tree. Ray would end up accompanying them, on the unspoken logic that sending those two into the lot without someone significantly less chaotic would prevent this taking way too long and saddle Maya and Lucas up with a much too giant tree. While they were out there, the others would do as much as they could in order to then get to decorate the tree all together. Outside, Lucas was joined by Sophie, Chiara, and Rosa to get lights on the roof and along the porch. The first two went up the ladder on to the roof and began hanging those lights while the others below took care of sending up the next batches without a single tangle in the cords.

"So, how are we going to deal with that?" Sophie asked, indicating the rise of the attic.

It was a whole new game this year, wasn't it? The roof before had shown its years. Oh, it was solid, absolutely, but it wasn't new either. Since last year it was new, didn't have a choice to be, as now they also had an attic, which they didn't have before. Lucas could hardly believe it had been that long since they'd all lived at his parents' house for weeks while the attic was being built. It had all been done in time for Christmas, and they had decorated, but they had gone in with an attitude of caution, like they didn't want to risk going too hard at it when it was brand new. This time around, they didn't see the need for caution. More than that, they wanted to give something to impress Elliott and Noah. It started with acquiring many more lights, which were now being seen to by Chiara and Rosa.

"Take a guess," Lucas told Sophie even as he was pulling a folded sheet of paper from his back pocket. He passed it to her as they both made sure not to lose balance and Sophie had a look like the existence of this paper was enough on its own to establish exactly what she'd needed to know. When she'd unfold it, she'd find the plan as drawn by Maya. "We had to know how many lights we'd need," Lucas reasoned.

"No, I get that," Sophie nodded, giving the plan a look. "Then we should be starting… there?" she pointed. Lucas nodded. "Alright, let's go."

"What are they up to?" Lucas asked, as they were coming around to finish the roof. Sophie followed his line of sight and found it directed to her wife and their friend. They were caught up in conversation, enough that they were not thinking to send up the next batch of bulbs. What few words managed to float up to them made it clear they were both speaking Italian to one another. When she saw them, Sophie muttered something under her breath which also sounded like Italian and possibly a bad word.

"Hey, quit that and send more lights!" she called down and at once Chiara and Rosa sprang back to attention, laughing to themselves as they brought the next batch.

"We were just talking," Rosa promised with a slow shrug. Sophie spoke the word again and Rosa snorted while Chiara expressed mock shock. "Are not," Rosa insisted, and the way her eyes moved to Lucas for a second, he now guessed they might have been talking about him. But why…

"What are you guys going on about?" he had to ask. Sophie sighed, while the others looked surprisingly clammed up for two people who'd had a lot to say not long ago. It gave the impression that whatever they were discussing they either couldn't tell him or they weren't sure if they could. "One of you just spit it out? Please?"

"Not you two," Sophie spoke at once, pointing to Chiara and Rosa. "Come here," she pointed for Lucas to follow her carefully back across the roof, far enough so the others couldn't overhear. "Look, if there's anything to know but you don't want them to, I will lie for you," Sophie whispered.

"What are you… Oh…" Lucas finally started to understand. They thought that Maya was pregnant again, right now. He'd only needed to get the thought in his head and now everything fit.

"Wait, is she really?" Sophie lifted her head. She looked like she hadn't really believed it herself, but now maybe…

"No, no," Lucas replied at once. The beat of silence didn't help in shutting the whole talk down. "We are trying," he had to admit. "But it hasn't happened yet, okay?"

"Alright," Sophie nodded. "I guess maybe this thing today got the gossip machine going."

"Why?" Lucas blinked.

"Please, you didn't need all of us here to get this done today, some of them just figured maybe it was an excuse to make a big surprise announcement," she intoned.

"So, we need a reason to want to see all of you at one time now?" Lucas asked with a laugh.

"Well, when you put it like that," Sophie bowed her head. "Sorry," she gave a sheepish smile. "But, hey, trying, that's good news, that's… well… yay!" she whispered.

"Yeah," Lucas laughed on. "We're not exactly telling though, so…"

"Oh, they can't drag it out of me no matter what they try," Sophie swore.

Inside the house, the progress in getting everything done before the tree arrive was somewhat impeded by the boys' presence. Elliott and Noah weren't the problem themselves, but then their parents' friends, forever known to them as uncles and aunts, would find it difficult not to want to play with them, to see what they'd say or do, and this would lead to them losing track of what they were supposed to be doing for a little while. Eventually, one of them would realize they'd trailed off again and they'd point it out, which would get them back to work for a little while, but this only ever worked so long before they'd lose themselves again.

"Now, Maya," Asher addressed her even as he had Elliott halfway climbed on to his back and he worked to ensure he wouldn't fall. "You're their mother, so it's up to you, but I think Dylan and I would really need to know what's the… youngest age bracket for horse races," he informed her, even as Dylan showed instant curiosity.

He had Noah stood next to him, as he sat on the ground, and as he would take out the stockings and check them over, his helper would look on. As soon as one of the stockings would be put on the low table before him, Noah would reach down and feel at the thing, trace his little fingers along the letters stitched on the front. He couldn't read, couldn't know they were the names of his family, but it didn't matter. He was intrigued by these great big socks.

"Funny, neither one of you asked for permission when it was my little sisters you were giving rides to," Nadine 'accused,' before turning to Maya. "They started doing it almost as soon as I brought them home the first time. Marley would have been six, Michaela four."

"Yeah, but we were kids ourselves, what did we know?" Asher reminded her as a defense.

"Alright, then definitely not before that," Maya chuckled, more so as the two guys shared a look, then looked to Elliott. Maya cleared her throat and they now looked to Noah.

"Aww, man," Dylan sighed in disappointment. His hat slipped off his head in the process, and Noah crouched to retrieve it and give it to him. "Thanks, bud," it made him smile and, rather than simply placing it back on his head, he let the thing flip in the air above him before ducking his head just in time for it to land in place.

Noah was instantly impressed, and Elliott came down from Asher's back at once, the better for him to try and do the same with his own hat. It didn't work so well, and it kept falling to the floor, but he kept trying, much to the others' encouragement. They were definitely not going to be ready when the tree arrived.

It wasn't so much of a delay, not once the four from outside came along and pitched in. It might have been an even bigger delay if Ray hadn't – by his own admission – gotten caught up in Zay and Riley's antics. But the result was just as they would have hoped. They had a great tree, and soon it was placed in the living room, the better for them to start decorating it. They may not all have been 'needed' in the effort, but any of them would say how much fun they'd had that day, being together all of them and the little Friars. Maybe it was having the children in their midst, but it had felt like dipping back into their old days and that… that meant so much. It was the perfect way for them to kick off the Christmas season.

TO BE CONTINUED

See you next week! - mooners