A/N: Thank Kita for this one. I felt so inspired by yesterday's post…
Christmas with the Hatakes
By: Reggie
December 8th: Santa
"Hell. No." Kakashi was floored. Flabbergasted. Horrified. A myriad of other descriptive words to describe this feeling of 'that is so wrong' screaming through the Jounin's system that he couldn't think of right now.
Guy's teeth flashed painfully, making Kakashi see spots every time he blinked, as he struck a nice guy pose. Kakashi couldn't decide if the Santa suit his friend was wearing made the look more or less effective. "Surely, Kakashi, you wish your cute daughter to have the best and most youthful Christmas possible!"
"Yes…" Kakashi wasn't sure this was a question, and less sure he wanted youthful attached to a sentence involving Sayuri's Christmas, but that seemed the only thing there was to say.
"Then you must have Santa Claus, in all his vigorous and joyful splendor," here, Guy's teeth flashed again, and it took all of Kakashi's self control not to rub his eye, "to deliver her wonderful presents!"
Guy was going to be arrested by the grammar police someday for over use of adjectives, Kakashi was sure of it. "Why? She's not going to remember it…"
This was the question Kakashi had been asking himself for days now. What was the point of all this when Sayuri wasn't going to remember?
Iruka was obviously less than comfortable with the idea of celebrating Christmas like this, and though he was going along with it there was an undercurrent of tension that hadn't been there before.
The only reason Kakashi felt like he had to do it was because of what Kurenai had said. "You have a family now, Kakashi, and this is what families do."
No one had ever put it like that before. He knew, of course, that Iruka and Sayuri were his family but no one had ever called them that before, and for some reason that made all the difference. This was something he hadn't had since he was a little boy, and it was very important that he do this right.
From somewhere in the depths of that awful suit, Guy pulled out a disposable camera and tossed it at Kakashi.
The silver-haired jounin caught it on instinct and stared at it for several minutes. "What's this for?"
"To preserve the memories of most precious youth!" Guy let slip a few manly tears before looking back at his friend. "Surely, you've been doing this all of this wonderful holiday season, my eternal rival."
"I…well…no." It wasn't often that Kakashi felt stupid, even less often when he was around Guy, but he was feeling it now. How could he not have realized such a simple solution? Sayuri may not be able to remember, but they could always show her later. Tell her about the fun stuff they did.
How ridiculous not to have thought of it before!
Guy looked far too pleased with himself about all of this. They were best friends, certainly, but they were also rivals in Guy's mind and he'd just made Kakashi look very foolish indeed and he knew it. "Then, my most esteemed rival, you must begin! Capture the fleeting moments of youth before they are whisked away by the winds of time!" Now there were many more tears, and a golden sunset on an ocean behind him. "If you do not, you will regret! I only wish I had more pictures of my cute students when they came to me, so full of the vigor of innocence and youth!"
Kakashi sweat dropped, sticking the camera in his weapons pouch beside the Icha Icha disguised baby book. He would never get used to Guy. "Taking pictures has always been Iruka's thing, but he doesn't seem very interested in this…"
The other jounin got a serious, for Guy, look on his face. It was a little creepy looking under that fluff tipped hat. "Is your beloved Iruka-sensei not a fan of Christmas, Kakashi?"
The jounin could only shrug. "Before Sayuri came a long, we largely ignored it. I mean, we exchanged gifts on the day, but didn't decorate and never actually mentioned the holiday by name."
Guy frowned, putting a hand to his face in a rather dramatic thoughtful pose. "I understand that you never did, Kakashi, but Iruka-sensei seems to be the Christmas Spirit type at the Academy. He always has me come in to play Santa for his students Christmas party."
The image of Guy, dressed as he was now, with Iruka sitting on his lap was one Kakashi could have gone lifetimes without ever envisioning, and now he firmly wished he knew a brain-washing jutsu just to be rid of it. "I don't know why, Guy, I never asked him because I didn't want him to ask me. But we have Sayuri now, and it can't just be about us." He shrugged helplessly again.
"Then it is up to Santa Claus to give your beloved some needed holiday cheer!" Guy flashed his teeth brilliantly, and threw himself into an enthusiastic pose to set off running. The affect was slightly ruined by the jiggling pillow he had tied around his middle.
"Guy, I said no!" Even if brain soap existed, Kakashi was certain there wouldn't be enough to get this horrible event out of his mind. Guy, Santa suit, it was all too much.
"But, I am the most youthful of…"
He looked so genuinely hurt that Kakashi didn't know what to do. "It's not that you're not fit for it Guy, I just…"
Kakashi fell speechless as Guy stepped back and gave him a bone-crushing hug. "Of course, my eternal rival, I understand now! You wish to play Santa for your own cute daughter! Why did I not think of it before?"
"No, that's not…"
"You may borrow my suit!" With this pronouncement Guy stepped back, and before Kakashi could make a move to stop him, had stripped down to his pillow and lime green, rather scanty, underwear.
Kakashi was sure he threw up a little in his mouth as the other Jounin shoved the red monstrosity into his hands, ignoring the stares from the traumatized passers-by. "May it serve you well in spreading joy in your time of need, Kakashi, as it has always served me!"
Guy turned and flashed the crowd a dazzling smile. Kakashi decided seeing a nice guy pose from the back was something he NEVER wanted to see again, and once he figured out how to remove that image from his mind he was going to soak the suit in oil, burn it, and scatter the ashes in different corners of the globe.