"Rodney?"

The scientist paused his typing at the sound of Laura Cadman's voice.

"What do you want Lieutenant?" he snapped at her.

"I need you to look at something for me."

"Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Now, now, Rodney," she admonished. "Santa's coming to town and he won't leave anything if you're bad."

Rodney deigned to look at her, folding his arms and scowling. "Save your idiotic prattle for someone still in diapers. I don't believe in Santa Claus."

"You don't believe in anything," she retorted crossly. "You don't have the imagination."

"I have plenty, thank you. But I doubt that some fat man dressed in a bad, red-coloured outfit is going to travel through the Stargate to bring you presents, Cadman."

"Scrooge," Laura accused him.

"Whatever," he replied. "Now go away, I'm busy."

"Fine, Rodney."

She wandered off humming Jingle Bells cheerily. Rodney rolled his eyes and got back on with his work.

Of course, Rodney knew at some point he'd have to look at whatever Cadman had wanted him to. "It" happened to be her laptop, which was failing to display anything. He was trying to find out just what she'd done to it, but she seemed intent on resuming their conversation about Santa Claus.

"Maybe the Pegasus Galaxy has its own version," she mused, making him give her a pained look.

"Why would any culture in this galaxy create a folk tale about a man randomly giving out gifts? I have noticed a distinct lack of chimneys and reindeer. Plus if anyone started to wander around he'd be likely to been fed off by the Wraith. And that would go down great Christmas morning – sorry kiddies, Santa couldn't make it cos he's dead."

Cadman smacked across the back of the head. "Bastard."

"Ow!"

"Serves you right, you... you... Grinch."

Rodney rubbed his head. "Grinch?"

"Yeah. Ugly, mean creature that tried to ruin Christmas."

"I was just pointing out-"

"A complete lack of Christmas spirit," she finished for him. "I got that. What you going to come out with next? Odds against us having a white Christmas?"

Rodney opened his mouth and then shut it again as he thought better of it. Cadman had noticed though and glared at him.

"What?" she snapped.

"Nothing."

"Spit it out, McKay."

"Well," he said slowly. "It's just that it's not actually... atmospherically possible..." He stopped altogether at the expression on her face. "Hey, you asked me!"

"Get out," she said.

"But I'm not done..."

"You are now," she shouted and pointed imperiously at the door. "Out!"

Rodney saw Cadman a handful of times in the few weeks leading up to Christmas and she ignored him every time. She seemed to have taken his disbelief in a childhood tale personally, as if it were some dreadful insult. He didn't understand why his opinion had pissed her off and he wasn't sure why her being annoyed at him was concerning, but it was.

It was Christmas Eve when she finally broke the silence between them. Or more, accurately, the early hours of Christmas Day itself. Rodney had spent the day working, despite Elizabeth telling him to quite it several times. She'd finally given up on trying and he'd carried on until he could barely keep his eyes open. At which point he'd gone to bed.

He was jerked awake by cold hands worming under his t-shirt.

"Shit!"

A chuckle emerged from the darkness that sounded terribly like Cadman.

"Are you awake?" she asked.

"Cadman what in the hell are you doing in my room?"

"I wanted to show you something."

Rodney fumbled around and finally found his bedside lamp. He flicked it on and blinked in the sudden light. He experienced only the slightest disappointment in the fact that Cadman was still dressed.

"Couldn't it have waited until morning?" he asked irritably.

"No. It might have stopped."

"What? What might have stopped."

Cadman tugged the sheet out of his grasp and grabbed his wrist. "Come on; I'll show you."

She tugged on his arm until he stumbled sleepily out of bed, bemused and grumbling about her choice of hours.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"Not far," she replied, leading him to the window. "Look."

Rodney blinked the sleep from his eyes and looked out. He blinked again.

"What the hell..."

"It's snowing." There was utter smugness in Cadman's tone.

"But... but... it can't."

"Well it is."

"But we miles from the mainland; it's not geophysically possible."

"Well it is," she said again.

Rodney stared at the flakes floating past his window. He felt inexplicably irritated that not even the weather could behave in this galaxy.

"That is so wrong," he muttered. "It's just not possible. How can it do that?"

"It's a Christmas miracle, Rodney," Cadman muttered, winding an arm around his. "Let it snow."

He glanced down at the golden head rested against his shoulder. "So you've woken me up in the middle of the night just to prove yourself right?"

She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Now why would I do anything as petty as that?" she said archly. "I'm obviously spending too much time around you McKay."

"Not lately you haven't," he retorted sourly.

"Well you pissed me off," she replied. "Why? Have you missed me bugging you?"

"Don't be stupid, of course I haven't. What exactly did I say to piss you off? Surely you don't really believe in Santa Claus?"

"Of course I don't!" she snapped, then sighed. "Rodney you might want to consider I'm a billion miles from home and it's Christmas and I miss my folks. You might consider that with the threat of Wraith and Genii and God only knows what else I might have needed to maintain some Christmas spirit. It is all about hope, you know."

And at that moment Rodney felt like an utter ass.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. Then he had a thought and untangled himself from Cadman's arm. "Hang on, I can make it up to you."

"Really?" She didn't sound like she believed him and watched in bemusement as he routed through a drawer.

"Uh huh," he muttered. "Ah ha!" He pulled a CD out and waved it at her. He put it into the player and skipped through the tracks until the strains of "White Christmas" drifted through his quarters.

Cadman's expression changed to one of delight.

"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas," Rodney sang softly as he came back to the window. It was still snowing but the fact no longer annoyed him. "I'm not much of a singer really."

Cadman wound herself around his arm again. "You're doing just fine," she assured firmly. She giggled and poked him as she sang about children listening for sleigh bells. He grinned at her.

"Did you hang your stocking out, Laura?" he asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"That's why I asked."

She chuckled. "Why Doctor McKay, I do believe you're being bad. Santa won't bring you anything if you're bad."

Rodney just smiled. "I don't want anything I don't already have," he told her as he pulled her against him. She arched an eyebrow at him.

"Really? Well it's a damn good job one of us was prepared..." She dug in her pocket and her eyes sparkled again when she pulled out a sprig of plastic mistletoe.

"So did I mention what I wanted for Christmas?" Rodney asked her.

Cadman giggled. "Let me guess," she murmured and pressed her lips to his.