A super belated post of the story I wrote back in December for the White Collar Holiday Grab Bag and set somewhere in season 1.
Written for prompt #23 - Santa's helpers.
I don't own White Collar any of its characters.
...
Title: (Have Yourself) A Merry Little Christmas.
Neal frowned as soon as he heard knocking on the door. It wasn't Mozzie, he could tell that much by the lack of an elaborated and distinctive pattern, but neither did it sound like Peter or June, or even any of the maids. He could only hope his unexpected visitor wasn't also an unpleasant one. It has been known to happen.
When he opened the door, it was to find Elizabeth Burke on the other side. She was all bundled up in a large coat to abate the cold, a stylish woolen hat, and warm gloves completing the attire. She was also holding a small potted tree hugged to her chest and held a couple of shopping bags in her free hand.
"Elizabeth! Hi!"
"Hey, Neal," El greeted with a bright smile. "Do you mind-?"
"Of course! Here, let me," Neal said, shaking off his surprise and moving to help out. The sweet scent of pine filled his nostrils as soon as he took the potted tree from her. Elizabeth was an unexpected but definitely not unpleasant visitor.
"Thanks."
"No problem. Come in." Neal stepped aside to let Elizabeth in and closed the door behind her. He did his best to hold back his curiosity as he followed her.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," El said as she looked at the documents spread at one end of the table.
"You aren't," Neal reassured her. "I was going over information on our latest case."
Elizabeth nodded, giving him a smile that looked almost amused before turning to put her bags on a free space on the table. She took back the tree and put it there as well.
"I see you went shopping today," Neal prompted, putting on a bright smile to hide his puzzlement.
"I did." El pulled out a chair and sat down with a sigh. "It's a good thing I like shopping or it would have been a total nightmare."
Neal grimaced in sympathy. "That bad?"
"Worse. You would not believe how packed the stores are. I felt like I was doing last-minute Christmas shopping."
"Peter didn't go with you, I take it?"
El snorted. "As if. You know I love Peter, but that man was not made for shopping. He hates all shopping, but Christmas especially."
Neal chuckled. He did know that.
"Can I get you anything?" He asked politely. "I have some mulled wine and cookies I baked yesterday."
"That's very tempting, but I have an appointment with a client in thirty," El said after checking her watch. "Rain check?"
"Of course." Neal was dying to ask why she came all the way here in the first place but didn't. He had manners. Neal offered her a charming smile instead. "Do you want some help getting all this down?"
El looked back at the tree and bags. "Oh, this is for you, actually."
"Me?"
"Peter told me you didn't have a Christmas tree up yet, so I brought you one. And some decorations as well." Hesitance crossed El's face a second late. "I probably should have asked first, but then it wouldn't have been a surprise."
"It's fine," Neal said quickly. "I- You didn't have to do this."
"I know. I wanted to," El reassured him with a warm smile. "I know June's gorgeous tree is just downstairs, but I figured it would be nice for you to have a small tree here as well to light up the place.
"You can think of it as a thank you for all the cards and gifts you sent us over the years," She added.
Neal offered her a gentle, but genuine mile time time. "It's perfect. Thank you."
Peter took a step into the loft and immediately came to an abrupt stop. He looked from Neal standing by the door to Mozzie sitting at the table and back again as his brain worked to make sense of what he was seeing.
It seemed today Neal had exchanged his fancy suits for a red sweater with a brightly adorned Christmas tree on the front, while Mozzie was sporting a deep green sweater with a smiling cartoon reindeer. The strange sight made him feel like he had just stepped into the twilight zone.
"Did I miss the memo about the new dress code?" Peter asked with a wide grin as he walked farther inside.
"Ha! As if you cared about any kind of dress code, Suit."
He glared at the little man, but El's voice in the back of his mind made him bite back a snappy retort. Peter decided to ignore him, turning his attention back to Neal with a silent question clear on his face.
Neal rolled his eyes as he sat back at the table but answered anyway. "Samantha gave us early Christmas presents."
"Samantha?"
"June's lovely granddaughter," Mozzie supplied, putting his glass of wine back on the table. "You assisted us in getting her name back on the donors' list and stopping that evil swindler who tried to con June not too long ago."
Peter opened his mouth to say something about glass houses and throwing stones but stopped himself. Even among criminals there were categories, and Neal and Mozzie didn't belong anywhere near that crooked doctor playing with people's lives.
"Right. Samantha." Peter gave a cursory look at the table and the Scrabble board on it. Along with the game, there was also a big dictionary, a bottle of what he was sure was some fancy wine, and two half-filled glasses.
It probably would have been a good idea to call before inviting himself over.
"Shall we now learn the reason for your untimely visit, Suit?"
Peter ignored Mozzie's question. "That doesn't explain why you're wearing the sweaters."
"Samantha and her parents are coming later today, and we wanted to show our appreciation for the gifts," Neal explained, looking down at his sweater. "Honestly, it could have been worse- a lot worse. Thankfully, June went shopping with her, so she helped keep things pretty tame."
"That's good," Peter commented, shifting awkwardly on his feet. He silently cursed the call that dragged El away from home and prompted him to drive here.
"Why don't you join us for a game?" Neal suggested brightly, quickly turning to address Mozzie next. "We'll put ours on hold. I'm sure June has another game downstairs."
"Fine," Mozzie huffed after a moment. He reached for the bottle and topped up his glass of wine.
Peter watched the exchange with a hesitant expression. He wasn't looking forward to going back to an empty house just yet, but he had a feeling getting involved in a game with Neal and Mozzie may not be the best idea.
"I'm in," he announced, earning a bright grin and a sigh from the two con men. This should be an interesting evening.
Neal watched out of the corner of his eye as Jones approached and immediately schooled his face into a pleasant expression.
He was still in the bullpen along with everyone else, but with Peter busy talking with Hughes and a couple of agents from another division, he decided to step back for a little while. Neal really hoped Peter hadn't put Jones in consitting duties for the duration of the party.
"Hey, Caffrey," Jones greeted with a slightly loopy smile on his face and a paper cup in his hand.
"Jones."
"How are you liking your first office Christmas party?"
"Who says it's my first?" Neal asked with an impish little grin.
Jones chuckled good-naturedly, prompting a real smile from him in response.
"It's a different experience for sure, but not in a bad way," Neal replied with a smooth shrug. He couldn't say he didn't miss his usual high-class events full of rich food and even richer people, but this wasn't too bad. "Though the drinks could be better."
"Can't disagree with that," Jones said, frowning down at his cup. "But yeah, this is nice. I'm not much of a party guy myself, but I always enjoy them."
"Cheers to that." Neal raised his own cup filled with cheap wine and a moment later Jones did the same.
They fell into a comfortable silence as they watched the many people around them.
"You got any plans for Christmas, Caffrey?"
"June was kind enough to invite me to her family celebration." Neal still wasn't sure if he was going to accept or not, but he decided to leave out that part. No need to turn this into a pity party, or something worse. "What about you? Big plans?"
"Yeah. I'm using my vacation time to go home to see the folks for a bit. Eat lots of delicious homemade food while I'm there," he added with a grin.
Neal marveled for a moment at the fact that, for the first time in his life, he was surrounded by absurdly normal people. People who were content with a simple office party and making plans to meet with family for the holidays-
Not that there was anything wrong with that, of course. He just had a hard time sometimes believing any of it was real.
"Having fun?" Peter asked, having appeared at Neal's side without him noticing.
Neal hid his surprise behind a charming smile. "Lots of fun. I was just telling Jones I can't believe I spent my whole life without experiencing an office party until now."
"That so?"
Jones looked from Neal to Peter in amusement. "Something like that, yeah."
Neal and Jones shared a smile. Peter eyed them for a moment before shaking his head also with a smile on his face.
"I think this is the last one," Neal announced, putting the box down on the floor. Most of June's usually spotless living room was now filled with cardboard boxes marked as Christmas decorations. A few were already open but still unpacked.
"Thank you for helping an old woman out, dear."
He shook his head. "No thanks needed. You know I'm always happy to help."
"I know you are." June gave him a warm smile, and he answered in kind.
Neal learned a few days ago that while June hired people to take care of the exterior Christmas decorations, she had a more hands-on approach inside, with the help from her family and staff, of course. He had been quick to offer his assistance along with Mozzie's, which June accepted gracefully.
Moz hadn't been particularly thrilled with the idea, but the promise of a good bottle of wine and the reminder they were doing it for June won him over in the end. Neal, on the other hand, was excited from the start. It had been far too long since he took part in the old tradition of putting up actual Christmas decorations, and he was looking forward to it.
"Oh," June said softly, dragging Neal's attention back. "These were the first ornaments Byron and I brought when we finally had a place to call our own."
Neal sat at June's side and looked down at the three bulb-shaped baubles nested in the box. The bright colors were a little faded now, and the hand-painted details had a few chips, but they were still beautiful and well loved.
"The rest ended broken at some point or another, but I saved these." She touched the golden bauble almost reverently. "Byron loved Christmas. Always had. Sometimes I couldn't be sure who enjoyed the holidays more if the children or him."
"I wish I could have met him." It wasn't the first time the thought crossed Neal's mind, but it was true all the same.
"I have no doubt he would have loved that," June assured him, putting a hand on his arm and squeezing gently.
Neal smiled brightly, warmed by the words.
June put the box carefully away after a moment and looked back at him with an amused smile. "Do you suppose Mozzie might have gotten lost on his way to the kitchen?"
Neal held back a grimace. At least he knew Moz was hiding away somewhere to avid the work rather than poking around where he shouldn't. Or so he hoped.
"I should go check on him."
"You do that, dear," June replied, amusement clear in her tone.
Peter had to do a double take when he stepped out of his office, empty coffee cup in hand.
Yep, he wasn't seeing things. There was a red and white candy cane stuck in Jones' mouth. A quick look around the bullpen showed him an intern eating a bar of what looked like chocolate.
Peter's gaze went immediately to Neal's desk. The conman was busy working on something, but he must have felt Peter's eyes on him because he looked up a second later and offered him a blinding smile.
Rather than head to the kitchenette as he had planned, Peter continued to Neal's desk. He saw a few candy canes on a couple of desks along the way.
Besides the already familiar Socrates' bust, a pen holder was now adorned with a gold ribbon and filled with candy cane and what he assumed were chocolate bars in red and white wrappers.
"Hey, Peter. What's up?"
"You brought candy to the office?" Peter asked with a pointed look at the repurposed pen holder.
"No. I brought homemade holiday treats to share with our hard-working coworkers," Neal corrected facetiously as he leaned back in his chair.
Peter gave him a look. "If Reese sees this-"
"Actually, Agent Hughes already stopped by," Neal commented with a charming smile. "The man has a big sweet tooth, I was pleased to discover."
Peter looked in the direction of his boss' office with a frown. That was certainly a surprise.
"Peter," Neal said slowly, barely contained amusement clear in his voice. "Are you mad because I didn't offer you any?"
Peter's frown deepened as he turned back to glare at Neal. He didn't deny anything, though. Why would he need to deny something that ridiculous? Neal's answering grin let him know that was a mistake.
"Here," Neal said as he got up from his chair, grabbing a handful of candy canes and chocolate bars. "You can have all these."
Peter eyed the offering but didn't take them. "I'm not mad about the candy, Neal."
"I know you aren't," Neal agreed easily. "But who says no to a delicious treat? And you should definitely give a couple of them to Elizabeth as well. June and I made them this weekend."
He hesitated for a moment longer before finally grabbing them. El did love candy.
"Let me know how you and El like them," Neal added with a beaming grin.
"I will," Peter agreed, flashing him a quick smile. He stood there for a moment longer before finally walking away.
Peter was back in his office, the door closed and a chocolate bar already unwrapped when he realized he had forgotten his coffee.
"Your assistance is required, mon frère," Mozzie announced as soon as he crossed the threshold, a cardboard box in his hands.
Neal looked up from the book he had been reading and gave him a wary look. "Moz-"
"Don't worry," Mozzie dismissed as he placed the box on the table and turned to face him. "It's nothing closed-minded individuals may call 'illegal', so you don't have to worry about the Suit figuring it out."
Neal almost sighed in relief. As much as he loved being involved in Mozzie's many schemes and helping him out when needed, he hated being put between a rock and a hard place now that he was working with Peter. It was a too-fine line, maintaining his friendship with Mozzie and keeping Peter from sending him back to prison.
He put his book aside and walked to Moz's side just as his friend finished taking off his coat and hanging it on the back of a chair.
"How can I help?"
Mozzie pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I need your help replying to some letters."
That explained the package of fancy stationery paper Neal spied in the box. It was far from the strangest request he had ever gotten from Mozzie, so Neal took it in stride. He didn't ask any more questions and sat down at the table, ready to follow Moz's instructions.
The package of stationery came out of the box along with thick envelopes, a handful of fountain pens, a box of pricey colored pencils, and a small pile of letters.
'To Santa' Neal read, written in a childlike scrawl on the envelope on top of the pile.
He looked at Mozzie with a puzzled expression. "I thought you didn't celebrate Christmas."
It was an understatement given the number of lectures Neal had heard over the years about corporate greed and manipulation of the masses, but he didn't want to get into all that right now.
"I don't, of course, but children obviously do." Mozzie pointed to the letters. "And I suppose there are worse things than letting young impressionable minds believe there's a mythical being who cares about them and is willing to give them presents if they are "good"."
Neal almost cracked a smile at Moz's air quotes. "Okay. I think I'm going to need more context than that."
"I made arrangements to procure gifts for children who have no one to play Santa for them," Mozzie explained after a moment's pause. "Some of them asked for things that cannot be given, hence the need for 'Santa' to write them letters."
He stared at Mozzie for a long time, deep fondness and love filling him as he was reminded one more time why Moz was his best friend. He was a certificated genius, of course, and had very useful connections everywhere- not to mention he was weird in all the right ways, but it was his big heart that had endeared him to Neal right from the start.
"You've always been good with words," Mozzie added, breaking the silence. "I figured you could find a way to, you know. Make it better."
Neal knew Moz wouldn't appreciate praise or any fuss about this good deed, so he focused on what was needed from him: Pen some letters in Santa's name. He could do that. No problem.
He felt a pang in his chest when he looked down at the letters he would be replying to. This wasn't going to be fun or easy, but it had to be done. He turned back to Moz with a determinate expression on his face.
"Alright, then. Let's get to work."
...
A/N: I have to admit I cheated a little bit since I joined the Grab Bag only after I had already decided to write a 5+1 Holiday fic and even had started writing a couple of parts. I wanted to join before that, but I wasn't confident I could come up with something good and on time for whatever prompt I was given. Not having the pressure of writing a whole fic but rather part of one helped a lot. Also, I have no idea how well this fits with the canon timeline, but I hope you enjoyed this anyway.
I want to give a huge thank you to the people running the Operation More White Collar account for organization this event one more time!
Title is, of course, from the song of the same name.
This is unbetaed and I'm not a native speaker, so please feel free to point out any mistake you may find.