AN: So, the first section isn't exactly a cheerful Christmas Eve but I promise by the time we get back to hamilton and Jack's birthday it is a happy afair. Well, except one little comment from Jack...

Why does it seem like I get these guys to Hamilton and it always takes more chapters to tell that part of the story then I intended? LOL! Still I hope you all enjoy!

So far, this was probably the bleakest holiday season that Robert could remember. Even the year his parents were worried about his mother's pregnancy wasn't quite this bad. At least he had been surrounded by people he could share his worries with, even if he hadn't wanted to add to his parents' concerns. Thoughts of that Christmas brought to mind his little sister Sarah. The precocious soon to be six-year-old had pleaded to be allowed to come with him when he had left Hope Valley for Fort St. John. Sarah had run into the house and slammed the door when he told her that she couldn't. That had only made it harder to leave home, but it was the choice he had made. After hugging his parents one last time, Robert had mounted his horse and set off. He had looked back several times to see his parents waving at him, his mother's eyes shining with tears.

Robert had only let tears come to his own eyes once he knew he was beyond the farms of anyone he knew in Hope Valley. He thought his time at Depot would have cured him of home sickness. It hadn't, and now with Christmas upon them, he could feel it settling in again. The package from home had helped lift his spirits some. His mother had sent cookies, fudge, and candied nuts that he was sharing with his fellow Mounties. His sister had sent a homemade card and there was a wrapped package that Robert was practicing the self-discipline they had tried teaching during the Academy by not opening that gift before Christmas Day. So far, he had been successful.

Adding to the bleakness was their most recent task.

The trapper had been due to come home the day before, having promised to spend Christmas with his wife and kids. As the day went on and the man didn't show up, his wife sought out the Mounties. With his wife describing where his cabin was and what territory his trap line covered, Sgt. Delaney promised the wife they would set out to look for the man. Not wanting to risk checking the trapline in the dark, his plan was for them to go to the man's cabin to see if he had simply been delayed or lost track of time. If the man was not at the cabin, the four Mounties would split up and search for the man at first light.

The search had not been necessary.

As the four of them had gone there. No smoke rose from the cabin. Expecting an empty cabin, Corporal Andy Gillis knocked on the front door while the rest of them stayed on their horses. Sitting in the saddle, Robert could tell that his training officer was uneasy. The sergeant's horse had shifted nervously, picking up on his rider's mood.

Robert realized Shaun knew something wasn't quite right, though the how remained a mystery to him.

"You paying attention?"

The question from LaMech brought Robert out of his thoughts and to his present task - monitoring the count with the trading post owner of the pelts they had brought back along with the dead body of the trapper.

"Sorry," Robert replied.

"First dead body you deal with?" LaMech asked, his tone softening just slightly.

Robert nodded.

"Infected wounds like that are a horrible smell," LaMech stated, his tone as conversational as though he was talking about the weather.

The trapper had already been dead when they had gotten to the cabin. The smell from the infected wound had wafted into the yard the moment Gillis had opened the door. The corporal had stepped back from the door, gagging even as the other three had caught a whiff of the smell. The odor of death had made the horses nervous, but for Robert, it had been too much. Slipping from his horse, he had gone toward the bushes to lose his supper in.

"Ya loss yer grub, didn't ya?" LaMech asked.

Robert felt his cheeks grow warm but didn't reply. Not that he needed to. His reaction to the question was all the confirmation the trader had needed.

"Ya not the first, kid nor will ya be the last with that reaction," the trader replied. "Horrible time of the year for this to happen," the man commented before returning back to his tally of the pelts so the proper payment could be given to the wife of the dead trapper.

Robert couldn't agree with that last sentiment more. Instead of staying the night at the cabin as planned, Sgt. Delaney had instructed his men to create a travois to haul the body and the pelts in the cabin back to the settlement. The sergeant himself had taken care of the task of preparing the body for travel, tying a handkerchief over his nose and mouth before entering the cabin.

Taking Robert with him, Sgt. Delaney had made notification to the wife upon returning to the settlement despite the late hour. Though Depot had tried to prepare them for the task, Robert found that the real situation was nothing like going over possible scenarios with the instructors. He was thankful that at least this time, all he had to do was stand behind his training officer and observe. That had been hard enough.

Pushing the memory aside, Robert returned to his task at hand. When the count was done and LaMech had given him the money to be turned over to the wife, the young Mountie made his way to the office. Elias and Shaun were sitting at the room's two desks. Both men looked up from their paperwork at the sound of his entrance.

"Here is the money for Mr. Hardgrove's widow," Robert said, walking up to Shaun's desk and turning over the envelope.

"Thank you," Shaun said, taking the money. "I will take it over to her when I finish the paperwork. Maybe cut some firewood for her. The pile looked low last night."

"Andy and I took care of it this morning," Elias told him.

"Good," Shaun replied. "Dr. Garvey says from the looks of how far the infection had set in the injury occurred a week ago. He says it was an ax cut. Hardgrove either wasn't up to the task of trying to make it into town or he chose not to. There were still bullets in his pistol which tells me he didn't try firing the weapon to get anyone's attention. He probably thought he could treat the cut himself and then the infection set in."

"Just goes to show you pride and stubbornness can be deadly things," Elias said.

"Anything else you need me to do, sir?" Robert asked, uncomfortable with the conversation.

Robert felt Shaun's gaze scrutinizing him as he waited for an answer. "I don't think so. Elias and I will finish the paperwork and then I will deliver the money. Andy is on call the rest of the day, you and I have tomorrow morning, and Elias will cover tomorrow afternoon," he said, reminding everyone of the modified scheduled he had implemented to give them all a little off duty time for the holiday. "I put another letter from that Ally girl in the cabin. Why don't you take care of your stall chore and go and read it?"

Robert nodded and turned to go.

"Oh, and Robert," Shaun called.

"Yes sir?" Robert asked turning back to his training officer.

"When you're ready to talk about this, come find me. If you don't, I will come find you. This isn't an incident a young Mountie should internalize and try to ignore."

Robert felt a bit of relief. Though he wasn't ready to talk yet, he was glad for the affirmation that he wasn't expected to deal with this on his own. "Yes, sir," Robert acknowledged before leaving the office and making the short walk to the Mountie stables.

Walking into the barn, he found Andy already working on mucking out the stalls.

"I was just coming to do that," Robert said, stopping just inside the stables.

Andy looked up as he put a shovel full of old straw and manure into the nearby wheelbarrow.

"I got it today," Andy told him. "Consider it my gift to you. Go get some rest. You look like you didn't sleep last night."

"I got a little sleep," Robert replied.

"Figured as much," Andy said. "Want to talk about anything?"

"Not yet?" Robert replied slowly. Part of him wanted to talk to someone but he wasn't quite sure he was ready to put anything into words.

"Fair enough," Andy said. "Go try to get some sleep then. Just know that you can talk to any of us when you're ready. We've all had calls like this before. As for getting sick at the smell, well at least you made it to the bushes. I managed to get my training officer's boots the first dead body I saw."

Robert felt a little smile come to his lips. At least he knew now he wasn't the only Mountie to have that response to a bad smell or dead body. It made him feel a little better.

"Thank you, sir," Robert said, before turning and leaving the stables. He was hoping that Ally's letter would be an upbeat one. He needed to read something cheerful right about now.

Marion sighed in frustration as her hair came tumbling down again. She couldn't understand how such an everyday task seemed so hard today. Feeling tears form in her eyes, she took a deep breath even as she reached for the nearby handkerchief, a Christmas gift from her students, to dab away the tears.

A soft knock on the door frame reminded Marion that she hadn't shut her door at the boarding room. Feeling a little embarrassed by the tears, she wished she had. Hoping her emotional state wasn't too noticeable, Marion looked toward the doorway to see her fellow teacher standing there. Eva had on a dark red, velvet dress with white lace lining every possible edge. The young woman looked quite becoming in it and Marion couldn't help but notice her hair was pinned up in a lovely up-do with shining combs that matched the color of her dress.

"Would you like some help, Ms. Stiles?" Eva asked tentatively.

The instinctive answer was to say no. Marion had spent so much time keeping to and relying on herself that encouraging friendships wasn't something she did. While most reacted to her frosty nature by leaving her be, Elizabeth hadn't. Her fellow widow and teacher had kept offering her friendship and chipping away at the wall she had built up. A chip that Harold had apparently peeked through and saw something that interested him.

Marion was finding she didn't want to be alone as much as she had once thought she did.

"I could use some help, yes," Marion admitted. "I just can't seem to get my hair to cooperate today."

"Perhaps you are nervous about seeing a certain Mountie again," Eva ventured, her voice full of hesitancy as she walked into the room.

"I also have not been to a Christmas service since Marcus passed," Marion admitted. "I fluctuate between wanting to ask God for peace and comfort and blaming him for taking my husband, though I know that Marcus' death was an accident. I didn't even go to church for the longest time and then when I started going back, it was irregular. Hope Valley not having a regular pastor has made it easy not to have people question my attendance."

Having reached the vanity Marion was sitting at, Eva reached for the hairbrush as she replied. "I couldn't imagine going through what you have but I would imagine that everyone has to figure their own way through. As in all things though, I would have to think things are easier when you let others share your walk with you," the younger woman offered as she began to brush her coworker's hair.

Marion allowed a small smile to come to her lips. "Before meeting Elizabeth, I probably would have told you that you were wrong, snatched the hairbrush and walked out of my own room," she said, her tone a bit sheepish. "Now, I want to believe that is true at least, though I am still struggling with it."

"Well, I am sure Corporal Mayne is up for helping you learn," Eva said with a giggle, putting down the hairbrush and twisting the hair into an updo.

Marion wanted to scold her younger coworker but didn't, as she hoped there was some truth to the words as well. She definitely wasn't feeling the butterflies like when she first met Marcus, but there was something endearing about the way Harold looked at her and treated her. It made her feel feminine again, instead of like the incomplete person she had since losing Marcus.

Even with the help of her mother and staff, preparation for her son's birthday had made for a busy morning. Not having Jack underfoot wanting to know what was going on, though, was a blessing. Nathan, Archie and her father had taken the two kids down to the harbor as Jack had wanted to show Nathan the big ships.

As Elizabeth walked into the kitchen, Mrs. Lynde, the Thatchers longtime cook, looked up from the food prep she was doing.

"Everything you need, including my recipe is over on that corner, dear," Ms. Lynde told her nodding toward the side counter. "If you have any questions or want my help, you just let me know."

"I will," Elizabeth replied. "Thank you for indulging me in this," she added, moving to retrieve an apron from the pegs by the kitchen door.

"Your mother never wanted you girls to know, but she used to come in here and help me bake the birthday cakes for you and your sisters," Ms. Lynde replied. "She swore me to secrecy because she thought it would ruin her image as a proper lady of society. She was always afraid of doing the decorating though."

"Mother? Really?" Elizabeth exclaimed as she slipped the apron over her head. "In retrospect, it does put her in a different light," she added as she reached behind her to tie the strings around her waist. "As for the decorating, I am going to need help with putting roses on the cake. Both Abigail and Bill have tried to teach me, but they just never look right."

"Icing roses can be tricky. I'll see if I can teach you and if not, I will put the roses on for you. We do want the little master's cake to be just right."

Elizabeth nodded, though she had a feeling just getting a cake today would make her son's day.

Moving to the counter, Elizabeth started to arrange things to her liking as she prepared to start making a birthday cake for her son.

By one o'clock everyone had returned to the house and things were prepared for the dinner party to celebrate Jack's birthday. Elizabeth's attempts at getting Jack to wear a tie fell through though. The boy, happily dressed up in his "church clothes," had already been protesting the tie, but when both Nathan and Archie walked downstairs without ties, Elizabeth knew the battle was lost even before Jack said, "I want to look like Dad not Lucas."

With a sigh, Elizabeth had asked Ella to take the tie upstairs for her even as the doorbell rang. Jack gleefully ran off to help his grandmother greet their guests.

"Sorry," Nathan said as he approached his wife. "Would it help if I wore a tie more often?"

The innocent question made Elizabeth realize how insignificant a piece of cloth was in the grand scheme of things. Especially as her son would be growing up in a little western town and not attending a prep school in the city. She chuckled as she shook her head.

"No, you just be you," she told her husband, resting her hands on his chest as she faced him. "Just make sure you wear a tie to weddings and funerals. I at least want my son growing up knowing that for those functions, a tie is socially expected."

"Got it," Nathan replied, tilting his head to capture Elizabeth's lips in a quick kiss before they heard footsteps approaching.

As the two broke away, Grace led Matthew and Abbey Chastain into the room. Jack's chatter could be heard out in the corridor.

"Your son has already captured Elise's attention. She adores kids," Abbey explained, seeing Elizabeth. "How are you, dear?" she asked, giving Elizabeth a hug.

"I am well these days," Elizabeth replied as she returned the hug.

The doorbell rang again and as Grace went to answer it, Elizabeth introduced Abbey and Matthew to Nathan. Margaret and her husband Rob showed up next and introductions were made. Rob was a free-lance journalist when he wasn't helping Margaret run the café. It was then that Elise came into the room explaining that Jack had decided to show four-year-old Belle, Margaret and Rob's daughter, his toys.

"Ally went with them," Elise explained. "She seems like a fine young lady."

"That is mostly Nathan's influence," Elizabeth said, knowing that her modest husband would not claim the credit he was due.

"I've had help over the years," Nathan responded.

"All parents can say that, but it should still be the parent that has the most influence on a child," Abbey replied. "You should be proud."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Grace ushered the adults into the parlor to pass the time until they were summoned to the table for the meal.

"If you love kids so much Elise, are you involved at all with children?" Elizabeth asked after they were all settled.

"I volunteered at the hospital, spending time with the children there for a bit while I helped Margaret out at the café. The romantic in me was hoping to meet Prince Charming and marry. After a few years of living with my parents and no steady relationships, I started to think that I should do something to support myself so with the help of Mr. Montclair, I was able to get my teaching certificate. I think I would enjoy teaching if I could find a position that was truly mine. Right now, I am either helping out in a classroom or being a substitute. I know I could get a position if I wanted to go out west, but I don't think I am quite as courageous as you, Elizabeth. I could never go someplace where I knew no one."

"What if it was in a town where you at least knew someone? Do you think you consider it then?"

"Maybe," Elise said, the hesitancy clear in her voice. "Do you know of something?"

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes. My position in Hope Valley actually. There was an issue with the previous teacher, and I agreed to go back temporarily but I find I enjoyed being at home with Jack."

"Do you think they would take me?" Elise asked. "Even though it would be my first full time position?"

"Part of the agreement when I came back was that I had a say in my replacement. I would be happy to recommend you. We just need to send the school board your resume to make it official."

Elise looked to her parents.

"It is your choice, Elsie," Matthew said. "I've always told myself that I would not repeat my parents' mistake and not support my children in following their own path."

"I do like the idea of you going somewhere that you at least know someone," Abbey added.

Elise looked to Elizabeth. "Just tell me who to send the resume too, and I would be happy to do so."

"I'll make sure you have the information before you leave," Elizabeth promised just as Mrs. Lynde stepped into the room to call them all to the table.

"I sent Ella to collect the children," the cook added.

The meal was delightful. Mrs. Lynde had made foods that she knew were Jack's favorites and the boy was delighted. The conversation shifted to make sure everyone was included at some point during the meal, even the three children.

When the main meal was over and the dishes cleared, Mrs. Lynde came out with the birthday cake. The cook placed it in front of the little boy whose eyes lit up at the clusters of blue flowers and the message on the cake.

"My name is on the cake!" He exclaimed. He looked up at Mrs. Lynde. "Thank you!"

"Thank your Mama. She baked and decorated it."

"Except for the flowers," Elizabeth amended.

"You're getting better dear," Mrs. Lynde told her even as Jack threw his arms around his mother who he was sitting next to.

"Thank you, Mama," Jack said.

Elizabeth smiled as she hugged her boy. "You're welcome, my sweet boy."

"Can we eat it now?" Jack asked as he let go of his mother and looked back at the cake.

Soft laughter rippled around the table.

"How about we light the candles and sing "Happy Birthday" to you first," Nathan suggested, striking a max from the box of matches Ella had brought him.

"When the song is over, you make a silent wish and blow out the candles," Ally said.

"Okay," Jack said, watching in fascination as Nathan lit the five candles on the cake.

The little boy beamed with happiness as those gathered sang to him. As soon as the song was over, Jack blew out the candles in front of him. Elizabeth wasn't sure if he had taken the time to make a wish or not, but from the joy on his face, she had a feeling it wasn't important.