Christmas Party fic
ooc: i have used and abused many a muse (…that was bizarrely rhyme-filled) in the following passage, but I felt it was appropriate to depict something involving Christmas with the Kents. Of course, if you’d prefer this be non-binding to your muse, just let me know, it’s all cool.
It was a decidedly full house at the Kent farm on Christmas Day, filled with old friends, some new, and more holidays deocrations than could ever be justified. On the couch on the living room sat Kon and Eirene, a woefully mismatched pair. Eirene was playing the role of captive audience as Kon enthusiastically shared his many fanciful and exaggerated theories of how the spawn of a Kryptonian and a demi-god might look and act. At the kitchen table sat Clark and Lana, reminiscing about times and holidays past over a glass of homemade eggnog while, nearby the fireplace, Jonathan was entertaining Nell, who had been coerced by Lana into making an appearance. Chloe, who had shown up after spending Christmas morning with her father, sat at the bottom of the steps with Lois, looking into the kitchen, plotting and scheming as always. Kara had found her way into said kitchen after a rather dull “conversation” with Shelby and was currently using her patented puppy dog eyes to get Martha’s attention, which was focused on the gingerbread cookies she was making.
“Please, Aunt Martha,” Kara begged her in earnest. “Please let me help.”
Martha avoided eye contact with the young woman, keeping one eye on Jonathan and Nell, as she cracked another egg open into the bowl. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea, sweetheart. You’re much better at eating than you are at…cooking.”
Kara couldn’t deny she was awfully good at eating - and this made her feel oddly proud - but that wasn’t the point. “But I have to learn some time.”
Martha turned to face her, tapping Kara’s nose with a warm, playful smile. “Christmas Day, my dear, is not that time.”
Kara sighed, reaching for one of the finished products on the countertop before Martha gently slapped her hand away. “Later.”
Chloe’s eyes were fixated on those same cookies from the steps. “You see those right there on the edge?” she asked, nudging Lois’ arm. “Those are coffee-flavored.”
Lois raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Coffee cookies? Those are a thing now?”
“They’re experimental,” Chloe replied with a dismissive shrug. “She made them just for me. It’s just evil of her to make us all wait. There must be some way to get in there.”
“I don’t know, Chlo,” Lois said, shaking her head. “It’s suicide to come between Martha Kent and her kitchen.”
“Hey, we can be stealthy. Cat-like even.”
Lois had to chuckle at that. “Us? You’re kidding, right?”
“Hmph.” Chloe took a moment to pout, glancing around the immediate vicinity for ideas, when her eyes fell upon Eirene. “We should ask the goddess.”
“Think she has stealth capabilities?”
“You never know.”
In the living room, Eirene’s eyes were wide as she listened to Kon’s wild theories. “He might have wings or something, none of that cape stuff. He could be like Cupid or…other gods that have wings, you know?”
Eirene nodded and smiled politely. “Maybe.”
“You should call him, like, something-El. You know, like Hercules-El or Venus-El,” Kon suggested helpfully.
“I’m a Greek goddess,” she reminded him.
“What? Oh, those are Roman. Well. Like. Aphrodite-El or Poseidon-El or…” Kon turned toward the kitchen. “Hey, Aunt Martha!”
“Yeeeesss?” Came her sing-song reply from across the way.
“What’s the name of that Greek goddess chick with the wisdom and the fertility and hunting or whatever?”
Martha paused a second to consider. “Artemis?”
“Artemis! Right!” Kon exclaimed, turning back to Eirene. “She knows everything, seriously. Kinda freaky. She’s all like ‘woo, watch me do fractions in my head and tell you about business-y things’ and then five minutes later she’s going on about Aztecs or some crap. Crazy.” He shook his head, in an effort to illustrate just how crazy. “Anyway, so you should name your kid Artemis-El.”
Eirene nodded and smiled once more before slowly standing. “Excuse me, will you?”
“Sure,” Kon replied with a shrug, munching on some chips that had been laid out on the coffee table.
Just as Martha always kept one eye on Jonathan and Nell, Eirene’s eye was on Clark and Lana as she walked into the kitchen.
“So, are you two hoping for a girl or a boy?” Lana was asking Clark with a timid smile.
“Oh, we’re good, just as long as he or she is healthy,” Clark replied, true to form.
Lana nodded, sipping at her eggnog. “I know your mom really wants a girl. It’s all she can talk about.”
“Yeah, well, I think she’s just got her hands full with the son she already has.”
She grinned. “I bet.”
Over in the kitchen, Kara was sitting on a stool at the counter watching Martha make shapes out of the homemade dough. “I think when the baby comes, she’s just going to pop out of you with a built-in craving for gingerbread or something.”
Martha chuckled. “Not if I keep eating as I go. She’ll be downright tired of the stuff.”
“Nah,” Kara replied. “If she’s a Kent, there’s no way she’ll ever get tired of your cooking, Aunt Martha.”
“Ah…” Martha flashed her a charmed smile. “Now for that little remark, you’ve earned yourself a cookie.”
A few yards away, Chloe immediately sat up straight, her ears perked up as she watched Kara delightedly accept the cookie offered to her. “Hey!” She grabbed her cousin’s arm. “Come on.”
Just moments before, Eirene arrived in the kitchen looking a bit overwhelmed.
“What’s the matter, dear?” Martha asked with mild concern. “You’ve got that slightly baffled look on your face like you’ve just been talking to my little rascal of a nephew.”
Eirene could only sigh. “He wants us to name the baby ‘Cupid-El.’”
Both Martha and Kara broke out into a fit of knowing laughter. “That’s Kon all right,” Kara said, just as Lois and Chloe showed up.
“What’s so funny?” Lois questioned, placing her hands on her hips.
“And why does she get a cookie?!” Chloe asked, pointing at Kara, who paused mid-chew.
“Probably because she stole it,” Clark said with a mischievous grin, stepping into the rather large group that now circled the counter, with Lana in tow.
“Hey!” Kara complained, mouth still full.
Just then, Kon stuck his head in, still munching on some pretzels. “What did Kara steal? Not that I’m like, doubting it or anything.”
“Nobody stole anything,” Martha affirmed, trying to quiet down the crowd.
“Yeah, that’s because your old pal Bart isn’t here,” Jonathan said, glancing at Clark as he waltzed into the kitchen with Nell. “What’s going on in here anyway?” He moved throughthe crowd to stand beside his wife. “Are you luring in the neighborhood children with baked goods again, honey?”
“No.” Martha rolled her eyes with a smile. “Not intentionally at least.”
“Well. Looks like this is as good a time as any to make a toast then.”
Martha looked up at him in protest. “But the cookies aren’t all done and not everyone has eggnog…”
“Oh, let’s step outside the lines a little,” Jonathan replied, slipping an arm around her shoulders and kissing her forehead when she pouted at this. And so she relented, and he turned back to the crowd.
“Well, it’s been a hell of a year around these parts, hasn’t it? Engagements, weddings, babies, new relationships, new jobs, people moving in, people moving out. Things are changing now, for all of us. But theo ne thing that doesn’t change, and I pray to god it never will change, is this group right there. This little family Martha and I have somehow managed. I think about all those years ago, we thought we’d spend the rest of our lives alone on this farm with no family to speak of, and now look at us, completely surrounded by love and friendship. This is the true definition of family, and family’s what the holidays are all about. We are both so grateful to all of you, for all you’ve given us, year-round.” Finally he glanced down at Martha. “Sweetheart, you have anything to add?”
“I think ‘Merry Christmas’ ought to just about do it.”
Jonathan nodded with a grin, raising his glass. “Merry Christmas.”
They all echoed the sentiment in return, some with tears in their eyes but all smiling. When the toast was over, Martha reached for one of her experimental coffee-flavored cookies and tossed it to Chloe. All but jumping for joy, Chloe excitedly took a bite, then frowned as she swallowed it. “This is really terrible."
Martha smirked. “Yes, I thought it might be.”
+
It was a decidedly full house at the Kent farm on Christmas Day, filled with old friends, some new, and more holidays deocrations than could ever be justified. On the couch on the living room sat Kon and Eirene, a woefully mismatched pair. Eirene was playing the role of captive audience as Kon enthusiastically shared his many fanciful and exaggerated theories of how the spawn of a Kryptonian and a demi-god might look and act. At the kitchen table sat Clark and Lana, reminiscing about times and holidays past over a glass of homemade eggnog while, nearby the fireplace, Jonathan was entertaining Nell, who had been coerced by Lana into making an appearance. Chloe, who had shown up after spending Christmas morning with her father, sat at the bottom of the steps with Lois, looking into the kitchen, plotting and scheming as always. Kara had found her way into said kitchen after a rather dull “conversation” with Shelby and was currently using her patented puppy dog eyes to get Martha’s attention, which was focused on the gingerbread cookies she was making.
“Please, Aunt Martha,” Kara begged her in earnest. “Please let me help.”
Martha avoided eye contact with the young woman, keeping one eye on Jonathan and Nell, as she cracked another egg open into the bowl. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea, sweetheart. You’re much better at eating than you are at…cooking.”
Kara couldn’t deny she was awfully good at eating - and this made her feel oddly proud - but that wasn’t the point. “But I have to learn some time.”
Martha turned to face her, tapping Kara’s nose with a warm, playful smile. “Christmas Day, my dear, is not that time.”
Kara sighed, reaching for one of the finished products on the countertop before Martha gently slapped her hand away. “Later.”
Chloe’s eyes were fixated on those same cookies from the steps. “You see those right there on the edge?” she asked, nudging Lois’ arm. “Those are coffee-flavored.”
Lois raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Coffee cookies? Those are a thing now?”
“They’re experimental,” Chloe replied with a dismissive shrug. “She made them just for me. It’s just evil of her to make us all wait. There must be some way to get in there.”
“I don’t know, Chlo,” Lois said, shaking her head. “It’s suicide to come between Martha Kent and her kitchen.”
“Hey, we can be stealthy. Cat-like even.”
Lois had to chuckle at that. “Us? You’re kidding, right?”
“Hmph.” Chloe took a moment to pout, glancing around the immediate vicinity for ideas, when her eyes fell upon Eirene. “We should ask the goddess.”
“Think she has stealth capabilities?”
“You never know.”
In the living room, Eirene’s eyes were wide as she listened to Kon’s wild theories. “He might have wings or something, none of that cape stuff. He could be like Cupid or…other gods that have wings, you know?”
Eirene nodded and smiled politely. “Maybe.”
“You should call him, like, something-El. You know, like Hercules-El or Venus-El,” Kon suggested helpfully.
“I’m a Greek goddess,” she reminded him.
“What? Oh, those are Roman. Well. Like. Aphrodite-El or Poseidon-El or…” Kon turned toward the kitchen. “Hey, Aunt Martha!”
“Yeeeesss?” Came her sing-song reply from across the way.
“What’s the name of that Greek goddess chick with the wisdom and the fertility and hunting or whatever?”
Martha paused a second to consider. “Artemis?”
“Artemis! Right!” Kon exclaimed, turning back to Eirene. “She knows everything, seriously. Kinda freaky. She’s all like ‘woo, watch me do fractions in my head and tell you about business-y things’ and then five minutes later she’s going on about Aztecs or some crap. Crazy.” He shook his head, in an effort to illustrate just how crazy. “Anyway, so you should name your kid Artemis-El.”
Eirene nodded and smiled once more before slowly standing. “Excuse me, will you?”
“Sure,” Kon replied with a shrug, munching on some chips that had been laid out on the coffee table.
Just as Martha always kept one eye on Jonathan and Nell, Eirene’s eye was on Clark and Lana as she walked into the kitchen.
“So, are you two hoping for a girl or a boy?” Lana was asking Clark with a timid smile.
“Oh, we’re good, just as long as he or she is healthy,” Clark replied, true to form.
Lana nodded, sipping at her eggnog. “I know your mom really wants a girl. It’s all she can talk about.”
“Yeah, well, I think she’s just got her hands full with the son she already has.”
She grinned. “I bet.”
Over in the kitchen, Kara was sitting on a stool at the counter watching Martha make shapes out of the homemade dough. “I think when the baby comes, she’s just going to pop out of you with a built-in craving for gingerbread or something.”
Martha chuckled. “Not if I keep eating as I go. She’ll be downright tired of the stuff.”
“Nah,” Kara replied. “If she’s a Kent, there’s no way she’ll ever get tired of your cooking, Aunt Martha.”
“Ah…” Martha flashed her a charmed smile. “Now for that little remark, you’ve earned yourself a cookie.”
A few yards away, Chloe immediately sat up straight, her ears perked up as she watched Kara delightedly accept the cookie offered to her. “Hey!” She grabbed her cousin’s arm. “Come on.”
Just moments before, Eirene arrived in the kitchen looking a bit overwhelmed.
“What’s the matter, dear?” Martha asked with mild concern. “You’ve got that slightly baffled look on your face like you’ve just been talking to my little rascal of a nephew.”
Eirene could only sigh. “He wants us to name the baby ‘Cupid-El.’”
Both Martha and Kara broke out into a fit of knowing laughter. “That’s Kon all right,” Kara said, just as Lois and Chloe showed up.
“What’s so funny?” Lois questioned, placing her hands on her hips.
“And why does she get a cookie?!” Chloe asked, pointing at Kara, who paused mid-chew.
“Probably because she stole it,” Clark said with a mischievous grin, stepping into the rather large group that now circled the counter, with Lana in tow.
“Hey!” Kara complained, mouth still full.
Just then, Kon stuck his head in, still munching on some pretzels. “What did Kara steal? Not that I’m like, doubting it or anything.”
“Nobody stole anything,” Martha affirmed, trying to quiet down the crowd.
“Yeah, that’s because your old pal Bart isn’t here,” Jonathan said, glancing at Clark as he waltzed into the kitchen with Nell. “What’s going on in here anyway?” He moved throughthe crowd to stand beside his wife. “Are you luring in the neighborhood children with baked goods again, honey?”
“No.” Martha rolled her eyes with a smile. “Not intentionally at least.”
“Well. Looks like this is as good a time as any to make a toast then.”
Martha looked up at him in protest. “But the cookies aren’t all done and not everyone has eggnog…”
“Oh, let’s step outside the lines a little,” Jonathan replied, slipping an arm around her shoulders and kissing her forehead when she pouted at this. And so she relented, and he turned back to the crowd.
“Well, it’s been a hell of a year around these parts, hasn’t it? Engagements, weddings, babies, new relationships, new jobs, people moving in, people moving out. Things are changing now, for all of us. But theo ne thing that doesn’t change, and I pray to god it never will change, is this group right there. This little family Martha and I have somehow managed. I think about all those years ago, we thought we’d spend the rest of our lives alone on this farm with no family to speak of, and now look at us, completely surrounded by love and friendship. This is the true definition of family, and family’s what the holidays are all about. We are both so grateful to all of you, for all you’ve given us, year-round.” Finally he glanced down at Martha. “Sweetheart, you have anything to add?”
“I think ‘Merry Christmas’ ought to just about do it.”
Jonathan nodded with a grin, raising his glass. “Merry Christmas.”
They all echoed the sentiment in return, some with tears in their eyes but all smiling. When the toast was over, Martha reached for one of her experimental coffee-flavored cookies and tossed it to Chloe. All but jumping for joy, Chloe excitedly took a bite, then frowned as she swallowed it. “This is really terrible."
Martha smirked. “Yes, I thought it might be.”
+