[Castle] "The First Gift of Christmas" (PG-13)
Author's Note: Written for 
fic_promptly's Author's choice, author's choice, surprise!. Featuring Castle, Beckett and Alexis with a Christmas surprise...
"I've got a surprise for you when I come home," Alexis had said, when she called home a few days before she was to arrive for Christmas break.
"She wouldn't tell me what kind of surprise it could be," Castle related, to Beckett the next day, as they sat in the precinct, Beckett filling out some exciting paperwork dealing with the current case, Castle sitting at the desk opposite hers.
"It's a surprise, Castle, it's not for you to know until she wants to unveil it," she replied patiently. "Much as I know how you like to shake your presents to see what's in them, this is one time you don't get to guess."
"You don't think it's something she doesn't want me to know, do you? I'm her father, she's shared everything with me, till now," he says. Then with a genuine (if dramatic) gasp of horror, he said, eyes wide as he leaned across the desk, "You don't think she's having a baby, do you? It's a father's worst fear, finding out his little girl is having a little girl. Or...boy."
Beckett glared at Castle. "I find that highly unlikely that she'd keep something *that* big from you, much less keep it from you as a Christmas surprise."
"You're sure about that? she hasn't been calling or skyping me as much as I'd hoped. Maybe she's been busy with her baby-daddy -- err, boyfriend," he stumbled.
Beckett sighed, with haggard patience. "Castle, knowing Alexis, she's been busy knocking the books, not knocking boots. Pull yourself together and start spinning some strange theory about these Santa slayings..."
Ryan or Esposito must have overheard Castle's maunderings: a Santa hat with "Grandpa's First Christmas" embroidered on the white fur trim showed up on Castle's chair, and then a coffee cup with "#1 Granddad" turned up next to the cappuccino machine. This did nothing to soothe Castle's jangling nerves.
Finally, the fateful day arrived: Castle hovered by the window of his apartment, watching for Alexis's cab to pull up. She'd begged him not to meet her at the train station. Or at the door. He tried to see if he could glimpse any tell-tale bulges under her coat as she got out and entered the building, but she moved too quickly for him to catch anything suspect.
A moment later, someone knocked at the door. He ran to answer it.
"Hey there, dad, Merry Christmas!" Alexis stood outside the door, suitcase in hand, a minute, fluffy Pomeranian peeking out of the neck of her coat.
"Hey there, and who's this?" he said, eyeing the weensy dog.
"This is the surprise I told you about: this is Queequeg," Alexis said, scritching the doggy's ears.
"Queequeg, eh?" he said, holding his hand out to the doggy to sniff. The little pup leaned his snoot closer, sniffing, then licked Castle's fingers. "You didn't get him when your neighbor died suddenly, did you?"
"Nope, my roommate's mother's dog had puppies and she let us keep one," she said.
"Well, then, I guess I'll have to find a crib -- err, a nice little doggy bed for this little guy," he said. Alexis gave him an odd look, but said nothing; something about that look suggested he'd have some 'splaining to do...
fic_promptly's Author's choice, author's choice, surprise!. Featuring Castle, Beckett and Alexis with a Christmas surprise...
"I've got a surprise for you when I come home," Alexis had said, when she called home a few days before she was to arrive for Christmas break.
"She wouldn't tell me what kind of surprise it could be," Castle related, to Beckett the next day, as they sat in the precinct, Beckett filling out some exciting paperwork dealing with the current case, Castle sitting at the desk opposite hers.
"It's a surprise, Castle, it's not for you to know until she wants to unveil it," she replied patiently. "Much as I know how you like to shake your presents to see what's in them, this is one time you don't get to guess."
"You don't think it's something she doesn't want me to know, do you? I'm her father, she's shared everything with me, till now," he says. Then with a genuine (if dramatic) gasp of horror, he said, eyes wide as he leaned across the desk, "You don't think she's having a baby, do you? It's a father's worst fear, finding out his little girl is having a little girl. Or...boy."
Beckett glared at Castle. "I find that highly unlikely that she'd keep something *that* big from you, much less keep it from you as a Christmas surprise."
"You're sure about that? she hasn't been calling or skyping me as much as I'd hoped. Maybe she's been busy with her baby-daddy -- err, boyfriend," he stumbled.
Beckett sighed, with haggard patience. "Castle, knowing Alexis, she's been busy knocking the books, not knocking boots. Pull yourself together and start spinning some strange theory about these Santa slayings..."
Ryan or Esposito must have overheard Castle's maunderings: a Santa hat with "Grandpa's First Christmas" embroidered on the white fur trim showed up on Castle's chair, and then a coffee cup with "#1 Granddad" turned up next to the cappuccino machine. This did nothing to soothe Castle's jangling nerves.
Finally, the fateful day arrived: Castle hovered by the window of his apartment, watching for Alexis's cab to pull up. She'd begged him not to meet her at the train station. Or at the door. He tried to see if he could glimpse any tell-tale bulges under her coat as she got out and entered the building, but she moved too quickly for him to catch anything suspect.
A moment later, someone knocked at the door. He ran to answer it.
"Hey there, dad, Merry Christmas!" Alexis stood outside the door, suitcase in hand, a minute, fluffy Pomeranian peeking out of the neck of her coat.
"Hey there, and who's this?" he said, eyeing the weensy dog.
"This is the surprise I told you about: this is Queequeg," Alexis said, scritching the doggy's ears.
"Queequeg, eh?" he said, holding his hand out to the doggy to sniff. The little pup leaned his snoot closer, sniffing, then licked Castle's fingers. "You didn't get him when your neighbor died suddenly, did you?"
"Nope, my roommate's mother's dog had puppies and she let us keep one," she said.
"Well, then, I guess I'll have to find a crib -- err, a nice little doggy bed for this little guy," he said. Alexis gave him an odd look, but said nothing; something about that look suggested he'd have some 'splaining to do...