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[pere_noel]

It was Christmas Day, and in the world of Saint Nick, that meant only one thing: making sure that every girl and boy got their piece of holiday cheer. Nick'd been hard at work for weeks now, using his time on the island not only to acquaint himself with the people but also to craft enough gifts to ensure everyone had a happy holiday. It might not

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[savedthatjaffa]

Carolyn was thinking about Christmas, which happened to be her birthday, but mostly, she was thinking about her grandfather. Every year up until he died, she could remember the box he'd brought. Origami paper. Thousands of sheets of it, all different colors, all different textures, some very large, some small. He'd always give her just enough to last until the next year, just enough to keep her fingers quick.

"Fold me a hawk!" he'd say. "Quicker, Carolyn. No, too big. I want a baby one. The tiniest you can make." And she'd make him a hawk the size of a postage stamp. He asked for smaller every time. The best she'd been able to do was a half-postage stamp, and he'd clapped and showered her with praise. When she got very, very good at that, he taught her how to fold palm sized dragons out of very large squares of paper. The detail (every scale, every claw) had blown her away

[pere_noel]

"I am very much real," Nick assured her, encouraging her to come and sit with him on this Christmas Day. "And I expect, if your grandfather would have loved to see me, then I would have loved to see him as well. As I am very happy to see you. Milk and cookies?"

[savedthatjaffa]

Lam smiled and found herself a seat. Christmas had long been an empty holiday filled with meaningless commercialism and the empty spot in her father's armchair. Truly, it was for that reason alone why she'd never found much comfort in the holiday. But there was a quiet sort of hope, here.

"I think milk and cookies sounds perfect," she said. "It's not every day you sit with the real Santa Claus. I always thought that in some reality somewhere there had to be a real Santa Claus. Usually, my grandfather played the part. He used to give me thousands of sheets of beautiful origami paper as a child, just enough to last me the year. I learned how to fold all sorts of complicated things, and I've never lost the touch."

She snagged a cookie and nibbled on it.

"I never missed him more than the first Christmas after he passed."

[pere_noel]

"But it's good that you have such happy memories of your Christmases together," said Nick kindly. Christmas was always a time for family - both the ones you were born with and the ones you made - but the flipside of that was that the holiday often made you feel the loss more keenly. "Would you like to fold me something now? I don't have any special paper, but I bet the bookshelf would at least give us something to work with."

[sgmitchell]

Somehow, in the sudden shift from the week of heat to the month of cold, Cameron had all but forgotten about the would-be Santa he'd helped to the Compound. In fact, he might not have recognized the guy if he weren't still wearing the same suit.

One that was, today, perfectly justified.

Cameron offered the man a slim smile, one hand in his pocket. "You feelin' better?"

[pere_noel]

"I'm certainly happier with the weather," admitted Nick, though once he got out of his suit and got into something more appropriate, the short, sunny vacation he'd enjoyed on the island wasn't anything to complain about. "Merry Christmas!"

[sgmitchell]

He'd probably be, too, if he'd arrived when the guy had. As it was, he was ready for normal island weather to return any day now. It was one thing to be temperate enough to let him wear the leathers he'd arrived in. Forcing him to bundle up like an SG-marshmallow was overdoing it.

"Merry Christmas, man. Good to hear you're handlin' the weather better." He gestured toward the man with a nod. "Great suit, by the way."

[pere_noel]

"It's always been my favourite," said Nick. It certainly was the brightest, of the many he'd donned over the years. "Would you like to join me for some milk and cookies? Or if you'd rather, I'm sure there's tea and coffee in the kitchen."

[midgar_flowers]

With all of the snow, and all of the things she had busied herself with over the month, the thoughts of Trance's promised 'Christmas' were all but forgotten, until today.

A special day that even the island itself observed. That seemed like an exciting prospect. That she'd never been involved in anything similar before simply made it all the more interesting to go and explore.

She'd finally made her way to the Compound and its rec room, when she saw an older man dressed in something bright and pretty.

"Hello there." She smiled brightly, wandering over to where he sat. "You look nice with red."

[pere_noel]

"Well, thank you," said Nick, looking down at his traditional outfit admiringly. "I have to admit, it's one of my favourites. Merry Christmas! Would you like to join me for some treats? I've good cookies, and I believe there's just enough milk left for two."

[midgar_flowers]

She very much liked the colors red and white. Perhaps the clothing box would offer her something similar if she asked it to. She nodded quickly, and grinned over at the man. "Merry Christmas! It's my first time." She nodded again, in belated reply to his question. "If you want to share. Whomever makes the cookies here is very good."

[pere_noel]

"There's never a time when I'm not happy to share," insisted Nick, offering her a seat. "So it's your first Christmas, is it? Tell me, what do you think of it so far?"

[polly_okeefe]

I emerged from the kitchen to see Saint Nicholas standing there, in the rec room, and I hadn't hung up my stockings with care.

Okay, that's enough puns for the day. I stepped out, setting the dish rag aside. "Hello... er... Mr. Claus," I said. "I'm glad the weather finally cooperated for you." Even if it nearly gave me a heart attack on the first day of snow.

[pere_noel]

"I'm certainly more comfortable," Nick had to admit. It wasn't just his clothing that gave him trouble in the hot weather; he was also quite the large man. "And a Merry Christmas to you!"

[polly_okeefe]

"And a Merry Christmas to you too, sir," I said, smiling. "Given out many presents today?"

[pere_noel]

"Oh, a few here and there," said Nick with a fond smile. "Lots of good boys and girls on this island this year. I'm glad I was prepared."

[bernicesurprise]

Benny made a quick stop in the kitchen to grab whatever breakfast-y type food she could find that didn't require any additional preparation. As she bit into the muffin, she said a silent thank you to whomever the mystery baker was. It was absolutely delicious. Walking, bleary eyed, into the rec room she immediately saw that someone had taken the spirit of the old Earth holiday rather seriously. She couldn't tell who was in the costume, but whomever it was, they'd really gone all out. The beard looked shockingly realistic.

As she made her way past him, she smiled. "So, Santa. You wouldn't happen to have a bottle of single-malt in that sack for me? I've been a good girl this year," she added with a wink.

[pere_noel]

"I'm sure you have," said Nick kindly, "but I'm afraid my manufacturing facilities on the island aren't what they were back home. I have to say, I wouldn't have minded a quick nip myself, once my duties here are complete. Would you settle for milk and cookies?"