"Felicitations of the festive season!" crowed Commodore Norrington as his junior officer entered the room where Christmas celebrations were in full swing.

"Indeed, sir. Merry Christmas to you too, sir," Lieutenant Gillette responded cautiously.

Norrington laughed and threw an arm about the startled young man's shoulders. "Don't be such a stick-in-the-mud, Gillette! It's Christmas Day, we're not on duty, and Sparrow is languishing in London. Here," he thrust his tankard before the other man's face, "have some punch!"

Gillette blinked, leaning back in surprise from the waft of alcoholic fumes. As he did so he caught sight of his colleague, Lieutenant Groves, burying a smirk in his own tankard of 'fruit' punch. Norrington waved the tankard under Gillette's nose again, "No?" he withdrew the offer and took a swallow himself.

"If I might be excused, sir, I need to speak with Lieutenant Groves." Gillette attempted to tactfully extricate himself from his superior officer's embrace.

"Certainly, Gillette!" Norrington gave him an encouraging nudge between the shoulder-blades, causing him to stumble as he stepped away, "Make sure you pick yourself up some refreshments!"

"Indeed, sir. Thank you, sir." Gillette hurried across to his fellow young lieutenant, who looked in pain from holding back laughter at the thunderous expression of his newly-arrived friend. "I take it this is your influence, Groves," he declared stiffly.

The tension in Groves' face leaked away as his brown eyes softened to pity for his friend, so obviously bound by social regulations. "Gillette, he won't come to any harm."

Gillette faced him with stony-faced resolute silence and Groves sighed.

"I wasn't going to let it get out of hand, I promise you," the younger man begged for understanding, "I just wanted him to be able to relax—and look! He is!" Groves nodded to where the Commodore stood, animatedly explaining something to the baffled Governor, "I don't see what you have against it, Gillette."

"It's undignified." Gillette executed a turn as sharp as his reply and strode across the hall to rescue his superior from any further humiliating display of uncharacteristic behaviour.

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Read the sequel, Resolution.