Christmas Sap Christmas Sap by Gilda Lily Author's website: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Gallery/8741/jmgarden.htm Disclaimer: I don't own 'em, Alliance does, more's the pity. Author's Notes: Just a little sapfest for Christmas. The title says it all. Enjoy! Story Notes: Pairing: Benny/Ray V., Elaine/Frannie. Categories: Sap. :) Challenge! Holiday! Rating: G. Warning: Extremely sappy. Monitor sugar intake. (c) December 15, 2001 This story is in answer to my Good Twin Jeannie Marie's 2001 Christmas Challenge #1: Write a story using the following traditional elements: Santa Claus Candy Canes Reindeer (extra points for Rudolph) Christmas Tree Fruitcake (Karen already did this so well! :) ) Ornament(s) Christmas Card(s) Presents Mistletoe I said ELVES, you moron! :) Any additional pairings, any rating, any genre. "There." Ray looked with satisfaction at the decorated Christmas tree as he stepped back. It stood proudly in the corner of the Vecchio living room, and the rest of his family were standing in admiration, too. Benny was beside him, and that was best of all. The children were all excited as the decoration of the Christmas tree meant that the big day wasn't that far away. Ray breathed in the fresh scent of the evergreen, then asked, "Hey, who's gonna get under there and give it its drink of water today?" "Oh, I suppose I will," Frannie grumbled, but she was happy to show off her shapely buttocks in her black Capri pants as she wiggled under the branches with the watering can. She had an appreciative audience: one dark-haired lovely by the name of Elaine. "Don't drown it, Frannie." "Oh, for cryin' out loud! I know how to do this, Ray." "Yeah, sure, and we'll end up with a Charlie Brown Christmas tree, the needles all fallin' off if you water it too much." "Speaking of blockheads..." "Children, it's Christmastime," Rosa Vecchio admonished, her dark eyes alight with joy as she presided over her family. Frannie wiggled back out from under the tree, her chestnut hair disheveled. Elaine immediately took the opportunity to smooth out the strands, and Frannie smiled, her eyes shining softly with love. Ray grinned. He was glad that his sister had finally found someone worthy of her love. Elaine couldn't have been a better match. Sometimes all you have to do is turn around to find your true love. That was certainly true for himself, as Benny had been right there all the time. All he'd had to do was turn around and see his beautiful face. He put his arm around Benny's sweater-clad shoulders, and the Canadian rested his head on Ray's shoulder. They happily gazed at the twinkling lights and delicate glass ornaments, all festooned with gold and silver garland. A gold star held the place of honor at the top of the tree. "We can't forget the candy canes!" Little Theresa ran to her parents, a small hand holding as many candy canes as she could carry. "No, we can't," Maria said solemnly, and she distributed the canes to the children and adults. "It looks like a Christmas card," Maria said when they were finished putting them on the tree. "And we've already got a zillion of those," Ray said, waving a hand toward the fireplace mantel and the mirror over the couch. Rosa declared, "Perfect." She stooped down and smiled at her grandchildren. "Who's ready for some Christmas cookies?" A general shout of affirmation went up, mixed in with Dief's barking. Children and wolf followed Rosa like the Pied Piper into the kitchen. Benny shook his head. "You pay and pay and pay.." he muttered. Ray laughed. "Lighten up, Bennyluv! It's Christmas!" He squeezed Benny's shoulders and they smiled lovingly at each other, their eyes reflecting the lights of the tree. Frannie rolled her eyes. "Christmas tree sap isn't the only kind around here." Elaine laughed as the two men remained oblivious. She wrapped her arm around Frannie's waist and murmured, "Let's go get some of those Christmas cookies before they're totally scarfed." Frannie giggled and they headed for the kitchen. Maria jabbed Tony in the ribs. "Why can't you be romantic like those four?" "Aw, honey!" *** It was the smell of the house at Christmastime, Ray thought as he and Benny broke out of their only-two-in-the-world reverie and headed for the kitchen. His ma's Christmas cookies were world-class, their wonderful shapes and flavors spread out on the table for all to see and rhapsodize over. There were Santas and reindeer and stars and elves. They were made of gingerbread and were sprinkled with red and green sparkles. Ray picked up a reindeer shape and took a bite. "Mmm, Ma, you're still Queen of the Cookies." "Raymondo!" Rosa's eyes sparkled with pleasure. Benny took an elf cookie and echoed his lover's sentiments. "Poor Rudolph," Theresa said as she looked at her reindeer cookie. "All the other reindeers were mean to him 'cause he was different." Ray looked at Benny, who all of a sudden was studiously observing Dief wolfing down a cookie. Ray crouched down next to his niece. "Yes, they were mean. It's not right to make fun of someone just because they're different." "No!" Big, brown eyes gazed up at Ray. "I don' understand why they didn' think he coulda not been a good reindeer just because he had a red nose. What's that got to do with flyin'?" "Nothing at all, honey." Ray kissed his niece and hugged her. When he stood, he saw that Benny was gone. He quietly left the noisy kitchen and returned to the living room where he found his lover. Benny was standing in front of the tree, looking at the ornamental trains, firefighters, angels, and dozens of other shapes and designs. Ray stood right beside him, their shoulders touching. "It's not easy being different," Benny said softly. "No, it isn't." Ray's heart ached. Benny had been ostracized his whole life: he'd been an outsider among the Inuit as a child, his own genuine interest and respect for their way of life gradually winning them over, but he was still not completely of them; his fellow Mounties thought him strange and some even considered him a traitor, hence his exile in America; and he was often thought to be odd at the Precinct, though had found some measure of acceptance there. He certainly had found it in this family. Ray understood ostracism. He was getting a crash course as a gay man in an open relationship, but he didn't care. He loved Benny, his family loved them both, and that was all that mattered. Ray turned Benny to face him and gently kissed him. "There you go." He rubbed his Vecchio nose to the Canadian's. "I like your nose, Rudolph." "Speaking of noses, Ray.." "Hey!" Benny grinned. Before they knew it, presents appeared under the tree as if by magic. Snow was falling outside the windows and the house was warm and filled with good food, company, and laughter. "Hey, Ray, think Aunt Sadie'll send us a fruitcake this year?" Frannie called to her brother over the noise of the impromptu party in the kitchen as Ray and Benny returned. "Why not? She's been doin' it for the last thirty years." Ray sighed. He took a couple of Coke cans from the refrigerator and handed one to Benny. Both were decorated with the classic Santa Claus image. "Did you know, Ray, that this image of Santa Claus that we are familiar with today was originally created in the 1930s for a Coke ad campaign?" "Yeah?" "Yes, the artist Haddon Sundblom created the image, which had been quite different before the ads. The American newspaper cartoonist Thomas Nast had come up with the nineteenth-century version of Santa as a jolly elf type, wearing a brown outfit and holly around his head." "Is that so?" Ray's eyes were soft with amused affection. Benny's eyes danced with excitement and love as the Vecchios' wrapped him warmly in their affection and made him one of their own. He breathed in Ray's scent and petted Dief, who was begging shamelessly, but for once he didn't care. They wandered back toward the living room, then Ray stopped Benny with a hand on his arm. "Wha...?" He looked up to see where Ray's finger was pointing and he smiled. He put his arms around Ray and kissed him deeply as Vecchio children swarmed around them and Frannie tugged Elaine's hand as they went into the dining room to help set the table for dinner, Maria getting out the pot for the stove and Rosa directing Tony to put the cookie platters in the pantry. Just a typical Christmastime evening at the Vecchios' as Ray and Benny kissed under the mistletoe. End Christmas Sap by Gilda Lily: jeanniemarie@sprintmail.com Author and story notes above.