Fic: Arrow Saves Christmas
Dec. 25th, 2010 10:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sunspotTitle: Arrow Saves Christmas
Fandom: Leverage (Other Supervillains 'verse)
Pairing: vague Eliot/Hardison
Rating: all
Word Count: 1,100
Summary: It's Christmas Eve and there's a big, big problem. Luckily, Arrow is always cool and calm in the face of holiday stress.
Author's Notes: For my darling![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
kitschywrite for Christmas. I love you, my dear, and I hope this is everything you wanted and more. Hopefully more. Thanks to cherie_morte for the speedy and glorious beta.
It was only a few days before Christmas, and something didn't feel right.
Arrow wasn't sure what was going on, but it didn't feel right. It was Indoor Tree Season, which was normally magical and full of exciting smells and extra snacks, but this year was somehow different.
Petting Girl gave him all the same belly rubs and Talking Guy still snuck him yummy treats when no one else was in the room, and of course the Inside Tree was inside, but everything seemed so tense.
The tree twinkled softly and the blanket in his bed smelled exactly the way he liked it. By all rights, Arrow should have been out like a faulty Christmas light. He snorted and rolled over, turning his feet towards the ceiling. The change of position didn't help, so he got up and did another perimeter check.
All his People were sleeping soundly, the little mouse that he sometimes heard running in the walls behind the food cupboard was quiet, and the pipes under the sink in the bathroom were leaking, ever so slightly. Everything was exactly as it should be.
So why couldn't he sleep?
He headed back to his bed next to the tree, resolving to chew the corner off the basket for something to do. Just as he settled in for a long night's chew, something caught his attention.
"Arrow?"
He sat up and looked around.
"Arrow?"
It didn't sound like any of his People. Arrow sniffed the air, and just before he decided that he had imagined the whole thing, a round little face popped out around the arm of the sofa.
"Hi, Arrow!"
Arrow looked at the little face connected to the little round body. He wasn't exactly sure what's going on.
The elf grinned. "Hey, buddy, we need your help."
The dog cocked his head and looked intensely at the little Christmas elf for a moment. He did not like being called 'buddy', not by anyone, but he sometimes tolerated it in exchange for a treat. Arrow waited for his treat. The elf got a little uncomfortable under Arrow's intense, food-seeking gaze.
"Arrow, we need your help. My name is Elfonzo and I've come from the North Pole and there's been a terrible accident." He smelled like cookies and cold outside smells and he was wearing a funny hat, so when he seemed really worked up about whatever it was, Arrow felt bad. He went over and nuzzled Elfonzo's jacket.
"So you'll help us?"
Arrow was used to helping his People -- they always needed something -- but he wasn't sure what kind of help he could be to little, badly dressed people.
"Good," Elfonzo said. "Let's go!" He pulled out a little bag and sprinkled gingerbread-smelling sparkles over his head and all over the floor. Everything went dark and cold and Arrow suddenly thought this was the worst idea of his life. And Food Guy was not going to be pleased about that glitter stuff on the carpet.
"Welcome to the Santa's Workshop!" came a chorus of squeaky voices when Arrow opened his eyes again.
Over the cacophony of welcomes, Arrow could hear the wind howling past the windows. He shivered involuntarily. He couldn't help it, he was such a short haired dog that any wind at all made him pinker than Pepto Bismol and big, tough, boys weren't supposed to wear pink. That's what Food Guy said when Talking Guy wore his pink shirt, anyways.
"Come along, Arrow," Elfonzo said, tilting his head. "We have a room set up for the briefing."
'Briefing' seemed like a strange word, but Arrow followed him. He was wondering what they needed him for. He hoped it wasn't for pulling a sleigh.
"Oh Arrow, thank goodness." Arrow's big, brown eyes went even bigger. He looked up to the big, red-suited man in the chair.
"It's been a rough week for Santa," Santa said, looking glum. "My elf-doctor says it's sprained and I have to stay off it 'til the New Year."
It was then that Arrow noticed Santa's ankle was all bandaged up.
"Can you deliver all the presents tonight, Arrow? To save Christmas?"
It was bigger than the biggest responsibility Arrow could ever remember having. It was even bigger than the time he had to wake Food Guy up on his birthday, and that had been pretty important.
"Excellent. Elfonzo will be your assistant tonight, and Elflizabeth will get you dressed for the weather." Santa leaned down and picked Arrow up. He gave the dog a quick hug and set him down again.
"Good luck!" Santa called after them as they trotted out of the room.
Elflizabeth met Arrow and Elfonzo in the workshop. "I'm thinking sequins," she grinned. "Sequins and maybe some of those little silver bells."
"I'll load the sleigh. We ride in five minutes!" Elfonzo called, dashing down the hall towards the reindeer barn.
The sequin collar was a little too glam for everyday wear, but Elflizabeth seemed so excited that Arrow felt he had to wear it. She even gave him a warm, fleecy coat to wear, which he liked, even if she did sew a few jingly little bells onto it.
Elfonzo came in with an extra reindeer halter slung over his shoulder. "Alright, Arrow, let's head out. We've got 4,967,281,302 houses to visit before dawn!"
"Good luck! Fly safe! You're awesome!" called all the workshop elves as the left.
It was a whirlwind of houses and presents and stockings and plate after plate of cookies. That was the best part. Twice, Arrow was caught by a curious child hoping to see Santa Claus. He just smiled and shook his bells and the child would smile and clap and Arrow was able to slip away again.
Even up in the sleigh, Arrow could barely feel the cold. With a big stack of cookies, a warm coat, the wind blowing past his ears, and the cozy feeling of Christmas, his heart was so full he could only think of one thing that would make it better.
--
Arrow's paws twitched again and Hardison smiled. "What do you think he's dreaming about?"
Eliot pulled the blanket tighter around them and Hardison nuzzled his face against Eliot's neck. Parker was curled between them, napping off the intense sugar crash after overloading on holiday sweets from Hardison's staff Christmas Eve party.
"Dunno. What do dogs dream about? Chasing rabbits, maybe?"
"Christmas rabbits," Hardison smiled sleepily.
Eliot snorted. "I doubt he even knows what Christmas is."
Hardison leaned over Parker's slumbering head again and kissed Eliot's cheek. "Well, we'll have to ask him tomorrow."
"Mmm."
"G'night, El."
"'Night, Alec."
Fandom: Leverage (Other Supervillains 'verse)
Pairing: vague Eliot/Hardison
Rating: all
Word Count: 1,100
Summary: It's Christmas Eve and there's a big, big problem. Luckily, Arrow is always cool and calm in the face of holiday stress.
Author's Notes: For my darling
kitschywrite for Christmas. I love you, my dear, and I hope this is everything you wanted and more. Hopefully more. Thanks to cherie_morte for the speedy and glorious beta.It was only a few days before Christmas, and something didn't feel right.
Arrow wasn't sure what was going on, but it didn't feel right. It was Indoor Tree Season, which was normally magical and full of exciting smells and extra snacks, but this year was somehow different.
Petting Girl gave him all the same belly rubs and Talking Guy still snuck him yummy treats when no one else was in the room, and of course the Inside Tree was inside, but everything seemed so tense.
The tree twinkled softly and the blanket in his bed smelled exactly the way he liked it. By all rights, Arrow should have been out like a faulty Christmas light. He snorted and rolled over, turning his feet towards the ceiling. The change of position didn't help, so he got up and did another perimeter check.
All his People were sleeping soundly, the little mouse that he sometimes heard running in the walls behind the food cupboard was quiet, and the pipes under the sink in the bathroom were leaking, ever so slightly. Everything was exactly as it should be.
So why couldn't he sleep?
He headed back to his bed next to the tree, resolving to chew the corner off the basket for something to do. Just as he settled in for a long night's chew, something caught his attention.
"Arrow?"
He sat up and looked around.
"Arrow?"
It didn't sound like any of his People. Arrow sniffed the air, and just before he decided that he had imagined the whole thing, a round little face popped out around the arm of the sofa.
"Hi, Arrow!"
Arrow looked at the little face connected to the little round body. He wasn't exactly sure what's going on.
The elf grinned. "Hey, buddy, we need your help."
The dog cocked his head and looked intensely at the little Christmas elf for a moment. He did not like being called 'buddy', not by anyone, but he sometimes tolerated it in exchange for a treat. Arrow waited for his treat. The elf got a little uncomfortable under Arrow's intense, food-seeking gaze.
"Arrow, we need your help. My name is Elfonzo and I've come from the North Pole and there's been a terrible accident." He smelled like cookies and cold outside smells and he was wearing a funny hat, so when he seemed really worked up about whatever it was, Arrow felt bad. He went over and nuzzled Elfonzo's jacket.
"So you'll help us?"
Arrow was used to helping his People -- they always needed something -- but he wasn't sure what kind of help he could be to little, badly dressed people.
"Good," Elfonzo said. "Let's go!" He pulled out a little bag and sprinkled gingerbread-smelling sparkles over his head and all over the floor. Everything went dark and cold and Arrow suddenly thought this was the worst idea of his life. And Food Guy was not going to be pleased about that glitter stuff on the carpet.
"Welcome to the Santa's Workshop!" came a chorus of squeaky voices when Arrow opened his eyes again.
Over the cacophony of welcomes, Arrow could hear the wind howling past the windows. He shivered involuntarily. He couldn't help it, he was such a short haired dog that any wind at all made him pinker than Pepto Bismol and big, tough, boys weren't supposed to wear pink. That's what Food Guy said when Talking Guy wore his pink shirt, anyways.
"Come along, Arrow," Elfonzo said, tilting his head. "We have a room set up for the briefing."
'Briefing' seemed like a strange word, but Arrow followed him. He was wondering what they needed him for. He hoped it wasn't for pulling a sleigh.
"Oh Arrow, thank goodness." Arrow's big, brown eyes went even bigger. He looked up to the big, red-suited man in the chair.
"It's been a rough week for Santa," Santa said, looking glum. "My elf-doctor says it's sprained and I have to stay off it 'til the New Year."
It was then that Arrow noticed Santa's ankle was all bandaged up.
"Can you deliver all the presents tonight, Arrow? To save Christmas?"
It was bigger than the biggest responsibility Arrow could ever remember having. It was even bigger than the time he had to wake Food Guy up on his birthday, and that had been pretty important.
"Excellent. Elfonzo will be your assistant tonight, and Elflizabeth will get you dressed for the weather." Santa leaned down and picked Arrow up. He gave the dog a quick hug and set him down again.
"Good luck!" Santa called after them as they trotted out of the room.
Elflizabeth met Arrow and Elfonzo in the workshop. "I'm thinking sequins," she grinned. "Sequins and maybe some of those little silver bells."
"I'll load the sleigh. We ride in five minutes!" Elfonzo called, dashing down the hall towards the reindeer barn.
The sequin collar was a little too glam for everyday wear, but Elflizabeth seemed so excited that Arrow felt he had to wear it. She even gave him a warm, fleecy coat to wear, which he liked, even if she did sew a few jingly little bells onto it.
Elfonzo came in with an extra reindeer halter slung over his shoulder. "Alright, Arrow, let's head out. We've got 4,967,281,302 houses to visit before dawn!"
"Good luck! Fly safe! You're awesome!" called all the workshop elves as the left.
It was a whirlwind of houses and presents and stockings and plate after plate of cookies. That was the best part. Twice, Arrow was caught by a curious child hoping to see Santa Claus. He just smiled and shook his bells and the child would smile and clap and Arrow was able to slip away again.
Even up in the sleigh, Arrow could barely feel the cold. With a big stack of cookies, a warm coat, the wind blowing past his ears, and the cozy feeling of Christmas, his heart was so full he could only think of one thing that would make it better.
--
Arrow's paws twitched again and Hardison smiled. "What do you think he's dreaming about?"
Eliot pulled the blanket tighter around them and Hardison nuzzled his face against Eliot's neck. Parker was curled between them, napping off the intense sugar crash after overloading on holiday sweets from Hardison's staff Christmas Eve party.
"Dunno. What do dogs dream about? Chasing rabbits, maybe?"
"Christmas rabbits," Hardison smiled sleepily.
Eliot snorted. "I doubt he even knows what Christmas is."
Hardison leaned over Parker's slumbering head again and kissed Eliot's cheek. "Well, we'll have to ask him tomorrow."
"Mmm."
"G'night, El."
"'Night, Alec."
