For Caitlin.
By Silvia.
Poppy stared at the display in Neiman's knowing the sweater was perfect for her stylish mother. She stood there for a good five minutes, overcome by a wave of sadness. It was her first Christmas on her own and it was breaking her heart. She had James, and her friends but they would never make up for her real family. How could it be Christmas without Phil, her mom, even Cliff?
All day Poppy had passed by things that made her think of the people she'd left behind. Little reminders of the life that was lost to her. She told herself she was being ridiculous. A simple sweater shouldn't be able to make tears well up in her eyes.
"You chose this," she told herself softly; pushing out the little voice that pointed out there hadn't been much of a choice. "Oh, get over it already. You died. After that what's a little loneliness?" She'd just about convinced herself to feel better when James came up and finished the job for her.
His arms slid around her waist as he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "You know talking to yourself is the first sign of madness."
She grinned up at him, feeling vaguely guilty for being unhappy when she had this perfect man to complete her. "I thought the first sign was hearing voices."
James shook his head sadly. "That's just something the voices tell you to freak you out. They're mean, those voices."
Surprised green eyes stared into hazel before Poppy giggled. "Sometimes you're really weird, you know that right, Jamie?"
James shrugged, happy he'd been able to lift the melancholy that had been clouding her eyes far too often these days. He knew she missed her family. Oh she'd been shielding her mind but when her defences were down he would get a stream of images from her. A crazy whirl of pictures from the past, underlain with a deep sadness that he'd give anything to be able to banish. If he only knew how.
*********
James was still trying to figure out how to cheer up Poppy a few hours later as he sat playing Mario Kart with Thea. After James came in eighth place for the third round in a row Thea leaned over and shut off the game.
"OK, what's going on with you?"
James stared at her blankly for a second, still too lost in his own little world to realize what was going on around him.
"James!" Thea shrieked.
He winced as the sound hurt his sensitive vampire ears. "What?"
"What's the matter with you?"
James gave a half shrug. "It's Poppy; she's just been so down lately. I can't bear it."
Poppy? Down? Thea couldn't remember ever seeing the cheerful redhead in anything but the highest spirits. Well, maybe that time Ash kidnapped her, but other than that Poppy was usually giggling and dancing around. "Is there anything I can do," she asked, not liking the idea of her friend being unhappy.
James shook his head. "She misses her family. If there was only some way she could see them again," he mused.
Thea thought for a second when she came up with the perfect solution. "She can do a glamour!" Seeing the confusion on James' face, she explained, "Poppy's part witch - she should be able to do a spell to alter her appearance, or make anyone think it's altered enough to not be Poppy."
"I don't know. She'd have to pretend to be someone else, pretend that she doesn't know them and go through all the motions of getting to know them. She wouldn't be their daughter."
"But she'd get to see them again," Thea argued, still convinced of the ingenuity of her plan.
James still wasn't convinced. "That might make it worse in the end, when she has to leave them again."
"Haven't you heard cousin? It's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all." Ash stepped into the room, his sardonic tone at odds with the pain in his eyes.
"That's just the first time. After that it gets monotonous. Just ask Thierry."
"Ask Thierry what?" He too stepped into the room.
James winced. Where had all these people come from? Ash was smirking at him across the room, but James was tactful enough to realize he probably shouldn't bring up the hundreds of times Thierry had lost his soulmate. He thought quickly. "I was just wondering what Hannah wants for Xmas. I'm her secret Santa," he added in a stroke of genius.
Thierry rolled his eyes. "You're not supposed to tell anyone who you picked!"
So maybe genius was the wrong word, James thought after Thierry left the room again.
"Nice save," came the voice from the corner. Ash, of course.
"What?" James put on his innocent face. "It was a legitimate question!"
"Funny. I seem to recall being Hannah's secret Santa," Ash said.
"In that case you should thank me," James bit out. "I just made your shopping so much easier."
Ash's eyes bugged out of his head. "Because it's so easy to find Incan matrimonial head masks! I was just going to get her tickets to Mamma Mia," he finished sulkily.
Ash left the room muttering to himself about stupid cousins and the problem with awakened Old Souls and then only James and Thea were left.
Thea flashed him a smile as she too headed out. "Think about what I said, ok?"
James nodded.
*********
He did think about it. He thought about it as he entertained Poppy. He took her to movies, casinos, shopping, anything to keep her busy and her mind occupied and off the family situation.
He went with her to Tiffany's as she shopped for a present for Thierry.
"I know exactly what I need," Poppy claimed as they walked in. She was feeling smug at finding the perfect present for the man who had everything.
"Um, honey, you are aware that Thierry isn't a girl."
She didn't bother to respond as she scoped out the store. "I bet it's over there," she pointed to a couple of counters at the back of the store, the one place in the store that wasn't teeming with people.
They reached a case full of pens and ties and other paraphernalia for the urbanite male. Poppy heaved a sigh as she looked back at the glittering cases they passed. "This is so the most boring section of the store." She shook her head. "If I opened up a Tiffany box and found something like this, heads would roll," Poppy gave James a pointed look which he returned serenely.
A salesperson finally noticed them standing there and came over to assist. "Can I help you?"
"Yes, how much is that pen over there," she pointed to the silver one in the corner.
The woman lifted the discreet price tag. "$250."
James let out a low whistle but Poppy didn't bat an eye. "I'll take it."
He stared at her in shock. "How exactly are you going to afford that?"
She grinned as she handed over her credit card. "Why, ask Thierry for a raise, of course."
"You get paid?!" he exclaimed in shock. Clearly, he had to have a talk with Thierry about issues of pay and equity. "All I have to say is if Thierry gets that much spent on him I'd better get something amazing."
She grinned at him as the woman handed her a small blue bag. "You have me, what else do you need?"
He rolled his eyes, but couldn't keep the silly grin off his face. He had her.
If only he could keep her as happy as she made him.
She completed his life. But without him, her life had already been complete. Sure, not in the same way, but as her twin, Phil had been her other half. Unlike his her parents cared about her beyond making her the perfect Nightworld child. Her father, ever so flaky was still ever so loving had taken them in after she'd come back from the dead. Her brother loved her enough to let her go. Was it any wonder she missed them? Was there anything stopping her from seeing them again?
*********
James spent the days leading up to Christmas having their friends in Circle Daybreak keeping Poppy busy as he worked on his surprise. The girls took her shopping for a dress for Thierry's party. The boys harangued her with questions about what to get their respective soulmates.
And if the sadness didn't quite go away it was buried under layers of friendship and work. There were nights when she woke up crying for her family, nights that James lulled her back to sleep, wanting more than anything to tell her what he'd planned.
But something held him back. It wasn't the need to surprise her, for that he'd gladly give up for the chance to wipe away her tears. It was the fear that something might go wrong and he'd have gotten her hopes up for nothing.
*********
Finally came Christmas Eve and Thierry's big party. Poppy wore a short green dress, the exact colour of her eyes. She stood in front of her mirror putting on fake emerald earrings when James came up behind her knotting his tie.
He gave a whistle as he saw her. "Why did it take so long for us to get together?"
Poppy beamed up at him. "Because you're an idiot. I knew all along that were meant to be together."
"I seem to recall issues about inter-species relations but, if you want to blame it on me being an idiot. . ."
"Oh stop being such a baby."
"First I'm an idiot and now I'm a baby. I'm starting to understand why I put off being in this relationship," he teased.
"Oh, shut up," Poppy grumbled.
He shook his head. "More abuse. If you can't be nice, I won't give you your surprise."
Poppy's eyes lit up. "A surprise? What is it?" She was practically jumping up and down in her excitement.
"It's downstairs."
Poppy let out a squeal and ran down the stairs. James tore after her, not wanting to miss her face when she saw his surprise.
And it was worth seeing. Poppy shrieked in glee as she saw her brother and father standing by the stairs. She grabbed each of them and threw her arms around them in delight.
"I can't believe it! You guys are really here!" "It was James's doing," Mr. North admitted. "He thought you might want to see your family for Christmas."
"Oh you did, did you," Poppy turned around to ask.
James shrugged. "Just a little hunch I had." He grinned, pleased to see that her face was suffused with happiness, all traces of sadness gone.
"Damn good hunch," she said. "Best present I've ever gotten."
And it was. Although Phil's promise to videotape Christmas morning at their house and send her a copy was a close second. Second only because he had to go home for it to happen. Mr. North was staying for a few days but Phil was expected to be home tomorrow morning and could only stay for a few hours.
Later, in the night as she danced with James, Poppy knew her life was perfect.
At least, until James made her realize what she was missing. "Poppy," he said, looking down into her eyes, "I know you wanted to spend Christmas with your family, but that would have happened even if Phillip and your dad hadn't been able to come. Because we're each others family. And I wanted to make that official."
He stopped dancing, and got down on one knee. "Poppy North," he said, pulling out a familiar looking small blue box, "will you marry me?"
And that was the best present ever.
The End
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