Jingle Bells

AN: A little one-shot fluff for Max and Fang, who one day will realize that they are each other's soul mates.

(dramatic sigh)

That'll be the day.

This is in Fang's point of view and Max and Fang are around… sixteen – seventeen in this story.

Oh, and Merry Christmas!

Dashing through the snow
In a one horse open sleigh
O'er the fields we go
Laughing all the way
Bells on bob tails ring
Making spirits bright
What fun it is to laugh and sing
A sleighing song tonight
Oh, jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way…

"Will you please turn that crap down?" Max groaned beside me on the couch. The Flock, Akila, and Total were sitting around the hotel's living room area, watching "Jingle All the Way". You know, the one with Arnold Schwarznegger and somehow, his kid doesn't have enough brainpower to realize that Santa has the same distinct accent his father does.

I would have pointed this out, but Max nudged me in the side with her elbow before I could even begin to contradict the plot.

"So… how did this guy become the governor of California again?" Iggy pondered aloud as he came back from the makeshift kitchen with cookies shaped like trees, stars, and misshaped Santa figures. For a blind guy, they looked pretty exceptional.

"You see, Iggy, there is this marvelous thing called voting and-" One of the Santa cookies cracked in half on top of my head.

"Ha, ha, ha. You're such a comedian," Max laughed, brushing crumbs off of my shoulders. I shrugged, nibbling on a tree. Inside, I had taken the form of an overly obsessed teenage male that might start possible bouncing in place, over the fact that Max's hand touched my shoulder. Outside, I continued snacking on the little cookie tree, trying to find something interesting on the TV screen. Resisting the urge to plug my fingers into my ears to not have to hear Arnold's annoying voice, I glanced down to find Max's head lightly resting on my arm, her brown eyes hazily watching the movie. My heart leaped for a moment, but before I could react the slightest, my eyes flickered over to where Angel sat. Surprisingly, there was no mischievous glint in her eyes, and she continued to stare at the screen. Okay, so if Max lying on my shoulder was no evil prank, then what was it? Was she just high on the Christmas spirit? Or… something else?

Later that Night…

After the movie had ended, Max sent the little ones to bed and sent Iggy to the kitchen to finish cleaning up the leftover dishes. I ventured into the room Iggy and I shared, changed into some sweat pants and a black T-shirt, before emerging back into the main living area. All was quiet and dark, Iggy finishing the kitchen by giving the counters a nice wipe down, and the dogs and kids had already hopped into bed. Christmas Eve was probably one of the quietest times of the year- Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel still believed in Santa Claus and Max reminded them each year that they had to go to bed early if Santa was going to visit. And every year, they bought it. I personally believed that this Santa guy was an incongruous, bizarre home invader that was allowed by homeowners to slide down their chimneys and gobble up their supply of cookies and milk.

"Night, Fang," Iggy broke the silence, brushing past me to vanish into our room.

"Night, Ig," I murmured back, moving silently through the living room and clicking the TV off. The darkness surrounded me, comforting and soothing. You couldn't see things in the darkness; you could blend into the pitch black so others couldn't find you. Sometimes, I suppose though, the darkness scared others off. Some people just weren't meant for the dark. Some were meant for the light, to be seen constantly, and to be counted on. People in the darkness couldn't be trusted, even if they were the kindest inhabitants ever made. Max was like the light, shining brightly anywhere she went, attracting eyes to her concrete- and yet dazzling- physique. I was like the dark, fading murkily in the background, hiding deep in corners with my domineering stature. Sighing, I absent-mindedly ran a hand through my hair- dark like the rest of myself- and was going to close the curtains over the sliding glass doors, when I finally found the light.

I knew I had caught Max at a perfect time. Her eyebrows were knitted, an inquisitive expression etched onto her face as she stood at the railing, a cup of hot chocolate in one hand. Smirking, I knocked loudly on the glass, chuckling as the hot cocoa flew out of her mug and onto her outfit. She spun, eyes lit with a blazing passion to wring my neck.

"Fang! Are you sick in the head? You scared the shit out of me!" Max exclaimed, venom seeping into her words as I slipped onto the balcony alongside her. The little slab of concrete was just barely big enough to fit the two of us, but it was perfect, being contained in that tiny space with her. It was like Heaven and hell combined, creating a perfect union. I glanced down into my own cup of hot chocolate, wondering if Iggy had slipped anything into it, which would explain my sudden obsession with metaphorical testimonials.

"Ahem, you better watch your language or Saint Nicholas won't pay you a visit," I leaned against the railing with her, watching the snowfall mutely around us. The Flock had picked Minnesota to spend the holidays, so we would be sure to earn plenty of snow.

The glare Max sent me read 'It would be wise to hush up now before I pour this steaming hot chocolate down your pants'. I shut up.

"Have you ever played a game called Truth?" Max asked after some time that we had been standing in the freezing cold.

"No, I don't believe I have. Although, since you have known me ever since we've existed, I'm sure you should have known that by now," I smirked down at her and she stuck her tongue out.

"Shut up."

"Anyway, what about this game Truth…?" I edged her forward to continue whatever she was going to talk about.

"I ask you a question, and if you answer truthfully, you can ask me a question. If I also answer correctly, then I ask you another question. The game continues until one of us lies about an answer, and that person loses. Got it?" She questioned and I nodded, inhaling a large breath.

"Okay, so… what's your favorite color?" Max flashed me a smug look and I shoved her shoulder playfully.

"You better hurry up and ask me whatever you intended to, because I'm going to become a Fang-sicle if you don't hurry." She studied me for a few more moments, her eyes flickering across my face. Their brown depths held back her question, and if her eyes could hold letters, I would have easily known what her question was to be.

"Do you believe opposites attract?" She finally blurted out and I have to admit, I was taken aback by the question. I had been expecting something cheesy like 'Do you believe in Santa?' or 'Do you still think about Lissa?'.

"Yes," I responded without even thinking twice.

"Why?"

"I thought the rules clearly stated I was allowed to ask a question after yours?"

"Forget the rules," Max turned herself towards me, "Why do you believe opposites attract?"

"Well, there's… Batman and Wonder Woman… and…" I stuttered, "And uh… well…."

"Yes?" Max egged me on, her eyes bright with attentiveness.

"Max, I think I love you," I concluded. That's about the time that I wanted to own a gun, so I could shoot myself in the mouth for what I had just uttered.

Stupid, stupid, stupid, are you crazy?! You just don't go freaking shouting that off the rooftops like that! You must be mentally sick. Are you, seriously, because that display just showed Max that you have mental problems!!!!

Before I could even manage an apology- or anything to cover up my proclamation- a dazzling smile on her face lit up my night sky, forcing the bad premonitions aside. And then everything came spilling out, like a toddler with a little box of Juicy Juice.

"You and I are like day and night, or water and fire. Apart, we're totally different. You're brilliant and amazing and I'm just the sidekick. Together, we create a display of… of something no one has ever seen before. It's like… like…" My mouth hung open and I wished to throw myself off the balcony at that moment. You create a display, huh, Fang? Yeah, a display of TOTALLY WRECKING any possibility that Max liked you. Now she probably thinks you need to be thrown into the Looney house. My conscious roared, apparently not enjoying my spiked hot cocoa as much as my mouth was.

"Fang?" Max whispered softly. I swallowed loudly.

"Yes?"

"Just shut up and kiss me already, okay?" Slowly, but surely, we both leaned forward, as if God had enough of this nonsense, and was finally giving us a final shove. The bells around Max's wrist- from Total's festive dog collar- tinkled metallically against another. Her lips met mine and an explosion of fireworks and whatever the hell else was inside my mind went off. Her hand slid up onto my neck, the tips of her fingers massaging into the skin right below my chin. Pulling apart was torture, but I lived through it and brushed away some snowflakes that had fallen onto her face.

"So does this mean I win? After all, you did kind of cheat," I nudged her playfully and she shook her head, smiling at me.

"Okay, but this is the only time you will hear it from me. Yes, Fang, you-" The boisterous sound of running footsteps and a loud thud interrupted her declaration. Max and I glanced up to see Gazzy, Nudge, and Angel peering out of the sliding glass door.

"Guys, what on earth are you-"

"Shh! I can't hear!" Nudge whispered harshly and kept quiet, her brown eyes darting across the night sky.

"What are you doing?" Max hissed through the glass to them.

"We heard bells! They had to come from Santa's sleigh!" Angel explained. Max and I glanced at each other before bursting out into laughter.

"Guys, that was just my bracelet. Go back to bed," She held up the silver bells around her wrist and the looks on the kids' faces fell visibly. We waited until their pathetic whines had vanished.

"So, what was it that you were going to tell me earlier, Max? That I actually won? That Fang beat Maximum Ride?" I gasped in fake shock, earning a hard punch to my stomach. Ouch.

"I don't recall anything you're talking about. You must be crazy or something," She beamed, wrapping her arms around my waist.

"Yeah. Or something," My lips ran over her frozen hair, wet from the fallen snow, "Merry Christmas, Max."

I turned us to where she was pressed up against the railing and me, my arms tightening on the handrail, and I bent forward again to-

The bells jingled again, louder this time.

"You better take those off before the kids-" Max's finger pushed against my lips, silencing my scolding. Flashing me a luminous smile, she explained, "I'm not wearing any bells. I gave them to Angel when they left." She held her wrists up for me to see that, in fact, she wasn't wearing them. Both of us looked to the dark midnight sky, trying to catch a glimpse of the home invader.

And then, like a CD repeating itself, the thundering of elephants was heard as the kids came running again, breath fogging up the glass.

"Are they going to do that every time the bells ring?" Max questioned skeptically as we slipped back into the warmth of the hotel room.

"Every time, Max. Every time."

He quieted down his herd as his gloved hands rummaged through his sack. Down below, he could hear the littlest girl talk of a new dress for her bear. The other girl complained how her headphones had broken, and the boy was praying for a load of PVC pipe, to construct homemade bombs with. Chuckling, his large arms carried the gifts over to the side of the roof and waited until the two eldest were inside before dropping the presents onto the balcony. Hurriedly, he jumped into his seat and flicked the reins, sending another round of jingles. This time, only the little dog heard them and came running to the glass. The wind gusted, blowing snow on top of the hoof tracks, until there was no physical trace of their existence. And as he drove out of sight, he saw the little dog's eyes light up with amazement and fright. He chuckled again, gliding away into the night. And- well, you know the rest- Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night….

Oh, jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it is to ride
In a one horse open sleigh

Hope you enjoyed it! The last part was from the home invader's point of view. Ha, ha, ha.

Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year, everybody!