Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There was a chill in the air on the Albatross one morning. Chip woke up shivering, even curled beneath his thick quilted blanket. He pulled the blanket tighter, yawning and opening his eyes.

It felt like it each day was getting colder and colder. Chip had to start wearing his thick socks to bed a few weeks ago. Winter must be coming soon. And the approach of winter meant the approach of the best day of the year.

“Christmas!” Chip cried, bolting up and out of his hammock with excitement. He ran across the room and behind the curtain where Jay slept, socked feet skidding on the floorboards. She snored quietly, looking comfortable under several layers of blankets and bedding.

“Jay! Jay, Jay, Jay, Jayyy, wake up!” Chip whispered loudly to the sleeping pirate.

She swore under her breath and slowly squinted her eyes open. “Is someone dying? Is there an emergency?”

“No one’s dying, but I have a very urgent question,” Chip replied, practically vibrating with excitement.

“What’s that?” Jay asked, propping her head up on her hand so she could glare at him. “This better be good.”

“What day is it?”

Jay’s head flopped back onto her pillow. “You’re kidding.”

“No, this is important! What day is it?” His hands wiggled impatiently.

“Uhh,” Jay leaned over to grab a leather journal that was sitting on a table near her hammock. She leafed through it until she found the page she was looking for. “Today is…December…4th, I think. Why?”

“YEAH! It’s almost Christmas, Jay, get excited!” Chip crowed, making some kind of movement with his body that was likely intended to be some kind of dance.

“Oh. Nice. Can I go back to sleep now?” Jay asked, setting the book down on the table and flopping back onto her hammock.

“How can you possibly sleep when there’s only a few weeks until Christmas?” Chip exclaimed.

“Chip, I’m going to sleep. Go bother Gill or something. Next time you wake me up, it better be because there’s a fire or something.”

With a salute, he pulled on a coat and hat and headed off to search for Gillion. He knocked on the lid of the triton’s barrel that he slept in, but there was no reply. Carefully, he lifted up the lid, but the barrel was just full of seawater.

Chip climbed up to the deck and spotted him training on the far side of the deck. Gillion swung his sword, then blasted a stream of blue magic to his right. Chip carefully walked to sit down on a crate near him, but not so close that he feared getting hit. The cold made his breath visible, billowing out in front of him in small clouds. He swung his legs back and forth in anticipation while he watched the triton train. He yawned and rubbed his hands together for warmth. He winked at Pretzel, who sat in an orb of water at Gillion’s hip.

At last, he turned around. “Oh!” Gillion said, startled. “Good morning, Chip, you’re up early.”

Chip stood on the crate and rested his hands on Gillion’s shoulders. He had a very serious expression on his face as he gazed into the triton’s striking blue eyes. “Gill. Gillion. Gilbert. Gilligan. Do you know. Do you–Do you know what day is coming up?”

A blank expression covered Gillion’s face. “Uh, is it your birthday?”

Chip didn’t respond, so Gillion tried again. “Jay’s birthday?”

The rogue continued staring at him.

“...My birthday?” Gillion asked.

“We are a mere few weeks away from only the best day of the year, Gill! Christmas!” Chip finally cheered, throwing his hands up into the air and hopping off the crate.

“Christmas? What’s a…Christmas?” Gillion looked puzzled.

An incredulous look appeared on Chip’s face as he froze in place. “You–no. Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of Christmas.” He paused as Gillion shook his head. “I mean, unless you celebrate Hanukkah, or Kwanza, or some other holiday like that, then that’s understandable. Or like, some Undersea holiday? Do they have Fishmas?”

“There wasn’t really much time for holidays for me growing up in the Undersea,” Gillion admitted quietly. “The Elders always emphasized the importance of training consistently, and they said taking too long of a break or indulging in festivities wasn’t worth my time and was forbidden. When you’re the Champion of the Undersea, there are more important matters.” He looked down at his sword and tucked it away.

“That is the saddest thing I have ever heard in my life,” Chip replied, still looking dumbstruck. Then his face lit up. “But! But it’s okay! We have a few weeks for you to learn all about it, and then we can celebrate it together! This is going to be so great! Your first Christmas, Gill!”

Gillion chuckled. “Okay, Chip, I’ll be ready to learn all about your…Christmas. But let’s head inside first, you look like you’re freezing.”

The two head back down into the main quarters of the ship to warm up. As they walked, Chip chatted about the holiday, the boards creaking.

“And you give each other gifts on Christmas morning, and it can be anything that you think they would like, whether you bought it or made it or anything. Like my first Christmas with the Black Rose pirates, Arlin knitted me this thick maroon sweater,” Chip paused, looking wistfully in the distance as he recalled his years with the pirates. “It was the coziest thing I owned, and I wore it for weeks and weeks straight until Lizzie had to rip it off me and wash it because apparently it smelled like rotten eggs and sweaty pigs and she couldn’t stand to be around me, and after it was washed I feel like it wasn’t as comfy, but it was still my favorite thing for a long time. And that Christmas I got her this cool wood carving of a pirate ship that I sto–I mean…acquired…from this town, and she acted like she wasn’t that excited about it, but I know she secretly loved it.”

Gillion nodded, not quite following, but enjoying Chip’s excitement. He started to brainstorm what kind of gifts he would want to get his fellow pirates. He had to figure something out, something perfect, so that he celebrated Christmas correctly and made them happy.

“One of our Christmases, I found this really cool shell, a conch shell on an island, and I gave it to Finn! We did Secret Santa that year, which is basically a gift exchange where you pick someone’s name, and then you get a present for that person, and I got Finn, and I didn’t really know what to get him, but then I had just found the most beautiful shell, and when I gave it to him, he actually cried a little bit because it turned out that it was actually a lost artifact from the Undersea and super valuable, and then he went on this whole quest to return it, and that was pretty cool.”

As Chip continued to ramble, Gillion worked on carefully polishing and sharpening his sword. Jay walked in, yawning and sitting down on a stool. She listened to Chip as she braided her hair.

“Jay, what’s your favorite Christmas tradition?” Gillion asked once Chip finished one of his many stories. “I’m trying to learn more about this holiday so I can celebrate it with all of you.”

Jay tied off the end of her braid with a small piece of fraying ribbon.

Maybe more ribbon for Jay’s hair could be a good present, Gillion thought to himself.

“Well,” Jay began. “Christmas was always a pretty big deal in my family. My…my sister, my mom, my grandma, and sometimes my dad, and I would all go out and find a nice pine tree, and we’d get it cut down and bring it inside. We have all these ornaments that have been in the family for years that we decorate it with. Colorful glass balls, some decorations carved from wood, some candles. And then sometimes we’ll make popcorn and put it on a string and add that to the tree. We also have this big ceramic gold star that we put on top of the tree too. My, uh, my sister and I would always fight over who got to put it on top of the tree, and sometimes our mom just made us both put it on together so we stopped arguing,” she chuckled. “My grandma would always hum these old Christmas carols, sometimes singing and dancing with us as we decorated.”

At first, Jay looked down, fiddling with a seam on her shirt sleeve while she started talking about her family, but a small smile filled her face and her eyes lit up as she recalled some good memories.

“Oh, that sounds nice, Jay. Why a tree, though?” Gillion asked, looking puzzled.

Jay paused. “Um, that’s a good question. I’m not sure, I guess it’s just a tradition a lot of people have for Christmas. Like a lot of our friends and neighbors who celebrated Christmas had a tree that they decorated.”

Gillion still looked confused but nodded slowly. “I can’t say I understand, but I’d like to participate in this tradition of…tree decorating. Even if I just learned what a tree was not too long ago.”

“Yes!” Chip cheered. “Jay, where is the nearest island with pine trees?”

“Why would I just know that?” Jay asked, rolling her eyes.

“I don’t know, just, look through your magic spyglass thingy or something! You’ll figure it out! You’re smart.” Chip sat on a barrel, swinging.

“I guess I can try,” Jay shrugged, and she headed up above deck.

“So, tell me more about these decorations, Chip,” Gillion set his sword down and looked at the other pirate in anticipation.

Chip’s face lit up. “Oh, you’re gonna love it, Gill. We’ll need so much stuff, like ribbon, tinsel, ornaments, candles, maybe we could use some seashell? The Millenium Chipper will be the most festive ship in the sea, and it’ll be amazing. And hey, maybe you could even use some of your magic to help make decorations! Like out of ice or something? That would be so cool!”

“I don’t completely understand, but whatever you need, I’m happy to help. I love seeing you so excited about this,” Gillion smiled.

“Just you wait, this is going to be the best Christmas ever!” Chip pumped a fist in the air and hopped up off his stool.

The two continued chatting as the boat rocked back and forth through the sea. Visions of a festive holiday together danced through the Riptide Pirates’ heads.

Chapter Text

Jay poked her head below the deck. “Hey! Good news!”

Chip and Gillion stopped talking to look at her.

“We’re about a week's travel from an island with lots of trees! We should be able to have our Christmas tree!” She grinned.

“YES!” Chip shouted, the glee evident on his face.

Gillion looked excited as well. “I can’t wait to see this Christmas tree.”

“Oh, Jay, take a look! Gillion used his magic to make some ornaments!” Chip pointed at Gill, who lifted up a handful of beautifully-shaped baubles of ice, a slight tinge of blue in his face as he did so.

“Wow, those are really impressive, Gill!” Jay carefully picked one up and examined it. “So detailed.”

“Chip had just been describing these decorations to me, and I thought I could make some out of water,” Gillion said, still blushing a little. “They’re magical so they shouldn’t melt, if we wanted to use them.”

“Of course!” Jay exclaimed. “They’ll look incredible on a tree. Here, put them in a box or something so they don’t get damaged first.”

She rummaged around until she found a small crate and some fabric to protect the ornaments. Gillion gingerly set them inside.

Chip’s stomach rumbled. “I’m going to go see if Old Man Earl’s making anything in the kitchen.” He paused and smiled. “Earl! I wonder if he’d be willing to cook a Christmas dinner!”

“Mmm…” Jay replied as she thought of the buttery mashed potatoes and baked ham that she’d had for dinner in Christmases past. “Yeah, let’s go ask.”

The three pirates swung open the door of the kitchen.

“Hey, Earl, how’s it going?” Chip asked cheerily.

The older man looked suspiciously at the group of them. “What d’ya want?”

“What makes you think we want something?” Chip asked innocently.

“You whippersnappers always want something,” he grumbled. “Never leavin’ me alone, except for when you disappear for weeks at a time on an island. Goddamn kids these days, I tell you….”

“Earl, it’s my first Christmas, and well, we were just wondering if you’d be willing to make a holiday dinner for us that night. I heard it’s in a couple weeks…? We could help you and everything, of course!” Gillion said earnestly.

Earl looked at the triton and sighed. “Yeah, yeah, alright. If you wanna help though, you won’t be makin’ a mess in my kitchen, you hear?”

The three pirates nodded enthusiastically as he frowned at them. There was a twinkle in his eye, though, letting him know that he wasn’t really mad.

“So, since Gillion’s never celebrated Christmas, we’ve been introducing him to different traditions,” Chip added. “Do you have any that you’d be willing to share?”

Rolling up his sleeves, Earl started grabbing mugs out of the cabinet. “Back in the day, I created the best eggnog recipe in all of Loffinlot. Just you wait, this shit’ll knock your socks right off.”

“Egg…nog?” Gillion asked.

“Yeah, it’s this spiced drink. It does have eggs in it, but it’s heated up, so you don’t get sick from raw eggs or anything,” Jay explained. “Sometimes it’s alcoholic as well.”

“Sometimes?” Earl guffawed. “It’s not eggnog if it’s not full of enough booze to knock a grown man on his rear and make him think he hears caroling sea serpents. Hey, why don’t you all swing by later, and I’ll make you some.”

“Thanks, Earl!” Gillion piped up.

“Get outta here before I change my mind,” he replied, wiping out a mug with a cloth.

They start walking out of the kitchen, giving Earl his space.

“Hey, let’s go find Ollie,” Chip suggested.

“You two go ahead, I’m going to the helm to make sure we’re on the right trajectory to get to that island,” Jay answered, boards squeaking under her feet.

Gillion followed Chip as they looked for the small boy they kept on the ship.

“Ollie! There you are!” Chip exclaimed as he spotted the young boy wrapped in blankets, fishing off the side of the ship.

“Oh! H-hey there, guys!” Ollie replied, shivering.

“Did you catch anything?” Chip asked.

“Umm, n-no, not yet, but Old Man Earl says if I c-catch a fish, he-he’ll show me how to cook it!” Ollie’s teeth chattered.

Icy waves crashed against the side of the ship, forming a freezing spray in the air.

“Well, buddy, right now the only thing you’re going to catch is a cold if you don’t go inside,” he replied, looking at the half elf’s bright red face.

Ollie hesitated, but then he reeled in his fishing pole with shaking hands. “O-okay.”

The two ushered him inside, and they sat down, warming up together.

“So, Ollie,” Gillion began, breaking the silence. “I’ve been learning about Christmas….”

“Christmas!” Ollie’s eyes widened.

“The Undersea doesn’t celebrate Christmas, so Gill here has been learning about all kinds of Christmas traditions,”

“Oh boy! I just love Christmas! There’s so many things that make it the best day ever, but probably one of my favorite things other than presents is that the night before Christmas, my mom and I take big decorated stockings and hang them up over the fireplace. And then during the night, there’s this really powerful bard named St. Nick who comes around to people’s houses and leaves treats and toys for them in their stockings!” Ollie grinned as he explained.

“What’s a stocking?” Gill asked.

“Um,” Ollie thought. “I guess it’s just a really big sock? But you don’t wear your Christmas stocking like a sock, otherwise it would be smelly and gross probably.”

Gillion nodded thoughtfully.

“Ollie, it is our destiny to make Christmas stockings!” The triton stood and marched off while the young boy bounced up and down on his toes before scurrying after him.

“So, what are we going to make them out of?”

Gillion stopped. “We tend to wear all of our socks, don’t we? Hmm. Maybe we can make them out of some other fabric or clothing item. Is there anything we have extra of?”

After a brief pause, Ollie piped up, “I have an idea!”

. . . . .

“This was such a great idea, Ollie,” Gillion complimented as he carefully cut the pair of pants in half and picked up a sewing needle to stitch it.

“Thhhks,” Ollie tried to say around the needle he carefully held in his mouth while arranging the fabric pieces in front of him.

The two continued to work, a near endless supply of pants at their disposal from the briefcase of holding. There was a flurry of scissors and needles moving, with pieces of fabric, markers, and glitter flying everywhere.

After a couple hours of work, they had a pile of completed stockings.

“Let’s go try some eggnog,” Gillion suggested.

“And we can show everyone their stockings!” Ollie cheered.

They each picked up a few stockings and walked back to the kitchen area.

“Earl, we have something for you!” Ollie yelled.

“What?” the older man replied while loudly clanging a spoon around in a large pot, stirring something that smelled herby, buttery, and delicious. He tasted its contents, made a face, and added various seasonings from a cabinet above the stove. Earl rested the spoon on the pot’s rim and turned around to face the two.

Ollie hesitantly walked up to him and shyly presented him with his own personalized stocking. It was made of thick, dark green fabric, and it displayed a crudely put together depiction of a cup of juice, along with a pile of oranges next to it. In small but bold letters, it read “OLD MAN EARL” at the top.

Earl snatched the stocking from the boy’s hands and examined it closely. “Cool,” he said, nonchalantly.

“Are those tears in your eyes–” Gillion started to ask.

“No!” Earl said hoarsely, turning around abruptly and setting the homemade stocking down on a clear space on the counter. He made a quiet sniffing sound and reached to the back of the counter, pulling out a couple of glasses of milky liquid. One had a haphazardly stuck smiley face sticker on its side.

“Thanks, kid,” Earl said. “Here–eggnog. This one’s got no rum in it, just for you. But don’t go telling people old Earl is making non-alcoholic eggnog. It’s a disgrace, and it hurt like a bitch for me to make. But I figured you shouldn’t be left out just ‘cause you’re a kid. Hell, it’s Christmas.”

The two accepted their glasses and sipped the drink carefully, then faster after they tasted the sweet beverage. With the magic of the sweet spice, they set out to share their holiday spirit.

“Let’s go find Marshal John,” Gillion suggested, and the two carried their eggnog with them, sipping it as they looked for him.

They found him lifting weights in his quarters, hearing his grunts and shouts before they saw him.

“Marshall John!” Gillion called.

“Gillioooon!” he replied, setting a large weight down on the ground.

“John!” he said once again.

Ollie gently tugged on the triton’s sleeve, and he looked down at the boy, who was holding out a decorated stocking.

“Right!” Gillion was reminded why they were there. “Thank you, Ollie. John, we’ve made this Christmas stocking for you!”

Ollie handed the man a huge, bright red stocking, labeled “MARSHALL JOHN” in proud letters. A graphic image of a punching fist knocking over a stick figure decorated the front. In a carefully scrawled print, an arrow pointed to the stick figure, declaring the figure to be “THE NAVY”.

“Wow, for me?” John asked. He clapped Ollie on the back, causing him to stumble forwards slightly. “Thank you!”

“You’re welcome,” Gillion beamed. “Come along, young Ollie!”

The two left John’s quarters to find Jay walking through the hallway, carrying a pile of blankets.

“Oh, Jay, come here!” the triton called.

One of Jay’s eyebrows raised, as she stopped and turned to them. “What’s up?”

“We have a stocking for you, Miss Jay!” Ollie informed her, setting it on top of her blanket pile. It was a beautiful, golden color with a few designs upon it: a spyglass, ocean waves, and a silhouette of a bird. A shaky attempt at cursive spelled out “JAY” in the ocean. Stars decorated the top of the stocking.

Jay grinned. “Wow, this is beautiful! Thanks, guys! We should put these up together somewhere.”

Gillion thought. “We’ll look for a spot after we give Chip his stocking.”

Jay nodded and continued walking with the blankets.

They headed for their quarters and found Chip flipping through a journal. He quickly closed it and looked at them. “Oh, uh, hey guys! What are you doing?”

“Here, we finished making the Christmas stockings!” Gillion said proudly as he handed the pirate a soft, jet-black fabric with drawings of the Jolly Roger, a rose, and piles of coins. Tall, thin letters stated “CHIP” at the top.

“Woah,” Chip said softly, holding the gift as if it were made of glass. He stared at it for a moment, then his gaze shifted to his friends. “You made this?”

The two nodded.

“Did you make one for everyone? Can I see them?” Chip asked enthusiastically.

“Well, we gave everyone theirs, but we’ll probably hang them up together somewhere,” Gillion stated.

“Here’s ours!” Ollie said, smiling.

He pulled out three stockings. The first was dark blue, with a big pirate ship in the middle. Snowflakes fell around the ship. Carefully spelled was “OLIVER” at the bottom, right beneath a Jolly Roger symbol. The second was also blue, but a much more vibrant, almost neon blue. It was covered in different drawings of fish, speckled with massive amounts of glitter. At the top was a ship riding above the sea. On the back, “GILLION TIDESTRIDER” was spelled out boldly at the top. In tiny, barely legible print was a list of titles, ending with “CHRISTMAS CELEBRATOR”. The last stocking was small, pink, and had a symbol of a twisted, salty snack. “PRETZEL” was written in cursive on it.

“Awesome,” Chip pronounced while looking carefully at all the details. “Let’s go find a good spot for these.”

He dashed away, leaving the other two pirates to follow him, giggling, as they tried to figure out where best to display their creations. They left a trail of glitter as they ran.

Chapter Text

Over the next week, the Riptide pirates decorated the Albatross for Christmas along with their normal ship duties. They plotted and planned the gifts they would give each other. Earl tried out several recipes to prepare for their Christmas dinner.

One morning, Gillion was out on the deck of the Albatross training. Sweat shimmered on his skin in the early light as Destiny’s Blade sliced through the air, ending a non-existent enemy. He set the sword down, preparing to switch to training some of his magic when he noticed something in the distance. He squinted and walked closer to the deck railing.

“Land!” The triton realized. He sheathed Destiny’s Blade and took a closer look at the horizon. A rocky beach formed the beginning of the land, but further back, a wave of green met up with the sky. “Trees?”

Gillion dashed below deck. “Jay?” he called, looking for his sharp-eyed friend. “Can you come take a look? I need your eyes! I think we might have made it to the island!”

There was no response.

“Jay?” he tried again, louder.

Gillion peeked at Jay’s bed, and seeing a lump underneath blankets and fiery hair upon a pillow, he sighed.

“Jayyyyy,” he pleaded one more time.

The pirate groaned and rolled over. She squinted up at her friend’s face.

“Gill, is this an emergency? Is the ship on fire? Is someone dying right now?”

“No, bu–” he started.

“Of course not.” Jay closed her eyes, sighed, and sat up, wrapping her blanket around herself as she did so. “What d’you need?” Her words slurred together slightly, clearly only partially awake.

“I think we’ve made it to the Christmas tree island!” Gillion bounced slightly on the balls of his feet as he spoke.

Jay nodded sleepily. “I think we need to have a conversation as a crew about what I should be woken up for and what can wait.”

She glanced at the triton waiting in anticipation and sighed again. “I’ll meet you above the deck in ten minutes.”

Gillion let out an excited chirp and headed above deck to wait. Jay remembered being a child once and being filled with that much excitement and wonder this time of year.

As soon as she was alone, she looked down at her shaking hands. She closed her eyes and let herself relive the dream she had been awoken from.

“Ava, c’mon, c’mon c’mon!” A young Jay tugged at her older sister’s pajama sleeve. “Wake UP, it’s Christmas!”

Her sister’s eyes shot open and she met Jay’s eyes. “Merry Christmas, Jay Jay,” she smiled. “Are Mom and Dad awake?”

“Not yet,” Jay replied.

“Perfect,” Ava said as she sat up and stretched her arms. “I haven’t wrapped Dad’s present yet, do you want to help me?”

“Yes, yes!” Jay cried.

“Okay, but we have to be quiet, or else we’ll wake him up, and it won’t be a surprise anymore,” Ava reminded the young girl.

“Oh, right,” Jay whispered. “Yes, please let me help!”

Ava pushed her hair out of her eyes and quickly tied it back into a ponytail. She got up out of bed and sat down on the floor next to Jay and carefully pulled a box out from underneath her bed.

“What is it?” Jay asked, eyes wide.

“You’ll see,” Ava replied with a small smile. “I have some pretty paper we can use to wrap it, why don’t you go get the tape and scissors from the study?”

“Okay!” Jay shuffled quietly away to find the supplies, but when she returned to her sister’s bedroom, it was empty.

“Ava?” she whispered. “Ava, where did you go?”

A flash, and she was 15 years old, standing behind her father. Silent tears streamed down her face, and she clutched her mother’s arm tightly as the Navy officer before the Ferins stood, pale-faced and anxious, breaking the unimaginable news.

It had been Christmas Eve, and she was wearing her festive pajamas. A fierce gust of winter wind blew some falling snow at them, and the icy precipitation mixed with her hot, salty tears. It had been the worst Christmas of her life, and the holiday was never the same for her after that.

Jay opened her eyes and took a shaky breath. She had to be strong. For Gillion, for Chip, and the rest of the crew. She didn’t want to ruin their excitement with her family drama.

With all the fortitude of an ex-Navy soldier, Jay got out of bed and got ready for the day, pushing the memory to the back of her mind.

. . . . .

As soon as the ship was docked, the Riptide Pirates ran onto an island covered in trees. Chip, Gillion, and Ollie raced around, looking for the best Christmas tree.

“It’s gotta be really, really tall!” Ollie told Gillion. “But not so tall that it can’t fit on the ship, but it’s important that it’s super tall!”

Gillion nodded as he looked around at the trees, assessing their heights.

“And it has to smell good, too!” Ollie added.

Jay chuckled to herself as she watched Gillion walk from tree to tree, sniffing deeply and looking thoughtful after each one. He seemed to be taking mental notes.

As the boys ran around the forest, Jay softly sighed and picked up a hunk of wood that was on the ground, taking a seat on a large rock. She pulled out a pocket knife and carefully started carving into the wood, her hands steadying as she did so. As she worked, she thought about the last Christmas she had celebrated with Ava. She thought about the way her father wasn’t very good at showing affection to his family, but he always made sure to be home for Christmas, no matter what was going on with the Navy. She thought about the spiced cookies she and her mother would bake together the night before Christmas.

After some time, Jay’s wood carving began to take shape, and she started to hear excited cries from the woods. She slipped the carving and the knife back into her pocket and followed the noise.

“I’ve never seen such a perfect tree in my whole life,” Chip stated, face glowing with wonder.

“Definitely, this is perfect,” Ollie agreed.

Gillion just stood bouncing up and down, gazing upon the tree.

“Did you guys find your tree?” Jay asked as she approached them. The boys nodded, grinning.

“Alright,” Jay smiled. “It is a pretty perfect tree–the right size, nice and fluffy, and definitely a good Christmas-y scent. Plenty of branches for ornaments. Should I chop it down?”

Gillion’s expression was now one of horror. “Chop it down?” He cried. “Didn’t we all decide it was the perfect tree?”

“Gill, how did you think we display Christmas trees in our house without cutting them down?” Jay asked, looking at him curiously.

“I–I don’t know, I suppose I didn’t really think about it….” The triton furrowed his brow.

“Maybe we can put it in a barrel of water?” Ollie piped up. “That way it could still be alive?”

The pirates looked at the young boy.

“Like with flowers!” Ollie explained. “Back when I was home, I would pick flowers for my mom sometimes, and she would put them in a vase with water, and then they wouldn’t die right away!”

“So it’s better for the tree to die a slow, agonizing death while we watch the life drain out if it, bit by bit until it finally passes with the passing of the holiday season?” Gillion asked, horror still evident.

Silence fell, and the pirates looked at each other.

“Hold on.” Chip started, a sparkle in his eye. “Are you saying the tree is a sacrificial symbol for the Christmas spirit? That’s pretty deep, Gill.”

Understanding began to dawn on Gillion’s face. “A hero’s honorable sacrifice. The tree gives all it has so we can celebrate together. What a story of…bravery and selflessness.” A single tear drips down his face. “If this is its destiny, what is the traditional way of thanking and honoring the tree before we take it?”

“Well, Jay is really the expert on something like that, she’s definitely done the most Christmas tree ceremonies of all of us–”

“Chip!” Jay coughed under her breath, sending a quick glare at him.

“So why don’t you go first, Jay?” Chip finished, a small mischievous smile on his face. The two exchanged a series of looks.

Jay sighed and walked up to the tree.

“O Christmas tree, o Christmas tree…uh, how lovely are your branches.” Jay said in a monotone, looking at the tree.

“Oh, Christmas tree, o Christmas tree!” Ollie sang back.

A small smile grew on Jay’s face, and she joined Ollie in singing the carol, recalling the words she would sing with her family. Chip remembered some of the words, and he joined in singing what he knew. Gillion listened to the singing, in awe, a few tears still streaming down his face, and he joined the group in the final verse as he kneeled on the ground.

There was a brief moment of silence after the song. Each pirate felt a warm fuzzy feeling in their chest, one that they wouldn’t verbalize, but all felt. Love. Belonging. Family.

Then they felt cold, wet drops on their faces.

“IT’S SNOWING!” Ollie yelled at the top of his lungs, dancing around.

“I take these intricate frozen water drops as a sign that this tree accepts our ceremony,” Gillion said, looking around at the snow in wonder. “It’s…beautiful.”

Jay smiled gently, watching her triton friend experience snow for the first time. His eyes gleamed and mouth was agape as he watched the large flakes fall.

“Okay, let’s get this tree cut down before it turns into a storm,” Jay said, pulling out a small saw. She looked at Gillion, waiting for confirmation, and he gave a small nod. She carefully cut the tree down while he watched. As she sawed, the flurries of snow became a heavier snowfall, and it began accumulating on the ground.

“Watch out!” Jay warned as the tree started tipping over. Gillion gingerly assisted the tree as it fell to the ground.

“Yeah, Gill, watch out!” Chip yelled as he threw a snowball at him.

Gillion glanced his way just in time and ducked, letting the snow fly over his head, fortunately for the triton. Unfortunately for Jay, it hit her square in the face.

Chip looked apologetic when he saw the icy white flakes stuck onto her shocked face. “OH, I’m sorry, Jay!” Jay carefully wiped the snow off her face.

“Yeah, you’ll be sorry,” Jay replied, a mischievous expression across her face as she took a handful of snow and rolled it into a ball.

“SNOWBALL FIGHT!” Ollie shouted, dropping to the ground to start making a small pile of snowballs.

The gang threw snowballs at each other, laughing as they ran beneath the falling snow until all their faces were bright red with cold and joy.

“Okay, it’s probably about time we bring the tree on the ship,” Jay conceded, chuckling as she watched Chip shake his shirt to get out the snow that had slid in it. She realized how this silly tree ceremony and snowball fight had distracted her from the nightmare.

Ollie supervised as the other three picked up the tree and started walking back toward the ship.

Once they finally made it back, sweaty and shivering, they set the tree on the deck and headed below to change out of their sopping wet clothes.

Each pirate heard faint yelling from down the hall. “Who left all these puddles of water everywhere, huh? Some of us aren’t so young and will break their damn hip if they slip!”

“Sorry, Earl!” Chip yelled back. “It was snowing!”

“Damn kids,” Earl grumbled. “‘Oughta swab the deck or somethin’....”

The pirates snickered to themselves as they put on warm, dry clothes, looking forward to decorating the tree.

Chapter Text

The Riptide pirates stood around the tree, which, per Ollie’s suggestion, now stood in a small barrel of water under the deck in the ship.

“So, what do we have to decorate the tree?” Ollie asked curiously.

“Gillion made these ice ornaments,” Chip said, picking up a crate. “And we have some candles—wait, hold on. Ice and fire…Gill, will the candles melt the ice?”

Gillion shook his head. “No, these are magical ornaments, so they should be alright.”

Ollie gasped. “Magic ornaments?”

“See for yourself!” Chip said, prying the lid of the crate off.

Ollie carefully rummaged through the crate, pulling out intricate stars, balls with various patterns, moons, suns, birds, bells, anchors, snowflakes, trees, and holly leaves. There were a few ornaments that were certainly unique, including a Jolly Roger, wave, leviathan, and a familiar-looking frogtopus.

“These are AMAZING!” Ollie squealed and started decorating the tree with the ornaments and candles. The other pirates soon joined him.

Despite the freezing day and the ice ornaments, the room had never felt cozier. After Chip had put a few ornaments on the tree, he slipped away for a minute, returning with his beat up-looking guitar. A smile on his face, he softly strummed, filling the room with music.

The pirates chattered quietly, complimenting Gillion on the ornaments and reminiscing as they spotted some decorations that reminded them of some of their adventures. They swapped holiday stories and bickered lightheartedly about which ornaments got placed on the front of the tree while they crunched on apples and toasted bread Jay had taken from the kitchen.

“I think it’s done,” Jay smiled.

“We still need to put the star at the top!” Chip added, setting down his guitar and pulling out another box from the ornament crate.

He opened the box and lifted out a huge, beautifully sculpted three-dimensional star.

“C’mere, Ollie—do you want to do the honors?” Chip asked the boy.

Ollie nodded excitedly and ran up to him. Chip squatted down and let him climb onto his shoulders. Jay picked up the star and handed it to Ollie, tears in her eyes, but a smile on her face.

“What’s wrong, Miss Jay?” The boy asked her.

“Nothing’s wrong, Ollie,” she replied, sniffing and wiping her face. “I’m just…happy.”

“You’re happy, but you’re crying?”

Jay paused. “The holidays are a bit of a complicated time for me. But, being here with you all is…it’s really nice.”

Ollie smiled and reached over to give her a hug.

“Mmffh…that’s a nice gesture, Ollie, but…you’re still on my shoulders,” Chip said in a muffled groaning voice.

“Oh! Sorry!” Ollie sat back, putting Chip’s neck back in a normal angle.

“Thanks, buddy,” Chip said, still strained. He walked over to the tree.

Ollie carefully set the star on top of the tree, straightening it. “Wow,” he exclaimed.

Chip lowered him back down to the ground.

“Nice work, Gill,” Chip said, clapping the triton on the shoulder.

“Oh, I’m not done yet,” he replied with a sparkle in his eye. He walked over to the tree and gently tapped the star. The star slowly began glowing a soft white light. Then, each ornament beneath it started to emit a dull glow as well, a whole rainbow of colors dancing around the room.

Ollie gasped, and the pirates gazed at their Christmas tree. Colorful light lit up their faces.

They admired the tree for several minutes before it was time for Ollie to go to bed. Gillion left as well, needing to go feed Pretzel and take the first watch for the night.

Chip continued strumming his guitar while Jay listened, seemingly lost in thought. After some time had passed, he set his guitar down and cleared his throat.

“So,” Chip said under his breath. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fi—“

“I know this can’t be the easiest time for you. First holidays away from your family?” Chip interrupted before she could tell him she was fine.

Jay sighed. She thought for a moment, fiddling with a stray piece of rope attached to the crate she was sitting against. “It’s been hard ever since I lost—since I lost my sister,” her voice cracked. “Christmas was never really the same. My dad started avoiding home on Christmas. It was really just me and my mom. And we would try to do something to make it special, but for the first few years after, we couldn’t even decorate or do anything festive without thinking about how wrong it felt to be doing it without Ava. She…she loved Christmas more than any of us.”

Tears were streaming down Jay’s face at this point. “The first year we tried to put our tree up, my mom pulled out a box of ornaments, and on top were these beautiful hand-painted bells Ava made a year before she died, and she just closed the box and went to her room. I couldn’t bear to go through the box either. A couple of years after that, we managed to start decorating again and giving each other a gift, but it was bittersweet. We would always end up talking about Ava and crying. It was hard, but my mom and I always had each other. And now—“ Jay choked back a sob. “Now she’s by herself.”

Chip got up off the crate he’d been perched on and sat next to her. “I’m sorry, Jay. That sounds so tough. I…well, I can’t relate in exactly the same way, but I know it was hard for me my first few Christmases without Arlin and the rest of the Black Rose pirates.” He cleared his throat. “And I guess I’ve just been so excited to finally get to celebrate the holidays again with people. We used to have such big parties, and going from that to Christmas by myself was, I don’t know, pretty lonely. I hope I haven’t been making this time of year harder for you by being so excited about it,” he blushed slightly.

“It’s okay, Chip. I know you meant well. Honestly, even though it’s been hard, it’s kind of nice to make new memories with you all.” Jay gave him a small smile and nudged him playfully. “And hey, I’m sure it would be no Black Rose celebration, but maybe we could have our own holiday party? Meet up with the Grandberry pirates and celebrate together?”

Chip grinned. “That sounds awesome.”

The two sat together in comfortable silence.

“So who do you think is going to be more excited on Christmas morning: Gill or Ollie?” Chip asked, chuckling.

Jay laughed, and the two talked for a few more hours before going to bed, each put at ease by the other’s presence.

Chapter Text

‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the ship, some creatures were still stirring, perhaps even Chip. Young Ollie turned over and over in his hammock, unable to sleep. He tried counting sheep, he tried getting a drink of water, but nothing seemed to help. He kept thinking about his mom, alone on Christmas. It was weird to think of not being home on Christmas. Maybe running away was a mistake. He never thought he would be gone this long. If only there was some way he could tell her he was okay. Then Ollie remembered seeing Miss Jay write a letter to her mom—maybe he could write a letter! She wouldn’t get it for a while, but then she would know he was okay.

Ollie got up out of his hammock and rummaged around until he found some paper and ink. It was too dark, and he didn’t have a candle or lantern, so he went into the main room of the ship, where a large lantern sat on the table. He carefully lit the lantern and started writing.

It helped a little bit to write, but once he finished writing, he started crying. He missed his mom, and he wanted to be home with her. Ollie loved being a pirate, but it was Christmas. He tried to stifle his sobs so he wouldn’t disrupt anyone, but he suddenly felt an arm around him.

“Hey, buddy, what’s up?” Chip whispered.

“I—I—I miss my m-mom, and I left her a-all by herself, a-and she doesn’t know where I am, and I was writing t-this letter to her, b-b-but she won’t get it until after Christmas, a-an-and now she has to spend Christmas all by herself, and I miss her. A lot.” Tears streamed down his face, and he wiped his nose on his sleeve.

“Oh, Ollie,” Chip ruffled the boy’s hair and sat down in the chair next to him. “That’s so nice of you to be thinking of her. I’ll bet she’ll be so happy to get that letter, that was a really thoughtful thing to do.” He paused. “Ollie, you’re probably the bravest kid I’ve ever met—I wasn’t half as brave as you when I was your age. And if your mom is anything like you, even though I’m sure she misses you like hell, she’s strong, and she’ll make it through. And I don’t think we’re really all that far from Zero, we can talk to Jay and Gill about making a stop and spending some time there. We might even be able to get there by the new year!”

“Oh, oh, we can watch the fireworks together! Those are the best fireworks ever, the ones for the New Year festival!” Ollie replied, looking a little more cheered up.

“I know it’ll be hard to celebrate without your mom. The first Christmas I had to spend without the Black Rose pirates was…well, it wasn’t a great day. But you’re not alone, you have a whole crew who cares about you and is here, okay?” Chip continued. “Want to go out above deck and look at the stars with me? That’s what I always do when I can’t sleep.”

Ollie nodded, wiping the last few tears off his face.

“Okay, grab your jacket and hat,” Chip told him as he started putting on his own coat from the hook on the wall. Ollie stood up and got dressed for the cold, and the two pirates headed outside.

Not only was a tapestry of stars displayed in the sky, but there was a beautiful dance of green and blue light across the sky. Ollie gasped. “What is that?”

“It’s the northern lights,” Chip replied, awestruck. “I’ve only seen them one other time before, when I wasn’t much older than you.”

“Isn’t it beautiful?” A voice added from across the deck. “In the Undersea, we have a type of jellyfish that will swim by and look kind of like this. They all glow bright blue. But this is in the sky….”

“Oh, hey, Gill,” Chip smiled.

Ollie joined the triton, laying on the deck next to him. “You know, I used to think all those stars in the sky were fish,” Gillion told him. “And to tell you a secret, Ollie, I still think it makes more sense for them to be fish than whatever they actually are.”

The young boy giggled, looking at Gillion and then back up at the sky. They sat in quiet for several minutes: Gillion and Ollie laying on the deck together, Chip sitting back on a crate.

“Oliver, you seem to be pretty knowledgeable about Christmas,” Gillion hesitated as he still gazed at the lights. “I’ve learned all about different traditions and heard different stories, but what is the true meaning of Christmas?”

“Well, a lot of people think it’s about the traditions like trees and decorations and presents, but my mom always told me that the most important thing on Christmas is being with the people you love, like family and friends,” Ollie said thoughtfully.

Gillion nodded as he listened.

Another voice spoke up, joining Chip on the crate. “Christmas is about a lot of things. Like being grateful for all the good in your life, and forgiving those who wronged you. It’s about being together in peace and joy and harmony. It’s putting others before yourself and helping those who need it. Christmas is about loving others and being loved.”

Tears filled Gillion’s eyes. “Oh, Jay, thank you.”

“Christmas is about the birth of the holy demigod son of the One True God to a poor virgin woman in an old stable beside farm animals in an ancient city, who was born to eventually be executed by his own people for the sins of the entire world,” Chip stated.

“What?” Jay asked, making a face.

“Uh…I don’t know,” Chip replied. “You guys are probably right. It’s about love.”

The crew chuckled and spent some more time on the deck before getting sleepy enough that they went to bed, dreams of sugarplums dancing in their heads.

. . . . .

There was a tangible excitement in the air as the Riptide pirates woke up on Christmas morning.

“CHRISTMAAASSS!” Ollie yelled, running through the ship in his pajamas. Chip burst out to join him in the hallway, also in his pajamas.

“IT’S CHRISTMAS!” Chip joined gleefully, picking the young boy up and setting him on his shoulders. They paraded down the hall and started singing.

“We wish you a merry Christmas, weeee wish you a merry Christmas, we wiiiish you a merry Christmaaaasss…and a happy new year!”

When there was no reply to their singing, Ollie whispered, “I don’t think anyone else is awake yet.”

“Probably not,” Chip replied, making a face as he lowered the boy back down to the ground. “It’s just the coolest people on the ship right now.”

Ollie giggled. “What should we do?”

“Hm, maybe we could pull a prank…no, not on Christmas. Hmm,” Chip thought.

“Oh, maybe we could make breakfast for everyone! Like pancakes or french toast or something!” Ollie said excitedly, mimicking mixing a bowl.

Chip snapped his fingers. “Let’s do it, Ollie.” And with that, they tiptoed into the kitchen.

They rummaged through the cupboards for ingredients, pulling out flour, sugar, and baking powder, only spreading a little bit of it onto the floor as they did so. Ollie pulled out a hidden bag of chocolate chips. “Should we add these too?”

Chip looked at the contents of the bag. “Oh, hell yeah. This is really Christmas now,” he said through a mouthful of chocolate. Ollie laughed and nibbled on some chocolate as well.

They tossed everything they would need on the wooden prep table and started stirring ingredients together. Before they knew it, after no fewer than twenty three spills or messes, they had a huge plate of chocolate chip pancakes. The rest of the pirates seemed to have awoken, though whether it was the smell of breakfast or the clatter the boys were making, they weren’t sure.

“Ooh, pancakes,” Jay yawned.

Gillion eyed the pancakes, poking one carefully.

“You kids better not have made a mess of my kitchen,” Earl grumbled.

They looked sheepish and quickly ducked back into the kitchen, armed with soap, a broom, and various rags. Fifteen minutes later, they came back out to join them to eat breakfast. “Squeaky clean!” Ollie said.

Earl grumbled something under his breath about “those damn kids”, but he seemed to be enjoying the pancakes. However, no one was enjoying the pancakes more than Gillion, who had never tried them before and had chocolate smeared all over his face.

“Can we give each other our gifts now?” Ollie asked after the triton had finished his huge stack of pancakes.

“Once we clean the dishes,” Jay said, picking up the dirty plates.

After they had cleared the table, scrubbed the dishes, and dried and put everything away, they sat together around the Christmas tree. Gifts wrapped in different paper and boxes sat beneath it. Marshall John joined them as well.

“I wanna give my gifts first!” Ollie cried, rushing forward and grabbing some clumsily wrapped boxes.

Jay unwrapped her gift first and pulled out a homemade ornament shaped like a star made out of twigs and twine. “It’s beautiful!” she smiled, looking at it carefully. Gillion, Chip, John, and Earl unwrapped their own ornaments, also crafted from twigs, in addition to pine cones, bark, and rocks.

They admired their ornaments and complimented Ollie, adding them to the tree.

Jay passed out her gifts next. The pirates received various wood carvings from her.

“I didn’t know you could carve wood like this, Jay!” Gillion exclaimed as he examined his intricately carved fish.

“Oh, it’s just something I’ve picked up recently,” Jay said humbly. “I’ve always admired wood carvings and have been teaching myself how to do it over the past couple months, but I’m still learning.”

Chip grinned as he looked at his own wooden version of their pirate flag. “I’ll go next!” He picked up a handful of boxes and gave them to each of his friends.

Ollie shrieked in joy as he unwrapped his very own pirate captain hat.

“You’re an honorary captain now, Ollie,” Chip smiled. “Don’t let the power go to your head.”

Ollie put it on his head and gave Chip a huge hug. Chip patted him on the back. The hat was just slightly too big. “It’ll fit you in time,” Chip added.

Marshall John found himself with a new bandana while Earl received a large bottle of rum. John wore his bandana, and Earl chuckled as he pulled the paper off the bottle and read the label.

Jay gasped at the hand carved box that contained a small compass. “Don’t worry, it’s not Niklaus’,” Chip told her. “But hopefully it’ll help you always find your own path.” A pink blush spread across his face as he explained.

“Thank you, Chip, this is beautiful!” she smiled.

Gillion had a huge grin on his face as he received a display stand for Destiny’s Blade, decorated with seashells and words scrawled across, the first few being “Champion of the Undersea, Hero of the Deep, the One”, and it continued with the rest of his titles. He also found a frogtopus-sized scarf in his gift. “You even remembered Pretzel!” He cried.

Marshall John handed out his gifts next—homemade knit mittens for everyone.

“My present for everyone is Christmas dinner,” Earl announced. “Fish, you’re up next.”

Gillion nervously gave everyone boxes that had fish drawn on each.

Earl was given a cookbook full of Undersea recipes, which he immediately started flipping through, making a variety of faces as he read.

Marshall John received a new belt that had aquatic designs embroidered on it.

Ollie danced with excitement when he found an enchanted toy pirate ship that floated around the room, rocking back and forth like it was in the water. He cheered when he saw the inscription of The Albatross on its side.

Pretzel got a tiny crown made of coral and sea shells, and after it was placed on her head she chirped and swam in circles.

Jay opened her box and found a new leather journal with an image of a songbird on the front. She smiled when she saw the bird and thanked Gillion.

Chip opened his gift last to find a pendant with a shark tooth attached. He carefully put it on and immediately felt as if he became physically stronger and tougher in some magical way. “Oh, wow, is this magic? Thanks, Gill!”

The pirates looked closer at their gifts, exchanged thank yous and hugs, and chatted. Then they started to go their separate ways to complete their various ship duties before Christmas dinner. As Chip and Gillion walked out through the doorway together, Ollie pointed, saying, “ooohh!”

They stopped. “What?” Chip asked.

“You’re under the mistletoe!” Ollie laughed.

“What does that mean?” Gillion asked, looking up at the leaves.

Chip’s face turned red. “It’s a…uh…tradition that if two people end up under the mistletoe together, they, well…they kiss each other.”

“I see,” Gillion said, his gaze softening and looking at Chip.

“But we don’t have to!” Chip exclaimed. “Not if you don’t want to!”

“What if I do want to?” The triton asked.

Chip’s face somehow managed to get redder. “I—“

The two looked at each other. Chip made the first move, slowly leaning in until Gillion closed the gap. They kissed softly and quickly and then separated. Sparks seemed to crackle between them, almost tangible.

Chip reached out and gently grabbed Gillion’s hand. They shared a gaze once again.

“Merry Christmas, Chip,” Gillion whispered.

“M-merry Christmas, Gill,” Chip stuttered.

Gillion squeezed his hand, then let go and left, off to complete his duties for the day. Chip looked dazed, standing in the doorway.

“Took you two long enough,” Jay said under her breath to him. “I hung that mistletoe up there weeks ago.”

Chip sputtered, “You did what?”

“Nothing,” Jay said, smirking as she headed to the captains’ quarters.

. . . . .

The crew of the Albatross and the Grandberry Pirates sat all together, tables pushed together to make room for everyone.

Earl set the last dish on the table: a large, steaming ham. The savory scent filled the air, mixing with the scents of all the other dishes into a delicious blend. And in glasses beside the plates were squirties for them all to share. Gillion smiled in recognition, remembering a couple weeks ago when Earl had asked about what special Undersea foods and drinks he liked.

“This looks amazing, Earl,” Jay told him. “Thank you for doing all this. I know it’s a lot of work.”

“Oh, you shoulda seen me back at the Orang-Inn, I was whippin’ up all kinds of shit,” Earl replied.

“Those are the best looking mashed potatoes I’ve ever seen,” Lizzie pointed out. “Are those chives on top?”

“Mac and cheese!” Ollie shouted.

Gillion took it all in. Not just the food, but the atmosphere. The shared smiles. The togetherness. The chatter. The hard work Earl put into making a special meal. The work they would do later cleaning the dishes and the kitchen together. The love. And all at once, he understood what Christmas was. All he wanted for Christmas was his crew, who were his closest friends, and now, his family. He felt the peace, and the joy, and the love, and his heart was full and grateful for it all, more than he ever felt like he would get in life, let alone, deserved to get. A life with a family who he loved and who he was loved by.

He couldn’t wait until the next Christmas.