Work Text:
Cold Hands, Warm Heart (working title)
by Buffy
God, it was freakin' cold! Any colder and they'd all probably turn into popsicles waiting. Abby adjusted her stocking cap to cover her ears better, then amused herself for a moment watching her breath fog in the air. One of her other friends called it "dragon weather" when it happened, because it made everyone look like they were breathing smoke. Abby checked her watch again. 7:45. The tree lighting ceremony was supposed to have started at 7:30, but they were still standing here, waiting.
Abby sighed, looking around her at her friends. Tim and Ziva were discussing different Christmas traditions around the world; Ducky was telling Gerald and Palmer some story about a past Christmas that involved a Santa in drag, and Tony and Gibbs were . . . standing close together, making occasional comments to each other as they watched the crowd.
What caught her attention, though, was how they were standing. They were practically shoulder-to-shoulder, both with hands hidden coat pockets. Abby remembered Tony's very vocal displeasure at losing one of his gloves earlier that day, and she had to smile. Tony's hand was tucked into Gibb's coat pocket with Gibb's hand. If anyone were to ask, Gibbs would probably say that it wasn't worth training a replacement to let Tony get frostbite.
She let herself feel the warm glow at seeing them standing so close together. She loved both of them, and was thrilled that they were happy, despite all the shit of the previous year. A flash of red hair at the corner of her eye made her abandon the warm fuzzies, though. Abby caught Ducky's eye, indicating Tony and Gibbs with a tiny nod of the head.
Abby moved to stand on Gibbs' other side, reaching over to pull his hand into her pocket even as she reached over to plunge her other hand into Tim's coat pocket. She gave his hand a soft squeeze as she did, and Tim took a cue from her, putting his other hand into Ziva's pocket. He leaned over and whispered with her for a moment, probably explaining before she could take offense and remove his hand.
On the other side of Tony, Abby could see Ducky moving to add to the chain, with Gerald and Palmer stepping up right alongside him. Palmer and Ziva surprised her, though. They moved around to stand together, creating a closed circle, linked by the hands in each other's coat pockets.
Abby grinned at their mini-family. After the lighting ceremony they'd all go to Gibbs' house, and Gibbs would start a big fire in the fireplace. There'd be hot coffee, and a crock pot of mulled cider, and even some of Ducky's wonderful eggnog. Tony had promised to bring "The Muppet's Christmas Carol", and there would be an exchange of little gifts and cards among them. Even the beginning of the usual holiday speeches didn't dim her grin. They'd be standing out here for another twenty minutes listening to political bull wrapped in holiday holiness, but she didn't care. Suddenly, it didn't seem cold anymore.
end