For @stmonstercalendar and heavily inspired by this post
Steddie • rated E • read on ao3 comments make writing happen bbs • sort of Elf Eddie, porn with not a lot of plot, monsterfucker Steve, shape shifting as flirting, autoerotic asphyxiation :)
He wouldn't have been able to explain how it had happened; a bit too buzzed and horny while trying to untangle his Christmas lights, maybe.
Steve had flung a loop of lights over his head to work on the infuriating ball, then when he'd gotten frustrated and yanked another loop, the string tightened perfectly across his throat.
His dick had taken over at that point.
Finding himself flat on the floor in front of his undecorated tree, pulling on the wires around his neck and his throbbing cock, a low voice startled him. "Well well well, what do we have here?"
Frozen, he could only stare at the figure perched in his recliner.
"Don't stop on my account, I'm enjoying the show."
Steve blinked. "What? Who?" There were several other questions he'd like to ask, but those were the most important, and easiest to say at the moment.
The stranger's eyes lingered over his face, down to his neck and a pink tongue came to wet his bottom lip as his gaze dropped further to Steve's hand still around his dick.
"That's really what you want to talk about, right now?"
Steve's hand slid up his length, his other hand leaving the lights. He smirked as the stranger let out a small disappointed noise.
"Okay, alright. I get it." He got to his feet quickly, albeit begrudging. Clearing his throat, and putting an air of importance in his voice, he continued, "Greetings mortal, I am Edwifkin, spirit of Christmas." He gave a bow and a flourish of his hand.
Steve stared.
"I was summoned here as there was a wealth of, ahem, Yuletide cheer. This," he gave a wave of his hand, encompassing Steve still sprawled on the floor, "however, is a new one for me."
"Me too," he offered.
The stranger hummed, returning to perch on the chair, face in his open palm, at rapt attention.
Steve felt his cheeks heat, a little late, and tried to remember the man's speech. "Tell me your name, again?"
He smirked. "Edwifkin, but you can call me Eddie. Any of my other names would make your little human brain explode."
Steve gulped. "So, you're not?" There was a beat where they stared at each other. "Not, um, human?"
Eddie chuckled, "No, sweetheart, I'm not. But that's fine, right? This, uh," he gestured down at himself, "visage is what you wanted me to appear as. Well, with my own style added in."
That made even less sense to Steve, but he could agree the look worked for him. Big dark eyes with long lashes, long dark curly hair. Black jeans and a dark red and green flannel button down, but the tears across the denim and the rolled up sleeves showed off swoops of ink across his pale skin.
"Yeah," Steve breathed. So he had a type, sue him. Speaking of, "Um, Eddie? If you're not human, does that mean, well, can you still …?"
Unable to find the words, he instead gripped himself, staring pointedly at where Eddie's legs were spread in his tight jeans.
"Naughty boy," Eddie teased. "I assure you, I can do anything you'd like, with whatever necessary appendages as you'd like."
Steve screamed as he came for the second time, Eddie pulling just right on the lights around his throat from behind as he used them as a rein to fuck him back onto his cock.
Steve panted, untangling himself with a groan from both the lights and the body around him. "I need some water, but then you're going to show me what else you can do."
Stella hated the snow, and the isolation of the small town she grew up in. Hated the bright colors, and sheer friendliness of the neighbors. How everyone was always involved in each other’s business, at all times--and how getting involved meant sharing.
Giving up your time for the greater good.
‘We’re one big family!’ Her father had told her, and hadn’t understood why she found the concept utterly revolting.
Just like she couldn’t understand why they never agreed with her ideas. Things would run so much more smoothly with more rules, better regulations. They didn’t need to rely on magic when they had spreadsheets.
Who cared if some people were upset? If some of the workers where put out of jobs, or “hurt” by her changes?
That was how evolution worked.
The strongest survived, and the business world demanded only the strongest of leaders.
She didn’t regret leaving.
Didn’t look behind her for a second, all too happy to go to college and find herself a rich man to make miserable.
Even had a child, though they were never her favorite things. Her Steven of course, would be so much different from the children she’d grown up among or the ones she helped oversee for her father's work.
He wouldn’t cry. He wouldn’t shriek or scream or make demands of busy adults. Steven would know his place, and he would stay in it until he had grown into a reasonable adult.
No unrealistic expectations, not from her son.
And absolutely, 100%, no magic.
(Unfortunately for Stella Harrington and her relationship with her son, magic does not obey the whims of one person.
Particularly not that kind of magic, one far older than Stella could comprehend.)
See: Steve knew where he came from. Would never say it of course, outright refused to put a name to it.
Knew better, even when he was young, than to speak it aloud.
Though his mother had long abandoned any powers given to her, Steve was still born with his. When lonely, he often found he could wander into a different kind of woods.
One absolutely covered in snow.
Steve should have been cold in those woods, but he never was, not even the first time he stumbled into them at the tender age of seven.
These trees never scared him. Not like the ones in his backyard sometimes did.
The whole place felt rather welcoming in a way his own house had never been, and as Steve had stumbled along following the faint glow of lights, he found himself feeling more relaxed.
Happy.
Even at seven, Steve was smart enough to know he needed to turn back, after a while. That his mother would be furious with him if he caused her to miss the meeting she needed to go to.
That he had a responsibility to be where she put him.
He hadn’t crested the hill yet. Hadn’t quite figured out where the glow was coming from, when he realized he needed to go home--but his trip wasn’t wasted.
A baby reindeer distracted him.
It peeked around a tree, and upon seeing him, came dashing his way.
Steve should be scared, would have been scared, but something in him told him this creature was his friend. He held out his hands and greeted it as such.
He was right.
A few more little reindeer came up over the hill, running around him, and together he played what felt like a game as he walked back in the direction he thought his house lay.
Said his goodbyes when the snow started to wane and made promises to return.
Found, sadly, that he wouldn’t get another chance too for almost a full year. He was too busy, signed up for multiple sports, handed over to tutors and taught life skills by a parade of nannies, none of whom ever stayed for long.
He dreamed of the snow.
The gentle way the woods felt.
It was what made him tell the lie that let him go back.
Steve was eight by then, and smart to how his parents and nannies worked. That some of them overlapped their stays when his parents went away.
So it was easy to tell Mary that she could go.
That it was okay, really. Carla had just called, she was on her way.
Just like it was easy to tell Carla that his parents' plans had changed. Let her know she wasn’t needed after all.
What harm would it do if he was alone for a night? His father kept telling him he was a big boy. Soon he’d be on his own anyway.
The snow found him faster this time, when he went for his walk in the woods.
Delighted, Steve kept an eye out for the reindeer, fingers skittering across tree bark as he looked around, once again tracking the soft glow that came up over the hill.
It was a long walk to that light, but Steve didn’t mind.
Not until he heard the crying.
“Hello?” Steve called, voice prim and proper as always. It was a little high--Tommy teased him endlessly about it, but he had been assured it would deepen.
The crying didn’t stop, but things got quiet for a moment, in the way that happens when someone was trying hard not to be found.
(Steve knew exactly how that felt, not wanting to be found. Wanting to cry for a moment, without someone telling you to toughen up, be a man, ‘God Steven you’re too old for all this--’)
“It’s okay!” Steve rushed out, trying to locate where the muffled sounds were coming from before they ran away. “I won’t tell anyone, I promise!”
Which is right about when he almost tripped over the other kid.
He was hunched against a tree, knees drawn into his chest with brown hair hanging into his eyes. His clothes were a odd--a little like how his teacher had made Steve dress when they’d done a play about the middle ages.
“Who’re you?” The boy asked defensively, wiping his nose with his sleeve.
“I’m Steve.” He said, before kneeling down himself. “Did you get hurt?”
“No.” The boy sniffled. After a moment he added; “M’ Eddie.”
His eyes were large, and reminded Steve of a puppy he once saw. All cute and round and shiny.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before.” The boy said and it wasn’t an accusation, but it wasn’t friendly.
“I’m not from around here.” Steve told him. “At least, I don’t think I am.”
It was kind of hard to know, given Steve wasn’t sure where here was, exactly--and absolutely knew better than to ask his parents.
“Well then you should go home.” The boy sniffled again.
Steve wasn't put off by it. Tommy had been a lot meaner than this after all, when they'd first met.
Given their parents made them play together anyways, Steve felt he he could get this kid to like him too.
"I'm gonna, later. I'm looking for something right now though--you wanna come?"
Which he felt was a pretty nice offer. Might distract Eddie from whatever was bothering him.
(Steve liked distractions, when he was upset. It made it a lot easier to swallow down the bad feelings.)
“You shouldn’t hang around me.” Eddie said suddenly. His nose was as red as his eyes, and he refused to look Steve in the eye as he hunched further into himself. “I’m bad.”
“You’re not bad.” Steve told him.
He got a glare for it.
“How would you know?”
“I dunno.” Steve stopped, brows furrowing in thought. “I just--kinda do. I always have.”
Which was true. Steve was awfully good at identifying who was good and who was bad, from adults to his fellow classmates. It had gotten him in trouble before his mother had sat him down, and told him he just had a good business sense.
That he needed to keep to himself who was good and who was bad, especially the adults, because it wasn’t his place to say such things.
(‘But it’ll serve you well in the future.’ His mother told him, tucking an errant strand of hair back behind his ear. ‘Particularly for business deals.’)
“Well you’re wrong then, because I was born bad.” Eddie scoffed, arms crossing over his chest. “Everyone says so!”
It was dramatic as hell, and Steve couldn’t help the giggle that escaped him.
“I’m sorry!” He said immediately, when Eddie’s face flushed angrily. “I’m sorry it’s just--you look kinda silly.”
He mimed Eddie’s stance for a moment, including a dramatic little huff of breath. It unbalanced him, and Steve ended up dropping on his butt, which made him to laugh even louder.
“No one who does that can be bad.” He said finally, through the giggles.
“That’s--stupid. You’re stupid.” Eddie said, except he was clearly trying to hide his own laugh at Steve’s antics.
“I’m not stupid--and you’re not bad. I promise.” Steve said, before reaching out a hand, one pinkie extended. “I’ll swear on it.”
“What’re you doing?” Eddie asked him, but he didn’t sound sad now. More curious.
Curious Steve knew, was a lot better than sad.
“You wrap your pinkie finger with mine. Then it’s a pinkie swear, which is like--unbreakable!”
That’s what Carol had told him at least, and so far it had held true. Steve figured it must work doubly so, in a place like this.
Cautiously, Eddie reached out, entwining his pinkie with Steve’s. Like any minute Steve would snatch his hand back, and tell him it was all a joke.
Instead, Steve bobbed their hands up and down once, before letting go and asking; “Do you wanna go find that light with me? I wanna see what it is.”
He pointed up the hill, toward the glow that had haunted his dreams.”
“Oh that’s boring.“ Eddie told him, but he had a grin on his face that felt infectious. “It’s just the town. I’ll show you something way better!”
“Yeah?” Steve asked, and let Eddie snatch his wrist, launching to his feet and bringing Steve with him.
In doing so his hair blew, revealing that he had pointed ears.
Steve stared at them in awe as Eddie tugged him further into the trees, until they burst into a clearing filled with gingerbread houses. They ranged from teeny tiny, to large enough that Steve and Eddie could walk in them, and it wasn’t long before the two started a game of tag, broken only by laughter.
In retrospect, this was his downfall.
Because the little gingerbread houses were really cool, and Eddie was a lot of fun. It was easy to play with him--like the two of them had been made for each other.
Steve had never connected like this with a person before. Never had so much fun with someone before.
Not even with Tommy and Carol, his very best friends.
Eddie seemed to feel the same way, and not even an hour into meeting him, Steve knew he would remember this for the rest of his life.
Remember Eddie.
Steve ended up losing track of time. Stayed so long that his lie was discovered.
The person who came looking for him wasn’t his parents, but looked weirdly like his mom--if his mom were a boy.
He introduced himself as Steve’s Uncle Nick after he called the two boys to him, hands on his hips in a way Steve kind of wanted to mimic.
Steve knew it to be true, in the same way he knew how to find the forest, and if someone was good or bad. A feeling inside him he could tap into, warm and fuzzy in a way that, should he ever be pressed, he might admit to feeling like magic.
“Now how did you get here?” Uncle Nick asked him, like Steve's presence was a surprising little puzzle.
Knowing better than to lie, sensing that his Uncle would be able to tell if he did anyways, Steve told him the truth.
It got him exactly what he expected, which was an upset adult.
Unlike his mom or dad however, his Uncle didn’t yell at him, or grab Steve’s hand in a punishing grip. No nails dug into his skin, no harsh words were hissed. Uncle Nick simply pinched the tip of his nose, before giving a sigh that shook his massive frame.
“Your mom is going to be very upset.” He said finally.
Like Steve didn't know.
“I just wanted to see the lights.”
“The lights--oh.” Uncle Nick glanced over his shoulder. “Could you see them from your house?”
Steve shook his head.
“No but I could feel them.”
Like a pulse in his chest. A compass, or--a guide.
“He says he can tell who's naughty or nice.” Eddie chimed in, oddly quiet for how loud he had been. “He says I’m good.”
This was said as a challenge, and Steve eyed his new friend out of the corner of his eye. He’d never dared speak to an adult like that, and was both a little in awe of Eddie doing it, and afraid for him.
Something his Uncle seemed to sense.
“Edward, go home.” He said, firm but kind. Not like how Steve's mom was when she was mad, or his dad when he had a bad day at work.“I’ll come talk to you later. Come on Steve, let me walk you back. I best explain this in person.”
Then he took Steve’s hand in his, while Steve called out a goodbye to Eddie over his shoulder.
“You’ll come back and visit, right!?” Eddie yelled back.
Steve shouted an affirmative, even knowing it wasn’t likely he’d be allowed.
(Wished with all his heart, that he'd be allowed.)
“Eddie is really good, you know.” Steve said once he no longer could see his new friend, because it felt important to tell his Uncle that. Necessary, for some reason.
“I know.” Uncle Nick replied gently. “But let’s not worry about him right now, okay?”
“Okay.”
Then they were back in Steve’s woods, the ones that were sometimes unfriendly. In his backyard, and up to the door, and even from here Steve could hear his mother and father screaming at each other, in a tone that made his stomach curl.
“Come on kiddo. Time to face the music.” Uncle Nick told him, and Steve found he really didn’t want to let go of his Uncle’s hand.
He did though.
He was a big boy, and well trained. He didn’t flinch from his parents. Didn’t disobey when his mother demanded he tell her exactly how he got to the fun place, with all the snow--and listened further still when she demanded Uncle Nick take it out of him.
Take what Steve didn’t know--not until his Uncle lost the argument.
Reached into Steve’s chest and did something to him, something that killed that warm and fuzzy thing that had always lived inside Steve.
He cried harder than he ever had before that night. Cried and begged for Uncle Nick to put it back, that he was sorry and he wouldn’t ever use it again if they just let him keep it.
(He promised, he promised, he promised-!)
Sank to his knees and told his parents that it hurt.
They didn't listen, and they didn't put it back.
His father told him to get up off the floor, and then pulled him up when Steve found he couldn’t.
Hauled him to his room, even as his Uncle warned his mother that he couldn’t get rid of it. That he could only suppress it, the same way she suppressed hers, but those words didn’t really matter to Steve just then.
Not when he was hurting, and tired, and found himself wishing for his new friend.
(His mother told him he’d feel better in time.
Steve never did.)
xXx
The hole in Steve’s chest had never filled.
It kept him up at night. The yearning for something just out of reach, tormenting him with a feeling of being hollow.
He didn’t know how his mother could stand it.
Steve stopped fussing about it though--or rather, he stopped the first time his father had slapped him over his complaining.
“Enough, Steven! You’re perfectly fine. Now start acting like it, for fucks sake!” He’d roared, and shocked as he was, Steve had still done what he’d been taught to do.
Toughed it out. Sucked it up. Got over it.
Dumped his entire life into basketball and swimming and other parent-approved activities, even if he felt empty.
He was eight, then ten, then fourteen and soon Steve wasn’t healed, but he'd adjusted.
Got aloof to the pain as his popularity skyrocketed, and his parents left him on his own while they chased the almighty dollar.
(Secretly, Steve tried to fill the void in his heart with parties and people, alcohol and even the occasional drug, though most just left him feeling worse than before.
It was perhaps how he ended up acting as he did.
Turning from the sweet boy who was always helping others, to someone who was fast with their insults. Popularity was a sharks game, and though he refused to participate in the bullying his friends enjoyed, he made sure everyone knew who the biggest fish in the pond was.
Because the hole was always there, in the back of his mind. The thing inside him that was missing, that made him crave the snow, and the lights, and the boy with pointy ears.
He might be able to force himself to forget about all of that, if only the hole in his heart would allow him.)
xXx
Five days before his fifteenth birthday, some random guy showed up in Steve’s yard.
This wasn’t unusual--Steve invited a lot of people over.
Tommy and Carol both had a standing invitation to use his pool and Steve often used it to curry favor with the upperclassmen--but even underwater, Steve didn’t recognize the teenager leaning over to watch him swim.
Plus it was a little weird for someone to pop up on a Sunday.
Refusing to be intimidated, Steve surfaced right under the guy, head whipping up to make sure he splashed him in the face.
Laughed as the other guy sputtered.
“Can I help you man?” Steve drawled, hooking his arms on the lip of the pool.
“I’m looking for someone. Steve Harrington?” The guy told him, glaring as he wiped water off his face.
His hair just touched his shoulders, in that awkward stage of growing out that made him look like a pageboy.
Steve tucked that little observation away for later, in case he needed it.
“Congratulations, you found me.” He said, eyeing him over.
Black jeans with holes in the knees, wallet chain and a black shirt with a faded logo of some band Steve had never heard of proudly displayed. A checkered plaid shirt topped the whole outfit, with a red guitar pick dangling around his neck from a chain.
Like the guy thought he was some kind of rockstar, and not in bumfuck Indiana.
Steve raised an eyebrow.
“Though I think you’re in the wrong place. The audition for the new town jester is being held at the high school.”
He got a frown, like the guy knew he was being insulted but didn’t quite want to believe it. “I’m not here for an audition.”
“You sure? Cause you’re definitely dressed the part.”
“Okay, you are definitely not Steve.” He said, arms crossing his chest. He had a ring on each hand, catching the light as he clutched at his arms. “Steve wasn’t this much of a dick.”
Which wasn’t the first time Steve had been called out for his behavior--but it had never been by the people he was supposed to care about.
Those people, the people his parents liked?
They loved it.
“Times change.” Steve told the stranger. Kept his tone light and playful, the way that always made girls giggle at him and guy’s listen.
Well the ones he wasn’t making fun of, anyways.
“People do too.”
He rearranged himself, planting both palms flat against the concrete, bouncing once to build energy before rocketing out of the water.
Stood, and watched with interest as the new guy’s eyes raked over his naked torso, before his whole face flushed red.
How he looked away, like he suddenly couldn’t bare to look at Steve.
“You shouldn't have changed that much.” He muttered, but Steve already had his number.
"Why were you looking for me anyway?” Steve asked as he went and grabbed a towel. Wrapped it around his waist, but kept his upper body shirtless.
Idly scratched at his hip and watched as the guy acted like Steve had practically stripped naked in front of him.
Weirdly enjoyed the little spark it gave him, to watch this guy appear so affected by his bare chest.
Defensive, the stranger bit out; “We were friends. I haven’t seen him in a long time, I was just checking up on him.”
That made Steve pause.
Really look over the guy standing before him.
The fidgeting, the blushing, the way he avoided Steve’s gaze.
He opened his mouth, an odd urge to draw this out guiding him when the hole in his chest pulsed.
Like a convulsion, a miniature seizure that took Steve entirely by surprise.
It had been a long time since it had done that, long enough to throw Steve off his game.
Make him feel unsafe, unmoored.
Abandoned.
“Yeah?” He wheezed, before covering himself and the flood of wrong/want/need with a harsh cough. “Well now I know you’re definitely barking up the wrong tree. I’d never be friends with a fucking queer.”
At that, the guy’s mouth dropped open, head whipping around to stare at Steve in shock.
"Don’t deny it, I can tell. You’re practically drooling over there.” Steve smiled with all his teeth, even as he struggled to keep his breath even. “It’s disgusting.”
“You know what, fuck you. I thought you were different and you’re not.” The stranger spat, with far more venom than Steve was prepared for. “You’re the same as all the rest.”
He scoffed, before whirling on his heel, middle finger high in the air as he stormed off into the woods.
“Have fun with your sad, beige fucking life!” He yelled, voice a little choked up.
“I will!” Steve yelled back at him, oddly heated.
Rubbed his chest when he was gone, before sitting down to try and figure out what the hell just happened--and why the hell his chest hurt so much.
xXx
Steve’s life remained completely and painfully normal--until Nancy Wheeler.
Nancy and her smile, Nancy and her reminder of what it felt like to be loved.
She didn’t fill the void inside him, but what she did came close.
Felt similar.
Steve found he’d do anything for her, looking at life once again through the lens he had back when he was seven.
It was great.
Better than great--it was the best he’d ever been.
Then Barb went missing.
Shit hit the fan so fast that in retrospect, Steve still doesn’t understand it. There was Jonathan and his camera, with the background of his missing little brother. Tommy and his insults, grabbing Steve up by the collar. Nancy being weird, Nancy ducking him to hang out with the guy who took photographs of them having sex.
Steve's brain tracks it all in little snapshots. The way he realized that maybe Nancy was right--he was way more of an asshole than he thought. How he decided to clean the theater, and then apologize to Jonathan.
(Creepy shit or not, Jonathan’s brother was gone. Steve had never had a brother, but he understood how it felt when something important was taken from you.
How it made you act after.)
There was a shift inside him. Not coming from the void, but from how Steve dealt with it.
And then there was a fucking monster coming out of the ceiling.
This is how Steve learns the magic he once had wasn’t special. That it’s not the only supernatural thing that exists in the world.
Only unlike the snow and gingerbread house and boy with pointed ears and an Uncle that looked a hell of a lot like Santa Clause, this version came with evil government laboratories, the Upside Down and his girlfriend holding a gun.
It was kind of a lot, really.
Particularly because his parents weren’t home.
(They still came home of course, but it wasn’t with the same frequency as it used to be.
The business trips went from once a month, to every other week, to long stretches of away periods. Long enough that Steve spoke to them over the phone more than he did in person, and knew more about business mergers than he ever cared too.
Also his fathers love life, courtesy of his drunk mother.)
Steve didn’t exactly handle it well.
Doesn’t think any of them handled it well, really, even if Nancy blamed him for trying to pretend he was okay. But right as their relationship blew up in Steve’s face, shit started happening again.
Flickering lights and freaky monsters. A group of kids Steve found himself in charge of, who were doing their level best to commit suicide.
(“We’re helping El and Will, idiot!” Mike Wheeler protested in the back of Billy Hargrove’s Camaro when Steve brought up that this was not what being benched meant, and Steve let him have that one given the way the world was spinning.
God that asshole hit like a train.)
Another snapshot, full of fear and fury, and things were over once again.
Steve was telling Nancy it was okay. She could go with Jonathan, that he could tell it was what she wanted.
It hurt him to do it, but he wasn’t going to be like his own parents.
Realized with a weird amount of clarity, that he wanted to be the very opposite of his parents.
Late in the night, feeling every ache and pain in his body but knowing everyone was safe, Steve finally started the long trek home.
He didn’t have his car (he hoped that was still at the Byers place) and he didn’t have his keys (no clue where those went but he was praying it wasn’t in the freaky tunnels) and was well into the middle of his walk when his chest started acting weird. Really weird.
Steve ignored it.
He kept ignoring it, focused on getting back to his bed, and his bed alone.
(Maybe he had been thinking more than that. About how the last time he had truly been happy wasn’t with Nancy, but with Eddie. That he’d give anything to go play in the gingerbread houses again.
Maybe he was even thinking of how warm his Uncle had been, the way he was so gentle when he held Steve’s hand.
How he’d argued against Steve’s parents, when no one else ever did.
It was probably just the head injury.)
Unfortunately--or fortunately, depending on who you asked later--the weird feeling didn't stop.
It grew and grew, until it felt like something was breaking out of him.
Like a cough you’d long suppressed that crawled forcefully up and out of your throat, it both hurt and felt amazing, a pang echoing out through his very core--
Then suddenly there was snow on the trees and Steve was stumbling into a teenager with fluffy hair.
“Sorry.” He muttered, right before he went down on his knees.
“What the hell---” Fluffy haired guy said, spinning around and looking at Steve like he was a ghost. “Oh shit, are you okay!?”
“I’m fine.” Steve lied, even as he gave in and laid down.
Man, this snow was nice.
Comfy and soft, and cold on his face.
There was a string of curses coming from above him, and Steve made the effort to twist his head so he could watch fluffy hair kneel frantically next to him.
“ What happened!? How did you get here!?”
“S’long story man.” Steve slurred, feeling bad and looking worse. His head fucking hurt.
“Don’t suppose there’s a guy named Eddie around? He has uh,” Steve fumbled, hands trying to point to his ears. “Pointed. You know.”
He gestured to his own ear again.
(Figured he might as well ask, given all the snow.)
The Fluffy Hair pulled said hair back at that, revealing his very own pointy ear. “Dude you’re in the North Pole, all us elves have pointy ears.”
The North Pole.
The words Steve had only ever dared to think, and never said out loud.
“Cool.” He said instead, not really feeling like he was inside his own body.
“Just--stay there, okay? My name's Gareth I’m gonna go get someone.” Gareth the elf (an elf, wasn’t that a trip. Did that mean Eddie was also an elf?) said, hands hovering awkwardly in the air, before he darted off, out of Steve’s sight.
“Can you get Eddie?” The question came out in a whine, the hurt in Steve’s chest overtaken by the pain in his head.
He didn’t get an answer.
Which was okay, he thought.
He didn’t really need one.
He had the snow, and the woods that weren’t straight out of a fucking nightmare, and, he could just sleep right here…
“Steve!”
He blinked, and found he must have passed out.
“There you are. Stay with me.” A blurry face was saying. A couple more blinks brought it into focus, and Steve knew this person, even if he couldn't put a name to a face.
The hair was longer, and there were more rings on his fingers, ones Steve could both see and feel as a hand ran along the back of his head.
Worried doe eyes met Steve's own, and just through the curtain of curls, he caught the outline of a pointed ear.
“Ed--ie?” He croaked, unsure.
“Yeah Stevie, it's me. You're okay, we brought you back to my place. Gareth is getting help.”
He was trying to sound reassuring but he mostly just sounded worried.
Not that Steve cared, because he finally figured out why older Eddie was familiar.
“Oh.” He managed, the words feeling like he had to push out. “It was you. By the--pool.”
“What?”
It felt like eons ago. The weird guy, asking after him. Back when Steve had been doing anything he could to fill the void his magic had left behind, and turned into a raging shithead as a result.
“M sorry.” Steve slurred, voice cracking in its honesty. “I was--asshole. M'sorry.”
The look Eddie gave him was wild. Like he couldn’t believe Steve was here, and definitely couldn’t believe Steve was apologizing.
Which was fair. Until last year Steve wouldn’t have ever apologized, to anyone, ever.
“Yeah you were, but we can talk about it later. Right now I just need you to stay awake.” Eddie said instead. It was gentle, a lot more gentle than Steve felt he deserved.
It made him want to explain, more than anything, what had happened.
“I was tryin to fix…the hole. Inside.” Steve needed Eddie to understand. Needed it more than breathing, just then.
“I know, big boy.” Eddie soothed, and his hands were back in Steve’s hair.
It felt nice.
“S’not an excuse, promise it's not. I was hurt--hurting, and--I was mean.” Steve continued. It was getting harder to think, the world swimming in and out of focus, but this was important.
Perhaps the most important thing he’d done in a long time, sans saving the kids from the demodogs.
“It’s okay, Stevie. I didn’t get it back then but I understand better now and…”
He might have said something more. Steve thinks he was, but then Eddie was shaking him harshly, and Steve realized he might have tried to pass back out.
“Come on Stevie, sweetheart, you can’t sleep right now. You have to stay awake for me, okay? Steve?”
Steve tried to shake his head and hissed when he found out how much that hurt. Breathed in and out through the pain, before his brain connected back to what he’d been trying to say.
“Not jus’ to you.” He panted. “Wasn’t mean just to you.”
That was important too. That Eddie knew he hadn't been targeted. That Steve was a dick to pretty much anyone he came across.
“I know. I've uh, been watching you, from here."
“Yeah?”
“We have this giant globe. Like a crystal ball, but it’s set deep into the floor so you can only really see half of it. It can also connect to snow globes, and it can let you see places. Watch people.”
Eddie’s voice was soothing, the deep timber of it echoing through Steve’s chest. Belatedly he realized his head was in Eddie’s lap.
That felt nice too.
“I was real mad at you but the Bossman--uh, your Uncle, he kinda showed me you once or twice and then I started watching you myself. Sorry I know that’s weird--”
“Least you didn’t take pictures.” Steve wheezed and then tried to grin because that was very much supposed to be a joke.
(He definitely had felt more put together when he dropped the kids off in Billy's Camaro--so what the hell was happening? Had the shock worn off? Adrenaline?
Fuck maybe he should have just driven Billy’s stupid car back to his house, instead of leaving it at Max's house.
Asshole deserved to not know where his car was anyway.)
Then suddenly there was a lot of noise and light and fuck did that all make his head hurt. Hands went all over him, people barking orders, and a girl Steve was pretty sure was his age was peering at him.
“Steve?” She asked, but it sounded distant. Echoey and unclear.
“I can’t keep him awake!”
That from Eddie, who sounded much clearer, if not utterly panicked.
“It’s okay, I’ve got him.” The girl said, tight but professional in a way that typically belonged to someone used to medical emergencies. “You can let him go now.”
“Are you kidding me, Buckley you’re an apprentice medmage-!”
Steve frowned at that, but found something was drifting over him. A weight, like an invisible blanket pressed down gently, and he had a second to recognize that this too, was some kind of magic before sleep tried to take him.
He fought it for a moment as a thought occurred.
One last thing he needed to say.
“You’re still good. Eddie. You’ve always been--”
The magic took him away.
xXx
It smelled like cinnamon.
Cinnamon and sharp hints of peppermint, the kind that tickled at Steve’s nose as he slowly rose back into consciousness.
Steve winced as he sat up, head itching like ants were crawling all over it. Idly he tried to scratch at his forehead and found himself touching a thick bandage, at about the same time his body seemed to catch on that he was awake.
It reminded him that he had had a hell of a night in the form of an onslaught of aches and pains.
His fingers traced the edge of the bandage as he took in the cheerful red walls surrounding him. The room was the exact kind of kitschy his mom hated, little twirls of white here and there making the place look like the inside of a candy cane.
The center piece was the full size window, taller than Steve was and twice as wide. Fat, fluffy flakes of snow drifted lazily outside it, some sticking to the window panes as they floated on by.
It was a little like being knocked out and waking up in the Wonka factory, but given all the shit that he had been through the past twenty four hours, Steve didn’t mind it.
Snow was infinitely preferable to the weird ash that came out of the Upside Down.
As if sensing he was awake, the door opposite the window swung open. A tray came through, positively stacked with a stupid amount of pancakes and oozing with maple syrup, the type Steve could smell.
“I,” Eddie announced, head just visible above the good, “had a very embarrassing meltdown when they tried to take you away from me. So suck it up Harrington, because you’re stuck with me now.”
Steve stared at him, mildly concerned he was a hallucination.
“I brought you pancakes.” Eddie added, pausing as he approached the bed like he hadn’t actually thought through to this point.
“I see that.” Steve said, just to fill the sudden, awkward silence. “There’s…kinda a lot there, man.”
So much so it was threatening to escape the confines of the tray and drip down onto the carpet.
“You play sports things don’t you?” Eddie defended, making the executive decision to put the tray down on the bed. “Kinda thought you’d need like, a lot, especially if you're healing."
Steve snorted, but didn’t bother to hide the smile that crept onto his face.
Even if it hurt.
Dragged his gaze from the pile of pancakes now laid before him, to the man fidgeting awkwardly by his bedside.
Realized belatedly, that Eddie hadn’t changed much.
Not since Steve had last seen him, though he never in his life would have thought one of Santa’s elves would wear so much black.
(Frankly Eddie looked just like every other teenage metalhead Steve had ever met, sans the pointed ears. One of which was now pierced and had little metal hoops threaded through it.)
Eddie realized Steve was looking, and bashfully twist a strand of his hair in front of his face.
It was cute.
It made him look cute.
“You might as well sit and help me with this, it’s way too much.” Steve told him.
Which was the truth--Eddie had brought him a shit load of pancakes and Steve wasn’t exactly sure he could chew all that well right now, considering his left cheek was so puffed out it felt like a chipmunks.
Didn’t want to turn down a gift though--or rather, turn down a gift from Eddie.
Who he absolutely still needed to apologize properly too.
“I guess I should start off with a thank you.” Steve began, as Eddie dropped onto the bed. “I think you might have saved my life, though I swear I wasn’t doing that bad off before I got here.”
“Robin said the shock wore off.” Eddie told him. He didn’t wait for Steve to dig in, grabbing a pancake and rolling it up like a sausage before stabbing one end in syrup. “She also said you had a hell of a concussion, two cracked ribs and a literal boatload of scratches,”
Which sounded about right, considering.
“Still though.” Steve frowned, looking at his hands. “I mostly just fought off Billy, the demodogs never got me.”
Something he was incredibly thankful for, given the sheer amount of teeth.
“I think you’re downplaying your injuries here, handsome, you gave Robin a hell of a fright. She cursed in four languages." Eddie talked fast, just like the little boy Steve remembered him as.
It made him grin.
“Handsome, huh?” Steve teased, and regretted it the second it slipped out of his mouth.
He hadn’t meant to call attention to it. Not just yet anyway. Wanted to work his way up to his apology and then the things he had kind of realized on his walk home (and possibly before that, though he thinks he might have…repressed it.)
Given the way Eddie froze, Steve figures he’s got about two seconds to talk himself out of it, before Eddie rightfully shut him out.
“I like it. The nicknames.” He said, which is also not what he intended to come out of his mouth and God he was really blowing this, wasn’t he?
“Steve,” Eddie started, sounding a little strangled and nope, no, he was going to fix this dammit!
“I’m sorry.” He said honestly. “I know I was an ass when you came to check up on me, and I know I said some terrible things to you. I regret it. I regret it a lot, and I shouldn’t have treated you like that.”
“You weren't wrong.” Eddie cut in, twirling a ring on his finger, eyes firmly on it. “I am gay. I am flamingly gay. And I understand if after today, you don't want me here.”
Which apparently answered the question about whether or not elves gave a shit about such things.
(Or maybe they did, and it was humans who cared, and Eddie was giving him an out for it.
Steve figured he’d ask later.
After he had finished groveling.)
“I want you here.” He said, as seriously as he’d ever said anything. “I think the real question is why you would want to help me?”
It was the one thing that didn’t add up. Why Eddie had been so nice, when he’d shown up.
Sure it was one thing to be a good citizen or whatever, help out a guy who was passed out on the ground, but Eddie hadn’t just gotten help.
He’d stroked Steve’s hair. He’d kept him awake.
Hell he called Steve sweetheart.
And now he was here again, right by Steve's bedside, checking up on him.
You didn’t do that for the guy who was a downright douchebag too you, even if it had been a few years.
Eddie bit his lip, before he chanced a look back at Steve, up through his bangs. “Because you said I was good Steve. You were the first person who ever said I was good.”
Quieter he added “And because we were friends once.”
“I'd like to still be friends.”
“Even if I'm gay?”
Steve took a deep breath, and let out a truth that he’d maybe been ignoring for almost as long as he’d tried to forget about the hole in his heart.
“Cards on the table Eddie, I’m not sure I’m not gay Or whatever both is."
He'd heard the word once from Chrissy, but hadn't cared to remember it.
(Regretted that a little bit.)
He got a mighty frown in response.
“Don’t do that. Don’t--joke, like that.”
“It’s not a joke.” Steve said slowly, feeling the words as he spoke them. “I think this is part of the stuff I always just--ignored. Didn’t want to deal with it, because my--”
Steve couldn’t bring himself to say magic, and so, aborted the sentence entirely. “I couldn’t deal. So everything connected to this place, to the rest of my family, to you, I just pushed aside. Pretended it didn’t exist.”
Pretended that he was normal.
Just like his parents wanted.
Then he’d met Nancy.
Realized what he felt about her, he’d always felt about Eddie. That the way she looked at Jonathan wasn’t the way she looked at him--and even then, in the love he had for her, Steve hadn’t looked at her like that either.
Steve had been attracted to her for her yes--but initially, maybe, because she’d looked a little like someone else.
Admitted to himself that he the reason he could clock Eddie so fast back when he was fourteen, wasn't because he was that good at reading people, but because he recognized what it looked like to get caught checking out a guy.
“But I could never forget about you.” Steve added because well. “I’ve never been able to forget about you.”
He’d already said cards on the table, hadn’t he?
Might as well reveal his whole hand.
“You were the last thing I thought of, when I was trying to get home. I wasn’t thinking about my house, or my parents. I was thinking about you. I’ve never been able to come back here, not after Uncle Nick,” He cut himself off again, frustrated that he couldn’t just fucking it, but made himself take a breath.
Continue.
“--but I could, last night. I could get to you.”
Technically he’d gotten to Gareth, who Steve probably also owed a thank you too, but hey, beggars can’t be choosers.
Gareth had found Eddie anyway, in the end.
“I absolutely get if you want nothing to do with that, considering I think I’m just now accepting this about myself but. I wanted you to know. You’re important to me, Eddie. You always have been.”
It was weird--Steve should have felt laid bare. Vulnerable now that he’d laid out all these things he’d suppressed, that he thought taken away alongside his magic.
Instead he felt lighter than air.
Like the weight had finally been lifted and he could breathe deep once again.
For a long moment no one said anything and Steve figured this was it, he’d gone too far, when Eddie darted in, pressing a quick kiss to Steve’s cheek.
He pulled away just as fast. Wide eyes searched Steve’s face, as though expecting Steve to change his mind.
If anything, it just solidified it.
Steve reached out slowly, gently grabbing on of Eddie’s hands. Brought it up to his mouth and kissed the back of it, while maintaining eye contact.
Enjoyed the way Eddie’s face went bright red.
“You’re important to me too.” He managed, voice awed. “You’ve always been important to me. Stevie.”
Finally feeling like he knew where he belonged, Steve grinned back.
xXx
Bonus
“When I said let him sleep Munson, I didn’t mean with you!” Someone screeched a few hours later, jolting Steve awake.
“He was awake when I came in!” Eddie protested, shoving himself up onto his elbows when the women from yesterday--Robin, Steve thought her name was--stormed in. “We fell asleep together after Robbie, I swear!”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Hi.” Steve said with a little wave, before the two of them could screech some more. “I’m Steve.”
“I know, Dingus.” Robin told him, eyes narrowed in fury. “You’re a member of the Clause family, everyone knows who you are.”
“Oh.” Steve said, though it felt less cool and more weird that someone had finally said it out loud.
That he, Steven Harrington, had an Uncle, and that Uncle was Santa Clause.
‘Dustin is gonna freak.’
“I’m sure Mega-Idiotson here hasn’t told you, but I’m the medmage that saw you last night. Or kinda--see I’m an apprentice medmage, but my teacher was kinda out with the Boss seeing someone a town over and time was tight and we couldn’t exactly wait--”
“Breath, Buckley. In,” Eddie teased, before demonstrating a deep breath on himself, hand sweeping into his chest before he loudly exhaled. “and out.”
“Shut up, Eddie, I’m working up to something here!”
“What is it?” Steve said, feeling like if he didn’t interject Robin would take a while to get to the point.
“I might have accidentally undid whatever was on your magic?” Robin rushed out, so fast Steve nearly didn’t catch it. “Like I can tell that’s the Boss’s magic, and that he did--whatever that was, but I couldn't figure out how to heal you with it there and it was kinda already leaking out so I just--took it off?”
Steve gaped at her.
“You fixed me?” He managed after a moment, hand darting out to squeeze at one of Eddie’s.
“Um. Yes?” Robin cautioned, like she wasn’t exactly sure that’s what she did.
“Oh my god. Oh my god!” Steve laughed, then felt absolutely stupid for not checking in with himself.
Because Robin was right.
The hole was gone--and his magic was back.
How had he not noticed that his magic was back!?
“Eddie, Eddie she’s right--I have it back!”
He turned in bed, dropping Eddie’s hand so he could cup his face and kiss him instead.
“Okay, I don’t need to see this--” Robin complained, but Steve didn’t care.
Could only laugh delighted into Eddie’s mouth, before Eddie deepened the kiss.
(“Guys seriously I am still right here! Can’t you at least wait until I’m gone!?”
“No. Now get out Robin, you’re ruining my moment!”
“It’s okay, Eds. I’ll give you as many moments as you want.”
“Ew, ew, ew-!” )
This whole ass thing on A03 if you'd rather read it there!
Written for @stevieweek Holiday Movie Marathon: Santa Clause
Counting it for @steddiesongfics too
Santa Stevie/Elf Eddie, I’ve seen the Santa Clause movies too many times, Getting together, elf magic used inappropriately, transfem Steve Harrington
“Thank you so much for coming so last minute, honey,” Claudia gushed, hugging Stevie as she was pulled inside into the hall. “Dustin is excited you’re going to be babysitting.”
“Mooommmmm!!” Dustin shouted from the dining room. “I’m not a baby!”
Stevie laughed quietly with Claudia as they walked to the other room.
“Of course you’re not, Dusty buns. We know you’re very mature and adult for an eight year old,” his mom winked across the room as she pressed a kiss to his head. “Now be good for Stevie, dear. There’s tons of food and I’m sure he’ll want to be in bed early so Santa can come.”
Dustin perked up at that, nodding aggressively. “I sure will, mom!”
Claudia grabbed her purse and was gone, having to help at the hospital due to call offs and the emergency room was already packed.
Helping herself to the home cooked meal on the table, they settled in for the night.
“We have to read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas! It’s tradition!”
Stevie rolled her eyes but agreed, snuggling in next to him in his bed with the book.
“What’s ’a rose such a clatter?’” he frowned.
Pointing at the words, she explained, “Arose means — it came. And a clatter is a big noise.”
“Why do they have to use such weird words?”
“…Merry Christmas and to all a good night!”
“Stevie! Wake up!”
She groaned, looking around. It was pitch black, she was still curled up on the couch. “What’s the matter?”
“A clatter!”
She rubbed her eyes, not understanding at all what was happening. “What?”
“It’s Santa! You know, the big noise! He’s here! C’mon!”
He pulled her off the couch and out into the front yard. She rubbed her eyes again.
“What the hell?” Dustin elbowed her. “Lay off, kid, my cussing is the least of our worries right now,” she hissed.
On the top of the house, there was a real sleigh with eight real reindeer. She blinked her eyes a bunch, then looked around for a camera crew or something.
“Hey look!” Dustin pointed up at the roof again, where a tall man in red had appeared. “It’s Santa! He’s real!”
The shout apparently shocked him, and he misstepped, losing his balance and toppling off the roof.
They could only stand there as the man hit the ground in front of them, as they watched his body disappeared, leaving only the red suit.
“You killed him,” Stevie whispered.
“I didn’t mean to!” He cried, looking around starting to panic.
Stevie felt drawn to the suit, somehow knowing there would be an answer inside.
“What are you doing?” Dustin hissed at her.
“I have no idea,” she responded, but then held up a small card that was in a pocket of the suit. “Look.”
Dustin snatched it from her. “If anything happens to me, put on the suit and get in the sleigh, the reindeer will know what to do. What does that mean?”
She turned to go back inside, the rational part of her brain finally clicking on, but she ran into a ladder that had come from nowhere. “What the fu-“
Holding her head, Dustin came over to investigate. She almost laughed at the face he made, but then he was scurrying up the ladder to the roof. “Wait! Hey!” She called. Remembering the suit, she hastily grabbed it from the ground before climbing up after him.
The reindeer did not look impressed. The front one snorted as she appeared on the roof. “Same to you,” she scoffed. “Now what?” She asked Dustin.
“Put on the suit!”
She looked down at the pile of red in her hands. “No way, we’re going to leave all of this alone and go back inside and call the police and maybe your mom. This is nuts! This is just a dream, or like a hallucination.” The reindeer snorted again. “Shut up!”
Dustin, however, was standing inside the sleigh. “Come look at this!”
“Ugh,” she huffed, stomping over to climb up into the massive vehicle. “This is too much, we gotta go- woah!”
The reindeer had taken off, sending them down into the seat and flying so fast the lights around them turned into streaks. As suddenly as they had started, they stopped. They were on another roof, who knows where.
“Oh my god,” Dustin whispered. “We have to keep delivering the presents.”
“What?” She cried. The first reindeer turned around and nodded at her. “For real? How are we supposed to do that?”
“Put on the suit!” He pointed down at the floor where the red fluffy thing had fallen.
Something inside of her knew that was what she was supposed to do. With a sigh, she slid her legs into the pants, pulling them up. “This belt better be really freaking magic,” she muttered.
Tying the sash around her waist and then the belt, she held her arms out to Dustin who gave her a thumbs up. She turned around to show the reindeer, the front one huffing at her impatiently.
“Alright, alright. Now what?”
Dustin threw something at her and she caught it, then screamed when Santa’s sack started floating over her head, taking her with it. “This is nuts!”
She blinked and she was being sucked down the chimney under her. “Holy shit,” she muttered, looking around the dark house.
There was a small child asleep on the couch, so she tried her best to walk silently in the big boots. She set the toys under the tree as quietly as she could,
“Santa?” A tiny voice startled her. “Why are you a girl?”
She stopped short, toy doll in hand. “What are you, my dad? You want this doll or not? Go to sleep!”
The girl closed her eyes, but as Stevie turned to approach the fireplace, wondering how she was supposed to go back up, the voice behind her reminded her, “You’re supposed to eat the cookies and drink the milk.”
She rolled her eyes and took a deep breath. “Jeez kid, it’s my first day can you give me a break?”
Whipping around to find the small end table with a Santa-shaped plate, she grabbed a cookie and took a bite. While the child watched, she made sure to gulp a bit of the milk down.
“Merry Christmas, now go to sleep,” she grumbled.
Thankfully as soon as she stepped into the fireplace, she was pulled up by the bag and found herself standing on the roof again.
Dustin perked up when he saw her. “How was it? How’d you get back up?”
“Christmas magic, Dusty buns, obviously,” she sassed.
Once she was sitting down the reindeer took off, but stopped at another house. “The bag is empty, guys! I-“ she picked up the sack to show them but found it heavy once more. “Oh man, this is going to be a long night.”
“Yeah, the best night ever!”
The novelty wore off at some point for Dustin, who curled up on the seat and fell asleep. Stevie rolled her eyes, figures.
“Oh shit, wake up dude, look at this!” She elbowed him until he blearily peeked one eye open. They’d stopped again, but this time not at anyone’s house. There wasn’t much to see, snow whipping around them. It felt familiar somehow, like a strange sense of Deja vu. But she’d clearly never been here before.
The reindeer took off, leaving the sleigh in the wind. “Hey! Take us home!” She looked finally down at Dustin who could only shrug.
“Look!” He pointed out into the horizon. She blinked the snow from her eyelashes, then rubbed her fists into her eyes. It couldn’t be. “It’s an elf!”
Whatever the stranger did, the sleigh was then lowered into a vast room full of people and noise.
“Santa’s workshop! I wish I had a camera!” Dustin whispered excitedly, looking around like he was instead trying to memorize every inch of the room.
“Excuse me,” Stevie called once they’d reached the ground. “Who’s in charge here?”
Deadpan, the closest person said, “You are.” Before walking quickly away.
“This is all such an amazing practical joke, but I’m ready to go back to reality now.”
“Where’s the fun in that?” A deep voice came from behind her. She spun, and gulped as the coat around her opened and she was reminded of her crop top and high waisted leggings as the attractive man’s eyes wandered over her.
He was a couple inches taller than Stevie, who was already towering over all of the people around them. The long dark wavy hair cascading past his shoulders over his dark flannel shirt gave him a grungier look than everyone else in the room in their more flashy outfits. What stole most of Stevie’s attention however were his dark eyelashes outlining his chocolate brown eyes.
“Who are you?” Dustin asked.
“Eddie,” he said shortly. “And you are?”
“Dustin. Dustin Henderson.”
“Of course you are,” Eddie grinned, his eyes never leaving Stevie. “Okay Santa, lets get you more comfortable.”
“I’m not Santa,” she argued, but he had turned and was already walking away. She had to almost jog to keep up with him. “If that’s the problem, Dustin was the one who made him fall, I had nothing to do with it.”
“That’s not true!”
“You read the card, correct?”
“What card?”
Eddie huffed and pulled them into a room. “The card in the Santa suit. In putting the suit on, you fell subject to the Santa clause. You accepted the contract.”
She stared at him. “The contract? It was a tiny frolicking- filibustering- what?”
He smirked at her. “It’s Santa’s workshop, babe. No swearing.”
“You’ve gotta be sleighing me. Jiminy Christmas.”
Dustin piped up again, “How did she sign a contract? It was just a tiny card. She didn't do anything.”
“Thank you, Dustin. Do you have it?”
Stevie glared at them but stuck her hands in the pockets of the pants and pulled out the card in question. Eddie took it from her and placed it behind a magnifier on the table. “What does this have to do with the guy who fell off my roof?”
“Nothing, now. This isn’t about Santa Claus, the person, but Santa clause, the clause.”
“My brain is going to explode,” Stevie grumbled.
“It’s all here — In putting on this suit and entering the sleigh, the wearer waives any and all rights to any previous identity, real or implied, and fully accepts the duties and responsibilities of Santa Claus,” Eddie recited as the words without looking as she followed along on the card.
“What does that mean?” She asked, knowing the answer.
“It means, you put on the suit, so you’re Santa.” He let his eyes wander down her again. “Albeit not the usual type, but you’ll do. Let me show you to your room.” They looked at each other for a long moment before he held the door open for them.
As they walked down a winding hallway, he continued. “You’ll leave tomorrow morning. You have eleven months to get your personal affairs in order and you’ll be expected back here after Thanksgiving. I’ll send the list to your house.”
“The list? What list?”
Dustin again helpfully supplied, “You know! He’s checking it twice? Gunna find out who’s naughty and nice!”
The crowd of elves continued the song loudly, echoing around the huge space. “Santa Claus is coming to town!”
Eddie yelled menacingly, “Alright, get back to work!” Then he turned and winked at her. “This way, c’mon.”
The room was the coziest place she’d ever seen, full of soft fabrics and toys, the bed made up with more pillows and blankets than she could count. Dustin immediately crawled into a play tent in the corner and was snoring before Eddie appeared again with a pile of clothes.
“You’re not what I expected,” he murmured as she wandered over to the window.
She laughed, a little sardonically. “I get that a lot.”
Eddie looked upset for a moment, then it was gone before she could study him. “Not in a bad way, of course. Unfortunately it’s been centuries of boring old guys. I look forward to seeing what you bring to the position.”
She got lost in his sparkly eyes and he moved closer, seemingly just as interested. However as soon as she thought he’d lean all the way, he pulled back and shoved the clothes into her chest.
“Get some rest, Santa,” he said with a smile.
“It’s Stevie.”
The smell of coffee woke her, and when she stretched she almost toppled off the couch.
Wait. The couch?
“Morning, Stevie dear. How was your night? I hope Dustin didn’t give you too much trouble.”
She looked around, nothing seemed out of place at the Henderson’s. The tree, the sounds of Claudia tinkering around in the kitchen. Then Dustin made his appearance by sprinting down the hall and sliding on his socks through the dining room.
“Oh my god! You’re still here, and you’re in the pajamas!”
Claudia came out to see what all the fuss was. “Oh yes, very festive pajamas, honey. Did you bring those with you?”
Stevie looked down at herself, confused. She’d gone to sleep in her own clothes. Seeing the red satiny set made her jaw drop.
“It was real! Mom, last night Santa came! He fell of our roof and Stevie put on his suit and we delivered the rest of the presents! She’s the new Santa Claus! It was awesome! We went to the North Pole and we met the elves-”
They both stared at his mom as she held a hand up. She sent an unrecognizable look to Stevie and she knew she was in trouble.
“No, Dustin, it must’ve just been a weird dream. Maybe we ate too fast, or-“
He cut her off, running back to his room with a shout.
“Look at this! How is this not real?”
Stevie had to walk around his mom to see what he was holding. It was a gorgeous, old fashioned snow globe. As they all watched, Dustin shook it and a tiny sleigh pulled by reindeer flew across the atmosphere.
“Eddie gave it to me. He told me I had to take very good care of it for him,” he explained seriously.
Claudia seemed even more concerned now, understandably. “Eddie? You brought a boy over here?”
“He’s not a boy, mom! He’s an elf! And no, we met him at the North Pole!”
Stevie could only stare at Claudia, unable to come up with any excuse whatsoever for this. “I-I’m sorry, Mrs. Henderson, this is all my fault. He got into some candy last night and we read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, he probably stayed up too late and had a strange dream. I promise nothing bad happened, and we didn’t have any guests over.”
“But Stevie!” Dustin stomped his foot and she immediately shook her head at him, begging him with her eyes to stop arguing.
“No, it’s okay, buddy.” She swallowed past the lump in her throat then looked back at Claudia. “And, I’ll understand if you don’t want me watch Dustin anymore. I’ll, uh,” she shook her head sadly. She wasn’t sure where the rest of her stuff was, or where the clothes she had changed out of were.
Claudia sent Dustin to his room, and Stevie went home feeling miserable. What in the world had happened last night?
The next few months were intense. She couldn’t go anywhere without people staring at her, Claudia and Dustin were distant, and she was having very vivid dreams.
Claudia had taken it about as well as could be expected, for your eight year old to be obsessed with the idea that his babysitter was now Santa and talking about it and the North Pole throughout the spring, even after several adults sat him down to try to reason it out with him. Stevie had gotten this information from Nancy, whose mom had been called in as part of an emergency mom group to provide backup.
Stevie herself was changing. She’d gained about thirty pounds, but most of it went to her boobs, hips and ass. Everyone in town assumed she had been getting work done. She couldn’t very well explain what was happening, so she had to ignore all the whispers behind her back and the dirty looks. Her hair was suddenly lighter, too. It wouldn’t hold dye at all, creepily reverting back to the white blonde waves by the next day every time she tried.
Then there were the dreams. A lot centered on delivering the toys, speaking with children and elves about toys, but there were a handful of others — where Eddie was featured — and they were unlike any dreams she’d ever had before. She’d wake up and her body would be sore and achy like she’d run a marathon in her sleep.
“Thinking of me again, sweets?” Eddie’s deep voice rumbled against her neck as he stepped up behind her, wrapping his hands around her waist.
“Always,” she murmured happily before turning in his arms and meeting his lips.
It wasn’t long before their clothes disappeared in dream efficiency, and she was crying out as she was taken apart over and over.
Just as she had convinced herself that she was going insane, there was a knock on the door. A delivery man held a clipboard out to her and she scribbled her name without looking too closely.
The phone rang in the other room and she called out for the guy, “Just put it inside here, please.”
After a few minutes on the phone, she realized she could still hear boxes being set down.
“What is all of this?” She walked back into the entryway to stacks and stacks of red shiny boxes, some as tall as she was.
The delivery guy was walking down the stairs of her apartment, waving to her. “Wait!”
But she sighed. Just her luck.
Going back inside, found a box that had an envelope attached. Here’s the list. Check it — twice! Yours, E
“Ugh, that bastard, how am I supposed to-“ she screamed as someone tapped on her shoulder. Spinning around, she was met with the smarmy grin of one particularly attractive elf. “Oh fuck, Eddie,” she gasped.
He stepped closer, flashing a grin at her and letting his eyes drift over her figure. “I do like the sound of that, sugar.”
She covered a moan with a small cough as the now familiar swoop in her belly made her think of her dreams.
“Do you happen to have, like, powers?” Stevie looked at him seriously.
He pushed her hair over her shoulder, tracing a finger down her jaw, making her shiver. “I like the new look, by the way. Suits you.”
“That isn’t an answer, you know,” she huffed. Her attention was drawn to the boxes around them. “Could you use your fancy magic powers to maybe, move these? Or shrink them? Robin already thinks I’m actually losing my mind.”
Eddie tapped his chin with a long finger, “I could, maybe. Where would you like them? Hypothetically, of course.”
“My bedroom?” She regretted it as soon as a feral grin appeared on his face. But where else could they go?
“Inviting me into your bedroom? Seems naughty.”
She shouldn’t have been shocked, but magically they were standing in her bedroom and all the boxes were stacked neatly against the far wall.
“Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it,” he shrugged a shoulder, his eyes wandering down her figure. “Now back to the topic at hand. I think you’re the only new Santa who looks better after their transformation.”
Stevie felt her cheeks heat, feeling underdressed in her own bedroom as Eddie continued staring at her.
The feeling that always plagued her when she’d gotten this far with someone before crept up. She looked away, not wanting to ruin this but wanting to be clear from the beginning. It wasn’t as if Eddie knew her very well, or had been privy to the things she’d been dreaming.
“Uh, there’s probably something you should know, Eddie. A-about me, I mean,” she couldn’t look at him.
He reached for her though, tipping her chin up to look at him fully. “I think I might know already,” he said softly. “Dustin may have given me the shovel talk before you left on Christmas.”
“Oh.”
He spent another long moment staring into her eyes, while she was unsure of what to do next. “So, you don’t mind?”
Eddie shook his head, inching impossibly closer. “Definitely do not mind. I think you were made just for me, if I’m being honest.” He finally closed the gap between them, and Stevie gasped as her lips tingled against his.
Pulling back a tiny amount, he chuckled against her. “Sorry, elf magic. It’s hard to hold back, especially when I’m all worked up.”
Stevie shrugged and closed the distance again. It took another second before something sparked in her memory. “Hey, you wouldn’t be able to mess with dreams, would you?”
He winked and simply said, “I plead the fifth,” before pulling her closer by her waist and deepening the kiss.
His hands started wandering and she gasped again as the tingling spread wherever he touched. She had to pull away as he cupped her breasts through her thin cami, panting against his shoulder.
As his hands starting traveling down, a strange buzzing startled them.
“Nutcrackers,” Eddie swore. She giggled but then tried to see what he was looking at. A tiny pager-like object in his hand was blinking red and green. “I have to go. Read over the list and I’ll see you before you know it.”
She tried to hide her disappointment as she pulled him into another slow teasing kiss.
As the holidays approached, she slowly started realizing this may be real. She knew kids names without asking and knew if they were on the nice list or naughty list. Sometimes even adults. She had crazy sweets cravings, making more cookies in a week than she’d ever made in her life.
“What is happening with you?” Robin asked again as she walked into the kitchen to find her baking again.
“Sweet tooth, what can I say?”
Her roommate eyed her suspiciously. “Uh huh. You still think all of this is just side effects of your new meds? Maybe you should call your doctor back.”
“Yeah, maybe I should make an appointment,” she offered.
“Your hair looks even lighter than it did this morning when I left.”
Stevie hummed and set the timer for her cookies.
Pack whatever you can’t live without, I’m Santanapping you tomorrow. XO -E
She grinned at the note left on her bed, trying to decide what that meant.
At noon the next day, she blinked and almost fell over as she was standing in the cozy room at the North Pole instead of her apartment.
“Welcome home, honey,” Eddie teased her, coming up behind her and pulling her hair away from her neck to place his mouth there.
“You could’ve warned me, what if I was in the shower or something?”
His hands grabbed her waist and pulled her back into him. “You’re right, next time I’ll have to plan better. Bring you wet and dripping right to me,” he promised darkly.
“Oh frost, I mean- that’s going to get really old,” she whined.
“You get used to it, I’m afraid,” he laughed. “But you’re right. Come with me.”
They did garner some stares as he lead her hand in hand down the hall, but a quick glare or reminder to get to work from Eddie made the elves scatter.
Just as she was about to ask where he was taking her, he put his finger up to his lips and quietly opened a heavy door, pulling her inside.
Staying quiet, they got past a few elves in what she could now see was a stable. He grinned at her and pulled her up into a smaller sleigh.
“Push this for me, sweetness,” he asked, pointing to a handle.
“Me?” He nodded at her and she complied, the sleigh starting forward as she did. “Holy snowballs.”
She flew the sleigh out the doors and above a snowy landscape. “This is amazing,” she breathed.
“I think you’re a bad influence on me,” Eddie chuckled.
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, one of us definitely is.”
“Stop anywhere you’d like,” he suggested.
“Oh yeah…” She’d almost forgotten their adventure had been for a purpose. She let up on the handle, slowing down to look around for a spot.
Finally the sleigh settled in a small clearing surrounded by a ridge and trees.
“Very nice. You went secluded, I’d have thought you were a bit more of a show off.”
She laughed. “Maybe next time,” she teased.
“Oh really?” Eddie sassed back before pulling her to straddle his lap.
Predictably even though the sleigh wasn’t covered, they stayed warm and the wind didn’t touch them. She assumed it was the sleigh, but it also could’ve been Eddie.
His hands went to her waist, but quickly settled instead cupping her ass. “Can I compliment you again on your new Santa figure? I swear it’s like you’re my very own Christmas present. Maybe after seven hundred years I get something after all.”
Stevie pulled back to look at his face. “Seven hundred years?”
He laughed, nodding, but his eyes were serious. “Don’t look at me like that, most elves live thousands of years. I promise I’m not like robbing the cradle or anything.”
She glared at him. “That wasn’t really what I was thinking. I do like older men, for the record.”
He met her glare, pulling her closer. “Well I guess that settles it then. For the record, I’ve never done this with a human, much less a Santa.”
“Awww, a newbie, huh?” She stuck her tongue out and he leaned forward to nip at it.
“Watch it, baby.”
“Or what?”
She squeaked as her clothes disappeared with a snap of his fingers. Even though the cold wind wasn’t able to reach them, her nipples hardened and she got goosebumps.
“So gorgeous, Stevie,” he drawled, letting his gaze drag down her form. After a moment of enjoying the attention, she began pulling at his shirt, earning a small laugh as he shrugged out of his layers.
He was pale, his dark hair making his skin seem even lighter. She briefly wished they had a mirror, her light hair against his dark would be beautiful. He hung onto her tightly, then she realized his legs were bare.
“Couldn’t wait any longer,” he explained. She rocked forward and they both cried out as their lengths slid against each other.
He leaned down to suck a nipple into his mouth and she groaned. “Fuck yes,” then she giggled once she realized she could swear again.
“There’s my girl,” he murmured. She rutted against him harder, but then backed off.
“Do you have, um, did you bring any-“
“Don’t need it.” He snapped his fingers again and her eyes rolled back. He slid two fingers around her hole, where it was already slick and ready.
“Oh my god,” she panted.
“Just Eddie will be fine, princess,” he teased.
She groaned, pulling herself up with her hands on his shoulders. “Please fuck me already.”
Together they angled his cock so she could lower herself onto it, their mouths meeting as they settled into a rhythm. He apparently couldn’t help but squeeze at her, his hands never staying in one place. The tingling sensation traveling around her body was driving her closer and closer.
“Wait,” Stevie gasped.
He stopped, holding onto her and gazing up at her with his sparkly eyes. It took her a moment to remember what she wanted.
“Wanna, um, can we-?”
“Anything, beautiful,” he groaned.
She slid off of his lap, turning around to bend over the front of the sleigh. “Fuck, you’re perfect, baby. Look at you,” he growled as he stood. He grabbed handfuls of her cheeks and spread them, staring down at her hole before lining back up.
Unable to hold back, he pushed in roughly, Stevie having to hold on so he didn’t send her flying out of the sleigh. This angle was sending lightning up her spine with every thrust, and as she got closer, Eddie reached around to wrap a rough hand around her dick. The tingling was multiplied now and she knew she wouldn’t last.
“Gunna, oh fuck Eddie, coming!”
He made a low keening noise as she clenched around him as she came, and after a few thrusts she felt him spill inside of her.
When she opened her eyes again, they were cuddled together in the huge bed back in the workshop.
