A Pietro and Typhoid Christmas

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro had no religious beliefs and little to no faith in anything, certainly not in a higher power. Holidays held no significance to him beyond cultural expectations, and those occasions where he could enjoy the company of loved ones and bring a smile to the lips of someone about whom he cared.

This was why he went Christmas shopping, and why he spent the day at the mansion. Uncle enjoyed the holiday and always had a large supper prepared and wanted the children to have some happy memories. He had happy memories of childhood Christmases, and it was the least he could do to not ruin the day for anyone else.

Rossignol, too, had similar cultural expectations - although a vastly different childhood - and this was why he did what he could for her on holidays. He was paid well with his job, and did not have to borrow money from Uncle now. He had dressed up very nicely - in a new suit, a different one from the only he had possessed when returning to the States - and had taken Rossignol out for Christmas Eve supper. He had found a special restaurant, one he thought that she would enjoy. But he had not told her where they were going; he had wanted it to be a surprise.::

[Typhoid]

Typhoid's feelings on the matter of Christmas were similar to Pietro's, and as a result it seemed as if they carried on their own private celebration every year, usually with some sort of dinner and gifts. She'd had a smaller amount of shopping to do this year, as many of her friends were off in college like she was and wouldn't be returning. The exception was Kitty, but that was worry on a whole other level.

She sat beside Pietro wearing a dark green dress and gold heels, wrapped in a dressier coat then the one she usually wore that Nimrod gave her. One of her gifts for him was in the backseat, the other was under the tree at the Mansion.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Because it was Christmas Eve, the traffic in the City was a nightmare, and Pietro did everything in his power to keep from losing his temper. It would not do for him to give in to frustration when they had the entire evening ahead of them. When he finally got away from the truck that felt it necessary to straddle two lanes while driving bumper-to-bumper, he relaxed visibly.:: "We are almost there."

[Typhoid]

She had been looking around; the traffic was a mess, and complaining that the ride was taking too long would make it worse all around, especially when Pietro couldn't do anything about it. So she just nodded. "Will we miss the reservation?"

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro glanced at the clock embedded into the car control panel and then shook his head slightly. He had over-estimated the time necessary since he lacked a proper sense of time.:: "No. We will make it."

[Typhoid]

"Good," she said with a small smile. It would be a waste to miss it now that they were here.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::While keeping his eyes on the road, Pietro moved one hand from the steering wheel. He let it rest on her thigh for a moment, patting gently.::

[Typhoid]

She covered his hand briefly with her own in response, brushing fingers across, and then let go so he could go back to driving if he wished.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::When she withdrew her hand, Pietro brought his back to the wheel. When they reached the proper street, he turned onto the next block and began to circle around for a parking space.::

[Typhoid]

She pointed, on the lookout so that the tedious search for a space could end as quickly as possible. "Someone is pulling out of a space over there."

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro followed the direction of her finger and saw the vehicle pulling out. He proceeded to "claim" the space by getting there first. And when the other vehicle had left, he parallel parked, bringing their car to a full stop once in the space.::

[Typhoid]

She unbuckled her seatbelt. "We just got lucky," she said with a smile. They were a block over from the restaurant, according to him, although he was doing a very good job of not telling her where he was taking her.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro nodded in agreement; they had been fortunate this one time. He unfastened his safety belt and exited the driver's seat, moving around to her side to open her door, as usual.::

[Typhoid]

She got out when he opened the door, getting in the back to retrieve her intended gift for him and then pausing to take his arm.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro shut the door once she was out and then extended his arm to her to take.:: "This way."