Chapter Text
“I’m really sorry, Sportacus! I didn’t mean for him to…oh no, I’m so sorry!” Trixie cried as she struggled to escape the confines of her snowy bush. The girl tumbled forward, landing in the surrounding snow drift. She got to her feet, shivering from the cold sting against her skin. “I didn’t mean to chase him off! I—I was only trying to help!”
The hero’s mind, though still in a fog from what had just happened, instinctually drove him to the distressed child’s side to comfort her. He knelt by her side to give the panicking girl a hand to help her back to her feet. She continued to babble at him through it all. Sportacus wrapped his arms around her and gently shushed the child as he ran a hand up and down Trixie’s back.
“Let’s get you inside. It’s freezing out here and you don’t even have a coat on.”
Trixie whimpered and nodded, hugging her fishing rod to her chest as Sportacus quietly lead her back inside.
The peaceful quiet of winter abruptly clashed with the roar of the Christmas dance music that hit them as they walked inside. To see the party carrying on with such fervor after what had just transpired outside was jarring, to say the least. In spite of himself, Sportacus had the urge to shout at the nearby party-goers to calm their festivities out of respect for his own personal feelings, but he fought it down. He turned his back on the dancefloor to block it from his vision, and knelt down in front of the still-sniffling Trixie.
“Are you okay?” he asked gently as he brushed some snow off of the child’s shoulders and hair.
The question only seemed to upset Trixie even more, and she threw her small fishing rod at the wall as hard as she could. She looked upset when, instead of breaking, it merely bounced off and rolled under the skirt of the Christmas tree nearby. She huffed and sniffled, then wiped her nose on her sleeve. Sportacus sighed and pulled a festively colored handkerchief out of his costume’s shirt pocket.
“I’m sorry,” she whined as the hero helped her clean up.
“I know. It’s okay,” Sportacus replied quietly, unsure if the girl was trembling from nerves or the snow.
“It’s not!” she protested. “I—I thought if you two got to kiss, everything would be okay! And I ruined it! It’s not fair!”
“What is?” Sportacus asked in concern. “Trixie, I don’t understand. You need to try and talk a little slower, okay? Take big, slow breaths, okay? Like this—!” He demonstrated and waited for the girl to copy him. “Good. And a long breath out.” He watched her do her best to replicate his example. “good, good. Now, slowly, what’s not fair? And wh-why do you want Robbie and me to kiss?”
His own personal desires notwithstanding.
“Because you love each other!” the girl cried loudly enough to make the hero lean back in sudden surprise.
“L-love?” The word felt alien on Sportacus’ lips. “Trixie, that...is a very strong word. Wh-what makes you think that Robbie and I…uh…?”
“Halloween!” the girl practically sobbed. “You were trick-or-treating with us, and you were so happy and Robbie was happy and you hung out all night, and Robbie even went to get you when…” She sighed and gave a sniffle. “You were real happy and...and we wanted you to keep being happy ‘cause…every time Robbie plays with us, you get a really big smile on your face and you were looking for him the whole party and...we…I thought maybe if you two kissed, then you’d both smile like that.”
Sportacus sighed. The girl’s heart seemed to be in the right place, but he wished that she had thought to come speak with him first before acting on her feelings. Then maybe poor Robbie wouldn’t have felt the need to run. And Trixie wouldn’t be crying in his arms from guilt. And maybe Sportacus could have gotten that kiss. He pulled the child into a hug and rubbed her back, letting the young troublemaker whimper into his shoulder as another wave of emotion hit her.
“I appreciate the gesture, Trixie,” Sportacus said quietly, trying to pick his words carefully, “But you shouldn’t try to force two people to be together. They must be allowed to come together on their own, when they’re ready. You wouldn’t want to be forced to do something if you weren’t ready yet, would you?”
Trixie shook her head, rubbing her face against Sportacus’ shirt. “No,” came her muffled reply. He pulled away and sniffled. “So…Robbie wasn’t ready, I guess…?”
The hero gave a slow shake of his head. “No, I don’t think so.”
“But that’s not fair!” the girl whimpered. “You really like him and…and…”
“That doesn’t matter, though, Trixie.”
She stared.
Sportacus felt a knot twist in his stomach as he spoke. “N-no matter how much someone likes a person, they can’t make that person like them back, or want to be with them. Sometimes...people just don’t end up together.”
“But you love Robbie!”
He had to look at the floor for a second to compose himself. “I don’t know about that,” he said slowly. “I…care for Robbie very much. But love is a complicated thing, Trixie. Many people confuse liking someone with loving someone. Love takes time.”
The girl groaned. “Then you really like him!”
He snorted in amusement. “Yes, I do. But no one can make him feel that way in return, understand?”
She nodded, but looked more dejected than the hero would have liked. “It’s still not fair,” she grumbled.
“Maybe not, but that’s how things are sometimes.”
“I’m sorry I messed things up, Sportacus. We all just wanted you two to be happy for Christmas.”
He was about to reassure the girl that it was alright when her words fully registered for him. “We?”
Trixie nodded, keeping her eyes firmly on the floor.
“What is going on, Trixie?”
After an awkward pause, the girl let out a heavy sigh. Sportacus waited for her answer.
“We all wanted you to be happy. We thought…tonight could be our Christmas present to you and Robbie.”
“By having us kiss?” Sportacus asked in mild confusion.
“N-not just that. Just…everything. Like on Halloween. We had a whole plan and everything!” Trixie wailed in dismay. “We got Robbie to actually come, and we made sure you got each other for the Secret Santa, and we were gonna have Pixel hijack the music so you could slow dance, and Stephanie made that big cake, and—”
“Wait, wait…” Sportacus shook his head. “You kids did all that…just to try and get me and Robbie together?”
He gave the tree a quick glance, eyes drifting over the box that he had seen Robbie set under it when he arrived. The man pulled his eyes away to see Trixie shrug and kick at some dust on the floor.
The hero sighed and wet his lips. “That’s all very sweet, Trixie, and I appreciate the thought, but—”
“We can’t force you. Or Robbie,” she mumbled. “I’m sorry, Sportacus.”
The hero wrapped the surprised girl in a sudden hug. “It’s alright. Now, you should go enjoy the rest of the party, okay?”
“B-but what about Robbie?”
That was a tough one. On one hand, he wanted to race to the villain’s side and find a way to make him somehow feel better. But that probably wouldn’t be the best course of action. Sportacus knew how Robbie valued his privacy, and confronting him about what they almost did…the hero didn’t want to hurt the man’s pride, either. This evening had almost been a dream come true. Though personally disappointed, Sportacus didn’t want to risk turning it into a bigger nightmare for his already embarrassed villain.
“I think…I should probably leave Robbie be for a little bit,” the hero managed to say as the words fought against his heart for their escape. “You go find the others and have fun, okay?”
“What about you?”
“I’ll…I’ll go get some more sportscandy for dinner. I’ll stay long enough for the gift exchange, okay?”
She didn’t answer right away.
“I’ll be okay,” the man said with a smile. “I promise.”
Trixie bit her lip, but nodded. She looked up at the hero as he stood to his full height.
“Now go have fun, okay?”
“Okay.”
Trixie started back toward the cluster of people. She glanced over her shoulder to spy Sportacus again eying Robbie’s gift for him under the tree. He didn’t look okay, that was for sure.
“What happened?”
She looked up at Stephanie, her friend’s eyes full of concern. Trixie shrugged and shoved her hands in her pockets. She didn’t really want to talk about it, but she knew she had to. She lead Stephanie further into the party so she wouldn’t have to see how sad Sportacus looked.
“I saw Sportacus talking to you. Is…everything okay?”
“No.” the dark-haired girl mumbled. “I screwed up! Everything was going great, and I thought putting them under some mistletoe would help him figure things out But…but then…Robbie ran away and now Sportacus is heartbroken and it’s all my fault and I ruined their Christmases and everyone’s plans!” she rambled, unable to stop herself once she got going. “Pinky, I ruined everything!”
Stephanie looked shocked for a moment as she took in the story. “Oh no. Um…I’m sure we can fix this, though. There’s always a way, right? We just need to find Robbie and apologize! Then maybe he’ll talk to Sportacus again and…everything’ll be better again!”
“Do you really think so?” Trixie asked worriedly.
Stephanie nodded, an enthusiastic smile on her face. “Yeah!” She reached out and grabbed her friend into a big hug. “Don’t worry, Trixie. We’ll fix it.”
She pulled away from her friend. “But Sportacus said we shouldn’t force two people to be together.”
“We’re not,” Stephanie said confidently. “Well, not now.” She made a face. “Okay, maybe it was wrong of us for trying to push things but…now we’re fixing things instead.” The pink-covered girl scrunched her nose as she mulled things over. “We just need to find Robbie and tell him we’re sorry and we’ll leave him and Sportacus alone.” She sighed in obvious disappointment. “I just wish those two would stop being so silly, though. It’s obvious they like each other.”
“I think it’s one of those times where everybody knows it except them,” Trixie agreed in frustration.
Stephanie nodded sadly.
“Okay,” Trixie huffed as she wiped her eyes one final time. “We have a villain to find. You take that half of the building and I’ll take this one. If you see any of the others, let them know what’s happening.”
“That sounds like the Trixie I know,” Stephanie giggled before giving her friend a salute.
The girls shared a quick smile and headed off in different directions.
*****
“He’s not in Uncle Milford’s office,” Stephanie sighed.
“He’s not anywhere outside, either,” Pixel declared, still brushing some snow out of his hair. “I didn’t detect any footprints leading away from town hall. “Did you find anything, Stingy?”
“He’s not by my presents.”
Stephanie gave her friend a look, hands on her hips as she shook her head. “Stingy, we need to find Robbie, not steal everyone’s Christmas presents. Put those back for the gift exchange.”
The boy gave a sigh, but turned to go put back the couple of boxes he still held back under the tree. He grumbled the entire way.
“I checked by the food,” Ziggy said through a mouthful of cookies. “Robbie’s not there.”
Trixie stamped her foot in frustration. “I didn’t find him either. Ugh, I’d hoped you guys would have found something. Where could he be?”
All the kids exchanged disheartened looks as they waited for the last of their ranks to return.
Suddenly, “Sportacus at two o’clock!” Pixel whispered probably a little too loudly.
Everyone’s heads snapped up at the warning. The group turned to see the town hero, hands on his hips and head cocked to the side in tired amusement, speaking with Stingy near the Christmas tree. Sportacus appeared busy giving the child a miniature lecture about giving at Christmas rather than receiving. The man glanced toward the group for only a second…but upon realizing there were four pairs of eyes fixed on him, gave the group a second, more concerned, look.
Everyone immediately looked in a different direction to avoid any further suspicion. Ziggy tried to whistle nonchalantly, but just ended up spitting cookie crumbs everywhere. Trixie took a step back to avoid the spray. From the look of things, Stingy was trying to call back Sportacus’ attention with a question. Trixie jumped into action the moment she saw the hero’s eyes turn away.
“Scatter!” she hissed.
The kids hurried off in separate directions, each of them trying to think of where else they hadn’t looked yet.
Sportacus saw Stingy off and looked up to get a better idea of what the kids might be up to clustered together like they were…but none of them were left. Even Stingy made himself scarce a little faster than he would have expected. The hero frowned, suspicious. Those kids had better not be trying to pull any more romantic shenanigans…especially considering Robbie had probably already snuck out of the party entirely and gone home. Not that Sportacus could blame him. The usually chipper hero was still feeling rather dispirited himself.
He had promised Trixie that he would stay until the gifts were distributed. It had partially been to calm the poor child…but mostly, Sportacus hoped that Robbie would return for the exchange. According to Trixie, his young friends had ensured that Sportacus and Robbie would exchange presents. He wanted to know now what Robbie had gotten for him. But, more than that, he wanted to see Robbie open his own Christmas present. He needed to know Robbie wouldn’t reject his heartfelt offer. But now, he wasn’t even sure the man would appear to retrieve it. Once the others had exchanged their Secret Santa spoils, he decided, he would head home to the airship. Maybe rereading his family’s letters would be some semblance of company for the night.
*****
Trixie sighed, leaning against the wall of the small hallway. There was no sign of Robbie anywhere, not even the stupid broom closet. They had checked everywhere they could think of. It wasn’t like the building was very big to begin with, and they were running out of time. Even now she could hear the mayor interrupting the dance music with an announcement that the gift exchange and party games would be starting soon. The girl groaned and covered her face, growling loudly in frustration. Aw man, she had really messed things up this time. Halloween was bad enough, but this… She turned her face up to the ceiling with a moaning whine. Trixie closed her eyes.
“Santa,” she whispered quietly, eyes slowly reopening. “If you’re listening…I-I’m sorry. I know you’ve got a ton of things going on. Y-ya know, Christmas and all…but you’re supposed to be watching a lot this time of year…” She took a deep breath. “I know it’s asking a lot, but if you could help me find Robbie and fix the stuff I messed up…again. Y-you can take back all the presents I’m supposed to get this year, okay? And next year, too! I just…want to fix this.”
The girl sniffled, wiping a bit of moisture attempting to collect at the corner of her eye. She was not going down that road again tonight. Not now, anyway; she was busy.
Trixie looked up and down the short, woefully empty hallway. Well, she might as well go to the bathroom while she was here. She pushed off the wall and wandered toward the restroom door waiting across from her. Her hand was almost on the door when she finally caught sight of the symbol on the door.
“Darn, it’s the men’s room,” she grumbled to herself.
Trixie turned to walk away in search of another bathroom, but stopped dead in her tracks. The girl looked over her shoulder.
“Wait…”
The men’s room. Had the boys checked the men’s room? She and Stephanie sure couldn’t. What if…?
Trixie hurried back to the door and pressed her ear against it. She didn’t hear anything right off the bat. But she had to be sure. The little troublemaker pursed her lips, stood a little straighter, and knocked firmly on the door.
“Occupied!” came an angry-sounding response from somewhere inside. “Erg…go away!”
Got him.
Trixie glanced back toward the main hall. No, there was no time to go find one of the boys. If she was going to fix things before present time, she would have to do it on her own.
She knocked on the door again. “Robbie?”
There was a strange repeated gasping-like noise from the other side of the door. Yup, definitely Robbie.
“N-no! Go away! I’m, uh, the janitor! There’s a broken toilet and, trust me, you don’t want to come in here! Now shoo!”
“You better be decent!” Trixie called before pushing the door open and tromping inside.
Startled from where he was sitting near the sinks, Robbie jumped up only to hit his head on the underside of the paper towel dispenser, which sent him straight back to the floor. He groaned and held his now-aching head. Trixie winced in sympathy at the sight before taking a quick look around; she had never been in the men’s room before, after all. She had limited time to set things right, but a second or two of looking around wouldn’t hurt, right?
“Wow, what are those?” she asked, intrigued by the strange porcelain structures sticking out from the wall on one side of the room.
“Never mind those!” Robbie snapped from where he cowered in the corner. “You’re not even supposed to be in here, you little hobgoblin!”
Right, gotta stay on track. Trixie approached the town villain. “We’ve been looking all over for you.”
“Why?” he snapped. “You come to cause even more damage?” Robbie asked angrily.
Trixie didn’t like how red Robbie’s eyes looked around their edges. She wrung her hands guiltily and kept her eyes low.
“I wanted to apologize for what happened. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad.”
“Apology not accepted! How dare you intrude on someone like that! That was…that was…Arrugh!”
Trixie winced again. Well, this…wasn’t going as well as she had hoped.
“I know,” she sighed. “I’m...real sorry. What I did was…bad.”
Robbie snorted and rolled his eyes, folding his arms tightly over his chest. “You can say that again!”
“What I did was super bad,” the girl sighed. “I thought I was helping, but…now I know I was wrong.”
Robbie huffed, but didn’t say anything.
“You and Sportacus are just so happy when you’re together! It’s obvious you like each other! I j-just wanted to…to help.”
Robbie’s cheeks suddenly matched the red that still rimmed his eyes. His shoulders pulled themselves up around his ears as he turned to stare at the tile on the wall. He absently fingered the winter coat crumpled up on the floor beside him.
“I don’t like Sportaclutz! H-how could you ever—?”
Trixie rolled her eyes. She put her hands on her and, with a sigh, replied with “Robbie. Sportacus is crazy about you! You saw him on Halloween! And…and look at today! He was looking for you everywhere the entire party!”
“H-he was?” the villain asked, turning just enough to see the expression on the child’s face.
Trixie gave him a firm nod before shrinking back again. “Yeah. I…I know I screwed up. I hurt you, and I h-hurt Sportacus, too, and…I’m really sorry,” she said, ending with a stifled whimper.
Robbie blinked and gave the girl a look. “Uh…h-hey,” he said awkwardly as he spied the tears trying to form in the little troublemaker’s eyes. “S-stop that. Stop with the leaking.”
“Sorry,” Trixie whimpered. She grunted in frustration, stamping her foot. “I didn’t want to cry again!” she yelled at herself.
“Then don’t!” Robbie cried, looking frightened.
“I just wanted you and Sportacus to be happy…I didn’t mean to ruin everything! But…I did. And I’m real sorry.”
The man shrugged and pressed himself back further against the wall. “Fine. You apologized. You can go away now.”
Trixie forced down her tears and tried her best to speak evenly. “But...what about you?”
“What about me?”
“You’re gonna come back out and join the party, right?”
“No.”
Trixie stared.
“Take a picture. It’ll last longer.”
“H-how come?” the girl asked with a frown.
Robbie’s eyes fell to the floor and he shrugged. “I don’t want to. Isn’t that enough?”
Aw man. She really had screwed things up, hadn’t she? Trixie nibbled on her lower lip as she walked over to the villain’s side and sat down. Robbie gave her a look and inched away as she invaded the outskirts of his personal bubble. Okay, this was going to be tough. But she had to. For Sportacus. And for Robbie, too.
“How come you’re hiding in here instead of going back out to the party?”
“What, back out to all those people and that loud music and…him?”
“Sportacus?” she asked with a confused frown.
Robbie balled up his coat and hugged it to his chest instead of answering right away. Trixie made a slight face as she watched the man pout. How come the villain suddenly reminded her so much of Ziggy?
“Who else?” the man grumbled sadly.
“What’s wrong with Sportacus?”
Again, Robbie didn’t answer right away. After a few agonizing seconds, he finally let out a long sigh. “Nothing. That’s the problem.”
“I don’t get it.”
“Of course you don’t get it, you’re just a brat!”
“Hey!”
“Y-you know what I mean!”
Trixie gave him a look. “Just ‘cause I’m not a grownup doesn’t mean I can’t tell Sportacus is crazy about you.”
Robbie sputtered for a moment, shaking his head before he gave the child a long, startled look. “Why would you say that?”
“Because it’s true!”
“Pffft.” Robbie turned away again.
Trixie watched the man for a few seconds, noticing how Robbie’s eyes seemed to be looking through the bathroom wall instead of at it. Not to mention his white knuckle grip on that coat of his.
“Do…you think Sportacus doesn’t like you?” she ventured curiously.
Robbie’s shoulders tensed instantly. Bingo.
“He does, you know,” the girl said quietly. “He was super happy when you finally showed up.”
“Don’t know why…”
“Why what?”
Robbie rolled his eyes with a grumble. “Why he’d like me!” he growled. “What else?”
Trixie shrugged. “I dunno. Sportacus likes everyone.” Robbie hunched his shoulders. “But…he’s always extra happy to see you. He seemed really happy with you outside before…well, because I was a jerk.” She sighed. “I’m sorry if I embarrassed you. I didn’t mean it.”
Another pause.
“It’s…okay,” Robbie finally said. “It’s…been a weird night.”
“You can say that again!” Trixie moaned.
Did Robbie just snicker?
The villain slowly looked over at the girl sitting next to him. He took in a deep breath before speaking again. “What makes you think the Sportakook likes me?” he questioned. “You do realize I’m a villain. A good one, too, I’ll have you know.”
Trixie grinned. “Yeah, and?”
“And? And! And why would a hero like a dastardly villain such as myself?” Robbie demanded. He blinked a few times before groaning and dropping his face into the palm of his hand. “Good heavens I’m asking a prepubescent child about relationships.”
Trixie frowned and put her fists on her hips. “Who’re you calling prepubescent?” she demanded, not too fond on being insulted after having such a stressful time trying to find the man.
Robbie leaned his head back and rolled his eyes.
“It feels like a cruel joke,” the man said suddenly. “Stupid Sportaperfect smiling at me like that. Even if he actually liked me, it’s not like it would last. I’m a villain. And I’m not about to change who I am for some flippy-floppy fitness freak, no matter how handsome he is! Or…how nice…or caring…or…oh, I’m in too deep,” the man whimpered.
“Well,” Trixie said slowly, trying to fully understand something she knew was probably didn’t fully grasp yet. This was definitely sounding more and more like one of those adult things that made no sense. No wonder she had screwed things up so much so fast. “How do you know if stuff won’t ‘last’ if you don’t give it a try?” she asked. “Sportacus says that if you’re scared of failing, you’ll never try anything new…I’d say you two being all mushy is probably something pretty new, right?”
Robbie sat there quietly, taking in the girl’s words. Trixie squirmed nervously beside him, hoping she hadn’t said the wrong thing. She couldn’t tell what might be running through Robbie’s mind; as wildly expressive as the villain usually was, his face now looked so…blank. Like he wasn’t even home anymore. Maybe she needed to call him back.
“Y-you’ll come back out to the party, right?” Trixie asked quietly.
The villain sighed. “I don’t think so, Tricky. I’ll just…wait here…until the party dies down, anyway. Hopefully there’ll be some leftovers I can grab…”
“But! But you can’t! You’ll miss the Secret Santa!” Trixie yelped, suddenly jumping to her feet. “It—it’s gonna happen any minute now! You need to be out there!”
“Why?”
“B-because you need to give your gift to…” No, no. Robbie didn’t need to know about that part. “You don’t want to disappoint them, do you?”
Robbie suddenly looked like a guilty child who had just been scolded for stealing a cookie. She should know; she had worn that look herself many a time.
“Besides, you’ve gotta get your gift, too!” she pointed out. “I mean, heck, Stingy was practically stealing presents earlier. If you leave yours out there he’s just gonna take it home with him.”
Trixie watched as Robbie’s eyes widened in alarm at the revelation. Yes! She would have to thank Stingy for the inspiration later, though he would probably be more offended than anything. Oh well. The girl looked up at the bathroom door as the music seeping in from the other side disappeared. The mayor’s voice quickly replaced it and, though she couldn’t quite make out the words, Trixie knew exactly what that meant.
“It’s Secret Santa time.” She grabbed at the villain’s arm. “Come on, Robbie! It’s now or never! Get off your butt!”
To her surprise, the man practically jumped to his feet. Luckily, he managed to avoid smacking his head this time. Robbie held his coat to his chest, his fingers twitching wildly, as though he was playing some mini piano that Trixie couldn’t see. His eyes were fixated on the bathroom door.
“Ugh. Come on, Robbie,” she insisted.
She gave his sleeve a quick tug before rushing over to the door and pulling it open to further encourage him. The man didn’t budge.
“Sportacus said he was gonna leave right after the gift exchange! We gotta go!”
Robbie shook his head, as if emerging from a daze. He looked down at the girl with a worried brow. “Sportaloon is leaving after…?”
She nodded urgently. “Yeah! It’s now or never, Robbie!”
“Now or never,” he whispered.
Robbie gave a ragged sigh and briefly tightened his grip on his coat. For a moment, Trixie was worried he was going to back into his fight-or-flight impulse and go hide in one of the bathroom stalls for the duration of the evening. Instead, the villain rushed past her and into the crowd a short distance beyond.
“Yes!”
Trixie punched the air in triumph. She gave the weird porcelain wall things one last look, making a mental note to sneak back in later and investigate further, and headed out after the town villain to make sure the man followed through.
“Trixie!” came Stephanie’s voice through the crowd. “Trixie, it’s Robbie!”
“I know isn’t it great?”
“Wait, you saw him already?”
“Yeah. He was hiding in the bathroom.”
“The boys’ room?”
The dark-haired girl nodded with a large smile on her face. “Yep! I found him in there!”
“You went in the boys’ room?” Stephanie asked in horror.
“I sure did!” Trixie said proudly. She grabbed her friend’s hand. “Now come on, we gotta make sure he doesn’t go and screw things up!”
*****
The citizens of LazyTown were exchanging Christmas gifts. Kids, adults…everyone but him, it seemed. Sportacus watched as presents were retrieved and given away. The building filled with laughter and words of thanks between the townsfolk. Meanwhile, his gift remained. Sportacus fought the urge to take up the box that Robbie had brought for him; as much as he wanted to see what might be inside, Sportacus knew it wasn’t right to open it without Robbie being there to present it.
He sighed. The villain was long gone, probably having snuck out of the party some time ago to head back to his lair. He should probably do the same. He had included a small tag with his contribution reading ‘To: Robbie Rotten’ at least; Sportacus could leave his villain’s Christmas present for him to find later. If he came back to city hall, that was. Maybe Robbie would like his gift better if he didn’t know it came from the town hero anyway. Sportacus sighed and headed for the front door.
“Wait!” came a weak cry from somewhere behind him.
The hero turned around, holding his breath as time briefly seemed to slow down. Robbie was standing just a few feet behind him. The man’s hands were shaking as he held his coat and his eyes were as big as saucers. Sportacus swallowed nervously, unsure what to expect. Robbie was still here?
“D-don’t go,” Robbie said, his voice barely above a whisper. His eyes darted back and forth between Sportacus and the Christmas tree. “I, uh…here.”
Robbie shoved his winter coat at the hero before hurrying over to the tree to retrieve the gift he had brought. He stalked back with arms outstretched. He almost looked like he was holding a box filled with lava with how frightened he looked.
“H-here,” he managed to squeak. “M-Merry Chr-Christmas, Sp-Sporta—Sportacus.”
The hero felt himself begin to smile as he squeezed the winter coat he now held in his arms. Robbie looked so scared, yet so…hopeful. The man had come back, even after what had happened. He came back just to give him a Christmas present. Sportacus cleared his throat, his own courage bubbling back to the surface now that Robbie’s had inspired him so.
“Who’s that?”
Robbie frowned, his lips slowly flapping as they tried to figure out how to respond to that. The hero couldn’t help but giggle at the face his villain was making.
“I d-don’t know who Sportacus is, but I’ll make sure he gets this,” the hero lightly teased as he shifted the coat to one arm and took Robbie’s gift with careful hands.
Robbie’s face scrunched up immediately at the other man’s words. Sportacus suppressed his laughter, though he was fairly certain his amusement was plastered all over his face. He offered Robbie his coat back before skipping back toward the Christmas tree. Robbie watched in confusion as Sportacus stooped down to pick up the square package with the orange bow only to return to him moments later.
“I met a man earlier who said he was a slightly above average hero,” Sportacus explained as he held out the gift. “He…he said this was for you.”
The villain hesitantly raised his hands to take the little package. He stared at the cheery snowmen that gazed up at him from the wrapping paper for a moment before looking back up at its presenter.
“Wait, you got my name?” he asked in disbelief.
The Christmas elf looked a little embarrassed as he nodded. “It seems we were…set up by a few of Secret Santa’s helpers,”
Sportacus said as he glanced out at the other part-goers. Robbie followed his gaze, just catching sight of a few little shapes scrambling out of view.
“I see,” Robbie said.
Robbie shook his head, but allowed himself the smallest of smiles before he looked back down at the present in his hands. Unfortunately, that’s when the music started up again. Although not nearly as loud as it had been, it was enough to make Robbie visibly wince at the sudden increase in volume. Sportacus put a gentle hand on the villain’s shoulder and, once he had the man’s attention, nodded questioningly toward the door. Robbie nodded and started to put on his coat while the hero went to hold the doors open for him.
“I swear it’s even colder somehow,” Robbie grumbled as he trudged past Sportacus and down the town hall steps.
“I guess with the sun having set so early, it’s getting colder earlier, too!” the man said as he followed behind, closing the doors behind him.
“At least it’s not snowing anymore.”
“No, but LazyTown looks beautiful with what did fall, doesn’t it?”
Robbie looked out over the town. Everything was white, the snow undisturbed or muddied with footprints or the scrapings of shovels. Though it was already dark, the streetlights overhead gave the roads a lovely glow that, in spite of the cold, made the villain feel a little warm inside.
“Yeah,” he mumbled as he held the small box to his chest.
Sportacus wet his lips as his fluttery nerves slowly began to return. He looked up at Robbie with hopeful eyes.
“I’m glad you came back,” Sportacus admitted quietly.
“To tell the truth, I almost didn’t.” Robbie sighed. “I had a little Christmas goblin convince me it might be worth the effort.”
Sportacus made a face. He didn’t really understand what Robbie was talking about, but nodded nonetheless. He nodded toward the package in Robbie’s hands.
“You haven’t opened your gift yet,” he said with a slightly quivering voice.
“W-well you ha-haven’t either!” the villain countered with a dramatic fluster of blinks and vague gestures at the box Sportacus was still holding.
The town hero laughed. “Fair enough. I guess we should open them. Who should go first?”
Robbie shivered as a gust of wind cut between them. “Y-you!”
Sportacus felt a flitter-flutter in his chest. “Okay!”
He carefully unwrapped the box, hating to destroy the obvious care Robbie had put into wrapping it. Sportacus balanced the box in one hand while he pulled up the thin lid with the other. He gave a small gasp at the beautiful blue coat resting inside.
“Oh, Robbie,” Sportacus said softly as he set the box aside on the steps to better admire the coat already out and waiting in his hands. “It’s wonderful!”
He held it up to take in all the details. It was a lovely light blue with white-and-black stripes across the pockets while a cream-colored fur lined its inside. A large 10 took up most of the back. It was as though his hero’s vest had been magically transformed. Sportacus could just make out a small ‘RR’ stitched just inside the right cuff.
“You’re crazy always wandering around in this cold without anything on but that stupid scarf of yours!” Robbie scolded. “I…I figured you could, uh, use it.”
“Thank you, Robbie. This is…this is gorgeous!”
The hero quickly pulled on his new coat. The cold never really bothered him that much, but he couldn’t deny how soft and wonderfully warm the coat felt from the moment it rested upon his shoulders. And best of all, it still smelled like its creator. Sportacus nuzzled the fur inside the collar.
“I, uh, made sure it’s...well, flexible,” Robbie mumbled. “As annoying as your flipping and flopping can be, I figured you might be more likely to actually use it if you could still move in the thing.”
“This is incredibly thoughtful, Robbie. It’s amazing. Thank you.”
The villain’s cheeks were far redder than he would have liked. Robbie shrugged and kept his eyes downcast. “Whatever.”
“I’m not sure my gift really holds up to yours,” Sportacus admitted sheepishly. “But…I hope you like it.”
“Of course it won’t hold up,” Robbie said with a faint grin. “I give the best Christmas presents!”
Sportacus giggled and nodded. “I think you’re right.”
The villain quickly sunk into his shoulders at the unexpected compliment and did his best not to unwrap his box like a nervous savage. He pried open the top of the box and furrowed his brow in surprise at its contents. There wasn’t one item, but two. The first was far more obvious.
“A book?”
Sportacus nodded excitedly. “Yes! Well, it is a little used. It’s one of my favorites. I hoped you might like it, too. My family always give each other books at Christmas. I thought…hoped…you might like that one. M-my pabbi gave it to me when I was fifteen and I loved it. I’m sorry it’s not in better shape.”
“It’s fine,” Robbie mumbled as he let his fingers trail the spine of the worn, yet well cared for book. “Wow. Uh…” He shook his head. “And what’s…?”
Robbie pulled out some sort of plush animal. It was clearly homemade. So clearly, in fact, that it looked like it was made by a child’s hand. It was crude, and the stitching was uneven and terrible, but for what it was, a lot of detail and care had been put into the little thing.
“Is...is it a reindeer?” Robbie asked, raising an eyebrow at the strange yet somehow endearing little creature.
Robbie looked up to catch Sportacus nodding. The hero’s entire face was startlingly red.
“Yeah. I…I thought you might like a friend. I know you’ve said you have trouble sleeping sometimes and I thought you might like to have some company when that happens. So you won’t have to be alone at night.”
Robbie blinked. He stared at the hero for a few seconds before looking down at the little stuffed deer again. One of its antlers flopped to one side and its eyes were slightly uneven buttons. It looked like another family piece the hero might be using as a hand-me-down gift…except, judging by how pristine its fur was, the haphazardly-stitched critter was fairly new.
“Did you…make this?”
Looking terribly embarrassed, Sportacus nodded. “I know it’s not very good. Stephanie was teaching me how to sew so I could make it for you. I’m afraid she’s far more talented than I am. But…I hope you like it anyway.”
Robbie felt his throat trying to tie itself into a knot. The stupid buffoon had learned to sew just to make him a Christmas present? A present so he wouldn’t be all alone at night. Stupid Sportacus. Stupid Christmas. The villain watched his fingers begin to tremble as he held the doofy-looking reindeer that stared blankly—yet so warmly—up at him.
“I…I love it,” Robbie whispered reverently.
“Really?”
Robbie looked up to see the brightest smile he thought he had ever seen on Sportacus’ face. Even the man’s mustache seemed to be mimicking an extra smile. The villain nodded.
“Yeah. This…this is great, Sportaflop—I mean—Sportacus.” He wiped away something tickling the corner of his eye. “Tha—thaan—thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Robbie. Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas, Sportacus.”
There was a short silence between the pair before Robbie spoke up again.
“I’m sorry about before. It…everything was…” He sighed, unable to put things into words right away.
“I understand, Robbie. It’s okay to be overwhelmed.”
The villain looked up at Sportacus’ warm glow of a smile.
“I was a little overwhelmed, too,” the hero admitted. “But…it was still nice.”
After a second, Robbie nodded in agreement. “Yeah. It was. It was…almost perfect,” he added a bit sadly as he looked back down at the ground, holding his gifts close to his chest.
After a moment, Sportacus cleared his throat. Robbie looked up to find the hero turning something over in his hands and looking rather nervous. Sportacus let out a long breath before opening his palm to show a small spring of mistletoe, a bit of severed string still attached to it. Sportacus looked almost frightened as he held it out to the other man. Robbie couldn’t help but notice the hero’s hand was shaking.
He stared at the small sample of festive flora. Was Sportacus saying what he thought he was saying? Oh, he hoped so. Robbie reached out a hesitant hand to take up the small plant himself. How could something so light also feel so heavy? The villain glanced back up at his nervous-looking hero and swallowed.
Robbie held the small bit of mistletoe above them. He could hear Sportacus’ sharp intake of breath. Or was that his own? The tall man leaned forward, closing his eyes as he tried to ignore the thundering beat of his own heart. Something soft and moist pressed against his lips only a moment later. The faint scent of apples filled his nostrils. Robbie allowed himself to lean into the kiss, to savor every microsecond of the impossible dream come true.
After what felt like a blissful eternity, Sportacus’ lips retreated and Robbie opened his eyes. With how red they were now, Robbie figured that neither of them probably needed their coats at the moment. No doubt both men would be nice and warm on their journeys home tonight. Sportacus’ face looked like it probably hurt as much as Robbie’s currently did, what with their grand smiles.
A triumphant-sounding hiss somewhere nearby caught the villain’s attention. Both looked back toward town hall to see a small row of faces watching them from the front windows. There was a gasp and the faces quickly disappeared below the windowsill. Trixie’s was the last to disappear, and Robbie couldn’t help but notice the girl’s proud smile.
Hero and villain looked back at each other with a mixture of embarrassment and euphoric bliss. Robbie hugged his beautiful gift to his chest as Sportacus pulled his coat a bit closer.
“Merry Christmas.”