Work Text:
Donna wakes up to a beautiful vision of white Winter Solstice morning, but it's intimately more rare than snow. She brushes Dawn's hair ever so slightly out of her face, smelling the sugary vanilla scent that came from her shampoo. Donna is sharp in almost everything. Dawn is indulgent and warm. Very warm, as Donna wraps herself around Dawn under the large quilted comforter that barely gave enough heat during the winters in the cabin. Legs tangle together and arms wrap around each other’s bodies, and the stirring makes the white haired beauty wake, happily humming with her eyes still closed. "Is there coffee?" she softly asks, still holding tightly to the vestiges of sleep in an adorable way that puts a smile on Donna's face.
"There should be soon if the timer is set," she replies. There were so many things about the world outside of Themyscaria that Donna loved, and the easiness of a coffee maker was one of them. “Did I wear you out?”
Dawn laughs. “Yes Ms. Amazonian,” she replies slyly as she turns around, the joke faltering into seriousness. “Are you sure you’re okay not spending the holidays with your family?”
“Family is complicated, you know that,” she replies, taking Dawn’s hand and kissing her scarred knuckles. “Diana’s off spending the year with Bruce anyway.”
“With Bruce?” Dawn asks, her eyebrows shooting up.
Smiling a little wryly, Donna nods. “They’ve kept the bonfire tradition since before Dick and I were even around. Alfred had to babysit us both when I wasn’t in Themyscaria.”
“What’s the bonfire tradition?” is the question in return. “You never spoke about this sort of thing with the Titans. Dick always told us not to ask.”
“Again, complicated,” Donna huffs looking up at the log ceiling, but it’s not more than a few seconds when she gives in. The closeness of Dawn’s skin on hers is it’s own truth device. “Growing up, I-- I had Christmas. It wasn’t perfect, but it was my Dad and I. After losing him, this time of year seemed so dark. Celebrating with a simple bonfire, bundling sticks with your wishes for the new year and burning the kindle of the past as you walk out of the darkness and toward lighter days-- it is poetic, at least.”
“That’s beautiful,” Dawn nods, thoughtfully pausing into a lull of silence that Donna can foretell the end of. “Not to steal from them, but I would love to do it with you.” She adds a sly smile. “We have plenty of wood, you know. Cabin, forest, and all.”
“Cabin, forest, and all,” Donna repeats, lips turning up. When the Titans had managed to bring Donna back to life everything had changed for both of them. Donna found the strength to tell Dawn how she felt, and maybe when faced with the loss Dawn found the same truth. Dawn begged that they go back to civilian life, and Donna couldn’t argue. Why would she? The quiet life here was all she needed. She understood now how Superman must feel with his farm in Smallville. They would help with the big battles, of course, but any other villain would have to be handled by their friends.
“So I’ll break out the wine tonight,” Dawn plans aloud, taking over in a way that Donna always found charming and relaxing. She’s still wrapped in her arms, but slowly moving away and Donna pulls her back. “We’ll attempt to cook as usual, then we will have a wonderful bonfire. Are there any other traditions I’m missing?”
Her big brown eyes match Donna’s with such earnestness that Donna’s chest tightens. There had been plenty of women in her life that had wanted to learn more, that Donna had pushed back over and over because the truth was too insane and dangerous to explain. With Dawn, the insanity part had been accepted years ago. There isn’t any part of the superhero suit or the Amazonian island that could scare her away, and sometimes, like now, it strikes her how lucky and terrifying it was to have found love with her.
Donna clears her throat, trying to push the vulnerable emotions away, and jokingly adds, “I mean, there’s a competition of presents delivered by a masked moon goddess that ends in a traditional faux hunt, but that’s a little overboard for two people.”
Dawn laughs, her eyes looking unsure, but still amused at the idea. “Let me guess, everyone ends tied up?”
“Plenty do, yeah,” Donna admits with a chuckle. “I suppose we could do that part.”
“You and your rope,” she whispers seductively.
“You like the rope,” she laughs in response. “Don’t pretend you haven’t commented on it multiple times way before now.”
“ Hmm, ” Dawn murmurs, moving forward to kiss her on the lips slowly before pulling back. “You might be right. We’ve got to keep up training right?”
“Right,” she replies, quickly going back to Dawn’s lips.
Cabin, forest, and all. There wasn’t a present on earth Donna wanted more.