Work Text:
Luke couldn’t believe that Dionysus joined the white elephant gift exchange this year. The old bastard never had before no matter how the kids begged him. They all wanted a gift from a god, even if it was a shitty gift. But when Luke tossed the suggestion at him, implying with an eye roll that Dionysus wouldn’t know how to give a good gift, the god surprised him by agreeing to join the exchange.
Luke worried over this for the week leading up to the gift exchange. He didn’t know what kind of gift Dionysus would contribute, but he was sure that it was not going to be kid-friendly. His own gift was a wood carving of a leopard that he’d been working on since September. Carving wasn’t exactly his speciality, but he had needed something to occupy his long winters at Camp Half-Blood - since he wasn’t allowed to go to school - and after two winters, he was decently skilled.
The day of the exchange, Luke wrapped his gift in brown paper and stole a length of green ribbon from the Demeter cabin to make a bow for the top. Most of the kids would be contributing things that they’d made - or stole over the summer - because they were year-rounders and didn’t have the money or means to go shopping.
They gathered in the game room, a dozen of them all together. Most were from the Hermes cabin, unwanted minor demigods or unclaimed demigods but there were a few who were from the other cabins as well. They set their gifts on the pingpong table and drew numbers that determined what order they would go in. Luke got number one. They lined up according to their turns. Chiron explained the rules to the few newcomers and as a reminder to those who weren’t new.
When everyone was ready and settled, Luke stepped up to the table. He looked over the wrapped gifts carefully. Some it was obvious what was inside, but some were mysteries. Dionysus’ gift was immediately recognizable. It was shaped like a bottle of wine and Luke had the impulse to grab it right away. He didn’t. The person who went first would get to exchange their gift last and Luke was going to take that wine from whoever got it. Instead, he chose a crudely wrapped box roughly the size of his hand. Making sure that everyone could see, Luke tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box.
Inside was a necklace of teeth. They looked like dog teeth, though they could have been from a coyote. Each had a hole drilled into the root and was laced on a leather cord with large beads set between them. It was obvious that Clarisse had made it. Ares kids had a strange fascination with dead things; maybe because of the boars head over their cabin door. Luke looked to the daughter of Ares and smiled at her. He held up the necklace for everyone to see.
There were polite oohs and aahs.
Chiron went next. Unlike Dionysus, he always played and his gift was always immaculately wrapped books. Now he stepped up and chose Luke’s carving from the pile. He unwrapped it and examined it closely. “Excellent craftsmanship,” he said with an approving glance toward Luke.
Luke didn’t know whether to be happy or upset that Chiron was the one who got his gift. He was almost positive that someone would steal it from him.
Chris was next. He was one of the unclaimed demigods. His face turned red as he walked to Luke and took the tooth necklace from him. Chris shuffled back to his spot and kept his head down, clutching the necklace close to his heart. His crush on Clarisse started over the summer and was only growing stronger every day. It was no wonder that he’d taken her gift.
Silena took a small glittery box and screeched with delight when she saw the flower-shaped earrings made of celestial bronze within. She was the only demigod that Luke knew with pierced ears and the earrings were clearly made by Beckendorf. They must have talked to each other beforehand.
Clarisse chose a pink box and unwrapped an ornate metal wrist cuff. She glanced at Silena then put it around her wrist. Then she glared at Beckendorf as though daring him to try to take it from her.
Butch was next and he chose Dionysus’ wine bottle. His expression was puzzled when he unwrapped it. “Is this alcoholic?”
“Of course it is,” Dionysus snapped. He rolled his eyes. He’d drawn the last number.
Beckendorf only smiled as he walked past Clarisse and to the ping pong table. Luke had thought for sure that he would go after the bracelet Silena made. Instead, he chose a long box that was revealed to be a set of reed pipes, each pipe dyed a different color. The gift was clearly made by Miranda Gardner.
Michael’s eyes lit up when he saw the reed pipes. It wasn’t a surprise when he took them.
Beckendorf got to go again, opening another present that turned out to be a pocketknife. Luke was sure that one of his brothers had stolen it.
Annabeth bounced up to the table and took the neatly wrapped stack of books that were Chiron’s gift. She almost always took his gift. No one would try to steal the books from her unless their gift was insanely lame.
Travis took the bottle of wine from Butch. He grinned like he’d won the lottery.
Little did he know that Luke was definitely going to get his hands on that bottle. He wasn’t about to let any of the kids become alcoholics. Travis was Luke’s little brother - Luke still didn’t know how to feel about Hermes cheating on his mom - and he was way too young to be drinking.
Butch picked a new present; a pair of silver hand-knit socks that were a little lumpy where they shouldn’t be. Luke had seen Annabeth working on them the night before.
The last few kids went and then it was Dionysus’ turn. Everyone held their breaths as they watched the god. What would he choose? Would he take a chance on the last present left or would he steal one? What was worthy of stealing? What was worthy of a god? Dionysus went straight to Chiron with no hesitation. He held out his hand. “I believe that belongs to me, Chiron.”
Chiron handed the leopard carving to Dionysus without a word.
Luke’s face grew hot with a blush. He hadn’t meant for it to belong to Dionysus but now that he thought about it, he remembered that the god of wine was also the god of big cats. Briefly he wondered if Dionysus had somehow enchanted Luke into carving the leopard.
Dionysus didn’t even glance at Luke as he went back to his place with his prize clutched in his hand.
It was Luke’s turn now. There was one present or he could steal one. He took the bottle of wine from Travis. “Sorry, kiddo,” he said with a smirk. “You’re underage.” Technically Luke was too - he was only sixteen - but that was by mortal standards. By Olympian standards, Luke was old enough to get shitfaced drunk if he wanted to. He did not look at Dionysus as he went back to his own spot.
Travis was left to take the last gift, which was a small collection of flint arrowheads; likely carved by Michael. The grin on his face was mischievous.
Once everyone had their gifts, they dispersed to either play with or stash away their treasures. Dionysus was the first out of the room.
Luke made sure that Chiron was keeping an eye on the kids, then he followed Dionysus. He could smell the strawberry wine through the bottle, knew that when he drank it - because there was no question of if he would - that it would be potent. Dionysus must have teleported because though he’d left only seconds before Luke, Luke didn’t see hide nor hair of him until he opened the screen door and stepped out into the cold night.
Dionysus sat on the double swing, staring out at the snow-covered yard. His thin face was lit up by the Christmas lights that the kids had strung on every eave and pillar of the Big House. He did not look like the unkempt, potbelly man that everyone saw on a regular basis. This version of Dionysus was lean and clean shaven. His brown curls hung down to his shoulders in thick locks. When he glanced at Luke, his pupils were slit like a cat. In his hand he held the leopard carving.
Luke sat down beside him without waiting to be invited. “So, we both got what was meant for us,” he said.
Dionysus watched him from the corner of his eye. “Why would I care which of you brats gets my wine?”
Luke snorted. “You wouldn’t waste it on someone who wouldn’t appreciate it.” He tipped the bottle in Dionysus’ direction. “Open it for me? I want to taste it.”
Dionysus’ addams apple bobbed when he swallowed. He magicked the wine bottle open for Luke. The smell of crushed grapes and sweet strawberries filled the air.
Luke drank directly from the bottle. He took a small sip at first, not actually accustomed to drinking alcohol. It went down and warmed him from the inside out. Was that how drinking was supposed to be or was it because the wine was made by a god? “Do you like your gift?”
Dionysus hummed noncommittally. “You aren’t predisposed to carving,” he said. “It’s alright. I guess.”
Luke rolled his eyes. He took another drink of wine. It kept the chill away and he wanted something to occupy him. Now that he was here, he didn’t know what to say or how to leave without being rude. Truthfully, Luke wasn’t sure that he wanted to leave. Being gay was something he suspected when he was fourteen but after spending two years at Camp Half-Blood, he was positive that he was exclusively attracted to boys. And there were no boys or men that could hold a candle to Dionysus. “This is good wine,” he said after yet another gulp.
“I’m so glad that my wine making skills are acceptable to a fledgling who has never touched a drop of alcohol before,” Dionysus said with an eye roll. His words were harsh but his tone didn’t quite match. Luke had managed to please the god.
Luke had been taking fairly big gulps of wine and it affected him more than he thought it would, faster than he thought it would. His whole body was hot and his mouth tasted so sweet that he kept swallowing his saliva and sucking on his tongue to get the flavor. The bottle was to his lips more often than not. It would likely be empty within an hour, maybe two if you were being generous. Luke found himself leaning toward Dionysus and then his head was on the god’s shoulder.
Dionysus wasn’t comfortable. He went through a small death every winter and because of that, he was rather bony at the moment. But Luke didn’t care because he wanted to be close to the god. His desire to be close to Dionysus was not something Luke thought too hard about. He still hated his father and he held a fair bit of resentment for the other Olympians...but Dionysus was hot and the way he made Luke feel was good and Luke was desperate for anything that didn’t feel bad.
Dionysus gave no indication he even realized Luke was there, leaning on him. His feet rocked the swing ever so slightly and he stared out into the night as he’d been doing when Luke found him here. After a long, long time of no movement, Dionysus tilted his head so that his cheek brushed against Luke’s hair. It was the smallest of acknowledgements but it made Luke’s heart howl with hope.