Author's note:
Jumping on the holiday fic bandwagon here.
Set somewhere post season 11 of Grey's Anatomy, and long after the ending of Private Practice.
bobbiejelly
I Saw Mommy Kissing Satan
Underneath the mistletoe last night...
"I swear, I did!" Ellis Shepherd bellows from underneath the Christmas tree in their big shared house in Seattle.
"No way!" says Derek Bailey Shepherd, or 'Bailey," as they all call him anyway.
"It's 'I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus,' Ellis," Zola Grey-Shepherd corrects with a sigh.
"And that wouldn't work because dad's dead so-" Bailey begins, until Zola shakes her head at him sternly, warning him not to spoil this secret so early for their youngest sibling.
When she had been younger, she hadn't had any older siblings to taunt her about Santa Claus not really being real, and her being the oldest sibling now, Zola felt a sense of responsibility in holding onto the magic for just a little bit longer.
Bailey had learned the truth from his buddies at school, but so far, Ellis had escaped from such harsh realities, and Zola intended to keep things that way.
"Bailey, why don't you go ask Addison for some more wrapping paper, hey?" Zola asks her brother politely, and Bailey nods, and runs off again, pleased at being bestowed with some more responsibility, or at least, in his mind, he certainly had been.
"Now, Ellis, do you want to tell me what you were talking about? I'm sorry that I interrupted you earlier," Zola says as she keeps up her holiday wrapping.
"I told you! I saw mommy kissing Satan, I wasn't fibbing!" Ellis whines.
"Alright, alright. I believe you," says Zola with a warm smile.
"Thanks, Zo," says Ellis, sighing contentedly. "Can I help you wrap those?" she offers.
Zola contemplates this, she knows that her younger sister genuinely wants to help her with the presents, but she also knows that if Ellis has her hands on the tape, things will very quickly become messy.
"Why don't you go see if Henry wants to wrap presents with you?" Zola tries not to sound too off-put by her sister.
"Henry's with Bailey, he never went to get wrapping paper," Ellis points at her brother, who is currently play-fighting with Henry Montgomery, Addison's son.
"Ah, I see," says Zola. "Well, I guess you can help me then," Zola offers, "why don't you hold the present while I fold over the edges?" Zola suggests, and she's pleased with herself for discovering this solution.
"Sure!" says Elis excitedly, clinging to the gifts and doing her very best to hold them steady.
With the team of the two of them, the presents don't take long to wrap, and soon enough, Zola and Ellis are ready to join the boys to go play outside again.
"Tag, you're it!" Henry pokes Zola, and Zola can't help but run back to chase him. Bailey and Ellis scatter, and the two oldest children make a break for it, running all around the yard until Henry gets tired, and Zola finally catches up to her.
"You're it, finally!" says Zola, as she taps him on the shoulder.
"Oh, goodness, I think I might be exhausted," says Henry, sliding down to the ground against a nearby tree.
"Me, too," says Zola, sliding down to sit against a nearby tree as well. They can see Ellis and Bailey playing off in the distance, so they just sit for a while to catch their breaths as the snow starts drifting down all around them.
