Festivities and Fruitcakes

December 20

December 20: “Little Wiggins is given his first ever Christmas present.” (from Madam'zelleGiry)

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A/N: Holmes’s POV. Takes place back before he met Watson, and he was still living somewhere on Montague Street.

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It was Christmas Eve, I was seated on the floor before the small fire in my rooms in Montague Street along with six-year-old Wiggins and his five-year-old cousins Teddy and Jamie.

I was not normally one for celebrating Christmas, as I had never had anyone to celebrate with, and in recent years, I hadn’t the money for it anyway. This year, however, I had just solved a rather lucrative case, so when Wiggins had mentioned that his family had never celebrated Christmas because there just wasn’t enough money, I decided that I would give the children a small Christmas celebration.

Those boys had been helpful to me on more than one occasion. And they were good boys…or at least they had the potential to be. I first met little Wiggins when he tried to relieve me of my pocketbook, but when he had the option to earn his keep legally, he did it.

“Blimey, Mr. ‘Olmes!” little Wiggins exclaimed when I handed each of them a small wrapped package. “Oi’ve never ‘ad a Christmas present before!”

“Me neither!” piped up Teddy excitedly.

Jamie grinned from ear to ear and bounced. “Can I open it? Can I open it?”

“Go ahead,” I said, and they cheerfully tore the paper off the parcels.

I hadn’t been quite sure what to get the boys, but I eventually decided on new hats and gloves. It had been frightfully cold lately, and I did not want them suffering from frostbite.

“They’re so warm!” exclaimed Jamie, who was the first to have his gloves unwrapped and on his hands.

“Oh, I’ve never had a hat this soft before!” said Teddy, rubbing it against his face.

“Thank you so much, Mr. ‘Olmes!” exclaimed Wiggins, hugging me tightly. “This is the best Christmas ever!”