Christmas. Their second Christmas together, much different than the last one. Much. It had been a hurried affair with things just starting to reorient themselves after Lee had tracked him down in Maine. Tracked him down in Maine with absolutely no intention of letting him come back with her. That's when he'd known. Oh, Tarin had known before that he wanted Lee for good, but when he realized what he'd meant to her and what she'd gone through just to tell him off for leaving...he'd known.

They were in Texas now, and things were better than he could have possibly imagined. His mother had welcomed him home with virtually open arms and while Ash's reception had been less than hoped for, it was pretty much as expected.

It was Christmas now and his mother had loved the present Tarin had given her, the picture of him and Lee now occupied a place on the mantle. Lee had enjoyed her presents too, which had mostly consisted of more Cowgirl gear. Cowgirl gear, a sleeping bag, and the promise of a surprise to come later in the night.

The weather was cooperating beautifully and Tarin couldn't think of a better day, or night, to introduce Lee to the ranch that had played such a vital role in the shaping of his childhood. His mother still had administrative duties over the place, but she'd handed over the actual running to someone else as she aged. Tarin wasn't surprised, or disappointed, without anyone to help her it had been the only option.

The sun was setting and it was almost time for him to make good on his promise to Lee from earlier that morning. Bandanna in hand, folded in the best possible way to restrict view, Tarin moved through the house looking for Lee. Finding her nowhere, he grabbed the keys to his old truck, the old truck that he'd checked everything out on earlier in the day to make sure it al worked. "Lee!" he called, "It's time for the rest of your present. Where are you? "

Christmas had been...Well, once they were there in Texas, Lee hadn't exactly had an idea what to expect. Other than the previous year with Tarin, and that didn't exactly count considering everything that had been going on between them at the time, Lee had been young the last time she had had a proper Christmas. She'd been 15 the last time she had actually really celebrated Christmas with anyone, and that year and the year before it, her powers had been effecting her and her family, though at the time no one was sure why everyone was so tired.

This Christmas was so much different, and as she sat on the porch step, a mug of tea held between her hands as she looked out toward the setting sun, Lee couldn't help but wonder if this was how adult Christmases were supposed to be.

The excitement of opening presents hadn't been nearly as strong as Lee could remember it being when she was a kid, but that didn't stop the happiness and expectation Lee was feeling about what she got from Tarin. And about what the rest of her present she was receiving that night was going to be. She had even gotten presents from Josh and their mother, something that Lee hadn't been expecting. They were small, there hadn't exactly been a lot of warning that her and Tarin were coming to visit over Christmas. But Lee had always found small touches and gestures to be incredibly important, thanks to her powers. Apparently, this seemed to be a very similar situation.

As the afternoon had continued, despite Ash's frostiness toward Tarin, and thus herself by association, Lee couldn't remember herself being this happy in a long time. Even longer since she had had this good of a day, and been this happy, when it had been more than simply herself and Tarin.

Dinner had come (Lee couldn't even remember if her own mother could cook as well as Tarin's, it had been too long), dinner had ended, and Lee had helped Tarin's mother and Josh's wife with the dishes after the boys had very quickly disappeared. But once the dishes were finished, Lee quietly excused herself and slipped outside with the cup of tea Adele had offered her. Lee was used to being around people all day, huge crowds at times, but not so much when they actually talked to her. It truly was an amazing feeling, an amazing experience, but Lee simply needed to be alone, with her thoughts, for a bit.

But Josh...Now that was something else, Lee thought as she took another quiet sip of her tea. A year ago when he had come to New York and visited with her and Tarin, he'd bought a ring but hadn't yet proposed. And now they were married. They'd eloped, gone off by themselves, with just a friend or two to be their witnesses, and gotten married. Bing, bang, done. Nothing being drawn out, no big plans or worries to have to deal with.

While they hadn't exactly made anything resembling solid plans for their own wedding, neither she nor Tarin really seemed to want anything big. Who would they really invite, anyway? It definitely had possibility, Lee admitted as she watched the large, orange sun sinking lower to the horizon. Adele had tried to talk her into wearing a coat or sweater when she went out, but Lee had pointed out, again, that there was snow on the ground in New York. It was warm here.

Then there was Adele's quiet, yet very much smiling comment she had made while they were doing dishes; she couldn't remember Tarin ever looking so happy, and that included the Christmas when he was 8 and found everything he had wanted wrapped under the tree. At least her plan had worked, Tarin didn't seem to be in his funk any more. All Lee could hope for was that this mood lasted longer than the plane ride home, that Tarin would still be feeling just as good about things once he stepped foot into the shop once more.

Speak of the devil, Lee heard Tarin calling for her from inside the house. Grinning, wondering what exactly he had in mind for her 'present', Lee leaned back over the small porch and pulled the screen door open a bit. "I'm out front, hon!" She called back into the house before straightening back up so she could finish her tea off.

She was out front, and Tarin grinned as he made his way around to the front of the house and therefore Lee. It was warm out, warm enough that Tarin didn't have a jacket on, even more perfect for the surprise he had in store for Lee. Texas had totally rubbed off on him already. If it had been this warm in New York, Tarin would have been wearing shorts and sunglasses, but that was in New York.

Here, Tarin had slipped right back into his old cowboy persona. Of course it helped that Lee loved it so much when he played it up. It was also a comfort to Tarin that he didn't look like a fool running around in boots and a cowboy hat, like he was now.

"Howdy Darlin'" he said, coming up behind Lee in the front of the house and wrapping his arms around her waist. The sun was low in the sky and painting the distant flatlands red and orange. It really was a beautiful thing to behold. There weren't as many buildings here to block the light. Lee seemed happy here too, hitting it off with his mother and his brother. Ash was another story...but again, Tarin had expected that.

"It really is beautiful, isn't it?" he said, kissing her soundly on the cheek. "I thought that you might be ready for the second part of your Christmas present."

Moving to walk in front of Lee, Tarin held out the keys and jingled them. "I haven't driven in quite a long time, but there's no other way to get out to where we're going."

Little did Lee know that he'd packed all the gear they could possibly need for a night under the stars, including sleeping bags, blankets, and pillows, into the bed of the truck.

"One more thing." he said, dangling the blindfold in front of Lee, "You'll have to trust me."

Lee couldn't help but grin, and grin widely, when she heard Tarin speaking behind her. The accent had been picked up very quickly, by that very fist night they were there, actually, and Lee couldn't stop her smile from appearing almost each and every time she heard it. At least that was definitely helping to make the trip enjoyable.

Even more enjoyable than the fact that Tarin's accent was there in full force was the fact that he was wearing his cowboy hat whenever he went out. Which, Lee saw as Tarin walked around in front of her, included that very moment.

"It really is beautiful, isn't it?"

Lee grinned even wider, happier, as she heard Tarin say that, and nodded her head, though her mind was thinking more about the man standing oh so close to her than about the sunset at that point in time. And as she looked at him, looking so much like the Texas cowboy he was sounding like, Lee couldn't even remember how she had talked herself into leaving him so many months before.

And then he asked if she'd like the second part of her Christmas present. A moment before holding up a set of keys and jingling them in front of her face.

"The second part of my present?" Lee asked, her head cocking to the side slightly as she looked at Tarin, then let her eyes dart to the keys he held briefly. "I sure hope that it's better than my other presents," she continued, teasing him.

Then Lee saw Tarin hold up the blindfold, and the teasing smile vanished from her face as she looked at it. Of course she loved and trusted Tarin, they couldn't exactly have a relationship together with the problems they faced if she didn't. But him saying she had to trust him to blindfold him as they went somewhere they couldn't get to without driving, when he had just admitted that he hadn't driven in years...

Of course she trusted him, but Lee couldn't help but be nervous about this situation.

Finishing the last of her tea, Lee set her now empty mug on the railing around the porch, Lee took a deep breath and stepped toward Tarin. "So because I trust you, I'm supposed to let you blindfold me and drive me off to the middle of nowhere?" Lee asked, a bit of her teasing smile returning.

"Yup, the second part of your Christmas present." Tarin said, a wide grin spreading across his features. Despite the fact that he was pretty sure Lee knew exactly what was going on, Tarin was pleased as punch at how well the whole situation had worked out. It had been something he'd planned from the second they set foot off the plane, it was just icing on the cake that the truck was still here...and running, albeit a bit rusty and loud.

Lee was teasing, she'd love the presents she'd gotten earlier in the day, even if the fashionista in her was slightly resistant to the idea of cowgirl anything. She looked good in the Texas gear though. She wasn't wearing it now, but the jeans and plain white t-shirt really suited her. Tarin had a feeling anything else would too.

She hesitated about the blindfold and Tarin tilted his head as he looked at her. He'd been joking when he'd told her that she'd have to trust him, it wasn't something he'd really been worried about her rejecting. There wasn't a whole lot of point in a surprise if Lee could see where they were going. It wasn't right to make her do something like that if she wasn't comfortable, and Tarin was just about to say so when Lee agreed to the blindfold.

Setting the cup she'd been cradling in her hands down, Lee moved towards him and Tarin automatically closed the distance, hands settling on her hips as she teased him about the reason for the blindfold. "Mmmm not necessarily because you trust me...that's just a reason for you to be okay with it. You're supposed to wear the blindfold because it's a surprise." Tarin plastered an innocent look on his face, "Who said anything about the middle of nowhere?"

That said, he leaned in and kissed her, soundly. "Ready?" he asked when they were done. "Daylight's fadin'."

It really didn't take long. Almost the moment she had set her mug down and gave him the slightest bit of an ok about the blind fold, Tarin was closing what remaining distance there was between the two of them and his hands came to rest on her hips. Lee wasn't at all sure how that worked with the whole blind folding thing, but she didn't say anything.

And then Tarin asked about her middle of nowhere comment with an obviously fake look of innocence on his face. "Well, I hope it's the middle of nowhere if you're taking me dressed like this," Lee informed Tarin softly. "Because if it's any less 'middle of nowhere' than we are right now, I need to go change before we leave."

Now, it's not as if Lee couldn't go anywhere dressed as she was, but she knew she wouldn't feel comfortable. Yes, she had settled on the jeans and t-shirt that day because she had felt strange the last few days wearing a skirt around the perpetual jeans. However, jeans, or pants of any sort for that matter, were not exactly normal for her, and she preferred not to go out wearing them on most occasions.

Then Lee felt Tarin lean in for a kiss and heard him ask if she was ready. Even after all these days of hearing it, Lee was a little dazed by the accent (or maybe it was the combination with the kiss that did it), but it took her a few moments before she was able to respond.

"Yeah, I'm ready," Lee said with a nod. It didn't take long from there. Almost before she knew it, Lee had a blind fold blocking out all light, and then Tarin was leading her slowly by the hand.

It was definitely an odd feeling, not being able to see where she was walking. Lee stumbled a few times, over a rock, or dip in the ground, or something, but thankfully Tarin was there to help her keep her balance. Then up, climbing up onto a seat, but higher than a normal seat would be. Ok, so maybe the jeans were a good thing, even with Tarin's help, getting up onto this seat wouldn't have been easy with skirt on.

Once she was sitting the right way, at least that's what Lee assumed since Tarin had stopped trying to rearrange her in the seat, she then felt him reaching across her a moment later, and heard a seatbelt click. "So where are you taking me?" Lee couldn't help but ask, despite the fact that a few moments earlier he had told her the blind fold was because this was a surprise.

Kissing was nice. Kissing was very nice. In fact, kissing was so nice that Tarin forgot that he was planning a whole night of stargazing and hopefully kissing. Then the kissing stopped and after a few moments, and Tarin's thoughts cleared enough that he could remember the fact that he needed to get them moving.

He hadn't said anything about the middle of nowhere comment before the kiss and he wasn't sure he was going to now. Lee was worried about it though, he knew it, and so as he was helping her walk to the truck he assured her that they weren't going anywhere that she needed to be more dressed up.

It didn't take too long to get Lee to the truck and buckled in (safety first) Lee asked where they were going and Tarin chuckled, "Not telling." he said, then basically sprinted to the other side and climbed in. He hadn't told Lee, but he'd been practicing in his free time the last couple of days and the truck roared to life.

They'd been driving for a while, and had long since left the paved roads that led from the small suburb that housed the place where Tarin had grown up when the lights from the more populated areas finally faded from view. The truck was set in third gear, leaving Tarin's hand free and he reached across the seat, grabbing Lee's and laughing softly, "We're almost there now." he said, maneuvering the truck over the slightly rougher terrain as he looked for a place that he'd been many times during his childhood and adolescence, sometimes with girls, but never ones he'd felt like this about. This had been his place, and now Lee was going to get to see it. Tarin just hoped that after all the stories she wouldn't be disappointed.

The slope of the ground slanted decidedly upward as they moved closer to the spot and Tarin grinned with how close they were. The small rise leveled out and he hit the breaks softly, disentangling his hand from Lees to put the truck in park and kill the headlights. "We're there, but keep the blindfold on for just another minute. I'm going to come around and help you get out."

That said, Tarin climbed out of the truck and made his way around to Lee's side. It was slightly cooler out here than it was in the suburbs, but that wasn't really surprising. It was still warm though and an even warmer breeze swept over the rise where they were situated. It was dark and Tarin felt his way around the truck to grab a flashlight from where he'd stashed it before making his way to Lee's door.

Once there, Tarin opened it and reached across Lee unbuckling the seatbelt and helping her climb from the truck while keeping her steady on her feet. "Just one more second..." he said, shutting the door of the truck once they were clear.

That done, Tarin situated Lee so that she was facing the open plains in front of them. This hill was by far the highest point in the surrounding miles and the moon and stars cast blue light over the ranch lands. There were enough of them too, as promised the weather was completely clear and stars dotted the sky like diamonds. It was quiet excepting the sound of the night insects singing and the occasional distant baying of a cow. "Perfect." Tarin said, almost more to himself than to Lee, then situated her in front of him. Reaching up slowly, he undid the knot in the bandanna over Lee's eyes and pulled it away. "Surprise." he whispered.

The sky was still red and orange when Tarin had put the blind fold on her and put her in what turned out to be a vehicle. But unlike the cab rides she had taken back in New York, which had been a much more common occurrence over the previous year, this trip was much more bumpy. Bumpier than any trip she had taken since she had been on the bus coming to New York. And much longer than any cab ride she had taken with Tarin.

So by the time they had stopped, Lee was quite curious about where they had gone.

It really hadn't taken Tarin long to help her out of the truck, but he didn't take off her blind fold right away. Instead, Tarin started leading her around again slowly by the hand, catching her as she stumbled, which was far more often this time.

It was silent. Well, Lee could hear bugs, and the occasional cow mooing, but otherwise silent. No cars, no sirens, no horns, no voices. Just silence.

Until Lee heard Tarin's voice from behind her. "Perfect."

Only then did Lee feel the blind fold come off.

It was dark, darker than she could remember it being outside in years. And yet Lee could see in the blueish-white light from above.

And then Lee glanced up at the source of that blueish-white light, and saw the stars...more stars than Lee could ever remember seeing in her entire life. "Oh wow..." Lee breathed.

She stumbled as they walked to the top of the rise and Tarin used the excuse to pull Lee closer to him as they moved. She didn't resist at all and he smiled, more pleased with himself than ever as he maneuvered her into what he considered the perfect viewing position for the stars and the moon. He wasn't disappointed in her reaction either.

Lee didn't say much, but she didn't have to. It was one of the reasons this was Tarin's favorite place. You didn't have to say anything about it for the appreciation to be evident. At her breathed observance, Tarin's smile widened and he wrapped his arms around her waist. "See, I told you it was good." he whispered, not wanting to break the spell of the warm and quiet night by speaking to loud.

He looked into the sky himself, thinking about what all it had taken to get he and Lee to the point they were. They were there though, standing and looking at the stars just like he'd imagined more than once in New York. Just the two of them. The night was just about as perfect as it could be.

"There's not a whole lot more to say about it. I packed the bed of the truck with our sleeping bags, snacks, and things like that if you want to stay out here." he said after a few moments, arms still wrapped around Lee from behind. "Otherwise we can head back to the house whenever you're ready. I thought it might be cool to lay down and look up at the stars though. When you look that way, they fill your field of vision and it's almost like you're floating out there if you stare long enough."

The view in front of her was absolutely amazing. Better than Lee had even imagined it would be. So when she felt Tarin's arms wrapping around her waist, Lee leaned back against him, her head on his shoulder, so that she could better look up at the sky.

"You did tell me it was good," Lee whispered in reply. Her eyes were trying to search out the various constellations. But Lee wasn't overly familiar with most of the constellations in general, so with having such an incredibly large amount of extra stars visible in the sky, Lee wasn't having any luck seeing them.

Not that it really mattered much. She hadn't wanted to come out here to see the constellations. She had wanted to come out here to see the stars, to spend the night with Tarin looking up at a sky filled with millions of tiny points of light.

And that's exactly what he was offering when he told her that he had already packed the bed of the truck with their new sleeping bags, pillows, and even snacks for the night. Why would she want to head back to the house, which was surrounded by enough lights that she hadn't been able to see even half this number of stars?

"It feels like you're floating?" Lee questioned, her voice very soft, as she turned her head slightly to look over her shoulder at Tarin. "You know, I can't remember the last time I saw any number of stars, and I've never in my life seen them like this. You're not getting out of letting me enjoy my night."

Twisting around slightly, Lee gave Tarin a quick kiss. "Are you going to be able to point the constellations out to me?"

Tarin shrugged against Lee's back when she questioned his description of the stars from the bed of the truck. "That's what I always thought. If you lay just right you can't see anything out of your peripheral vision. I've always felt like I was floating."

Lee was impressed with the view and the knowledge that the surprise was continuing to go off without a hitch made Tarin grin as he leaned his face into Lee's hair. He stayed there for a few moments, listening to Lee talk about how she couldn't remember seeing stars like this ever in her life. Tarin just nodded, words kind of failed the situation. She wanted to stay though, and that widened Tarin's grin. He'd hoped that would be the answer, "So we'll stay then." he said, then loosed his arms as Lee twisted, returning her kiss happily.

Lee spoke again and Tarin laughed, the sound loud in the silence of the plains. Running a hand down her arm to catch her hand, Tarin pulled Lee towards the truck and opened the tailgate. "After you." he said, gesturing, then came back to the question she'd asked. "Of course I can name the constellations." he said, head turning upwards as he pointed, "That one...right there is bunnyopea. And that one over there..." he added, swinging his arm to the side, "that one is turtleas." The ruse over, Tarin looked at Lee with a sly smile and a helpless shrug, "I just always made up my own. I've never been interested in knowing about the stars."

That said, Tarin pulled himself into the bed of the truck and started unrolling sleeping bags and arranging pillows. When that was done, he patted the space next to him, "Ready to float?"

Lee smiled happily as she heard Tarin explaining about how he had always felt like he was floating when he looked up at the stars how they were about to. How he had been able to see nothing other than the stars above him.

And when she teased him about getting out of the night ahead of them, Lee grinned even wider as she heard Tarin's laugh, clearly the loudest noise since he had shut the truck off. But he still dropped his hand to hers, clasping it tightly, and pulled her toward the back of the truck.

The smile still on her face, Lee hopped up onto the tailgate after Tarin opened it, then turned to climb further into the bed of the truck. He seemed to have things well in hand, though, it was his present to her, after all, so Lee just sat back, staying out of his way while he went about laying out the sleeping bags and pillows for them.

She'd already thought so once that evening, but as Lee watched Tarin setting things up, Lee couldn't help but think that this was most certainly the best thing she could have done for them, booking the trip to Texas. Tarin was just so happy and relaxed. Lee knew that she had seen him like this before, but by this point it had been so long...

Only when that was done did Lee move again, crawling over beside him and leaning over to give him another quick kiss. "Bunnyopea and turtleas?" Lee asked, shaking her head and rolling her eyes at Tarin despite the smile that didn't seem capable of leaving her face at that moment. "I know next to nothing about stars, and even I know those aren't real constellations."

But then Lee heard Tarin's last question, and her smile grew so much more. "Of course I'm ready to float," she whispered.

Lee crawled to him across the bed of the truck and Tarin smiled as she came up to kiss him, then reached out to wrap his arms around her waist again, laughing as she pointed out that even a novice astronomer like herself knew that the two constellations he made up were bogus.

"I told you that I made up my own constellations." he said, pulling Lee back further so he could rest his chin on her shoulder. "Besides, there's enough stars out here that you could probably pick out any picture you wanted and call it a constellation."

Lee was ready to float, and as soon as she admitted it, Tarin pulled them backwards slowly, not stopping until they were laying back in the small pile of pillows he tossed in the bed of the truck and Lee was laying against his chest.

Tarin's peripheral vision wasn't perfect for floating, he could still see Lee out of the corner of his eye, but he wasn't worried. He'd seen the stars before, many times. This was much better, he could feel Lee against him and now that they were laying down he tightened his arms. So far, Lee had been okay with the contact and Tarin figured she'd let him know if there was too much going on.

"So. What do you think about floating." Tarin said, his voice soft again as he turned to talk into Lee's ear, kissing her jaw softly when he was done.

Lee laughed slightly when Tarin commented on his making up constellations. And on how with how many stars there were, they could make up whatever pictures and constellations they wanted. Tarin had pulled her closer against him, so Lee just snugged into him. Until he started pulling her backward. Then Lee tensed slightly, but still she easily let Tarin pull her backwards until they were laying down. Snuggling against him more, her head resting on Tarin's shoulder, Lee looked up at the sky.

If she had thought that the view was good before, that was nothing compared to what she was seeing now. Laying there in the back of the truck, Lee was able to see so much more of the sky, without any worry of falling over from leaning back too far. She was also able to relax so much more than she'd been able to when she was on her feet.

Then Lee heard Tarin ask what she thought of floating, just before he kissed her on the jaw softly.

Lee shivered. She couldn't help it. It wasn't cold, not by a long shot laying there beside Tarin, but the feeling of Tarin's lips on her skin...it was something she hadn't felt like that in a long time.

"It's absolutely amazing," Lee breathed. "I can see why you liked coming out here so much..."

The resistance had been there, it'd been tightly reigned in when he leaned them back, but it had been momentary and soon Lee relaxed against him, watching the sky as it stretched out above them.

Tarin didn't miss it, it was impossible for him to miss anything when Lee was this close. It was like he'd gone hypersensitive and when Lee didn't move after she shivered, Tarin's stomach started to feel all funny and suddenly the absolute last thing he was thinking about were the made up constellations he'd been talking about a few minutes before.

Lee commented that she could understand why he'd like coming out here so much when he was younger. Tarin nodded his head, "It's never been this good before though. Almost all I've been able to think about since we got here was doing this. I wanted to show you."

Tarin was quiet for a few moments, just holding Lee close and he turned his head to kiss her jaw again, once...twice. "I'm so glad you set this up Lee. I'd have never done it on my own." Another few moments of silence, "It's almost the New Year, you know. I'd have never made it through the last year without you." His voice was laced with emotion as he spoke, and Tarin held Lee just a little tighter. "I don't mean to get all weird and sentimental on you, but I just wanted you to know that this really meant a lot to me, I couldn't imagine a more perfect holiday."