December 25, 2000

Disclaimers: The characters and places of Magnificent Seven do not belong to me. No profit other than pleasure was made from this story.

Comments:Special thanks to Mackie and Mary.

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Winter reached down with a vengeance and tore through the air. Seven men from Four Corners huddled in their saddles, bowing their heads into the wind to protect their faces from the frigid blast of freezing rain.

A favor, Judge Travis had said, a simple favor. Just catch the bank robbers and send them off to trial; you'll be doing me a big favor, boys.

That simple request hid a host of problems: First, leaving Four Corners vulnerable for nearly three weeks while the Seven followed the robbers' trail through the territory and beyond. Second, a pulled muscle for Josiah when the criminals managed to escape from the barn where they were cornered. Then Buck suffered a sprained wrist when he tried to impress a group of ladies by swinging from a low loft to jump one of the robbers. Finally, JD took a surprise dip in the local creek. The kid had tackled one of the fleeing men and the two rolled over a short drop into the water. Ever since that particular stunt JD had complained of chills and a scratchy throat. Nathan's announcement that the kid had fever took no one by surprise.

The robbers had been captured and taken off to jail. Now the men were heading home.

After a brief conversation with Chris, Vin broke away from the rest. His horse lifted its head, eyes rolling wildly as he chewed on his bit, eager to catch up to the others. The gelding pranced in place, his hooves creating puffs of white on the road. Vin pulled on the reins and urged him in another direction.

The tracker soon returned. He pulled up next to Chris and gestured with one gloved hand back the way he’d come. "Found an old cabin ‘bout half a mile north a here."

Nathan drew even with the two men. "Does it have a roof?"

"Yep, looks solid enough. It’ll be a tight fit, though, and the walls have chinks wide enough for a man to put his arm through. There’s a bit of a shed in back ought to give the horses something to squeeze under."

Chris shifted in his saddle, glancing back at JD. The young man sat hunched in his saddle like the rest of them with his head bent low to protect his face from the weather. While Chris watched, JD reached up and rubbed at his neck through his coat's open collar. He was too far away to see the expression on the kid's face. The scratchy throat JD had mentioned earlier must still be bothering him. "Guess that’s the best we can get right now." He squinted at the low hanging clouds draped like sagging bunting across the sky. "Looks like this weather's gonna come to a head any minute. I say we find shelter now and sit out the worst of it." He brought his gaze back to Vin. "Any roof will do."

Vin nodded in answer. "If you say so, partner."

Reunited, the seven men turned in the direction of the shelter.

The small, brown shack was a smudge of color in the smoky whiteness. Vin pointed, then led the others behind the building where a tiny shed sagged against the dilapidated ruin of the cabin. Despite its flimsy appearance, it offered adequate shelter for the horses.

They led the animals into the tiny shed, preparing for the arduous task of bedding them down for the night. Seven tired horses and seven tired men in such a confined space bought an intimacy they all would have just as soon avoided.

Josiah's big gelding thought JD's solid form an excellent choice for a scratching post. Trapped as he was in the middle of the group, JD could only brace himself and endure the horse's broad head rubbing up and down his back. "Dang it, Josiah, get this animal off me!"

"Sorry, JD," Josiah apologized. "Hang on a minute and he'll be finished." The grin on his face brightened his words but JD didn't find the situation funny.

Buck eased past and took up the scratching duties with his fingers, freeing JD of his impromptu role. "I thought Josiah would have taught you better manners," he whispered in the horse's ear.

The animal's head bobbed up and down, but that probably had more to do with responding to the attention rather than agreeing with the criticism.

JD turned to his own horse with a barely stifled groan.

The men moved tiredly with an economy of words and motions. Tack and bedrolls were removed and the horses were tethered to a rope strung between two of the strongest posts. Buck's grumbling about his sore wrist elicited little sympathy from the others; they all had aches and pains to complain about.

No one missed the fact that JD seemed more lethargic and exhausted than the others did. His feet dragged and his eyes were half-closed as he went about his chores. He shoved dark hair from his eyes, a weary gesture, then draped both arms over his saddle.

Vin worked his way around the crush of bodies and stopped beside the young man. "Why don't you head inside and see what the place has to offer?" He covered one of JD's arms with his hand.

JD gave a minute shake of his head. "Thanks, but taking care of your mount is the first thing a rider's supposed to do." He lifted his eyes and turned his head to gaze levelly at Vin. "You taught me that."

Vin nodded, not liking the fever-brightness he saw in those weary eyes. "All right, but there's nothin' that says a man can't accept a little help with the tack."

JD stared at the uncinched saddle waiting to be lifted from his mount's back. Through his exhaustion, it looked as if it weighed a hundred pounds. "Okay, thanks."

Vin squeezed JD's arm and let go. He quickly pulled the saddle and blankets off and carried them to the sheltered spot where the rest of the tack was piled.

A quick grooming smoothed the horses' blanket-roughened coats, and then hooves and legs were checked for any signs of injury. There wasn't any fodder for feed, but Josiah had bought a small sack of grain in the last town they'd visited. He was very popular as seven velvet muzzles begged shamelessly for a handout.

Their chores finished, the men picked up their bedrolls and trudged wearily into the cabin to begin their own preparations for the long night ahead. JD stumbled, awkwardly unbalanced with both arms wrapped around his middle and his head down. Buck tucked a hand under the kid's elbow, offering help. JD leaned against his friend, then gently pulled away once they were indoors.

Inside the shelter, Ezra dumped his blanket and found himself beside a broken window. With his shoulders hunched nearly to his ears, he reached out and quickly closed the flapping shutters. One rusty hinge gave way under the rough handling and the shutter sagged open. Muttering a curse under his breath, he attempted to pull the gaping wood together. Josiah joined him. Reaching around the shorter man, the preacher managed to get hold of the boards and secure them by latching the old hook between them.

Ezra's smile was chagrined. "You should consider going into the construction business, my friend."

The other man nodded and grinned. "I knew all that work on the church would come in handy one day." He reached up to rub at his shoulder, kneading strong fingers into tender muscle. Stretching around Ezra had created a slight pull across his back, reminding him of his injury.

Ezra moved away. Josiah glanced at Buck and JD. The older man was checking out the room, probably making note of the only door and two windows. JD stood quietly at his side, his hands rubbing his arms in an obvious attempt to stay warm.

The preacher bent to grab Ezra's bedroll and tossed it into the pile with all the others. He shrugged out of his wet coat, shaking still melting snow from the heavy folds. A convenient nail made for a perfect hanger near the blackened stones by the fireplace. Vin picked up wet coats the other men had shed and followed Josiah's example by hanging them up to dry.

Nathan pulled a small leather pouch from his saddlebag and carefully pried it open with half frozen fingers. A cup came out next and the healer deftly sprinkled some of the herbs from the bag into the container. Water from his canteen followed, and the herbs floated to the surface. Kneeling beside the stone fireplace he placed the cup carefully on the floor, ready to heat the tea as soon as the fire was started.

Ezra tugged a silver flask out of his jacket. Unscrewing the cap, he took a long pull then wiped his lips. "A fortune for a warm bed and a fireplace without holes." He moved to replace the container, then hesitated and offered the flask to JD. "Something to warm the belly and sooth the mind."

JD smiled, his teeth showing stark white in the gloomy room. "Thanks, Ezra."

"Want to share some of that Christmas cheer with the rest of us?" Buck snatched the container before JD could take a swig. "No alcohol for you, Junior. I think Nathan's brewing up some smelly tea for that sore throat."

"This'll get me warmer, faster." JD reached for the flask but Buck moved it out of his reach.

Ezra neatly plucked the flask from Buck's hand and took another long pull. "I'd forgotten what day it is -- today's Christmas Eve, isn't it?" He lifted the container. "This may be the only form of nourishment we can enjoy in this --" He looked around, searching for a word. "-- humble abode."

"Don’t know what you’re complaining about." Josiah finished organizing the jackets and spread his arms wide. "We've got all the comforts of home right here." He gestured toward the roof. "Shelter, warm fire, and good company."

"Speak for yourself." Buck’s grumble filtered out from the corner where he stood with JD. "What this place needs is a feminine touch. Come to think of it, I could use that myself." He poked his elbow into JD.

"Ouch! Cut it out, Buck."

"What’s a matter, JD? Can’t take a little ribbin’?" Laughing at his own joke Buck playfully nudged JD again.

JD moved out of range. "If the jokes get any worse I’m takin’ my chances with the weather."

"You are the last person who should be protesting witticism, Mr. Dunne."

Throwing Ezra a look of fiery determination, JD reached up to push his hat farther down on his head. "Did I ever tell you the one about --"

"Yes!" The unanimous chorus echoed off the walls, startling JD into silence. His shoulders slumped and he crossed his arms again, conserving as much body heat as he could.

Nathan glanced over his shoulder, watching the exchange between the three men. He watched Josiah and Vin move among the complainers, silently shaking out blankets, retrieving coffee from Josiah's saddlebag, pulling cups from Vin's; doing all the little chores that would make the cabin more habitable. The contrast between the two groups was amusing. Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to the water-filled pot he held. Coffee would go a long way in warming them all up.

Chris swept into the room along with a stiff wind and a swirl of snow. Several small branches lay piled in his arms. He twisted to shut the flimsy door, then hurried over to the old, stone fireplace and knelt down. Mortar lay in powdery piles on the floor. Suspicious sounds of loosened rocks whispered through the room when he pushed against the fireplace for balance.

He and Nathan worked together to start a fire. White sparks flickered inside the small cave formed by their bodies. It lit their faces briefly with flashes of yellow and blue. Moments later, the glow of a fledgling fire warmed their features, gilding their flesh into golden honey.

Buck and JD stood close by, their hands tucked into their armpits for warmth. "At least we won’t freeze to death," Buck mumbled as he drifted closer to the warmth. Nudging JD with his shoulder, he encouraged the young man to accompany him.

"I thought I put my blanket right --?" Ezra looked around his feet. His gaze traced the floor and soon found the neat pile of bedrolls stacked near one wall. The evidence of the other's housekeeping efforts were obvious: the fire cackled merrily, eating hungrily at the wood, wet coats hung dripping on numerous nails in the walls, and a pot of water stood on a makeshift grill over the fire, steam already rising from its surface.

"Anything I can do to help?" JD's offer sputtered through a sudden silence. Nathan's low chuckle softened the quiet.

"I think it's all been done, JD. Come get some of this tea. Should help with that fever and sore throat of yours."

Buck reached down for a blanket. He shook it out and draped it around JD's shoulders. JD twisted to face him, a frown wrinkling his brow, but he accepted the covering without comment.

Despite the fire, cold still seeped in, stealing through the numerous cracks in the walls and between the ill-fitted windows. The wind had calmed down. Puffy white snowflakes drifted down outside, lazy and free-falling in the still air. Blue shadows blended with the white, creating an undulating landscape of smoothly rolling hills, frozen to perfection. Even the trees looked cold, shivering in their thin layers of peeling bark, stark black against the gray sky.

The glow from the fire lit the room, shoving the gloom into the corners where it cowered and stayed put. A groan from Ezra pulled Buck’s attention to the gambler.

"Only fifteen minutes past the hour." He tucked his watch back into his pocket. "I swear time has stopped to hold us prisoner in this frozen hell."

Perhaps motivated by Ezra’s words Vin moved toward the door. "Wouldn’t hurt to make sure we’re snowed in. Could be if the road’s not too bad, once we warm up a piece it’d be best to move on."

"I’ll come with you." Chris joined him and the two left the cabin.

Nathan held up a pot of dark, steaming liquid. "Coffee, anyone?"

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The wind regained its strength, blowing harder and pushing cold fingers into their coats and through their clothes, prickling their skin with an icy touch. Vin hunched down low in the saddle and looked at Chris. The man’s swirling black coat looked like a giant bat fluttering to free itself from earthly bonds.

"I can’t see the road." Chris raised his voice in order to be heard over the gathering wind. Nature laughed at his effort and blew harder, shoving cold, wet snow into his face and down his collar where it melted against his skin.

"Yep. Landmarks’ll be too hard to pick out in all this. Might as well stay where we are, do our best to keep warm." And stay sane.

He kept the final thought to himself. Gratefully turning their backs to the wind, they started for the old cabin.

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JD and Buck had settled in near the fire. The older man leaned against the wall, a cup of coffee held between thawing hands. Nathan unwrapped his arms from where he’d folded them against his chest and pressed the back of his hand against JD’s forehead. The kid flinched then brushed disdainfully at the offending hand.

"Get your paws off me, Nathan, I ain’t got no fever."

Josiah chuckled. "Only been a few hours so it's too early for cabin fever, right Nathan?"

Nathan quickly crossed his arms over his chest. He tucked his chin deeper into the opening of his jacket, hunching his shoulders to ward out the cold. "You're right, Josiah." He glanced up and found Buck’s waiting eyes. The question in the other man’s raised eyebrows demanded an answer and he carefully nodded. Fever. "But you still feel a bit warm to me, JD."

The door opened. The rising wind muffled their footsteps; no one heard Chris and Vin returning. Startled, Buck spilled his coffee as he reached for his gun. He had the weapon halfway out of its holster before he recognized his friends.

"Give a feller warning next time, hey boys?" He brushed at the coffee sprinkles that had splashed against his thigh. At least the cup had been nearly empty when he'd dropped it.

Chris grinned and stood near the fire, his arms outstretched, palms reaching for warmth. Nathan handed him a cup. "Wouldn't have done any good, Buck. You gettin' slow on the draw there?"

Buck tucked his chin into his chest and leaned back against the wall. "Nope. Just too frozen to give you a run for your money right now, that's all."

"Anyone got anything else to drink?" JD asked from where he sat doubled over on the floor.

"Your throat still sore, JD?" Nathan's question brought the young man's head up.

An expression of longsuffering twisted his lips into an unpleasant smile. "Yep. And I'll pass on the tea if it's all the same to you."

Josiah's chuckle warmed the room. "Ezra, you got any more of that rot gut?"

While Ezra reached into his jacket to pull out his flask, Vin bent to retrieve a small pot Nathan had unpacked near the fireplace. The liquor was passed around again and the tracker slipped unnoticed out the door. He returned and knelt in front of the fire. The pot he held over the flame was full of snow and melted quickly. He offered it to JD.

"Here ya go."

JD unclasped one hand from his jacket. "Thanks, Vin."

Nathan grabbed a handful of branches stacked near the fireplace and fed the dwindling flame. Chris had managed to find some deadfall protected by a huge tree, much preferable to wet branches. The old, crumbling chimney would have thrown the smoke from the wet wood back into the room, making it unbearable to remain indoors.

Vin moved over and checked one of the coats. Finding it dry he lifted it from the nail and tossed it to Ezra. "Coats are dry." He brief explanation had them all reaching for their jackets. Buck handed JD his coffee and gratefully slipped into his own coat, then retrieved the cup and returned the favor for the kid.

After a bit of moving and shifting, the men found places on the floor, leaning against a friend's back, warmed with each other's presence. Lying down, preparing to go to sleep, or just sitting around, they all huddled around the fireplace.

"Hell of a way to spend Christmas." Josiah's quiet voice settled into the room, drifting over their heads like falling leaves.

JD's sleepy mumble threaded through the silence. "What's the best Christmas you can remember, preacher?"

Josiah looked at JD before answering. "Well now, a memory came to mind the minute you asked, JD. I saved up all my pennies one year and bought my sister a doll, back when I was a young man still in my teens. We depended on the missionary barrels for our clothes and things and she never complained about the hand-me-downs. I saw her looking at Molly Tillman's doll one day, though, and I can remember thinking how much I wanted to take that look of longing out of her eyes."

"Did your dad let her keep it?"

Josiah's gaze shifted sideways to look at Buck, who'd asked the question. "He never knew. We kept it hid from him 'til the day she decided she was too old for dolls and gave it to another little girl."

"Speakin' of girls, I can remember one Christmas in particular --"

"Shut up, Buck."

"Why, JD! Don't you want to hear about my best Christmas?"

"We all heard that one before, Buck, some of us more than once." Nathan settled in closer to JD, sandwiching the young man between himself and Buck. The kid still had a fever and he needed to be kept warm. JD didn't seem to mind.

"Indeed. You should gather new information for your stories, Mr. Wilmington, before we all die of boredom."

"How 'bout you, Ezra?"

"Pardon?"

JD leaned his head back against the wall. He gazed at Ezra through hooded eyes, unable to resist the warm drowsiness pulling at him. "You got a particular Christmas you remember?"

"I do, Mr. Dunne." He rolled to one hip and pulled his favorite pack of cards from his pocket. "I remember receiving my first deck of cards from my mother."

"Why's that so special, Ezra?" Having recovered from his rebuff, Buck grinned across the hills of bodies at the gambler. "I would think you'd get a new deck every year, like the rest of us get badly knit scarves and mittens."

"The honor of receiving my first deck of cards from her was akin to a young man receiving the crown from his father the king." He smiled at them, the corners of his mouth turning down slightly to ruin the happy effect. "It was the only year my mother actually made an appearance at Christmas."

The quiet in the room felt uncomfortable. JD adjusted his position, switching his arms from left over right to right over left, then tucking in his fingers. "Vin? You remember a special Christmas?"

The tracker sat staring into the fire, his blue eyes translucent with yellow reflected flame. "They were all about the same, JD. None more special than the rest."

Forced into silence, JD gradually slumped against Buck's shoulder. The hypnotic crackling and dancing flames of the fire created a calm quiet in the small room. Without being aware of it he closed his eyes and slipped into sleep.

About an hour later Josiah’s roaming mind caught hold of his body’s discomfort and nudged him awake. He blinked slowly and lifted his head. A crazy quilt of bodies lay about near the fire, close enough to touch but somehow maintaining distance from each other. Coals glowed bright as cat’s eyes. Stray puffs of wind blew into the fire, and the embers’ colors alternated between hot red and ash gray. Looking up, he realized he could no longer see the spaces between the warped boards of the roof. Night had fallen despite Ezra’s belief that they’d been caught in some hellish limbo. Josiah smiled.

He sat up. Keeping his movements slow to avoid waking any of his friends, he leaned forward and added more wood to the fire. The muted light in the cabin brightened, illuminating the haphazard but familiar chaos of men, bedrolls, and coats.

The cabin wasn’t large, barely enough to accommodate the seven men. But with all of them piled in front of the crumbling fireplace, the area seemed bigger, and the walls farther away than before.

A small sound drew his attention back to the men. He watched as JD moved, burrowing down in a mound of jackets, his hands pulling the material closer together under his chin. He looked closer. His eyes widened as he realized that there were several coats piled on top of JD.

He glanced toward the fire and saw a coatless Chris. One arm reached for warmth near the fire while the other held a cup of coffee to his lips. Vin sat beside him, his heavy winter coat also missing. Vin's light colored buffalo-skin shirt contrasted sharply with Chris' black clothes. Flickering glow from the fire caught honey highlights in Vin's hair and drew the edge of Chris' dark hat in sharp detail. Josiah reflected on the contrast.

The preacher looked at Buck. The gunslinger’s long legs were bent in sharp angles from where he sat leaning against a wall behind the kid. Josiah followed Buck's long length up to find the man’s eyes open and staring. His jaw was hard with worry, his eyes agate specks flickering with tiny yellow flames from the fire. As if sensing Josiah’s scrutiny he glanced across at him.

"Cold--"

JD's tremulous voice startled Buck into moving. He reached over and touched the young man's face. Light from the fire reflected on stray beads of moisture dotting JD's forehead and cheeks. He opened his eyes.

"S'okay, JD."

"What's your favorite Christmas, Buck?" JD sounded as if he thought just a few minutes had passed instead of the hours he'd been asleep.

Surprised with JD's whispered question, Buck sat still for a moment. Time grabbed hold of him, pulling him through memories woven from his past. He followed the thread and found himself in front of another fire. A young woman smiled. Her face was aglow with happiness and her eyes shown with love. A boy sat on Buck's knee, stocking feet peeking out from under a long flannel nightshirt. Chris sat in a chair beside him, features caught in a grin.

Buck looked up. Chris watched him, eyes reflecting the same bittersweet memory. Warm breath touched his hand and he looked down to find JD asleep again, the cherry-pink of fever fading from his cheeks. Buck used a corner from one of the coats to carefully wipe away the moisture from the kid's face. When he looked up again Chris was facing the fire, all emotion gone.

JD moved again, obviously unsettled in his sleep. Buck reached for JD's hand where he clutched his jacket. Gently squeezing the kid's fingers, he discovered they were cold. He shifted to his knees. Grabbing handfuls of the bottommost coat, he pulled the kid closer to the fire. Flame light flickered muted against the back of the brown jackets, bathing the material in golden yellow.

He touched JD's cheek and was gratified to feel warmth, but not fever-hot flesh, against his palm. With a sigh, he settled back against the wall and leaned his shoulder on warm rocks.

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JD blinked and struggled to recall where he was. Memories gradually filled the gaps. He pushed against the bedroll-padded floor and slowly sat up. Funny how comfortable he'd slept through the night with nothing more than his own jacket to keep him warm. The small cabin must have been sturdier than it appeared.

Buck smiled at him. "'Bout time you woke up, sleepy head." He leaned over and slid his jacket from the top of the pile on JD.

Realizing the reason for his comfort, JD grinned sheepishly at Buck. He sought and held each friend's eyes as they walked over and removed their coats from the pile that had kept him warm all night.

"Thanks." Embarrassment heated his cheeks. He stood and gathered his own bedroll as the others donned their jackets. "What time is it?"

Ezra pulled his watch from his pocket and squinted at the face. "It is time to leave, Mr. Dunne. I for one am ready to get home and spend the day lounging about in my own bed. I don't think I'll ever feel warm again."

"Aw, it wasn't so bad," Nathan countered from where he knelt by the fire. The heady smell of coffee filled the cabin, bringing with it a warmth all its own. "How you feeling this morning, JD?"

"Just fine, Nate, thanks."

Buck reached up to squeeze the kid's shoulder, then patted his cheek, a teasing grin on his face. "No fever here, just peach fuzz."

"Hey!"

The bantering convinced Nathan JD's fever had broken. To assure himself he stood and felt the kid's forehead. As expected, JD used his elbow to push the healer away.

"I’m all right! Dang it, you two are worse than mother hens."

Vin moved for the door. "I'll go see to the horses." Chris and Josiah followed him out.

Ezra and Buck reached for the coffee Nathan offered. The liquid steamed their faces and warmth of the cups settled between their palms. Buck blew on the surface to cool it, then sipped. JD accepted a cup, too.

Within a few minutes, Chris, Josiah and Vin returned. Sunshine shown bright through the door before Vin shoved it closed. "Sky's clear." They accepted cups and greedily sipped the warm liquid. When they were finished Nathan took the cups, swished some water around to clean out the grounds, and packed them back into his bag.

As they moved toward the door, Buck glanced back to make sure nothing had been left.

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Morning sunshine shown painfully bright against the sparkling snow that covered the ground like a blanket of glittering diamonds. Steaming breath from the horses billowed around them. The crisp cold air affected the animals. Chris discreetly moved out of the way when his horse lifted his foreleg to paw at the ankle deep snow. He laughed when the animal butted against him, indignantly shaking his head as if to say, don't tell me you like this stuff!

Gunshot-like explosions announced cracking branches as ice-laden limbs gave way beneath the heavy weight. The broken limbs plummeted to the ground, frozen pine needles shattering with the impact.

"Merry Christmas, everyone." Josiah's announcement brought answering greetings as the seven mounted their horses and turned to find the road.

Buck grunted as he drew his coat closed against his chest. "That certainly wasn't the most pleasant Christmas I’ve ever had, but it’s not the worst."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah well…." He slouched forward comfortably in his saddle and draped one arm over the pommel. "The best Christmas was that time I was with Mary Anne and Doreen. We decided to celebrate Christmas that night and let me tell you --! Those two know how to make a man happy."

"We've all heard this one, Buck."

"Yeah, but I haven't told you the time I spent Christmas in New Orleans, JD."

"Oh yeah, you have."

"No, I haven't! --"