Chapter one

It was the day before Christmas Eve and Mike Nesmith unlocked the door and pushed it open. He hurled his suitcase in and stepped in the door. He was followed by band mates Peter Tork, Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones. They set their suitcases down and took a look around. The Monkees had been invited to play at a Christmas Eve party at a mountain resort in a place called Mount little rock, a small village in the mountains. The guy who was holding the party had offered The Monkees a cabin to stay in and told them they could stay for a Christmas vacation.

"Wow! This place is great" Micky exclaimed, turning in a circle a couple of times to get a good look at the place.

It was a typical log cabin. The first room you came in to was a spacious lounge with various pieces of furniture, it was warm and cozy with a roaring fire in the corner, which pleased Mike, it was snowing outside and he was glad to be inside and in the warm. The kitchen was through a door to the left and there were some stairs to the right that led to two bedrooms and a bathroom. They had shot fingers on the way up to see who would share with who in the bedrooms and it turned out to be the same as usual, Peter and Davy in one room, Mike and Micky in the other.

"I hope Mr. Schneider will be ok I still think we should've brought him with us, I don't like the idea of him spending the holidays alone" Peter said walking over and joining Mike by the fire, so he could warm his hands. 

"He'll be ok Pete, Mrs. Purdy is gonna look in on him, he didn't mind us leaving him" Davy told the bassist

"Yeah I know" Peter said "But I still don't like it"

"It's not decorated though," Micky said, as if Peter and Davy's conversation had never happened and he was still continuing with his previous statement. He was still turning in a circle taking in all the features of the room.

"We'll get a tree later Mick don't worry" Mike told him "We'll get this place decorated real nice, but for now let's go get somethin' to eat I'm starvin'" So the Monkees left the cabin and went in search of the dining hall. They soon found it and were able to get quite a lot of food for a relatively small amount of money, which was good because Micky had managed to shovel most of it before they sat down.

"Got any ideas for a set list yet Mike?" Davy asked when they had found an empty table and sat down.

"Not yet shotgun but I think we should learn a couple Christmas songs `Winter wonderland' `The Christmas song' `Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow' stuff like that" Mike suggested

"Yeah groovy idea" Micky said in between mouthfuls "But what's `The Christmas song'?" He asked

"You know, the one that goes `Chestnuts roastin' on an open fire, Jack Frost nippin' at your nose'" Mike told him, singing the lines to the song"

"Oh yeah I know" Micky replied shoving another mouthful of food into his mouth

"You have a very beautiful voice" Came a voice from behind Mike. He turned to see a young woman, with long black hair and brown eyes, smiling at him. She had turned her chair to face Mike as she addressed him

"Thank you ma'am" Mike replied, his cheeks flushed a little with embarrassment, he hadn't meant for any one else to hear him

"My name is Lucy, Lucy Montgomery," She said offering her hand

"Michael, Er I'm Michael Nesmith" Mike managed to stutter. Peter, Davy and Micky were quietly sniggering as they watched. They had never seen Mike stumble over his words before, especially over a girl.

"It's nice to meet you Michael, will you be staying long?" Lucy asked

"Well...I...Er...that is we..."

"We're here for the party, we're the band, the manager hired us to play" Peter said helpfully. Lucy's eyes lit up

"Of course you are! You're The Monkees, I don't know why I didn't recognize you before. I'm the one who convinced my father to hire you; he owns this resort. I saw you playing in a little club in Malibu beach while I was there visiting friends"

"Well I guess we owe you a big thank you," Micky told her and Lucy giggled

"You're welcome. It was no problem you guys are really good, I like your sound"

"Thank you again" Davy said, flashing one of his most charming smiles

"You're Davy right?" Lucy asked him. Everyone stared at Lucy in surprise

"That's right how did you know that!" Davy asked

"I've got a friend who lives in Malibu beach. She's got a big crush on you, I hear about you all the time. That's how come I saw you guys in the first place she took me to your gig" Lucy explained. Peter and Micky rolled their eyes. Davy had a big grin on his face.

"What's your friends name?" He asked

"Not now Davy" Micky warned. Mike wasn't paying attention to the other Monkees he was staring at Lucy.

"So I know Michael and now I know Davy, but what about you two?"

"What? None of your friends have got crushes on us!" Micky said playfully, pretending to be offended "I'm Micky and this goofy looking fella here is Peter"

"Hay!" Peter said glaring at Micky and Lucy laughed. She looked at her watch.

"Well it's nice to meet you all but I've gotta go my break is over but I look forward to seeing you play again and maybe we'll see each other around sometime" She said aiming her last comment at Mike. She got up "Well goodbye"

"Bye Lucy" Peter, Micky and Davy said. Mike managed a small squeak and cough and that was all. Lucy left casting a glance over her shoulder at Mike.

"Someone's got a crush," Micky said in a singsong voice, earning a giggle from Peter and Davy. Mike wasn't listening he was staring at the door Lucy had just exited through. Finally he turned back around and noticed the other three Monkees grinning at him.

"I've never seen you hung up on a girl before Michael, it's a little scary," Peter admitted

"What girl" Mike asked innocently. Micky rolled his eyes

"Queen Elizabeth" He replied sarcastically "Who do you think!" he added

"So! I like Lucy, What's wrong with that?" Mike asked, reaching over and picking up Micky's sandwich and taking a bite from it. Micky was too shocked to protest.

"He's actually admitting it," He told his other two band mates

"That's even more scary!" Peter added. Mike sighed quietly and was about to respond when Davy interrupted him

"Hay I've just thought of something" He exclaimed excitedly "If you guys fall in love you'll be able to say I love Lucy!" he told Mike, then proceeded to burst into a fit of giggles. Micky and Mike groaned. Peter watched Davy for a moment then turned to Micky

"I don't get it," He said

"It's the name of an old television series I love Lucy" Micky explained

"Oh" Peter replied. He thought about it for a moment then said, "I don't get it" Micky sighed

"Never mind, come on let's go. Come on Romeo, you too Chuckles" He said to Mike and Davy. After getting glares from Mike and Davy, Micky led the way back to the cabin.

When they arrived Mike and Micky began unloading the instruments from the car, Davy went to check himself in the nearest mirror and Peter called home to check on Mr. Schneider.

"This is going to be great huh Mike, spending Christmas somewhere other then the pad" Micky said as they unloaded his drums ready to take inside.

"Sure is shotgun, it's nice to get a change of scenery every once in a while. Plus, we have snow! Somethin' that would never happen in Malibu beach" Mike replied

"Yeah, I've never had a white Christmas before. Coming from California all my winters have been hot"

"After we've unpacked I'll go get permission to cut down a tree then we'll turn this into a proper Christmas" Mike told the drummer

"Groovy!" Micky exclaimed

So half an hour later Mike had gone to get permission to get a tree, Peter had decided to tag along with him so that if they were allowed a tree he could help Mike bring it back. Micky and Davy had stayed behind to set up the instruments.

"What do you think about Mike liking Lucy then?" Davy asked Micky as they assembled his drums.

"I think it's great. Lucy seems really nice. I just hope Mike does something about it though you know what he's like" Micky replied

"That's true, so maybe we could do something about it for him" Davy suggested

"I dunno Davy, this is Mike remember he has got a pretty good temper on him. I don't think he'd appreciated us messing around with his love life"

"Who say's he has to know? We could arrange it so it's just a happy coincidence for him" Davy said but Micky wasn't convinced

"I'm not sure," he said "And anyway Lucy may not even like him"

"Of course she does, didn't you see the way she was looking at him, and plus no girl can resist that Nesmith charm"

"If that's true then how come he hasn't had a serious girlfriend in a while, or any girlfriend to be exact"

"There was that actress," Davy pointed out

"What, that mad one from the answering service? She doesn't count they didn't actually date, Mike was just hung up on her" Micky said

"That's true, what was her name again?"

"I can't remember now, Ellen something I think"

"Ok what about April?" Davy asked

"There's no way you can count April! We were all in love with her and anyway we gave her to Peter in the end"

"Yeah I know, I still think we should of gone three out of five on that one. I still can't walk past soap without thinking about her. I wonder if things worked out between her and that musician? Maybe I should give her a call," Davy said, his eyes starting to glaze over.

"Davy, snap out of it. You have to forget about her, we all do. That thing was nothing but a big mess," Micky told him

"Yeah I know, anyway what were we talking about...oh yeah I remember now, can you imagine what Mike would be like if he had a girlfriend! Maybe he'd go a little easier on us"

"I don't think he's that bad, he's Papa Nez it's in his nature but I do like the idea of getting him a girlfriend for Christmas, I've been struggling with gift ideas for him"

"So shall we go talk to Lucy? See what she thought of Mike?"

"Not yet, Peter and Mike will be back with the tree soon. Let's leave it until tomorrow and then that way we can let Peter in on our plan"

"Ok sure" Davy replied.

Peter and Mike returned twenty minutes later pulling a tree behind them. Mike and Davy set it up in the lounge. Peter went in search of  decorations and was thrilled to find a box full in one of the bedroom closets. Micky disappeared for a while and arrived back half an hour later with a couple more boxfuls that the local villagers had been kind enough to give him.

"Wow there are some real nice people around here," Mike said as he rummaged through one of Micky's boxes "This stuff is great," He added

"I know, I only went out to find some spray snow to decorate the windows with and I got talking to a couple of people and told them how bear our cabin was and they gave me all this stuff! Isn't it neat!" Micky explained

"It sure is" Peter said happily, it was really beginning to feel like Christmas to him.

"With the box that Peter found plus this lot, it should be more than enough" Davy added excitedly, peering into another of Micky's boxes.

The Monkees spent the rest of the evening decorating the tree and lounge. Micky went to work on the windows with the snow spray he'd brought and by the time they'd finished the place looked great. Tinsel and ornaments hung from every brunch of the tree, Mike had carefully hung a garland around the fireplace, strips of tinsel had been wound around the banister of the stairs and along the edge of the ceiling, Micky had decorated the windows with the stencils he had gotten with the spray. They had managed to find two sets of fairy lights, one set hung on the tree the other set Micky had put around the window to compliment his stencils. Once they had finished they all collapsed on the sofa. Micky was grinning from ear to ear.

"That's a lot better," He announced, admiring his handy work on the window.

"Yeah it's a lot more Christmas-y now," Peter added

"It really is" Mike replied then said, "I'm really sorry fellas but I need to go to bed, I'm beat" He told them

"Me too" Peter told him. Davy and Micky decided to go too. They all got up and walked to the stairs. With one last look around they all went to bed.

Chapter 2

The next morning Micky woke up and was startled to find himself not in his own bed, not even in his own room!

"Where am I!" He said starting to panic, then he remembered, "Oh yeah I know now" He said and breathed a sigh of relief. He got up and walked downstairs. Peter and Davy were in the kitchen eating breakfast.

"Morning Mick, sleep well?" Peter asked, pushing a bowl of cereal in Micky's direction

"Yeah I did thanks Pete, panicked a bit this morning when I forgot where I was but I had a good nights rest" He told the bassist "Where's Mike?" He added and started to pour some orange juice over his cereal.

Peter stared at him, after having lived with Micky for two years he still wasn't used to seeing him put orange juice on his corn flakes, he watching in fascination as Micky shoved a spoonful into his mouth and started munching happily. Davy shrugged

"Dunno, he just said he was going out, he didn't tell us where" he said. Micky looked at him.

"To see Lucy?" He asked gulping down some cereal

"Could be" Davy replied

"We saw her yesterday" Peter told them

"We know Pete, Davy and I were there too remember" Micky said. Peter shook his head

"No I mean Mike and I saw her when we went to get permission to cut down the tree. Turns out Lucy was the person we needed to see, she's assistant manager here and she's very smart," He explained

"Figures" Davy said, "Mike couldn't just fall for any old chick, he had to fall for some high powered intelligent business chick"

"Do you think this will interfere with our plans?" Micky asked Davy.

"What plans?" Peter asked. So Davy and Micky explained to Peter what they had decided

"What do you think?" Micky asked. He and Davy were grinning at Peter expectantly waiting for him to tell them what a brilliant idea it was but Peter just stared at them.

"You're gonna give Lucy to Mike for Christmas?" He said finally. Davy nodded

"Uh-huh, what do you think?" He replied

"That's not very fair on Lucy" Peter told them Micky and Davy stared back at him "Well it's not" He added quietly. Davy looked at Micky

"He's right you know, it's not fair on Lucy" He said and Micky sighed and nodded

"Yeah I guess you're right" He said and stood up

"Where you off to babe?" Davy asked

"Into town, I need to find a gift for Mike" Micky told him and started to head for the door.

"Er Mick?" Davy called. The drummer turned around

"Yeah?"

"You maybe wanna get dressed first?" Davy told him and pointed at his clothes. Micky looked down and realized he was still wearing his blue and white striped pajamas.

"Oh yeah maybe that would be a good idea" He replied and smiled sheepishly then disappeared upstairs, leaving Davy and Peter sniggering into their breakfast.

Later that morning Davy was sitting in the living room and Mike peeked in the front door

"Hay Davy, is Peter around?" Mike asked

"Yeah he's upstairs, why?"

"Quick! Help me hide these," He said, he disappeared for a couple of seconds then heaved in a huge gray sack

"What's that?" Davy asked, standing up and walking over to Mike.

"They're the gifts our families sent up for Christmas. There's another one in the Monkeemobile, we need to find some place to hide them before Peter sees them" Mike explained

"He's 22 years old Mike, don't you think it's about time someone told him the truth about Father Christmas?"

"Come on Davy, that would crush him. It's not harming anyone by him not knowing the truth, besides, do you really wanna do that to him?" Mike told him and Davy sighed

"No of course not, I'll go get the other sack" He replied and went outside. He returned a couple of seconds later, dragging the sack behind him.

"Now where can we put these? It has to be some place Peter would never go" Mike thought out loud

"Somewhere in yours and Micky's room perhaps?" Davy suggested

"Yeah that's a good idea we'll hid them in the closet, they've got locks on too so we can lock the door as an extra precaution" Mike told him "You go distract Peter so I can get these upstairs without him coming out and seeing"

"How am I supposed to distract him?"

"I dunno, improvise" Mike said. So Davy walked upstairs and opened the door to the room he shared with Peter. Peter was sitting on the bed and when he heard the door open he frantically tried to hide something, but when he saw it was Davy he sighed with relief

"It's only you, I thought you were Mike," He said

"Sorry to disappoint you" Davy replied coming over and sitting on the bed

"No you didn't it's just I'm wrapping Mike's present and I didn't want him to see"
 
"Oh, so what did you get him?"

"Just a guitar strap for his 12 string, I really couldn't afford anything else" Peter said, sounding a little disappointed.

"No that's great Pete, I bet he'll love it"

"You sure you'll be able to get it to Santa on time?"

"Yeah I'm sure, I promised you yesterday didn't I. It'll be no problem Mike will find it under the tree tomorrow morning, you have my word" Davy told him and Peter grinned

"Thank you David," He said

"You're welcome, you wanna hang out in here for a while, just the two of us?" Davy asked

"Yeah I'd like that" Peter replied. After about fifteen minutes or so, Mike opened the door and walked in.

"Hi fellas what you up to?" He asked and sneaked a thumbs up to Davy which Davy acknowledged with a slight nod

"Just hanging out" Peter replied "Where did you run off to this morning?"

"Just wanted to drive around, take a look at the place, it's real pretty " Mike told them, coming over and sitting on the bed

"Did you see Lucy?" Davy asked. Mike stared at him.

"Real subtle Dave" He said, "Yes I saw Lucy"

"And?" Peter prompted, "What happened?" He added when Mike just looked at him

"Nothing happened, we just talked that's all" Mike said

"About what?" Davy asked, probing for more information

"Normal stuff, the weather, the party, Christmas, that kinda thing"

"You didn't tell her how you felt about her then" Davy said

"There's no point, we couldn't have a relationship she lives a million miles away. It wouldn't be logical"

"Yeah you're right, Spock!" Davy said, his tone dripping with sarcasm, which earned him a glare from Mike "It's not like you'd be happy or anything and the fact that this girl could really like you. Come on Mike you have to at least give it a try, you haven't had a girlfriend in like. forever!"

"Yeah forget logic, think about Lucy" Peter added.

Mike looked at them, as though he was seriously considering it but then he shook his head.  "Na it's not worth it, I'm way too busy" He told them then got up and left.

"Oh sometimes he infuriates me!" Peter growled "He's always taking care of other people, when's he gonna start taking care of himself!" he said, getting up and pacing the room.

"See, that idea about getting him Lucy for Christmas doesn't seem so bad now does it!" Davy said. Peter didn't answer he just glared at him "Sorry" Davy added, hanging his head.

"I'm gonna go call Mr. Schneider" Peter said and left the room.

When Micky returned the four Monkees set about learning some Christmas songs to add to their set list for the party that evening. Lucy had given Mike some sheet music for a couple of songs but he was worried they had left it too late and would not learn them in time but he decided that they at least had to try.

Each Monkee went into a different room so they could learn their individual pieces separately at first then try putting them together and also try and learn the words. Mike had decided to sing `The Christmas Song' and Micky remarked that he only wanted to sing that one to impress Lucy because he knew she liked the way he sang it. Micky wanted to sing `Winter Wonderland' Davy chose `Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow' and Peter would attempt `Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer'. When the others asked why he had chosen that one he remained very cryptic and just replied, "You'll see".

So The Monkees did their best to learn their parts and spent the afternoon and early evening putting it all together. At dinner Mike put together a set list, then after dinner they went back to practicing the Christmas music. They surprised themselves by managing to pull it off but Micky soon began to get bored and announced that he was confident enough with his drum parts and that he was just going to get some fresh air for a few minutes. Mike didn't even get chance to protest, the drummer had already bolted out the door before the Texan could even open his mouth.

Chapter 3

Micky came bounding back into the cabin half an hour later and screeched to a halt at the sight of Peter standing in the middle of the floor.

"Pete, what on earth are you wearing?" He asked

"You like it Mick? It's my costume for the party" Peter told him.

The Christmas Eve party at Mount Little Rock was a costume party and everyone who was attending had to dress up, including the band, something that didn't impress Mike one little bit. Peter was wearing a brown felt all in one suit, complete with hood, ears, antlers and a  red flashing nose. Micky looked him up and down and walked around him a couple of times

"What are you meant to be?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Peter frowned.

"I'm Rudolf," He explained. Micky stared at him.

"Oh I see it now, groovy idea babe, now I know why you wanted to sing `Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer'" Micky said and Peter nodded proudly.

"Where's Mike and Davy?" He asked

"Mike's still putting on his costume and Davy's having trouble with his tights" Peter told him

"Tights!" Micky repeated, raising his eyebrow again

"I got a ladder in one" Davy said as he came down the stairs "But it's ok, you can't see it" He added. Micky had to suppress his laughter when Davy appeared on the stairs. He was wearing a green suit that looked about two sizes too small, his trousers came just below the knee. He was wearing red and white and striped tights and green shoes that curled up at the toes and a small bell hung from the point.

"You better go get changed Mick, we'll be leaving soon" Peter told him

"I know I won't be long" The drummer said and bounded upstairs. Davy looked at Peter

"What are you meant to be?" He asked. Peter sighed

"I'm Rudolf!" He said with a frustrated growl.

"Oh yeah, that's why you wanted to sing `Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer'" Davy observed.

Ten minutes later Micky appeared at the top of the stairs. He was wearing a zoot suit and blond wig. He slid down the banister and landed neatly at the bottom, then looked at Peter and Davy expectantly while they conferred then Davy said

"Not bad, the descent was good but the landing was a little shaky"

"You almost toppled" Peter added

"So we'll give you a 7.5 for that one" Davy told him

"Aw come on! it was at least an 8" Micky pouted. Peter and Davy conferred again and Peter nodded

"Ok We'll give you an 8" Davy told him.

"Excellent, so what do you think of my costume?" Micky asked. Davy looked him up and down

"Who are you?" He asked. Micky slouched over to him

"You're a Yankee Doodle Dandy, and you're the rat who killed my brudder" He said, poking Davy on the shoulder with every word he said. Davy stared at him blankly

"So. who are you?" He repeated

"James Cagney!" Micky replied, like it was the most obvious thing in the world

"Oh right yeah of course" Davy said he turned to Peter and shrugged

"It's not very Christmas-y Mick" Peter said

"I know but I like to be different" Micky said with a grin.

"Yeah ok, so is Mike ready yet?" Peter asked him

"Dunno, he was hiding in the closet while I was up there, I guess he wasn't ready for me to see his costume yet" Micky told him, dropping into the nearest chair and adjusting his wig that was refusing to stay on top of his unruly mop of curls <Maybe I should've worn a hat> He thought to himself.

It was another five minutes before Mike appeared at the top of the stairs. He was wearing a black shirt, jeans, cowboy boots and of course, his usual green wool hat on his head.

"Ok guys let's go," He said as he began descending the stairs

"Hay you're not in costume!" Peter protested

"Yes I am, I'm going as a musician," Mike said as he reached the bottom of the stairs

"But you're a musician all the time Mike, the point of a costume party is to go as someone youre not" Micky pointed out

"Ok fine, then I'm a musician with a regular pay check" He replied deadpan "Now can we get going?"

"Not yet" Davy replied walking over and taking the wool hat from Mike's head and placing it on his own

"What are you doing?" Mike asked

"I need a hat to complete my elf costume" Davy told him "Peter used mine to drain the spaghetti we had for dinner" He explained

"So that's why there were green threads in my meatballs!" Mike said. Peter smiled guiltily

"Sorry Mike" He said

"That's ok Pete, come on we better go" Mike said. So they left.

They arrived at the ballroom and it was while they were setting up their instruments that Peter discovered a small flaw in his costume. He had sown brown mittens to the sleeves of his suit to make his hands look like paws but he found it hard to pluck the strings on his bass and hit the individual keys on his keyboard. When he presented this problem to Mike, Mike sent Davy in search of scissors to cut the stitching. When Davy didn't return after fifteen minutes Mike had to go in search of him. He soon found him by the entrance of the storeroom talking to a young woman.

"Davy" Mike called

"You eyes are like cup cakes floating in a sea of sour cream," Davy told the girl

"Davy!" Mike tried again

"Your lips are as red and full as the juiciest cherry," Davy told the girl

"DAVID!" Mike yelled this time. Davy jumped round in shock to find Mike glaring at him

"Jeez Mike you didn't have yell" He said defensively "This is Ginny by the way"

"Nice to meet you Ginny" Mike said, "Did you find any scissors Davy?" He asked

"Yeah here they are" Davy said he walked over to Mike, gave him the scissors and turned to go back over to Ginny but Mike grabbed his arm

"Say goodbye to the nice young lady Davy we've got a job to do" Mike told him

"Bye Luv" Davy called as he disappeared through the door. They returned to the ballroom and Mike relieved Peter of his mittens and Peter was able to play his instruments again

The Party was soon in full swing and Mike found himself scanning the crowd for any signs of Lucy and was disappointed when he couldn't see her

"Don't worry Mike, she'll be here" Peter told him, as if reading his thoughts and Mike gave a small smile. After they had played for a while Mike announced they would be taking a short break, and then he jumped off stage to get a drink. He was really hoping Lucy would show up for their next set because that was when they'd be doing their Christmas medley and he really wanted her to hear him sing it. Micky bounced over to him

"You having a good time Mike?" He asked as he started loading a plate with food from the buffet

"Yeah I suppose" He said. He watched Micky for a second then said, "Should you be eating that? You've only just had your dinner"  Mike told him

"I know but I'm hungry" Micky replied with a grin

"You're always hungry" Mike countered, unable to keep a smile from his own lips "Where do you put it all?" He asked. Micky shrugged

"Dunno, must have hollow legs I suppose," He said

"Well don't eat too much, I don't want you to get so full that you won't be able to sing" Mike ordered

"Na don't worry it'll take a lot more then this to fill me up" Micky said, puffing out his chest smugly. Mike let out a small laugh and Micky bounced off again.

During their break, Peter was dancing away in the middle of the dance floor, Davy had disappeared completely and Micky sat happily near the buffet table talking to various people and checking out girls that walked past him. Mike was sitting quietly in the corner, he never felt comfortable at parties, except when he was on stage performing.

He almost dreaded the time The Monkees took a break because he was never quite sure what to do with himself. He wasn't going to dance that was for certain; he hated dancing. He didn't even want to try and talk to people because the music was so loud, the owner of the resort had hired a jukebox as well as The Monkees for the party so that when the Monkees took a break there would still be music, and Mike didn't fancy spending the night yelling in people's ears so he sat patiently watching the clock, willing it to make half an hour pass like no time at all. Finally he got so impatient at just sitting and watching, he decided to take a walk. When he got outside he instantly regretted his decision because it was freezing but he went to the Monkeemobile and found his jacket sitting on the back seat so he slipped it on and sat on a bench, staring at the clear night sky.

"It's beautiful isn't it" Came a voice that jerked Mike from his thoughts. He looked over at the door and saw Lucy leaning against the door frame looking up at the stars

"It is" He replied looking back up again "I've never seen it so clear and bright before" He admitted

"That's the magic of Christmas at Mount Little Rock" Lucy said as she walked over to him "May I join you?" She asked

"Of course, please do" He said and slid over to make room for her. She sat down next to him and wrapped her arms around herself, it was obvious she was cold "Here take this" Mike said, taking off his jacket and slipping it around Lucy's shoulders

"Thank you Michael" She said, slipping her arms through the sleeves

"Please, call me Mike" He told her. Lucy looked at him then nodded and smiled

"Mike" She repeated. They sat in silence for a while, neither one of  them knowing what to say next. "You're not in costume," Lucy said finally

"You either" Mike observed

"That's the burden of being assistant manager, I have to stay looking important and approachable, what's your excuse?"

"I didn't want to look dumb" Mike told her bluntly and Lucy laughed

"Ah yes, that's a good excuse too" She replied

"Would you like to have dinner with me sometime?" Mike asked. Lucy looked at him

"Are you asking me out on a date?" She asked

"Yeah, I am" He replied. Lucy smiled

"I would love to, thank you Mike," She answered and Mike grinned

"Excellent! How about tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow's Christmas day"

"Oh yeah of course sorry"

"How about the day after that?"  Lucy suggested

"Yeah that's great, I can meet you in the dining room at seven?"

"Yep that's good, I'll see you then" She told him. She kissed him on the cheek, gave him back his jacket and went back inside. Mike grinned again, this vacation was starting to turn out quite nicely for him. He put his jacket back in the Monkeemobile and went inside.

The rest of the party got a lot better for him. Everyone loved Peter's rendition of `Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer'. Sometime during the break Micky had gotten tired of adjusting his wig and discarded it completely. At around half past midnight everyone left the party.

The Monkees packed up their instruments and headed back to their cabin. Peter had a minor panic when he couldn't find his stocking, but Micky soon found it, still packed in Peter's suitcase. So with the crisis over they all went to bed. Mike's dreams that night were filled with Lucy and their date in the next couple of days, where as Micky's dreams were filled with the fat juicy turkey he would be feasting on tomorrow evening.

Chapter 4

Davy was snoring peacefully in his bed when he was suddenly shaken from his dreams

"Davy? Are you awake?" Peter whispered in his ear, Davy grunted and turned over but Peter shook him again "Davy, can we go downstairs yet?" He asked. Davy unwillingly opened his eyes and tried to focus on the clock

"What time is it?" He asked when his sleep filled eyes refused to co-operate

"Six fifty five AM" Peter told him. Davy sighed

"You know the rules Pete, you can't go yet" Davy told him turning back over and rubbing his eyes with his fists.

"I know, I have to wait `til seven AM," Peter said rather disappointedly "But it's only five more minutes please Davy, please!" Peter begged

"No Peter not yet and if you keep on I'll make you wait `til half seven" Davy told him closing his eyes again and Peter stuck his tongue out at him "I saw that!" Davy said. Peter stared at him, wondering how Davy could've seen when he had his eyes closed.

Peter decided to pass the time by looking out the window. It had snowed again that night and the ground was covered in a fresh white blanket. Peter was dying to get out there and build a snowman and maybe make some snow angels. He hated waiting, this was the only day of the year he got impatient. He couldn't open the presents in his stocking because he'd already done that an hour and a half ago. He was usually a morning person anyway and if they were at home and it was a normal day he'd already be up by now preparing breakfast, but today was different. It was Christmas day and Mike had set firm rules for this day. Peter was not allowed out of his room until seven AM, if he came out any earlier Mike would not let him open any presents until the evening. So there Peter sat, by the window staring out as the sun appeared over the horizon and begun washing everything with daylight. He thought about Mr. Schneider and hoped he was ok, he thought about Mr. Babbitt and realized that he didn't know if Mr. Babbitt had someone to share the holidays with, he even realized that he didn't even know Mr. Babbitt's first name "I wonder if he's even got a first name" he mused "Maybe everyone has always just called him Mr. Babbitt". He looked at the clock again that now read six fifty nine and watched it intensely and held his breath. Finally, almost in slow motion, the numbers flicked and changed to seven AM and Peter jumped up from his seat

"Davy look, It says seven see" Peter said picking up the clock and waving it in front of Davy's face. Davy grunted again and didn't even try and open his eyes this time

"Ok you can go" The Englishman said

"Yippee!" Peter yelled and flung open the bedroom and rushed out of it. Davy sighed and tried to get up but he felt much to sleepy so decided to stay in bed a little while longer. Peter rushed downstairs and was greeted by the sight of Mike and Micky standing in front of  the tree

"Merry Christmas!" they both yelled then stepped aside to reveal a pile of presents under the tree. Peter gasped and ran over to them

"Wow! There's so many!" He said in utter delight

"They're yours over there," Mike told him pointing, he had a big grin on his face. One of Mike's most favourite things about Christmas was seeing the complete joy on Peter's face in the morning.

"Well go on then" Micky told Peter, he was bouncing up and down with excitement, he could hardly wait for Peter to get started.

Davy came down stairs a few moments later. He watched Peter, who was sitting by the tree, happily ripping paper off anything with his name on. Then he walked over to Mike and Micky, who were sitting on the sofa watching the bassist.

"Next year one of you guys can share with him" Davy said jabbing a thumb in Peter's direction "The way he wakes you up in the morning gets more violent every year!"

"Ok" Micky agreed "One of us will share with him next year, but you'll have to be the one of us getting up in the middle of the night to lay out the presents" He added quietly so Peter wouldn't hear. Davy thought about that.

"Yeah good point, I'll share with him still" He said and Mike rolled his eyes.

"Hay aren't you guys gonna open your presents?" Peter called to them.

When all the presents had been open, Mike grabbed a black sack and began throwing all the discarded wrapping paper into it, wondering whether he should tell his friends about his date with Lucy tomorrow evening. He looked around at each of them. Peter was still sitting by the tree taking time to look at each of his presents, absolutely fascinated by each one. Davy was on the sofa, his head resting in his hand with his eyes closed, trying hard to just doze and not fall asleep completely. Micky, ever the tinkerer, was sitting in a pile of presents pulling things apart then seeing how they fit back together again. Mike smiled as he watched them and decided not to say anything to them just yet, he didn't like keeping secrets from them but this was too much of a doozy to tell them straight away.

They had a small lunch but nothing fancy because a full Christmas dinner with all the trimmings was being provided in the dining room that evening.

"Guys?" Peter said, once they had finished eating and were back in the lounge watching television "I just wanna say thanks" He said

"For what big Peter?" Micky asked, not taking his eyes from the television

"For everything I guess, I know it's hard for us to be away from our families on the holidays, especially for you Davy, but if we can't be home then there's no place I'd rather be right now then here with you guys. You are my family and I'm thankful for all the things we share together," He told them. Micky, Mike and Davy had turned to look at him

"That's very kind of you to say Peter and I feel the same way" Davy told him "Being with you guys makes being so far from home a lot easier to handle because the pad at Malibu beach is my home now and you guys are the greatest friends I could ever hope for" He added. Micky sniffed

"I promised myself I wasn't gonna cry!" Micky said wiping away a pretend tear "No, but seriously, ditto, I feel the same way. I love you guys like brothers and I'm having such a great time, I couldn't imagine having all these adventures with anyone else" He told them.

Mike had stayed quiet throughout, he wasn't very good at expressing his feelings, only through his song writing, but as Micky finished his speech he knew he had to say something because he did love those three guys like brothers and was so grateful he could spend Christmas with them. Peter could see the panicked look on Mike's face and he couldn't help but giggle a little

"It's alright Michael you don't have to say anything, we know" The bassist told him

"No it's ok Pete I do have somethin' I wanted to say. I know sometimes I'm kinda hard on you all and I do lose my temper quite a lot of the time."

"No! You don't do you! I never noticed!" Micky said pretending to be shocked. Mike smiled and threw a pillow at him.

"Anyway, it's only because I care about you all so much, so yeah sometimes Micky's practical jokes irritate me and I wanna kill him" at that point the pillow came sailing back over to Mike "Hay! I said sometimes!" Mike protested with a smile "But I've got a good feeling about us and I know if we keep at this thing we can be huge, it's gonna be one hell of a journey and I couldn't be happier about the people I'm gonna have along with me for the ride. I love you guys too and I hope you memorize that because it's the last time you'll ever hear me say it, well out loud anyway!" Mike added with a grin.

Later that evening Micky was standing by the door practically vibrating with excitement and anticipation. This was his favourite part about Christmas, all the great food he got to eat. He hoped it would be as good as his mum's food, he was yet to find anyone who could prepare a turkey quite like his mother.

"Come on guys" He yelled "We're gonna be late" The dinner was formal so all The Monkees were dressed in suits and ties. Mike came down the stairs and after much deliberation he decided not to wear his hat.

"Calm down Micky we've got plenty of time" The Texan said as he fastened his watch then walked over to the coffee table and picked up the keys to the cabin. They had decided to walk to the dining room rather then take the Monkeemobile "Put your coat on you'll freeze" Mike ordered putting on his own jacket, that still had a faint scent of Lucy's perfume from when she had worn it the previous evening.

Micky put his on jacket then jogged over to the stairs "Peter, Davy get a move on!" He yelled, trying his best to sound like Mike. Mike rolled his eyes

"Yeah nice try Mick" Davy said as he appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Where's Peter?" Micky asked

"Looking for his tie" Davy replied as he reached the bottom of the stairs and grabbed his jacket. Micky huffed loudly

"Check your suitcase Pete!" He yelled up the stairs

"Ah got it, Thanks Mick!" Peter yelled back. Micky grabbed Peter's coat and when Peter came down the stairs, shoved it at him.

"Ok great let's go" Micky announced and ran out the door. The other three looked at each other, shrugged then headed out. 

Chapter 5

As the four Monkees headed to the dining room, Micky trotted a little ahead of the other three. He was already daydreaming of all the wonderful things he was going to eat. Peter, Mike and Davy walked quietly, each of them enjoying the walk and surroundings, not wanting to spoil it with unnecessary small talk. Mike felt a little excited about seeing Lucy, he knew she would be there because she had told him when they bumped in to each other the previous morning.

When the three of them arrived at the hall Micky was already there, inspecting the line of food on the table, Davy saw someone he knew and jogged over to greet them. Therefore, Peter and Mike went to find where they'd be sitting. Mike's heart did somersaults when Peter pointed out that they were on the same table as Lucy.

"Maybe it was intentional" Peter suggested "I mean she is assistant manager so maybe she got a choice of where to sit" He told the Texan.

Mike couldn't answer, he wanted to but the words got stuck somewhere between his larynx and his lips so he changed the subject.

"I'm gonna go drag Micky away from the food before he drools over it all" He said and ran off before another word could be said. Peter looked around wondering what he should do. He didn't have to wonder very long because Davy soon came jogging back over.

"Thought you'd like some company" He said and Peter smiled

"Thanks Davy" He said, "Have you seen who's on our table?" He added, pointing at Lucy's name on the place card

"This is going to be very interesting" Davy replied with a sly grin, he was looking forward to this a lot more now.

Mike soon returned dragging Micky behind him and the four Monkees sat down and talked with other people on his table. Lucy arrived just before dinner was served. She was wearing a simple long black evening dress with black sandals. Her hair, which was usually tied back in a ponytail, hung loose around her shoulders. She wandered around various tables greeting people and making small talk. Micky saw her first and nudged Mike who turned and looked at him and he pointed. Mike turned his head in the direction Micky was pointing and his mouth dropped to the floor. A few moments later Lucy came over.

"Hi guys," She said to the Monkees as she sat down.

"Hi Lucy, you look gorgeous" Micky told her

"Thank you Micky" She replied "Hello Mike" She said looking at the Texan, whose words had got stuck again and could only managed a small squeak 

"I'll translate" Davy told her "Mike just said `My goodness I have never seen such a vision of beauty in all my life'" He said, which caused both Mike and Lucy to blush a brilliant shade of red.

"Thank you Michael" Lucy replied. Mike stared at the table, not daring to look her in the eye just yet "Did you have a good Christmas morning Peter?" She asked. Mike had explained to her what Christmas morning meant to Peter when they had met yesterday.

"Yes I did thank you Lucy, I had a wonderful morning"

"Did Santa bring you everything you asked for?"

"Oh yes and a lot more, and you?"

"Yes, a lot more" She replied, glancing sideways at Mike.

"Ooh, ooh look, the food is coming!" Micky exclaimed excitedly jabbing Davy on the arm with one hand and pointing with the other. Lucy laughed a little. She already knew so much about these four people and she was beginning to think of them as friends, although when it came to Mike she was hoping for a lot more then friendship with him.

The food arrived and Micky started on his straight away, Davy was enjoying watching Mike squirm, Peter was looking around and grinning at all the decorations and enjoying his food and Mike was feeling really stupid. He had no trouble talking to Lucy when it was just the two of them but when the other three Monkees were around he became a nervous wreck in front of her. Lucy was just as baffled by his behaviour and wondered if she had said or done anything to upset him.

She spent a lot of the night talking to Micky, Peter and Davy getting to know them better, while Mike tended to look everywhere except at her. At one point she got so frustrated that she excused herself and went to the bathroom. Davy watched her go then turned to Mike

"Uh-oh you've really done it now!" He said to him

"What did I do? I haven't done anything!" Mike replied in his defense

"Exactly!" Was the only reply he got from Davy. Mike got up from the table and went and hovered by the ladies bathrooms waiting for Lucy to come out. He got a few funny looks from women that were going in and out but finally Lucy emerged and was a little surprised to see him.

"Mike! What are you doing?" She asked

"Waiting for you" He told her "I'm sorry if I've upset you this evening, I didn't mean to it's just a little hard for me when those three are around. I feel as though they're analyzing everything I say and do when it comes to you and it makes me nervous" He admitted, the
words filtering from his mouth before he had chance to think about what he was saying.

"It's ok I understand that and I'm sorry too I guess I was just being a little over sensitive, but I'll except your apology if you'll except mine" She told him

"Of course I do"

"I'm glad, so are you still ok for tomorrow?"

"Yes I am I'm really looking forward to it"

"Me too" Lucy said and smiled. They walked back to the table, hand in hand. Davy noticed that and almost choked on a piece of turkey. Lucy swapped seats with another lady so she could sit next to Mike and the rest of the evening went a lot smoother for the both of them. Mike was saddened when the evening came to an end. He was having a really good time. He much preferred this kind of party to attend and had even danced at one point, because he didn't mind this kind of dancing. The music was soft and simple the kind you could just sway to with a partner and when Lucy had asked him to dance he didn't need much persuasion at all. He walked with her to the dance floor and pulled her close and the two of them swayed together to the music

"Uh-oh!" Micky announced as he watched them

"What?" Peter and Davy asked in unison

"Papa Nez is in love" He replied with a big goofy grin on his face. Peter smiled too

"Good" He said, turning his attention back to Mike and Lucy.

When Mike got home he went straight to bed. Tomorrow couldn't come quick enough for his liking. He couldn't wait to see Lucy again, even though he had only left her less then half an hour ago. He was finding it hard to sleep because he was so excited <"That's a first"> he sniggered mentally <Mike Nesmith losing sleep over a girl! You must really like this woman> he told himself

"I do" He replied to himself out loud.

"Huh what?" Micky asked. The drummer had just entered the room as Mike uttered those words

"Nothing Mick, don't worry about it, go to bed. I was just talking to myself"

"Ok, although u must tell you I'm a little worried"

"About what?"

"You, not only do you dance, with a girl, in front of other people" He said, ticking them off on his fingers "but now you're talking to yourself"

"Yeah funny" Mike replied dryly "Just go to bed and be quiet will ya, I'm tryin' to sleep here," he added, hoping Micky would hear the teasing tone of his voice and evidently he did.

"Sorry daddy" Micky replied and Mike smiled slightly.

Now he knew what it was like to be Peter on Christmas Eve, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't sleep. The anticipation was too much for him and if he couldn't even make it through the night then he dreaded to think how he's make it through the day. The sooner it was the next evening, the better in his book.

Chapter 6