Unlike Sunnydale--usually--Cleveland often had a white Christmas and this year was no exception. As Buffy and Spike stood at the living room window watching the snow falling and the clouds blotting out the sun, behind them their guests were pulling on winter coats, scarves and gloves.
"You can go join them, you know," Spike murmured in Buffy's ear.
"I'd rather stay in here snuggling with you," she replied with a smile on her face.
"She might freeze her ass off," Dawn snarked, "and it's not really there to begin with."
"Hey!"
Dawn grinned and plunked a wooly hat on her head. "Come on, guys, there's enough snow to build a snowman."
"I think a meadow is needed for that," Xander teased. "Y'know, in the meadow etc."
"The front yard will have to do."
"You guys head out, I'll find the necessary accouterments," Willow said, digging in her bag for an extra scarf. "You have any coal?"
Spike arched an eyebrow at her.
"We don't have anything in the house that leads to flambeed vampire, but there are some fake lava rocks in the flower bed outside the front door."
"That'll do," the redhead smiled at her best friend, then followed the others outside.
"Look at the wee tots," Spike teased and Buffy smacked him lightly, then kissed him lovingly.
Outside, it was cold but not much below freezing, so the snow had that wet consistency that made perfect snowmen. Kennedy was the only one with any experience so she led the way, directing the rolling and forming until Willow dumped snow down her back making her squeal.
As the Slayer tackled the Witch, both laughing, Dawn rolled her eyes at Xander and helped him lift the second ball onto the first.
"It needs boobies."
Dawn smacked Xander's arm. "It's a snow man," she stressed.
He grinned at her. "Then it needs..."
A wet mittened hand clapped over his mouth and he smiled around it until it was removed. "Okay, the poor snowman's a eunuch."
Dawn patted it's frozen shoulder in sympathy, then giggled at Xander's mournful expression. "I don't think it minds."
"I could bring it to life and we could ask it," Willow suggested as a joke.
Kennedy's eyes widened in mock horror. "A living snowman on a hellmouth? We're talking rabid people eater here!"
Both women laughed and pulled themselves up out of the snow, brushing each other off in an not so platonic way. Meanwhile, Dawn and Xander rolled the final snowball and placed it on top of the other two.
"We need some sticks for arms."
Willow wrapped the scarf around its neck as Kennedy fetched some twigs that the heavy snow had broken from the tree in the middle of the front yard.
Inside Buffy realized they'd forgotten something and headed to the kitchen.
"Where did this tradition start anyway?" Spike asked, eying the carrot she emerged with.
"There's a song."
"I'm sure it started before the song."
"We can ask Giles when he calls later this afternoon. It's probably something demonic."
Spike shot her a grin as she headed to the door to toss the carrot to Kennedy. "It always is around here."
Buffy returned to snuggle into his arms and press a kiss to his mouth. "Certain demons are kind of cuddly."
"I'm not cuddly," he said in mock horror.
She flipped him a saucy grin. "Who said I was talking about you?"
Outside Dawn stuck the drooping carrot in the top snowball where a nose might possibly be and stood back to survey their creation.
"Yeah, let's not bring that to life," Xander suggested.
"Why does it have fangs?" Kennedy asked.
"Tradition."
Kennedy shot Dawn a look. "I'm pretty sure the song talks about a hat, not fangs."
"Hellmouth tradition. Maybe we should add some ketchup dripping down the chin."
"You are way too into this," Xander teased.
"Catching up for lost Key time." Bending, Dawn scooped up a handful of snow and patted it into a ball, then lobbed it at unsuspecting Xander.
"Hey! No fair hitting my blind side." He ducked behind the snowman and made his own snowball before lobbing it at the laughing brunette.
"All's fair in love and war." She got a mouthful of snow for that and everyone started to chase each other around the yard, flinging snowballs.
"Go on and join them, luv," Spike urged Buffy with a smile.
"You sure?"
"I'll make my wicked hot chocolate and have it waiting to thaw you all out."
"You are the best boyfriend ever," Buffy declared and kissed him again, then headed for the closet and her own winter gear.
"I'm also not stupid enough to freeze my bollocks off," he muttered, grinning as he walked to the kitchen.
End