"Okay, now, mon ami…LIFT!" Jean-Michel grinned at the straining boy as they manhandled the tree into the house. "Over there in the corner next to the piano, mon cher…Only a few more feet." Finally they reached the specified corner and settled the tree down with a sigh. "Ah, is she not lovely, mon ami?" Jean-Michel stepped back and looked over the tall pine tree in it’s tub, almost brushing the ceiling at 6 feet tall.

Christopher grinned, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. Taking a few steps back, the boy looked critically at the tree, and at its surroundings. "Hmmmm," he said, smiling broadly, "Not bad at all, I'd say. Wherever did you find such a beautiful tree?"

Jean-Michel grinned widely, "Ah…mon petit oiseau, I have connections. So now, on to the decorations, non?" He winked at Chris and headed into the hall closet and Chris could hear a few bangs and thuds. "Ah…here we go!" Jean-Michel came back into the living room with dust smeared across one cheek, triumphantly carrying a large box. "Come see, mon cher." Opening the box carefully, Jean-Michel started removing carefully packed wooden and handblown crystal ornaments. Tossing a bit of emerald green garland around his neck to keep it out of the way, Jean-Michel smiled at Chris, "Dig in, mon ami… the house will not decorate itself!"

Laughing softly, Christopher plunged into the box, rooting around a bit before coming up with what he was looking for. "Are you sure, Jean? Given this house and the peculiarities of its owner, I wouldn’t be surprised if it did!" With a triumphant look on his face, Christopher pulled out his prize: several strings of miniscule white lights, as well as that most essential of devices – the blinking adapter. "I’m just going to start with these, I think. They’ll give us something to build on, and they don’t even have to be worn to get them out of the way!" Chris leaned back, sitting down indian style as he began to unravel the lights, chuckling softly at the sight of his dusty and festooned partner in this endeavor.

Jean-Michel laughs, "Ah well, mon ami, as to the house decorating itself, I have plans that may allow that eventually, but for now we shall have to take care of her ourselves, non?" He flung the end of the garland, which at the moment looked exactly like a rather shiny boa, over his shoulder and dug further into the box. "Ah, here it is…the crowning achievement." When Chris looked over curiously Jean-Michel winked at him and set it aside, "Non, mon… not until the rest is done. Now, hurry up with those lights, mon petit oiseau, there is much to do!" Jean-Michel held out a sapphire blue paper thin crystal star, almost exactly matching his eyes, "For you must hang the first ornament, it IS your first holiday in this house, mon ami."

Christopher nodded, making a smiling half bow to JM before plugging in the lights. Holding the glowing strings in one hand, he contemplated the tree, trying to offset lack of practice with longer preparation time. Finally, he shrugged, and began winding the softly glimmering lights around the tree, starting from the bottom and working his way up. The tree was positively gorgeous – he wished he knew where Jean had managed to find it. His hands worked among the thickly needled branches, the scent of pine wafting to his nose as he cajoled each light into where he thought it looked best. The upper branches were a bit tricky, and he had to stand on his tiptoes to get the last few lights into place. Still, he thought, looking over his work critically, definitely not bad for a first timer. With a grin, he turned around to look for Jean-Michel, and was pleasantly surprised with how much the room had changed. "Wow, you HAVE been busy, haven’t you," he teased, looking around at his friend’s handiwork.

The house had undergone several changes while Chris had been fussing with the lights. Over the mantle hung a complex wreath of ivy and holly intertwined framed by candles. Elsewhere in the room candles in green and gold gleamed softly, their glow illuminating the large living room with a gentle gleaming light. A faint scent of cinnamon and other spices filled the air, though Chris could not for the life of him spot the source of the smells. Jean-Michel looked up with a soft smile from the ivy center piece he was placing on the large mahogany coffee table, "It is a start, I suppose, mon ami…just a start."