At exactly one o'clock, a knock sounded on Kara's apartment door.

"That's Mon-El." Kara said, her voice breathy in anticipation. "Mom, please will you let him in." She nodded to the bowl that she was whisking. "If I stop now dessert will be a flop."

Nodding, Eliza walked over and opened the door to reveal Mon-El standing there with a bouquet of flowers and bagful armful of presents.

"Jolly Christmas." He said, stooping down to give Eliza a one armed hug. "It's good to see you again."

"Merry Christmas to you too." Eliza said, smiling. "I am so glad that you're joining us for Christmas day, Mon-El."

Mon-El grinned as he stepped into Kara's apartment and looked around. "I'm spending the day with four beautiful women. This truly is a gift."

Kara blushed brightly at his compliment, while her mother laughed softly. Alex and Maggie shared a look and rolled their eyes.

"I'm not late, am I?" He asked, handing Eliza the bouquet of red and white Christmas roses. He glanced over at the kitchen; at Kara. "Or am I too early? I can come back in a while if you want." He took a step back towards the door.

"No. This is the perfect time." Eliza said, halting him mid-stride. "Kara is just finishing up. You can go and help her, if you want."

"Here, let me take those from you." Alex offered, gesturing towards the gifts he carried. "We'll open them up in a bit."

"Oh, yeah. Thanks." He said, handing over the gifts, already distracted by the prospect of stealing a taste of whatever Kara was cooking. Her apartment smelt delightful, even though he couldn't identify half of the odours wafting through the place. His stomach rumbled at the prospect of tucking into the meal Kara was preparing. He had followed Kara's advice and had a small breakfast in anticipation of the feasting that would happen later.

"Happy Christmas, Kara." He said, grinning broadly.

"Merry Christmas, Mon-El." Kara said, putting down the bowl and giving him a quick hug.

He stared at her intently for a moment. He gestured at his cheek. "Um, I don't know if you know it, but you have something…"

"Oh." Kara swiped the back of her hand across her face. "Did I get it?"

He shook his head. "You made it worse actually."

Kara looked down at her cocoa powder-covered hands. "I'm a bit of a messy cook." She admitted, looking around for the damp cloth she had been using earlier.

"A bit?" Alex said dryly. She and Maggie were seated on Kara's couch, watching the two aliens closely. "That's a bit of an understatement."

Kara shot her look that promised sisterly revenge later, before nudging aside the dishes that were spread across the counter. "There should be a cloth here somewhere. I had it earlier."

"Is this what you're looking for?" Mon-El asked, holding up a damp cloth.

"Yes, that's it." Kara said, reaching out to take it from him.

Mon-El stepped forward and instead of handing her the cloth, reach forward and gently wiped the brown powder from her cheek. Kara froze, her startled gaze meeting his. Her breath caught.

Someone - probably Alex - sniggered.

Kara stepped back, bumping into the kitchen counter. "What are you doing?" She whispered.

"Distracting you."

"From?"

"This." He waved the roast potato he had nicked from the pan on the hot tray behind her, before stuffing it into his mouth.

"Mon-El!" Kara scolded. Maggie and her family burst out laughing before quickly resuming their conversation, when Kara shot them a look for eavesdropping.

"Zey smelt gud." He mumbled. Chewing quickly, he swallowed and shrugged. "Hey, I was hungry. I haven't eaten for hours." He leaned forward and whispered, "It was just too tempting not to."

This time, it was Kara's hand that snapped out and caught his, inches from roasting pan.

He grinned sheepishly. "It was worth a try."

Still holding his hand, Kara turned to look at her family who were unashamedly watching them with bemused looks on their faces. "Alex, please come and get Mon-El, before he eats everything before lunch is ready."

Laughing Alex jerked her head towards the lounge. "Step away from the food, Mon-El. Or I will take you down." She mock threatened. "Kara's nearly done and I am sure that you will survive waiting a little while longer.

While Kara and her mother set the last of the pots on the stove to boil the vegetables, Alex and Maggie set about distracting Mon-El by asking him about his new job.

A few minutes later, a mini whirlwind swept through the kitchen when Kara used her powers to tidy up and restore her kitchen to its usual order.

"I'll never get used to seeing that." Maggie said to Alex, distracted by the sight.

"Stick around long enough and you'll eventually get used to it." Alex playfully nudged Maggie.

"I thought you said that you never used your powers for personal gain." Mon-El said to Kara who was drying her hands as though nothing had happened.

Lunch will be ready in about fifteen minutes." Kara said, joining to the group sitting round the Christmas tree. "And told you that I don't." She said to Mon-El.

"Then what was that?" He gestured at the now spotless kitchen.

Kara placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head back sanctimoniously. "That was for your benefit. Or did you want to spend the next hour cleaning up?"

"Liar. You just want to open up my gifts."

Kara rolled her eyes at him. "I guess you figured me out."

"We've got enough time," Eliza said. "I think we should exchange gifts."

Kara and Alex handed out the few remaining presents that lay underneath the Christmas tree. They had opened their gifts for and from family that morning and all that remained were the gifts for Mon-El and Maggie, and their gifts for the Danvers sisters.

Kara watched nervously while Mon-El opened her gift to him. Rather than ripping into the paper like Maggie was, he was carefully peeling back the tape and smoothing back the paper. "

I hope you haven't bought yourself one yet." She said, as Mon-El finally tore open the gift to reveal a radio/CD player. "I remembered how much you enjoyed music and having a good time." She explained unnecessarily.

"I hadn't gotten myself one." Mon-El said, his gaze catching hers. "Thank you Kara." He handed her his gifts. "Open the big one first. And no peeking!" He admonished.

Grinning broadly, she unwrapped the gift to reveal a intricately carved wooden box. Inside the box was divided into ten slots and which had been lined with red velvet. "It's stunning," Kara said.

"Oh, that's a beautiful jewellery box." Eliza said, admiring the workmanship.

"On Daxam, we would call this a kotak janji - a promise box." Mon-El explained.

Kara titled her head in confusion, her fingers stroking over the flowers that had been carved onto the lid.

"Each one of those empty slots is a promise that I will do my best to fill."

"And what exactly would those promises be?" Alex asked slyly.

Mon-El blushed. "Not what you're thinking. By buying Kara an empty jewellery box, I would be promising to supply the jewellery to fill each compartment. Each piece is supposed to represent a momentous occasion." He gestured towards the second smaller box. "Go on. Open it."

"Oh so it's kinda like the equivalent of a charm bracelet but bigger." Maggie said, watching Kara unwrap the present.

Kara opened the box to reveal a pair of silver star earrings. "These are lovely." Kara breathed.

"It's my first Christmas on Earth. With you." He shrugged, suddenly bashful. "Seemed like a big deal."

"Well, I won't be putting them in the box just yet." Kara said, taking off her own studs and putting on the earrings Mon-El had given her. They sparkled in the light. Kara reached up to touch them. "Thank you again."

Mon-El's stomach rumbled. Loudly.

"Clearly someone's hungry." Kara grinned and looked over at the clock. "And aren't you lucky? It's time to eat."

In the end, everyone had seconds of the gammon, lamb and turkey, although for Kara and Mon-El (with their alien metabolisms) it was more like fourths and fifths respectfully. Christmas lunch was rounded off with the chocolate volcanoes Kara had made from scratch.

They had all risen from the table and made their way back to lounge to relax and digest the delicious meal.

Everyone looked up, awoken from their near stupors, when Maggie coughed loudly. "Look what I found. It must be my lucky day." She grinned broadly and pointed at the mistletoe she stood under.

"Why did you put it over there?" Alex asked turning to Kara. "You weren't trying to hide it, were you?"

"No. Why would I hide it?" Kara said, glancing nervously at Mon-El. "It's up, just not in its usual place."

"Actually I was the one who hung it up there." Mon-El offered.

"It doesn't matter who put it up, or where it is." Maggie interrupted. "What matters is whether my girlfriend is going to leave me standing here, alone under the mistletoe."

Alex just grinned and strode over to Maggie. She drew her into her arms and kissed her soundly.

Kara grinned to see her sister so happy and comfortable around Maggie and her family. She glanced over to see her mother's reaction and instead saw Mon-El staring at her - his face carefully blank.

"I thought that you said that mistletoe brought luck." He said carefully.

Kara wrung her hands together, mentally kicking herself for not thinking this through when she had agreed to Mon-El's belief about mistletoe. "Um… technically… uh…"

"It's more like mistletoe brings luck in love." Eliza said, taking pity on her daughter and stepping in. "If you stand beneath its leaves you're supposed to receive a kiss."

"Oh. Well, I feel like a bit of an idiot then." Mon-El said, looking at Kara. "I thought it brought luck." He forced a laugh. "The more I think I know, the more I realise how much more I need to learn on this planet." Deliberately he turned his back to Kara and focused on her mother. "Won't you tell me more about this mistletoe and how it got this strange kiss granting power, Dr Danvers."

Feeling sick, Kara got up and headed back to the kitchen where she began slowly packing the Christmas dishes into the dishwasher. She hadn't meant to upset Mon-El when she had lied to him, but it had been easier to go along with his suggestion. She hadn't wanted to make him think he was obligated to kiss her because of the mistletoe. Especially since making it so clear that it wasn't something that would ever cross his mind, unless it was feverish that is.

A few minutes later, Alex joined her at the sink. "Hey, I'll rinse, you pack." She said, nudging her to the side and grabbing a dirty plate from Kara. The sisters worked together silently for a moment, before Alex said softly, "What did you do to Mon-El?"

Kara glanced up, the guilt clear on her face. "I lied to him. About mistletoe. And now he's angry with me. Rightfully so. I shouldn't have lied to him."

"I don't know, Kara." Alex paused thoughtfully. "I don't think he is angry. If anything, I would say he's upset or disappointed. Not angry. Why did you lie to him? That's not like you."

Kara looked over at her mother, Maggie and Mon-El. He did seem more subdued than angry. "I just didn't want him to feel like he had to kiss me under the mistletoe. You've seen the type of women he attracts. I wouldn't even be a blip on his radar."

"Those Christmas presents are not the sort of gift a man gives someone he is not interested in." Alex said carefully, handing her the last of the plates. "He was basically promising you that he would be around for quite a while. Especially if he is promising to celebrate momentous occasions with you."

Kara froze, her mind whirling. "I think you might be right." Quickly she packed the last of the dishes before giving Alex a hug. "Thanks Alex."

"You going to fix this?" Alex asked, hugging her back.

Kara nodded firmly and stepped back. She smoothed her hand over her hair and straightened her sweater. "Do I look okay?"

Alex nodded. "Good luck."

Kara squared her shoulders, took a deep breath and strode across the living room to the mistletoe hanging by her balcony. Making sure that she was exactly underneath the plant, she cleared her throat loudly, drawing everyone's attention to her.

Maggie and her mother grinned and turned expectantly to Mon-El.

He stared at her for a long moment.

Kara felt an embarrassed flush spread across her face. Her heart dropped to her stomach. This had been a mistake. A foolish one. She was just about to turn and leap out off the balcony, when Mon-El stood up.

Her stomach tightened painfully as he walked towards her, his face still blank.

She held her breath as he stepped in front of her, angling his head to kiss her.

To kiss her cheek! She realised, painfully. Just like she had done to him. He was following her lead, because she had convinced him that she didn't want his kisses. Which was the biggest lie in the universe.

Just before his lips brushed her cheek, Kara turned and captured his lips with hers.

He froze, and Kara felt her heart skip a beat in the moment it took him to bring his hands up and place them on her shoulders. Not to push her way, but to pull her up against him.

Kara melted.

It was just as intense as she remembered, only better. Because he wasn't dying and she felt more alive than she had in ages. She pressed herself up against him, losing herself in his taste, for once not having to worry about controlling her strength.

His lips moved over hers, sucking gently. It was with a shuddering breath and a great deal of reluctance that Kara broke the kiss.

"Just like I remembered." He murmured, as he pulled back.

"You remembered!" Kara said, pulling out of his arms in shock. "You lied?"

"Just like you lied to me." He shot back.

"Alex dear." Eliza said, as Kara and Mon-El stared at each other. "I'm going to head off home, won't you and Maggie see me out. I think these two need a moment alone."

"No, mom, it's okay." Kara said quickly.

"No." Eliza said firmly. "You two need to sort out whatever's going on between you. You need space to do that."

"Yeah, we don't want to intrude." Maggie said, glancing at Alex. "Besides we have plans."

Alex nodded.

Hugs were quickly exchanged and jackets were retrieved and before Kara could argue much further, she and Mon-El were left alone in her apartment.

Kara strode over to her windows, her arms wrapped around her waist as she gathered her thoughts and braced herself for the conversation that was about to follow.

"Were you ever going to tell me?" He asked, coming up next to her.

"No. I don't know." She said, avoiding his eyes.

"Why didn't you?"

"Because I was scared that you wouldn't want me."

"That's ridiculous. No man wouldn't want you."

"But you said…"

He cut her off, turning her to face him. "I know what I said. You should also know that I am an idiot and that I was scared. Scared of losing you. That's why I played dumb. I thought you might regret kissing a Daxamite so I gave you an out if you wanted it." He sighed deeply, regret clear in his eyes. "When you didn't admit it happened, I thought it was because you hated it. Hated me." He said slowly.

"The only thing I regretted, was not saying anything. I'm sorry, Mon-El, for lying and letting you think I hated you."

"Do you regret this?" He gestured between the two of them.

"No. Not at all."

"Good. Glad we got that sorted." He said, pulling her towards him.

"You're still under the mistletoe," he whispered just before he kissed her again.

Author's Note: Merry Christmas everyone.

I wasn't sure that I'd be able to get this up for Christmas. I experienced some severe writers block because I thought I had the last chapter down in my head but whenever I tried to type it up, it came out wrong. In the end, I just sat down and started writing and lo and behold - a story emerged. Somehow.

I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank you for joining me on this short journey and to all the people who left reviews, or favourited and followed this story - you rock!