A Christmas Mystery, a kingdom hearts fanfic

A Christmas Mystery

Sora didn't know what to make of it.

It was a sparkling box, bathed in glitter, tied up in red ribbons with a neat bow on top. It had been stashed in his locker, snug between textbooks and snacks. Several questions ran through his head. Who was the present from? How did it get into his locker? And was inside? The third question could be answered easily enough.

He grabbed the box and shut his locker. It was light. Was there even anything inside? He shook it and heard a rattle, and looked it over for any tags, and found a small white card tucked underneath the bow. It read: From your secret admirer.

He froze, and his eyes darted around for anyone suspicious. Whoever left this box wasn't around to observe their handiwork. The only thing left to do was open it, but not here, someplace else. He tucked the package underneath his arm and walked to next period. He never expected to find something like this on the last day of school before winter break.

He was early. The classroom was empty except for the teacher, Mr. Leonhart—who preferred to be called Leon. He wore a black leather jacket with short sleeves, a white undershirt, and dark jeans. Brown hair was swept behind his back and a distinctive scar ran across his face. He was sitting at his desk when he looked up. "What's that in your hand, a present for me?"

"No, it's for me," Sora corrected.

Leon smiled. "Ah, an early gift. Who's it from?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"I have a suggestion."

"What's that?"

"Open it.

Sora scoffed. "You don't have to tell me that."

"Oh? That'll break tradition though. You're not supposed to open gifts until Christmas day."

"Didn't you just say to open it?"

"No, I made a suggestion, one you were supposed to refuse. I see your Christmas spirit isn't very strong," Leon criticized. "Remind me not to give you any presents. You wouldn't open them properly."

"That's fine by me. Your last present sucked." Sora was referring to the "C" he got on his final.

Leon chuckled. "Work harder next time."

Sora ignored him and sat down. He pulled on the bow and the ribbon went slack. He lifted the lid to find a bundle of green holly leaves and red berries wrapped in a satin bow. He pulled it out gingerly. "What is this, a twig? What am I supposed to do with this?"

Leon crossed his arms, adopting his lecture pose. "Didn't I just tell you about tradition? That twig is a mistletoe."

Sora did a mental oohhhh. It was the first time he saw one up close. "Isn't this the thing that forces people to kiss?"

"Indeed. Perhaps whoever sent it to you was trying to send a message."

"What kind of message?" he wondered.

Leon sighed. "I don't know. Something to do with a certain tradition associated with mistletoe?"

Sora clapped his hands. "Oh, you mean the kissing tradition!"

"Yes. It's obviously symbolic. Is there anything else in the box?"

"Let's see…" Sora dug out the paper stuffing until he found a card and opened it:

Try to look for me, if you can,
You must examine memory, for who I am,
I am one of many, in your mind,
This is now, the perfect time,
Try to hand me, this mistletoe,
Find me, and you will know
How to receive kiss, from me to you
For help, this is my clue:

Third.

"It's some kind of…riddle."

"Let me see." Leon looked it over, rubbing his chin. "The clue is third. Do you know what it could mean?"

"No idea. It doesn't mean anything to me."

"You have to look deeper into it. Think in terms of threes. The number three… Like a trio, or third period, or third place—something like that."

"This is third period, isn't it?"

The instructor shrugged. "Perhaps the one who gave it to you is in this class." Leon went back to his desk to prepare for third period.

Sora stared at the card. "Third…"

The warning bell rang and students began filing in. He eyed the door for anyone suspicious until Kairi caught his eye. Long auburn hair swung as she walked in. She wore a pink dress that complimented her figure.

Maybe like a trio…

If he was part of any trio, it would include himself, Kairi, and Riku. They were friends for as long as he could remember. He thought she was pretty, but she was going out with Riku. She took her usual seat beside him.

"What's up?" she asked.

No time like the present. He offered her the mistletoe. "Uh…for you."

She was confused for a moment but her eyes brightened. She held it up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Merry Christmas, Sora!" She grinned and handed the mistletoe back.

That was it? It was just a friendly kiss he always got from her. "Was this for me?" he asked.

She tilted her head curiously. "Didn't you just give it to me?"

Kairi wasn't the one. "Never mind, I'm just being dumb."

She slapped him on the back. "Cheer up!"

Third period ended. He walked out and made his way to his next class. If it wasn't Kairi, who else could it be? This riddle was making his brain hurt. He entered his next period and was greeted by the teacher, Mr. Terra. He was a tall brunet with a mess of hair comparable to Sora's.

"Welcome to class, have a seat!" The boy sat down dutifully, distracted by thoughts of mysterious gift-givers. Terra clapped his hands when the bell rang. "Alright! Now that we're all here, I will promise to give out awards to the top three students in class for the semester. Drum roll, please?" Several students tapped their desks to build up anticipation. "For third place, we have the wonderful Olette! Everybody, please give her a hand!" The class gave a great round of applause.

Third place…

Could it be Olette? The girl, clad in a sleeveless top and beige shorts, walked up and accepted a gift from the teacher. She gave a small bow to the class and returned to her seat. They had shared a group project a month ago. Sora was always lagging behind in school, and if it wasn't for her, he probably would've failed. Terra finished offering the last two prizes and declared free time.

Sora approached Olette. "Hey."

She looked up and smiled. "Sora, what's up!"

He rubbed the back of his head. "Congratulations on third place. I er…have something for you." He offered the mistletoe.

She immediately blushed. "Oh! Um…" She stood up from her seat and led him towards the back. "I'm flattered but…there's already someone else…"

It wasn't her. "Oh, that's fine! I wasn't actually—"

He was cut off by a quick peck on the cheek. "But thank you. I'm sorry I couldn't live up to your expectations."

He touched the spot tenderly and nodded. "It's no problem. I guess better luck next time, right?"

"Merry Christmas," she answered back. That was a wash. Half the day was over and he still didn't have a clue. He entered his next class and took his assigned seat.

Look for me…

The number three…

"What's up Sora!" the girl in front greeted.

His head shot up to meet Xion's smiling face. She had cropped raven hair that made her look cute but childish. She sat in front of him and was the main reason he was passing this particular course. They used to be two idiots in a pod, but she got bit by an academic bug and started working hard halfway in the semester. "Nothing really… Actually, can I ask you something?"

She leaned forward in anticipation. "Oooh, it sounds like you're onto something. Go ahead."

"Does the number three mean anything to you?"

"Of course it does!" Did he finally catch the culprit? "It's my GPA!" she declared proudly. "It's proof that I'm getting smarter!"

"Oh…" He was disappointed. It was a long shot anyways. "I'm happy for you."

"All my hard work has finally paid off; all that clawing from D-land was not for naught." She paused in her musings and looked at his desk. "What's that?"

He followed her line of sight to his mistletoe, and quickly tried to hide it. "It's nothing."

She smirked, and her hand thrust beneath the desk and pulled out the prize. "Oh! This is… Were you trying to hide this from me?"

Sora looked away. "It's just—"

She grabbed his head, turned his face forward, and kissed him on the lips. He was dazed. "I'm feeling generous today; you're welcome, and Merry Christmas." He definitely wasn't expecting that, and he couldn't stop thinking about it until lunch started.

He ambled through the halls mindlessly. Among the girls in his mind, he crossed off Kairi, Olette, and Xion. Who else was there? The trophy case made him stop. There was an award plaque on the shelf. "Congratulations to Naminé for placing third in the country-wide art contest."

Third place…

Could it be? His legs set course for the art room where he would find her. He opened the studio door, revealing a lone girl behind the canvas. He snuck behind and saw what she was working on. It was a… "Mistletoe?"

The girl shot up and turned around, her blonde hair whipping and almost grazing the wet painting. "S-Sora! What are you doing here?"

"I saw your award in the trophy case," he explained. "Nice painting."

"Thanks, but it's not complete yet. It's a Christmas-themed portrait. So how can I help you?"

"Well…" He pulled out the mistletoe.

Her eyes widened. "This is…" She hugged him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks! I could use this to finish my painting; you don't mind if I borrow this until lunch ends, do you?"

"Not at all."

Once again, another failure. He waited until lunch ended and got his mistletoe back. There were two more periods before school would end, and next one was PE. He was outside in his gym clothes. It was another free day; the students were allowed to do whatever they wanted. He sat on the grass with the mistletoe in hand. His eyes roamed about until the big fat number "3" caught his attention. It was on a jersey worn by a raven-haired girl. That was it! He got up and ran up to her.

"Yuffie!" he called out.

She put her hands together to stop the game, "Timeout!"

"Sorry for interrupting," he apologized.

"No worries. I was wondering when you were gonna come." She was expecting it? It had to be her. "Don't you have something for me?" she teased.

He held out the mistletoe. "Here."

She grabbed his cheeks, pulled him close, and gave him the longest, wettest, and sloppiest kiss of his life. "Merry Christmas!" His brain stopped working. She took a step back to resume the game.

Wait a minute. "Yuffie!"

"What? You want seconds?"

"No, I mean, not that I wouldn't mind, but aren't you the one who gave this to me?"

She giggled. "What gave you that idea?"

"But weren't you expecting me?"

"That's because I saw you sitting there looking lonely with a mistletoe. I figured you could use a little pick-me-up! Did it work?"

"Yeah, it did!" He laughed nervously. "Thanks."

With that, he was kissed by almost every girl he knew except one. Through process of elimination, it had to be Selphie. Fortunately, they shared last period together. He entered the classroom, walked up to her, and offered the mistletoe. The bright-eyed brunette gasped. "I can't believe you, Sora!"

He was taken back. "What?"

She planted her hands on her hips. "I didn't expect you, of all people, to come up with such a brilliant idea. How could I have missed it? It was so obvious…" she muttered. "I guess I'll use it for next year though."

"What are you talking about? You're not the one who gave this to me?"

She shook her head. "Aren't you offering it to me now?"

"I…I guess so."

She gave him a peck. "There you go! I wonder if I could get all the cute guys to kiss me? Can I borrow that mistletoe, please?"

She was the last one who could've possibly given it to him. He had no more use for it. "You can have it. Merry Christmas."

"Thank you so much! Next to Valentine's Day, I love Christmas the most. It's the second-most romantic day of the year. Especially with this little guy." She twirled the mistletoe around. "We are bound to tradition, to keep alive meaning in meaningless things. If it makes somebody happy for just one moment, isn't that reason enough to indulge in a little holiday spirit?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm better than okay. Merry Christmas, Sora." That was his last shot, and he missed it completely.

After school, Sora sat on the entrance steps and stared blankly at the card. Despite his best efforts, he wasn't able to solve the mystery before school ended. No matter how many times he read it, he couldn't figure it out.

Third.

But the third what? What did third have to do with—it couldn't be. Third… Third… The THIRD! It was in front of his face all along! The card was talking about itself! He got up from the stairs and ran into the building. Where was it? There! He burst into his third period class to find it empty. He searched around until he found it, on the teacher's desk, one silver-wrapped Hershey's kiss. There was a message on the whiteboard:

Merry Christmas. Work harder next time.

Sora laughed disbelievingly. Who knew that Mr. Leonhart could be such a troll?

"Merry Christmas, you bastard."

Try to Look for me, if you can,
You must Examine memory, for who I am,
I am One of many, in your mind,
This is Now, the perfect time,
Try to Hand me, this mistletoe,
Find me, And you will know
How to Receive kiss, from me to you
For help, This is my clue:

Third.