A/N: Soooooo! Here's the sequel to 'Alyse's Christmas Story' that I was talking about. lol! I'm sorry if you feel any of the characters are OOC (especially at the end there...), I tried reeeally hard. Anyway, this ones been in my arsenal for a while now and I'm glad to finally get it out. Hope you guys like! Please R&R!

Disclaimer: I OWN (lol, ETP) nothing!

Her thoughts were a mess as she watched her friends laughing and talking around the Christmas tree - minus Alyse and Tyson, who were still locked in the hall closet. The smile on her face was forced and the answers she gave were half-hearted, although convincing, every time her friends spoke to her. She tried to be cheerful and not put a damper on everyone else's fun but truth be told; things just weren't the same without a certain redhead around.

"That jerk..." She thought sadly. "He said he was gonna be here this time. He's always got such stupid excuses! I duno why I ever believe him anymore, he never keeps his promises."

Her brilliant blue-green eyes dulled slightly as she resisted a frown at that thought.

"But then... why should he feel obligated to keep any promises to me? It's not like we're together or anything..."

There was only one person in the room who could always tell how she was feeling and exactly what she was thinking, and that was the blonde sitting next to her with his arm around her shoulders.

"He'd be here if he could." Max whispered softly in her ear. Shandi turned her head to offer the blonde a sad smile.

"I know." She whispered back, careful not to let the others in on their quiet conversation. "But it still sucks."

Max pressed a sweet kiss to her forehead.

"I know, Andi-Mandy." He replied softly. "Like I said earlier... Gomensai."

Shandi leaned over to rest her head on Max's shoulder.

"I know you are, Maxie. And I love you for it."

Max tilted his head to rest atop Shandi's as he affectionately rubbed her shoulder with his thumb.

"Love you too, Andi." He replied softly. "That's what family is for."

Shandi snuggled closer to her cousin and looked around the room, watching her friends without really taking it in. After a few minutes of silence from the two, Max spoke again, once more in a soft tone but not a whisper this time.

"Hey, by the way; did you get his gift?"

Shandi smiled half-heartedly, not lifting her head from Max's shoulder as she spoke.

"No." She replied softly. "He probably didn't have time to pick something up."

Max lifted his head and looked down at her with a slightly confused expression.

"Yes he did." He replied bluntly. "I picked it up from the post office for him."

Without a word, Max pulled away from Shandi and stood up, leaving her to blink after him while he walked over to the Christmas tree and crouched in front of it. Getting down on his knees, the blonde crawled under the tree and searched around, knowing the item he was looking for was under there somewhere.

Eventually, Max emerged again, now holding a very small, wrapped present in his hand. Immediately Shandi thought of a necklace or bracelet or some other pretty but common gift. Sitting back beside the girl, Max replaced his arm around her shoulder while he reached out to hand her the item in his hands.

"I knew it was down there somewhere." He said with a smile. "Here."

Accepting the present from her cousin, Shandi starred at it for a moment before pulling the ribbon loose and lifting the cover of the small box, barely able to contain the excitement she admittedly felt as she waited in anticipation. Imagine her disappointment when she finally lifted the lid and starred down into the box to see an old rusted key.

Blue-green eyes starred down into the box for a moment before their owner made a face and reached down to pick the pathetic old thing up.

"What's this, they key to his heart?" She asked sarcastic and irritably. "Looks about right; cold and rusty, just like him!"

Max laughed.

"Don't judge a book by it's cover." He said in amusement. "You of all people should know that."

Shandi looked up to give the blonde a dull stare.

"Max, you know I'm far from shallow or selfish - I'm crushing on the king of cruel for Frig sakes! But this... come on! There's not even a note telling me what it's for. If this is Tala's idea of being funny, then he's got a lot to learn!"

Max laughed again and shook his head. Removing his arm from around the girl's shoulders again, he reached out a hand to request the box.

"Here, lemme see."

Quite willing to be rid of the so-called gift, Shandi dropped the box back into Max's hand with a small pout, making him grin in amusement before peering down into it. Lifting his other hand, the blonde reached up to lift the thin piece of cotton that had previously displayed the key and smiled at what he saw.

"There, you see." He said, turning the box back to his cousin again. "I told you not to jump to conclusions."

Shandi blinked down at the small GPS inside the box in bewilderment.

"Well I'll be damned..." She whispered in astonishment.

Max smiled and pulled the tiny device from the box to hold out to her.

"Why don't you follow it?" He said gently.

Holding the device in both her hands, Shandi starred down at it for a long time until finally a grin lit her face and she clenched it tightly to her chest.

"Know what? I think I will." She said determinedly.

Turning to give Max a hug, to which made him chuckle and hug her back, the raven-haired beauty pulled away from her cousin, stood up and wished the rest of her friends a Merry Christmas before leaving the room, leaving it to the blonde to explain to them where she was going if he so wished it.

-;-

Blue-green eyes looked over the reflection in the hallway mirror and deemed it acceptable. The girl in the mirror was wearing a black, white and red half-jacket that was un-zipped with a v-neck white sleeveless top inside. White skinny jeans hugged her hips while thick, furry, black and white winter boots fit her feet perfectly. Perched atop her head was a pair of red skii goggles - since the wind and snow had really picked up outside - while a pair of warm black gloves completed the outfit. Her ears were adorned with a multitude of black and red studs while a pair of ruby tear-drop earrings hung from her ears and a tiny silver stud rested on the left side of her nose. She also wore just a touch of makeup to enhance her features - just in case.

Hearing a horn sound from outside, the raven-haired teen grabbed her heavy red, black and white skii jacket and pulled it on with the hood over her head before opening the door and venturing out into the heavy snow.

"You're lucky miss, I was just about to go off-duty. Where ya headed?"

Shandi shivered and shook off her jacket when she got into the taxi and smiled at the driver before withdrawing the pre-set GPS from her pocket.

"Thank you." She said gratefully. "Can you take me north outside of town, please."

The driver turned around in his seat to look at her.

"You sure?" He asked a little uncertainly. "Nothin' out there but untamed wilderness and no civilization for miles and miles."

Shandi sweat-dropped.

"No, I'm not sure." She mumbled bluntly. "But... can you please take me there anyway?"

The driver nodded and put the car in gear.

"Sure. Might take us a while though, this snow's gettin' pretty heavy."

Shandi sighed heavily and sat back in her seat.

"It's fine." She mumbled aloud. "Might give me a chance to talk some sense into myself..."

The taxi drove for a good few miles until the GPS in Shandi's hand began to blink wildly.

"Stop here, please." She said a little loudly.

The driver looked at her in the rear-view mirror like she was insane.

"Miss... there's nothing here."

Feeling a small sense of dread, Shandi sighed again and sat up straight in her seat.

"Well... I'm hoping you're wrong, sir." She replied with a frown. "Please stop."

"OK." The driver replied, still sounding uncertain. "Here ya go, miss."

"Thanks."

Shandi paid the driver and pulled her goggles down over her eyes before pulling up her hood and zipper again and reaching for the door.

"You want me to wait for ya?" The driver asked, sounding sympathetic now. "No waiting charge?"

Shandi paused in thought for a moment before reaching into her pocket and grasping the rusty old key tightly in her hand. With a heavy sigh she opened the door.

"No thank you. Just... wish me luck."

"That I will, lil' miss! Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas."

Shandi got out of the car and closed the door, stopping and sighing as she starred at the thick and heavily wooded forest before her with a dull expression.

"Damn it, Tala..." She muttered irritably. "This better be a damn-good Christmas present!"

The raven-haired teen pulled herself up to her full height, took a deep breath and reluctantly began her cold, hard, and likely long trek into the woods.

Small curses and profanities could be heard from a particular raven-haired teen as she trudged through knee-deep snow, occasionally lifting the GPS into her face just to see it until it almost touched her nose, before stuffing it back into her pocket again and resuming hugging herself to fend off the numbing chill of the harsh winter night.

"I hate you, Tala." She said aloud, the words instantly swallowed up by the biting wind around her. "I really, really hate you."

Ha! Biggest lie she'd ever told...

With another sigh, Shandi once more removed the GPS from her pocket and lifted it in front of her face but suddenly gasped loudly when she saw that it was beginning to give out. Either because of low batteries or from the cold, she wasn't sure, but the fact was irrelevant.

"NO!" She yelled in a panic. "Don't die on me yet you piece of crap! I'll be stranded in the middle of nowhere!"

Seeing as the device didn't seem inclined to listen to her, the dark beauty released a whole new string of curses before picking up her pace and pushing herself to make large jumps in the massive snow drifts to close more distance between her and her destination.

It was just when the teen rounded the top of an excruciatingly tiring hill that her GPS finally gave out and died.

"AHHHHHHH!" She screamed out into the night. "NOOOO! You've gotta be kidding me!"

The teen dropped helplessly to her knees in despair, ready to live out her last few moments as a Popsicle when something in the distance caught her eye. At the bottom of the hill, the faintest flicker of a light could be seen through the blinding snow. With a leap of joy, Shandi jumped up and all but rolled down the hill as she stumbled and plowed through the thick and heavy precipitation with brute force.

Finally Shandi reached the bottom of the hill, hands on her knees while she panted and gasped for breath. Eventually looking up, she blinked at the quaint and cute cottage before her, warmly puffing out smoke from it's chimney while it gazed out over her invitingly.

"No way..." She whispered in awe. "He didn't..."

A leap of excitement and hope jumping in her chest, Shandi jumped forward for the last stretch and bound forward onto the front step. Hastily pulling the old, rusted key from her pocket, the teen's heart gave a joyous flip when she found the crummy old thing actually worked.

Pushing the door to the cute log cabin open, Shandi quickly hurried inside and shut the door behind her, effectively barring out the harsh wind and cold as it whispered and howled for her to open up.

"I don't think so, Old Man Winter..." The teen muttered under her breath, reaching up to pull down her hood and zipper.

Reaching up to pull off her now steamed up goggles, Shandi looked around the adorable cabin with a smile.

"This is cute." She thought happily. "Whatever that cheeky redhead's got planned... he's doing good so far."

That little flicker of hope returned and the teen looked around again, surveying more thoroughly this time as she reached up to pull off her gloves and jacket, Shandi kept an eye out for any sign of the fiery redhead. Unfortunately, she saw no sign of him and felt her heart sink again.

"Of course not." She thought moodily. "He would lead me all the way out here just to be alone..."

She sighed and hung the coat and other gear on a nearby coat rack before venturing into the cabin. After entering what appeared to be the living room, complete with an inviting and roaring fire, she spotted a massive present in the middle of the floor. Her excitement piqued a third time as she starred at it, imagining a curled up Russian redhead inside it, waiting to burst out and surprise her.

"Oh Tala..." She whispered with a smile, approaching the huge box a little giddily.

When she was before it, the teen took a deep breath and held it before reaching out and removing the lid. Bracing herself, she was a little surprised when nothing happened. Blinking a few times, she leaned forward and peered into the box. After starring into the box for a few moments, she finally frowned and reached inside. When she straightened up again she was holding a massive, albeit absolutely adorable, wolf plushie. Around it's neck was a huge red bow and a tiny note. A mocha-colored hand reached up to turn it over and read it to herself with a now-dull and disappointed expression.

"Hug me."

Still frowning, Shandi squeezed the stuffed animal and listened while Tala's voice was heard from inside it.

"I'm sorry I broke my promise... again. I should have been there with you guys this morning. I'm sorry. Hopefully this will make up for it. Thought you'd like this and the cabin, seems to be your kinda thing. Merry Christmas."

Shandi held the wolf out before her and starred into it's eyes. When the realistic glossy orbs starred back at her, her own blue-green ones suddenly filled up.

"That's so lame, Tala..." She whispered aloud, her voice cracking slightly as she hugged the plushie close again.

She loved the plushie and the idea of the cabin... but what was the fun if she was all alone? Besides, as cute as the plushie was, she'd much rather the real thing - her real lone wolf.

"Yea, I thought so too. It was Max's idea."

Shandi whirled around so fast she actually slipped on the floor and had to take a moment to steady herself before gawking up at the being before her with saucer-wide eyes. After a few moments of starring at the utterly bored-looking Tala image, her face went blank and she deposited the plushie onto the couch before walking up to him. She starred at the image for a few moments, causing a heavy red brow to lift slightly, before reaching up to poke his cheek.

Tala swatted Shandi's hand away with an irritated expression.

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked irritably. "Knock it off."

Shandi's breath hitched upon hearing his voice in front of her and she had to swallow hard against the sudden lump in her throat.

"Just making sure you're real and not just a hologram or some other... silly disappointment."

Tala rolled his eyes.

"Well I can assure you;" He replied sarcastically. "I'm quite real."

All of a sudden, the redhead's eyes shot open and a small gasp escaped him as Shandi suddenly bounded forward and threw her arms around him. Tala looked down at her, utterly stunned, before awkwardly reaching up to return her embrace.

"Don't get all girly on me..." He muttered in slight embarrassment.

Shandi pulled away and starred up at him, and the redhead was surprised again to see her eyes shinning brightly in the firelight as she gave him a warm and tender smile.

"I'm sorry." She whispered softly. "It's just... this is the best Christmas gift ever, Tal."

Tala felt his face heat slightly and turned his head, unable to look at the girl any longer.

"Right... just... go sit on the couch, will ya?"

Shandi grinned before turning and heading back over to the couch. Plopping herself down, she leaned over and placed an elbow the arm, resting her chin in her hand as she smiled up at the redhead.

"Kay." She said simply. "Now what?"

"Close your eyes." Tala replied bluntly.

Shandi's smile widened and her anticipation and excitement sky-rocketed as she imagined the redhead fidgeting and fumbling, trying to will himself to build up the courage to kiss her. She bit her lip as she resisted an excited shiver, positively giddy over the thought. After a few moments, she felt a presence close to her and took a deep breath, her senses going berserk as she smelled the Russian's deep, rich and intoxicating scent.

"Mmmmmm...!" She thought happily, her face growing hot as she anticipated the inevitable. "After all this time, that scent still draws me in!"

A moment later, Shandi felt something light and a little cold around her neck before Tala's scent disappeared and she heard his voice again.

"OK. Open your eyes."

A little confused, Blue-green eyes opened and looked down to see a beautiful necklace around her neck; a gorgeous wolf pendant with her birthstone between his jaws and the Russian words for 'true beauty' elegantly woven around it while it sat delicately around a thin, silver chain.

The piece was beautiful, but...

Shandi bit her lip as she starred down at the pendant, trying desperately to hold back the mix of emotions she felt.

"Tala, you idiot..." She thought with a strange mix of affection and bitter disappointment.

Taking a long, silent, and deep breath, Shandi finally forced back her negative emotions and tried her damnedest to feed off of the positive ones as she forced a grateful smile and looked up at the redhead again.

"Thank you, Tala..." She replied, only able to manage another small whisper. "It's beautiful..."

Tala watched her for a few moments, apparently studying her, until finally he frowned and a slightly angry look crossed his face.

"What's wrong with you?" He demanded harshly. "Just what am I doing wrong?"

Shandi blinked at him, slightly taken aback.

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean your attitude! You've been nothing but disappointed ever since you got here!"

Shandi smiled half-heartedly and looked down and away from the redhead.

"It's just... not what I expected, that's all."

"Than just what the hell did you expect?" Tala snapped angrily. "You could at least be a little grateful for all I went through!"

Feeling like he'd just physically struck her, Shandi's eyes welled up again as her chest and throat constricted painfully.

"I am, grateful..." She choked, looking back at him through glossy, defiant eyes.

"You've got a damn poor way of showing it!"

Shandi swallowed hard against the burning in her throat but tried to be the bigger man - figuratively speaking - and smooth things over.

"I'm sorry..." She repeated softly. "But like I said; it's just not what I expected... that's all."

Unfortunately, that didn't diffuse Tala's anger as he seemed to be on a rampage.

"I came all the hell the way from Russia to this hell hole to give you your gifts, I even set up this lame and corny-ass scene, just to make you happy, and you don't even appreciate it! How many friends do that kinda thing for each other, Shandi? Or am I really still that new at this kinda thing yet? Tell me; what am I missing here?"

That was the last straw; the dark beauty could only take being yelled at by the same person so much before she finally snapped.

Bolting up from the couch, Shandi stormed up to the redhead until she was nose to nose with him and glared at him with vengeance.

"Well it was stupid to come all the way here just for that!" She yelled angrily. "You could have just sent the damn things in the mail like all the other times!"

"I left my friends back home for you!" Tala yelled back furiously.

That was it. There was no turning back at that point; Tala had finally bit off more then he could chew...

A silent tear ran down the raven-haired teen's face then as she tried to keep up her defiant facade.

"Then you should have stayed in Russia!" She hissed angrily. But her eyes were unable to hide the excruciating pain Tala had already inflicted upon her.

That said, the teen's hand reached up and yanked the necklace from her neck before dropping it at Tala's feet and storming out of the room.

Clenching her teeth to resist the blinding tears and breathing furiously, Shandi forced herself not to cry, to focus on her anger as she all but flew to the door in a furious rage and grabbed her coat.

She had just placed her hand on the door knob when Tala's fair hand appeared in her line of view, leaning on the door and effectively blocking her escape. Shandi turned around to face the redhead, fully prepared for his furious and wild rage. But against everything she expected, she was utterly stunned to see a warm and tender expression on his face while his eyes burned with immense guilt.

"I'm sorry..." He whispered, barely audible. "Please don't go..."

The redhead reached up and gently placed the necklace back around the girl before him's neck.

"I got it for you, so don't try to give it back to me... what am I supposed to do with a girly necklace?"

Once the piece was secure, Tala's hands lifted up to rest against the door on either side of the dark teen's head again, as if to assure she didn't escape.

"If the plush and necklace didn't make you happy... then what would have? What could I have given you that wouldn't have disappointed you?"

Shandi starred up into brilliant sapphire eyes and knew that this would probably be her one and only chance. It was obvious that Tala would be forever oblivious and she'd be waiting forever if she left it up to him. That only left one other option.

"What I really wanted?" She whispered. "You really wanna know?"

Tala starred into her eyes with a small frown.

"Yes. I wanna know."

She didn't break the gaze as she moved up ever-so-slightly, her eyes closing half-mast as she whispered again.

"There's only one thing I ever wanted from you Tala. One simple thing, and it wouldn't have cost you a dime..."

Tala furrowed his brows in confusion but instead of saying anything more, Shandi reached up to cup his face and gently pull him down to her level before pressing her lips tenderly to his.

Tala's entire body tensed and he instantly froze. After only a moment, Shandi pulled away and gave him a whisper of a smile.

"That's it." She whispered again. "That's all you had to do..."

Tala was starring at her like a deer caught in headlights. After a few moments, his lack of movement was beginning to make his companion feel steadily more uneasy. Eventually she gave a nervous chuckle, immediately regretting her brash decision before, ducking out from under the redhead's arms and making another attempt at escape.

Once again, the redhead foiled her attempts, but this time a hand on her waist spun her around and held her close to a firm body while wild eyes starred down into hers.

"That's it?" Tala exclaimed wildly. "A kiss? I went through all this trouble and did everything Max told me to and all you wanted was a kiss?"

Shandi laughed, feeling a hot blush cross her cheeks and nose as she nodded.

"Yea." She replied gently. "Like I said; simple."

Tala raised an eyebrow before finally smirking and pulling her tight to him.

"In that case; I can do better then that."

In a flutter of heartstrings and emotions, Shandi's head grew suddenly light as Tala leaned down to kiss her again, this time a little more forcefully and hotly. Her entire body heated up pleasantly as his lips massaged and caressed hers in a way she'd never imagined before. Tiny electric currents were coursing through her body, starting at her chest and running from her fingers to the tips of her toes as the redhead kissed her with as much force and emotion as he could pour into that one simple motion. A tiny sigh escaped the dark teen during the shared moment and the tiny vibration sent a shiver down Tala's spine as he pressed his hand against the small of her back and pulled her as close as their bodies would allow.

When finally the two pulled away, they did so slowly, each savoring the taste of the other as eyes slowly slid back open to re-embrace the rest of the world.

Shandi smiled up at Tala, feeling a little dizzy and lightheaded as if coming down off a high. Without a word she took his hand and lead him back to the couch by the fire. Sitting down, she kicked off her heavy boots, gesturing for Tala to do the same, before grabbing a nearby quilt and throwing it around them both.

Tala still looked a little awkward as Shandi moved next to him and snuggled up to his side. Noting his expression and the tenseness in his muscles, she pulled back slightly to look up at him.

"Is this OK?" She asked softly. "Are you OK with this?"

Tala looked down at her.

"Yea... this is just not what I expected..."

Giving him a lopsided smile, Shandi pulled a little further away from him.

"I'm sorry." She said with a small laugh. "Are you uncomfortable?... Do you want me to move?"

Tala watched her for a few moments before eventually gently shaking his head.

"No." He replied simply. "I like it better then what I'd originally planned."

That said, Tala shocked the dark teen again by placing an arm around her shoulder and pulling her close to him. Thoroughly ecstatic, Shandi smiled happily before slipping her arms around Tala's waist and leaning into him, resting her head on his shoulder.

All was silent as the two starred into the flames and let their own thoughts run wild. Eventually however, Shandi broke the silence.

"Tala.." She asked gently. "Why did you really come all the way from Russia tonight?"

There was another short silence and the girl lifted her head to look up at the redhead, who was still starring thoughtfully into the fire. After a few more moments a whisper of a smile graced his lips and he closed his eyes before finally replying.

"I think I came for this..." He whispered softly.

Obviously confused, Shandi tilted her head to one side questioningly, watching him. After doing so for a while, Tala opened his eyes to stare at the fire again.

"I asked Max what I should get you for Christmas..." He confessed softly. "He told me I should get you a plane ticket. When I asked him where you wanted to go he said; 'not for her, for you!' I didn't get it and he didn't explain, he just gave me the cabin and plush idea instead."

The redhead was silent again after this and Shandi gave him his space. He had answered and was still answering her question, she didn't care how long it took him.

"I liked the idea of spending time alone with you..." Tala confessed eventually. "Getting to hang out and know you better... but I didn't know if you'd go for that, or how to go about it. But when Max gave me this idea, that was enough to make me book a ticket right away... I didn't expect things to turn out this way but, subconsciously.. I kinda hoped they would... and I'm definitely glad they did."

Shandi blinked at the redhead for a few moments, especially when she saw a small pink blush spread across his cheeks. Eventually the same, feathery feeling from early overcame her and she beamed up at her companion.

"I guess I owe Maxie a huge thanks." She teased softly.

Tala finally looked back down at the girl at that and gave her another whisper of a smile, this one subtly brighter then the first.

"Yea, I think you should." He replied teasingly. Shandi smiled again.

"But I think I should thank you more, though." She said softly.

Tala finally gave her a full-fledged, tender smile and wrapped both his arms around her to, shockingly, pull her into his lap.

"No. I'm the one who should be thanking you." He whispered, leaning down into her face. "This has been the only really memorable Christmas so far... But I'm kinda hoping there'll be more..."

Shandi felt her heart explode with joy as her eyes glossed over again and she reached out to slip her arms around Tala's neck.

"So long as I'm breathing..." She promised softly. "There'll be many, many more to come... Merry Christmas, Tal."

"Merry Christmas..." The redhead whispered. His smile remained as he reached up to affectionately caress her cheek, watching her face for a moment before finally moving in to tenderly press his lips to hers.