Snow accumulate in piles that teeter in the winter wind. The winter sun is so weak that illumination is an afterthought. The dregs of it linger, desperate to gain a foothold. It's fingernails scrabbling on a ledge. Only a matter of time before it all ends. But that ending will only be the start of something new. In the winter weather, there comes a yearning for warmth—the warmth of heaters, the warmth of hot drinks, and the warmth of skin on skin. Winter is a reunion of people. Sometimes it's a reunion of people you do not want to interact with.

A high-pitched yowl (almost a weirdly human cackle if you listen close) reverberates through the room. Muffled thuds leak outside the enclosed room. An indignant voice shouts out "Sensei!" Within the room, there is a tangle of amber and black hair on a futon with long limbs entwined as a kerosene heater enfolds them in warm bliss. In between two lean forms, a rotund cat purrs happily.

"You're heavy, cat! Get off!" Takashi cries. A fist rises in preparation of releasing all irritation, only to be gently covered by long fingers. He has his grandmother's quick temper, Madara thinks. A soft huff of laughter escapes Takashi's companion, Kaname.

"Deal with it," Madara grumbles. For such a small creature, there is a heaviness to his form that renders Takashi and Kaname still. It must be that huge head of his, Kaname muses uncharitably.

"I'd rather not," Takashi argues. Kaname watches Takashi and Ponta fondly. These are the best sort of times—when Takashi is so free and unreserved with his emotions. He is always at his most expressive when with Ponta. He never tries to limit himself with a facade of politeness and a reluctance that would bury his heart under layers of well-meaning intentions. When you get to the heart of the matter, Takashi is a passionate person, who feels so much that he had resolved to never again feel the sting of hurt. But these days, Takashi is opening up to family and friends with all the hard-won beauty of a flower blooming after a long winter.

"Naughty boy," Madara mutters, "cuddling without me—me, your poor, pitiful bodyguard who slaves day after day after your fool self. Me, your lowly, dedicated servant who—"

Takashi laughs. His hands roughly pass over Madara's not-fur, going against the grain and riling up Madara even more. "You? Poor? Pitiful? Lowly? Dedicated? More like fat off too much sweets and drunk off sake, you glutton!" Takashi teases. "Don't think I can't smell the sake off you right now! You're making the whole room smell and I'm not explaining to Touko-san again why my room smells like alcohol."

Madara harrumphs and slides off Takashi's form entirely in favor of clambering onto Kaname. Kaname obligingly pets him. "See! This is how a good human acts!"

Takashi's lips twists in a moue of distaste—a pout he will deny ever expressing. He misses Kaname's hands on him, before Nyanko-sensei had so rudely interrupted with his usual tact, or lack thereof, and bluster.

"Thanks, Ponta," Kaname murmurs, with a sly look cast at Takashi. His lips curve up and unwillingly, Takashi smiles back.

Takashi does not look forward to shaking off Madara off their trail tomorrow. He always manages to interfere at the precise time he is not needed and wander off when he should not. Takashi wants Christmas Eve to be as enjoyable as possible. He had never thought before that he would get the opportunity to engage in the normal, in the mundane. Christmas Eve is a couples' holiday and shyly, greedily, Takashi has plans ( and if they're influenced by Touko-san's dramas and Nishimura's fumbling advice, well, Kaname doesn't have to know).


A/N: Actually posted on Nov. 24 on AO3. I'm more active on AO3 and tumblr. I'm also tunnelOFdawn on both. I take prompts on my tumblr and post fic previews and drabbles. On AO3, I post author notes indicating chapter amounts or other commentary.

Prompt was: Can you do a happy fluffy Natsume fic involving winter holidays? If you wanna do shippy I'd like TanuNatsu