Here's a little something I threw together on a whim. I have it set to occur earlier in the series, after the class field trip during which Konoka is kidnapped. Potential OOC moments and WAFF may occur. Implied KonoSetsu.
Disclaimer: I don't own Negima in any way. I make no profit from this story.
Home for Christmas
Negi stared forlornly at the overhead digital board displaying the upcoming flights at the airport. The words Flight Canceled in bright red letters flashed as the upcoming winter storm impeded air travel for not only his, but several other flights that evening. What was truly disheartening was that if his flight had only been scheduled to leave an hour earlier, he would be already on his way home to spend the holiday with his sister. But now it was all too obvious that those plans were no longer possible. He'd have to head back to Mahora for the time being, hoping he could at least catch a flight sometime tomorrow.
His trip back was quiet and lonely. There were few people on the train or just out and about in general. The cold winter air wrapped around him like a tight cloak, attempting to sap him of the little warmth his coat, hat and mittens provided him. The sky overhead was a lifeless gray, the beginning of what would eventually become a long and heavy snowstorm. The first flakes of snow drifted down and began lightly dusting the landscape. Negi's breath came out in little clouds in front of him, each one spreading out and fading into nothing before his eyes. And while the sun was easily hidden behind the seemingly endless barrier of clouds in the sky, Negi could tell that it was almost night time as it began to become gradually darker outside.
By the time he finally arrived back at the dorm room he shared with two of his students it had been dark for near an hour and the temperature had sunk below freezing. Negi was grateful to leave the cold behind before the storm could finally bring out its fury. The snow was coming down a little faster and heavier, but had yet to reach the blizzard that was to be expected. Having avoided it was a silver lining for the young teacher, albeit a small one.
Negi opened the door to the dorm room and went inside, removing his winter clothing to be set aside. His entrance quickly gained the attention of one of his roommates, Konoka, who came over to greet him. Her face held a look of mixed concern and curiosity as she addressed him.
"Negi-kun, what are you doing back here? You didn't miss your flight did you?"
"Something like that." Negi said. "It was actually canceled since the weather seems to be getting worse than they had originally expected."
"Oh, that's too bad. You've been looking forward to going home all month! You must be so disappointed!"
Negi forced a convincing smile, "It's alright. It can't be helped after all. Weather isn't something that can or should be controlled. I think I'll lay down for a little bit."
He walked past her, keeping his faux smile on his face. Konoka said nothing, but she knew he was just pretending. It was obvious to her that he was pretty upset about what happened and she wished there was something that she could do for the young boy. However she was quickly snapped from her thoughts when she saw him heading for the beds.
"Negi-kun, wait!"
"Hmm? Why? What's the matter?"
The answer to his question appeared from the top bunk. Asuna leapt down from her bed where she had been cat-napping pleasantly. Her long hair was down and she let out a small yawn as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She had been sleeping without any pajama bottoms, her pink panties on full display. And her top was mostly unbuttoned, exposing a fair amount of her upper body to the younger boy. Not that it really mattered, Negi had seen her naked before. But that didn't stop him from blushing heavily when he saw her like that, nor did it keep her from doing the same to see him staring at her.
"N-Negi!? What are you doing here!? I thought you left!"
"I did!" Negi blurted out as he finally remembered to cover his eyes. "My flight was canceled due to the bad weather so I came back here!"
Asuna turned her gaze from the boy to the window and saw the storm outside. She then glared angrily at him and grabbed him by his ear.
"Were you out walking in that? Do you want to get pneumonia or something!?"
"I-I'm fine Asuna! Really! The walk back wasn't too bad and it was either that or staying at the airport overnight."
"Well why didn't you fly back?"
"It was getting dark and even if not for that, the storm would have made flying on my staff too dangerous." Negi explained, relieved as he felt Asuna finally let go of his ear. He rubbed the sore body part gently as he resumed heading into the bed like he had originally planned on doing.
"Hold on Negi. Where are you going?" Asuna asked, her tone still sounding like that of a stern mother.
"Um, to lie down? I'm feeling a little tired after heading all the way to the airport and back."
"You can lie down later. After being out in the snow I think it would be better if you took a bath to warm up."
Negi paled as the mention of one of his least favorite things. He would have tried to weasel his way out of it, but before he could say a word on the matter, Konoka stepped in and took Asuna's side.
"She's right Negi-kun. Otherwise you could catch cold and I don't think any of us want that. Now hurry up and go with Asuna and when you get back I'll have dinner started. I'm making homemade chicken soup for tonight. Lucky for you I was already planning on making enough for leftovers so there will be plenty to go around."
The young boy nodded and surrendered to his unwanted fate. He knew from past experiences that he would be lucky to escape Asuna when she wanted him to take a bath. But if Konoka backed her up he'd have no chance whatsoever. So instead of resisting he followed the older girl to the shared baths in the dorm that all the girls usually used. Once there Asuna stripped him down despite his protests that he could do it himself and then removed her own clothes, not at all caring that Negi would see everything. Although he did the polite thing and covered his eyes as a heavy blush came to his face yet again.
"Okay let's get you washed up and then into the water." Asuna said as she wrapped her body in a fluffy white towel, covering it up and allowing Negi to look at her again. She grabbed a clean washcloth that she had brought with her (extra soft to comply with Negi's sensitive skin and prevent any whining from him) along with some not so femininely scented body wash and shampoo (also to keep the younger boy from complaining during bath time). Negi was more than familiar with the routine by now and turned around to let the older girl begin washing his hair.
Asuna filled the wash bin she had brought with some warm water and dumped it onto the boy's head to wet his hair. Negi felt a small amount of the shampoo be squeezed out onto the top of his head and then Asuna's hands followed to lather it throughout his hair. To the young boy's surprise she was unusually gentle this time. Normally she'd claw through his locks so harshly that he often feared that all his hair would end up torn out by the roots. But this time it was so different from the usual routine that he wouldn't have believed that it was Asuna if he didn't know better. But what truly shocked him was who her gentle touch reminded him of: his older sister.
Negi quickly found his thoughts turning to his sibling. He wouldn't be seeing her; something he had truly been looking forward to for weeks. It occurred to him that she wasn't even aware that he wasn't coming home yet. She'd probably be every bit as disappointed as he was when she finally found out. Thinking of that made Negi feel more upset by the whole thing and the tears he'd been holding back finally managed to begin escaping the corners of his eyes. At first it wasn't much and he felt as though he could stop them. But trying to stop them only proved to be a futile effort and they started to flow more freely.
"What are you crying about?" Asuna asked, a little more harshly than she had intended. "I'm being as gentle as I can and I know none of the shampoo got into your eyes."
"It's not that. I just miss my sister and feel bad that she won't get to see me either this year."
"Oh, that would be something to be upset about. Sorry, I wasn't thinking."
"It's alright Asuna. Thank you anyway for your concern."
Negi then felt Asuna's arms wrap around him from behind, pulling him in for a hug. He blushed as she held him close and gently began speaking to him, her tone of voice shockingly like his older sister's whenever she spoke to him back home.
"I know how it feels to be alone at this time of year. I remember seeing other kids when I was younger, who were with their families and how happy they seemed. I was really envious and hated that I couldn't have what they had. So I can say that I understand that it can't be easy to be by yourself at any time when you're little. Even when there are people who are willing to look after you, if they aren't family; if they don't even just feel like family, you still feel alone no matter how hard they try. But you have someone that is family to you and you can't see her now that you have to stay here. It must be harder to know you have somebody to go home to and then not be able to go home."
Her words sank in and the young boy leaned back into her arms, a small smile coming to his face. He still felt upset but now it wasn't eating away at him as badly as before. What Asuna said to him seemed to ease the burden a bit. As though it was a heavy object he was carrying alone and then she had come to lend him a hand. That little boost was all that he needed to pick himself up out of his negative mood and focus on what he could do to keep trying to feel better. After all there wasn't anything he could do about it and there would always be next year to celebrate the holiday with his sister. Then again there was still the chance to go home for New Year's, he could even go tomorrow if he liked. That way he would be able to spend plenty of time with his sister even if it wouldn't be as soon as he had wanted.
"Thank you Asuna. When we're dressed again, I owe you a hug. I can finish washing myself now if that's alright."
Asuna hesitated. Negi never washed himself, at least not the right way. Asuna had tried to make him do it himself once but he only faked it to try and get out of a real bath. But to her complete surprise, Negi began to eagerly scrub himself clean. She had to take a moment to make sure that her eyes weren't playing tricks on her before she could accept the sight as a reality.
"Well look at you. If I had known it was this easy to get you to wash yourself then I'd have given you a heart-to-heart talk ages ago. Or maybe you're finally starting to grow up a little?" She joked.
"Actually I just want to get back to the room to eat dinner."
Asuna sighed; she had truly hoped that Negi was going to finally start practicing better hygiene without her checking up on him. It seemed like he'd never stop seeing bath time as a loathsome chore. But at least he was complying this time, so she wasn't going to risk discouraging him. He hurriedly finished washing himself from head to toe, Asuna allowing him some privacy while she went to wash herself up. After that they settled down into the soothingly hot water to soak for a short while and relax.
Once they were finished they dried off and redressed in some clean clothes that Asuna had also brought along. Negi provided the promised hug to the older girl and then took her hand as they walked back to their room. The smell of Konoka's cooking greeted them as they got closer and as a result they both noticed just how hungry they were. Once back inside the room they found a fully set table with bowls of hot soup and even freshly baked and sliced bread sitting in a small basket at the center of the table.
"Oh good you're back just in time." Konoka said, setting down empty glasses and a pitcher of ice water. She then noticed that Asuna had Negi's hand clasped in hers and couldn't stop herself from smiling at them. "Aw, look at you two. It's nice to see you get along."
"What's that supposed to mean Konoka? We get along." Asuna said defensively.
Realizing she still had a grip on the young boy's hand she pulled away and moved over to the table to sit down. Negi did the same and took a moment to enjoy the savory scent of the chicken soup with its rich broth and chopped vegetables. Konoka sat in her seat and smiled again at the boy.
"Feel better now Negi-kun?"
"Yes, much better. All thanks to Asuna really."
"Oh? That's a surprise. Asuna usually makes bath time miserable for you." Konoka said, giving the other girl a teasing glance.
"Ha-ha. Very funny Konoka," Asuna replied. "Is it so hard to believe I can be nice to him? You should've been there though. Negi surprised me with his first time."
Konoka's face immediately flushed. "His 'first time'? Asuna! You didn't!"
She glared harshly at the other girl, making her feel uneasy. Asuna needed a moment to understand what her friend was going on about. But once she realized her poor choice of words she ended up blushing just as much as Konoka.
"W-wait! That isn't what I meant! What I was saying is that Negi bathed himself for once!"
"Is that true Negi-kun?" Konoka asked, doubting Asuna's word, mostly due to her nervous reaction.
Negi nodded as he scooped up some soup with his spoon. "I did and Asuna seemed pretty proud of me. Why? What did you think she meant?"
"Nothing!" Both Konoka and Asuna blurted out at the same time, their faces tinted red. A moment of awkward silence passed between them while Negi continued enjoying his meal, blissfully unaware of why the two girls were acting so oddly. They resumed eating as well, Konoka giving Asuna an apologetic glance and receiving a forgiving one in turn.
Soon enough the meal was finished and the table cleared. Konoka and Negi retired to the couch while Asuna washed the dishes (only fair since Konoka cooked). And while they waited for the other girl to finish her chore and join them, Konoka put on some Christmas music to enjoy in the meantime. The festive tunes covered up the sound of running water and created a joyful atmosphere for them all to enjoy. By the time Asuna had finished her chore and joined the other two the third song had begun, an instrumental version of 'Silent Night' requested by Negi.
"Okay, now that we're all fed and comfy I think it's time for presents!" Konoka said as Asuna sat down. "I worked hard on these so I hope you both like them!"
She handed a medium size box wrapped in red paper with green ribbon to Asuna and a smaller box with blue paper and a white ribbon to Negi. The young boy tore eagerly at the wrapping and opened the plain white box inside. He found a pair of green hand-knit mittens which he tried on immediately. Konoka giggled at his childish enthusiasm and watched as Asuna finished opening her gift. Hers was a pink hand-knit scarf, perfect for her early morning paper route in the cold weather.
"It's beautiful Konoka, thank you."
"Yeah Konoka, these are great! Thank you very much!"
"You really like them? I'm so glad! I wanted to try making gifts for everybody I know this year and I admit I had some trouble getting the hang of knitting at first."
"I wouldn't have guessed." Asuna said, wrapping the scarf around her neck before getting up to get a pair of boxes both wrapped in red and green striped paper. "It's time for you two to open my gifts now. Here, this big one is for you Konoka. And here's yours Negi."
Negi removed his new mittens and tore the wrapping away finding a generously sized box of assorted chocolates. He made quick work of the plastic encasing the box and then opened it up to eye the various and tasty treats inside. The only thing that kept him from starting to eat was the simple fact that he just couldn't decide where to start.
"You are not eating all of those tonight." Asuna said, "Pick out a couple and then put them away."
"Don't worry Asuna, after that nice dinner we ate I really doubt I could eat all of these no matter how much I wanted too. It's just that they all look so yummy." Negi replied as he finally made his choice. "In fact, why don't you and Konoka each pick one out to try? It would be a shame to keep all of these for myself."
Asuna reached out to make her selection but was quickly cut off by Konoka who snatched one of the chocolates from the box and popped it into her mouth. She chewed it slowly, savoring the smooth caramel that was inside while Asuna took a piece of chocolate for herself. However she regretted her pick the moment she bit into it. An intense spiciness flared across her tongue and she had to spit the chocolate out and rush for a glass of water. She guzzled it down, barely suppressing the hot taste that had taken over her mouth.
"Why would anyone think of mixing hot chili peppers with chocolate!?" She asked as she rejoined the other two.
"Someone out there must like it I imagine." Negi said, "Here, try another one."
"I'm good, thanks. I think I lost some of my taste buds."
"You'll be fine." Konoka said as she finished opening her gift, having been delayed from watching Asuna's mad dash to the kitchen sink. "But while we're on the subject of taste. Thank you Asuna, it's so cute!"
From the box she had just unwrapped Konoka pulled out a red, long sleeve v-neck top and a knee length black skirt with a holly pattern along the hem. She stood up and walked to the bathroom with her new outfit.
"I'm trying it on right now to make sure it fits and to see how I look. No peeking Negi-kun, just because Asuna lets you see her naked doesn't mean that I will!" She said with a playful wink.
"Hey! What is that supposed to mean Konoka!?" Asuna snapped, feeling a vein throbbing in her forehead. "Sheesh, she makes it sound like I'm trying to make you look at my body. That's the type of stunt Ayaka would pull." She muttered.
"For what it's worth, I know you don't try to do that sort of thing Asuna." Negi said.
"Yeah, I know that. And I know you don't try to peek. It's just something that ends up happening over and over again. If I didn't know better I would think someone was planning it all out."
"Who's planning what out?" Konoka asked as she emerged from the bathroom in her new outfit. When the other two turned to see her she gave them a smile and turned around once to provide them with the complete view of her new look.
"You look great Konoka!" Negi said.
"No doubt," Asuna added. "You look even better in it that I thought you would!"
Konoka giggled, "Thank you both. But really, what were you two talking about just now?"
"It's nothing Konoka, just thinking out loud." Asuna answered. She looked the other girl up and down again, admiring how nice the new clothes looked on her. "Just wait until Setsuna sees you wearing that. She might not be able to stop staring at you."
"Setsuna and Konoka sitting in a tree…" Negi teasingly threw in.
"That's enough, both of you." Konoka scolded, blushing mildly from their comments. "I'm changing into my pajamas and then Negi-kun can hand out his presents."
"Um, actually I don't have anything for either of you yet. I wanted to bring back some souvenirs to give you as presents. I hope you aren't too disappointed."
Negi smiled nervously, feeling guilty for being the only one without gifts to give out to the other two. He silently wished he had known he wouldn't be able to head home so he could have gotten them something already. Thankfully Asuna placed her hand onto the top of his head, ruffling his hair playfully and putting him at ease.
"So you owe us each a gift when you get back. Just don't forget or we will be disappointed. Got it?"
Negi nodded, smiling gratefully after receiving the comforting gesture. Konoka dug through her drawers for a pair of pajamas and also got Negi's for him to change into as well.
"You'll have plenty of time to look and without all the crowds too. But don't worry too much about it right now. You just worry about enjoying tonight with us and going home tomorrow to spend Christmas day with your sister."
The moment those words left her mouth she noticed a drastic change in the expressions on the faces of the other two. Negi began looking sullen and Asuna glared at her angrily. Konoka felt a mix of guilt and confusion over the scene she had caused.
"What's wrong?"
"Maybe you forgot sometime between when we had dinner and just now," Asuna said, maintaining a calm tone, albeit with a slight edge. "But Negi can't spend Christmas with his sister. This storm is going to be getting worse and won't stop until tomorrow after sunrise. Even if he could catch the earliest flight after that he still won't be home until that night!"
"The flight takes between twelve and thirteen hours." Negi added.
Konoka began giggling at them but stifled it before either of them could question her. "Yes, I know all of that. But I think what the two of you forgot is that it's about nine or ten hours earlier than now over in England. So if it's seven at night here, then it should be about nine to ten in the morning still back there. So tomorrow morning when it's seven, it will be nine or ten at night on Christmas Eve at Negi's home in England."
The dumbstruck looks on Negi and Asuna's faces almost got Konoka giggling again. She allowed them a minute to let what had been completely obvious to her sink into their minds. And while that was occurring she took the opportunity to fetch a deck of playing cards from her desk drawer. She rejoined the other two and began shuffling the deck, a devious glint in her eyes.
"So, it seems to me that no matter what time in the morning Negi-kun catches his flight home, he may end up arriving there too early for anyone to meet him at the airport. It makes more sense for him to try and leave sometime in the afternoon. That way we can stay up all night, playing card games. Then we can sleep in late tomorrow, have a nice early Christmas brunch and then see Negi off at the airport. Sound good to everyone?"
Negi and Asuna nodded, the latter quickly realizing just what her friend had just said they would be doing for the remainder of that evening. A slight panic came to her eyes and she began to slowly reach towards the cards that Konoka was shuffling.
"Actually Konoka, instead of card games maybe we could play something else? Like charades? Or I think there are some board games we haven't played in a long time."
Konoka moved the cards into one hand and held them out of reach. "Why don't we put it to a vote? Negi-kun, would you like to play card games or something else?"
"Card games sound fine to me." The teacher answered.
Konoka smirked in triumph and returned to shuffling. Asuna sighed and looked over at the boy, an almost pitying look in her eyes.
"You're about to learn a very valuable lesson."
-X-mas-
Konoka hummed happily while sitting on the edge of her bed. She had just finished brushing her teeth and was waiting for Negi and Asuna to do the same. The three of them had played a slightly modified version of poker she had thought up. Instead of betting money in the form of poker chips, she had each of them start up with a set number of points which were anted each round. And since the points had no monetary value the winner instead got one favor (nothing immoral or indecent just to be fair) from each of the losers. For Konoka this was always a lucrative way to kill some time while having fun. Sadly the same could not be said for the other two, although Konoka would make it up to them with an extra special meal after they woke up the following morning.
Inside the bathroom Negi and Asuna finished rinsing out their mouths after having brushed their teeth. They only wished they could wash away the feeling of inferiority they had gotten after their sound defeat from Konoka's surprising poker skills.
"I can't believe I'm stuck with washing dishes, laundry and all the other cleaning chores for the next two weeks!" Asuna whined before turning to give Negi a cold stare. "I hope you'll think twice the next time Konoka asks to play cards."
"I never would have expected that she'd be so good at it! Besides you only have a few little things to worry about. I need to somehow arrange a class field trip just before summer and set Konoka in the same room alone with Setsuna."
"Wow, I wonder why she asked you to do that." Asuna said with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. She allowed herself a quick laugh at her own joke and Negi joined in as well. After that and they then went out to get into bed for some much needed rest. Seeing them emerge from the bathroom Konoka got under her covers and moved over to one side. She held up the covers and smiled sweetly at Negi.
"Negi-kun, would you like to sleep in my bed with me tonight? That way you can sleep next to someone and Asuna won't need to worry about you sneaking into her bed tonight."
The boy eagerly accepted the offer, always finding it easier to get a good night's sleep if there was someone to share the bed with. Asuna was also grateful for the idea, as it meant she would have her bed to herself for a change. They all said their goodnights and settled down in their beds, Konoka allowing Negi to snuggle up close to her as he closed his eyes.
The next two hours passed by quickly to the two, but Asuna found herself unable to sleep. She had initially drifted off for the better part of the first hour but had awoken feeling restless. Something just felt off and she couldn't put her finger on it. Without worrying about Negi wandering into her bed that night she thought she'd sleep with no trouble whatsoever. But for some strange reason she felt like she may actually miss the normally unwanted bed guest. She tried to convince herself that she was just imagining it and made another attempt at sleeping.
It was not even a full ten seconds later that she opened her eyes again and cursed herself for giving into what was Negi's habit. She climbed out of her bed and managed to sneak under Konoka's covers to join her and Negi in the same bed. Somehow sensing the new presence in his sleep, the young boy adjusted to be slightly closer to her. Asuna carefully closed the small distance between them and wrapped one arm around him, a small feeling of contentment coming to her as she realized that Negi clearly preferred her as a cuddle buddy. Now without anything left to bother her, she quickly joined the other two in blissful slumber.
-X-mas-
Negi stirred in his sleep. The pressure from his full bladder disturbing him from the dreams he'd been entertained by throughout the night. He groggily wiggled out from between the two warm bodies that had been spooning him and made his way to the bathroom. Asuna and Konoka were both inadvertently woken up as well by his movements. Asuna whined and sat up slightly, her eyes half open. Upon realizing what was going on the girl got resettled under the blanket and snuggled closer to Konoka, making the other girl giggle.
"Good morning Asuna."
"Morning Konoka."
"And just why have you been in my bed with us? Did you miss Negi-kun?" Konoka asked teasingly.
"So what if I did? Am I not allowed to be lonely sometimes? Besides, the three of us are practically a family; so there shouldn't be anything wrong with us being close."
"Aww, that's so sweet. It's like we're Negi-kun's mommies."
"More like his surrogate sisters. They way you put it makes it sound like we're a couple." Asuna said, opening one eye and smirking knowingly at her friend. "And we both know that the only person you want to call you 'mommy' is Setsuna."
Konoka blushed, a shocked look in her eyes that quickly became irritation. "How do you know about that?" She said in a harsh whisper.
"Well, you talk in your sleep. It's kind of funny really."
The brunette glared at Asuna and then smirked at her, not unlike she had just been doing. "You make it sound like I'm the only one who does that. Tell me Asuna, does this sound familiar to you? 'Ooh Takahata-sensei, stop! Your facial hair is tickling me!'"
It became Asuna's turn to blush and glare at the other girl while also hoping that Negi hadn't heard Konoka just now. He knew she had a crush on the older teacher, but that didn't mean she needed him to know what sorts of dreams she had about him. Although only a few of them were really naughty, and those ones occurred very rarely. Asuna was about to try and get Konoka back by mentioning another occasion when the girl had been talking in her sleep when Negi returned from the bathroom, still semi-asleep. He crawled back into the bed with the two girls and settled down in between them. Konoka giggled at how cute she thought he was while Asuna rolled her eyes and nudged the boy.
"Hey, it's time to get up Negi. You need to start getting ready."
The boy whined slightly and tried to borrow deeper into the blanket as well as up against Konoka. The girl held back another giggle and moved away, pulling at the blanket. Negi rolled over and hid his face in the pillow, still seeking the comfort of sleep. Konoka placed her hand on his shoulder and shook him gently.
"Wake up sleepyhead. If you don't you could end up missing your flight home."
Negi heard Konoka's words, but they didn't fully sink in until a minute later. His eyes shot open and he scrambled out of the bed. He put his glasses on, grabbed his packed travel bag from where he had left it the previous evening and then bolted out the door, still in his pajamas. The entire scene was enough to get Konoka laughing and Asuna groaning.
"For crying out loud, he didn't even put anything on his feet!"
"Why don't you go and try to stop him before he gets outside Asuna? I'll start cooking something nice for us to eat."
"I'm on it." Asuna said wearily as she got out of bed and grabbed her socks and boots to put on. "It never stops surprising me what a pain he can be."
"But you're still going to miss him while he's gone, right?"
Asuna stopped at the door. "Yeah, I'll miss him. Kind of hate to admit it out loud, but I will." she said before running out after the boy and hoping he hadn't gotten out into the snow yet. Konoka smiled to herself and got up to begin cooking a nice brunch for them to enjoy before seeing Negi off. She was glad that he was still going to get to spend Christmas with his family back home. But in a small way she was also a little glad that he hadn't been able to leave as soon as he had originally planned. Otherwise she Asuna and Negi wouldn't have been able to spend Christmas Eve together. It may not have been a large, extravagant affair with all of their other friends involved, but it was still a fond memory that they could all cherish. A cherished memory of a time when they were all together as a family in the little place that they called home.
End.
okay so the ending seems a little weak and cheesy, but endings have always been a bit tricky for me when it comes to one-shots. hopefully it won't take too much away from the rest of the story's quality, whatever it may considered to be. please R&R and happy holidays to all, regardless of which one(s) you celebrate!