Tales of Yuletide

Genre: General

Pairing: Dhaos x Chester

Warnings: None

Rating: T

Disclaimer: Tales of Phantasia © Namco

Summary: Dhaos shares more than a 'human holiday' with Chester.

Author's Note: It's Christmas! I should do something to celebrate the occasion! Thus, I figured a nice Dhaos x Chester story was in order. Hehe! Short fic, somewhat drabble-ish.

This fan fiction is dedicated to my dear friend, Nari. For it is Christmas, and I hope you will not feel sorrow encase you this time of year… May you find solstice in your strong friendships through times of despair. Many prayers for you to find internal happiness!

It was the twenty-fourth of December. To Dhaos, it was merely another day to pass, and another day his people would have to wait for the Yggdrasill tree to produce a mana seed. He woke that morning as he did every morning, and slipped into his form-fitting black clothing and bright cloak, just as any morning. He wandered down to the great hall, where Chester usually waited for him, in front of a massive sized fireplace, gazing at the twirling wisps of gold and red.

But Chester wasn't there, unlike every other morning, and in his place, was a single white envelope with writing far less orderly than Dhaos'. The demon lord picked it up, removing the stiff parchment from within the papery confinement and began to read the text to himself.

'To Dhaos, who I assume has found this letter by now.' It began, and Dhaos nearly chuckled in amusement. If his bluebird has time to write such things, chances are he wouldn't be any great trouble. 'I will be out for a greater part of the day. I'll explain when I get back. If you need me, follow the footprints. Why? It snowed last night! Ah… I'm straying from the point... I'll be back soon! –Chester.'

Dhaos raised one slender brow in confusion. What could his archer possibly be doing outside at this time? He doubted he'd be rolling in the snow like a child would. Generally, Dhaos preferred to stay out of the cold. It was far too troublesome. Without sparing another thought, he set the quickly scrawled letter onto the table, and left to continue waiting for the mana seed to grow.

THUNK… THUNK… THUNK!

For once, the sound wasn't that of well crafted arrows hitting wood. Gloved hands grasped the wooden ax handle even harder as he hurled the razor blade into the rough bark, sending scraps of wood and bark flying into the air. A deep groove in the tree had been created on the other side. Chester paused for a second to wipe a bead of sweat off his forehead, then resumed hacking away at the tree trunk.

When at last, Chester heard a satisfying creaking, he gave the tree a mighty kick above the freshly cut groove, and a merry 'TIMBER' rang in the air. Snowflakes flew back into the air as the mighty pine hit the ground, and the low thud of the fall resonated in the crisp winter air.

Dhaos could have sworn he had heard something large plummet to the ground. The growing flock of birds flying in the air certainly added to his suspicions. Then again, he recalled Chester was going to be out for a while, so he put two and two together, reasoning that Chester was probably behind this thing. With a sigh, he sat back down a familiar worn book resting in his hands. Nothing Chester does can be irreversible… Except perhaps his accidental falling for the blue headed archer…

Jagged saw teeth bit mercilessly into the roughly cut tree trunk, removing the near pointed end, and reducing it to a fine flat surface. When Chester was satisfied with the product, he tied a rope to the trunk near the bristly pale green boughs, and proceeded to drag the fruit of his efforts home. Yes, home.

He whistled a tune, the soft crunching of his dull blue boots on freshly fallen snow fell into beat. The pine needles brushed the white power to the sides, leaving a broad mark wherever it went. When the stone strong hold has come into sight, Chester broke out into a mad dash, the cut tree following close behind him.

He made sure to get as much snow off of himself and the pine branches before passing the thresh hold. From his pocket, he pulled out two finely wrought Derris Emblems, and pinned one to the breast of his coat, the other to the coarse tree bark. Though it was, technically, safe to cross over the seal, the archer nimbly side stepped around the glowing orange markings on the floor. The tree followed as usual.

Something crossed over the seal. One was relatively human sized, which Dhaos knew was Chester. The other was… huge, and had very little mana of its own. Being a demon lord, and apparently quite a fine spell caster, the lack of mana in the second figure piqued his interest, and lead the blonde down into the Grand hall.

Confusion screened his expression as he stumbled upon Chester climbing into the boughs of the massive pine tree, akin to a squirrel; Which Dhaos did admit was quite…Charming…; and placing a shining gold star at the very tip of the tree. Several long strings of what seemed like silver and gold fuzz were wrapped around the boughs, winding back and forth. A box of pine cones and small red balls lay forgotten beside the tree. "What are you doing?" He asked, not bothering to mask the utter perplexity in his voice.

"Oh, hello Dhaos!" He said, just as merrily as he had been an hour ago. Chester leapt out of the tree and landed gracefully before the demon lord.

"Why are you strangling the tree?"

"Strangling? What? Ah, that tree?" Chester chuckled fondly. "I'm decorating it. It's supposed to be a Christmas tree. It IS Christmas tomorrow, you know…"

The confusion never left Dhaos' visage. Words that Chester said ran right over him like a swift river. "… Christmas?" He managed to ask, sitting down in a chair. He sensed a long discussion coming up…

"…You never heard of Christmas?" Chester nearly shouted. How could anyone not know of the most famous holiday in Aselia? In any case, Dhaos nodded once, motioning with his half gloved hands for him to continue. "Well… It's a human holiday, where people gather with their family and friends to celebrate… And they bring up a tree – Like this one – And they decorate it together. It's for the presents to go under."

"Why?" Such a simple question Dhaos didn't even imagine could come out of his mouth. It seemed to him like folly to cut down a perfectly good tree just so people could put a bunch of presents under it…

"… You know, I'm starting to get the feeling you never celebrated anything resembling Christmas either…" Chester sighed, almost exasperatedly. He sat down on his hunches to pick up a stray red glass ball from the ground. Short strands of wire had been attached through a loop at the top, as well as the top of each pine cone. "Well, I suppose I'll explain in a moment. Help me put these up, would you?" He suggested, poking the loop of wire around the tip of a bough. Dhaos rose and did the same on the other side. And so it went on, until the box was relieved of all its contents, and the tree was a standing festive treasure.

"Now, back to what I was saying. Christmas is a very special holiday people celebrate with their families and friends. A popular thing to do is to exchange cards with good tidings for a 'Merry Christmas' or for them to have a 'Happy New Year'." Chester explained, retrieving a wrapped box from the far end of the room. The blond demon lord couldn't figure out how he had missed such a large package when he first entered the room that morning.

"People also exchange gifts to show their affection for the receiving person. Mind you, the gift isn't exactly what shows their love, but the fact that when went out of their time to find something special for their loved ones." Chester said, grinning. He placed the gift under the bushy green branches and stepped away. "They place it under the Christmas tree and don't open them until next morning. These two days, Christmas Eve and Christmas are mostly occupied by partying. People getting together and dance or have fun. You know." Dhaos rolled his eyes.

"Sometimes people go caroling, singing festive songs in public, and VERY OFTEN…. They have one of these." A small sprig of green and white tied together with a red ribbon was produced from the depths of Chester's coat pocket. "These are hung on ceilings when there's a party. Couples caught under mistletoe have to… Kiss each other." Chest could have sworn he saw Dhaos smirk, though if he did; it was gone as fast as it appeared. "Other then that, there are just many stories and feasts with Christmas." Chester ended quickly, feeling eyes bore into his head. "Err… I have to get the rest of the decorations. See you later Dhaos." He excused, running out of the room.

Dhaos eyed the small green and white sprig that was left on the table, and a grinned. This proved to be interesting. With soft steps he left the room, taking the plant with him. He'd have plans for tomorrow… He needed to find a suitable present for his archer.

That night, as Chester left to sleep, he surveyed his work with glee. The halls were lines with wreaths, and the strange red plants Dhaos kept around proved to come in handy. Bells were hung wherever they could, and ribbons line a few of the door ways. (In truth, Chester had taken to tying one send of several ribbons to a torch holder, and the other send to an arrow… The rest was self explanatory…)

As he entered his room, looking far more welcome than when he first came, he dropped off a pine cone for the growing green moss in the dusty corner of his room. It gurgled some sort of good night and Chester grinned. He'd long come to accept the peculiar growth as a sort of an exotic pet, and ignored the obvious eccentricities.

Wood was gathered for the miniature bonfire in Chester's well worn fire place. He changed out of his usual archer gear into suitable night clothes climbed into bed. A good day's worth of labour had the archer desperately searching for sleep. When he pulled the warm quits around him, his eyes slowly blacked out, and wonderful, blissful rest came unto him.

'Where am I?' He thought, rubbing at his eyes. He was pretty sure he didn't usually glow. 'A…Dream?'

His vision became white, and images of Totus came into mind. There was the stone building of the Alvein Swordsman Academy, and south of that the home he shared with Amy… Snow blanked every corner of the town, making the peaceful atmosphere desirable.

"Come on Chester! We're wasting time! Christmas is only once a year you know!"

The voice. So familiar. Chester swung around to see Cless, clad in his traditional armour and a thick woolen cloak. He was smiling at a blue archer shivering as he approached him. Chester did a double take. It was Christmas day… A year ago. He spent it with Ami, Cless and his family…

"It's cold, Cless…"

"Well, of course it's cold. It's winter…"

"… We'd better wait for Amy."

From the blue, a snow ball was born and flung at the shivering archer, who yelped and quickly recoiled. A mischievous grin donned his face, and two snow balls were thrown at Cless with the deadly accuracy only an archer could possess.

"ARGH!" Then the two broke out in laughter. Chest couldn't help but grin sadly at the scene. It seemed like only yesterday they were fooling around in Totus, as free as ever. He's exchange gifts with Amy and Cless' family. Then they'd have a wonderful feast together, and all would be fine… But Cless wasn't around anymore. And Totus was burned down. All he had left… Was Dhaos.

Suddenly, and image of the said blonde appeared, and the snowy background faded to a stony grey. Dhaos was rummaging through the great storehouse. Chester didn't know what he was doing, but then again, if he didn't know, there was a good chance he would never want to know either. So he left the scene by sheer will alone, and commanded his mind NOT to allow him to wander off into dream, while he rested himself for Christmas day.

It was the twenty-fifth of December. To Chester, it meant a great deal of joy, laughter, presents, and awkward situations from his past experiences. The faint scent of food wafted into his chamber, luring him out of bed. He followed the aroma, all while shrugging on his tunic over his white shirts. He had just finished securing the brown tie over his stomach, now fully dressed, when he was met by the sight of Dhaos whipping off his gloved hands on a towel. One end of the stone table was ladled with food, enough for two. Dhaos looked as if he knew nothing of it.

"How did…." Chester mumbled, doing a rather impressive imitation of a gold fish. Dhaos gave him his usual 'I win' grin. Chester unwillingly thought back to the first day he was here, and how food somehow miraculously appeared whenever he woke. "You didn't."

"I did. I lived alone for over a century if you have forgotten." Dhaos remarked, pulling up two tall backed chairs. "Let's begin."

Chester hadn't felt so warm, or so full for the matter, since that one Christmas a year ago. He stood up with a satisfied sigh and started to pick up a plate before Dhaos motioned for him to leave it. "What did you say was next, my bluebird...?" He asked, walking towards the decorated pine tree.

The archer had to smirk. "Presents." He said almost gleefully. He remembered a distant day when both he and Cless were but young children, running to the tree to harvest the year's worth of Christmas presents. Though this year there was one each, it was just as merry… No. Chester squinted. There were two of them… Yet three wrapped gifts lay under the tree. "Don't ask. Just open." Dhaos insisted, noticing that Chester was eyeing two rather poorly wrapped packages. Perhaps gift wrapping was a skill best left to humans.

Both men picked up their respective gifts, nodded their thanks, and proceeded to claw away at the thin ornate paper. Not knowing what to give to a demon lord who could travel back to time, and only desired a mana seed to save his people, Chester decided to get him another novel he found hidden away in a cardboard box in the dungeons. Dhaos, being equally perplexed as he wouldn't know what to give to a human who's celebrated Christmas many times before, decided to hand him a sturdy bow he found collecting dust in the armoury and polished it.

…Which left the oddly wrapped, flimsy looking parcel still sitting on the floor under the protective pine boughs. Chester shrugged and swooped down to grab it. It was wrapped in plain brown paper, and tied together with old twine. Chester pulled at the loose end, and the entire package came apart. A white silken scarf fell from his grasps, though Dhaos managed to snatch it before it touched the ground.

Chester marveled at how soft it was. But he heard of how strong silk could be. The long winding cloth was placed around Chester's neck. Dhaos pulled on the feathery light fabric and Chester came barreling into his chest. "D-Dhaos…." He mumbled, feeling his cheeks warm up. He'd come to know in the past four months that Dhaos, despite his cold, calm appearance, could be quite affectionate… And just as equally playful as any other person.

"My bluebird… Look up." Dhaos whispered, tilting the blue headed archer's face up with a finger under his chin. Chester's iron blue eyes widened, as his gaze fell on a small spring of white and green. "How convenient…" Dhaos chuckled, thought a sparkle in his eye told Chester he was responsible for putting it up there. The ex-Totus man narrowed his eyes, remembering that he'd left the plant on the table when he made his hasty escape the day before. Ah dammit.

"Dhaos, we… We can't…"

"Why not, my blue bird? No one's around to see… Even you yourself said couples caught under the mistletoe are forced to kiss. Are we not couples?"

"Well, yes, but –"

His protests were silence by warm lips over his own. The iron blue eyes were gazed over, giving it a misty grey tint. A soft groan sounded from deep down his throat as Dhaos pulled him closer, into his passionate embrace. The scarf around his neck was forgotten, and left dangling around his neck. Dhaos ran his tongue over Chester's lips, plunging back into the cavernous depths. The muffled groans grew longer, and more heart felt. Chester felt himself melt. It wasn't long before he wrapped his around Dhaos' torso, lacing his fingers together behind the taller male's back.

When Dhaos broke the kiss, Chester looked breathless, and blood rushed to his cheeks, painting them rosy red. His flustered look intrigued Dhaos more then ever. "Dhaos…" Chester said his voice slightly raspy from his heightened senses.

"Yes, my little bluebird...?"

"…Let's do that again…"

He grinned and relented, tipping his head downwards as Chester tilted his upwards to meet Dhaos' lips half way. When Dhaos demanded entrance, Chester gladly allowed him in, taking the opportunity to burst into the blonde's mouth. The kiss was vehement, both struggling to gain control of their desires. But soon they found it futile, and gave in. Every small twitch of muscle sent the other one into heaven. Dhaos slipped one hand around the back of Chester's head, stroking the long locks of cloudy sky blue. The tasted each other one last time before the need for oxygen broke them apart.

"Dear Martel, you're amazing…" Chester mumbled, settling into the comfort of Dhaos' strong arms.

"As are you, my bluebird." Dhaos stated voice slightly breathless. He gave the scarf a slight tug and set his face into the crook of Chester's neck. "We could stay like this… Forever… Or…"

"Forever's a long time Dhaos."

"Not nearly long enough with you."

"Point taken. Love you too."

"As I said, or we can go to my room, and we can play a game. We'll even use your new scarf."

"Ah… Sounds amusing."

"Quite."

"…What are we waiting for then? I'll keep score." Chester agreed, smiling knowingly. Dhaos returned the gesture, one arm creeping around Chester's not-as-broad shoulders. The two walked down the hall, sharing one another's embrace.

Chester was right, or so Dhaos thought went be surveyed the archer's still form waiting for him to hurry up and stop fumbling with the long scarf. The mildly irked face of his archer made him smile softly, though against his will. Christmas was an amazing holiday, even if it was a human one. It was even better with close friends to spend it with, and simply amazing gifts exchanged between friends. He couldn't possibly ask for a better gift then Chester for Christmas.

"Dhaos, hurry up. It's cold."

"My apologies, love. Just thinking."

"It's good to try new things, but please keep you thoughts brief... You wouldn't want to hurt yourself."

"Ah. Merry Christmas, bluebird."

-End-