SUMMARY:

It's been three years since magically-still-seventeen-year-old Tsukiyomi Ikuto returned to Japan, and he's at wit's end trying to convince the love of his life that he really is in love with her, and not that he's just a friend pulling the same old joke. Meanwhile, Kukai bets Utau that she can't get to know him- and she never backs down from a bet- Nagihiko is carefully avoiding Rima for whatever reason, Tadase is holed up in his house with no visitors allowed, and Kairi returns with a whole load of surprises from Yaya. Growing up and falling in love are never easy, but the facts have to be faced sooner or later. This Christmas may be the last one they all have together.

So Far

Chapter 1

Rude Awakening

King, Queen, Jack, Ace. Joker.

Humpty Lock. Dumpty Key.

Maybe these roles have been recycled repeatedly, and maybe their destinies have been fulfilled. But what ties have been formed in that process? Stars never cease to cross, after all, and friendships are never perfect. Love is never perfect. Life is never perfect.

Christmas is a time for warmth, for human closeness against the world's cold nature. The children that once played those roles are growing up. Fates are intertwining, falling.

I watched them as they laughed in the snow years ago, and I watch them now, seemingly inseparable. I watch their stars, too. I anticipate their journeys.

Amu

You'd think that after three years, you'd get used to it.

And, you know, maybe I would have, had he done it consistently. But nope. That wasn't the case. Maybe he was doing it this way to mess with my head, but Ikuto only slept in my bed when he felt like it. There was no pattern. There was no warning. It always ended up like this.

"GAH!"

Insert thud as my butt hits the hardwood floor.

"Hmmm…?"

Insert rustle as sheets are tugged from my arms and back into the bed.

"Ikuto!"

Insert louder thud as said pervert's side hits the ground beside me, blankets and all.

"Ah. Crap."

Insert hissing inhalation as Ikuto lifts a heavy lid to give me an accusing glare, as if he didn't have this coming.

"Are you kidding me," was all I could muster without getting too loud again. Mom may have known about Ikuto's irregular visits- she wasn't stupid, after all- but we were 200% sure that Dad couldn't handle the truth. Mom had already covered a few incidents for me, but she was a terrible liar, and Dad's ignorance was fading away with each stutter in her explanations.

"As a matter of fact, I'm not," came Ikuto's reply. Whatever that meant.

"Look," I hissed, "Sleeping my bed was a little more explanatory when I was a flat-chested little girl. There would be questions, at least. Questions that we could correct. Now, however, if my Dad or Ami were to come in asking where I put the remote, or why I'm still on my laptop, they will see a teenaged boy in a teenaged girl's bed. No questions will be asked. I will be grounded until death. You will be arrested at best, and drowned in a pool of your blood and Dad's tears at worst. Understand?"

Ikuto stuck out a lazy tongue at me. "It's cold at my place," he said. "And lonely."

I flicked him in the forehead as hard as I could. He grunted and rubbed his abused skull, but I knew it wasn't enough to really hurt him. Just enough to prove a point.

"Sleep with your sister for all I care."

I stood and yanked the covers from under him. He toppled forward, inciting a satisfied snort from me.

"I'm sure she'd appreciate that," he muttered, gathering himself.

I made a noise of disgust and kicked him over again. "I was joking, pervert. Jeez. Utau's not that creepy at all."

"I was joking too, little girl," he shot back. "So dumb you can't even realize that."

I waved my bare foot in his face and set to making my bed. There was a quiet squeak as he plopped down into my desk chair, propping his feet onto the foot of my bed. It was, thankfully, already made.

I tucked the last corners into place and turned to him, my gaze level and cool. He looked up from one of my manga and stared right back.

"What?" he asked, flatly, after a long while of this.

"I'm going to change," I said carefully.

"And?"

I spat it out. "If you follow me into the bathroom for the fifth time, pervert, I'm calling up my dad. Understood?"

Ikuto rolled his eyes and snorted, a familiar, endearing smile accompanying the otherwise sarcastic gesture.

I grinned back.

You see, the thing about Ikuto and I was that we had a game. In this game, we insulted one another, he sexually harassed/ teased me, and I yelled/ hit him in return. To us, this was code for You're my best friend and I have no idea what I would do without you. A bit unorthodox, but true.

I sighed and shrugged on a pink oversized sweater Nagi had gotten me for my birthday a few months back, as well as my favorite black leggings and a soft pair of faux fur boots. I started to slip my mass of strawberry pink into a sloppy bun, but six tiny hands beat me to it.

"Ah- morning, guys." I smiled in the mirror as my Shugo Chara collectively returned the greeting.

Ran pushed my calves, which were now muscular and tight, thanks to her insistence upon me exercising. "Aw," she whined, "These'll all go to jello by the end of this month! All of this candy and cold weather…...can't you restrain yourself, Amu-chan?!"

"Nope," I answered gleefully. We'd all agreed that, while I had no natural talents, I could work at culinary arts, fine arts, and sports until I was as good as I was in my Character Changes. I was almost there, they said, with each of my fields. This didn't stop me from taking breaks.

"You're so lazy." Miki secured my hairstyle. It looked flawless, thanks to her. She smirked at me in the mirror. "I don't know what you'd do without us, Amu-chan. Too clumsy, too lazy, too airheaded to get by as a normal person."

"Oh, shut up." I stuck my tongue out at her reflection; she did likewise.

"By the way," Su began softly, "are you going to tell them anytime soon? About, um….. "

I frowned instantly. Ran stopped smacking my legs, and Miki gave Su a shocked stare.

"Uh, yeah." I couldn't look at anything but my toes. "I have to anyway, don't I? Just…..not today."

I closed my eyes; I didn't want to see anything now.

I felt tiny hands pat my temples. Someone hugged my cheek, and someone else cuddled into my neck. I smiled at their attempts to comfort me and stroked each of their backs with my index fingers. "It's fine," I assured them. "We'll all be fine. "We have two weeks."

"It's not enough," Ran sighed.

"It has to be," I reminded her.

Ikuto tugged at loose strands of my hair, curled up on his side while I was flat on my back, reading articles on my phone.

"Hey," I said.

"Hmm?"

I tried to conceal my grin. "This article says that cat DNA is being bred with human's DNA as an experiment. Think you'll have a new playmate?"

Ikuto was quiet for a while. I giggled, ignoring the sighs of my Charas (and maybe Yoru, who could have been asleep at that moment, for all I knew). Poking fun at Ikuto's feline characteristics was another part of our game. It was mostly for my entertainment, though.

My full-out guffaws, however, were ceased as soon as I found Ikuto over me, pinning my hands to the comforter. Crap.

"The only playmate I need is right here," he returned. "And proving it would be a cinch."

"Pervert," I muttered. He smirked and smoothly rolled back onto his side, releasing my hands and securing my hair once more. Somehow, he always managed to win. If he felt up to it, that is.

Just as I reached to picked up my poor, halfway-discarded phone, it began to buzz. A golden-eyed boy with beautifully long hair appeared on the screen, and I pressed the phone to my ear with a ready smile. "Nagi!"

"Morning, Amu," he greeted. "Just calling to invite you over to the local cafe. We'll all be hanging around there today, and you and Ikuto-kun can come around any time you choose. Or...are you guys busy?"

I felt my face redden at the suspicious undertone in Nagi's voice. "We're perfectly free, Nagihiko," I spat with extra malice. He barely contained a laugh; I rolled my eyes and pulled away from the phone.

"Ikuto."

"Hmm?" he asked absently.

"Are you up for going out with everyone?"

"Sure." I could hear the faint smile in his words, and I grinned, too. Ikuto had been welcomed back to Japan with the former Guardian's open arms, an amazing sight I thought I'd never see. My friends were now his friends. He wasn't the outcast anymore.

Mostly, though, I knew he wanted to see Tadase and Kukai. The three of them could spend hours together doing God knows what. Kukai and Ikuto were specifically close, but he had a connection to Tadase that he had to no one else. Tadase was always the first to know anything about Ikuto; to be honest, I was beginning to get jealous.

I sat up, Ikuto's fingers falling from my hair, and put the phone to my ear again. "Yeah, we'll come, Nagi. Should we walk?"

"Kukai's already in his truck," Nagi said. "He'll be by your house in just a second."

I nodded. "Kay. See you then." I turned to Ikuto. "Kukai's picking us up," I said.

He sighed, knowing what he had to do, and stood. "Yoru."

Ikuto's Chara was by his side in a few seconds, yawning and rubbing his teary golden eyes. "MMmmm, morning, everyone-nya."

We all gave a soft, collective greeting in return. Yoru dropped into the crook of Ikuto's neck and began to snore again. Ikuto smiled softly at him and closed his own eyes for a moment. Two large, sleek cat ears appeared atop his head, accompanied by a long indigo tail. He waved a hand in temporary departing and hopped out of my window with a grace that never failed to awe me.

I stared after him for a while before finally closing the window and turning to leave.

Ikuto

I love Amu. I love her, and I love everything about her, from her sweet scent to her multiple quirks to her selfless instincts. The problem wasn't telling her, either. It was too easy to tell her; I could mix a confession in with normal dialogue. The problem was getting her to believe me.

I wasn't sure if she was in denial, or if she was just that dense. I would see her flushing bright red and staring at both Souma and Tadase, so it wasn't as though she felt that she wasn't ready for all of this. I'd told her- over and over and over, but all she did was hit me and claim that I was teasing her again. I didn't want to argue over it, but I'd have to get it through to her head somehow. Before it was too late.

So many people joke about the friendzone, but I may have been in such a place of frustration. Let me tell you: it sucks. I've been through worse, but it sucks. And, as unhealthy as it might be, I needed Amu to see me the way I saw her. I couldn't think about it too much without getting restless. I'd already gone a few weeks without eat or sleep in the past, just waiting for her to notice me. I wasn't sure how much longer I could last.

I leaned against the side of her house, rubbing my shoulders. I was tired of getting sick all of the time, but I guess I couldn't help it. I had a bad immune system, especially in the winter. Amu tended to wake up to a surprise almost daily this time of year. If it wasn't Amu, it was my family complaining about the temperatures in our house and my sleeping in the living room with the TV on. Naturally, I preferred curling up against a cute girl than staring bleary-eyed at my scowling mother and cold-faced father, so the choice was usually obvious.

Speaking of family and Amu, I had yet to get them gifts. It wasn't like I had a job, and I didn't want to ask Kukai or Tadase for anything, so money was a problem. I guessed that inexpensive, meaningful gifts were enough, but I'd have trouble getting something for Amu that way. Not that she'd care, but I really wanted to get her something. Her birthday and Christmas were the only times that I could repay her for everything she did for me, day in and day out. Perpetually saving me from the deepest chasms, even now. She made me feel like I was worth something. I never did enough for her.

But as for my family...Dad was into baking, ignoring how many fires he'd started burning pastries, so a cheap cookbook or an apron would do. Orchestra-related tools might have been more appropriate, but those were ridiculously expensive, so they were out. Mom would appreciate books, or a bath set, or maybe some new sheet music for her piano. Sheet music, I decided. And, while Utau always claimed that my presence was enough for her, I knew that she appreciated gifts, too. I could get her a new scarf, or a necklace. Or, even better, a hoodie. She'd been more into being comfortable than fashionable lately, I'd noticed.

Kukai would probably want a new pair of sneakers, which I'd been saving up for. I'd been working on a new song for Tadase, as it seemed that he loved to hear me play my violin. But Amu was the kicker; I had no idea what to get her or how to get it.

I shrugged and stepped forward as Souma's truck pulled into the front. He honked once, and Amu came sprinting out of the front door. Maybe it would come to me in the form of a Christmas miracle.

Amu

The ride was short and full of Kukai's voice, but I was only too happy to be squished between the boys and directly in front of the heater. Ikuto stared out of the window, but both Kukai and I knew he was listening.

Kukai parked near the door of the cafe; Ikuto held the door open for me before tousling my hair and jogging over to the copper-headed jock.

I walked in after them, easily spotting my friends in the corner. Luckily, we were quiet, but I suspected that that could be attributed to Nagihiko's deadly calm authority over us all. Even then, Yaya could be seen teasing Utau from across the table, Rima gripping Utau's arm to keep her from standing up. I sighed, marveling at how little and how largely we'd all changed, and snagged the edge of Ikuto's sleeve to follow him to our table.

I knew even before that day that things wouldn't be the same, but it still surprised me when it all changed. We all have to grow up sometime, I guess.

A/N: Hey, all. This is quite late, as Christmas was yesterday, but I felt I needed to do this ASAP.

This is indeed a revised version of No Mistletoe Needed. Art-x-Soul, if you're reading this, don't worry. Christmas Tree Scene isn't going anywhere. ;)

To newcomers, don't worry about reading another fic to catch up. To past readers, I'm sorry about this, and I hope that you enjoy this fic just as much or even more.

Things that are different:

Amu won't be shouting HENTAI every other sentence. It gets tedious to write, guys, and she's sixteen now. I'll bet even she's tired of screaming 'pervert' to the heavens every chance she gets.

Same thing goes for blushing. It seems to me that Ikuto harassed her so often as a way of consoling himself about how young and immature she was; he probably won't do so as often. Amu is an easy blusher, however, so it's not like she'll be immune to the charms of moe that I'll be slapping her in the face with.

The story will be focused on Amuto, but other pairings will get almost as much story. Kutau is the second biggest story, followed by Rimahiko and then slight Yairi.

This will be less of a comedy, though I'll try and mix a bit of that in, anyway. I'm not too funny, but it seemed to work last time, so.

I want this story to have a clear direction. I've planned a lot, and I got a new laptop for Christmas, so things should go faster. At least, I hope they do. Don't hold me to it.

Amu and Ikuto's relationship isn't as undefined, now that he's spending more time with her, but he's still a clear romantic interest.

I'm taking a Japanese class, so I may be a bit of a show-off in culture.

Amu doesn't have a crush on Kukai like she did in NMN, but she does have feelings for Tadase.

Ikuto's teenage status will be explained, for you newcomers. Just take note of how kind he is to Yoru nowadays. ;)

So thanks, guys, and I'd like your opinions: TO CHAT OR NOT TO CHAT?

August: I say chat.

Me: I think you're missing the point.

Review, flame, kiss up to me, do whatevs, friends. Just give me feedback. Thanks. :)