Merry Christmas
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It had all began when Rukia asked him what Christmas was.
Ichigo, not wanting to delve into the religious aspect of it, deciding it would confuse her, simply called it a time in winter when people celebrated, gave each other presents, put up lights and decorated trees.
Rukia was fascinated. There was nothing like Christmas in Soul Society.
So when her first Christmas rolled around, she was very excited. She had her present all ready for Ichigo a whole week before; a pocketknife complete with screwdriver, compass, and scissors, as well as a dedicated card (hand-drawn, with chappy bunnies) and a small book on Shakespeare. Outside, lights were twinkling in rainbow colors all over Karakura. She saw people everywhere with santa hats and yards with blown-up snowmen, or heard jaunty music wafting from shops and people's homes. The recent snow made it even better, giving the whole neighbourhood a pale glow.
It truly fascinated her. Five days before Christmas day, she begged and annoyed Ichigo to the best of her talents to go out on night walks and look at the neighbours' decorations. Grudgingly, he would agree, secretly pleased that she loved the event so much. She thought Christmas was a very pretty thing, with all the shiny lights in so many colors. That was her favorite part.
No, wait - it wasn't. More than anything, she loved decorating the Christmas tree.
Four days before Christmas, Isshin brought in a huge pine tree (he chose it so large only because he wanted to place a substantial picture of Masaki at the very top), dug out the old boxes of Christmas decorations, and left Ichigo and Rukia to decorate it together (he called it "bonding").
From the moment she opened the first box of decorations, her face lit up.
Ichigo couldn't help but smile.
"No, Rukia," he said. "We have to put the lights on first."
So they wrapped the lights around the tree together, eventually needing to grab a chair for Rukia to reach the higher branches. Plugging in the cord made the tree come to life with multitudes of bright colors, ruby red and sweet pink, fresh yellow, warm white, blues and greens and cool violet. Ichigo noticed how the lights were reflected in her widened eyes, giving them shimmering spectrums.
"It's amazing, Ichigo!" she exclaimed.
"Wait until the decorations go on," he said, grinning.
So then at last came the first decoration. Taking the ornaments out of the boxes was like unwrapping presents, all on its own. It had that special joy to it, that feeling of familiarity and gladness to see them again. One year is a long while; long enough to make you feel good to see the old decorations again.
The first one Rukia drew out was a glass candy-cane.
Rukia recognized it from wandering around the stores. "Isn't it a kind of candy?"
"Yup."
"Can this be eaten?"
"Baka. It's glass."
"...Oh."
"Here, let me put it up near the top."
Next she took out a bundle of white paper, and dug through it, the paper crackling like small fires as she searched for the decoration inside. At last she managed to find the small ornament; a reindeer carved carefully out of wood and painted just as carefully.
Rukia was delighted. Perhaps she saw the resemblance to a Chappy, it being an animal and all. She hung it herself, on a lower bough.
So continued the decorating as Rukia brought out strange bearded men in red (Ichigo called them Santas), angels ("Do they fly with those tiny wings?"), bells, candles, stars, shiny orbs ("I can see myself!"), and snowflakes. When she found a realistic, plastic apple, she actually asked why it wasn't rotten after being in there for a year, and made Ichigo fall into a fit of chuckles.
Last of all she took a snowman, made of glass in a wire frame. Its face had a daring grin, eyebrows down and smile wide. She looked at its face, looked at Ichigo, and burst out laughing.
"What?" he asked, annoyed.
"It's you!" she managed to get out. "It's Ichigo!"
Ichigo snorted and rolled his eyes as she, still giggling, hung the snowman right beside the reindeer.
"See," she said happily, "that's you, and that's me. Isn't it cute?"
He watched, silent, as she adjusted their positions to fit them more snugly into the tree - and then had them touching. Giving a satisfied nod, she skipped over to the pile of boxes and lids and searched for something else to put on the tree. Ichigo heard her distantly say "oh, there's no more" as he stared at the snowman and the reindeer.
What's she thinking? he thought, exasperated, and moved to pull them apart a little bit, but stopped. She had looked so happy.
He left it.
Rukia skipped back over and without a word plunked a huge Santa hat right on his head. He spluttered with irritation but was at last forced to put it on with Rukia's startling strength.
"Geez, Rukia..."
"Everyone's wearing these hats," she declared. "Now we're wearing them too." Eagerly she grabbed his hands and held them, her smile a radiant glow in the dim room.
"Turn on the tree, Ichigo," she ordered, distracting him from her hands.
"Oh - oh, right."
The sullen room immediately felt festive and bright as the tree and its residents sparkled to life.
They watched the tree for a while, simply enjoying its beauty as they sat side by side. Rukia still clutched one of Ichigo's hands. He glanced at her and saw her smile falter.
"The War isn't over..." she murmured.
He set his jaw. "Don't, Rukia. Not now..."
Reaching over, he hugged her gently and quickly. "Right now, there's no war. There's only us and the tree."
She was not really startled by his embrace. It was comforting, rather, and pleasant. It seemed so natural to be this close, to be by his side. As always.
"Ichigo?"
"Yeah?"
"You know how you told me how every Christmas you kind of make a wish? Just for yourself?"
"Yeah... It's nothing traditional or set or anything. I just do it... 'cause..."
"I have one. It's a little early."
The smile returned to her face, as bright and beautiful as ever, and as she gazed into his face she said,
"I wish that we can always be side by side."
A pause.
"Baka... You don't have to wish for that."
-
"Merry Christmas, Ichigo."
"Merry Christmas, Rukia."
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