I do not own any of these characters, they are all owned and created by the people at Square Enix the creators of the Final Fantasy series.
A/N Merry Christmas everyone! The Christmas Wreath has been listed in my upcoming titles for a few weeks now, so I am very happy to present you with my first Christmas and Final Fantasy fanfic. I am collaborating with PierceTheVeils and her team of cowriters to write Ace Attorney Investigations Miles Edgeworth: End Of An Era you can read that story on PierceTheVeils, page.
Now Let The Story Commence
The Christmas Wreath
"Lightning, where are all of your Christmas decorations? Christmas is only a week away and you don't even have a Christmas tree." Serah Ferron said after absorbing Lightning's living room. She could not believe that sister didn't even have Christmas tree.
"I've been really busy with work, so when I have been home, I just have not wanted to take the time decorate." Lightning replied. Looking around the room though, she could not help but think maybe her sister had a point. The living room at least could use some Christmas decorations.
"But Lightning, it's Christmas. Don't you remember how much fun we used to have at Christmas? It was our favorite time of year." Serah reminded Lightning of all of the good times they used to have Christmas, hoping to get her older sister back into the Christmas spirit.
"We did have a lot of fun during the season." Lightning agreed, starting to think about some of the Christmas memories she and her sister had together in the past.
"You know sis, one of my favorite Christmas is when we got the biggest Christmas tree we could find at the tree farm and it was so big we couldn't get it to fit through the door." Serah's face beamed brightly over the memory.
"That was a great Christmas. I will not ever forget the look on our neighbor's face when she saw me standing on the front porch in the snow with an axe trying to cut the trunk of the tree to make it smaller so we could fit it through the door." Lightning let a smile come to her face, thinking about she had to get that tree into the living room. She knew that was a struggle that was worth while, considering that was one of if not the best Christmas trees they had ever decorated.
"I think she thought we were crazy for trying to get that tree into the house, but when you told her, what's the matter haven't you ever seen a lady with an axe cutting a Christmas tree before?" Serah laughed over the memory causing Lightning to laugh as well.
"Yes then before she went back into her house she had the nerve to say, good luck getting that tree through your door. She never should have underestimated me." Lightning said, wishing in her mind that the neighbor lady could have seen the moment that the Christmas tree did go through door.
"That's for sure." Serah agreed, knowing that once Lightning set her mind to something, she always found a way to finish it.
"Thinking about one of our past Christmas memories has convinced me into going out and buying some decorations and a Christmas tree tomorrow." Lightning told her sister, who was happy over the fact that she was able to convince her sister into getting the decorations.
"Can I come with you to get the decorations?" Serah asked, hoping that she would be able to go shopping for Christmas decorations, like she used to in the past.
"Yes, that actually sounds fun." Lightning answered her sister's question. She was looking forward to having her sister along for the shopping trip.
"That sounds great! When time are we going tomorrow?" Serah asked, getting excited.
"i was thinking tomorrow night at seven, depending on what you and Snow usually do in the evenings." Lightning answered, hoping that Snow wouldn't mind his wife went shopping with her in the evening.
"I can ask him when I get back home. We already setup our Christmas decorations and we don't have anything that we do every evening, so I don't think he will mind."
"Good, then it's settled." Lightning said, looking forward to the shopping trip more then she was willing to admit.
"What about this tree, Lightning?" Snow asked, pointing to a shorter but well branched tree at the Christmas tree farm the next night.
"It's to short." Lightning replied, observing the tree.
"Let me guess, you want a really tall tree, with a lot of branches." Snow replied, figuring by his sister-in-law's answer to his question, that she must have wanted a bigger tree.
"Yes, that is exacty the kind of tree I want." Lightning looked from the tree back to Snow, who sighed. He didn't think Christmas tree shopping was going to this hard, even if the tree was going to be Lightning.
"But sis, we've been searching for almost a hour and we haven't found a tree like that yet, besides, this tree looks a lot like the tree that Snow and I picked our living room." Serah spoke up, trying to pursuade her sister to dettle for one of the really nice that they had already passed by on the lot.
"I don't want a tree like the one you and Snow have. We came here to try and find a tree that looks like the ones you and a used to get Serah, and I am not leaving until I find a tree that meets my expectations." Lightning said, before walking in search of her perfect Christmas tree, again.
"Ugh, was she always this difficult when you two used to get your Christmas trees, before?" Snow asked his wife, starting to get annoyed. He couldn't figure out why a Christmas tree had to be so perfect. It was just a tree after all, once it was decorated you didn't usually pay much attention to the branches anyway.
"No, she used to let me pick the trees, or we would decide on them together, but considering we both liked big trees, we usually got one of the biggest trees that the tree farms had." Serah informed her husband, who just shook his head, still wondering why she couldn't settle for a smaller tree, especially since she lived alone now.
"Serah, I found the perfect tree!" Lightning called out to her sister, who along with Snow started to follow Lightning's voice, to find her and the Christmas tree, that she sounded so happy about.
When Serah and Snow found Lightning, they found her standing in front of a tall tree, that had straight evenly shaped branches.
"Lightning, it is the perfect tree for you." Serah agreed, glad that her sister had found her perfect tree after after a almost a hour of searching.
"Give me you axe Snow, so I can cut this tree down."
"Are you sure you don't want me to cut the tree down, Lightning? Serah brought me with her so you wouldn't have to cut the tree for once."
"Thank you for the offer, but I don't need your help, Snow. I have cut down many Christmas trees and this one will be no different." Lightning yanked the axe out of her brother-in-law's hands and begun cutting the tree.
"You did well Lightning, you got a big tree that fir through the door and it looks great in that corner." Serah said, looking at the Christmas tree, that was now setting in one of the corners of her sister's living room.
"Thank you Serah, I'm glad that you agree." Lightning was also satisfied with how well the tree in the corner of the living room. The only thing that would have the tree look better, is if it was decorated.
"Are we getting decorations for the tree, tonight or tomorrow?" Serah asked, she couldn't wait to see what kind of Christmas decorations she and sister would find for the tree.
"I am still up to going tonight if you are." Lightning replied, hoping that since it was getting late, Snow would be alright if they still went out shopping.
"Go have fun shopping with your sister, Serah. I can pick up you up here after you are done shopping." Snow said, much to delight of the two sisters.
"Thank you, Snow. We are going to have so much, Lightning!" Serah happily walked towards the door with Snow and Lightning walking behind her.
"Oh Lightning, these are beautiful." Serah said, looking at the display Christmas tree bulbs that were all on display in the Christmas aisle.
"They are all pretty but I can't get all of them." Lightning started to pick up alll of the boxes trying to decide which bulbs to buy for the tree.
"Well if your're not sure, we could always go and pick out garland, lights and a star, instead." Serah suggested since her sister seemed to be having a hard time deciding on the bulbs.
"Let's do that, once I have those it will make the decision of what ornaments to get easier." Lightning set the boxes she was currnetly back on the shelf to go to the next aisle.
"Those are some the biggest Christmas tree lights I have seen." Lightning observed the lights on the shelf. The package of the bigger Christmas tree lights instantly getting her attention.
"Those are the lights Snow and I have on our tree." Serah said, trying to figure out if her sister did or did not like the idea of the bigge lights. Considering the fact that Lightning didn't want a Christmas tree that looked she and Snow's, Serah had assumed that her sister was going to get different lights from the ones they had.
"I have a bigger tree, so it seems more logical to buy bigger lights, regardless on if these are the same lights that you and Snow have." Lightning put the packages of Christmas tree lights in her cart, then walked down the aisle some in search of garland.
"These are same lights we have sis, but it's a different brand so you don't have to worry about having the same kind of lights that Snow picked for us." Serah told her sister, knowing that having the same kind of lights that Snow had a hand in picking out would get on her sister's nerves.
"That's good to know." Lightning said, now looking at the various garland that was in front of her.
"How about this blue and silver garland?" Serah asked, holding the different strands of garland in each hand, for her sister to see.
"The blue and silver is beautiful, and it would it compliment the blue and silver ornaments perfectly." Lightning agreed, adding the blue and silver garland to the cart along with the lights.
"I don't see a star in this aisle, so let's go to the next one." Lightning turned the corner to head into the next aisle, when a Christmas on display caught her attention.
"Serah, look at this wreath." Lightning pulled the wreath of it's display to show her sister, who also seemed to really like the wreath as well.
"That is a pretty wreath are going to get?" Serah also picked one of the wreaths up, to look it over.
"No I am not going to get it, because we came here to buy Christmas tree decorations, and I don't want to spend that much on one wreath after buying all of these." Lightning pointed to the decorations in the cart with her free hand, before setting the wreath back on it's display, before walking into the next ailse.
"Here's the stars, Serah." Lightning said, standing in front of the numerous types of Christmas tree stars, and picking up a silver star with blue lights to match her garland ornaments. She then begun to walk out of the aisle with Serah walking behind her.
"Are you sure you don't want to get the wreath, Lightning?" Serah asked, as they were nearing the checkout.
"Maybe next year." Lightning replied, putting her decorations on the checkout counter for the chashier to scan.
"Serah, the tree looks beautiful." Lightning said, with a satisfied smile, as she and her sister were looking the know fully decorated tree.
"It does look beautiful, Lightning. Thank you for letting me come with you tinight." Serah said, hearing the beep of the car horn outside meaning that Snow had arrived to pick her up.
"Your welcome, Serah. I enjoyed shopping with you tonight." Lightning told her sister, who was getting her coat to meet her husband who was waiting for her in the car.
"Merry Christmas, Lightning!" Serah greeted her sister wth a big hug, after she walked into the house in Christmas day.
"Merry Christmas to you as well, Serah. Snow I'm also glad you could be here." Lightning greeted her sister and brother-in-law.
"Thank you Lightning, and merry Christmas to you too." Snow greeted his sister-in-law, after setting he and Serah's coats on Lightning's coat rack.
"Where can Snow and I put our presents?" Serah, wanted to know, picking up the presents that Snow had to set on the floor to put away their coats.
'You can put them anywhere under the tree." Lightning answered, looking at the gift boxes.
"Serah said that the two of you decorated the tree, she wasn't kidding." Snow observed the tree after setting the presents underneath it.
"We had fun decorating. I might have to have Serah join me for decorating my Christmas tree next year." Lightning looked at Serah who smiled over the fact that she might me able to help decorate her sister's Christmas tree next year.
"I would love to help you decorate again next year." Serah said, as she, Lightning and Snow heard a knock at the door.
"That must be Hope." Lightning walked over to let her guest into her home.
"Merry Christmas, Light!" Hope happily greeted his friend as he waked into her house.
"Merry Christmas to you also, Hope. You can put your presents under the tree." Lightning pointed to the corner where the tree was located.
"That's always a good place to put presents." Hope laughed, setting his gifts down under the tree.
"Are Fang, Vanille, Sazh and Dodge also coming?" Serah asked, thinking about the other friends.
"No it's just the four of us. Sazh wanted to spend Christmas with Dodge and Fang and Vanille since they have been friends for so long, already had their plan for Christmas. They are all going to be coming to my New Year's eve party, though." Lightning replied, glad that even though their other friends were not going to be gathering at her house they would still be in the presence of friends and family.
"Alright, I can understand that. It wil be great having them join for the New Year's eve party." Serah understood, looking forward to the New Year's party after Christmas.
"That will be great, it's been a while since we have all gotten together." Hope agreed, having helped plan the activities for the party he knew that it was going to be fun.
"Is it going to be great having everyone together for New Year's eve just because we have gotten together for a while, or is going to be great because Vanille is going to be there, Hope?" Snow asked with a smirk.
"Snow, I think you embarrassed him." Serah looked at Hope, who face was turning as red as the Christmas light's that were on Lightning's Christmas tree.
"Snow, how could embarrass someone like that on Christmas Day?" Lightning asked, notcing that Hope's face was still red a minute later.
"I didn't mean to embarrass him. I was just trying to tease him a little." Snow answered Lightning's question, but she was still unamused.
"Well your teasing stops now, and if I ever find you teasing my sister to the point of a red face like his, you won't have a voice for a while to tease with." Lightning came to Hope's defense.
"Please let's not get into a fight on Christmas Day." Serah spoke up, sensing an argument brewing between her sister and husband.
"Serah is right, let's not get into an argument today, this is the holiday of peace on earth and goodwill towards men." Hope agreed, his words also helped down the current tension between Lightning and Snow who were giving each other intense glares.
"I also agree, so top teasing and show some of that good will, Snow." Lightning gave her brother-in-law one final glare, before walking towards the tree.
"Oh fine." Snow replied, not knowing what else to say.
"Good, now that we have all of that, let's open presents." Lightning said, said sifting through all of the presents deciding on who to have hand out their presents.
"Who do you want to go first, Light?" Hope asked, he knew Lightning long enough, to know when she was thinking about something.
"Hope, since you are closest to the tree, you can hand out your presents, first." Lightning replied, stepping away from the tree so he could get his presents.
"Thanks Light, after I give Snow and Serah's their's, I need to go out to my car to get your's because it was going to be to big to fit under the tree." Hope said, picking up two gifts for Serah and Snow.
"It's that big?" Lightning questioned, wondering what Hope coud have gotten that would have needed such a arge box, to where it would not even under the tree.
"Yes it's that big and you are going to love it." Hope gave Lightning a smie after his Snow his present and then Serah's hers.
"Thank you Hope, the sporting goods stores are my favorite." Snow opened the small box to find a tin containing three gift cards to his favorite store.
"Your welcome. I wasn't sure what to get you, so I asked Serah if you would like gift cards to your favorite store and that is when she told me you what your favorite stores were so I knew what cards to get." Hope told Snow, as they were watching Serah unwrap her present.
"Hope, these are so cute, thank you." Serah pulled a set of hair clips and head bands out of hre box.
"I told you, she would like hair stuff." Snow winked at Hope, thinking back to the call he had received from Hope a few days, asking what he should get Serah for Christmas.
"Your welcome, Serah. I'm going to head out to my car and get Lightning's presents." Hope starting to walking towards to the front door, to retrieve the present.
"Alright, I am going to get Serah's and Snow's presents ready, while you are out."Lightning walked back to the tree, to get her presents for her sister and brother-in-law.
"Hope looks like he could use a little help, bringing that in." Serah told Snow, watching through the window as Hope to get the large box out of his car.
Snow seeing that his wife was right, decided to go out and help his friend bring the really large gift in the house. The box itself from what he could see, looked big enough for two people to carry, Snow couldn't figure out how Hope managed to get the present into this car, on his own.
"Need some help?" Snow asked, approaching Hope's car door.
"Yes thank you Snow, if you can finish pulling it out of the car and carry from that side that would be great. I'll support it at this end since I have already gotten this side out of the car."
"Sounds like a plan." Snow said, reaching into the car to take the opposite of the box.
Lightning and Serah were watcing from the window so one of them could get the door for Hope and Snow when they approached. When the two men reached the steps, Lightning went over to the door and opened it.
"Here it is, Light." Hope said, as he and Snow carried the present into the living room, and gently set it on the floor.
"Hope, what is in there? It look big enough to be a small pony." Lightning couldn't help but wonder what could have been in such a large gift. It was the biggest box she had ever received, and knowing Hope wasn't exactly one for pranks, she knew it couldn't have been the smaller present box inside a bigger box trick, if that was the case the box wouldn't have been so heavy either if that was case.
"Open it and find out!" Hope got excited for moment, he had worked so long on making this present, he couldn't for Lightning to open and see what he had made her.
"Go ahead, sis. I want to see what is the box just as much you do." Serah noticed her sister's slight excitement over the big box, she also coudn't wait to see what Hope had gotten her sister.
Lightning seeing Hope and her sister's excitement over had begun to tear apart the wrapping paper that was covering the box, when she opened the boxe's lid, she was surprised by what she saw.
"Oh Hope, this is beautiful." Lightning lifted a horse made from crystal, out of the box.
"I made it out of those crystal, just for you." Hope beamed, glad that Lightning had appeared to have liked his gift, as much as he thought she would.
"Hope thank you so much, I love it." Lightning thanked her friend, after setting the crystal horse on the floor for everyone to see.
"Your welcome Light, I wanted to make sure your gift was something special."
"It ceratinly is. I will have to find a proper place to put it after everyone is done opening their gifts." Lightning was still looking over the horse, reaching under the tree for the gists that she still had for Serah and Snow.
"You did a wonderful job on that horse, Hope." Serah said, before Lightning handed her sister her present.
"Thanks Serah." Hope thanked her while she was unwrapping her present from that older sister gave her.
"Lightning, this bracelet is beautiful, thank you." Serah thanked her sister, while putting the bracelet on her wrist, it was a perfect fit.
"Your welcome, I thought of you as soon as I saw it." Lightning told her sister, while handing a Snow a cirucular box, which her brother-in-law wasted no time in opening.
"Oh you are so sweet Lightning, just what I always wanted for Christmas, a lump of coal." Snow held up a literal lump of coal for everyone to see. Serah was shocked over her sister's 'gift' to her husband, while Lightning, and Hope watched his reaction in amusement.
"Sis, you didn't really get him a lump of coal for Christmas did you?" Serah asked, still a little shocked.
"Looks like you were on the top of Light's naught list, Snow." Hope laughed, no longer able able to control the laughter that he had been trying to hold in.
"Of course that is not what I got him for Christmas, here is your real gift, Snow." Lightning handed him a much another wrapped, but much bigger present.
"I've been wanting another bike helmet LIghtning, and this one looks greta, thank you." Snow was pleasantly surprised that his sister-in-law had gotten him such a nice present. Especially after she had given him the lump of coal as a gag gift.
"Serah told me that would be a good gift to get you when I asked." Lightning said, thinking about how right on her sister had been in what she suggested as gift ideas for everyone.
"This one is your's, Hope." Lightning handed, him his present.
"Lightning, this an awesome boomerang, the best one I have I ever seen, thank you." Hope happily help up an orange boomerang, with blue tipped edges.
"Your welcome. I had it custom made just for you." Lightning said, as Snow and Serah and Snow were getting their gift for Hope out from under the tree.
"Here you go, Hope. Serah and I thought of you as soon as we saw these." Snow gave Hope his present from he and Serah.
"Thank you, these a very nice bandanas." Hope thnaked his two friends whiw tying one of the bandanas around his neck.
"Lightning told us you liked checkered patterns, so we bought every checkered bandana the store had." Serah was happy that the bandanas were a good choice, while Snow was smiling thinking about the look on the cashier's face when he was scanning on all of the bandanas.
"Well Lightning, it looks like Serah and my presents to you are the only ones that are left." Snow looked at the tree, seeing only two presents remaining. He then went over and picked up the presents, and then handed them to his wife so she could give the two presents to her sister.
"Thank you Serah and Snow." Lightning took the presents from her sister, deciding to open the more longer and lean box first.
"Is this what I think it is?" Lightning questioned, lifting a red dress lined with red lace and a pair of bright red heels to match, out of the box.
"I like the color." She liked the color like he she had said, but lace just wasn't her thing.
"Hey Light, that looks a lot like the dress you wore when you-" Hope started to speak but was stopped mid sentence when Lightning said, "Hope, stop it."
"Why? It's true, it does remind me of that dress." Hope didn't think making mention of the fact how much the dress looked like the one that Lightning had worn for the play would bother her now, but he decided to drop the mention of it any way.
"What dress is he talking about, sis?" Serah asked, she had never seen her sister in a dress that looked like the one she was given, so she was curious to find out what dress Hope was speaking of.
"Yeah Lightning, inquiring minds want to know." Snow piped up.
"This is one thing your inquiring mind is not going to know about, Snow." Lightning put the dress and shoes back in the box, while Snow sighed, knowing he wasn't going to get the answer out of her.
"I know you are really going to like this." Serah handed Lightning her last present. The last present of the day. Lightning had started to unwrap the gift and Serah couldn't wait for her to see what was inside the gift box.
"Serah, this is the wreath I really liked while we were shopping for Christmas decorations, thank you." Lightning thnked her sister, while pulling the wraeth out of the gift box.
"That is a great looking wreath, Light." Hope said, once Lightning had completely gotten the wreath out of the box.
"Your welcome sis, when you showed me this wreath I thought of you, and all of the hardships and victories that we have gone through together." Serah smiled.
"How does this wreath make you think of us?" LIghtning was wondering how a wreath, a decoration, could have made her sister or anyone for that matter about their life's journey.
"Well, the holly branches remind me of you, Lightning, because no matter how dangerous and even hopeless our situations got at times, you remaimed strong and held us together like the branches that hold the leaves." Serah explained, leaving Lightning to realize and understand what her sister was getting at.
"We are were and still are friends, I saw it as my duty to keep everyone safe, no matter the cost." Lightning said, looking at the wreath's branches.
"The candle reminds me of you Hope, because during my sister's quest to save the world, you were there to be like a light to help guide her through her journey." Serah explained Hope's reprensentation on the wreath.
"I would have to admit, I never could have done that without you, Hope." LIghtning agreed with her sister's statement on how much of a light Hope had been for her on that quest.
"After I lost my mother and father, Lightning became the cloest one I have had to family she was always there to be a guiding light for me, so that journey was my way of returning the favor to be a light for her." Hope said, thinking about how much Lightning had become like a older sister to him, since he had met her.
"Snow, from my sister's prospective you would be the berries." Serah, continued.
"Why the berries?" Snow asked his wife.
"Because some berries are like a poison that only cause trouble amongst others, other berries instead of causing trouble are sweet and greatly enjoyed by others, just like how Lightning was alright with you marrying me because I love you and you make me happy like the sweet berries, although my sister's opinion of you is that of the poison and the sweet at times." Serah smiled her husband who had to agree with wife's thoughts in himself and the berries.
"Serah, if I am the branches, Hope is the candle, and Snow the berries, what represents you on this wreath?" Lightning wanted to know. Her sister was the only left out of the four of them.
"I haven't really thought about what I represent." Serah didn't think about herself, in the midst of thinking of the others and what they represent.
Serah represents the ribbon tied on the wreath, because you were a tie of encouragement that was wrapped around to remind us all that even we didn't have the courage to face our problems at that exact moment, you helped encourage us to face out problems when were ready." Lightning gave the explanation and she could tell by the looks on Hope's, Snow's and even Serah's faces that all agreed, that Serah representation was the ribbon.
"Thank you Lightning, that was the sweetest thing you ever said to me." Serah was thankful for the kind words that her sister had spoken.
"Your welcome. We are very fortunate to have each other." Lightning at her sister, brother-in-law and friend with a smile. "I think this has been a great Christmas and what has been so great was being able to spend it together."
"I couldn't agree more sis, this has been not only been a great Christmas but one of best." Serah agreed, having also really enjoyed this Christmas.
"I can say this was the best Christmas I ever had." Snow said, thinking back to his Christmas memories, it was at this moment they all looked towards Hope waiting to hear what he was going to say.
"My parents always made Christmas a really special time of year, and after loosing them I thought my days of a merry and bright Christmas memories were over, but thanks to all of you, my hope of having a joyful Christmas has been restored." Hope told his three friends, thankful that he was able to enjoy Christmas with them.
"I know that loosing your parents was hard for you Hope, so remember that we will always be there for you, not just at Christmas, but for through the years to come." Lightning was thinking of added Serah and Snow to the statement as well, but decided not to, she didn't have to know when Snow spoke up.
"You know Hope, just like Lightning and I, you and I started out with a rough friendship, but I think our friendship has gotten better, over time, you can count on Serah and I anytime too." Snow spoke for himself and Serah, who he knew would have agreed with his words.
"Thank you both, I honestly don't know what I have done without the three of you, and our other friends as well." Hope said, to the three friends that were present, over the past year especially they had become a family of friends, and that was something that they were all grateful for.
"In reality, even though we might not want to admit it at times, thinking back to our past journey's and even now, I've come to realize that friendship is one of the best gifts that could ever be given. Serah, I have you and your speech about this wreath to thank for that." Lightning picked up the wreath to look it over again.
"Your welcome sis, it means so much to hear you say that." Serah was glad that the wreath was not just a beautiful decoration, but a great reminder of important friendships can be.
"I agree, friendship truly is a gift to treasure." Hope said, before Lightning left the living room.
"I think all of this talk about friendships was to much emotional stuff for sister." Snow direted his statemnt to his wife, after noticing that Lightning had left the room.
"You couldn't have been more wrong, Snow." Lightning returned back to the her living room, with a hammer and nail in her hands.
"Do I want to know why you are carrying a hammer and a nail?" Snow asked, causing Serah to laugh, and say, "I think she got them to hang up her wreath."
"I believe Serah is right, Light wouldn't have any other reason to be carrying a hammer and a nail." Hope said, as he, Snow and Serah watched Lightning walk over the fireplace with the wreath in hand.
"Yes that is exactly why I have, abd I am going to put the wreath right here." Lightning started to hammer the nail into the wall.
"It looks beautiful, sis." Serah said, after her sister had hung the wreath on the nail, that she just hammered into the wall.
"Serah's right, it looks great there." Snow agreed, also looking at the wreath.
"That is the perfect spot for it." Hope also thought there was not a better place for the wreath in Lightning's living room, then above the fireplace.
"Thank you all for making this Christmas such a special one." Lightning said, stepping away some to look at the wreath from a distance, where it would always be in her view so she could think and reflect on thankful she was for having Hope as a friend, Serah and Snow for family, and for the opportunity they had to be able to spend their first Christmas in the new world together.
A/N On that thought, The Christmas Wreath comes to a close. I have to take a moment to thank my sister for coming up with the gift ideas for this story. Lightning giving Snow a lump of coal before giving him his real present was her idea as well, and that was honestly one of my favorite scenes to write. I hope you all thought it was just as funny as I did. :) You could say 'The Christmas Wreath' came from the heart considering some of the things in this story were inspired by traditions my family has for Christmas every year, especially the shopping for a new ornament for each member of the family, and sometimes (like Snow's lump of the coal) there is a joke gift given as well, which always gets laughs or smiles from not only the one who recieves the gift, but from the others as well. I think Christmas is one of the best times of year for many reasons, from the reason for the season, the Christmas traditions that you enjoy and the gettting together with family and friends, I think Christmas memories are some of our favorites to think upon and it is truly one of the most wonderful times of the year. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone!