A Leo's Christmas
It's Christmas! And what better way to celebrate it, than to write a fanfic for you all? This one's about LoLu, enjoy and Merry Christmas! This fic also includes hints of FreedCana.
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way… Loki had liked this song ever since he had been nothing but a little lion cub, and he'd always sing it loudly and out of tune. Embarrassingly, he'd never been one to have cared about others staring when he'd been a mere child, and the other Spirits had often rebuked his father for letting the 'strongest of the Zodiac' turn into 'this tiny weakling'.
However, now, Loki craved not this song, nor the festive mood in the Spirit World, but the warmth and smiles of his owner, Lucy Heartfilia. Not a day did he miss the cycle of pining for his beloved, even as his friends counted down to the snowflakes and presents under the big pine tree.
"Are you going to the Human World for Christmas, Leo?" Aries asked shyly, hands curled into fists with her thumbs protruding out. Bashfully, she kicked at the snow with her boots, and she glanced up at the Lion, who was deep in thought. "Leo?"
"Aries," Loki started with a sigh, loosening his red tie a little. "I told you countless times before; you all can call me Loki."
"I-I'm sorry," The lamb bleated out profusely, her awfully shy nature getting the best of her. "I-I just w-wanted you to g-give this to L-Lucy," She stammered on, cheeks flushing as she wavered with uncertainty before producing a large, neatly-wrapped package from the big sack she was lugging around.
In the Spirit World, each year for Christmas, one Spirit would be the 'Santa', and give out presents. It had become a custom after eons, and they were all perfectly fine with it. As it was, this year was Aries' turn and just watching her try to pull that huge sack that towered her tiny frame was very heartbreaking.
"Sure," He smiled as he took the enormous – it was that big – package from her tiny hands, and then leaned forward to kiss her on the forehead. "Good job wrapping it, Aries. If you need help with the sack, just ask any of the Spirits."
"O-Okay," Aries nodded, fumbling about with the sack again as she produced another package, albeit smaller this time. "T-this is for y-you."
"Aries, you shouldn't have," the Lion uttered genteelly, decades of mannerism rising to the surface despite how deeply-embedded the custom was for centuries. "Thank you, merry Christmas."
He watched the little lamb struggle with the package once more as he gave her a wave, smiling as he held the two presents. Striding proudly past the others, he was greeted with cheerful Christmas greetings from all the Spirits, to which he returned with the same gusto and cheer. Quickly reaching the eggnog dispenser – courtesy of the King – he topped it up again as he prepared to leave for the Human World.
"Yo, Leo," He heard a voice call out to him, turning to see all of Lucy's Spirits in a group. "Come on for a group shot."
Without a complaint, he went over, setting the presents on the ground to pose cheekily with the rest of them.
"You should get rid of that suit sometime during this season, Leo, we are," Scorpio commented, before pulling some sort of headband over Loki's ginger hair. "Here, take this!"
"Scorpio, darling," Aquarius giggled, hands around the Scorpion's well-built arm, "That was from Halloween."
The Lion didn't need to raise a hand to know that he bore the same pair of fluffy kitty – lion, Virgo had insisted – ears atop of his ginger mane.
"Let me change you, Leo," said maiden raised a hand. She'd changed out of her maid outfit, into a Santa girl dress along with matching hat, and soon she had him wearing something else besides his stuffy suit.
Technically, all of them were dressed for the occasion – Scorpio was an elf, Aquarius a female elf, Virgo a female Santa, Aries as Rudolph, Capricorn even had on a Santa suit, Gemini had on matching outfits decked in red, Taurus had on a shirt, for once, Cancer was fully dressed in red, Sagittarius had also abandoned his horse hat for a Santa-Rudolph one.
Even Crux, Lyda, Horologium and Plue were all decked in other outfits than their usual ones, making Loki feel like he was way behind in the season's festive mood.
"Say cheese," The Spirit King grinned large beneath his giant moustache, and the camera flashed as all of Lucy's Spirits posed.
"Is there any reason why we're suddenly taking a group picture?" Loki managed to grate out through his smile.
"It's our present for Lucy," Gemini chimed, and all the others nodded.
"That and the wool coat Aries wanted to give Lucy," Virgo pointed out, before glancing at the picture the King had passed to her. "This is fine, so let's sign it, everybody."
As they passed around a pen to sign the edges of the picture, Loki smiled at the heart-warming sight. Surely, Lucy would love all of this effort her Spirits had put into their gifts. No, she had already loved all of them, even if they'd only just met.
That was the one reason all of her Spirits loved, cared for and supported her, and as Loki gripped the pen in his hand, he signed the picture with a smile and Lucy on his mind.
"Have a safe trip, Leo," All of her Spirits waved as he prepared to pass the gate using his own magic.
"See you guys later," He grinned at all of them, armed with the presents for their beloved master. "Don't hog the eggnog, Taurus!"
As the Lion disappeared into a flash of golden light, the Spirits all turned to face each other, and the females tittered.
"… Anybody wanted to tell Leo just how adorable he looked in that little lion outfit?"
Honestly, Lucy had never been to such a rowdy Christmas party. When she had been little, she'd been celebrating with her mother... until the latter passed on. The absence of her father during the festive season of family gatherings grew on her; she never needed him to be there for her during winter.
So she celebrated Christmas alone. A little girl that would place her hands on the cold glass pane of the polished windows and stare outside at the falling snow – wishing to play in it, wanting to eat a nice turkey dinner with her mother again, like all the other kids, play with gifts and unwrap them as they lay waiting for her under the tree – but never got her wish each year.
However, this year was different. She had a new family now: Fairy Tail, and these guys sure knew how to throw a party. As booze and fists flew, Lucy took it all in with immense happiness. The guild she'd grown to love in the short period of time she'd been here, the three partners she had as a team – four, if she included Happy, the friends that she had made... including all of her Spirits, as well...
Thinking about her Spirits made Lucy wonder how they actually spent Christmas, did they celebrate the occasion like humans did here in their world? Did they pass out presents to each other, drink eggnog and dress up in Christmas figures like Santa?
Her mind flitted to her Spirit friends, and she thought about Loki dressed as Santa.
"Pfft," Lucy raised her hand to stop her giggle from the image she had in her mind. Loki would never make a good Santa, seeing as to how skinny he was.
Everyone in the guild were dressed up in festive outfits, some standing, some dancing, some busy throwing up the huge amounts of eggnog they had guzzled down earlier – mainly Natsu, though.
They suddenly crooned when a light suddenly flashed, and when they saw Loki, they attacked him with out-of-tune Christmas carols and half-eaten candy canes. Laughter also filled the air – whether from Loki's outfit or from the merry atmosphere, nobody was sure.
"Whoa, hey, guys," The Lion raised his hands at them, stopping them from crushing the gifts he brought with him.
"Gifts!" Happy shouted happily, and all of them wondered who the gifts were for.
"Are those for me?" Natsu yelled out excitedly, happy that Loki had decided to bring him a gift-
"No, they're not," He scratched his ginger hair as he held onto the gifts. "Where's Lucy? These are from her Spirits, to her."
"Oh," The crowd immediately dispersed.
"Nice outfit, Loki," Gray snickered as he slid past the Lion, giving a pat to the latter's head. "I'm sure Lucy will appreciate that you've gone to this kind of extent to actually be a lion."
"Huh?" Loki furrowed his brow, unsure what Gray was talking about.
"Lucy's over there," Natsu pointed to the blond mage sitting at the bar with a cup of hot cocoa in her hands. "By the way, nice outfit, where'd you get it?"
Without waiting for Loki to answer, Natsu ran off after Gray, fists aflame, seemingly charged for another battle even though it was Christmas.
"A Liiiiiiiiiion!" Happy crooned happily, drool on the corner of his mouth as he floated past Loki with his wings outstretched.
"Lion?" This made Loki furrow his brow even more, but nevertheless shook his head and headed towards his master.
"Wow, nice outfit, Loki!" Wendy called after him as she ran to heal Natsu and Gray from their crazy fight.
"Humph, what a dorky outfit," Carla commented as she flew past, heading towards the fight as well.
Shaking his head at the attention he was getting, Loki just continued on his mission to hand Lucy her gifts, and he walked past Jet and Droy passed out on eggnog, heads on the table as Levy stood nearby with Gajeel, trying to wake them up.
"What in the hell are you wearing, Levy?" Gajeel stared at the female, crimson eyes pinned on the very short dress said maiden was wearing. Why, if she bent over just a teeny bit, he'd be able to see her panties-
"Oh, Loki, nice outfit!" Levy waved to him, and Gajeel looked up at the Lion for a few seconds before he burst out into peals of laughter.
"... A lion?" Panther Lily tilted his head at Loki as he passed.
Strangely, every single member he strode past had the same, or similar comments – nice outfit, Loki; wow Loki, you're a lion; look, a lion; it's Loki the lion! Slightly peeved, he finally broke through the crowd and saw Lucy at the bar, just a few feet away from him, Cana next to her, the female guzzling beer.
He approached the ladies as a figure joined him, and Loki slightly turned to see Freed.
"Look, Lucy," Cana slurred slightly, pointing at the two males. "It's a lion and a bush!"
"Cana, I do not look like a bush," Freed stated calmly as he shifted the barrel of beer beyond her reach. "You've had too much too drink already. Mira, get her some water, please."
"Coming," Mira sang as she flitted around behind the counter, decked out in a crazy red-and-green striped dress. "Hi Loki, wow, nice outfit!"
As Freed continued to fuss over Cana, Lucy turned to eye her Lion – wait, did she just say her Lion? She probably meant her Loki- oh great, her words were coming out wrong.
However, as she turned, her almond eyes bulged at the sight of Loki – her lion was literally quite the correct term, after all. Rested in his fluffy ginger hair was a pair of cat, or rather, lion, ears. He had on a full-body suit that had brown fur covering it, a pale cream color on what seemed to be the stomach area, complete with small, paw-like gloves at the end. And, from his backside, there protruded a flimsy piece of string that seemed to be the tail.
At least he doesn't have any whiskers on his face; Lucy chuckled as the Lion approached her.
"What are you, Loki?" She stifled her giggles as she tugged on his sleeve. "A Lion Santa?"
"Seriously," He started, frown lacing his thin lips. "What is with everybody and calling me a lion today?"
"Look down," came Lucy's simple answer.
Loki did so. "WHAT?"
He almost dropped her gifts in terror when he realized she was right. He was a Lion – literally! Then, he heard a soft sound, like a 'pft', before he glanced up to notice that Lucy was giggling behind her hand.
"I suppose you find this funny, Miss Heartfilia," He said in a mocking tone, trying to be sarcastic as he waved the gifts in her face. "Let's not forget I'm the one giving the presents here."
Sweat drenched the temples of Loki's head – he had been worried that he'd looked stupid and pathetic in front of Lucy with a lion costume on, but all those worries had melted away when Lucy laughed. She had a nice laugh, Loki thought as he smiled at his favourite blonde.
"Okay," Lucy tittered, hand covering her soft lips as she gained control over herself again. "Let me see what they got me."
"This one is from Aries," Loki told her as he handed her the bulky package. "She thought it would be better for you to be dressed in warmer clothes this season."
With sparkling eyes and nimble fingers, Lucy unwrapped the gift quickly before squealing in utter delight.
"It looks so soft!" Lucy shrieked out in surprise as she felt it. "It is soft!"
Loki chuckled, "Of course, Aries sewed it herself, with her wool."
"Wow, thank her when you get back for me!" Lucy grinned up at him, almond eyes dancing with an animated and bright glow, almost knocking the lion off his feet.
"This one's from all of us," Loki told her as he handed her the signed photo, to which his owner squealed with utmost delight again.
"I can't believe you guys would do this for me!" She sighed, hugging the photo to her chest. "I'll keep this forever!"
"You're not just our master, Lucy," He smiled down at the blonde as he looked her in the eyes. "I speak for all your spirits when I say, you are the best owner we have ever had the pleasure of having."
"Loki... I just... I... Oh my god!" She managed to stutter before she burst into tears.
"Whoa, whoa, turn off the waterworks," Loki chuckled as he patted Lucy on the head, a friendly gesture that seemed to overwhelm the crying mage even more. "Don't cry Lucy, you care for us and we care for you."
"Oh, Loki, that was just so wonderful," Lucy sobbed as she wiped her eyes. "I'll let you walk me home, okay?"
"Walk my lady home!" Loki was delighted. "I will be very much pleased to have the honour to do so!"
"Merry Christmas!" The whole guild shouted at each other then, and cups of eggnog were bumped to each other for a cheer.
"Lucy, you should go home early," Makarov told her. "It's snowing really hard outside."
"Yeah, Lucy," Erza agreed as she sipped her eggnog from a beer cup. "Go home, or you'll be snowed in here. For us girls who live in the female dorm, it's easy for us to just shovel the snow away."
"Alright, see you guys then," Lucy waved at all her guild mates. "Merry Christmas everyone!"
"Merry Christmas!"
The chill of the snow and cold hit Lucy once she left the warm atmosphere of the guild. Immediately a coat was draped around her shoulders, and the musky scent of cologne filled her nose.
"Thanks, Loki," She puffed as she drew the woolen material around her frame tighter. "I needed that."
"You'll be warm once you reach home," He purred at her. "Although, I have no idea why it reeks of my cologne when it was made by Aries."
"Probably because you held it for such a long time," She laughed, smiling up at the Lion trotting beside her.
"Mm, yeah," He grunted, before he put an arm around her shivering frame. "We should hurry; it's getting freezing out here."
The warmth of Lucy's cosy and small apartment was very relaxing. Both of them slumped on the sofa, feeling their skin warming up in the heated room. Loki yawned, glancing out the window at the falling snow, thanking Regulus that Makarov sent Lucy home early.
"Hey, Loki?"
"Hm?" Loki turned to face Lucy at the sound of her melodious voice.
"So the coat is from Aries, the photo is from all of the others?" She offered him a cup of hot chocolate, to which he took with utter delight.
"Yes," He replied as he sipped on the chocolate, he noticed there were marshmallows floating on top. Really, she knew him so well without knowing him at all.
"Then..." She trailed off, causing him to glance up at her. Her face was red, for reasons unknown, and it worried him. "W-what about you guys? D-do you give each other presents?"
"Yes, we do," Loki smiled at her, warming his hands against the blue mug. "We do it every year; it's been a custom for centuries."
"It must be nice, huh?" Lucy smiled, almond eyes shining with the thought of exchanging gifts.
"Did you get all of the guild people anything?" He popped the question as he sipped his chocolate.
"Mm, yeah, and they also got me some stuffs," Lucy smiled. "Erza gave me new headphones, Natsu and Happy gave me a bracelet, Gray gave me a necklace, Cana gave me a bottle of wine, Mirajane, Elfman and Lisanna gave me a cute little teddy bear, and Makarov gave me a nice new jewellery box."
"Did you take them back home already, in the morning?" He asked, thinking back to where he first appeared in the guild at night to pass her presents, where she hadn't been holding onto anything at all.
"Yeah, they're right there," She pointed to a neat stack of presents near her bedside. "There were many other presents from Freed, Bickslow and Evergreen, too."
"I see," He smiled, before he set his mug down and turned to look her in the eyes. "So, Lucy, are you going to give us Spirits anything?"
"Hm, I don't know, what do you all want?"
Loki chuckled at his master; she was really putting her thought and sincerity into this.
"We don't need a gift, Lucy," He told her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "You've already given us such a good life, we couldn't ask for anything else. Although, I think Aquarius would like to devote more time to Scorpio than battles."
"What about the others?" Lucy tilted her head to look at him, blonde tresses falling over her shoulders when she shifted.
"Aries, Taurus, Sagittarius, Virgo, Capricorn and Gemini are already pleased," He informed her as he tucked a strand of her stray hair behind her ear. "Scorpio and Aquarius would just like more time to each other, that's all."
"What about you?" She breathed, and chocolate eyes met charcoal ones as they looked at each other.
"I don't really need a present," He shrugged, brushing her hair behind her ear. "Although, there is one little thing I want."
"What is it?"
He glanced down at her soft, pink and plump lips before looking into her captivating eyes once again.
"You."
"You can't have me," She told him, although he sensed her tone was a teasing one.
"Then I'll just have a kiss," He teased right back.
Little did he expect the mage to lean over, press her soft lips to his for a brief moment, and pull away, forcing his gate close in her embarrassment. As Loki faded away back into the Spirit, he smiled as brightly as Regulus shone.
This Christmas was a Leo's Christmas, indeed.
Hope you enjoyed that! Merry Christmas once again!