Keyblade: Yay! I'm writing something!
Lelouch: You make me sad. Keyblade and Bookworm also don't own a thing, so kindly don't sue.
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It was Christmas Eve, and the town was bustling with activity. People dressed for the cold where either doing last-minute Christmas shopping or going to a relative's for a party. Vendors were yelling into these crowds, hoping to get some sales in. Two boys trying to sell apples were no different.
The smaller one wore a red coat with white gloves. He had blond hair tied in a braid, golden eyes, and an annoyed facial expression.
The other wore a crazy multi-colored outfit that really did not look suited for the cold weather. His jacket had short sleeves and was left unzipped. He hadn't even bothered to lift his hood to cover his incredibly spiky brown hair. He wore fingerless gloves, a silver crown on a chain around his neck, and yellow shoes that looked far too big for human feet. From the look of happiness in his bright blue eyes, it was clear that the cold did not bother him at all. He was currently eating all their products.
"Hey Sora, we can't sell apples if you just eat them all!" the blond boy complained to his friend, shivering despite his coat.
It was hard enough selling apples to people when they were busy trying to get out of the cold, but with the way his companion was eating them, he wondered if they would end up selling any at all.
The spiky-haired youth scoffed at his friend. "Well, some of us can't help it if they get really hungry, Ed. And I'm trying to create a scarcity so that people will buy them."
Ed glared up at him. "Like you're hungry every single minute of the da--"
Sora stopped him, noticing that there was an audience reading this story. "Hello! Welcome to the Anime Version of the Muppets Christmas Carol! I'm here to eat all the food and tell the story."
"And I'm here on a top-secret mission from Eastern HQ. In order to find out more information about the area, I'm stuck selling apples with this idiot."
"I'm Charles Dickens."
"And I'm Edward Elric-- Hey wait a minute!"
Sora glanced over at his short companion. "Yeah, what?"
Ed gave Sora a suspicious look. "You're not Charles Dickens."
"Charles" looked appalled. "I am so Charles Dickens!"
"Uh-huh, I'm sure Charles Dickens had hair that looks like a porcupine sat on his head and a house key bigger than his arm. And when he wasn't writing novels, he was hunting heartless. " Ed retorted as sarcastically as he could.
"You're just the nicest person in all the worlds, Ed. But I really am Charles Dickens."
Ed wondered whether "Charles" had a few too many potions or had hit his head on some sort of hard object. "What's gonna make me believe that you're Charles Dickens?"
The spiky-haired boy laughed. "Well, it's because I know this Christmas Carol like the back of my hand."
"Prove it!" Ed challenged.
"Okay…" said the wannabe Charles Dickens, closing his eyes. "See? This hand's got a black glove with a silver X on it and holes for my fingers to make it easier to hold my keybl--"
"Not the hand! The story! Y'know, the thing we're supposed to be telling." Ed complained.
"Oh right! Thanks…" "Charles" cleared his throat. "The Marleys were dead, to begin with--"
"Hold on," Ed interrupted. "That's how the story begins? With you telling everyone about two dead people?"
"Charles" smiled. "Yup, that's how the story begins-- 'The Marleys were dead, to begin with...'"
"Huh…"
"As dead as a doornail," he continued, trying to set up an atmosphere.
"That's... pretty good. It's a creepy beginning," Ed reluctantly complimented.
"Why thank you, Ed!" Sora glomped his friend.
"You're welcome, Mr. Dickens," Ed answered, pushing him off. He started to munch on an apple, in spite of himself. It was better than starving in the cold, at least.
"In life, the Marleys had been business partners with a shrewd money lender named… Light Yagami. We'll meet him as he comes around… that corner."
Ed looked around, obviously confused by this statement. "Where?"
"There."
"When?"
"Now."
Right on cue, Light came from around the corner. He wore a long, dark coat, and carried a cane, although he didn't need one. He had this murderous look in his eye, like anyone who crossed his path would be killed. He also hated Christmas. Wonderfully likable guy, no?
"Brr… It just got a bit colder… Perfect..." Ed grumbled, tugging his coat closer to himself.
