The Third Day of Christmas
~A Baccano! Fandom Fic~
The back room of the Daily Days was usually dark. A normal air of gloom would settle about the place, secrets hiding in the curtains, stories sitting on the shelves. History could be heavy, and it tended to make the atmosphere… musty. As if their air itself was composed of parchment and newsprint rather than a combination of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and other trace gasses.
Today, however, was different. It was a rather… unusual day, so to speak. Spots of red and white burned through the darkness. Flashing sparkles of green and blue danced on the lovingly messy furniture. And one girl was balancing on a precariously tipped chair, tangled wires clinging to her fist.
"Carol, what are you doing?" A voice asked. Quite used to her senior appearing, seemingly, out of nowhere, the girl- Carol- simply swiveled her head around and smiled broadly.
"I'm decorating, Mr. Vice President sir!" she chimed, hooking another trail of lights to the shelf.
Gustav St-Germain smiled, casually brushing his fingers against a thick stack of old headlines. "And why would you do that?"
"It's Christmas, sir!"
"Isn't that a bit foolish, Carol?"
"Eh?!" Carol tipped off her stool, landing in a flurry of paper while the man peered curiously at her. "Of course not, sir!"
"But what's the reason, Carol?"
"The reason? Do we need a reason?"
"… Nintey-two points."
"Out of how many?"
"I'm curious, Carol. What's your reason?"
Carol gazed at the sheaves surrounding her, as if the candid faces would whisper the answer in her ear. Underneath her palm was a snapshot of Firo Prochinezo, the youngest and most talented Martillo Camorra thus seen, a shot glass in his hand.
"To Maiza!" Firo called, lifting his glass of Vodka to the man across from him.
The little restaurant was cozy- lights and garlands of poinsettia and burgundy drapings hanging from the ornamentations. The feast before them was looking tastier every second that those gathered grew hungrier.
December the nineteenth was seeing the Christmas celebrations of Firo, the Camorras, and their invited guests, Isaac, Miria, Ennis, Rachel and Chez. Jacuzzi and Nice, who had been introduced to Firo through the two thieves, had dropped off a few gifts, shared a glass, and departed as quickly as possible so as not to miss the next train to Chicago, where they'd be spending the holidays with friends and relatives.
Isaac and Miria were returning to California soon, so it had been decided to party early. Which was why, nearly a full week before the holiday, goose and turkey, lasagna and ham, vodka and vino and all sorts of delicious goodies were now laid out, and the "Sorry, we're closed!" sign was hanging peacefully against the window.
"Why are we celebrating Maiza? He's a good kid and all, but I've just arrived with the Aqua Vitae, so I expect your adoration!"
Claire Stanfield walked in, arm around one Chane Laforet, leading in the three Gandor brothers who struggled under the weight of thick wooden crates.
"You made it!" Firo cried happily, tipping his hat and his glass to them.
"Wouldn't miss it for the world, Firo," Luck said gently, setting the packages down on the table. "All your necessities for a real party."
They took their seats around the table, Rachel guiding Chez to the far end to examine the fixings. The "young" boy looked up at her, smiling and blushing at her careful and sisterly care. Firo welcomed the new guests, begging them to regale tales of their latest scheme. Isaac and Miria were protesting to Maiza how their recent machinations were putting them on the path to saving the world. Even Ronnie had a captive audience as he related one of the escaped aboard the Advena Avis.
"To Maiza!" Firo called again, lifting his glass as a lull crept into the conversation. "Without him, we wouldn't be here to celebrate!"
Mazia waved him off. "Ah, Firo-" but he was cut off.
"To Maiza!" The gathered company cheered happily, a few 'yahoos!' punctuating the uniformity like an exclamation point.
Snow gathered at the windowpane, the glass fogging up. It cast a warm veil over the occupants of the room, allowing them just enough privacy to contain their friendship, at least for one night.
Carol looked up at the Vice President.
"I'm waiting, Carol," he said calmly.
There were so many reasons. The love of family, the food, the warmth in the cold.
Being lucky.
Being fortunate, and grateful that… that… that...
"Well sir… I suppose it's… because we can."
"… Because we can?"
"Yes sir," Carol supplied, waiting for the inevitable rebuke and deduction of points in a system she would never quite comprehend.
" … Merry Christmas, Carol. Isn't there a party you should be getting to in the front office?"
Carol beamed at him, dropping the lights she'd been holding. She bounced up exuberantly.
"Thank you, sir! Merry Christmas!" She ran for her coat- then doubled back to slip a thing, wrapped package on the desk before bolting for the door.
Gustav chuckled, picking the gift up. "Merry Christmas, Carol!"
A/N:
A/N: It is officially 10 days till christmas :) I know this is rushed, but I busted my ass (not literally!) to get htis out. One fic per fandom per day of Christmas =D Day 3 is The Baccano crew in a little fluffy moment. Fluffy, fluffy goodness. Pardon typos, please and thank you. I had not time to edit ;)
No angst, no drama, (very little) sadness for the next twelve days.
Next Fandom: ... Not exactly sure. I think It's Psych.
Day 1: Danny Phantom
Day 2: D. Gray-man (my fave so far)
Day 3: Baccano
Look at those for more holiday goodness!!!
3 Holiday cheers, Happy Haunakkah (sorry if I butchered that spelling Oo), Happy Kwanza and all the other lovely ways we celebrate love, peace and good will towards men. Because no matter the religion or cultre or creed, isn't it nice to set aside a litte time as the days get shorter and the cold set in, to remind us that warmth will return. And that it resides year-round in all of us =)
~UGA~