A Christmas to Remember

An Amuto Fanfic

Welcome to the attraction, 'A Christmas to Remember'. Please keep your hands, legs, and all personal items inside the tram car at all times. Remember there is no flash photography inside the ride permitted. Thank you.

I don't see why I have to do a disclaimer. Pony Canon isn't just going to pop in going "you stole my characters! Sue, Sue!" But I will anyway. I own a lovely chunk of nothing.

Twas the night before Christmas,

And all through the house.

Only a cat was stirring,

And let's not forget his little mouse.

It was the night before Christmas (and don't get me started on that whole 'and all through the house, not a creature was stirring...' business). Anyway, it wasn't a holiday I was excited for, though I knew someone close to me that was. And I would do anything to make her happy. So I walked the streets to her house, in the cold, wet winter. I would do more for her than that though. I would give my life for her. I would give my life to her, if necessary. I liked to think that I knew her better than anyone else. I wasn't sure if that was entirely true, but I did know that this holiday – the birth of Christ – was her favorite holiday.

I for one did not get it. It was just a day of the year where people gave each other gifts. Hoorah. I got a laptop! I got a high-definition television! I got a packet of catnip! Er, I did not even get the 'catnip' one. For awhile I had been unsure of what I was planning on doing tonight. But tonight, I could feel it. Deep in my bones, I knew that tonight was the right night. So I walked bravely, with my chest held high, wearing no more than a coat.

If I had still been the teenager I was when I met her, my tail would have been swinging in joy. But I was no longer a teenager. She and I were adults now, and there was nothing standing in the way of us being together. No kiddy king, no guardians, no Easter, nothing. When I twenty two I lost my guardian Chara, Yoru. I didn't exactly like to think that I had lost him though. It was more like he had gone back inside of me, and remained with me as I grew up. I was still as sneaky as ever – and I was sure part of that was because of him.

I was at her door now. There was no need to be nervous, really. She had no reason to reject this small question. Okay, maybe small was the wrong word - the wrong word by a mile. I ignored my heart pounding profoundly in my chest and walked right it, not bothering to take off my coat or my shoes. Hopefully we wouldn't be here for long. She really ought to lock her door; some pervert could just walk right in. And no any old pervert was walking in here – no sire. I was the only pervert walking in through these doors.

I walked – silent as a cat – through her house, being extra careful today not to make a sound. I found her leaning over the kitchen table, staring down at a bill in her hand. Her long, pink hair had fallen down over her shoulders, creating a curtain which blocked a part of her face. Her face was slightly worried, which – naturally – made me edgy too. I couldn't help but worry about her, too. Watching her, I felt myself unconsciously half-smile. How could someone like her be mine and no one else's?

As I watched her, she tucked a piece of her bubble-gum pink hair behind her ear, making the curtain disappear. She still didn't know I was here. And I wasn't about to alert her, either. Strangely, I just…couldn't stop staring. I wasn't trying to be a pervert, but I suppose I was just naturally one. So, I watched her hips sway gracefully to the side as the kitchen lights gracefully illuminated her partly pale skin. With everything she did, she was as graceful and artistic as a dancer. Her Ran side showed every day, it seemed, but that didn't mean her other sides didn't show. She was currently taking an artist's class at the local recreational center, loved to cook dinner every night for us, and was taking singing lessons from my sister, Utau. Amu's voice really got better as she got older, and now she was better than ever.

Finally, the courage that I didn't even know was building inside of me reached its breaking point. I strode – quietly – in through, her back still to me. I smiled at the nape of her neck for once more a moment before wrapping my arms around her waist and resting my chin on her shoulder. Her back became erect in one fluid motion – surprised, I assumed – but relaxed just as quickly. I could almost feel the worry and stress melt out of her to be replaced with joy and happiness.

"I think I know those hands," she said, a smile touching her cherry-red lips. "Merry Christmas, Ikuto-kun."

I rolled my eyes quite profoundly. Already my good mood had been so very much wrecked. I did not like – no, scratch that – I hated the honorific 'kun.' It was a little immature, but it made me think that I was no better than Tadase. I was no fool – when Amu was younger, I knew she had a little crush on him. I couldn't deny it – no matter how hard I tried. She claimed that the love she felt for me was ten – no – one hundred times more deep and everlasting, but even after all these years, I still felt a ting of jealously whenever the subject was brought up. Luckily, the subject wasn't brought up very often.

In the years previous to this one, when she and I were children, always, even from the start, we called each other Ikuto and Amu. In the culture in which we were apart of, honorifics were important. If you didn't include one, it meant that you had permission to address someone in an intimate way. We had always been intimate, since the day we met when I tried to steal two of her three available guardian eggs. From then on, we always knew each other as Amu and Ikuto, through the good times and the bad. No guy beside me had ever slept in Amu's bed (or at least I hoped so). I would always be there to catch her when she fell, no matter what would happen. Whether I defined tonight as a positive or a negative.

Maybe I wasn't even going to follow through on my plan. But, even as I thought this, I knew that I was just lying to myself.

"You know I don't like when you call me Ikuto-kun," I replied, exaggerating the 'kun.'

She laughed, and the sound was pure silver and bells. Of the top ten favorite sounds in the world, that had to be my number one. You probably don't want to know two and three. She closed her eyes, leaning in to me, as I slowly sniffed her. I was tempted to nip her ear – but I knew now wasn't the right time to tease her. Maybe tomorrow.

"Why don't we go for a little…walk?" I proposed quietly in her ear. She shivered lightly in response – and I knew that she wasn't cold.

"A-and if I say no?" She returned quietly, unable to keep a slight tremor from rising up into her voice.

"Well I'm just going to have to leave then," I returned. I felt her stiffen beneath me, and I smiled. Although she rarely voiced it, I knew she didn't like when I left. She had asked me time and time again to live with her, but I always said no. It wasn't because I didn't love her enough to commit, but the first time she asked me, she was only twenty. We had been dating for almost a year, but it still didn't feel right. The next time she was twenty one. I hated to do it, but I refused her. She didn't ask again. It wasn't until later that I had figured it out – I still saw her as pure. Like she an angel, unable to be touched by any mere man. The thought wasn't completely irrational, though it was a little strange, considering the fact that I knew for a fact that she wasn't a virgin.

"Well let me just get my coat then," she said after a moment. I snagged her coat off the back of the nearest kitchen chair, and handed it smoothly to her.

"Now are you ready?" I said, smirking at her.

She nodded back quickly, a small blush warming her skin, her eyes a little unfocused. I helped her into the coat, and then took her hand gently, leading her to the upper floor of her loft. She looked at me questioningly, but I pretended not to notice. At the top of the stairs, I turned right, and we were soon in her room.

"This was the first place you and I…" I trailed off, staring at her. She cocked an eyebrow at me, giving me her best 'is this supposed to be a game?' look.

"Just answer the question," I ordered, slightly impatient. She rolled her eyes, and then looked at the queen bed in front of us.

"This was the first place you and I…you know…" she said, the blush that had begun to fade away coming back with a vengeance.

I smiled, completely unrepentant.

"This was the first place you and I did it."

"Did…it?"

"Had sex," she said bravely, daring me with her eyes to tease her as the blush on her face reached a level ten.

"Alright," I said simply. I led her (I hadn't let go of her once since I took her hand in the kitchen) out the bedroom door, and she followed me without any questions. We walked through the house, my boots sounding loud next to her silent socks. Strange, they sounded a lot quieter when I was walking through the house earlier.

"Tell me, did I surprise you when I came in earlier?" I asked, my voice sounding a little loud in the silence.

"Don't you always?" She murmured back, mainly to herself.

"You have completely no idea what I'm planning, do you?"

"You think I would have figured it out," Amu said, frustrated. "I'm supposed to know you better than anyone else."

"Amu…." I said comfortingly, stopping in place to wrap my arms around her shoulders. She responded by pressing her face into my chest. "You also know that I'm very good at hiding my secrets."

"Couples shouldn't have secrets," Amu returned, her voice slightly muffled by my coat.

"One little secret won't hurt. Besides, you'll know it by the end of tonight."

"I will?"

"Absolutely."

She was immediately comforted by the small fact, and she pulled back from our embrace. I let her go reluctantly.

We walked a few more steps, only to stop once to let her put on her shoes. Then we were out the door, walking down the front steps that led to the rest of the world. She shivered once when we were outside, as the full coolness of the December night hit her. I stared at her face as she peered around; looking at the city we had lived in for who knows how long. It was the same environment, but she still acted like everything was new to her. The only thing that had changed was the fact that over the last few weeks Christmas lights had popped up on almost every house on the street. Some overdid it way too much – blinking lights, dancing Santa's – the whole lot. But other's look like someone did their job halfway – like they got bored and suddenly headed in.

Amu must've sensed that I was looking at her, because she turned her head to look at me. I was completely unfazed – I didn't look away.

"Why are you staring at me?" She asked, giggling.

"I don't really know," I responded, smiling a little. "Does it annoy you?"

"No, it doesn't," she returned honestly, twirling a lock of hair on one of her fingers.

"Why are you nervous?"

"How could you tell I was nervous?"

"You always twirl your hair like that when you are."

"I do? Strange, I never noticed."

"I have," I said, smirking.

Amu rolled her eyes once, and then we set off again.

After we were done walking down the steps, I stopped. Amu, once again, gave me a questioningly look, arching one of her eyebrows at me.

"This was the first place you and I…" I said for the second time that night. Amu looked at the base of the stairs, then up at me with her wide, topaz eyes.

"This was the place where you and I had our first kiss," she said certainly, looking away from me after a few moments when she realized I wasn't going to stop staring back at her. I always won our little staring contests. Although she was certain about the response she gave me, I could still tell she was wondering what this was all about. I was glad she hadn't figured it out yet – it would make her response more interesting when she knew where I was leading her.

We set off again, making footsteps in the not-so freshly fallen snow. The streetlights shined dully, assisting our way down the narrow sidewalk. It was a cloudless (and moonless) night, the stars the only thing shining above us. There wasn't a single car or person in sight, everyone was with their families. Amu's sister, mother, and father took a vacation to the Bahamas for the holiday season. They invited her, but she politely refused. I didn't have any family I really wanted to spend time with besides my sister, Utau, and this was her first Christmas with her new boyfriend. I didn't dare disturb her, or I would risk her wrath. So, Amu and I were a family, at least for a few days. I hoped that soon, we would become a real family.

We didn't talk when we walked, but it wasn't uncomfortable. It wasn't that we had nothing to talk about; it was more like we already knew what the other was thinking. If I wanted to talk, I would have talked, and I knew Amu would too. But for now, it was fine to just let this night say silent. Though I knew that I would soon break the silence.

And at the end of the street in which we were on, I did just so.

"This was the first place you and I…" I repeated. I was beginning to sound like a broken record, even to myself.

She looked upon the small, yellow diner for a mere instant before stating, "This was where we had our first date."

"Exactly."

"Exactly what is the point of this?" she asked me suddenly, turning halfway to face me.

"You'll see," I said mysteriously, staring off into the distance.

She knew I wasn't going to give her an answer, so she dropped it.

"Alright," she said resignedly. "Lead the way."

I chuckled, but not really out of humor. Again we set off, making a left. The direction surprised her – that was obvious. I was leading her downtown, to the building district. She didn't voice her surprise though, she knew I would just either ignore her or give a mysterious, unhelpful response.

The next stop we made wasn't for another few minutes. It was our longest segment yet. I opened my mouth to ask an obvious question, but she cut me off.

"This was the place you and I met," she said quietly, staring up at the building. I remembered that day like it was just yesterday. Amu had just chara-changed for the first time, and managed to land herself precariously on an unfinished building ledge. I remembered how terrified she had been, gripping the red support beam like it was a life line. And I – of course – made it no easier on her. In fact, I made it much worse. I stole her remaining Guardian Eggs, not expecting a fight from the small girl. Well I was dead wrong. Moments after I stole the eggs and set off to get down from this building, she ran after me, making a grab for her possessions in my hand. Out of surprise, I dropped them, and, obviously, she jumped after them. I watched her plummet to the ground through eyes that pretended not to care, although I obviously did. It took every fiber of my being to not jump after her. Luckily, she ended up okay. She was saved by Tadase, and I disappeared, leaving her to be with her little crush.

I looked over at Amu, and she looked like she was remembering the same thing.

We set off again. Same old, same old right? Well this was going to be our best 'this was the first place you and I' yet. Because honestly – she and I had never been there.

I lead her to a bench. It wasn't a significant bench, it was just a snow covered, forgotten looking bench in a small park. I lead her there and sat her down, finally letting go of her hand. That questioning look was back in her eyes. I was beginning to wonder if it would ever go away. I finally released her hand.

I never took my eyes away from hers as knelt down, one knee in the snow. Although the snow should've soaked through my jeans, I didn't feel the coolness of the wet ground. I was too focused on other things. Recognition finally dawned clear in her eyes.

"I-I don't remember this place," she said, sounding as though something was stuck in her throat.

My hand dove in my pocket, pulling out a small, blue velvet box. Tears formed at the corners of her eyes.

"Amu Hinamori –"

"Yes!" She said, unable to contain herself.

"Can I please at least finish?"

"Fine," she said, pouting cutely.

"Amu Hinamori, I love you more than life itself. I am prepared to be with you for the rest of both of our lives, because I don't want anyone else. Will you marry me, Amu?"

She pretended to contemplate as continued to stare.

"I don't know…" she said, smiling a wide smile. I really shouldn't spend the rest of my life with someone so much older than me. He might die way before me and leave me all alone."

"I refuse to leave you all alone. Even if I do die, I swear to haunt you."

"Aw, you promise?"

"Absolutely."

"Then yes. Yes a million times over."

She knelt down in the snow next to me and kissed me deeply. She started the kiss, and I had to end it. When we pulled apart, we were both breathing deeply, and smiling like we couldn't contain ourselves. I couldn't help it, it felt like I was about to burst.

She sat herself back up on the bench and I stood up, and then sat down next to her. I took her left hand gently and put the small diamond ring on her fourth finger. It wasn't anything major; it was just a heart-cut diamond, surrounded by blue and pink smaller diamonds. But when I saw her face light up, I knew I had made the right choice. As soon as it was on, I kissed her. I kissed her with every ounce of love and emotion I had within me, and she was lifted right off her feet. Like she was flying. I felt the same.

She responded by wrapping her arms around my neck. The only reason I broke apart was for air, but when we broke apart, I was surprised to find out something. I looked up, hardly able to believe the timing.

It was snowing. Fresh white fluff floated down from the heavens, sticking on the ground and in my hair. I looked over at Amu, who was staring at the sky also, her eyes shining. The cold weather had turned her cheeks pink and the snowflakes had begun to catch in her eyelashes and her hair, making her look absolutely angelic. Maybe I wasn't completely wrong about the rationalization that she was truly an angel – my angel. I doubted she felt as powerfully in love with me as I was (so much love would crush her small body, wouldn't it?) with her but I didn't care.

The look in her eyes when she looked back at me said the same thing I was feeling – that there was nothing else I could ever possibly want in the world. I held her close in an embrace as off in the distance, a bell tolled twelve times. It was officially Christmas. A Christmas I would remember, as would she.

"So, Ikuto? Are you and I finally going to move in together?"

In my opinion – this is too short. I wanted it to be at least 4,000 words, but I couldn't think of anything else to add. So, the end result was about 3,800. I wrote this on December 2nd, because I was in a Christmas mood.

If you guys don't already know, I got this from a Kay's commercial. You know "every kiss begins with Kay." Yeah, the jewelry company. If you guys don't know what that is…well…it doesn't really matter.

Oh – and one more thing. The building scene, where Amu and Ikuto met. Yeah, I got that from the anime. I know in the manga that she fell in the hole, but I went anime style this time.

Eh…one more thing…I don't really know about the ending – "Are you and I finally going to move in together?" I found it a little strange, but also a little funny. But what I find funny can be a little different than what you guys think is funny. Please tell me in your reviews.

So, merry Christmas to you guys. If you don't celebrate Christmas then…happy "_____________________".

(Insert holiday name here).

~ABeautifulDream [Chrissy – chan]