A/N: Well, I wanted to do something for Christmas, so I thought I might as well take a crack at this. *shrugs* I'll try to update once a day, but no promises.
Summary: Everyone knows there are twelve days of Christmas, and they shall be celebrated - deliberately or otherwise.
Possible Pairings (no order): Kutau, Amuto, Rimahiko, Yuukari, Kaiya
Disclaimer: Yes, I do own Shugo Chara!, which is why I'm writing fanfiction. In english. Evidently.
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Days of Christmas
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On the first day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me
A partridge in a pear tree.
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Day 1: A Partridge in a Pear Tree
Utau briskly walked along the street, her breath fogging up in the cold air.
It had been a horrible day as far as Utau was concerned. Yukari was in fits over something that Yuu had said or might have said or might have wanted to say, or might have meant or might have wanted to mean. Her manager was just a tad sensitive about these things, especially around the holidays. It didn't help that all the stores seemed to be sold out of anything truly decent for a present by the time they'd gone Christmas shopping. Both of them had agreed that looking over the most recent contracts that they had been over came first, and now they were both miffed that they couldn't find anything for anyone.
Add on the fact that she hadn't seen Iru or Eru since lunch and that the sun was already setting, she was feeling snappish. There was a very worrying tickle at the back of her throat, too, and the very last thing she needed now was to get sick or lose her voice over Christmas, because there was this charity event during which Utau might be able to bag herself some sponsors if only she could perform…
Utau sighed. Life was hectic and, according to Sanjou, it would just get worse as she grew older. But she was a singer, she was living her dream and if that happened to include a bit more paperwork and sucking up to people that she'd initially thought, well, too bad because she was Utau Tsukiyomi and she would be damned if she let them win. 'Them' being those pompous magazine editors who swore up and down that a teen star such as herself would eventually crack under pressure and either have a mental breakdown and do drugs or randomly shave her head.
It was in a very agitated state of mind that Utau unlocked the door to her apartment – her mother had been disapproving but Utau pointed out it wasn't as though she'd cared much for the past decade or so – dismissing the loud voices and cheerful music that she could hear as coming from her neighbour.
So she really didn't expect to open her door to be blinded by Christmas decorations and loud yelps and… How did they get that tree in there? It was much, much wider than the door.
"Come on, just wear the beak! You already have the wings!" exclaimed a russet-haired teenager who was inexplicably sitting next to the tree in the middle of her apartment.
"I refuse! I don't want to be some kind of bird. Make Iru do it!" exclaimed Eru, corssing her arms and huffing.
Iru smirked, taking the tiny beak from Kukai's hands. With barely a "Here, let me," she started to attack the little angel-Chara, trying to force it on. It proved to be harder to do than the devil-Chara first suspected, with Eru wiggling and taking the beak off again once it was on.
Daichi, who had up to that point been lounging in the air as though all was right with the world, grinned and leaned to whisper in Eru's ear. "It's romantic," he said.
"LOVE!" and with that, Eru took the beak and put it on herself before perching on the Christmas tree.
Utau finally recovered from her shock. Not enough, unfortunately, to form a coherent sentence. "What… I – how…? What?" she spluttered inelegantly from the doorway.
"Idol-chan!" exclaimed the boy happily as he held up a light-green bauble.
"Don't call me that, boy," she responded automatically. She shook herself and demanded, "How did you get in here? And what are you doing?"
"I begged Amu to get a key off Sanj – Wait, did she change her surname after marriage?" he wondered, hanging the bauble, which was strangely deformed, further up on he branches of the tree. It was a real tree, too. Utau could smell the pine from where she was still standing.
"Yes, but she uses her maiden name for business. And… really, how did you get that tree in here? Up three flights of steps?" she added, because the tree surely couldn't have fit on their elevator.
Kukai held a finger to his lips and winked.
"A magician never reveals their secrets," he said, laughing at the expression on her face.
"Utau! Utau~!" Eru called, still perched on the actual pine tree. "It's almost Christmas!"
"Oh, really? Golly gosh, I had no idea," she sniped before she could help it. Utau, it had to be said, was not one who could handle change very calmly. If anybody ever needed an example, all they had to do was ask Amu how she'd reacted when her brother finally started showing some interest in girls. Or a girl, at any rate. His friends used to wonder if maybe he was gay…
"We're decorating," added Iru, trying to pass off as nonchalant although Utau could tell she was secretly delighted.
"We haven't decorated for Christmas in years," declared Eru, eyes shining. Utau looked at the Chara, glowing around the cardboard beak on a string, and cracked up. She tried not to, tried to muffle it with her hands, but she couldn't help it as she dissolved into helpless laughter.
Kukai beamed proudly at her reaction, which made her laugh even more, because truthfully, she hadn't been able to laugh in weeks. This, whatever the heck this was, was exactly what she needed.
"What – what are you doing?" she managed to gasp out. At some point during her laughter she had collapsed against the doorframe and was now clutching onto it like dear life because she wouldn't be able to support herself otherwise.
"Come into your own home and close the door, and I will tell you," he ordered, grinning.
Utau did so and leaned against the closed door, but only because she was insanely curious why her kind-boyfriend decided to break into her apartment and redecorate things in the name of Christmas. And gave Eru a beak. Plus, she was letting in a cold draught to the otherwise cosy apartment.
"Well, you know that song? On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me and all that jazz?" asked Kukai, shrugging like it didn't mean anything although the blush spreading across his cheeks said differently.
Utau shot him a confused look. "Yeah…?"
"Well, I sorta… kinda… asked Eru a favour," said Kukai, now looking anywhere but at her.
Eru smiled brightly beneath her beak. "I'm a partridge!"
Utau's eyebrows rose to her hairline as she tried to find an appropriate response to that sudden announcement. "Really?" she said at last.
"Yup," nodded Daichi. "And that's a pear tree." He pointed at the Christmas tree, which, now that Utau looked closer, was decorated in nothing but the weirdly shaped, light-green and yellow baubles with a few lights blinking here and there.
"Oh."
Kukai looked at her, concern written all over his face. "Are you okay? You sound kinda choked."
"I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" he asked. "You're turning red."
Utau, who had been able to heroically hold back another burst of laughter, caught sight of Eru and her beak trying (and failing) to imitate a partridge to the best of her ability. Which was why she lost it again. She only laughed harder at Kukai's bewildered look, sinking to the floor.
"Uh, Utau?" he prompted.
She shook her head and held up a hand, trying to catch her breath again. Her chuckles increased again when she heard Eru the ever-faithful partridge start singing.
"On the fiiiirst day of Chriiiistmaaaas, my truuueee LOVE! gaaave to meeeeee~ A paaartridge in a peeeaaaar Treeeeeeee~"
Kukai watched her, now looking more amused than anything else. "You're laughing at me, aren't you." It wasn't a question but a statement.
Utau wiped tears away, her cheeks and stomach aching. "Maybe…"
"Figures," he said in the same monotone. "The first attempt I try to make at being romantic, and you laugh at me."
Another smile graced Utau's face, regardless of her complaining cheeks. "You are such a kid," she said teasingly.
He pretended to glare at her. "Why yes, yes I am."
Utau's smile widened as she stood and walked over to Kukai before kneeling again. "But you deserve a reward," she said softly, cupping his jaw with her hand.
"Yeah, I definitely deserve a reward," he breathed, nodding enthusiastically.
With another chuckle, Utau placed a soft kiss on his lips. He sported a goofy smile when the broke apart. She answered with one of her own, only less goofy.
"LOVE!" yelled an exuberant Eru, holding a hand dramatically to her forehead even as she went on singing. "On the fiiiifth day of Chriiiistmaaaas, my truuueee LOVE! gaaave to meeee~"
Kukai seemed to realise something then, his face flushing a very holiday-appropriate red as he quickly stammered; "Not… not that I want to be you true love or something. Or even your love. I mean, I don't not want to if you want to, but if you don't want to, then that's fine and everything, I mean we're still teens and all that. I mean, not true love. I can be, like, your, kinda, white like or something. I mean, I'm fine either way, but I dunno, true love is a bit, like, um…"
Utau laid a finger against his lips, silently telling him to be quiet. She was smirking though, which was at least better than her looking freaked out over sudden confessions of maybe-I-am-if-you-are-kinda-maybe-true-love.
"Alright then, 'white like'," she said, chuckling, "just stop meaning things and we'll be fine."
"Alright then," he said, lips twisting into another smile. "Uh… Merry Christmas."
She rolled her eyes. "There's still another twelve days to go, Kukai," she reminded him.
"Merry Almost Christmas," he amended.
"Merry Almost Christmas," she echoed with a smirk. "But Kukai, can I ask you a favour?"
"What?" he asked.
"Never give Eru a beak again."
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