A/N: This fanfic was originally intended for AnimeSuki community and i sort of forgot to upload it here as well, so please forgive me if a christmas fic appears at such a strange time :) I hope you like it.
Disclaimer: Author does not owm Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha nor the characters ... he wishes he would, though.
Friends.
Snowflakes of pure white were falling from the sky, covering the city streets with a soft blanket. The weather was especially cold this night, making Fate shiver a bit. She adjusted the collar of her fur coat and buried her chin deeper in it. It had been a while since she had visited Earth and had almost forgotten just how cold the winters could be.
She raised her gaze from the ground and took another look around, immediately feeling the chill wind on her newly exposed chin. Faint, yet warm light seemed to cover all of the streets and squares despite it being the middle of night. All of the shops had their windows decorated with sparkling lights or otherwise illuminated accessories, pushing the darkness back to the furthest of corners. A large Christmas tree twinkling in all the rainbow colors towered in middle of the city square, just meters in front of her.
The whole town seemed to be celebrating this quiet occasion together with its inhabitants. The air lingered with silent and undisturbed tranquility, only the occasional couple passing every now and then, just like the one passing now. A girl no older than Fate herself was walking next to her male counterpart while holding on to his elbow. The two seemed to be immersed in a conversation, seemingly oblivious to everything around them. As she watched the smiling expressions on their faces Fate's expression changed to a slightly solemn one and the blonde let out a barely audible sigh, turning her gaze to the starry sky above.
Christmas was a time of peace and harmony, meant to be spent together with your family and loved ones, simply enjoying the company and warmth of those close to you. At least that was how she understood it. Yet all she had been doing for the last several hours was aimlessly wander the almost lifeless streets alone, only her thoughts and falling snowflakes to keep her company.
Hayate had invited her over, but Fate felt she would be intruding on one of the rare times Hayate and her knights got to spend alone together. They were a closely knit family, and although Fate was sure none of them would mind to have her over, she still felt awkward about it.
Erio and Caro had ran off somewhere during the day and she hadn't heard from them since.. Even though neither were very familiar with Earth, Fate was fully confident about them being capable of looking after themselves. The fact they had not contacted her meant the pair was doing just fine, and although Fate felt a linger of pride regarding this, it also tugged on her loneliness. Try as she might, Fate could never be the mother for them she had wanted to be. They looked up to her; were thankful towards her from the bottom of their hearts. Yet there was an invisible gap she could never breach, much like between her and her own adoptive family.
Fate rubbed her hands and blew on them, watching her breath crystallize in front of her while she eyed the now giggling couple take a turn around a corner and disappearing from her sight. She could have spent the evening together with Nanoha and Yuuno – the closest friends she had. But she also knew how much Nanoha had looked towards this short holiday the TSAB had granted them. Thanks to their work schedules she barely got any time to spend together with Yuuno, and her "secret crush" on the male was about as subtle as the cold stabbing needles in her cheeks.
Fate had made it sure to vacate their company rather quickly; it was the least she could do for her friends. They had finally a moment of peace to share together, and she was certain they could do without a third wheel. And this realization stabbed at her heart. She had friends; close friends she shared many memories with. Close friends she was ready to protect with all her might and knew she could expect the same in turn. Yet when it came to occasions like this she was but a third wheel, not having a real place anywhere. She had no actual family to go home to; no special someone whose shoulder to lean upon.
A sharp gush of wind made the blonde raise her hand and hold on to her hair, not to let it flutter in the wind. The large clock on top of the nearby city hall dully rang a new hour, announcing it being two hours past midnight. She waited till the distant sound had completely faded in the night and after a moment decided to head home. There was no point in continuing to aimlessly wander the streets in the freezing weather.
Her walk home was dull and uneventful, various thoughts lingering on her mind. She unlocked the door and stepped inside the large, empty apartment she shared with Nanoha and Yuuno while on their vacation. Though truth be told, Nanoha spend a lot of time with her family and Yuuno seemed to disappear a lot somewhere, so even though all of them had keys to the place she seemed to be the only one using them.
"I'm home" Fate quietly announced while shutting the door behind her. Of course there was no response from the empty apartment. She took off her boots and hung the coat in its place without even bothering to turn on the lights and advanced towards the living room. The only source of light was the decorated Christmas tree in the corner, bathing the room with faint light from its artificial candles she had not turned off when leaving. Yet somehow she found the lacking illumination to be comforting.
Gracefully she moved around the table in middle of the room and flopped down on the sofa next to the wall. Fate closed her eyes and placed her right hand on her forehead, pondering whether simply going to sleep would not be the best action. The empty apartment only reminded Fate of her previous thought, making them resurface. She barely noticed something tugging on her right hand while mussing over this and slowly opened her right eye.
The kitten was brushing its nose against her arm, obviously demanding attention. She absently moved her hand and placed it on the little furball, gently rubbing it behind the ear. The kitten purred slightly and flopped down on its side, catching Fate's finger with his paws and started playfully pummeling it with his hind legs and finally biting on it.
The sudden jolt of sensation in her finger caused Fate to quickly pull her hand back and blink a few times in confusion while staring at the kitten who looked to be searching for his now lost plaything.
"… A cat?" she muttered in obvious confusion, but the sound of a silent giggling coming from the kitchen caught her attention. "Nanoha ?"
The laughter ceased and the lights in the room got lit up, causing Fate to instinctively cover her eyes with a hand. She blinked a few times and sat up, adjusting to the brightly lit room and noticed her friend leaning against the doorframe, obviously a content expression on her face.
"Mou, Fate-chan, I was wondering how long you would play with the kitten before noticing it" Nanoha playfully announced while stepping closer, obviously enjoying the confusing expression on the blonde's face.
Fate blinked once more, trying to wrap her mind around the situation. The coal black kitten had crawled in to her lap and curled up, obviously announcing his intentions of not moving from the spot for a while.
Nanoha nodded happily at the sight. "Mhm, looks like he likes you. Isn't that a relief, Yuuno-kun ?" she asked with a smile while turning her head back, towards the kitchen. The still speechless Fate followed her gaze only to find the male leaning against the same doorframe Nanoha had used to support herself a moment ago.
"Nanoha … Yuuno … why are you two here ?" She finally spoke up, having broken through the initial shock..
Her friend pouted playfully and sat down on the sofa next to Fate while Yuuno moved to sit across from the two. "Mou, Fate-chan, why did you have to disappear on us? We had planned to spend the evening together, just the three of us, right ?"
The blonde nodded. That had indeed been the initial plan, but … "But, I thought … you two …" she looked at both Yuuno and Nanoha who exchanged quick glances upon this notion and both blushed slightly as their eyes met.
"Nyahaha" Nanoha laughed nervously while scratching her cheek with a finger, the red on her cheeks becoming more visible. Yuuno coughed to clear his throat and turned to Fate.
"Fate, you didn't have to sneak away. We wanted to spend the day together with you … we are friends, right ? Isn't it natural?"
"But …"
"that's right!" Nanoha interrupted her "And we had a very hard time picking out your present because you were gone".
"My present … ?"
Nanoha nodded at the question. "Yep. We walked around for several hours but didn't find anything. Then I asked Yuuno-kun to describe you in few words. "Something gentle and warm" was what he said".
Fate blushed profoundly at this and lowered her gaze while stealing a glance at Yuuno, who seemed to be just as embarrassed.
"And so, we decided on this. Do you like it ?" Nanoha leaned towards with the last question, obviously anxious about the answer.
"Do I like it … ?" Fate followed Nanoha's gaze towards the kitten in her lap. It was very small, probably just a few months old. Such a fragile little life, yet warm and gentle at the same time. The kitten was purring lowly in his sleep and Fate could feel its heart beating beneath the soft fur. A smile rose on her face as she gently slid three of her fingers across the kitten's side. It was barely bigger than her hand, yet it felt warm and soft.
She raised her head and nodded happily, a slight tint of red lingering on her cheeks. "Mhm. Thank you …both of you.". She looked at the kitten once more, starting to gently caress it under the chin. The kitten outstretched its neck to embrace the notion, starting to purr a little louder,
Nanoha leaned back and let out an obviously relieved sigh. "Thank goodness. Right, Yuuno-kun ?"
The male nodded and stood up vigorously. "Good! Lets get some food in here so we can start truly celebrating this occasion."
"Yep" Nanoha happily nodded, hopping up from the sofa and disappearing in to the kitchen after the male.
Fate watched the two leave the room with a smile on her face. She felt a warm feeling in her chest and looked down at the sleeping kitten. "Friends, huh …" A sincere smile lingered on her blushing cheeks. "Thank you …"
"Gentle and warm, huh" Nanoha mussed over while Yuuno was exploring the contents of the fridge right next to her. "I am feeling kind of envious now"
Yuuno laughed nervously at that and pulled a large bowl of salad out of the fridge and turned around, only to find Nanoha staring straight in to his eyes, only a few inches away. "W … what?" he stuttered, his face slowly turning red.
"Nee, Yuuno-kun … " Nanoha begun in a low, almost whispering voice and held a brief pause, making Yuuno swallow. "Does Arf get along with cats ?"
The male almost dropped the bowl while feeling a sweatdrop forming on the back of his head. This is something that had never crossed his mind before. "… I have no idea".