Snow Angels and Traditions

by KarissaEB

My REALLY REALLY REALLY belated Christmas takari I've been working on... sorry this is so late. But what's the harm in prolonging the Christmas season a LITTLE longer??? ^_^ Well,I'm not gonna give a summary,the story's way too long to do that. Takari

Snow Angels and Traditions
by Kari

A/N: Grr... not my best work at all... but you may enjoy it. By the time this was finished, it was 2 days after Christmas, and by the time I finished HTML-ing it, it was ... well, now. So I know it's a LOT late there, but what's the harm in prolonging Christmas a little more?? ^_^ It was SUPPOSED to be for Lace123's Christmas contest, but I obviously didn't finish it in time. Oh well. This is a TAKARI (WOOHOO!) with a smidgen (funny word I picked up from a friend the other day... is it even spelled right? I dunno...) of Taiora and Jyoumi, and maybe some others. There's a little bit of self-insertion in here.... just a LITTLE bit... I read one of R80's fics and he had himself in the story and I figured I'd try doing that too. It's kinda weird writing yourself into a story though... especially me! There's also a picture I drew for this fic, the link is on the review page. Hope everybody likes this! If there are any typos, I apologize now... I was kinda rushing the HTML-ing of this anyway so I wasn't really paying attention. Don't flame me for them!! ^_^ Now that I've rambled your ears off, read, review, enjoy! Kari :)

Age Check:
Tai, Sora, Matt: 18
Joe: 19
Izzy and Mimi: 17
T.K., Kari, Davis: 15
Yolei: 16
Cody: 12

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Oh yeah, this switches between T.K.'s, Kari's, and MY point of view... hehe)

*T.K.*
Two days until Christmas... YES! Christmas is my favorite holiday. It always has been... the fact that for the past 7 years I've spent it with Kari Kamiya only makes it better. Kari has been my best friend since we first met in the Digiworld all those years ago... but for the past 4 years or so, I've wanted her as more than my best friend.

The other Digidestined occasionally say we're meant for each other, because... "Just look at your Digimon, they're Angemon and Angewomon!" (That one's Tai...), "Your crests are the two special ones - hope and light!" (That's what Sora says...), "Come on, even Piedmon said you guys were falling for each other!...Yes, I heard that, even though I was a keychain." (THAT was Matt...). There are plenty more, but there are too many to go through right now. Whenever they'd say these things, of course Kari and I HAD to be together at the time. I'd just laugh it off nervously, trying to cover up the fact that everything they said was true... I do love Kari... ever since I first saw her.

************************** "Hi! I'm Kari," a young girl said brightly as she walked up to T.K., her small hand outstretched. He stared at her a moment...he was strangely entranced by her, simply by looking into her eyes and at her soft hand extended towards him.

This strange new emotion that filled his eight-year-old heart both exhilarated and frightened him, but he liked it... and they had just finished finding this girl. T.K. had gotten his wish... the eighth child was his age, just a little taller than him so basically his size, and she was pretty. "H-hi," T.K. stammered, taking Kari's hand and shaking it briefly with his own tiny hand.

Now that the threat of Myotismon was over, Kari had time to meet the rest of the Digidestined, besides her brother, Tai, and Sora, who she had known all her life through Tai. Sora and Tai had been best friends since before Kari was even born. The group of Digidestined was now back in the Digital World, and the older children were sitting around a bonfire, trying to think up a plan as to how they would defeat these new Dark Masters. Kari and T.K. had strayed away from the blaze of the fire, bored with the heated discussion that was arising from the older Digidestined.

"Well, what's your name?" Kari asked innocently, smiling her sweet, childish smile at him. T.K. took a deep breath.

"Takeru, or T.K. for short. Everybody usually just calls me T.K., unless it's my mom and she's mad at me."

Kari laughed. T.K. smiled to himself... Kari's got such a pretty laugh, he thought. "My mama does that too, when she's mad at me, she calls me Hikari. I don't really like that name, it's too long." T.K. and Kari smiled at each other.

"I think Hikari is a pretty name, but Kari is pretty too," T.K. said quietly.

"I like your name too, T.K."

Their simple yet meaningful conversation carried on for the entire duration of the heated discussion/argument that Tai and the others were having... little did they know that this conversation was the beginning of something much more than either of them ever could've dreamed.**********************

Yep, since the first time I saw her.

*Kari*
Wow, Christmas is only two days away... it almost crept up on me this year! The past few years, Christmas hasn't really been that big of a deal earlier in the holiday season, but this year, I started looking forward to it right after Thanksgiving, if not before! I'm really excited about this year, T.K.'s having a Christmas party at his church for all the Digidestined and their families. I can't wait! Usually I'm not that excited about going to churches, they kind of make me nervous.

Tai goes to Sora's church with her, Davis, and Izzy, and T.K., Matt, Joe, Mimi, Cody, and Yolei go to another. I tried going with Tai and Sora to their church, but Davis ruins the experience every time. Once I went with T.K. to his church, but I didn't really get the service, so I just don't go. Everybody else tries to get me to go, I guess because I'm the only one who doesn't go, but it's just not my thing.

I've gotten T.K. the perfect gift... I just hope he likes it. You have no idea how much time I spent looking for something that would tell him just how much he means to me and how much I love him... even though I have yet to tell him that I love him... but I think I finally have the perfect thing. I got him a copy of the picture we took together in New York three years ago and decorated it inside a beautiful frame I found.

I hope he likes it... he was so disappointed when my digital camera wouldn't take the picture at first... I think we took that picture at least a hundred times. Each time we tried taking the picture again, we would edge a little closer to each other than we had been during the previous attempt. That was such a great summer....

************************** "Say cheese!" T.K. said, smiling and holding up a victory V. He was hoping that maybe this time the picture would work. Kari hoped that it would work as well, but she wouldn't really mind if it didn't... she enjoyed the excuse to be so close to T.K. Kari smiled sweetly into the camera as the flash burst with light. After the moment the picture was hopefully taken, Kari walked over to the laptop that Izzy had lent her and T.K. for their trip to America. Izzy, through some... aggressive persuasion from Tai and Matt, had borrowed the laptop from the computer club he was president of and let T.K. and Kari take it with them so they could keep in touch with their brothers and the rest of the Destined. Kari waited anxiously for the picture to come up on the screen...

10 seconds...

45 seconds...

A minute and a half...

By this time T.K. had wandered over to her and now stood beside her, looking just as anxiously over her shoulder...

The laptop beeped and an error window popped up on the screen. "Agh..." T.K. groaned, plopping his head gently onto Kari's shoulder without thinking. Kari giggled as a faint tint of crimson appeared on her cheeks.

"Should we give it another go?" Kari asked him, trying to rid the blush from her face. T.K. grinned warmly at her and she felt a surge of emotion rise in her throat. She loved his grin, it was so cute...

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind and walked in step with her over to the building they had been attempting to take the picture in front of. "Might as well, are you sure you're setting it right?"

Kari's heart was pounding fast from the acts of affection directed towards her from T.K. as she nodded in reply. She thought she very well could be falling for him, and this certainly wasn't helping the notion of the opposite. T.K. positioned Kari in front of the camera and went to double check it for the third time since Kari had set it to take the picture. "Hurry T.K., or the camera will take it without you!" Kari laughed. T.K. made one last check before rushing to Kari's side. He pressed against her in his rush to get to his place and unconsciously placed a strong arm around her. Kari felt the blush rising to her cheeks again and her eyes shone with love the boy that was holding her so close.

"And again... say cheese!" T.K. said jokingly as the flash once again brightened the area for a fraction of a second. After the picture was taken, Kari again began to walk over to the laptop, but felt some resistance from T.K. against her breaking away from him. Her heart fluttered and she smiled brightly. T.K. seemed to come to reality after feeling her breaking away from him and he liet go, grinning wildly, trying to rid his face of the appearing blush on his cheeks. Kari and T.K. bent over the computer, anxiously awaiting the results...

"YES!" they shouted in unison as a window popped up and a picture began to appear. It was a blur of color at first, then as the computer downloaded and displayed the picture, it cleared. Gatomon and Patamon had now joined the two children and stood in front of them, standing on tiptoe or, in Patamon's case, flying, to try and see the picture. Kari gasped slowly as she saw the picture of she and T.K.

"Wow, we make cute couple," T.K. said playfully. Kari blushed further as she dared say something she never thought she'd have the courage to say...

"Yes, we do."************************************

Was that a great summer... but now it's Christmastime! Even better. I wonder if his church will hang mistletoe above the doorway... we're walking there together. We're really big about traditions, if you catch my drift. Like one of my favorites, and I'm sure his too. Every year, since we first met, we have played in the snow together and made snow angels every year.

*T.K.*
One of the biggest reasons I love Christmas is the traditions that come with it. My all-time favorite involves Kari... no surprise there. Every year we make now angels. And I mean every year. I just hope we're not too old the year... and I hope it snows soon. It hasn't even started yet. It's funny, Tai and Sora always take pictures of us, and if we look back on them, the snow angels get bigger and bigger every year. Those pictures always make Kari and I laugh... those have got to be the best times of my life.

I got Kari her Christmas present already and I hope she'll love it. It's a silver heart locket, but there aren't any pictures of us in it. I got it engraved... a snow angel outline on each side with our crests inside each one. I just hope she likes it... and maybe as an added bonus I'll tell her how I really feel about her. I tried to three years ago, on accident, but I never flat out told her what I really meant. This year though, I'll definitely tell her. I've made up my mind.

*No P.O.V.*
"Hey bro, hurry up! It's almost time to go!"

Matt's voice broke through T.K.'s thoughts. He looked in on T.K. and saw him sitting on his bed with a sort of dreamy look on his face. "Hm..." Matt said thoughtfully, "I think I know what you're thinking about..."

"Shutup Matt," T.K. scowled, throwing his pillow at his big brother.

"Hey, hey! Sorry! Just thought I might tell you... you have ten minutes to get ready before we have to leave to meet up with Kari, Tai, and Sora."

T.K. nearly fell off his bed in his rush to get to the bathroom to finish getting ready. Matt laughed heartily at him. "Yeah, we don't want to be late for Kari now, do we?"

"I said shutup Matt!" T.K. called from the bathroom. He quickly brushed his teeth for the third time that day. Today was the day that T.K. was hoping he would have the courage to tell Kari how he really felt. He didn't think he would be able to, but he had faith that Kari felt the same way he did. They dropped some big hints here and there, which drove poor Davis close to insanity, and T.K. knew his hints were for real. He just hoped Kari's were real as well.

Seven minutes later T.K. was ready. He was wearing a black sweater and khaki slacks. He and Matt were on their way to get Kari, Tai, and Sora so they could go to the karaoke bar near the park. It was something all of the Digidestined did every year, one of their few less-casual dress things they did together. The eight old destined, plus Davis, Yolei, and Cody, and even Michael and Willis when they were in town, spent as much time as they could together before Christmas, and before their annual Christmas party. This year, however, Michael and Willis couldn't make it to Japan in time for Christmas, so they were out on the traditions this year. T.K. had always thought it strange that half the things he and his friends did before their Christmas party were less casual than the party itself was - pretty much come as you are. Nonetheless, he and Matt walked out of their apartment, dressed like they might have been going to a fancy restaurant and not a karaoke bar.

About 10 minutes after they had left the Takaishi's apartment, Matt and T.K. arrived at Tai and Kari's front door. T.K. felt his palms get sweaty and his heart began to race.

"Calm down T.K., it's Kari we're talking about here..."

"Exactly Matt..." T.K. said nervously.

Matt turned halfway to face his brother. "T.K., think now... how long have you known Kari?"

"7 years."

"And when has she ever not showed that she cared for you?"

"Never..."

"Then don't get nervous! You'll spoil your fun before it starts!" Matt smiled at his brother, getting a mischievous sparkle in his eye. T.K. had seen this sparkle before... too many times... like the time Matt had cooked up a 'secret recipe' of his that consisted of "a little o' hot sauce, a little wasabi, and a mystery meat he found in the back of the fridge covered in green fuzz". "I know for a fact that Kari likes you."

T.K.'s head shot up. "A...are you serious? How do you know that?"

Matt grinned. "Let's just say I... have my resources."

Even though T.K. didn't really believe that Matt knew if Kari liked him or not, the notion of it made him feel a little better about this. maybe he would find the courage to tell Kari how he felt about her tonight...

The door opened and Sora's head peeked out from behind it.

"Hey Matt, hey T.K.!" she said cheerfully. "Tai and I are ready, and Kari's finishing up in the bathroom. Come on in!" Sora stepped aside to allow Matt and T.K. inside the Kamiya's apartment. T.K. chuckled to himself. Sora acted like she lived here. She might as well have, she had known Tai since they were very young, and was over at his house all the time. she even had her own pair of slippers at their house... very much used. T.K. saw Tai sitting on the couch watching TV as Sora deposited herself next to him. He turned around and smiled.

"Hey you two! kari should be almost ready..." Tai turned his head towards the bathroom door. "Hey Kari, hurry up, they're here!" On cue, Kari walked out of the batroom. T.K. had to fight to keep his jaw from dropping to the floor. Kari looked beautiful in a pair of black pants and a flattering light blue turtleneck sweater.

"Hi T.K.," she said shyly. She thought he looked pretty good himself... of course, she always thought he looked good. T.K. smiled brightly at Kari and gave her a quick hug, as was his and Kari's usual greeting... at least when Davis wasn't around.

"Hey," he replied, flashing her a warm smile.

"So are we ready to go now or what?" Tai said, turning off the television and helping Sora up from the couch.

"Let's get outta here," Matt said, heading out the door.

The five Digidestined walked down the sidewalk together towards the karaoke bar. "Oh man..." Matt groaned. The group had just rounded the corner, now joined by Mimi, Joe, Izzy, Davis, Yolei, and Cody, and saw a very large line for the karaoke bar. The others groaned as well, except Mimi that is.

"Don't worry guys!" she smiled, holding up a victory V, "I made reservations!" Mimi, accompanied by Joe, led the others to the front of the line. A few people grumbled and yelled at them, but Mimi had the same firm reply for all of them - "Well if you didn't want to wait in a line like this, you should've made reservations... LIKE US!" Every time Mimi yelled at someone, Joe sweatdropped and turned his gaze to the ground. He may have been dating her, but when she got like this, it was hard to be around her. While the group of teenagers weaved their way through the crowd in front of the karaoke bar, T.K. and Kari were smushed quite close together. T.K. found himself in the situation often where there wasn't enough room for them to squeeze through some people in their normal positions... he often had to put his arm around her for them to be able to get through. The whole time the two of them were blushing up a storm, Davis found himself about ready to kill T.K. They finally made their way to the front of the line.

"Please go back to the end of the line," a flustered waitress told them as the reached the door.

"But we have reservations!"

"Name?"

"Tachikawa Mimi." The waitress quickly scanned her long list of reservations.

"Sorry, but I don't see a Tachikawa Mimi here, you'll have to go back and wait." The children groaned and started to leave, but Mimi wouldn't give up that easily.

"DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM!?" she shouted at the woman. Joe dropped his head and shook it...

"Here we go..." he mumbled under his breath.

"You just said you were Tachikawa Mimi."

"Do you have ANY idea who my father is? Tachikawa SATOSHI?"

"The... the owner of that big computer company?"

"Yes... he'd be VERY upset if I got sick from waiting out here in this long line... in the cold... I suggest you find an open private room, like, now or something." The waitress became very pale and began bowing profusely.

"Oh! Miss Tachikawa, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize!"

"I'm sure you didn't," Mimi said dismissively.

"Please, follow me! I'm sorry!" The waitress quickly turned and made her way into the karaoke bar. The people who were next to get in started shouting at her, but Mimi just turned and smiled at them as she motioned for the others to follow her and the waitress. The group was ushered directly to the nicest private room in the whole place. There was a rather large group of American-looking executives in it, making complete fools of themselves. The waitress hurried in, and T.K. and Kari could hear shouts from inside.

"Your time is up!"

"What? We still have an hour left!"

"That was an hour ago! You have to leave now!"

"No, that was twenty minutes ago! We still have forty minutes!"

"If you don't want to be thrown out of here I suggest you leave now!"

Soon after the waitress had gone in the room, the large group of Americans left it, looking very angrily at the froup of kids that had taken their place in the large room. The waitress came back out after them, looking extremely frazzled. "I'm sorry, the room is ready for you, Miss Tachikawa."

"Thank you," Mimi said, telling the other Digidestined to go in. Then before she went in, Mimi turned to the waitress. "I'll be sure to tell my father what a wonderful help you've been..." Mimi glanced at the waitress's name tag, "Hiroshi."

"Oh THANK YOU Miss Tachikawa, thank you!" The young waitress bowed repeatedly before turning and heading back to her post at the door. Mimi then turned and entered the room. T.K. and Kari had sat together on a small couch next to Tai and Sora. Matt had taken a chair near the karaoke machine, as had Izzy, Yolei, and Cody. Davis sat in a chair next to the couch, fuming that he hadn't gotten there sooner so he could've taken the place T.K. was sitting in. Mimi took her place on another small couch next to Joe.

"Alright, now that that's settled, who's going to go first?" Sora stood up.

"We will!"

"Huh?" Tai said, looking up at her.

"Come on Tai, you know you want to."

"Sora, you know I can't sing."

"Well, karaoke DOES mean tone-deaf, you know." She laughed briefly. "Come on!" Sora pulled Tai up by the hands and dragged him up by the karaoke machine. She and Tai quickly scanned the list of songs. "Oh Tai, let's sing this one!"

"Uh..."

"Pleeeeeeease?" Sora looked into Tai's eyes pleadingly. Tai seemed unable to speak for a moment, and then he smiled and kissed her briefly.

"Whatever you want, Sora," he said boyishly to her. Sh esmiled at him and Izzy pressed the button on the machine that started their song. They began to sing...

After what seemed like hours had passed by, Hiroshi finally gathered enough courage to stick her head into the room the destined were in. "Um, Miss Tachikawa?"

"Yes Hiroshi?"

"Um, I was wondering if you were close to finished in here."

"How long have we been in here?"

"About 2 1/2 hours."

Mimi throught it over a minute. "Sure Hiroshi, just one more song." Hiroshi smiled and bowed a few times before leaving the room. "Well, who wants to have the last song?" Mimi asked the group. Matt grinned slyly.

"I haven't heard T.K. or Kari sing anything tonight," he smirked. T.K. shot a frantic look at him and felt a blush appearing on his cheeks.

"Hey, I haven't sa..." Poor Davis was interruped by Yolei's hand smacking over his mouth.

"Shut UP Davis!" she hissed at him. Tai took his turn in the fun.

"Yeah, too bad there's only one song left, I guess they'll have to sing it together!" This time it was Kari's turn to blush and glare at her brother. Mimi got starry-eyed.

"OH! That would be just perfect!"

"Uh, I don't sing," T.K. said quickly, waving his hands in the air.

"Neither do I," Kari added, blushing a deep crimson.

"Nonsense!" Sora said, quickly catching onto what the others were getting at. "I've heard the both of you sing before and you both sing very well, so get up there you two!" Kari seemed to be thinking of another excuse not to go up. T.K. looked over at her and got up off the couch.

"Come on Kari," he said, smiling and reaching his hand out to help her up. "If we don't, we'll never get out of here in one piece." Kari laughed and took T.K.'s hand, allowing him to help her up from her place on the couch.

*T.K.*
I had no idea what we were going to be singing... that was all up to Izzy and Matt. Note to self... self, kill Matt when we get hom... and THEN thank him. I didn't want to let Kari's hand go when she got up, but I guess that would've been kinda bad for Davis... I think he's gonna explode if Yolei doesn't allow some of that hot air of his to escape his mouth. -_-'

*Kari*
Hm... I could get used to T.K. holding my hand I think. I let go of it though... if I hadn't, I would've given myself away before I wanted to. I wonder what we're going to sing. Note to self... thank Tai when we get home... and then kill him. Davis looks like he could kill someone.. poor guy. Oh well, I can't please everybody!

*No P.O.V.*
"Make them sing..." Mimi scanned the list of karaoke songs, and pointed to one on the list, "this one!" Izzy glanced at it, and nodded in agreement. Matt also looked at the song Mimi had chosen and cast a smirk at T.K. and Kari. They looked nervously at him and each other.

"Okay, hit it!" Mimi cried, holding up a victory V. A few beautiful notes began to fill the air. Both T.K. and Kari recognized the song immediately. Kari's part came up on the song... she took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves and began to sing...

"From this moment, life has begun..."

T.K. saw his cue and joined in. "From this moment, you are the one..."

"Right beside you,"

The two sang in harmony, "Is where I belong, from this moment on."

T.K. continued. "From this moment, I have been blessed,"

"I live only for your happiness,"

"And for your love,"

"I'd give my last breath, from this moment on."

"I give my hand to you with all my heart,"

"Can't wait to live my life with you, can't wait to start,"

"You and I will never be apart, my dreams came true because of you,"

T.K. and Kari were finally into the song, and forgetting where they were, they turned to face each other to continue singing the song.

"From this moment, as long as I live,"

"I will love you, I promise you this,"

"There is nothing I wouldn't give,"

"From this moment on..."

T.K. and Kari were staring into each other's eyes so deeply they could read the emotions swirling frantically inside of them. Kari began again.

"You're the reason I believe in love,"

"And you're the answer to my prayers from up above,"

"All we need is just the two of us, my dreams came true because of you..."

The climatic key change of the song marked the climax of both of their feelings for each other, in their realizations of them anyway.

"From this moment, as long as I live, I will love you, I promise you this, there is nothing I wouldn't give, from this moment..."

"I will love you, as long as I live, from this moment..."

"...on..."

The song ended and T.K. and Kari were left gazing into each other's eyes, slowly lowering the microphones from their mouths. Not once did they tear their eyes away from each other, and they didn't notice the silence in the room. "Kari, I..." T.K. began, starting to lean in on Kari, and she leaned forward a bit as well, but they were both interrupted by a loud wail. They looked to the source of the cry in surprise. They saw a teary-eyed Mimi with her hands clasped together. They then looked around and saw a very shocked group of Digidestined. Sora also had tears in her eyes, and Tai and Matt were looking a bit misty as well. Yolei got starry-eyed and finally removed her hand from Davis's mouth.

"That was.." she began, breathless.

"So beautiful!" Mimi finished for her, beginning to clap. The others immediately joined in, all except Davis, who was still sulking because he didn't get to sing with Kari. He apparently hadn't been paying attention to what happened during the song because he would've been much more upset than he was. T.K. and Kari turned deep crimson and smiled sheepishly, averting their gazes to the floor. Tai whooped and Matt whistled, both clapping wildly.

"WHOO! THAT WAS INCREDIBLE!!!"

"ENCORE, ENCORE!"

"Uh, I don't think so..." T.K. said uncertainly.

"Oh yes!! Do another, do another!!" Yolei added enthusiastically. Izzy sat at the karaoke machine smiling at T.K. and Kari. The older Digidestined's plan was working perfectly.

*Christmas Eve*

*T.K.*
Yesterday night keeps playing inside my head... over and over and over and over and over and over and... well, you get the point. I could've told her then... I SHOULD'VE told her then... argh! Well, I guess I could tell her today... she and I, including Tai, Sora, and Matt, are meeting at Matt's house to make Christmas cookies. Just another of our traditions. Usually we do this earlier... I mean, today IS the Christmas party. Today I have got to tell Kari how I feel. I really hope it snows today, or else Kari and I won't get to make our snow angels...

*Kari*
*Sigh* Last night had to be the most incredible night of my life! It was so perfect, when we sang together... I didn't want it to end. I don't know what came over me... the song is just so beautiful, it seemed so right! If only my brother hadn't been there... but if he hadn't, the whole thing may not have happened. ARGH! Brothers! Can't live with them, could probably live without them, but where's the fun in that? Then I wouldn't have been able to tease him about Sora when he first asked her out.

Today is the Christmas party at T.K.'s church... I canNOT wait! So I get to spend the whole day with T.K. Tai, Sora, and I are supposed to meet him and Matt at Matt's apartment so we can make Christmas cookies. Another tradition, but this time only for the five of us. I don't really know why none of the other Digidestined are in on this tradition, and none of them really know about it either... maybe some reason that Tai says my mine can't handle at my young age... ha, young age. I am 15 years old here! I think I could handle it... don't you?

*The omnipotent Author's P.O.V (hehe ^_^... wait, omnipotent IS all-knowing right? Let's just say it's third person, kay? Geez... now I have to go dig up a dictionary, hold on...)
"Kari!" Tai's voice rang out in the apartment, "Get a move on, we've gotta leave in five minutes!"

Kari nearly jumped out of her skin... she had been thinking of T.K., and whenever she thought of T.K., the rest of the world dissolved around her. Sora peeked into Kari's room.

"Kari?"

"Yeah Sora?" Kari answered quickly.

"Are you ready yet?"

"Almost, I'll be ready in just a minute, okay?"

"Okay..." Sora turned to leave, but seemed to change her mind and ventured into Kari's room and took a seat on her bed. "You were thinking about last night, weren't you?"

Kari felt a slight blush appearing on her cheeks. "No!... uh... I mean... well..."

"Kari, you are a terrible liar, you know that?" Sora smirked at the blushing younger girl.

"Oh okay, maybe I was a little..."

Sora raised an eyebrow.

"...A lot..." Kari admitted.

Sora crossed her arms and arched her eyebrow a little more for effect.

"...Incessantly..."

Sora seemed satisfied at this answer and replaced her skeptical expression for a happy one. "Uh huh, that's what I thought."

"Sora, I don't know what to do! I want to tell him... and yet I don't... but if I don't... AH! I don't know..."

Sora laughed gently at the girl. "Kari, don't worry about it. You two admitting how you feel for each other will happen in time. It will happen though." She stood and placed a comforting hand on Kari's shoulder. "Now come on, get ready to go, the cookies won't wait!" Sora smiled warmly at Kari and walked out of her room to rejoin Tai in the kitchen. Kari sat on her bed and thought for a moment.

"Maybe I am making too big a deal out of this..." she mumbled to herself. Then she smiled and jumped up from the bed to finish getting ready.

Kari walked into the kitchen, where Tai and Sora were waiting for her. "Okay, we have that flat thing..." Tai checked off his mental list. Sora laughed.

"You mean the spatula?"

"Yeah, that thing, and the potholders, and the sugar, and the icing... is that all we were supposed to bring?" Kari entered the kitchen.

"Yes Tai, that's all T.K. said to bring," she told him. Tai turned around to face his imooto.

"Oh, Kari! Are you ready to go now?"

"Yeah, let's go," she smiled. The three exited the apartment and made their way to the Ishida's apartment.

"Hey you guys!" a voice called from behind the small group of Digidestined. They turned to see a girl with blue eyes and shoulder length light brown hair and a boy with blond hair and blue eyes walking towards them.

"Hey Karissa, hey Kyle!" Sora called to them. The pair caught up with Tai and the others.

"Where are y'all heading to?" Karissa asked them. Kari laughed. Karissa and Kyle were twin siblings (not identical, obviously) from Texas in America. The both of them had moved to Japan when their father had been transferred there for Air Force reasons. (A/N: This may really happen. My dad is in the Air Force and we might move to Japan, out of a few other choices in a year and a half. And Kyle really isn't my brother, he's one of my friends.) They had met Tai and Kari through soccer, as they both played on Tai's team.

"We're going to Matt Ishida's apartment to make Christmas cookies with him and his brother, T.K. Takaishi," Kari explained.

"Oh, I remember Matt! He's the one with the band, right?" Karissa asked.

"Yes Karissa," Kyle said from beside her.

"Shutup Kyle, I wasn't asking you," Karissa chided, rolling her eyes at her brother. He shrugged in reply.

"Is T.K. the one you're always with, Kari?" Kyle questioned. Karissa, Sora, and Tai all got the same mischievous looks on their faces.

"Yeeeeessssss," they dragged out. Kari looked at her feet and felt her face getting hot.

"Quiet you three," she mumbled. Kyle grinned.

"He's not the brown-haired kid with goggles, is he?" Kari looked up quickly.

"NO! T.K. has blond hair, like his brother, and he DEFINITELY doesn't wear goggles. Hats are his thing," Kari said loudly. Kyle stepped back.

"Okay, okay!! Forget I ever mentioned goggle boy then! It doesn't seem to be a good subject of conversation for you," he said, waving his hands in front of him.

"Only when she's making fun of him," Tai laughed.

"Kyle, you are such a moron..." Karissa said under her breath, shaking her head. "Well, before we cause any more trouble, we'll get out of here!" Karissa said cheerfully, grabbing onto Kyle's arm. "Come on Kyle, if we don't get home soon mom will kill us." She dragged Kyle behind her and waved goodbye to the group. After they were out of sight, Tai laughed.

"Ya know, if I didn't know they were brother and sister, I'd say they were dating." Sora smiled and Kari rolled her eyes at her oniichan.

"Sure Tai," she said playfully. The group finally reached Matt's door. Before they could ring the doorbell, they heard a loud crash inside the apartment, followed by a yell from Matt. Tai laughed and rang the doorbell.

"Come on in, it's unlocked!" Matt called from inside. They entered the apartment and walked into the kitchen to find Matt and T.K. crouched on the floor, cleaning up some spilled milk. Some metal mixing bowls and large spoons and whisks were lying on the counter and on the floor near the milk.

"What happened?" Kari asked, leaning over T.K.'s shoulder. T.K. looked up and smiled boyishly at Kari.

"Matt knocked over the milk carton with the mixing bowl," he explained.

"Hey, if you had moved it like I asked you to, it wouldn't have fallen off!" Matt countered.

"Well if you had been watching where you were putting the bowl you wouldn't have knocked it down!" T.K. shouted back.

"Okay, okay! Just clean it up, we'll help!" Sora said, laughing. She and Tai started to help Matt with the fallen mixing bowls and the things they had brought with them, and Kari grabbed a towel from the counter and started to help T.K. with the milk on the floor.

"You don't have to help me, Kari," T.K. said quietly.

"Oh I know, but I want to... it'll get done much faster that way," she told him. He smiled gratefully at her and they continued cleaning the milk. After it was all off the floor, both Kari and T.K. reached for the empty milk carton near them without looking. Kari reached it first, and T.K.'s hand landed on top of hers a second after. They looked at their hands on the carton and then to each other for what seemed like an eternity.

"Hey you two, hurry up with that so we can start!" Matt chided. T.K. and Kari snapped out of their trance and hastily removed their hands from the carton.

"Sorry," T.K. laughed nervously, averting his gaze from Kari's.

"Yeah," Kari replied, just as nervously as T.K. had. T.K. took hold of the carton this time and they both began to get up.

"Ow!" they exclaimed when they bumped heads. They smiled and chuckled nervously at each other and rubbed their foreheads. T.K. turned to throw the milk carton away, and Kari turned to help Tai, Sora, and Matt.

Half an hour had gone by and they were out of cookie mix. "Aw man... we have all this icing left and no cookies for them..." Matt complained.

"Let's just go get more... Yolei's family's convenience store probably has some, and I know they're open today," Kari informed.

"Great!" Tai said, getting that sparkle in his eye that usually meant he was up to something. "Go get more cookie mix, the same kind we're using right now."

Matt looked at T.K. "You go with her, T.K.," he said, a grin appearing on his face. Kari and T.K. looked at each other, then nodded at their brothers. They went to the door and T.K. grabbed his and Kari's coats, handed Kari hers, and then the two of them walked out of the apartment and into the cold winter air. Tai, Matt, and Sora grinned at each other.

"If this doesn't work, I don't know what will," Tai smirked.

T.K. and Kari walked down the sidewalk side by side to the Inoue's convenience store. T.K. had his hands in his coat pockets and Kari was rubbing hers together to keep them warm. "Why don't you just stick your hands in your pockets?" T.K. asked her, seeing how she was blowing into her cupped hands. Kari looked at him and smiled sheepishly.

"This coat doesn't have any," she admitted. T.K. smiled a bit. He took Kari's hands in his and began to rub them vigorously. Kari looked up at him in surprise. His eyes were focused on Kari's hands, however, and he didn't see her expression or the blush quickly appearing on her cheeks. He cupped his hands over hers and blew his warm breath into them, warming both his and her hands.

"There, that better?" he asked her, smiling warmly.

"Tons... thank you T.K.," Kari smiled. She stood on tiptoe and gently kissed his cheek. T.K. blushed deeply and grinned.

"No problem Kari, anytime." The two of them walked along for a few more minutes and soon Kari was rubbing her hands again. She laughed a bit.

"Guess I should buy some gloves," she said sheepishly. T.K. laughed too, and held his hands out to her.

"Give them here," he commanded, smiling. She laughed and readily complied and placed her hands in his. T.K. closed his hands over hers and the two continued walking. They talked a lot on the way to the store and eventually forgot they were holding hands. They finally reached Yolei's family's convenience store, and as they walked in, they saw Yolei was working the cash register.

"Hey Yolei," they said as they walked in. Yolei looked up and saw T.K. and Kari holding hands. Her eyes became wide and she smiled brightly.

"Anything I should know?" she asked them playfully. T.K. and Kari looked confused for a moment, then remembered. T.K. quickly let go of Kari's hands and sweatdropped.

"I was just warming her hands for her," he explained, sounding a bit more nervous than he would've liked. Yolei's eyes narrowed.

"I'm sure... we have hand warmers here if you want any," she told them.

"Actually we came for some cookie mix... do you have any right now?" Kari asked.

"Sure, right back there." Yolei pointed to the back of the store near the aisle with snacks and candy lining the shelves.

"Thanks," T.K. smiled. He and Kari walked to the back of the store and grabbed two boxes of the cookie mix they needed and paid for it.

"Thanks guys, see you tonight!" Yolei called to them as they walked out the door.

"Yeah, see you later Yolei!" Kari called back, waving at her. Once T.K. and Kari were out of sight of the store, Kari groaned. T.K. looked at her, confused.

"What's the matter?" he asked her.

"I forgot to get some hand warmers!" she exclaimed. T.K. laughed a bit.

"Here, give me your hands again," he smiled.

"Are you sure, T.K.? It's a little hard to walk straight when we're holding hands like that," Kari laughed.

"I don't mind at all, Kari," he said. "Now give me your hands before they freeze." Kari giggled and once again placed her hands in T.K.'s. They remained joined with his the rest of the way to Matt's apartment.

T.K. opened the door for Kari and they walked back in. Kari took off her coat and T.K. took it for her and hung it up next to his on the coat rack. "We're back!" Kari announced, walking into the kitchen next to T.K. She and T.K. gasped at what they saw. Tai and Sora were covered with icing and Matt was nowhere to be seen.

"What happened in here?!" T.K. asked. "Where's Matt?"

Tai and Sora laughed as they answered. "Um, the icing of the cookies got a little..." Sora began through a fit of giggles.

"...Out of hand, and this happened... Matt's in the bathroom getting some green stuff out of his hair," Tai finished for her. Kari and T.K. laughed.

"Well, we got the rest of the cookie mix, so should we start it now?" Kari asked. Just then, Matt walked in, rubbing a towel vigorously through his wet hair.

"When did you two get back?" he asked them.

"Just now," T.K. told him.

"Well, let's get that stuff mixed up and finish these cookies! We have to get ready for the party soon," Matt said.

The five of them mixed and baked and iced for the next two hours. Finally they were done. Tai wiped his brown with the back of his hand. "Whew... five dozen cookies... that should last for awhile at the party, right?" he commented. Kari nodded, taking a paper towel from the rack on the counter and wiping her hands on it. She took one for T.K. as well.

"Here you go, T.K.," she said, handing it to him.

"Thanks," he smiled, wiping his hands as well.

"Well, we need to be going if we're going to be ready for the party," Tai told Matt and T.K. Matt nodded.

"Be back here by 5," he said. Tai winked and pointed a finger in the air.

"We'll be here," he told them, and he, Sora, and Kari waved goodbye as they started out the door.

*T.K.*
I'm all ready for this party... and what better to do while I'm waiting for the others than to watch the weather channel? Okay... so there's a LOT of things I could be doing besides this... but I'm looking to see if it's supposed to snow tonight. It hasn't yet and if it doesn't, Kari and I won't get to make our snow angels. We haven't missed doing it yet in all the years we've been doing it, and I don't exactly want to start now. It didn't take long to decide what to wear... since the party is casual dress, I put on my favorite yellow and blue sweater and a pair of blue jeans. I wonder what Kari's wearing...

*Kari*
Tai and Sora better hurry... they're still not ready yet, and I don't want to go check up on them... I might step in on something I don't wnat to see. Last time I checked up on them I found them making out. Tai almost killed me. I've been ready for an hour... so while I waited for them I decided to watch a little TV. After I couldn't find anything but stupid Christmas specials I've seen 50 times over, I turned it to the weather channel. I wanted to see if it was going to snow tonight. I hope so... otherwise T.K. and I won't be able to make our snow angels. That's my favorite tradition with him, mostly because it's ONLY with him... and it's fun too. Since it's casual dress, I decided to wear my pink and white sweater and a pair of yellow pants that my mom got me for my birthday this year. Tai asked to borrow my digital camera for the party, and... I hope I don't regret this... but I told him he could use it as long as I got it back in one piece. Geez... are they done yet?!

*Author's P.O.V. again ^_^*
"TAI!!!!!" Kari yelled from the couch in the living room. "We have to go in 5 minutes!" Tai and Sora walked into the room, each with a bag of gifts. Tai was wearing a black sweater and khaki pants, and Sora was wearing the red sweater Tai had gotten her and a black pair of pants.

"Okay, okay, calm down," Tai told her, rolling his eyes, "we're ready."

Sora grinned. "Anxious to see T.K.?" she asked Kari playfully.

"Uh, no..." Kari stammered.

"Kari, what did I tell you about lying?" Sora chided.

"Okay, okay! I'm just anxious to get to the party, that's all," she said, her gaze fixed on the floor.

"Suuuuuure," Tai joked.

"Let's go then," Kari exclaimed, jumping up from the couch and grabbing her coat and bag of gifts from the pegs near the door.

Kari's heart began to race as she, Tai, and Sora arrived at Matt's door. Tai reached forward and rang the doorbell. "Coming!" T.K.'s voice called from inside the apartment. he opened the door quickly and smiled at them. "Come on in, Matt's getting the cookies together," he said, stepping aside to let them in. As Kari passed him, his gaze met hers and they smiled sweetly at each other. "Hey," he mouthed to her.

"Hey," she mouthed back.

"Hey guys!" Matt called from the kitchen. "I'm almost done getting these cookies in bags... Tai, Sora, can you give me a hand?" Tai and Sora walked back to the kitchen, leaving T.K. and Kari alone.

"Sure Matt, what do you need help with?" T.K. and Kari heard Tai and Sora say to Matt in the kitchen.

"So..." Kari said nervously, "what all are we going to do at the party tonight?" T.K. looked up at her and smiled.

"Well, first we're going to eat a little, then there's a short service, and then we're going to exchange gifts," he told her. He glanced at the bag in Kari's hand. "Are those all the gifts you brought?" he asked her.

"Oh, just from me, Tai and Sora have theirs... where are yours?"

"They're on the couch," T.K. said, motioning to the place he had spent the last hour. Kari looked over to the couch and nodded.

"What kind of service is it?"

"Huh?" T.K. looked confused for a moment, then remembered that Kari didn't really go to church. "Oh... it's a church service..." he looked at Kari and saw that she looked a little apprehensive about it. He knew Tai went to church with Sora every Sunday, but Kari never really had anyone to go with since she didn't want to be a third wheel to Tai and Sora. She had tried church a few times, but she could never understand the sermon. T.K. took one of Kari's hands in his and she looked up at him.

"Kari, I know how you feel about church, but everybody else is going to go to it... but if you don't want to, tell me and I'll stay with you so you're not bored, okay?"

Kari smiled gratefully. "T.K., I don't know what I'd do without you... but I'll go to the church service if you want me to go."

"Really!?"

Kari laughed at how T.K.'s face lit up at her acceptance of his invitation. "Sure, I've never sat through a holiday service at your church anyway, maybe I'll get it this time." T.K. suddenly hugged Kari tightly.

"Thank you Kari!" he whispered happily. Kari giggled.

"No problem, T.K.," she replied quietly, smiling brightly and returning the hug. They only broke apart when they heard a snort from behind them.

"Uh... if you two don't mind, we're ready to go," Tai smirked. Matt and Sora were trying unsuccessfully to hide their laughter. T.K. and Kari blushed deeply and looked away from each other.

"Um, sure, let's go," T.K. said, going over to the couch and grabbing his bag of gifts.

20 minutes later, Matt, Tai, Sora, T.K., and Kari reached the church. T.K. and Kari were the first to walk in, side by side. "Oh, oh!" Sora cried, pointing above the doorway. This caused T.K. and Kari to stop and turn just inside the doorway.

"Look above you," Matt said slyly, grinning like a fool. T.K. and Kari looked up and saw a small sprig of mistletoe hanging right above them.

"Oooh, now you have to kiss," Sora smirked. T.K. and Kari both turned a very deep red and looked at the ground nervously.

"What's the matter? Don't you know how?" Tai asked, laughing. "Here, let me show you." Tai pulled Sora under the doorway, dipped her down, and met her lips in a fiery kiss. After a few seconds, he broke it and pulled her back up. Sora was giggling like mad and kissed him again.

"So go on, just like that," Matt grinned. T.K. looked nervously at Kari and smiled. She smiled back, and they both leaned hesitantly forward. Their lips touched just briefly and pulled away from each other just as quickly as they had met. They looked away from each other, blushing wildly. "Well, not as good as Tai and Sora, but it'll do," Matt said, casting a victorious glance in Tai and Sora's direction. Sora giggled and Tai held up a victory V. Then T.K. and Kari joined the others inside. They met the rest of the Digidestined and their families there, and Mr. and Mrs. Kamiya, Ms. Takenouchi, Ms. Takaishi, and Mr. Ishida arrived soon after Tai, Sora, Matt, T.K., and Kari from work.

After eating a bit and dropping off presents under the tree, the group of Destined and their families walked together to the large sanctuary and got seats on two of the pews. T.K. and Kari sat next to each other between Tai and Sora and Matt. The dull roar of talking and laughing in the sanctuary died down when a brown haired man that looked about mid-thirties, the pastor, walked in and took his place on the platform.

"Good evening everyone, and merry Christmas!" 'Merry Christmas's' rang out from every which way in the sanctuary and jumbled together so that you couldn't distinguish so that you couldn't distinguish what anyone was saying unless you knew already. "Could everyone please stand for the singing of Joy To The World!" The music rose from the piano and the small organ and everyone started to sing.

After the song was over, Kari leaned over and whispered in T.K.'s ear, "I didn't know that was a hymn!"

T.K. smiled. "Yeah, it's in the hymnal and everything, along with Hark! The Herald Angels Sing and O Holy Night and all those other songs we all sing," he whispered back. After a few more songs, the pastor asked everyone to take their seats and began his sermon. Kari shifted uneasily in her seat and T.K. looked over to her. She looked back and he smiled at her, placing a hand on hers. She smiled weakly back and meshed her fingers with his and their hands remained that way. They both looked forward at the preacher once more.

"Joy to the World... Oh Holy Night... Hark, the herald angels sing... O come, o come Emmanuel... all these great hyms and more tell a wonderful story of one special night when one special baby was born to special parents in a stable, underneath the brightest star in the sky that night. Prophets had told of the coming of the Son of God for thousands of years, and finally... that time had come.

On a silent night in Bethlehem, a young couple, Joseph, a lowly carpenter from Bethlehem, and a young girl, Mary, a virgin who had become pregnant with God's son by the Holy Spirit, looked for a place to stay for the night. They had traveled far to get to Bethlehem, for Caesar had ordered a census at that time and every man had to travel to his home town to participate. Mary had been chosen by God to carry His son.

Just a little trivial thing here - in the Hebrew language, which as you all know was the language of Jesus, Bethlehem means 'House of Bread'. How appropriate that Jesus would be born in the 'house of bread', as he would one day be called the Bread of Life. Who knew that the baby Jesus would be born in a small stable? A small cave cut out of the side of a hill? A garage, in essence?

The people of that day would ride camels and donkeys and have livestock with them when they traveled, and each inn or hotel would have a stable in the back for the weary traveler to keep his animals. Many Jews who had been watching for the coming of the Messiah imagined the baby to be born into royalty and not in a manger. For this reason, many Jews didn't believe that this baby, born to a virgin under a star in the East, was the King they had been waiting for for years. This baby, Jesus, came to be called the hope and the light of the world. He was born into the flesh to become one of us, only to die thirty-three years later on a cross to save all of us from our sins."

The preacher continued on, telling the story of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Kari hung on every word the pastor said, not realizing she was gripping tightly to T.K.'s hand. She had bolted upright when she had heard the preacher say that Jesus was called the hope and the light of the world. It was almost as if she and T.K. were foretold int he Bible itself.

T.K. had noticed too. He glanced sideways at Kari and saw that she was paying great attention to the sermon. He noticed Kari had tears gethering in her eyes as well. He smiled to himself, recognizing the signs, and squeezed her hand. She was feeling the Spirit of God in her heart. Tai and Sora noticed too, and smiled at each other.

"If you haven't heard this story before, and feel the Spirit knocking on the door of your heart, pray with me now..."

Kari looked over at T.K. with tears rolling down her cheeks. T.K. held her in his arms and whispered to her the prayer, as she was too emotional to speak. She sobbed quietly on his shoulder and he prayed with her. Kari tried to whisper what she could of the prayer, but said all of it in her mind.

"Father..." T.K. repeated after the preacher, "I know I'm a sinner... I thank you that you sent your son to earth this night 2000 years ago to save me from my foolish sins... I want you in my heart, to be with me always, to guide me and give me light, to give me hope in the direst of situations... thank you Lord for all you've done... in Your precious Son's name, Amen."

T.K. finished and lifted his head from near Kari's ear and she lifted her head as well. T.K. brushed away her tears and hugged her again. "Welcome to the family," he whispered happily, tears clouding his own vision.

"Thank you, T.K.," she whispered back.

After the service, the other Digidestined and their families congratulated Kari on her decision. "Thank you, it feels great," she told all of them with a huge smile on her face. T.K. never left her side. He was smiling as brightly as she was, feeling joy beyond words that she had finally joined the family of God. After all the congrats, Davis was the one to finally announce that it was time to open presents. Everyone instantly agreed and the group gathered around the trees.

T.K. and Kari kept glancing out of the windows in the activity center, where the party was being held... no doubt looking to see if there was any sign of snow. Every time they looked, however, there was no sign at all. Both of them were a little upset. Their snow angel tradition was their favorite of all the traditions they participated in during the holidays.

"Open mine first, Kari!" Davis yelled, practically knocking everyon over and throwing his gift to Kari in her hands.

"Uh... I think I'll wait until I have all my gifts first, okay?" she said uncertainly.

"Sure! Just open mine first!" He turned to the pile of presents under the large tree and began to look for gifts addressed to both him and to Kari. Kari looked at T.K. and rolled her eyes. T.K. smiled and stifled a laugh.

Half an hour went by, and almost all the gifts were opened. "T.K., Kari, look!" Tai exclaimed, pointing out of one of the large windows. T.K. and Kari turned quickly and looked out of the window Tai was pointing at. They had forgotten to look for the past half hour and now they saw softly falling snow, and about five inches already stuck to the ground.

"Kari, come on!" T.K. said happily, jumping up from the floor.

"But T.K., I haven't opened your present yet!"

"Bring it! I haven't opened yours either," he said impatiently and excitedly at the same time. "Come on!" Kari smiled and joined him. They both ran out of the room and into the falling snow, forgetting their boats. Davis began to get up to go after them, but Yolei and Mimi each grabbed one of his legs.

"Don't even thing about it, Davis," Tai said, glaring at him. "This is THEIR tradition, so don't go ruining it." Davis looked hurt and extremely peeved as he reluctantly flopped back onto the floor.

"Oh T.K., it finally snowed!" Kari laughed, holding her arms out and spinning in a circle. T.K. smiled and laughed heartily along with her.

"I was getting a little worried there for a minute," he told her. "I was afraid I wouldn't get to do my favorite thing this year!"

"What, make snow angels?"

"It's not just that, Kari..." T.K. began, becoming serious for a moment.

"What is it then?" she asked, looking at him questioningly.

"It's... oh, nevermind," he said. "Let's just make some snow angels!" With that said, he scooped Kari up and laid her gently into the snow. Kari started giggling uncontrollably. T.K. plopped down next to her in the snow and began to sweep his arms and legs up and down and back and forth to make his snow angel. Kari was already doing the same.

"T.K...." Kari said quietly, looking over at him.

"Yeah Kari?" he replied, meeting her gaze with his.

"Can I open your gift now?"

"Sure, let me get it for you." T.K. got up carefully from his snow angel and picked up his and Kari's gifts from the ground nearby. He walked over to her and handed hers to her and sat down on his snow angel once more with his.

"Open yours at the same time," she said, grinning. "Okay, ready? One... two... three!" T.K. and Kari ripped the paper off of their gifts and stared at what they had gotten. "Oh T.K...." Kari whispered breathlessly.

T.K. was grinning wildly at the picture. I don't remember putting my arm around her... he thought. He tore his eyes away from the picture to look at Kari. "Kari, I..." T.K. began.

"...I love it..." they said simultaneously. They looked into each other's eyes and began to laugh.

"Did you look inside?" T.K. asked her.

"No..." Kari said quietly. She carefully pried the locket open and saw her and T.K.'s crests inside snow angel outlines. "Oh T.K.... it's beautiful!" Kari whispered again, and reached over to hug T.K. He hugged her back, enjoying the warmth that was radiating from her body. Neither of them had even noticed the cold yet, since they hadn't brought their coats out with them.

"I love the picture Kari, you don't know how much it means to me," T.K. whispered to her. kari pulled away a bit and smiled at him. He helped her put the locket on and then she met his eyes once more. "Kari, there's more to go with that locket," T.K. said quietly, smiling boyishly at her.

"What else is there?" Kari asked. T.K. stared into her eyes and gently leaned forward, pressing his lips onto hers. Kari's eyes widened, but soon closed so she could enjoy this unexpected Christmas gift. Kari scooted closer to T.k. so she could wrap her arms around his neck. T.K. wrapped on of his arms around her waist and reached up with the other to caress Kari's cold cheek with his hand. Kari pressed her lips harder onto his and he pulled her closer still. The kiss became even more passionate than the one Tai and Sora had shared earlier. The two of them finally pulled away from each other and smiled.

"Well THAT'S not part of the tradition," Kari laughed, laying back down in her snow angel.

"It could be from now on," T.K. said quietly, laying down in his snow angel as well and turning his head to smile at her. She smiled sweetly back. "I love you, Kari."

Kari took his hand in hers from her position on her back and felt his warmth rush through her through the simple gesture. "I love you, T.K.," she whispered back. They stared into each other's eyes as they laid on the snow angels, holding hands tightly, as if they never wanted to let go. Suddenly, a bright flash bursted, causing T.K. and Kari to sit up suddenly. They saw Tai, Sora, and Matt standing by the wall of the church building, Tai holding Kari's digital camera in his hands.

"YES! That was GREAT!" Pose for another, I'd like a third picture," he said, smiling brightly.

"What!?" T.K. and Kari exclaimed, "Third picture??"

"I didn't know there was a second!" Kari said, glaring at her brother. He and the others laughed.

"Oh, we got a great one of T.K. kissing you, that was the first, and then the one we just took..." Matt smirked. "Now, if you two could just pose one more time, real cute-like, we'll take another..."

T.K. and Kari looked at each other and laughed. T.K. sat on the ground on his snow angel and Kari sat right next to him, their sides touching. T.K. wrapped his arms around Kari's shoulders and Kari folded her arms in her lap. Sora walked over to them and flung T.K.'s coat over their shoulders and then stepped back.

"Now that's cute," she commented seriously, looking back at Tai and smiling at him, motioning for him to take the picture.

"Okay, smile!"

T.K. and Kari smiled just as brightly as the camera's flash as it went off, capturing them and their snow angels for good.

*Christmas Eve Night*

*T.K.*
This was the best Christmas ever... finally I was able to tell Kari how I felt about her. And best yet - she feels the same! I know we're going to get married some day, just like Tai and Sora are going to get married in February, and Joe and Mimi after she graduates from high school... and if Izzy and Yolei every figure themselves out, I'm sure they will too. Right now I'm just going to enjoy every second I have with her, now that she's finally my own. Now you know why making snow angels with Kari is my favorite tradition.

*Kari*
I'm so glad T.K. and I finally admitted to each other how we felt... I feel like a huge burden has been lifted off my shoulders... partly because of that and partly about my decision to accept Jesus. This has been the best Christmas ever! And now that T.K. and I are finally official, I imagine that church will be even better than before. I know I'm going to spend the rest of my life with him.

*MY P.O.V.*
T.K. laid down on his bed. He first looked at the clock on his bedstand... 10:30 PM. He set his alarm for 7:30 AM and then looked to the four framed pictures next to his clock. One was the one of him and Kari in New York that Kari had given him earlier. He lovingly stroked one of his fingers along Kari's face on one of the pictures, smiling lightly to himself. "Goodnight my angel," he whispered to it, and he turned off his lamp and went to sleep. He had a long day with Kari tomorrow, and he wanted to be well rested.

Kari was going to bed as well at that time. She lightly kissed the picture of her and T.K. holding each other and set her alarm before laying her head down on the pillow and drifting off to sleep, dreams of T.K. appearing in her mind. She slept soundly the whole night, and got up the next morning, ready for her new life with T.K. at her side.

A/N: Okay, so the ending kinda sucked... okay, it REALLY sucked... I just wanted to get it done! I hope somebody liked it, too bad I couldn't get it in in time for the contest. Oh well... and it's late for Christmas... and New Year's... but those stupid time limit things kill me! (Logan, Aushie, Sora, Robster... you guys know what I'm talking about ^_^) Okay, you all know the drill... read, review, all that good stuff, please! Merry (VERY BELATED) Christmas minna! Oh yeah, for those of you that were reading it, I got the second part of Trouble at Home out, so read it... I had a few people say they didn't know it was out, so I'm telling you now so you can go look for it. ^_^ Please read it!!
Kari :)