Tis appropriate timing, no? Happy holidays!

Disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online (there'd be more fluff if I did).

Chapter 6. Christmas

"Hello? Ah, Kirito-kun! Perfect timing! I just finished with my family's party. I'm leaving to meet you now. Yes... Yes, me too. See you soon! Bye!" Asuna cheerfully hung up her cell phone and gathered her things.

It was presently Christmas Day about 4PM, and she and Kazuto had arranged to meet up for the evening and spend it together after they had seen their families. After concluding that Asuna's family still did not particularly dislike Kazuto or like him either, they thought they could make things easier just by meeting up themselves.

Asuna had debated a long time with herself what her boyfriend's present should be, but she soon decided on making him a scarf. Although she had maxed her in-game sewing skills, she was still a bit clumsy in real life, so she had trained hard in order to complete it just a few days ago. It was currently wrapped up in tissue paper in a small bag she would be taking with her.

Her outfit was another small present for Kazuto, since she knew that probably no boy would mind their girlfriend dressing in such a fashion. Her hair was down as usual but tied with little red and white ribbons here and there. She wore a red dress that reached her thighs with white fluff about the collar and long sleeves, accompanied by thigh-high socks with white and red candy-cane stripe patterns. She slipped on matching red boots, gloves, and a white scarf as well as a Santa hat before gathering her gift for Kazuto.

"I'm leaving!" She called out to her family who gave nods and tiny smiles back; Asuna knew they would come around sooner or later.

She stepped out the door into the cold air, suppressing a shiver as she began walking toward the designated meeting spot. The ground was covered in a thin layer of snow and little flurries still fell, making for a rare white Christmas.

She arrived within a few moments at a certain bench on the sidewalk, cleared the snow off, and sat down with a shudder. "The things I do for this boy... he'd better appreciate it!" She huffed under her breath as the frigid cold seeped into the exposed skin of her legs.

She counted the cars driving by for several moments until she heard the crunching of snow that suggested footsteps. At the same time, a familiar voice that warmed her heart called out to her; "Asunaaa!" She heard him running toward her from behind the bench and quickly turned around and called back, "Kirito-ku-mph... ahahahahaha!" She broke out into hysterics the second she saw him, doubling over on the bench and hugging her sides.

"Aw, come on, it's not that funny, is it?" Kazuto gave a crooked smirk. He was wearing a generic Santa costume, but the part that was so hilarious to Asuna was the white beard that hung from his chin. The clothes were also far too big, which made it even funnier.

"K-K-Kirito-kun... what are you wearing?" She managed to ask between giggles.

"I borrowed it. I guess it doesn't fit, huh?" He wondered, taking a seat beside her.

"No, no. I think it's perfect!" She beamed as the laughter died away, but small giggles still escaped her lips and tears clung to the corners of her eyes. Kazuto grinned goofily past his beard, just seemed to notice Asuna's attire, and blushed.

"I think... yours is perfect, too." He mumbled, unable to conceal how his face turned red.

"Really? It's not too short?" She clutched the ends of her dress and tugged them down adorably, in such an irresistible fashion that Kazuto had to wonder if she was doing it on purpose. He swallowed as he took her gloved hands in his.

"It's perfect." He repeated earnestly. Asuna chortled with a little nod of embarrassment.

"Well, anyway, I have something for you." She announced, slipping her hands away in order to grab the little bag she had brought along, shifting it from her lap to his. "Merry Christmas, Kirito-kun."

Kazuto accepted the bag with a smile an Asuna leaned sideways closer to him to watch him open it. He removed the purple tissue paper to reveal the handmade scarf. His eyes widened when he saw it, which made Asuna blush shyly. The scarf was of black wool but had dark gray and silver patterns woven into it. It was just the perfect length and was extremely soft and warm; Kazuto could easily tell that Asuna have woven her feelings for him into every stitch, and the softness and warmth he felt from it was probably produced by her having put her heart entirely into its creation.

"Wow. This is awesome! I love it!" He cried.

The childish light in his onyx eyes at that moment along with his make-believe attire moved Asuna quite a bit; she thought it was certainly a wonderful sight to hold onto the precious feelings of being young.

Kazuto threw his arms around her shoulders and Asuna laughed lightly as she patted his back.

"Thank goodness! I'm glad you liked it!" She sighed.

"Wrong." He pulled back and looked into her eyes as she tried to refrain from laughing at his beard. "I don't like it. I love it." He wrapped the scarf around his neck and Asuna helped him adjust it; although it looked a bit odd with what he was wearing right now, they both knew it would go significantly better with his usual attire. "Now it's my turn." Kazuto declared.

He reached into his pocket and presented her with a small, rectangular pink box. He had purposefully chosen a clearly elongated shaped, for he feared if he had given her a generic small velvet square box, she might faint on the spot. As he slid the box into her gloved palm, he could not help but wonder if he saw a bit of disappointment in her eyes that it was not an engagement ring box. But her golden-auburn eyes quickly relit with joy as she accepted the gift.

She carefully opened the lid to reveal a golden, heart-shaped necklace that also appeared to be a locket. "It's beautiful." She whispered, gently slipping one glove off to pick up the heart with.

"Now watch." Kazuto leaned over and, slipping off his own glove, took her bare hand with his. He guided her finger to a small button on the side of the trinket and had her press it.

Asuna heard a faint clicking sound before suddenly, her field of view exploded in greenish-blue light. She jumped a bit at the sudden change and looked confusedly over at Kazuto, but his eyes were focused on the green light before them. Upon closer inspection, Asuna realized the light was projecting from the heart-shaped necklace, forming somewhat of an intangible computer screen directly before her eyes. She watched in stunned amazement as her eyes adjusted and gradually, she made out characters written on the grid. There was a projected message before her eyes, and she gasped as she finally made sense of it:

Dear Asuna,

I love you, always and forevermore.

- Kazuto

A few seconds later, the message faded into the air, the green light vanished, and all was still again.

Tears freely flowed down Asuna's cheeks as she continued to stare in awe and amazement at the space of air before her. She curled her fingers around the necklace as she tried to remember how to breathe.

"Neh, Asuna," Kazuto murmured from beside her. "Did it work?" He wondered. Asuna turned sideways to face him and he panicked when he saw her crying. "O-Oy, Asuna, what-"

"You idiot!" She cried, throwing her arms around him, still clutching the jewelry. "Of course it worked! Why else would I be like this?" She buried her face into the scarf she had made him as he embraced her back, stroking her hair as he smiled. Asuna hiccuped a few times before speaking again. "This is... the most wonderful thing in the world..." she whimpered. "Thank you, Kirito-kun. I'll treasure it forever. And you, too." She squeezed him tighter and he did likewise.

They stayed that way for a while, during which time, more snow began to fall. When Asuna finally believed she could keep her tears back, she pulled away to face him. "How does it do that?" She wondered with a small smile, glancing down at the golden heart in her palm.

"It's a new product." Kazuto explained as he picked it up. "Only the person who presses this button can read it, and it'll work every time, so I'll always be with you."

Asuna felt the stinging sensation of tears within her eyes again but sniffed them back as Kazuto slipped his arms around her neck, brushed her hair aside, and fastened the necklace. When he had finished, he pulled away to admire the sight of her, looking like a cross between an elf and an angel. "Merry Christmas, Asuna."

She nodded once and closed her eyes as he leaned in to kiss her. Their lips met, but for a second shorter than usual before Asuna had to pull back.

"I'm sorry." She giggled.

"What?" He asked, feigning a pout.

"Your beard tickles."

"Ah." Kazuto made a face as if he had completely forgotten about his costume, which had Asuna giggling more. "I'll take it off." He said.

"No, you don't have to." She stopped him, placing her hand atop his. "I... kind of like it. It's fuzzy and warm."

Kazuto blinked once in surprise before smiling. "Alright then." He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her in again to kiss her again. She laughed against him, but resisted the urge to pull away at the ticklish sensation.

When they next pulled apart, Asuna locked her gaze with his. "But make no mistake," she said in her kindergarten teacher voice, pointing her index finger at his nose. "This doesn't mean you can grow a beard."

"Okay, okay." He sighed exaggeratedly. It was then when he noticed her shivering. "Are you cold? Sorry, I didn't notice because I was too busy being so warm with this lovely scarf made by my lovely girlfriend."

"Oh you..." she stuck her tongue out at him cutely.

"Let's go to dinner." He suggested, helping her to her feet.

"Dressed like this?" She blinked.

"Why not?"

"You're so weird, Kirito-kun." She sighed hopelessly. She then reached out to hug him once more. "I love you too," she breathed. "Forevermore."

Kazuto kissed her forehead before taking her hand in his. As they began walking, their eyes met again.

"Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas."

And despite the snowflakes falling onto their hair, their hearts were very warm indeed.

~The End~

A/N: Ah that last line reminds me of the Cold Hand, Warm Heart chapter :3 Hope you enjoyed! Happy Holidays!

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