A/N: Hi guys! Long time no see. Christmas is currently around the corner and it's a season of joy and giving. So, for your Christmas present, here's a special edition of Scarlet Nova for you guys since you have all been such nice reviewers and supporters XD. I would like to thank Elegant Soul for giving me the idea and helping to structure a part of the story. Couldn't have done it without her .

For those that are curious, this edition encompasses details after the post Black Citadel fight so be warned, there are spoilers within the story itself. However, I hope that doesn't deter you guys from reading it since it is a Christmas Gift and all.

With that let's get the party started and I wish all you readers out there a happy festive season and a jolly, merry Christmas!

Scarlet Nova Guild house, Dec 24, X791

"Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle all the way…" chorused the young choir of children as they stood in the middle of Akaba, Valgore's shopping district, and handed out Christmas flyers. All around them, people were hustling in and out of the shops, buying various gifts and food for the upcoming festive day. While not all the shops were open due to most of the owners returning to their respective home towns to celebrate the festive season, those that were still continued to greet their customers with a wide smile on their face as they exchanged seasonal greetings with each other.

It was that time of the year again in Valgore, the time of celebration and giving. While Valgore was usually warm and humid all year round, the climate changes once a year near the end of it to fit a more Christmas theme. So for that one month or so, Valgore experiences snow that never stops falling, bringing joy to most of the town's inhabitants. Unfortunately due to this, most forms of transportation close earlier than expected, so most people have to book their rides early lest they do not make it back in time home for the festive season.

While the mages of Scarlet Nova were usually busy with missions or other things of certain importance, Glaive has made it a point that they all had to be town during the festive season. Like it or not, they were all part of one big family and Glaive expected a family gathering in the form of a Christmas Dinner every year without fail. Of course, this was no ordinary dinner so preparations had to be made early and with a lot of fanfare. Due to the large size of their Guild house, the Scarlet Nova mages had spent lots of time over the week trying to decorate it. It was not until now did they finally make the finishing touches onto their masterpiece.

The Guild house was literally decked in tinsel and flashing lacrima that glowed in various colors in the night. This covered almost every inch of the enormous building and it almost made the place resemble a large Christmas tree. As if to add on to the effect, the lone tower behind the main guild house had a single golden star positioned on top of it. Even the inside of the guild house was redecorated to a certain extent. The carpeted floors of the guild hall were all replaced with some form of carpet grass and the surrounding walls held rosemary wreaths that had glowing ethereal Christmas Themed Cheers floating around them. There was even a small artificial fireplace created just for the sake of the occasion, by the left side of the Guild house.

"Come on people, we still have work to do," Glaive called out from the second floor as he clapped his hands to get the attention of the mages that were currently scurrying in and out of the guild hall. Most of them shot him back a thumb up or a grin of acknowledgement while the quieter ones nodded back.

Glaive let out a small sigh as a smile was brought to his face. They didn't really have this at Fairy Tail back in the days and boy was he glad that he could finally carry this out with his own guild. Though they all hailed from different walks of life, Glaive still felt that it was important for all of them to be here together once a year to have dinner together. They were all members of Scarlet Nova, and therefore a part of his family.

Below him, Seras was concentrating with her magic. While her magic was usually used for forming large landscapes, she decided to try something special for once. Something much smaller.

"Terraforming: Table" she called out as she pictured a large marble table in her mind. Luckily for her, the thing that popped out from beneath the ground turned out exactly as she visualized. An elongated oval black marble table with streaks of white erupted from the ground in front of her, stretching and covering almost the whole length of the guild hall.

"Well I guess that's about right," Seras thought out aloud. It was slightly larger than what she wanted but then her Father said they might be expecting guests, so she guessed that it would do for now. Calling upon her magic once more, she formed 34 small stone pedestals that served as chairs, lining each side of the table and a lone pedestal at the end of the table that was for her Father.

The guild doors suddenly burst open, revealing Aiden carrying an enormous Christmas tree. Even with his magic, Aiden was still sweating, a testament to the tree's weight. The whole thing had to be carried in sideways or else it would never fit through the guild's doors. Behind him trailed Scar, who was still wearing that expressionless look on her face. Further back, a bunch of Scar's animal friends followed suit and entered the guild hall. Worried that they could not take the cold weather, Scar had sought Glaive's permission to bring them into the guild to which he readily agreed. That was also one of the main reasons why there was carpeted grass, to make the animals feel more at home.

Swiftly, Scar directed her companions, with Warrior at the helm of them, towards the fireplace where they would be nice and snug. The animals instantly bounded to the source of heat, huddling against each other for the extra warmth. Scar took up point beside them as well, leaning back against Warrior as she enjoyed the heat the fireplace provided and the warmth her companions gave.

"Seras, where should this thing go?" Aiden asked as he desperately tried to see from the thick canopy. The darn thing's leaves and height were obscuring his vision.

"Next to the fireplace will do Aiden," Seras replied, hoping that he could hear her.

"Err, where's that?" Aiden asked with a puzzled expression on his face. That was when Seras let out a small giggle, realizing that he was completely blind at this point.

"Ok, take ten paces to your right. Followed by another 10 paces forward." Seras commanded. Aiden had no choice but to follow blindly, sincerely hoping that Seras did not pull a prank on him.

"Be careful," Reminded Scar monotonously. She did not want any of her animal friends getting hurt in the process.

Luckily for her, he did not. In one swift movement, he flipped the tree upright and placed it right next to the warm fireplace. He then proceeded to take a few steps back to observe the handiwork.

"Damn that's a big tree," Aiden commented as he gazed at it. The tip of the tree was almost reaching the top of the guild house. How on earth were they going to get it decorated and place the star on top?

"Well, Father had some friends who specialized in Nature magic help him grow the tree. I'm guessing that's what happens when you speed up something's growth with magic." Seras chuckled.

"Alright, it your turn now ladies," Aiden told Hikari and Asuna who were sitting at the bar. Both female mages acknowledged with slight nods of their heads as they proceeded to get to work. They were both in charge of decorating the tree and given their magics, it was a good choice too.

"Silver make: Wires" Asuna shot forth her liquid silver, allowing it to gently coil around the tree. This silver had a tinge of sparkles in it though, courtesy of Asuna soaking the silver in confetti before she used it. This caused the tree to glitter in the dim light, brightening up the room to a certain degree.

On the other hand, Hikari concentrated her light magic into assorted colored lacrima, causing each of them to sparkle with a different hue. When she was done, she proceeded to attach them to Asuna's silver wire. The silver wire acted just like a conveyor belt, transporting the colorful lacrima up and around the tree. Within moments, the decoration of the tree was complete. Now all that was left was the star on top of it.

Aiden whistled as he gazed upon the near complete Christmas tree. It looked darn good if he said so himself. Even Hikari and Asuna were smiling when they admired their handiwork. The Christmas tree did look nice and sparkly, fitting well into their guild hall.

Meanwhile Klein had just woken up from his nap, having finished his Christmas task earlier in the week. The first thing that caught his eye was the sparkly Christmas tree and he had to agree that his guild mates did go out of their way to impress. He then walked down the halls of the guild as Yuki flew next to him. Everything was already decorated for Christmas and he was sure that the dinner was going to be a blast as well. That brought a wide grin to his face as he imagined the fun that everyone was about to have.

Klein then saw Chantal, sitting on a window still and gazing out at the snow covered town of Valgore, with a sad expression. She was stroking Aengus, who was nested in her lap. That caused Klein to frown in confusion.

"Why is Chantal still here?" Klein asked Yuki. "Shouldn't she be at home right now?"

"Klein, remembered the mission we took the week before? Chantal was supposed to leave, but you begged us to take that mission. Now all travel methods are closed because of the thick snow and Chantal doesn't want to risk exhausting her animal friends just to get home," Yuki said. "This is first her Christmas separated from her family."

Klein mentally punched himself. He remembered Chantal acted a little unsure taking the mission, but she willing accepted it, like . . . she didn't want to disappoint him. Now because of him, Chantal is miserable.

All of a sudden, Klein had a brilliant idea. As he whispered his idea to Yuki, a wide smile appeared on her face as well. Silently, they signaled to the other guild members that were in the guild currently; explaining what he wanted to do.

"Hey, Chantal," Klein greeted her with a big smile as he entered the room, making her and Angus look up at him.

"Oh, hi, Klein," Chantal said, trying to sound chirpier.

"I have something to show you; come here," Klein said, gently pulling her to her feet and lead her to the fireplace, and Angus followed them.

There stood the large Christmas tree, beautifully decorated, and surrounded by Seras, Aiden, Hikari and Asuna. Chantal then noticed something was missing from the tree.

"Why hasn't Seras put the star on yet?" Chantal asked, remembering who Glaive announcing as who would have the honors of doing it this year.

"Well . . . I told Seras what happened . . . and I asked her if you could do it instead . . . and she agreed," Klein said. Chantal swiftly looked at him. "Scarlet Nova is family, Chantal . . . and since you're not with your family . . . you should feel welcomed into ours."

At this point, Scar took out her violin and started playing a short Christmas melody. Her animal companions upon hearing it, started to howl in tune with it, making it all the more melodious.

"Klien . . . thank you . . . for making me feel . . . happy again . . . this Christmas," Chantal said, smiling at him, and Klein found himself smiling back at her.

That was when the mages heard a squeal coming from near the top of the tree.

"Oh, brother," Yuki said, getting their attention. Chantal and Klein followed Yuki's gaze to see Aengus on top of a shelf, and somehow tied the mistletoe around his tail so it now hung above them.

Aengus smirked at them with a goofy grin, causing the rest of the mages to erupt in laughter, filling the empty guild hall with sounds of fun and life.

Scarlet Nova Guild Dorm

"Well they certainly sound like they're having fun," commented Tsukiko as she wiped the sweat from her forehead. Beside her, Aly giggled softly as she nodded her head in agreement. Judging from the laughter that was coming within the guild, something humorous must have probably happened.

"Well, I guess that just means we better speed up our work if we wanna join them," Aly smiled.

"I agree, but how?" Tsukiko groaned. "It's not like this place will stop snowing anytime soon."

Both girls were put in charge of thawing the snow and ice that was currently building up on top of the guild house. According to Nerys, who had a knack for architecture, she said that the roof of the guild house might collapse if too much snow accumulated on it, partially due to the building's age as well.

Aly paused momentarily, closing her eyes as she tried to think of ideas. Tsukiko was right. Unless they could find a way to stop the snow from piling up, they weren't going to get anywhere with their task.

Then, a brain wave hit her.

"Hey, Tsukiko," She called out to her team mate who was wearing a dreary expression. "Check this out."

Aly coursed mana through her arms, forming a blue magic circle before her open palms as she called out the name of her spell.

"Azure Dirt" she echoed softly as twin balls of blue fire shot out of her palms, coating the entire roof in a bright blue field.

"Whoa, are you off your rocker Aly?" Tsukiko freaked as she watched the blue flames spread across the entire roof. "You're going to burn the guild house down."

"Relax," Aly replied with a smile on her face, having found the solution to their problem. "Just touch the flames."

Tsukiko's eyes almost popped out when she heard Aly's request but the smile on Aly's face seemed to soothe her nerves. Reluctantly, she bent down and placed her hands on the roof.

"Strange," She remarked as she brushed her hands to and fro between the flames. "The fire is not hot, it just warm. It's like I'm standing on a warm grass patch."

"That's right." Aly grinned. "All I did was change the intensity of the flames. Now it's warm enough to melt the snow but not hot enough to burn the roof."

"Plus, I'm pretty sure it's quite cool to see this baby burning at night," she added. "Adds to the decoration of this place."

"I get it now," Tsukiko returned her smile with one of her own. Now she was getting excited. She did not know that one could change the properties of fire like that. She wondered if she could do the same with her Dragon-slayer magic.

Well, there only one way to find out.

"Solar Dragon's Barrier," Tsukiko called out as she fired a golden wave from her open palm. The wave washed over the adjacent roof from them, creating a thin golden barrier on it. While the barrier did not burn like Aly's flames, it still generated enough heat to cause the snow on top of the roof to start to melt.

"Yes!" Tsukiko punched her fist into the air while Aly watched on with amazement.

"Not what I had in mind, but that's a swell job there." Aly complimented as she gave Tsukiko a high-five.

"Now we can definitely finish our job faster. I can't wait to get inside and snuggle by the fireplace." Tsukiko remarked happily

"Sounds great to me!" Aly agreed, and with that both females got back to work, eager to stay warm and snug within the guild house.

Below them within the guild's courtyard, another bunch of mages were hard at work as well.

Or should one say, hard at play.

"SNOW!" exclaimed Judar as he twirled over and over in the open courtyard, fascinated by the rare cold climate that he heard about in Valgore. All around him, snowdrops fell one after another, causing the Sand Dragon Slayer's eyes to twinkle with amazement and joy.

"SNOW!" both Flora and Vento echoed after him, equally excited about playing in the cold. Well that was to be expected since Judar and Flora both hailed from a desert region and have never seen snow before. Vento on the other hand was just purely excited about spending time playing in the snow.

"C'mon guys," Cora reminded, her hands on her hips. "We're supposed to be removing the snow, not playing in it."

"Nah!" All three of them replied simultaneously, sticking out their tongues at Cora.

"Why you guys," Cora forced a grin out of her face despite all the tick marks that were forming on her forehead at this point. Why did she have to babysit this bunch of mages?

"Well, I better get started first," Cora sighed to herself as she began to dig deep into the snow with the shovel she was given.

"Look, I'm making a snow angel!" Judar called out as he fell backwards onto the patch of snow covering the courtyard, flailing his arms and legs sideways. Slowly but surely, a distorted snow angel began to take shape, creating sparkles of amusement in the eyes of Flora and Vento.

"That looks fun!" remarked Vento as Flora nodded her head as well. Both of them fell back on the snowy floor as well, attempting to create their own snow angels.

"Guys," pleaded Cora, "Can we please start doing our job?" It was sub zero temperatures outside and she really wanted to be back in the guild house soon, sipping a warm mug of cocoa.

"Nah!" All three of them replied at the same again, this pulling out their lower lips instead.

"Grrr…" Cora growled silently as she received the same response, her patience wearing thin. Nonetheless she still continued to dig, though one could hear her venting her frustrations if they listened closely.

"Snowball fight!" Judar called out again, gathering and shaping the snow in his hands as he fired the snowballs one after another.

"Eeep!" Vento squealed as he ducked for cover to avoid the onslaught. He too scooped up snow from the ground, rolling them into snowballs and returning fire. Meanwhile Flora was darting through the skies, raining balls of snow on the "battlefield' as though she was a fighter jet. Squeals of excitement echoed throughout the courtyard, courtesy of the three way battle between the two mages and one exceed.

"Guys," Cora started for the third time but this time she did not manage to finish her sentence as three snowballs all smacked her straight in the face.

"Oopsies," grinned Judar as he stuck his head out from his hiding spot. Vento and Flora were both holding their hands to their mouths, desperately trying to stop themselves from laughing out loud.

Well that did it for Cora and she finally snapped.

"ALRIGHT YOU RASCALS! YOUR ON!" she raged though the grin on her face said otherwise. Scooping up some snow of her own, Cora hurled her snowballs with deadly accuracy. Each of them smacking the two mages and exceed squarely in the face as well.

"Now this is what I'm talking about!" Judar laughed as he wiped the snow from his face, returning fire from his hiding spot behind the stairs.

"Yeah!" both Vento and Flora cheered; unfazed by the fact that Cora was supposedly angry at them. They too continued their snowball fight, this time accompanied by Cora.

Despite their disobedience, Cora could not help but find herself smiling. Christmas was all about having fun wasn't it. So she guess she could cut them slack for now. After all she was enjoying herself as well.

"Well, I guess I should loosen up once in a while," Cora thought out loud as she dodged another snowball from Vento and shot one back at Flora.

"I just sure hope Master Glaive won't mind if our work got delayed."

Ryuga peered out his dormitory window as he heard the commotion coming from the courtyard. From what he could tell, it seemed like a four way snowball fight. The kid within him was itching to take part in it as well, having been deprived a childhood since young. However he had something more serious to attend to at the moment.

Something that he held very dearly to his heart.

Ryuga's room was very simply decorated unlike most of the other dorms. The place was not particularly big per se, having only a living room and two other rooms, one of which was for the toilet and the other for sleeping. He kept the grey and brown interior of the room, having found it a hassle to redecorate. The living room had only a small brown sofa and two armchairs, meant for visitors, with a centre coffee table. On the wall hung some of his past requests taken up and a rack which displayed a few of his demonic amours. Most people would consider the place rather normal, until they say the pile of presents that lay at the corner of the room. Above the pile of presents was a small picture on a miniature altar, showing the image of a young tanned girl smiling warmly.

"Happy Birthday Yura," Ryuga smiled as he sat before the picture, placing the items in his hands down. In his right was a rectangular present with green wrapping and a big red bow while in his left was small strawberry shortcake that he bought from the local confectionary. He then proceeded to place the present with the rest of the pile, something that he had done for the past 9 years. After which, he lit a single candle and placed it on the cake, humming the birthday song as he did so.

Yura's birthday was right before Christmas, making it easy for Ryuga to remember. This was even more so after she passed away. Whenever the festive season arrived, most people would be exhilarated but not Ryuga. It meant that he had to spend another lonely year celebrating her birthday all over again, something that pained him. Because of this, he always chose to take the day off before Christmas day, worried that his grief would affect the holiday spirit of the other guild members.

So imagine his surprise when he heard someone falling face first onto the ground.

"Whose there," he demanded. Within seconds, a pair of sweater arms shot up and a voice pleaded, "Please don't skewer me."

"What are you doing Neel?" Ryuga asked, the tone in his voice being gentler now. Neel popped her head out from behind the sofa, a sheepish grin on her face.

"Sorry to intrude Ryuga, but you didn't lock the door when you came in, so I just let myself in." Neel explained, rubbing the back of her head.

"It's ok," Ryuga replied, letting out an internal sigh of relief that it wasn't Seras or Glaive. He really did not want them to worry about him now with the festive season around the corner.

"Who's that?" Neel asked cheerfully, popping herself on the floor beside Ryuga as she gazed at Yura's portrait. "She's really pretty."

"Well, that's my deceased girlfriend," Ryuga answered, the sadness in his voice barely detectable but Neel still picked up a tinge of it, her smile slowly disappearing when she realized she hit a sore point of Ryuga's.

"My condolences," she muttered, apologizing for her insensitive question. Ryuga just shook his head, telling her that it wasn't her fault at all. She was just curious after all.

"So is that why you vanish every time the day before Christmas?" She asked, Ryuga nodding in reply.

"Her birthday falls the day before Christmas." Ryuga explained. "When she was alive, we celebrated it together alone. Even when she has passed on, I still continue this tradition of celebrating her birthday and delivering her a present. It would have been what she wanted."

"Doesn't that hurt?" Neel asked, the concern visible in her voice. "Having to relive the memory of your loved one?"

"Not really," Ryuga lied. "I've grown used to it over the years."

"You can't lie to me Ryuga." Neel countered, her tone being more serious now. "You were my teacher, so I know exactly how you feel and act. You have to stop putting on a brave front before others. We are all only human after all."

"Well what am I supposed to do?" Ryuga sighed as he gazed into Neel's eyes. "I don't want anyone to worry about me and spoil the Christmas mood. My problems should be mine to burden alone."

That caused to Neel to pause for a while before her eyes sparkled once more, a brilliant idea crossing her mind.

"You can talk to me then," Neel declared, a proud look on her face. "I'll be your personal adviser and consultant from now on."

"But…" Ryuga started, only for Neel to wag a finger in his face.

"No buts," she insisted. "Consider it as thanks for mentoring me over the past year. Besides, now that I know of your problem, I can't exactly stay quiet."

Ryuga just sighed inwardly as a small smile appeared across his face. Neel always had a way with words, easily persuading people especially with that look on her face. There was just no way of out talking her.

"You remind me of her a lot," Ryuga started, gazing at Yura's portrait.

"Your girlfriend?" Neel asked.

"Yep, "Ryuga replied, the smile on his face growing bigger. "Like you, she always knew what to do when I was having trouble. Even when I deny it, she would still see right through me."

"Well, I guess that makes it easier for you to talk to me then," Neel grinned. "You just have to imagine me to be as your girlfriend."

"I guess," Ryuga laughed heartily, feeling the burden in his heart easing.

"I just hope I can be your girlfriend one day…" Neel muttered softly amidst Ryuga's laughter, her face blushing slightly as she twiddled her thumbs.

"Did you say something?"

"N…no…nothing," Neel stammered anxiously, her face turning beet red as she waved her hands to dismiss Ryuga's thoughts. That was a close call.

Ryuga just shrugged, deciding to leave it as that for now and enjoy her company instead.

"Thanks again, Neel."

"No problem, Ryuga. Anytime."

Scarlet Nova Guild house, Kitchen

"You know, my magic isn't really meant for this kind of thing," Zion muttered underneath his breath as he inserted another clump of magma into the stove. "It's called God Slaying magic for a reason and I don't see any Gods to kill in here."

That earned him a knock on the head with a ladle by Vali.

"The only thing you're gonna kill is the turkey dish, ok." Vali reminded. "Everyone's gonna be eating it tonight so don't overcook it." Zion, Liliana and he were put in charge of making the night's dinner feast by Glaive and while all three of them barely had any cooking experience, they were determined not to mess this up.

"Roger that," Zion sighed. "I still don't get it why I was chosen. Can't you get Aly instead, or better yet Ryuga since either of them has a clue of what they are actually doing in here. All I'm doing is making sure that there's enough heat in the stove."

"Well, Ryuga's out on personal business and Aly's busy with thawing the roof." Vali replied as he paused while stirring the broth. He then proceeded to add in a bunch of spices and some carrots before turning up the heat just a little to let everything simmer. "Besides, Ryuga left a cook book with recipes, so we should be fine."

That was until there was a miniature explosion from the oven to the left of them, thick black smoke billowing out from what was left of the oven.

Liliana emerged from the wreck coughing, soot covering her entire face and chest. In her hands was pile of cinders on a metal plate, supposedly the Christmas pudding that she had put into the oven 15 minutes ago.

"Sorry guys, I forgot to turn down the heat at the 10 minute mark." Liliana apologized with a sheepish look on her face, earning stupefied expressions from both Zion and Vali.

"You still think so?" Zion asked without averting his gaze from the cooking disaster.

Vali did not even bother answering, knowing that he was probably right.

20 minutes later, Zion and Vali finally managed to clean up Liliana's mess, having made a replacement pudding in record time. Liliana was now on chopping duty, slicing pieces of vegetables and fruit for the salad. Despite the easier task, both Zion and Vali still prayed that she did not forget to remove her fingers when doing the cutting.

"So who do you think is gonna come tonight?" Zion asked as he seasoned the minced beef with a dash of pepper and herbs.

"Santa Claus?" Liliana suggested, instantly visualizing the red and white old man busting open the guild doors with a bag full of presents.

"No, silly," Vali laughed. "Zion's referring to the guests that Master Glaive mentioned a while back. If you ask me, I think it's gonna be Fairy Tail. Master Glaive and Master Makarov go way back apparently."

"My thoughts exactly," agreed Zion, looking up from his task at hand. "I really hope so, cause there's someone I really want to fight there." The God Slayer's face lit up as he looked forward to having his potential showdown with the Fairy Tail member.

"Salamander?" Vali asked, receiving Zion's nod of confirmation.

"Yup. I heard he fought and beat Zancrow from Grimoire Heart seven years ago and he grew even stronger since then. I can't wait to see how I fair against him." Zion grinned.

"I hope you take it outside the guild house though, if he does show up." Liliana sweat dropped. A fight between two slayers would probably only destroy the guild house, if they were lucky. "Is there someone you're looking forward to seeing Vali?"

"Probably Lucy," Vali replied without looking up from his task of applying the whipped cream to some puff pastry. "Since we're both celestial spirit mages, I was hoping she could give me some advice on how to communicate with my celestial spirits. They are always rude and receive to speak."

"I see," Liliana had her hand against her cheek as she thought about it. "Well, I guess we will only find out tonight now. We should probably focus on the dishes now. We won't want anyone complaining of not eating their fill tonight."

"Of course." Vali smiled.

"Hell yeah," Zion smirked.

Guild members and guests alike, they were going to make sure that they had nothing but praise for the food they made.

Valgore, Akaba Shopping District

Near the fountain of Akaba, a small shed had been temporarily set up there. It was made rather haphazardly, with just stacks of wooden planks to act as walls and a red curtain draped over the top of it in order to shield the contents of the shed. A medium sized brown sofa was set right in front of it and two miniatures Christmas trees flanked it. On a normal circumstance, many would have shunned it, thinking it was a sham. However, there was currently a long queue in front of it, all of them children nonetheless.

Well that was to be expected when they saw who was running the store.

"Hohoho! Merry Christmas!" Shinji cheered in a deep voice from beneath his thick beard. He was currently dressed as Santa Claus, fully decked out in the standard red and white suit He was even wearing a beard and had a round pot-belly as well, help from the 2 layers of cushions beneath his shirt. Beside him were Padme and Hanaku, both wearing rather thin clothing for such a cold weather. They were wearing a single piece dress that exposed a rather large amount of their cleavage and short miniskirts. To complete the look, they wore red caps and knee tall high heeled boots, resembling Santa's helpers to a certain degree.

"Merry Christmas," Hanaku smiled as waved at the crowd of children while Padme rang the small bell in her hands. Despite their smiles, their teeth were chattering and their bodies trembled, courtesy of the cold winds that were blowing. No doubt thanks to the ridiculous outfits that Shinji had handpicked for them.

"Remember to kill this airhead later," Hanaku growled under her breath, the joyful smile not leaving her face.

"Don't worry about it," Padme replied softly, "He will never see it coming."

"I had no choice," Shinji lied. "There were only these costumes left in the store." Well, in actual fact the whole shop was decked in Christmas suits but Shinji had told the owner to pick the skimpiest ones instead. 'I still think you all look beautiful in them, with an extra tinge of sexiness, eroticness…"

Before Shinji's mind could run its fantasies any further, both girls stamped their high heeled boots into each of Shinji's foot, causing the Gunner mage to yelp in pain and his eyes to almost pop out of their sockets.

"Behave." Came the simple reply of both girls.

"Ok, ok," Shinji chuckled as he received the next kid. By the looks of it, this kid no more than 10 years old, having an innocent smile on his face. "Hello, my dear. What would you like to have this Christmas?"

"I would like to have a Pikachu please, preferably one that's yellow, cute and fuzzy!' the boy smiled.

"One Pikachu, coming right up." Padme smiled as she placed her hand around the boy's head momentarily, a small violet glow appearing quickly before vanishing. While the boy looked confused initially, Shinji and Hanaku quickly reassured him that it was nothing while Padme took her leave to within the shed.

Inside the cramped quarters of the shed sat Otis and Yami, a small table in front of them filled with girt wrappers and empty boxes. When Padme entered, they knew it was time to get to work.

"It must be fun playing as Santa Claus," remarked Yami as he watched Padme enter with a smile on her face. "It totally beats being Santa's toy maker elves."

"Then would you like to exchange outfits with me? I would totally die to be in those warm jackets of yours." Padme's smile darkened instantly, her face now contorted from the cold.

"I think we'll pass." Otis laughed. There was no way he would be caught dead in that outfit. The girls had begged the two of them to keep quiet about this from the guild which they agreed reluctantly. If anything, Shinji had some perverted taste in clothing, not that he or Yami minded.

Well the same could not be said for Shinji who was probably gonna get hell from them when this was all over.

"Dream Empress: Connection." Padme called out as a small violet magic circle appeared at her fingertips. Within seconds, the same magic circle appeared at the sides of Otis and Yami's heads, receiving the image that she had just witnessed from the boys' memories.

"Well then, let's get to it." Otis said as he began manipulating the snow on the floor. They instantly converged into the space between his two palms, forming a regular ball of snow. With a few swipes of hand movements, Otis skillfully managed to recreate the ears, tail and face of the Pikachu before adding the few finishing touches which were the stripes and cheeks.

"My turn," Yami smiled as he activated his own magic. A black magic circle appeared beneath the Pikachu, extending it shadow by twice the size.

"Shadow Replica," Yami commanded as an identical Pikachu, this one completely black, appeared from within the extended shadow. Unlike the snow Pikachu which crumbled instantly after, the shadow Pikachu did not, instead maintaining the original's softness and shape permanently. With a quick swipe of some paint, the adorable and fluffy yellow Pikachu made it appearance.

"Send our regards to the kid Padme," Otis smiled.

"Why not you guys just come out and say so yourselves?" Padme asked curiously.

"And spoil the surprise?" Yami grinned. "It's Santa's job to give out the presents. Toy making elves like us shouldn't steal the limelight."

"Here you go," Padme handed the toy Pikachu replica to the boy, causing his eyes to sparkle and his grin to widen.

"OMG, THANK YOU SANTA!" The boy squealed as he hugged his new toy. "This is the best present ever! Thank you and have a merry Christmas!" he chirped before running off, eager to get home to show his parents.

"Well, the same to you too," called Hanaku as she waved to the boy's fleeting figure. It sure felt good handing them presents.

The only problem was that the queue in front of them was not growing much shorter.

That meant that they were going to be stuck in these clothes for quite some time.

"Make reminder to self to kill Shinji," both girls thought out aloud, causing Shinji to grin cheekily as his cheerful voice rang through the air once more.

"Hohoho, Merry Christmas!"

Orphanage at the edge of Valgore

"Charlie, get off my back! James, stop pulling my hair! I told you your turn will come soon! And you Rudolf zip that mouth of yours! You're drooling all over the wool!"

Kozmotis was snarling in so many different directions at once that he himself lost count already. There were just too many children clamoring all over him. While his voice sounded harsh, it lacked the natural dark tone he usually gave off. The children, having been used to that voice of his, did not seem intimidated, but rather amused instead.

"How the hell is a guy supposed to knit in peace here?" Kozmotis yelled to the heavens, seemingly frustrated by the noise that the children were making. He was trying so hard to make sweaters for them, if only they let him concentrate. They were all talking and laughing at once, interrupting his thought process and that was making him feel very angst.

Even so, he did not find the heart to lash out at the kids strange enough, resorting to cursing under his breath for a change.

"I said tone down you runts!" he hissed, though he was effectively ignored again. "I swear to God, I am regretting doing this right now! There could be nothing worse than this."

As if God heard him, challenge accepted.

"Hello guys!" an all too familiar voice called out from the front door of the orphanage, distracting the kids with all of them rushing towards the door to greet the visitors. On the other hand, it caused Kozmotis to freeze over instantly.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!' he cursed as he desperately tried to pack up his sewing kit and find a place to hide. There was no way in hell he was going to let his guild mates catch him doing this. They would let him hear the end of it. Sure he could silence some of them by scaring, but he knew all too well that the owner of the voice would be far from intimidated.

He was in the midst of stuffing the wool into his pockets when he heard the room's door knob turn. Instinctively, he leapt for the nearest window, trying to save his face while he still could. Unfortunately, he tripped against a table leg at the last second, hitting the window pane face first and sliding to the ground. That was when the door opened.

"Fudgebuckets." He cursed

From the door walked in Gemma, her face smiling as she held the hands of the numerous kids encircling her. Behind her was Rhea, carrying bags of goodies and toys that they had bought on the way here. Both mages instantly saw Kozmotis lying flat on the ground with his arse high up in the air. For a second, they were shell shocked, their jaws left hanging. In the next, Gemma had already burst out laughing while Rhea covered her mouth and turned away, trying her best to stifle her giggles.

Kozmotis' face instantly darkened, though it wasn't visible to anyone from his angle. Acting as if nothing had happened, he picked himself up and dusted his coat. Wordlessly, he rushed for the exit, grabbing both Gemma and Rhea by their collars. With that he slammed the door, leaving the children to their own devices for the time being.

They were going to have to talk.

"Spill a word and I'll spill your blood." Hissed Kozmotis as he got straight to the point. It was bad enough having the loud-mouth know his secret. He didn't intend on anyone else figuring out as well.

"Big words from a big man," Gemma smirked. "but you don't scare me. I have seen bigger men who are at least twice as bad as you."

"Well this big man is telling you nicely to shut up or he'll shut you down permanently." Kozmotis growled lowly, killer intent already starting to seep out of him.

"Oh really, is that the best you can do?" Gemma teased, acting all frightened and shivering. "I'm quaking in my boots and crying for my mommy."

That did it for Kozmotis. "All right then, how about I just kill you right here and now! Saves me the trouble anyway!" he snarled, beginning to unsheathe the sword hidden in his cane.

"Bring it on! I'll take you down in a sec!" Gemma grinned as she stood up to his challenge, her left arm forming an iron sword and her right a giant mallet.

And then Rhea came right in between them and bashed their heads.

"Enough, both of you." She said simply.

"The hell!" Kozmotis bared his teeth as he glared at Rhea but he sheathed his sword nonetheless.

"Right, sorry." Gemma smiled sheepishly as she rubbed the bruise on her head.

"So what brings you here anyway? Not that I care much." Kozmotis demanded

"Well, I didn't really experience much love from my parents since young, so I decided to make a change to those around me. These orphans are way worse off than me in the sense that they don't have any parents to start with so I wanted to spend time with them playing. To make their lives more enjoyable and not as gloomy." Explained Gemma. "What about you?"

"Something along the same lines." Kozmotis shrugged. "Now pay up."

"I see…WAIT WHAT!" Gemma suddenly exclaimed, the later part of his answer just registering into her head.

"You asked me for information, so I expect some form of compensation."

"Screw that! You asked me the question first. Who the hell pays for this kind of shitty reason?" Gemma protested.

"Do you want to make these kids happy or not." Kozmotis snorted.

Gemma clicked her tongue, annoyed by his attitude but she still agreed with it. It was for the sake of the orphans after all. "What do you want?"

"Keep them occupied while I finish my sewing." Kozmotis answered simply. "I intend to make them each a woolen sweater and I need some time and privacy."

That almost made Gemma burst out laughing again, only for Rhea to smack her on the head again. "Yeah, we could do that." Rhea smiled warmly, answering in Gemma's stead.

Kozmotis snorted, turning his back to them as he proceeded to the armchair at the end of the hallway.

"You're actually a nice guy deep down, aren't you?" Gemma smirked at the leaving figure of Kozmotis.

"Can it." He retorted without looking back. There was way too much bullshit for his liking already.

Valgore Post Office

"Well that's the last of It." wheezed the old man from behind the counter as he handed the last sack to Blitz.

"Thanks for your help Gramps," Zephyr smiled as he watched the old man off the lights in the post office.

"No, it should be thanking you youngsters instead." the old man replied. "Thanks to you mages, I can now spend more time with my wife waiting for Christmas."

"You take care now," Nerys placed a warm leather coat on the old man's back, carefully helping him down the stairs onto the street.

"I will, "the old man had a warm smile on his face as he waved at the Scarlet Nova mages. "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas!" the trio chorused in reply, watching as the old man's figure gradually fading away in the snow.

"Now it's our turn to get to work," Blitz grinned as he stared at the huge sack of mail and presents beside him. Next to Nerys and Zephyr were equally large sacks, filled to the brim with various goods and toys as well.

Due to the cold weather, there had been a delay in the mail service to Valgore. Mails that were supposed to reach before Christmas had all strangely arrived at the same time at the post office. Given that the post office was run by the old man alone, it would take forever to sort out everything and delivering them to their respective homes. Christmas would have been long over by then. Luckily for him, the Scarlet Nova mages were there to help, and to top that off, they all specialized in speed.

"We have about an hour or so to deliver all these, so it's best if we hurry." Nerys reminded as she stared at Valgore's clock tower. The time currently read 10.30 pm, leaving less than 2 hours for them to get their job done AND be back in time for their own Christmas dinner.

"We might as well have some fun while we're at it, seeing how it is the festive season and all." quipped Zephyr, causing both Blitz and Nerys to stare at him in curiosity.

"I was thinking that the last person to finish delivering all the mail and presents will have to buy the other two a present of their choice. This way we'll be motivated to work even faster and it fits just nicely with the Christmas theme as well." Zephyr continued, receiving approving nods from the other two Scarlet Nova mages.

"Sounds good to me." Agreed Blitz

"I'm all game if you guys are." Nerys nodded.

"Meet back at the guild's gates." Zephyr reminded as each mage took a ready stance. At the chime of the bell, all of them vanished instantly, leaving only tuffs of smoke in their paths.

Zephyr zipped thru and flow across the streets, leaving only a blur of blue light in his path, courtesy of his electric blue sweater and pants. As the person who initiated the challenge, Zephyr most certainly did not want to be the one losing it. Hence he decided to take the most efficient way of doing things.

To each household he visited, he simply left the present and mail at the doorstep and rang the doorbell. As most families were waiting for Christmas to arrive, the houses were lit up and filled with people, leaving Zephyr with no worries that the presents would get stolen. The second he rang the doorbell, Zephyr took off immediately moving on to the next house. He never did managed to get a chance to see the joyous expressions of his recipients or the grateful tears that rolled down their eyes when they finally managed to get their precious mail and gifts from or for their loved ones.

Nerys was a bit more courteous on the other hand. She chose to teleport within the houses themselves. There she would walk around and find someone to pass the gift or mail to before she left. While receiving or giving thanks, she did not hesitate to give her comments about the architecture of the place, offering sound advice on how to redecorate and stuff before vanishing to the next building.

Blitz was more traditional compared to the other two. Despite his age, he still believed in the tale of Santa Claus, something enforced onto him by his teacher a long time ago. As such he teleported to each of his recipients' houses chimneys, depositing the mail and presents down them. Unfortunately for him, his method had a few minor flaws. For one, some of the presents were way too thick or bulky to fit down the chimney. For another, not all the recipient houses had chimneys. Luckily for him, he had a solution to both problems. He simply left the presents by the bedroom windows, leaving small post-its on the gifts saying "Santa was here" in hopes of keeping the tradition alive. Despite knowing that this would cause him precious time, he still found it necessary.

And so for the next hour, the streets were filled with streaks of fading blue lights and the zipping noises of teleportation. Most of the residents of Valgore were in the festive mood already, oblivious to the hard work that the mages were carrying out. Not that any of the trio minded. They were all just glad to put a smile on everyone's face before the festive day approached.

At 11.30pm sharp, Zephyr arrived first in front of the guild house, panting slightly. That certainly did a number on his magic but it was definitely worth it. Following that was Nerys, who seemed slightly less exhausted and was carrying a plate of cookies and milk in her hands, courtesy of one of her recipient families. Lastly, Blitz arrived a full minute later, his face caked in soot when he tried to fish out a stuck present.

"Well, it seems like someone owes us a present," Nerys grinned, fist-bumping Zephyr.

"I'll honor my end of the deal alright. Go ahead and decide what you guys want." Blitz shrugged, earning squeals of laughter and joy from the two younger mages. He had money to spare anyways. Besides, it wouldn't harm giving gifts to his guild mates.

That's what the festive spirit was all about.

Scarlet Nova Guild House, 11.45pm

Glaive smiled as he saw Zephyr and company enter the guild doors. With them accounted for, everyone was finally back. All members of the guild had kept their promise and were now seated at the sides of the stone table. Before their eyes was a scrumptious feast, personally prepared with an extra dose of sweat and effort by Zion, Vali and Liliana. There was roast turkey with rosemary, black pepper beef, pumpkin pie, coconut ice cream and chocolate Christmas pudding, all accompanied by a fresh glass of lemonade infused vodka drink that was specially chosen from Glaive's personal collection. Watching all the amazed looks on their guild mates faces boosted the trio's pride and moral by a large extent.

"Food, food, food…" drooled Vento, his hunger getting the better of him already. Seras had lost count of how many times she had to close his mouth already to prevent his saliva from falling all over the food.

Well he wasn't alone in that aspect. All across the table sounds of grumbling tummies echoed in the guild hall. Evidently everyone was aching to dig in to the delicious spread of food laid before them.

"Master," Cora asked as she rubbed her grumbling tummy, "are we starting soon?"

"Patience my dear," Glaive replied with a smile, "they're almost here."

"They?" questioned Scar. She was pretty sure that all the guild members were back by now.

"Oh! The special guests that Master was talking about!" squealed Tsukiko, having suddenly recalled what he said earlier that morning.

At that exact moment, there was knock on the guild's doors, causing all heads to turn in that general direction.

"Well, speak of the devil." Grinned Klein. It was anyone's guess who the guests were now.

And they were all pretty surprised when they saw who walked through the door.

"Sorry we are late," Vale gave a small smile as he took off his winter coat. "It took us a while to travel without being detected by the council."

"Vale!" Aiden exclaimed in excitement as he got off his chair to greet the ex-Orochi member. "It's great to see you again!"

"You too, Aiden." Vale replied. The two of them had gotten pretty close since the incident at Morgoth despite being former enemies and they were glad to be in each other's company once again.

Behind Vale, the other members of Sombra Estrella removed their cloaks, earning even more squeals and shouts of excitement from the Scarlet Nova mages.

"OLIN!" squealed Zion as he tackled his younger brother in a ferocious hug.

"Can't breathe you idiot!" Olin wheezed with whatever air he had left in his lungs, before resorting to punching Zion in the jaw to have him released from his chokehold of a hug.

"It's hard to imagine that Olin's the younger one when his older brother acts like a doofus." Aly remarked, earning nods of approval from both Shinji and Blitz.

"Big Brother!" Rin squealed as she ran up to Ryuga, embracing him.

"Welcome back Rin," Ryuga replied warmly as he snuggled the younger mage he now called his sister. He then allowed her to sit on his lap, stroking her hair as he did so. It had been way too long since they last met and he sure was glad that he could see her again.

"ZEPHYR!" chimed Mara and Zora as they both tackled the speed mage. During the short span of time they had spent together after their battles, they had also become very close friends.

"Hi ladies, it's nice to see yall again," Zephyr chuckled as a deep red blush crept onto his cheeks from all the physical contact. He had to get used to that someday.

"Yo Drake," Yami greeted the Shadow Dragon Slayer who was at the end of the group. "its good to see you again."

"Hi Yami, sorry for intruding as usual." Drake mumbled softly, twiddling his thumbs. He wasn't used to attending events with so many people around, making him even more shy than usual.

"Man you have to loosen up," Yami grinned as he put an arm around Drake. "I will have to teach you how to get over your shyness one of these days."

"Thanks Yami," Drake blushed, happy that he still had friend that cared for him.

With that, all the seats were completely filled, making the guild house all the livelier.

At the strike of 12am, Glaive stood up, holding out his glass as he prepared a toast. All the rest seated at the table instantly quietened down and followed his example, each holding their glass as they waited for the signal.

"3"

"2"

"1"

"MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!" Everyone cheered, marking the start of the Christmas Day and the beginning of a new year.

And so the curtain falls on the first act, bringing about new beginnings as the second chapter prepares to write itself.

A/N: And that's a wrap for this chapter! Hope you guys have enjoyed this short Christmas special XD

The new characters introduced at the end will be introduced as the story progresses so don't worry about it. For those interested, you guys can google the name of Vale's guild. Its meaning is tied closely to Scarlet Nova. Have fun figuring it out hahaha

Lastly, I hope this makes a nice Christmas present from me to you guys! So I wish all you readers out there, a very Merry and Jolly Christmas and a very very happy New Year

Death Obelisk signing off.