Disclaimer: I do not own House of Anubis, the characters in it, and the locations used.

A/N: Didn't have my laptop with me for the last few days until 4 hours ago, so I couldn't update yesterday, but here we go! A new chapter for you, only a day late! Christmas has arrived...

Happy Birthday to EarthSong77 and LiveLoveLaugh79!


Nina POV

Fabian and I woke to a shrill scream.

I shot up in bed, but he pulled me back down again, chuckling into my ear. "It's just Amber discovering the presents, darling. Don't worry yourself." He kissed my cheek. "Merry Christmas, darling." I smiled and blushed.

"Merry Christmas, Fabian." I sat up again, but calmer this time, and stretched. "I suppose we should get up and get dressed them."

"Nope." I looked back at him, and he grinned. "We open presents and eat breakfast in our pajamas. It's a house rule." Mick let out a particularly loud snore, and Fabian chucked one of his pillows at him. "Wake up, idiot."

Out the window was a blanket of white.

"It's snowing!" I shrieked. Mick startled so badly that he fell off the bed, earning a peal of laughter from Fabian. "It's a White Christmas!" I stood up, pulling Fabian with me. "Come on, let's go!" He slipped off the bed obediently, handing me my hoodie, which I quickly put on. Then we were out the door, leaving Mick behind.

There was a massive Christmas tree in the living room that hadn't been there the night before. I gaped at it, and Fabian laughed again. "We decorate it in the attic and bring it down Christmas Eve. I let them do it so it would be a surprise for you." I nodded mutely, staring at all the presents. I knew there'd be a lot, considering how many people were living here, but holy crap. There must've been 50 or so stacked up in various places around the tree, mine included. Off to the side was a massive trunk that hadn't been there before.

"Nina!" Amber squealed, tossing her arms around me. "Happy Christmas!"

"Let me breathe, Amber. Happy Christmas." She pulled back and pranced over to the couch, taking her usual spot. The others were already gathered there, chatting merrily with each other, and Mick came stumbling in behind us, yawning. "So how do we do this? Order-wise, I mean?"

We took a seat while Amber explained. "You don't have your name on the ones you bought, right?" I nodded - Fabian had told me. "We all help in passing them out, one at a time, until everyone has their presents. Then we all open them at once!" She started passing out some, and my smile widened when I saw that there were some for me. They were all wrapped in intricate red and green wrapping paper with a gold bow, and I promised myself that I would keep the gold decoration.

We all helped in giving each other the presents, and when I subtly looked down to count mine, I saw that I only had four - one said from three and another said from two, but that left only 7 people. Someone hadn't bought me one. It didn't sting, since I'd only expected to get a present from a few people, but it poked at my curiosity. Who hadn't gotten me one?

"Alright… on your mark, get set, GO!" Amber yelled. We all dove into our presents.

Even while everyone ripped off their paper, I carefully unfolded mine, not wanting to damage it. Fabian nudged me, and I looked up to see the silent question in his eyes. "I want to keep them. As a memory." My first Christmas that I can remember. He smiled.

"Alright. But you have to rip into one." I nodded and went back to my unfolding, which revealed a box. After peeking open the lid, I grinned at Mick - a NIKE exercising outfit with shoes. I managed to catch his eye and mouth a clear thank you.

Next up came a book of classic jokes from the present with the note of from two. Clearly it had come from Alfie and Jerome, and I looked up just to see them open my present of magic tricks, a different set for each of them. I figured if they liked pranking so much… why not a 'magical' form? To my relief, they crowed with joy and high fived each other.

The classic Amber shriek filled the air, and she jumped to her feet, quickly dragging me to mine as well and hugging me tightly. I could feel the pamphlet I'd given her against my back, and I grinned. "What did you get from her?" Fabian asked.

"I got a note saying I could play Barbie Nina whenever I wanted…" That one got a glance from Fabian, but she wasn't done. "And a ticket for a fashion summer camp in the next city over!"

"It's two weeks long. She gets to not only learn from the professionals the first week, but then draw designs and bring them to life using their techniques. Then she gets to put them on actual models on the runway day. Hundreds of people come to watch the show." I blushed as I explained, shrugging. "It was the least I could do. You have talent, Amber." I was both mortified and pleased when I realized she was crying. Another hug from her, and we sat down, promising we'd talk more about it later.

When I opened my next gift, I gasped. Inside were several sets of gorgeous clothing; the tops were silky and the pants were in a material I couldn't name, but they weren't denim and they looked a little fancier, too. Underneath was an actual pajama set, unlike my sweatpants and hoodie, both in soft cotton. All the clothes were long sleeved or touched my ankles, but I realized that the way they were designed were still baggy in the torso area, but in a more subtle way. When I wore them, they would still hide what curves I had on my thin frame, but it wouldn't look purposeful. The note tucked in the corner drew another gasp from me. An Amber Millington original.

Amber got another hundred hugs after that.

My final gift, the one that I ripped the paper off of, was the one that brought me to tears.

Inside was a large photo album, and on the cover was a picture of me. I couldn't name what day it'd been taken, but it was clearly Joy's work. My eyes were alight with happiness, and my smile was wide. It was outside, but that was all I could tell. Regardless, it was beautiful. I opened the front, and a very similar smile spread my lips. It was a photo of me on what must've been my first week here. It was before Joy had gotten her new camera, so the quality wasn't as good, but my shy glance at Fabian on the other side of the couch spoke of the months to come.

Fabian stopped unwrapping beside me to look, and I leaned into him as I flipped through. Me with Amber, reading Harry Potter, sitting in the gardens with Fabian. There was a picture of our midnight picnic, which I vaguely remembered being taken from the window, and a picture of Fabian covering my eyes just before he led me outside. Our Halloween pictures, both the one of me with Fabian and the group shot. Some of the rest of the Anubis crew doing various things. Me with Eddie, just a few days ago when he came over, drawing on the floor. The final one was a shot of Fabian and I curled up in his bed, fast asleep. My head was in the crook of his neck, and his cheek rested on the top of my head. His arm was wrapped around my waist and my fist was curled into his shirt - unwilling to let him go, even in unconsciousness. I remembered Joy's camera being on Mick's nightstand, and I'd thought he was looking through her photos, but now I realized that he must've taken a picture of us once we were asleep. A drop of water hit the plastic covering of the page, and I realized it was my tear.

I turned the page once more, and instead of a picture, there was a note. This album can have pages added to it. We've gone ahead and put in twenty blank ones… for all your adventures to come! - Joy, Mara, and Patricia

Fabian tilted my head with two gentle fingers on my chin, and wiped away my tears. "No crying. It's Christmas," he murmured, voice warm.

"Yeah." I wiped my tears away. "Sorry." The present he'd paused in unwrapping ended up being mine - a 9x12 journal. On one side of the page was a blank sheet of sketch paper, and on the other was lined paper to write on. It was more or less the diary he already had - the stacks of papers I'd seen in his nightstand - but bound in a notebook that he could take with him.

"I can already tell that this is your gift. This is perfect, Nina. Thank you." He kissed my cheek. "I can definitely see myself using this."

I smiled and bit my lip. "That's not all. I got you something else, but I wanted to wait and give it to you later, if that's okay." He nodded and wrapped an arm around me, settling back against the couch. It was then that it hit me.

I didn't have a present from Fabian.

I knew I couldn't have mistaken one of his for someone else's. He hadn't gotten me one. I tilted my head, glad he couldn't see my face, and I couldn't decide whether I should feel hurt or not. Just curious for now, I decided internally, settling into his hug. We'd have to see.

Fabian and I watched as the others opened their presents. Jerome got a second item from me, a watercolor set with two instructional books. Mara got a signed collector's edition of the Harry Potter series. Joy received a few books on photography from the masters and their techniques behind each photo. Patricia grinned at my wide collection of music I'd gotten her. I'd seen her shelves - she had a large taste in music. After some consulting with Joy, I'd pulled it off. I gave Mick a music collection of his own, fit for working out to. And Trudy, who'd been watching with a fond smile, got a book of the Best American Short Stories - 2006 Edition.

When the last present was opened, Fabian and Mick immediately rose and went over to the trunk I'd noticed earlier. It was a dark brown with gold designs, 4 or so feet long and around 2 feet wide, while it was another 3 feet deep. Together they lifted it, grunting with the effort, and set it down in front of me. "The whole group sorta got you a present," Fabian explained, sitting back down. "This is the one I mentioned that didn't cost much money. We all pitched in for it." He nudged me. "Open it."

I took off the latch and lifted the top, only to be left gaping at the contents.

There were four separated types of material inside - books, ranging from the Eragon series to a series called Goosebumps, movies like Pitch Perfect and The Poltergeist, music from The Eagles to Mumford and Sons, and video games like Mario Kart and Halo.

"Fabian said your stepfather had you lead a pretty sheltered life, and we know we've made jokes you don't understand," Joy said. "So we've decided to give you a crash course on pop culture until the summer, and maybe continue it once we return for the next school year."

Amber smiled. "We all put some of our items in there. The video games are for Wii and Xbox 360 - Jerome and Mick have the former, and Alfie has the latter. They'll bring them over sometimes so we can all play together. The video games are the only ones we'd like you to return once you're done with them. The books, movies, and music - at least, the ones you like - you can keep."

I was still gaping, and Fabian shifted nervously beside me. "You don't have to watch and read all of them. I know it's a lot, and you don't have a deadline or anything. I just figured that it'd be a nice thought." He started to ramble. "We picked the most popular ones and the ones we thought would have the most emotional resonance within you. I know we could be wrong about the ones for the latter, but-"

I threw my arms around Fabian's neck, hugging him tightly. "It's perfect," I said, smiling brightly. After a moment, I pulled back and looked at everyone, my smile turning more shy. "Really, everyone. Thank you." I picked through a couple of them, glancing at the ones further down the massive stacks. "I'm not going to get any work done now. You've created a monster."

"Merry Christmas, Nina," Fabian said warmly, and it was echoed by everyone else a second later. I looked down, blushing furiously and unable to wipe the grin off my face.

Yes. A Merry Christmas it is.

X

Once all the trash had been picked up and breakfast had been eaten, we all went out to play in the thick snow. The yard had gained a few inches overnight, but it was still coming down lightly. I stuck out my tongue to get a snowflake, which Joy caught on camera… as well as a picture of a snowball plowing straight into my open mouth, thanks to Mick. I chased him around the yard for a few minutes, lobbing snow at the back of his head, and finally succeeded on my sixth shot when snow went inside his coat.

I was aiming for Fabian this time when Mark and Haru came down the halfway plowed sidewalk.

"Mark?" I called, startled. Everyone screeched to a halt, and Fabian's face crumpled into a hard expression that reminded me of stone. But there he was, riding along in a wheelchair pushed by Haru. He waved at me, and I walked over to them, joining them as they headed for the front door. "What are you doing here? I thought you were still in the hospital?"

"This stubborn idiot decided he was going to risk his health and get out despite the doctor's recommendation," Haru said, a smile on his face that read I tried. I giggled quietly and opened the door for them, helping to lift the wheelchair up the steps. Mark hadn't said anything yet, and watched me, clearly hesitating over something. "Mark has something he wants to say to you," Haru said, nudging him.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted after Hairball left," Mark said quietly. "I don't know what came over me, and I'm truly regretful for hurting your feelings. I've done that far too many times lately."

My eyes widened slightly, and I glanced from one boy to the other. I couldn't help but admit that I was startled, but I adjusted quickly to this calmer side of Mark that seemed to appear whenever Haru was around. "I forgive you. You were out of it at the hospital, and you were in a vulnerable position. That was rough on you," I said, dipping my head slightly. "Thank you for apologizing."

"It's about time," Fabian muttered, having come inside with us, but I didn't think either of them heard him. Apparently I wasn't supposed to either, because he looked abashed when I shot him a warning glare. In an attempt to make up for it, he coughed to gain their attention. "Would you like anything to drink? Or eat?"

Mark eyed the leftover pancakes on the table, but Haru stepped in immediately. "Mark isn't allowed to eat anything. He's on a liquid only diet, cleared by the hospital. But I'd like some water, if you don't mind." Mark groaned, muttering something only Haru could hear under his breath, and the boy laughed quietly. Fabian went into the kitchen, and Mark pulled out a present from the bag on his lap.

"It's for you," he said, almost shyly. "Don't open it until I leave, though."

"Thank you, Mark." I smiled and pulled out a present from underneath the Christmas tree - there were a few left, ready for other visitors and families when they picked up the students tomorrow. "This is for you and Haru. I wasn't entirely sure what to get you, but I was going to drop it off at the hospital tomorrow. But wait to open it until we're all settled." At my direction, we went over to the couches. Leaning heavily on Haru, Mark raised himself out of the chair and plopped down on the couch with only a slight wince. Haru sat down beside him and folded the wheelchair to rest against the table, watching his friend as carefully as he always did.

There was… a fondness there, in his eyes. Something closer than friendship, at least in Haru's gaze. I thought back to when I'd asked if there was something going on between the two. "No, no. Mark's not gay," Haru had said. He'd never said anything about his feelings for Mark… and I suspected it was something much more than even a crush.

My heart gave a tug at the troubling situation. Poor Haru.

The study of Haru, who I now realized was staring back at me with narrowed eyes, was interrupted by Mark ripping through the paper. The tiny box was yanked back to reveal… tickets. To a theatre show. "What is this?" Mark asked curiously, but Haru had frozen, a smile spreading his lips. Clearly one of them knew what I'd gotten them.

"They're tickets to a show at the nearby live theatre. It's about a pianist who lives in the UK who struggles to succeed despite his amazing talent. It's gotten amazing reviews, and I managed to snatch some tickets for the show in two weeks. They aren't the best seats in the house, but they're still pretty good. I thought that not only would Haru like it for its story, considering his love of piano, but that you would love it for its technical side. Most of the reviews have raved about the set changes, the costume, the use of lighting and music… since technical theatre is your main passion…"

Fabian had come back in halfway through my explanation, setting the glass down beside Haru. "My mother went to see that one," he cut in, surprising me. I hadn't said anything to him about the present, and I was pleased by his attempt to relate. "I'm sure you'll enjoy it. She did."

"Thank you, Nina," Mark said, smiling unusually bright. Haru nodded beside him, still rendered speechless. "I'm sure Hairball and I will love the show. I promise I'll tell you all about it." He looked up at his friend, his eyes narrowed in concern. "Do I need to put you in the hospital now? Or shall I give you CPR?" He froze the second he brought up the idea, shrinking slightly. "Nah. Never mind. I'll leave Rutter to do that," he muttered, laughing it off nervously. His hand crawled up to scratch at a patch of his hair, and he looked away. "Anyway. Thanks for the tickets, Nina."

I stared at them, totally lost. At the change in his voice, Haru had finally broken out of his excited trance, choosing instead to study Mark for a moment. "Thank you, Nina, really," he said, his eyes never wavering from Mark's lowered head. Fabian and I shared a look, unsure what to do. "I'm going to the restroom. Excuse me." Haru stood and made his way to the bathroom, and Fabian left for the kitchen. I saw him keep a wary eye on us while he stirred something behind the counter.

"Mark," I said hesitantly, scooting closer to him and lowering my voice. "Are you sure there's nothing going on between you two?"

He tensed further, and almost resembled me in the past as he curled his legs up tightly on the couch - a semi-ball, clearly a defensive measure. "I yelled at him. When he visited me in the hospital, and I woke up and I screamed at him until he went away. I didn't want him to see me like that. He returned the favor a few days ago, when we got back from the hospital. We've danced around the topic ever since."

"You should bring it up with him and apologize," I advised. "But I was speaking of a more… romantic sort of thing."

He barked out a laugh, but it seemed forced and dark. "Please. I like girls. Didn't my sexual assault of you prove that?" he spat. "Haru is the homosexual one, not me." He scratched at his head again, like an automatic movement.

"There's such a thing as being bisexual. It's not like we're going to judge you for it. And Haru would be over the moon," I blurted without thinking. His eyes widened.

"What? Why?"

I was saved by the bell ringing. I shot up and made my way to the door, waving off Fabian when he approached it at the same time as me. I peeked open the door, and my eyes widened in my surprise. "Oh, hello! Merry Christmas!"

"And a Happy Christmas as well to you, Ms. Martin," Mr. Sweet said kindly. Eddie rushed forward and outstretched his arms, and I picked him up instantly. Ms. Miller, standing beside Mr. Sweet, grinned at the way he squealed when I spun him around. "Sorry we didn't call ahead. We were planning on coming later, but we're all going out to dinner instead, so we came earlier. You aren't busy, are you?"

I shook my head, closing the door after them. The sounds of the Anubis residents screaming and screeching outside in the snow dulled. "No, sir. Mostly everyone is outside, but Fabian and I are entertaining some guests from Isis House… Mark and Haru, both of whom I'm sure you know." Mr. Sweet's smile faded slightly at the sight of Mark.

"Ah. Mr. Hampton. I thought you were advised to stay in the hospital for another few days?"

Mark's face had gone a little stony as more people flooded in, and he opened his mouth to say something that would likely get him kicked out, but Haru put his hand on his shoulder. Mark exhaled slowly, and I watched in amazement as the anger drained from his face at the simple touch. "I was, sir, but I figured that being around my friends would help me heal more than sitting in a bed alone would."

"Ah." He glanced at me, to Haru, and back to Mark. "Well then, I hope your recovery goes by quickly." The tension dissipated, and Ms. Miller pulled a gift from her bag and handed it to Fabian while Mr. Sweet explained it. "We got you a gift. Eddie picked it out himself." Fabian sat down and opened the tiny gift bag, and smiled at the object that fell out - a gift card to a restaurant I'd never heard of. Eddie slipped out of my arms and ran to Fabian, who knelt for him. He whispered something in Fabian's ear, and he blushed but smiled widely.

"Thanks, little dude. I'll definitely do that. When do you think we should?" There was another whisper and more secretive smiles. "Perfect. We can talk more later." I hid my giggle behind my hand when Fabian looked up at me with a mischievous smirk.

He would be a wonderful father one day.

Eddie made his way back to me and looked up at me hopefully. "I got you a present too, Nina. But it's not here yet. I'll give it to you later, 'kay?"

"Okay. I have a gift for you, ya know. Fabian and I worked on one together." Fabian grabbed his present from under the tree and joined my side. We both knelt down, and Fabian held out the package. "We may have heard about how you got a new guitar from your parents this morning… and we also inquired about your games." I smiled, and Fabian's quickly followed. Eddie ripped apart the wrappings and gasped. "It's the Rocksmith game for Xbox 360. You plug in your actual guitar and learn how to play through games and lessons. You can supposedly learn how to play in 60 days."

A second later, we were both being pushed to the floor with the force of Eddie's hug. I gasped, fear rippling through me for a second, but Fabian's hand found mine blindly on the floor and squeezed hard until I relaxed. Eddie held us both in a tight group hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" he crowed. "Momma, Dad, I'm gonna be a rockstar now!"

"Yes, you are." He laughed and shook his head. "We're also going to be deaf." My heart stopped, for a moment thinking he was angry, but he saw my worry and smiled. "I'm kidding. Thank you for the gift. He loves it, obviously." I sighed in relief and sat up when Eddie's weight was finally removed from me. Fabian helped me up, and when I glanced around, even Mark was trying to suppress a wistful smile. "Hey, can you babysit Eddie some more? We have a few more dates set up, and since he enjoyed last time so much…"

I nodded my consent to Fabian, who nodded as well. "Of course, Mr. Sweet. We love having him here."

"We should probably go," Haru said, standing up and trying to unfold the wheelchair. Mark was looking paler than normal, the overstimulation and exhaustion obviously getting to him. "Thank you for the Christmas present, Nina." He tugged at the wheelchair, but it wouldn't open, and he groaned. "Cheap piece of crap. We need to buy you a better one, idiot."

Mark sighed. "Tell my lack of a paycheck that." He stood, shaking slightly, with the effort. "I'll walk. It's fine." I knew he would never make it that far. Based on Haru's concerned frown, he was thinking along the lines that I was…

So he reached down and put one arm under his knees, another under his back, and pulled him into the air without warning.

Mark bit down on a yell, clutching Haru tightly. "What the hell, man? I said I could walk! I am not your da-" He barely bit down the curse, glancing at Eddie. "I am not your wife and you are not allowed to carry me like I am! Put me down!" Haru grinned and shook his head cheerily, and he motioned for me to grab the folded wheelchair. I picked it up on one side…

And it opened without pause.

I quickly folded it again when my eyes met Haru's. He'd lied. He just wanted an excuse to carry Mark, who was absolutely unaware, and I had to bite down on my automatic smile. Realization hit Fabian as well based on the chuckle that he released, though he probably thought he wanted to do it for kicks, and I nudged him so he'd be quiet. I carried the wheelchair silently and watched Haru spin him around - stopping when the man in his arms complained of dizziness - and shield him with his own body from the falling snow. Mark's was taller than his roommate, but Haru was much stronger due to the football, and the long and lanky body carried bridal style in his arms was almost comical. Everyone outside stared at the odd sight, the snowball fight frozen as we passed, and several people giggled.

Mark tensed visibly enough that I picked up on it, hardening in the face of ridicule, but Haru muttered something that distracted him. I went ahead of them and loaded the wheelchair into the back of his car so that by the time they were both in the car, the trunk was closed and they were ready to go. Mark was pouting. I rolled my eyes and went around to his side of the car. "So I can open you're present now that you're leaving?"

"Yeah. Don't show anyone, please. It's a… personal gift," he muttered. "Nothing bad, just deep in meaning. I hope they prove useful to you one day." I nodded and stepped back, and with a final order to Haru to take good care of Mark, they were off on their way.

Eddie joined me on the sidewalk and watched the car fade into the distance. "Are they together? Do they love each other, like you and Fabian do?" he asked. Within a half an hour, he'd picked up on something no one else had. I glanced around to make sure no one else had heard, but they were all busy with their Christmas festivities. I sat down beside him and studiously ignored the cold snow beneath me.

"No, Eddie. Not yet. Maybe one day."

It took me a second to realize that I hadn't considered correcting his assumption that Fabian and I loved each other.

It sounded like the truth. I wanted it to be the truth.

Maybe it was.

There was a pause where Eddie tilted his head much like Fabian would. You could see his thoughts spin and organize themselves into decisions all across his face, and he smiled a little. "Maru," he said firmly. "I like it."

He turned around and walked back to the resumed snowball fight.

And that was the end of that.


A/N: Another day, another chapter. The big thing was moved to the next chapter! Sorry, guys. What did you think of the presents? What was your favorite? And patience... there are two more presents to come for Nina and Fabian, from each other. And what about Mark's gift? Any guesses?

Next chapter update will be anywhere from June 27th - July 5th. Christmas continues! Eddie gives Nina her gift. Fabian and Nina have Anubis to themselves when everyone else goes home for Christmas night. Adorable Fabina cooking scene! More Maru development (and more tension). Realizations. Worries. Fear of the arrival of Nina's stepfather... and that big scene. ;)

Reviews are love, dear readers. It helps that you get a you get a preview of the next chapter for reviewing... Tempting enough?

See ya soon, my little definitions!