Another Nishikino Holiday Charity Ball, gold and glitter everywhere, the Nishikinos and their peers grand in the latest designer dresses and tuxedos, champagne, brash, nervous laughter, a tree topped with a revolving star that swept the ceiling. But Maki was looking at her star, Yazawa Nico, in a short red and silver gown, high heels, hair swept up in bun, tiny, sparkling LED lights woven through. Holding her hand was their oldest daughter in a matching green and silver gown, eyes watching the crowd suspiciously. Nico crouched down to whisper something in Dia's ear, pointing at the tree and then to where Maki was holding Ruby in her arms. Ruby was already 2 years old, still tiny, and super super shy. Maki had her doubts about bringing Ruby, but Nico was convinced Ruby would love the tree and the Nishikino grandparents really wanted to make this year the big family entrance. So Maki and Ruby were lurking by the tree, waiting for the Drs. Nishikino. Nico waved at them happily; Dia looked a little judgy. Maki smiled. Nico was starting to make her way through the chattering crowd, stopping every ten people or so to either introduce Dia to someone or pull out the Nico Ni.
Someone pushed at Maki and as she adjusted her footing, there were cameras pointed at her, a man in an off the rack suit with his hand out, recording them. Obviously crashers and not one of the invited social influencers, who were expected to have much more restraint.
"Red hair like you. What's its name? How old? You have put on some weight since your idol days."
Ruby started crying, a high, wailing sound. Once Ruby started crying, a whole body experience, she got louder and louder until somehow, someone calmed her down.
"Hey." Nico sounded shrill, not a good sign, and must have sprinted, but Maki was grateful to have her there, rather than try to deal with the situation while holding Ruby. "Get away from them."
Maki thought she heard Dia say something but the noise of the crowd increased and people were looking their way. She could feel her face redden and knew more cameras were focusing on them.
"BZZZZZZTTT." Dia decided to stop being ignored, stepped around Nico and unleashed her buzzer of disapproval right in the man's face. Surprised, he stumbled back, dropping his phone. Maki heard an immediate crunch. Had Nico stepped on it? She didn't have time to look, while his attention was distracted, Maki tucked Ruby into her shoulder and headed for a ballroom exit. Next, there was a shout, a crash into what sounded like the tree, a liquid splashing noise, and Nico hissing, her hand out, staring up in horror, "Dia, come here."
Maki stopped and turned around. The tree was looking much less steady than earlier, at least two people were trying to stand up and work their way out of its grasp, her father was rushing toward the scene with his head of hospital security, her mother was talking to the caterer, who was staring at the silver wheeled cart that had somehow been overturned as it ran into the middle of the livestreaming cameras, one of which had fallen over, and Maki could have sworn there were sparks. Ruby still wailed, but there was the door. Nico would get Dia out and then…
Maki glanced back. Her father was approaching his oldest grandchild, who had her arms crossed and a scowl on her face, a crowd of shouting adults was closing a circle around her, and Nico looked like she was about to pick up Dia and run for it, something that had happened too often recently.
"C'mon Ruby, let's go home." Maki whispered. Ruby screamed, piercing Maki's ear with headache hammer notes. How did tiny lungs get such volume?
And then the tree fell, catching the chandelier on the way to the ground.
###
Nico put down her phone, reaching for her…third cup of coffee. Maki had lost count several hours ago, at midnight, when Nico's Mom had finally gotten Ruby and Dia to sleep.
"Well, that's all the damage control Nico can do at this hour. Our management team and Hanayo will start early, Nozomi and Eli are keeping an eye on the late night stuff. Have you talked to your parents yet?"
Maki shook her head. She'd had almost as much coffee as Nico but it hadn't given her any kind of buzz.
"How many times have they called?"
Maki shrugged.
Nico grabbed Maki's phone, "They're probably just worried about us." She typed in Maki's passcode and hit "call" on the last voicemail.
"Hi, it's Nico. She's fine, the girls are asleep, my mom's a magician…Nico's management is on it…are they really?" Nico laughed, "That's a better nickname than either Maki or Nico ever got. Yeah, we'll see you Christmas…at the cottage…thanks…but we'll figure it out."
NIco ended the call and tossed Maki's phone onto the low table in front of the sofa, chuckling.
"How is anything funny, Nico-chan?"
"They're calling her Dangerous Dia. Quarter million dollars in damage. Photoshopped pics of our daughter as a kaiju."
"How can you laugh?"
"They missed a few details though," Nico slid an arm around her wife, "I stepped on the phone, not Dia. Stilettos are useful."
"No, they're not. They just inflate your sense of…"
"Maki."
Maki sighed, leaning her head against Nico's shoulder, "Sorry. I'm just upset. Dangerous Dia. How can they call her that. She's not even five."
"It's not a lie." Since Dia had started crawling, Nico's nightmares had included too many scenes of the trouble Dia could possibly wander into.
"Nico-chan." Maki's chiding voice was adorbs.
Nico kissed the top of Maki's head, "It was bad enough when Nico just had to worry about you breaking photographer's noses."
"She never should have been in your dressing room."
"Agreed."
"Dia's very protective of Ruby. She's been watching you and your siblings since she was born."
"Family is everything, Maki-chan."
"I know." A pause, two women exhausted by attention since their high school years wanting nothing more than a different life for their daughters. "What do we do?"
"Move out of Tokyo? Go undercover?" Nico said it quietly, out loud for the first time, vocalizing something that had been building in her head for awhile.
"We can't just all walk around in masks and trenchcoats. Dia has to start elementary school in a year."
"So now's the perfect time. We go overseas for a trip, then come back to…"
"Where, Nico-chan?" Maki was having trouble with the not Tokyo thought. She loved Tokyo, the city, the arts, the music, the bustle where you could be lost in a crowd or on a train or in a museum gallery. But Nico could never be anonymous, not the very visible, very distinctive Number One Idol in the Universe, always ready to make a fan smile, Nico Ni. And their children were shadowed by that.
"Your family has houses. Got one somewhere…" Nico gestured with the arm not holding Maki, "away."
Maki sat up, thinking, remembering conversations with her mother about distant aunts and cousins, "Maybe. Mama would know."
"Ask her."
"But Nico-chan. Can you really…" Worried, Maki turned so she was facing Nico.
"Those two in there," Nico pointed over her shoulder, "are more important than anything else we ever do." Nico's finger swept down Maki's cheek, following the track of a tear. Maki gulped. Nico's eyes were banked fires, ready to flare, as she leaned in.
"Mom?"
Nico jumped back. Dia stared at them over the couch, green eyes wide and worried. Maki giggled. Dia had terrible timing.
"What is it, bun?"
"Are you and Mama mad at me?"
"No."
Maki reached over to pull Dia up over the couch, "You're a Yazawa. Yazawas take care of family. You were protecting Ruby. We're proud of you."
Nico chuckled, kissing Dia on the cheek. Dia reached up to smudge at it, "I'm just going to teach you how to do it a little quieter."
Dia nodded seriously, ready to take notes.
"Not now, Dia." Nico ruffled Dia's hair, "Now, we're going to watch something silly. And then you're going back to sleep."
"Okay, Mom." Dia snuggled between Nico and Maki, too alert to have ever been asleep. "I'm all packed if we want to move."
Maki shook her head, "We'll talk about that tomorrow." She hugged Dia and Nico closer, "We've had enough excitement tonight."
Dia sounded perky, like she'd had three cups of coffee. "Grandma said we could put up a Christmas tree tomorrow. Ruby wants to."
A/N: I wanted to revisit one of the Christmas stories I have yet to finish, but my theatre life has been full of delays. So there I was, working on a tree decorating themed Secret Santa fic, when I thought, why not write a bunch of tree decorating scenes with some of my favorite Idols. So here you go. It wouldn't seem like Christmas without Nico and Maki. Hope you enjoy this. And if you have a ship I write you'd like a quick tree decorating or New Year's Eve kiss fic for, drop it in the comments.
Stay safe and take care.