The group chattered amongst themselves, laughter filling that particular section of the café. It was Christmas Eve, and Shantae and her friends had spent the day playing with children, having snowball fights, and delivering presents in a heroic fashion.

Because of the warm climate, it didn't naturally snow in Scuttle Town, but every year Shantae would use her genie powers to make it snow for the week before, during, and after Christmas. Everyone enjoyed it, especially the children, the snow blanketing the town in a beautiful carpet of white, a large and decorated tree situated in the plaza outside of the art gallery.

The genie hero herself was dressed as Santa, albeit without the beard. Her hair didn't have her ponytail clasp, instead being tied with a large green and red bow around neck-length. She had a short red cape that went over her shoulders, complete with a fluffy trim around the edges. Her bra was swapped out with a red tube around her chest that also had a fluffy white trim on the upper edge, yet keeping her cleavage exposed as much as it usually was. For her waist, a short skirt with a trim on the bottom of it was worn with a black belt, and to complete the outfit, Shantae had white gloves, white stockings half-way up her thighs, a Santa hat, and two small pom-poms on a necklace around her neck.

Her friends were just as dressed as she was. Bolo was dressed as a yeti, which the children of the town loved, the poor boy absolutely tired from playing tag and hide-and-seek all day. Sky and Rottytops had both dressed as elves, though their costumes differed quite a bit. Sky, of course, had eggs on her outfit, and had a red bandana with trees on it rather than her blue one. Her hood was a mix of an elf hat and a reindeer face, tossing up between the two the night before, before giving up and just implementing the face of the reindeer into the hood. Of course, Sky was never complete without her glove and Wrench, who was dressed like Rudolph.

Rottytops was more of a typical elf, though she seemed to like wearing little, almost as if she was purposely teasing every teenage boy in town. She had a miniskirt as short as her shorts, and stocking that went up as high as Shantae's. Her chest was covered with another short tank top, but with the printing of an elf's costume on it. She constantly made remarks about how Shantae would've been a better elf because of her pointed ears, which the genie had grown sick of by the first half hour.

"But you would look—"

"Leave her alone, Rotty. I think she gets the point."

"Just saying…"

The star of the town, however, was no one else but Uncle Mimic, his build and beard making him the perfect representation of Father Christmas. He set up a grand chair he had built in the town plaza, asking children what they would like for Christmas and getting Shantae and her friends to deliver toys he had made over the year as gifts. Wrench had spent most of the day perched on a stand next to him, enjoying the constant food he was offered by kids waiting in line to speak to Mimic.

Sometimes, if it wasn't too much for her, Shantae would grant a small wish for each child that came to see Mimic. Knowing that Shantae had certain limits, most children would ask for sweets, toys, books, or even just a hug from the heroine herself. Shantae had outdone herself today, expending a lot of her energy and unfortunately having to leave everyone else to deal with the deliveries. As a result, the tight group of friends were quite tired, especially the genie herself.

Shantae stretched, extending her arms in the air and pushing out her chest in a large yawn. In the corner of her eye, she saw Bolo watching her.

"Enjoying the show?" She asked, settling back into position.

"W-what? What show? I wasn't watching anything, I swear!"

Shantae giggled at the flustered face of her closest male friend. He was a good kid, if a year younger. Though she did like him, Shantae had greater feelings for Risky, and she couldn't help but feel that Bolo might be suited more to a girl with a less life-threating job than her.

She stretched again, this time reaching towards the other end of the table. A pair of hands clamped down on her wrists, pinning them to the table.

"Gotcha," Rottytops chuckled, using one hand to keep the genie's hands bound together and reaching for her hat. "I want the hat. It's mine now. Give."

Shantae shook herself out of Rotty's grip, blowing a raspberry at the zombie in wake of her mini victory. The girl across from her blew a raspberry back, rudely interrupted by a chunk of lamington exploding against her face.

"Hey!" Rotty looked around, spying a certain birdkeeper trying to act innocent and eat her food. It didn't help that she happened to be the only one with a lamington on her plate, as well as a massive smirk that she was attempting badly to hide. "Oh, I just wonder who that was, Sky."

"No clue," was the monotone response. Rotty raised an eyebrow.

"You're the only one here with lamingtons, bird-brain."

"No idea what you're talking about," Sky said, but a small smile was beginning to form upon her mouth. Rotty grinned. She picked up the remains of her own dessert, throwing them full force at the blonde. The food burst into tiny chunks on contact with her face, and Sky dropped her fork in shock. She took a few seconds to process what happened, before taking another chunk of lamington and throwing it back at the zombie.

Completely missing.

"Ha," Rotty chuckled, leaning over far enough to Sky so that only she was able to hear the zombie's next words. "You throw about as straight as your sexuality," the undead girl whispered seductively.

"Rotty, please. Not now." Purple eyes met with crimson red, and Rotty understood that Sky needed a little bit more time.

"Right. Sorry. Guess I'll have to cross out the mistletoe idea," she murmured as she pulled away, eliciting a giggle from Sky.

'That's cute of her,' the birdkeeper thought.

"If you're done with whispering whatever secrets you two have with each other," Shantae interrupted, pausing and giving Rotty a knowing look, "I'm going to head home for the night. We have an early start, don't we Bolo?" The boy in question groaned at the reminder as Sky and Rotty cleaned their faces with napkins.

"Setting up the celebrations for the day at four in the morning suuuucks."

"Well we only have to do it once a year, so you can be thankful for that at least." Bolo eyed Shantae, mild frustration in his eyes. He shook his head, standing up, Shantae quickly following suit.

"I suppose. Do you want me to walk you home?" he offered. Shantae shook her head, ignoring the snickering from Rottytops.

"No thanks," she politely declined. "I need to stop by Uncle Mimic's and grab something anyway." It wasn't entirely true. She had nothing to collect, but wanted to say goodnight to him anyway. In all honesty, Shantae was just really tired and wanted to get home as soon as possible.

"Alright. I'll see you in the plaza at four." Bolo waved as he left, the girls all waving back as he exited the café.

"Offering to walk you home? What a gentleman," Rotty said, beginning to laugh again. Shantae rolled her eyes, about to retort back when Sky spoke up first.

"Something you could take note of, dear Rotty. I don't think you've ever offered anyone such a thing." The comment silenced the undead girl, who began to turn red now that she was both in the spotlight and that the statement was true. She glanced to Shantae, looking for some help. The genie grinned in a way that told Rotty that she was on her own for this one. She gulped.

"I, uh… would… w-would you l-like me to walk you home, Sky?" Rotty stammered as she spoke, her face heating up even further. Sky took her time finishing her lamington, silently enjoying the mental torture she was putting the zombie through. She cleaned her plate, setting down her cutlery and looking Rottytops dead in the eye, causing her to further blush.

Shantae watched, noticing how Sky was the only person in the entire town who could make the carefree zombie suddenly become self-conscious and flustered, something which Rottytops was not known for.

"That would be lovely, Rotty," Sky said calmly, standing up and walking around to her friend. Rotty shakily stood up, extending her hand for the blonde to take.

"You have quite the effect on her, Sky," Shanate commented, the birdkeeper winking at her.

"I'll pay, Shae. You go and see your uncle." Shantae nodded, quickly giving Sky and Rotty a quick hug before jogging out the door. "As for you, Rotty." The green girl, still flustered, turned her head to Sky.

"Yes?" she croaked. Sky smiled warmly.

"Sleepover tonight?"

Shantae ran from her Uncle's workshop after saying goodnight to him, her tiredness beginning to catch up to her. As she ran along the familiar pier, she pondered over the state of Sky and Rotty's relationship. Rotty had told her everything that had had happened on that day, and though Shantae was happy for her friend, she was also concerned for her, not wanting the zombie to get her hopes up too much.

"Maybe I should speak to Sky…" Murmuring to herself as she unlocked the door, she used some magic to spark some lights to life, before freezing on the spot at what she saw.

There was a present addressed to her on the table. Only one person could write the perfect cursive that was on the tag.

Risky Boots.

It was clear that the pirate had broken into her house (again) to deliver the present. While Shantae was happy about it, she also mildly worried. The last time Risky had broken into her house to deliver a 'gift' ended up with the town hero trapped in a bathtub while being interrogated by Risky about Tinkerbats. Shantae blushed at the memory. 'If I didn't make so many bubbles then she would've seen my—' the genie bit her tongue to distract herself from her thoughts, carefully approaching the wrapped box.

Nobody could blame her for being hesitant to even touch it. Risky had quite a history of setting wicked traps, and Shantae had quite the history of falling for them. Gently picking it up, it felt like a normal present. No explosions had happened.

Yet.

Her tiredness completely gone, she slowly unwrapped the ribbon that formed a well-made bow, noticing that it was a two-tone red and purple ribbon. The wrapping of the present itself was the same coloured gold as her tiara. Though Shantae could say that the choice of colours was a coincidence, knowing Risky, it was probably planned.

The ribbon fell away, leaving the box bare and ready to open. Standing back as far as possible, Shantae used her fingertips to lift the lid of the gift, expecting a Tinkerbat or some mechanical contraption to burst out and start ripping her to shreds. She'd have little defense either, as her hair was tied differently and she didn't like using large amounts of magic within her house.

When nothing came out to kill her, Shantae peeked over the edge of the box, seeing only a letter and another wrapped object, which was lumpy in shape. She took the card, deciding to see what her best frenemy had written for her.

Dear -Runt- Shantae,

Merry Christmas. Enjoy the gift. It may very well be your last gift you ever receive, since I'm going to completely obliterate you next year.

Before I forget; screw you for the snow. Do you know how hard it is to sail a ship when the sails have snow clogged in them? Nevermind, I forgot you have no idea what any part of a ship is. I'm surprised you're able to recite the alphabet.

I'll see you next year.

Love,

Risky Boots

P.S. I think the ribbon on this gift would look nice if it was tied in your hair. Not that I care what you look like. I definitely won't care when I kill you. Whatever.

Shantae smiled, rereading the card again. It was just so Risky, with the perfect amount of threats and teasing, but written in a way that showed that she did care what she wrote and how the purplette felt, especially when 'runt' was crossed out at the start. What made Shantae happiest was seeing that this time, Risky ended her card with 'love,' which wasn't crossed out like last time. Perhaps she was warming to the genie after all.

Shantae glanced at the ribbon, before pulling it out from under the box and wrapping it loosely around her wrist, so she could store it upstairs. Setting the card down gently, Shantae reached in and grabbed the wrapped lump. It was soft. She hummed for a moment, deciding that she could have just one early gift. Tearing into the present, the genie was overjoyed to see that it was another plushie, except this time it was of the Tinkertub. (It was the 2.0 variant, easily identified by the lack of eyes on the ship.) She held it tightly against her chest, jumping on the spot in happiness.

Her tiredness beginning to return, Shantae stretched and yawned, placing the lid of the box back where it belonged before sluggishly shimmying her way up the rope to her room. She fell into bed, happy that she had planned ahead and had set the alarm clock earlier. Not even bothering to change, and only taking her hat off, she laid on top of the sheets, her new plushie right next to her face.

Shantae lay peacefully, the scent of Risky that still lingered on the handstitched toy lulling her into a deep sleep.

Risky looked through her eyeglass, waiting for the genie to walk into her house. She had set up a present on the table, and made sure it was in perfect view in the window, so she was able to see it from her hiding position in the trees across the bay from the lighthouse. Finally, the girl walked in, and Risky chuckled at the hesitant actions she performed.

Watching her open it and read the card first, a smile broke out on Shantae's face; one that had Risky feeling butterflies in her stomach. She continued to watch as the genie unwrapped the plushie, surprised at how ecstatic she got over it.

If Risky had a few butterflies in her stomach before, she had a few hundred now. She found herself admiring how the girl could be so happy about something so simple, while Risky herself could only feel the same level of happiness if one of her plans had gone right.

Which they never did. The pirate felt a little bit down by not necessarily the failure of each plan, but that each one involved the intention of hurting or even killing Shantae.

Noticing sudden tiredness overcome Shantae, who began to shimmy up her rope, Risky put down her eyeglass. It was worth waiting a few hours just to see the excitement that the young girl demonstrated. She sat there for a bit, not minding the snow gently settling upon her.

Risky did like Shantae. She was coming to terms with it. Not only that, but the self-proclaimed queen found herself caring for the local hero.

But did she love her?

Risky stood up and brushed herself off, heading back to the Tinkertub she had hidden on the other side of the coast.

That was a question that could be answered the next time she saw the genie, be it in battle or another visit.

In the plaza, a zombie was walking side by side with a hooded birdkeeper. Their conversation was filled with laughter and happy subjects, until they came to the door of the aviary.

"Hey, Rotty," Sky said, interrupting her friend's monologue about why a standalone game starring the undead girl would be amazing. Whatever that was. "Look up."

The undead girl looked up, her crimson eyes focusing on a plant hanging from the roof.

"Is that—" Rotty stopped talking, her eyes widening as she felt a pair of lips gently press against her cheek.

"It is. Now come on, I'm tired and I know you will be, zombie or not." Sky opened the door to her house, feeling lightheaded.

A good type of lightheaded.

"Does that mean… you know?" Rotty timidly asked as she followed Sky into her home. She immediately regretted her decision when the girl in front of her stiffened up.

"I'm… I'm still deciding. You know how much this is of a deal to me. I just wanted to say thanks. Or, show it via that. I didn't mean to get your hopes u—" Sky's voice died out as Rotty hugged her from behind. Her lip trembled, thankful that the zombie couldn't see her face.

"It's fine. I understand." Rotty turned the blonde around, who wasn't expecting it, unable to hide her sad expression from the green girl. Rotty noticed, but didn't push it. "When you're ready, I'll be here waiting for you."

Sky nodded, lest she cry, not used to hearing passionate understanding from her zombie friend.

"I-I'll go get u-us some pyjamas." The blonde turned away, wanting to hide herself from Rotty for a minute so she could sort herself out, but was called back by her. Slowly, Sky came back, and was surprised to feel the zombie's lips on her own cheek. She was then brought into a hug by Rotty, feeling a little bit happier, and even… safer in her arms.

"Merry Christmas, Sky."

Sky smiled, returning the hug at last.

"Merry Christmas, Rottytops."

MERRY HALLOWEEN!

Wait.

HAPPY EASTER!

No, that's not it... ah!

HAPPY BIRTHD- nope, not that either.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! I was originally going to upload this on the 25th but with how much stuff I have going on on that day I figured I might as well just upload it now.

I decided to throw a little bit of Australia into the story - we don't get snow here at all during the year, unless you visit the mountains during the winter period. And judging by the everyday attire of Shantae and her friends, it seems to be pretty warm there, Frostbite Island being an exception. Also, did you like my little attempt at a fourth wall break like the games themselves do? I have a better one, but that will be used in a future chapter.

I have plans for what's next. I'm in the middle of figuring out how to make it flow from this chapter but hopefully it'll be up by February.

Why Feb? That's a pretty big gap from now. Well, I'm 'relaxing' (stressing about my own future) for the rest of the year, and then Uni applications happen in January, so my time will be taken up by that, along with other personal problems that are hindering me at the moment, so I'll see how I go. But it'll definitely be out by then. I promise. As long as I keep the cat away from my computer anyway.

As always, typo pointers, reviews, and criticism welcome, it always makes me happy to see that someone likes my story enough to comment on it. Or favourite/follow it. A real confidence booster - I'm doing something people like for once!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Till next time,

-Tommycats