Squall whistled happily as he drove down the icy road, nuzzled tight to Zell. This was the first Christmas he ever enjoyed. He decided that he and Zell would visit Seifer and bring the gift Squall had been saving. He never thought the day would come that he and Seifer Almasy would be exchanging gifts and hugs, but then again, he never thought he'd be sleeping with Zell Dincht either. So go figure.

Pulling up in front of the house, he didn't bother to knock, but burst in with a smile painted on his face. Zell stepped in behind him, beaming as usual. "Hello!" Zell yelled, but frowned when he saw no one. "Squall, where are they?" he asked confused. The house was silent.

Squall ran from room to room but found no one. "I dunno." He said, a hurt look crossing his face. Zell set Seifer's gift down by the door and walked over to the package on the counter.

"Hey look," He said, grabbing his scarred lover's attention, "It has your name on it."

Squall stepped to the gift, chewing his lip in nervousness. It was against SeeD regulation to visit other than the weekly supply delivery. He let his mind wander to his friend. Then he picked up the package and ushered Zell out of the house. Zell grabbed the present intended for Seifer on the way out, a confused look playing on his tattooed face.

"Uhhh, Squall shouldn't we call someone?" Zell asked as the brunette climbed hastily into the truck.

"No," Squall said, "I'll pretend to find out when I do a routine check on Tuesday." Zell just looked at him.



Once back at the dorm, Squall tore at the paper around the box. "I wonder what it could be." Zell mused, "Maybe it's a bomb."

Squall just looked at him, and then continued ripping. Once the paper was removed, he lifted the lid anxiously. There, lying in the box, were the two things Seifer treasured most, his Coat and his silver identity necklace. Squall gasped, lifting the coat into his arms and hugging it against his chest. Zell starred in awe. "I can't believe it," Squall breathed, "He cherished these things."

"He had to get rid of his identity." Zell said distantly. Smiling at nothing, "He obviously didn't want to destroy them."

Squall inhaled the scent of the coat, caressing the soft leather lovingly. Then he stepped over to Zell and placed the necklace around his lover's neck. It hung loosely on Zell's small collar but Zell touched it with love anyway. Squall hugged him tightly, "I want it to be close to my heart." He whispered.





Seifer knocked open the door to the hut. It creaked as it swung open in a way that made both men shudder. "No one's been in here for ages." Seifer said, groping the wall for a light switch.

"What is it?" Sephiroth asked, squinting into the darkness. It was so cold, both men could see their breath.

Seifer found the switch that illuminated a posh living room. "Wow, It looks the same way it did when I last saw it," Seifer breathed, stepping in from the cold. "It was the hideout the Sorceress Ultimecia used during the war. It brings back nightmares, but we can use it for now."

"Wow," Sephiroth said in fake awe, "Does it have heat?"

"Listen," Seifer put his hands to his hips, "You're the one that insisted we go in the dead of winter! I hate the cold! But Oh No! We Had to go in mid-December!"

"Where's the thermostat?" Sephiroth took all the amusement from his voice.

"Over there." Seifer said sheepishly, pointing to the far wall. "Ah, this will do nicely." He watched Sephiroth move to the temperature gauge and set it. He frowned a bit, he still hadn't gotten used to that short hair.

Seifer sat down on the couch that took up half the room and sighed. The back of his neck stung like hell. He couldn't believe that Sephiroth hadn't shown much pain during the extraction of his tracking device. Sephiroth sat down and kissed the band-aid that covered the wound on Seifer's neck. "Does it still hurt?" He cooed.

"Yes!" Seifer whined, laying his head on Sephiroth's shoulder. "Does yours?"

"Not really." Sephiroth laughed. Seifer snuggled into the nape of his lover's neck and Sephiroth placed a protective arm around him.

"Is this going to work, Sephy?" Seifer asked, his voice teeming with doubt.

"I hope so." Sephiroth said, "As long as we stay low." Seifer itched his head where the hair was missing. He would never get used to the Mohawk Sephiroth had given him. Or the fact that it was dyed Orange. And the lip ring wasn't exactly his cup of tea either.

"So.what'a we do now?" Seifer asked, a mischievous smile dancing on his lips.

"I dunno." Sephiroth laughed, pouncing on the young, orange-haired punk that sat beside him. Seifer giggled uncharacteristically as Sephiroth tackled him.







To be continued