Disclaimer – I don't own Gundam Seed, the characters, or the plot. Please, just don't kill me.
Aki-note: Boy, it's been a while, hasn't it? Miss me? Nah, doubt ya did. LoL. I got real bored. It's was past Christmas, so I thought, a Christmas fic oughtta get me back into the spirit of things, neh? LoL. Hope you like it.
She never cared much for the holidays. Actually, she rarely had the luxury to leave her office for things other than for her political affairs with just about everyone, excluding her family and closest friends. She often stayed in her office during these long anticipated holidays that gave everyone an excuse to be with the ones they loved. She would read papers and sign documents till she dropped dead on her oak desk in her emptied out office. Holidays, nowadays, were becoming nothing more than just another couple of days in the week.
Of course, things weren't always like this. She had a calendar marking the days till freedom in just about every room she stepped into, this she made sure of. She had fits of mad excitement in the middle of the night, quickly dialing her brother's number to check what day it was. He could never sleep again and she retreated back under her covers in disappointment.
She enjoyed the time she was given to spend with the people she loved, considering she was always to busy with a job she'd wish she never had taken up. But during these short term days of freedom, she made the most of things with a special someone. Her special someone. The special someone that made her glad she took up politics to eat up her social life only to be granted these unforgettable memories on these holidays. She wished to relive them. He left though and the meaning of these holidays would be lost in her desk drawers as she drowned herself in work only to forget.
It was holiday season again – Christmas to be exact. Snow had just begun to fall from the sky and citizens were already getting a head start on their Christmas shopping. She barely took notice of the decoration around her home when she returned late at night. The lights were purposely left on the tree found in the foyer of her home for her to take actual time to admire what beauty the holidays could bring. But just like past couple of Christmas celebrations, she no longer wished to be a part of something she no longer cared for.
When everyone else was off doing last minute Christmas shopping, she sat at home after much arguing with Kisaka. He managed to somehow convince the young woman to take a break she needed, but was too stubborn to admit.
Still tucked tightly under her covers, her hand searched for her television remote, groping around the surface of her nightstand, knowing some things off. Her fingers were able to feel the distinct material of the television remote's buttons and clicked "On". Without applying much effort, she lifted enough of her sheets to allow her eyes to take a quick peek at her television set.
She saw several ORB citizens walking around with at lest three large bags in each hand. In bold, the headlines above the smiling faces read "Happy Holidays" with every other letter being red or green. Her droopy eyes squinted hard at her television and finally flicked her set off, silently complaining to herself that the colors made her eyes hurt.
After much struggle, her covers still surrounded her and her feet dragged down the several steps of her home, finally noticing the many things that decorated it, including the tree in every room she stepped into.
She dropped by the kitchen, making herself a pot of coffee, taking a cupful with her to the living room. She found yet another tree, lights and all, placed in a perfect pattern that was definitely hard to ignore. "What the hell is up with these trees?" she grumbled to herself as she took a sip from her cup. A gold stream lead her eyes to the base of the tree, covered with presents, hiding the tree's trunk behind the colorfully wrapped packages. She just remembered that despite the fact she didn't celebrate the holidays, that didn't mean her home workers had to do the same. This year is was "Secret Santa".
She smiled to herself and stared outside her windows as she reclined on her favorite loveseat, curled around her bed sheets still. Her smiled quickly turned upside down. This seat never felt so empty.
Her eyes directed themselves back outside her window. According to the clock on the wall, it was still hours before the sun would rise, but she guessed that the heavy sheets of snow covering everything in sight made the sky seem just a little brighter.
Her cell phone rang. She groaned at the thought of having to do more paperwork for Kisaka. She checked the caller I.D. It was Kira.
"Hello?" she asked wearily.
"Sorry if I woke you up, Cagalli."
"No, no. It's alright. What's up?"
There was a brief silence afterwards. "Yeah, um, are you doing anything for the holidays?"
She chortled. "I thought you knew me better."
"Yeah, I kind of figured," he laughed. "Would you like to come over for Christmas Eve?"
"But I didn't buy you guys anything. The kids would be disappointed-"
"You worry too much. I think they'll be happy just seeing you in person."
"Oh, well, I don't know…" She sounded hesitant.
"Please, Cagalli. If not for me and Lacus, for the kids? It would mean the world to them if they saw you outside their television set."
"Oh quit it, Kira. I'm going, I'm going," she said with a heavy sigh of defeat. Damn children.
"Oh thank you, thank you, THANK YOU, Cagalli! Tonight, okay? Heck, show up earlier if you'd like."
"Wait, it's Christmas Eve?" she asked, jumping to her feet to find a calendar. December 24th. "So that makes tomorrow Christmas, right?"
"Last time I checked, yeah."
"Do you mind if I sleep over? I mean, I know you're holding a lot of kids, you and Lacus, and now me. I don't want to be a burden and eve-"
"Cagalli! Enough, okay? You can stay. Besides, Santa might come and pay us a little visit," he said teasingly.
"What's the supposed to mean?"
"Nothing. Just wanted keep the Christmas spirit alive, you know?"
"Ugh, you are such a dork. Gotta go though, you know, get ready."
"See you later, then."
Click.
Her hand held on to her phone when she looked out the window. It was sick o'clock in the morning and the sun finally rose as the last of the bits of snow fell to the already frost bitten ground. It was still very early and she wasn't exactly feeling her best. She found herself abandoning her coffee to cool on the side table, dragging her way back to her bedroom to drift back to dreamland.
In her dreams, nothing went wrong and she was on top of the world every time. She dreamt about memories.
Unfortunately, not all memories were meant to be sweet or remembered.
She saw her dad this time. He had a kind of warmth around him. Her dazes quickly transitioned to several years before when she was still nothing more than a little girl.
"It's already night, Kisaka! Father said he'd be here by lunch! Where is he?" whined a little girl of six, dashing through the festively decorated hallways of her home.
The young officer held her shoulder, stopped her in place.
"He's not coming…is he?" Her voice was cracking.
He knelt behind her, turning her to face him. She was crying. "Your father…he's a very busy man. You have to understand, Cagalli. He probably tried his very hardest to get here on time."
"He didn't try hard enough!" It's like this every year! Just once, I want it to be different!"
She ran away to somewhere, tears spilling down her cheeks.
It happened every year since then.
He called earlier, promising he'd be home in time.
He never showed up.
It had reminded her of several things. But the most troublesome of those things was that one person that left not too long ago.
Quarter to seven. She finally woke up. She could hardly believe she overslept that much.
Despite the lack of clothes within it, she owned a surprisingly large closet.
She grabbed a red turtle neck sweater. Sighing, she remembered it was a Christmas gift from the kids. You could only tell. It was one size too small. It barely fit, but she wanted to be festive and appreciative.
Jeans and a beige coat and she ran out her bedroom door. She declined the offer for a car ride, despite the weather. You see, unlike her father, she hated flashy entrances in equally flashy cars. And unlike her father, she wasn't going to let anyone down this year.
The streets were packed, cars stuck bumper–to–bumper. Lights had shown everywhere, just not within stores and restaurants and such. There's no place like home for the holidays.
She was in a few steps to the house and it was already twenty past eight. The little home by the sea was lit inside and out, with colors of brilliant red, green, and gold welcoming her. Talk about Christmas spirit. Maybe her brother had more due to her lack of.
She rubbed her hard together to keep them warm. Knock. It was cold outside.
Her best friend stood at the door. Could she still consider them as best friends? It felt like forever since they last saw one another and had an appropriate conversation.
"Cagalli! It's so good to see you!"
Obviously, it was alright.
Her friend leaned forward to embrace her, and immediately, she felt weighed down. Looking down, she found herself anchored to the ground by little children. They did miss her.
Her brother was nowhere to be seen. "Where's Kira, Lacus?"
"He's getting a little surprise ready for the kids. Come inside, Cagalli. It's getting terribly cold out."
The home was cozy as ever. Little shining trinkets hung around the tree in the main room. Looking closer, she found the name of each child on single trinkets. Stockings were all over the walls, waiting patiently for Santa to fill them up. It's the kind of things you'd see in movies, never in life.
She took a seat by the fire, only to be tackled to the ground by children.
"Behave children!" scolded Lacus. "Don't kill uncle Kira's only sister!"
"We won't," they responded in that horribly cute way.
It was like a real Christmas, the best she'd ever had. One thing was missing.
And despite being thrashed by little children, she managed to cage them all in her gentle embrace. Then, she felt a tug on her pants as she sat Indian style on the floor, a huge grin on her face.
Looking down, "We're glad you came, Aunty Cagalli."
It was one of her favorite little kids. This year, she managed to lose her two front teeth. It was a miracle she could still speak normally. Cagalli smiled and included the girl into the tight embrace.
"Wouldn't miss this for the world."
"Really?"
"Really."
"That's great, Aunty…but, can you let go of us now? We're not breathing right."
Cagalli didn't want her brother to come home only to find the children all dead on the floor. She let go after one last squeeze.
"Where's uncle Kira, kids?"
"He said he was going to get us a surprise," said one eager little boy, stuck in the bottom of a dog pile.
"Do you think he got Santa?" a girl with startling blue eyes squealed.
"Nah. Santa doesn't exist, stupid," declared the boy on top of the dog pile, rolling down on the child mount.
"No way! Santa does to exist!" screamed the little girl.
"Stop kidding yourself! You're just five! Of course you won't believe me," said the boy, folding his hands before him with a huff.
"Aunty Cagalli's old…" – Cagalli cringed – "…but she believes in Santa, don't you Aunty?"
Cagalli opened her mouth…
"HO HO HO! Merry Christmas!"
Stupid relatives.
The kids dashed from their spots to the plump man dressed in red. The priceless joy seen on the children's face was enough to make her regret not coming the past years. It was a shame, but this made up for something.
Santa was giving out gifts from his bag of toys.
"So, does Santa Claus have anything for Cagalli and Lacus?" Cagalli teased from the couch.
"Well, let's see." He dug his hand through the bag. "Nope, can't say I do. You two ladies haven't been on your best behavior this year, hmm?" he walked towards the songstress holding a tray of Christmas cookies.
Lacus smiled. "Santa, it seems that you and I have stumbled beneath a mistletoe." She peered up.
The man clad is red fluff followed her eyes. "Well, what a coincidence!"
"You do know what people do under those things don't ya, Santa?" teased the king-of-the-mountain boy.
"'Course I do!"
"Then why don't you do it. Or…"- he mock gasped – "…are ya chicken?"
Santa's cheeks puffed red. He bent down, his fluffy white beard tickling the nose of his partner.
Chu.
"EWW!"
What a normal thing to hear from "just kids".
They smiled, they laughed, they played, and finally, they were put to rest.
The fire was dying in its place as three young people sat tired on the chairs before it.
"Well, no regrets Cagalli?" Santa teased.
"Oh take off that stupid beard, Kira. And never grow one," she chortled.
Lacus chuckled in his arms, her hand covering her mouth to suppress the noise.
"It's off, it's off."
"For the record, had a great time. Your parties never cease to amaze me." She stood from her seat and slipped on her shoes.
"Where are you going, Cagalli?" Lacus asked.
"Home."
"I thought you were staying over," Kira said, feeling somewhat concerned with his sister.
"I forgot my stuff at home," she lied.
"It's cold out. You sure?" There was his famous brotherly love.
"I'm very sure, Kira." She kissed his cheek. "You know how Kisaka likes to keep me busy."
"What about your presents?" Lacus asked, holding a pile of three festively wrapped boxes.
"Can I drop by again tomorrow to pick them up?" It didn't matter much to her. They couldn't get her what she wanted.
There was only one gift that she needed.
And no one could give it to her.
"We'll be here." Kira wrapped an arm around Lacus.
"Alright then. You guys take care. Oh, and Merry Christmas," she greeted before trudging back into the cold.
The walk home wasn't as terrible as getting there. The lights died down finally and the neon didn't blind her as badly as before. Pubs were still well awake, with rowdy cheers heard from far away.
She reached home within minutes this time. Streets weren't as bad, maybe? Never mind the reason, she was home. She reached for the door knob, but it creaked open without her help. She didn't think much of it; maids were probably just careless since it was a holiday night.
It was the same as she had left it; quite and empty. The single tree in the foyer was still brightly shining. There was not a sound to be heard. It was just the same.
Tonight, she slept faster than usual…
…and received a rude awakening the next morning.
"MERRY CHRISTMAS!"
Stupid brothers. She banged the phone back to its holder.
She tossed and turned under her comfy blanket. With a loud groan, she slipped out of bed, down the steps, into the kitchen. The daily routine.
Her cup was in her grasp and she found the maids excitedly rushing about with presents in their arms. Man, she was tired. What time was it again?
She watched as paper fly through the air like no tomorrow. She saw their eyes widen and sparkle with every gift unwrapped. It had to be Christmas.
She was lost in a daze until one of the more reserved maids came up to her with a tiny rectangular box. For a while, Cagalli just started at the maid. She didn't remember being asked to play their game.
"It has your name on it, Miss Athha."
It really did. The sticker was all smudged and she could barely read the name.
She pulled the ends of the ribbon till the knot was loose. Setting it aside, she pulled the cover off the box to only find…
"A cell phone?"
All eyes on her.
"What?"
She held the thing in her hands. Damn, it was thin and tiny. Twisting and turning it, she made sure she checked every angle. She flipped it open. Oh that's nice. Was this a hand-me-down? The screen read "New Text".
She was feeling skeptical, partly because this phone was one pain in the ass and partly because she had already gotten a message in some phone.
Mry Xmas.
Apparently, the ID was blocked. No way to check this now.
It started to ring. All eyes still on her.
"Aren't you going to answer, Miss Athha?"
"I WILL!" She stood up indignantly and stepped into the main foyer.
The ID was blocked again, and for she knew, it could just have been a prank caller. She hated those guys.
"Hello?"
"Hello, miss. It seems as if one of your soldiers went AWOL on you some years ago, correct?"
His voice was deep.
"Yes, bu-"
"Let me finish, ma'am. It seems that soldier went to PLANT to get something. And now, he's back in ORB."
This was ridiculous. How many soldiers go AWOL only to come back? This was nothing new.
"And?"
"And, we believe him to be dangerously armed and…"
Knock knock.
"Excuse me, sir. Hold that thought."
She answered the door. Looking around at the snow covered grounds, she saw no one. She brought the phone back to her ear. "I'm back, sir. And what?"
"We believe him to be armed and extremely horny."
She swore her eyes popped. "WHAT!"
The line went dead.
She looked down at the phone, desperately trying to call the person back. What did they say?
"Ahem."
She looked up from her phone. The door was still open. And she couldn't believe her eyes.
"What are you doing back here?" she asked.
"Why, didn't the man on the phone tell you everything you needed to know?" he asked teasingly, an identical cell phone in his hands.
She looked at her, then looked at his. "…YOU!"
"Uh oh! She caught me!" he teased again.
"And what exactly were you getting up in the PLANTS?"
"Something."
"Like?"
"Something."
After all this, he was still the same infuriating man.
"Couldn't you get it here?"
"Not with my paycheck."
She knew she was talking way too much, scolding way too much, and being way to nosy for her health. It was Christmas for god sake.
"And who's that something for?"
"Take a wild guess, princess."
Ugh, how irritating.
He smiled. "Now, if I'm correct, you did get the message didn't you?" He looked at her.
"Which one?"
"The second one." He smiled again.
There wasn't much of a hello. She understood him completely. She wanted to tear him apart, rip his smile off, and kill him. But, it was Christmas. And it was still daytime. They had plenty of time to discuss later and she had plenty of fight left in her to scream at him to get her answers in due time. Truth was, at least she wasn't disappointed this year and she wouldn't be in the future. He wasn't going back after that stupid mistake, not on her watch.
It was good to have him home. The heater was definitely on overdrive, or else, why was she so warm? Well, we don't need to know.
It was nine in the evening.
"Hello?"
She smirked. "You were in on this weren't you?"
"W-what?"
"Don't lie to me, brother. It's Christmas."
Damn, she was good. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Sure you don't."
He sighed.
"You have no idea how Athrun called you from the PLANTS to tell you he was finally coming home to give me his present after god knows how long. You have no idea why you just pressured me into coming over for Christmas Eve. You have no idea that your best friend was what made my Christmas spectacular and forced me into b-"
"Cagalli! I don't need to hear about your sexcapades with Athrun. I can live not ever knowing."
"Good, because you're never going to know!" she chirped.
"Sorry about lying, though. We were just stalling for time. But, hey, you have to like the little bonus right?" he teased.
"You're invited, alright? February 16. Don't miss it, or you will so pay."
"Gotcha. Anyway, Cagalli. Good night. We still have your presents here, but I can imagine you're not physically capable of getting them right now."
"Oh shut up and bye!" She smashed the phone back to place.
He encircled his strong arms behind her. No words needed to be shared. One action spoke it all. This had to be the best Christmas ever, even if it did start out somewhat ludicrous. Next year, she was getting her payback. That was for sure.
But for tonight, she watched the sterling silver band sparkle along with the moonlight.
Late Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, ya'll!
I was kinda busy and so out of things. A couple of you guys know why. No need to repeat. But ya, thanks for the support! And I hope this wasn't too cheesy. It was supposed to be some sad ending. But meh, think of it was a present. Hope ya'll like it!
And i hope you know wut's gonna happen on feb 16th in terms of this story! I hope i made it clear enough. XD