Day 12: A Christmas Carol, Present
When he was back in his office, Finn decided to try and get back to work. He brought up his papers and began to write down and sign for supplies. The next expedition wouldn't be for another couple of months, but it was never too early to start. However, Finn found his mind wandering. He thought back to everything that Zard had shown him. After ten minutes of no work, he tried stabbing his pen into his hand. He would do anything to get himself to focus.
Right before the stabbing happened, though, there was a knock at the door. Finn's head snapped up. He had no idea what would happen next, but he was lying if he said he wasn't terrified. The fear deep in his spine got worse when he heard the voice.
"I'm coming in, now," she said.
Instead of Zard, who walked through, this ghost turned the knob and walked in the doorway. She was polite about the whole ordeal, and her footsteps were silent. This was only fitting because she was the monster mage, Alfia.
Her eyes were closed, and her hair fell loosely around her shoulders. Even in death, there was dignity and grace in her body. How she walked and carried herself both spoke to a tremendous strength.
"It has been a while, Braver," she said. The ghost closed the door behind her. "I understand that the big lug has already come by. So, you've seen your past, which means it's time to visit your present."
Finn stood up, a stubborn set to his shoulders.
"And what I said I didn't want to?" replied Finn.
Alfia let out a long sigh and then waved her hand. The magical force pulled Finn in her direction. Alfia stepped aside, and he went sailing towards the door. Finn raised his arms to defend himself when he went through harmlessly. He opened his eyes to look and found that the door was still intact. It had not blown apart like he had thought.
"For the next little while," said Alfia, following him. "You'll be just like me. No one will see you or hear you. But you'll see and hear everything that you're missing."
Finn tried to right himself so he could walk through the door. He found, though, that he had no control over his body. Instead, he had to wait for Alfia to tug him along. He was stuck floating through the halls of his own home. They floated down staircases till they came to the main hall. Everyone in the Familia was there, eating and enjoying themselves. Well, almost everyone was.
Tione was busy resting her head on her arms. Her arms were resting in some mashed potatoes. Her sister, Tiona, sat at her side, patting her on the back.
"Hey, I'm sure Finn didn't mean it. He's just stressed, that's all," she said.
Tione shook her head, strands of hair falling into pools of gravy.
"No way, the Captain was pissed, and it was all my fault!"
Her face fell forward, buried in turkey, and she began to cry. Finn watched on, a frown deepening on his face. He hadn't meant to make her feel this bad. The Braver had just been stressed and not in the mood for the holidays. He reached out to console her and apologize for his actions, but it passed right through her. All that happened was that Tione lifted her head from her dinner and stared strictly at where Finn's ghost was.
"I've been a bit of an ass, haven't I?" asked Finn.
Alfia smiled. "Oh, most certainly a large one, that's for sure. Now, let's go listen to how else you messed up?"
The two of them drifted over to the executive's table. Finn watched as Loki spared him a glance and a wink. Finn shivered at the capabilities of the Gods. However, Loki quickly turned back to the conversation at hand, and Finn listened in as well.
"I can't believe this!" said Aki, slamming her fist on the table. "He can't just make poor Raul walk out into the storm because he's a workaholic!" She looked over at Riveria and Gareth. "I know he's the Captain and all, but can't you two do something about it?"
Riveria opened her mouth before Gareth nudged her. She closed it, fury brewing in her eyes. Meanwhile, Gareth chose to speak up instead.
"It's not that simple, lass. The holidays are complicated for Finn. As much as we want to disagree about it, we have to just let him ride it out and hope he gets smart on his won," said the dwarf.
Aki's nose scrunched. "I still think that it's unfair that he gets to ruin our Christmas just because he's in charge. Where's the sympathy to the rest of us?"
Riveria bulled forward. "I couldn't agree more. This is why Raul will be getting a couple of days off when he returns. I am also going to personally drag that little pallum down here by the ear to apologize to Tione." She looked over at Gareth. "Even you can agree that it was a step too far."
Gareth nodded, stroking his beard.
"It makes me worry," he said. "Just what will become of Finn one day. I hope that he realizes soon that his goals won't be there to take care of him when he needs it."
Finn hung his head. "I get it. I've been a complete ass tonight." At his sides, his hands curled into fists. "I just can't get into the Christmas spirit. Not after everything, it's taken from me."
As soon as he finished that sentence, Finn felt a wave of incredible anger staring down at him. He opened his eyes to find Alfia there. Her eyes were open, and her rage was almost crushing him into the floor.
"You think you've lost a lot?" she asked.
Alfia waved a hand, and the two zipped out of the Twilight Manor. They shot through the streets of Orario, weaving from place to place. Any people still out on the street took no notice of them.
After what seemed like a lifetime of travel, they finally arrived at their destination. It was the Hearth Manor of Hestia Familia. Finn was confused, not entirely understanding what they were doing here and how Bell Cranel's Familia connected him. He turned to ask Alfia and found her staring into the window. Her eyes were filled with longing, and they were trained on Bell.
"Whenever we think we've lost it all, we have to remember that there's always more to lose," she said. "This holiday began because it fell on one of the coldest and darkest times of the year. A time when people were scared to even leave their homes. Instead, they would come together and celebrate the life they had. They would be warm and sing songs to cheer each other up." Alfia tore her eyes away and looked at Finn. "That's what this holiday is about, you miserable workaholic. Now stop wallowing in self-pity. No one asked you to be the saviour of your people, you know?"
Finn had nothing to say to that. At his apparent lack of words, Alfia sneered. She waved her hand one more time, and Finn went flying off in the opposite direction. When he started to feel sick, he closed his eyes. The next time he opened them, he was back in his office. He went to open the door but found that it was locked. He was stuck now, waiting for the ghost of Christmas future.
The End
Hestia looked worried as she placed the quilted square down. Something was terrifying about what was to come. She looked up.
"Remember folks, treasure what you have, and don't let anyone take it away from you," she says. "You never know when you might lose it."
