(The Marsanes/Slightly later…)

"Well, that was fun", Mikhail stated. He sat down next to Jin at the Christmas table they had put up in front of the tree. The others had left and the two of them were alone, alone with the Christmas tree… and the dead and frozen Lora, of course.

Mikhail grabbed a gingerbread talisman from the plate and leaned back in a relaxed way.

"Are you pleased with the result?", Jin asked.

"What do you mean?" Mikhail took a bite.

"Obviously you did have fun", Jin said. "I haven't seen you laughing in ages."

Well, strictly speaking he had never seen Mikhail laugh before at all. Maybe there had been a shy smile from the boy Mikhail, because Milton had tried his best to melt the ice around his heart and help him heal. But with Milton dead and gone…

"I was surprised you wanted us to have another Christmas together", Jin went on.

"Me?" Mikhail looked at Jin with big blue eyes full of wonder. He looked so much like that boy from then and there in that instance. "But this was your doing."

They looked at each other as if they were in a tug-of-war. None of them gave way, however.

"I mean", Mikhail stated, "You acted so… little surprised when you saw the tree. And saying that this was the wonder of Christmas…"

He hesitated, as if trying to give Jin the opportunity to admit that it had been him after all. But no such confession came.

"Wow", Mikhail said. "That's… I was all but certain it was you. I did not understand how you managed to persuade Malos to bring this tree on to the Marsanes, but…"

"Malos?"

"Sure. I mean, after all, he is the only one who can simply come and go with no-one noticing."

Jin's eyes widened. "But that is impossible", he said.

Malos, of course, could get to any place at any time nearly with no limits. Sure, he could no longer warp around Alrest with the ease he once had done – once, before Mythra had shattered his core crystal and burned his essence until only so little of it had remained that he had barely survived the impact of it. But he still could, as Mikhail had put it come and go with none of them noticing.

But, even if he was the perfect suspect for doing the deed and get a tree unnoticed on board the Marsanes, it did not make any sense, because…

"Malos had not been to our last Christmas Party", Jin stated the obvious. "And I haven't told him anything about it."

He looked at Mikhail. Mikhail returned the look.

"Neither did I", he said firmly.

"This is nonsense." Jin got to his feet resolutely. "I will go and ask him."

That was a Christmas miracle he could not simply accept. He had to know.