Chapter 41: Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too

"Like this?"

"Hold them away from your hair!"

Lea chuckled and did as Lilo said, stretching his arms out more. In his hands he held two wooden poles, by all appearances completely normal and uninteresting…because they were completely normal and uninteresting, for the moment. They were in the Third District's square, lit by the neon lights hanging on the walls. Lilo and Stitch sat on the pavement, with an orange kitten named Oliver in Lilo's arms. Back against the wall, Xion crouched down to pet a brown and white dog while the two that she had introduces as Jumba and Pleakley stood nearby. The woman named Nani sat on the steps leading down from the upper road.

"Can't believe I'm really doin' this," Lea said with another chuckle. But Lilo had asked for it last time he had visited Xion's friends a few nights ago, and who was he to say no to a little girl? "Okay, you all ready?"

When Lilo and Stitch cheered in confirmation, Lea grinned and tossed the wooden poles above his head. As they spun around in the air they ignited, the ends bursting into flames. Lilo let out a drawn-out "Woooow!" and Stitch laughed cheerfully, clapping his hands. When the poles fell back down, he grabbed them by the still cool centers and began to twirl them around.

Lea had never done this before. His only experience with fire dancing had been a very amateurish demonstration that Riku and Xion had shown him earlier that day; apparently it was a thing on the Destiny Islands too, not just Lilo and Stitch's world. Go figure. At least he was doing better than those two had, even if he was making it up entirely as he went on; Riku was still busy making up for the damage to Scrooge back in the First District.

It had been a week since they arrived in Traverse Town. In that time, Xion had spent every day with the Pelekais while Lea had visited them three times: on their first night, two nights ago, and now tonight. He had seen very little of anyone else in that time, save for a few run-ins with Riku and Squall—er, Leon—and a short dinner with Cissnei. Everyone was doing things on their own; King Mickey had barely come out of his room at the hotel as he thought about where to go next. Nobody knew how to enter the Realm of Darkness to find this Aqua person they were looking for, not without access to corridors which they no longer had, as Lea was human, Xion's heart was too bright, and Riku had left Ansem's grasp.

And at the moment, Lea wasn't worrying about that. He was too busy trying his darnedest to avoid learning the hard way if he was still resistant to flames like Axel had been.

The poles were not like his chakrams. As Lea attempted to spin them around his fingers, he remembered that too late. They went flying from his hands, up into the air. Having not expected to lose them, Lea didn't prepare to catch them. The burning wood crashed onto him and went out, but not before sending some of the flames onto his clothing.

"Ah! Hot, hot!" Lea slapped his hands on his burning jacket, then tore it off and stomped it on the ground.

"Lea!" Xion jumped up to her feet and ran over even as Stitch cackled wildly and clapped his hands even more.

"I'm fine," he assured her, taking in a deep breath. "I really loved this jacket, though." Lea groaned and leaned down to pick it up. It wasn't beyond repair; thankfully he had put the flames out in time. It was crumpled and stained, though. Nothing a quick wash couldn't fix.

"Here, let me help with that." Nani stood up from her spot on the stairs and motioned for Lea to follow her. "We can clean that inside."

Lea looked down at his jacket then shrugged. "Sure, thanks." He followed Nani up the stairs, toward the house, and ruffled Xion's hair while he walked past her. "Don't get into any trouble without me, alright?"

"I've got it memorized."

"Ha! Sure."

The Pelekai home was small, one of many just like it all over Traverse Town. Photos lined the wall, held up by tape, and all of them were of random people across the town. Sometimes a finger was caught in front of the lens, and even more rarely a claw. Lilo and Stitch must have been the ones taking them.

"Here, I'll take that." Nani held her hand out, and Lea complied by handing over his jacket. She vanished into a small room around the corner and Lea heard the clunking of an old, worn washing machine.

While waiting for Nani to return, Lea awkwardly crossed his arms and looked around at the rest of the room. Besides the photos, there wasn't really a whole lot to it. The front room was the kitchen, with a little corner set aside for the sink and dishes. There was no mechanical dishwasher to be found, unlike the washing machine he still heard struggling along. Along the far wall was a small setup of a sofa and a TV, not much else.

A very short hall branched off into two bedrooms, with the barest of essentials in them. One had a bunk bed and the other a queen-sized; rather conspicuously, the room with the bunk also had some sort of mechanical contraption sitting in the corner. When Lea ran a hand along it, the metal-plated sphere on top opened up to reveal hundreds of balls about the size of ping pong balls floating around in a green energy field.

"What…"

"So, Lea." Nani's voice caught Lea by surprise, and he turned to see her walking out of the laundry room. "We've met before, but I don't think we've ever really been introduced. Is Xion your little sister?"

Lea choked. He was sure his reaction to those words would have been hilarious if he had seen them from the outside, feeling his face heat up and his eyes bug out, but from his perspective he was absolutely dumbfounded. "W-What?" he managed to get out through soft laughter. "No, no. We're just friends; really close friends, but just friends."

"Oh." Nani almost sounded disappointed. "It's just been so hard raising Lilo without our parents, I was hoping there'd be someone to talk to about it."

Lea frowned and rubbed the back of his neck as he stared at the ground. "Well, I mean, I guess technically I did raise Xion and Roxas, but…" Nani didn't seem to hear his mumblings, and he wasn't sure if he was glad of that or not. His frown deepened, his brow furrowed, and his eyes narrowed. They weren't blood related, but could it be said that he was like the big brother to Xion and Roxas after all? It was a bizarre thought, to say the least, and he didn't think he liked it. But still…

Lea turned his head up and looked out the window, watching Xion play in the courtyard down the steps. She chased Stitch and that dog around in circles, dodging their tackles and laughing all the time. He felt a warmth in his chest, one that as Axel only two people in all the worlds had ever been able to make him feel. As Xion fell to the ground laughing and pushed the dog off of her before he could lick her face raw, Lea wondered if maybe the idea wasn't so far-fetched after all.

…Wait a second. How was she being so active? Back when they were fleeing Hollow Bastion, Xion said that she had to be by Sora. But just as Lea was questioning that, Xion looked up and waved at someone coming in from the Second District. Lea blinked and turned to look toward the large doors outside. Ah. Well, there was Sora now.

x-x-x

"Sora, hey!" Xion sat up as Dodger and Stitch turned away, running off to play with Lilo and Oliver. She dusted off her shirt and skirt, then smiled at her friend. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know. Just wanted to see how you were doing and everything." Sora grinned and moved his hands behind his head.

But as Sora grinned at her, Xion's own smile faltered. The smile looked half-forced, like he was happy to see her but not as happy as he was making it appear. Xion's expression grew even more somber as she came to realize what it was: unlike her playing here every day, or Donald practicing his magic, or Cid running his shop…unlike everyone else having something to keep them occupied, to keep them from lamenting about their failures, Sora didn't have that. Every other day he spent a few minutes with Baymax and Tadashi, but other than that he didn't have a lot to do. He was certainly in a better state than he had been a week earlier, that much was beyond any shred of doubt, but he still needed to snap out of this depression. Their ship runs on happy faces!

Xion looked past Sora, over his shoulder, at a small alleyway hidden in the corner of the Third District's courtyard. As she dug through Sora's memories to recall what was back there, immediately an idea clicked in her head. Yes, it was perfect! Just the thing to cheer Sora up!

"Come with me!" Xion exclaimed, grabbing both of Sora's hands in her own.

"Huh?"

But Xion grinned and turned around pulling Sora along with her as they moved toward the alley. "Nope, no questions. Just come with me!"

"Where are we going? H-Hey, Xion!" Sora stumbled as Xion began walking quickly, not expecting her to move so suddenly. But as he began to move in step with her, Xion let go of his wrist and turned around, walking backwards

"It's a surprise!" She winked at Sora before turning around once again as they approached the familiar fire-patterned door.

"What do you want with Merlin?" Sora asked as Xion struggled with opening it up.

Xion groaned and turned around. "Open it," she said, ignoring his question. Sora glanced aside at her before summoning his Keyblade and casting a weak Fire spell. The flames spread across the door, causing the pattern to illuminate. A moment later it swung open of its own accord.

The other side of the door was incredibly quiet, somehow managing to keep out all the city's sounds with that simple enchanted lock. With the large stone walls and circular lake, it was like they had gone into another world entirely; there was nothing even hinting that they were still in Traverse Town. On an island in the center of the lake, accessed by a series of large stones floating in the water, was a small house.

"Are you going to tell me what you want with Merlin?" As Xion jumped across the floating stones, she turned to see Sora still standing on the shore.

"I'm not looking for Merlin," she responded with a shrug.

"What—"

"Come on, Sora! It's gonna be great, I promise. You need a break and you'll love it!"

"But where are we going?"

"Somewhere only we know." Xion had to admit she enjoyed being teasingly vague. This must be what Braig felt like all the time.

"Some help…" Hearing the splashing water behind her, Xion rightfully figured that Sora was beginning to follow her across the stones. She pushed aside the green cloth hanging in front of the door to Merlin's house and stepped inside as she heard Sora walk up behind her.

Merlin's house was far messier than the one back in Hollow Bastion had been, with tons of junk cluttering the floor of the single circular room. Everything from boxes of silverware to tables with tea sets was in here, including piles upon piles off assorted books and an empty birdcage. But even with all of that, the house was conspicuously empty of any life.

"He's not here…"

"I told you, we're not looking for Merlin." As Sora stood in the doorway with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow, Xion began to search through the mess of books, digging through piles and opening cabinets in search of one particular novel. She frowned as she crouched down and looked inside a drawer low to the ground; there was no sign of it.

Groaning as she pushed the drawer shut, Xion stood up. But she stood up rather quickly, knocking her head against a low-hanging shelf and knocking its contents over. "Ow…" Rubbing the top of her head, she kneeled down and began to pick up the various odds and trinkets that had been sitting on the shelf; luckily, none of them were broken. But one fallen object in particular caught her eye: an old brown book, its pages uneven as if they had been fixed second-hand after being torn out.

"Here it is!"

"Here's what? Oh!" As soon as Sora recognized the book Xion was holding, his face lit up like a candle. A big, goofy grin crossed his face and Xion could swear she saw his eyes twinkle. "Xion, that's—!"

Not letting Sora finish, Xion opened the book to the first page. Light poured out from the map within, the hand-written labels by each landmark shimmering brightly.

x-x-x

A chill wind swept around them, though not quite enough to call it a blustery day. As the light faded from their vision, the first thing Xion and Sora noticed about where they stood was the blanket of white coating the ground, the small frozen creek, and the glistening icicles hanging on the leafless trees. If it was possible for Sora's grin to get even wider, it certainly did when he saw the winter weather.

When it occurred to Xion that she should be much colder than she was in this weather, she looked down at herself to find that her clothes had changed. Gone were the skirt, leggings, tank top, and jacket she had gotten from Destiny Islands so long ago; rather, she now had wool pants and a warm, zip-up hoodie, though the colors matched her usual clothes. It was a fair bit different from the heavy coat she had worn in Arendelle, to be sure, but then it wasn't quite as cold as in Arendelle either.

Sora was dressed warmer, too. His black jacket had seemingly grown into a full winter coat and zipped shut, and there was a red scarf wrapped around his neck. The many pouches and straps had vanished from his pants and his shoes were replaced with winter boots.

Sora laughed as he looked around at the frozen forest, and Xion couldn't help but join in. The last time he had seen snow was Arendelle, and while Xion had been surrounded by the stuff much more recently it hadn't exactly been in a happy situation. As the wind picked up she pulled her black hood over her face and turned to the snow-covered hills. Already she was imagining sliding down those on boards, as she had with—

No. No thoughts like that. The whole point of this trip to the Hundred Acre Wood was to cheer Sora up. Moping around about lost friends was the complete opposite of that. Speaking of Sora, he was walking quickly down the path—or what he presumed was the path, since it was all covered in snow. Xion saw his hair bounce, the back of his head exposed. She couldn't hide her grin as she knelt down and scooped some snow into her hands.

Whap!

Sora stopped as Xion's snowball hit right on-target, coating the back of his head in slush. As he wiped the snow away and turned around, he shot Xion a devilish grin that she returned.

"You like to play games, huh?" Sora kept his eyes on her as he crouched down to roll up some snow of his own.

"Who was it that started the fight in Arendelle?" Xion replied with her hands on her hips. But Sora's answer back she expected to be verbal; instead, she got a face full of snow. Spitting out the snow even as it melted, Xion laughed and broke into a sprint, running behind the trees while Sora tossed another ball at her.

"Stand still!"

"No way!"

Xion ducked and rolled to avoid another snowball, then scooped up a handful of her own and tossed it at Sora. Sora rolled to avoid it, but Xion flexed her fingers and called on a chill wind with the weakest Aero she could manage. The snow redirected itself, whacking Sora in the side of his head.

"Oh, you just opened a big can of worms with that!" Sora raised his hand into the sky and called on his Keyblade, then pointed it forward. "Freeze!" Rather than ice blasts, Sora's low-level Blizzard spell manifested a bunch of snowballs in the air that then flew forward.

Xion laughed even as the magical snowballs hit her. Sweeping her hand out, she cast another Aero and sent more snow flying at Sora in response. The miniature blizzard did little besides tinting his clothes, white however. As Xion raised her hand and swirled the wind around her to gather more, she heard a peculiar flapping join in with the blustery howls.

"Huh?" Cutting off her magic, she let the winds die down and watched as a strange shape flew through the air, the flapping sound coming from it as the wind blew over its thin form. It was, of all things, an envelope. Sora noticed it too, his smile giving way to confusion as the two of them watched the envelope settle onto a branch bare of leaves on a nearby tree.

"What's this?" Sora jumped up and grabbed the letter between his fingers, snagging it from the tree's grip without tearing it apart. He didn't unfold it, but instead flipped it around to look at the childlike handwriting on the other side.

To: Ƨɒntɒ

From: Winniɘ thɘ Pooh

"Santa?" Xion frowned as she looked at the envelope from over Sora's shoulder. "How old is this?"

"Yeah, Christmas was months ago…" Sora scratched his head. "Well, let's go see Pooh and tell him we found his letter!"

"Sure!" Xion smiled and nodded, but paused as she began to walk through the woods. "Oh…I suppose this is actually the first time I've met him, isn't it?"

Sora shrugged. "Sure, but come on. Pooh isn't going to care."

And with that he started down the old forest road, the note in his grip. Xion had to smile as she followed, glad that Sora was out of his Kairi-induced funk. You could really tell how much he loved this place; even when everything was coated in snow and unfamiliar, he knew the pathway like the back of his hand. As they followed the frozen creek and crossed over a familiar old bridge, the hill with the swing was visible in the distance. Further into the woods patches of snow were pressed down too far apart for steps, showing that a certain bouncing tiger was having a bit of fun. Above their heads a red balloon floated through the tree branches, brushing against the bell to Owl's house when they passed by.

And as they approached that familiar old tree where a familiar old bear lived under the name of Sanders, Xion and Sora heard an upbeat tune coming through the open window.

"Let all your holidays be bright
"And very merry, too
"I wish you all a great new year
"And lots of honey, too"

"In the Hundred Acre Wood
"We gather round with friends
"And pass the cup of honey 'round
"Until the old year ends"

"For auld lang syne, my friends
"For auld lang syne
"We'll pass the cup of honey 'round
"For auld lang syne"

Xion giggled. "First Christmas, now New Year's?" She moved up to the open window and peeked inside, spotting the little bear himself. Winnie the Pooh stood on a stool and was hammering away at something, nailing it into his wall.

"Come on, let's go see him!" Sora said impatiently. Without waiting for her response he hurried to the front door and gave it a short knock, then opened the door slowly. "Pooh? You in here?" The door swung open the rest of the way of its own accord as another winter wind blew past them.

They were able to get a clear view of just what Pooh had been hammering from this angle: a homemade star, cut out of cardboard from the looks of things, and painted yellow. It was atop an innocently childlike drawing of a pine tree, with circles of green, pink, and blue colored in to represent ornaments. On the ground, near the legs of the stool that Pooh stood on, was a bowl of chalk.

Pooh turned around as Sora shut the door behind them. "Oh! Hello, Sora. Hello, Somebody-I-Don't-Know." He didn't seem at all surprised to see them, setting the hammer down and hopping off of the stool. "I see that Santa got my letter after all."

"Letter? Oh!" Sora held up the envelope in his hand. "Yeah, we found this out in the forest. But Pooh, how long ago did you send it? Christmas isn't…"

"Why thank you, Sora!" Pooh walked over to Sora and took the letter from him, then smiled and set it down on a shelf. He didn't seem to pay any attention to Sora's question. "Santa must have returned the letter when he brought me my present: you!"

"Your present?" Xion tilted her head. "You asked for Sora for Christmas?"

Pooh turned to her and grinned. "I was thinking, after my stoutness exercises, about what I wanted most for Christmas. Rabbit wants a flyswatter, and Tigger snowshoes, and Eeyore an umbrella. But I wanted my friend to enjoy the season with me. And I see he brought a friend of his own, Somebody-I-Don't-Know."

"Oh." Xion felt a slight blush creeping up her cheeks as Pooh stared at her. She crouched down to eye level and smiled. "Yeah, I'm Sora's friend. I'm Xion, and it's nice to meet you, Pooh. Sora's…told me a lot about you and your friends." Behind her, Sora chuckled. She stood up and jabbed him with her elbow.

Sora shoved her shoulder playfully before he looked around Pooh's house again. Besides the, er, 'Christmas tree' on the wall, lights hung around the windows and a few streams of garland were on the walls. It wasn't some old letter, then. Pooh really was setting up for Christmas.

"Hey, Pooh…" Sora began as Pooh walked back over to the wall and picked up a piece of blue chalk, coloring in more ornaments. "You know Christmas was months ago, don't you?"

"Oh yes, and now it has come again. Aren't you excited, Sora?" Pooh laughed. "We are all going to have a big tree-trimming and gift-giving party at my house tonight! I have to get ready."

Sora and Xion look at each other with some surprise and confusion. They both knew that Pooh was a bear of very little brain, but surely even he had to know how to tell time? Xion eyed the calendar hanging on the far wall, where a big 24 was circled. A thought occurred to her. Worlds had different passages of time, so perhaps…

"Sora, I think it really is Christmas."

Pooh grinned again. "Why of course it is. Or else I would look very silly setting up my Christmas tree!"

Sora smiled at Xion knowingly, and she returned the gesture. If it was Christmas, who were they to turn it down? She hadn't exactly had a happy time at her last Christmas, and now was the time to change that. "Alright, Pooh. Do you want us to help get ready for the party, then? What do you still need?"

"What is there? Think, think… Think, think…" Pooh stopped coloring in the ornaments and paused, tapping the side of his head. Being a bear of very little brain, there was only so much he could focus on. And as he thought and thought of something for his friends to do, his mind began to wander. It wandered from Christmas to lunch, which he had not yet eaten, and then Pooh got an idea.

"I did?"

Yes, and a rather good idea at that.

"Oh! Well I suppose it is a rather good idea, yes. Especially for my tummy." Smiling and rubbing his stomach, Pooh dropped the chalk and walked over to his cabinet. As it opened, a pile of brown pots all labeled 'hunny' spilled out. Pooh picked up the nearest one and removed its lid before digging his hand in and then bringing it to his mouth. But none of his favorite snack was on his hand, and he pulled it out of his hand to see just a bare bear's paw. Frowning, Pooh sat down and looked into the pot, looking deeper and deeper until he shoved his face inside.

"Oh bother."

"Uh, Pooh?"

Pooh popped the pot off of his face and looked at Sora and Xion as if he had forgotten they were there. Setting the pot down, he sat back up and walked over to them by the door. "It seems we are all out of honey," he said sadly as he wrapped a scarf around his neck. "And a party without honey isn't a party at all. Let's go get some."

Sora laughed. "Sure, Pooh. You lead the way."

The door opened, exposing them to the winter chill again as they left that house under the name of Sanders. Going down the path in a different direction than they had come, Xion called up what she could of the forest's layout. Pooh was looking for honey, so there were only two places he would go: the honey tree or Rabbit's house. And of the two Rabbit's was the closer one, so Pooh was most definitely heading there.

And as they continued their journey through the Hundred Acre Wood, something nagged in the back of Xion's mind. A growling noise resounded through the trees and bushes, but since neither Sora nor Pooh reacted Xion couldn't help but wonder if it was her imagination. If it was her imagination, though, it was running wild; the growling got considerably louder as they moved on. Knowing that this was a world without Heartless, Xion was not scared. She did, however, keep her guard up for any heffalumps or woozles that may be stalking them.

"Blugadeebloo!" To Xion's right, an orange and black blur burst out of a snow-covered bush and slammed into her. She rolled across the ground before landing on her back in the snow, with a springy, bouncy tiger perched on her chest.

"Aw, lookie at this!" Tigger peered down at Xion with a wide grin, then pushed his face close to hers and looked into her eyes. "So good to see ya again, you old so-and-so! Gosh, how long has it been, huh? What've ya been up to?"

Xion blinked up at Tigger in surprise, catching herself from greeting him like an old friend. When he didn't budge from his position off of her, she shook her head. "Uh, we haven't—"

"Why Tigger, I didn't know you knew Xion." Pooh said as he and Sora approached them.

Sora laughed and held a hand out to help Xion up. As she brushed the snow off of her back, he clarified. "He doesn't, Pooh. This is Xion's first time here."

"Oh thank goodness!" Tigger exclaimed, leaning his head back and holding his hand over his eyes. "'Cause if there's one thing Tiggers do best, it's rememberin' faces! And uh, I couldn't rememberate yours." Grabbing Xion's hand with both of his, Tigger shook it up and down while he continued to talk. "Name's Tigger! T-I-double-guh-RR! That spells Tigger!"

Xion couldn't help but giggle at his energy. "It's nice to meet you, Tigger."

He didn't seem to catch her hesitation on the word 'meet', and turned immediately to Pooh. Wrapping an arm around the bear's shoulder, Tigger leaned in close and whispered conspiratorially. "So what are ya doin' Pooh-boy?"

"We need honey, and we are going to ask Rabbit if he has a smackerel or two."

"Honey?" Tigger recoiled and stuck out his tongue. "Blech! But uh, if you're payin' a visit to old long-ears, then I'll help ya visitate him!"

And so the party gained another member, whether they wanted one or not. While Pooh, Sora, and Xion kept up their leisurely stroll through the woods, Tigger bounced several feet ahead only to jump back to them and shout words of encouragement, then leap down the path again. This continued for quite some time, until at last they passed over a hill and found themselves at a garden that was lifeless for the winter.

A soft humming came from within Rabbit's house. Xion moved to knock and introduce herself, but Pooh got to the door first and invited himself in. "Why hello, Rabbit! How are you and your lunch doing?"

"Pooh?!" Surprised at the bear's sudden appearance, Rabbit dropped the opened bag of mulch he had in his hands, scattering its contents across the floor. At that same moment, Tigger invited himself in as well and bounced around the room in circles, laughing and hollering all the while. "Eep, Tigger!" Hastily, Rabbit picked up a carrot in a pot that sat on the tale in front of him and hugged it close to his chest. "W-What are you two doing here?!"

Pooh, of course, had his focus entirely on Rabbit's cabinet. As he opened the wooden doors and shifted through the food inside, he smacked his lips. "You wouldn't happen to have a small smackerel, would you, Rabbit?"

"Yeah, bunny boy! Pooh needs his honey! Woo-hoohoohoo!" With a laugh, Tigger jumped into the cabinet as well, knocking over pots and cans and causing them to tumble to the ground.

"Pooh, I don't have any honey. I gave you my last pot last week!"

"Oh. Well, I hope you don't mind if I take just a quick look."

"I—Tigger, be careful!" Rabbit jumped back, holding the potted carrot as if his life depended on it. Tigger had nearly crashed into him as he leaped out of the cabinet, but Rabbit's narrow avoidance had sent him flying back outside instead. Pooh was left behind, opening pot after pot in search of his favorite snack.

Sighing, Rabbit set the carrot back on the table and grabbed a broom to sweep up the spilled mulch. Beside Xion, Sora moved ahead and knelt down beside Rabbit. "Let me help you out, Rabbit."

Rabbit was surprised, but it was quickly replaced with a smile. "Oh, hello, Sora. Thank you; it's good to see you again." Only then did he notice Xion standing in the doorway. "Who's your friend?"

"I'm Xion. It's nice to meet you, Rabbit."

Rabbit sighed. "You too, though I'm not exactly in the best of moods right now."

As if Pooh had been waiting for that, he fell backward with an empty honey pot on his face once again. More cans and pots of stored food came crashing down around him. It was rather impressive how much Rabbit's cabinets could hold.

"Oh, stuff and fluff." Pooh took the pot off of his face, set it down, and turned to Rabbit. "Rabbit, I am afraid you are all out of honey."

"Yes, Pooh." Rabbit rolled his eyes and sighed as he cleaned up the mulch. "That's what I told you!"

"Bother. Well now where am I going to find some for the Christmas party? Think, think… Think, think…" And then, from outside, he heard a rather peculiar sound. "Peculiar how?" Well, it almost sounded like something brushing against the branches above Rabbit's home. And looking out the window, Pooh's face was suddenly taken up by a wide grin. "Owl! Owl will know where to find honey. He's very smart, you know."

Xion and Sora exchanged glances, and while Sora continued to help Rabbit clean up Xion followed the little bear outside. Sure enough, there was Owl sitting on a branch up above and chatting with Tigger. Upon noticing Pooh and Xion, Owl waved at them and flew down.

"Why hello there, Pooh! And this must be the Xion that Tigger was telling me about."

Tigger bounced up to join them. "Sure is, Owl! And Sora is helpin' long-ears clean up inside!"

"I see! It is good to see Sora again, yes. Now then, Pooh; Tigger tells me you are looking for honey!"

Pooh rubbed his rumbling tummy and licked his lips. "You wouldn't happen to have a smackerel or two, would you, Owl?"

Owl stood straight and puffed out his chest. "Why Pooh, as it happens I do! I was planning to eat it myself, but I did have lunch rather recently. Do you want it?"

"Oh, I very much do, Owl!" Pooh was practically drooling as Owl held a wing behind his back and then emerged with the pot. Where had that been?

But as Pooh reached for it, Owl pulled away. "Now just a moment, dear boy. Where's the fun in just giving it away? After all, adventure is a wonderful thing! How about a game?"

"Game?" Pooh asked, dejected.

"Ah, a game! Splendid idea, Pooh. Splendid! Now, where…" Owl looked up, down, and all around, muttering to himself. When he looked directly above them, he grinned. "Ah! There, the top of Rabbit's tree, you see? Whoever reaches the top will win the honey!"

Tigger hollered and jumped up and down. "Oh, I sure do like the sound of that! After all, bouncin' is what Tiggers do best!"

"What's this about bouncing?" Sora asked as he came out of Rabbit's house, wiping his hands clean of the remaining mulch.

"Owl's going to give Pooh some honey if he can bounce high enough," Xion explained.

"Sounds fun! Why don't we all join in? You can work with me, Pooh."

Pooh nodded. "I would like that very much, Sora."

"Very well, boys and girls!" Owl flew up to the highest branch of the tree above Rabbit's house and set the pot of honey down. "The first to reach me gets the honey!"

Sora kneeled down and allowed Pooh to climb onto his back. "All set?"

"All set, Sora!"

Sora looked to Xion. "No cheating with Aero!"

Xion looked at him in surprise. "I'm playing, too?"

"Of course!"

"Ha!" Tigger jumped up and down on his tail. "You non-Tiggers are never gonna reach the tippity-top of the tree! The…way high…top." He gulped.

"Is everybody ready?" Owl called down to them. "Begin!"

x-x-x

Some time later, Xion, Sora, and Pooh returned to Pooh's humble abode. On the walk back, Pooh had finished off every last drop of honey that he and Sora had proudly won—though Tigger had been close behind. After bidding farewell to everyone, they had made their way back to help Pooh with his final preparations for the party. As the little bear opened the door, the sun beyond the trees was beginning to set.

Xion looked around at the garland and chalk tree. "What is there to do still, Pooh? It all looks pretty much done."

Pooh set Owl's now empty pot down with his dozens of other pots. "Well, I suppose it is rather…messy. Oh, bother." He frowned as he looked around; not only were the pots gathered on the floor, but dishes were stacked high and wrapping paper and ribbon were scattered along the floor.

Sora rested a hand on Pooh's shoulder. "We'll help you clean, Pooh. Watch this. Gather!" Holding his palm up, Sora cast a weak Magnet spell that sucked up the scattered paper and clumped it all together. "Go get a trash bag, Pooh. Then we'll work on those dishes."

"I'll clean up his honey pots, then." Xion knelt down by the mess, marveling at just how much Pooh was able to eat. Before putting them all away in the cabinets, she started by straightening them up and fixing their lids. While doing this to just one of many, something tumbled out of the hole at the top.

"Hm?" It was a simple brown box with a red ribbon around it, but no tag saying who it was a gift for. Xion picked it up and shook it lightly, but nothing rattled inside. "What's this, Pooh?"

"Oh!" Pooh popped his head out of a pile of soap bubbles and set down the dish he had begun to scrub. Walking over to Xion, he took the box in his hands and smiled widely. "Why, this is a Christmas present for my dear friend Piglet! I had nearly forgotten where I had hidden it."

Sora shook his head and set his own dishes down. "Pooh, you really should write things like that down, you know."

"Oh yes, but I had forgotten that as well." As Pooh began to take the present over to the tree, a knocking came from his door.

"Pooh Bear!"

"Hey, open up Pooh boy!"

"Oh my!" Pooh gasped and quickly hid the present behind his back. "It's Piglet and everyone else!"

"Isn't that good?" Sora looked up at Pooh's clock. "They look right on time—Pooh?" But as he turned back to see the silly old bear, he had seemingly vanished. Xion shrugged; she hadn't been paying attention either. Where in the world had he disappeared to?

"Well, let's not keep them waiting I guess." Xion said as she finished storing Pooh's honey pots. Agreeing, Sora walked over to the door and opened it up. As soon as he did the denizens of the Hundred Acre Wood came inside—all of them.

"Hello, Sora! Good to see you again, dear," Kanga said as she and Roo came in carrying boxes. "And you must be the Xion that Tigger told us about."

Xion smiled as she shook Kanga's hand. "That's me. But, I'm not sure where Pooh is…"

"Oh, he'll come along soon enough!" Rabbit came in with a large box of ornaments in one hand and gifts in the other. "Okay everyone, let's get busy. Uh, gifts here," he set his colorfully wrapped boxes on Pooh's table, "and decorations there."

"All this excitement is getting' me excited. I say we deck the halls!" Tigger dived toward Gopher's box of decorations as soon as they were put down and began digging through it. Letting out a wonderfully happy gasp, he emerged from the box with bells hanging from his hands and wrapped around his torso. "Jingly bells! Woo-hoohoohoo!"

"Tigger, no! Be careful!" Rabbit cried, jumping out of the way of the ringing, jingling madman.

As Xion stepped back to avoid Tigger's bouncing and ringing, she nearly tripped over a little donkey with a wreathe around his neck. "Oh! Sorry, Eeyore."

"Thanks for noticin' me," he said in a slow drawl. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas indeed!" came a voice from Pooh's fireplace. A silly old bear dressed in red and white tumbled down the chimney, a brown bag in his hands. "Ho ho—oh!" Pooh stopped on his way to everyone and grabbed a handful of cookies that Kanga had set on the table.

"Santa!" Roo exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement. "It's really Santa, Mama!"

Kanga chuckled. "It sure is, dear."

"Yes, Roo; ho ho hello! Have you been a good little boy this year?" Pooh asked, reaching into his bag. "Why, of course you have! So here you—whoa!" Pooh tripped backwards, sending the contents of his bag flying. Gifts for everyone scattered around the room: Rabbit's flyswatter, Eeyore's umbrella, Tigger's snowshoes, and more. Piglet's gift landed at the little pig's feet and opened up, playing a soft tune to the image of a dancing Pooh and Piglet.

"Oh, bother." Pooh sat up and removed his hat and fake beard (Roo was too preoccupied with his toy to notice). Digging through his bag, he frowned and shook his head. "Xion, Sora… I'm afraid I didn't get you a present."

But Xion smiled and shook her head. "Look there, Pooh." She pointed to the other end of the room, where Sora was playing with Roo and singing carols with Tigger. "I think Sora got just what he needed."

And as she watched her friend, even found herself joining in, Xion knew that he was going to be just fine.

x-x-x

Some hours into the party, as Roo had fallen asleep and others were beginning to make their way home, Xion had noticed one special guest was absent. Sora had noticed, too; where was Winnie the Pooh?

It was late at night, after marching through the snow and bracing against the blustery wind, when they found him. A little yellow and red spot against a sea of white sat atop the hill that overlooked the forest, resting on a fallen log and tapping the side of his head. As Xion and Sora approached, they heard Pooh's mutterings of "Think, think… Think, think…"

"Pooh!" Sora's call brought Pooh out of his deep thought. He looked down at the two of them as they climbed the hill, then up at the sky.

"Hello, Sora and Xion. Isn't it a beautiful night?"

Sora and Xion sat on either side of Pooh without a word and looked up at the clear, dark sky. It really was as Pooh had described: beautiful. The yellow moon was full and bright, its light causing the snow on the ground and in the air to glow faintly. And the stars… The sight almost made Xion tear up. The star was positively filled with them, thousands of silver lights in the sky, as opposed to the blackness of the worlds outside this book. She couldn't remember the last time the night sky had been so full of life.

Resting his hands in his lap, Sora turned to Pooh. "So, what were you doing here?"

"I was thinking: perhaps there's a way to make it so you won't go away."

"You mean a way to make us stay?"

"Yes." Pooh didn't seem t catch to the slight wavering in Sora's voice. "Would there be such a way to make it so you don't go away again?"

Sora grew silent at that, and stared down at his hands. As Xion watched him, she felt a frown growing on her face. Her eyes shifted to Kairi's charm hanging on his belt, and she watched as he unhooked it to hold it tightly between his fingers. Pooh watched Sora as well, but rather than question anything he turned back to the sky with a blissful smile on his face.

With neither of them saying anything, Xion took it upon herself. "Don't worry." She leaned forward so Sora could see her on the other side of Pooh and smiled. "We promise we'll come back and visit you now and then."

Pooh kicked his legs lightly as he spoke. "Could you make it 'now and now' instead? That seems a bit better to me." Pooh smiled at them at Xion returned it, but Sora only looked at them silently, just slightly loosening his grip on the Wayfinder. "Sora, Xion, if I go looking for you, will I find you?"

Xion exhaled, watching her breath form a mist in front of her. She pulled down her hood despite the cold and smiled at Pooh beside her, rubbing his head. Then she glanced up at Sora, keeping her smile steady. When she spoke, it was directed as much to him as to Pooh.

"We'll always be with you—right here." She poked Pooh in the chest, and he brought a paw up over his heart. "You don't have to go anywhere. Just stay here, and you can see us anytime you want."

"You mean I just have to stay right here?"

Xion rubbed Pooh's head again. "Yep, that's all." Across the log, Sora stared down at Kairi's charm again and then hooked it to his belt.

"Would you promise?" Pooh asked.

"Promise." It was Sora who spoke, before Xion had a chance. Xion looked up at him and Pooh turned around. Sora placed his hand over the paw on Pooh's chest. "If there ever comes a day when we can't be together, keep us in your heart, we'll stay there forever."

Pooh closed his eyes, and as he did so Xion sighed. She stood up and held her hand out to Sora, who took it without a word but with a smile. As he dusted the snowflakes off his coat, he looked at her in the moonlight. "Thanks for today, Xion. I really needed it."

"Sure thing."

"You're leaving?" The two of them turned to see Pooh, who pushed himself up off the log as well.

"Yes… We really have to go," Sora said with regret.

But Pooh just smiled. "Well, I won't be sad, because you'll always be right here forever and ever." He patted his heart again. "Right, Sora and Xion?"

"Right. And all my friends are right here, too." Sora spread his fingers out over his own heart. "See ya." Xion walked beside her friend with a smile, and when he noticed her watching she quickly averted her gaze and felt a blush creeping up her cheeks. And as the two of them made their way down the snowy slope, they waved one last goodbye to Winnie the Pooh.

Wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way, in that enchanted place on top of the forest, a little bear will always be waiting.