6th Day of Christmas
Theme: Return to sender
Coming back to Nihon after so many years should have been a bit of a shock, but nothing and no one had changed, except that someone had decided to introduce Christmas to Tomoyo.
During the time they'd spent searching for Sakura's feathers, the group had been exposed to Christmas. Fai had done some conversions when they'd arrive in Nihon, happily announced that it was, in fact, that time of the year, and proceeded to share every single tradition with Tomoyo.
The holiday spirit had thoroughly, though unsurprisingly, infected Tomoyo.
The halls were royally decked - he wasn't sure that there were any evergreen trees left on the palace grounds - and snippets of carols could be heard echoing from the adjacent room where Syaoran and Mokona were putting the finishing touches on the obligatory Christmas tree. He'd lost track of Fai and Tomoyo in the scramble to bring the tree in, but he did not want to even begin to speculate on what they were getting up to.
Speak of the devil. Tomoyo glided back into the room, having changed into robes that were almost completely red with gold embroidered flowers down the wide skirt. She looked disgustingly festive for someone who had only learned of the holiday hours earlier.
No words could describe the relief that washed over him when Fai reappeared on her heels in a traditional yukata, as opposed to the furisode that Tomoyo had stuffed him into on their last visit. The relief was short lived.
Tomoyo cut across the room towards him, exposing the rest of Fai's outfit.
Besides the obi, he had a wide red ribbon tied into a bow around his upper torso.
He growled, "What?" at Tomoyo.
"He's gift wrapped." Tomoyo covered a knowing smile with a hand. "I couldn't think of a better present for you."
Fai waived, grinning broadly, and trotted over. "Merry Christmas, Kuro-tan!"
He reached for the ribbon, intending to yank it off.
"I wouldn't." Tomoyo warned. She stood on her tiptoes and leaned into his side. "Not here, at least. The only thing holding that yukata together is that ribbon."
Kurogane choked. His hand dropped back to his side instantly.
"Merry Christmas!" Tomoyo called over her shoulder as she hustled off to help Syaoran and Mokona. "Enjoy your present, Kurogane."
From the blank expression on Fai's face, he was as clueless about what he was wearing as he had been before.
Somewhere deep under the frustration at Tomoyo barging into his private life, he felt a swell of anticipation. Introducing Fai to the unique features of his outfit was going to be...entertaining.