(Woah, I totally forgot that last sentence was there! That was supposed to be included in this chapter, not the first one. I'm incredibly unorganised! Heh, must be because I'm stressing over the exam week that starts tomorrow. Sorry 'bout that. Anyways, enjoy the next chapter).

The next day, the group were wrapped up warm in multiple layers, coats, woolly hats, gloves, scarves and thick boots. It was a cold morning that even Kurogane was rubbing his gloves together and breathing on them as if his warm breath would get to his hands through the wool. Sakura was wearing many thick layers and more than one glove on her hands. And yet, Syaoran kept asking if Sakura was warm enough to walk outside all day.

"I'm fine, Syaoran-kun," she repeated with a kind smile, "but will you be warm enough? You've barely got anything on."

She worried for Syaoran's health most of the time, especially since it seemed like he was accustomed to throwing himself in all kinds of danger. And she was confused as to why every time he did so; he did it to protect her. She admitted that she couldn't fend for herself every time they faced a dangerous situation since she'd no strength or ability to fight but she wanted to do the best she could. She sighed to herself whenever she felt like she was being such a burden and that she couldn't do anything. It was the most horrible feeling she felt on the journey, and she felt it most of the time. And so, why does Syaoran do this all for her? Is there any way to thank him?

Sakura clenched her fists at the thought of buying the perfect gift for Syaoran. She'd be able to thank him with something materialistic but it had to be something to represent her gratitude for all he has done for her. But what could she get him? What is there in this country that she could get him?

After Syaoran assured her that he was fine and that had didn't feel cold at all, they ventured out the house and into the icy air of the winter. Fai turned to Sakura and Syaoran and told them that they should go the shops and get whatever they needed for Christmas.

"I'll come with you and Kurogane, Fai! Kurogane needs some cheerleaders as he chops down that big tree for our Christmas tree!" Mokona said in a matter-of-fact tone as she leaped on to Fai's shoulder. Suddenly, and almost immediately, Mokona dodged Kurogane's hard fist with speed when Kurogane attempted to grab the 'annoying white manjuu'.

"Shut up! I don't need you two yelling at me during!"

Syaoran and Sakura entered the town shopping centre and saw the feather still shining brightly even in the light of the morning. They looked up for at least five minutes; the older men from the day before were right, they felt a strange happiness within them as they saw the feather representing itself as the North Star. Then they understood why the older men definitely did not want Syaoran to take it.

"Syaoran-kun." Sakura called, a little quieter than usual.

"Yes, princess?"

"Um..."

Say it, Sakura, Sakura's thoughts told her sharply, ask him what he'd like for Christmas.

No, wait, Sakura thoughts suddenly changed, that's not what you're supposed to do at Christmas. You should already know what to get him. Besides, Mokona said that you can't show the person their present until they unwrap it on Christmas day.

But how are you supposed to know what he wants? Do you even know what he likes?

"What do you think we should get Fai and Kurogane?" She asked him.

Her thoughts had suddenly depressed her. It's true that she didn't know Syaoran all that well, and so giving him a gift would difficult. And so she decided to ask the others later when Syaoran isn't around.

As for the question she had resorted to, Syaoran folded his arms and puzzled.

"Hm, I'm not sure of that, princess." He said truthfully, "Perhaps we should have a look around the shops to see if there is anything they'd like."

Sakura nodded, a little happier now, "Yes, good idea!"

As they went in and out of shops, and having a good browse around the racks and stalls, they had managed to buy decorations for the house they'd rented. They'd bought holly to hang on the door, a wreath with a ribbon, wrapping paper, baubles, a plastic star and crystal tinsel for the Christmas tree and lastly, Christmas lights for the house.

Upon one shop, they came across something that hung under the 'love' section in a card shop. It was held up with red ribbon, the leaves had long stalks and there were small white buds here and there. It looked very cute.

"I wonder what that is for." Sakura said to Syaoran when they both had spotted it hanging above them. He had found another pair in a shop next door and they both agreed to buy it so they could ask Mokona what it was later.

oOoOo

Meanwhile, in a snow covered forest, Kurogane, Fai and Mokona had approached a large looking tree that would fit perfectly in their front room. Fai and Mokona stood back and expected Kurogane to start cutting it down at any minute. But they had found Kurogane just standing there and continue stare at the tree.

Fai and Mokona looked onward incredulously, "Isn't Kurogane going to start chopping?" Mokona wondered.

"I would," Kurogane started, then the sound of a vein popping suddenly filled Fai and Mokona's ears, "But I haven't got anything in my hands that would be suitable to chop down a tree! Wouldn't you agree!?" he yelled loudly to Mokona who took this slightly by surprise. Yet she straightened her plump little figure in Fai's arms while he continued to laugh out loud. Mokona tilted her head to the side with a grin simple-mindedly.

"Oh yeah." She said calmly.

"Hurry up and pass me my sword, manjuu!!"

Mokona opened her mouth wide; in fact her mouth was so wide that it filled the whole of her cute little body, and out slid Kurogane's sword.

"Where the Hell does this thing go when it's swallowed?" Kurogane mumbled grumpily and took the sword firmly by the hand. He swished the sword around fast so that the cover flew off to the side somewhere. He positioned himself into a familiar battle stance.

"Woo, Kurogane's getting all serious!" Mokona yelled happily from Fai's arms.

"Hyuu!! You can do it, Kuro-tango!"

"Kuro-tango! Hyuu!"

Kurogane was almost shaking with annoyance, "Don't you dare start with this 'hyuu' business!"

Kurogane felt a great power within him coarse through his body and rush into the blade of his sword. It began to glow quickly and the phrase that Kurogane was most familiar with overthrown the two voices that was cheering behind him.

"Hama... Ryuujin!"

He swiped his sword across the air and the sharp beam from his sword cut straight through the trunk of the tree as easy as a knife cuts through butter.

"Yay! Kurogane did it!"

"Hurray for Kuro-rin! Hyuu! Hyuu!"

"Hyuu!"

"Shut the Hell up!" Kurogane yelled back and grabbed the end of the trunk with an iron grip. "Aren't you going to help, mage?"

Fai tilted his head to the side, just as Mokona did earlier, and his grin curled up at the sides almost like a Cheshire cat. "Hm?"

"What? Are you going to let me do all the work here!?"

"But Kuro-rin is so strong; he wouldn't need my help at all." Fai complimented and winked his way. Kurogane huffed but gave up. If he didn't help at all in Chun'yan's world with the broken roof, he sure as Hell won't help in this world.

But Fai surprised him when he all of a sudden picked up the middle of the tree and held it above his head. When Kurogane tried to see Fai, just to see what he was really playing at, thick layers of leaves completely covered his view. Kurogane huffed again, but let it be and carried on walking.

Fai's expression was almost morbid. His true intentions were so that he wouldn't get too involved with Kurogane and the others. But Fai didn't like to see the others get hurt in any way. He's kept it up for this long to not get involved but it had affected him in another way. They had become a close part of him.

Although he would have liked to tease Kurogane the whole way home, he realised that he would be crossing the line. He thought to himself, and the same old thought occurred to him over and over; when I give the others Christmas gifts, we'll become closer. And that is something I definitely want to avoid.

oOoOo

Sakura and Syaoran walked into a shop called Blockbusters which sold CDs in different decorated cases. They watched someone from behind the counter demonstrate with a television of how to place a CD in and out a slot in the TV and showed the onlookers about how to play it. Syaoran and Sakura remembered seeing these televisions in Hanshin Republic and Piffle country.

Sakura had curiously picked one up and the cover had a couple in a locked embrace sharing a passionate kiss. Behind the picture was a strange text that Sakura couldn't quite make out.

"Syaoran-kun, do you know what this says?" Sakura called to him and pointed to the text.

"The wording resembles the language from the country of Jade. I think it says 'Mo-uh-lin Ro-uh-geh."

"I think you mean Moulin Rouge, my friend." The woman from behind the counter said with a welcoming smile, "It's my favourite. It's about a man who falls in love with a prostitute. It's all very sweet but then there is this Duke, right, who also falls in love with her and the plot is mainly based around the love triangle. It's so thrilling! And it's a musical too, so expect the actors to spontaneously break into song and dance."

"That sounds great." Sakura said and gazed at the little pictures of frozen scenes on the back of the case.

"But there is a very sad ending, so I warn you, it's a tear jerker." The woman said cautiously. She had worked there long enough to know who likes what kind of movies. Even those of who are foreigners. She knew that if Sakura had watched it, she would end up with tears in her eyes.

"Do you think Moko-chan would like this?" Sakura asked Syaoran. He shrugged and answered honestly,

"I'm not sure, but let's hope."

oOoOo

"I think it's stuck, Kuro-pon!" Fai called from inside the house. On the outside, Kurogane was furiously attempting to shove the large tree through the front door which had, unfortunately, got wedged between the frames.

"It's not stuck; you're just not pulling hard enough!" He argued with his nostrils flaring and his body had literally clasped on the trunk. Mokona bounced merrily beside him with a happy grin and sang 'Kurogane's nose looks like two train tunnels' in soprano.

"Or maybe you're not as strong as I thought, Kuro-pon!" Fai called back with laughter.

"What was that, you useless mage!"

"Now, now, Kuro-pan, I helped you carry the tree down here, what I should be hearing from you is thank you!"

Kurogane yelled something back, but I'm afraid it is so vile, so graphic, that even I don't have the strength to type something so crude...

Kurogane heard Fai sniff. "Kuro-pyon, that is so mean!"

"Don't you dare pretend to cry, now pull!"

And so Fai did, with all of the strength he could muster, and Kurogane teamed up by pushing with the same force. That was until the frames of the door cracked and left a large dent in the side of the house.

"Kurogane, Fai, stop!" Mokona yelled in alarm, "If you push any more, than we'll have to pay more for the damage we'll cause to the house!"

The cute little... thing... was right, and neither of them could deny it. Against their best efforts, they simply couldn't bring the tree into the house.

"Can't we just leave it outside?" Kurogane asked Mokona and she denied his request whole-heartedly.

"It's tradition that Santa leaves the presents under the tree in the house."

"But if we can't get it through the door, we sure as Hell can't get it through anything else in this house!" Kurogane yelled in frustration at Mokona, who had pushed her long ears against her body.

"Waah! Kuro-pyon's loud voice hurts my ears!"

"They're so big, a cockroaches shuffle could be heard from miles away!!"

"Well," Fai's voice sounded from inside calmly and interrupted them, "we could probably fit it through the back door."

Mokona and Kurogane turned to the plugged door incredulously, as if Fai was there instead staring back at them innocently.

"There's a back door!?" Kurogane yelled.

"It slides so it must be much bigger!" Fai said, in a matter-of-fact tone.

Kurogane could feel his anger building within him, and since he had Mokona in his hand, Mokona eye's almost bulged from feeling the enormous amount of annoyance that was just about to burst free.

Well, that was until Fai had suddenly pushed the tree hard out of the doorway and so the trunk hit him hard in the face.

BASH!

Kurogane fell down.

"Kuro-pyon!" Fai gasped when he saw Kurogane lying face first in the snow with stars flying above his head. Mokona and Fai leant over him, glanced at each other, backed away, and left him there so he could cool off for a while.

oOoOo

Sakura tapped her finger on her lips while trying to think of what Fai and Kurogane would like for Christmas.

Fai is the sort of person who likes... cooking? Would he like something home-baked in return? She could buy ingredients and then she could make something while Fai isn't looking.

And what about Kurogane? He likes... fighting! She was sure of that. But he already had a sword that he likes so a new one wouldn't be any good. Does he like anything other than fighting? Oh, I remember he likes delicious things! She remembered that he enjoyed eating that sushi they had... uh, not paid for some worlds ago. Fai doesn't like sushi, so she'd better get different ingredients.

Syaoran likes... Syaoran likes... Syaoran likes...

She spied him looking at stockings that are meant to be hung on the fireplace. They remembered Mokona telling them that Santa also placed presents in your stockings but couldn't remember why. But Sakura could remember the way Syaoran looked when Mokona told him about Christmas and its origins.

That's it! Syaoran likes architecture and history! Sakura punched her palm when she finally realised something that she could've figured out earlier! Then her spirits sunk. She didn't know what sort of things in this country that he'd like or even consider as architecture or even history. She'd expect historical items to be pretty expensive in this kind of town.

Syaoran had already bought the others gifts and she wasn't quite sure if he had bought her anything yet. She felt her cheeks flush unnecessarily at the thought of receiving a gift from Syaoran on Christmas day. And she'd feel absolutely horrid if he had bought her something and she had nothing to return. But that wasn't it either. She wanted to have him a gift and she wouldn't mind if he had got her one or not since he's already done enough for her.

"Princess Sakura?" Syaoran asked as he spied Sakura looking frustrated and rather unnerved. But when she swung around to Syaoran, she saw how concerned he was for her.

"Y-yes, Syaoran-kun?" She asked him a shaky voice because she felt she was on the verge of tears.

"Are you alright?" He asked, beginning to worry a lot more now that he saw how her eyes glistened from tears threatening to fall.

"I'm fine, really," she said and turned the other way to cough, "I'm just cold, that's all." She lied.

"Do you want my jacket?" She declined but had already seen him shrugging out of it. Before he had time to take it off completely, she stopped him by suddenly placing a hand over his arm and locking her gaze into his.

"No, I'm fine, I don't want you to be cold either."

Then suddenly, it hit her!

She had seen the black sleeveless polo neck top underneath his jacket and noted that it had become slightly tattered mostly because of all the fights and mess they've ended up in throughout each country. He could really use with a new one!

Syaoran was surprised and incredibly embarrassed when he realised that Sakura still had a hand over his arm and the fact that she was grinning at his chest. Then, all of a sudden, her head snapped up and shot him one of her famous bright smiles that was as warm as the sunshine in spring.

"I'm just fine now, please keep warm!" She said happily and patted his arm before turning around on her heels and almost bouncing with each step as she walked out of the shop.

Although Syaoran was more than happy to have helped Sakura cheer up, he just wished he knew what he did to help her.

Next chapter: Mokona, Sakura and Syaoran help out with the decorations at home while Kurogane and Fai... attempt... to buy their presents and explore the wonders of Christmas. (Yeah, Kurogane still doesn't trust that fat guy!)

Wish me luck with my exams! Thanks for reading~ !