A/N: Hello to thee. Well, here we are into another chapter of Christmas in the Castle. Now, I have to forewarn you that the concept for this chapter actually goes with another part of one of my stories entitled 'Mistletoe Mischief' if you want to check it out…but it is my dedication to Christmastime smut, just so you know.

I wanted to keep this story mellower and pretty much just fluff, because I must admit that as much as I'm a sucker for reading smut…I'm more of a fluff fan myself. A party with close friends and family is always one of the best ways to spend the holidays! My coven and I have a big Yule party and exchange handmade gifts every year while we have a big dinner and play games.

Disclaimer: I own nothing…except the idea for the story. But none of the fun characters from Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy belong to me.

Chapter 12: 'Twas the Night

Organization XIII & Friends

"Put that tray on this table" Namine conducted as she watched members move from the kitchen to the dining area with platters and trays filled with food. Everyone was dressed in a festive manner and traditional Christmas songs played soft throughout the room.

"Fire is hot and toasty" Axel said coming into the room and rubbing his hands together "There's a few large logs in the fireplace, so it should burn warm all night"

Namine smiled her thank you as she pointed to the spot on the table that Zexion should set the basket of rolls. Xion, Demyx and Roxas were heading for one of the side tables reserved for desserts, each holding something sweet in both hands.

"I think if we have left-over pies we should let Cloud and Tifa take them home for the children" Xion said placing a warm apple pie onto the table.

"But…but, we can keep a couple of them, right?" Demyx asked setting a cheesecake and chocolate torte down with a questioning look on his face.

Xion couldn't help but chuckle as she placed a hand on Demyx's shoulder "Don't worry Dem, I hid a few in the refrigerator in the basement for you already"

Demyx smiled wide a Xion as the light from the chandelier and candles caught the glitter in her red bow she had placed in her hair. It matched the dark red velvet dress she was wearing. Demyx thought that with the sparkle from her outfit and makeup she resembled and very cute elf.

"Thanks Xion" he said with a smile

"Though the idea of not having enough sweets is crazy" Roxas said placing a large tray of cookies and one of fudge on the table "What'd you girls make like 20 pies and 500 cookies!?" he asked with a laugh.

"Not quite, but I lost count" Xion said as she shrugged her shoulders. She grabbed each of the boy's hands and began to pull them back towards the kitchen. "C'mon, it's almost time for everyone to get here! Let's hurry up and get the rest!"

"You mean there's more?" Axel asked walking up to the table and grabbing a piece of peanut butter fudge. Before he could put the piece in his mouth Roxas grabbed one of his hands and yanked him towards him.

"Help us bring the rest out" the blonde yelled as he was pulled along by Xion

"Whoa!" Axel had just enough time to drop the piece of fudge back onto the tray before turning his body and following the other three through the busy room.

"What's our time frame?" Namine yelled across one of the tables towards Luxord

"10 minutes" Luxord shouted back to her.

Namine huffed in slight panic and ran her hands down the sides of her long white dress. It had silver snowflakes around the hem and neckline that matched the headband shimmering in her braided hair.

"Relax Nam"

She turned when she felt a hand touch her shoulder gently. It was Xemnas wearing a soft smile that matched the dark blue of his tailored suit. "You did a great job"

"Thank you Xemnas" she said smiling back at him.

"Hey you guys, there's a couple of car's coming up the drive" Marluxia shouted over the crowd. His light red suit bore a close resemblance on being on the border of light pink, and he had pinned a small poinsettia to the front of his chest. But somehow, this color looked good on Marluxia.

"They're here! They're here!" Xion squealed and began to run from the room and towards the front doors.

"I'll come and greet them with you" Demyx yelled "C'mon Zexy!" he grabbed hold of Zexion's hand and pulled him along with him.

"What is it with all the pulling around lately?" Axel asked Roxas as he placed the last of the desserts on the table.

Roxas shrugged his shoulders and grinned "'Cause it's fun" he stood up on his toes and pecked Axel quick on the cheek before lacing his fingers with the redheads. "Now, let's go and see who's here"

~xoxoxoxoxoxox~

Xion had reached the front doors first and was already pulling them open when the rest entered the room.

"Merry Christmas Eve everyone!" she shouted with a smile

Aerith, Yuna, Rikku and Yuffie all quickly ran into the warmth of the house. Their hair or hats sprinkled light with a dusting of fresh snow.

"Merry Christmas Eve" Aerith said with a smile as she stomped her boots off and moved to give Xion a hug.

As the rest of the girls moved into the Castle, Leon and Rinoa came in followed by Tifa, Cloud and someone that they didn't recognize. Xion was about to close the doors, when she saw three more people running up the steps in the falling snow. She could tell by the pink hair that it was Vanille, Serah and Lightning.

"Merry Christmas guys" Tifa said stomping her boots and pulling the zipper down the front of her black coat.

Xion waited for the girls to come in before shutting the doors and directing everyone to where to hang their coats.

"We're not too early, are we?" Rikku asked flattening out the creases in her yellow party dress.

"No, actually you're right on time" Demyx said with a smile.

They waited for everyone to hang their coats up before starting to head back towards the dining hall.

"So" Xion asked Cloud with a wide grin "Cloud, who's your friend?"

"Oh!" Cloud said with a slight gasp "I almost forgot that you guys hadn't met yet. This is Zack Fair" Cloud said placing his hand on the shoulder of the raven haired man walking next to him.

Xion held a hand out "It's nice to meet you Zack" she smiled at him

"Nice to meet you too…?" Zack paused for a name

"Oh, I'm Xion" she said with a giggle. "I can introduce you to the rest of the house"

"I'd like that" Zack nodded with a smile but was a little shocked when Xion grabbed one of his hands and began to pull him forward.

Axel and Roxas were walking hand-in-hand when they felt the rush of movement next to them. Axel pointed with a smile "See, more pulling. And now she's doing it to strangers" They both laughed and walked into the dining room.

Upon entering the large decorated room, all the guests were in awe.

"You've really outdone yourselves this year guys" Yuffie said looking around. Her red and white striped headband resembled a candy cane and matched the pattern around her mini skirt and tank top.

"Thank you"

Namine appeared next to the small group of girls wearing a huge relieved smile as she began to greet them all with hugs. As the greetings and small introductions went around the room, Xemnas made his way to the front of one of the long tables decorated in fine linens and had an elegant place setting.

He held a glass champagne flute in one hand and picked up a silver butter knife with the other.

"Attention everyone" he tapped the side of his glass lightly and waited for the room to go silent. Once he had all eyes focused on him he smiled warmly around the room letting his golden eyes linger for a long moment on Saix.

"On behalf of everyone, I'd like to welcome all of our guests to our home and this year's annual holiday event" he watched as all faces turned to smiles and they nodded their heads in thanks. "If you'd please take a seat we can start the festivities"

As everyone made the decision of where they wanted to sit or who they wanted to sit with, Namine stood at the front of one of the tables and announced that they could start coming up and filling their plates. Somehow, she always found herself able to take charge of large events. It seemed a little stressful during the planning, but at the end of the night she was always proud of herself.

She stood off to the side and watched as everyone began to grab their plates and make their way to all their various stations. Xaldin was standing at one of the tables wearing a festive apron and chef hand while craving up the turkeys and ham. Everything was going as planned and Namine was smiling at the great outcome. She felt someone bump her side their hip. She turned to see Larxene handing her a plate.

"Great job Namine, but get yourself something to eat and relax a little" the blonde smiled at her

Namine nodded once and took the plate from Larxene "Thanks" she said and began to make her way around the tables.

"This is like a fancy restaurant!" Yuna said enthusiastically

"But the food is way better" Aerith said with a smile.

After everyone had made their plates and settled down at their chosen spots, the sounds of laughter and light conversations intertwined with the Christmas music. They shared stories of what they'd been doing for the holiday and some talked about their plans for the coming year. While sharing ideas of what they thought was to come, the children were brought up.

"Oh yeah Tifa, so where are the children tonight?" Xaldin asked across from where he sat.

"At home with Barret and Vincent" she said with a smile as she reached for her champagne flute.

"Vincent?" Xigbar asked a little shocked "As in Vincent Valentine?"

Tifa nodded her head once "Yeah. He's really great with the kids and Barret wanted to spend some time with Marlene" Tifa knew that even though Barret had a few days off for the holiday, he would be back to work looking oil wells all-too-soon and have to leave little Marlene again. It was always tough on him.

As the evening continued all the guests ate and conversed to the point where they were stuffed.

"Oh, I couldn't eat another bite" Zexion sighed placing his hand over his full stomach.

"How about some punch?"

The slate haired youth looked over his shoulder to see Luxord standing beside him and holding out a small clear glass filled with a red liquid.

Zexion shook his head and held up a hand "No, thanks. There is absolutely no more room in my stomach"

"I'll take it" Demyx smiled and held his hand out waiting for the glass. Luxord nodded with a smile as he handed the glass to him.

"Thank you" Demyx grinned

As Zexion watched Demyx raise the glass to his lips a slight panic overtook his mind

"Wait Demyx!" he said rather loudly and placed his hand on the cup

"What!?" Demyx gasped "What is it Zex?" he asked looking a little confused

Zexion turned his attention to the tall blonde still standing beside the table "You didn't spike the punch again this year, did you Luxord?" he asked

"What, me?" Luxord placed a hand on his chest and pretended to be shocked. "Of course not!"

Still not entirely sure, Zexion reached for the glass in Demyx's hand and tipped it slightly towards his face to inhale the liquid. It didn't smell like there was any sort of alcohol in it.

"Do you wanna taste it first?" Demyx asked holding the glass a little closer to Zexion's face.

"Um, no. I trust Luxord" Zexion sighed and sat back in his chair. "This time"

He watched as Demyx took a large swig from the glass before smacking his lips together with a smile.

"Yum, tastes like Namine's holiday special" Demyx grinned at Zexion.

"You can relax Zexion, I promise I didn't spike the punch with anything this year" Luxord smiled and began to walk away from them "Now, the egg nog on the other hand…" he chuckled under his breath.

The dishes were cleared with a few desserts left out for munching and small groups had formed around tables. Either playing some sort of card game or just converting while sipping drinks. The large clock in the main room began to bong loudly, and after the eleventh rang out Tifa stood up and made the announcement that it was getting late and she should probably be going home.

"The kids will be awake super early to open gifts, so I wanna be able to at least get a couple hours of sleep" she spoke to Xemnas and Saix as she pushed her chair in.

"Oh, it looks like we're heading out" Cloud said as he watched Tifa stand and start to hug everyone. He placed his glass on the table and waited for Zack to stand.

"It was nice meeting you Zack" Roxas said with a smile

"Yeah. Thanks for having me" Zack nodded as he shook everyone's hands.

Serah, Vanille and Lightning all began to stand as they decided it was best they were headed out too.

"Hope is coming over for Christmas morning!" Vanille said with a smile "I haven't seen him since summertime"

They made their way around and hugged everyone watching as Leon and Rinoa made the motion to do the same.

"Well" Yuffie said placing her cards on the table and stretching while she stood up "I guess that's the sign to head out"

Goodbyes and Christmas wishes were exchanged between everyone as they made their way to the front of the house and put their coats back on. Xemnas and Saix waited by the doors to see all of their guests out safely and once the lights disappeared from the dark driveway, they joined hands and headed back to the dining room.

"Great party tonight everyone" Xemnas smiled as he entered the room.

"The best yet!" Axel said a little too loud and held up a glass. Clearly, he had been enjoying the nog.

"What'd ya say we call it a night?" Saix leaned over and whispered close to his ear.

Xemnas turned with a smile and watched the slight gleam in Saix's eye. His mind went to the comforts of his bed and being able to change into some warm pajamas. Perhaps a little Christmas Eve cuddling? He nodded once and let the room know that they were retiring and would see everyone the next morning.

Demyx stretched his arms up and yawned widely. "I think I'm gonna go to bed too" he held his hand out towards Zexion "Walk me to my room?" Demyx asked with a smile

"Wouldn't have it any other way" Zexion smiled back at him

They told everyone good night and headed up the stairs.

Marluxia and Vexen were the next pair to leave. Followed by Xigbar and Xaldin. Lexaeus and Larxene hung around for a bit longer to help make sure everything was put away, before they moved to snuggle in front of the crackling fire for a bit. Axel was getting a little giggly and Roxas decided that it was time for him to go to bed. He led the redhead up the stairs and made sure he made it into his bedroom before yawning and heading to his own room.

Xion still seemed to have a little energy and danced around the room to the music as they made sure everything was ready for the morning. "I think I'm gonna go watch another Christmas movie" she turned to Namine and said "I'll see you in the morning, Christmas morning!" she hollered as she skipped to the steps.

As Namine did one last sweep of the rooms and decided that everything was in order, she yawned wide and waved to Luxord before heading upstairs.

Luxord had decided that he wasn't tired in the least, but seeing as how everyone else was going to bed he would have to find a way to entertain himself. He thought for a moment before he made a quick stop in the kitchen to grab another half-gallon of egg nog and head to one of the back rooms of the Castle. There he could enjoy a few drinks and maybe watch a movie or listen to music.

All fell quiet in the Castle when the clock chimed midnight. An official sign of Christmas morning. But all the tenets of the home were sleeping…or so it seemed at first.