A/N: This was originally going to be a one-shot birthday gift for the amazing Brid, but in writing this idea, I was inspired to do the rest of the series and since I was already late in finishing this one... I hope they don't mind belated presents. Also, just a note, the only things I know about Islam are what I've read on Wikipedia and snooped around about on the net, so I sincerely apologize if I insult someone! I truly don't mean to! Enjoy~!

Christmas Eve was never all that busy at Four Blues General, but Vivi Nefertari was sore and tired anyway. Pulling doubles like that, going from the Sunny to the hospital, really wore her down, though she couldn't complain. Chopper had been in right before she left. The teenager hadn't needed to be, but he wanted to make sure all of his favorite nurses—all of them—had something special for Christmas. She held up the tiny candy cane with a smile. It had been years since she could say she truly looked forward to the holidays, but now... with all of that behind them? A touch of color lit up her cheeks as she entered the apartment she still technically shared with her father. Tomorrow was going to be amazing!

"Papa, I'm home! Did you get the..."

Cobra's expression was hard, and she trailed off when she came up to the dining room table. Scattered around him were pages written in an elegant, all-too-familiar, script. Arabic, with traditional detailing around the edges. And she sighed heavily. Of course.

"There was a letter for you too." He tried to hide his discontent poorly, and hurried, as she moved to pick the thick envelope, to add, "You don't have to read it, if you don't want to. I know you get so worried..."

"It's fine, Papa." She reached up to pull her sky blue hair from its ponytail, and kissed him on the top of the head. "I will see what Grandpapa wants, and then I will see about dinner, yeah?"

"You are too good to me, Vivi. You do what you want, and then you go see that girly of yours. You work too hard!" Cobra chided.

She laughed, slitting the paper with a thumbnail. "Maybe it's because I love you."

Predictably the letter within was long-winded, and archaically written. Standard over-praising of Allah, and conservative drivel, and all of the closed-minded things that had chased the vibrant young woman from her family's faith long before she realized it wasn't about the things they tried to impress on her. Truly, she was saddened somewhat by the way it had been tainted in her childhood, because she thought maybe if she didn't have the memories of being forced into clothing she hated, and rituals that restricted her ability to think for herself, she probably could have come to embrace Islam the way her father did. But her grandfather's spin on it... it made her shudder to think about. And mentally, she apologized both to Allah and to her father for her inability to extract the bad from the good.

One paragraph in particular caught her attention, and she found herself sinking onto the couch cushions, vaguely nauseous, though unable to look away from it:

"Heathen daughter of my former son's loins, your soul be saved by Allah, praise be to Allah, it has been two summers since last we spoke of your blasphemy and it is high time you returned to the fold from whence you emerged blessed and breathing in Allah's Name, praise be to Allah. Your dowry has been destroyed and given to your intended blessed husband as penance for your profane ways. Return and seek to make amends for your discretions and you will still be accepted as a second wife, able to bear him many sons and lift his name again to the Heavens and Light of Allah, praise be to Allah. Your indecency shall be forgiven for all you have done as you are but a woman, and Allah is forgiving of those who sin, praise be to Allah."

It went on like that for several more lines, but Vivi's vision was blurry with rage. She crumpled the expensive paper and threw it violently across the room.

"Oh! Oh oh! I knew it would bring no good. Come here, baby girl, it's okay!" Cobra pulled her into his arms, tears in his own eyes at seeing how badly the letter hurt. "They have no power over you, or me, or even Kohza. Shhh."

"I hate them! I know I shouldn't, but I do! Papa! Why?! Why can I not forgive them!?"

"Because they are not forgivable by human hearts. They must answer for their sins the same as we all will. And Allah is wiser than all of His creations. They will learn, my girl, and you will never have to worry about them again." He held her close, letting her angry tears stain his shirt. "But! But but but!" He pulled back after moment, and tucked a finger under her chin, "Look see on the mantle! What else the postman brought today."

She turned, wiping her face, and gave a small exclamation, "Kohza!"

Her former fiancé, who was, at the moment, reclining on a beach in Aruba, had remained a friend to his childhood playmate and companion throughout the entire ugly mess two years ago. The envelope was plain compared to her grandfathers; just simple white paper decorated with a few holiday stickers in the corners. The letter inside was written on simple hotel stationery and included was a photograph of himself and Pell, leaning into each other and laughing, wearing nothing but board shorts. Both of them were sunburned cherry red.

His tone was equally different, light and warm as the sun from the picture. "Hey Vivi, look at us! Almost Christmas and here we are, a pair of roasting geese. Happy Holidays to you from Aruba! No those are not mojitos in our hands, they just LOOK like mojitos. Now, knowing you've probably got other things to do, I'm going to shamelessly take up your time by writing to you all the things we've done since we've gotten to this lovely piece of sand that turned us both into lobsters..."

He went on to tell her they'd tried to surf, and broken both boards while doing so—much to their embarrassment. They'd gone diving for clams and seen the reefs. A carnival distracted them from getting back to their hotel, and a bonfire on the beach kept them out all night long! Overall they were experiencing as much as they could get out of the island. He said that they missed her, Pell especially, because they thought she and Nami would just LOVE the heat and the swimming in the crystal-clear waters.

By the time she finished she was laughing hard enough that she had tears running down her face. The drama of her grandfather was not forgotten exactly, but she pushed aside to worry about later. She folded the letter carefully back into its envelope and stuck both it and the picture back on the mantle. Then she started towards the kitchen to make supper.

"Ah tah tah tah! No no. You go changed and get off to that girlfriend of yours." Cobra caught her by the shoulders and turned her towards her bedroom.

"But Papa..."

"Don't you but Papa me, you haven't had any alone time with her in almost a week, now git!" He bopped her on the behind to make her jump forward, and turned his back on the whole thing, humming a traditional carol under his breath and absolutely refusing to be swayed on the matter.

Which was how Vivi found herself strapped into a pair of ice skates, downtown in front of the city's Christmas tree, and under siege to cheer up and 'forget all that fuddy-duddy old-fashioned nonsense already!'

"C'mon, Vivi, it'll be fun!"

"I don't know about that."

But the blue-haired woman had very little choice in the matter as her girlfriend hauled her back up to her feet. Her hands clung to Nami's sleeves and her whole lower body shook, with absolutely no traction under her.

"I-I-I… N-Namiiiii!"

The redhead laughed and skated backwards, away from the bench, and out towards the middle of the rink. They started going a little faster, and Vivi screamed, lost her balance and brought them both down onto the ice in a tangle of scarves and frost.

"Oh! Oh oh! Are you okay?!" She was quick to push herself up onto her hands and knees, but Nami was simply laughing more.

"You're so uptight." Her brown eyes sparkled. "You need to relax."

"How can I relax when I feel like I'm going to fall!?"

"Everybody falls at first. C'mon." Nami slid to the side a little and climbed back to her feet, easily balancing on the ice.

Vivi wasn't so sure, clinging hard to her girlfriend's hands as she tried to maintain her upright position a second time. "Why are we doing this?"

"To have fun!"

"How is falling on the cold, hard, ice fun?"

"Because you're with me, and I'll make sure you don't fall." Vivi gave her a look, and Nami closed one eye in a rueful smile, "Okay, anymore. I'll make sure you don't fall. Anymore."

The taller woman didn't look convinced. So her girlfriend closed the distance between them, wrapping her strong arms around her waist, and reached up to peck her on the lips.

"Trust me, babe."

As always that phrase, from that mouth, with those eyes, and nnnnnngh! Vivi melted, "I do…"

"Great!" Nami pulled back, letting her go all but for her hands, and pushed off to get them moving again. "Don't worry, it's like riding a bicycle!"

"I can't do that either!"

"What?! No matter, we'll fix that come summer, but for now just know it's easier to stay up once you're moving. Just do what I do."

Vivi concentrated very hard on what Nami was doing with her feet, and just couldn't get it. Push and swish? Or swish then push? Or swish while pushing? Her confusion wrinkled her brow and not for the first time since winter had fallen did she regret no longer wearing her hijab. Out on the ice, with the wind blowing through her ponytail, and the snow in the air, she was freezing! That wasn't the reason she'd originally worn it, of course, but the difference between last year and this was marked! She hadn't realized how insulating it had been! The cold was making it harder to pay attention.

That seemed to work in her favor, however, because while she wasn't focused on what she was doing, she hadn't realized that she'd relaxed into Nami's grip. They were on their third lap around the rink when Vivi looked up at the passing evergreen tree and gasped.

"We're skating!"

"Yeah! You just noticed?" Nami laughed, spinning them a little, and drawing her girlfriend closer again.

Vivi wasn't ready for that move. Her original panic came back and the tension of her reaction threw them off again. This time though Nami controlled their fall so that all they did was land on a bench at the edge, rather than sprawled in the middle of the rink where they could have been in someone's way—like the first time.

She reached a gloved hand out to brush the powder blue bangs out of Vivi's face, and smiled. "How about some hot chocolate and chestnuts?"

"Ah, are you… um… I mean yeah, but you don't have to stop on my account!"

"Nah. It's not as much fun without you, and you look done."

The younger of the two blushed through her cold-rosy cheeks, "Is it bad if I agree with you?"

"Of course not! That's why I suggested it, silly!" Nami pulled her closer and gave her another kiss. "Now, c'mon, let's go get warm! Then maybe we can do a little shopping for your dad!"

Vivi laughed brightly, "Okay!"

About an hour later, the two flopped with their packages into one of the booths at Iggy & Terry's Diner. Being as it was Christmas Eve evening, there weren't many people left out and about, so the two girls didn't see any trouble with piling their bags of gifts into the booth behind Vivi before opening a menu to share.

"Oh, it's been so long since I've had Terry's soup! I have to have a cup of her chicken noodle!" Nami's eyes lit up as soon as she saw it.

Vivi laughed, "You should tell me these things. Papa comes here every day for lunch. He could bring you some."

"I don't wanna make work for your dad like that though. He's got enough stress as it is."

"Trust me, he's happier now. Politics and business and trading non-material things, bah! It made his head spin! Working with his hands, even if it's just sweeping the floor or hanging clothes on the racks, it makes him feel more accomplished. And the fact that he can help out Keimi makes it better."

"I never get over there either. It's a wonder I even had time to come out with you today! She's right next door every day and I never have the chance to go see her or Pappagu. I feel horrible about it." The redhead flopped her face onto her arms, her hair forming a halo around her on the table.

Her girlfriend rescued the menu and set it off to the side, "Well things should calm down a little now though, right? I mean the holidays will be over in another week, and then Luffy's big fight against Tea—"

"Don't say his name!" Nami's eyes flashed over the edge of her arms.

"Oops! Sorry! I know I know! I just don't have the same scruples about names that you do. He's a rotten stinking mean person, but he's still just a man." Vivi shrugged.

Before Nami could launch into her well-rehearsed spiel about him, Igaram appeared at their table with two glasses of water and a pot of coffee with the mugs hooked on the spout. He cleared his throat before speaking, "Ma-ma-ma, my it's good to see you, Miss Vivi, Miss Nami, and on such a busy busy day."

"Igaram!" Vivi beamed up at him, "Merry holidays!"

"And the same to you. Terry has—" his voice garbled, so he cleared it again, "Ma-ma-ma~! Terry has something special for you both. She was going to send it home with your father when he stopped in earlier, but he said he suspected you would be dropping by, and here you are."

"Oh?" Nami, ever on the look out for a deal even from friends and family, perked up at the thought of free food.

Her girlfriend laughed behind her hand because it really was a little contradictory considering how much they'd just spent on gifts for the others, but at the same time, she found it adorable. Nobody could pinch a penny the way Nami could. She had a magic with numbers.

"Start on your coffee and I'll—ma-ma-ma—I'll get it for you." Igaram beamed at them both, taking joy in their happiness with a secret sort of air that had both young women watching him curiously as he made his way back to the kitchen.

Through the service window they could see into where Terracota, Terry for short, was cooking up a storm, her bouncy curls pulled back into a high tail that nearly rivaled Vivi's. She seemed quite busy with whatever their special treat was, and the Egyptian woman grew contemplative over her coffee mug. To an outsider it would appear as though she was merely watching the cook, but to her partner, she was obviously distracted.

"You're thinking about the letter again." Nami said with a definitive sniff that made Vivi blush. "Hmph. Old fuddy-duddies don't know what they're missing by cutting you out like this."

"It's not that. I just…"

"Just what?" She reached over to take her slender fingers between her own and gave them a small squeeze.

Vivi set her coffee down and sighed slightly, "It didn't really hit me until today, but I'm all disconnected. You convinced me to strike out on my own, and don't get me wrong, I love it! Dying my hair, wearing whatever I want without having to worry about people staring at me, the piercings..." She blushed deeper, biting her lip when Nami sniggered. "And… I feel horrid saying this… like I'm betraying something… but I was happy… not fasting for Ramadan."

"But?"

"But… am I losing myself? While trying to find myself?" Her brows folded together. "I just worry about what Papa is thinking. He never says anything against what I'm doing, and has always been supportive when I come to him about it, but… I feel a bit as though I'm turning my back on my culture."

Nami merely nodded, still holding her hand and sipping at her own coffee.

"I don't want to lose everything just because I am embracing new things. Coming here, meeting you, spreading my wings for the first time, and just... everything! It's all been so amazing! I just… I'm scared."

The redhead gave a nod, and inhaled, contemplating her words for a moment. "Well… what about the best of both worlds? I… still don't know how the he-jab business works, so you'll have to decide all of that on your own, but maybe this Ramadan you could give up some things, but not everything? Or maybe you could wear some other symbol of your religion and heritage without going full veils and scarves that I cannot begin to pronounce the names of. Wow… I sound so insensitive…" Nami ducked her head, blushing nervously. "Maybe… I could be your project? You teach me about the things that you grew up with, and maybe in doing that you'll learn what you want to embrace and what you want to throw away. Yeah?"

Vivi laughed, squeezing her girlfriend's hand. "Yeah. Let's start with the name. It's hijab, not he-jab."

"Hijab?"

"Close." The blunette nodded still chuckling as Igaram and Terry both came up to the table.

"We thought you might be a little homesick this year, since you didn't come to the feast with your father in October." Terry set the plates down in front of the girls, piled high with roasted meat kebabs nestled on a bed of rice and grilled vegetables.

Igaram stepped in behind her with a bowl of hummus and pita chips, and a salad of feta cheese and tomatoes with olive oil and garlic for flavor. He topped off their coffee pot with his other hand, and Terry completed the spread with crepes that smelled faintly of sweet cheese.

"Terry, are those Qatayef?!" Vivi looked back and forth between the food and the woman who had been one of the first people to welcome them to Four Blues City. "And lamb?! You shouldn't have!" She had tears in the corners of her eyes, "And pilaf… Terry…"

The big woman just bent down and hugged her hard, "You're just about as close to a daughter as I have, huny, and since we missed your holidays…"

"I hope it's okay." Igaram didn't even try to clear his throat that time.

"Yes! Yes! A million times yes! Thank you!" Vivi was actually crying by then as she jumped out of the booth to hug them both more easily.

Terry rubbed her back, "Did we get it right? I wasn't sure on which food went with which holiday."

"It doesn't matter. Not right now. Just the fact that you guys tried means more than I can say. Did you give some to Papa? Neither of us cooks well enough to make it at home, and he hasn't had good hummus in months!" Vivi looked between the two of them, wiping her cheeks.

Nami laughed, "I'm sure they did, now c'mon, you're letting it get cold!"

"Okay, okay!" The taller of the two slid back into her place in the booth, still grinning like crazy. "Lemme just…"

The three of them nodded, Terry and Igaram joining them at the table since the shop was slow, and she folded her hands for a short prayer that she hadn't used in months. Finally, she felt like she was allowed to do so again, without either feeling constrained by her conservative family's views, or like she was faking it.

As soon as she was done, she grinned up at them, "Let's eat!"