Christmas never held much significance for Mira. Perhaps when she was a child and her mother was still alive, the holiday was something she looked forward to, but it had been a long time since those carefree days. Once she'd gone to live with her master, the holiday largely went unacknowledged, other than having a day off from training. Even in the Land of Departure, Eraqus never made a big deal of it; they ate a nice meal together and had a free day. It was quiet. Simple.

Which is why, when Mira stepped into the common room on Christmas morning, she was taken aback by the flurry of activity. Ansem and all his apprentices were gathered, separating gifts – gifts that had not been under the tree the night before – by recipient and piling them beside each person's designated seat. Ienzo had the most, by far. The pile was almost as tall as he was. Mira froze in the doorway, torn between running back to her room and braving the storm of festivity. In the end, the decision was made for her when Braig spotted her and waved her over. Sighing, Mira steeled her resolve and threw herself into the thick of it.

"Merry Christmas, Princess. Sleep well?" There wasn't a trace of the heaviness from their conversation the night before, only amusement and a smirk.

She shrugged. "More or less. No hangover?"

"As if – I know my limits, unlike those fools," he said, gesturing to the dark circles hanging below Even's eyes and Dilan surreptitiously pouring something from a flask into his coffee cup. Surprisingly, or perhaps unsurprisingly given that he was such a big guy, Aeleus was unaffected by the consequences of the previous night and was engaged in helping Ienzo build a fort with his gifts. "C'mon," Braig interrupted, "Your presents are over here."

Her eyes widened. "Presents...? But I didn't-"

"Ansem just wanted to make sure you felt welcome, so don't worry," he murmured, kissing the top of her head. "We don't usually get each other much except gag gifts." He brought her to a seat on the couch with a modest pile of gifts and a pouch on top. Similar pouches sat atop the other apprentices' presents as well. Braig sat to her right.

Ansem cleared his throat. "Merry Christmas my dear apprentices, if everyone could take their seats, we'll get started." Dilan shuffled towards them, flopping on the couch on Braig's other side. Even sat in a chair to her left. Xehanort, Aeleus, Ienzo, and Ansem were across from them. "Before we dive into our gifts, I'd like to say a few words-"

"Not so loud," Dilan groaned, and Ansem shot him a look.

"I'm speaking no louder than normal, Dilan. I'd suggest you go lighter on the alcohol if you don't wish to suffer its effects the next day." Dilan grumbled something unintelligible and took a swig of his spiked coffee. "Anyway, I'm delighted that our family has grown bigger this year with the addition of Mira and Xehanort. Let's make sure they feel at home this Christmas." The king cleared his throat and gestured to their gift piles. "You'll all find your holiday bonuses in the pouches on your presents."

Mira poked Braig's arm. "Holiday bonus?"

"Yeah, it's for going above and beyond the required service for the castle."

"Then why do I have one? I haven't done anything." After a second, she added, "I don't even work here. If anything, I'm a freeloader..."

Braig shrugged. "I wouldn't say that. You rescued a little girl from monsters. That's not nothing. Not to mention," he lowered his voice, "you keep the air ducts clear with how much you crawl around up there."

"Oh, shut it," she hissed.

Dilan elbowed Braig. "Quit flirting, I'm gonna puke."

Mira rolled her eyes. "That's probably just your hangover."

Ansem cleared his throat, sending the three of them a look that clearly said 'be quiet' before continuing his announcements. "One final note: construction on the second lab has been completed and we will resume our experiments in the new facility after the new year. With all that said, let's enjoy our holiday!"

The others opened their gifts, and the room was filled with laughter and exuberance. Even with their hangovers, Dilan and Even still managed to be somewhat lively and joyful as they tore open their presents. Mira contented herself with watching the others enjoy themselves in rapt fascination. She pointedly avoided looking at Xehanort, though, if only to keep her own spirits up. It was difficult to believe she was present in a moment such as this, and Mira soaked up as much of it as she could, laughing as Braig opened a container and snakes popped out, or when Ansem received a fluffy bathrobe that looked like a lab coat. It wasn't until Braig dropped a gift onto her lap that she realized she hadn't opened anything at all.

"I know nothing can top what I got you, but presents are meant to be opened, Princess," he murmured.

Mira glanced around the room, but luckily, no one seemed to have noticed her lapse, absorbed as they were in watching Ienzo opening his gifts. She rolled her eyes at him, grinning. "You're ridiculous."

There weren't many to open, but it was more than she was used to receiving, and Mira made short work of them. To her shock, there was a gift from Even: the ugliest sweater she'd ever laid eyes on wrapped around a pouch. Peering into the pouch, she smirked at the munny inside; Mira made eye contact with the blond and they shared a nod, though Even made a rude gesture when he was sure no one was looking. At least she wouldn't have to shake him down later. She hid the pouch before Braig could see. Dilan got her a steamy romance novel with a half-dressed woman swooning against a shirtless man with long flowing hair.

Braig snickered. "Some quality literature, right there. Wanna read it together?" He waggled his eyebrows.

Heat creeped up the back of her neck and she resolved to toss it in the fire the first chance she had. "Absolutely not."

"Darn."

There was also a gift from Gast and Aerith – a warm light grey scarf – and a note that told her not to go out in the snow without it. Mira huffed; she'd have to thank them when she next visited the inn. The last thing was her holiday bonus, which she'd count later.

After all the presents had been opened, the apprentices broke off into groups – Dilan, Aeleus, Even, and Ienzo crowded around the small table, setting up a game the boy had gotten. Ansem and Xehanort stood apart from everyone else in deep conversation, leaving Mira and Braig alone on the couch.

"Do you have any plans today, Princess?"

She shrugged and pulled at a loose thread on her shirt. "Not really. I might pop into town to thank Gast and Aerith for the scarf though."

"So polite. Mind if I tag along?"

She glanced at him with raised brows. "Sure. You have business at the inn?"

"Sort of. Ansem wants me to give Lea and Isa their application results."

"Application?"

Braig rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, we've had enough of them breaking in. Ansem decided that, if they were serious about becoming apprentices, they needed to meet a few requirements. Namely, a lengthy application process and after that, supervised study every day." He ran a hand over his face and groaned. "We're gonna start seeing a lot more of them around here."

She snorted. "Do you know if Ansem has decided who's going to supervise them?"

Braig shook his head. "Dunno. I just hope it's not me."

"Watch, it'll be you."

It did not, in fact, end up being Braig who was assigned to supervise the boys. After they ran their errands and returned to the castle, Ansem had pulled her aside to ask a favor. That favor was how Mira found herself slumped over a table in the library while Lea and Isa poured over their assigned reading. Apparently, her bonus had been granted with the understanding that she would cover this task while the other apprentices went about their duties. If the sum hadn't been so large... Mira banished the thought. She was living at the castle as a freeloader under false pretenses. And it wasn't like spending all day every day of the week with the boys was so bad. They were good company. But they weren't there to socialize, and it was boring when they were studying. The empty hours of the day provided the perfect opportunity to conjure all manner of agonizing scenarios of how the experiment could go wrong. Worse yet was that Braig's duties had increased, and they hadn't had a proper conversation since Christmas day. She sighed.

Lea slammed his pencil on the table. "I can't take it anymore!"

Mira started, eyes widening at the redhead. "What's wrong?"

Isa rolled his eyes as Lea pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, Mira, it's great of you to sit with us," Lea began to pace around the table, "but that's like, the tenth time you've sighed in the last fifteen minutes. What's got you so mopey?"

"I'm not-"

"Yes," Isa cut in, "you are. Is everything alright?"

She regarded the two boys, coming to a swift decision. Even if they were prospective apprentices and would eventually learn of the goings on of the castle, it wouldn't be wise to tell them the truth. They didn't need to know. "I guess I just didn't realize how boring this would be when Ansem asked me to do it. I don't know what I'm supposed to do while you two are studying, you know?"

Lea nodded. "I get that. But don't you have a hobby or something? Maybe a book you're reading?"

She recalled the steamy romance novel Dilan got her, but instantly banished the thought. Not a chance. Mira didn't have any of the supplies she used to make wayfinders either; anything she'd want to read was likely back at her master's home. "Sorry, I guess I'm just not used to being confined to one space for hours on end. Honestly, I don't know how you guys are managing so well." Even during the most intense parts of her training, her master didn't force her to stay in one activity for too long; he'd always organized it so that she didn't get bored. Eraqus had kept their schedules full too. She'd never had as much downtime as she had now.

Lea and Isa shared a look. "That's easy – we have a goal!"

Mira rested her chin in her palm. "I never asked before, but why do you guys want to become apprentices?"

It was Isa who answered. "Well... there's a lot of opportunity in learning from Lord Ansem. You know he's called the 'sage-king,' right?"

Mira nodded. The title was vaguely familiar. "Because he's wise and has this huge library, right?"

"Yes. We can get more educated and-"

"But it's more than that!" Lea added. "We've heard rumors-"

Isa elbowed him. "Not here," he muttered. Louder, he said, "We should get back to work."

Mira frowned as they fell silent, returning to their tasks. Isa's movements were stiff, and Lea shot worried glances at him whenever he thought she wasn't watching. Something was up with them. To go through such pains for a rumor, whatever it was had to be significant. They were too serious for it to be otherwise. And if they needed to be in the castle to find out... Perhaps it was time to pay Gast another visit. Maybe he'd know what was going on with them. Too engrossed in her thoughts, Mira didn't sigh for the rest of their study session.