Waking up in the master bedroom of his manor, Hotaru stretched widely, before groaning frustratedly, for it was a school day. For two months now he had been attending Caldina's Cephiroan language classes, and in a few hours, he would be flying across the continent again. Leaning over the sleeping woman next to him, he kissed her on the cheek to wake her up.
"Rise and shine, or is Snow White feeling like Sleeping Beauty today?" Hotaru asked lovingly, earning a chuckle from Alcyone.
As they got out of bed, they started the day as per usual; washing their faces, teeth, putting on clothes, etc. Opening the curtains and windows of their bedroom, Alcyone stared tenderly at her courtyard garden, wondering what to do today. She had spent so much tending to her garden, she was having a hard time coming up with new ideas for refining her personal haven.
"I can't believe it's already Sky Moon," Alcyone said serenely. "The world was about to end, but thanks to us, now the year is almost over."
"How the time flies," Hotaru mused, leaning over her intimately as they watched out the window. "Although… sometimes it feels like it stands still."
Making their way out to the terrace for their usual breakfast spot, the sun was shining down on them gently, slightly covered by white fluffy clouds. Their three maids, Integra, Envix, and Livina, had already finished their morning chores, and now stood by waiting. Sitting down to eat, Hotaru couldn't help but lean back in his chair, staring up in the sky and sighing. The weather was beautiful as always and, thanks to their efforts, he knew it would remain that way.
"Mmmm, this is delicious!" Alcyone exclaimed, eating her breakfast with a spoon. "What is it that you called it again?"
"Rice pudding…" Hotaru muttered under his breath, grabbing his spoon.
"Is something wrong with the food?" Livina asked, tilting her head. "You seemed quite adamant about having it today, so we tried our best."
"I'm sure it is fine if Alcyone likes it. I just requested it since we used to eat it around this time of year," Hotaru admitted, "back in my previous world, that is. I figured it would help me shake this malaise, but now I am just frustrated…"
Listening to Hotaru speak, Alcyone could tell which world he meant. Not wanting the maids to feel or spread the same existential dread Cephiro's defenders had had, Hotaru had refrained from telling them about his previous life. Hence, when they were around, Hotaru would say previous world when talking about his past life, and Earth, when referring to his time as an orphan.
Seeing Hotaru stirring in the cinnamon, butter, and sugar on his porridge with a thousand-yard stare, Alcyone knew something was up. At first, she had thought Hotaru was just trying to be dramatic about going to school again, but now it was clear he was struggling with something.
"…Do you miss your old home?" Alcyone inquired worriedly. "I know we have a new one, but knowing we can never go back to our old ones, can be hard to get over with…"
"Hmmm?" Hotaru perked up, sensing Alcyone's worry. "I mean… I do miss them, but I am happy with the life we have now. It's just… I'm just sad I can never celebrate Chris… Yule with them again."
As Mokona is my witness, that is not a can of worms I will be opening on Cephiro.
"Yule?" Envix raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"
"It's a holiday from Earth," Hotaru answered while eating. "It is held during winter in a few weeks' time from now, a week before the end of the year."
"Winter?" Alcyone's ears perked excitedly. "You mean you actually had winters on Earth? I've only ever heard about them in tales from other countries…"
"Yeah…" Hotaru sighed. "To tell you the truth, I miss having snow and rain every now and then. Cephiro is a nice place to live, but without changes in weather and seasons it gets very samely. I miss being able to make snow angels, build snowmen, snow forts, having snowball fights, and going sledding."
"What is this… snow you speak of?" Integra asked, trying to stay respectful.
"Flakes of frozen water," Alcyone answered knowingly. "I have spells and techniques that create some, but I have heard that on some worlds snow falls from the skies naturally."
"From the sky?" Livina asked in awe, staring up into the blue expanse. "You mean like how water came down from the sky when Cephiro was falling apart?"
"Yes, but in cold temperatures it freezes," Hotaru explained.
"…Wouldn't that be incredibly painful then?" Envix pointed out.
"You're thinking of hail, which can be dangerous. Snowflakes instead are light and fluffy and fall to the ground slowly."
"What causes rain to turn into hail instead of snow?" Integra asked curiously.
Staring at each other, Alcyone and Hotaru both expected for the other to chime in. However, as the silence lingered, it became more and more awkward and clear neither of them knew.
"Well, you see… Could you tell us more about this thing called Yule?" Alcyone quickly changed the topic, causing the maids to pratfall.
"Nice one," Hotaru whispered before clearing his throat. "Yule is essentially a big celebration to brighten up the coldest and darkest time of the year. The days are shorter and nights longer, so people light their houses up with colorful lights and candles. Everything is white since it is covered in snow, so we put up colorful decorations everywhere to get us in a whimsical mood. We also bring plants and trees like firs, holly, mistletoe, and Yule star indoors, to remind us of spring and summer. We eat good foods, drink spiced drinks, and sing songs to lift our spirits and revel until we fall asleep. And to top it all off we hand out presents to all the people we care about to show our love and appreciation. It's become such a big part of it that we call Yule the season of giving."
Listening to Hotaru's description, Livina was completely enchanted, "It sounds amazing…"
"Does it?" Envix asked. "It sounds like an ordinary birthday or New Year's celebration to me. Aside from bringing plants indoors…"
"Yeah, but it is like a birthday for everyone!" Livina pointed out cheerfully.
"It's a bit more than that," Hotaru pointed out, not wanting to go into too much detail. "Everyone celebrates it a bit differently. Some people do it in large groups with their whole family and friends, others alone or with their lovers, and everything in between. The point is that you show the people closest to you that you care about them. And of course, then there is Santa Claus…"
"Santa… Claus?" Envix asked, tilting her head slowly.
Smirking on the inside, Hotaru leaned back in his chair, "Mhm, imagine Santa as a merry, magical, stout old man with a fluffy white beard. He wears a red coat with a cozy white fur collar and cuffs, along with matching red trousers and a pointy hat. A sturdy black leather belt wraps around his waist, and his feet are clad in shiny black boots. He has a large sleigh pulled by flying reindeers and lives in the north with hundreds of… well, it's either elves or gnomes depending on who you ask."
Imagining the person in question, Livina asked, "What does he do?"
Seeing the childlike amazement in Livina's and Envix's eyes, Hotaru continued, "He joyfully carries a sack overflowing with toys built by his helpers. He keeps a list of who has been naughty or nice, and during the Yule night he flies from house to house delivering presents to all the good children of the world."
Tilting her head again, Envix sighed defeatedly, "I guess that rules me out, then?"
Chuckling into her hand, Alcyone mused, "Earth sure has a lot of fun traditions."
"It sounds great, but didn't you say that Earth didn't have magic?" Integra asked, furrowing her brow ponderously.
Choking on a glass of milk he was drinking; Hotaru beat his chest furiously before swallowing, trying to save face. Thinking quickly, Hotaru looked at his wrist mounted mobile computer.
"Oh! Look at the time!" he exclaimed. "My class is going to start in three hours!"
Finishing his cooled down rice pudding in a hurry with Silver Speed, Hotaru wiped his mouth and grabbed his gauntlets. Before any of the maids could point out that his mobile computer didn't tell time, he said his farewells before flying off.
Seeing the master of the house skedaddle, the maids followed his flight, with Envix snarking, "Humans from Earth are such a strange bunch."
"Maybe so, but they do live colorful lives," Alcyone smiled happily, taking a sip of tea. "…And just happened to give me a few new ideas."
With her gardening having reached a creative impasse, Alcyone decided to move onto her other passion; sorcery. For the rest of the day, she withdrew into the library to do some research and gather information on a couple of subjects. Once Hotaru came back from school, Alcyone quickly cleaned after her, to keep her project secret.
Having made notes of her findings, Alcyone felt like she was being a nefarious villainess once more, scheming behind Hotaru's back. Enjoying the familiar and mirthful feeling, Alcyone started working on her plan whenever Hotaru was away. Teleporting around Cephiro for the next few days, she gathered many materials, from herbs, to minerals, as well as some fruit and plant extracts.
Once everything had been gathered, Alcyone withdrew into her Alchemy tower to proceed with her plan. Five stories tall, the stone and crystal alchemy tower was made out of silvery-gray stone and pinkish purple crystal, with golden trims. The packed-with-detail tower was covered in ornately carved arcades, arches, and even statuettes. It had thin emerald-cut windows running along the side, and several round pinkish purple gems decorating and giving color to the smaller details. The base of the tower was rectangular in shape, with a circular middle, and an octagonal top that flared out. The roof of the tower was domed with crystal spikes protruding through it, with a miniature spire at the top of it.
While its outsides were ostentatious, its insides were much simpler and colder in tone. The walls were made out of small, tightly packed, and dark bricks, with the windows giving only a bit of light to the spiral staircase leading upwards. At the top of the tower, was a much more open, round, two-story laboratory, lit up by blue flamed sconces.
Unlike her old tower in Emeraude's castle, she didn't have to use this one as her bedroom, library, and living space, giving her much more room to work with. At the center of the bottom room, she had a large basin with a glowing blue orb floating above it, giving fresh water on command. At the four corners of the first floor, there was a large alchemy table, two large racks of ingredients and finished medicine, a shelf full of beakers and other laboratory glassware, and a large cauldron. From upstairs to down stairs, innumerous glass pipes of a large distilling system made their way down through a wide, circular hole of the ceiling. Other objects of interest on the top floor included a star map, a crystal ball, a telescope, and a pedal-driven medicine mixer. Several small yet cozy cages hung from the roof and ceiling, and were scattered throughout the laboratory. They were mostly used for housing injured critters, but right now all of them were empty.
Hovering about her laboratory, Alcyone unloaded the ingredients she had gathered to different containers and into the distiller. First, she crushed minerals and seeds in a mortar into a fine dust, and used a yagen to turn leaves, roots, and herbs into paste. Combining the paste and powder, she formed a round soft ball in her hands before leaving it to dry. Next she took many of the extracts she had collected, water from the basin, and began to purify them at her alchemy table. One mixture she boiled in the cauldron, other two she saturated with rock salt and blue crystal powder, while chilling the fourth one.
With the mixtures under way, Alcyone took the time to prepare a tincture of purple crystals, white petals, and red pollen. Distilling the tincture through her elaborate device, she turned it into a syrupy ink, before scribbling markings onto the ball she had made earlier. With the dirty green ball covered in shining purple markings, she teleported to the other side of Cephiro to bathe it in moonlight. Under the moon, she concentrated her magical powers into it, causing the sphere to turn black.
Returning back to her tower, she took the mixtures and placed them in glass jars of equal sizes. Finished for the day, she left the black sphere soaking in a blue solution overnight. With each day, she would dry off and polish the soaked sphere, and leave it soaking in another mixture. First green, then yellow, and finally red, with the sphere turning lighter and lighter grey with each passing day. With little else to do, she would focus on making sweets for her budding business and spend time practicing ballroom dancing with Hotaru.
After four days of soaking, Alcyone prepared for the final phase. She placed the leftover mixtures into different sections of her distiller, along with clean water and silver powder. For the next few days, she adjusted the temperatures and cleaned the solutions, to make sure everything was as pure as possible. Day by day, the multicolored liquids formed a clear and colorless liquid. Once the distilled solution was finished, she added nectar of a rubber tree flower, to turn it waxy.
Placing her now light grey sphere into her medicine mixer, she slowly pedaled away while adding in the waxy liquid little by little. Over the course of several hours, the orb took on a radiant, snow-white coloration, giving off a white glow. Holding the sphere in her hands, Alcyone smiled proudly at her creation.
"Finally, I have truly made it. I wish you were still alive to see this, Stella, for I couldn't have done it without inspiration from you," Alcyone mused to herself, feeling the refreshing cold radiating from the sphere. "I shall name it in your honor, Winter Star."
As a few more sunny Sky Moon days passed, Alcyone finished a number of preparations and tasks, before the time finally came. While Hotaru was playing video games late into the night, Alcyone snuck out of the manor, to the tip of the mountain their country housewas built upon. Standing on its peak, Alcyone raised her hands into the air, letting the Winter Star float up amongst the others. Although this was a gift from her to herself first and foremost, she hoped deep down that everyone could appreciate it.
The next morning started for the maids of the mansion like any other, in their large, shared bedroom in the servants' quarters. The white walled room had three, sand green, two-story bunk beds, with extra spots for three more maids who had never been hired. As such, the manor's three maids had been able to freely choose their resting spots. Integra and Livina slept in the bottom beds of the left and right bed, while Envix slept in the top bunk of the center bed.
While their beds and blankets were comfortable, the three of them couldn't help but feel a sense of uncomfort as their alarm clock rang. Shivering under her blanket, Integra reached out for the clock to turn it off, before opening her eyes and looking around. Their bedroom included two tall wardrobes, a wide deep blue couch, and two dark red nightstands. Though nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, the room looked different from other mornings.
"Brrrr! It's cold!" Envix groaned from up high. "Livina, did you leave the window open again?"
"Not that I know of… why is it so dark?" the orange haired maid blinked.
Dressed in a long yet light pajama, Integra stood up and walked over to the window. The hardwood floorboards were cold and the windows of their bedroom fogged over. Getting up on the couch, she wiped a small circle on the window with her sleeve, almost yelling out in shock, before quickly wiping off the rest of the fog.
The usually lush and colorful courtyard was now almost completely white. All the bushes, trees, trails, statues, flowers, and bridges were covered in a four-inch-thick layer of blindingly white powder. Only the large pond in the middle of it showed some color, as its half frozen green waters looked dark in comparison.
"What has happened!?" Livina gasped in shock.
"I think… that is snow?" Integra blinked, hazarding a guess.
Putting on their maid uniforms in a hurry, the trio rushed outside into the wintery weather. The skies were covered in thick, light gray clouds, sprinkling down coin-sized snowflakes. As Envix and Integra carefully inspected the cold and wet material, Livina ran off, flailing her arms excitedly.
"It's snow! It really is now! Aahaaahahahaaa!" Livina yelled cheerfully, enjoying the sound of snow compressing under her feet. "I'm gonna make a snow angel when I figure out what it is!"
"Try not to get your clothes wet!" Integra yelled strictly, before feeling a cold smack against her back.
"Ehehehehe! Direct hit!" Envix giggled impishly, having discovered how to make a snowball.
Hearing the commotion outside, Hotaru quickly opened the fourth-floor window of the main building, before questioning if he was still dreaming. But as the snow on the windowsill fell to the ground with an audible thud and a cold breeze blew against his face, a wide smile spread across his face. With Alcyone poking him in the back gently, Hotaru turned around quickly, her coy smirk confirming his suspicions.
"Merry Yuletide~," Alcyone winked happily.
"You did this…?" Hotaru gawked, before quickly picking her up and hugging her tightly. "Lady, I love you!"
After putting on their clothes, Hotaru and Alcyone rushed outside. While they owned no winter clothes, they made do with what they had. Alcyone wrapped a thick bathrobe around her with a couple of extra straps, and Hotaru grabbed a large pillowcase as a scarf. The maids had all put on their spare uniforms on top of their regular ones, as well as their aprons. For mittens, Alcyone used her gardening gloves and Hotaru his gauntlets, while the maids used oven mitts, riding-, and dishwashing gloves.
With Hotaru teaching others how to make different sized snowballs and use everyday objects and junk, the others quickly started building snowmen and castles. Livina and Envix built a series of snowmen outside the main gate, while Integra and Alcyone built a cozy walled off area inside the courtyard. Freezing the walls and seats inside with her ice magic, Alcyone made sure their creation would be durable. Waiting for more snow to fall, Hotaru rolled up a bunch of small snow balls, before stacking them into snow lanterns all around the mansion. With their builds complete, Integra and Alcyone started making soup and tea on an open fire inside their shelter.
With the two of them having brought in firewood and ingredients, the other three quickly came over to warm up next to the fire. Using towels and cloths as seats, they sat on a frozen, curved bench. As they ate and warmed up, the snow continued to fall and cover the mountains and forests around them. Finished with eating, Hotaru guided the others on a trek across the hand-shaped mountain range their home was built upon. With them, according to Hotaru's instructions, they brought cast iron cooking sheets, a large washing tub, and a carpet.
Making their way from the thumb to the middle finger, the five eventually made it over to a long, high, yet relatively gentle slope. As the others took a breather from walking all this way in snow, Hotaru flew to the top of the slope before pulling out his round, spartan-style shield. Flipping it around and hopping on top of it, the paladin pushed himself forward before skidding down the snowy slope. Seeing Hotaru slide past them at high speeds, Envix quickly grabbed one of the cooking sheets and rushed up the hill.
Joining them eagerly, Livina and Alcyone also made their way uphill, with Integra following suit slowly. It took some time, but the head maid eventually got into the spirit of sledding as well, though not quite to the same degree as Envix. The short purple-haired maid would climb higher than the others and sled further down, even giving Hotaru a run for his money. Of course, climbing up the hill over and over again was demanding exercise, but Hotaru and Alcyone sometimes gave their maids lifts. The residents of the manor continued sledding for the rest of the afternoon, until the setting sun dyed the cloud covered horizon red.
Returning back home, they all gathered around the main building's grand fireplace to warm- and cozy up. Having put on dry clothes, the maids huddle up close together inside a large blanket in front of the fireplace. Alcyone had done the same after taking off her bathrobe, getting nice and cozy atop a plush couch. To crown off the snow day, Hotaru had taken several Mokona-summoned ingredients and spices from the larder, to make French hot chocolate for everyone. Finished with stirring up a thick batch over the fire, he ladled out the piping hot liquid to all the ladies' mugs, before huddling up next to Alcyone.
"Sledding, building snow forts, snowball fights, eating outside. I cannot remember when I last had this much fun on a snow day," Hotaru smiled despite the fatigue, wrapping an arm around Alcyone.
"It has been quite the experience," Integra admitted, sipping the cocoa slowly.
"Thank you very much, Lady Alcyone!" Livina cheered, as Envix burnt her tongue on the cocoa.
As Alcyone smiled widely, she was startled when Hotaru all of a sudden got up screaming, "OH CRAP I FORGOT!"
"What is it dear?" Alcyone asked worriedly. "If it is the marshmallows I have some in my tower…"
"That sounds lovely, but NO!" Hotaru panicked, almost spilling his cocoa. "I forgot I had school today! Caldina is going to give me SO MUCH homework…"
Seeing Hotaru panicking about the possibility of losing out on more wintery fun, Alcyone sighed relieved and stood up. She wrapped her arm around his shoulder, guiding him back down on the couch, before smiling smugly.
"Do not worry, I already talked to Caldina about this. She agreed that all her students could have a week off from school, since you've all worked so hard."
Hearing he wasn't in trouble with his teacher, Hotaru sighed in relief before leaning against Alcyone. Taken aback by all this, it took him a moment to get back to the position and mood he had been earlier. Wrapping his arm around her, Hotaru stared into Alcyone's eyes.
"Thank you so much for making all this possible, sweetheart," Hotaru thanked her, before leaning closer.
Receiving a quick kiss from Hotaru, Alcyone smiled, "I am glad everyone had fun today. I hope you will enjoy tomorrow too!"
"Speaking of…" Hotaru said, furrowing his brow a bit, "how long will it continue snowing?"
"As long as we want," Alcyone answered proudly. "Winter Star will continue making it snow until I turn it off, at which point it will stop on the spot."
"That sounds great!" Livina exclaimed, the corners of her mouth covered in chocolate. "Can you also turn it back on command?"
"Unfortunately, no," Alcyone shook her head pensively. "Once the magic has been dispelled, I will need to make a new one."
"…I see," Hotaru nodded cautiously, before asking. "How long did you plan on our winter vacation to continue?"
"At least four more days," Alcyone huddled up closer. "The Yule Day is in a few days, and I figured we could celebrate it here at our mansion. I have already invited all our friends last week~."
"B-But Lady Alcyone!" Integra spoke up worriedly. "Planning and decorating for a Yule party is going to take a lot of time and work! Are we sure we can do it in such a short time?"
"I made sure to gather all the necessary materials beforehand. Besides, this will give us something to do indoors as well."
"So that's why you were asking so many details about Yule decorations," Hotaru chuckled, before stroking his chin. "However, I'm not sure if we… Actually, we might just have all the ingredients we need for a Chr- Yule dinner in the larder, if we use all that Mokona has conjured."
"Mhm~!" Alcyone hummed smugly while drinking her cocoa. "I have thought of everything."
"Well, you didn't account for the fact that the servants' quarters aren't warm enough for weather like this," Envix pointed out, shivering slightly. "Can we sleep in the guest house until you stop the spell?"
"That will not do," Alcyone said strictly. "You will sleep here in the main building."
Over the next few days, the people of the mountain top manor were the busiest they had ever been. The maids were tasked with cleaning in the morning, cooking and baking in the afternoon, and making decorations in the evening. Alcyone started bringing in plants that would function as doubles for boughs of holly, mistletoe, garlands, and the fir trees, and make sure they were kept fresh. She would also cook the usual three daily meals, so that the maids could focus on their work.
Hotaru in turn was left in charge of yard work, as the snow kept piling on every day, but it wasn't much of a chore with his buffing spells. In fact, to keep things interesting and fun for himself, his way of clearing out the snow involved playing with it. On the second day he built a giant, three stories tall snowman next to the ones the maids had built, making it look like a giant monster. This caused quite the uproar atnight, as Livina thought that they were actually under attack.
On the third day, Hotaru broke down the snow monster, and used it and the extra snow that had fallen overnight to help their horses. Zenith and Nadir, their unicorn and bicorn, had been inside the stables, but just like the servants' quarters it wasn't winter proof. As such, Hotaru used the snow to create a thick barrier around the stables, forming sort of an igloo extension.
Even as the fourth day came along and the guests were expected to arrive, the maids were still busy cooking. They had: baked cookies, gingerbread, fruitcake; prepared gravies, jams, mulled wine; roasted chestnuts, potatoes, potato pancakes,sausages, ham, goose; made red salads, cured fish; and made several kinds of casseroles. Yet even with many foods prepared beforehand, they still needed to heat up most of them. Alcyone and Hotaru had finished their chores, and were keeping an eye out for their guests. To pass the time, they built some simple, decorative, pyramidic ice sculptures outdoors, with lanterns inside to give light. By the time it got dark, they heard a familiar sound at the door.
"Do we have the right address!" a young male voice asked cheerfully from outside.
Hurrying to open the door while wearing red capes with white fluffy trims, Hotaru and Alcyone made their way downstairs. Quickly pulling open the main building's double doors, they revealed a crowd of familiar faces.
At the head of the pack was Ferio who was smiling widely and wearing a red tunic and a white scarf. Behind him were Clef, Presea, Sierra, and Zazu, wearing red coats with fluffy white collars and cuffs. They were all carrying gift boxes, with the exception of Presea, who was holding Mokona, dressed in a red hat and a white fake beard. Ascot, Caldina, and Lafarga stood further back, waving at them happily. The trio were all wearing red versions of their regular outfits, with even Lafarga having left his armor behind.
"Merry Yule!" they all yelled cheerfully.
"Pu! Pu! Pu!"
"Welcome everyone! How did you all get here so suddenly?" Hotaru asked, unable to stop himself from smiling.
"Clef gathered us all up!" Caldina smiled. "Saved us several days of travel!"
"Come on in, everyone!" Alcyone beckoned them closer. "We've kept our home warm for you all!"
"Thanks, it was starting to get a bit chilly!" Ferio smiled, entering the warm manor. "Woah! Look at all the decorations!"
The reactions of the rest of the guests mirrored those of Ferio. The walls, tables, chairs, windows, the ceiling, stair cases, and even shelves were covered in a variety of Yule decorations. Red and white paper crafts in the shape of bells, gnomes, and snowflakes were generously hung from the ceiling. Garlands of conifer tree branches tied together decorated door frames, walls, balustrades, and shelves, some of which had been colored gold or silver. Many candles inside tinted glass candle holders were spread throughout the building, giving off colorful lights. Baubles of every kind were arranged into neat piles on tables, drawers, and shelves. Several small coniferous trees had been brought in, as all the maids had wanted to decorate their own Yule trees.
Looking at it all, Presea and her sister couldn't help but smile, "Wow… I heard Alcyone describe it, but it really has its own air of magic."
"That isn't the only thing in the air," Ascot said with a smile. "The food smells great."
Seeing her boyfriend staring at all the things around him, Sierra asked, "Are you feeling excited?"
"It's just… overwhelming," Zazu said, awestruck by all the glimmer and the atmosphere. "This feels so removed from Autozam."
"Well, it's meant to appeal to little 'uns…" Caldina giggled quietly, before being interrupted.
"EEEEEEEEEEEKKK!"
Turning towards the sound of the scream, the guests were flabbergasted to see three maids standing at the dining room's doorway. Thoughts that they had seen something alarming quickly faded away, as they saw the sparkling eyes of the maid in the middle, being held back by the other two.
"OH MY GOD EVERYONE IS HERE!" Liviana screamed excitedly, pulling herself free from Envix and Integra.
Worried they were about to get jumped, the guest all took a step back and raised their arms. The only ones who weren't on guard were Clef and Presea, who were already familiar with the carrot top maid. Even still, Hotaru had already activated Silver Speed and Tungsten Defense on instinct, in case he had to go back to his roots as a bodyguard. However, to everyone's surprise, Livina only got up close without actually touching any of the guests.
"Captain of the Guard Lafarga! Illusionist Caldina! Summoner Ascot! Prince Ferio! Master Blacksmith Sierra!" Livina went through each of the guests in a rapid fire succession, bowing before each of them. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for protecting us at the Sanctuary!"
"It was… the least we could do?" Lafarga smiled awkwardly, even his stoic demeanor having taken a heavy blow.
Stepping forward, Zazu crossed his arms proudly, "Don't forget about me!"
A drawn-out awkward moment of silence passed, before Livina asked, "…Who are you, exactly?"
While Sierra was doing her best to save Zazu's dignity, Caldina and Lafarga walked over to their hosts, trying to appear composed. Having thought of Hotaru as her student for such a long time now, it took Caldina a while to get her tone of voice back to its socialite status.
"Ya two have built such a lovely home for yourselves!" Caldina complimented them, giving Alcyone and Hotaru quick hugs. "So big, warm, elegant, and full of class! The village is also so cute and cozy!"
"Thank you!" Alcyone smiled proudly, before asking. "…What village?"
Realizing the confusion, Lafarga leaned into Caldina's ear, "Dearest, I think those were all other sections of the mansion."
"Ah…" Caldina's jaw dropped awkwardly. "Well, this place is bigger and wackier than I thought!"
Feeling Alcyone starting to fume about her home being insulted, Hotaru wrapped an arm around her to calm her down, "It grows on you over time! You should come and visit when everything isn't covered in snow! Alcyone has quite the spectacular green thumb, and the gardens are beautiful!"
"We'll see if we have time for another visit soon," Lafarga mused with a steady voice.
Allowing others to do the socializing, Ferio had made his way over to the drawing room's corner couch to relax. While he was quite happy with his treehouse in the middle of the woods, its many small nooks and cabins left no room for opulence. He often visited Ascot, whose home was much more open, but all of the furniture was monster proof. As such, something as simple as a plush leather couch was great luxury for the Prince of Cephiro.
As he relaxed, one of the maids walked over to him, "Umm… Excuse me, Prince Ferio…"
Opening his eyes, Ferio looked up at a woman with hair as green as his, who was almost a head taller than him. Though he had met many green-haired people during his life, this one seemed familiar.
With a cheerful smile, Ferio casually remarked, "You can skip the honorifics and just call me Ferio. What's your name, Ms…?"
"Integra, and you do not need to use honorifics either," the head maid bowed politely. "I… I don't want to assume, but I feel we have met before."
"Oh? Back at the Sanctuary?" Ferio inquired curiously.
"No, before that," Integra shook her head. "Do you remember ever saving a family of six from a monster? Around six years before the weeks of darkness…"
Ferio looked at Integra confused for a moment, before an old memory came flooding back. He remembered having been traveling to find the Spring of Eterna, when he had spotted a lush, fruity orchard. He had thought of grabbing himself some fruit to eat for his journey, when he saw flames from behind the trees. Rushing over, he had come across a large, fire breathing monster harassing a farmer and his family. The buildings had already been half destroyed and set ablaze, as well as several of the trees. The farmer had been slammed to the ground, with the beast's claws digging into his leg.
Wasting no time, he had jumped the beast from behind, cutting it in half with his large curved sword. While he had slain the monster, he had been of little help in putting out the fires. While the orchard had been damaged beyond repair, the farmer had still shared what was left of his produce with him. Though he only remembered the farmer's family at a glance, he did remember seeing a head of green hair amongst his children.
Standing up, Ferio gasped, "You… you were that girl at the orchard!"
Seeing that Ferio did remember her, Integra smiled happily, "That's right! I wouldn't be standing here if it weren't for you."
"You have grown so much since I last saw you…" Ferio said, tilting his head up. "Last time we met we were the same height."
"Thank you for noticing. You haven't changed much since we last met," Integra giggled.
With Ferio discussing with Integra, Caldina and Lafarga busy with Hotaru and Alcyone, Ascot was left on his lonesome. He figured he could try catching up with his teacher, but Presea, Clef, and Sierra were busy trying to explain to Livina who Zazu was and what he did. As such, he figured he would try and strike up a conversation with the last maid, who was leaning against a wall while looking at others.
Getting closer to her, Ascot was surprised by the height difference between them, which seemed to startle the purple-haired maid at first. Getting over the initial two-way shock, Ascot found himself struggling to come up with a topic to speak to her about.
"Uhh… My name is Ascot, what is yours?" the summoner said, deciding to start with introductions.
"Envix," she answered bluntly, before squinting. "You trying to hit on me?"
Blushing and panicking, Ascot shook his hands fiercely, "Eh!? What? No! …Why would you think that?"
"You're standing below the 'mistletoe'," Envix pointed out and at the ceiling.
Seeing a leafy plant with small white buds, Ascot asked, "Does… that mean something?"
Smirking impishly, Envix leaned towards the tall boy with her arms crossed, "You're supposed tokissunder it."
"K— A— I have a girlfriend!" Ascot raised his arms in the air, taking a step back.
Letting an amused prankish laugh, Envix grinned, "Oh what a pity.
Before their conversation could continue, there was a knock at the door, silencing most of the people. Quickly walking over, Envix opened it and was shocked as an even taller man stepped in from the snow storm. Because of his thick, black, winter coat, it took a moment for Envix and the other maids to recognize him as Lantis.
"Sorry we are late," Lantis said sternly. "I had to deal with a monster attack before coming over."
"No problem, make yourself at home," Envix said in a dismissive tone, before asking. "We?"
As Lantis was taking off his winter coat, a small snow-capped fairy flew around him. Shaking the snow off of her, the aqua-haired fairy dressed in a pink fluff dress looked down at Envix sternly.
"Aha! So, this is the den of heathens and heartbreakers!" Primera snapped with her hands on her hips. "I wish Lantis would let me decorate like this…"
Leaning towards Hotaru and Alcyone, Caldina whispered, "Why did ya have to invite that lil nutcase?"
"We couldn't leave Lantis uninvited and she would have followed anyway," Alcyone sighed annoyedly.
Making his way to Primera, Clef addressed her in a soft yet assertive manner, "Come now Primera, this is meant to be a celebration for peace, joy, and spending time with your loved ones. So please, try to get along with everyone."
Staring down at Clef silently, Primera eventually huffed, "Alright, if the Master Mage himself requests it."
With peace among the guests, Hotaru guided the Cephiroans to some Yuletide activities. They had played word games, charades, Old Maid, and decorated gingerbread cookies, after which they had gathered in the ballroom for some music, singing and dancing. Although Hotaru couldn't teach the Cephiroans any Yule songs due to language barriers, Ferio was kind enough to play his lute. Following along with others, Hotaru sang some Cephiroan songs and danced a couple of folk dances with Alcyone, Caldina, Lafarga, Presea, and Clef.
Once everyone had gotten in a merry mood, they gathered around the dining room table, to an already set feast. Helping each other out, everyone piled up foods they were most comfortable with. Having been invited in on the feast as well, the maids received many compliments for the delicious meal. Many of the guests were excited to get to try differentmeats from Earth, while the maids were most proud of the casseroles they had made. Mokona and Primera had been given small jam jars with cushioned lids as chairs, and a cheese board as a table. While Mokona usually didn't eat a lot, the little bunny was scarfing down everything around it at a staggeringly quick pace for its size. Primera being a fairy did not much care for heavy foods, but the red salads and desserts were big favorites. The mulled wine, sausages and fried potatoes fit Zazu's Autozamian palate the most, with him requesting the recipe for the spiced wine.
Wiping his mouth on a napkin, Clef smiled, "So, this is what food from Earth is like. It has quite the hearty feel to it. Thank you for letting us experience this holiday, Hotaru."
"All thanks go to Alcyone," Hotaru admitted with a smile. "She was the one who went through the trouble of doing all this."
As the others applauded at her, Alcyone couldn't help but blush proudly while leaning against Hotaru.
As the applause died down, Caldina asked Clef curiously, "Does the food really taste that different? I don't think it's that much different from Cephiroan grub."
While eating, Ferio asked Lantis, "What do you say, Mr. Been-everywhere. Have you ever had food like this before?"
"Can't say that I have," Lantis said while carving a piece off of a turkey. "Similar animals, yes, but the spices and the aromas are all different. It certainly has its own feel to it, as does this whole holiday."
"You've actually seen snow before, haven't you?" Lafarga pointed out. "Was it similar to this?"
"Yes, on Fahren they have annual snowfall," Lantis nodded. "However, it's never to such an extreme level, at least in the areas I visited."
"Hard to believe snow can be used in so many ways," Sierra pointed out, with crumbs on her cheek. "The snow forts and statues outside were awesome, and the ice lanterns are beautiful!"
"Building them is such a joy," Alcyone smiled. "I recommend giving it a try as well!"
"We tried already, but we couldn't quite figure out the technique for doing it," Ascot pointed out, spreading cream cheese on a cracker.
"The trick is to roll it into balls," Hotaru chuckled, taking a big bite of ham.
"Mokona already figured that out," Presea smiled with a chuckle, "It quickly built a snow version of itself and used a small berry for its forehead gem."
"That's cute, can't wait to see it," Hotaru smiled.
"Cute yes, but you should see the snow speeder I built!" Zazu smiled, crossing his arms proudly.
"When did you have time to…" Hotaru asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Hmph! I cannot believe you actually can find joy in this weather," Primera complained. "It is far too cold! Even being with Lantis doesn't warm me up."
"…Huh?" a cold sweat fell down the paladin's neck.
"Oh, it isn't that bad! Even the kids enjoy playin' in the snow," Caldina smiled happily. "Though I wish they wouldn't throw snowballs against the windows…"
"You also…"
"Yes, but it can get quite chilly outside," Ferio pointed out. "I have had to keep the fireplace going through the night, and even grow more trees to chop down."
Getting off of his seat calmly, Hotaru addressed his guests, "Excuse me for a moment. Alcyone and I need to discuss something before we continue our celebration."
"What is it dear?" Alcyone asked, confusedly, before Hotaru grabbed her wrist.
"Come along now…"
With Alcyone in tow, Hotaru strode off, leaving the others staring after them in a mix of confusion and curiosity.
Finishing a large mouthful, Livina figured, "Maybe he realized they didn't have time to kiss under the mistletoe yet?"
Outside the dining room, Hotaru quickly pushed Alcyone against a wall while looking into her eyes intensely. While this at first excited Alcyone, she quickly came to the realization that Hotaru was quite serious about the matter.
"Something wrong, dear?" she asked worriedly.
Taking a deep breath to calm down, Hotaru asked, "When you created the Winter Star to blanket Cephiro in snow, just how expansive is the area it covers?"
"Well… I wanted everyone to be able to experience what a winter was like," Alcyone answered carefully, "so I made it snow everywhere like during a real winter."
Sucking in his lower lip, Hotaru's eyes narrowed into dots, before calmly explaining, "…Darling, back on Earth, it snows in less than… quarter of the planet's surface area. Even in winter it can still be temperate and hot in other sections of the planet."
"Oh…" Alcyone grew slightly paler than normal. "…But if I only have it snow for a week, is it really such a bad thing?"
"Well, it sort of is, because many animals who cannot handle the cold, usually migrate to warmer areas when it starts snowing," Hotaru explained while squeezing her shoulders tightly. "Now they literally have nowhere to go, and I don't think the plants are going to like this anymore than they do!"
Realizing her blunder, Alcyone's eyes widened and she nodded affirmingly, "Understood, I will turn off the Winter Star right away."
Rushing out into the snowstorm that was still picking up, Alcyone quickly flew towards the top of the mountain, with Hotaru following her. The snow was getting so thick it was hard to see forward, and the wind was so loud they could barely hear. Temperatures had been dropping day by day, so now they had to wear their capes tightly around them to stay warm. Eventually they made it to the top, at which point Alcyone summoned her bident-like staff.
Pointing it towards the sky, she shouted, "Winter Over!"
Up in the sky, where the Winter Star had shone behind the snow clouds, there was a bright white flash that blew a hole in the cloud cover. Though snow kept falling for a moment longer, the snowstorm subsided within minutes of Alcyone giving her command. Soon after, the clouds themselves began to disperse, revealing a dark, star filled night sky, as well as the crescent moon.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Alcyone turned towards Hotaru, "Sorry… I didn't know I would cause so much trouble for the animals."
Though Alcyone was feeling sad, Hotaru couldn't mince his words, "Animals might be the least of our worries now… How long will it take for the snow to melt?"
Thinking about it for a moment, Alcyone shrugged, "Usually it just takes a few hours, and should be gone when the sun shines upon it."
"Yes, but this isn't usually," Hotaru pointed out. "If all of the planet is as cold as here, that means there is no warm weather anywhere. It will take days, maybe weeks for the sun to warm all of Cephiro again."
Clutching her staff tightly, Alcyone asked sheepishly, "Will it really be that bad…?"
Sighing reluctantly, Hotaru spoke in a deadpan voice. "Long ago, we on Earth used to have this thing called ice age. During it, close to a quarter of the planet was covered in snow and ice, and the temperature dropped by several degrees. Time scale wise, the situation you have created is roughly eight times worse! So, if you could, can you create an elixir that can make it spring or summer in a hurry?"
Starting to realize the full extent of her blunder, Alcyone reluctantly answered, "I could… but it would take me several weeks to do so."
"We do not have several weeks," Hotaru groaned, facepalming in anguish. "People are going to start starving and panicking in a few more days…"
This is all our fault… What can we do? We could gather all the mages and try and warm people up with fire magic, but that probably isn't enough. I could maybe heat up the atmosphere if I started spamming Uranium Cannon, but I doubt we have enough healers to deal with the radiation. Perhaps I could gather all the people back into the Sanctuary to keep warm for a few days? Ask Mokona to spawn everyone enough food and fuel to have one big Christmas party and… Hold on.
Giving a mischievous grin, Hotaru turned to Alcyone, "I may have an idea, but it is going to take a lot of work."
Giving a quick shrug, Alcyone stated, "I am up for anything to get us out of this mess."
Back at the dining room, the guests had all finished enjoying the feast and even dessert. As Integra started pouring after-meal cocoa, they started to wonder where Alcyone and Hotaru had gone off to. Before they could bring it up, the dining room door opened quickly, with Hotaru stepping in.
"Excuse me for a moment, but I need to borrow this," Hotaru said, before hurriedly grabbing the Santa costume wearing Mokona. "Alcyone and I need to run a few errands, feel free to stay overnight so we can Celebrate Yule Day tomorrow!"
"Pu-puuuu!" Mokona yelled, as Hotaru pulled it along quickly, not giving others time to respond.
Rushing back outside, up the mountain near the hot spring, Hotaru could see Alcyone standing next to a wooden cabin with a reinforced handle on top. Under Hotaru's request, Alcyone had fetched The Box from Sanctuary and brought it here.
"So, what exactly are you planning?" Alcyone asked, leaning against The Box, knee deep in snow.
"Pupupu pupuu!" Mokona chirped, demanding an explanation.
"Simple, we're going to play Santa Claus," Hotaru answered, while entering The Box and placing Mokona on one of the seats. "We will visit each town and village and give the people food, warm clothes, and fuel to burn. Enough to help them last to the end of this winter. Provided by Mokona of course."
"Puuu!?" Mokona gasped in horror.
"I see, so that's why you fetched it," Alcyone stroked her chin. "But how will we visit each village in time? I can only store so many supplies in my magic gem and you cannot teleport. Even with your flight it would take days to visit all the villages! The three of us simply cannot do it."
Raising a finger, Hotaru pointed out, "True… but the four of us can. Mazdakin!"
In a flash of lime-green light, a massive silver and gold robot with way too many lime-green orbs on it, appeared behind The Box. Its golden, hexagonal armor and silver bladed wings shone in the moonlight, with its many orbs giving off faint light. Its many golden geometric shapes, silver surfaces, and massive size, made it look like a fallen star or a Yule tree among the all-encompassing snow.
Walking behind it, a lime-green beam of light shone from the gem on its back, absorbing Hotaru into its hexagonal control prism. Once in control of the giant robot, he reached down, grabbing hold of The Box's handle, at which point Alcyone hurried inside it. Lifting The Box up and holding it securely, Hotaru activated Silver Speed and Aluminum Flight, before taking off at tenth the speed of lightning.
While the speed was ludicrous for the passengers, Hotaru managed to keep The Box stable, allowing them to hold on steadily. In a few seconds time, they made their way to the village closest to them, Daihatsu.
The bustling village had grown over the year into a small town with two story stone and clay houses, a grand town hall, and even a school. However, despite its many improvements, the town was now mainly dominated by mountains of cleared out snow and half meter snowdrifts. Within the snow, there were signs of snowmen and other builds that had been either cleared away or snowed over. To stay warm, all the houses had smoke coming out of their chimneys, and the town hall had its lights on even though it was late at night.
Feeling the cold, Hotaru placed down The Box before focusing on his magical powers, causing his warm nuclear aura to flare out. While his magical aura rapidly warmed the air around the village, it wasn't quite enough to melt the snow. Regardless, the heat and warmth did catch the attention of the people, who started rushing out of the house into the streets.
As expected by Hotaru, most of the villagers only had very light clothing, which they had stacked several layers of. What he hadn't expected was the large crowd of people coming from the town hall. If he had to guess, the people whose houses weren't warm enough, had sought shelter in the hall. Seeing Mazdakin and The Box, many people yelled out in surprise and elation, recognizing their hero and seeing that the snowstorm had ended.
"Ho! Ho! Ho! Everyone, gather around for your Yule Day gifts!" Hotaru called them forth with a deep voice.
With the people gathering around them, Alcyone and Mokona came out of The Box, having finally gotten their bearings. Staying in his Mazdakin to keep the heat on, Hotaru started giving orders to the two of them.
"Mokona, start conjuring up food, sweaters, wool pants, and sacks of coal! Alcyone, make sure everyone gets their fair share."
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Alcyone asked dryly.
"PUPU PUU PUPUUPU!" Mokona chirped, objecting to Hotaru's orders.
"I know it isn't the cleanest of fuels but these people need something more substantial than wood to stave off the cold!" Hotaru argued back with the million times smaller blob.
If my planet can survive burning that stuff for over a century, Cephiro can make due with a week or so. Besides, it's tradition.
Following Hotaru's instructions, Alcyone and Mokona started handing out gifts to all the families of Daihatsu. Everyone was given a set of warm woolen clothes, week's food supplies, and a large sack of coal per family. Mokona even threw in a couple of dolls, stick horses, and leather sewn balls for the kids. Once Hotaru saw that some of the townsfolk were starting to get hot under the collar, he exited Mazdakin and helped distribute food and gifts. Working quickly, they managed to finish their job in around fifteen minutes.
Saying their goodbyes to the villagers, Hotaru hurried Alcyone and Mokona back in, "Alright, one down, at least a hundred more to go."
"This is going to take forever…" Alcyone whimpered, sitting down for what little rest possible.
"It will take less time if Mokona conjures supplies during the flight," Hotaru mentioned, before getting back inside Mazdakin.
"Puu pu puu…" Mokona whined.
Picking up The Box again, Hotaru flew off onto the next village, always flying westward. On their way there, Mokona filled the box with large quantities of food and gifts. To make sure he was doing all he could, Hotaru kept his aura active during his flights, trying to warm the weather as much as he could. With each village that they visited, they got better at coaxing people out of their houses and spreading merriment and cheer. Many people complained about how the snow and cold had upheaved their lives, but their visits brightened up their lives and gave them hope for the future.
Seeing the chaos she had caused, Alcyone felt guilty about receiving all this praise, but knew she couldn't just explain all that had happened. If she and Hotaru were to apologize to everyone, other villages would have to wait longer for their food, clothes, and fuel. As such she focused on working hard in making things easy for Mokona and Hotaru, as they helped her clean up her mess.
Continuing their travels, Mokona opened the door of The Box and started conjuring huge amounts of seeds, nuts, and fruits mid-flight. While this at first confused Hotaru and Alcyone, they figured the little guy was spawning food for the animals of Cephiro. As Mokona continued spawning more and more food, the little sacred beast started getting weary. While the food and coals caused no issue, the woolen sweaters and pants began to look increasingly mismatched, with their designs growing more whimsical. While this didn't bother the Cephiroans, Hotaru couldn't refrain from laughing at the fact he had managed to introduce ugly Christmas sweaters to Cephiro.
Using Mazdakin's and Hotaru's combined speeds and the planet's rotation, the quartet managed to visit each village on Cephiro in one night. However, this task still took them over thirty hours in total, and coffee and snacks spawned by Mokona only helped so much. By the time they handled the final village, they could barely muster up a smile for the villagers, with Alcyone's legs shaking from the fatigue and caffeine. Even Mokona was so tired, that it laid motionlessly on Hotaru's shoulder.
Though the journey home wasn't a long one, there was a certain sense of defeat in the air despite having succeeded in their plan. Having traveled around the world for so long, they had completely missed the Yule Day itself. But with how tired, cold, and sweaty they all were, their one and only priority was to get some sleep. Getting back to their manor, it was already noon the day after tomorrow, with the sun shining brightly against the white snow banks. The temperature already felt much warmer, with the snow on the roofs having already melted. Opening the door of their manor's main building, they welcomed its warm embrace, with Mokona's ears twitching slightly, at the warm welcome.
"Oh! You're finally back!"
Startled by his voice, Hotaru and Alcyone looked at Ferio in shock, who was reading a book on the drawing room's corner couch. With him sat Integra with her own book, who seemed far more alarmed to see them return. Putting the book down, she rushed over to her employers, with a worried expression.
"Master Hotaru, Lady Alcyone! You're finally back!" Integra addressed them, bowing deeply before asking worriedly. "How was your journey?"
"Everywhere, thanks for asking," Hotaru answered sarcastically with a hoarse and groaning voice. "How come Ferio is still here?"
Instead of an answer, they heard loud stomping from upstairs, as several people ran down several flights of steps. Wearing their Yule clothes, all of their guests rushed down from upstairs, along with their two other maids. As they surrounded them, they smiled at them happily, welcoming them home.
"Welcome back! Merry Yuletide! Thank you for letting us stay here!" they greeted them happily.
"Why… Why are you all still here?" Alcyone asked, unable to believe her eyes.
"We had so much fun here, we decided to stay a bit longer," Zazu said with a grin, rubbing his nose. "These guys are a riot with video games! And the hot springs were great!"
"Also, we couldn't leave without givin' ya your presents, now could we?" Caldina winked happily.
"Especially not after seeing the efforts you three went to," Lafarga said proudly. "You three went out of your way to spread the season's greetings to so many people."
"You… You saw that?" Hotaru stuttered, feeling a bit weak in the knees. "H-How?"
"We can thank Ascot for that," Envix said while patting the summoner on the shoulder impishly.
"Well, yeah… Though Clef did help too," Ascot admitted awkwardly.
Seeing how proud their friends were of them despite almost having caused a global disaster, Alcyone and Hotaru blushed while looking at each other. While they wanted to go to bed after staying up for almost two days straight, they figured they could spare a couple more hours for their friends.
"Also, you won't BELIEVE what we found!" Livina announced happily.
After clapping her hands, she rushed into the ballroom excitedly, with Envix following along. Hotaru and Alcyone could hear some rustling from the room, before the maids ran back to the entrance hall, carrying two gift boxes.
"We found a whole sack of gifts, one for each of us, and you won't believe who they are from!"
"Santa?" Hotaru asked, before grabbing a gift box.
"Yes! How did you know?"
"Eh, I had a hunch he would find his way here if we threw a party," Hotaru said, before winking at Alcyone, handing over her gift.
It had been four days since the three-day Yule Day celebration came to an end, and the host and hostess of the event were still tired. Having mostly laid in bed sleeping and getting over a slight fever, Hotaru and Alcyone had been lucky there had been no monster attacks in a while. Waking up in bed curled up around each other, they could tell that spring had fully returned to Cephiro. Birds were singing outside once more and sunlight was bouncing off the thawed lake to the east of their mountain into their bedroom. Rolling over onto their backs and staring at the ceiling of their four poster bed, they finally felt like themselves again.
"You know, all things considered, that was the best Yule celebration of my life," Hotaru chuckled at the past few days in hindsight.
"To tell you the truth, I have never been to a better party," Alcyone admitted, holding Hotaru's hand under covers.
As Hotaru held her hand firmly, they turned to smile at each other, with Alcyone grinning, "You know… the New Year's celebration is tomorrow."
Rolling his eyes with a wry smile, Hotaru scoffed, "I'll be frank with you, I don't feel like partying."
"Neither do I!" Alcyone smirked happily with her eyes closed.
"…What about snow, ice, and winter? Have you had your fill?"
"Fufufufu,never," Alcyone giggled villainously, "but I will make sure it only snows here, and only for a day or two."
Getting out of the bed, they stretched out widely before getting to their usual routines. Opening the curtains and windows of their bedroom, Alcyone looked down upon the courtyard and her garden, or what was left of it. While Cephiro had mostly healed from its very first winter, some plants had completely wilted away. Her garden, perhaps for having been directly under the winter star, had suffered it the worst. Seeing Alcyone looking down at her now brown and olive-green garden, Hotaru placed an empathetic hand on her shoulder.
"It is a shame what happened to all your hard work," Hotaru tried to comfort her to the best of his ability.
"…It's not that bad," Alcyone admitted with a shrug. "I had already run out of ideas what to do with it, but now I can start all over. Perhaps I will ask Mokona for some mistletoe…"
Feeling Alcyone lean her back against his chest, Hotaru wrapped his arms around her, "Merry Yuletide, Alcyone."
"And a happy New Year, Martin~."
Author's Afterword. I am slightly disappointed I couldn't get this finished for Christmas, but at least I got it out for New Year's. I had considered writing this chapter in the rhyming style of classic Christmas poems, but I figured it wouldn't translate well. Instead, I just made it into a more light-hearted and simplistic chapter, with some key tropes of a holiday special.
These not only included stuff like an outsider telling about Yuletide traditions and teaching how to play in snow, but showcasing things we usually don't see. These included Alcyone's tower, the servants' quarters, and even the first meetings and reactions of the maids and Cephiro's defenders.
And what would a Christmas special be without our leads saving the holiday? The consequences of Alcyone trying to create a true winter wonderland on Cephiro, are a topic that have kept me busy all year. Figuring out its details and twisting into a global celebration, were all funny problems to solve.
As always, reviews, questions, and critiques are welcome! Let me know what you thought of this little Christmas adventure! Also, a big thankyou to EVERYONE who has left comments and reviews for this fic throughout the year! This has been my first year on this site, and I am happy to have met so many great people on it
Remember, even if you leave a review on an older chapter, I will always be grateful and make sure to mention you in the next chapter!
PS. This chapter will be moved between chapters 44 and 45 at a later date.