Omake
Bruh I am so drunk I have no idea what I wrote. Except the first 2-3 pages I've been drunk for the duration of writing this.
Don't expect much, not even I don't even know what the hell this is all about.
Anyway, Merry Christmas to you all.
XXX
A while later...
His training had been going well for a while now. Some progress was made, and not just for himself: his apprentice managed to grow as well.
From a warrior's perspective, everything was going really well.
The only problem…
Was that it was now winter.
And with winter came the Holy Winter Festival.
Though he had not yet actually experienced the festival himself, it sounded too similar to Christmas and that pissed him off.
That belief he once naively followed along with the book that opened his mind to the belief, he had discarded them both already. If he had to guess, the Holy Winter Festival was just some make-believe a random Deity, or maybe multiple of them, had created to have one more reason to behave like lowly trash, as they usually did.
Last time he had managed to evade the unnecessary holiday with the same tactic he always used: going on a lengthy solo expedition planned in advance. Key rule was to start the expedition about three days before the event itself, then only come out from the Dungeon two or three days after the event.
That way, everyone's celebratory spirit died down, and he could enjoy his peace.
'Hey, Fuzen, where have you been? You missed out on the holiday!'
'Oh no...What a tragedy…'
That is pretty much how it went last year when Gareth had seen him at the Twilight Manor after his six days of absence, six days of enjoying peace in the life-or-death known as the Dungeon.
However, this year…
There was no escape for him.
"How about these?! Can I put these up?!" The girl to his side asked as she grabbed another decoration from the box, holding it up above her head as a smile split her face in two.
It was a reindeer carved of wood, about the size of one's palm with a cord on its back.
'That hardly goes well with the bulbs we already used...No, screw it…'
"...Sure. Why not?" Was his reply. Alya wasted no time and grabbed the nearest empty branch, quickly pushing the decoration on it until it would no longer fall off.
And then she reached inside the box again, taking out yet another weird decoration.
Indeed, they were decorating their Christmas tree-...no, their Holy Winter Festival tree.
'...Those things don't even look good in an eastern-style home...It looks out of place.'
Unlucky as he always was, Alya had heard the townsfolk talk about the Festival and quickly rushed to ask him about it, apparently excited at the idea of it.
He had done his best to explain it to her and to no one's surprise her eyes lit up like lamps, her excitement for the Festival being lit up even further.
As such, there was no escape for him this time around.
She, unconsciously at that, looked up to him to show her how the Festival was supposed to be...done.
Something he himself wasn't aware of.
And he had tried to shove the responsibility onto others, explaining as plainly as he could to the girl that he wasn't the best one for the job.
However, her reply was that if it wasn't him, then she didn't want to celebrate the Festival after all.
'Cheeky little bugger...Perhaps I should implement spanking in her punishments...No, with my power I'd spank the ass-cheeks out of her ass...Haaa…'
And so they were here.
Decorating a tree, while the others were decorating the rest of the house.
As for their Familia Home, the Twilight Manor had been fully decorated for the holiday yesterday, an effort which had required an 'all hands on deck' approach. Fuzen was still irked at how many windows he had to decorate with crap.
'We're gonna take it all down again, anyway...Waste of time…'
"Fuzen!" The girl who literally stood just a single meter away from him yelled, more or less rupturing his ear-drum in the process.
"...What?"
"This!" She exclaimed, holding a large five-sided star in her hands. "I wanna put it!"
"...Alya…"
"Up there! I wanna put it up there!" She added, looking at the top of the tree they were decorating.
"...Alya."
"Help me up!"
"…"
With a deadpan look on his face he shook his head before standing up and grabbing the girl by the armpits, raising her up.
She herself extended her arms as well with the star still firmly in her grasp, however…
"I...can't reach…" She voiced as she struggled to make herself reach even further but to no avail. "Fuzen, I can't reach…"
"…"
"I can't reach it, Fuzen!"
"…"
'Raiju. Get over here. NOW."
'…'
'Raiju? You can hear me, so get over here.'
'...PFFFFFFF….'
'Are you...laughing?'
'Ahahahahahahahaha! My Master, grasping for the Heavens but not even able to reach the top of a tree! Buhahahahaha!'
"...Motherfucker…"
Seven more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
Whatever it was the right thing to do, he had no idea.
It neither felt nor seemed to be the right idea, in all honestly. Training was not supposed to be something you could just take a break from, not until the goal has been achieved.
That was his earnest belief.
However, it was also the mindset he had been trained with.
And while the progress and achievements from his training could not be discarded by anyone...it was hardly the healthiest for any sane person.
Luckily, he was not sane.
But the same could not be said about others.
'...This seems about right...I guess?'
Fuzen looked up at the sky through: it was already well into the morning.
He had completed his daily mandatory training hours ago, and while normally he would have used the free time to check up on Mikoto's progress, today he had used that time to paint some more, catch up on the workload that his gallery's Director imposed on him.
With a nod he put his brush down and put on his coat, leaving his room and walking to the ground floor. "Mikoto." He voiced as he stood behind the door, opening it just a bit to allow some light to shed inside. "It's morning. Wake up."
As if on cue her eyes opened and the girl stood up in a flash. She noticed the strong light from outside and her mind immediately linked the dots: she had overslept. "M-Master, I apologize! I have overslept!"
"...Hardly. You really think you could oversleep as long as I am around?"
The words made sense even to her barely awake mind and a weight seemed to lift off her chest. "O-Oh...That's right."
"Freshen up. Put on something casual. Then come have breakfast."
He had let her sleep a four whole hours longer than usual today. While the extra sleep did seem to do wonders to the girl, she still look thinner and more tired than when she first started her training.
Which was good.
Her thinness was not one a person would associate with malnourishment, but rather, the kind of weight loss one got from harsh physical training. Subsequently, her muscles were now somewhat more defined, thought it would still be a while before her musculature was fully developed.
"…I understand, Master."
While she uttered those words, she did not seem to truly understand what was going on. The change in schedule took her by surprise, to say the least.
Once he left Mikoto quickly went to wash her face and brush her hair, then changed into a casual outfit as Fuzen had requested. That was the hardest part by far, since her Master had bought her a whole drawer full of clothes.
After she finally decided on which one to wear she headed towards the largest room of the mansion, the room which was used both as a place for breakfast but also for the meetings her Master had with the grown-ups who regularly came to meet him, something she wasn't yet perfectly clear about.
Why they met, or what they talked about, she had no idea.
"Master, it is Mikoto."
"Come in."
As expected the room was empty, with only eastern-style single-person tables lined up on both sides. At the far end was Fuzen, and a table had been set just opposite of his. "Take a seat."
She did as asked and a couple of minutes later the house ladies came in with her breakfast, leaving the two alone moments later. Mikoto ate her breakfast while Fuzen had a cup of tea, having already eaten much earlier than her.
Though the silence was a bit unsettling, she had grown accustomed enough to her Master to not feel awkward eating by herself.
When she was finished, a question came. "How are you feeling?"
A normal question. A normal reply would be 'I'm fine, thanks for asking'. However, in her case that would be a lie, even if just an innocent little white lie.
And if she learned anything about Fuzen, it was the fact that lying to him in any shape or form was bad. It was a very, very bad idea. "I feel tired, Master."
"Good."
"Yes, Master. If I may...Why did you choose not to have me train today?"
"...Do you know what later this week will be?"
"Uhh...The Holy Winter Festival?"
"That is correct. The gist of the Festival is to be sharing. For it to be a time for giving and not just receiving. Some sort of spirit of 'togetherness'...whatever that means."
"I am aware, Master. But…"
"You have a Familia of your own." He voiced bluntly. "Even if you temporarily gave up your Falna to train under me. There are just a couple of days until the Festival. I give you a leave of absence today: go and buy yourself and others something nice."
He then reached inside his clothes and took out three gold plaques, placing them in front of Mikoto. Plaques printed by the bank, which could in turn be exchanged for Valis.
Three of them.
"T-T-T-Three hundred thousand?!"
"Yes. After some thought, I believed this to be an appropriate amount."
"Master, it's too much! Way too much!"
"...You did not listen. I said to use this money to buy something nice for yourself...and for others."
Mikoto finally understood what he meant. By not specifying who those others were, he was giving her the freedom to do whatever she wanted with the money. Buying gifts for her Familia...and whoever else she wanted.
"I see…But this money…"
"Is yours." He shut her up. "You gave up the means you used to earn money to train under me, at my request. Is it not logical that all your expenses are covered by me, then?"
Mikoto did not answer: to agree seemed a bit too arrogant from her part. However, she did understand where he was coming, and she understood his feelings. "Mikoto Yamato gracefully accepts Master's kindness."
"...Don't make it sound special. It is not. Go out today. Prepare for the Festival. You'll be training the next couple of days as usual. On the night of the day before the Festival I'll give you leave again to be with your Familia."
"Thank you, Master Fuzen."
"...Mm."
It wasn't exactly linked to the Festival. Better said, it was something he had pondered on for a while now.
A Master who could provide a good life to his apprentice...Fuzen thought he wanted to be as close to that kind of person as he could. Whatever it was productive to make decisions based on that, however...remained to be seen.
Six more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
"And that's…" He lifted the box above his head, putting it on the shelf he was directed to. "The last one."
"Thanks a lot again~" The brown-haired waitress voiced as she pat him on the back, a gesture he did not like but didn't find annoying enough to make a big deal out of it.
"...You are welcome."
As it so happened, he was currently at the Hostess of Fertility, the pub that both his Familia regularly frequented but also an establishment he himself found...good.
Having passed by earlier today he noticed the lack of decorations and inquired the owner as to the reason. Apparently, they had wanted to start decorating the day before but some of the decorations they had put away last year had been severely damaged, mostly thanks to the careless storing of the boxes at the hands of two stupid cats...at least that is what the owner said.
The pub would have sent someone to order some more decorations before the Holy Winter Festival, but as it so happened Fuzen still had more than enough boxes full of such things back at his house, having himself ordered too many.
After talking to the Dwarf owner of the pub he offered to give them whatever he still had stashed away. Mia was reluctant to accept at first, but after Fuzen said to think of it as a sort of compensation for all the times Loki had been drunk and caused troubles for the Hostess, the Dwarf agreed.
Luckily enough it seemed that what he gave them would be enough to decorate the place both inside and outside.
Some would call it a sign of goodwill. Fuzen would call it 'disposing of unnecessary stuff productively'. There was only so much storage space he had available back at his house, after all.
"Well, let's go back downstairs, then." Lunoire voiced and he nodded, leaving the storage room and going back to the ground floor, the pub full of civilians.
"Thanks again, Kenshi." It was the pub owner who addressed him next. "That saved us a lot of time. And money."
"Don't worry about it…" He replied but his eyes looked around, trying to search for the black-haired creepy woman. Mia noticed this and pointed at the hallway behind the stairs leading up.
"She's in the break room."
"Oh. May I go there?"
She shrugged. "For today. You did help me out."
"I see. I shall take you on that offer, then." With a small bow he turned around and walked down the hallway, finding the room with the sign on it and knocking a couple of times.
"It's me." The woman gave him permission to enter and so he did.
"Kitten~ Thanks again for the help nya." Chloe Rollo voiced as she waved a hand for him to take a seat at the table with her. "That scolding was no joke…" She turned slightly pale as she remembered her boss's anger the day before, anger directed at both her and Anya.
"You should be more careful."
"Will try to do nya…"
"...So what is the Hostess going to do during the Holy Winter Festival?"
"Working from dawn to dusk, nya." She sighed in defeat. "Since it's a holiday, we will be packed with customers. All hands on deck for this one."
"...Oh. That's too bad. I actually came to invite you over for the Festival….Guess that is not possible."
Her ears immediately perked up as her eyes widened. "Really?!"
Fuzen simply tilted his head ever so slightly. "Except work colleagues, you do not have any friends." It was the harsh truth. He wasn't sure about the other staff members, but he knew for a fact the woman in front of him had no friends or relatives: she had told him that much herself.
"Ahh, celebrating the Festival with Kitten...~ I could try to pretend being sick-" Her feline instincts kicked in and stopped her from finishing her sentence. "Just kidding, just kidding!"
"I sure hope so."
"Such a shame...But sorry Kitten, I can't come."
"It's understandable." He nodded. Obviously, her work needed to take precedence.
In truth he had little idea why he even decided to invite her in the first place. His house would already be filled with the women living there, Alya, Yamamoto and all the businessmen and women who had no relatives to spend the Festival with.
Chloe wasn't his friend.
Nor was she related to him.
Also, they were not members of the same Familia, either.
He did think she was an optically attractive woman. Even with that said, the only female he truly fancied was Amid...At least, he hoped that was still the case.
Their relationship was one of the few aspects of his life he didn't fully understand, something which confused him even to this date.
If anyone was to question him was his relationship with Chloe was, all he could honestly say would be 'Hell if I know.'
But...she was someone of importance to him.
Her creepy wants aside, she had done something for him which no other had done before: she stood up for him.
Tried to 'protect' him, as absurd as that sounded.
However, even when there was nothing for her to gain out of it, she had done it. Nearly got herself into trouble for his sake.
She was creepy, very much so.
And her like for those younger, much younger, than her was still a point of confusing to Fuzen.
However, she was not a bad person.
Just like Fuzen, she had gone through a lot of difficult stuff in her life. She had not told him exactly what had happened in her life, and neither did he ask. However, he could tell that they were similar to a degree.
She was like him.
And yet despite that she had managed to find her way back to some sense of normalcy.
She had a job.
Worked like everyone else, even if she was a bit lazy.
She was able to interact with people normally.
Smile even, something he had seen her do on a regular basis.
Unlike him, who had allowed himself to be moulded by the circumstances in his life, situations which had drained the humanity out of his soul, Chloe remained true to herself despite being faced with similar circumstances.
She didn't allow her past to define who she was in the present.
The one woman Fuzen knew who won at something he had lost.
'...Looking up to her...Is that what this is? Is that what I am doing?'
He wasn't sure.
Not yet.
He would probably never be.
"Well, I do work during the Festival, but I have half a day off before the Festival…" She looked over at her, a smile visible on her lips. "Come with me shopping?"
It wasn't a question which surprised him: they had already done that a couple of times. It was only a number which he could still count using only the fingers of his own two hands, but they had been out together before.
Going with her shopping, trying out a new sweets shop she wanted to try, stuff of that nature.
And once again, because of the Holy Winter Festival and the fact he was also needed for matters concerning the East District, Fuzen would not be able to go to the Dungeon until after the Festival was over.
"I have time, sure. However, I do need to say something."
"What is it, nya~?"
"You should really try to make some friends within your age range. Hanging out with a kid like me can't be good for you in the long-term."
It was his honest opinion, but the woman seemed hardly affected by the statement. In the end he accepted to go out with her the day before the Festival, as he had some time.
Five more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
"Come on bro, help me out here…"
"I already told you: how the hell should I know what your Captain would want?"
"Isn't your Familia full of women? Shouldn't you know at least something I don't?"
"And you think I would actually care enough to pay attention?"
"Oh, right…"
As his luck would have it, Fuzen had ran into Seiji while out on a walk, his childhood acquaintance window shopping for a gift for his Captain.
Desperate and running out of ideas, he pleaded Fuzen to help him look for something. With a sigh, Fuzen agreed to it.
That was two hours ago.
And they were still looking even now.
"What about a hat?" Seiji asked as he pointed at some fashionable hats on display.
"Sure...You think any one of those is within your price range, though?"
The biggest problem so far had been that Seiji only had two thousand five hundred Valis on hand. Even with sales going on, they were still living in Orario, the centre of the world.
Anything worth being called a gift was mostly above that prince range.
"Hmmm...How about a scarf, then?"
"That's literally the oldest idea in the universe."
"Socks? Keeping your feet warm is important…"
"Are you a goddamn grandpa? Also, she is a Level 2: you could leave her out in the cold with only a shirt and short pants on and she wouldn't feel a thing."
"I don't know anymore!" Seiji yelled as he finally fell down to his knees.
They had tried clothes: he said Naaza would look great in everything. Also, it was out of his budget.
They had also tried perfumes: everything was too expensive.
Next they looked at plushies: all the good ones were too expensive. The ones he could afford, Seiji didn't like.
They even had a look at jewellery and accessories: unfortunately, Seiji remembered that Naaza didn't wear earrings and rings would get in the way of her work. Also, too expensive.
'This guy's such a pain in my fricking butt!' Fuzen thought to himself as he looked to the side in annoyance. It was then that he saw something and his brain went into overdrive.
"...Perhaps you are looking at it from the wrong angle?"
"...Huh?"
"Naaza is your Familia's Captain. Instead of trying to get a gift for only her, why not buy something which the whole Familia can use at the same time?" He asked and made a sign with his head to the store on the left, further ahead.
It was a toy store, and there on the display were a couple of board games.
"A toy store?" Seiji asked, confused.
"Think about it: if you buy a board game, all three of you can enjoy playing it together. It will also be a great conversation starter."
Seiji seemed to get what Fuzen was getting at and stood up, the two of them walking up to the window. He looked at the price tag: two thousand four hundred and ninety-nine.
Exactly what he had on hand.
It also looked to be a sort of adventure-based game which came with some figures and the likes.
An Adventurer simulation, in other words.
"Right...This way, I could also learn how my precious Naaza thinks, what her strategy is when faced with imaginary Monsters. Learning more about Naaza...Learning more about Naaza…"
Within the next two seconds he rushed through the door and ran up to the clerk, his sudden intrusion into the store scaring the man out of his shoes.
'...I have no idea what I just said...But at least I am rid of that pain in my butt.'
Fuzen thought to himself as he shook his head and walked away, knowing Seiji would handle things himself from then on.
He walked a short distance, however he soon heard rushing footsteps coming from behind. "WaitWaitWait!"
"...What?"
Instead of replying he grab his hand and then slapped it, leaving one single Valis in Fuzen's palm. "The change. Keep it. Thanks for the help bro! You're still a stone-faced shorty, though! Hahahahaha!" And then he ran away.
Fuzen looked at the coin in his hand, then back in the direction Seiji ran off to.
'...Fricking moron.'
Four more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
'Now, which one should I pick, exactly…?'
A hard decision had to be made.
Overall, despite being part of a Familia which numbered almost a hundred, Fuzen had managed to buy gifts for almost everyone without much difficulty.
However, the one person who proved to be on the tricker side was Riveria, his Vice-Captain.
The choice was of course obvious: books is what the High Elf liked, and reading was her own true past time.
However, Elves lived long lives. Riveria herself was almost a hundred years old.
Obviously she had read much in her life.
Some random book published twenty years ago was most certainly something she had already read.
His options were limited to new books, those which had came out just recently. However, there were once again obviously not that many new books.
And from those he had to find a genre the High Elf would enjoy reading.
'Problem is, I don't know which genre that is…'
Was she someone who read natural sciences? Or perhaps a fantasy-type story? Maybe a love story? Or did she like reading encyclopedias?
As he stood in front of a shelf with new books in the largest book shop in Orario, those questions crossed Fuzen's mind.
He truly had no idea.
'Maybe I'll find something eye-catching on the other side…'
With that in mind he walked around to the other side.
"Ah/Ah."
Only for a pair of golden eyes to meet his.
He had tried to suppress his Ki sensory in order to avoid getting overwhelmed by the dozens, or hundred of Ki signature all moving around within his Ki sensory radius. As such, he had not picked up on Ais being just on the other side of the shelf.
It made sense that she was here, however: she had spent years with Riveria. She was raised by her.
Even an airhead like her would of course know that a book was the best gift one could give their Vice-Captain.
That or expensive magical items. He did not have the money for those, however.
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"...Any recommendations?" Fuzen finally asked after they stared at each other for a long moment.
"...Oh. Yes…"
And to his surprise the blonde airhead proved to be useful for once, her knowledge on Riveria's taste in books just what he was in need of.
In the end they both bought a book after about an hour of back and forth.
Four more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
"...How is it looking?"
The question drew the attention of all the women to him.
For days now they had been more or less been constantly working on an idea Fuzen had.
Weeks ago, a meeting took place. A meeting to determine the East District's path during the upcoming Festival.
Like every other business, their own shops had to determine the sales each individual store would decide on. Likewise, they had to calculate approximately how much of their merchandise would be sold off and prepare orders to replenish their shelves accordingly.
It was a meeting which took hours.
Fuzen had been present, however he hardly said anything during the meeting.
He knew almost nothing of sales and businesses.
However, he had one idea he wanted to put into action, an idea for which he needed the approval of all the business owners under him.
They had approved of it, despite being surprised at it.
It was a simple idea, really: using palm-sized hollow balls which could be taken apart by twisting the middle, they would fill those balls with various things.
Then they would give those out for free, to keep with the 'spirit' of the upcoming holiday.
For once, the merchandise some shops had not been able to sell according to plan and which took up space on the shelves.
Small toys and the likes.
In others they would put money: a couple hundred Valis, all taped to the inside so the sound wouldn't give away what was inside.
In others they would put coupons which could be used within the East District. More precisely, at the stores and shops Fuzen owned.
'Buy one, get one free.'
'25% off the most expensive item.'
'15% off.'
Stuff like that.
In other balls they would put candies and cookies. Those were the ones Fuzen's house maids were now filling the balls with.
All were the same colour to avoid people choosing what they wanted, and each person would only get one single ball.
As for where they would hand them out...it would happen in front of Fuzen's house. His housemaids would stay outside the front gate and let the passing people get one ball from the sacks.
By now, they had filled a couple dozen such sacks.
Thousands of balls had been used.
"We will be done on time, Young Master!" One of the women replied rather excitedly.
"...Have you been taking your breaks regularly?"
"Of course, Young Master! However, we are all glad to finally be of help to you, so don't mind us!"
"I don't want any of you collapsing thanks to fatigue, though...Everyone, take a half an hour break. You can resume afterwards."
"Ehhh…?"
His words seemed to disappoint all the women at once. "We want to keep working, Young Master!"
"Yes, we do!"
"Young Master!"
"Don't take away our joy!"
"Let us work!"
'...What a pain in my fricking butt!'
"...All right. Keep at it, then. But take your breaks. That's an order."
All of them seemed to let out a sigh of relief as they were allowed to continue their work and they turned away from him, their eyes reflecting the superhuman focus they displayed for the task at hand.
'Note to self: don't ever give them work again...Sigh…'
Three more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
"The hell are you doing?"
For once he was unable to channel any of his usual politeness and as such the question came out rather rude.
It was understandable, however.
The last couple of days, or better said couple of weeks, had been rather stressful for him and as such Fuzen was in no mood for fooling around.
Now he was back at the Twilight Manor after running some errands, taking a seat in the large living area of the Familia Home, the same room where their rather tall and well-decorated Festival Tree was standing strong.
Yet just as he took a seat in the comfortable armchair the younger of the Amazon twins sneaked up from behind him and raised her arm high above both of them, a mistletoe between her fingers.
"Don't you know, Fuu? It's a tradition." She answered with a large smile.
He would at least entertain her for a bit. "What tradition?"
"Hehe, Loki told me about it~" The Amazon answered smugly. "During the period of the Holy Winter Festival, two people who are under a mistletoe must kill. If one refuses, bad luck will fall on him or her."
"...That's the dumbest thing I ever heard."
"Bad luck will befall you, you know?!"
"The fact that you are getting on my nerves right now is already proof I have bad luck. What's a few more drops added to that bucket?"
"It's just a kiss, Fuu! Quick, before the bad luck falls on you!" She exclaimed as she moved to the side of the armchair, mistletoe still held up high above them. "Don't you wanna kiss me?"
"...I don't hate myself that much just yet."
Had she paid a bit more attention she would have noticed the faintest trace of a smirk on his lips, but she had been too focused on the rude words to notice any such thing. Without hesitation the Amazon took the lead and moved to sit on the armchair, on Fuzen's lap, mistletoe still held high up above their heads.
She brought her face closer to his, a certain dangerous focus visible in her eyes. "Do it."
"Make me."
They stared at each other for a long second, neither of the two blinking or breathing.
Tiona struck first, her free hand thrusting forward and grabbing the boy by his collar, quickly trying to pull him forward and force him to keep to the rules of the mistletoe. In her focus, however, she failed to notice his hand grabbed her bare thigh.
A moment later she convulsed ever so slightly as he zapped her with his Magic. It was a strong zap, but not powerful enough to inflict anything more than a temporary numbness.
That was enough to make her let go of the mistletoe however, which Fuzen then caught.
"What the hell?!"
"You've been misinformed." His statement caught her attention, Tiona looking at him with a perplexed look on her face. He thus continued, now holding the branch of the plant between his fingers. "While it is true what you said about the kiss and the bad luck, only a man is supposed to hold this above a lady, like this."
He then raised his hand, holding the plant above Tiona's head. The girl looked at the hand, then at him, then back at the plant. "A young lady caught like this could not refuse a kiss. If she did, then bad luck would befall her. This was done in order to increase her chances of marriage…"
He slowly pulled her closer to him with the use of his free hand, the Amazon not fighting the motion. They got closer and closer, close enough for her to feel his breath on her neck.
And then he pressed the mistletoe against her lips. "You don't have berries, however."
"...What?"
"The mistletoe. You are supposed to remove one berry after each kiss. This branch of yours has no berries." He voiced, obviously pretty smug, as he grabbed her hand and pressed the plant in her palm. "Better try next time."
"…"
"…"
"…"
"...Something else?"
All he could hear was the tearing of the armchair's material as Tiona squeezed it in her grip before standing up and walking away. "Don't feel like it anymore."
'...Not exactly in-character of me, but I don't think letting that side of me slip out once every year is that bad. At least now I have some piece and quiet.'
Three more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
"So it's done, huh?"
"It sure is, my Master."
"It is, isn't it?"
The boy and the dragon nodded as they stared at the large bags in front of them. Eighteen to be precise. Inside were boxes of different sizes and colours, but all meant for the same purpose.
"Cooperation will be the key. I need you to work with me in perfect unison. No stupid snarkily remarks, no distractions."
"Don't worry, my Master. I know what must be done."
"I sure hope so. We get one chance only. Timing will be crucial."
"Yes."
"The front gate is a no-go. The guards stationed there would be problematic."
"Take them out from afar?"
"Negative. Risk too high." He shook his head. "We'll go in from the back. Access the kitchen from above. Make our way to the drop point from there."
"We can each carry two bags. Four bags per trip. However, two bags will remain at the end. Should we drop the last two bags, lower the chances of detection?"
"Negative. It's either all or nothing. Easy plan." He voiced before tapping his temple. "We tie one bag to our backs on each trip. Six bags. Then twelve, then eighteen. Six trips total, back and forth. Lower chances of detection."
"As expected, my Master. But...tying them to our backs means untying them at the drop point. Is the time reasonable?"
"Affirmative. Five seconds tops. Worst case scenario…" He lifted his hand, sparks of electricity springing to life.
The dragon understood, and so he nodded.
Two more days until the Holy Winter Festival…
XXX
The day of the Holy Winter Festival...
All throughout the day he had behaved normally. Gave off no suspicious behaviour. It had paid off and he was told he could, as discussed, spend the night before the Holy Winter Festival at his own house, in the East District.
And so he left once the sun began to set.
However, it was two past midnight now and he was obviously not at his house: he was standing atop the levitating Raiju in his middle-sized form, the eighteen bags all strapped to his snake-like body.
'The last light was shut forty minutes ago now. It's time. Let's go.'
'Aye, my Master.'
The dragon heard the order and began to descend very slowly, trying his best to not stand out. With some luck they managed to descend outside, behind the kitchen, without drawing the attention of anyone sleeping or that of the guards stationed at the gate.
'Fifteen minutes until those on guard duty change.'
'Plenty time, my Master.'
Once the dragon's belly touched the grass beneath he transformed into his humanoid form, the bags strapped to his back softly landing on the ground. Fuzen moved quickly and opened the kitchen window, then jumped back down. Helping each other they tied one bag to the other's back before grabbing two bags and jumping inside.
It was dark and quiet, as one would expect at that late hour.
From the kitchen they had to go through the mess hall, then up the hallway, take a right and then they arrived at the living room. A bit of a walk, but the most secure one. The windows of the living room had been too heavily decorated for them to enter without either accidentally ripping off some of the decorations or pushing something to the floor and possibly draw the attention of the Beast People with excellent hearing.
Once at the living room they made a beeline for the tree, placed the bags under it then quickly but sneakily made their way back to the kitchen, grabbing six more bags and with a crouched brisk wall retracing their steps.
However…
Thud
Thud
Thud
'Someone going down the stairs.' Raiju voiced inside Fuzen's mind and the two stopped at the corner.
Fuzen focused his senses. 'It's Raul.'
The living room was connected to the first floor through a set of stairs, which Raul was now descending. He was coming to the ground floor.
'What now?'
'Let's wait and see where he is going.'
Fuzen said as the two focused their senses even more. Unfortunately, it seemed as if he was taking the hallway and walking towards them.
'He's coming this way.'
'Why the hell now of all times, my Master?'
"...Thirsty…" The man muttered as if on cue.
'Fucking Raul…' Raiju said. 'Plans?'
'...Let go of the bags. When he is close enough rush him and cover his eyes and mouth from behind. I'll knock him out.'
'All clear.' The Dragon replied and got ready.
Then when the Human man was close enough…
Whoosh!
He rushed from behind the corner and behind him, using his hands to quickly take away his sight and his ability to scream. "MhhhMM?! HhMmmm!"
Raul tried to struggle but it was too late: Fuzen already jumped out from behind the corner, arm extended behind him. Then using the same body movements Tiona had taught him during their training, he threw a punch at the man's abdomen and punched his consciousness away.
'Damn it...We lost Raul.'
'I know, calm yourself.' Fuzen took a moment to think. 'Grab his other arm.'
And so the two dragged him back to the stair, where they left him sprayed out all over the last couple of steps. 'Let others believe he fell down and knocked himself out.'
'Good idea. He's just a Raul, after all.'
'Mhm. Passing out from a concussion is not something unimaginable in this case. Because...well, Raul.'
They nodded at each and rushed back to their bags which they placed under the tree before rushing to get the last six bags. Luckily, they were able to place all of them without raising the alarm, and so Fuzen reached inside his clothes and took out a bottle.
Chemicals which were supposed to erase their scent from the bags so that no one could trace their appearance below the tree to Fuzen.
With a nod he started to content of the bottle all over the bags, the liquid disappearing as soon as it make contact with the fabric.
'All done. Let's bail.'
'Aye.'
With everything finished and throwing one more look at the High Novice knocked out on the floor the two rushed back to the kitchen, erased their traces and then bailed out via flight.
The mission had been a success.
XXX
Come morning of course the first thing he had to do was accompany the hyper-excited Alya downstairs to where their own tree had been placed.
Once there the young girl, still in her pyjama, jumped up and down from joy as she noticed the many gifts under the tree, from both Fuzen and the housemaids. Some of the women bought individual gifts with the money they earned for their work. Others pitched together to buy slightly more expensive gifts.
Even so there were more than ten boxes, most of them for Alya but also a couple for Fuzen.
She pulled on his pant as she pointed at them. "Fuzen, there are so many boxes!"
"Yeah. There are."
"Let's see what's inside!" Alya more or less pulled him there by force, looking at the pile. "Which one should I open first?!"
"Alya." His voice drew her attention, her eyes now on him.
"Hmm?"
"Do you...like the Holy Winter Festival?"
The gigantic smile on her face was enough of an answer. "I do!"
"Then maybe this…" He grabbed a blue box of medium-size and gave it to her. It was his gift to her. "...gift of mine will help you remember this even much, much later in your life."
Without waiting much longer Alya threw herself on her rear and began to unpack the gift, her expression changing once she took out its content. "Whoooa…" It was a snow globe. A snow globe with a highly decorated tree. "It's so pretty…"
"Shake it."
"Hm?"
"Shake it." Fuzen repeated and Alya did as he instructed, the magic behind the snow globe and it's particles which imitated snow immediately leaving her jaw wide open.
"It's even prettier."
"...Yeah. I guess it is."
It was finally the Holy Winter Festival.
From there his day went by in a flash.
Spending the morning at his house, eating together with Alya and the housemaids. Then the free gifts in the form of the balls were set out outside his house, which proved to be a huge success.
By the time evening would come they would be all out.
Having ran around and exhausted herself Alya fell asleep again when midday came, time which Fuzen used to visit Twilight Manor as per agreement.
Back there everyone was still in an uproar about the bags of gifts they had found, on each box the name of a Familia member. Some laughed lightly at the gifts they received. Others were left rather impressed with the 'unknown person' who set up the gifts: he had nailed their taste perfectly.
"...Why didn't I get anything…?" A certain Amazon girl muttered from the sidelines as there hadn't been any gift with her name on it within the bags.
"Maybe you have been too naughty?' Fuzen asked in return and although his reply was meant to be sarcastic, he had uttered the words on the same tone as usual.
Then he reached for the inside of his clothes and took out a small box, barely big enough to fit in his palm and extended it to Tiona.
She looked at the box for a long second. "Is it for me?"
"Obviously."
She grabbed the box with great care and removed the lid, her eyes widening at the sight of the gift inside.
"Your golden hair beads…" Fuzen voiced as he pointed at the two hair accessories she used. "Wear and tear is slightly visible on them. I thought you might want some new ones."
Tiona didn't reply. Instead she simply took off her old hair beads and wasted no time in replacing them with the new ones from Fuzen. They were golden like the last ones, however on both the top and end side of the beads there were some small tribal designs, setting them apart for her old ones.
"How does it look?"
His answer could have been many things.
'It looks the same as always.'
'There is no difference to me.'
'There is no change.'
Each and every sentence would have held some degree of truth to it.
However, his mouth had decided on something else entirely.
"...Looks good."
That was it. No further explanation from his side. But it seemed to be okay: Tiona smiled at his answer, a bit of redness in her cheeks.
An unexpected quick kiss on his cheek by the girl followed next. "Thanks."
"...Mhm."
Playing games, eating food, starting a bit of chit-chat with the rest of the Familia...All those were things he had engaged in for the duration of the next couple of hours.
However once it hit three past midday he had excused himself and went back to the East District.
He had promised to take Alya out and to see the Holy Winter Festival, and that is what he had done.
Together they walked around, looked at the decorations, stayed to watch some street performers, ate food, participated in some event games…
And just like that, the day was almost over. Night fell just like Alya had fallen asleep, having spent too much energy being excited about anything and everything around her.
Bringing her back home Fuzen put her to sleep and then stepped back on Raiju's back, flying slowly above Orario in a circle as he took in the city below him. From that height, with its round walls the city of Orario almost looked like a snow globe in its own right, the city still lit without a single speck of absence of light to be seen anywhere despite the late hour.
Everyone was still celebrating, the whole city was.
And Fuzen?
Fuzen had seen many new things for the first time, as well.
He had gone out of his way for others, helped some, gave gifts to others, did everything that was expected of him as per the traditions of the Holy Winter Festival.
Many people had also given him gifts, some of which he had already opened.
Indeed, he had done it all as had been expected.
A perfect pretender to be sure.
Because something was very clear to him this day: other people's joy, their spirit of celebration, their wishes and their emotions...On this day, Fuzen had observed it all.
And to him it was still as strange and confusing as when he first tried to understand it, weeks ago during preparations.
"Let's go…"
"...Yes, my Master."
He had tried to understand, but it was impossible. Maybe he simply did not share the same capacity for feeling joy at meaningless stuff as others did.
Saying he knew for sure was a lie, of course.
But he was someone who lived by the sword, for the sword.
Maybe his type of people were simply not meant to understand the cause of joy of others.
Likewise, maybe somewhere in the future, ten or twenty years from now, he too would be able to understand the love for holidays other had.
But at the current time, he did not. Could not.
As they approached the Babel he looked over his shoulder behind him: despite it being late it almost seemed as if Orario itself was just now starting to prepare for celebration, the city seemingly coming to renewed life.
Raiju descended down at the entrance to the Babel, Fuzen then sending him away to do whatever he wanted to do for the duration of the day. The area around the stairs leading into the Dungeon was empty, not a single soul in sight.
It was eerily silent, and so he heard it behind him.
The harmony of the city coming together, if only for a single day. He looked back at it for a moment, a rather long moment.
It was harmonious indeed, the spirit of the city.
But it wasn't his harmony. Not yet. Perhaps not ever.
"...Merry Christmas."
And then slowly, step by step, he descended down into the Dungeon.
XXX