A/N: Happy Holidays! With the holiday season coming up I felt like writing up a story about the most wonderful time of the year, and why not do it with one of my favorite anime?

In case the title didn't give it away, this story is very similar to the Christmas classic It's a Wonderful Life; easily one of my favorite Christmas movies ever made. Not just because of the holiday, but also the message that the film conveys. If you haven't seen it yet I highly recommend it.

For those of you following for Warrior of the Wasteland, don't worry, I still plan to add more to that, this is just something I wanted to do because of the holiday season,

With all that said, enjoy the story, and the holidays, no matter what you celebrate!

Chapter 1:

The holidays couldn't have come sooner for Diana Cavendish. Not that her first semester at Luna Nova was necessarily bad that year, but it had certainly been an adventure. First, there was the fact that she almost had to quit school to take up the head Cavendish mantle; but due to unforeseen circumstances, that didn't happen.

Then there was the whole ordeal with the Grand triskelion. Professor Croix, through the use of magitronics, had somehow created some sort of monster missile, (Diana wasn't too sure on the details as she was a bit unfamiliar with technology). With help from her, well she wouldn't exactly say "friends", but more, "acquaintances", they were able to stop the missile, and save the day.

After that, things had gone back to normal, she still attended her classes, and continued her studies, as if nothing had happened. However, a few things that had changed were that Professor Croix had left Luna Nova, and she now found herself hanging around her "acquaintances" from the magic missile incident. Not that she disliked her two teammates, Hannah England, and Barbara Parker, but at times it felt like they were just sucking up to her rather than having a conversation. Before she got to fully know them, she had seen these "acquaintances" as ingrates, students who would most likely not make it far at Luna Nova, with a few exceptions, but as time went on, she slowly grew attached to each one in different ways.

There was Lotte Yanson, a sweet, but timid girl who liked to read a lot. Sucy Manbavaran, who could be very cynical but good heated, and had great knowledge of alchemy and potions. Amanda O'Neill, a hot-headed, but skilled broom rider. Constanze Amalie Von Braunschbank Albrechtsberger, who despite her mouthful of a name rarely spoke out loud, and could often be seen fiddling with one of her various stanbots. Jasminka Antonenko, a kind person, who could always be seen with some sort of snack. And then there was Atsuko Kagari…

Out of all of them, she was definitely the oddball of the bunch. She had been the first non-magical student to attend Luna Nova, who was inspired by a witch who was not highly thought of in the magic world, Shiny Chariot. This would often make her subject to teasing from her fellow students; even Diana, who thought of her as nothing more than an ignorant child when she first met her. But despite all of this, Atsuko, or Akko as she went by, always seemed to have a cheerful attitude around Luna Nova. Yes the things some people said to her did seem to get to her at times, and she wasn't exactly the best student, but she would always bounce back with a smile on her face and a sense of determination.

Diana had been especially surprised at this, but even more so at the idea that Akko saw the relationship between herself and Diana as that of rivals. Diana didn't think much of it at first, but as she got to know Akko more, and see all the things that she had done, Diana could definitely say that she was impressed. Despite seemingly everything stacked against her, Akko had proven time and time again that she was an excellent witch, worthy of attending Luna Nova. She could still be a bit too eccentric for Diana's tastes, but she was still someone Diana was glad to know.

But Diana didn't count on the other students teasing her…

Despite all that Akko had accomplished, she still had some trouble with her magic. There was no doubt she was getting better, but she was still a long way from where some of the other students were. While there were definitely some students who respected her and saw what she had done; there were still those who teased her about her magic ability, and love of Chariot.

This unfortunately also extended to Akko's friends who, while not on the same level of Akko, would occasionally get made fun of for dressing like Shiny Chariot during the missile incident. This ranged from being asked if they belonged in pre-school, or to name calling like "Baby witch", and other rude names. While it did annoy each of them on various levels, Like Akko they usually just shrugged it off and went on with their business.

Diana had tried to do this as well, but she still found it hard being teased every so often. She would remember when she was younger, and how her cousins had made fun of her for being a fan of Chariot. She hated it. It was one of the main reasons she tried to bury her love of the scarlet-haired witch for so long.

It was a feeling of inferiority she never wanted to feel ever again. But now, by associating herself with Akko Kagari, the heckling had returned, along with this feeling. The logical thing to do would be to stop being around the brunette and avoid her, but that was easier said than done. After all, how do you just shove someone who you know and respect to the side? She knew doing so would only invoke the same inferiority feelings upon Akko, and make Diana no better than the bullies who called her all those names.

These thoughts cluttered Diana's mind as she was preparing for the evening. It was the 21st of December, which was also the day of Luna Nova's annual Christmas feast: a massive party of food and music attended by any students who had yet to leave for break. Though not all students would be in attendance, there would be enough to spread the word about anything interesting that would happen there.

Diana planned to leave for home on Christmas Eve, which meant that she would be able to go to the feast. She tried to be excited about the feast, but only feelings of dread loomed over her; Akko had not left for the break yet and would be more than likely in attendance at the party. This meant that some of the students could also more than likely make fun of her in some fashion, along with her friends. She wasn't sure if she could stand being teased at the party. But at the same time, she didn't want to be so cruel to Akko.

There was a knock on the door just as Diana had finished putting on her light blue dress. Who could that be? She wondered, both Hannah and Barbara had already left school for their respective families for the holidays, so who else would possibly be at her door? She opened the door and found…

"Diana!" came a familiar excited voice. Diana felt a pair of arms squeeze around her waist, and looked to see Atsuko Kagari giving her a hug.

"Um, Good evening, Akko," said Diana in a polite manner, even though she was still a little surprised by the visit. "I hope that the break is treating you well."

"You know it!" exclaimed Akko, "This feast is gonna be so awesome! All that yummy food and cool music are just what I need after finishing all those final tests."

"Well it certainly sounds like you're ready to enjoy yourself," said Diana as she began to smile. "Do you think you did well on your exams?" she asked, even though she was pretty sure of the answer.

"Well..." laughed Akko nervously, confirming Diana's suspicions. "The past is in the past."

Diana sighed, "I suppose you're right," she said with a smile, "We shouldn't be focused entirely on books and studies when there's so much holiday cheer."

"Finally, we agree on something!" laughed Akko, Diana following with a small chuckle herself.

Akko could certainly be very obnoxious at times, but she was also kind, and funny. These were attributes that contributed to her likability. Maybe tonight wouldn't be so bad after all, maybe Diana could actually hang around Akko without getting pestered with names.

"I think that's one joke too many for me" chuckled Diana, "I'm ready to enjoy the feast. What say you, Akko?"

"Double for me!" agreed Akko, "Let's get goin'!"

The two then began to walk down to the cafeteria, where the feast took place. As they were walking, Diana looked over to Akko, and could now see the brunette's full outfit for the night. A simple pair of blue jeans, and a gray wool sweater with a crude, red knitting of Shiny Chariot on the front. Diana was taken aback and had to do a double take on the ugly piece of fabric.

"Um, Akko?" she asked.

"Hmm?" replied Akko

"What exactly is that you're wearing?"

"Oh, this?" she said, looking at the sweater, "Why it's my official Shiny Chariot ugly Christmas sweater!" she proclaimed.

"Huh?" Diana was still confused

"Don'cha know, silly? It's just not a Christmas party without an ugly Christmas sweater, so I figured that if I'm gonna wear one, why not make look like my idol?"

Akko then proceeded to laugh some more, with Diana joining in again. Although this time her laughter had a hint of nervousness in it as she thought to herself

Please don't embarrass me, Please don't embarrass me, Please don't embarrass me, Please don't embarrass me...