Pairing: Axel/Xion

Rating: K+ (there's only the accidental use of alcohol, that's not that bad. xD Romantic fluff as well, yay.)

Dedicated to: Taliax and Timber Wolf of Purity, who are not afraid to reference Christianity in their fics. ^^ You go girls~

Merry (way too early) Christmas! 8D

Gloria in Excelsis Deo

"Ah, Christmas Eve. Christmas used to be my favorite holiday, you know."

Axel was laying down on the clocktower with a popsicle stick in his mouth, his warm breath sending hot puffs into the frigid air every few seconds. Grinning, he took the popsicle stick out of his mouth and sat up. He skillfully twirled it before flicking it down to the plaza below their hanging feet.

"Axel, you shouldn't litter like that." Xion frowned as she watched it soar into the air and begin its descent down.

"Litter, you say? Watch."

Her eyes trained on it, she followed its long, arching path until it landed into a frozen wastebasket with a satisfying, muted plop. He chuckled smugly, and she rolled her eyes with a small smile making the corners of her mouth twitch upward.

"Ok, so how come this holiday used to be your favorite?" Xion still wasn't exactly sure what Christmas was, but she figured she would find out sooner or later. Her teeth chattered as she rubbed her arms. But she wasn't nearly as cold as she could have been, since Axel was right next to her. His presence sent a small shiver up her spine, yet out of what? Warmth? Heat wasn't supposed to make you shiver.

"Heh, well... When I was a little kid..." He assumed his storytelling position, turning slightly toward her with his elbows on his knees and hands free to motion along with the story. A smirk played on his lips at how old he sounded, even though he wasn't that old. "Just like all little kids, I got presents. Every year, it was something different. One year, a remote control car, the next, a video game. The last present I got was frisbees—I know it doesn't sound like much, but I loved those things.

"Sometimes though, I'd get underwear or socks—mainly from the old people." He made a face, and she laughed. "But Santa, man, he always made up with those kinds of presents with something amazing. He's the one that got me those frisbees. And one time he got me a giant toy car you could actually drive in. Everyone was jealous.

"One year though, I found out Santa wasn't real, and—"

"Axel, Santa is real." Xion gave him a strange look. He barked out a laugh, grinning like crazy at her.

"Ok, Xi, Santa's real if you want."

"No, really, Roxas and I saw him just the other day! He's really... big, and he wears a red coat with white fur, right?"

"Ok, look." He clapped a hand down on her shoulder. "You probably just saw some guy dressed up as Santa. They do that all the time, all that commercial advertising stuff, just to make money."

He spat out the words with obvious distaste.

"I'm serious!" Pushing his arm off her shoulder, she stood up. She grabbed his arm and tried to pull him up. "I'll go show you! Roxas and I went there just yesterday."

"Aw, sure you don't want to just stay here and eat ice cream?" he groaned, his arm hanging there limply in her hand.

"It's thirty degrees out, Axel. I don't want to eat ice cream. I can't regulate my body temperature like you—I can only 'light up dark rooms' apparently."

"I know, not everyone can be as hot as me." He winked. She whirled around and crossed her arms, hiding the fire burning in her cheeks. But he hadn't even done anything, let alone lit a fire. She secretly rubbed at them in vain. What was wrong with her?

"Fine, if you don't want to go, I'll go by myself," she huffed and began to walk away. He watched her curiously, wondering what could possibly make her so angry. His curiosity got the better of him, even if he knew Santa wasn't real, so he jumped up.

"I'll come, but just because you want me to so badly." He smirked at her. Blinking rapidly a few times, she stuttered, "O-ok."

They stepped through a swirling portal Xion had summoned, ending up in a snowy little town brightened by the soft lights of stars and streetlamps.

"What world is this?" Axel frowned. He wasn't sure if he had ever been sent there before.

"This is Christmas Town—you can get here from Halloween Town. Roxas and I were looking for Heartless and literally stumbled onto this place... Roxas slipped and fell through the doorway in the painted tree on the tree."

"Uh, ok, whatever you say. So where's this Santa of yours?"

"Down there, in that big building." She pointed to the building at the end of the snow covered street. "This place is wonderful, Axel, there's giant candycanes everywhere, and little elves, and lots of presents inside Santa's workshop. He didn't let me take any, but I got to see them. The only problem with this place is that it's so cold, and the Heartless come here too."

She shivered as she stood ankle deep in the snow. Was it wrong for him to want to put an arm around her to warm her?

He lit a small fire in front of them so it hovered along with them as they walked. It was just an instinct to want to help a best friend, nothing more than that.

"H-hey, what's with the fur on our coats?" Axel had just noticed the tufts of white fur trimming the sleeves and bottom of the coat and filling the hoods on both of their coats.

"I think that they change so that we fit in here a little better," Xion responded. By the way she was still visibly shivering, it apparently wasn't helping much at all. He made the fire grow until it cast a warm glow to light up all the shadows of her face.

"Thanks, Axel."

They sluggishly made their way through the fresh snow, finally pushing open the door with a loud jingle of bells attached to the door. A wintry draft followed them in, and Xion shut the door with some effort.

"Mr. Claus, are you home? It's me, Xion."

"...we are right on schedule. Just do make sure you don't forget to check the List again; it could always use a few more checks instead of just two. I should have those songs changed..."

The voice came from the room next door. Someone opened the other door to the small study-like room they were in.

"Oh, hello there, Xion. And I see you've brought your friend Axel."

"Umm... Nice to meet you, sir." Axel shook his hand and looked at him oddly. "If I might ask, how did you know my name?"

"Oh, well of course I know of all the names of every boy and girl in all the worlds." Axel's eyes widened slightly. "Your two friends did tell me about you yesterday, though."

His skeptical look returned, and he grinned a little at his own little childish hopes. "Oh, they did? And just what did they say about me?"

He ruffled Xion's hair, and she stared down at her toes, blushing.

"Oh, they kept going on about how you always answer all of their questions, and how nice and what a good best friend you are. They said that you were the best boy in all the worlds, and deserved a present equally as great as you. I asked what you wanted for Christmas, but they weren't sure. So, what do you want for Christmas, Axel?"

"I-I'm not sure..." They thought that about him? That he was 'the best boy in all the worlds'? Him, of all people—an assassin for a secret Organization. As for his Christmas wish, he was half tempted to ask for a heart, just for a good laugh. Besides, he wasn't the real Santa. No such thing.

"Oh! Xion, you wanted to see how the presents were made, didn't you? My elves here can show you." He ushered a little female elf in, who motioned for Xion to follow her to the present room. Axel began to come along as well, but Santa called him off to the side, "Come here Axel, I'd like to talk to you for just a moment."

Santa settled into the chair at his desk, where the Naughty or Nice list usually resided. It was away with the elves at the moment. He patted his beard slowly as he picked up a different list of preparations for the upcoming Christmas. Axel had to admit, the place was pretty convincing.

"So, you don't believe in Santa anymore, do you Axel?"

"Well, no offense, but I can't say I do."

"But your little friend there, she believes so."

"Well, she—Xion's different than me."

"Yes, very different..."

Santa brought a small pair of spectacles to his nose and scanned over the worn paper.

"What do you mean?" Axel's eyes narrowed. What did he know?

"Well, I'm sure you used to be the same way as she is now, Lea. You loved those little frisbees I brought for you, I hope?"

Axel stiffened. He hadn't told anyone about those frisbees except Xion, and that had been after she had met Santa. And his old name? Only Saïx knew him by that, though he rarely ever referred to him as so, and doubtless all the others had forgotten it.

"Oh ho, I apologize, you prefer Axel now, I see. It's just a little hard on this old man's mind to try to remember all these names—there's so many, you know."

"Wait—you—"

Xion popped her head in, beginning to call out to him, "A—"

She saw the two conversing by the desk and stopped. "...xel?"

"You... you're the real Santa!" Axel waved his hands in a disbelieving gesture toward him. He hadn't noticed her in his outburst, but Santa had and winked at her with a smile. She giggled and watched from her secret spot peeking from behind the door.

"You're really him! You exist!" He laughed and ran a hand through his hair, leaning on the table with his other hand. "Man, sorry for, you know, not believing in you. Once I became..."

He stopped, still smiling but with a hint of bitterness. "...I've been a bad boy, huh?"

"Well, I would say keeping watch over your two best friends is good, don't you think?" Santa chuckled heartily.

"And does that make up for everything else I've done?"

"Nothing ever 'makes up' for what you have done. But that does not diminish the good deeds either." He leaned over the desk, his hand shielding their conversation from curious ears. "I'm sure I could pull some strings and see if I could get you on that Nice List, how does that sound to you?"

He sat back, laughing jollily (and Axel couldn't help but notice that the belt buckle on Santa's pants looked about ready to pop off).

"You had just better keep on being a good boy if you want to stay on that List." He waggled a finger at Axel, who grinned widely.

"I'll try my best."

"Told you he was the real Santa." Xion was uncharacteristically smirking from her position leaning on the doorframe casually, looking as if she was mimicking Axel.

"Ok, you were right." He caved reluctantly. "He is."

"I never knew you could be such a kid, Axel. You should have seen how excited you were when you realized he was the real Santa." Xion giggled as he frowned at her. "It's sweet."

"Man, you're gonna ruin my hard-earned reputation. But you know what else is sweet? Eggnog. I haven't had any in forever." Turning to Santa, "Is there somewhere here that sells any?"

"There's the little shop down the street that does, along with hot cocoa. Just tell them I sent you; they'll be pleased to have you."

"Ok, thank you."

He ushered Xion out the door, not before turning back for a last time. "Oh, and thank you for all those presents—especially those frisbees."

"Of course. Now do take care of both yourself and your friend there. And don't forget that there is more to Christmas than just me, you know."

Axel saw him wink before the door shut from a sudden draft.

"Brr, I forgot how cold it was out here!" Xion rubbed her arms, only managing to create heat by exhaling.

"Human-Nobody-furnace here, at your service." Axel gave a little bow with a flourish of his hand. He slipped his arm around her waist, sending waves of heat across her body. Even he felt a few degrees warmer than usual.

"It's warmer this way. Besides, it's not too far to the shop."

She walked stiffly alongside him, and he looked down at her curiously. "Are you ok?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"Does... this bother you? Because I can stop, I just thought, you know, you were just cold and—"

"No, it's fine, it's just... it's fine." She tried to lean into him comfortably, like she had seen the other occasional pairs of boys and girls across Twilight Town do—he was warm after all—but her body refused. The more he held her closer, the more her body went rigid with quivering shivers, which she tried to disguise as normal shivers. Which didn't help, because then he just tightened his grip around her. Everywhere he touched burned like fire, but there never was any flame.

"Hello, anyone here?" Axel called as they entered the small shop, where a few booths sat empty in silence.

"Hold on dearie, I'll be out in a jiffy!" someone called from the kitchen. There was some clanking and jingling before the two doors to the kitchen swung open for a stout, plump old woman, her greying hair pinned up in a bun, to come out smiling. Her rosy cheeks looked just like those of Santa himself.

"Oh my, two dearies! And cute ones at that." She chuckled as they hastily separated, looking away from one another.

"Uh, Mr. Claus sent us. I was hoping we could get some eggnog, ma'am."

"Of course, of course. That man and his eggnog and hot cocoa; we always have some around. Oh, please excuse me, I'm Mrs. Claus."

"I'm Axel."

"Xion, ma'am."

"Pleased to meet you, dearies. Now, two eggnogs, I'll go get that for you now." She hummed cheerfully as she disappeared into the kitchen.

"She's nice, don't you think?" Xion slid into the booth seat across from Axel.

"Yeah, just like how they say how she is."

"Here you go." She came back out with two mugs in her hands and set them down. Her hands clasped together, she smiled again. "Please do enjoy."

"So what is this, Axel?" Xion swirled the liquid around in her mug as Mrs. Claus went back to the kitchen.

"Eggnog. It's good." He took a gulp of his and dropped the mug back down with a satisfied sigh. "Man, how long has it been since I drank any eggnog? Eight years? Ten years?"

Xion cautiously took a sip out of hers, and she blinked in surprise. "It's good."

Axel was nearly half done with his already. "Surprised?"

"Well, it looks kinda funny. We never drink anything but water and milk, really... and melted ice cream, if it counts for anything."

He threw his head back and laughed. "Well, I'm just happy to get you to try something different. I've missed this Christmas spirit, too. I wish I had known about this place before."

Xion took a few more slow gulps of her eggnog. She gazed out the window beside their table quietly for a while, noting how the icicles hanging outside of it refracted large rings of light where they obscured the streetlamp's light.

"Excuse me? Could I get another one, please?"

"Of course, dearie!"

She was out as quickly as it took him to ask. Xion eyed him worriedly, slipping out of the booth to talk to her. She pulled her off to the side a little, speaking quietly.

"Excuse me ma'am, but was there something different in Axel's drink than mine?"

"Oh, well of course, dearie. I saw him and assumed he was the rougher type who would prefer the alcoholic eggnog—my husband prefers it sometimes, especially after Christmas. He is at least twenty one, isn't he?"

"Ummm..." She glanced back over at her friend, who was now twirling the empty mug around his finger with his feet crossed up on the table. "I'm not quite sure..."

"Xion, what're you doing?" He waved to her as he leaned back casually in his seat, stretching out. His words were the tiniest bit slurred, but he managed to keep it out of his voice. "Don't you want more eggnog?"

She noticed there were three empty mugs on the table, not including her half full one. Where and when did he even get that other one?

"U-umm, no thanks."

"Oh, dear, I'm sorry if this causes you any trouble." Mrs. Claus looked at her apologetically, but she shook her head.

"It's ok, I'm sure he'll be fine. Maybe we should go now though, since he probably shouldn't get into anymore eggnog."

Mrs. Claus chuckled as they looked over at him grinning up at the ceiling with a blank look. "I suppose not."

"How much will it be, ma'am? I'm sorry he got through so much."

"Oh, no worries, dearie! It's on the house tonight."

"What? Are you sure?"

"Of course, especially after the trouble I caused you."

"Th-thank you, ma'am!" Xion gave a little surprised nod that turned into more of a small bow. She marched over to Axel and grabbed him by the wrist. "I think I'll take him before he starts to cause trouble."

She dragged him to the door, pausing to wave back to Mrs. Claus. "Thanks again!"

"Come back anytime! I'll be sure to stash the eggnog away next time."

"Come on Axel, let's go—"

"Already ahead of you." A portal was already writhing in front of them. He laced his fingers into those of her right hand and pulled her through the portal.

They reappeared in the snow, except this time on top of a low hill overlooking a fairly large city.

"Axel, this isn't the castle!" she sighed in exasperation.

"Who said we were going there?" He leaned in close to her face, his head tilted to the side and eyes half closed, his smirk so close she almost felt it. He refused to let go of her hand.

"Th-then where exactly are we?" she stammered, backing away from him a step and looking around him at her surroundings. It was still very pretty, the way the stars stood out against the dark sky and white hills, with the twinkling city looking like a cluster of stars itself. She could just make out the drifting sounds of laughter and singing as well as the silhouetted shapes of cranes and half built structures.

"My home." He fell back into the snow, taking her with him into the bed of white. Their faces were flecked with snow that soon melted from their body heat, mostly Axel's.

"But your home is the castle." He had to be crazy. Xion swore to herself she would never touch eggnog again as long as she lived.

"No, my old home. I lived here when I was a kid." He was still grinning madly up at the clear sky. "This is Radiant Garden—well, now they call it Hollow Bastion. I never really like to come back here, but this place is ok on Christmas Eve. From up here, you can hear the church bells ringing on Christmas Eve and Christmas day, and the songs and hymns of all the carolers... Not to mention there's all this snow. Perfect for snowball fights and hot cocoa, don't you think? We used to sled here, too. I always crashed into things."

"When you were a kid? But..." Axel never wanted to talk about where he used to live, let alone took anyone there. She could try to get answers from him... Now seemed like an opportune time to. "How come you don't talk about it?"

"Ah, well, this place has got a lot of memories for me. Good ones, bad ones. I lived with my parents here, went to school here, had friends here... About ten years ago, the Heartless came and engulfed the whole world in darkness."

His free hand motioned in the air, and Xion pictured foreboding clouds enshrouding the clear sky. He kept tracing his thumb up and down the side of hers, raising goosebumps even through her glove and immensely distracting her.

"My family... That's when I..." He trailed off. Even in his current state he apparently didn't want to say any more than what he had already told her.

"Oh... I'm sorry for bringing it up." Her voice was a whisper. He sighed briefly before suddenly flipping over onto his side, facing her with a soft grin.

"Nah, it's fine. I'm Axel now, so it doesn't... really matter."

He was pressed right up against her side, still holding her hand. He brushed her cheek lightly with his right hand, his low chuckle a deep vibration in his throat.

"You know..." His breath was warm, tickling her ear. He shifted so he could let go of her hand, the slight movement enough to make small, warm tremors crawl across her skin. She dared to take a shallow breath and turn her eyes in his direction. "My mom always said that when I found someone, I should bring her here in the winter, so long as I kept her warm."

He slowly slid his arms around her, his emerald eyes half lidded. His lips were nearly pressed against her cheek, right below her ear, so close the tiny hairs on her cheek could sense them. He murmured gently into her ear. "Are you warm?"

"Y-yes..." Xion breathed shakily. To put it bluntly, she was terrified in a strange, almost good way. Despite how pleasant it was to feel his arms wrapped around her, she desperately hoped the effects of whatever was in that eggnog would wear off soon. Even glancing at him in the dark, she could see his flushed cheeks. It didn't show much of a sign of letting up anytime soon.

As he gingerly pushed his lips against her cheek, she had a fierce debate with herself before finally building up the courage to talk. "A-Axel, you're acting weird."

"Am I?" He laughed quietly, suddenly pulling back and twirling a finger in a lock of her hair. He shrugged innocently. "I was just trying to keep you warm."

Axel held her closer, and heat erupted across her body in a shiver. When she felt she was about to explode from all the tension she had built up in her body, he released her and helped her to her feet.

He grinned and began to lead down the hill, his fingers intertwined with hers again.

"Come on. I want to show you something."

He flew down the hill with her stumbling behind him, snow spraying in all directions. It caught in the tips of Xion's black hair and clung to them as her hair bounced on her back.

"Don't trip, or else we'll turn into a giant snowball and have to roll all the way down the hill!" Axel yelled back to her, laughing.

"Is that even possible?"

"I'm not sure!" He smirked to himself, a mischievous look crossing his face. "Why don't we find out?"

Abruptly stopping, he whirled around with his arms out wide so she crashed right into him, and they somersaulted the rest of the way down the hill. At the bottom, they finally stopped rolling and collapsed into a heap of tangled arms and legs. Panting, Axel pinned her down, much too close for comfort for Xion, his forehead practically to hers.

"Heh, guess it's not."

She stared into his eyes without a word until he grew uneasy at her unwavering gaze.

"Xi...?"

She suddenly grabbed a fistful of snow and smeared it in his face, escaping his grasp when his guard was down. He wiped the clumps of snow from his eyes and flushed face, watching her dash away through the snow like a deer with a surprised, lopsided smile. Once she was at a safe distance, she stopped to catch her breath, giggling wildly. Maybe crazy, eggnog-drunken Axel wasn't too bad. She hadn't ever seen him laugh the way he just did.

"Ok, ok, you got me. I deserved that." He stood up, trying not to laugh, and brushed himself off. "Now let's really go before we get any more snow-logged."

Xion shook her sleeve to empty out the snow clinging to her cold skin. He sidled up beside her and grabbed her hand yet again. So much for any hope of him being vaguely normal.

They took yet another portal, this time to a little building with a tall, ornate spire with large bell looking ready to ring out the late hour. The joyful lilt of hymns flowed through the air.

"Wow... The church is still here. They must've fixed up some parts, but it's practically the same." Axel's hand tightened around Xion's as he gazed up at it.

"Church? What's that?"

"You'll see. Let's go in." He dragged open one of the huge front doors, allowing her to go in before him. It slowly shut with a soft thud behind them.

He offered her a seat on the pew farthest back. She settled into the warm seat with a contented sigh; despite the beauty of snow, it was nice to be out of the cold.

"...and so we thank the Lord for bringing us together on this day, the blessing of the birth of His only son Jesus, the blessing of His sacrifice for us..."

"Who are they talking about, Axel? Is there someone like Xemnas who rules over this city too?" Xion whispered into his ear, and he gave a breathy laugh.

"No, Xi, they're talking about God. God created everything and everyone, and His son Jesus died to save mankind. People pray to Him, either asking for things or to thank Him. Today is the day Jesus was born, a long, long time ago. That's why people celebrate Christmas, though people just make a big deal out of presents and Santa instead."

"Oh... He sounds powerful. A lot like Xemnas." She suddenly became aware of his arm around her as she leaned back into it. Almost trying to escape it, she only managed to fall into him, making him smirk.

"He's a lot more powerful than Xemnas, though. Xemnas has control over Nothing—He has power over everything. But he does everything for us."

"Wow... If he has control over everything, do you think he could make us... human?" He didn't even have to bring her closer, she pressed into him with a hand against his chest lightly.

"I don't know, I guess so. But if we're still like this, then I guess there's a reason for that too."

"Does that mean we have purpose?"

He paused for a moment, looking a whole step sobered. "...Maybe. I sure hope so."

She rested her head on his arm, having decided that the physical contact wasn't all that bad, even if made her shiver so much.

And this 'God' person... wherever he was, she wished she could meet him. He sounded nice.

They began to sing, entrancing Xion—she had always been interested in music ever since Demyx had played a song for her once. She was jealous, as she knew no songs at all.

"Angels we have heard on high..."

"Do you know this song, Axel?"

"Yep. They sang it practically every Christmas at my house."

Her eyes shined eagerly. "So you can sing?"

He rose an eyebrow. "Anyone can sing."

"Then teach me the song."

"Whoa, whoa. Who said I taught people how to sing? I'm not Demyx, you know. Good thing too."

"Please?"

Looking over her pleading puppy dog eyes with a retort already at his lips, he seemed to reach a reluctant decision with a sigh.

"...Fine. I can teach you the chorus, at least." He turned toward her more. "'Gloria in Excelsis Deo.' Got it memorized?"

"Glo...ria..."

"Gloria in."

"Gloria... in."

"Excelsis Deo."

"Ex...celsis Deo."

"Think you got that? Oh, it's coming up."

They sang along for a while, Xion stumbling over the words and Axel trying not to laugh. A little child a few pews in front of them swinging his legs back and forth as he mouthed the words every few verses, looked back at them strangely until his mother motioned for him to face the correct direction. Axel stifled another laugh at the perturbed look on the child's face when he heard Xion's attempt at singing.

"Don't make fun of me," she hissed at him with a pout.

"No, no, it's not that you're bad, you just don't know what you're talking about." He smirked and ruffled her hair, much to her acute discomfort when he refused to take his hand from her head. "You actually can sing pretty well."

"Surprised?" She giggled and pushed his hand away, obviously pleased with the compliment as told by the blush searing her cheeks. He chuckled. "What does it mean, then?"

"It means 'glory to God in the highest.'"

"Oh... Well, if anyone deserves thanks, it's the person who gave life to everything."

"Guess you're right."

Once the singing ended, they resumed whatever it was they had been doing. They were constantly talking with no obvious clues as to when to sing or stand or sit, and Xion had given up on deciphering it all.

"...the presence of God, our family and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner, in sickness and in health..."

A man in a formal tuxedo and woman in a beautiful snow-white dress trailing across the floor were at the altar, facing one another, engaged in something Xion was unfamiliar with. "What are they doing?"

"Getting married. Guess we missed the service and walked in on a marriage by accident, huh? Nice day to be married." Still a little tipsy, he didn't seem too concerned. Xion looked at him curiously.

"'Married'?"

"It's... it's when two people decide to be together forever because they love one another. Like best friends, but much, much more than that." He shifted in his spot, looking thoughtful despite the mistiness in his eyes.

"I didn't know that there was anything better than being best friends... Must be nice, then." Love... It sounded amazing.

"Yeah... Mom and Dad got married here."

Silence settled over the two as the ceremony commenced. At its end, when the two kissed one another in a passionate embrace and many women were dabbing at their wet eyes with tissues, Xion eyed Axel out of the corner of her eye. Her eyes trailed from his, if not currently clouded over, bright emerald eyes to his lips. It suddenly seemed so desirable, so easy and simple to just lean over and... But that was probably reserved for only married couples. She still didn't even know what it meant. She refrained from asking him anything; it didn't seem like something she should have asked.

He interrupted her thoughts by unexpectedly standing up, absentmindedly watching the people file out with a cheerful air to the reception. Only a few glanced over at the unfamiliar couple in the far pew.

He offered her a hand and led her to the center isle, where a velvet carpet was lain out from the altar to the door. He gazed at the trail of lavender flowers leading up to the altat with a small, sad smile.

"Too bad I'm a Nobody. I don't think I'll ever get to get married."

Xion stared up at him with a shocked expression, and then looked down at her petite hand in his. Axel cared about those kinds of things? Well, he did have that eggnog. And apparently Nobodies didn't get married, which probably was a characteristic extended to Replicas as well.

She felt his slim fingers between her own.

What would her hand look like with a ring, on that third finger in?

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I... I'd marry you." His head turned toward her in slight surprise, his emerald eyes boring into her with a mischievous twinkle, his grin shown even through his eyes.

"Oh really?"

"Well, we would have been together forever anyway, right? We are best friends." It sounded extremely appealing to her, someone with already shaky bonds with the few people she had, to be able to stay with someone forever. She wondered if she would have to marry Roxas as well, since she wanted to be with him forever too.

"Ok, then you had better not forget about your promise."

Her brow furrowed when he slid his hand from hers and held a pinky out in front of her. A slight nod of his head and a friendly grin encouraged her to do the same, and she did so hesitantly. As soon as she interlocked pinkies with him, his lips were pressed to hers in a soft kiss.

He pulled back a long moment later, a small smirk playing on his lips as he slipped his arms around her waist and slid his lips next to her ear again.

"Early wedding present," he whispered, following with a chuckle. He kept her close and buried his face in her hair, breathing in slowly, almost swaying to some unheard music. She stood there dumbly, not daring to move or breathe at all. Slowly but surely, she melted out of her frigid state and wrapped her arms around him as well, her eyes closed.

If Replicas and Nobodies were never meant to be married, well... She prayed to God, right there and then, with her hands clasped together behind his neck as she had seen the wedding goers do, that one day they could be human.

They separated reluctantly, and he quietly led her out and back into the snow, never letting go of her hand. Except this time, snowflakes were floating down from the heavens and delicately piling in their hair to form an intricate, glistening mesh comparable to a spiderweb covered in morning dew.

Xion gasped in awe, wide-eyed, at the sight of snow falling from the clear sky. Seemingly forgetting everything that had just happened, she stumbled out into the center of the single nearby streetlamp's light to see the snowflakes better. She held her hands out to catch as many as she could, giggling as they landed on her and melted away into miniature puffs of steam.

"I've seen snow before, but I've never seen it actually snow!" She turned back to Axel with a joyful smile. Making her way over to him and grabbing both his hands, she yanked him into the ring of light. The way the light illuminated the melted snow in her hair and created a bright halo around her head was alluring, and he stopped short for a breathless moment, his mind finally cleared, fighting the urge to reach out and stroke her hair, to bring her close and make sure she was real and hold her tight. It was so powerful and strong now that he could think straight again, and he wasn't sure what to do.

She lifted her head to the sky in wonderment, swinging his arms back and forth. Looking back down at him, she tilted her head to the side. His eyes were as clear and sharp and stunning as ever.

"Were you pretending to be... when you..."

"I don't know, was I?" His white teeth glinted in the light, his eyes smirking playfully. She scanned them carefully for a little while before breaking into a smile again. Going back to peacefully catching snowflakes from the air from where she stood, she was unaware of his gaze on her.

A few quiet words came from his softly grinning lips.

"I think I know what I want for Christmas."

xxx

"Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."

—Luke 2:14

The whole drunk off eggnog thing was inspired by Raberba Girl's Christmas at the Castle- go read it now. I can never compare /fails and explodes (I didn't put it at the beginning because I don't want her to feel obliged to review or anything, since I know she doesn't like this pairing XD) Apparently it is possible to get drunk off eggnog, but I probably stretched it. Oh well.

Let's pretend that somewhere by/in Hollow Bastion there's some sort of low hills, k? 8D

Lol fail I used the wrong altar. /shifty eyes/ no one saw that... /fixes

And that was a whopper (for me), wasn't it? Took only about two days too, believe that! 8D

Well, I really hope you enjoyed. ^^ Your support is very much appreciated. C:

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas or other holiday you celebrate! =D