A.N. Welcome to Day 25! I know technically there's only 24 days in an Advent Calendar, but it was always my intention to post 25 fics. This last one is just a small, light-hearted Christmas-themed story. It's just a nice note to end off on, especially after yesterday. Thanks for all the support this past month. One last time…Enjoy.

As a rule, they didn't buy each other gifts.

There was no point; what do you buy for someone who's lived for centuries? They both lived comfortably off their captain's salary; even Jūshirō who sent much of his paycheck away to support his seven younger siblings was able to live in comfort. Neither Jūshirō nor Shunsui made wish lists when Christmas came around, although they were asked by friends and others who would buy them a gift or two. In truth there was nothing that either of them particularly needed, and they'd fallen into the habit of picking up small gifts throughout the year if they saw something they thought the other would enjoy or get a laugh out of.

They did, however, spend most Christmases together. Shunsui avoided his family like the plague – he'd never gottem along with them and after his brother died he'd really had no reason to visit. He did make a point to send letters every once and a while and visit on his mother's birthday, but they didn't expect him to show up on Christmas, and he never made the effort.

Jūshirō did get along quite well with his siblings, but most of them had married and some had families of their own. Ugendō wasn't quite large enough for all of them to get together and he wouldn't want to intrude on any of their families. They seemed to get along well enough without seeing him during the holidays.

"Yare yare, Ukitake. A bottle of sake? How did you know?"

Jūshirō smirked, "I actually bought it very early into the year in the Living World and I meant to give it to you on your birthday. I found it when I was cleaning out my cupboards the other day."

Shunsui took a drink from his glass and, finding it to his liking, nodded before downing the rest of the liquid.

"If my Nanao-chan only knew that you were one of the most prominent suppliers of my sake…perhaps then she would go after you instead of finding increasingly larger books to hit me with."

"It's one of the only gifts I can give you that I know you'll use entirely," Jūshirō said simply, seemingly unfazed by Shunsui's covert threat.

"Did you want a drink?" Shunsui asked.

Jūshirō shook his head, "Maybe later. I'm okay for now."

Shunsui shrugged, "We don't normally do gifts. I don't have anything for you."

Jūshirō smiled, "I wasn't expecting anything. Regardless my birthday was four days ago, and that surprise party at the bar was enough for me. It was nice to see everyone together."

"It was," Shunsui agreed.

They prepared dinner – Jūshirō cooked and Shunsui drank – and they ate out on the porch. It was surprisingly mild out for the end of December, which was beneficial for Ukitake's health and was complementary to Shunsui's habit of sleeping outside whenever possible. In truth, Christmas for them was a lot like many other days that they spent together. Jūshirō loved Christmas but he had stopped decorating Ugendō many years ago, although he did still string lights on the outside of the estate. Shunsui could never be bothered, but he did enjoy the opportunity to buy scandalous gifts for Nanao; who did often gift him with an 'obligatory' present in return.

"It's supposed to be a full moon tonight," Shunsui said as they relaxed on thick cushions after they'd finished their meal.

"On Christmas? I can't even remember the last time that happened."

Shunsui said nothing in reply, instead he pulled a second sake dish from his uniform and placed it on the porch near Ukitake, filling it with sake.

Jūshirō arched an eyebrow, "I never said that I was going to drink."

"But you will," Shunsui murmured, amused. "It's Christmas, Ukitake. This is a celebration that demands alcohol!"

Jūshirō laughed, and took a small drink of the sake. Although he wouldn't consider himself to be a sake connoisseur by any stretch of the imagination, he'd been purchasing it long enough to be able to pick out good bottles. The bottle he'd given Shunsui was no exception and he was secretly pleased with himself.

The evening faded into night and soon enough they were watching the full moon in the calm sky; not a cloud in sight to block the beautiful view.

"Long year," Shunsui murmured absently.

Jūshirō made a sound of agreement.

"A quick one nonetheless," Shunsui continued.

Jūshirō nodded again before looking over at his best friend. "A toast, perhaps?" He offered, holding out the dish.

Shunsui smiled, and raised his disk to Jūshirō's, knocking them against each other lightly.

"To the Gotei 13," Shunsui murmured.

"To the Gotei," Jūshirō echoed, smiling.