Hisoka was once again sitting beside the lake, but this time, he wasn't alone. Tsuzuki was sitting with him, and, much to Hisoka's pleasure, wasn't humming along to a Christmas song that apparently came out of nowhere. They were sitting together in silence, which was perfectly fine for the both of them. It was one of those moments where no words were needed, when they knew what the other was thinking without uttering a sound. Hisoka's left hand was laying on the grass between them, Tsuzuki's right hand on top of it, their fingers intwined. The small space between them was starting to bug Hisoka, however, so he scooted over more, closing the gap. As he rested his head on Tsuzuki's shoulder, Tsuzuki wrapped his arm around Hisoka's waist. And there they sat, looking at the full moon's bright reflection in the dark water, watching the petals of the cherry blossom trees fly by in the warm night breeze. There was nothing threatening about the darkness around them, no disturbing thoughts haunting the backs of their minds. Hisoka could only think about how comfortable Tsuzuki was to lay against, and, oddly enough, how good he smelled. Not to mention how lovely he looked in the moonlight, with that slight glimmer to his purple eyes. The temperature was just perfect, a cozy sort of warmth, not unlike cuddling under blankets on a cold day. In fact, Hisoka was pretty sure that he was cuddled under blankets, in bed on a cold December morning.

Slowly opening his eyes, Hisoka found he was indeed in bed and cuddled with Tsuzuki under blankets. Though his head wasn't resting against his shoulder, since they were both laying on their sides facing each other, he was laying against him, Tsuzuki's arm around his waist, holding him there. Hisoka realized Tsuzuki wasn't lying when he said he liked to hug something when he slept. He had said it helped him sleep better, and apparently Hisoka had now become his personal living teddy bear. Not that Hisoka minded much, it was nice. Strange how something he avoided so adamantly before he found pleasurable now.

Tsuzuki's right arm was laying between them, the sleeve of his pajama top pushed up and the scars on his wrist visible. Hisoka slid his thumb softly over the marks and frowned. He knew just what pushed Tsuzuki to do such a thing, and just how depressed he could get. After all, Hisoka had witnessed it first-hand, and it wasn't something he ever wanted to see again. All the guilt, sorrow and self-hatred Tsuzuki had felt in Kyoto was absolutely crushing. It was something that had affected all of them, and every second of it had ripped at Hisoka. Tsuzuki didn't deserve to feel like that. He was such a caring, compassionate, loving individual, and he deserved to be treated that way in return, not teased, kicked around, toyed with and treated like a monster.

Hisoka pressed his face to Tsuzuki's chest, the top of his head just under Tsuzuki's chin, and, in a whisper, made a promise, "I'll never let you feel that way again."

A short while later, Tsuzuki awoke. He smiled as he saw Hisoka was still cuddled up to him. "Good morning."

"Good morning."

"And you said you didn't like cuddling." Tsuzuki teased.

"I don't." Hisoka paused for a moment, knowing that Tsuzuki was going to say something about that, blushed, and continued in a softer tone, "Only with you..."

"Aww, how cute."

Hisoka's blush deepened, and he tried to hide it by looking down and cuddling close to Tsuzuki's chest. That wasn't enough to fool Tsuzuki, however.

"Hey, don't hide, it's cute when you blush!"

"Cut it out!"

Tsuzuki chuckled and ruffled Hisoka's hair. "Oh! Merry Christmas!"

"Oh, right. Merry Christmas."

"I'm so glad we don't have work today! Working on Christmas is no fun. Besides...I don't really feel like getting up right now." Tsuzuki wondered how long Hisoka would stay in bed. The younger usually wasn't one for lounging around in the morning, and was always ready before Tsuzuki.

"For once...I agree with you." Hisoka said, much to Tsuzuki's surprise.

"See? I told you cuddling was good!"

Hisoka glanced up at Tsuzuki. "Tsuzuki, don't push it."

"Shutting up now."

"Good."

Tsuzuki smiled, wondering how he ever got so lucky as to have Hisoka as a partner. He still couldn't figure out just why Hisoka had chosen to remain with him, but he was glad he did.

"It wasn't luck." Hisoka suddenly said, having picked up Tsuzuki's thoughts. "It was...for lack of a better word, karma."

"Karma? I doubt it. If it was karma, you never would have-"

"Tsuzuki." Hisoka moved back so he could look his partner in the eye. "I didn't stay because you happened to get lucky. I stayed because I wanted to, and because you didn't deserve to have another partner walk out on you. No, don't turn away, look at me." Hisoka put his fingers on Tsuzuki's cheek, redirecting his gaze to make sure Tsuzuki was looking at him. "Listen to me. Do you not think the reason I stayed was because I wanted to?"

"Well...I mean...I don't know why you wanted to. Remember how angry you were when you found out you were stuck with me?"

"That was before I knew you. You think I could have just walked away after what you did for me? I couldn't tell you I didn't want to work with you after that. I stayed because, past being the lazy, sweet-toothed, carefree, clumsy Shinigami, you are compassionate, kind and caring. It's no less than you deserve. If anything, you deserve better."

Tsuzuki shook his head. "There isn't anyone better. I couldn't ask for a better partner than you." Unlike his previous partners, Hisoka actually understood him. Hisoka took the time and energy to figure him out, saw through his masks, then tried his hardest to help. Even though Tsuzuki had worn fake smiles to fool everyone when he was actually depressed, even though he would deny it and refuse to explain himself, a part of him screamed to be understood, to be helped. He would feel guilty about living, but he didn't want to. He didn't want to be depressed. He didn't want to ruin everything, he wanted to be able to feel better about himself. Hisoka was the only one who actually persisted despite Tsuzuki's stubbornness about it all, the only one who heard his screams for help and refused to leave his side until he knew Tsuzuki would be alright. Hisoka actually wanted to remain with him.

Hisoka blushed again. "Then don't argue with me when I tell you it's no less than you deserve."

"Alright, alright." Tsuzuki said, smiling. He laid with Hisoka for a little while longer, the two of them content just silently cuddling. After a few minutes, Hisoka decided it was time to start the day.

"I think it's time to get up."

Tsuzuki stuck out his lower lip in a pout. "Do we have to?"

Hisoka sat up and stretched. "Yes, now get up. Besides, we have to get ready for Hakushaku's Christmas party. I'm sure you want to go...for whatever reason."

"What do you mean? Christmas parties are fun! Why wouldn't I want to go?" Tsuzuki asked, sitting up.

Hisoka shrugged and dug through the small dresser Tatsumi had given him to store his clothes in while he was at Tsuzuki's. "Too many people. Well, not for you I guess. Just be careful how much sake you drink, because we both know Hakushaku will take full advantage of that, and we don't need you doing something you'll end up regretting."

"C'mon, I don't get that drunk!"

Hisoka turned around and raised an eyebrow at Tsuzuki. "Right. Which explains why you decided it would be fun to strip at one of his parties."

"That was only once!"

"What about that time we went on vacation to Hokkaido and you sung bad karaoke?"

"Hey, It wasn't bad!"

"I beg to differ. Anyway, the point is, you do get that drunk, and you will end up doing something more stupid than usual if you aren't careful, and I'm not going to bail you out." Gathering his clothes into his arms, he stood up. "I'm going to take a shower." With that, he headed to the bathroom, effectively ending all conversation.

Tsuzuki sighed and shook his head. Even on Christmas, Hisoka was his usual, argumentative self. Though, Tsuzuki had to admit, he probably wouldn't have it any other way. Tsuzuki had come to learn that it was Hisoka's own way of caring. Well, most of the time. Still, he just wouldn't be Hisoka if he didn't call him an idiot at least once a day.

Sliding out of bed, Tsuzuki began gathering his own clothes while he waited for Hisoka to get out of the shower so he could take one himself. He knew Hisoka hated parties, so he most certainly wasn't looking forward to this evening, but Tsuzuki wondered if he could make it at all better for him. There had to be something he could do to make it more fun for him. Dancing was out of the question, he didn't get excited about food, and he wasn't very sociable. Tsuzuki sighed. Pleasing Hisoka was so difficult. Half the time he couldn't even tell if he was making him angry by trying or not. Of course, that never stopped him from trying to make Hisoka smile. Hisoka had definitely been happy the night before, though Tsuzuki wasn't sure what he'd done right. Whatever it was, he needed to do it again. That was the first time Hisoka had ever willingly cuddled, or even shown affection, and it just wasn't healthy to be so withdrawn all the time. He'd come up with something.

The rest of the morning went as it usually did: the two got ready, ate breakfast, with Hisoka yelling at Tsuzuki to hurry up because he was too slow and they would be late if he didn't move faster. Tsuzuki insisted they had plenty of time, but arrived at Tatsumi's just on time. Had they not walked quickly, they would have been late. With their arrival, Tatsumi, Watari, Tsuzuki and Hisoka all climbed into Tatsumi's car and headed to the Hall of Candles.

"Oh, welcome everyone!" Hakushaku greeted the four as they walked in the door. "You are the last ones to arrive!"

Tatsumi threw a glance at Tsuzuki. "I apologize if we were later than expected."

Hakushaku laughed. "Oh, it's fine! You know what they say...best for last." At this, he turned to face Tsuzuki, who gave a nervous grin in return.

"I take that back." Tatsumi mumbled. Hisoka rolled his eyes.

As they all made their way in, two familiar, bubbly voices sang out, "Hi~so~ka~!"

"Oh, no..."

Before Hisoka could find a place to disappear to, Saya and Yuma were beside him, each with a hand on his shoulder and uncomfortably close to his face.

"Oh, look how cute he is in his tux!" Saya giggled.

"But he would look so much more adorable in that Christmas dress we found." Yuma said with a smirk. "It would look lovely with his eyes!"

"Indeed it would! And we could put a little bow on top of his head, he'd be too cute to resist!"

Yuma ran a finger down his cheek. "And his skin is as soft as ever!"

"Stop touching me!" Hisoka yelled, pushing Yuma's hand away.

Yuma looked over at Tsuzuki. "What do you think, Tsuzuki? Wouldn't he look simply adorable in a nice Christmas dress?"

Hisoka was glaring at Tsuzuki with a look that clearly said 'if you say yes, I'm going to kill you slowly and painfully.' Tsuzuki grinned.

"Nah, I think he looks handsome in a tux."

Hisoka's face turned red. "Tsuzuki!"

Yuma gasped. "Did you hear that, Saya?"

"I did! Does this mean what I think it does?"

"I believe so."

"Come on, Yuma, I think we have some plotting to do."

With that, the two girls walked off, giggling in a way that made Hisoka shudder. "Great, now look what you started."

"Sorry. Should I go back and tell them the dress would look better?"

"Do that, Tsuzuki, and I swear, you will suffer."

Tsuzuki ruffled Hisoka's hair. "I'm just teasing you, I wouldn't do that to you. Besides, you look far better in a tux."

"Go get your food that you've been waiting all day for." Hisoka said with a blush, giving Tsuzuki a small push.

On the dance floor, Terazuma was spinning Kannuki around. Since it was the first time anyone had seen them dance together, everyone had actually stopped to watch. Neither of the two dancers noticed, continuing as if nobody else was around. When they finished, Terazuma dipped Kannuki and planted a kiss on her lips, and the room erupted with applause. Terazuma looked up, suddenly feeling awkward. Kannuki simply laughed and curtsied. Terazuma tried to walk away, but Kannuki grabbed his arm and pulled him back over.

"Bow, Hajime-chan!"

Though he didn't particularly want to, Terazuma gave a small bow anyway, then wandered toward the back of the room with his partner.

"That was fun!" Kannuki said, a large smile spread across her face. "We can dance again later, right?"

Terazuma nodded. "We can dance again. As long as everybody doesn't decide to start staring again."

"Aw, but they all clapped for us! They were watching because they liked our dance! Aren't you happy that they enjoyed it so much?"

Terazuma thought about it for a moment. While he didn't exactly like being put on the spot, he did have to admit, it was kind of nice to have everyone applaud their dance. After all, it was for Kannuki, and it made her happy.

Only a couple of minutes later, a slow song started playing, and Kannuki looked eagerly over at Terazuma. With a small smile, Terazuma took Kannuki's hand and walked her over to the dance floor.

Tsuzuki was still by the food table, watching the dancers. Normally, he'd have already been up there, but not having a dance partner made it rather difficult to dance. He wanted to ask Hisoka, but he knew that his partner hated dancing. Or, at least, he assumed so, since he had never seen him have any desire to do so. It didn't help that Hisoka hated crowds and stuck to the back of the room during parties.

Hisoka glanced up at Tsuzuki. "I'm surprised you haven't asked anybody to dance with you yet."

"Nobody to dance with." Tsuzuki said with a shrug.

"What do you mean? You could ask Saya or Yuma. They'd be happy to dance with you."

"I could..."

"But...?" Hisoka knew there was a reason behind it. He was starting to pick up on whenever Tsuzuki wanted something but was hesitant to ask.

"I wanted to dance with you."

Hisoka felt his cheeks heat up. "Me? I think you'd be better off asking somebody else...I'm not very good at dancing..." He'd only danced with somebody once before, and, while it hadn't gone badly, he had felt a little awkward, and he knew that he'd only make this awkward for Tsuzuki.

Tsuzuki gave a small smile. "That's okay, I can lead you. Please, Hisoka? Just one, and we'll do it off to the side where nobody else is. I don't want to dance with anybody else."

"Well..." Hisoka sighed. He couldn't say no to the look Tsuzuki was giving him. "Fine, just one. Don't expect this often, either."

"Thanks! You'll have fun, I promise!"

Tsuzuki led Hisoka to the least populated side of the room, away from the other dancers. Since Hisoka was giving him a chance, he was determined not to mess it up. Placing one hand at Hisoka's waist and taking his hand in the other, the two began a slow, simple dance. At first, Hisoka kept his gaze fixed on random things about the room, trying not to look at Tsuzuki. When he did look up, Tsuzuki was looking down at him with a gentle smile. Hisoka moved closer and rested his head against Tsuzuki's chest. He was surprised. He had expected it to be awkward, but it wasn't. It was actually rather nice, much like the night before when he had fallen asleep on the couch laying against Tsuzuki.

After the song ended, Hisoka took a moment before pulling away from Tsuzuki. The same smile was spread across Tsuzuki's face.

"Thanks, Hisoka. That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"No..."

Tsuzuki's smile widened. "I'm glad." He glanced up, and his smile turned into a sly sort of smirk. "Hey, look up."

Confused, Hisoka looked up. His face immediately turned red when he realized what they were standing under: one of the many mistletoes Hakushaku had set about the place, most likely in hopes of catching Tsuzuki under one. Before he could give any more of a reaction, Tsuzuki pressed his lips to Hisoka's, lingering a short moment before pulling back. Hisoka didn't have to look in a mirror to know his entire face had turned red.

"Tsuzuki~" Hakushaku sung out, stopping short when he saw Hisoka standing close to Tsuzuki. He didn't say anything, but Hisoka picked up on his first thought, which had been a loud, 'What is he doing with my Tsuzuki?!'

Hisoka looked at Hakushaku for a moment, turned back to Tsuzuki, and gave him a somewhat forceful kiss. Hakushaku seemed to take the hint, grumbled and walked away. After Hisoka pulled away, Tsuzuki had a slightly confused look on his face.

"Hakushaku." Hisoka said with a blush as he explained, "He was wondering...well, in his words...what I was doing with 'his' Tsuzuki." He wasn't completely sure why he'd suddenly gotten possessive, but, after all they'd been through, Hisoka felt Tsuzuki was his to protect, to comfort, to love.

Tsuzuki smirked. "I'm not his Tsuzuki then?"

"No. You're my Tsuzuki. Mine and mine alone."

"Alright, but only if you are my Hisoka, and mine alone." Tsuzuki said, wrapping his arms tightly around Hisoka and pulling him close.

"Of course."

Tsuzuki leaned down and kissed Hisoka again. "Merry Christmas, Hisoka."

Author's Note: Sorry it's a day late. I hope you all enjoyed this little holiday story. Merry Christmas to you all, and a happy new year as well!