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Fareeha’s bright smile was truly infectious. Just two years old, and already living up to her name’s meaning. She was the main source of Ana’s motivation on the front lines, knowing that she was fighting to protect her daughter and her country. Knowing that one day, the fighting would finally come to an end, and she could go home (wherever that may be) to see her Fareeha grinning at her with that same little smile. Ana sighed in melancholy as Sam announced that it was time for a certain little girl to go to bed, or else Santa Claus would not come to their house. The two waved goodbye through the holo-tablet’s screen, and Ana bid them good night and blew a kiss to her family.
As the home screen popped up when the video feed went dark, she sighed deeply. They had been fighting for five months straight now…her, Morrison, Commander Reyes, Wilhelm, Lindholm…they all had families, they all wanted to be home for the holidays. But the conflict didn’t stop solely because of the time of year. No, the conflict would not stop until every last Omnium and God AI was secured and shut down. Not until every single infected Omnic on the face of the planet was wiped out. That…would take a long time. The UN predicted that at the current rate, peacetime would return in nine years at least. Nine years away from her family. Nine years far away from Fareeha and Sam in their apartment in Canada. Nine years away from her native city of Cairo, which she hoped would not be attacked in that time. Nine years away from family.
Ana breathed in deeply, looking out over the frosty streets below their safehouse in Lublin. The balcony was perched high above the people hurrying through the cold to do last-minute shopping and get to Christmas parties. She could only imagine how this place would look if the Omnics got through their defenses. They were roughly twenty kilometers from the frontlines, planes frequently flying in from the capital to drop supplies and troops. Overwatch was heading the defense most of the time, but since things had been calm for a few days, they had been given leave to remain within city walls for the holidays as long as nothing came up. For that, she was grateful. No bombs, no killer robots. If she didn’t know what was happening just beyond the walls of the Omnium, she would have said it was peaceful.
Lublin was the last major city near the eastern border that hadn’t fallen. Bialystok was already gone, and if Lublin fell, then the next on the Omnics’ list would be the capital city of Warszawa. Ana would do everything in her power to make sure that didn’t happen.
A large, warm hand on her shoulder yanked her from her thoughts. She turned to face Reinhardt Wilhelm, a German Crusader that she had grown close with through their battles. He had a look of concern on his usually confident face, seeming to know what she was thinking about. She simply shook her head, and turned to look out over the rows of buildings once more. “It’s a beautiful night.”
“It is,” he responded. “A perfect Christmas Eve, in my opinion.”
“You know, I never got to see snow much in Egypt. It really does make everything prettier.” She caught a few flakes in her gloved hand, watching them stay for a few seconds before melting away.
“We have too much of it back home this year. Let’s arrange a shipment, send a few tons of it down to Cairo,” her friend laughed.
“I can see the disapproval in the Secretary-General’s eyes as we speak,” Ana chuckled in response. Reinhardt always managed to make her a little bit merrier, even in the darkest of times.
“Bah, who needs him? We’ll just do it ourselves, a Christmas miracle!” This made her snort at his jokes, shaking her head. Such a silly man.
“I’m pretty sure the others would notice if we stole a jet and flew from Germany to Egypt, Reinhardt. They wouldn’t be all too happy that they were left out of the deal.”
He exhaled, loud and sarcastic. “Ah, well. I suppose they would. You’re right, as usual. Anyway, I didn’t just come out here to talk about the weather.”
“Oh?” She looked over to the blonde leaning over the railing beside her. It was then that Ana noticed the small package in his hand, that was…not well wrapped, to say the least. At least she couldn’t see what was actually inside.
“Yes! I know you said you don’t usually celebrate Christmas, but I think everyone should get a present. Especially those that don’t get anything most of the time!” His cheeky grin was infectious, making her smile in return.
“Oh, Reinhardt, you shouldn’t have! It’s a shame I don’t have something prepared for you,” she said as she took the small box.
“A kiss under the mistletoe would be an excellent present,” he joked, winking. She snorted once more.
“In your dreams, Wilhelm.” The colorful wrapping was soon removed, and the cardboard box pulled open. She moved the tissue paper to discover a styrofoam case, which was easily lifted up. Inside was a glass orb, with a miniature set of pyramids amidst a desert that was dotted with particles of artificial snow. The ball was attached to a base made of acacia wood, carved with hieroglyphs. Her eyes widened in awe at her present.
“You miss your home quite a lot, glöckchen. So I thought I might give you a piece of it to take with you wherever you travel.” The soft tone of Reinhardt’s was voice was something rarely heard by anyone, and it made Ana’s heart flutter. She looked from the snow globe to the man who had given it to her, jumping at him to wrap her arms around her neck. She was careful not to drop the trinket while she hugged him.
“Thank you, Reinhardt. You don’t know how much this means to me,” she whispered, smile evident in her voice. She felt his warm, strong arms wrap around the small of her back, happily returning her embrace.
“You’re very welcome! Now, come inside. It’s too cold to stay out here sulking for so long."