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Anya bounced up and down in the backseat of the car.
“Calm down,” Loid called from the driver’s seat.
“How am I supposed to calm down? It’s CHRISTMAS!!”
“No, we’re just going to a christmas party. It’s not Christmas just yet.”
They were practically the same thing in Anya’s mind.
Becky had invited the Forgers to a Christmas party with extravagant gifts, food and even the richest people! (Papa only decided to go because it would be good for the mission.) When they arrived at Becky's mansion, Anya breathed out at the sight of it. The driveway was lined with giant candy-cane lights. The lawn was covered with untouched snow that was just taller than Anya herself. The house itself was decorated with lights that climbed the pillars on the front as well as lined the roof. The windows as well as the front door were decorated with green wreaths tied off with red bows.
“Papa, I’m moving in with Becky.” Anya decided, nodding to herself. It was decided.
“Uh-huh.” Loid replied unconvinced.
“You and Mama will have to visit me. Oh, and I’m taking Bond, too.”
“Alright, have fun.”
Satisfied, Anya climbed out of the car and ran up to the front door, careful not to slip on any ice. (there wasn’t any) She knocked on the door, waiting for Martha to open the door. To her surprise, Becky opened the door, a large grin on her face. Behind her, her father stood with a warm, welcoming smile.
Loid and Mr. Blackbell started to chat as Becky dragged Anya deep through the halls of the mansion and towards a lounge room.
“The party is technically in the ballroom, but I have a few gifts for you first.” Becky started rattling off as she searched around the room until she found a colorful box. She handed to Anya and grinned excitedly. I got a friendship necklace that I knew she would like. And some peanuts in case she doesn’t. But she totally will.
Anya ripped into the gift, pretending to be surprised at the gift but she realized she didn’t have to pretend at all. The necklace was half of a friendship necklace but there were also a few charms on it as well. One of the charms was a peanut, another was a chimera and the last one was a bondman charm. Anya smiled wide and threw her arms around her best friend.
“I love it! Thank you, Becky!”
Becky returned the hug with an equally wide smile.
“I’m glad you love it, because do you know how hard it was trying to find those charms?”
Anya laughed. Becky’s mind was racing about how many people she had to go through to get a peanut charm alone.
“Oh! I have something for you, too!” Anya reached into her satchel and pulled out a bag of cookies and fudge. “I made them myself!”
Becky took them and smiled.
“Thank you, Anya! Now. Before we go join the party, I think you need a better dress.”
Anya looked down at her dress, confused. It was the best dress she had, it was a red dress that fell just below the knees and tied at the back with a silk bow. She wore a white cardigan with it as well as green leggings and a pair of black shoes. She looked pretty. Apparently Becky didn’t think so. And Becky was the queen of fashion.
Becky pulled out an emerald green dress that puffed out slightly around the waist and reached the floor. It was long sleeved and had a red ribbon that tied on the side in a pretty bow. It was fancy. Something so fancy Anya was surprised Becky was having her wear it considering her track record of ruining nice things. (exhibit A, a few years ago, Becky and Anya were playing dress up and Anya got distracted and fell into the mud, ruining a one of a kind dress with stains that took weeks to get out.)
“Are you sure, Becky?” Anya asked, eyeing the dress wearily. “I like the one I’m wearing.”
“Yeah, yeah. It looks cute, but this one screams Princess. And that’s exactly what you are, Anya. And we’re going to show everyone out there that Anya Forger is more than the commoner they believe.” A person flashed through Becky’s mind but it was gone as soon as it arrived. “Now c’mon! Change and I can help with your hair!”
Anya reached up and touched her hair in a weak attempt to hide it.
“Nuh-uh. I’ll wear the dress, but my hair is fine. Mama braided it and I don’t want her to be upset.”
“Alright, alright. I’ll wait outside the door for you, hurry so we can get down there before all the treats are gone!”
Becky left the room and closed the door behind her so Anya could have some privacy while she changed. Anya picked up the dress and looked at it. It really was pretty. It wasn’t her style, but if Becky thought she would look cute in it…
Anya changed quickly, although she kept the cardigan. It looked cute with the dress. She looked in the mirror and inspected herself. She really did look cute. Like a princess. Princess Anya Forger. She stuck her tongue out at the title. She wasn’t a princess, she was a spy. She wasn’t useless like royalty. She was cool like papa. She was strong like mama. But… maybe the dress wouldn’t be bad for the night.
With a sigh, she opened the door and was met with Becky’s squealing glee.
“Anya! You look so pretty !” Then, without hesitation, she linked their arms and dragged them to the ballroom. “Let’s go!”
They walked to the ballroom quite fast. (Anya almost tripped on the dress a couple times) When they got there, a servant opened the doors for them and they entered. As soon as they did, Anya’s breath caught at the sight.
There were strings of lights everywhere. It was gorgeous . There was a large Christmas tree in the center of the room decorated with white and blue decorations with an Angel on the top. There were circle tables along the edges for people to sit and chat (most of which were old people.) and long tables full of all types of desserts. There was an orchestra playing Christmas music and people dancing in the center of the room.
“Becky, this is amazing!”
“Right? My family always throws the best parties.”
Anya agreed. Granted, she hadn’t been to any parties before. In the past, her and her parents had spent the holidays at home with each other. But this was on a whole other level that Anya didn’t know existed.
Everyone from her school was there with their families. That she knew, her papa had looked at the guest list beforehand. Although, there was one family she didn’t see there. The Desmonds. They were on the guest list, but they were nowhere to be found. Perhaps they had decided against coming. That was fine, Sy-on boy was annoying. Wait. No, that wasn’t good. What about the mission?? Her papa had agreed to come because the Desmonds would be there!
Becky dragged Anya into the middle of the room and started dancing with her. Anya briefly forgot about her worries. It was fun, dancing like this. They were at a Christmas party to have fun! And that’s exactly what she was doing!
After about ten minutes, though, her head started spinning because of the people. There were so many voices. So many thoughts. She was having trouble staying focused. So, she excused herself and walked over to the punch bowl. Hopefully a drink would help her so she wouldn’t have to go out of the room. She was having fun and didn’t want Becky thinking she was dragging her around!
When she got there, she grabbed herself a cup and leaned against the wall, sipping on her drink, staring at the tree. It really was pretty. Maybe she could convince Papa to get a tree this big next year. She giggled at the thought. As if Papa would allow that to happen. They didn’t even have enough room in their apartment, let alone enough money for all those lights.
“What’s so funny?” a voice asked beside her, making her jump and look over at who it was.
“SY-ON BOY!” she shouted, making a few people turn and give her weird looks. Her cheeks reddened as she lowered her voice. “What are you doing here?”
“My family was invited. The real question is what are you doing here?” Your family doesn’t come to these things .
Anya ignored his thoughts and answered his question.
“My family was invited too. Becky’s my friend, remember?” she narrowed her eyes.
Syon-boy didn’t actually look bad. His hair was gelled back and he had on a suit with a red tie. His eyes searched Anya for a minute before blushing slightly and looking away.
“Ah, that makes sense. Blackbell did say something about you being here. I didn’t think you would actually show.” A thought began to cross his mind but he shook it away before it could form anything coherent. He did that a lot. “It’s a bit stuffy in here, want to head outside for a bit?”
Anya looked at him with a confused expression.
“Didn’t you just get here?”
“Yeah, but you look like you’ve been here for quite a while, and it’s good to get fresh air during events like these.”
Anya looked across the room and made eye contact with Loid, sending him a quick signal, letting him know she would be outside. He nodded slightly in confirmation and went back to his conversation. Anya then looked back at Damian who was watching her expectantly.
“Alright, let’s go outside.”
“Let’s.”
Damian held out his arm for Anya to take. And Anya, understanding at least a little bit of good mannerisms took it as she led him outside. They went to the front porch and sat down with their legs dangling off the edge. Anya breathed in the crisp air and breathed out a sigh of relief. She had started getting a headache in there so she was grateful Syon-boy had come when he had.
She looked up at the sky. There weren’t any stars, but there were snowflakes falling. It was pretty. After a while, she leaned back on her hands and closed her eyes, enjoying being outside. She would have to give Becky a good excuse later, but that was a future Anya problem.
She sat like that for what felt like forever before a voice cut through the silence.
You really are beautiful, Anya Forger.
Anya’s eyes snapped open and looked over to see Damian watching her, a dopey smile on his face. When he noticed that he had been caught, he looked away, hiding a blush that had started to form on his cheeks.
“Did you say something?” she asked, making the boy’s blush worsen.
“No.” he said. “You’re hearing things, you sure you don’t need your ears checked, Forger?”
Anya eyed him skeptically before looking back at the snow. She started shivering. It was getting cold, she really should’ve brought a warmer jacket. She brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, keeping in as much warmth as she could. This wasn’t the worst thing that could happen. She could be inside, forced to listen to everyone’s constant thoughts. But honestly, that was a sacrifice she would make if it meant warmth.
A weight fell around her shoulders as Damian draped his suit jacket around her.
Once again, Anya looked over at him. And, again, he quickly looked away.
“You were shivering. I couldn’t let you get cold after I dragged you out here.” he said. You look good with my jacket .
“Thanks,” Anya replied, pulling the jacket tighter around her shoulders.
They fell into silence again, although this time it was broken rather quickly.
“What do you do for Christmas, usually?” Damian asked, turning so he was facing Anya fully.
“Oh, uh… I don’t know, wait for Santa to come and open presents?”
“Everyone does that, dummy. I meant like family traditions. Things only your family does.”
Anya thought about that. What did her family do that no one else did?
“Well, we usually make hot cocoa and watch the snow fall. And we build snow forts in the park and have a snowball fight. Although Mama usually wins. Papa almost won last year, but Mama’s sneaky. Then we’ll walk around the city and look at all the pretty lights. And when we get home we’ll sing carols and read stories before bed. Then in the morning Papa makes a HUGE breakfast that we eat before opening presents and baking for the rest of the day!”
Anya smiled at the memories. She loved Christmas. It was one of the few times of the year that both her Mama and Papa had time off of all of their jobs. She enjoyed it. When she looked over at Damian, he had a small smile on his face.
“What about you, Sy-on boy? What family traditions do you have?”
Damian looked thoughtful for a minute before he looked off and stared at the falling snowflakes.
“I’m not actually sure. Mother and Father are always busy and Demetreus is never around for the holidays so it’s usually just me. I don’t do much, besides open a couple presents. It’s nothing special like your Christmas.” I wish my family was as close as yours.
Anya looked at Damian as cogs started turning in her head.
“Then spend this year’s Christmas with us.” she decided. “Then you won’t be Lonely and Alone.”
Damain’s head turned so fast Anya was afraid he would hurt himself.
“Are you sure?”
Anya nodded.
“Sy-on boy can’t be lonely on Christmas. Not anymore. Not as long as Anya’s around.” Or as long as the mission exists. “You will come with us and enjoy the Forger Family Christmas.”
Damian’s lips curled into a smile.
“I would like that. Thank you, Anya.”