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Anya put on her shoes, grabbed her schoolbag, and cheerfully called out to Loid and Yor :
“See you tonight !”
She ran out of the house. Today was starting off particularly well. She was going to ride to the academy in Becky’s luxurious car. It was much more comfortable than taking the bus.
Anya greeted Martha, who opened the back door for her, and she immediately sat down next to Becky. The ride to school went by in a cheerful mood. They talked about the latest episode of Berlint in Love. Or rather, Becky delivered a long, passionate monologue about it. They also admired the shop windows decorated with Christmas colors as they passed by.
“Christmas vacation starts tonight. I can’t wait !” Becky exclaimed.
“Me too,” Anya replied.
No school for two whole weeks. Just thinking about it made Anya feel lighter already.
“What are you doing with your parents for Christmas ?” Becky asked.
“What do you mean ?”
“Well, every year, my family goes to our mountain chalet. We buy the Christmas tree, decorate it, and my dad lets me put the star on top. We have a big dinner on Christmas Eve. My mom reads a Christmas story by the fireplace. And before we go to bed, we leave a plate of cookies and a glass of milk for Santa. The next morning, we open our presents while still in our pajamas. That’s our Christmas tradition. And you ? What do you do ?”
Anya felt panic rising inside her. She could not tell Becky that this year would be her very first Christmas with her parents. And she had never celebrated Christmas at the orphanage. It simply wasn’t something they cared about.
“Same as you,” she finally answered.
Becky’s eyes widened.
“You have a chalet too ?!”
Anya nodded. Better that than telling the truth, she thought. But a small pang of sadness tugged at her heart. She wished she had Christmas traditions of her own.
******
That evening, Anya sat at the dining table for dinner. Loid and Yor exchanged a worried look. Ever since she had come home from school, she had been strangely quiet. Normally, she would have been bouncing around, shouting about being on vacation.
“Is something wrong, Anya ?” Yor asked.
Anya poked at her food with her fork, hesitant.
“Are we going to celebrate Christmas this year ?”
Loid and Yor froze. They hadn’t planned anything. Anya immediately heard their thoughts :
“I usually celebrate it with Yuri,” Yor thought. “But it would be nice for Anya to celebrate it as a family.”
“It’s been so long since I last celebrated Christmas,” Loid thought. “I didn’t see the point of doing it this year. But for the mission, we should.”
Anya’s hope grew as she listened to them.
“It might be a good idea to celebrate it,” Yor suggested.
“I think you’re right,” Loid replied with a smile.
Bond barked as if to approve. Anya jumped from her chair, glowing with excitement. She was going to celebrate Christmas. Her first Christmas with her parents.
******
The following days were dedicated to preparing for Christmas. They bought decorations, went to the Christmas market, drank hot chocolate, and ate cookies. Anya had never had so much fun. Especially when she was the one who chose the tree. The biggest and most impressive one she could find. Much to Loid’s dismay, who wanted a smaller, easier-to-carry one. Once the tree was set up in the living room, they decorated it, and Loid lifted Anya onto his shoulders so she could place the star on top. Yor took dozens of photos, determined not to miss a single moment.
Finally, Christmas Eve arrived. Everything had been bought for the meal. Yor insisted on making the Yule log. Bond and Anya shivered. Anya stared at Bond to read his thoughts. Images of the future flashed in her mind. The Yule log would be inedible, but thankfully, no one would get sick. She sighed in relief. Christmas Eve wouldn’t be ruined.
Anya had volunteered to make Santa’s cookies.
“Are you sure you can make them all by yourself ?” Loid asked.
Anya nodded firmly. This way, she thought, Santa will see I’ve been good and I’ll get more presents. She giggled and Loid frowned, wondering what she was plotting.
They had dinner and Anya declared it was the best meal she had ever eaten. After dinner, Yor taught her Christmas songs.
“It was a tradition Yuri and I had when we were little. After dinner, we always sang Christmas songs. It was our tradition.”
A tradition, Anya thought. Just like Becky’s family. Anya sang as loudly as she could. She wanted to continue this tradition and make Yor happy.
They went to bed. Anya tried to sneak out of her room to see Santa, but Loid intercepted her and managed to put her back to bed, explaining that Santa could not come if she was still awake. She eventually fell asleep, curled up against Bond, who had climbed onto her bed.
The next morning, Anya woke up at the first light of dawn, waking Loid and Yor as well. In the living room, the presents were placed under the tree.
“Santa came !” She exclaimed.
She looked at the coffee table where she had left the cookies. A bright smile lit up her face.
“And he ate the cookies I made !”
She unwrapped her presents. It was everything she had written on her list : Bondman toys. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Is something wrong ?” Yor asked, worried.
Anya shook her head and wiped her tears. They were not tears of sadness, but of joy. She was happy to have received all the toys she wanted. But her greatest gift of all was her first Christmas with her parents.
The end