Scarlet had been hit by a wave of Christmas spirit. In a place as traditionally oriental as Time Valley, Christmas was of course not part of the annual celebrations. Nevertheless, since her husband had embraced quite a number of western cultures, he'd indulgently allowed his wife to celebrate it if she wanted to. 

She didn't normally get into the spirit; maybe once a decade or maybe if a Saint was visiting. This year, it was unknown what bug had bitten her but the club was decidedly festive with wreaths of holly and mistletoe; with several tinsel decorated trees in the corners. Thankfully, Gin had put his foot down on the artificial snow, although he had hired several snow elementals to stay outside, making the outside of the club a lovely winter wonderland. There were also several fairies flitting around giving a magical glow to everything. 

Ciel was bewildered by his mother's excitement over this holiday. It had only been two years since her last Christmas. So he and his siblings had assumed that they wouldn't have to see the decorations for another seven to eight years. None of the Christmas or Noel related myths were visiting either. He did notice that his father had a rather sour face whenever he saw the decorations; but Gin would roll his eyes and not say a thing whenever he felt his wife pinch his arm. Ciel decided to just let her be; until he heard Blanc snickering with his twin. 

"What's so funny?"

"We just heard something from the Japanese raccoon that was here earlier."

"Oh?"

"It seems that Christmas isn't a religious holiday there. It's more of a celebration for lovers. "

Ciel could hear the italics in his brother's words and his face flamed almost instantly. Ever since he and George got together, he had been stuck between an over-excited mother who wanted to celebrate love and a moody father who wanted his children to remain five. Ciel didn't want to imagine Valentine's Day; especially if his mother managed to get her hands on some cherubs to play cupid.

Speaking of cherubs, another one who was rather grumpy about the decorations was surprisingly the angel. The normally apathetic, quirky angel would look at all the holly and tinsel with a dark face and sigh. He had banned all decorations from the infirmary, which was his domain. He even growled at the gingerbread and eggnog that was offered to him. Seeing how bad tempered he had been, everyone had avoided the angel and looked for other healers for their minor bumps and bruises. 

Before he could quash his brother's crooked thoughts though, Scarlet had walked in and announced that there would be a Christmas ball and a secret Santa for the staff. Ciel couldn't help but roll his eyes. He would bet everything he owned and maybe everything that smirking Blanc owned that he would pull out George's name from the box. His father was nowhere to be seen; most likely he had decided to give up and join the angel in the only Christmas free zone that was the infirmary. But everyone else had gotten into the holiday spirit and was rather excited. Everyone knew that the box was rigged but there was something magical about Scarlet's pairings. Those that were a pair would normally be paired with their partners whereas those without would be paired with someone who suited them or that they were already interested in. This was a chance to get closer to their special someone. 

In the past Ciel normally pulled out a family member's name which was how his father liked it. This time he exchanged glances with George from across the room and gave a helpless smile. They both knew the rules of the game. However, Scarlet surprised everyone. 

"Just prepare a gift. During the party, each of you will pull out a number. The one with the corresponding number will exchange gifts with each other. I'm not enchanting the box this time. Master Gin has banned me from doing it."

So even his mother had her limits... Now Ciel had to crack his head. He'd have to prepare two gifts. One for George and one more for in case he was matched with someone else. No, make that three. If he ended up with a family member, it was obvious he couldn't give a generic potion as a gift. He scratched his head and sighed; his mother had just made life difficult. It was obvious that the other staff all thought the same from the faces that they were pulling. 

"Sorry, my husband said I was too meddling and he would cancel the party if I enchanted the box." Scarlet gave a helpless shrug. 

While it would be a little difficult, it was still better than not having a party at all so the staff had no choice but to accept the terms offered. 

*        *        *        *        *

Now, Ciel had all the gifts except the one he wanted to give George. He'd prepared a set of enhancement potions as the generic gift and prepared a pendant with emergency teleportation for his siblings; his parents never took part in the gift exchanges; something to do with his father being a jealous man. But the one he wanted to gift the most he had no idea what to give. They had just started out and he was torn between a casual and intimate gift. Sighing in frustration, he went to find his father to ask for permission to go shopping in the human world; maybe he'd get an inspiration then. 

His father had looked at him with a grumpy look but sighed and allowed it; on condition that Noire and Blanc went with him. The two of them hardly ever left the confines of their home and club. He wanted them to stretch their wings a little. Ciel agreed and had to drag the 'reluctant to go' duo with him. 

"Why don't you two like going to the human world anyway?" 

"There's nothing to see or do." Blanc shrugged his shoulders.  Ciel stared. Was he serious? 

"Where did you guys go the last time?"

"Some place called the Amazon. I didn't see any of Thyia's clansmen at all." He complained. 

No wonder then. Ciel took them to the happiest place on earth, gave them a pair of VIP tickets and told them he'd be back the next day. With the twins out of the way, Ciel left and went to a nearby metropolis to do some shopping. He went to several cities but was not satisfied with anything he found; finally he got a tip from an elf he happened to meet and found himself outside an old storefront somewhere in England. 

You wouldn't be able to find the store though. Ciel was pretty sure a normal person wouldn't even be able to find the village where the store was located; not if the casually passing Fey were any indication. Looking at the sign that just said 'Smith', Ciel took a deep breath and walked in, the bell jangling as he swung the door open.  

It was a fascinating store, full of bric-a-bracs and other knickknacks. From jewelry to watches to weapons; anything that required the skilled hand of a 'smith'. 

"Welcome. Can I help you, young man?" 

Ciel turned to see a wizened old man, with a head of snow white hair and extremely thick glasses at the counter. He smiled shyly and responded. 

"I'm told that you can make personalized accessories here."

"I can. But so can a lot of stores elsewhere. I'll only make them if they pique my interest."

Ciel nodded in understanding.  "I'd like to make a pair of cufflinks and a tiepin out of this in this design." he pulled out a small pouch and poured out several white, glittering materials. He also pulled out a sheet of paper with some designs sketched on it. He looked at the old man who was studying the designs and materials, anxious and hopeful. 

"Now this is interesting. Is it for personal use?"

"It's meant to be a gift."

"The receiver must be special then."

"He is."

The old man nodded. "I see. All right, I accept. Could I have some of the left over material as payment?"

Ciel thought it over and accepted. After some discussion he agreed to collect the accessories in a week's time. Going back to collect the now 'reluctant to go home' twins, Ciel went back home, eager to see the final product when they were ready. 

*        *        *        *        *

The party was in full swing and everyone was having a good time. With nonstop music and free flow of delicious food and drink, guests and staff mingled freely. His parents as the hosts were dressed for the occasion with Scarlet in a red and white dress while his father had a silver vest with red and white embroidery to match his mother. 

Since his father had forbidden the gift exchange box to be enchanted, even guests who brought gifts were free to join the fun. At the last minute, it was decided that everyone would put all the gifts in one spot and have them randomly numbered. Then everyone would pull a number from the box and get the corresponding gift. There would not be any awkward face to face exchange that way. Ciel had left the potion set and did not bother to pull a number; if there was a left over gift then that would be his. 

He decided that he had had enough mingling and had gone out for some fresh air. As expected, it wasn't long before he felt a familiar warmth on his back and a pair of arms around his waist. 

"Did you have a good time?"

"It's better now."

"Cheeky."

They walked and were soon out of sight of the club. Ciel was not surprised that he was leaned against a tree and kissed senseless.

"Your father had all the mistletoe hung against the wall. He really wanted to avoid any hanky panky." George complained. 

"Whose, I wonder." Ciel smiled. In the comfortable silence, he pulled out a box just as George brought a pouch out of his pocket. They looked at each other and laughed. Without another word, they exchanged gifts. 

Opening the pouch, Ciel tipped the contents onto his palm; it was a beautiful filigree pin. The lace-like metalwork showed a delicate pair of wings. It was ingeniously designed that he could either pin it to his shirt or even attach it to his hair. 

"Since I took your wings, it's only right that I return a pair to you... "

Ciel blushed when he looked at the pin. It was obvious that the pin was a custom piece; no other pin would have the words 'Ciel and George forever' designed into the filigree work like that. It was hidden in the intricate metal workings and might not be noticed at a glance but to Ciel, it was as obvious as a beacon in the night. 

George meanwhile had opened the box and stared at the pieces inside. Made of white, glittering material, the tiepin and cufflinks stood out against the black velvet. The square cufflinks had the letter 'G' engraved on them, with a blue saphire where the 'G' crossed. And hidden behind it, pretending to be a shadow, was a letter 'C'. If one looked carefully, one saphire was a lighter shade than the other. The tiepin had the word 'George' engraved on one side with a saphire of light blue while the other side of the clip was the word 'Ciel' with a saphire several shades darker. It was designed in such a way that the pin was reversible and any side could be worn as the front. But what moved George was the material from which they were made of. 

"This material is..."

"Dragon scale." Ciel paused.  "Mine."

"You... "

"I didn't intentionally pull them out if that's what you're worried about. These were shed sometime ago." Ciel stared at the visibly conflicted George. "I just thought they'd be more personal..."

Before he could say anything else, he'd been captured by George for another kiss. He closed his eyes and savoured the warmth and feel of the man embracing him, opening his mouth to let him in. 

"I love it. Thank you."

"Mmmm" Ciel was a little befuddled by the kiss but he gave George a smile which caused George to kiss him again, causing further befuddlement. When they had finally had enough, they returned - hand in hand - to the club, only to be greeted by an even bigger commotion. Ciel was surprised to see the angel in the middle of the revelers. 

"Didn't he hate Christmas?" Ciel asked bewildered. 

"Turns out what he didn't like was the possibility that he might be called to return to heaven. He was just informed that he didn't have to go back." Blanc explained. Ciel noticed that he and Noire were preparing to leave. 

"Going home so soon?" he couldn't help but ask. 

"No. Since the angel didn't have to return, he's taking some days off to go to an amusement park. We got father's permission to go with him. This should cheer Noire up. She pulled a pack of generic enhancement potions in the gift draw."

Ciel did not feel the least bit guilty and even told the twins to have fun. He went to the gift exchange counter to pick up his gift. Socks? Really? 

____________

A/N: just a little extra for the holidays. Merry Christmas everyone ^_^