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Felicem Nativitatem
(Latin) 
'Merry Christmas'

"Aqua! Merry Christmas!"

Aqua paused from taking a bite of his omelet as Kana walked behind him and encircled her arms around his shoulders in a loose hug. 

"Merry Christmas," he replied, unperturbed. 

She tilter her head at his side, her bright crimson eyes curious as she looked at him. "I can't believe you're not going home for the holidays. What did Ruby and Taiki say?"

He remembered how Ruby had pestered him to reconsider, even resorting to crying when he sent her off on the train. Taiki, who was working in Egypt for Gringotts, had sent letters daily on how hurt he was that his little bro was skipping the family trip to visit him. His mother had been more understanding, but had made him promise to bring Kana to visit them next summer. His father, meanwhile, gave him extra galleons for spending, a knowing smile on his face. "They'll manage." 

He missed Kana's warmth as she disentangled herself and sat beside him. She took the croissant from his plate and started munching on it. "Seriously, Aqua, a sixth-year like you should just relax. Enjoy your youth!"

"While a seventh-year like you should really focus on your N.E.W.T. exams."

Scowling, she turned her head guiltily to avoid his accusing stare. "I am studying!"

"Yeah— if you count reading Witch Weekly as studying."

"Hey! It keeps me updated with current events!"

"Isn't that what the Daily Prophet is for?"

"Excuse me." Kana and Aqua stopped their bickering to glance at the first-year Slytherin sitting across from them at the long table. She had a haughty look, her eyes narrowed at Kana. "Aren't you a Gryffindor? Why are you at our table?"

Before Kana could retort, a sixth-year Slytherin seated a few seats away, piped in, "Don't sweat on it, kid! We all love Miss Kana Arima. She's an honorary Slytherin."

Another Slytherin confirmed as he raised a thumbs-up. "Yeah! You're very much welcome here, Miss Kana! Have breakfast with us!"

Embarrassed, the first-year Slytherin student got up from her seat and left.

Kana— who was one of the most popular girls in school and was loved by almost everyone— propped her chin on her palm as she glared at Aqua. "This is all your fault. What did the Sorting Hat see in that twisted head of yours to place you in Slytherin? I was convinced you and Ruby would be in Gryffindor!"

"My whole family is in Slytherin. Even my grandparents, and great grandparents."

"Some pure blood shit?"

He quirked his eyebrow and offered his fork with sausage to her. She took a bite. "You have such a foul mouth. But yes, probably."

"So Hoshino, Arima," a seventh-year Slytherin sitting on their left interrupted. "Are the two of you finally dating?"

Aqua felt slightly annoyed by Kana's laugh. "Of course not!" She pinched his cheek and grinned. "We're just childhood friends. We've lived in the same neighborhood since birth. I've known him since he was a crybaby!"

He removed her hand from his cheek. "I'm not a crybaby."

"Really?" she challenged. "Taiki told me how you cried for a week when I left for Hogwarts during my first year."

"I did not," he countered.

Her grin widened. "He gave me the pictures."

He was going to kill Taiki. He was ready to make excuses when their conversation was interrupted, this time by the arrival of the messenger owls. His snowy owl stooped down and deposited a parcel on his lap.   

He unwrapped its contents, first pulling out a postcard from Egypt. Kana leaned over to see the Kamiki-Hoshino family happily waving as they posed in front of the great pyramids. She glanced at him, her voice teasing, "Looks like they are having fun without you, Aqua."

"That's good," he replied, his attention now on the enclosed small gift-wrapped package. "Kana, are you missing any gifts from my family?"

"No." She pouted. "Only yours."

He paused and averted his eyes. "I'll give it to you later."

She stared at him dubiously. "You didn't forget to get me a gift, did you?" She pulled on his white wool scarf. "After I painstakingly knitted this for you?!"

"Thanks," he said, thumbing the soft material. "It's really warm." He cleared his throat. "I'll give you my gift later."

That seemed to satisfy her as she now focused on the package in his hand. "So, what's that? Oh, there's a note." She peeled the tightly folded note stuck on the other side of the package.

It was Taiki's messy handwriting that Kana read aloud, "My little bro doesn't love me anymore. He's choosing his books over visiting me in Egypt for the holidays." 

Suddenly, Kana blushed, and her reading speed increased significantly. "Or maybe he's got a girlfriend he's going to snog in one of the broom closets in Hogwarts. For that, my Christmas gift to you, my not-so-little brother, Aqua, is something muggles use: a box of con—"

Aqua snatched the note and waved his wand to burn Taiki's letter and gift. 

He was really going to kill his older brother. 

After breakfast, Aqua made his way to the library while Kana pulled on the sleeve of his robe to deter him.

"Library? On Christmas Day?" she said incredulously as they crossed the courtyard. "Seriously, Aqua?" 

He furrowed his eyebrows as he continued walking ahead. "I stayed to study, you know. You should probably study—"

Splat.

Caught off-guard, a snowball hit the side of his head. Slowly, he turned to Kana who was grinning radiantly, her hands crossed guiltily behind her back. "Should we have a snowball fight like old times?"

He shook the snow from his head. "Alright." He raised his wand and smirked. Kana took a step back. "I wanted to practice anyway."

"Hey!" Kana retreated as he stalked towards her. "No wands!"

"No." He waved his wand to conjure a perfectly spherical snowball in his hand which he threw at her feet.

Kana screamed, whipped her wand and sent a barrage of snowballs at him.

.
.
.

Half an hour later, they were both sprawled on the snow-covered ground, out of breath from playing. Kana had insisted they make snow angels. Aqua had no choice but to follow.

"Hmm..." She stood pensively in front of their different sized snow angels. "You've grown, Aqua."

Aqua waved his wand to remove the snow from her hair and robes. He mumbled another spell to dry them both. "I hope so. I'm almost seventeen now, if you hadn't noticed," he scoffed.

She turned to him and raised her hand to gauge his height. She was much shorter. Or was he really just tall? A wistful smile touched her lips. "You used to be so short and cute, but now I need to tilt my head just to look at you!"

Daringly, he stepped closer and leaned his forehead against hers. He watched as her crimson eyes widened, a blush warming her cold cheeks. "Stop treating me like a kid."

She stepped back and pushed him away, turning her face to the side as she stammered heatedly, "S-Stop playing around!"

He smiled, amused at her cute, blushing face. "Oh, are we done playing? Then let's go to the library."

"W-What? Me too?"

"Of course." He grabbed her hand and led the way. "We don't want Gryffindor's Head Girl to fail her N.E.W.T.s now, do we?"

Aside from Madam Pince, the library was expectedly empty. Aqua made his way to the back of the Reference Section where the Herbology books were located. 

Kana sat on the alcove of the tall window by the side as she watched him skim through the row of books, her nose scrunched in disgust. Next to History of Magic, Herbology was her least favorite subject. "What are you looking for?"

"A book on Healing Plants," he answered. "If you're bored, you can start studying."

Kana yawned and leaned her head against the window. "I'm not studying on Christmas Day." Suddenly, her eyes caught sight of an odd plant with white berries dangling above her from the ceiling. "Aqua, what is that?"

He looked up from the shelf and walked towards her, his eyes studying the said plant. "It's a mistletoe. The berries can be used as part of an antidote to common poisons."

Warmth flooded her cheeks. "Oh..." She slapped his arm and laughed awkwardly as she tried to hide her embarrassment. "You grew up in a pure blood family, Aqua, so you probably don't know the muggle tradition with mistletoes."

He stared at her curiously. "What tradition?"

"Well," she tried to sound nonchalant, "You're supposed to exchange a kiss under a mistletoe."

He moved so that he was standing in front of her, his arms on either side of her body, caging her. "What happens if you don't?"

Kana swallowed nervously, her eyes unconsciously lingering on his lips. "You'll have bad luck."

Aqua leaned closer, his breath tickling her lips as he whispered, "We don't want that, do we?"

His clear blue eyes partly hidden behind wisps of his blond hair mesmerized her as she nodded. 

Smiling, he brought one of his hands up to cradle her neck. "Close your eyes, Kana."

Kana did as she was told, and Aqua pressed their lips together in a quick, chaste kiss. 

Slightly out of breath and cheeks adorably flushed, she scowled at his smug expression when they broke apart.

"Not enough?"

Bravely, she grabbed the front of his robes to pull him closer. She was in Gryffindor for a reason. "More."

"Okay." He gripped her waist to press their bodies together and tilted her head to kiss her deeper. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck as his tongue prodded her mouth open, tasting every corner he could reach.

In the flurry of their wildly beating hearts and fervent, breathless kissing, Aqua cast a nonverbal spell to make the mistletoe he set up disappear.

The Sorting Hat was never wrong. He was placed in Slytherin for a reason.

"What, in the name of Merlin, happened to you, Taiki?" Ai gasped as she surveyed the purple bruise on his right eye.

Taiki gestured at the package in his hand as he replied, "Aqua sent me a Boxing Telescope for Christmas." 

Hikaru had gone to retrieve the bruise removal paste while Ruby was clutching her stomach from laughing.

"Oi, Ruby," Taiki chastised with a grin as he held the note that accompanied his little brother's gift. "Pay up."

His sister stopped laughing, confused. "What? Why?"

"Aqua's dating Kana now." 

"What?!" Ruby snatched the note from her brother's hands in disbelief. "That's too fast! I thought he'll wait until after her exams!" Begrudgingly, she retrieved five galleons from her purse and handed them to Taiki.

"I told you he'd be too impatient. And look! He didn't need any help at all!" Taiki remarked proudly as he read Aqua's neatly written postscript.

'P.S. Broom closets are tacky and I don't need your gift. 
Charms work just fine.'

The End