SD Gundam Fan Fiction ❯ Our First Christmas ❯ Chapter 1

Mel: T.T I know, it's past Christmas, but I promised myself I'd have it done and posted by the end of the first day of 2007. This thing really has no point. I'm still stuck in that hole I fell in all so long ago when I stopped writing. I did this to try and get out…… it didn't work so well

Rap: >.> No editing has been done and probably won't be done, so sorry if it hurts your eyes to read

 

Mel: There will probably be many typos (cause I have a problem with typing ;;;>> I go too fast)

Yin-Yang: Disclaimer is we don't own SD Gundam. Please enjoy the late Christmas story.

 

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

Our First Christmas

 

Another day, another wasted 24 hours of the thing called life. To Zapper, life had become pretty dull around the Magna-Musai since invasions had been halted. Why the attacks had stopped, the colonel didn't know, but he could care less.

 

What really caught his attention was the way everyone was being so nice to each other, smiling when there was no reason to be happy and the zakos were all decorating the Musai! The place was covered with green that contrasted with the red and the ship was overrun with multicolored lights that were never. Turned. OFF!

 

Not only the colors and lights, but Destroyer had was wearing a headband upon which was suspended a plant by means of a curve of wire and was trying to kiss him every time they were in the same room. It annoyed the colonel to no end and he'd eventually plucked the leaves from the other's headband and walked away with it. Dom had remained still from shock before, most likely, running off to find someone to cry to.

 

“Not that there's a shortage of those damn things. With some hung up in at least every door way, he could just take that and put it on his stupid headband.” The colonel muttered crossly.

 

“Why are you talking to yourself?”

 

Zapper sat up quickly, glaring at intruder the voice belonged to. “Get the hell outta my room Grappler. I'm not in the mood to deal with you.” And the colonel flopped face down back onto his couch. Grappler watched him boredly, fingering some of the other's long red hair. “Talk about a scrooge attitude. What's with you today?” The blue haired male hopped over the back of the couch and sat on the colonel's back.

Zapper, not expecting to be sat on, was surprised and struggled under the other's weight. “Hey, get off! You're heavy dammit!”

 

Grappler rolled his eyes, standing so Zapper could sit up before sitting down next to him, draping an arm over the other's shoulders. “C'mon Zaku, it's almost Christmas! Couldn't you be tolerable through the holiday and save your effeminate mood swings for the rest of the year?”

 

Zapper's response was to shakes the other's arm off and punch Grappler hard in the shoulder, glaring. The lieutenant colonel clutched his shoulder, rubbing it lightly, “Hey, easy, I was just kidding.” When Zapper looked away Grappler rubbed his shoulder a little more vigorously, mouthing a pained “ow.”

 

“Hey, Grappler,” the blue haired male froze, almost scared by the other's tone.

 

“Y-yeah?”

When Zapper turned and gave the other with an almost innocent look, the lieutenant colonel's face tinged red. “Shit, what's he going to do next??!” the blue haired male thought, leaning away slightly. He was expecting almost everything except what Zapper actually said. “What's Christmas?”

 

Queue silence with poorly drawn yellow bird flying across the top of the screen, chirping happily. Grappler had never expected that kind of question from anyone. After all, who didn't know about Christmas? Maybe he'd heard wrong. “What?”

”Christmas. What is it?”

Another silence, bird flies back across the screen. Zapper watched, perplexed as to why there was a 2D disconfigured bird flying around. “Gerbera really needs to watch his experiments more carefully. They're really creepy.”

 

He looked back Grappler and blinked, “Um, why are you looking at me like that?” the colonel asked cautiously, inching away from the lieutenant colonel. Grappler was in shock. How could somebody not know what Christmas was?!

“You're, joking, right Zaku? You just don't like Christmas, so you pretend you don't know what it is… right??”

“No, I'm not joking.” Zapper responded gruffly, suddenly feeling left out that he didn't know. “You mentioned holidays too. I didn't think there were any this time of- Grappler? What are you doing?”

The lieutenant colonel had pulled out his new communicator (A/N: It would look like one of our modern Razor phones) and was calling someone. “Nobody knows Christmas better then my sister. She'll explain it to you.” He shoved the device at Zapper before standing. “Bring that back to me when you're finished talking to her.” And he walked out the door, leaving Zapper and his sister's mercy

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

“He WHAT?!”

“He has no idea what Christmas is Dom.”

“But how can he not know about Christmas???”

Grappler shrugged, “I guess they didn't have it where he came from.”

“But Kharlan is the land of angels Grappler. Angels! How can they not know about-”

 

“Look, it doesn't matter why he doesn't know, just that he's going to. Tank will make sure he's well informed.”

Destroyer pouted, “At least now I know why he took my mistletoe.” He poked at the still broken contraption sitting on the metal table in front of him. “It was still mean though.”

“Get over it.” Grappler mumbled, turning his attention back to the book he was attempting to read. Destroyer watched his companion with interest, but had a short attention span and his mind quickly wandered to other things. “So, this is gonna be his first Christmas.” Dom smiled, “You should make it really special for him Grappler! Give him something nice, or maybe go on a special da-”

 

Grappler clamped his hand over the other's mouth, effectively silencing him. “If you want to live to see the New Year, you won't finish that sentence.” Dom was pouting again, but nodded. Grappler removed his hand and, once again, went back to his book.

 

Destroyer remained silent, staring at the other lieutenant colonel tearfully before his attention was drawn to Zapper when the other entered the room. “Hey! Zapper! How was your talk with Tank?” The colonel just sat down next to Grappler, crossing his arms on the surface and hiding his face in them. “My phone?” Grappler asked, not bothering to look up from his book.

 

Zapper produced the device from a pocket and Grappler took it, returning it to a clip on his belt. “Do you understand know Zaku?” Zapper nodded. “Good.”

“Hey Zapper, didn't you have Christmas back in Kharlan?” Dom asked suddenly, earning a glare from Grappler. The lieutenant colonel closed his book, glancing at the red head next to him nervously. Kharlan wasn't something Zapper liked to discuss.

The other shifted, resting his head on one balled fist, glaring as he reached for a pen that was sitting on the table, rolling it under his index finger back and forth on the table. “I don't know.” Zapper said coldly, glaring at the pen as if it were the cause of all his problems. Destroyer was confused. “How can you not know? Can't you remember people decorating the town in lights and buying Christmas trees for their homes?”

The colonel stopped rolling the pen, his eyes narrowing. He was silent for a moment before he began to roll the pen again. “No, I can't.”

 

Grappler could sense the red head's anger building and shot Destroyer a warning glare, motioning for the other to drop the subject. Dom obliged, but was obviously still curious. The awkward silence that followed didn't help the situation either.

Destroyer grew bored and his carefree smile returned. “Hey Grappler, isn't the tree lighting ceremony back in your home dimension tonight?” The blue haired male flinched visibly before becoming still. Like Zapper, Grappler didn't like discussing where he'd come from, but for completely different reasons. He could never get along with anyone else in his family and he and whatever husband his mother had that week never exactly saw eye to eye.

 

Destroyer didn't care though and his smile broadened. “We should go to Misuho and watch it! We can visit Tank too. After all, we haven't seen her since Gan-” but Dom cut himself off, looking at Grappler apologetically. The lieutenant colonel waved the other's concern off, “It's okay Dom, I got over his death a long time ago.”

 

“So then we should go. C'mon, it'd be fun!”

 

Neither of his companions seemed too thrilled with the idea, but Destroyer wasn't discouraged. “I'll go talk to the commander right away.” He got up and left the room quickly, leaving the two alone. The only noise left was the sound of Zapper's pen as it rolled over the metal table top, but Grappler reached over and grabbed his hand, stopping the movement. He then put an arm around the other's shoulders, hugging him slightly. “Look, I'm sorry.”

Zapper glared at the hand on his shoulder before peeling it off and shoving the blue haired male's arm away. “There's nothing to be sorry for. It's not your fault he has the attention span of a three year old.”

 

With nothing else to say, the awkward silence returned, making the two uncomfortable. Grappler tried to continue his book, but his attention kept shifting to the red head next to him. Judging by the lack of expression and the far away eyes, he guessed Zapper was spacing again. The lieutenant colonel rolled his eyes, getting up and tapping his book on the other's head, “Hey, wake up. We might as well get going, because there's no way we're getting out of this trip with Dom.”

Zapper sighed exasperatedly, pushing himself up and following the lieutenant colonel. “I guess this means I'll finally get to meet your family, huh?” the colonel smirked. “The way you talk about them, they sound like total nut jobs. Especially your mother.”

 

“You have no room to talk.”

“At least I'm not stupid enough to let myself be passed around like a cheap rag doll.”

Grappler would probably regret responding to this later, “Yeah, you're right. You beg for it.”

 

Now, the gloves were off. Zapper made the first move, intent on breaking bones. Grappler had anticipated the attack though and managed to defend himself before going on the offensive as well. It had become a sort of habit for them to fight on a daily basis and nobody except Destroyer had every really tried to prevent the inevitable.

 

But, being so close to Christmas, the other soldiers didn't seem too happy about the verbal and physical conflict. Several dogas quickly arrived and attempted to separate the two, but to no avail. If possible, the failed intervention only made things worse and zakos who watched from the sidelines started getting scared. They could see Zapper's eyes were beginning to glow.

 

Before anyone got seriously hurt, however, Destroyer made his reappearance, followed closely by Commander Sazabi, and the quarreling duo was pulled apart and restrained. “I thought you two were going to get along over the holiday?” the commander stated idly, flicking some of his blonde bangs out of the way of his light purple eyes. He then gazed into the glowing red of Zapper's own eyes, “I was actually considering letting you two go to Misuho too.” He moved back from the colonel when the other's eyes darkened and let him drop to the floor. “But, if you can't get along, I have no choice but to have you quarantined to your rooms. We can't have you idiots messing up our relations with the capitol city of that dimension.”

 

“Commander, I can keep them from fighting with each other!” Destroyer still had a tight hold on Grappler, who had calmed down considerably. “As long as I'm between them, they can't do any harm.” The dark skinned soldier's eyes seemed to get bigger and glistened with tears. “Please, can they come with me to Misuho? We're just going to see the tree lighting ceremony and then come right back. They won't have time to fight.”

 

The soldiers on the side lines all turned their gaze on their commander, waiting to see what he did. Slowly, the blonde looked back and forth between Zapper and Grappler then at Destroyer before closing his eyes. “Alright then. You three have my permission to travel to Misuho.”

 

“Yay!” Destroyer dropped Grappler, cheering. The blue haired male caught himself before he hit the ground and slowly stood back up. Zapper was sitting against the wall, glaring at Grappler evilly. The lieutenant colonel returned the look before Destroyer caught him in a tight hug. The black haired male reached down and grabbed Zapper too, holding them both tightly. “This is going to be so much fun!”

 

The two he held captive weren't so sure.

 

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

“Wooooow.”

 

“It's not that amazing.” Grappler grumbled, pulling the awestruck Dom into the city of Misuho, Zapper trailing a little behind them. Dom's eyes were sparkling will joy, “But it's so beautiful! The lights, the decorations, and the snow!”

 

“Listen, could you keep it down? I'd rather we not attract attention to ourselves.”

 

“Please, we stick out anyway. There's no way your family won't be able to spot you in a crowd.”

 

“Well maybe if you'd cut and dye your hair, we won't be so noticeable Zaku.”

 

“Oh, and you blend in any better? Everyone knows you Grappler.”

 

“Hey, remember what Sazabi said you guys. No fighting.” Dom caught the two in a tight embrace, pouting. “Please don't get me in trouble. Sazabi gets really testy around Christmas.”

Grappler quickly slipped from the other's grasp, glancing around to see if anyone was staring. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just lay low and we won't fight.” Zapper, still in Destroyer's grasp, glared at the lieutenant colonel, before sighing. “If he keeps his mouth shut, I will too.”

Dom smiled brightly, letting Zapper go, “Thanks guys.” He then continued on down the sidewalk, his two companions trailing a little behind. “He's such a child.”

 

“Yeah, but children are very destructive.” The colonel pointed out.

 

“Him being destructive is putting it mildly.” Grappler scoffed, shoving his gloved hands into his jacket pockets. Zapper nodded in agreement before the conversation died. The only noise they heard was the people around them, chatting happily with one another of the upcoming ceremony.

Zapper glanced around, envying the happy families and couples that passed them. Tank, Grappler's sister, had told him Christmas was a holiday that brought peace and joy to all and even the Dark Axis ceased all fighting for the holiday. It was a miracle that something so simple could bring even the worst of enemies together, but he didn't get how. Not having experienced the holiday for himself as a child, all he had were words from Tank that it was a wonderful thing, this Christmas.

 

“Hey, if the ceremony is tonight, what are we doing here so early?”

Grappler glanced at his companion before looking ahead at Destroyer. “His idea, not mine. Though, I think it's because he wanted to visit my sister.”

 

Zapper looked ahead at Destroyer too. “That's why he's so excited?” He glanced at the lieutenant colonel, “Why aren't you excited too then? She is your sister.” Grappler chose not to respond, speeding up a little. “If we don't hurry Destroyer will get too far ahead.”

“But, you- Hey wait!” Grapple had raced on ahead and Zapper had to dash to catch up. Dom was running too because his destination was in sight.

 

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

“Taaaank!” the shout rang out through the building, causing everyone trying to balance on something to nearly fall. The girl whom was being called for, Tank, was coordinating a group of people as they put up a banner. When she turned away from the team, she missed them tumbling from their ladders, but didn't seem to care.

Instead, she'd ran to the banister meant to keep people from falling off the second floor to the open lobby below and her red eyes lit up with joy. “Guys! Up here!” the girl called, waving. Destroyer, who was standing in the middle of the huge circular lobby, waved back, smiling just as brightly. Zapper and Grappler were wandering up behind their companion, weary of the evil looks everyone was giving them.

 

“Zapper! Grappler!” The girl paused, one of her light blue eyebrows, rising slightly. “You haven't killed each other yet?”

 

“I heard that!” Grappler shouted up at his sister. He was smiling though and shook his head. “And here I was expecting a warm welcome from you.” Tank grinned, hopping over the banister and falling to the lobby below. She landed in a crouch before shooting forward to her brother. Grappler caught her in a hug, holding her tightly. “It's good to see you.”

 

“I'm just glad to see a friendly face!” the girl exclaimed, pulling away from the lieutenant colonel. She then turned and looked up at Destroyer. “How've ya been ya big lug?”

“Tank! I missed you so much!” Dom exclaimed, picking the girl up easily, “Everything is so boring without you around. Nobody talks to me except those two.”

 

“Hey!”

Tank couldn't help but laugh, hugging the taller male. “Sorry Destroyer, but I had orders from the general. Without me here, there'd be no alliance with Misuho and we'd have another army to fend off.”

 

“That's only because you ran away and joined the army you street urchin.” Came a voice from behind the group.

Destroyer put Tank down and looked towards the front entrance. Zapper turned too, but Tank and Grappler were ridged. Then the light blue haired girl spun on her heels, glaring menacingly at the group of girls who were strolling towards them. “Shut the hell up Lydia. At least I'm brave enough to fight for something. You're all too spoiled to understand what it means to actually live.”

 

“You call your meager existence living? You're not even married for heavens sakes!”

 

“Lydia,” Grappler turned and gave the blonde at the front of the group a glare more heated then Tank's. “Back off.”

 

“Oh, Grappler! You're here.” The blonde, Lydia, put on a fake smile. Behind her, the other girls did the same, waving to the lieutenant colonel. “Still attached to your pet I see.”

 

“She's not my pet, she's our sister and I expect you to treat her as such.” Grappler growled threateningly. Lydia smirked, her eyes narrowing. “Those are awfully big words little brother.” She brought her gaze to Tank, “She's just a stray you brought in from the streets though. We'll never associate ourselves with her kind.”

 

The girls behind Lydia agreed. “Yeah, I mean, look at the way she dresses.” A brown haired girl exclaimed, smirking.

 

“In black, and like a guy!” cried the look-a-like of the brown haired girl, pointing at Tank. Grappler leveled his gaze with the two, causing them to shrink back a little. “Annie, Emily. I see you two haven't changed.” He looked back up at Lydia, “Still following your queen around.”

 

Lydia scowled at Grappler as the blue haired male smirked. “I guess you've changed a little though Lydia.” He motioned to her face, “You're wearing three times as much make-up as you used to and your hair used to be a dark brown.”

 

The blonde practically screamed at her little brother, clenching her fists. “Shut up! Shut up shut up SHUT UP!” Grappler just laughed at her reaction, Tank laughing with him. Behind them, Zapper and Destroyer watched with amusement as the siblings exchanged insults, knowing the rich girls stood no chance against their comrades. Grappler especially, since he and Zapper verbally abused each other on a daily basis.

 

Finally, after a few more minutes of Lydia's screeching at her brother to be quiet, she stormed out of the hall, pushing people out of her way and knocking over whatever was within her reach. Her posy watched her go before looking up at Grappler. “How could you!” one the brown haired girls cried.

 

“She's the oldest in the family, you should respect her!” shouted the other. Then, Annie and Emily left after their sister, practically in tears. Remaining were four shorter girls whose attention was drawn to the oblivious Zapper and Destroyer who stood behind their older brother. “Hey Nii-san, who're your friends?” asked a girl with dark green hair, her eyes glued to Destroyer.

 

The dark skinned male shivered, feeling the girls' eyes on him. Zapper fidgeted uncomfortably too, inching back a little as one of the girls approached him. “Hi, I'm Laura! You're really hot.” said a blonde as she grabbed Zapper's wrists. The colonel pulled himself from her grasp, giving the blonde a heated glare. “Don't touch me.”

 

Laura completely ignored what the red head said, reaching out to grab the other's hair. “Your hair is so long! Do you dye it that color, or is it natural?” Zapper jumped back, out of her reach. He was protective of his hair and hated people touching it. “I said, don't touch me!”

 

“Laura, leave him alone!” Tank stepped between the two, shoving her sister back. The girl fumed and tried to hit the taller girl, only to have her wrist caught. Tank leaned down, holding her face really close to the shaking blonde's. “Do you really wanna hit an experienced soldier? One that holds a record of killing over 100 men?”

 

Laura's eyes widened before she tore away from Tank, running as fast as her high heels and skirt would allow. The light blue haired girl chuckled, looking back at Zapper. “None of the girls in our family will back off unless you threaten them.” She turned to face him. “Especially since you're so short.”

 

The colonel fumed. “I was taller then all of those girls!”

 

“But you're shorter then Tank.” Grappler pointed out, standing next to his sister. The red head looked between the two, noticing brother and sister were both the same height. “Wha- Hey!” he pointed at Tank. “Since when were you and Grappler the same height?!”

 

Grappler pat the other's head, “She grew my friend.” He smirked, “Face it, you'll always be the effeminate one among us.”

 

Tank had to jump between the two, shoving Zapper back from her brother. “Hey you two, not here. Besides, Destroyer needs our help.”

 

“What?” The two soldiers looked to where Dom was standing and blinked. Three of Grappler's younger sisters had the lieutenant colonel surrounded and were fawning over him. Destroyer was scared stiff, not knowing how to handle the three teens. He looked at Grappler with tears in his eyes, begging to be saved.

The blue haired male sighed before stepping forward and shooing his younger siblings away. “You three are too young to be thinking about guys. Now go home. And tell Mom I said hi!” The girls stopped at the door and waved goodbye to their brother before disappearing outside.

 

The second they were out of sight, Destroyer lifted Grappler off the ground into a bone crushing hug. “Thank you! That was so scary! How can I ever repay you?”

 

“You could, stop crushing me.” Grappler chocked out, his face already changing colors. Dom dropped his friend, smiling apologetically. Zapper held a hand out to the other, looking concerned. “You okay?”

 

“Yeah.” Grappler took the other's hand and the colonel hoisted him up. Tank and Destroyer were both staring at the two, smirking as they took their time letting go of each other's hands. It was a cute scene, especially since both Destroyer and Tank knew of the feelings the two had for each other. The problem was, neither would admit his feelings, so the awkward moments were made even more embarrassing.

 

“Are you two gonna stare at each other all day or can we move on? There're still a lot of decorations to put up and you two still have to go shopping.” Zapper and Grappler both glared at Tank, their faces tinged red as they moved away from each other. “So you got our money?”

 

“Yup. I made more then I'd expected so you can all get something nice for each other.” Tank held three envelopes out and each of the trio took one. “I've got to stay here and finish with preparations for tonight though, so have fun exploring the place. Just make sure you're back here by six, okay?”

 

“Will do sis.” Grappler muttered, heading for the front door. Zapper watched him go before thanking Tank for the money and running out as well. Destroyer, once Zapper was gone, smiled at Tank. “Isn't it great? They've definitely gotten closer since you saw them last, but I can't tell exactly how much because I see them every day.”

 

“Oh, they're real close now. If my brother can ever work up the courage to admit he cares, their love will last forever.” She looked up to Destroyer, “Because they won't have to change. They can still argue and fight, but they'll still care. The same goes for any hardships they might face.” The girl's eyes were glowing with happiness, “Out of everything my brother has been through, everything he has yet to face, I know he'll be okay as long as he has Zapper.”

Destroyer looked down at the girl in awe, “You really care about him, don't you?”

 

“Yeah,” Tank responded. “When I came to Misuho, battered and ill, he was the only one who looked at me. Despite the fact that my memory had been wiped clean of my past and I only had a name, he thought of me as worth calling family. Heck, we may have met because our personalities clashed, but it was the best first impression anyone could ever lay on me.”

”Only because you have that bias opinion about men.”

Tank rolled her eyes, heading back for the second floor. “Straight men Destroyer, straight men.” She called back to her friend, earning several odd looks from anyone within hearing range. The lieutenant colonel just shook his head. “I can't wait for the day you get married!”

 

A bark of laughter came from Tank, “That day will come when the male population learns to think with the brain in their head and not the one between their legs.” The two were talking from different floors at this point so Tank leaned over the banister, making a shooing motion with her hands. “Get going you. You have gifts to buy.”

Destroyer nodded, waving goodbye to his friend before rushing out of the building and smiling up at the sky, causing people to take wide detours to avoid him. Dom didn't care though. Tonight was Christmas Eve and then Christmas. He'd gotten to visit his best friend, and he was going to get to spend the holiday with the people he loved. Absolutely nothing in the universe could bring his mood down.

 

Nothing

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

Nothing in Misuho had changed since Grappler had left. Sure, the buildings looked a little more modern, but none of the people had changed. For some, it meant they were still friendly and cheerful, greeting the lieutenant colonel when they saw him, commenting on how much he'd changed and saying how glad they were he was still alive. Others, however, were still bitter and cold towards the blue haired male and threatened his life whenever he got within hearing range.

 

“And here I thought time would change them.” Grappler sighed, shaking his hand to ease the pain in his knuckles. He'd passed by a bar that had been crawling with all his mom's ex husbands and he couldn't turn down the invitation they'd offered to join them. Sure, it had been an empty beer bottle chucked at his head, but that had been more then enough invitation to fight. Especially since they'd cut his cheek.

Yeah, Tank would've never forgiven him if he hadn't bruised some of the men after they drew first blood. And, since their egos were so big, they'd never admit Grappler had beaten all 20 of them by himself, only walking away with a few scratches. The lieutenant smirked at the thought of the men's' faces when they woke up and discovered they'd been crushed by their “son-in-law.”

 

“That was my excitement for the afternoon though. Nothing to do now except find something else to do until tonight.” Grappler mumbled, nodding his head to a passing couple when they waved. The two were an elderly couple and a thought suddenly came to the lieutenant colonel. He made a quick detour and headed for an older part of town, walking right into a welding shop with a small house around back.

 

The front door was open, but the place was empty. “Hello? Anybody here?”

 

“Just a moment, I'll be right there!” came the voice of a woman from behind a door. The women could be heard shuffling around before the door was opened and she stepped out into the shop. Grappler smiled when he saw her, “Hey, daibo.”

 

The elderly women paused, staring at the blue haired male as if he didn't exist. Then, her face lit up with joy. “Grappler?! Is it really you?” She then noticed the blood still dripping from the cut on the other's cheek and laughed. “Yeah, you do always show up here with some kind of injury. Just like when we first met.”

 

“Yeah, when you and I were young.” Grappler said as he walked up to his daibo. The women was shorter then him by a few inches, but she still stood up straight and looked good for being a grandmother. Daibo smiled darkly up at the blue haired male, “Still got that attitude I see.” She then punched the lieutenant colonel in the chest, “Not as bad as you used to be though. The military really does do wonders.”

 

The women smiled at Grappler who was rubbing where she'd hit him, “Yeah, wonders.”

 

Daibo frowned, “Did I hurt you?” She led him through the door, taking his coat before poking his chest. Grappler flinched and her frown deepened. Slowly, she put two and two together before shaking her head. “You got into another fight, didn't you?”

Grappler stared at the women, not really knowing if he wanted to know how she'd figured out why he was bruised. Then, he slipped his boots off, nodding slowly. Daibo sighed, “With whom this time?”

The blue haired male stepped further into the house, not looking at his elder, “Oh, I just pasted a bar on my way here and, um, some of mom's old….husbands were there.” He then ducked down, barely avoiding a slap to the back of his head.

 

“Magomusuko, how many times do Daifu and I have to tell you to stay away from those men?!”

 

“I know, but-”

 

“Save it.” The women grabbed the lieutenant colonel, dragging him further down the hall. She stopped at a small kitchen, motioning for Grappler to sit down. “That cut on your cheek is still bleeding. Does it hurt?” Daibo spoke with her back turned, rummaging through drawers, looking for something. Grappler rolled his eyes, “It stings, but it's not unbearable.”

 

Daibo pulled a pair of tweezers from a drawer and quickly went to Grappler, turning the other's head so she could better examine the cut. She then sighed, digging into the cut with her tweezers. Grappler flinched, trying to pull away. “What're you-” but the pain stopped and Grappler blinked.

 

“Glass,” she women, throwing the blood covered piece of glass away. The lieutenant colonel just stared, allowing his daibo to check the cut for any more glass. When she finished, she put a single strip of bandage tape over it and stepped back. “Your hands?” Grappler showed her his bruised knuckles before allowing her to check the bruises on his chest. “Well, nothing too bad.” Daibo glared at the blue haired male. “Don't do it again.”

Grappler was already walking out of the kitchen, “Whatever.” He looked back at her and grinned, “I'm part of an army at war, don't think I haven't been in worse shape then this.” He moved his hair to show her the scar that cut over his left eye. “Much worse.”

 

The women gasped in surprise, but Grappler ignored her, slipping into the living room where he hoped to find his daifu. As soon as he stepped into the room, the lieutenant colonel had to throw himself to the ground, barely avoiding the set of knives that were now imbedded into the wall. “Well I'll be. Our little Grappler has returned.” An old man stepped in front of the blue haired male, helping him up. “Good thing your reflexes have improved.” The other man observed the blades in the wall, “That could've killed you.”

 

“No shit! What the hell kind of welcome is that Daifu?!”

Daifu chuckled, “The one you've probably getting everywhere else.” He placed a hand on Grappler's shoulder, smiling warmly. “It's good to see you though. You've obviously done a lot of growing up since you left.” He brushed the lieutenant colonel's hair out of the way. “Nice scar. I'll bet it's well earned too.”

 

Grappler sighed, “Yeah, but it's not my only one.”

 

“And as long as you remain in the service hunny, you're going to get more.” Daibo had entered the room, sidestepping the two and sitting down in a chair. “And one of these days, your luck might run out and you won't walk away with just a scar.”

 

The old man agreed with his wife, “We worry about you all the time Grappler. But you were old enough to make the decision on your own, so we've back you 100 percent since you left.” Daifu smirked, “Try to write to us once and a while from now on though. Your daibo over there almost had a heart attack when Tank came home with a dead body.”

 

“You were upset to Daifu! It was just as likely that he'd been the one killed.”

 

“Guys, guys.” Grappler stepped between his grandparents. “Seems we've hit a sensitive topic. Why don't we move to another one?”

Daifu nodded, sitting down on the couch, Grappler taking up a second chair, facing his elders. There was definitely a lot he had to tell them. He knew Daifu would like his war stories and Daibo would enjoy hearing about all the people he worked with, but there was one thing he'd promised himself he'd tell them if he ever got the chance. It was the one bit of information he could never tell his real family for it'd break his mother's heart, but he wanted someone as close as family, other then Tank, to know.

 

“Now, a lot has happened since I left Misuho. I could tell by the look of the town that a little has happened here too, but nobody has really changed.” Grappler looked between the two, “For some, I'm glad there's been no change.” He then averted his eyes, “I have changed though. I'll always be your magomusuko, but not the same one that left you a few years ago.”

 

Grappler had no idea why coming out to these two was so difficult. He knew they'd love him no matter what and always stay by him. Then again, they'd probably never had to deal with the subject of homosexuality. There was a death sentence in some areas of the county if you were caught committing homosexual acts. It wasn't just frowned upon, it was punishable by death.

But what the heck, he'd broken every other moral his mother had tried to teach him, why not reveal to his grandparents that he didn't believe in one more. “Daibo, Daifu.” He made sure to confidante when he spoke, sure of himself. “I'm gay.”

 

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

The past few hours had been quite interesting for the lieutenant colonel. After he'd come out to Daibo and Daifu, the silence had almost made him reconsider telling them. The two quickly banished all those thoughts by smiling warmly at him before Daibo exclaimed how happy she was for him and that she was so glad he'd told them. Daifu had then smirked, asking if he had any boyfriends. Grappler had hesitated on telling them about any of his relationships, but finally worked up the courage to tell them of Destroyer.

Somehow, Daibo knew Destroyer wasn't the one Grappler's true feelings lied with, and tried to get more out of the blue haired male. The two knew the lieutenant colonel well too, so Grappler hadn't stood a chance and it wasn't long before he told them of Zapper. Daibo seemed so happy that Grappler had discovered love and Daifu had laughed, saying the two sounded just perfect for each other.

 

Then he'd told them he and Zapper weren't together. He'd told them of their daily arguments and of how much Zapper hated him. Daibo had scowled at this, telling Grappler off for not telling the colonel how he felt, but both promised they wouldn't say anything if they ever met the colonel. Which, they probably would tonight, if they came to the ceremony. Grappler had purposely left that out though, choosing not to tell them Zapper and Destroyer were in Misuho.

 

“Grappler!” Tank's voice brought the lieutenant colonel out of his trance and he looked up, meeting the girl's confused gaze. “You still have that daydreaming problem? It even seems like its gotten worse.” Tank motioned for her brother to follow her, “And what happened to your face?”

 

“Mom's exes.”

“What?!”

 

“Don't worry, I got `em good.”

 

Tank smirked back at her brother. “Oh, well, as long as you didn't let them land too many hits on you.”

 

“Are you kidding me? Those guys can't hardly make a fist, let alone fight.” Grappler smiled sheepishly, “They can swing chairs around though, I will give them that.” The girl laughed at the other's expense as they entered the lobby of the capital building. “You're still standin' though, so your fine.” She turned to face the lieutenant colonel, pointing at him. “Which is good, because you're singing with me this year.”

 

There was an awkward silence following Tank's words before Grappler chuckled. “Me? Sing? Sis, I can't-”

 

“Yes, you can. And I have to admit, you've got quiet a voice for a guy.” She smirked, “I've heard your interest sing too.” Tank suddenly had her brother's attention. She smirked, “He's got refined talent. I wouldn't be surprised if he had a better voice then you.” The girl paused. Grappler glared at her. “Fine.”

 

“Wonderful!” Tank was already walking back outside, “You've got five minutes. See if you can find Zapper and Destroyer before the ceremony starts.” And she was back outside, probably putting the finishing touches on the tree. Grappler scowled after her before he too went outside, wandering around center square as he waited for his companions to show up.

 

Luckily, the two were together when they found the lieutenant colonel and just in time. “Both of you should wait up in front of town hall.” Grappler looked away, glaring at the ground, “I have to sing with my sister.” Zapper and Destroyer both suppressed their laughter as they crossed center square with Grappler, walking to the capital building entrance and leaning against the wall. “Have fun then Grappler.” Destroyer said, smiling.

The lieutenant colonel ignored Dom, going to where his sister was waiting for him. “Why are we singing exactly?”

”To attract people to the square.” Tank glanced at her brother. “The better we sing, the bigger the crowd.” Then she frowned, “Last year, Lydia was allowed to sing. Nobody came, not even mom.”

 

“Ouch. You sure anybody will even listen if they had to hear Lydia last year?”

Tank nodded, “With you and me together, I'm sure we'll attract the whole city.” The blue haired girl took a piece of paper from her pocket, looking it over. “Don't worry, we're singing all Christmas carols so you'll know them all.” Grappler looked at his sister, smiling slightly. “Out of all the holidays you could be obsessive over, I'm glad it's Christmas.” He glanced at the list, quickly memorizing the order of the songs before stepping to the microphone that was set up for him.

 

Tank grinned, stepping up next to her brother, “Yeah, I could be obsessed with Valentines Day or Halloween.” The music for their first song was beginning to play so Grappler didn't have a chance to respond.

 

Behind them, Zapper and Destroyer were watching quietly, Dom smiling happily and Zapper staring off with an unreadable expression. When the Grappler and Tank began the song, the two focused their attention on their friends. The first song was slow, smooth and everything in the city seemed to stop to listen.

 

There were two at the mic, but it sounded as if they were sharing one, beautiful voice. It took less then two carols to draw a large amount of people but at the end of the fifth, the square was full and people were gathering on the tops of buildings around the square. The sight caused Tank's eyes to light up with joy and she looked at her brother. Grappler returned her looked, knowing how much this meant to his sister.

 

Tank had always secretly wanted to please the people of Misuho, to prove she was worthy of their acceptance, but because of her origin, not many had been willing to give her so much as glance. Now, the whole city was there, seeing that it was the outcasts and misfits who were there to greet them, yet nobody stopped smiling.

 

“Merry Christmas Sis.”

Tank hugged her brother, happier then she'd ever remembered being, “Merry Christmas to you too Grappler.”

 

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 

When the sky was black and people were talking happily of the following day, the tree had been lit. All the lights around town square had been turned off just for the occasion and Tank had given the honor of flipping the power switch to her brother. The lieutenant colonel had hesitated, but when he saw his sister's smile in the darkness, he couldn't help but accept.

 

Now, the square was lit by only the tree and that's all the light they really needed. It was so bright and beautiful that some said it was the best they'd ever seen. The blue haired girl had quickly been drawn into the crowd, being congratulated and praised on what her hard work had accomplished. This left her three comrades alone, watching everything in silence.

 

Grappler was sitting next to Zapper on the ground, panting slightly. He was still a little short of breath after singing for so long, but wasn't really bothered by it. Above the two, Destroyer was smiling mischievously, glancing at his two companions occasionally. Unlike Grappler, Zapper was noticing the extra attention and stood up, looking at Dom suspiciously. “Why do you keep looking at us like that?”

Destroyer's smile got bigger and he pointed above the two. Grappler stood, looking up. His eyes widened when he saw mistletoe. Zapper mirrored his expression. “What-how-” The colonel tried to step out from underneath the leaves, but Dom blocked him, scolding him, “You know the rules. Two people standing under mistletoe have to share a kiss. Now I'm not letting you two go anywhere until you do so.”

“But Dom,” Grappler hissed, “Someone might see.” The other lieutenant colonel just shook his head. “Nobody can see you guys over here, trust me.”

 

Despite the fact that the two secretly wanted to kiss, they were still extremely reluctant, but Grappler finally gave in. “This will never be spoken of.” He growled at Destroyer before holding Zapper still and touching his lips to the other's gently. The first reaction of both was shock, but Zapper responded slightly, putting a little more force into the kiss. Time seemed to slow down and they remained together before the two realized what they were doing and jerked apart, moving as far away from each other as they could.

 

Destroyer chose to follow Grappler, standing in front of the other, looking proud of himself. “Merry Christmas Grappler.” The lieutenant colonel said smiling. The blue haired male cocked an eyebrow, “You… had something to do with that?”

Dom nodded, “That was your Christmas present from me!”

Grappler stared, blinking twice. He then glanced around to see if anyone was close by before grabbing the other and dragging him into a passionate kiss. Destroyer was caught by surprise, but kissed back, whining when Grappler pulled away. “Don't worry, there'll be more. Just have to wait till we get back to the Magna-Musai.” Dom regained his smile before walking away.

 

The blue haired male watched him go, rolling his eyes, but still smiling. A little ways away, Zapper was avoiding everyone's eyes, his cheeks still tinged red. Grappler sighed happily at the sight, turning his gaze towards the sky. Far above, he could see the stars and, in the distance, the moon. The event had turned out better then he'd hoped.

 

Despite not being able to spend time with the colonel as boyfriends, they'd still spent Christmas Eve hanging out. Grappler couldn't believe he'd even gotten a kiss, no matter how brief it was. The lieutenant colonel was going to thank Dom later for giving his and Zapper's first Christmas together a perfect ending.

 

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

Mel: There….. I kept my promise with myself….. Reviews are liked…..I'm going to go back to trying to get out of the writer's block hole.