Secret Santa 2019 - Story collection

[NoticeMeOppai]

Here's my belated SX entry, really sorry it took so long to get it done for you Stiles! Hope you enjoy it, despite no longer really being the season for it. Thanks to Feurox for proofing for me.

Victim: Stiles Long
Prompt: Yamaku's Secret Santa accidentally misses a person, leaving them bereft of presents! Without resorting to sex, who makes up for this loss and how?

A Festive Flashback

"Wahaha!~~ I wonder who could have got you that Shicchan!" Misha boomed, her hands awkwardly trying to keep up as she signed to her new friend.

Shizune’s polite smile didn't reach her eyes as she placed her gift back in the box and put it by her feet. She looked over at the table everything had been piled on, [Yes. Well that seems to be the last present.] Out of the corner of her eye she could see Misha's long brown hair bouncing enthusiastically as she translated for those who didn't understand sign.

It hadn't been long since the brunette had started trying to translate for her, and she still struggled at times, mostly with speed and long amounts of signing. Shizune suspected sometimes her words weren't being translated exactly, but she had to admit it beat dragging a pad and pen around constantly.

Looking around the circle she noticed one girl sitting and awkwardly fidgeting next to Lily. Shizune was trying to remember what she had received, when she realised Misha was translating Lily's conversation with the girl. "-did you get from your Santa Hanako?"

"I uh, I d-didn't get, um." Hanako trailed off, her face nearly completely obscured by her hair. She was clearly unhappy about having this brought up and sank into her chair as if wanting to disappear. Hearing Misha translating her words, the parts of her face that were still visible went an even deeper shade of crimson and she hunched into herself as if for protection from the extra attention this brought her.

Shizune's eyes narrowed as she looked around the room for any signs of who might not have brought anything and still turned up to receive something. As she scanned the room she was already signing, [Who was supposed to get Hanako's gift?]

Everyone looked uncomfortably around at their fellow students, though none looked as uncomfortable as Hanako herself. Shizune's eyes finally came to rest on one of the boys from Lilly's class, quietly fidgeting with the hand-knitted red and yellow scarf he'd received.

For a moment he stared back defiantly through glasses so thick she couldn't be sure he could actually even see her. Suddenly he jumped to his feet and shouted something, gesticulating wildly the whole time. As abruptly as he'd jumped up he ran from the room, ranting and waving his arms around as he went.

Shizune turned to Misha who shrugged apologetically, [He was just shouting nonsense I think, something about feminist conspiracies?]

Shizune sighed and shook her head.

[As the organizers I feel we, the student council, are partly responsible, so how about we take you to the Shanghai for a meal as your gift?] she offered.

As soon as she had translated this, Misha followed along with her own suggestion, [Ooh, If you don't want that we could do this thing I heard about!~ It's called Yankee swap~, and everyone picks the gift they want so everyone is happy!~] she struggled over the finger spelling for the name, but Shizune had heard of it before. She wasn't sure that was exactly how it worked, but already Misha was translating ideas from other students as people started chipping in.

Without warning, Hanako went from cowering in her chair to bolt upright and dashed from the room. Misha shrugged again at Shizune's questioning gaze, [She, uh... Had to go do something?]

***

Hanako was sitting in the library reading when she finally noticed the dimming light as the sun started to dip outside the window. The library usually started closing around this time, so she should probably start to gather her things. She stretched, always surprised by how quickly a few hours could pass when she was immersed in her books.

As she went to stand she noticed a small parcel sat on the bookcase next to her, wrapped in crinkled newspaper with a purple ribbon around it. It definitely hadn't been there when she sat down, though she hadn't noticed anyone coming near her. She found this vaguely disconcerting, but had previously come out of her reading trance to notice people were sat near her that she hadn't noticed approach so it wasn't a new feeling.

Lifting it gently, she noticed a small label on the top which read "To Hanako, from Santa". She smiled softly to herself and put the parcel in her bag to open later. As she left the library there was a slight spring in her step that hadn't been there earlier in the day.

[Feurox]

Away We Go Wassailing

Mutou sighed, and a spiral of his cold breath sailed away into the evening. He tapped his foot, tapped his watch, patted down his shirt. He coughed into his curled-up hand.

Of course they were late. As if tonight wasn’t going to be long enough already.

He sighed again.

At least it was snowing. There was always something beautiful about the snow, something really pure about it. It always managed to tease a smile out of him, like the snow and him had an impossible relationship, something he didn’t even understand himself. It made him happy. It reminded him of his late parents. It reminded him of his daughter, and then suddenly the snow made him sad.

“Mutou Sensei!”

He turned with a moody frown towards the loud voice. A pair of girls bounced towards him, one with long brown hair, and the other with long-ish blue hair. They stood out against the backdrop of the wintery campus grounds. Their energy, their bright and bubbly attitudes, it just didn’t fit with the quiet and subdued winter world around them all. He tried to give them an honest smile, but even the extra pay he was getting for chaperoning the young ladies wasn’t enough to make it seem genuine.

“Ms Mikado, Ms Hakamichi,” he stated gruffly. “Are we ready to go?”

The brown-haired girl, Mikado, translated for the one with blue hair, Hakamichi. The two were wearing their school uniforms under heavy fur coats. Mutou half expected them to arrive dressed in western holiday clothing, and for him to scold them for their inappropriate outfits, but the two had actually shown an unusual restraint for second year students. Then again, Hakamichi was a fairly serious young woman, so he wasn’t really that surprised. He was, however, surprised by the handful of girls that were approaching from the distance.

A handful of girls, and a woman who stood out as somehow separate from the group.

The short one he recognised immediately as Emi Ibarazaki, Yamaku’s native track star. He hadn’t taught her, but his friend in the nursing staff gushed about her a lot despite his otherwise professional attitude towards work. The man seemed to think of her as a kind of surrogate daughter, but Mutou figured it wasn’t his place to pry.

Alongside the short one was a short red-haired girl with no arms, and besides them both were two blonde ladies, though one had less of a feminine frame and was wearing a fairly stylish suit despite the wintery weather. All of the girls, (aside from the obviously older one in the suit) were wrapped up warm and gave the other two girls beside him a wave. The red-haired one wiggled her sleeves in the snow and looked fairly silly doing so.

“Sorry to keep you all waiting,” Ibarazaki shouted and gleefully embraced Mikado. Unbeknown to Mutou, the two had been spending a lot of time together recently. Regardless, Hakamichi merely bowed to each of the girls as they arrived, and everyone returned the gesture.

“Yo Shizune, Shiina,” the older woman said with a shrug, before turning her attention to Mutou and bowing. “Satou Akira, and this is my younger sister Lilly, you must be Mutou?” Her tone was curious, but in a way that made Mutou feel like she knew everything there was to know about him. It was peculiar, but he had the feeling that even if he wanted to, he would never be able to lie to her. She seemed like the kind of person who saw more than you wanted them to in a person.

He coughed and pulled his jacket across his chest, before bowing before the girls. “Miss Ibarazaki, Miss Satou,” he nodded at the younger of the Satou sisters, “and Miss…”

“Tezuka,” Ibarazaki explained as Mutou looked over the girl with no arms. Someone had done a poor job of buttoning her jacket, as the middle button was clearly in the wrong hole.

“Of course,” he confirmed, “Miss Tezuka.” The sound of a passing car behind them interrupted his thoughts for a moment, but he composed himself and met the older Satou’s eyes. “Mutou, Akio.”

A tiny smile crept onto the side of her face, but it was replaced with a no-nonsense expression as soon as it had appeared.

“I didn’t know the girls had a teacher for tonight’s event, but saves me having to look after them all,” Akira laughed. Mutou smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of his neck as the girls chattered excitedly. Hakamichi linked her arm with the younger Satou and the girls began heading towards the gates of Yamaku with a quick comment that they were ready now.

“Indeed,” Mutou said, and the girls seemed to race ahead whilst Akira and him walked slowly behind. He felt a bit like a father again, but he swallowed that feeling as deep inside as was possible.

A car meandered past, with its headlights dipped, the snow continued to fall slowly.

The night was awfully quiet, aside from the chatter of the girls and Mutou and Akira’s crunching footsteps on the powdered ground. She kept meaning to ask him something, but exactly what she didn’t know.

It seemed like all of them were characters; they were characters being plopped along by a child’s hand -recreating what it means to be alive from glimpses of an unreal life, glimpses through a child’s eyes on a doll house. They were in a Christmas story, and it always snows hard like this in Christmas stories. Except the snow was turning more into rain, and Mutou grumbled and pulled his jacket again.

The lights of the town continued to creep closer, and whilst the young ladies in front chattered and giggled, Mutou and Akira remained silent. They were guests, really. Child minders. Tonight, was nothing to do with them and everything to do with spreading some non-eastern festive cheer. Who cared if it was a bit odd, Akira thought, too many people exist and not enough people live. The man walking beside her seemed like someone who oscillated between both, but was never really either. What if in this world or the next they were characters in some story, wouldn’t that be a funny thought, she thought. No, no it would not, she decided.

The rag-tag group wondered through the slush and chatter until they reached their first destination, the outside of a park. The girls grouped up, linked arms, and terribly organised and awfully began to sing. Hakamichi smiled, and occasionally opened her mouth as though pretending to sing as well.

Here we come a-wassailing
Among the leaves so green,
Here we come a-wand'ring
So fair to be seen.

“So, didn’t have better plans tonight?” Akira asked. Though the carolling was adorable, it wasn’t her thing, she was only there to make sure the girls were safe. Mutou seemed responsible, but she would have come anyway, she thought.

Love and joy come to you,
And to you your wassail, too,
And God bless you, and send you

“Not particularly, besides I live close by, so it just made sense that I would accompany them.” Mutou explained. Despite the fact that it was evident the girls hadn’t rehearsed this at all, or really even thought it through that much, he could tell they were having fun. That made him smile.

A Happy New Year,
And God send you a Happy New Year.

“Well, I’m sure they appreciate it.” Akira stated with a shrug, it was like blood from a stone with this guy. She wasn’t trying that hard. She wanted a beer.

We are not daily beggers
That beg from door to door,
But we are neighbors' children
Whom you have seen before
Love and joy come to you,
And to you your wassail, too,
And God bless you, and send you
A Happy New Year,
And God send you a Happy New Year.

The girls gathered together again, giggling and chatting. A few people had gathered around to watch the display, and either clapped in an unsure way, or moved on. The whole thing was quite surreal, but there were plenty more spots to hit tonight and so the girls began to move again.

Akira and Mutou followed them from behind, maybe they’d pass a bar, Akira thought.

Maybe things could be better, Mutou thought. Maybe all the world needed was a little bit of cheer. It didn’t have to make sense; it didn’t even have to matter. It just had to happen.

It was all just waiting to happen, Mutou thought.

And he smiled into that slush/snow/rain, like his smile would last forever.

Because maybe that was enough.

It’s all just waiting to happen, he thought again.


_________________________________________________________________
Sorry its so late Shiranai! Happy Christmas/Happy Holiday!

Here was the prompt, for those wondering: Cast members go holiday carolling in the snow

As you can probably tell, I didn't know where to take this. It's christmas, and I wanted to be happy for Shira, and write something more cheerful. Did I forget how, or is this actually a happy one? I don't know.

[brythain]

Oh lovely! So unreal especially in these terrible times, so happy-making. Ah, Mutou/Akira... one of those ideas which needs growing.

[ProfAllister]

Well, it has certainly been a year. If you've been paying close attention tot he news, you may have picked up hints of things that have kept me away from being more active here.

Seeing as we're almost past the point where I can use the "Christmas in July!" excuse, I should follow through on my promise to comment on all of the Secret Santa entries.

So, without further ado, let us bid "Adieu" to the past year's Christmas Celebration (almost in time for this year's!)

'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

A lovely little interlude. Not a huge fan of that interpretation of the Hakamichi parents, but it's a common one; can't blame you there. The nice kind of sweetnees that's great to read wrapped in blankets in front of a fireplace.

Hothouse

This reads like the demented love child of Brythain and Doomish. I mean that as a compliment.

Christmas Double Date

A cute little story. If feels a little forced, but not terribly so...

Next Step

When I wrote the prompt, I felt that it was 50/50 odds that it would be an Emi story, simply since she's the most associated with "unconquered", being the one who overcomes her problems through sheer grit and willpower.

That being said, it's a very nice angle, and very well executed. Much appreciated.

Dreams By Firelight

Too short; didn't read.

Total Eclipse of the Heart

A fun bit of fluff, if a bit of a shaggy dog story. Which, to be honest, given the context, was probably the point. And still very amused how much this years drawing makes it look like I had my thumb on the scales.

A Katawa Christmas Carol

A fun take on the prompt, and a nice gradual escalation from things being a little bit off to getting downright bizarre. I kinda feel the ending bit was a bit of a cliche at this point, but still good for a chuckle.

Writing on the Wall

Well, we had discussed this before you wrote it, and I stick with my initial recommendation that you should have had Emi realise Misha's affection before Misha did, and break it off - both because it's more exquisite torment, and because it better reflects Emi's own issues with closeness.

And, for the record, when I saw Crud's prompt, my first reaction was that he isn't one of the individuals I would have pegged for requesting straight-up smut, so I side with you on that one.

One criticism, though: "How is she so good at this?" is a smut trope that I'm not a fan of in general, but it especially doen't work here. Consider, for contrast, easting a meal, or watching a movie. "How does she do that so well?" is the sort of thought that requires some removal from the experience to consider. Normally, this is someone who is a professional/extremely versed in the material, or someone who isn't really enjoying it (or perhaps trying not to enjoy it). None of those seem to apply to this Emi, which makes the thought rather jarring.

A Winter at Home

A bit unusual, but the prompt wanted something rather unusual. And definitely a good meditation when you get caught up in the little things.

untitled

A fun little look at a possible domestic future. You seem to have caught the spirit of the characters, and paint a compelling picture of events.

SX Entry

Silly fun. Not much more to be said about it. Not that that's a bad thing.

Christmas Confessions

On the other side of the coin, this is a prompt practically begging for smut, written by someone with a reputation for smut, but no smut. Decent (mostly) wholesome fun, if perhaps a bit standard. Nevertheless, a nice entry.

A Festive Flashback

While the whole story is there, it still feels somewhat incomplete. Like it needed more of an Act 2 or something. What's there is nice, but still, somehow feels incomplete.

The Secret Santa

Long, convoluted, and fun. Not much to complain about here - a stock plot, but still good for entertainment.

untitled

An interesting piece. Sparse and somber, but jsut enough detail to give it some weight. Not bad.

An Unseen Play

A tricky prompt, but handled surprisingly well, all things considered. Definitely one of the prompts I'm glad I didn't pull. :p

Winterhome

As always, we've got brythain at his brythain-est. There's a certian spirit, a je ne sais quoi to your works that just gives them a different flavor from most of the other writings around here. It's fascinating, really.

Almost Home For Christmas

Cute and fun. Haven't read any of the recent Saki routes, so can't compare it to much besides themocaw's Saki. But, for what it is, it's nice.

The Waiting Games

I'm a sucker for this kind of framing device, so I was pretty much guaranteed to enjoy it. But it was also reasonably well done, which is certainly a bonus.

A Hidden Obsession

Kenji-style shenanigans can always be fun. But 4 o'clock would be your right shoulder...
The ending is a little abrupt, but serviceable for what it is.

Away We Go Wassailing

A little bit happy, a little bit melancholic, but mostly a happy melancholic. About what you'd expect from a 40-something man watching carefree highschoolers (or a 20-somehtign woman who's seen far too much of the world). Getting all the girls together like this feels like a bit of a stretch, but there's more excuse than most stories. And the first perspective shift was a little jarring. But overall a sweet little short, which is precisely appropriate for the season of... early spring?

Is It In Gingerbread That One’s Cake is Dough?

It's a little rough and choppy, but serviceable. It strikes me that you're vaguely uncomfortable with your own writing, and trying to play it safe. In general, the lines lack follow-through and commitment, holding back on delivering a powerful impact. Additionally, the lines rush from one idea to another, as if they're afraid to let the reader linger on a thought. More generous use of line breaks would likely slow the action down from its hectic pace, giving the reader the chance to digest what's being said.

All said, not bad for a first post.


As always, wonderful work, everyone, and see you all next year in a couple months!

[PsychicSpy]

Took on this prompt recently to finally give out Emii's Christmas gift of 2019.
Victim: emi
Prompt: Hisao and Hanako open presents during Christmas at the Nakai residence.

THE TWO SANTAS

“But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight—’Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!’” Hisao closed the book with a smile. Junko and Renjiro still looked spellbound as they stared up at him from where they were sitting cross legged on the carpet. Their mother, Hanako, lightly clapped for him and they soon joined, giving a small round of applause to their father.

“So Santa really does that? He comes down the chimney and brings presents too?” Junko piped up.

“Yes, for all the good children, like you and Renjiro. He especially loves children who leave out cookies and milk. Come on, we can go get Santa some snacks,” Hanako said warmly as she herded the children into the kitchen, sneaking a covert wink at Hisao as she went out the door.

Hisao smiled happily. He was always happy when Hanako was able to be home for Christmas. In the past, the newspaper that she worked for had her covering events around this time and she couldn’t get off work. The Asahi Shimbun was a prestigious newspaper to be sure, and refusing to cover a story to spend time with family was not an option.

The kids came bouncing back into the room, Junko carrying a plate of cookies while Renjiro brought a glass of milk. They placed them down on the coffee table excitedly and glanced under the tree, as if Santa would appear there any minute armed with presents.

“Ah, Santa has to wait until you’re asleep! Remember what the kids in the story were doing on Christmas Eve? Off to bed.” Hisao said.

“But we aren’t tired!” they protested weakly as he led them to their room. He tucked them in, gave them each a kiss on the forehead, and returned to the living room, where Hanako was waiting for her kiss.

“We should probably get started. After all, Santa doesn’t work by himself,” he said. She giggled as they kissed again and they headed down into the basement to get started on Santa’s work.

******

“Mom! Dad! Wake up!” Hisao wearily blinked awake. He turned his head as his vision cleared and he could read the clock. 7:00 . He felt a jolt as a weight came down on his legs. Junko had jumped on to the bed, while Renjiro was doing the same for their mother. “It’s time to open presents!” Junko clamored.

Hisao sat up, trying to look enthusiastic on the prospect of waking up after the very little sleep he had gotten. He felt a can being pressed into his hand.

“Mommy bought this for you yesterday and told us to give it to you this morning,” Junko said as he saw that it was a canned cofffee. He mentally thanked Hanako for that as he was led by the hand out of bed by his daughter. His wife stumbled along with them, likewise pulled by their son.

They were led to the living room. Squeals came from the children as they saw the presents under the tree. Hanako and Hisao shared a sleepy smile as they went towards the tree.

“Hold on now, you two,” Hisao said, putting his hand on their shoulders. He eased them back onto the couch. “Why don’t we have a bit of patience. Who wants to be Santa first?” Hisao asked, picking up the Santa hat that he had left out the night before.

“Me! Me!” Renjiro snatched the hat from his hands and stuck it on, the brim of the hat slightly drooping over his brow. He scurried over to the tree and read over the labels on them. He picked up a small thin one and brought it over to his older sister. Junko ripped off the paper and shrieked.

“What did you get, Junko?” Hanako asked knowingly.

“Santa brought me Pokemon Sword!” Junko said excitedly, showing the whole room the Nintendo switch game case.

“Very exciting!” Hisao agreed. He lightly pulled at the white ball of the Santa cap, getting the hat off of Renjiro and placing it onto Junko’s head. “Now go get a present for your brother.

She obliged, picking a misshapen spherical object from under the tree. She handed it to him and he eagerly mimicked his sister, tearing it open with wild abandon.

“A volleyball! Thanks, Santa!” he said as he looked at the ball with glee. Hisao felt a rise of joy, seeing his kids so excited for these presents. Junko handed the Santa hat to Hisao.

“Dad, it’s your turn to be Santa!” If only she knew how true that was. Hisao pulled the hat on and selected a present, placing it in Hanako’s lap. She pulled it open a little more gently than the children had done with their presents.

“My 60 Memorable Games by Bobby Fischer! Santa was very thoughtful with this gift,” Hanako said warmly. Just then, the ding of a timer went off in the kitchen. “What’s that?” she asked the two kids.

“We turned on the oven so we could make breakfast,” Renjiro replied sheepishly. Both parents held back laughter. Sometimes these two were just too cute.

“Why don’t you go set out some plates and I’ll give Dad his present from Santa,” Hanako suggested. Two two brightened up and raced into the kitchen. Hanako grabbed a slightly larger box and brought it over to Hisao. He turned it over, trying to figure out how such a box could be as light as it was.

“Stop trying to use the scientific method to figure out what it is and just open it,” Hanako said jokingly. “You aren’t at work.”

“I know, I know,” Hisao replied. He pulled at the corners, pulling off the paper to reveal a basic white box. He scratched the tape off as the sound of cabinets opening and shutting loudly came from the kitchen. “Should we?”

“They’ll be ok for a few minutes,” Hanako reassured. He pulled the top of the box off. Moving the tissue paper aside, he found a long, silky ribbon, which seemed to form a certain shape. He looked closer at it before Hanako took it out of his hands. She pulled two parts of the ribbon up to her shoulders, revealing that the ribbon would wrap around her body and come up to a bow over her breasts. His face flushed a little red as Hanako gave him a kiss on the cheek.

“You’ll get to open this present up later, Hisao.” She placed the lingerie neatly back in the box and went to go check on the children. Hisao smiled as he stood to go too. Today really was a Happy Christmas.


Hope you enjoy it!

[Mirage_GSM]

Good thing that timer went off as it did, or they would have had some explaining to do for the kids...

[Chatty Wheeler]

That's one heck of a mistletoe...

Thanks for writing this! Short, sweet, and charming. Sometimes it's nice to just sit back and enjoy a story like this at the end of the day.

[Xeraeo]

Heartwarming. Thanks for this!

[ProfAllister]

7:00? I know that holiday fantasies are a common element, but the idea that the kids would let him sleep in that late is pretty far-fetched.

[brythain]

My little 2019 SX story for Downix is now up here. Enjoy!

[ProfAllister]

My little 2019 SX story for Downix is now up here. Enjoy!

If Kenji were everything he believed himself to be, he would be not entirely dissimilar to your Jigoro.

[NuclearStudent]

My little 2019 SX story for Downix is now up here. Enjoy!

If Kenji were everything he believed himself to be, he would be not entirely dissimilar to your Jigoro.

If Kenji were everything he wanted to be, he'd be fairly similar to Jigoro.