All I Want for Christmas is Yui (To Stop Blushing)

※ Christmas Morning ※

As everyone gathered around their one-of-a-kind Christmas tree, the whole scene seemed to glow with holiday magic—all despite (or perhaps because of) its charmingly lopsided posture, vivaciously draped tinsel and lights, and the over-indulged crystal star tree topper. With barely contained anticipation, they retrieved the presents that had been tempting them from beneath the tree for the past two weeks, arranging themselves in a cozy circle around their holiday bounty. The moment they'd all been waiting for had finally arrived!

“Now we're all settled, why don't we go around the circle nya?” Narumi suggested, her tail swishing excitedly as she selected a small gift from the pile. Her gaze landed on Emi, who sat to her right. “Starting with Emi-chan!”

“Ara, me first?” Emi adjusted her glasses, reaching for the present Narumi handed to her. “Hmm, small and light…” She gave it a gentle shake before unwrapping it with cheerful enthusiasm, her eyes widening at the sleek instant camera and film pack inside. “Ehh!? A real camera!?”

“I wanted to get you something that would help you capture those precious memories!” Narumi raised her hand proudly, her tail swishing enthusiastically. The catgirl could barely contain her excitement as she leaned forward, ears twitching.

“It's a special hybrid model nya!” she explained, practically vibrating with excitement. “It can upload digital copies to your MAG as well as print the pictures you want to keep!”

“Ehh? A camera that can do both?” Emi gasped in amazement. “This is going to be so useful!” Emi exclaimed, pulling Narumi into a tight hug— her catastrophic chest cushions threatening to suffocate the smaller catgirl. “Thank you so much, Narumi-chan! Arigatou!”

She attempted to take her first shot, somehow holding the camera backwards without realising—pointing the device directly at her own face. Her left index finger found the shutter button, and...

Kacha!

“Ah re? Ah re re?” Emi reeled back, temporarily blinded. She blinked rapidly, her glasses askew as colorful spots danced in her vision. “Why is everything so sparkly? Did I break it already?”

“Emi-chan...” Narumi gently turned the camera around in her friend's hands. “You had it backwards nyaa...”

“Ara, no wonder… Ah! Something is coming out!”

The inaugural first photo slowly emerged from the slot, gradually revealing an extreme close-up of Emi's left nostril.

“Humu, humu…” She nodded sagely, examining the photo with genuine curiosity. “I had no idea the inside of my nose had such interesting architecture!” [That’s NOT the kind of photo you're supposed to appreciate!]

Next in the circle was Narumi, whose cat ears perked up as she eyed her suspiciously large and squishy gift—her tail swishing side to side with increasing speed. She pounced on the present with all the precision of a caffeinated kitten, shredding the wrapping paper in record time to reveal a giant fluffy limited-edition Cinnabun plushie—an adorable chubby bunny mascot with cinnamon colored fur.

“KAWAIINYAAAA!” Narumi’s eyes sparkled as she clutched the Cinnabun to her chest. With the agility of her feline heritage, she launched herself at Yui, wrapping both girl and plushie in an enthusiastic embrace. “Arigatou, Yui-chanyaaaaaaaaa!”

Piyoyoyo! The sudden onset of unstable conditions drove Mochi into a frantic flutter of wings as he desperately maintained balance atop Yui’s head.

“N-Narumi-chan! You're crushing me!” A smile tugged at Yui’s lips despite her protests—her cheeks tinged pink as she tried to maintain her cool demeanor while being sandwiched between an overexcited catgirl and a fluffy bunny plushie. “A-And stop making those weird nyanya sounds right in my ear!”

“But Yui-chan is such a cute and awesome friend, nyaaaa~” Narumi nuzzled her cheek against Yui's and the plushie, nyanya-ing contentedly.

Kacha!

“Also, how did you even know it was me?” Yui questioned, still trapped in Narumi's enthusiastic embrace.

"I knew it had to be you! Only Yui-chan can notice me sneaking extra patrols through the shopping district nya~" Narumi's ears twitched as she recalled the memory. "I almost bought it last week, you know? I finally convinced myself to splurge..." Her ears drooped slightly, tail curling into a thoughtful loop. "But then that cute little girl came into the shop with her mummy, and the way she looked at that plushie... It was the last one, so I just had to let her have it nyaa..."

Just as quickly, Narumi perked right back up, squeezing Yui even tighter. "I can't believe you got me the Christmas Cinnabun nya! It was always juuust a bit too expensive when I kept finding the cutest hairclips that would look perfect on Yui-chan, or when Akari mentioned that new boba place, or when Emi's birthday was coming up!"

"You know, you don't have to buy that stuff for us..." Yui's voice softened, a mixture of exasperation and affection in her turquoise and amber eyes as she regarded her best friend.

The words had barely left her mouth when the realization hit her. Wait a minute… Two weeks ago, I bought the plushie... and last week Narumi tried to buy the very last one... which means… I'm the reason she had to watch that little girl's eyes light up and then make that heart-wrenching decision... [Oops]

"Ash-kun's turn nyaaa~!" Narumi announced cheerfully to her left, completely oblivious to her friend's internal crisis as she cuddled her giant new Cinnabun.

Ash picked up his present with a curious expression— it was soft and surprisingly light. As he tore it open, he revealed a large men's t-shirt with an absolutely massive, absolutely adorable frog face printed across the entire front. The frog's expression could only be described as :3, complete with rosy cheeks and sparkly eyes. There was only one person who could pick such a gift.

“Ahh... thank you Akari-san. It's very cute. And... froggy.” He held it up, looking in bemused amusement at the giant amphibian who stared right back at him with aggressive kawaii energy.

Without further prompting, he slipped the shirt on. “How do I look?”

Kacha! “Ara, that looks great on you, Ash-kun!” Emi giggled.

Akari beamed with pride from her spot next to Ash. “Mm!” She nodded firmly. “I picked it because Ash-nii-san is supercool but gentle, just like frogs are!” She declared with absolute conviction.

Yui's brain nearly shutdown as she watched Ash—the legendary Meteorn who had been carving through Halpha's greatest challenges with his photonic blade, whose name echoed from Aelio to Kvaris—just casually don a T-shirt with an absurdly adorable frog face.

Ash-san is... is... k-kawaiiiiiiii!? The thought escaped before she could stop it, her small hands rushing to cover her mouth in a panic—her heart nearly bursting at the devastating contrast between his usual stoic demeanor and the cheerful :3 now plastered across his chest. HYAAAA!! This is illegal! It should be illegal! How can he just sit there wearing something so ridiculously adorable and still look cool and manly and cute and—NO WAIT STOP BRAIN STOP—

[And thus, Yui awakens a hidden desire for gap moe boys]

Akari bounced in her seat as her turn finally arrived, her reddish-pink eyes sparkling with barely contained delight. The thin rectangular gift that had been teasing her imagination for weeks now sat in her small hands. She carefully peeled back the wrapping paper, revealing an elegant white box. Her fingers trembled slightly with anticipation as she lifted the lid.

"Herrokerooooooo!!!" she gasped in delight, as she discovered a set of four beautiful holographic bookmarks nestled in soft velvet, each one seeming to have captured an entire world within its surface. A spring tree frog perched beneath a tiny paper umbrella amid falling cherry blossoms. A summer forest frog lounging on a lily pad under dancing fireflies. An autumn tree frog balancing atop golden-red maple leaves. And in winter, an adorable Japanese tree frog sitting bundled in a tiny knitted scarf, its legs tucked under its tummy with snow falling gently around it. As Akari tilted the bookmarks, the scenes shifted and danced with mesmerizing depth.

Her eyes quite literally sparkled. “They’re so pretty!” Akari clutched the bookmarks to her chest before glancing between the two-remaining secret santas, Emi and Ash. “Mmmmmm… was it Emi-nee-san?”

Kacha! “That’s right! I'm glad you like them, Akari-chan!” Emi beamed, lowering her new instant camera as it printed another photo. “When I saw them in the book shop, I just knew they were perfect for our precious little frog enthusiast~”

"Arigatou, Emi-nee-san!" Akari exclaimed, completely entranced as she tilted the bookmarks back and forth, watching the tiny frogs come to life in their shimmering seasonal worlds, already imagining how these precious treasures would look marking the pages of her favorite books.

The circle's attention turned to Yui, the last unopened gift sitting innocently before her. Her heart threatened to burst from her chest as she reached for it with trembling fingers. Through simple process of elimination—Emi having just revealed herself as Akari's Secret Santa—there was only one possible person this could be from. Her eyes flickered upward for just a fraction of a second, catching Ash watching her from across their little gathering. Their gazes met—her cheeks immediately warmed.

Doki doki!

She dropped her eyes back to the gift, her face erupting in heat.

The soft rectangular package now sat in her lap, wrapped in cheerful holiday paper dotted with tiny Christmas trees. As the group watched in anticipation, Narumi's tail began swishing with increasing intensity, while Emi failed spectacularly at suppressing an excited "Ara arnmm~"

Piyoyo piyo! Mochi reported as his airfield suddenly began to destabilize. (Alert! structural vibrations detected on Primary Airfield! Monitoring situation!)

"Y-you don't have to all stare..." Yui mumbled, her fingers trembling slightly as she began unwrapping it with painstaking care, treating the paper itself like a delicate artifact. The mounting suspense was apparently too much for Narumi, whose tail was now swishing with such velocity she could probably take off.

"Mou, Yui-chanyaaa!" Narumi whined, bouncing in place. "At this rate, we'll all turn into grandmas before you finish nyaa!"

"S-Shut up! I'm just being careful!" Yui snapped back, though the effect was somewhat ruined by her face reaching temperatures that could probably cook an egg.

Piyo piyoyo piyo! Mochi announced, struggling to maintain stability on his still quaking, now burning hot airfield. (Primary Airfield experiencing continued structural vibrations and critical thermal anomalies! Source of anomalies identified to be suspicious package; strongly advise immediate removal!)

As the last of the paper fell away, Yui's breath caught in her throat. There, folded neatly before her, was an apron that made her heart skip several beats. Elegant embroidered birds took flight across the fabric—delicate sparrows, proud cranes, and everything in between, their forms brought to life through delicate threadwork against cream-colored cloth with pink accents. Her fingers traced the stitching with reverent care as realization dawned: Ash hadn't just remembered her love of baking—he'd noticed her passion for birds too.

DOKI DOKI DOKI DOKI DOKI DOKI DOKI DOKI! [Uh we may need an ambulance]

“Th-th-thank you A-Ash-san,” she stammered, her face progressing through increasingly impressive shades of red, ears following suit.

PIYO! PIYOYO PIYOYO!!! Mochi’s little feet hopped in place atop Yui's head as he flapped his wings in absolute anguish. (WARNING! Primary Airfield status critical! All systems overheating! Audio system failing! Multiple birds detected on new uniform but NONE OF THEM ARE ME???!!)

Kacha!

“Ara ara~” Emi giggled, lowering her new camera. “You should have seen how much thought Ash-kun put into choosing it! He even asked Narumi-chan and me all about what you like!”

Yui clutched the apron to her chest, already lost in an elaborate fantasy about preserving it perfectly forever. Maybe a special display case with UV-protective glass like Emi’s figurine cases? Or maybe I should get it professionally framed? No, that's not enough - I need museum-grade preservation! With climate control, and an inert gas chamber, and…

[Please just use the apron. It's an apron]

“I noticed your current apron is quite worn, so I thought I’d buy you a new one,” Ash explained with his small smile, completely oblivious to the fact that Yui was about two seconds away from fainting of sheer happiness. “Hope you like the design.”

“I-I love it!” Yui clutched the apron even tighter, her voice coming out in an excited squeak that she'd likely deny making later.

Akari tilted her head thoughtfully, observing Yui's crimson complexion. "The way Yui-nee-san's face changes color reminds me of the Glass Frog!" She pressed a tiny finger to her chin in contemplation, adopting the serious pose she'd seen researchers use at school. "Though instead of hiding blood cells in her liver, they all rush to her face whenever Ash-nii-san is around... Nature is amazing, herrokero!"

P-PIIYO! PIIYO! PIIYO! PIYOOOOOOO!!! (M-MAYDAY! MAYDAY! MAYDAY! PRIMARY AIRFIELD IN COMPLETE FREEFALL! ABANDON AIRFIELD! ABANDON AIRFIELD!!!)