Chapter Text
Sebastian woke slowly to the sound of Nurse Gutierrez opening the door of his room in the safe ward. She looked normal as could be, except for one thing. Sebastian scrubbed at his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things; clearly he had a concussion or that green goop was affecting his brain after using it so much.
Sitting right atop her head was… a red Santa Claus hat, complete with a small pompom on the end and white trim. It matched the rest of her normal attire well, in all honesty.
Sebastian blinked over and over multiple times. “I guess I’ve finally lost it,” he muttered to the Nurse as he stared.
“Not quite, tis the season for such things,” she replied in her usual monotone before stepping aside the entrance, a gesture indicating he should get up and start the day.
Sebastian was still skeptical of his own sanity, but then again he had forgotten how long he was stuck here. He didn’t even know how to tell time, much less what date it was supposed to be. He swung himself off the bed, examined the nurse and her new uniform once more, and quickly headed out the door.
He was met with the sound of Christmas music coming softly out from under many of the other doors in the hallway. He recognized it as “White Christmas,” it was one of his favorites.
Sebastian was shocked for the second time. This was a change in atmosphere his brain was not prepared for. Being stuck for so long in a place that he had learned to be dead and desolate, he never realized how much he missed the pleasant sounds of music. He shook off his confusion and opted instead to just listen. It was admittedly strange to hear, but was a welcome change from dead silence or eerie piano pieces that normally permeated the place. It was lovely.
After a few moments of listening, he prepared himself and headed for the mirror with spirits raised.
Sebastian ended up in the city, on a long and wide street with buildings of various shapes and sizes on either side. He tensed and scanned the area for any movement; haunts were always lurking around. But he didn’t immediately spot any, instead spying something else which drew his attention.
All around the street, on every rooftop, window, and door…were Christmas decorations.
Sebastian just stood there with his mouth open, thoughts only focused on the brightly colored lights in different shining colors, the wreaths hung on the doors, and the ribbons tied around fences and lampposts. He couldn’t stop staring, the beginnings of a smile gracing his face; everything was arranged neatly and with care. Sebastian could nearly convince himself everything was normal and he was home again for the holidays.
Sebastian’s eyes shone with all of the colors of the lights as he stared, and Ruvik had never seen someone so stunned.
Ruvik stood away from Sebastian, out of sight. He was placed in the shadows and invisible for the moment as he simply watched Sebastian with interest. No one had ever appeared so pleased and awe-struck by something he had done, aside from his sister Laura. It gave him a warm feeling in his chest, and he held it there for as long as he could. It wasn’t hard to create the scene before them, a simple thought and a raised hand, and it had been done in mere moments at his will.
Ruvik contemplated revealing himself, but stopped short when he sensed another presence. He peered down the street to see Joseph Oda walking in their direction. His mouth twitched slightly in annoyance, but he kept himself composed as he watched the other man approach.
Sebastian heard the sound of unhurried footsteps, and was taken out of his reverie. He whipped around and looked down the brightly colored street, and saw none other than Joseph.
Sebastian grew a new smile on his face and ran towards his partner, happy to see him after being apart for only god knew how long.
Joseph looked up as he heard the sound of Sebastian’s feet hitting the pavement and looked frightened for about 2 seconds before realizing who it was, and sprinted forward to meet him halfway.
“Jo! Boy am I glad to see you!” Sebastian let his good mood show through his actions and embraced Joseph when they met together. Joseph was surprised by his attitude, but was glad to see Sebastian happy for once and hugged him back.
“Yeah, same for you!” Joseph said as they parted, “I was beginning to think I’d never see you or anyone else again in this crazy place! How are you holding up, Seb?”
“Don’t worry about me, you know I can handle myself. What about you?” Sebastian said raising an eyebrow, alluding to their previous incidents in the church and on the cliff.
“Oh, yes, well, I’m fine,” Joseph stated, “I’ve just been worried about everyone and getting sick of this place…but by the way, have you noticed –everything-?” he said as he gestured around the street.
Sebastian let a small smile show on his face as he looked around, “Yeah I dunno what’s going on, but we've seen crazier things. It looks great for once. How do you think this all got here?”
Joseph shook his head and raised his eyebrows slightly at Sebastian’s demeanor before deciding it was better than his usual stoic face in this place. Joseph relaxed and they both looked around the street together; the lights shining various colors onto their figures while they just admired the things that they didn’t think could even exist here.
Sebastian broke their comfortable silence after a couple of minutes, “…You know what’s missing?”
From the shadows, Ruvik’s curiosity was peaked; he had thought there wasn’t anything more he could add to make it look any better than it did. He stayed hidden in place, impatiently waiting to hear the assessment.
“What’s that?” Joseph asked good naturedly, though skeptic as usual.
Sebastian was quiet and looked up at the dull grey sky before speaking.
“Snow,” he said, turning back and smiling at his partner.
Joseph cracked a smile of his own and patted Sebastian on the back, “You’re right, but I’m just happy to have this much!” he said as they both let out a light-hearted laugh.
At the same time, Ruvik didn’t even think before he raised his hand and willed a slow, silent snowfall to appear in his world.
Sebastian and Joseph both gasped as they noticed the floating white flakes beginning to fall around them, their worries forgotten for the time being. It didn’t take long for a small dusting to coat everything, and Sebastian gave a short cheer and raised fist to the sky in elation. He thought of the song he had heard earlier in the ward, and felt deeply content in the moment.
The reunited pair watched excitedly as the snow fell around them both on the vivid street, and the one in the shadows only had eyes for the one he created it for.