Christmas was coming. Another one of Earthy holidays Azurite didn't understand. The streets of Little Homeworld were covered with snow which was failing since dawn.

Azurite was walking along the streets along with Shi'ra and Jasper, his boots leaving marks on the soft white powder. Steven called all of the residents of Little Homeworld to the city center, but he didn't told them why.

"Why did he called us there?" Shi'ra asked Azurite and Jasper.

"Don't ask me. I know as much as you do." Jasper answered with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Azurite? What about you?" Shi'r asked Azurite, turning towards him.

"Do you really have to ask?" Azurite told her, as if the answer wasn't obvious enough.

"Right... guess, we're going to find out in a moment." Shi'ra said.

"Guys! Over here!" All three of them instantly recognized this voice. They turned to the source of it to see Spinel, who was waving at them. Centi and Orange Pearl were standing by her side.

"Maybe they'll know something." Shi'ra stated.

"Shi'ra, Spinel is there. I'm certain she'll know the reason why he called us here." Jasper said to which Azurite nodded in agreement as the three of them made their way over to Spinel, Orange Pearl and Centi.

"Hey, guys." Orange Pearl greeted all three of them, as they reached them.

"Hey." Shi'ra greeted her back as Jasper and Azurite just nodded their heads to that.

"So, do you guys know what we're doing here?" Centi asked them.

"No." Azurite answered with a shook of his head.

"We thought you knew." Shi'ra explained.

"Well, Jasper. It looks like you were wrong about Spinel knowing the reason why he called us all of us here." Azurite said, a hint of smirk was on his face.

"Oh, be quiet." Jasper quickly shushed him.

"What? I'm just telling you." Azurite stated, to which Jasper rolled her eyes.

"You all may be wondering why I called you here." Steven began, as everyone focused his attention on him, "The reason why I called you here is if as most of you know, Christmas is coming and we're going to do a Secret Santa."

"Secret Santa?" Jasper asked with a raised brow, wanting to be sure if she didn't misheard it.

"What's that?" Azurite wanted to know to which Shi'ra nodded her head in agreement.

"I don't know." Spinel answered with a shrug of her shoulders, "Maybe we should as..."

Before Spinel could continue, a gem from the crowd. Her name was Orange Spodumene, asked, "What is Secret Santa?"

''...Guess we don't have to, now." Shi'ra stated.

In response to Orange Spodumene's question, Steven held up a basket filled with small pieces of paper and said, "Everyone pick a name from this basket. Whoever you get you have to get a gift for! But you can't tell who you're buying it. You can ask their friends for advice, but you can't ask the gem you drew. You can also tell your friends, as long as you didn't drew any of them."

"Oh..." Azurite responded to Steven's explanation, hoping he was going to get someone he knew.

"Oh, indeed." Jasper agreed with him, hoping she was going to get someone she knew.

"C'mon, guys! Let's get in the line!" Spinel told them, as all six of them slowly made their way to the line, with Azurite being the last one of them in the line.

Shi'ra was right before him. When it was her turn, she walked over to the basket and put her hand inside of it, before pulling a small piece of paper out of it. She looked at who she picked from the basket and sighed in relief. It must've been someone she knew very well, she whispered to Azurite, "Good luck" before walking off to Spinel, Jasper, Centi and Orange Pearl.

Azurite was the next one in the line. He walked over to the basket and pulled out a small piece of paper, and read which name was written there.

"Spinel."

He let out a sigh of relief. Good thing it was someone he knew, but this relief was replaced with small panic, which he hid very well. Spinel was one of the gems he spend the most time with on this planet, if not the most and ironically he had no idea what to give her. Good thing he had over a week to buy it for her, and he had a lot of time to think about it.

When he came up to Shi'ra, Jasper, Spinel, Centi and Orange Pearl, Spinel asked him, "So, Azzie. Who did you get?"

"I won't tell you." Azurite said with a shook of his head, tensing up a bit.

"Why?" Spinel raised her brow, "Steven told us it's okay as long as you didn... You have one of us?"

Azurite shook his head again, "...No? I'm going to tell you once I'll give it to that gem."

"You're just like Shi'ra. She doesn't want to tell us as well." Spinel stated with a laugh.

"Now you have more reasons why we're friends, Spinel." Shi'ra said, as she walked over to Azurite and wrapped her arm around him, "Now if you excuse us, I and Azurite were planning to spend some time together."

''We did?" Azurite whispered to her, quietly so the other wouldn't hear.

"Just go along with it." Shi'ra whispered back to him.

"Oh, yes. I and Shi'ra here planned to spent some time with each other today." Azurite said a second after, going along with what Shi'ra said.

"Who did you get?" She asked him, even though the answer was pretty obvious to her.

"Spinel." Azurite answered.

Shi'ra laughed to that, "I knew it. It explains why you tensed up the moment she asked you that question."

"What about you?" Azurite asked her.

"Centi." Shi'ra told him.

"It explains why you didn't want to tell them who you drew too." Azurite stated.

"I guess it does." Shi'ra said with a nod of her head, "We both were lucky that we got someone we know very well. Jasper for example got a gem she only shared a few words with it.

"Yup. We were." Azurite chuckled to that, "So... do you know what you're going to buy Centi?"

"I'm going to buy her a weekly supply of chaps." Shi'ra explained.

"Seriously? You're going to buy her that snack?" Azurite wanted to be if she was serious.

"Yes. You saw how much she likes it when we watched Footloose." Shi'ra answered.

"I did." Azurite said with a nod of his head, remembering how Centi dug into chaps as if it was going to be her last meal.

"Speaking of gifts, what are you going to get for Spinel?" Shi'ra asked him.

Azurite shook his head, "I have no idea?"

Shi'ra raised her brows, suprised, "Really? You're spending so much time with each other and you have no idea what to get her?"

Azurite shrugged his shoulders, "Yes. Good thing I have one week to figure it out. I want to her like whatever I'm going to get her."

"It's Spinel, pal. I'm certain she'll like it." Shi'ra assured him.

"If you say so. I want to give her something special." Azurite began as Shi'ra looked at him, curious what was he going to say, "After I came here, she was the gem that helped me the most, that's why I want my gift for her to be special."

Shi'ra nodded her head at his words, as she wrapped her hand around, "You know you can ask me for advice what to get her. I can help you with it. In fact, I was actually going into town to get my gift for Centi, and you can go with me. We both may figure out what to get for Spinel."

"Thanks, Shi'ra. I'd appreciate your help." Azurite said to her.

"You're like a brother to me, Azurite. It's my job to help you." Shi'ra smiled at him.

"If you think about me like that, so how about I got with you to get this gift for Centi, sister." Azurite smiled back at her.

"I'd love to, brother." Shi'ra continued to smile as they both headed into town.

-----

Christmas has finally come one week later. The streets and houses of Little Homeworld were covered in various decorations, and many of the gem had decided to wear a red christmas hat because of todays ocassion, Spinel and Orange Pearl were one of them. Spinel tried to convice Azurite, Shi'ra, Centi and Jasper to wear one too, but they declined this offer.

As for now, Azurite along with Shi'ra, Spinel, Jasper, Centi and Orange Pearl were standing in the back of the crowd of gems, as Steven along with Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst stood on before a giant tree which was filled with decorations, from lamps to baubles.

When the lights were lit up, all of the gem in the crowd cheered, and once it died down, Steven exclaimed, "Everyone, now the time for the gifts has come!"

Everyone reacted to his words, and all of the gems began move towards the gems they bought gifts for, Orange Pearl, Spinel and Jasper being one of them.

Centi was about to move out too, but she was stopped by Shi'ra, who immediately showed her gift for Centi, "Now, you may now understand why I didn't want to tell any of you who I got."

Centi eyed the gift, and when she was that it was a supply of chaps, her eyes lit up, as she embraced Shi'ra, "Thank you, Shi'ra! I love this gift!"

Shi'ra hugged the former corrupted gem back, "Hey, that's what friends are for, right? I know how much you love to eat this thing."

"Hey, Azurite!" Azurite turned to the direction of the voice and saw Bismuth, walking over to him with a smile on her face, "Merry Christmas!"

"Bismuth." He greeted her back with a small bow of his head, "Likewise."

Bismuth pulled out a gift and handed it to him, a smile on her face, "So, Azurite. You see, I was the one who pulled your name from the basket."

Azurite took his gift from her and carefully opened it. His eyes shot open when he saw what was inside of the box. It was a pair of claws, "I experience it myself how well you can fight with your hands, and Orange Pearl even told us that you started to teach her everything you know about it, and I thought you could use a weapon that would give you advantage in that area than just your bare fists."

Azurite stared in awe at gift for a good moment. He admired how well made it was, "This is... very nice, Bismuth. Thank you."

Bismuth continued to smile, "We may have a rocky start, and even though we barely talk with each other, I can see that you mean no harm to any of us and that you did what you did because you were in a need of units."

"I'm glad you think like that about me. It means a lot." Azurite smiled back at her.

Bismuth reached her hand out and gave him a pat on his shoulder, "If you want to test them out. I left a piece of wood in the place where you're training Orange Pearl."

Azurite bowed his head to her in thankful manner, "Thanks for telling me. I'll certainly go there to test them out."

"Oh, and there will be another piece of wood there, but don't do anything to it. It is kept for another gem who is going to receive a gift similiar to yours." Bismuth explained.

Azurite nodded his head in understanding, "I'll keep that in mind."

He and Bismuth said their goodbyes to each other, as Azurite headed off to the training spot to try his new weapon out.

As he proceeded to walk there, he bumped into a similiar pink gem, "Sorry, Spinel."

"It's okay, Azzie. Where were you going?" She asked him.

"I was going to test out my new weapon, which was a gift from Bismuth." Azurite answered, as he held up his new weapon, showing it off to her.

"Wow." Spinel was in awe of Azurite's new weapon, "Can I go with you? I want to see what it can do."

"Sure." Azurite answered. It would be a good place to give her the gift he bought for her.

Spinel smiled at him, as they started walking towards the place where Azurite trained Orange Pearl. The first thing he saw after reaching this place were two huge pieces of wood, one for him, one for the other gem Bismuth mentioned. He and Spinel shared a quick look with each other and nodded. Spinel went to the crate he usually sat on when she came here to watch the training session between Azurite and Orange Pearl, as Azurite put the claws on his fists. He walked over to one of the pieces of wood, and swung his fist at it, slicing it in the half. He and Spinel stared in awe with their eyes wide open at the damage Azurite's new weapon did, before he swung it a few more times, until there were only a few pieces left of that piece of wood.

"Wow." Spinel said, still in awe of it.

"Wow, indeed." Azurite said as Spinel hopped off the crate and walked over to him.

"Bismuth really outdid herself with this weapon." Spinel stated.

"Yeah... Oh, and Spinel, there's something I need to tell you." Azurite told her, thinking that it was a good time to her present he bought for her.

"Yes?" Spinel asked him, curious what he was going to say.

"You were the one I got from that basket." Azurite said, pulling his gift out. It was placed in a small pink box.

Spinel's eyes shot open, as Azurite pushed gift towards her. A moment after, she chuckled, "That explains why you were so nervous when I asked you about that."

"You can say that." Azurite said with a nod of his head, as Spinel took her gift from him, wondering what he got her. She carefully opened it, not to damage the thing that was inside, and when it was finally opened she took a peek at what was inside.

It was a necklace. A little shape was nestled there with a silvery chain. It's charm was shaped in a heart, just like her gem.

"I hope you like it. You were one of the people that helped me the most after I came to this planet, and I wanted it to be something special." Azurite told her.

Spinel eyed her present for a moment, before looking up at Azurite, with stars in her eyes, "I love it Azzie! It's beautiful! Thank you so much!"

Azurite smiled at her and gestured towards her neck, "I'm glad you like it. Do you want me to..."

"Of course." Spinel said with a nod of her head.

Azurite took the necklace out of the box. He undid the tiny clasp on the necklace's chain, then put it around her neck, with the charm laying close to her throat.

When he was done with it, Azurite looked down at Spinel, with a smile on his face. He opened his mouth and was about to say something, but didn't had a chance.

Because then something unexcepted that took him off the guard happened.

She kissed him in the cheek.

Azurite could feel his face getting more blue than usual,and he felt like he was about to explode. He could feel something in his stomach. It was a feeling he never felt before. He stared at Spinel, unsure of what to do, or say.

Spinel giggled at his stunned face, "Merry Christmas, Azzie!"

"Yeah... Merry Christmas to you too..." Azurite said back, trying not to sound awkwardly.

"Let's go to the others. I'm eager to show them my gift!" Spinel said, as she grabbed Azurite by his hand and started leading out of the place, only to be stopped by Orange Pearl.

"Hey, guys. There you are." She said to them.

"Hi, Orange! See what Azzie got me!" Spinel said, gesturing towards her necklace.

Orange's Pearl's gaze quickly went down to Spinel's neck, noticing the necklace, "It's beautiful."

"I know, right?!" Spinel said, as Azurite remained silent, "We were planning to show it to our friends. How about you'll go with us."

"I actually came here for a reason, but I can join you later." Orange Pearl said back, as she looked at Azurite, "Can I talk with Azurite for a moment? We'll join you in a moment."

"Okay. I'll see you guys in a moment." Spinel said, as she let go off Azurite's hand, and headed out to find Shi'ra, or Jasper, or Centi, or Steven.

"...Azurite? Are you okay? You look like you just saw a ghost." Orange Pearl stated, as she watched Spinel leave.

"Maybe I just did..." Azurite said, touching the cheek which Spinel kissed just a moment ago, before turning to Orange Pearl, "So, what are you doing here?"

In response to his question, Orange Pearl held up a pair of claws which looked similiar to his, "Heaven Beetle was the one that got me from the basket. She asked Bismuth to make a pair of claws, because she knew that you were training me. What about you?"

Azurite smiled as he held up his claws, "Ironically, Bismuth was the one who drew me, and she had similiar idea to Heaven Beetle."

Orange Pearl grinned, "I guess we may now use them during our training sessions."

"Maybe one day, Orange, but we are far away from that." Azurite assured her.

"I know. I'm just saying." Orange Pearl as she walked over to the other piece of wood, "Can you wait for me for a second? I'll just test it and then we'll go to the others."

"Sure." Azurite said back to her with a nod of his head.

As Orange Pearl tested her new claws on the piece of wood, Azurite just watched her, but his attention was not focused on her, but on his cheek.

He had a few encounters with women, especially during him the time when he and Dragan were traveling with Sydney, Osgar and Lambert, and had been kissed before in both cheeks and lips, but in all of those situations, he felt nothing during that.

Now it was completely different.

He actually felt something during that.

Did he have feelings for Spinel?

-----

We're done with the christmas chapter! Only one more chapter and we're off to Infinity War!