Vanessa wasn't quite sure what time it was, but she knew she wasn't ready to get out of bed. Even if it was Christmas morning. She was warm, comfortable... but more importantly, she was snuggled up tightly against Artemis, her back pressed against his chest. His arm was wrapped around her waist, and Vanessa's arm rested on top of it, her fingers entwined with his. She could feel him breathing gently in her ear, still sound asleep. Vanessa smiled as she closed her eyes again, completely at ease for once in her recent memory. This whole cuddling thing was nice. While she had shared many nights of passion with Draco, not once had they laid together like this afterwards.

    Another sign things between the two of them weren't quite right.

    She tried to shake the thought and get a few more minutes of sleep. Vanessa shifted ever so slightly, causing Artemis to stir beside her. She felt him stretch against her before he pulled her closer to him. The smile on Vanessa's face grew as she rubbed her thumb against his.

    "Good morning, Arty," she said quietly.

    "Mm, good morning, Nessa," he replied back sleepily.

    Vanessa released his hand and turned to face him, pulling him into a close embrace. She buried her face in his chest, and moments later, he kissed the top of her head gently. Vanessa's face was starting to hurt from smiling so much. Was this what happiness felt like?

    "Merry Christmas," Artemis added.

    "Merry Christmas to you too," Vanessa echoed. She was quiet for a few seconds before she spoke again. "Do we have to get out of bed?"

    "Only if you don't want to raise any suspicion," Artemis answered.

    Vanessa's smile faltered just a bit. He had a good point. If the two of them stayed in bed on any day- let alone Christmas- it would certainly garner the attention of someone, and likely not in any good way. If they were going to keep their relationship of sorts a secret, they were going to have to do everything in their power to not attract any sort of suspicion. Everything was going to have to appear normal.

    Or as normal as they could anyway.

    She sighed, reluctantly sitting up. "What do you think the odds are of someone realizing I slept in here and not my room?"

    Artemis sat up too, stretching slightly, causing the blankets to fall to his waist. Vanessa tried her hardest to not stare at him, but her efforts were futile. Artemis had never bothered to put his shirt back on last night before they went to bed, and the rare sight of his bare chest was more distracting than she cared to admit. If she couldn't even keep her eyes off of him now, trying to pretend nothing was up in front of his family was going to be incredibly difficult.

    "Well, with any luck, no one should've noticed," he answered. "Even still, it's not the first time we have fallen asleep in the other's room."

    Another fair point. "Well no, but it's the first that we um... did after that," she countered. "Whenever that happened, the door was always open. It's definitely shut now."

    Artemis was quiet for a moment. "I suppose that is also true. So long as no one acknowledges it, we don't have to either," he replied. "In the meantime, we should make ourselves decent and head downstairs for breakfast and presents."

    Vanessa smirked. "I think you're the only one not decent."

    He smirked back at her. "I wouldn't be so sure of that if I was you."

    Vanessa glanced down at herself, and immediately saw what he was talking about. Her tank top had shifted in her sleep and had revealed more of her chest than she'd like. Vanessa wasn't sure why her cheeks got heated from blush as she quickly readjusted herself. It wasn't like he hadn't seen more than that.

    "There; all covered," Vanessa declared.

    "Unfortunate, really," Artemis muttered. Vanessa resisted the urge to roll her eyes at him; he tried to act like he wasn't a raging ball of hormones like other boys his age, but sometimes it certainly slipped out.

    "Oh shut up and put your shirt on," Vanessa retorted. "We've got breakfast to eat and presents to open!"

    Artemis sighed and turned so he could get out of bed. He picked his shirt off the ground, and started to put it on as he made his way to his personal bathroom. He paused in the doorway, glancing over his shoulder at Vanessa as he started buttoning up his shirt. "That's true," he started. "Give me a moment and we'll head down."

*****

    Once the two of them had finished getting partially ready for the day, Artemis slowly opened the door to his room, sticking his head out and looking down the hall. Vanessa stood quietly behind him, waiting for the all clear.

    "All is quiet," he announced, moving back into the room. "We should be able to go downstairs without incident."

    Vanessa nodded. "Good. No need for any awkward conversations today."

    "Precisely," Artemis agreed. "However... before we go..."

    His voice trailed off before he placed a hand on her chin, gently lifting until their eyes met. Vanessa was too busy admiring how pretty his eyes were to even realize he was going in for a kiss until moments before it happened. His lips pressed against hers gently, in a much more chaste kiss than the ones they had shared the night before. She kissed him back for just a few seconds before he pulled away.

    Vanessa frowned slightly at the sudden loss. "I wasn't done kissing you."

    "I'm sorry, love," Artemis replied. "I promise there will be plenty of time for that later. We should probably get downstairs before someone decides to come up here and get us."

    Vanessa nodded. "Lead the way."

    Artemis opened the door, stepping out into the hallway with Vanessa following close behind him for a moment until she caught up. They walked side by side, Vanessa resisting the urge to grab his hand. Acting like nothing had happened was becoming more difficult with every passing moment, and she was starting to worry she was going to mess up in front of Artemis' parents. It's not that she thought they would disapprove of their relationship- honestly, she thought they would probably be ecstatic about that; it was the circumstances behind it that she thought they'd not be happy about.

    The two of them descended the staircase, and Vanessa silently wondered what they were going to do first. The last time Vanessa had been at the manor for Christmas, Artemis had been an only child. His brothers had been born during the following spring, and she was sure the Fowls' holiday routine had changed slightly with multiple children- especially with such a large gap between them age wise.

    Vanessa looked to Artemis. "So... breakfast first, or presents?"

    "For us, presents," he replied. "Generally speaking, Myles and Beckett are up earlier so they eat something first. By the time they're done, I'm awake and we open gifts, followed by a bigger breakfast for everyone else." He paused, laughing a little. "I assume everyone is probably waiting for us since we slept in quite a bit compared to normal."

    Vanessa nodded. "Makes sense to me. We usually do presents first, and then mum makes... well, made cinnamon rolls. Dad made them last year though to continue the tradition."

    She caught him smiling from the corner of her eye. "Maybe if you're lucky, there will be some at breakfast," Artemis replied.

    That told her there definitely would be some. She supposed he probably remembered her mentioning that previously and suggested to his family that they make some that morning. He truly was the greatest. She silently wondered if things had been different if Draco would've been so thoughtful; she guessed probably not.

    Her mind didn't have much time to wander as the two of them entered one of the many living spaces in the manor. The large Christmas tree stood proudly in front of vast windows, the sunlight causing the ornaments to sparkle. Dozens of presents sat at the base of the tree, all arranged perfectly. Vanessa was sure his mother had spent quite some time making everything look as picturesque as it did. She imagined one day she would know the effort a mother truly put into making Christmas morning magical for her kids- even once they were practically adults.

    Artemis' family was already gathered around the tree. His parents sat on the sofa, his father's left arm draped across the back of the sofa behind his mother as she leaned against him. Each of them held a cup of what Vanessa could only assume was coffee or tea. They looked on as Beckett ran circles around a somewhat annoyed looking Myles. For the two of them being twins, Vanessa thought they couldn't be any more different.

    Not to be left out of the holiday festivities, Butler stood a few feet behind Artemis' parents, hands clasped behind his back. He was the first to notice the two teens enter the room, which didn't shock Vanessa at all given he was a professionally trained bodyguard. If he hadn't been, he would've been bad at his job. The man didn't say anything, but he gave Artemis a questioning look. Artemis responded by giving him a look that Vanessa could only assume meant 'we'll talk later.' The two of them were close, and she wouldn't be shocked if they could in fact read each other's minds. But whatever look was on Artemis' face quickly dissipated as his father greeted them both.

    "Ah, good morning, you two," he said. "We were beginning to wonder if you had forgotten what today was."

    "No, certainly not. We just... slept in a bit," Artemis answered, regaining that all-too perfect posture he used around his parents. He couldn't relax that habit, even on Christmas, it seemed. "Merry Christmas everyone."

    A chorus of 'Merry Christmas' echoed through the room as Vanessa and Artemis' family replied to him. It was a warm, cheery sound, and it made Vanessa happy she had decided to come to the manor for the holiday. That alone was better than being by herself.

    "Come sit down and we can get started on the presents," Angeline continued.

    Artemis and Vanessa made their way to where the rest of his family was sitting, and they both took their seats on the floor near where Myles was sitting. Beckett immediately stopped running around and plopped down on the floor directly between his elder brothers, a smile lighting up the toddler's face. Vanessa couldn't resist smiling at the sight.

    After a few moments of silence, the boys' father set his cup on the end table to his right and sighed as he started to stand. "Well, let me take my usual spot," he said. He seemed less steady than normal, and held onto the arm of the sofa as he lowered himself down to the ground.

    Artemis hesitated, but then asked, "Are you sure you want to pass out presents, father? If you're having difficulties with your leg, I can do it instead."

    Senior laughed as he moved in front of the tree. "Nonsense! I've passed out the gifts every year for the past seventeen years. That's not going to change now because of a little pain. I appreciate your concern, but I can handle it, Arty."

    Artemis frowned slightly, but nodded. "Very well."

    His father started to pass out the gifts, and Vanessa was both excited and anxious to open hers. As the morning passed, and she finally got to open some of her presents, the anxiety she felt started to melt away. Her father had sent the usual suspects- various clothing, sweets, and the like- and that alone was nice. He tried so hard to buy gifts like her mother had when she was alive. He even wrote 'mum & dad' on the tags. The effort was definitely appreciated.

    Alex had gotten her and Artemis each some fancy loose leaf tea and a new cup to go long with it. Apparently, the cups had been enchanted to always stay warm, so they would never have to drink cold tea again. Honestly, Vanessa was a little shocked her friend had managed to think of something so thoughtful; normally Alex's presents were much more goofy and fun than this. Vanessa admittedly liked this better.

    The gifts from Artemis' family were much like those from her father, only more expensive. Her favorite among them was a purple and black sweater. Normally she wasn't a sweater person, but she could tell just by holding the soft fabric in her hands she was going to love this one.

    She had saved what she had thought were going to be the best gifts for last. She stared at two similarly sized presents, one wrapped in almost black wrapping paper, and the other in gold. Even if she hadn't read the tags, she would've known who they were from. Partially because the gold matched a good portion of the wrapping paper the Fowls' had wrapped their gifts in. After a silent debate, she picked up the black box, wondering what Draco had gotten her.

    Vanessa would've been lying if she had said she had thought about him much at all today. She had momentarily forgotten about her boyfriend, and honestly only remembered him at the sight of his gift to her. Guilt plagued her mind as she slowly unwrapped the box, curious to know what was inside. Once it was free of paper, Vanessa held a red velvet box in her hands. She stared at it for a moment, feeling a bit horrible that all she had gotten him was a box of sweets and what she thought was a fancy hat. She didn't know what was inside, yet she knew he had likely spent quite a bit on it. Vanessa took a deep breath and opened the box.

    Nestled inside was a gold necklace with a large yellow gemstone pendant. Vanessa smiled, but it was forced. Admittedly, it was very pretty; Vanessa just hated yellow. It was her least favorite color, and she didn't look great in it either. That meant she certainly didn't have much gold jewelry, and definitely not any topaz. It was the thought that counted though, so she was just going to be grateful he had gotten her anything at all.

    Artemis' voice broke her thoughts. "Thanks for the book, Nessa. It's exactly what I wanted."

    Vanessa glanced over at him as she sat her gift from Draco on the pile of her other presents. "I'm really glad you like it," she answered. "I thought I heard you mention that one at some point."

    Artemis nodded, still smiling. "You did. Great job," he replied. He paused for a moment, looking over at her. "What is it that Draco got you?"

    Vanessa reached over and picked the box back up, showing Artemis the necklace. The smile on his face faded a bit.

    "Oh... well... this is a bit awkward then," he muttered.

    Vanessa raised an eyebrow as she sat it back on the gift pile. "Why do you say that?"

    "You'll see," was all Artemis said back.

    She picked up the golden present in front of her, carefully unwrapping it to reveal a black box. It wasn't velvet like the box the necklace from Draco had been in, but it didn't appear cheap either. She opened it, and she quickly realized why he had said that. He, too, had gotten her a necklace. Upon a silver chain was a small acrylic circle with a four leaf clover inside. Vanessa couldn't help but smile at it. It brought back memories of their first summer as friends. It was the summer after their first year, and she had been visiting with her family. The two of them had been sitting in a field on the estate when she had found her first four leaf clover. She still had that one pressed between the pages of a book.

    Vanessa looked up at her friend, truly resisting the urge to kiss him in front of the family. She'd have to do that later, but for now she went with the more subtle, "It's perfect, Artemis. Thank you."

    "You're welcome," he replied. "I'm truly glad you like it."

    Vanessa looked back at the necklace, looking at it for a few moments before she gently took it from its box. She undid the clasp and brought it up around her neck before redoing it. Once it was on her neck, she played with the charm between her fingers for a moment before she looked back over at Artemis.

    He had a smug smile on his face, and Vanessa knew exactly why. She couldn't say she blamed him either.

*****

Hi everyone! I know, I know. I used to do author's notes at the beginning of chapters, but I think I'm liking them at the end better.

Sorry it took so long to get this posted. I struggled with it for a minute, but I got it all sorted. Not to mention things in real life have been a bit chaotic recently so that has limited my writing time. The good news on that front is that I think I have finally figured out a schedule so things should be much more regular in the future.

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Hope to have another chapter up soon!

~arty_writes