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Tidas looked calm as they made their way through the snow, but inside: his mind was in utter chaos.. ‘Genie’s expression wasn’t one a ‘brother’ would have while looking at his ‘sister’ in such a state.. Or was it pure shock? No, there was want in his eyes..’

Tidas huffed as they went up the few stairs leading into Bai Lei’s home.. ‘But it’s Genie! And it’s Skye! He’s known us Both since we were children! He couldn’t see Skye in that kind of a light....could he? Or maybe I’m just being jealous? Am I overreacting? It’s possible, but...dammit, I know what I saw!’

The fact that Skye was unbelievably beautiful was not lost on Him. Tidas understood and dealt with people making blatant passes at his wife right in front of him, but.. ‘Genie’s different..’

“By the gods!” Peggy hollered.

“Oh my goodness! Tis beautiful!” Skye happily exclaimed at the same time, bringing Tidas out of his thoughts.

When he looked up, he had just walked inside of a massive foyer. It had hooks and places for their cloaks and shoes, as well as a pair of house slippers for each person. Genie had allowed them to be optional at his home, but Bai Lei required them to be worn inside his. Tidas didn’t care much for them, but Skye, and especially Peggy; liked the fact that they kept the house cleaner.

The reason for the ruckus, however, had been the beautifully trimmed, and decorated garland that boardered the doorway leading into the main part of the house. It was perfectly bushy, and displayed the ornaments and thin strings of jewels like they’d always been there. As the large group slowly entered Bai Lei’s home, the ‘Ooos’ and ‘ahhs’ only grew more frequent.

The foyer immediately opened into a large waiting room of sorts. Comfortable-looking couches encircled an intricately carved, massive coffee table in the center of the room. And three chair and table sets sat between the various doors leading to the rest of the house.

.....

Directly to their left were the doors leading to the dining area and kitchens. The doors directly across from them led to the guest quarters, common social areas, and main bedrooms. The last wall had the doors that led to the second section of Bai Lei’s estate.

In Sai, their home life was often separated from their home life, and their houses reflected that. The second part of Bai Lei’s home had his library, offices, and the way to his family’s training grounds. The training grounds themselves were enormous, and took up their own building. To be honest: his home was more like a compound, than an actual house.

The buildings all surrounded a massive garden courtyard that the Lei family had been curating for generations. Everything from aesthetic flowers, to incredibly rare herbs grew in it, and were tended to every day; even in winter. Bai Lei seemed especially proud of it as he spoke with his guests.

As he happily explained the layout of his home, Skye looked around the main room. Her spirits shot up tenfold as sparkly bobbles and shimmering fake snow filled her vision. Dark-green garland similar to what had been in the foyer lined the light-tan-colored room. The ornaments were an exquisite mixture of patterned, and solid-colored bulbs with strings of pearls laced between them.

Tiny decorative trees were in the center of the side tables, and the massive coffee table had evenly-spaced, little red bows stuck to the sides. They were interconnected by strings of pearls, and complimented the beautiful dragon design on the tabletop. Peggy internally complimented whomever had decorated for outlining the design instead of covering it with a centerpiece.

The paintings hanging on the walls above the tables had decorative scones on either side, which also had tiny rings of garland on them. Gold and silver strings had been wrapped around in a candy cane-like pattern, and shimmered whenever the candles flickered.

The tiny details showed care, which made Skye’s heart soar. Yuletide wasn’t usually celebrated in Sai, so Bai Lei had done all of this for them. When he paused in his explanation, Skye walked over, and hugged him out of gratitude.

Taken off guard, Bai Lei had momentarily froze before a nostalgic smile stretched across his face. Any time he had done something special for her and Mei as children, Skye had always thanked him with a hug. Just like now..

“I’m glad to see that a some things never change,” he commented as he hugged her back.

Skye looked up at him and grinned sweetly; “Me too. Yer such a softie, Bai Lei.. I was just startin’ ta get homesick cause Yuletide is in a couple of days.”

“I know, child,” Bai Lei replied as he patted the top of her head; “You always made sure that your father had you home for Yuletide as a child. Since you can’t be there this year, I thought that I’d bring Yuletide to you.”

Looking up at the smiling group, Bai Lei called out; “Happy Yuletide, my dear Alconians!”

Everyone clapped and thanked Senator Lei for being so considerate, especially Skye. After they’d started to look around in earnest, Bai Lei looked over at Peggy, and winked at her. Skye and Tidas were talking about the colors on some of the ornaments, so they didn’t catch it, but Ralph had seen it.

He grinned and nodded as Peggy glanced at him, then placed her finger over her lips in a hushing motion. Ralph nodded while maintaining his grin, agreeing to keep the real orchestrator a secret. He had no doubts that the old servant had talked the senator into splurging on the decorations, and wasn’t about to invoke her ire by blabbing.

Since he’d been Tidas’ bodyguard and trainer from his childhood, Ralph had known Peggy for well over a decade. He’d learned very quickly that while she was a servant in title, Peggy was more respected than many nobleman he’d met. Especially by King Magnus.

‘I suppose it’s expected since she’s Princess Skye’s main caregiver. But it still throws me off at times like these.. What Couldn’t that old woman accomplish fer those two?’

As the thought passed Ralph’s mind, Bai Lei offered to show them to their quarters. Warms baths and fresh clothes were waiting for everyone, including Ralph, Klaus, Kari, and Ronnie. Bai Lei had even known to put Klaus and Kari together, which made Kari’s cheeks turn pink, but she still happily thanked him.

Bai Lei had to get a touch creative with about what to do with Hang and Mei’s situation. As much as he hated it, not all of Bai Lei’s servants could be trusted, so Hana and Mei still had to keep their relationship hushed. Which meant that Mei and Hang had to share a room.

Hang acted unperturbed by it, but everyone could tell that he was uncomfortable about it. Hana didn’t seem happy either, but couldn’t object. They were married on paper, and the world saw them as a couple, no matter how the three felt about it.

Skye couldn’t wrap her head around it, but understood that there wasn’t anything they could do about it...at least, right now. If Mei followed in her father’s footsteps and became a Senator, then she might be able to enact actual changes..

‘No matter what: I’ll support her. Mei and Hana love each other, they love Rukia, and Hang wants Mei ta be happy.. Tis all that matters in life.. I hope Hang finds his person soon.. The man deserves it..’

As the thought crossed Skye’s mind, the group headed across the room. The hallway leading down to their rooms was long and chilly, but well lit with scones. It took Skye a moment to realize that the flames inside the fixtures weren’t real, and that they were actually tiny light bulbs with something covering the filament.

The orangish-red paper fluttered from the heat given off my the bulb’s light source, mimicking a flame. It was an impressive invention, despite not having another purpose other than simple aesthetics. Each fixture had a tiny wreath on it, just like in the main room as well.

“I think real candles would’ve helped to keep the hallway warm,” Tidas commented while missing his cloak.

Bai Lei smiled as he glanced back at Tidas, and said; “We don’t have heat running into the main hallways connecting the buildings. They’re all sectioned off from the actual buildings, so it’s a waste of money.”

“Not freezing your arse off inside your home is a waste of money?” Tidas commented sarcastically.

As Skye shot him a look, Bai Lei chuckled before answering; “It’s just the hallways. Everywhere else will be nice and warm. See?”

When Bai Lei has pushed the door open at the end of the hall, a burst of warm air hit the group. As they all hurriedly went inside, Bai Lei added; “Hallways aren’t meant for dawdling in, and the cost to heat them during the winter is ridiculous. So I don’t.”

“That’s actually rather smart, but still a wee bit inconsiderate to yer servants. They use the halls a lot more than you do, and get frozen every time. The cold’s not so bad ta is, but I’ve seen everyone else here in Sai actin’ like we’re in an ice age,” Skye paused to take a breath; “Tis not me home, and I have nae real say, but I implore ye ta see it from their perspectives, please.”

Bai Lei looked at Skye with a gentle smile; “I am glad to see that your kind nature hasn’t changed, either. I can think of no other noble that would consider the feelings of their servants so thoroughly. Especially since Alconian servants have far less say in how they’re treated, or what they’re allowed to do.”

Skye nodded, then glanced at Peggy before saying; “That’s exactly why, ya ken?”

Bai Lei smiled as he looked down at Skye. She was a wonderful child that grew up to be an excellent person. The fact that she was unbelievably powerful hadn’t changed who she was at her core, which Bai had been concerned about.

In Senator Lei’s experience: absolute power almost always absolutely corrupted. So he was relieved to see that Skye wasn’t.. ‘When she didn’t react to Mei and Hana’s relationship, I figured that she was different.. I’m so happy that I was right.. And I fully understand why Zazzy chose her..’

As the thought crossed his mind, Bai Lei perked up; “Oh! I almost forgot.. I believe a certain dragon has a birthday coming up as well. I have an idea about that..”

Skye and Bai Lei grinned conspiratorially at each other as Skye replied; “Oh good! I had a few things ta discuss about that wit ya as well..”