Maddin and the Kuwa Circus welcomed everyone warmly except for Maddox who they were cautious of, probably because of the investment thing he mentioned before. They were given two separate tents with two beds each. Magnus wanted the twins to reconcile so instead of sending Maia inside Maddin's tent, he sent Maddox. Magnus and Maki shared the other tent while Maia and Damian shared the other.
Magnus and Maddox wanted to intervene with Maia and Damian sharing a room but Maki told them that it's irrelevant now since the two had already shared a room back at the pentagon.
"Nice to know that your brothers are keeping me in check like normal brothers"
Maia laughed at Damian who was settling down on the bed on the other side of the tent. She sat on the other bed and just stared at him, Damian noticed her staring at him, he stopped fixing his stuff before staring at her back.
"What's wrong?"
"Are you seriously gonna settle down there? We already shared a bed you know. One bed would have been enough for the both of us"
Damian's cheeks reddened which Maia laughed at. Damian scratched the back of his head before heading towards her side of the bed. He sat next to Maia, placed his head on her shoulders, and held her hand.
"You think your brothers would kill me if they found us sleeping on one bed?"
"I could always kill them back"
Maia laughed as she tightened her grasp on his hand and placed her head on top of his.
"This is our first Christmas after so many years"
Maia subconsciously blurted to which Damian smiled at.
"Considering the time we had been apart since we started the missions, I'd say we missed out on a lot of holidays, so I'm glad we get to share this one"
Maia thought about the time they both had lost. They both sealed their memories during the SDC's missions and had been apart for years. Lost each other during the tournament and even when he remembered her, she was gone. Then there was the issue of her being dead and resurrected.
"We'll share this one and all the holidays to come, I promise"
Maia looked at Damian and smiled at him. Damian loved it, he loves seeing her smile and happy. He loves seeing Maia just like her normal old self.
Damian caressed Maia's snow-white hair and stared at her ruby eyes. Maia smiled at her before putting her forehead on his.
"I won't disappear again, Damian"
"You'd better"
Damian smiled at her, cupped her cheeks, and pulled her closer. He was about to kiss her when the entrance to their tent flew open and Maddox swung his arms, fingers pointing at the both of them.
"I knew it, KUYA THEY'RE KISSING!! I TOLD YOU WE NEED TO SEPARATE THEM"
Maia glared at Maddox while Damian cleared his throat before saying.
"For the record, it's not the first kiss"
"You pervert, stay away from my sister"
Maia redirected her glare towards Damian who was now smiling at her, glad about his provocation towards her brother. Maddox was about to go to their position when an arm extended from the outside of the tent and grabbed him by his collar.
"They're dating and Maia's old enough to do that now"
It was Maddin, holding a bowl of salad on one hand and holding Maddox on the other.
"18 is not old enough, you should know that"
"Whatever, let them be. Hold this and just help me prepare the food. You guys get out when you're finished"
Maia's cheeks reddened when Maddin winked at them before handing Maddox the bowl of salad and pulling him out of the tent.
Maia hid her face on her hands out of embarrassment while Damian laughed out loud.
"One thing I know for sure, I really like your sister"
Maia glared at Damian who was smiling widely. Damian pushed Maia lightly so that she was now laying down on the bed.
"What did you just say?"
Maia put a hand to Damian's mouth when he tried to kiss her again. Damian just held it and kissed her palm while smiling at her.
"I said I love you"
Damian closed in on Maia and kissed her shortly before pulling away and smiling at her.
"You just know how to shut me up don't you?"
Damian just shrugged at her and smiled.
"What can I do? I just know how instinctively"
Maia smiled back at him and wraps her arms around his neck.
"I love you too"
Maia pulled Damian in for another kiss and time just felt like it stopped for the both of them. Damian deepened their kiss as his hands hold Maia's cheeks. Maia gasped as she felt that overwhelming familiar sensation of having Damian's tongue inside her mouth.
She could feel the heat enveloping her and so did Damian. Maia pulled Damian closer to her as if he wasn't close enough for her. She could feel him, the way his body was larger than hers, his shoulders broader and harder. His abdomen and that particular lower part that seems to be getting larger as their kiss deepen.
Like always, before things get out of hand, it was Damian who pulls away, his face red from both embarrassment and arousal that he had felt.
He lets out a sigh and plants a short kiss in Maia's forehead before staring at her.
And like always, Maia would want more but she could never bring herself to tell him. So instead, she holds his hands to her cheeks and close her eyes.
"I want to do it properly Maia"
She knew what he meant and somehow she wasn't surprised and angry at his mild refusal because she knew how much self control he had been putting on lately.
"I know Damian, it's alright"
She would wait, they both would. When this war is done and the only thing left is peace, that's when everything would fall into their rightful place.
Maia rose up from the bed and offered Damian her hand.
"Let's go? This is our first Christmas together after so many years, I don't want to miss the countdown"
Damian smiled back at her and took her hand before getting out of the tent.
The two of them were welcomed by the colorful Christmas lights placed on top of the tents surrounding the whole circus area. In the middle, a large Christmas tree surrounded with lights stood. Below it, a large rectangular table filled with countless foods lay. Logs forming multiple smaller circles with bonfires on the middle surrounded the whole area. And the people of the Kuwa Circus were already starting to form around the area.
Maia and Damian easily spotted Magnus and the group. They were approaching them when the whole area started the countdown. From 10 to 1, Maia stopped as she saw fireworks lit up the night sky when the count reached to zero.
Everyone greeted each other but Maia stood still. Captivated by the colorful and mesmerizing display in the night sky, she couldn't help but feel a slight pang of pain in her chest.
And as she stare at her siblings and Damian gathering around her, greeting each other a Merry Christmas, a tear fell from her eye.
The group panicked when they saw Maia crying and asked her what was wrong but she couldn't utter another word, instead she cried louder.
A small memory playing in the back of her mind.
It was Christmas too, their house decorated with Christmas lights and a tree that stood in the middle. Their table filled with a scrumptious feast. Under the tree were gifts, and their house filled with the laughter and greetings from various people. From the balcony of their house, she watched as the fireworks lit up the night sky.
She watched as Artemis hugged and kissed her, muttering the word that she wanted to hear from her before she killed her.
She cried as she remembered how warm it was when she muttered the words she wanted to hear the most.
"I love you my darling, Merry Christmas"
She cried as the realization hit her. Her holidays would never be the same anymore.
Because Artemis was now gone.
Because she had killed her own mother.