My Brave Warrior

My Family

A week before Christmas, the beautiful mountain city of Actraham was blessed with a blanket of snow. Everything was closed down for the day because the roads were too slippery for cars to safely travel. This left Maddie home with Dabi for the night because nobody wanted to come in that day, which forced Derek to close the store for the day. Dabi was naturally overjoyed because of this. In the later hours of the night, they both went outside to enjoy the sparkling white sheets. Maddie was bundled up in practically every warm piece of clothing she owned, her nose red. Dabi wore what he always did and was unphazed by this Winter spell, as he was everything else.

"Aren't you cold?" Maddie asked him as they walked.

Dabi smiled at her. "I am not. I do not often get chilly."

Maddie grinned while sucking up snot into her nose. "Let me guess." She tried her best to mimic his booming warrior voice. "On Enubia, we had the most unpleasant of Winters! Many of our elite soldiers would be frozen solid just from a few minutes of being out in the cold! We had to barricade in underground bunkers and huddle together for warmth! Only a handful would survive each year!"

Dabi looked at her with shock for a second. He couldn't hide the grin forming on his face, and he roared in laughter. "Very humorous, my queen!" He nearly fell to his knees as he held his stomach.

Maddie felt a sense of pride in the fact that she got him to laugh that hard. She shyly twiddled her fingers. "Was I close?"

"Unfortunately, Enubia is often very warm." Dabi smiled at her after wiping his eyes. "All except for the top and bottom of our planet, of course, however, no one dared to venture to those areas. I suppose, in that way, you were correct."

"Well, I promise the cold isn't as bad here." Maddie smiled and began to shiver a little.

"Perhaps not for me." Dabi grabbed the blanket he used as a cloak off of his shoulders and wrapped it around her.

Maddie shyly chuckled as he bundled her up. "Thank you." She looked around at the snow. "Isn't it pretty?"

"Yes, it is quite pleasant to lay my eyes on." Dabi nodded. "I did enjoy snow when it did come about on Enubia. I only saw it once or twice, however."

"You'll see it at least once every year here, especially around Christmas." Maddie walked closer to him.

Dabi looked down at her. "Christmas? What is that, my queen?"

"Well..." Maddie suddenly frowned. "It's... um... every Winter, families gather together, exchange gifts, and eat a lot of food." She giggled. "At least, that's what it is to me. A time to spend time with family."

"So, it is a time when families gather to celebrate together?" Dabi grinned. "I am very excited to do this 'Christmas' with you, my queen!" While he said this, he didn't notice Maddie's face sink in sadness. "I may not understand these 'families' very well, but I believe we are family, are we not?"

"Of course we are..." Maddie muttered, not looking him in the eye.

Dabi noticed her change in emotion and frowned. "What troubles you, my queen?"

"Dabi... I know you want to celebrate Christmas with me, but... I should've told you this sooner... but I have to go out of town next weekend to see my family for Christmas." Maddie saw him grow sad from hearing this, making her heart sink in her chest. "A-And, you know... bringing you around them... I don't know what they'll do..."

"Oh..." The emotion drained from Dabi's face. He stumbled for a moment, trying to think of what to say. He wanted to be selfish and tell her he wanted her to stay, but he could never do something like that. After a deep breath, he gave her a small smile. "I understand, my queen."