#ahqanswer

( 1 ) who spends hours putting up lights only to get tangled in them and storm off?

Alexander wants to get invested in this activity, particularly because it reminds him of the small and quaint Christmases he shared with his mother when he was a child. After telling Aurora (and so confidently, at that) that he had everything under control, Alex would first get stuck in the large, live tree they’d procured from Cloverwood Forest. After getting his foot caught in a tangle of wires and sputtering out a slew of curses, he spots a live squirrel that had been nesting inside of the tree. The squirrel, angry and frightened by the sight of an angry human man, flings itself at Alexander’s face. Alex fumbles about the living room as an adult, proceeding to get more ensnared in the lights with each step and swat of his hand against the screaming squirrel stuck on his face. By the time he finally manages to toss the rodent outside and yanks the Christmas lights off of him, Aurora is hiding a visible laugh behind her mouth.

When Alex comes out of his room after sulking an hour later, the entire tree is finished with a pristine, ethereal twinkle, as Aurora calmly sits on the nearby couch and leisurely flips through a magazine, as she gazes up at him and asks: “What, like it’s hard?”

( 2 ) who accidentally eats a whole box of christmas chocolates in one sitting?

Alexander devours the entire tin of chocolate chip cookies one of the Resistance members made for him. As he attempts to tell Aurora between mouthfuls of food, he’s just grateful someone other than Raymond took the reins of the holiday cooking this year. Aurora chooses to stick to her smoothie and tells Alex that she believes him. 

( 3 ) who insists on watching the cheesey hallmark christmas movies?

Aurora absolutely gets invested in having them watch these romantic movies together, all snuggled up on the couch, and every time a cheating boyfriend or leading male who fucks up crosses the screen, she simply turns and glares at him. By the third night of these movies, Alexander realizes she’s teaching him a lesson.

( 4 ) who insists on playing nothing but michael buble in the few days running up to christmas?

I get the feeling both of them listen to whatever comes on through the Spotify Christmas station radio or whatever music they’re listening to at the moment. Alex gets a bit excited whenever a Michael Buble song comes on, while simultaneously explaining to Aurora that he’s a pretentious-sounding little prick. This usually causes an ensuing argument, where Aurora explains that if Alex really felt that way, why didn’t he just change the channel? The argument, as per usual, is usually resolved by Alex bending Aurora over the counter and having his wicked way with her.

( 5 ) who gets their presents wrapped at the mall so the other cant go snooping

Alexander absolutely prefers to do things himself, and that involves Christmas shopping. But he has a feeling that Aurora is nosy and enjoys snooping, primarily because she simply can’t stand not knowing something, and takes to staying up late at night to wrap her presents once she’s fast asleep. He hides them throughout the house, in special hiding places she’ll never find, because he knows how much she likes to explore.

( 6 ) who insists on making snow angels?

Aurora is the first one to suggest such an activity, but the act of making snow angels soon turns into a snowball fight, one that Alex wins before pinning Aurora against the ground, glittering snowflakes woven through her golden hair, before kissing her. The temperature might be below freezing, and he’s bound in layers of clothes to protect himself from the chill, so why does he suddenly feel so very warm?

( 7 ) who put christmas outfits on all the pets?

Aurora wins this one without any hesitation whatsoever. Alexander would be absolutely horrified if he came home from hunting or working one day and found Brutus and Maximus, his two prized dogs, all dolled up to look like the Grinch and a Christmas tree. In fact, he very well might faint.

( 8 ) do they go to family’s or have a quiet day in? 

Both Alexander and Aurora have complicated feelings regarding families. After Alexander lost his mother as a young child, Lilianna and her parents became the closest thing to a family Alexander has ever known. Given the turbulent relationship he currently shares with the Shu Lei heiress, Alexander is concerned that he would be unwelcome at any holiday table prepared by Lilianna or her father, Jiang.

Aurora, similarly, knows a family within the Garden, but not much else. She has become so enmeshed with the very fabric of Alexander’s life at this moment that the thought of them spending the holiday season without each other seems...painful.

( 9 ) who insists on wearing matching ugly christmas jumpers?

Alexander would be able to see the humor in wearing ugly holiday sweaters, though Aurora would argue that she would never wear something with built-in lights and a twinkling reindeer nose stitched across a scratchy knitted sweater. Instead, she dons a piece of Christmas-inspired lingerie, decked in red and silver like a present waiting to be unwrapped.

( 10 ) who waits up until midnight to give the other their present?

Alexander rolls over in his bed, grumbling to himself in his sleep, only to feel a sudden pressure on his chest. He opens his eyes and finds Aurora sitting on his chest, a smile widening across her face as she holds a small, artfully-wrapped present in her hands. She spent all evening too anxious and nervous about his reaction to even consider sleep, so the moment the clock struck midnight and Christmas descended upon Astralis, she chose to take the chance to start their festivities a bit early.

( 11 ) who insists on hand-made presents only one year?

Alexander thinks it would be nice to do something simple for each other for the duration of the holiday season. Aurora (politely? Not so politely?) disagrees, as she’s seen Alexander’s skillset and would rather not wake up to some anonymous faerie’s wings wrapped in a box for her to open.

( 12 ) who puts mistletoe on every door frame?

Aurora absolutely does this and then pretends to get mad every time they both pass under the doorframe. “Ugh, I guess we have to kiss again.”

( 13 ) who gets too drunk at the work christmas party and has to be picked up at 9:15pm? who gets angry and almost tells kids that santa isnt real?

Aurora is somehow the answer to both of these, though it’s worth noting that Alexander would absolutely get irritated enough with a group of children whom he presumed to be little more than arrogant brats and tell them the mystical man in the sky was nothing more than a figment of their imaginations. Aurora would do it after a PTA mom scolded her for grinding on Alex in a Santa costume at a work party, angrily telling the woman “First of all, it’s none of your business. Second of all, it’s not like he’s fucking real.”

“Is this even a question? The answer is obviously me.” 

“Oh! Well, I really love baking; it was one of my favorite ways to bond with my mother growing up. I loved my dad immeasurably, but my mom and I were always closest. But if we’re talking about things that get me riled up, I actually have a list: fudgy chocolate chip brownies, first editions of ancient human literature, historical anthologies, brand new fighting leathers, and ancient human geography. You’d be amazed at the civilizations humans crafted before they knew magic existed.”

"You forgot perpetual condescension.”

“Of course I miss the Hunt; the pain is really like a physical ache at this point. I dream of the days I can return, if only to participate in some of the traditions and holidays we share in the Hunt. But leaving behind Arielle is...I don’t want to think about it. And I don’t view what I’m doing as lying to her. Sure, I’m here for Lucien, but I’m also--look. I protect her, alright?”

( @nymphcts )

“Lilianna, of course; I would answer no differently. Celine is a sexy little minx, as well, though she might carve out my internal organs if she caught me saying that. Sophia is...well, Sophia was something else. Truly. Even for a faerie, the Resistance was absolutely besotted by her. And Noa’s not bad to look at, either, but don’t tell Santiago I said that.”

( @nymphcts / @voxdaemonica / @wickedgxmes )

“Did someone mention war?” Henryk managed, snatching the letter off the table and scanning its contents. There was no sender or return address, and he couldn’t say he recognized the handwriting, but there was nothing to glean from its contents. Nothing except... “What the fuck is a Raymond?”

“And why is he wet?” Carter asked, his brows furrowed together in confusion. He stood in the corner of the room, mindlessly flipping through the books on the shelf of Henryk’s office. He opened one and glanced at the Spring Court’s War General, indicating the book’s contents. “This one is just pictures? Do you not know how to read?” He flipped to a page that illustrated a couple of faeries engaged in what could only be described as a pretzel twist. His furrowed brows deepened their crease, and it wasn’t until he turned the book 180 degrees that he saw how the position worked. “Oh, I see. It’s porn.”

“I could give you a few reasons why he’d be wet,” Laurent answered in a purr, plucking the paper directly out of Henryk’s hands to glance at the contents. His lips split into a grin, a delighted, almost sinister laugh escaping his lips as he finished the acronym. “This is actually a tad funny, I might borrow it one day.”

“Is that why you dragged me here? To look at a piece of paper?” Lucien deadpanned, his gaze hardening on his older brother. Laurent nodded simply, flapping the letter around in his hand as the Wolf King glowered ta him. “So all of that talk about there being an impending threat on the Wild Hunt was just....?”

“A lie, yes. You do remember those, don’t you? You might have heard them a few times in bed.” Laurent answered brightly. Carter had to surge forward and hold Lucien back from pummeling his brother in the face as Alexander reached between the two and snatched the paper away.

“’A Raymond’ is mine, you pixie bastards, back off,” Alexander growled, scanning the contents of the letter and trying to assess if there was a threat on Raymond’s life. He blinked, slowly, his gaze lifting as he met the others in the room. “This is...written in Raymond’s handwriting. To himself.” Henryk stopped fiddling with the stress ball on his desk and Lucien and Laurent stopped fighting long enough to glance at Alex, confusion clouding all of their features, before they all turned to the corner, where Gabriel Beaumont was comfortably sitting in a plush armchair, idly flipping through a novel. He held a glass of wine in his hands, taking a slow, languid sip as lightning flashed somewhere in the background, illuminating the shadowy sector of the room the King of Nightmares was holed up in.

“What?” Gabriel asked, glancing up from his book briefly to meet their gazes. “Am I supposed to have an opinion in all of this? Frankly, I don’t care.” Lightning flashed again, this time followed by thunder, but only illuminating where Gabriel sat.