Disclaimer: I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh GX
Title: Holiday Surprises: Chapter 5: Unwinding
Characters: Misawa Daichi, Taniya, Misawa Saki
Romance: Taniya x Misawa
Word Count: chapter: 1,705||story: 8,300
Genre: Drama, Family, Romance||Rated: PG-13
Challenge: Yu-Gi-Oh GX Non-Flash Bingo; Diversity Challenge, section H, #9, a multichapter with exactly five chapters.
Notes: This takes place a few years after the end of Yu-Gi-Oh GX.
Summary: Misawa Saki expected visiting her son and his beloved would be a different way to spend the holidays. She had absolutely no idea of how different it would be.

"Mother!"

Saki smiled at the sound of her son's voice, turning to greet him as he, Taniya, and the rest of the rescue party stepped from the brush. Taniya took in the situation, then turned to Tsubasa.

"I see my message reached you," the Amazon tribal leader said, one corner of her mouth quirking up at the sight of the very subdued King Goblin.

"That it did." Tsubasa nodded, feathered arms folded over her chest. "Though his foolishness may not be without good results."

Taniya tilted her head and Tsubasa glanced toward Saki. "The lady here has agreed to visit our nesting grounds freely."

Daichi tensed up, looking from one of them to the other before his eyes returned to Saki. "Mother?"

She patted him on the arm. "It's all right, dear. I know what I'm doing." Children in need of discipline weren't that different from each other, she believed. Wings or fur or skin, they needed guidance and she knew how to provide that.

He looked at her for another moment or two searchingly, then nodded. "All right. If we're done here, then, we can probably get back home in time for the ceremony still. A little late, but..."

Taniya nodded, checking over her two freshly freed captives. "I think the powers that be will understand if we're not completely on time."

Daichi's own mouth quirked up now. "I'm pretty sure you're right."

Saki had a very strong feeling that she was missing a little part of this conversation, but at the moment she also felt that didn't matter. Not nearly as much as returning to Amazoness Village and finishing out matters so she could find a flat place to get some sleep afterward.

Taniya looked once more at Tsubasa. "Would you and yours care to attend the ritual with us? You'd be more than welcome."

Tsubasa didn't hesitate for a moment. "And we would be honored." With a wave of one clawed hand, she sent one of her own into the skies, taking word back to her flock of her whereabouts. Then she looked toward Saki. "I would carry you to Amazoness Village, if you like."

Saki herself hesitated now. She'd never been completely fond of flying. But she didn't want to be rude, either. "All right," she decided after a quick moment of thought. "Will it take long?" She could handle it for a little while. She hoped.

"Not as long as running will," Tsubasa replied, a smile teasing at her lips as she looked toward Taniya. "I'll see you there."

Saki could tell that Daichi wasn't completely thrilled by this. Part of her decision to do so was fueled by that; she wasn't so old that she couldn't handle new experiences. That was part of what this trip was all about in the first place.

Tsubasa scooped her up in to her arms, spread her wings wide, and leaped into the air. Saki had one last glimpse of the Amazons gathering together and heading back the way they'd come before they were too far away for her to see them any longer.

True to Tsubasa's word, they arrived back at the village before Taniya, Daichi, and the others did. Not much long before, given that their return trip wasn't as cautious as the one outward, but soon enough, the Harpies and Amazons stood together, the tale of the abduction, the rescue, and the reaffirming of the bond between the allies being told to those who had remained behind.

Saki only partially listened to it all; she'd gone through it herself, and she needed time to rest before she paid too much attention to anything else. Instead, she sat in a place of honor Taniya had indicated to her and watched as the tale finished and the Amazons began to sort themselves out into the patterns for the ceremony once more.

By the time everyone and everything was in its proper position, full night had fallen. Saki seldom left her apartment when it was this dark, and those times she did, streetlights and well-lit buildings stretched out in all directions. Here only the firelight and torchlight pierced the night, and the darkness itself did not threaten with the unknown, but welcomed all instead.

She caught sight of Daichi looking into the shadows, a soft little smile on his lips, which moved into the shape of a word she did not understand. She had no chance to ask him what he said, however, as at that moment, the call for him to perform his part in this ceremony came, and she would not miss that for all the world.

Or all the worlds, for that matter.

Saki knew that her son had many talents, though he preferred to focus on those relating to mathmatics, as well as survival. She hadn't imagined that he was a singer, and in all truth, he wasn't professional standard at all. She would've said it was suitable for singing in the shower or for close friends or personal enjoyment.

Yet here he stood, in the outfit that she'd been told was restricted to the leader's mate, and without a shred of self-consciousness, he lifted his voice in song, telling a tale of long ago. A few minutes of listening told her that this was a creation myth of some kind, of something called the 'Gentle Darkness' and how from its nurturing depths all life came. It wasn't one she'd ever heard before, but it fascinated her anyway.

Darkness and light spun the world around in a balance, and now as the winter solstice embrace them, the time of darkness came to an end, and light would take over for the rest of the year.

At last the tale came to an end, and other voices took up singing, Amazons and Harpies alike. Warriors and spellcasters danced in fierce, expressive joy, and those who were mated embraced one another in the unending celebration of life and rebirth.

Saki just managed to keep her eyes open all this time, breathing low and deep, her attention wavering only a trifle here and there. She looked up at the pressure of a clawed hand on her shoulder and wasn't surprised to see Tsubasa there.

"Hello." Saki rubbed at her eyes as she spoke, wanting to be somewhat coherent. She didn't think the Harpie Queen counted as a friend just yet, but they weren't enemies, and it was only polite to be...polite.

"Their celebrations are always so different from ours," Tsubasa said, gesturing to the Amazons who still danced and amused themselves in every way. "Perhaps next year you'll attend our ritual for this night?"

Saki blinked at that. "I can't promise just yet," she hedged a little. "It's so far away."

"Of course." Tsubasa didn't seem to take any offense. "As to your visit for the hatchlings, you may come at your leisure. Unfortunately, I'm certain they will be as rowdy a month from now as they are tonight."

"Children usually are," Saki agreed, amused. "But I'll have to arrange more time off from work before I can." She'd only arranged a couple of days for this trip and she would need all the time she could manage to recover from it.

Tsubasa leaped onto a nearby tree's extended branch, talons closing about it as she perched. "If you wish, and he desires to, your son may accompany you on your trip. I'm certain it isn't one you'd wish to make alone." A swift smile slipped over her features. "Few wish to visit the Harpie Hunting Grounds without a guard of some kind."

A more foolish woman might've denied that. Saki tried hard not to be foolish. "I'm certain Daichi would enjoy visiting there as much as I would." He'd probably get all wrapped up in trying to figure out how they flew and anything else he could learn from there. Some things never changed, and his thirst for knowledge was one of those.

"Then when you both are ready, you are more than welcome," Tsubasa promised. "You may send a message to me through Taniya whenever you desire."

As much as Saki wished otherwise, she couldn't stop herself from yawning, covering her mouth with one hand as she did. "I'm sorry, Tsubasa," she apologized, cheeks tinging a faint red, "but I've had a very long day."

"I don't doubt that you have. Here comes your son."

Saki barely had time to look up before Daichi stood there, helping her to her feet. "They're going to keep on dancing for a long time, Mother," he told her. "You look dead on your feet."

It wasn't how she would've said it, but it was true nevertheless. She pulled herself to her feet, letting him give her a bit of a helping hand, glad that she'd found enough to eat during the ceremony itself so that she didn't fall on her face.

"Did you have a good time?" Daichi asked, then stopped in his tracks, staring at her. "I'm sorry, mother. I didn't think about that."

She waved it off, chuckling a little. "I can't say it was everything I expected it to be, but I enjoyed myself anyway." She stifled another yawn. "But I'm also ready to get some sleep."

"Of course." Daichi helped her along to the hut she'd been given for the night and soon enough she lay curled underneath a warm blanket

Of all the holidays she'd ever had, this one would forever hold a special place in her heart. She did, however, wonder what it would be like to visit the Harpie hatchlings, and to see what the Hunting Grounds were like. This was a world like none other, and while it wasn't something she'd expected while he grew up, she knew her son was happy here, and that was all she'd ever wanted for him.

Maybe she would see if she could arrange a longer vacation soon. She loved her job, but the thought of having more time to explore here did appeal to her. She didn't like to see an opportunity slip away from her.

With those thoughts in mind, Saki let herself fade away into sleep, beginning the inevitable recovery from the holidays.

The End