Fire Emblem: High School Years (High School AU) - Junior Year

Chapter 12: Her Partner

Anna

I smiled to myself, pulling another batch of gingerbread cookies out of the oven. With the pace I'm going at, I'll be done with these in no time! My whole house smelled of gingerbread, Yulemas music playing faintly in the background - if you listened hard enough, you could hear Mom faintly humming along.

Every year, Mom and I had a tradition of setting up all of our Yulemas stuff the day after Thanksgiving. She would busy herself by adding the fine details of our decorations while I made cookies. Once we were both done with our tasks, we would decorate the rest of the house together and then the cookies.

It's been like this for as long as I could remember, never changing. Ever.

"Those smell amazing, Little Bird." Mom smiled as she stepped into the kitchen.

I looked back at her. "I'm almost done. I'll help you with the tree once I get the last batch in the oven."

She sat down at the table. "Take your time. There's no rush." She chewed on her bottom lip. "It was very nice for Chrom's family to invite us over for Thanksgiving. Be sure to tell him just how grateful I am."

I busied myself with rolling and cutting out the rest of the dough. "I will, don't worry," I replied. "Heh, maybe we'll invite them over for Yulemas."

Mom giggled weakly. "M-maybe..." I could hear the hesitation in her voice. "A-actually, about that..."

I turned to her, eyebrow raised. "About what?"

She sighed, gesturing for me to sit down. "I think we're going to have different plans for Yulemas..." She gulped. "As you know, I've been seeing someone for a few months and I would like to invite them over."

I sat down, my nerves suddenly spiking. "I see..." This is different. But, we're getting somewhere. "Mom, if you want to invite someone over, you can. You don't need my permission."

"I know! But..." She shook her head. "Gods, this is so difficult. "I know how much you dislike change, and inviting someone into our lives like this is a big one. I just need to know how comfortable you are with this."

"Mom," I reached out and held her hands in mine, "this person clearly makes you happy. We've had this conversation before! As long as you're happy, I'm happy. If you want to bring this person into our lives, then more power to ya. I'd love to meet them, anyway."

She smiled, warmth radiating off her being. "Thank you, my dear."

I can tell this has been weighing on her for a long time. I'm so glad she can finally feel at ease. "Soooooo...can I at least get their name?" Doesn't mean I'm gonna not be nosey about it.

Mom giggled nervously, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "W-well...um..." She inhaled a large breath. "H-her name is Karina."

Ohhhh, I see.

"Mom, were you-"

"No. Yes. I mean...maybe...no..." She trailed off. "I-I was mostly worried about you just accepting the fact that I had a new partner. It's just been me and you for so long... I didn't want to freak you out by bringing someone else in our family, let alone-"

"Mom." I stared her directly in her eyes, squeezing her hands. "I'm okay. I promise. Having Chrom in my life has helped me realize that change is good...that having someone else in your life can make it better." I smiled. "Also, I'm a bisexual disaster. You really think I'm gonna mind who you choose to date?"

She laughed at that. "No, I don't think you would," she sighed. "Sorry. I've just been so confused about the whole thing myself."

"And that's okay," I whispered. "Nothing has to be black and white; there doesn't even need to be a grey area. Whatever you're happy and comfortable with is what you're, well, happy and comfortable with. Trust me, I've had years of confusion to teach me this."

She remained silent for a good while, too nervous to say anything. "...She also has a son who goes to your school. Would you be comfortable with her bringing him along?"

"Of course. If this makes you happy, then I'm okay with anything."

"Good. I'm glad." She glanced at something behind me. "Your cookies are almost burning."

"Dammit! Couldn't this discussion wait until I was done!" I exclaimed, running over to the oven and taking out the trey before they could burn.

Mom laughed. "Sorry, dear. I'll try to remember that from now on."

Near-disaster aside, I'm glad she finally told me. I can't wait to meet this Karina. I wonder if I know her son... Well, I guess I'll find out on Yulemas.

*****
Whoosh. That's a lot. And yes, Anna is 100% absolutely no doubt a bi disaster and no one can tell me otherwise. And for anyone wondering, Evelina is pansexual. Also, some of you may recognize the name Karina... I wonder where she's from... Yee yee. I also have a tradition of making gingerbread cookies when my family is decorating for Christmas. I made them yesterday and they freakING TOOK FOUR HOURS. I NEVER WANT TO SEE A PIECE OF GINGERBREAD AGAIN IN MY LIFE. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH FROSTING I MADE? HMM? WELL, LET ME TELL YOU THAT IT INVOLVED EIGHT CUPS OF POWDERED SUGAR AND I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO BREATHE NORMALLY SINCE. They taste bomb tho. Quick update! I just started posting my December Prompts! The first prompt, Music, is out now and I would really appreciate if you checked them out! That's all I got for now. Thank you so much for reading and look forward to reading more!