//------------------------------// // Operation Christmas Part One // Story: Three Dazzling Daughters // by BG9 //------------------------------// Anon went to go check on Dagi after the whole scrapbook thing. And she was out. She certainly deserved it though. Poor thing had been going nonstop lately. Luckily Sonata was up, which mean the first phase of operation first Christmas was a go. After filling up on pancakes and drinking hot coco, he instructs the girls on the plan. "Ok girls, we need to do a bit of Christmas shopping for Adagio. We're going to the mall." Anon said "Christmas?" Aria asked "What's that?" Damn that amnesia. And he couldn't just say it was a corporate clusterfuck in which companies tried to sell a bunch of stuff under the guise of Christmas cheer. "Basically, it's a time when family comes together shares presents as well as the enjoying the time they have." "Yay Christmas!" Sonata said with her tiny fist in the air "What day is it?" "The 25th." he explained "So it's about 2 weeks away. Now get ready so we can go shop for your big sis." While Aria and Sonata both went to put their coats on, Anon went to write a little note to Adagio. Dear Adagio, the girls and I are going out to shop a bit. There is some extra pancakes in the fridge and some hot chocolate for you to heat up. If you need me call my cell. Anon He also made sure to write his number down. Now was just the question of where to put the note. Somewhere where she'd be sure to see it. Anon walks up to Adagio's room and puts it directly opposite her door. No way she'd miss that. As he walked back down the hall, he saw the 'We Love You, Anon' banner. He just had to sit and admire it a bit. It made him feel so warm. "You ready, Anon?" Aria called up in a hushed tone "Yep. Let's get going." Anon grabbed his keys and wallet and with that they were out. Surprisingly most of the car ride was quiet. Maybe that talk helped turn Aria around. But just as he had thought that, Sonata had begun to whine and whimper. He sighed. "What's going on?" "Anon! I have to go to the bathroom!" Oh thank god. "Just hold it Sonata. We're about there." They arrive shortly and get Sonata the bathroom break she needs. While Sonata finished up, Anon and Aria began to chat. "So what kind of stuff do Adagio like?" Anon asked Aria thought for a moment. "She likes more grown up things. I already know what I'm going to get her." she said "What's that?" "A journal. The one she is using is almost out of pages." "Well I'll be damned. I had no idea she kept a journal. When did she start that?" "She found an old one in the trash when we were wondering the street." Time to test Aria if she remembered anything. "Do you have any memories before that? Anything at all?" "No, actually. Now that you mention it, it's completely blank. The first memory I have was me yelling something at Adagio how the 'concert' went. Whatever the hell that means." If she also didn't have any memories, it was safe to assume that Sonata didn't either. Magic is weird. But at least that meant no more sirens. Nothing wrong with that. "I see." Anon said, quickly changing the subject "So what other things does Adagio like?" "Well I know she likes makeup." "Alright. Since you're getting the journal can you help me pick out some makeup she might like?" "Of course." Aria's poster shrinks and she get's quiet all of a sudden "Can I ask you something?" "Sure." "Well you see..." she gets even quieter "I have been thinking about this for a while and I was just wondering if... well... instead of calling you Anon all the time I could call you..." She trails off "Call me what, Aria?" "Well.... Dad." Anon's eyes widen. Dad? He wasn't ready for such a title. He couldn't care for a child, much less raise three. "You don't have to if you don't want to. I was stupid to ever bring it up. I'm sorry." "Not at all." he said putting a hand on her shoulder "To be honest, I have been thinking the same thing too." "Seriously!?" Aria asks, her eyes sparkling "You bet. I just didn't know how to say it without sounding weird. Do the other two feel this way?" "I know Adagio does." Just as Aria says this, Sonata walks out of the bathroom. "Done!" she says with glee "Hey Sonata. Do you have an idea for what you want to get for Adagio?" "Not really." "Well then we'll just have to explore a bit. Let's stop at the book store first to get her a journal." Anon leaned over to Aria and whispered "We'll keep talking about this more later ok?" "Sure thing." Aria said The trio begin to walk around the mall, searching for Adagio's perfect presents. Anon was actually a dad now. A real dad. He never realized the weight of the title. How much responsibility it carried. He was going to raise them one hundred times as good as his father raise him. When he died, they were going to remember just how much Anon loved them. They weren't going to look at his casket with hate like he would when his dad died. Aria wasted no time at all finding a gift, going into a bookstore and picking up a leather journal. "This is perfect Anon. Look at this" Aria said, holding it up "She'll love it. Let's get her a card." Anon said The two girls pick out separate cards for Adagio. Aria picks out one with a cute beagle wearing a Santa hat while Sonata picks one with a unicorn on the front. "Makeup next?" Anon asked "Sure." said Aria All of a sudden Aria grabs his hand, avoiding eye contact. Who knew this tough girl had such a soft spot? B-but it's not like she liked him or anything baka. They all walked up to a makeup store and began looking around. "Alright Aria, I'll need your help." "Will do." she said ""Now Adagio's favorite products are shampoos and the like with a second being lipstick." "How on earth does she manage to keep her hair so well done?" "She has a lot of products she uses to keep it that way. You wouldn't understand. There is a lot of effort that goes into making us look the way we do." "I'll take your word for it." Anon looked around and found a tube of dark red lipstick. "Will this work?" "Oh yeah. That should do just fine." "Now we just need some shampoo." They both keep searching and find some heavy duty shit. Anon was pretty sure that some of the ingredients were used to make nuclear weapons. "Ok Sonata. Have you thought about what she might like?" "A hat!" Sonata chirps "A hat huh?" "Yeah!" "Well then I guess we best find her one." They both travel around a while before coming across a run of the mill hat and apparel store. After some looking around, Sonata comes back with two hats. One is a sea green skull cap and the other is a deep purple beanie with red hearts running around the rim. "Which one should I pick Anon?" Sonata asks "Well, if I were her, I think she'd like the purple one more." She nods and puts the green hat back on the shelf. After buying the hat and some extra wrapping paper, Anon begins to make his way home. He leans back to the other girls. "Ok girls, we need to make sure Adagio doesn't see this. It needs to be a surprise." he explains "So you two will go in first and I will go around back. Make sure not to tell her what you got her ok? That will ruin it." They both nod in agreement and they make their way back. It takes slightly longer to get home due to rush hour and as such it wasn't until four that they made it back. Anon rushed the girls in and took the bags around back, opening the side door into the garage. He put all of Dagi's gifts down and cover it with a big tarp just in case. He walks into the kitchen to find a still half asleep Adagio. "Well if it isn't Sunshine." he jokes "Very funny." Dagi says "Hey Adagio, mind if I talk to you for a second?" He winks at Aria, letting her know what's up. She winks back in response. "Sure, I don't see why not. Let me get some water first." The two walk up to her room and sit on the bed. "So Aria tells me that you two think of me as a father." Adagio spits out her drink in surprise. "What!? She was supposed to do it with me!" she whined "You don't think it's weird do you? You don't have to." "On the contrary I would love that. You can call me dad all you want." Adagio gives him a big hug, full of love. "Thanks Anon-I mean dad. You're the best." "You're very welcome. It's the least I could do for all the happiness you have caused me. How was your nap?" "Much needed. I just don't know how well I'll be able to sleep tonight though. I was out for like four hours!" "If you can't sleep talk to me. I have struggled with insomnia for most of my life so I am an expert in unorthodox ways to fall asleep." She smiles "I will dad. I will." "Well then, lets get dinner going shall we?" "Let's do it Dad. Together."