Work Text:
One thing that the Azur Lane world settlers brought to the Republic was Christmas when people would receive gifts and enjoy their holiday. Thus, on the December 25th of that year, the first-ever Christmas on the continent took hold at the Republic.
December 25th.....
The new malls and stores all had red and green decorations, and staff and shop owners dressed in red and green uniforms handled gifts and coupons to visitors.
"As you can see, the people of the other world have an exciting festival like the Holy Birth festival," A voice of a news reporter spoke loudly on Lena's office television. A Giad news service arrived to broadcast the first-ever Christmas of the continent through their television.
Despite the end of the Legion War, the scars left by these war machines were too great. Countless millions of lives were cut short by the war of annihilation. Thus, the Giad news always sought to improve the population's morale. The Christmas festival was one of those hopes to raise people's minds and drag them from the horrors of the war that lasted for more than a decade.
Lena was in her home's office, working on documents about the continent reconstruction programs, the needed materials, the required workforce, and more. She could not enjoy such a festival when her nation brought suffering to many. Shin and the Spearhead were back at Giad's capital while Hood and others were at the Royal Isles for urgent business.
"Edinburg, if you want to go back, there is no problem," Lena told the maid.
"Her Majesty gave me the order to be with you. Therefore, it is my duty," the maid said with a smile. The maid looked outside the window; much of the Republic's capital was still under reconstruction, and rubble was all over the city. Such sight reminded her of the trails of destruction left by the Sirens.
"It will take at least a decade to repair all those and decades more for the population to get back the way it was," She did a calculation after the Legion War was over. The result far surpassed anything the history of humanity of both worlds ever faced. The Legion War casualties exceeded 80 million people and left the entire continent in ruins. There were so many bodies left on the continent that it would take years or decades to bury them all.
The economy was also in bad shape as the Legion contaminated all the lands they had taken and held. The nation's food stock was beginning to run low, and fear of mass starvation took hold. The military held strong and would not let their guard down; all nations that survived invested their society into the army. The countries were at war for over a decade, leaving people with high taxation. War, wariness, and fatigue left the continent's people on their last legs.
It was then when the Jack and the Azur Lane intervened, just as they had come to aid the Fleet countries in their darkest hour. He contacted all Eagle Union superiors to form another lend-lease program to the continent. Elizabeth and her Royal Navy ship girls all round up all available merchant navy ships for food transfer. Richelieu asked all her nation's religious organizations for aid and more. The Sakura Empire and the Iron Blood did nothing, as they did not want to spare the few resources they had. But Bismarck and Amagi forced them to do something at least.
The continent presented a golden opportunity for trade and more, not to mention state-of-the-art weaponry. As weakened and in bad shape as they might have been, the nations had strong militaries.
Lena and Edinburg's attentions were on the papers when they heard a sound of window cracking. They looked out the window, and there was a bald eagle.
"GRIM!!!!"Lena rushed to the window. The bird was the closest college to Yorktown and barely left Enterprise side.
_
Yorktown decided to come to the Republic to see the crimes of the Albas with her own eyes. It was nothing compared to all she had seen so far; humans treated others like livestock based on race.
A living hell that the Eighty-Six had to go through at the hands of the silver-haired people of the Republic.The hate that the people of this land held toward the non-Alba or the Colorata was indescribable.
"Miss Yorktown?" A voice asked her.
"Ah, Miss Lena," The woman replied as she looked to her side.
Yorktown wore a thick black coat and a white winter coat. Edinburgh wore a thick maid-style winter coat. Lena wore a dark winter blue coat over a white coat. They were at the war memorial, once where the names of the fallen rested for the Albas, now a desolate wasteland. With only rifles marking the grave of the Eighty-Six who fought here.
"Sorry to come unannounced," The carrier smiled as she walked to Lena.
"You could have told me I would go to pick you up." Lena looked at the sky and saw Grim flying above.
"There was no need. Besides, it was a holiday for me; what about you?" She looked at the girl as Grim landed on her arms.
"I..." The Alba girl was thinking of what to say.
"You could not bring yourself to celebrate when the continent was reeling from so many losses?" The touring carrier asked.
"There was no Christmas in my world, and..." The girl answered.
"When you were busy fighting survival..." Yorktown replied as the eagle flew to Lena's shoulder, to which the girl looked in amazement. The eagle was quite fond of her as well, mainly because the girl managed to make Enterprise not go full berserk in combat, and she was able to get Enterprise to stop eating MRE and eat proper food instead. Right on cue, Lena opened a meat can to the eagle.
"Where is Miss Enterprise?" She inquired.
"I heard she was walking around the Republic. How about we talk more at your home?" The eldest of the Yorktown class looked at the snowfall.
"Good idea," She agreed.
A while later...
Lena walked back home, and as she was about to enter the front door, a pair of hands covered her face and eyes. She felt another pair of hands holding her tight as she walked forward, and then...
"MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!" The hands went away as the shout filled her ears. As the door opened, she saw a huge tree full of decorations in the living room and a lot of presents and colourful boxes beneath it.
"Miss Enterprise and Miss Hornet!!!!"
Enterprise, in her thick white coat and black jacket, and Hornet, in her black winter coat and yellow jacket, happily spoke as they held gifts.
"Jack asked me to give you Merry Christmas," Yorktown elbowed her. Enterprise noticed something missing in Lena's life: she was in the age of great bloodshed in the Legion War. Thus, she devised this idea to surprise the girl, and he greenlighted it.
"Here is your present!!!" Enterprise handed it to the girl. She opened it to see a lovely winter scarf and a silver winter helmet.
"Thank you," Lena's eyes filled with tears.
"No, thank you for taking me to the Republic," The Big E smiled in return.
"Group picture!!!!" Hornet brought a camera and grabbed everyone, including Marie, into the camera's lens as she pressed the button. From that day on, a picture in Lena's room office had the faces of The Yorktown sisters, Edinburg, Marie and Lena, along with words...
"My first Christmas Miracle,"