Ball of Nothing - Chapter 90
Chapter 90
It was nearing that time of the year again for humans . Although the Great Gods didn't celebrate human festivals, they needed an excuse to buy things . Hence, the following heated argument was taking place at Zeus' shrine .
Team Inconspicuous: Hades, Sedna, Gaia
Team Flamboyant: Zeus, Isis, Freya
Team Practical: Buddha, En
"I say we go for dresses," Isis insisted . They could have Truen trick Zero into a secret photo shoot . The last batch of photographs sold out and they made a neat profit from that .
"He needs clothing that will help him fit in with the different civilisations once he begins his travel . None of his current clothing is suitable for keeping a low profile . " Hades disagreed much to his brother's displeasure .
"Hades, Zero will attract attention anywhere he goes . If he wore the same as commoners and travellers, he would be targeted by some lowlife and be taken advantage of . Better looking clothes will keep them at arm's length," the Sky God reasoned .
"How about we go for something that Zero can use and enjoy?" Buddha asked and Freya shot him a glare .
"Are you saying that he won't enjoy our gifts?"
"Calm down, Freya . Nobody said that . I'm sure we could just ask Zero what he wants for Christmas . . . "
"Rejected!" En yelled . He didn't want to let Zero know about their plans . It was meant to be a surprise and En was most confident in his gift .
Sedna raised an eyebrow . En was definitely up to something .
"How about this," Buddha proposed . The fight was getting them nowhere . "We prepare our gifts for Zero as a team . Then, we present it to Zero on Christmas . Depending on which gift Zero likes better, the other teams will have to cover the bills for the winning team . Deal?"
Everyone looked at Buddha with suspicion . Buddha hardly did bets but when he did, he always won . Then again, everyone was confident about their gifts .
"Deal!" Zeus declared and promptly walked out of the meeting, preparing to pay a visit to Grem in La Boutique .
On the other hand, Gaia helped Hades and her sister to prepare for a trip down to Earth .
"When do we start?" En asked Buddha .
The Sage God smiled serenely . "Patience . I'm going to have a talk with Merlin and Hua Tuo . Just be sure to update me about their movements . "
King Yama grinned . A gift didn't have to be an object . Those Great Gods had a long way to go .
***
Grem Lee sneezed . Jen looked at the tailor worriedly . He'd been sneezing a lot since the morning and she feared that he might be under the weather .
The quiet morning ended when three of their shop's VVIPs stepped in through the front door . Startled at their arrival without a call in advance, Jen led them to the inner room and excused herself to get tea while Grem attended to them .
"Great Gods and Goddesses, how may I help you?"
"We're looking for a gift for Zero," Isis explained and Grem nodded . He remembered how they pampered that strange boy with a bottomless appetite . It was quite a handsome profit he earned back then and he looked forward to another business deal .
"How can I help?"
Freya explained about their desire to present Zero with clothes for Christmas and Grem raised a bushy brow . If they were talking about Christmas, children generally liked meeting the legendary Saint who gives presents .
"Is anyone going to be playing Santa?"
Zeus cocked his head to a side . "What's a Santa?"
Neither of the Great Goddesses knew what that was and Grem had to explain in detail about the Christmas tradition while Jen brought the snacks over .
After a long question and answer session, there was a twinkle in Zeus' eye .
"Could we ask you for one more favour?"
Grem felt the chills . However, Zeus was considered a very important customer so he cautiously agreed .
"Please be our Santa and deliver the gifts on our behalf!"
Jen had to stifle a giggle at Grem's horrified expression . Isis and Freya's stares didn't allow the poor gnome to refuse so he had to agree . However, he didn't allow his assistants to go scotfree .
"Jeremy, you'll be playing Rudolf . Jen, you will be playing the worker elf!"
They looked horrified and Jen immediately protested . The look on Grem's face offered no room for negotiation so the pixie reluctantly set to designing their costumes while Grem discussed details about Zero's gifts .
It was simple . Frey and Isis wanted Zero to wear costumes for a photo shoot while Zeus wanted to gift Zero an armour that looked cool .
"For the last time, I'm a clothing designer, not a blacksmith . I can only make cloth armour and not mithril ones . Besides, the magic imbued in all of Zero's clothes are better than any tough looking armour anyone can make out there . "
Zeus looked lost . "But . . . Zero is a man! He can't just wear dresses and wigs . Surely he would like something more masculine . . . "
Grem pinched the bridge of his nose . Reminding himself that Zeus was still a valuable customer, he took a deep breath and tried to explain again . "I can make clothes in a more masculine fashion . However, I CANNOT make mithril armour with fabric . I can, however, design hero costumes if you want . It is rather popular among children his age . "
Zeus considered it for a while . The hero costume that Grem spoke off was meant to be pyjamas . Zeus didn't know if having a hero sleepwear was going to make the boy more masculine but it was better than nothing . Reluctantly, he agreed .
"Could you make a hero costume with a cape?"
Relieved that Zeus was finally asking for something possible, the gnome nodded . In the meantime, Isis and Freya argued over the kind of costumes best suited for Zero . Freya wanted to buy twenty costumes for the secret collection but Isis chided her, claiming that it would make a huge indent in their profits .
"We can only select one each . I'm sure Zero will model for all our gifts so it's pointless to spend a fortune on clothes he would only wear once . Although I don't agree with Sedna and Gaia, I do believe that it has to be something Zero would want to wear . "
Freya looked offended . "Are you telling me that he doesn't want to wear stockings?"
Isis deadpanned . "He doesn't like silk ribbon bowties . Do you think he'll enjoy stockings? You heard Truen's report . Zero mostly wore the tracksuit . "
"But a tracksuit isn't fancy!"
Isis patted Freya . "We just need to find something that is . How about a uniform? That's popular . . . "
Freya tried to picture Zero in a school uniform and had to promptly stop her nose from bleeding . "That's so cute! I could almost see those pure white wings and halo behind him . . . That's it! We're getting an angel outfit with flight abilities . "
Isis pulled out a calculator while Grem watched the Great Goddesses debate . Finally, they reached a conclusion and Grem took their orders happily before seeing them out . It was a short notice but if anyone could get it done, it would be the world's best tailor .
"Jen! Jeremy, prepare for work . We're closing the shop for a few days . "
Jen readied the fabric and threads . "What are we making, boss?"
The gnome grinned . "One Santa costume – gnome-size XL, one Christmas elf costume – pixie-size M, one Rudolf headband, one Elementary school uniform for boys – human-size M, one Angel Halo and Wings Set – kids size, one Hero pyjamas with cape – human-size M . Designs to be finalised by tomorrow and work to be completed in four days . "
Jeremy immediately got to preparing the materials while Jen and Grem started sketching designs . They had no time to lose .
***
"A party?"
Buddha smiled . Zero was currently out on an errand . "Yes . I've spoken with Merlin and informed Truen about it . They will be coming for Christmas . It's a surprise party to be held at King Yama's mansion in the Purgatory . The Great Gods will be there too . "
Hua Tuo hummed . They would make it back before Christmas so it wasn't too much of a worry . "How will we get there?"
"Merlin will open a gateway . Just be prepared for it . Also, the Great Gods seem to be competing about who would get Zero the best gifts . I wouldn't try to compete against them if I were you . "
Hua Tuo shuddered . It wasn't rare for the Great Gods to have internal competitions but nobody liked it when that happened . For one, they weren't graceful losers . Freya lashed out and set fire to an entire planet because she lost a bet against Gaia once . Hades' depression caused a never-ending eclipse . Zeus' rage caused thunderstorms and lightning destroyed half a continent . Sedna's tears caused a huge flood . Gaia's fury caused multiple earthquakes for months and Isis' discontent made stars explode .
"Thank you, friend . I'll be sure to keep the schedule open . Are you participating in their bet?"
The Sage God of Enlightenment smiled serenely and said nothing . Hua Tuo shuddered . Buddha was up to no good and he just knew it .
"Well then, see you during the party," Hua Tuo said and hung up promptly . Never bet against Buddha . His enlightenment was a cheating device for gambling and clearly, there wasn't a rule against it .
***
At a local tavern, three figures in cloaks spoke in low voices .
"Did you find what you wanted?"
Gaia grinned at her sister and produced a small hunting knife . Sedna was impressed . It was well crafted and definitely imbued with enchantments . After hearing from Hua Tuo that Zero was learning how to hunt animals, Gaia had the idea to present Zero his very own hunting knife . It was a practical gift and even Hades couldn't help but approve of it .
"What about the both of you?"
Sedna grinned . She had similar ideas . However, instead of a hunting knife, she'd gotten Zero a portable pill making set . It consisted of magic enchanted mortar and pestle, a mini magical furnace and some measuring scales . Although the idea was originally provided by Hua Tuo, Sedna felt proud that she managed to get the best craftsman to make what the Sage God specified . Ancient Chinese pill making tools were not on this planet so it was difficult to buy any . Fortunately, they were not difficult to replicate .
Hades looked smug . While the Goddesses had great gifts, he had confidence that Zero would like his more .
Recently, he heard from Hua Tuo that Zero enjoyed reading . As such, God of Death went to great lengths to record stories from every library known to them and had Steve compile them into a thin magical reading device . Of course, books were constantly being written and found so it wasn't a complete collection but Hades was still proud of his achievement .
Gaia complained about Hades' gift when she heard it . That was definitely cheating . With the powers of controlling shadows, Hades could collect information at a speed nobody could imagine . The God of Death merely brushed it off and claimed that it was fair . Dinner at the tavern was full of protest from Gaia and Sedna while Hades felt proud at his accomplishments .
***
Finally, the day of judgement arrived . Although they were feeling confident about their gifts, nobody knew how Zero would react to it . They didn't know if Zero understood the concept of Christmas but it was too late to back out . Grem was on standby and Merlin went to fetch the guest of honour for the party . En looked bored and Buddha was smiling as usual .
When Zero arrived, the first thing he noticed was the people in the room . Sedna welcomed him with her open arms and the brunet quickly jumped into them . Gaia snatched the boy over and cooed when Zero presented her a leaf of the same green as her hair . She was touched when Zero apologised to everyone else . He didn't have gifts for them yet as they were difficult to collect but he promised to find them soon . Isis didn't mind and demanded a hug from the small boy . Freya followed and it took a while before the party could officially begin .
La Boutique worked hard providing for the feast and Zero thoroughly enjoyed every single dish, mindful to leave enough for everyone else . He was most glad to see Truen and couldn't wait to share with his friend about what he learnt .
The wood elf was great at keeping Zero distracted while everyone else readied their gifts . Santa wobbled on his reindeer and Jen had to help steady him before they made their dramatic entrance .
"HO HO HO! Merry Christmas!"
Zero was startled but started laughing when he saw Grem try to enter from the unlit fireplace . Jeremy had to help the gnome out of it when he got stuck halfway . Once Grem finished adjusting his beard, he coughed awkwardly and started to present the gifts .
Zero oohed and ahhed over every gift, trying on the costumes at Freya and Isis' urging . Nobody expected Merlin to gift Zero an amulet and the Great Gods were impressed by how fast he could finalise the magic accumulation device . Steve must have pulled many all-nighters to finish the product on time and Sedna made a mental note to bring good sushi to thank the God of Technology .
By the end of it all, everyone was dying to know which gift Zero liked the best .
It was a nerve-wracking moment when Zero couldn't decide . In the end, his answer made everyone fall over in their minds . However, nobody could hate him for it .
"All of it! I love everything because I love everyone! This is the best Christmas, I promise to bring presents for everybody next Christmas . . . thank you for this wonderful surprise . I'm so happy . . . "
Although nobody won, they were satisfied . Christmas was about giving and if anyone had gotten that right, it was Zero . The boy went around giving hugs to everyone, showering them in his love before he had to leave again .
"Merry Christmas!" he yelled before Merlin closed the warp gate .
The words weren't spoken but everyone knew what they would've said if the boy was still around .
Merry Christmas, Zero .