Hello. My name is Linnéa and you might already from fandoms like glee, Harry Potter or Cobra Kai etc. I've been wanting to write a fic about Annie but haven't really found the ideas for doing so. Earlier I've been writing oneshots in memory for a few actors who died (and when our dog died). And when I found out that Ann Reinking passed away a couple of weeks ago, while Albert Finney did almost two years ago I decided to write this. And with Ann having died just before Christmas, and now being right after Christmas sI decided to write it like this.

I hope you like it.

Annie POV

So many years had passed since I first set a foot into this place for what was only supposed to be a few days…

After then I hadn't changed my bedroom even once. The bedroom I woke up during my first night here was the same night I fell asleep every night now, almost fifty years later.

But except for that this whole house had changed.

When I woke up for Christmas it was always with a childish kind of joy. And for a long while I just had to lie in bed, covers around me and only listen to the children's voices of the home for girls I and Molly had made of the Warbucks- house now quite some time ago.

I couldn't help but look towards the photo on my night stand. A picture of my parents along with Molly and I and Sarah- the first girl, except for me that had ever ended up on Warbucks' home for girls, now years ago- I never wanted to count exactly how many.

Daddy had still lived here by then and so did mummy and Punjap, Drake and everybody else were still around.

They had all softened with having me here from the beginning. There wasn't a girl in the house that couldn't wrap each member of the staff around their little finger. And with the girls and our home, we had never been able to understand how Miss Hannigan could treat us the way she did.

There hadn't been a day for the last forty-seven years that I hadn't been the happiest woman on earth for what I had.

Even during those hard days, when daddy and mummy moved away to retire and live on their own. When daddy got sick and passed away.

And then, only a few months ago when mummy unexpectedly passed away in her sleep.

With everything and maybe too how happy I was for having all of this as mine. That one Christmas morning, while still in bed I could suddenly feel tears running down my face. And I just couldn't stop them even if I'd tried.

For almost an hour I just laid there, sobbing quietly and hearing the voices of the girls grow louder and louder as they all woke up and got out of bed ready to start Christmas day.

Tucker, our Poodle crawled up on the bed and licked the tears away.

The only thing I could do was hoping that no one would knock on my door and found me like this.

Because how would I have been supposed to explain the tears when we all knew very well I loved Christmas more than any child?

Flashback

Mr. Warbucks' POV

My house was usually filled with all kinds of staff…

Except for one morning a year from now on. And it was at the time it was Annie's first Christmas morning with myself and Grace. As of now, I, Grace, Annie and Sandy were alone in the whole, big house and I knew from the start there'd never been an as perfect Christmas morning as this one.

I couldn't wait to get started and see my Annie open- and even see all of her gifts. The biggest Christmas tree I had ever seen stood in the hall where I and Annie had first met. And beneath and around it laid a mountain of wrapped gifts of various sizes and kinds- most of them for our little girl that just came running down the hallway and into the stairs where she froze.

"Wow"

She yet hadn't opened one single gift. But the sight only of a Christmas she had always dreamt off but never had, had her frozen for more than ten seconds.

"Come on then Annie." Grace said from next to me at last. "It's time for Christmas gifts."

With that having been said Annie ran down the stairs and with her eyes open wide looked around and around as if she didn't know where to turn. Or if she was afraid everything she hadn't seen would suddenly get lost into thin air.

"Are any of those for Molly? Or Pepper? Or Duffy?

"No Annie." Grace laid a hand on her shoulder while the young girl didn't seem to know in what direction she should look. "This is for you."

"This is all for me?"

"Yeah."

"Everything?"

"Just a few are for Sandy."

Annie kept looking around with her eyes just as big. And still didn't seem certain that we had planned this for only her or her friends too.

Then at last she went over to one of the biggest that stood on the side and she looked around it for just a few seconds.

"That one is from Drake… You do not how to open a gift, do you?"

It broke my heart that she might not even have had the chance to learn before.

But it had been her birthday after she came here and before now and we had given her all kinds of gifts before and after that and…

"Of course."

Then at last, just like that she grabbed a corner of the big gift and ripped the paper off a large dog house that was a perfect replica of my own house.

"Whoa?" Annie froze and after a few seconds she saw the board over the door "Sandy… I love it. Sandy loves it too. Don't you Sandy?" As if he understood what we said he pushed some gift paper away and then went into his little house, managed to turn around in it and stuck his head out. "Yeah, you love it boy." Annie sat down on the floor and there reached for the nearest one. "This one's also for Sandy."

Since the day Annie and Sandy had arrived both I and Drake had taken a like in Sandy and Drake spoiled him just as much as Annie. And whatever Sandy got, Annie loved just as much as if we'd given her the world.

"Look at that. It looks just like your auto-copter." Annie held up a bracelet with a silver charm that did for sure look like the auto-copter. "Punjab gave it to me... It looks just like the one he saved me from. Can you help me? Mum?"

It was still so special to hear Annie call us mum and dad. More than often, it was mama Grace and daddy Warbucks. Still, when everything was so normal and we did everything just so normal. As if we were just another normal family having our Christmas together.

Annie didn't even seem to have noticed what she said while Grace helped her put the bracelet on and Annie- still with big eyes looked around on all of the gifts.

"I want to open that one. Another big one… Oh… thank you. This looks so much fun. But what is it?"

"This…" I showed her how to stand on it and hold on to the handlebars. "…is a kicksled."

"Whoa? But what do I do with it?"

Annie tried standing on it. Of course she couldn't go anywhere when we were inside but she seemed to get it quite fast. And turning back to the mountain of gifts we had for her she continued with them all.

Big and small, she acted like we'd given her everything she ever wished for and a bit more. But still, as the pile of gifts went smaller and the pile of wrapping paper higher. A bit too soon she was at the last one.

"This came all the way from President Roosevelt. We can just take the lid of the box and lift it off."

"I bet there aren't many kids who get Christmas gifts from our president."

"I bet you're right. Come Grace, we have to lift this lid off and I can't do it myself."

Annie clapped her hands as she stood in front of the box and while I and Grace took each side of the lid.

To be honest I was just as curious as Annie to see what was in it as Annie was.

"Whoa!"

Annie's chin dropped and her eyes opened wide as we had lifted the lid of the carton off. A carton that held a large doll house. And in difference from Sandy's dog house, this doll house was a perfect replica of the white house. Dolls and everything- including of Franklin and Eleanor, myself and even Annie in the room we'd been and sung about tomorrow.

"And that isn't even the best part yet." I had found a small note on the side to me about a second surprise. There was an electricity switch to the little, white house. And when I pressed it lamps in every room of the whole house were turned on- just like the house had been real. "Do you like that?"

Annie didn't say anything at first, then just one single word whispered came.

"Wow."

Annie carefully reached out and took the little doll that looked like herself, as she took it, she twisted and turned it as if afraid it would disappear if it wasn't real enough.

But seeing the way she looked towards the doll and the house and everything made a feeling I didn't want to admit in my stomach. Something of jealousy.

I might be rich. One of the richest people on earth. But I didn't have a high status and I definitely wasn't the president. Nor would I ever be.

What if he kept coming with gifts like this and Annie liked his gifts more than mine? And liked him more than me? Maybe especially how I had treated her when she first came here.

It might be a childish feeling. But I couldn't help it and I couldn't ignore it.

From seeing every little detail of the doll house Annie suddenly looked at me. And before I could change my expression, she must have read my thoughts.

Annie put the doll of herself back into the house and then came over to me, Sandy following in her footsteps and Grace was right next to me while Annie looked up on Grace, towards me and then back again in silence and with a dreamy look in her eyes.

"I don't care for the things. Really. I love them and I'm the happiest girl in the world but you could take it all away tomorrow and I'd still be just as happy. You could take away the doll house and the books and Sandy's new collar and everything. You guys gave me best gift out of all, something I always wanted and now I couldn't live without it… yes, you too Sandy."

Sandy growled slightly in well-being when Annie scratched her head, looked towards her and then up towards Grace and myself again.

"You gave me a family."

End of flashback

Back to Annie's POV

"Annie?"

I was just wiping the last of the tears when there was suddenly a knock on the door and Molly opened.

"All the girls are waiting for you to come downstairs so we can start opening gifts?"

I couldn't help but smile, knowing Molly, fifty plus was at least as excited for Christmas gifts as the children.

"Coming. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas Annie."

"Come on Tuck."

I got up from the bed and the Poodle followed me while I pulled on a morning robe and then went towards the main hall and all of the kids- and Molly. They were all waiting to open their gifts, some of the girls were just as jumping in excitement and couldn't keep still.

"Merry Christmas everyone."

"Merry Christmas Miss Annie." Came from all directions while everyone hoped I would start our tradition. "This one is for…" I read the tag and kept quiet while I looked around. "…Kia."

I handed the first wrapped gift to an African-American girl next to me and the screaming and tries to get their gifts were loud as everyone tried to find their gifts first.

I took a step back not to be in the way for anyone. Sure there were some gifts in the piles for me too. But right now the only gift I wanted and needed was to watch all the joy around me.

I knew more than anything else, that if it hadn't been for my real parents I could have never felt like this. Seeing girls and hearing them screaming happily for getting books or stuffed animals or dolls or jigsaw puzzles I knew, just like every Christmas for almost fifty years- I couldn't have been happier.

After all, the two I called mum and dad were always all around me. Especially at Christmas and what they had made for me during that time of year. I knew it was thanks to them I had more than enough of them to make each girls' Christmas made out of magic and joy every year.

And I hoped that each and every one of the girls felt something like I had been feeling for all my Christmases here…

Then we could all be each other's family just like mum and dad had been to me.

This isn't the first time I planned to go to bed sooner. Then stayed up to finish a chapter.

And I actually had to use Facebook to figure ideas for what Annie could have wanted and gotten for Christmas.

Random fact

Some of this was actually quite hard to write and get in the way I wanted to show it. But I think it turned out alright. From the beginning the first and last parts were set at New Year's.

Rest in peace Albert Finney, May 9th 1936- February 7th 2019

Rest in peace Ann Reinking November 10th 1949- December 12th 2020