December 25th was the last day of school for AD2096 and everyone in class 2E were checking their end of term results before classes ended for the day. Tatsuya noticed Mizuki was looking at him nervously. He asked her what was wrong. Mizuki wanted to ask Tatsuya about his test grades but was embarrassed that she might have to tell him hers as well. She told him nothing was wrong and he headed to the Student Council Room while she went on to the Arts Club.
Later that day the 2nd year friends met up at Eine Briese for an informal Christmas gathering. Minami, nor any of the other 1st Years were attending because they had to attend a much larger party thrown by the members of their grade. Erika commented on wanting to have their party a day earlier but everyone had prior commitments to their families’ own social gatherings.
As they enjoyed their cake they reflected on the year's events. Everyone added their perspective on the previous year’s events. As usual Erika picked on Leo. When they left for home Honoka asked Tatsuya if he were going to Hatsumōde with everyone on New Year’s. He informed her that Miyuki and he could not attend this year due to a previous commitment. Miyuki seemed nervous after Tatsuya said this to everyone, because she knew Tatsuya and she would have to attend the Yotsuba family New Year's gathering. Shizuku worried about her and inquired if she was well. Erika quickly changed the topic since she knew if Miyuki were sick, Tatsuya would have reacted immediately.
Once back home, Tatsuya noticed Miyuki was still not recovered and told her to go rest in her room till she felt better. Once in her room she used her magic to increase the temperature and changed out of her school uniform. She saw the letter from the family ordering everyone to attend this year. She knew that ordering everyone to attend meant that Maya was going to name her successor as clan head. She was one of four candidates from among her generation. The other three were all her cousins; Shibata Katsushige, Tsukuba Yuuka and Kuroba Fumiya. She knew that she was the most likely candidate to become the next head of the family due to her superior magical abilities.
She dreaded becoming the next head because that meant she had to become engaged and married to someone, separating her from her brother. She was conflicted because she knew that once she was head of the family she could improve her brother’s standing within the family. She reflected on the fact that it was others that had always pushed her for becoming the next clan leader and that since the incident in Okinawa four years earlier she no longer had any desires to be the next family head.
Miyuki then had a conversation with her perceived younger self in her mirror. She tried to convince her image in the mirror that she had no control over the coming events and that she must do her duty. Her mirror image challenged her and tried to convince her that she was in love with her brother and to not give up on that. She confessed her romantic love for her brother to herself and her dread of never being able to fulfill her desire to be with him. She resigned herself to her fate, to have to spend her life with someone other than Tatsuya.