"Silver Bells, Silver Bells" Scarecrow sung with the radio as he finished decorating his house for the big Christmas Party. He hope this one turned out even better then his Thanksgiving shindig, given that this was at least planned out in advance. He had sent out the invitations to his characters, and even told them about a special 'Secret Santa', so there should be lots of fun! Sadly, the crew of the Deadliest Warrior wouldn't be attending, as they were off having a party with the crew from Mythbusters. Oh well.
Scarecrow was startled from his decorating by a disturbance on the roof. It sounded like someone walking… "Santa?" he asked out loud, wondering if the jolly old elf was popping in early. He himself was wearing a Santa suit, with a hat onto of his usual burlap sack. Frankly, some might say it was a bit disturbing.
A bang and crash later, and something fell out of his chimney, spreading dust and ash all over his nice clean floor… and the worst part? It wasn't even Santa!
"NARUTO!" Scarecrow yelled, looking at the Naruto from Naruto: Card Captor. He was wearing a red ceremonial kimono… decorated with tiny Santas and Snowmen.
"Heh… sorry" Naruto said, scratching his head in embarrassment. "I saw your chimney and thought 'what they heck' you know? In the spirit of the season and all?" he finished, hoping he wasn't about to get a beating over the head.
Scarecrow was about to lay into the idiot ninja when the door rang, distracting him. He turned back to the Naruto and said "While I go get that, you clean up this mess. And put your Secret Santa gift under the tree." he said. Naruto nodded, taking a gift from his kimono and placing it under the tree, before turning to the task of cleaning the floor.
Scarecrow answered the door to find Crona standing there. He was wearing a black sweater with a bright green christmas tree on it looking, as always, nervous to be there. "Hello there Crona, good of you to come… where's Ragnarok?" he greeted, wondering where the little blood fiend was. He supposed he might still be in Crona, but it seemed unlike him to miss a party.
Crona rubbed his arm nervously "Well… " he turned, showing that Ragnarok had stretched out of him quiet a bit. Following the stretched body, Scarecrow quickly found out what happened to Ragnarok.
"Oh you have got to be kidding me." Scarecrow said, his eyebrow twitching at the sight: Ragnarok had his tongue stuck to a lamppost. The little monster was quite displeased with his predicament, and was waving his arms and shouting all kinds of muffled obscenities to express that fact. "Why did he do that?"
"I told him that if you lick a cold lamppost, you're tongue would get stuck, and he didn't believe me." a new voice said, making Scarecrow turn. I
t was Naruto, from Naruto in Hell. He was wearing what he normally wore, making Scarecrow raise an eyebrow (which was invisible under his burlap sack) "Why aren't you wearing appropriate attire?" Scarecrow asked.
Naruto shrugged "The armor is plenty fancy. Besides, I didn't feel like looking for something more festive." he said.
Scarecrow just shook his head "Well that will never do." and with a snap of his fingers, the carved runes on the armor were replaced with a large Frosty the Snowman. "There much better." he said with a grin, making Naruto (who from this point on will be called D-Naruto) growl in annoyance. "Now get inside everyone, its time for this party to start!" he called out jovially, snapping his fingers and freeing Ragnarok.
"Good! I want my presents!" Ragnarok said loudly, easing his tongue back into his mouth.
As they went back into the living room, Scarecrow was pleased to see his floor clean. Card Captor Naruto (from from now on will be called C-Naruto) greeted his older counterpart and Crona warmly. They returned the greeting to him and Keros, except for Ragnarok who was busy trying to find out where Scarecrow hid the presents, so he could force Crona to take them all and run.
"So now that we're all here-" C-Naruto started but was cut off when Scarecrow shook his head.
"We're still missing someone" he said "but he should be here right about-" he pointed to a door that had just appeared "now". The door opened, and in came Ichigo Kurosaki from the new story Guardian of the League. Despite having only one chapter to his name (and it was a prologue no less), he had still qualified for the Christmas Party.
"Hey, how's it going." he waved to his fellow protagonists. Like them, he was wearing cloths to fit the season. While his pants were regular dress pants, his shirt was hidden by a large snowflake sweater. It had been a gift from Orihime, and she had asked him to wear it to his party.
"Well, now that you're all here it's time for-" Scarecrow started.
"Presents?" Ragnarok butted in hopefully.
Scarecrow shook his head, nearly losing his Santa hat "Nope. First we have sit by the fire roasting chestnuts, drink punch and eggnog, and eat pie!" he declared, producing a bag of said chestnuts from empty space.
While disappointed at the lack of presents, both Ragnarok and Keros liked the sound of pie.
30 Minutes Later
After a few false starts involving Ragnarok eating all the chestnuts before they were roasted, and another where C-Naruto accidentally lit D-Naruto on fire, they had finally managed to roast chestnuts and eat pie. They had listened to festive christmas music, and generally made merry. But now they had come across a major problem.
There was only once slice of pie left.
As the four sat around the table (Scarecrow having left find more eggnog), they all began to stake their claim to the pie.
"I say I should get the pie. I'm the newest story here, and my first chapter comes out the same day this does. I deserve it as a congratulations" Ichigo said. When none of the other looked like they were buying it, he produced his Zanpakuto, in bankai form, and laid it on the table. "Just saying." he said. Normally he wouldn't act so immature, but damn if it wasn't good pie.
D-Naruto glared at Ichigo "Well I'm the oldest, and I've gone longest without an update. I should get it" he said, putting his Ninjato on the table "just saying."
"Go on, say it!" Ragnarok said, handing Crona a piece of paper with his lines on it, before poking him in the back of the head and turning into his broadsword form.
"Um…I should get the pie, on the ground that" Crona unfolded the paper for the rest "I will murder your punk asses if you don't. I shake my fist at you menacingly" He read haltingly, before realizing he was supposed to perform that last part. The others had a hard time not laughing as Crona laid Ragnarok on the table and feebly shook his fist.
C-Naruto smirked, gently laying his Sealing Wand on the table "Guys… I'm sure we can all come to an agreement on how to split the pie" he said, silently summoning Sleep with plans to knock the other heroes out. Keros said nothing, only eyeing the pie with hunger.
"Okay everyone, I found more eggnog!" Scarecrow said, bounding back into the room "Oh look, pie!" he said, scooping up the last piece and eating it in one gulp. How he did this without removing his burlap sack is probably best left to the imagination. "Delicious" he said, ignoring the disbelief on his guests faces "Now then, onto the next event!" he said.
"Do we get presents now?" Keros asked
Scarecrow shook his head "Soon, soon. I have a little game for you all to play first." he said, getting their attention.
"What kind of game?" Ichigo asked, not fully trusting Scarecrow to be straight forward.
"Oh its simple enough" Scarecrow said, dusting his knuckles on his Santa jacket. "You know how so many Christmas Specials are about the main characters incapacitating Santa in some way, then being forced to deliver the presents themselves?" he asked, getting nods all around. It was, after all, one of the most common types of Christmas Specials.
With a wave of his hand, four piles of gifts appeared before the guests. It took them a moment to realize what was going on.
"Wait… are you saying WE have to deliver these?" D-Naruto asked incredulously. "Why isn't Santa doing it? You didn't…" he and the other guests looked at Scarecrow in horror at the implications.
Scarecrow realized what they were thinking "Oh good heaves no! I would never hurt Santa Claus!" he said, "Scouts honor!"
"Um… you were never a scout" Crona said meekly.
"And proud of it!" Scarecrow said, trying to distract them. "But if you must know, these are not from Santa. These are part of the game. Each pile is addressed to one house. Your job is to find the house, deliver the gifts without waking anyone, and return here to me." Scarecrow said, outlining the rules of the game.
"What do we get if we win?" Keros asked, already thinking about how Naruto could use the Clow Cards he had to win the game.
"Is there some sort of prize?" Ichigo asked. If he was going to play delivery boy because Scarecrow was too lazy to ship his gifts, there had better be some compensation.
Scarecrow nodded "Yes. Whoever gets back first gets there gift from me first. The second after him, and so on and so forth."
That got them all hopped up, all ready and waiting for that special gift. Scarecrow rolled his eyes "May I remind you that Christmas is about giving, not getting. It is a time when we try to spread kindness to all people. Peace on Earth, and good will towards men and all that."
The others nodded, feeling rather foolish.
Well… except Ragnarok. Seeing his chance, he grabbed the nearest pile of gifts and shouted "So long suckers, let the games begin! Let's go Crona, or I'll tear the gumdrops off your gingerbread men!"
Crona yelped, fearing for his delicious cookie "But I don't know how to deal with being Santa Claus!" he yelled as he dived out the window, breaking it.
The others were startled by Ragnarok's outburst; but not for long. Soon they'd all grabbed their gifts and ran straight for the door. None bothered to unlock it or open it though, choosing instead to go through it.
Scarecrow sighed… he felt a headache coming on. Oh well, might as well watch the fun. Turning to his TV he watched as the four contestants appeared on screen, each frantic to win the contest.
Crona & Ragnarok:
The pair had quickly found the house they were supposed to deliver to (thankfully the house was close by), and were now trying to find a subtle way in. Crona suggested that, with his slender frame, he could easily fit down the chimney, and they'd be done. Ragnarok on the other hand, figured it would be easier to go through the front door. Who do you think one the argument?
"Ragnarok! You can't just punch down the door!" Crona tried to keep his voice down, but he had to stop Ragnarok from doing something stupid… again.
"And why not?" Ragnarok asked indignantly.
"Well for one, its against the rules. Scarecrow will disqualify us and you'll never get your gift. Two, I'm pretty sure what you planned was illegal, and I don't know how to deal with a B&E charge." Crona said, in what was possibly the longest set of words to come out of his mouth in a long time.
Ragnarok snorted "Fine, we'll use my super sonics to vibrate open the door lock." he said, stretching down to the door lock and preparing to whistle.
"Um… " Crona said, taping Ragnarok on the shoulder before he went through with his plan.
"WHAT?" Ragnarok asked, frustrated. They were losing time all because Crona didn't want to get his hands dirty.
"I'm not sure its actually possible to do that." Crona said.
"Fine then. You think you're so smart, you open the lock!" Ragnarok yelled, making Crona wince. He hoped they hadn't woken anyone in the house up. He stepped toward the lock on the door, and pressed his finger to the lock. Black blood flowed from his fingertip into the door, filling in the nicks and crannies, before hardening inside in the shape of a proper key. With a simple twist, the door was open.
"I hate you so much Crona."
The two walked quietly into the house. Thankfully, the tree was right next to the window by the door. With Ragnarok helping him, Crona quickly spread the gifts all around the tree.
"And we're done." Crona said with a smile, knowing that these gifts would make someone very happy.
"There's no way those other guys caught up with us yet" Ragnarok cheered, forgetting to keep his voice down. "And that means we'll win for sure. Hell Yeah!" he punched his fist in victory. Right through the front window. This of course triggered the home's security alarm, and immediately notified the police.
As they heard the blaring house alarm, Crona and Ragnarok shared a look, before bolting out of the house. As they fled the scene, Ragnarok could only mutter "We keep this just between us, are we clear."
C-Naruto:
Keros had been able to convince Naruto that trying to go down the chimney was a bad idea. Since Naruto had managed to conniver half of Scarecrow's carpet in ash the last time, maybe it was better if Keros did that himself.
So, flying as fast as his wings would carry him, he flew up to the roof, downy the chimney, and unlocked the door from the inside. Once the two of the found the tree, they quickly unsealed the presents and placed them around the tree. It only took few minutes, and then it was time to go.
They simply go our the front door, but Naruto had a better idea.
"Come on, how often does this chance come along?" he said, strolling over to the fireplace Keros was desperately trying to drag his charge away, but Naruto was dead set.
"Please, we've already delivered the gifts! There's no reason to do this!" Keros pleaded.
"The challenge is to be like Santa Claus right? And Santa would go back up the chimney. So that's what I'm gonna do!" Naruto said, now standing inside the brick fireplace. "Now then… how to get back up there… aha!" he exclaimed taking out his Sealing Wand.
Keros realized what C-Naruto was going to do a moment before he did it. And, knowing that there was no way to stop the idiot, he did the only other sensible thing: He bolted.
Naruto readied the Sealing Wand and called out "Windy Card, I summon thee!"
Keros made it outside just in time to watch the chimney explode, along with part of the side of the house. Turns out that releasing a powerful wind elemental in such an inclosed space was a bad idea. And where was Naruto?
"AAAAHHHHHH!" WHAM. Ah there he was. The boy had managed to launch himself into the air. To bad he couldn't stick the landing.
With sirens wailing in the distance, he and C-Naruto quickly made tracks back to Scarecrow's house, praying their host didn't connect this with them.
Ichigo:
Ichigo was rather puzzled as to how to get into the house. He was to big to go down the chimney, and all of his powers wouldn't help him unlock a door without smashing into pieces. His frown deepened. He had only gotten one chapter of existence so far and none of it included preparing him for the challenge of being Santa Claus!
Finally, he decided to go with the simplest option: he knocked. When silence still rang in the house, he rang again. This time, he could hear the shuffling of feet coming to the door.
When it opened, a sleepy eyed man (clearly the father of the household) asked the obvious "What is it?"
Ichigo punched him in the face.
The man was knocked unconscious, and Ichigo stepped over his body into his home. Quickly finding the tree, he dumped the gifts around it, then made his way back to the front door. He figured he may have been a little harsh, so picked up the man and put him on the couch. After that, he left, closing the door behind him. There, simple.
D-Naruto:
D-Naruto had had a rather ingenious idea. Instead of going in through the front door, or down the chimney, he would instead go up through the floor, and deliver the gifts! It was brilliant!
He had managed to do this by using his Amulet to burn a man sized hole in the ground, then quickly blasted a tunnel under the house. It was messy work, and he was sure he felt rumblings up above once or twice, but luckily the tunnel held. Once he was sure he was under the tree (he'd looked through the window for the tree's location before he'd started digging; he wasn't an idiot!), he blasted a hole upwards. Poking his head out, he saw the cost was clear (and missing the fact that he had burned away half the tree). He quickly placed the gifts around his makeshift entrance, he quickly made his way back through.
From there, he used his Gourd to summon a great amount of dirt to cover up the hole he'd come through. Done. He was sure to win the prize for sure! He walked away whistling, totally missing the man sized hole he'd blown in the house's roof.
About ten minutes later all the guests met up again, to discover they were all being chased by a swarm of cop cars. Behind the cop cars was a mob of citizens formed by the families of the homes that were broken into. Of course, they all blamed each other. After all, it couldn't have been anything they'd done right?… right?
Crap.
Later, back at Scarecrow's House:
Scarecrow smacked his head on the table "How do you managed to turn something so simple into such a quagmire?" he asked, looking at his sheepish guests. They had managed to outrun the police and angry pedestrians, so for the moment they were safe… relatively speaking.
"Well… despite the spot of bother we got into" D-Naruto started, getting a glare from Scarecrow "All of the gifts were successfully delivered, and at the time in which they were delivered, the home owners did not know we were there…" he trailed off weakly.
Scarecrow sighed "I suppose you're right."
C-Naruto grew excited "And doesn't that mean…"
"PRESENTS!" Keros and Ragnarok cheered, high five-ing each other (though this resulted in Keros flying across the room).
Scarecrow nodded "Yeah yeah. Look, exchange Secret Santa gifts while I go get your gifts from me." he said, getting up to go to his special hiding place.
Ichigo turned to D-Naruto "Well, I figured since I'm the newest story and your the oldest" he said, smirking at the idea of being younger then this kid (and D-Naruto twitching at being called old) "I'd give us something to celebrate with" he pulled out a bottle of Sake from… hammer-space? And offered it to D-Naruto. "Cheers" Ichigo said.
D-Naruto happily accepted it. He had rarely gotten the chance to drink before his adventure had started, and he certainly had no time to do so while fighting Hell's minions. "Cheers." he reciprocated Ichigo's goodwill gesture.
D-Naruto turned to his younger, alternate world counterpart. "Kid, I know your story has only just really gotten started, and Scarecrow's barely covered the canon material yet, but I figured I have something you might find useful" he handed C-Naruto a box.
Opening it, C-Naruto found it was filled with NARUTO manga. "Is this what I think it is?" C-Naruto asked in awe, with Keros looking over his shoulder. Keros and Ragnarok weren't part of the Secret Santa, because they weren't the primary protagonist (something Ragnarok had argued long and hard about).
"It is" D-Naruto said with a grin "It goes all the way up 'til to the time-skip"
"Time-skip?" C-Naruto asked, confused.
D-Naruto just smirked "You'll find out."
Crona asked to go next, and he turned to Ichigo "Here you go" he said handing Ichigo a box of chocolate. He didn't know anything about Ichigo yet, so he just went with something basic.
Ichigo opened the box, planning to try one, when something made itself known "Why are over half the chocolates gone?" he asked, slightly irritated.
Everyone looked at Ragnarok, who was trying to look innocent (and not pulling it off at all)
"Ragnarok! I told you not to eat those!" Crona said, upset that his present had been ruined by his partner's selfishness!
"And who are you to boss me around!" Ragnarok challenged, giving Crona a smack to the back of the head.
Crona whimpered at the harsh treatment, but was too busy riffling through his pockets. Finally, he found Plan B. Looking up at Ichigo he said "I was worried something like this may happen. So please, take one of my poems" he handed the simple piece of paper to the larger teen.
"Oh, thanks." Ichigo said, unfolding the paper, completely missing the frantic looks and waves D-Naruto, C-Naruto, and Keros were sending him "You really didn't have to do that…" he trailed off as he started to read the poem.
C-Naruto gave an awkward chuckle as Ichigo went and collapsed in a corner, a dark cloud hanging over his head. Poor guy… no one deserved that. "Guess you want your gift now, eh Crona?" he said, forcing a laugh.
He handed Crona a box full of puzzles and games, and poetry books (with any luck he'd make his poems less depressing). "This way you have something to do in-between chapters." he said, answering Crona's questioning look.
Crona smiled, happy to have gotten such a thoughtful gift. "Thank you… I'm not sure I know how to deal with getting such nice gifts thought" he said worriedly. Everyone else just rolled their eyes.
Scarecrow came back baring gifts. Looking at the weeping Ichigo he simply raised an eyebrow. Looks like someone had been writing poetry again.
"Alright everyone, gather around for gifts!" he shouted a fake Santa Claus beard appearing on his chin. "Since you botched my contest, we'll just have to go randomly. D-Naruto you're up first." he tossed a large silver package at D-Naruto.
D-Naruto opened with great relish, and what he found made him go wide eyed "Is this… what I think it is?" he asked, absolute joy and hope in his voice.
Scarecrow just nodded "Yup, you've been updated my friend, congratulations" he said as D-Naruto removed the script for the Chapter about his trip through the Circle of Violence.
"Thank you! I'm one step closer to finishing my journey now!" D-Naruto said, his eyes already skimming over the text.
Scarecrow then turned to Crona "Crona, between this, Guardian of the League, and Naruto in Hell, I'm afraid I didn't have time to update the next chapter of your story." he said sadly, watching Crona's face fall slightly. "I felt bad about it, so I searched long and hard for something you would appreciate."
He handed Crona very large and heavy box "I figured hanging out with Ragnarok must be hard, so I thought you might like a companion as sweet and (relatively innocent as you are (usually)."
Crona tentatively opened the box and his eyes got wide he just managed to contain his squeal of delight as he instantly latched onto it.
Everyone else just looked at what had come out of the box, then back at Scarecrow.
"Seriously?" D-Naruto said, looking at his host.
"What?" Scarecrow asked, innocently.
"You got him a pony?" Keros said disbelievingly. How had that even fit in the box?
"I think it's a pegasus… C-Naruto said, uncertainly.
Everyone just watched as Crona snuggled the pegasus pony. It had a yellow coat, and a pink mane. On its flank was the image of three butterflies.
"Oh god! It's too much! Stop touching it Crona!" Ragnarok had to keep himself from retching at the sight of Crona hugging such an innocent looking creature.
"Um… my name is Fluttershy" the pony actually spoke, but its voice was so soft and meek that it was hard for anyone to hear it.
C-Naruto turned to Scarecrow "Isn't that from-"
"Yes" Scarecrow said.
C-Naruto raised an eyebrow "So… does that mean you watch-"
"Would you like a nice long vacation Naruto?" Scarecrow said, turning to face his guest "Doesn't that sound nice? A nice long Hiatus? Hmm?" while it was phrased in the nicest way, Naruto still went pale and shook his head vehemently. Scarecrow just eye smiled "Didn't think so. Catch." he tossed Naruto his gift, which was smaller then the first two.
Opening it, C-Naruto raised an eyebrow "A list? What is this?"
Scarecrow just smirked "That is a list of the Clow Cards you will meet, in order of appearance."
"Gimme!" Keros said, snatching the list from a protesting Naruto. If he could see what order the Clow were in, he could better prepare his charge. "Let's see… Shadow is in the next chapter, that's obvious. Then it's Sword…" he trailed down the list, skipping over several chapters, muttering about others "How did Glow sneak in before Time?" he questioned, but Scarecrow only chuckled knowingly. "And Power isn't until after the Chunin Exams? I like her, she's got spunk." he whined, making C-Naruto and Scarecrow just roll there eyes.
"And that just leaves you Ichigo" Scarecrow said to a very pale Ichigo who had just walked out of the corner. "And your gift is…" he leaned in very close to Ichigo and whispered "They aren't really dead."
Ichigo's eyes went wide "Wh-what did you just say?" he asked.
Scarecrow nodded "I said they aren't really dead. Your friends are not dead. You will see them again. It won't be until after like ten chapters or so, but you will definitely see them again."
Ichigo looked like he was on cloud nine, knowing that his friends were really dead. Then he stopped, and realized who he was talking to "Does this mean I'm gonna have to fight each of them? And each will have gained some ridiculous power up and appearance?" he asked shrewdly.
Scarecrow blinked "What makes you say that?" he asked curiously.
Ichigo folded his arms "Because my prologue seemed very familiar." he said, annoyed.
Scarecrow was bewildered "When I have I ever ended a protagonists entire reality just to transport the hero to a new location where all of his adventures will… take… place." Scarecrow trailed off as he saw D-Naruto raising an eyebrow at him.
Scarecrow coughed into his hand "Well… this is totally different!" he said defensively "They aren't dead in this one, like they are in NIH!"
Ichigo still wasn't letting up "So I'm not going to have to fight my best friends?"
Scarecrow looked around, trying to stall for time "Uh… well you see… "
At that moment, the universe answered his call
"This is the police, we have you surrounded! Come out with your hands up!" the sound of sirens became deafening as SWAT vans surrounded the location of several dangerous home invaders.
"Oh Crap! It's the fuzz!" Keros panicked at the sound. "Scarecrow what do we do?" he turned, only to find Scarecrow had vanished into thin air!
"Dammit Scarecrow!" D-Naruto shook his fist at the sky. But he wasn't going to go down without a fight. He headed to the front door, C-Naruto and Ichigo right behind him (Crona couldn't deal with police officers and was hiding with Fluttershy). He threw open the door, ready to fight for his freedom.
But there was nothing there. On the stoop was a stereo blaring police noises and chatter, but no actual officers were there.
"Scarecrow…" Ichigo growled as he realized they had been had.
The sound of jingle bells drifted down from the sky. The four guest (Crona had come out when the police noises had stopped) watched as a sleigh pulled by eight reindeer passed over a full moon. It was low enough that they could see the driver was none other then Scarecrow.
A tiny post card dieted down to then, and Ichigo snatched it out of the air. "Hope you all had lots of fun, but now the party's done. You all have stories to get back to, and I have to get back to making them. See you all at the next big get-together. Signed, Scarecrow. Ho-Ho-Ho."
The card glowed white, before shooting off into the sky. There, it exploded into a million falling stars that rained across the sky. All over the town, the damage caused by their party mended itself, until not a trace of destruction was left.
One by one the characters said there goodbyes, and slowly faded back to their own worlds. Sadly for Keros and Ichigo; any knowledge they'd gleaned during the party could not be taken with them. Finally, D-Naruto faded, off to fulfill his role in the latest chapter.
Scarecrow saw all this, and smiled. He loved being a writer. Turning to to reader he smiled "Hello beloved reader, how are you? I hope this special finds you well, even if you don't celebrate Christmas. If you are curious about this challenge, it is as follows:
It's the Holiday Season, and what better way then to celebrate it with the people you care about? In this challenge, your Protagonist (that's important) gather around for a Christmas Party! (or, if you don't celebrate Christmas, if can be some other type of party). There should be at least one character from each of your narratives, though if you have more that's fine. If one of your stories is not included, at least mention it in passing. What the characters do at the party is up to you, I personally recommend a sort of 'Secret Santa' thing, but that's your choice. Hijinks should ensue, but ultimately it should end on a happy, light hearted note. How you, the author interact with your characters is up to you, but there should be some interaction.
That's Christmas, for New Years...
The Antagonists of your various stories gather around for a light get together. There's not necessarily any big schemes or plans, its just then getting together to enjoy the holiday. They shoot the breeze, sharing 'almost got'ems' and the like, complaining about their adversaries; then make a toast and some New Year's Resolutions. If you chose to up the ante from there, that'd be fine too. This challenge doesn't necessarily require your author avatar to interact with the characters, though if you want to, that's cool. Again, at least one antagonist from each of your narratives, and if one is not present, they should be mentioned in passing.
If you do take up either of these challenges (and you can do both if you like), please try and post it by Christmas / New Year's Day (or Eve). Also, if you do theses challenges, please send me a response PM saying so, so that I can read it. I would also appreciate it if you mentioned where you got the challenge, so that people might find their way to mine.
If you chose not to take up either of these challenges, that's fine. It's merely meant as a little something extra and fun to do during the holidays. And whether or not you do them, I'd like to wish a you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!
"Of course, it being Christmas now, means it's a little late to be doing that challenge. However, I will still accept them as long as you post them before the new year. And you still have plenty of time to do the New Year's Challenge too! So there's that."
Scarecrow sighed, looking up at the sky. "Well folks, it's Christmas, and I have family things to go do. From the bottom of my heart, I wish you all a Merry Christmas (or Happy Holiday), and a very very Happy New Year. We've all had a lot of fun over this last year, my first year on the sight. To my fellow authors, I hope you take me up on my challenge. To my readers, I hope you at least got a chuckle out of this."
Scarecrow leaned forward and cracked the reigns, flying off into the starry sky "MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!"