Lisa walked back and forth across the bedroom she shared with her brother, which was about four steps each way even with her tiny first grader legs. Len thought the 'room' was intended to be storage, and Lisa agreed with him since it barely fit their bed. They put their clothes in the bottom drawer of their father's dresser, and other than that the siblings didn't have all that many possessions they could call theirs.

Lisa flopped onto the bed, took a few deep breaths, and then hugged a pillow. "You can do this. You can go out there and talk to Daddy and it'll be fine. It'll be fine." Her legs were shaking when she walked into the living room.

Her father was sitting on the couch watching TV. It was best not to try talking to him while a show was actually on, so Lisa climbed onto the couch next to him and waited silently with her hands folded for a good opportunity. It came a couple hours later when her father declared there to be nothing on. He didn't turn the TV off though, just settled for the crap sitcom he'd landed on.

"D-Dad? Can I ask you something?"

He let out a reluctant grunt and begrudgingly turned down the volume a little. "What do you want?"

"Um…um…tomorrow at school we're having a Winter Festival and we can, um, we're a'posed to buy presents for our families. I was w-wondering if I could please have a dollar so I can buy Lenny a Christmas present for being such a good brother. To me."

Mr. Snart let out a coarse laugh. "You think you're gonna get anything good at a dinky school Christmas table for a buck? Yeah Lisa, that'll really show your brother what you think of him, that he's cheap and stupid."

"But…but some of the kids in the other class went yesterday and they got really nice things. They had watercolor sets, a-and sticker books, and, um…" She trailed into mumbles. At least her father wasn't angry at her request for money, but the amusement wasn't making her feel much better.

"Hey, how come you're not asking for a buck to get your old man a present anyway?"

Well the answer to that one was simple. Lenny never hit her. In fact, she was pretty sure Len picked fights with their Dad on purpose sometimes, to keep him from going after Lisa when it got late and he started walking funny. Their father always got really angry when he got sleepy and started walking funny.

"I just, I just didn't wanna ask for too much."

"Well that's crap. I'm your father. I work my butt off to take care of you kids, you should be getting me the Christmas presents, not your damn brother. Where is he, anyway? Did he come home from school?"

"I-I don't know. So I can't have the dollar?" Lisa asked.

Mr. Snart snorted. "Listen Lisa, one thing you're gonna learn, a dollar's crap anyway and no one wants a cheap present. And if you want something you gotta earn it."

"Okay Daddy. Good night." Lisa scooted off the couch and ran for the bedroom since she was pretty sure she was on the verge of tears, and it was an exceptionally bad idea to cry in front of her father.

Len snuck into the bedroom awhile later with a bulge under his coat. "Hey Leese. Is something wrong?"

She wasn't crying, but she must have still looked upset. She quickly tried to force a smile onto her face.

"Dad didn't hurt you again, did he?"

"N-no," She sniffled. "I just…I just asked him for a dollar and he said no, that's all."

"Well you should'a come to me. I've got a dollar."

"Yeah, but I don't wanna take your money. I don't care about taking his."

"Well I don't care about you taking my money. What do you need a dollar for anyway?"

"Um…the, the Winter Festival at school tomorrow."

"Oh yeah, they let you first graders buy stuff there. Well Grandpa gave me ten dollars for helping him with his ice-route. I can give you five."

"Lenny no! That money's yours! You earned it."

"But I don't care about sharing it. I can get more, but you never get spending money. That's not fair either. Did Dad feed you tonight?"

"No, he forgot. I had some crackers though."

Len took off his coat, revealing the bulge to be a paper bag. He sat down on the bed next to her and took out a couple of tinfoil wrapped sandwiches and a bag of chips. "I got us tuna tonight. Lisa, you're okay. C'mon, please don't cry. He might hear you."

"I know. M'sorry Len."

"Don't be, it's okay. Don't I always look out for you?"

"Uh huh."

The siblings ate their late supper, then Len helped Lisa with her homework (skipping his own in the process), and they went to bed. Lisa intentionally didn't bring up the money again, resigning herself to skipping the Winter Festival. She'd just swipe some supplies from the art classroom and make Len a card instead.

But the next day at school, when she opened her lunchbox there was a five dollar bill with a note paperclipped to it resting on her peanut butter sandwich. She slowly sounded out the words, "B-buy suh-some…someth…something nick, no, nice. Buy something nice Lisa. Oh no." She snapped her lunchbox shut, afraid someone would see the money.

She'd never had that much money before, and it wasn't hers. People would know. They'd take it, and then Daddy would think she took it from Len and she'd be in huge trouble.

"Calm down stupid. It's a present."

"Len!" Lisa turned around and saw her brother standing there with a lunch tray. He looked exasperated. "I saw you freaking out, so I came over to tell you to stop being stupid. If you don't buy something at the Festival then I'm gonna tell Grandpa you took the Lord's name in vain."

"But I didn't!"

"Yeah, well I'll still tell him."

Lisa scowled. "You're being a bully just because I don't wanna take your money."

"Yep."

"Well as long as you noticed."

"Yeah yeah. Have fun at recess kiddo."

Lisa walked along the tables at the Winter Festival, eyeing funny animal erasers, sticker books, peppermint sticks and all sorts of nice things she usually liked getting. But this was important, she needed to find something special. And so, for the first time ever, she stepped away from the 10-50 cent table and approached the 75 cent - $1 table.

She hadn't even let herself look at such riches last year, and now she could afford anything she liked on it! She could get three presents for Len and still have money left over for herself. Still somewhat spellbound by the friendship bracelets, marble sets, watercolor paints and other goodies from the 75 cent - $1 table, Lisa wandered to the most expensive table: $2.50-$5.

Her eyes immediately rested on a porcelain cat statue. It was a cute little white cat with golden mittens and a scarf. She'd always wanted a white kitten, but there was no way her dad would let her have one. The statue was four dollars. If she got it for herself then she'd still have a whole dollar for Len.

The water color sets really were one of the better presents. All the other kids had been showing them off.

Lisa frowned, torn between getting Len a really nice present and getting something for herself. She probably wouldn't see money like this again until she was a grown up, so she had to choose carefully…

And then she saw a beautiful Christmas tree ornament. It was made of light blue glass and etched with delicate silver snowflakes. Lisa carefully picked it up and looked it over.

"Pretty, huh?" The man running the table asked. Lisa nodded without looking up.

"I've never seen something so beautiful before."

"You know what else? There's room on there for writing," The man held up a fine tipped silver pen. "I've been writing Christmas messages for kids all day."

"So you could write for Len, the very best brother ever?" Lisa asked.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Y'know most of the kids have been getting these for their mommies and daddies. They're kind of special presents."

"Lenny's special. Here. I'll take one and I want you to write my message and make it the prettiest you can."

"Okay Miss, whatever you want. With the message, it'll be five dollars for the pretty ornament."

The ornament was wrapped up in tissue paper and placed in a little cardboard box. Lisa kept it in her lap for the rest of the day, not trusting the coat room for such a fragile thing. She was twice as long walking home, stepping gingerly on the icy sidewalks, eyes on the little box, which she promptly hid under the bed when she got in.

That night when Len got home he brought hamburgers and cans of soda. They sat on the bed and ate together while their father watched a game show in the living room.

"Sorry I didn't walk you home from school. I had detention."

"Your teacher's always picking on you, huh?" Lisa observed.

"Yeah. Plus I punched Jacob Howell and knocked out one of his permanent teeth, so I kinda deserved it. But Miss Nestor's a stupid bitch. So what'd you do today?"

"I learned how to spell a big word. I can spell cousin now."

"Well that's useless. We don't have any cousins. But I meant the Winter Festival dummy. What'd you get?"

"Something pretty…"

"Uh huh. What?"

"I can't show you. It's special."

Len frowned. "I paid for it. How come I can't see it?"

"Because it's special!" Lisa snapped.

"That's real nice. You know, I think I'm a pretty good big brother to you and you can't even show me a stupid toy you got? That's cold Leese."

"It's not cold!"

"Yeah, it is. Whatever. Everything at the Festival was stupid anyway."

"It was not! For your information, there was a beautiful cat statue that I really wanted, but I had to put it back."

"So what, now I didn't give you enough money? You know something, Grandpa didn't give me ten dollars, he gave me five and I gave it all to you, and all the other money I get I use to buy us food because Dad forgets. So if the cat was so good you shoulda just bought it. I gave you all the money I had and you just wasted it, didn't you?"

"I guess I did, you stupid-head!" Lisa took their burger wrappers and went to throw them out.

"Hey, don't go out there all upset like that!" Len grabbed her arm and pulled her back into the bedroom. "And geeze, I gotta teach you how to swear. You sound like a moron."

"You said not to swear."

"Yeah, in front of Dad, Grandpa, or teachers. It's okay when we're alone. Now come on, let's do your homework and go to bed. I'm tired."

Len spent the next two days trying to trick Lisa into telling him what she got, but she managed to keep the ornament a secret. Christmas Eve finally came, marked by Mr. Snart hauling their fake tree out of the shed and leaning it against the living room wall. Len and Lisa cut out snowflakes from paper plates and decorated the tree themselves while their father watched Christmas specials.

"Alright you little leeches, let's have the hot cocoa and go to bed so Santa can come. But don't expect much. With all the trouble you've been, you're just getting coal," Mr. Snart teased.

"I've been trouble every year and I always get something," Len said with a grin. "And Leese has been good as gold. Her teachers always talk about how smart she is."

Lisa didn't say anything; even when her father seemed happy she always found it safer to smile and nod.

They had the traditional cocoa and candy cane, and then the kids went to bed where they pretended they couldn't hear their grandfather coming in with their Christmas presents, and berating their father for not having gifts for his own kids.

"Whaddya think you're getting this year?" Lisa asked.

Len shrugged. "I asked Grandpa if I could have a pocket knife like his. He said I was too young, but I think I talked him down."

"I hope we get a puppy."

"Grandpa's not getting us a dog."

"He might. Um, um, Lenny?"

"Yeah?"

Lisa crawled under their bed and grabbed the box. "Merry Christmas." She kissed his cheek and then crawled into bed to hide while he opened the present.

Len was quiet for a few minutes after he got the box open. "Leese…did you spend the whole five bucks on this?"

"M-maybe," She answered from under a pile of blankets. "I thought it was pretty."

"It is. But Lisa, you should have bought the cat statue. You didn't need to…"

Lisa crawled out from under the blankets and gave him a hug. "Merry Christmas big brother."

"Merry Christmas."

Some years later while Angie visited her most regular client for their weekly appointment, she noticed a delicate looking glass ornament on an end table in the living room. She let out a little laugh. "Lenny, it's gonna take a lot more than one little bauble to make this pit look festive. Hon? Did I say something?" His expression indicated she'd probably crossed some sort of line again. Damn. With her luck, it was the dead sister thing again. Best lay on the charm if she still wanted her tip.

She started walking over to him with what was hopefully a seductive smile, but navigating such a small, messy space in heels was too much for her. Angie's hip knocked against the end table and the little ornament tumbled towards the floor.

Angie felt her stomach drop, but luckily the ornament landed in a box of open takeout that was soft enough to keep it from breaking.

...And there was the glare. Definitely the dead sister.

"Clean that off before I have to look at you again," Len growled before stomping off for his bedroom.

"If he paid any less…" Angie scowled under her breath. But she scrubbed the ornament clean and hung it somewhere where it was in less danger of being smashed.