"Eames, are you sure about those gifts?" Arthur asked as he turned the key to shut off the car engine.

"Come on Arthur, it's a 'build your own dinosaur park Lego set'; what more would a four year old boy want? And a Barbie dream house with one of those Barbies where you can cut her hair for Phillipa," reassured Eames as he opened the back-seat door of the five seater to retrieve the presents.

"Fine, fine. Lets go in, we're already twenty minutes late," said Arthur before ringing the doorbell to Cobb's residential house.

They were greeted with with a clatter of footsteps and screaming voices hurrying daddy to open the door. When the door was finally opened, James and Phillipa were less shy of their good manners in saying: hello, Christmas greetings and thank yous before running off with their presents.

"Remember not to open the presents still tomorrow morning!" Cobb shouted after them before turning back to Arthur and Eames. "So, thanks for coming. Yusuf and Ariadne are in the living room watching something festive and the eggnog is on the table- do not add more rum," warned Cobb pointing at Eames after a manly hug.

"Now why would I do that?" Eames retorted and took his step past Cobb into the house and hugged Ariadne. Arthur gave a hefty laugh and walked in after Cobb, after all there were still gingerbread cookies to bake and stuffing to prepare.

It was only four in the afternoon and all hell broke loose at Cobb's kitchen as five adults and two children were trying to make a Christmas dinner happen in two hours. Ariadne was teaching James how to sieve flour slowly so that the flour does not end up on the counter, Eames and Phillipa were making gingerbread cookies into different shapes giggling like mad, Yusuf was making more eggnog while Cobb and Arthur were cutting the potatoes and ham to go with the roast turkey.

"James, no you can't just flip the sieve over, not all the flour has been sieved. Now look at all the flour on my jumper-"

"Do you guys think there's enough egg, it seems a bit watery to me-"

"...Yeah, Phillipa's adjusting to first grade pretty well, I do have some sort of a problem in telling her what I do for a living, businessman's all I've been saying. Well I do wear a suit- Ow, fuck- stupid knife-"

"Uncle Eames! Uncle Eames! Look at this cookie, its in a shape of a star and and this one is daddy, you can see it is him because his eyes are very very small-"

Above all this relatively peaceful celebration was Bing Crosby's voice drifting through the Bose player into the kitchen, interrupted by Cobb's tiny knife wound on his finger. It was only a small cut really, nonetheless it caused Arthur to quickly wash his hands and get the antiseptic, cotton ball and bandage from the first aid kit.

"Arthur, its just a cut, not bullet wound," commented Cobb as he pointed his finger up towards the celling in the middle of the kitchen table.

Arthur glared before putting on a latex glove and cleaned the wound with the cotton ball.

"If this gets infected; don't come running to me for help."

Before Cobb could say anything, Phillipa and James hurrying over to see what was going on.

"Daddy! Daddy! Are you okay?"

"Does it hurt?"

"Can I see? Can I see?"

"Lemme kiss it better!"

"James," halted Arthur, "That is very unhygienic, germs might transfer from you saliva to your daddy's wound."

Poor James looked up with eyes like he was about to cry but was saved by Eames swooping him up into an embrace.

"Come on love, don't cry," comforted Eames, "Uncle Arthur's only being careful because he doesn't want your daddy to get worse. He doesn't mean to be angry, do you Arthur?"

All eyes were on Arthur.

"I'm sorry James, I didn't mean to make you sad," said Arthur. James sniffed and looked at Arthur who smiled. "You can kiss it better after I put a bandage on, okay?"

"Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise."

Arthur stuck out his pinky to shake with James'.

"Um, can I have my finger back please?" Cobb asked quietly giving his finger a wiggle as it was held between Arthur's thumb and forefinger.

Ariadne only laughed before putting the gingerbread cookies into the oven and joined Yusuf back in front of the TV with a glass of eggnog. Two seconds later a thud was heard from the living room.

"HEY GUYS," should Ariadne, "I THINK I FOUND COBB'S OLD PHOTO ALBUMS."

Needless to say everyone ran out of the kitchen to living room but Arthur tending to Cobb's finger.

"STOP GOING THROUGH MY STUFF." Cobb shouted back.

"STOP MOVING," commanded Arthur.