Merry Christmas, readers! I thought I'd do something special for the holidays. This is based on a story I never really thought of doing a version of before: A Christmas Carol. This one features Logan trying to make sure a 'Scrooge' by the name of J.T. Morgan changes for the better. This is also going to introduce a character named Kenny, who is basically a mix of two people: real life RB artist Stevie Wonder (for appearance) and South Park's Kenny McCormick (running gag). Kenny aside, Logan's tag partners in this are Juni (who's always with him in this), Soifon (Ghost of Christmas Past), Cloak (Ghost of Christmas Present), and Kiryo (Ghost of Christmas Future). The guy that gave me Nate and his crew tried to have them hog the spotlight.
DISCLAIMER 1: Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo
DISCLAIMER 2: Street Fighter is owned by Capcom
DISCLAIMER 3: A Christmas Carol was created by Charles Dickens.
A Big Leagues Christmas Carol
At St. Louis, there was snow on the ground. Lights were strung up on the shops and wreaths were hung up on the street lights. The mood was so festive that the kids were out playing in the snow. Some were even building a snowman while others were throwing snowballs at one another. The coffee shops even had their annual Peppermint Mochas on the menu. It was a good sight to see that even Kiryo, who was one of the most wound up of Logan's group, decided to have fun...at Angel and Cammy's urging, of course. It was odd, but very much welcome since they had to deal with the mysterious organization, LexCorp, and Shadaloo quite a bit lately, along with other criminals at the side.
At the downtown area, Logan and Juni were walking around getting some Christmas shopping done. While Logan had on his usual gear (hood off, of course), Juni had on a pair of white pants, an ugly Christmas sweater with Rudolph's face on the front, black snow boots, a black leather coat, green gloves, and red earmuffs. She took her time because she wanted to look good. Logan thought the look was as cute on her as it would be on Cammy or Chun-Li, which is no surprise since he hung out with and dated both of them at the same time. The prime reason that Juni wanted to go with her Assassin friend was because she was one of the only Dolls aside from Cammy to grow attached to him, the other being Decapre. Naturally, Logan was very much appreciative of the time he spent learning more about them and wished he could do the same with the other Dolls.
As they came to a department store that Juni wanted to shop at for Cammy, she grew more excited at what the two of them could get her. Naturally, they wanted to make her feel like the luckiest girl in the world, but Logan knew they couldn't leave Chun-Li out of the mix. After all, the Interpol Officer, combined with his breakup with Soifon (still a sore spot for him), was the reason they all met. They entered the store and noticed something missing. "What!?" Juni exclaimed in horror. "Where are all the ornament trees!? Where are all the wreaths!? The Christmas lights!?" Logan could tell that the girl was close to tears. "This place isn't very festive! I don't even see a snowman or a dancing Santa Claus!"
The Assassin took a double take at the name of the store. "'Benson and Morgan's Department Store'," he read. "If I had to guess, it may have something to do with the owner."
"I'm sorry, you guys," said the clerk. "But Mr. Morgan's never felt the Christmas spirit. He doesn't see the point of the Holiday season. It's so bad that store policy forbids us from even setting up a mistletoe. It's sad, but there's no one that can get it through his head that Christmas deserves to be celebrated. We even have to work on the Christmas holiday."
"It's a wonder that this place stayed open as long as it did. No one here may be able to get it through his skull, but maybe someone outside of his employment can." The clerk had a confused look on her face as Logan smiled, winked, and turned to Juni. "C'mon, Juni. Cammy and Chun-Li's gifts are going to have to wait. We've got work to do." Juni smiled, knowing Logan was up to something.
Meanwhile, a miserly old man with a perpetual scowl on his face was sitting in his office doing paperwork. He had on a 3-piece suit with his top hat and scarf on a coat rack. It was his least favorite time of year, which means that he couldn't be more different from Logan and his crew. He moved some of the papers and saw a Christmas card from a friend of his from Coast City. "Bah!" he exclaimed. "That Fumbler's getting soft." He then heard some music playing, so he grabbed his cane, hat, and scarf and went to the sales floor to see what the racket was. He got to the bottom floor and saw the customers gathered in a group. "What in the name of...?"
"...Then all at once they heard a mighty whistle blow!"
"Ground started shakin'! It even shook the mistletoe!"
"They were comin' 'round the mountain, right through the steam and smoke!"
"Pulling sixteen coaches and shoutin' 'Ho! Ho! Ho!'"
"Who needs a sleigh? Santa's Got a Choo Choo Train!"
On the makeshift stage were Logan on guitar, Juni on tambourine, and a blind friend of Logan's on the piano. The man was African-American with dreadlocks and dark clothes consisting of a sweater, leather jacket, jeans, and boots. All three of them had microphones that they were singing into and it looked like everyone was having a ball, especially the piano player despite being blind. "What in tar-nations is going on here!?" the old man asked.
"I'm going to guess that that bad vibe coming with that loud noise is the source of your problem, Logan," the blind guy said. "I'm right, aren't I?"
"Yes you are, Kenny," Logan answered. "Mr. Morgan, it's an honor that you could make it. Let me introduce our little group here. My name's Logan. This lovely young lady is my friend Juni. And this very talented piano player is my friend Kenny. I have to ask: Did you enjoy the show?"
"Bah! You're as big of a smart-alack as Tony Stark," said Mr. Morgan. "I would've enjoyed it better if it didn't happen."
"Oh my Lord, we're in a pinch. I do believe we found our Grinch," Kenny joked.
"Very funny, Dr. Seuss." Morgan then turned to Logan. "And you. I know who you are, Assassin. We're the two biggest influences in St. Louis. The Elections are a pain in the ass. We each have a candidate that we back up. I beat you and your father in the Election for Sheriff of the city, but you prove to be a bigger pain in the election for Mayor. It was only a matter of time until you and I met."
"Oh, so YOU'RE the reason why Jackson's still on the force AND a pain in my ass?" the Assassin asked, getting a chuckle from Kenny, a giggle from Juni, and a scowl from Morgan. "Okay, let's leave politics out of this. Tony, Mr. Wayne, and I have a strong distaste for them, especially since I'm trying to find a way to beat Lex Luthor at the moment."
"Your quarrels with Luthor are not my concern, boy! Now take your Christmas spirit and get out of here before I call the cops!"
"Before we go, Mr. Morgan, I have a question."
"Yeah? What is it? And make it snappy!"
"Tell me, have you ever heard the story of The Christmas Carol?"
"Yeah, I heard that story. It's nothing but a fairy tale if you ask me!" Morgan said, glaring at Logan. "What are you getting at?"
"What if I told you that I wind up curing grumps like you of Grinchitis every year? Granted, I couldn't do that last year on account of attacks from Firefly and a thug named Birdie, so my friend Sharel took that one over and it happened to be your old friend Jeremiah Fumbler."
"I am well aware about how Fumbler's softened up."
"What I'm getting at is that you very well could be visited by three spirits who represent Christmas Past, Present, and Future. They usually shape up before Christmas Future or even Present show up, but you're proving to be the biggest challenge so far. My older brother was one of them. It took Past and Present to change him."
"I'm telling you that you're full of lies today. Take your fairy tales and get out of my store!"
As the three upbeat friends left the store, Juni was trying to think of an idea for the said 'Ghosts'. Logan saw the contemplative look on her face and thought it looked cute, reminding him of Cammy. They looked around and saw Cammy approaching them. She was wearing clothing similar to Juni, but with the colors switched. "Cammy!" Juni exclaimed, giving her 'sister' a hug that the latter returned. Logan greeted Cammy with a hug and a kiss as Kenny walked away.
"Well, I'll see you guys later," the blind man said, not knowing that he was missing his walking stick. As he walked for the crosswalk, he was unaware of the oncoming car.
"Uh, Kenny, look out for that..." Logan tried to warn. It was too late, though, as the car couldn't stop quickly on an icy road. It hit Kenny into another oncoming car, which ran him over.
"Oh no! They killed Kenny!" Juni exclaimed, her and Cammy horrified at the sight.
"You bastards!" Logan exclaimed, shaking his fist at the drivers.
"That was something," Cammy said, recovering from the shock. "What were you guys doing at Morgan's anyway?"
"Christmas shopping. Only now, I've got a new patient that's sick with Grinchitis. A real Scrooge, if you will. I hate to say it since you're around, but I'm going to need a certain Soul Reaper for this."
"Wait, you don't mean..."
"Yep. Soifon."
It was later that evening when Mr. Morgan closed the store. He decided to stay there that evening because he couldn't wait for the morning. The closer it got to Christmas, the more he couldn't wait. He figured that the one good thing about the Holidays was the money they brought in. He got upstairs and put the money he had in the vault. When he shut the vault door and turned around, to his shock and anger, Logan was in his chair with Juni on his lap. "Wow," said the Assassin. "The leather in the chair feels nice, especially when you have a lovely lady like this on your lap." Juni responded with a kiss on Logan's cheek.
"Don't get me started, kid. I bet you have a different girl on your lap and in your bed each week," said the grouchy old man. "Of course, back in my day, money is what got the girls."
"It still does...at least the ones not out for love."
"Do you mind telling me what the humbug you're doing here before I call Security?"
"Um...you don't have Security, Mr. Morgan. You thought it was a waste of time and money, remember?" Juni asked.
"Just get to the point and out of my chair!" The younger two did as he said and got up so he could sit down. "Now what in Scrooge's name are you doing here?"
"I thought you didn't believe in that story," Logan said, getting a scowl from the old man. "Right. Well, you see that clock over there?"
"Yeah, that's my granddaddy's. What of it?"
"Well, I'm afraid that when that clock strikes Midnight, you're going to be in for a world of fright. You'll be visited by three ghosts. The first will take you to your miserable past; The second, to a poor family that's suffering in the present because of you; The third, to what the consequences of your actions will bring you."
"You've done this before, kid, but I done told you I've read the story. You ain't going to get me, I can promise you that."
"We'll see in about...three minutes," Juni said, Logan following up with a smirk.
"Just get the humbug out of here." After shoving Logan and Juni out, Morgan went to his wall, used his cane to hook a handle in it, and pulled it out, revealing a bed. He got in bed and put on his nightcap to try to go to sleep. Unfortunately, the clock struck at Midnight and a new one entered the room. The figure tapped him on the shoulder, but he just pulled the covers over his head. "Go away, Assassin," he said. "Don't you have a contract to take or something?"
"If I was allowed to kill you, I would," said the figure. "Now wake up, you miserly old bastard!" That got him going. He turned on a lamp and saw his new intruder. With the scowl, petite figure, twin pigtails, steel-gray eyes, and glaringly obvious Chinese descent, there was no mistaking Soifon, who had on a forest green shihakusho and red variation of her haori with a white version of her squad's kanji on it.
"Who...Who are you?"
"I'm the Ghost of Christmas Past, and if you ask me, dealing with you is a waste of anyone's time."
"You tell that to that Assassin and the little lady that's with him. I know they're still here."
"Let's focus on your past instead," she said, taking out her Zanpakuto. "Sting All Enemies to Death, Suzumebachi." The old man panicked as the sword turned into the black-and-yellow gauntlet form it was known for. She quickly stung Morgan, leaving a butterfly-shaped Homonka mark on his arm. "That's for the spell I'm about to use. It's required; Otherwise, I'd be in big trouble for using this on a living person." Soifon then began to mutter an incantation as she glowed white. She opened her eyes, revealing them to be without irises or pupils. She touched the Homonka mark with her left hand and a bright light surrounded them.
Morgan opened his eyes and saw a log cabin in the woods. He was wondering how he got there in the first place, obviously lacking knowledge about Soul Reapers. It was snowing, but the old man felt no chill. He was even further confused when some children ran right through him towards the log cabin."No worries," Soifon said. Her figure was a silhouette with only the schlera in her eyes showing. "No one can spot us. They can't feel us, so we can't feel them."
"Why did you bring me here?" he asked.
"I told you. I'm the Ghost of Christmas Past. This place should seem familiar to you. You grew up here after all." Morgan had a closer look at the setting and saw that he indeed remembered the place.
"This was the orphanage. I met my future business partner Stewart Benson here. He had dreams of a business empire in St. Louis. I never cared for Christmas that much because none of us had real families."
"Hey, Jimmy," said a young girl around eight years old. "Do you want to play in the snow?"
"No thanks, Cindy," Jimmy said. Morgan put two-and-two together and figured out that Jimmy was his younger self.
"Okay, but if you're missing out on the fun, then I guess I will too."
"She had a crush on you, didn't she?" Soifon asked the old man.
"Yeah, and I was too stupid to realize it until now." They got one last look in before Soifon fast forwarded them.
Now they were in St. Louis, showing the store in its early years. "Well, Stewart, I'd say we made a profit this year," said Morgan, who was a young adult at this time.
"Yep. Thanks for helping me out, Jim," Stewart said. "Say, the wife and I would love it if you would come over for dinner."
"Oh no. I can't. I'd just be trouble."
"Okay. Suit yourself."
"I remember this," the old man told Soifon. "That was the last time I ever saw Stewart. Poor man died young because of a gunshot wound. Damned Assassin."
"You can't blame Logan for Paul Wayne Thompson Jr's actions," Soifon scolded. "It's not fair for the son to take the heat for his father. Besides, this was in the 60s. Paul Wayne wasn't even born yet."
One last flash forward brought them to a funeral scene. "You made a promise on this one."
"I would like to say a few words to you all," said Jim. "Stewart and I were business partners and close friends. We opened a store together. It's succeeded in the time it has been opened. That is why I made a promise to look out for his family, including hiring his son Stanley when he came of age."
"When Stewart and I opened the store, I had no idea he and Cindy were married until I saw the family at the funeral," Morgan said. "I was happy for them nonetheless and was sorry for their loss. Stanley and his baby sister were just too young when Stewart was killed."
"You must've learned something from this," said Soifon. "I know I have."
"I am not about to satisfy Logan Washburn's ego!"
"Suit yourself, you old fool. That concludes this trip."
With a flash of light, the two of them were back in Morgan's office. Soifon had removed the Homonka mark from Morgan's arm. Her physical form also returned to normal, including her eyes. She even returned Suzumebachi to her sealed state. "That trip to your past was just the beginning," she said. "I suggest you change your selfish ways before you die an old grump." Soifon was about to leave, but she heard the sound of music coming from outside the office. "You might want to check that out. Some festivities are going on in your store."
That got Morgan out of his bed and out the door to see what was going on. "...O bring me some figi pudding.
O bring me some figi pudding.
O bring me some figi pudding.
And bring it 'round here."
To Morgan's surprise, Logan and Juni were joined by Nate and Sharel in singing Christmas Carols and decorating the store. Sharel decided to try her hand at art and sketch the old man's head.
"We wish you a Merry Christmas.
We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Christmas..."
"Now get the humbug out of here!" he exclaimed.
"Hey, Mr. Morgan," Logan greeted. "I thought you went to sleep."
"How can I with all this racket going on? And who are these rotten imps?"
"Imps?" Nate repeated back.
"If there's anyone here who has the least likely chance of becoming an imp, it's Juni. Sharel stalks a buddy of mine." Sharel scratched the back of her head as she nervously chuckled. "And Nate almost killed his high school bully."
"Bah! I need some fresh air. By the time I get back, this place had better get cleaned up, Assassin. And that means clearing the Christmas crap out of my store!"
"Well that's just mean!" Juni pouted as soon as he left.
"We're not really taking the decorations down, are we?" Nate asked.
"Yeah, the chances of that happening are slimmer than Homer Simpson getting more of a brain," came the sarcastic answer from the Assassin. "The day I don't bother to put up a decoration will be the day Hell freezes over."
After Morgan stepped outside to go for his walk, he looked to the sky, shook up a little from his trip to the past. 'Man, what an odd day. First that Assassin picks me for his reform project, then that girl with the pigtails somehow takes me to my past. What's next?' he thought.
"Taking it all in?" a voice asked, making the old man jump a little. He turned around and saw a young man in a trenchcoat. "It's a nice night out, but someone of your age shouldn't be out this late and in this weather."
"Thanks for the concern. I just had a lot going on in the past several minutes."
"You must've saw your life flash right before your eyes."
"Pretty much, yeah."
"Then I guess I can be your Ghost of Christmas Present. Care to join me for a walk?" Morgan figured that he had no other choice in the matter, so that's what he did. "Now, a little heads-up: I don't have the same supernatural abilities that the Ghost of Christmas Past does, so everyone can see us. That means no playing in the street and we have to watch out for muggers. Try as he might, Logan can't get them all to jail."
"We're still near the store."
"Right. You remember Kenny from yesterday, right?"
"Oh that snarky Stevie Wonder? Yeah, I remember him."
"Well he was blind. You weren't kind enough to give him back his stick and he got ran over by oncoming traffic."
"Bastards...Even I wouldn't do that."
"You essentially did. Luckily, he'll be back the next day. Moving on." Todd led Morgan further down the street to a hospital.
"What are we doing here?"
"It's a treatment facility for children. There are a few kids who have friends here. They're visiting from Coast City, just like your friend Fumbler." They entered the hospital and got the directions from the receptionist, who wasn't happy to see Morgan. It was obvious to Todd as to why. "I will let you in on this: There are some children here that aren't going to be happy to see you either."
"What did I do to them?"
"You'll find out." The two of them got to the waiting room and saw Billy, Shannon, Sarah, and Mary. All of them had a worried look on their faces until they saw Morgan.
"What's he doing here?" Mary asked.
"That's a good question," Shannon responded with scorn.
"Mr. Morgan, if you don't mind me asking, what are you doing here?" asked Sarah. Morgan, who had an idea as to why Mary and Shannon were being rude to him, looked to Todd for confirmation.
"I came here to..." he said hesitantly before getting an encouraging nod from his 'Ghost'. "I came here because I needed to retrace my own footsteps. I'd like to know what I've done to wrong you all."
"Freddie's in the hospital for a broken leg," said an angry Billy. "He got it while shopping in your store. He was trying to get a product off the shelf and fell."
"My son Issac is sick from pneumonia. All he wanted was to see all of St. Louis decorated for Christmas, but not one tree was even set up. He was upset when we found out the policy you put in place. He fell sick the next day, so we brought him here."
"Ms. Youngblood, the kids will be alright," a doctor said. "Your son Issac made a full recovery."
"That's great, Doctor. How much do I owe you?"
"Allow me, Ms. Youngblood," Morgan interrupted. "It's the least I can do, even if Freddie had no business climbing the shelves. And don't worry about paying me back. You don't owe me a thing."
"Th...Thank you, Mr. Morgan," she said. Morgan shot a kind smile and left with Todd after paying for both boys' treatments.
"You must've meant every word of that. You shocked even Shannon with your kindness."
"I just felt horrible for her little brother, that's all." Todd smirked, knowing that Logan's idea was actually working. "I better get those little whippersnappers to stay off my shelves."
Later, Todd brought Morgan to another place he was familiar with. It didn't sit that well with him. He considered not going on the property, but he saw the van that Fumbler's son owned and figured that his old friend was there too. It was a simple two-story house with a yard. "Why did you bring me here? If I wanted to visit Fumbler, I would've went to Coast City's old fools home."
"I didn't bring you here to visit Fumbler. I thought he was checking out another senior home to see if he could find some friends. A few days back, you let go of an employee who's been with you for over thirty years. He was the son of another friend of yours, one that got shot and killed. You made a promise to him that he'd be employed out of respect for his father. I don't know what happened, but you just flat-out fired the poor guy. Now, he's got no income to support his family."
"Stanley..." Morgan said. "I got real angry that I wasn't thinking straight and fired my best employee. Everyone kept asking me about Christmas and all he was doing was checking up on me. Stanley and his family must hate me now."
"Try getting that humbug out of your ass, Morgan!" exclaimed a voice. Todd and Morgan looked and saw Old Man Fumbler walking towards them. "I saw you coming from a mile away. That was wrong of you to fire my nephew like you did."
"Nephew?"
"I had no idea," said Todd.
"Lucky for you, Stanley still holds a lot of respect for you. If not for him, I would clobber you right here and now."
"I'd like to see you try you old bag o' bones!"
"Fellas, please! Don't start! It's the middle of the Christmas season!"
"Bah humbug!" Morgan exclaimed.
"I dare you to say that again, you walking corpse!" Fumbler shouted back.
"O-O-Okay, Mr. Morgan, I think we better get going. Nice seeing you again, Mr. Fumbler."
"Come visit me without that jagoff next time, will ya?"
"Go eat the cooking at the old fools home!" Morgan yelled back. "That was one visit I did not need." Todd decided not to say anything, choosing not to anger Morgan any further.
They got back to the store and found out that Logan and the others did not listen to Morgan. Instead, it was the opposite. "Oh my Lord," Morgan said with disdain. "They kept at it."
"Did you learn anything from this trip?" asked Todd.
"Yeah, that kids climb my shelves and Fumbler's still a pain in the ass...And I need to get my best employee back. Washburn is still not getting the last laugh, though."
"Figures..."
Fumbler entered the store and looked for Logan and Juni after seeing Nate and Sharel decorating the ceiling. He found them on the second floor setting up a place for kids to get their photo taken with Santa Claus. "...I don't care what Morgan says," said Logan. "If these guys want a Santa, then they're going to get a Santa. Even if we have to borrow Karin's butler."
"You're going to have to owe Karin a long night of 'fun' if you want to borrow one of her most trusted employees," Juni said, giving her friend a suggestive look.
"Yeah, well I might give her, Mika, and Ibuki the same present on the same night since they'll be in the same place. On Christmas Eve, though, if you're comfortable enough to show a bit around multiple people, you, Chun-Li, and Cammy are getting a bit of 'Christmas cheer'." This caused Juni to gain a huge blush on her face, knowing full well what he meant.
"I run a department store, not a brothel or an adult shop," Morgan said, making his way back to his office. "I'm only saying this one more time: Get the humbug out of here with your Christmas crap! And take your pillow talk with you!" As Morgan had his back turned, he hadn't seen the face that Logan made, getting Juni to barely hold in a giggle.
Back in the office, Morgan knew he wouldn't be able to get any sleep, so he sat at his desk and mulled over the events of the night. He had a feeling as to what might happen next just from these events. Still, he wouldn't let Logan get the last laugh; His pride wouldn't allow it. He was looking over some old photos of him and Stewart, including the opening of the store. Stanley's firing was getting to him, along with the Ghosts. He was zoned in on the photos that he didn't see a shadowy figure drop behind him, nore did he hear him mutter an incantation. The figure grabbed him by the shoulder and caused both of them to be swallowed by a bright light.
The next thing Morgan knew, he was stumbling in a blizzard he looked around in panic, which only increased when he saw the figure who brought him there. It was a man dressed in black boots, black cargo pants, a padded black sweater, black overcoat, and a black metal mask with the eyes darkened. The dark hair was shoulder-length, but waving around with the wind. "Who...Who are you!? Morgan asked, frightened by the man. "A...Are you my G-Ghost of Christmas Future!?"
The man nodded and pointed towards a family gathered together. It dawned on Morgan that their location was a cemetery. Though they were aged, Morgan recognized them as Stanley's family. He saw the kids-now adults- gathered around the graves belonging to their grandparents. Some were even gathered around Stewart and Cindy's graves. He even found some around Fumbler's. They got done, but as they were about to leave, Stanley's son looked behind him at a brush pile. "You know, dad always had high hopes that you'll change for the better! I did too, but you were stubborn to the very end! Until next time, old man!"
Though the wind was blowing, Morgan heard that loud and clear. After they left, he ran towards the brush pile. He cleared the brushes and saw his fears confirmed. The headstone read:
"HERE LIES
JAMESON T. MORGAN
STUBBORN TO
THE END"
Now he felt frightened. He now knew where he was headed. "So this is it, huh?" he asked. "Is there nothing I can do to avoid this?"
"Change," a voice said. He saw the figure standing behind.
"Please show me how! I want to know!" The figure didn't say anything, only turning around and disappearing in the winds.
A flash of light later found Morgan back at his office. He breathed a sigh of relief and felt like new life was back in his soul. Without the use of his cane, he ran into the store and saw, to newfound delight, that it was fully decorated. He ran and found his former rival and his friends. "What's going on in here?" he asked in excitement. Sharel mistook it for frustration. "What are we still doing here? We've got work to do!"
"Ooooookay," Sharel said, confused as to what was going on before leaning into Logan's ear. "What's wrong with him?"
"Nothing's wrong with him," said Logan.
"He just found the Christmas spirit, Sharel," Nate pointed out. "Given the personality he had when we met him, looking at him now, he may seem like he had some spiked eggnog, but he's perfectly fine."
"Must be some strong stuff."
"Logan my boy, I don't know how you pulled that plan of yours off, but I feel like a new man!" Morgan exclaimed in excitement. "C'mon, you slowpokes! Let's get busy! I'll even get that Santa Claus folks have been asking for! I also better call Stanley and tell him he's welcome to come back if he wants."
Later, the store was looking festive as Morgan oversaw the whole thing. Stanley, as his assistant, showed the increase in sales to his boss. Morgan pointed out that he was just happy to feel the Christmas spirit. "I see a good future for your store, Morgan," Logan said. He saw that the Santa they got was a very charitable motorcycle rider.
"It took a bit, but now I feel much better," said the old man. "If being an old grouch could kill a man, I'd be dead a long time ago."
"I'm just glad there's a such thing as Christmas miracles. We need more of them in this day and age."
"Amen to that." Logan went and rejoined Juni, the two of them leaving to get back home. "Attention everyone!" Morgan called out, getting everyone's attention. "As you know, I used to be a curmudgeonly old grump. I went through a doozy of a nightmare last night that turned into a wake-up call. If not for a Christmas miracle, I'd probably die an old grump. So I'm going to change for the better. From now on, on National Holidays, we can have the days off, just like my old friend, the late Stewart Bensonn would've wanted!" Everyone cheered in happiness as Morgan smiled.
Up on the rooftops, Logan and Juni were joined by the 'Ghosts'. Christmas Future pulled off his mask, revealing himself to be Kiryo. "Merry Christmas, Morgan," Logan said.
THE END
Okay, that took a year longer than I had hoped. I hope Christmas Future wasn't too short, but every iteration of A Christmas Carol always had a short version of that. Also, I kept Todd visible because he has no ininvisibility powers whatsoever...plus, out of the Ghosts, he's the one who knows Fumbler the best. I also wanted to use Fumbler, so it fit. Anyway, hope y'all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.