IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME, KIDDIES! And that means I get to do what I do best - write Christmas fanfics! Hooray!

So this takes place umm... I think about a year-ish in the future. Funny story, I actually wrote this story last January, but I didn't wanna post it since it was already after Christmas, heh heh. SO I waited till this December and now the time has come at last! ...Though I haven't re-read or edited this since then, so I probably forget what happens at all... hahaha. Oh well, I remember loving it, so we'll just go with it for now!

Also as a side note, this is the longest chapter by far, so don't worry about the others being this terrifying length. There's 6 chapters total, and the next-longest one was only 11 pages in Word (whereas this one was 20... haha). I'll probably post them ever three or four days, so I end up posting the last one right before Christmas.

(Oh, and don't think this means I'm quitting on House of Cards. The next chapter of it is about half-written, and since this is already done it won't take my time away!)

Happy Christmastime, everybody!


"It's Christmas! It's Christmas!"

Liz groggily opened one eye as the sound of her sister's excited shouts penetrated the otherwise complete early morning silence inside her bedroom walls.

Christmas…? she thought as she sat up, rubbing the last remnants of sleep from her tired eyes. She glanced at the clock beside her bed, on which the shorter hand was stopped somewhere near the eight and the longer hand near the two. Wow… She let me sleep in this year.

With a long, disgruntled sigh, Liz got out of bed and threw on some clothes, the sounds of her sister thumping happily down the stairs ringing in her ears. As she made her bed and left the room, she couldn't help but feel her spirits dropping with each passing second. Christmas had always been Liz's least favorite holiday, maybe even her least favorite day of the year altogether, for a number of reasons she tried not to remind herself of. But no matter how much she always wished she could simply sleep through the day, each year she would be forced awake, usually at the crack of dawn, by her sister Patty, who loved Christmas just as much as the next kid and would be damned if she'd let her only older sister miss such a grand event, much to said sister's dismay. So of course, today was no different.

"Merry Christmas, sis!" Patty exclaimed happily as Liz entered the living room where she was sitting, sorting through the myriad of brightly-colored, perfectly wrapped gifts huddled under the enormous Christmas tree. "Look at all the presents! Guess ya can't beat Christmas in a fancy mansion, huh?" She laughed her overly-loud laugh through a grin of utter excitement, to which Liz forced a smile and a half-hearted reply.

"Where's Kid?" Liz asked her sister, trying to at least momentarily change the subject. Their meister always got up at exactly eight o'clock every morning, so she knew he had to be around somewhere. She also knew that while far from disliking Christmas, he at least was nowhere near as enthusiastic about it as Patty, and would therefore prove less depressing company for the cynical older sister.

Patty threw an arm out behind her, pointing to the kitchen door, as she continued to examine her gifts. "He's in there, makin' breakfast." Without another word, Liz headed for the kitchen door and pushed it open to find Kid inside, just as Patty had said. He was standing at the counter, his back to her, stirring sugar into a steaming cup of coffee. Hearing the sudden entrance, he turned around to greet her.

"Morning, Liz," he offered simply. After a very brief pause, he added a careful "Merry Christmas."

"Yeah," Liz replied shortly, plopping into a seat at the square table in the center of the room. Kid and Patty both knew how she disliked the holidays, but while Patty spent her time trying to make her sister see the joy of Christmas, Kid always seemed to accept her feelings and try only not to make her more angry and uncomfortable. For this, Liz felt she should be grateful, and maybe after the day was over she would be.

Just then a clicking noise sounded as four pieces of freshly-cooked toast popped out of the silver toaster behind Kid. "Want some toast?" he asked as he turned around and lifted the bread from the toaster.

"Sure," Liz answered, stifling a yawn. "Strawberry jam, please," she continued, answering his next question before he asked it.

Roughly thirty-five minutes later, as Kid finally handed Liz her now-cold slice of toast (after he insisted on making sure the jam was evenly spread across every inch of the surface), Patty suddenly burst through the kitchen door, wearing an expression that was clearly supposed to be a pout but that came off somewhat comical because of the stifled enthusiasm on her face.

"Come on, guys, present time!" she whined, grabbing each of their hands and dragging them both back into the living room, where she promptly forced them onto the couch and plopped herself back down amid the assortment of gifts. "So… Who should go first?" she asked rhetorically, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Well, it's Kid's house, so…" She turned her eyes to him, as if offering to let him start, though the gleam in them clearly displayed that that wasn't her true intention.

After a short pause, Kid leaned back on the couch, closing his eyes. "No, you go ahead, Patty," he said with a sigh.

"Wheeee! Thanks, Kid!" Patty exclaimed happily, before grabbing the first box addressed to her and tearing it open.

Just under an hour later, they had just about finished unwrapping, and as a result the living room was littered with colored wrapping paper, shiny ribbons, and expertly-tied bows, not to mention the contents of the previously-wrapped boxes now strewn about. As Liz opened her final gift, a movie soundtrack that she'd had her eye on from Patty, Kid stood up and addressed the two of them.

"Now that we're done with that, I've got one more gift for each of you." With that, he turned and left the room, headed for the foyer. The sisters exchanged a glance, wondering what it could be, but before either could say a word he was back, carrying two boxes with identical paper and bows, though one was considerably larger than the other. It looked like it was paining him to carry a different-sized box in each hand, and Patty giggled at the sight as he handed her the larger of the two, which was about three square feet in size. Liz's was smaller, about a foot tall and two-thirds as wide. "My father suggested I get you each something… different," he continued as they tore into the packages. Liz knew he was referring to the way that lately, both the sisters and Lord Death had been trying their hardest to cure Kid of his 'problem.' Most of the other gifts he'd gotten them had been the same for each sister, which was nice but at the same time may not have been best for them. "So I had these made with each of you in mind. My father thinks it's progress, but I still feel that—"

A squeal from Patty drowned out whatever it was Kid had been about to say, as she finally finished freeing her new gift. Inside the box was a dollhouse version of the Academy, a perfect replica including doors that really opened and lights that flickered on and off. Inside were figures of them and most of their friends, including some of the teachers. Patty beamed at Kid and squealed again, before setting to explore it more closely.

Turning her eyes to her own gift, Liz opened the box and lifted out of it a snow globe about the size of her head, inside of which was a tiny model of all of Death City. She shook it absently, making snow swirl up around the buildings she was now so used to. When it caught the light, however, she noticed that each of those buildings was decorated with Christmas lights and bows, a testament to the holiday she so hated to be reminded of. She looked away with a huff and a depressed glance that didn't go unnoticed by her meister.

"What's wrong," he asked, an almost unnoticeable twinge of sadness in his voice, "you don't like it?"

Liz looked up at him. "It's not that…" she offered lamely, though she couldn't think of anything else to say. In truth, it was a very beautiful gift, something just about any other girl would fall completely in love with. But then again, 'any other girl' probably didn't feel like crawling back into bed at the mention of the holidays.

Much to Patty's disappointment, Kid quickly shooed them upstairs with all their gifts after that, saying he needed to clean up the mess before calling his father. Back in the safety of her bedroom, Liz tossed all her new possessions into a corner and dropped down onto her bed, staring at the ceiling. She hated to make Kid think she didn't appreciate such a great gift, especially when Patty's blatant love for her gift made any reaction Liz could possibly give pale in comparison already. He was always so good to both of them. It was because of him, after all, that Patty could spend Christmas in such a beautiful house, rather than on the icy streets of Brooklyn like they had for so many years. And Liz knew she should at least be thankful for that, if nothing else. After all, she loved her sister dearly, and would give anything for her happiness. But around this season, she found it increasingly difficult to think of anyone's happiness, let alone her own. She knew it was selfish, but she couldn't help it. Patty didn't remember, after all… And it wasn't something Liz wanted to tell her sister about, or anyone for that matter.

A knock on her door soon woke Liz out of her self-pitying reverie. "Sis?" Patty called, opening the door as Liz sat up on her bed. "We're goin' to visit Maka and Soul. Wanna come?"

After a moment's thought, Liz shrugged, standing up. "Sure," she answered shortly, grabbing a jacket and pair of boots and following Patty downstairs. It might be good to get outside, be distracted by the cold and snow. Plus, Soul wasn't too big on the whole Christmas thing either (if for different reasons than her), so there was a good chance their place wouldn't be as lavishly decorated as Kid's mansion, which would be a welcome change.

Less than ten minutes later, all three of the house's occupants were dressed in their winter wear and ready to head out into the snow. Not three seconds after opening the doors, however, the sisters found their paths obstructed by each of Kid's arms, which he'd flung out to stop them as he first turned his eyes outside. Stepping sideways to see around her meister (whose height had grown a few inches over the past year so that he was now barely an inch shorter than her), Liz noticed immediately exactly what it was that had caught his attention.

The vast front lawn of their home had overnight been covered in a light sheet of perfectly white snow, which now sat completely smooth and untouched over the frozen grass beneath it. Patty breathed a slow "Woooooow" as they looked out over the pearly snow glittering in the late morning sun.

"Look at that snow!" Kid began, stars in his eyes as he stood stock-still, blocking their path. "I've never seen something so beautiful in my life! The way it lies so closely with the gentle slope of the hill, the perfection with which it's brushed so evenly across the ground, hiding any impurities in the grass. There's no way we're going to walk on it and create a mess of uneven footprints."

Liz huffed, hands on her hips. "Well, what do you expect us to do, jump over the entire lawn to the street?" she said sarcastically. "Let me just get a running start."

"Of course not, Liz, don't be silly," he replied.

Right, she couldn't help but think. Like I'm the one being silly.

No sooner had she finished this thought than Kid's magical skateboard, Beelzebub, appeared at his side. He lowered his arms just a little, holding a hand out to each of the sisters.

"Yay!" Patty squealed as she took one of her meister's hands and transformed into her weapon form. The younger Thompson sister loved flying, and didn't seem to mind that the cold in the air would surely be amplified at the speeds at which they usually travelled.

Kid turned his head to look at the remaining sister. "Liz?"

Liz sighed, shaking her head. "Yeah, yeah," she replied dully as she too took his outstretched hand and changed to her weapon form.

Both weapons safely in his grip, Kid jumped onto the skateboard and took off over the snowy lawn, still marveling at its apparent magnificence. Liz had been right in thinking that it would no doubt be much colder flying through the winter air than walking. The cold metal of her pistol form only made things worse, and she was instantly missing the furry coat and boots she'd been wearing back on the doorstep. She could feel Patty's excitement and Kid's contentment as the icy wind whipped by them, chilling Liz to the bone.

A short moment later, and to Liz's great relief, they touched ground again, the sisters reverting back to human form. They were now standing on the city sidewalk, which had been shoveled and was now snow-free.

"Awww, no more flying?" Patty confirmed in a disappointed voice.

Kid shot a short, discreet glance in Liz's direction, before turning and starting forward on foot. "We walk from here," he answered shortly. Liz wondered briefly whether or not he had sensed her discomfort in the air and that was why they'd landed. Ordinarily she would've thanked him, but her mood was already so sour she didn't want to open her mouth and risk snapping at anyone before warming up a little.

As they walked past all the dark, closed shops and warm, brightly-lit homes, Patty wishing a Merry Christmas to anyone who passed by them, Liz kept her hands shoved in her pockets and followed along sullenly, not speaking much. Trudging along behind the others, she noticed that Kid seemed a bit distracted. He kept looking sideways down alleyways and into dark windows, as if searching for something. But it seemed he didn't care to tell them what it was, so she didn't ask. She just walked begrudgingly along, glaring at her feet as they kicked up slush on the damp sidewalk.

"You know, it's really not that cold out," Kid offered finally in a slightly reprimanding tone, when he had fallen into step next to Liz and a little behind Patty. "It also helps not to think about it."

"Yeah, well, you're a grim reaper," Liz replied almost monotonously. "You're body's different than mine."

"True," he admitted, "but look at Patty. She's managing just fine." Indeed, Patty seemed to notice the cold the least out of the three of them, as she skipped on ahead, a permanent grin plastered on her flushed face.

Liz looked down toward the ground. "She's got that unnatural 'holiday cheer' of hers to keep her warm."

Kid fixed her with a pointed look, raising his eyebrows as if to say that was exactly his point. Liz glared back at him.

"What?" she snapped. "Like I should try getting into the season and suddenly all my problems will go away? Right. Great advice, Kid."

Kid shrugged and held up his hands defensively. "I'm just suggesting—"

"Well, don't," she cut him off bitterly, and he fell silent. "I just wanna get through this day as quickly and painlessly as possible."

Now, of course, because everything in the world was constantly out to make her life a living hell, it was at that exact moment that Patty stopped in her tracks, her eyes going wide.

"Oooooh," she crooned, pointing to something across the street. "Look!"

Following Patty's gaze, Liz saw what looked like the only open shop for miles, its lights on and a sign on the door reading 'Come in'. It was a small building, looking somewhat squashed between the two apartment buildings on either side of it. It had a low roof and a small red awning over a single door, the only window covered with a burgundy shawl from the inside. A dusty sign above the awning read Madam Avea, Mystic Seer in curly faded-gold lettering. The shop looked old, but had a sort of strange allure to it all the same, like a box you're told not to look inside because it holds a great secret.

"A fortune teller!" Patty marveled, her grin widening. She turned to Kid with pleading eyes. "Can we go?"

"I don't know, Patty," he replied slowly, squinting his eyes at the little shop, an apprehensive look on his face. "People like that are usually just frauds trying to cheat innocent people out of their money. It's probably ridiculously over-priced."

"Yeah, let's just get going," Liz chimed in. Though some part of her was inexplicably drawn to the place, it wasn't a big enough desire to overturn her foul mood.

"Aww, come on," the younger sister continued, jumping up and down. She grabbed Kid's arm and yanked on it, nearly knocking him over. "Pleeeeease?"

"Okay, okay," he gave in after she continued to pull on his sleeve. He shook her off and straightened his jacket. "Just for a little." Patty cheered and led the way across the street as Liz groaned and trudged along behind, realizing neither she nor Kid really had much final say in the matter at all.

For how ordinary the outside of the fortune teller's shop had looked, the inside was far from it. The front room they walked into was very dimly-lit, so much so that Liz had to wait for her eyes to adjust properly before she could take a good look around. There were a few tea lamps scattered about, but each had thin, burgundy shawls draped over them, casting the room in a deep reddish glow. Larger shawls of similar reds and browns were hanging askew in odd places on the walls as well, almost giving the impression that a child had stuck them up carelessly and they had stayed there since (Liz saw Kid cringe at the sight, but he bit his bottom lip to keep from saying anything and stayed where he stood). A particularly ugly curtain decorated with a pattern that looked something like tree bark hung loosely over a doorway in the back left of the room, leading to who-knows-where. There were musty old armchairs in the corners of the room, and a single round table in the center, around which were set the two largest seats. There must have been incense burning somewhere, given the pungent smell of smoky perfume drifting in the air. Immediately upon entering, Liz could feel her mind become somewhat clouded, as if she'd just been thinking of something important but could no longer remember what it was (though admittedly, it didn't matter much, as she was too busy being pleased to notice that the room was decidedly void of Christmas decorations).

As the door closed behind them, blocking out the cold, the tree-bark curtain was pushed aside to reveal an old woman with long, auburn hair and a wrinkled face. She was a few inches shorter than Patty, as she walked slightly hunched over. She had numerous shawls draped over her small frame, their colors matching those of the ones on the walls and the layering giving her a feathered appearance, and a multitude of gold bangles shook around her wrists. A chain hung from her neck, on which was attached a gold watch the size of a fist. Her chestnut eyes were large and wide, and they gave Liz the haunting feeling that they could see into her thoughts. Altogether she resembled an old owl, wise and all-seeing.

"Uh… Hi," Kid said awkwardly, taking an uncertain step forward. The woman—Liz assumed she was Avea—didn't reply. She only smiled at them all as she seated herself in one of the high-backed chairs around the small table. After a moment's beat, she held out a hand, indicating the other chair.

"I'll go first!" Patty said happily, seating herself down (though it wasn't as though either of the other two were quite as eager as she was in the first place). She took hold of Avea's outstretched hand and both closed their eyes. Liz watched in silence, waiting for Avea to say something or begin whatever it was she was going to do, but as the seconds turned to minutes, still nothing happened, as both her sister and the fortune teller remained seated perfectly still and perfectly quiet.

After a moment, it was as though someone had pressed play again. Patty opened her eyes, grinned, and stood, giving Avea a slight bow. She looked like she was fighting hard to keep quiet, as she grabbed Kid by the shoulders and shoved him into the chair she had just vacated, Liz watching in complete confusion. It hadn't looked as though Avea had done anything, and yet Patty seemed perfectly happy with the silent exchange they'd just witnessed. As Kid slowly took the fortune teller's hand, that same look of apprehension never leaving his face, Liz felt her curiosity rising, almost causing her to forget whatever had had her so depressed before entering the small shop. And before she knew it, Kid was rising from the chair, looking thoroughly confused (which wasn't a look she often saw on his face). He looked at Avea almost suspiciously for a brief second, before seeming to decide against whatever he'd thought of saying and instead turning and stepping away from the table. Patty looked over at Liz, and she took it to mean it was finally her turn.

Liz could feel the old woman's round, piercing eyes on her as she sat down in the cushy, high-backed chair. In closer proximity, she was able to get a good look at Avea's hands, which were wrinkled with age. On almost every finger was a small golden ring, and her fingernails were over an inch long and pointed, giving the impression of talons. Quite reluctantly, Liz took the fortune teller's outstretched hand, waiting for something to happen. When Avea closed her eyes, Liz followed suit and slowly did the same.

It's rare to meet such an unpleasant aura on Christmas Day, you know.

Liz must have jumped a mile high at the sound of the old woman's voice speaking in her mind. She cracked an eye open to see if she had been tricked in some way.

You haven't misheard, the voice said again, though Liz noticed Avea's lips didn't move, but stayed closed and stationary forming the smallest of smiles. This is how I do my Seeing.

You can… Liz felt silly having a conversation with someone by thought alone, but what else was she to do? You can read minds?

The woman chuckled, and Liz felt slightly embarrassed. In a manner of speaking, yes, came the reply. And not often have I met a mind as closed off as yours, especially on Christmas.

Why is Christmas all everyone ever talks about? Liz complained, all discomfort of her current situation having gone. Why is it so great anyway? Nothing good's ever happened to me on Christmas. What reason do I have to be all cheery?

It seems you haven't quite realized the meaning behind the Christmas season. Liz could almost hear the frown in the old woman's voice. It's truly a special time, and it only comes once a year, you know—

Good thing, Liz couldn't help but interject. Or I'd have all the more reason to be miserable.

There was a short pause, during which Liz began to feel extremely self-conscious. I see, Avea's voice said finally. So you really have closed your eyes to what truly matters. Well, let me give you some advice, rather than a fortune reading, alright? Liz didn't answer. Frankly, she didn't care what this woman said anymore, and really she just wanted to leave this place. As I've said, Christmas is a wonderful day that only comes once a year, once every three hundred and sixty-five days. You say you would be more miserable if it occurred more frequently, but really that is only because you fail to see what's so great about it. So this year, maybe all you need to do is open your eyes a little. You may be surprised at what you See.

Liz felt the old woman's hand slip away from hers, and looked up to see her wide, chestnut eyes watching her, a gentle smile on her wrinkled face.

As Liz stood, Kid made to pay Avea for her services, but she shook her head silently, pulling a small, wooden sign out from under the table and holding it up to them with a friendly smile. It read 'Merry Christmas' in dusty, gold lettering.

Patty beamed at the woman and Kid cracked a small smile. "Thanks," he offered as Liz pulled open the door. "Merry Christmas."

The rest of the walk to Maka and Soul's apartment was relatively uneventful. Patty couldn't resist discussing what she and Avea had talked about in her mind (evidently the woman had told Patty that she had an extremely pleasant aura, and would no doubt bring happiness to many other people that day), and tried hard to get the other two to spill the beans as well. After much prodding, Kid would only give up that they had talked a bit about his father, and a task he'd been set to do. But other than that, he was adamantly silent. Liz, of course, would say absolutely nothing on the subject.

When they reached their destination and knocked on the door, they were answered with a muffled 'Come in' from beyond it, at which Patty twisted the doorknob and led the way inside, Liz bringing up the rear. Upon entering the main room of the small apartment, Liz's earlier hopes of a relatively Christmas-free visit were instantly dashed.

If she'd thought their house was over-decorated, then Soul and Maka's place could very well have been Santa's workshop at the North Pole on Christmas Eve. 'Over-decorated' wasn't even an adequate term to describe the state the apartment was in. Sparkling garland wrapped in twinkling lights hung from every window, table, and bookcase, as well as the mantle and the corners where the walls met the ceiling. The walls were all but covered in intricate paper snowflakes, no two the same (in true snowflake fashion). Nutcrackers of every shape and size were placed strategically around the room: three on the mantle, two on the coffee table, one on each of the shelves in the bookcase, and two on the TV stand. Small figurines of Santas, snowmen, figure skaters, and tiny boxes wrapped with bows decorated the bookshelves and TV stand, and three candles—two red and one white—sat burning atop the mantle, their wax dripping into golden bowls lined with holly and berries. The couch had been packed with what looked like over thirty stuffed toys, which featured bears, snowmen, penguins, puppies, Santa Claus himself, and a whole mess of similar animals wearing red scarves or green vests to show their festive side. The fattest Christmas tree Liz had ever seen was stuffed into the corner opposite the bookcase, and its branches were weighed down heavily with tinsel, pinecones, garlands, gingerbread, strung popcorn, and blinking lights of at least six different colors. All in all, it looked as though a megastore selling Christmas decorations had simply dumped all of its wares in through the roof.

"Woooooow," Patty breathed, taking a few steps into the room to get a good look at everything. Liz huffed and shook her head, wishing she'd decided to stay home after all.

"Yeah, I know," came a bodiless voice, which made them all jump and look around. It took Liz a moment to realize it had come from Soul, who was in fact sitting half-hidden among the multitude of stuffed toys on the sofa. Now that she'd seen him, she couldn't help but think it was actually a rather funny sight. "Maka and Blair went a little crazy with the decorations this year…"

"I can see that," Kid stated simply, and Liz could tell he and Patty were trying not to laugh (Kid managing it better than Patty, who had her hand over her mouth to suppress her giggles) as Soul fought himself away from the stuffed toys—some of which fell onto the floor at the disturbance—and came over to greet them.

"Where's Maka?" Liz asked half-heartedly, not seeing the scythe meister in the room, buried under stuffed toys or otherwise.

Soul looked at her, seeming slightly taken aback by her very obvious melancholy, before answering, "She's changing clothes. Said she wanted to be ready early, but I think she just wants to show off her new dress." He rolled his eyes as if to say 'Must be a girl thing.'

Just then Blair came bouncing into the room, dressed in a very short and revealing Santa costume, complete with a red hat, which had holes cut for her furry cat ears. She was carrying a tray full to bursting with all kinds of Christmas sweets, a wide grin plastered on her face.

"Who wants cookiiiiieeees?" she crooned with a wink, holding up the tray. Patty squealed and rushed to meet her, stuffing a handful of sugar cookies into her mouth. The next twenty minutes or so were spent in pleasant conversation (for most of the participating party anyway). Blair kept trying to stuff sweets into the mouths of Kid and Soul, both of whom tried their hardest to shove her off, while Patty happily indulged herself in the remainder of the tray. Liz sat mostly in silence, refusing to look around for fear of catching glimpses of the numerous decorations (though admittedly that left her little to look at), only speaking when someone addressed her directly—and even then her answers were typically quite short and snappish.

"Ta-da!" came a sudden voice from across the room, making them all look up. Maka had just entered from the hallway leading to the kitchen and bedrooms, and she was wearing what Liz presumed to be the 'new dress' Soul had mentioned earlier. It was almost knee length, made of a soft, forest green cotton. The sleeves reached halfway down her upper arms, and the bust of the dress was gathered into a shiny black belt that sat just below her chest, the skirt hanging loosely below it. It was the perfect dress for Maka, modest but cute at the same time. "My dad got something right for once," she said happily, turning around so they could see it from every angle. It was then she noticed Kid, Liz, and Patty, and she beamed at them. "Hey, guys! Merry Christmas!"

"You look so pretty!" Patty told Maka, who grinned at the compliment.

"Yeah," Soul agreed, an impressed smile on his face. "It looks great on you."

Maka blushed slightly, before frowning at him. "You're not wearing that to Christmas dinner, are you?" she challenged him in a warning tone.

He looked down at the white shirt and black jeans he was wearing. "I was planning to, yes," he answered shortly.

"I think he looks fine!" Blair piped up, pressing against Soul from behind and hanging her arms around his neck. He shook her off awkwardly and Maka ignored her completely.

"I don't think so, mister," she said, striding forward and grabbing his arm, before proceeding to drag him back toward the hallway. "We'll call Black Star and be at your place around seven," she called to Kid, Liz, and Patty as they disappeared around the corner. "See you guys later!"

"Uh-oh," Liz said aloud, a thought hitting her at Maka's last statement. "That only leaves us six hours to get ready."

"What's wrong?" Blair asked as she picked up the now empty cookie tray. "That's plenty of time to cook dinner."

Liz fixed the cat with a wry smile. "Maybe for someone who doesn't live with this idiot." She jabbed a finger over her shoulder toward Kid, who looked up, seeming to take minor offense at this statement.

"Last year we started around 2:30," Patty chimed in. "And by eight o'clock all we had cooked were mashed potatoes and cranberries."

"Kid was never satisfied with the way the turkey was cooked, and had to keep putting it in the oven for longer, insisting that one side was slightly less done than the other. By the time it was equally cooked, the whole thing was burnt the same shade of black." Liz shook her head at the memory. "We ended up eating the potatoes, cranberries, and cold cereal."

"Plus, this time, we're cooking for seven." Patty held up seven fingers as if to emphasize this fact. "So we'll have to be extra careful."

Blair gave them both confused looks as they hurriedly said goodbye and each grabbed one of Kid's arms and rushed him out the door, as he attempted to justify that he would never want to serve anything less than completely perfect for such an important meal, else it be a complete disgrace to his name.

They flew back to the mansion in order to save time (much to Liz's displeasure). On the way, the sisters could sense that same distracted feeling in their meister, who kept glancing this way and that, as if watching out for something. He was definitely on edge about something, though when Patty asked him about it he brushed it off as nothing, so they didn't bring it up again.

Not long after reaching the house, they were all in the kitchen, making different preparations. Patty was peeling potatoes, Liz was cutting up celery, and Kid was examining the turkey with a curved ruler.

"Kid, what are you doing?" Liz finally asked in an exasperated voice.

"Well," he began without looking up from his work, "you, Maka, Soul, and Black Star prefer white meat while Patty, Tsubaki, and I prefer dark, which means that the ratio of white to dark meat should be exactly four to three in order to make sure that everyone present gets precisely equal portions."

Liz sighed. "Long as this doesn't turn into another fiasco like last year…"

"Liz, you know how I feel about—" He stopped short as he turned to face her. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" he yelled so suddenly it made both sisters jump in surprise.

Liz looked down at her work. "What does it look like?" she answered irritably. "I'm chopping celery."

"This is all wrong!" Kid began, rushing over and pushing her out of the way, picking up the knife. "Look at this! Every single one of these pieces is cut a different size! How can we possibly eat this?" He then proceeded to measure and re-cut all the celery slices Liz had already done. As she watched him, Patty giggling silently behind her, Liz couldn't help but think that this very well might be the second meal of cold toast she'd have that day, and silently hoped that the others wouldn't hold it against them.

A few hours later, a knock on the door sounded just as the trio finished setting the table, announcing the arrival of Black Star and Tsubaki. Black Star had clearly attempted to dress up somewhat for the occasion (likely not without some prodding from his weapon partner); he was wearing a pair of white pants and a slightly wrinkled black dress shirt, which he had neglected to tuck in. His white tie was tied loosely around his neck. He wore his usual starred boots under the pant legs, and his usual cocky grin on his face. Tsubaki, in contrast, looked very nice in a simple black, ankle-length dress, a shining gold ribbon in her hair. She was smiling almost apologetically as Kid opened the door to let them in.

"…Wait," Kid said suddenly, staring at Black Star's shoes. "You didn't walk through the snow, did you?" he asked in an accusatory tone—there was snow covering his shoes and pant legs.

"Well, duh," Black Star replied, as if Kid had asked him if the sky was blue. "How'd you expect us to get here, fly?" He laughed loudly, hands on his hips. Liz put a hand over her face. Here we go…

Tsubaki offered a smile and shrugged, her hands together. "Sorry, Kid," she said, speaking over Black Star.

To Liz's surprise, Kid let the subject drop and stepped aside, allowing the two on the doorstep entrance to the house (Tsubaki made sure Black Star stomped the snow off his feet before stepping inside). "That's okay," he said, though it sounded more like he was trying to convince himself of this fact rather than reassure Tsubaki. "It's Christmas. Let's just… forget about it." Liz noticed that he closed the door without looking outside.

"So what's for dinner?" Black Star asked, rubbing his hands together and shaking off the cold. "I'm starving!"

"Black Star, you ate two hours ago," Tsubaki said carefully, handing their coats to Patty, who rushed to hang them in the closet.

"Ha!" Black Star laughed, as if Tsubaki had said something extremely stupid. "Come on, Tsubaki. You know a man needs six meals a day to survive, especially a man as big as me." He jabbed his chest with his thumb as Tsubaki shook her head, a sympathetic smile in place.

"Well, I hope you're not too hungry…" Liz interjected sardonically, leading the way to the dining room and opening the door to reveal the fully-set table, which had a very eclectic assortment of foods arranged on it.

There were two bowls of mashed potatoes, one bowl of corn, a plate of whole apples and carrot sticks, very thinly sliced bread with sides of jam, butter, and marmalade, a tray of honey-roasted peanuts, individual-sized iced carrot cakes, and string cheese. All in all, it looked like a table of entirely appetizers, or a giant, separated trail mix.

"What the hell is all this?" Black Star asked incredulously after a moment of silence.

Liz flinched a bit, the memories of the last few hours of cooking all flooding back to her, before answering, "Dinner."

Before Black Star could reply, Kid shook his head, saying, "I know it's terrible, it's a disgrace. The turkey was so improperly portioned, and I just couldn't get the vegetables sliced evenly. We tried cooking beans, but they filled out to different consistencies every time. The casserole was too crispy on one end and too soft on the other, it took me over an hour just to get that bread sliced to a satisfactory level, the crust on the apple pie just wouldn't even out, the cookies looked more like ellipses than circles—"

Liz turned to Tsubaki for help, sliding her hand over her throat and glancing meaningfully at Kid, who continued to point out every imperfection he'd come across in the last few hours ("—there were thirty-seven sesame seeds on one of the dinner rolls. Thirty-seven!"). As Black Star opened his mouth to complain, Tsubaki instantly covered it with her hand and jabbed him in the back.

"It looks perfect, Kid!" she insisted through a forced smile. "We can't wait to eat it! Right, Black Star?" She jabbed him in the back again and he nodded, glaring at the 'feast' before him.

Maka and Soul (whom his meister had apparently forced into a pair of black pants and a deep red dress shirt) arrived shortly afterward, and they all set down to eat. Dinner was a quiet affair for a while, Tsubaki ensuring that Black Star kept quiet and everyone else either too wary or disappointed to say anything to their hosts. Patty was eating just as enthusiastically as ever, determined to try and keep the mood light, but Liz felt it really didn't help much. Occasionally Maka or Tsubaki would attempt to start a conversation, but it never quite got anywhere. The only moderately successful attempt happened after about half an hour, though the resulting events were likely not what anyone had had in mind.

"This is nice, isn't it?" the scythe meister began, glancing around the table. "All of us here together on Christmas; lately we haven't gotten to hang out much… Even though this isn't really—"

Everyone jumped when Kid suddenly slammed down his silverware and hung his head. "This is all my fault! If it wasn't for my inability to make anything perfect, we'd have a real dinner right now! Maybe we should've just ordered out for pizza or something…"

"Don't say that, Kid," Patty tried, setting her fork down and patting her meister on the shoulder. "It's not your fault. And this isn't so bad anyway! Besides, whenever we order pizza you just complain about the sauce or the cheese being too thick or too thin." She laughed quite loudly, unaware that her attempt to cheer Kid up had in fact had the opposite effect, instead making him groan and drop his head to the table. Liz shook her head just as Patty banged her fist on the table, accidentally landing it on the end of her spoon and flinging a rather large spoonful of mashed potatoes across the table, where it collided with the side of Black Star's face.

Whatever Liz had been about to say vanished from her mind as Black Star dropped the slice of bread he'd been about to put in his mouth and wiped the mashed potatoes from his face, an annoyed look in his eyes. Uh-oh… Liz couldn't help but think as he looked up the table toward where the flying potatoes had come from. Patty sat very straight, mouth shut tightly, and pointed her finger toward Soul, who was sitting next to her and hadn't noticed what happened. Liz glared at Black Star. He's not gonna…

No sooner had this thought formed itself than Black Star stood up on his chair, slammed his right foot on the table, and pointed his index finger at Soul, who looked up with a very confused expression. Liz slapped her hand to her forehead. He's gonna.

"Hey! Soul!" Black Star called, Tsubaki whispering at him to get off the table and sit down. "You wanna start a fight with me? Me? Well you're on!" He bent down and picked up a handful of mashed potatoes off his plate.

"Black Star, don't!" Tsubaki hissed, reaching out to stop him.

Soul glared at him. "What are you talking—?" Before he could finish his sentence, Black Star raised his arm and flung the potatoes toward his new opponent. Soul stopped short and ducked, which turned out to be a mistake as the potatoes instead hit Maka full in the face. Soul began to laugh, but cut off abruptly as his meister wiped the potatoes off her face, revealing a look of terrifying, icy anger beneath them.

"Oh, no!" Tsubaki gasped, her hands over her mouth. "Maka, I'm so sorry! He didn't mean to—"

"That's enough!" Liz shouted, but it didn't seem like anyone was listening. Great, she thought. This is just what I need…

Maka stood up slowly, glaring daggers at Black Star, who seemed to be retreating somewhat under her gaze.

"W-What?" he challenged her feebly. "Y-You wanna fight? Well… bring it on…!" His grin faltered a bit as she threw down her napkin. She picked up a very buttery knife in one hand and a carrot cake in the other, stood still for a second, then screamed and charged at Black Star, who bolted for the other side of the table.

Tsubaki stood up and made toward the two, attempting to calm her meister, but as soon as she'd taken one step she was pelted with a barrage of peanuts which Maka had dodged, knocking her back into her seat. Patty started laughing again and stood up as well, picking up the bowl of marmalade. Recognizing the mischievous gleam in her sister's gaze, Liz's eyes widened. "Patty, no!"

Too late. "FOOD FIGHT!" Patty screamed, before chucking a fistful of marmalade at the closest person. It slammed into the back of Soul's head, and he turned to face her, an expression similar to hers on his face. He grabbed the bowl of corn next to his plate and rushed at Patty, who shrieked and ran in the other direction. As Patty ran behind Liz's chair, Liz tried to reach out and grab her, but instead her arm was hit with a slice of buttery bread. She retracted it instantly, turning to Kid, who still sat with his head down at the head of the table.

"Kid! Do something!" Liz shouted, grabbing his shoulder. He only shook his head and didn't look up.

"This is a disaster!" Kid complained, his voice muffled so that Liz had to strain to hear him. "A fiasco! A tragedy! How could I let something like this happen? I'm a failure! I'm not even worthy to serve Christmas dinner to anyone… I should just crawl in a hole and stay there until next Christmas…"

Liz was far too thoroughly annoyed with the whole situation to even try and cheer him up. As far as she was concerned, this really was all his fault to begin with. If he hadn't been so difficult when they were trying to cook dinner earlier, they would've had a nice, normal feast and everyone would've been happy, instead of chasing each other with butter knives, flinging mashed potatoes, and ducking and swerving around flying condiments. As a handful of peanuts collided painfully with her left arm, she was suddenly reminded most unwillingly of that Christmas eleven years ago, back when she first started to hate the holidays.

Completely fed up, Liz stood up so fast her chair fell over. No one noticed, of course, as they were all preoccupied with the escalating food fight. In a huff she turned and stormed out of the dining room, stopping once she was safe in the foyer. She leaned against a wall, the sounds of people yelling penetrating the walls and reverberating in the tall entrance hall. She didn't want to think about it now, she wouldn't allow herself to. It didn't matter, she'd told herself many times. It was so long ago, how could it? And yet, to this day, she was never able to thoroughly enjoy Christmas because the memory still made her blood boil.

Her brooding thoughts were cut short when the dining room doors flung open to reveal Black Star, who appeared to be running for his life. Maka was hot on his heels, an evil glare in her eyes and a carrot cake in each hand as she chased him out the front door and into the yard. Not far behind was Tsubaki, still calling for Black Star to apologize and stop this. Before Liz could decide whether to follow them or go hide upstairs, Soul burst through the doors, a look of terror on his face. Liz's puzzled look was answered in the form of Patty rushing through the doorway behind him, a knife in one hand and a bowl of butter in the other, a wicked grin in place as she cackled insanely.

Uh-oh… Liz thought, slapping a hand to her forehead for the second time that night. This won't end well…

Again, before she could make the decision whether or not to leave the foyer, a great rumble sounded from just outside the front doors, making the floor shake. Curious, and somewhat worried, Liz headed straight for the entrance doors, which were still wide open. Upon reaching the front steps, she saw Soul standing a few feet in front of her, Patty on his back and the bowl of butter upside-down on his head. Maka had apparently tackled Black Star, who was lying on the ground—Maka on top of him—with his face covered in icing. But none of them were moving. They were all looking around for the source of the sound.

Not three seconds later, there was a loud crack and the ground to their left near the street split open a few feet, and out of the resulting hole crawled what looked like a giant, mechanical dragon. Its long neck and back had foot-long, metal spikes protruding from it, and its tail was covered in ones twice as long. Great, jointed wings were folded against its sides, and its head was swinging back and forth menacingly, steel glinting in the moonlight. Its eyes were a glowing, piercing red, and it kept opening and closing its mouth, smoke rings protruding from it with each motion. Most of her anger instantly vanished, and Liz froze to the spot. It was the most terrifying thing she'd ever laid eyes on.

"Kids, eh?" a seemingly bodiless voice said, and it took Liz a moment of shock to realize it had come from the humanoid creature on the beast's back. It looked like a man, but something was different. He had an overly-large mouth, with two-inch fangs for teeth that dripped with saliva. His eyes were opened very wide, as if he were either trying to see all around himself or pop them right out of his head. His hands were rested on what looked like a control panel, which must have been how he was controlling the dragon beneath him. He licked his fangs in anticipation as he looked them all over hungrily. "Looks like a Christmas feast for me! I'll be taking all your souls tonight!" He laughed maniacally as the dragon let out a fiery roar into the sky.

"A kishin egg?" Maka said, standing up. "Here?"

"Tsubaki!" Black Star yelled to his partner, jumping to his feet and turning to her, a determined look on his face.

"Right!" she replied obediently, before jumping into the air and shifting into her weapon form. Her meister caught her reflexively and ran straight for the mechanical monster.

"Be careful!" Maka shouted in an almost exasperated voice. "Watch out for all those spikes!"

"As if I need told that!" Black Star scoffed as he narrowly dodged a swipe from the beast's deadly tail. Without being told, Soul dropped Patty—who landed on her feet and took a few steps out of the way—and ran to Maka, grabbing her hand and changing to his scythe form so she too could join the fight. Patty turned toward her sister, who was still standing frozen just outside the door.

"Go get Kid!" Patty yelled, but Liz didn't move. She couldn't move. All she could do was watch as the monster swung every inch of its spiked body at her friends. After a second of silence, Patty grunted and ran into the house, shooting a look between worry and anxiety at her sister as she passed.

Where did this thing come from? Why was it here? Why now? On the one day that Liz really just wanted to spend in peace and quiet and let pass as fast and uneventfully as possible? She knew it was part of their job, but maybe it was too much to hope for that at least today they be able to have a day off. The Academy hadn't had as much trouble with kishin eggs since the defeat of the kishin Asura three months ago, but the occasional one did of course always slip through. It seemed this was unfortunately another of those times.

About a minute later, Patty burst back through the doorway, Kid in tow.

"So this is it…" Kid muttered absently, his depression from earlier having completely faded, to be replaced with his usual determination. Liz glanced at him, about to ask what he meant, but he gave her no time. "Liz, Patty, transform."

Weapons in hand, Kid ran forward, joining the battle. As they fought, Liz couldn't help but notice that nothing they did seemed to have any effect. Soul's and Tsubaki's blades only clanged against the steel of the dragon, occasionally leaving small scratches but nothing of major consequence. Liz and Patty's gunfire only bounced off, which did more hindrance than help as it resulted in Maka and Black Star having to dodge the resulting ricochet. Even Black Star's soul wave attack had little effect. Of course, it didn't help that everyone was still at odds because of the dinner, particularly Maka and Black Star, who kept yelling at each other and getting in the other's way. Another disadvantage was Liz's lingering and ever-present fear. Though she felt somewhat safer in the hand of her meister than standing in the snow, it wasn't enough to demolish her fear completely, and the strength of her shots and the trio's resonance rate were suffering because of it. The only plus was that the dragon's size made localized attacks difficult for it, and they had managed to keep dodging with not too much difficulty. Though as fatigue began to take them, it was unclear for how long it would stay that way.

"Out of my way!" Black Star yelled, shouldering Maka aside as he ran in for an attack, Tsubaki's enchanted sword mode grasped tightly in his hands.

"Hey!" Maka shouted back, panting heavily. "Watch it, Black Star! You're gonna get someone hurt!"

"Only this monster!" He jumped high and swung Tsubaki down, only to hear her clang on the surface of the dragon's side once again. They noticed, however, as he landed in the snow, that it had left a considerably larger scratch than any previous attack. "That's what I'm sayin'!" Black Star cheered, grinning.

"Don't be so cocky!" Maka scolded him, her grip on Soul tightening. "And watch out or you'll get hit!" Why can't they just shut up? Liz wondered, her head starting to ache from the bickering.

Black Star turned around. "How many times do I gotta tell ya, Maka? This thing's nothing compared to me! Look!" He turned to point to the dent he'd made in its side, just as it swung its raised claw down toward him, slamming into him from the side and sending him flying with a pained yell a few yards backward into the snow.

"I told you!" Maka said, though she didn't sound happy. She ran forward and jumped onto its still raised claw, using it as leverage to reach the head, from which she leapt forward and aimed an attack at the man on top, whose eyes widened further (which Liz didn't think was possible) before he hastily pulled a lever, swinging the head violently to the right. Maka lost her balance and was flung from the beast, landing in a heap in the snow below.

"You kids are starting to get on my nerves," the man complained. "Way too much trouble. I'll go find some weak townspeople, they'll be a much easier feast than you lot."

"Wait!" Kid shouted, rushing forward as the dragon leapt back into the hole it had come from. Just as Kid reached the crater, a whooshing sound swept by and just like that, the hole was gone. Kid growled in defeat, before letting go of Liz and Patty, who were back in human form before they hit the ground. All three turned and headed back for the others.

Soul was on his feet, helping Maka stand. She looked tired, and had quite a few bruises. Her dress was a bit torn, and she had a slight limp in her left leg, which Liz guessed was from that last fall. Tsubaki was kneeling next to Black Star, who was still sitting on the ground, his teeth gritted tightly and his hand clutched firmly over his upper right arm, beads of sweat running down his face. His shirt sleeve was torn beyond belief, and there was a two-inch-wide gash running the length of his entire arm, blood gushing out from it. The snow around him had been stained dark red; Liz's eyes widened at the sight.

Maka walked over to him, looking concerned. "Hey, are you—?"

"This is your fault," he said through clenched teeth, squeezing his eyes shut as Tsubaki helped him stand. "If you hadn't been yelling stupid things at me back then, I would've seen that attack coming."

"Are you kidding me?" Maka scoffed angrily, all worry gone from her voice. "You're the one who just stood there marveling at your fantastic attack. If you'd been smart and gotten outta there right away, he wouldn't have been able to reach you in the first place!"

"Whatever," Black Star retorted. "You're just too small to admit you were getting in my way. I get it."

"What? I was in your way? What is wrong with you?"

Soul put his hand on Maka's shoulder and tried to pull her away. "Maka, come on, let's go—"

"You're infuriating!" she shouted at Black Star, moving to shake off her partner but swinging her arm with a bit too much force and elbowing him quite hard in the face as a result. He yelled and backed up a few steps, a hand over his mouth. Maka didn't even notice as he spit a mouthful of blood and a broken tooth into the snow. Instead, Patty ran over to make sure he was alright (he flinched momentarily at her touch, still recalling her attack on him earlier at dinner) as Liz watched the entire exchange, feeling a bizarre mixture of concern, anger, and annoyance.

"Infuriating? Me?" Black Star said, taking a step forward while Tsubaki tried to get him to back away.

"You think you're so big, so powerful, so invincible and always free of fault! Like you're better than all of us!" Maka went on, her face flushing in anger. "Well you know what? If you don't need us, then let's just stop being a team right now!"

Kid looked alarmed at this proposition. "Maka, wait, don't go saying—"

"Fine by me," Black Star grunted over Kid, who offered a disbelieving "Huh?" in reply.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, before Maka stood up straight, turned on her heel and started to march off. "Come on, Soul, let's get outta here." She stopped when she saw him. "What happened to you?"

Soul raised his eyebrows. "What—? You—"

"Never mind, just come on," Maka cut him off, grabbing his arm and leading him forcefully toward the street.

"Hey!" Kid yelled, trying to get her attention. "This is stupid! Come on! Maka!" But she didn't turn back.

Black Star stared after her with a stony expression, wincing every few seconds. "Whatever," he said again. "Let her go. Like I care."

Kid rounded on him, glare in place. "I don't understand you two. You're gonna let some stupid, pointless fight break up our team?"

"Just stay out of it, Kid," Black Star replied icily. "You seemed to be good at that earlier." Kid stared at Black Star, at a loss for words.

Tsubaki took the time now to step forward and bow slightly to Kid. "I'm sorry, Kid, but I really need to get Black Star to the hospital." Black Star protested that he was alright and didn't need a bunch of doctors fussing over him, but no one was listening to him anymore.

"Yeah," Kid answered vaguely, not looking at her. "Right."

Tsubaki forced an awkward smile before leading the still fighting Black Star away from the house, through the uneven, dirty, bloody snow that had just that morning been so perfect and white. It didn't feel at all like Christmas anymore, and Liz wasn't sure if she was thankful for that or not. In a way, she'd gotten her wish, and everyone else was just as bitter as she was on Christmas and didn't seem to want to acknowledge its existence. She supposed she should have felt something about the scene she'd just witnessed and hadn't taken any part in, but for whatever reason she felt… nothing. Not sadness, regret, or even anger or annoyance. Just… nothing.

Patty looked downtrodden, her eyes filled with silent tears as they went inside and locked the front door. Kid still had a look of disbelief as he retreated into the dining room—presumably to clean up the mess—and closed the doors behind him. But as she climbed the stairs to take a shower and get to bed, Liz's face was expressionless. She knew she should've felt something about their team's apparent disbanding, and maybe if it had been any other day and she hadn't been so angry with every single one of them beforehand, she would have. But right there, right then, she just didn't care.

After a long shower of washing mashed potatoes and marmalade out of her hair, Liz crawled thankfully into bed and glanced at the clock beside her, noticing it was around eleven o'clock. Ugh… Still Christmas… she thought, turning her back to her bedside table. After everything that had happened that day, all she wanted was for Christmas to be over. It didn't matter what happened in the morning, as long as it wasn't Christmas, Liz felt she'd be able to handle it. Maybe this fight would blow over eventually, too. All she cared about right then was sleep, and the prospect of December 26th.

Little did she know that Christmas wasn't going to let her go that easily.


Yeesh, what a sucky Christmas, huh? Liz is such a Scrooge... haha. But wait! It gets better! I'll get Chapter 2 up in a few days, kay?

Till then!

-oMM