A/N: So, this episode is kind of a filler. No major conflicts involved, but there's a good amount of characterization and it's pretty entertaining in my opinon. XDD Enjoy!

Episode 2: An Intimate Gathering

Anna shifted uncomfortably as she sat on the bleachers, grimacing as the cold hard metal pushed against her tailbone. She wasn't used to sitting on bleachers, but she wanted to see the game and didn't want to seem like a weakling, so she kept it to herself. Her cousin Rapunzel sat next to her, looking at something on her phone and paying no attention to Anna. Anna, meanwhile, searched the crowd, trying to find some trace of the rest of her friends so they could all sit together.

"I hope MK makes it here ok," Anna said, frowning with concern. "She might get lost."

"Don't worry about her, Anna," Rapunzel reassured her. "She probably ran into Jack and Oncie on their way here. You know them-they just seem to have an inner homing device when it comes to girls."

Anna giggled at this, but continued to search frantically for her friends. A few rows away, she noticed a familiar head full of floppy blond hair. Anna beamed with delight. "Kristoff!" she called, waving him over.

Kristoff turned at the sound of his name, and smiled widely when he saw Anna. Waving as he walked over, Kristoff quickly engulfed his girlfriend into a big hug. "Hey," he said softly, kissing Anna's head tenderly. "How are you?"

"I'm alright," Anna giggled. She sat back down on the bleachers and Kristoff sat next to her. "What about you?"

The older boy shrugged. "Oh, same old same old." He paused and glanced behind Anna. "Hi, Rapunzel."

Rapunzel waved at him sweetly and Kristoff turned back to Anna. "This is smaller than your normal group of friends," he said to her. "Where is everyone?"

"Oh they're coming," Anna replied. "We have this whole bleacher reserved for them."

Kristoff gave a low whistle at the row of empty seats that Anna had indicated. He leaned back in his seat thoughtfully. "Must be nice to have so many friends," he mumbled.

Anna crossed her arms and grinned at her boyfriend. "Kristoff, I told you: if you're lonely, you can always come hang out with us."

Kristoff smiled gratefully at her. "Thanks, Anna, but you know me. I'm not naturally good at socializing with people like you are..."

"That's ok, sweetie," Anna cooed. "You can do whatever you want. I was just saying, you know." She leaned over to kiss Kristoff's cheek, but before she could she felt a long wooden object hit her on the head. Anna winced in pain, them glared up at Jack, who was standing a row above her, holding up his large staff and grinning. "What was that for, Jack?" she snapped.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Uh, that was for making us all wait by the entrance for like half an hour while you were here having a love fest with your boyfriend," he explained. "...and Rapunzel, apparently."

"Hey!" Rapunzel piped up. "I was not involved in that."

Surprised, Anna looked behind the snickering Jack and noticed that all the rest of her friends were standing behind him, all with annoyed looks on their faces as they started to take their seats. "Y-you guys were waiting for us?" Anna asked sheepishly. "I'm so sorry, oh my gosh! We were here waiting for you!"

"Hey, it's fine," Once-ler said as he plopped down in the seat behind Anna. "We're here now...but you're lucky we were able to find you in this huge crowd."

"Homing device," Rapunzel murmured, making her cousin giggle. Spotting MK at the end of the bleachers, Anna eagerly waved her over and made some room between herself and Rapunzel.

MK sat down next to Anna. "Wow, this stadium is so crowded," she observed. "I mean, I know football is popular, but I had no idea there would be this many people, especially all the girls."

"Girls?" Anna rolled her eyes. "Oh, most of them don't care about football. They're just here for the quarterback." Anna nodded out to the field where Hans was getting ready to take his position.

MK grimaced. "Ugh," she groaned. "It'll be hard for me to cheer on the team now."

Anna bit her lip as she suddenly remembered what had happened between Hans and MK. "Hey, don't worry about him," she quickly assured her. "I usually just cheer for the team in general."

MK just nodded.

Anna attempted to change the subject. "By the way, have you met Kristoff?" She quickly turned to her boyfriend and grabbed his hand. "Kristoff, this is MK. MK, Kristoff."

"Hi," Kristoff said shyly, waving to Anna's new friend.

MK grinned back. "Hey, so you're Kristoff? It's nice to finally meet you. Anna talks about you all the time."

Kristoff seemed surprised. "She does?"

"Of course I do, silly!" Anna giggled as she nudged Kristoff. "But I'm not annoying about it or anything. I'm not annoying, right, MK?"

MK playfully raised an eyebrow. "Wellll..."

Kristoff chuckled into his hand as Anna gaped. MK just laughed and held out her hands. "I'm just joking," she said. "I'm kidding. Don't take me seriously."

Anna pouted a little but continued smiling. "Dangit, MK..."

MK just giggled.

Anna stuck her tongue out at her before her stomach growled. She quickly stood up. "Well, anyway, I'm going to go get some snacks. You guys just stay here and talk, be friendly...but not itoo/i friendly." She playfully nudged Kristoff and hurried off to a nearby snack bar.

MK and Kristoff just sat there awkwardly, not saying anything to each other. Kristoff bit his lip. "She, uh..." He pointed to the empty space between himself and MK. "She does this a lot."

"Yeah, so I've heard."

The game soon started and everyone had to stop their conversations. Anna's school's team was able to score several touchdowns, but in the second quarter, the opponents began to make a comeback.

"Woooooo! Go Astrid!" Merida cheered, pointing down at the small but agile figure on the field. "That's Astrid making all the touchdowns down there!"

"Ok, that's nice!" Jack retorted, annoyed. "Just sit down and quit cheering for the other team!"

"I'm not!"

But despite Astrid's efforts, the opponents lost, and the home team ran victoriously off the field to the cheers of everyone in the school. Anna had to hold on to Kristoff and Rapunzel's hands in order to avoid getting lost in the crowd, but somehow they were all able to get out of the stadium without being separated.

"Victory!" Jack cried when they were outside, raising his staff in the air. The others cheered. "We should do something to celebrate."

At this, Hiccup looked up from the book in his hands. "Wait, did we win?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Hiccup, if you're just gonna be reading the whole time, why do you even bother coming to games?"

"You force me to come."

Suddenly Merida perked up and started waving at someone in the distance. "Astrid!" She called out. "Over here!"

Astrid was on her way to the girls locker room, when she spotted her redheaded friend and walked over. Her helmet was off now, revealing a small pretty face with thick blond hair and aquamarine eyes. "Hey, Merida!" She greeted with a smile. "Did you see me?"

"Sure did!" Merida replied. "Ye had me scared fer a while, lass! I thought our team would lose because of ya!"

Astrid laughed and Jack walked over to her, leaning cockily on his staff. "Yeah, but we still won, though," the boy piped up, making Astrid roll her eyes.

"Laugh it up," Astrid snapped, poking Jack's chest. "We'll get you next time. Don't underestimate me just because I'm a girl."

Jack snickered. "You should tell that to Hiccup," he said, nodding in his friend's direction. "He doesn't think that girls should be on a football team."

Hiccup stared up in horror. "Jack! That's not what I said!"

But at this point Astrid was already nose to nose with him. "Then what did you say, huh?" She asked him cooly. "Tell me, I can take it."

Hiccup gulped and took a few steps backward as his friends giggled a little. "I just said...that it was surprising...most schools don't like having girls on their team, and..."

"Like your school?"

"No...yes...No! Dammit, Jack!" The others laughed at him, and Hiccup glared. "Why do you guys do this to me?" He turned back to Astrid, who was also laughing, and tried to fix up his mistake. "You play good. Your school is great."

"Well, thanks, runt." Astrid replied. She gave Hiccup a light punch on the shoulder, making him wince in pain, and grinned. "I'll forgive you for whatever you really said...this time." The other kids giggled again, and Astrid turned back to the locker room. "Anyway, I have to go," she informed them. "See you all later."

"Wow, sassy," Rapunzel murmured, nudging Hiccup with her elbow. "She should totally be part of your Sass Squad."

Hiccup rolled his eyes.

When Astrid was gone, Jack turned to his friends once more. "Alright, like I was saying before," he began. "In honor of our victory, I'm hosting an intimate gathering at my place, and-"

"Did you just say 'intimate gathering at my place'?" Once-ler interrupted with a frown.

"Yeah, I said that."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, man. 'Party at my place' is so cliche."

"See Jack, this is why you can't be as cool as me."

Jack ignored him."7:00 PM, my place," he snapped. "You are all required to come. No exceptions."

Anna snickered as her friends started to groan. "Are you going?" She asked Rapunzel.

"Yeah," Rapunzel replied. "It's been a while since I went to an intimate gathering." She giggled. "Maybe I'll bring Eugene."

"Yeah! I was thinking of bringing Elsa too. Hold on..." She pulled out her phone and sent a text to her sister.

Hey Elsa, Jack's having an "intimate gathering" at his place 2nite. Wanna come with me? Everyone's going.

Sorry, came Elsa's reply. Have a lot of homework tonight. Can Rapunzel take you?

...Yeah, I guess so...but are you sure you don't wanna come? It's been a while...

Sorry, Anna...

Anna sighed and put her phone away. "Hey Rapunzel, can I have a ride?"

"Elsa's not coming?" her cousin asked with a frown.

"Nah, you know Elsa. She's just being...herself."

Anna glanced out the window as Rapunzel pulled up in front of Jack's house. For a moment she thought they were the first ones to arrive, but then she noticed Once-ler talking to Jack on the front porch. Of course he would be here first. Once-ler and Jack had been best friends for years.

The two girls stepped out of the car and walked up to the porch, waving. Once-ler waved back at them and Jack frowned. "You're late," the white-haired boy said.

"What?" Anna replied, confused. "You said 7, right?"

"Yeah, and it's 7:02 right now!"

"Oh give it a rest, Jack."

Jack grinned. "Hey, where's Eugene?" he asked Rapunzel. "I thought you said you'd bring him here."

"Oh, yeah, he couldn't come," Rapunzel said, looking down. "He has a whole bunch of homework he needs to finish up..."

"Aw, man! That's what he says every time!" Jack groaned. "Rapunzel, are you sure he's not cheating on you or something?"

Rapunzel tensed up a little, but shrugged it off and smiled. "No Jack, don't be ridiculous. Eugene would never do that."

"Are you sure?" Once-ler smirked. "I mean, he is in college. You know what guys do in college."

Jack and Anna laughed, not noticing that Rapunzel was glaring at them fiercely. "Stop it, you guys." she snapped. "Let's go inside already." She pushed past them and into Jack's house. Anna followed her, a little concerned about Rapunzel's tone.

The boys didn't seem to notice it. "Uh oh, she's denying it," Jack teased as he closed the door behind them."It must be true. Better watch out Rapun-"

"I said stop it!" Rapunzel suddenly screamed. "What part of that do you not understand?! "

The room was silent.

"Eugene just...isn't here, ok?" Rapunzel continued, still upset. "That doesn't mean he's off messing around, so stop saying that!" She paused, trying to compose herself, as the others stared back at her with their mouths agape. Rapunzel was unfazed. "Now are we going to have an intimate gathering or what?!" she huffed, and turned to plop herself down on a nearby sofa. She didn't look at the others.

Jack, Once-ler and Anna just stood their looking at their feet and glancing nervously at each other, feeling extremely guilty. "R-Rapunzel..." Once-ler began. "We were just kidding, you know...I mean we know that's not what's really going on."

"Yeah," Jack added quickly. "I mean, we know Eugene. He's too cool to do something like that. The only reason we can joke about it is cause we know it won't happen, right?"

Rapunzel did not look up. "Well, stop it." She said, much quieter this time. "I don't want you to joke about that."

Anna sat down next to her cousin. "Punzie, we're really sorry." She soothed. "We wouldn't have done it if we knew you would get so upset..."

At this Rapunzel looked back up at her, and Anna noticed a hint of tears in her eyes. "Y-you don't understand Anna..." The brunette said quietly. "It's not just you guys. Ever since Eugene went off to college, it's been the same thing. Everyone's coming up to me going like, 'College guys cheat!'" Rapunzel raised the pitch of her voice slightly so as to mock her teasers. "'Eugene's cheating!' 'Hes cheating!' 'Cheat cheat cheating!' I hate it!"

Anna patted Rapunzel's back softly. "Don't worry Rapunzel. We won't do it again. Right guys?" Anna looked over at the boys, who nodded earnestly.

"Yeah, we just won't talk about it anymore," Jack said. He suddenly paused for a moment, then perked up. "Hey, I know something that will cheer you up." He grinned over at Anna and Rapunzel. "There's someone who's been dying to see you two for the longest time."

Anna was confused, until she spotted two small pairs of eyes peaking out at her from behind a wall. She grinned widely. "Emma! Sophie!" She squealed.

Hearing the sound of Anna calling their names, Jack's two little sisters jumped out joyfully from behind the wall. "Anna and Rapunzel!" they called, running into the older girls' arms.

Rapunzel wiped away her tears and scooped Sophie up into her arms. "Oooooh, I've missed you so much!" She cooed. "Look at how much you've grown!"

While the girls were occupied, Jack and Once-ler plopped down on a couch, relieved that the drama was over. "Crisis averted," Once-ler said. "Nice job bringing your sisters out."

"Yeah man, I swear, I was just joking, I was not expecting her to blow up like that." said Jack. He scoffed quietly. "Women...so dramatic. But hey, at least now they're occupied until the others show up..."

"Where is everyone, anyway?"

"Late as usual. You just can't trust

people to be punctual these days."

Once-ler rolled his eyes at Jack, and as if on cue the doorbell rang. Jack got up to open the door, and Merida, Hiccup, and Norma flooded into the house.

"Why is yer house always so cold?" Merida snapped after the initial greetings. She zipped up her sweater and glared at Jack, who just shrugged.

"So you all came together," Jack observed. "Is that why you're so late?"

"Aye, I had to pick up Hiccup an' Norma on the way. And we're not that late, Jack, it's only been ten minutes."

"Where do you want us to put the housewarming gifts?" Norma asked suddenly, holding out a box.

Jack frowned with confusion and took the box from her. "Housewarming gifts?" He asked. "You guys have been here a million times, why are you just now bringing me a housewarming gi-" He was cut off when he lifted the top off the box and a bunch of rubber snakes flew in his face, causing everyone to laugh.

"Real funny," Jack muttered. "I'll get you back for that later."

At that moment, Sophie jumped off Anna's lap and ran over to the three newcomers. "Can I have a present too?"

"Sure Sophie," replied Norma. "We'll get you a nicer present next time."

"Where's Jamie?" asked Hiccup, who wasn't holding a book for once.

"He's upstairs," Jack replied. "On the computer, probably. I might call him down later."

"So wait, all your siblings are going to hang out with us?"

"Yeah, Hic. This is a family-friendly gathering. What did you think was going to happen?"

"So we're not going to play Truth or Dare?" Once-ler cut in. "I was looking forward to that."

"Oh, we're going to play," Jack smirked. "I have some wonderful things planned for all of you. We just have to wait until the others get here."

It was 7:30 when MK pulled up in front of Jack's house with her dad. The girl glanced nervously out at the two-story house, wondering if anyone was already there. She sure hoped that it hasn't been cancelled or something without her knowing. That would be so awkward.

But what if they were mad at her for being late? She had only just met them, after all. She had no idea how seriously they took their "intimate gatherings."

"Actually, I'm starting to rethink this," MK broke out suddenly. "Let's just go home and tell them that I got sick or something."

Her father looked at her, confused. "Why?" he asked. "They're your friends, aren't they?"

"Well, yeah...sort of..."

Bomba paused. "Well, it's your decision, I guess. But, you know, I think you should go and have fun, ok?"

MK smiled at her dad, relieved that he was actually showing her some affection. She had spent the last hour trying to make him understand that she was going to a friend's house at 7, but as usual, her dad was not able to fully get it until they were late. "Thanks, dad." She said with a smile.

"Uh, no problem," her father replied, smiling back. "So you're going? Because I...kinda need to get back to what I was doing at home..."

MK's smile faded.

"I-I mean," her dad stammered, "you take your time, sweetie...it's just that..."

MK sighed. "No, don't worry dad, I'll get out of your hair." She quickly stepped out of the car and slammed the door.

"No sweetie, I didn't mean it like that...!"

MK ignored him and just walked up toward the house in annoyance. Just as she was about to ring the doorbell, she noticed someone else heading in her direction. "Mavis!" she called, waving in the girl's direction.

Mavis was wearing a bright red sweater over her usual dark clothing, which was the only way that MK had been able to see her in the dark. "Hey, MK!" Mavis waved back. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who's late." She stepped onto the porch next to MK and rang the doorbell. "My dad was holding me back like crazy," Mavis continued with a roll of her eyes. "He wouldn't let me leave until he knew all the details. 'Whose house is it at? Who's going to be there? Will there be girls or boys? Are the parents home? How long will it last?'" Mavis crossed her arms and rolled her eyes again. "So overprotective," she muttered. "Seriously."

MK laughed a little at Mavis' imitation of her dad. "He just cares about you, that's all," she told her. "You're lucky. I wish my dad was like that. I was late because I spent like an hour trying to remind him that I exist."

Before they could say any more, the door was opened, and Jack stood there grinning. "Hey, there you guys are! Finally!" He stepped aside to let the two girls in, and called to the others, who were already there. "The gang's all here!"

"MK you made it!" Anna exclaimed, giving her a hug.

"You all can head upstairs," Jack was saying. "I'm just gonna take a quick bathroom break."

MK followed the others to the stairs. "What are we going upstairs for?" she asked.

"So we don't bother Jack's mom," Anna replied. "We get kinda loud when we play Truth or Dare."

MK cringed. "Oh, no. We're going to play Truth or Dare?"

"Of course," Anna said with a giggle. "It's an Intimate Gathering tradition."

MK was about to say something else when she felt a small pair of hands pulling on her leggings. She looked down to see a small girl with blond hair and big blue eyes staring up at her. "Are you new?" The little girl asked.

MK smiled a little. "Um...yeah, I am."

"This is Sophie," Anna put in, nodding at the little girl. She turned to another girl, this one with straight brown hair, who was holding her hand. "And this is Emma. They're Jack's little sisters. Guys, this is MK."

Emma waved shyly at MK, while Sophie squealed and attached herself to MK's leg in a big hug. MK smiled at her adorableness and let her hug her until she to the top of the stairs.

"Ok," Once-ler announced as he opened the door to a large, empty guest room. "Just sit down on a circle on the floor, we'll start when Jack gets back."

MK sat herself down on the carpeted floor between Mavis and Once-ler, letting Sophie sit on her lap. After a couple of minutes, Jack came running up the stairs and into the room, plopping himself on the floor next to Once-ler.

"Sorry I took so long," the white-haired boy said. "Who wants to start?"

"I think MK should start," Rapunzel cut in. "Since she's new."

"Huh?" MK's eyes widened in surprise as she looked around at the grinning faces. "Um, ok." She surveyed the circle, deciding who to ask, when her gaze fell on Anna.

"Anna, Truth or Dare?"

Anna smiled sheepishly. "Truth."

MK thought for a moment. "What...when did you first meet Kristoff?"

"Noooo!" Merida called out while Anna beamed. A bunch of anguished groans filled the room. MK was confused until she noticed the strawberry-blond haired girl stand up in the middle of the circle and beam down at her.

"I'm so glad you asked, MK!" Anna squealed. "Nobody ever wants to hear me tell that story-"

"And nobody wants to hear it now," Jack interrupted. "Sit down, Anna."

"What? Hey, no fair!"

"It's ok, Anna," Norma cut in. "You can tell her the story some other time when you're not around everyone else whose heard it like fifteen zillion times before."

Anna pouted and sat back down in her spot.

MK shrugged sympathetically at her, but continued the game. "Ok, I'll ask Mavis instead. Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"Do...you have a crush on anyone?"

Mavis looked at the ground and blushed. "Actually, I do."

"Wait, what? You do?" Anna asked as she was accompanied by surprised gasps. "That's news."

Once-ler gave Jack a quick sidelong glance before turning to Mavis. "Who?" He asked eagerly.

"I'm not telling," Mavis singsonged. "MK didn't ask me that. Anyway, it's my turn. Hiccup, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"Ok, so when you're not studying, what exactly do you read?"

Hiccup shrugged. "Lots of mythology and fantasy," he replied. "Stories about dragons and Vikings and stuff."

"Cool," MK responded, causing Hiccup to look up in surprise. "I mean, it's a geeky sort of cool," she continued. "But still cool."

Hiccup smiled for what seemed to MK like the first time ever. "Thanks," he mumbled. "Ok, Once-ler, Truth or Dare?"

Once-ler smirked. "Dare."

Hiccup frowned. "I dare you to..." he paused for a moment and shrugged simply. "...kiss the person next to you."

There were a few awkward giggles from Anna and Rapunzel, and Once-ler frowned. "Seriously, Hiccup?" he asked. "How old are you, five?"

Hiccup just smirked back at him. "I don't see any smooching~"

"Not me," Jack declared, scooting away from Once-ler, who he happened to be sitting next to. Meanwhile Anna and Rapunzel just burst into laughter.

MK blushed in the realization that she was the other person sitting next to Once-ler. "W-wait a minute..." She stammered.

But he was already scooting closer to her. "Sorry, MK," he apologized. "A dare's a dare." MK was about to protest, but he cut her off. In one swift, smooth movement, Once-ler took her hand and planted a small kiss right above her knuckles, drawing a few "oooooh"s from some of the other girls.

Surprised, MK glanced down at her hand before slumping with relief. Meanwhile, Once-ler moved back to his original position and sat up straight. "There. I did it." he announced.

Hiccup gaped at him. "Wait, hold on! That doesn't count!"

"Yes it does. You told me to kiss her, but you didn't say where."

"On the cheek!"

"Too late now!" Once-ler grinned in triumph as the other kids burst into giggles once more. "Now, for my revenge," Once-ler continued, "I dare you to kiss Merida. Go."

"What?" Hiccup shouted. "No fair, you can't do that! You didn't even ask me-"

"Kiss her. On the cheek. Do it."

The others continued snickering. Anna was practically doubled over. MK also chuckled a little as Hiccup glanced desperately around him, finally sighing and leaning towards Merida.

"Do it an' I'll twist yer little lips right off yer face!" Merida snapped, though she was still grinning. Everyone laughed again, and Hiccup gave Once-ler a pleading look.

"All right, all right," Once-ler said as the laughter died down. "I'll let you go this time, Hiccup." Hiccup nodded gratefully and settled down, as Once-ler turned to Jack. "Jack, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth," Jack chuckled.

"Is your staff a security blanket?"

"Oh, for God's sake!" Jack cried, throwing his arms up in the air. "No it's not! Will you let that one go already?"

"Uh, no."

This time, MK joined in the obnoxious laughter, and Emma was giggling like crazy. "Security blanket," she singsonged, teasing her older brother.

"It's not a security blanket," Jack told her. "Stop saying that."

All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door. Everyone stopped laughing, worried that they had upset Jack's mother. But instead, there was a masculine voice from outside the door. "I hear laughter..." It said. The door opened, and in walked a tall young man with groomed brown hair and a small goatee. MK didn't recognize him, but judging from the excited gasps that emerged from the room, she guessed that the others did. The young man stepped into the room and grinned. "You guys aren't having fun without me, are you?"

"Eugene!" Rapunzel squealed. She quickly ran up to him and gave him a big hug, nearly tripping over MK in the process. Eugene hugged her back, giving her a small kiss on the cheek.

"Hallelujah, everyone!" Jack cried while this was happening. "Eugene is alive!"

"But you said you weren't coming!" Rapunzel said, pulling away from him slightly.

Eugene shrugged. "Well I ended up finishing a little earlier than I expected, so I decided to surprise you." With this he turned and smiled at everyone else. "Long time no see, guys!"

"No kidding!" Once-ler piped up. "Where have you been lately, we thought you were dead!"

"No, but I'm stuck in college, so it's kinda the same thing. By the way, stand up, Once."

Once-ler frowned in confusion. "Why?"

"Just do it."

Once-ler did as he was told. As he stood, Eugene turned to Rapunzel and covered his eyes with his hand. "Ok, Rapunzel," he said. "Be honest with me...who's taller?"

MK burst out laughing with everyone else. Eugene was fairly tall, but Once-ler still towered over him by at least half a foot.

Rapunzel covered up her snickers with her hand. "Really, Eugene?" She giggled. "I think we established long ago that Oncie will forever be taller than you."

Eugene uncovered his eyes and glared up at Once-ler. "Oh, come on!" He exclaimed. "How are you still taller? You're two years younger than me, dammit!"

"It's ok, Eugene," Once-ler replied, patting his shoulder. "Rapunzel still loves you, even though you're short."

"I'm not short. You're the one who looks like a frikking lamppost. Sit down."

Once-ler sat, still grinning, and moved over a little to make room for Rapunzel and Eugene to sit. MK moved aside as well, and it was then that Eugene finally noticed her presence. "Oh hey! A new face!" he grinned.

"Oh sorry!" Rapunzel said. "I forgot to introduce you guys..."

"Don't worry about it," he held out a hand to MK and smiled. "Eugene Fitzherbert."

"Mary Katherine," MK responded, shaking his hand. "But you can call me MK."

"Nice," Eugene said, and turned his attention back to everyone else. "So, Truth or Dare, huh? Classic. Whose turn is it?"

"Mine," Jack answered. "It's my turn. Norma, Truth or Dare?"

"Dare," Norma replied.

A devious grin crossed Jack's face. "I dare you to go downstairs, open the fridge, find the can of whipped cream, bring it up here and spray it into your mouth."

Norma's face scrunched up into a frown. "Huh?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Go downstairs, open the fridge-"

"Yeah, ok," Norma interrupted. "But what kind of dare is that?"

"Are you gonna do it or not?"

"Alright, fine..." Norma got up and lightly jogged out the door.

Jack snickered once she had left. "Oh, God, she fell for it!" He said. "This is gonna be great."

"Dude, what did you do?" Once-ler asked.

"Remember when I took a bathroom break?" said Jack. "It wasn't really a bathroom break. I was screwing around with the stuff in the fridge."

"You what?" Anna gasped.

"Yo, Jack," Eugene chimed in. "You're not gonna poison her or something, are you?"

"What? No!" Jack denied, looking hurt that Eugene would even suggest such a thing. "It's completely non-toxic."

"What is completely non-toxic?!" Once-ler exclaimed.

Before Jack could answer, Norma walked into the room again, triumphantly holding the can of whipped cream in her hand. "I'm back," she declared.

Jack smirked. "Cool. Now spray it into your mouth. And fill your mouth up, don't leave any space."

Norma glanced suspiciously at Jack, but she removed the cover off the can and raised it to her mouth. There was a hushed silence across the room and several of them exchanged awkward glances as Norma raised the can up to her mouth. She started spraying the whipped cream into her mouth, when suddenly she stopped.

"Oh, wat da heww is dith?!" she shouted, her words obscured by the cream filling her mouth. Norma tossed the can aside while Jack handed her a plastic cup to spit in, laughing hysterically.

"Shaving cream," Jack replied cheekily, still laughing. "Don't worry, totally non-toxic."

"What the hell, Jack?!" Norma snapped. She spit several times into the cup Jack had given her, and headed out to the bathroom to rinse out her mouth. "What was that for?!"

"For the housewarming gift!" Jack called after her. "Thought I'd say thank you!"

"It wasn't that bad, you jerk!"

Knowing that Norma was fine, the other kids in the room started laughing again. MK, Mavis and Eugene just looked around in confusion. "I have no idea what's going on," Eugene declared, voicing MK's thoughts.

Rapunzel giggled. "Norma pulled the old rubber-snakes-in-a-can trick on Jack earlier," she told him.

Eugene cringed. "Aw, no, you should never prank Jack. He'll get you back for sure."

"Ye should know, Eugene!" Merida teased. "Remember the time Jack put fake worms in yer-"

"Don't," Eugene cautioned, eyeing Merida. "Don't mention that."

Merida just snickered. "You were screamin' like a wee lass."

"Shut up, Merida!"

Jack grinned and shrugged his shoulders sheepishly. "Well, I guess Norma's gonna skip her turn," he said simply. "Eugene, why don't you go?"

Eugene frowned at him. "Jack, I dare you to go and bang your head against the wall several times and say "I am a dummy," over and over."

MK and the others snickered at this. Jack started to protest, but got up and did as Eugene told him. "I am a dummy," he repeated as he lightly hit his own head on the wall. "I am a dummy."

Everyone choked on their laughs.

"Jack, for your information, I am recording this whole thing on my phone," Once-ler informed him. "I'm going to use it as blackmail material for sure."

"Ah, shut up," Jack snickered. "You wouldn't do that." He plopped himself down next to Once-ler just as Norma came back into the room.

"Guys," Norma began with a confused expression on her face. "There's like a Russian Santa Claus downstairs."

"What...?"

Before Norma could answer, a small boy who looked a lot like he could be the male version of Emma pushed past her and poked his head into the room. "Jack!" The boy exclaimed. "Uncle North is here!"

Jack's eyes widened. "Uncle North?" He repeated. "Wait, Jamie, are you sure?"

The boy, Jamie, nodded his head and ran off. "Yeah, it's him!" he said. "I heard him laughing!"

"Uncle North!" little Sophie squealed. She jumped out of MK's lap and tottered after Jamie. Emma followed suit.

Jack mumbled a few words under his breath and went after his younger siblings. Curious, the others got up and followed him down the stairs.

"Who's Uncle North?" MK asked.

"My uncle," Jack replied. "North."

"No durr, Jack," Mavis snickered, to which Jack just grinned sheepishly.

The group of teenagers reached the bottom of the stairs and MK's eyes widened when she saw the man in the living room. He really did look like Santa Claus. He was large with a round belly, had a long white beard and he was even passing out presents to the little kids in the room. Surprisingly, however, the man's arms were covered with tattoos, something she did not expect Santa Claus to have.

North looked up and beamed at the sight of his oldest nephew. "There he is!" he greeted with a thick Russian accent. He lumbered over to Jack and scooped the boy up in a tight, backbreaking hug. "Good to see you, Jack Frost!"

"It's good to see you too, Uncle North," Jack strained, struggling to breathe as he was squeezed in North's tight embrace.

The man finally put Jack down and started digging through his sack of gifts once more. "Don't worry, I have presents for you too," he said. "And all your friends." North stood up, holding several thin boxes in his hands, and grinned. "I hope you all like chocolate."

MK perked up and glanced over at Anna, who was practically bouncing with delight. Who didn't love chocolate?

"Here you go," North said as he started passing out the boxes. MK eagerly took hers with a small "thanks." She plopped down on a nearby sofa and started munching on her treats as she watched the others receive their presents. Jack sat down next to MK as North looked at him with slight disapproval.

"Jack, are you still carrying that staff?" his uncle asked. "How long are you going to keep that thing with you?"

"Security blanket~" Emma teased again, causing everyone but Jack to snicker.

"Shut up, Emma..." Jack said. "Dammit Once-ler, stop teaching weird crap to my sister."

"Oh yeah, just blame everything on the tall guy," Once-ler groaned jokingly, accepting his gift and sitting on another sofa. MK had to stifle a giggle to keep herself from choking on chocolate.

As the silly comments continued, a tired-looking woman with short brown hair, probably Jack's mother, stepped into the room and smiled. "It's so good, to have you back, North," she said. "The kids always love it when you come."

"Yes, the kids always love it when you bring them gifts," North replied as he gave Jack's mom a hug. "How are you doing, by the way?"

Jack's mom sighed. "Alright, I guess..."

The two adults talked some more before disappearing into another room. The living room quieted down a little, while everyone munched on their chocolates, but there was the occasional chatter once in a while. MK was quiet for a moment as well, and then turned to her side to look at Jack.

"So...if you don't mind me asking," the girl said. "Where's your dad?"

Jack's brow furrowed momentarily, but he shrugged and tossed a piece of chocolate in his mouth. "I don't know."

"...What?"

"He left five years ago," Jack responded simply. "After Sophie was born. Never saw him again." He paused a moment, swallowing his chocolate, and continued. "Then I started doing some of the dad duties around here, but Uncle North shows up every month or so to help out, so it's all good."

MK was taken a little aback. How could he say something like that so easily? "I-I'm sorry," she stammered. "I didn't mean to sound rude or anything."

"Don't worry about it," said Jack, thought he didn't look directly at her.

MK thought for a moment. A missing dad was probably not the same as a deceased mother, but maybe Jack knew how she felt. After all, a parent is a parent, right? "Jack..." she began quietly. "Do you miss him?"

"My dad?" Jack asked, turning to face her.

MK nodded.

Something flashed on Jack's blue eyes, but MK couldn't quite tell what it was. Sadness? Pain? Hatred? But it was gone in an instant and Jack nonchalantly went back to his snack.

"Nah," Jack finally responded. "He was an asshole."

"Oh...ok." MK leaned back in her seat, a little embarrassed, and ate in silence. Looks like she had been wrong, but she only hoped that she didn't make Jack feel upset.

Everyone else seemed to stop speaking at that moment as well, and there was an awkward silence, at least for MK, that covered the room. Rapunzel and Eugene were cuddled up on a love seat, Mavis was next to Jack, Merida was next to Mavis, Jack's siblings were on the floor, and Once-ler, Anna, Norma and Hiccup were sitting on the other side of the room.

Finally Eugene spoke. "Hey Once," he said. "Do you still sing?"

Once-ler nodded. "Yeah, why?"

"Sing something for us. I'm bored."

Once-ler frowned in response. "Do I look like your personal entertainer?" he snapped.

"Sure," replied Eugene with a grin.

Rapunzel gave her boyfriend a small shove, but then she turned to Once-ler with a wide smile on her face. "Come on, Oncie, sing something," she pleaded. "It's been a while."

"Yeah, sing a song!" cried Anna.

Once-ler leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms. "Nope. I don't feel like singing right now."

"Aww!" Anna pouted.

"Dude, you know you want to sing," Jack urged. "That's why you brought your guitar with you, right?" he nodded in the direction of a guitar case by the door which MK had not noticed before.

"Come on," said Mavis. "Let's bug him until he agrees. " She, Anna, and Rapunzel hopped out of their seats and ran over to Once-ler, staring at him with big, begging eyes. "Pleeeeease sing?"

"No,"

"Come on!"

"Nope."

"Pleeeeeeeeeeease?"

Once-ler rolled his eyes and finally gave in. "Fine! You win!" he stood up to get his guitar as the girls cheered. The boy pretended to be extremely annoyed, but MK spotted a small grin on his face as he sat down and started tuning his guitar. Mavis, Anna, and Rapunzel sat in a circle around him, and they were soon joined by Norma.

Jack snickered. "Look at him," he joked. "He's surrounded by girls."

"What a whore," Merida replied with a grin.

"Hey, Once!" Jack called, "Scoot over." He stood up and sat next to Once-ler as he tuned his guitar, and Eugene did the same.

"Oh look," said MK. "Now he's surrounded by girls and guys."

"What a whore," Merida snickered.

Once-ler picked up a rubber ball and tossed it at Merida's head before turning back to the others. "What song?" He asked.

"Billionare!" Jack cried, and the others laughed encouragingly.

Once-ler rolled his eyes. "Again?"

"What? It suits you!"

"Alright, fine," Once-ler played a few chords on his guitar, and everyone started swaying to the music. Then he started to sing.

"I wanna be a billionaire so very bad,

Wanna buy all the things I never had, yeah

I wanna be on the cover of Forbes magazine,

Smiling next to Oprah and the Queen."

MK sat back and felt herself smile. He was really good. His voice had a rough edge to it, but at the same time it was really strong and nice to listen to. MK closed her eyes and tapped her feet to the beat.

"Oh, every time I close my eyes,

I see my name in shining lights

A different city every night alright,

I swear, the world better be prepared

For when I'm a billionaire!

Oooh, Oooh.../i"

The others who were sitting around him started harmonizing. MK wasn't much of a singer herself, so instead she snapped her fingers. She felt a little awkward at first, but then she noticed Merida and Hiccup doing the same.

"Yeh, I know," Merida told her. "I don' sing either. They always leave me an' Hiccup alone when they do these things."

The intimate gathering atmosphere started to dissolve down after that, and it wasn't long before Mavis' dad came to pick her up.

"Always the first to leave," Mavis complained as she zipped up her sweater and headed for the door. "I'll see you guys soon, ok?"

They saw her to the door and Hiccup, Merida and Norma followed her out. MK scanned the horizon for her dad's car. As expected, there was no sign of him. She only hoped he hadn't forgotten about her.

"Well, I'd better be leaving too," Eugene declared after a while. He turned to his girlfriend. "You want me to give you a ride home?"

Rapunzel smiled apologetically. "I'd love to, but I have to drive Anna home..."

"Ok," Eugene said, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. "I'll call you soon, ok?"

"Bye, Eugene!"

MK waved with the others as Eugene drove off, continually searching for any sign of her dad. She even tried calling his cell phone, but nobody answered. She wished she could hurry up and learn to drive so she wouldn't have to do this anymore.

"Sorry I have to make you wait, guys..." MK apologized to the remaining four other people.

"It's alright, MK," said Rapunzel with a smile. "We've been here way later before."

MK nodded at turned back toward the outside. After a few minutes it started to get quite chilly out, so she had to shut the door and look from the window instead.

It was rather silent in the living room now, making it even more awkward. Rapunzel was on her phone, Anna was stroking a sleepy Sophie's hair in her lap, Jack was in the bathroom (for real this time), and Once-ler was putting his guitar away in its case.

After a couple of seconds Once-ler hauled his guitar case over to the door and stood next to MK. "Any sign of him yet?"

MK shook her head and checked her phone for messages. Nothing. And her dad was almost an hour late.

"He'll show up," Once-ler reassured her. "Don't worry."

"Yeah, thanks," MK replied, smiling gratefully at him. "I liked your song, by the way. You have a nice voice."

Once-ler blushed a little at the compliment but smiled. "Thanks," he said. "But you know, you'd probably get sick of it after a while. Especially since they make me sing that song all the time."

"Really?" asked MK, just as Jack came back into the room.

"Hey, we just wanted to try out our harmonies ok?" Rapunzel piped up. "Besides, the song suits him."

"It does?" asked MK. "How?"

"When you start hearing him go on and on about that invention of his," Jack answered, "You'll understand. It's like the song was written for him."

MK snickered and turned back to Once-ler. "Invention?"

The taller boy shrugged sheepishly. "Yeah, it's not ready yet," he admitted. "But, when it is, I'm going to mass produce it and sell it to the world..." he suddenly got a dreamy, far off look in his eyes. "And I'll become rich and then I'll finally prove-" At that moment he suddenly became aware of what he was saying and cut himself off. "Well, you know what I mean."

MK blinked in surprise. She had not realized how serious he was about this.

"Yeah, I can just picture him in a bright flashy business suit," Jack chuckled, giving Once-ler a friendly pat on the shoulder. "And a top hat...and a monocle."

"A monocle?" Once-ler laughed.

"Yeah. And a cup of tea. It's perfect."

MK giggled.

Once-ler rolled his eyes with a grin and turned back to MK. "Of course, right now I'm working in an ice cream shop," he admitted with a shrug. "But hey, one step at a time, right?"

Before MK could respond, a honking noise came from outside. Hurrying to the window, the girl beamed with relief to see that her dad's car was, finally, pulling up in front of Jack's house.

"Oh, thank goodness," she sighed, turning back to the others. "My dad's here."

"Guess it's time to leave then," Rapunzel said. She stood up and put her phone away as Anna gently put Sophie on the couch. "Thanks for having us over, Jack."

"No problem. See you guys later."

The girls all said their goodbyes, climbed into their respective cars, and drove off. Once-ler and Jack stood in front of the door and watched them go, shivering a little from the cold.

"I guess I should be going too," Once-ler declared. "But well, I didn't bring a car." He shrugged. "I guess I'll have to walk."

Jack frowned as he watched his friend pick up his guitar case. "You're walking home? But it's freezing out. Why don't you just spend the night?"

Once-ler shook his head. "Can't. My aunt needs me back in the morning. Besides, your Uncle North is probably taking the guest room." As he spoke he opened the door and stepped out into the chilly night.

"Well, do you want a ride?" Jack called after him. "My mom can give you a ride..."

"No, I'm fine."

"Are you sure? I mean, we can..."

Once-ler whirled around, a little annoyed, to face his best friend. "Jack, I told you: I don't need any help. I appreciate it, but I'm fine, ok?" No sooner had he said this, a cold breeze hit him and caused him to sneeze. But he remained unfazed, turning around and heading on his way once more. "I'm fine."

Jack's frown deepened. "How long are you going to be like that?"

Once-ler turned around again. "Be like what?" he asked innocently.

Jack was quiet for a moment, then started to shut the door. "Nothing, forget it. I'll see you later, Once."

"Ok...see ya."

Once-ler lightly turned on his heel and walked away. Jack watched him go and closed the door, but not before hearing his friend sneeze one more time, much louder this time.