Seven Swans-A-Swimming
Normally, Seychelles doesn't like the cold or snow, but today she smiles as she walks down the street, eyes skyward. England was right, it snowed all night and into the morning. Now, late in the evening, flurries drift down on the lit up New York streets. Surprisingly, the street she's on is blissfully empty and she reaches her gloved hands up to catch the flurries.
"Sneak attack!" Madagascar yells though his voice is muffled because of her ear muffles and before Seychelles can react, he swoops her up off the ground. The woman laughs and halfheartedly struggles to get down.
"Can you two be serious, please?" Comoros asks, pushing up her glasses as she walks pass then. "It's too cold out here to play around."
Mauritius runs to catch up with them, his bags weighing him down.
"Aw. I smell a Grinch." Madagascar teases. Seychelles chuckles. It didn't occur her until now that she'd stopped walking. "Don't be like that, Como, it's Christmas."
"Comoros," she corrects and turns around to the two who'd stop moving, eyeing Madagascar and Seychelles playing in the snow. "It's five days before Christmas and none of us, except Mauritius has a costume. Can you two stop acting like children so we can focus?"
Neither really listens to her as Seychelles scoops up some snow, not even forming it into a ball before smashing it against her friend's shoulder. Madagascar bends over laughing and she uses the opportunity to jump on his back.
"Guys!" Comoros marches up to them.
Madagascar straightens with Seychelles on his back and smiles lazily at the woman storming up to him. Comoros is short, taller than Seychelles but still shorter than him. "For such a tiny lady, you're mighty uptight."
Comoros ignores him in favor of looking at Seychelles, "What has you so excited? You're normally the first person complaining when the temperature drops."
"Someone likes her," Mauritius supplies as he catches up with the group. Again. Seychelles pokes her tongue at him. "And he's been giving her presents."
"What?" Comoros asks, quite surprised.
Madagascar shrugs and trudges on toward the snow. Comoros stands dumbly for a moment before quickly following. "Someone likes you? Who? Why didn't you tell me? How come Mauritius and Madagascar know and not me?"
Seychelles dust snow from Madagascar's hair even though more accumulate. "I didn't tell Mauritius. He was nosy and snuck up on me and Maddy while we were talking this morning."
"I overheard them talking about her swan pendent." He says proudly and Comoros spies a glimpse of the pendent on her neighbor's shirt.
"Did your 'friend' give that to you?" she asks and Seychelles nods.
"It's the seventh gift," Mauritius answers for her and smiles brightly at Seychelles and then to Comoros who looks deep in thought.
"So," the African French Arabic nation says, "Do you know who it is?"
"Not a clue." Madagascar supplies. "Oh, let's go into this store!" he says gleefully and veers in that direction even after Comoros' protest.
They shop around for a bit and, eventually, all island nations find a costume for the party.
"Ever since that movie came out, you pick the same kind of costume every year." Mauritius laughs as Madagascar bobs his head, the headdress feathers shaking in the process.
"No I don't. I'm going as King Julien XIII this Christmas." He processes to dance up the street while singing 'I like to move it, move it.' Seychelles attempts to join before Comoros grabs her by the back of her coat to stop it before it beings.
"I have a theory." She informs them. Madagascar turns around and starts dancing backwards. "That's not surprising." He sings in tune of his song.
Comoros rolls her eyes and pushes up her glasses again. "I think we've missed and important point in Seychelles' secret admirer."
"What's that?" said nation ask in all seriousness. True, Madagascar said not knowing is half the fun but Seychelles really wants to know.
"I think we've been investigating this one dimensionally." Comoros rubs her chin as she walks; "We've looked at and considered all of the names, human and country, that start with 'M' in English. It's the international language, but what if this person is using their own language to better conceal themselves? Country names aren't the same in every language, for instance I'm Comoros in English and French, Komori in Comorian and Juzur al-Qumur in Arabic. My initials could essentially be C, K or Q."
Seychelles sighs dramatically and slumps her shoulders. "So there's even more names to add to the list."
"Yes and no," Comoros says easily, "'M' very well may not stand for a name at all but a word like 'monsieur', 'man' or 'mystery man'".
Seychelles whines something awful but Madagascar just laughs. "You're putting too much thought into this, Como. You're thinking like a girl." He says and stops his dancing long enough to explain. "Guys don't think like that with the whole word thing, language thing maybe. The fact that this guy is going through all this puts him a cut above the rest. But he's still a guy. We're simple minded people."
"So," Seychelles pipes up, "We still have to add people who's name beings with M in other languages?"
"Maybe. But I wouldn't stress too much about it. I told you, being surprised is half the fun. Who knows, it could be me or Mauritius." Madagascar teases and turns around while Seychelles yells at him to wait up and explain, Mauritius cries foul and yells it isn't him and Comoros just shakes her head and chuckles to herself.
Island nations are crazy.
A/N: And the plot thickens with Comoros' helpful observation!
