We survived the spring semester just to bring you a new chapter of our glorious sack of shit.

~YJ~

The West/Allen household was teeming with activity as the delicate preparations for Thanksgiving dinner were well underway- with the occasional crash and bang from the rest of the household who were decidedly less delicate. Barry and Wally had both offered to host Thanksgiving for the rest of the team and were still frantically decorating every surface they could get their hands on with various fall themed décor- trying very hard not to knock over the candles that they had lit ten minutes earlier. A vicious game of Mario Kart 8 was taking place in the living room, Kaldur calmly and swiftly destroying Artemis who was screaming at the tv as though it would make her character (Link, of course) go faster.

Connor was desperately trying to distract M'Gann from entering the kitchen, where Diana and Dick were busy concocting a Thanksgiving meal for everyone. Delicious scents danced out of the kitchen as Diana decided to go full out this year, enlisting Dick to help her make a huge French-inspired meal- it was in her blood after all. The turkey was already roasting in the oven, stuffed with rosemary and drizzled with truffle butter. Dick was helping to puree a handful of hazelnuts that would be used in the butternut squash soup that would be served at the beginning of the meal. Through the preparation, Diana and Dick were subtly brushing hands and giggling at jokes only they seemed to hear while simultaneously working in tandem to craft a meal that met Diana's high standards.

"How's the turkey coming along?" Diana asked, glancing as she wiped a stray bit of batter from her forehead.

"Hold on," Dick opened the oven and glanced in, giving a thumbs up, "We're on schedule, should be ready in about thirty minutes."

"And the apple pie?" Diana asked, walking over and glancing in the oven, "Should we turn up the heat after we take the turkey out? I feel like it's baking so slowly-"

"Wait, wait, you got a little something right. . ." He paused and swiped a bit of frosting on her nose, "There!"

Diana raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, although the hint of a smile tugged at the corner of her lips, "You don't want to play the frosting game with me."

"Don't I?" Dick asked, smirking as he dabbed another bit of frosting on her chin, "Gotcha!"

"Oh, it's on," Diana said, grabbing a bowl full of pink frosting and chasing him with it. He swerved around the giant table of ingredients and ducked into the pantry, Diana hot on his tail. She managed to corner him between a stack of pots and pans and a straw laundry basket, "Prepare for your doom, Grayson!"

"Not today!" He responded, picking her up around the waist and twirling her around, "Not if I have anything to say about it!"

"Dick! Let me down!" Diana said, laughing as she said it.

After a spin or two, he relented, and set her back on the ground, their faces a few inches from each other, "I love you, Diana Knight."

"I love you too," She responded, smiling, and leaning forward for a kiss but not before swiping frosting across his face, "Gotcha."

At that very moment, Wally ran into the kitchen, sliding under Connor's blocking arm, and slamming into the wall, "If you two are done being nauseating, it might be time to start Thanksgiving dinner? The decorations are up, the turkey is done, and everyone is here."

"Right," Diana laughed awkwardly and straightened out her dress, wiping the frosting off of her nose, "Evelyne's here?"

"Ah, yes and no. I saw them pull up a few minutes ago but they haven't come up yet." Wally answered, wandering dangerously close to the food, "Oooooo, stuffing!"
Dick and Diana exchanged a look before Dick ran into the kitchen and slapped Wally's hand away, "Wait like everyone else!"

"But Dick," Wally whined, earning a stern look from Diana, "Ah, fine, but I'm starving."

"Noted," Diana responded, shooing him out of the kitchen.

Before Diana could finish chewing him out, the doorbell rang, releasing Wally from the impending doom of Diana's Mom Glare™. Using his super speed to aid his escape, Wally went to open the door, only to have been beaten there by Barry, who was already in the process of swinging open the door. On the other side was Roy and Evelyne, who both looked like they crawled out of bed, hair disheveled and clothes sticking out at odd angles and Evelyne's eyeliner slightly smeared. Evelyne's red skirt was slightly askew and her sweater was falling off her shoulder, giving her an air of rushed formality. On the other hand, Roy's navy button-down was also in a state of disarray as the shirt was half tucked into his jeans and one of the buttons was left open, forgotten by rushed hands.

Barry opened his mouth to say something, clearly aware of what was going on, but promptly shut it, clearing his throat before painfully saying, "I don't wanna know."

Wally snickered, "Hey, guys, Roy got -"

He was cut off by Artemis, who punched his shoulder with enough force to split the earth, "Oh my God, shut up."

"Is everyone here?" Diana asked, emerging from the kitchen, her apron folded over her arm, "The turkey is just about ready and so is the rest of the food."

"I think that's our cue to shuffle into the dining room and take our seats," Barry announced, smiling in an almost paternalistic manner, "Wally, don't swipe any of the food on the way there."

There was a resulting, "Aw man," and a chuckle around the room as the gang made their way to the kitchen. Evelyne caught up to Diana in the kitchen and grabbed the gravy dish, wanting to make herself helpful.

"Hey, Di!" She greeted, offering a smile, "Happy thanksgiving."

Diana, who had a salad on one hip and mashed potatoes on the other, replied with, "Hi Evelyne," Her eyes glanced over her best friend's outfit, eyebrow raising in the process, "Uh, you might want to…" She motioned to the her shoulder, indicating that Evelyne should pull her sweater up.

Evelyne responded by sticking her tongue out and grabbing the plate of bread before heading into the living room and laying it out among the table as the gang shuffled in. Barry took a seat at the head of the table, Wally settling in on the right side with Dick beside him. Diana slid into the seat next to Dick with a smile as Evelyne aggressively called dibs on the seat next to her friend. Roy sat at the opposite end of the table, around the corner from Evelyne and Kaldur. Artemis almost slid into the seat across from Wally but luckily, M'Gann caught her just in time and made her sit across from Diana instead. M'Gann sat on Barry's left side, with Connor next to her.

There was chatter at the table for a minute before Connor stood and tapped his glass with a fork a few times. Silence fell over the group of superheroes. He cleared his throat and, in a gruff voice, said, "I, uh, I saw this thing on a tv show where people talk about what they're thankful for and, ah, I guess I'd like to say that I'm thankful for you guys. You, uh, you're fun and I like you, a lot," By now, there was a blinding red blush making it's way across the tops of his cheeks, "Yeah, uh, that's it."

M'Gann started off the clapping and pat Connor's back when he sat down, rising after him, "If you guys don't mind, I'd like to go next! I'm thankful for Connor, of course," She offered Connor a bright, kind smile and he returned it with an almost secret one of his own, "And my new friends, all of you. You are. . . wonderful and have been so welcoming and kind to me. I have been … ill-received in society before and it was one of my fears about coming to Earth but you all put that at ease. You are my people and I'm thankful for every moment, painful ones included," There was a brief, resounding laugh, "Okay, Artemis, you are next!"

The archer rolled her eyes and slowly stood up, looking more than a little uncomfortable, "Just like the two nerds before me, I'm thankful for you guys as well -"

"Even Wally?" Dick asked, prompting a laugh from around the table.

"Even Wally," Artemis said, rolling her eyes at the speedster but smiling in the process, "I'm thankful for the team and for the leag- my uncle giving me a chance to be on it. I've learned so much about fighting and, I guess, spending time with you all isn't that bad," She stood awkwardly for a moment before quickly blurting, "Okay, Barry, I'm done, your turn."

"Well," Barry began, "I'm thankful for my family, for Wallace, of course, and my wife, Iris, who I'm sure is going to kick our asses the second we come back," There was another chorus of laughter, "And, oh, speaking of getting my ass kicked! I'm probably the most thankful that Batman hasn't been here to verbally and physically slaughter me," Another round of laughter was interrupted by, "Dick, I trust you not to report back to the Bat on me."

"No such promises can be made."

Barry paled a few shades, "Fuck," Another round of laughter echoed around the table at his expression and when it settled, Barry added, "On a serious note though, I am very thankful for my family, for Wally and Iris, and for all of you. You kids have shown both me and the League that heroes come in all sizes and I'm very proud of you all." Barry sat back down, everyone glowing at the compliment.

Wally, realizing that it was his turn stood up. "I'm also very thankful for all of you, you guys are my buddies. Uncle Barry, thanks for being such a great mentor and letting me help you with the whole superhero thing, I love doing it and there's no one I'd rather do it with. Thanks Rob, for being my friend the longest and everyone else for being the greatest friends I could ask for. You guys are my dudes."

Robin stood up and offered his best friend a small smile, "I'd like to start off by saying that I'm thankful for my family, for the ones back home and the ones here. Wally, you're the best friend I could have asked for. There's never a dull moment with you. Diana. . . I didn't ever think that I was fit for a relationship before I met you and I'm thankful that you proved me wrong. Of course, I am thankful for you all, for the chance to be in a team like this and to grow and learn with you all."

As he sat, Diana rose and said, "I'd like to start off by thanking all of you for coming into my life, I expected to have a dull senior year and a dull life moving forward but you guys changed all of that. I feel so loved being your friend and I can't imagine my life without every one of you. Thank you Dick, for loving me to the fullest and for showing my inner strength even if I've never seen it myself. I love you so much. Evelyne, do I really need to say anything? We've been attached at the hip for so long that there is no more Diana at this point- it's Diana and Evelye, two peas in a pod, best of friends for life and whatever comes afterwards. Thank you for being there for me and I promise I'll always be there for you. Thank you all so much."

Evelyne rose once Diana was seated, the softest smile on her face, "Like all of the previous speakers, I'd like to say that I'm thankful for you guys. You're fun and dangerous and wild and I love you all for it. I'm thankful for Roy, of course," She glanced to her left, flashing him a little smile, "Thank you for putting up with me and sticking with me. I haven't always had the highest opinion of romance but you've changed that. I love you. I hope you know that. And last, but not least, I'm thankful for Diana. Christ, we'd be here all night if I listed all the reasons I'm thankful that you're in my life. You are the last piece of stable earth in this crazy world. You've been by my side for forever, helping me, keeping me out of trouble, and I love you so much for it. I hope you know that I've factored you into every aspect of my life, marriage, college, hell, even old age. I can't imagine a world without my best friend, my rock, my person. You are my soulmate. I truly believe that our friendship was meant to be and I thank God for it everyday."

There was a sniff next to where Evelyne was standing, Diana's eyes beginning to well up with tears, "Way to out do me you ass."

Evelyne, whose eyes had gotten increasingly teary with every word of her speech, "Ah, just shut it and hug me."

Diana sniffled, nodded, and wrapped her arms around her best friend. Evelyne put her head in the crook of Diana's shoulder and hummed, "I love you, Di."

The table looked on for a moment before Barry, staring agonizingly at the turkey, spoke up, "Hey kids, this is really sweet and all but I'm starving. Should we eat?"

"Yeah," Diana said, pulling away with a smile, "Who wants to carve the turkey?"

"I elect Kaldur, seeing as he is team leader." Dick said, passing the knife and fork to the Atlantian.

With a grateful nod, Kaldur began carving out the turkey, sliding the knife in an awkward and haphazard manner, making all of the pieces uneven and slightly lumpy. This, however, didn't ruin the good tidings at the table, everyone too preoccupied with merriment and thankfulness to complain about the ugly slices. After the turkey had been passed around everyone was given free reign of the rest of the meal and dug into all the side dishes that Diana and Dick had spent hours making.

"Can someone pass me the potatoes?" M'Gann asked.

Before Connor had a chance to grab the bowl of mashed potatoes, Wally whisked it away, using his superspeed in a less than ethical manner, "I got it, babe." He scooped out the mashed potatoes, attempting to arrange them in a heart shape, but, sadly, he failed and it just looked like a sad lump.

"Oh my God," Artemis rolled her eyes and leaned over, similar to the way Michelangelo carved out the David from a slab of marble, she fashioned a heart out of the lump with the same sort of delicate care, "There, an actual heart and not just a weird lump."

Wally clicked his tongue and shot finger guns at her, "Thanks, babe."

Artemis ducked her head and sad down, muttering, "Shut the fuck up."

Dick, ever perceptive, caught the slight tint of red on her face from his seat across the table, "Aw, Artie, are you blushing?"

She flicked a pea between his eyes, "You shut the fuck up too."

"Kids, kids, please," Barry said, mouth full of various Thanksgiving foods, "No fighting at the dinner table."

Diana snorted, "Thanks, dad."

Barry paled, "I'm too young to be a father."

Wally snickered, "No, you're not. You're 40, man."

"I am 32."

"32, 40, same thing," Roy said, waving around a fork.

"When did we stop roasting the turkey," Barry said, dabbing at imaginary tears, "And

start roasting me."

Connor glanced at the clock, "About ten minutes ago."

"Dude, you're like two." Barry said.

Connor dug into the gravy again, "And yet somehow I'm more mature than a 40, sorry, 32," He made airquotes around the second number, "year old."

A loud "OOOOHHHHH" echoed around the room. Everyone at the table started banging on the faux-mahogany, rattling the cutlery and finer china. Barry slumped down in his chair, completely defeated by a two year old.

After everyone finished dinner and cleaned up the plates, everyone migrated to the living room. They spread out across the couches, each barely managing to keep their food comas at bay.

Amidst the sea of groans, Diana piped up, "Hey, did you guys want to maybe watch the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Special? It should be playing on channel five around now."

"Charlie Brown?!" Wally asked, warmly remembering sitting by the fire with his aunt and uncle on Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, "Yeah, that sounds fun."

"Uh . . ." M'Gann began to speak, "What's Charlie Brown?"

"Oh, right, you're not from Earth," Dick said, cradling his food baby, "It's this children's cartoon that's been on for a long times. The main character is . . . Actually, why don't we just show you?"

"That sounds good!" M'Gann said, excited at the prospect of viewing another Earth program, "Let's watch it."

"I, uh, I also have never seen Charlie Brown," Superboy confessed, looking a little sheepish, "But I guess it sounds okay."

"Connor, M'Gann, prepare to be amazed." Artemis said, clicking on the T.V. just as the opening credits wrapped up.

The group unknowingly gathered around Connor and M'Gann, who were basking in the glory of their first Charlie Brown special. Every once in a while, Barry or Dick or Artemis would glance at them in anticipation, trying to gauge their reaction and opinion about the famed television program. Just above Connor's head, Evelyne's cell phone light occasionally flickered on, distracting Artemis from the misadventures of Charlie and his friends.

"Dude, what's up? Why do you keep checking your phone?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh! Her sister, Caroline, is about to have a baby," Diana responded, "How's it looking?"

"I don't know . . . Mom's up there right now, checking on Carrie, I'm just waiting for information. . ." Evelyne muttered, occasionally glancing up at the T.V. screen.

"Whatever. Just keep it on mute." Artemis grumbled, returning her attention to the television.

They were only a few minutes in when M'Gann let out a full on peals of laughter and Connor was trying to contain his chuckles when Charlie Brown iconically missed kicking the football, landed flat on his back, and stared straight at the camera. Even though Connor always seemed to have a rough exterior, he let himself smile at the shenanigans that Snoopy and Woodstock managed to get themselves into, basking at the warmth and innocence of the movie.

After a few questions as to how Snoopy was able to set up the table and help to make dinner, M'Gann simply let herself enjoy the movie that everyone seemed to enjoy, simply glad that a hyper intelligent dog and a small little bird could make her friends so relaxed and happy. Connor was enamored by the show and didn't even notice when M'Gann cuddled even closer, completely content with the moment.

~YJ~