December 22nd Itinerary
Serena, dear, you get to help with dinner today. That's all.
Serena lit up with a hopeful smile. Maybe her mother would give up on the special activities. Hopefully. And then she groaned. The kitchen? With her in it, everyone would probably die of food poisoning.
"Mina," she called out as she left her room. "What duty do you have today?"
"Kitchen duty? Why?"
"Same here. Too bad we can't switch. I'm a lawyer. I know what happens when people die after they eat your food . you get sued!"
"Don't worry," Mina reassured. "Lita's got kitchen duty, too. She'll take care of us."
An hour later .
Lita, Amy, Raye, Mina, and Serena stood knee-deep in flour.
Mina and Serena suddenly looked very sheepish. "Sorry," they chorused in identical innocent voices.
Amy shook her head. "I volunteer to make sure these two don't do anything else that results in flour exploding on the floor again. I'm not much good at cooking, myself."
"I've done some," Raye shrugged.
"Then we'll do it together," Lita said. "I . Let's just say I don't trust Serena and Mina with anything else in the kitchen, and I think they're the type to go nosing around anyways."
"Well this certainly isn't fair," Serena complained.
"Yeah. We were just trying to help," Mina pointed out.
"You set the flour on fire," Amy pointed out patiently.
"It was an accident!" Mina protested.
"We didn't know that the stove was turned on," Serena explained. "We just wanted to get the flour at a higher angle to see if we could open the bag. How should we know that it would just blow up?"
"Well," Amy said flatly. "For that, you two get clean-up duty. You shouldn't break anything in that ."
Later .
"I spoke too soon," Amy said, looking at the chaos in the kitchen.
Raye took one look around and groaned. "Oh, no."
Oh no indeed.
Meanwhile .
"Why do ~we~ have to clean out dishes?" Jared addressed the sky.
"Brace yourselves," Kirk warned. "My wife is in there, and the mess will be huge."
"It can't be that bad, can it?" Darien shrugged.
"Fatal last words, man," Zephyr shook his head.
They arrived at the door, and were speechless. Out filed a sheepish Mina and Serena, a ready-to-faint Amy, an exhausted-looking Raye, and a tired Lita. Before she walked away, though Lita turned around. "See how well you do," she said shortly, before dropping the keys to the kitchen into Nick's hand.
"All right, men," Nick said. "You heard the lady. It's time to get to work ."
***
Beryl and Demando smiled at each other.
"So you're offering me the deal now?" Beryl asked. "As in right now?"
"Yes," Demando said. "I have pressing engagements in South America I must attend to. Some drug dealers are getting restless there. I have no time to waste on this pathetic little trial. It's too bad, though. My lawyer had the cutest daughter. A few more days, and I would have charmed her into my bed. She was really cute."
"Don't worry," Beryl smirked. "You can have plenty of fun with one of my girls. I suggest Beruche. Still, we now have two people to get rid of. My lawyer and yours."
"I've done some extensive research," Demando smirked. "My lawyer's holding a party, and your lawyer was invited. Wanna see how much of a party pooper I can be?"
"Mmm," Beryl smiled. "Can I play with you?"
"Sure. What do you feel like using? Bombs, assassins, poison, or the good old-fashioned knife in the gut?" Demando smirked. "I myself prefer the latter. They're so much more original, you can hear the scream of pain, and its so satisfying seeing the looks on their faces."
"I like bombs," Beryl smiled. "Knives are so messy, my fingernails would get all messed up. No, bombs are definitely better. They're so . Boom."
"Then bombs it is," Demando said. "Watch out, Moone and Shields. Your lives are about to wither away, 'cause your time is up. A toast then," he smiled, holding out some champagne. "To our future, and to their . non-future."
Beryl nodded, and held up a glass, watching him pour the champagne in. "To our future and to their future, which will shortly end."
***
December 23rd Itinerary
Noon: Exchange of Secret Santa Gifts
5:00 - Exchange of Secret Santa Letters
9:00 - You better have placed all or most of your Christmas presents under the tree by this time, Serena!
Serena groaned. She flipped her letter over.
Your Secret Santa: Raye (She needs cheering up, the poor girl. Give her something bright.)
Well, this mean major shopping spree until noon. She also had to disguise the gift, and wrap it, and write an anonymous card. She almost groaned. Suddenly she brightened. Surely Mina would feel up to a shopping spree. "Shop 'til you drop shopping sprees" were Mina's specialty.
Later .
Serena smiled. She had found the perfect gift. She couldn't wait to see the look on Raye's face when she opened it. I am so good, she thought to herself. Okay, what do I have? Raye's SS present is here, as well as her Christmas present. I can type up her SS letter later. I've covered Christmas presents for Mina, Lita, Amy, Alex, Michelle, Hotaru, Aunt Trista, Mom, Dad, and Sammy. That should be all.
She was by the last store. Mina had gone off to buy her present. She looked at the gold lettering. ~ROSES FOR ALL OCCASIONS~ She peeked inside, and was delighted to see, not only fresh roses, but all kinds of rose pins and ornaments. She went inside immediately.
Her eyes immediately fell upon the most curious item. It was a dagger, shaped like a rose with an incredibly sharp tip and sharp thorns. Its sheath was meticulously designed, and it was beautiful. Her breath caught as her hand reached to touch it. She was immediately transported to a faraway time and place, and the scent of roses permeated her nose.
A dreamy smile appeared on her face as she decided to take it. Along the way, she snatched a bottle of a too-strong perfume of roses because she didn't want to just buy the rose-dagger. As she placed it on the counter, the cashier, obviously also the owner of the quaint little shop, eyed her carefully. Her somewhat old-fashioned yellow dress and grayish-black hair made her look eccentric. Her blouse bore a tag that said "Hi! My name is Luna."
"You wish to buy this dagger?" Luna asked softly. Her piercing eyes seemed to bore into Serena, to divine all of her deepest secrets.
"Yes," Serena said, surprised and a bit unnerved. Luna reminded her a lot of Aunt Trista, and she was probably just as old. She fidgeted uncomfortably as she waited for Luna to accept her twenty-dollar bill.
Luna paused a delicate few instants, before ringing up the items. "That'll be $10.65," she said gently. Her voice was soft and musical, reminiscent of some long-forgotten time where people where politer to each other, and were happier with their roles in life.
Serena received the receipt and absent-mindedly looked at it. "You forgot to ring up the dagger," she said, startled. She had always been quite honest.
Luna looked into Serena's eyes. Her silvery eyes held Serena's own cerulean eyes for a long while. "Consider it a gift," she finally said, after a long period of silence. "You have use of it."
Serena was confused at the woman's words, but put the dagger in her bag in a dreamy, almost trance-like state. "Good-bye," she said as she walked out of the door, the bells tinkling slightly.
Luna watched Serena's retreating back as a silver-haired man entered the room. He put his arm around her and pecked her on the forehead. "Oh, Artemis," she whispered. "She's all grown up."
"Yes," Artemis said. "She is." He looked down at Luna. "Aren't you proud of her?"
"Yes," Luna nodded. "And . and worried."
Artemis wisely said nothing.
Later, when Serena turned to catch a last glimpse of the almost- mystic shop that had seemed so alluring, she was surprised to see that she couldn't find it. Before she went to meet Mina at Andrew's Café, she checked the map for "Roses For All Occasions" and could not find it. She looked for her receipt and could not find it. Instead, she found her money that she had paid back. All that remained of the shop was the rose-dagger, the too-strong perfume, and her memories. Startled, she forgot about it as she caught sight of Mina, and ran to catch up with her.
A/N: That's all I can think of for now. La, just couldn't resist adding the mystic seeress-Luna thing.
Serena, dear, you get to help with dinner today. That's all.
Serena lit up with a hopeful smile. Maybe her mother would give up on the special activities. Hopefully. And then she groaned. The kitchen? With her in it, everyone would probably die of food poisoning.
"Mina," she called out as she left her room. "What duty do you have today?"
"Kitchen duty? Why?"
"Same here. Too bad we can't switch. I'm a lawyer. I know what happens when people die after they eat your food . you get sued!"
"Don't worry," Mina reassured. "Lita's got kitchen duty, too. She'll take care of us."
An hour later .
Lita, Amy, Raye, Mina, and Serena stood knee-deep in flour.
Mina and Serena suddenly looked very sheepish. "Sorry," they chorused in identical innocent voices.
Amy shook her head. "I volunteer to make sure these two don't do anything else that results in flour exploding on the floor again. I'm not much good at cooking, myself."
"I've done some," Raye shrugged.
"Then we'll do it together," Lita said. "I . Let's just say I don't trust Serena and Mina with anything else in the kitchen, and I think they're the type to go nosing around anyways."
"Well this certainly isn't fair," Serena complained.
"Yeah. We were just trying to help," Mina pointed out.
"You set the flour on fire," Amy pointed out patiently.
"It was an accident!" Mina protested.
"We didn't know that the stove was turned on," Serena explained. "We just wanted to get the flour at a higher angle to see if we could open the bag. How should we know that it would just blow up?"
"Well," Amy said flatly. "For that, you two get clean-up duty. You shouldn't break anything in that ."
Later .
"I spoke too soon," Amy said, looking at the chaos in the kitchen.
Raye took one look around and groaned. "Oh, no."
Oh no indeed.
Meanwhile .
"Why do ~we~ have to clean out dishes?" Jared addressed the sky.
"Brace yourselves," Kirk warned. "My wife is in there, and the mess will be huge."
"It can't be that bad, can it?" Darien shrugged.
"Fatal last words, man," Zephyr shook his head.
They arrived at the door, and were speechless. Out filed a sheepish Mina and Serena, a ready-to-faint Amy, an exhausted-looking Raye, and a tired Lita. Before she walked away, though Lita turned around. "See how well you do," she said shortly, before dropping the keys to the kitchen into Nick's hand.
"All right, men," Nick said. "You heard the lady. It's time to get to work ."
***
Beryl and Demando smiled at each other.
"So you're offering me the deal now?" Beryl asked. "As in right now?"
"Yes," Demando said. "I have pressing engagements in South America I must attend to. Some drug dealers are getting restless there. I have no time to waste on this pathetic little trial. It's too bad, though. My lawyer had the cutest daughter. A few more days, and I would have charmed her into my bed. She was really cute."
"Don't worry," Beryl smirked. "You can have plenty of fun with one of my girls. I suggest Beruche. Still, we now have two people to get rid of. My lawyer and yours."
"I've done some extensive research," Demando smirked. "My lawyer's holding a party, and your lawyer was invited. Wanna see how much of a party pooper I can be?"
"Mmm," Beryl smiled. "Can I play with you?"
"Sure. What do you feel like using? Bombs, assassins, poison, or the good old-fashioned knife in the gut?" Demando smirked. "I myself prefer the latter. They're so much more original, you can hear the scream of pain, and its so satisfying seeing the looks on their faces."
"I like bombs," Beryl smiled. "Knives are so messy, my fingernails would get all messed up. No, bombs are definitely better. They're so . Boom."
"Then bombs it is," Demando said. "Watch out, Moone and Shields. Your lives are about to wither away, 'cause your time is up. A toast then," he smiled, holding out some champagne. "To our future, and to their . non-future."
Beryl nodded, and held up a glass, watching him pour the champagne in. "To our future and to their future, which will shortly end."
***
December 23rd Itinerary
Noon: Exchange of Secret Santa Gifts
5:00 - Exchange of Secret Santa Letters
9:00 - You better have placed all or most of your Christmas presents under the tree by this time, Serena!
Serena groaned. She flipped her letter over.
Your Secret Santa: Raye (She needs cheering up, the poor girl. Give her something bright.)
Well, this mean major shopping spree until noon. She also had to disguise the gift, and wrap it, and write an anonymous card. She almost groaned. Suddenly she brightened. Surely Mina would feel up to a shopping spree. "Shop 'til you drop shopping sprees" were Mina's specialty.
Later .
Serena smiled. She had found the perfect gift. She couldn't wait to see the look on Raye's face when she opened it. I am so good, she thought to herself. Okay, what do I have? Raye's SS present is here, as well as her Christmas present. I can type up her SS letter later. I've covered Christmas presents for Mina, Lita, Amy, Alex, Michelle, Hotaru, Aunt Trista, Mom, Dad, and Sammy. That should be all.
She was by the last store. Mina had gone off to buy her present. She looked at the gold lettering. ~ROSES FOR ALL OCCASIONS~ She peeked inside, and was delighted to see, not only fresh roses, but all kinds of rose pins and ornaments. She went inside immediately.
Her eyes immediately fell upon the most curious item. It was a dagger, shaped like a rose with an incredibly sharp tip and sharp thorns. Its sheath was meticulously designed, and it was beautiful. Her breath caught as her hand reached to touch it. She was immediately transported to a faraway time and place, and the scent of roses permeated her nose.
A dreamy smile appeared on her face as she decided to take it. Along the way, she snatched a bottle of a too-strong perfume of roses because she didn't want to just buy the rose-dagger. As she placed it on the counter, the cashier, obviously also the owner of the quaint little shop, eyed her carefully. Her somewhat old-fashioned yellow dress and grayish-black hair made her look eccentric. Her blouse bore a tag that said "Hi! My name is Luna."
"You wish to buy this dagger?" Luna asked softly. Her piercing eyes seemed to bore into Serena, to divine all of her deepest secrets.
"Yes," Serena said, surprised and a bit unnerved. Luna reminded her a lot of Aunt Trista, and she was probably just as old. She fidgeted uncomfortably as she waited for Luna to accept her twenty-dollar bill.
Luna paused a delicate few instants, before ringing up the items. "That'll be $10.65," she said gently. Her voice was soft and musical, reminiscent of some long-forgotten time where people where politer to each other, and were happier with their roles in life.
Serena received the receipt and absent-mindedly looked at it. "You forgot to ring up the dagger," she said, startled. She had always been quite honest.
Luna looked into Serena's eyes. Her silvery eyes held Serena's own cerulean eyes for a long while. "Consider it a gift," she finally said, after a long period of silence. "You have use of it."
Serena was confused at the woman's words, but put the dagger in her bag in a dreamy, almost trance-like state. "Good-bye," she said as she walked out of the door, the bells tinkling slightly.
Luna watched Serena's retreating back as a silver-haired man entered the room. He put his arm around her and pecked her on the forehead. "Oh, Artemis," she whispered. "She's all grown up."
"Yes," Artemis said. "She is." He looked down at Luna. "Aren't you proud of her?"
"Yes," Luna nodded. "And . and worried."
Artemis wisely said nothing.
Later, when Serena turned to catch a last glimpse of the almost- mystic shop that had seemed so alluring, she was surprised to see that she couldn't find it. Before she went to meet Mina at Andrew's Café, she checked the map for "Roses For All Occasions" and could not find it. She looked for her receipt and could not find it. Instead, she found her money that she had paid back. All that remained of the shop was the rose-dagger, the too-strong perfume, and her memories. Startled, she forgot about it as she caught sight of Mina, and ran to catch up with her.
A/N: That's all I can think of for now. La, just couldn't resist adding the mystic seeress-Luna thing.