Merry Christmas, folks! Here's the Christmas special. It's quite different, so let me know what you think.

Bonus: Snowfall

~?~

"Looks like you're down to your last dude, Nicky."

A young boy leaned forward, looking over the screen of his Game Boy Color. He flashed a smile at his friend, who lay on the floor, looking at his own device.

"Heeheehee... don't think you've won yet, Shane. This one's my best guy," Nicky declared, pushing brown hair out of his eyes. "You ready for this? Go, Lugia!"

Shane watched the colored pixels flash across his screen. "Ha, big whoop! My Dragonite can totally deal with th–"

"Eat this... Psychic!" Nicky squealed, jostling his Game Boy in excitement. In the process, the Pikachu plushy in his lap dropped to the floor. Shane's enthusiastic expression quickly vanished as he watched Dragonite's sprite fall off of his screen.

"No way. You were faster than me?" Shane gasped.

"Now you're down to your last dude, Shane," Nicky taunted.

Shane's grin reappeared. "Ah, but I saved the best for last, too. Go, Ho-Oh!" The other Legendary bird popped up on his Game Boy's screen. He eagerly went to select a move to use. "Alright, it's time for me to win the bat–"

"Heeheeheehee! Nice try, but it won't help. Hydro Pump to the face, dude," Nicky said with a victorious laugh.

"What? It gets Hydro Pump?" Shane gasped. He watched the HP of his Ho-Oh trickle down to zero and Ho-Oh's sprite vanished from the screen. "No way. You totally cheated!"

"Of course Lugia gets Hydro Pump," Nicky scoffed. He grabbed his stuffed Pikachu and dusted off the rainbow ribbon pinned to its chest. "Don't you remember the Lugia movie? It lives underwater, dude." He disconnected the Link Cable tethering their Game Boys. "Better luck next time."

Shane hung his head in defeat. "Ugh, fiiiiine."

Ding-Dong!

"Nicholas, your mother's here!"

Nicky frowned. "Aww man. Already?"

"You can come back tomorrow, can't you?" Shane asked.

Nicky shook his head. "No. Tomorrow I'm going on a trip."

"Oh." Shane slowly got to his feet. "But we can play more when you get back, right?"

"Totally!" Nicky promised. The two of them ran down the staircase, where a pair of women stood by the door. One had on a black, puffy winter jacket.

"Nicholas, what do you say to Shane and his mom?" Nicky's mom asked, rubbing fog off her glasses.

"Right." He turned back to Shane. "Thanks for letting me come over."

"And?"

Nicky gave his mom a confused look. She rolled her eyes and said, "And Merry Christmas to you both."

"Oh, right! Merry Christmas, Shane. Merry Christmas, Mrs. Shane's Mom!" Nicky chirped, causing the two women to giggle.

"Okay. Let's get going before the snow gets really bad on the roads," Nicky's mom exclaimed. The two exited the house. Shane ran up to the window beside the door and gave Nicky a wave goodbye.

"I'll see you soon, dude!" he called as the car pulled out of the driveway.

~14 Years Later~

A young man removed the white coat he was wearing and draped it over his right arm. He paused at a corner and poked his head around the wall. "Dr. Sinclair?" he called.

"I know what I said, Rory, and I'm sorry. I got held up at work. I'm waiting on some labs for a patient."

He spotted a woman seated in front of a computer with her back to him. She had a cell phone pressed against her right ear, while her left hand twirled a lock of blonde hair. "Prisma?" he said, knocking on the wall.

"Hang on, Rory," Prisma sighed and pulled the phone away. She spun around in her office chair. "What are you still doing here, Sanders? I thought I told you to go drop by the holiday party before it closes down."

Sanders laughed nervously. "Aha ha… right. I was planning on doing that, but the Ardsley kids' parents yanked me aside and started asking me questions about his procedure tomorrow. Before I knew it…"

"Sanders, Sanders, Sanders," Prisma sighed, shaking her head. "How many times do I have to tell you? Do not indulge helicopter parents. You'll never be able to shake them off. Give them brief answers and tell them you'll check in on their kid shortly. Then get your butt out of that room." She lifted her phone up. "Now, is there anything else? I'm a bit busy here."

"I, uh, just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas. You're, um, not stuck working this year, are you?" Sanders asked.

"Ha! Good one, Sanders," Prisma laughed. "That's what we've got you residents for."

Sanders eyes widened. "B-But I thought I had Christmas off," he muttered.

Prisma rolled her eyes. "You do. Learn to take a joke, Sanders. It'll go a long way in this field. Now, get a move on before I change my mind and make you do blood draws with the nurses."

"R-Right," Sanders muttered. "Merry Christmas, boss."

"And a happy new year," Prisma replied, waving her subordinate off. She spun back around in her chair and took her hand of the phone's speaker. "Sorry about that, sweetie. One of the kids had a question." A pause followed. "Yes, I was talking about a resident. You know how Sanders gets sometimes. Poor guy's too polite for his own good."

A notification popped up on Prisma's computer. "Oh… oh!" She leaned in toward the screen and started moving the mouse around. "Looks like I shouldn't be out too much longer, Rory. I just got the test results I needed. I'm going to wrap things up with my patient. With any luck, I'll be home in an hour."

She went silent and nodded slowly. "I'm aware it's already after sundown. Can't she just wait until I'm home?" Prisma sighed and rubbed her temples. "Okay, tell you what. She can open one of her birthday presents now. But she'll need to wait until I'm home to open the rest. And don't let the kids get at the cake yet, either."

Another pause followed. "Love you too, sweetie. I'll be home before you know it." She ended the call and tucked the phone into the pocket of her white coat. Prisma took a deep breath and clasped her hands together. "Come on, baby. Prisma needs a Christmas miracle here." She pulled up a page of lab results and immediately started scanning them. Her eyes lit up. "Oh, thank heavens. This is fantastic!"

Prisma typed into the keyboard and the printer beside her whirred to life. The lab values printed out and she grabbed the page. Prisma fast-walked down the hallway, approaching a bedroom in the corner. She stopped at the door and gave a knock. "Evening, Mr. and Mrs. Miller," she greeted. Then she turned toward the bed, where a young girl lay heavily wrapped in blankets. "And hello to you too, Izzy. How are we feeling tonight, huh?"

"Kinda tired," Izzy mumbled. She pulled the stuffed Lapras doll in her arms up against her face.

"She just woke up from a nap," Mrs. Miller explained. "We know that the floor's holiday movie night is happening soon." She shot her husband a concerned look. "But you said you weren't sure if she'd be allowed to leave the room and go."

"Well, I have some good news for you all, then," Prisma exclaimed, passing the page she printed to the Millers. "Her white count's showing marked improvements. No inflammatory markers, either."

Mr. Miller examined the page in confusion. "What does that mean, doctor?"

"It looks like the bone marrow transplant is taking," Prisma elaborated. "She's responding well to it. No signs of rejection in her labs." She stepped to the side, allowing a nurse to enter the room. "So, I'm happy to say that she's got my permission to take part in the floor's Christmas activities." Her smile widened. "And that includes movie night, of course."

Izzy sat up at this. "Really?" she squeaked. "Can Cissy come with me, too?" She held up the Lapras doll.

Prisma nodded. "I think that would be okay," she exclaimed. Izzy cheered and hugged the plush while the nurse helped her out of the bed and into a wheelchair. Prisma gave her a wave as the nurse wheeled her toward the exit. "You have a Merry Christmas, okay Izzy? I'll be back soon to check up on you."

"Okay. Merry Christmas, Dr. Prisma," Izzy bid her farewell.

Prisma waited until the wheelchair was out of view, and then turned to her parents and said, "You'll want to sanitize and wash that doll tonight. Her immune system's improving, but it's far from perfect."

"Of course, doctor," Mr. Miller said. "We can't thank you enough for all your help." He wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders. "We were so worried she was going to be cooped up in this room for all of Christmas."

"It's my pleasure. I'm here to help," Prisma replied. "Now, I should let you know that I'll be out of the hospital on vacation with my family next week." She pulled out a business card from the chest pocket of her coat. "My partner, Dr. Bezdow, will be covering my patients, along with my residents. I'm sure you both remember Dr. Sanders."

"The mousy fellow, right?" Mrs. Miller asked.

Prisma fought back a laugh at that. "Yes, well he'll be off for Christmas, but he's here the rest of the month. I've given him special instructions to keep an eye on Izzy. So, don't you worry. She's in great hands." She winked at the Millers. "I'm afraid I must get going, now. It's my daughter's birthday, you see, and I'm already in hot water with my husband for staying here too late."

The Millers chuckled at this. "Well, don't let us hold you up any further," Mr. Miller declared. "Merry Christmas, Dr. Sinclair."

"Same to you both," Prisma replied. She turned and departed the room, taking off her white coat in the process. She made a quick stop at her office to shut down her computer, and then snaked her way through the hospital to get to her white SUV. As she pulled out from the parking garage she frowned at the sight of snowflakes cascading down in front of her car's headlights.

"Ah, crud," she muttered. She reached down and switched the radio on.

"… that'll conclude the traffic report. For the weather, here's meteorologist Chuck Donohue," a man's voice crackled through the speakers.

"Thanks, Mac. The words for the night are snowing and blowing, folks," Chuck exclaimed. "We've got a high-pressure system moving in from Lake Ontario. And jets of warm air to the south and southeast of us look to be slowing the storm system down. So, expect the snow to linger over the county from tonight, through tomorrow, and into Christmas Day. If your kids were hankering for a white Christmas, then they won't be disappointed."

Prisma sighed and switched the stations. She flipped on her high-beam lights and slowly drove through the deserted city. She remained focused on the road, only the music and whirring of her windshield wipers to keep her company. After thirty minutes of driving, she pulled up to a snow-covered driveway. She glanced out the window.

'I think I can make it,' she figured. 'C'mon, old girl. Let's put that horsepower of yours to good work.' She spun the wheel to the left and slammed down on the accelerator. Her truck surged forward, digging through the snow and shooting its way along her driveway. She pulled into an open garage door and shut it behind her.

Prisma managed to just make it through the door when a pair of eager voices sounded through the house.

"Mom!"

"Mommy!"

Prisma hastily dropped her bag onto the floor and opened her arms up to embrace her two kids. "Hi!" she chirped. "Aren't you two positively bursting with energy?" She looked up and noticed her husband walking forward, hands tucked into the pockets of his black jeans. "You didn't let them get at the cake, did you?"

"What kind of sorry soul do you take me for, huh?" Rory asked, rubbing the back of his bald head. "Kids, tell your mother we've been waiting for her to get dinner started."

"We've been waiting and we're sooooooo hungry," they declared in unison.

"Well, you won't have to be hungry any longer," Prisma declared. She took off her winter coat, hung it up, and proceeded into the kitchen. "Oh, wow. Smell that? Looks like someone's got her favorite dish waiting for her, huh?"

Prisma's daughter nodded enthusiastically and sprinted toward her seat at the table, black hair fluttering. The rest of the family joined her. Rory brought over a large strainer filled with spaghetti and offered up helpings to everyone. "Okay, dig in," he declared, setting down the strainer to take his seat. Both of the kids immediately reached for the jar of sauce.

"Hey. Let go, Gallian. I wanna use the sauce first!"

"And let you take all of it? Little sister, please," Gallian scoffed, shoving her smaller hand aside.

Prisma rolled her eyes and gently lifted her son's hand off the jar. "Come on, Gallian. It's Tessa's birthday. Let her have first dibs just this once, okay?"

Gallian sat back in his chair and scowled while Tessa accepted the jar with a delighted grin. "… tch. Have some pasta with your sauce," he heckled, blowing a tuft of brown hair out of his eyes.

"Hey now, tomato sauce can be good for you," Rory said, looking over toward Prisma. "Isn't that right, doc?"

"How the heck should I know? I'm not that kind of doctor," Prisma scoffed. "Last I checked, tomato sauce isn't causing cancer, so Tessa's free to have as much as she wants."

"Yeah, sure. Maybe you'll turn into a tomato if you keep eating that much," Gallian said, pouring sauce on his pasta. "Then I can tell everyone in school that my sister's taken being a vegetarian one step too far."

"Mom!" Tessa whined.

"Don't tease your sister, Gallian," Prisma scolded. "Especially with all the junky snacks you like to eat. Don't think I don't know that you're taking coins from the family coin jar to use on the vending machines at school, because I do."

"Meh." Gallian shrugged. "Dad shaysh I have a shuper metabolishm jusht like him."

"How many times do I have to tell you not to talk with your mouth full?" Prisma sighed.

Gallian slurped up the spaghetti dangling from his mouth. "I can eat whatever I want and I'll never get fat."

"I never said anything like that," Rory insisted, raising his hands innocently.

"Good. Because I'd hate to have to replace all the snacks in the pantry with vegetables," Prisma teased. Gallian's eyes widened and he promptly looked down at his dinner, pouting. "So, Tessa," she said, turning to her daughter, "I understand you got a bit overeager with opening your presents. What'd you get?"

Tessa's eyes sparkled. "Oh! Oh! Wait here, I'll go get it." She launched off her chair and sprinted out of the room.

"Nice airplane arms you've got there, ya dork," Gallian heckled.

"As I recall, you used to run like that when you were her age," Rory mused, stroking his goatee. Gallian looked away, blushing.

Tessa returned, brandishing a small game case in her right hand. "Here it is, here it is!" she chirped, slapping the case on the table. Prisma briefly glanced the bright-blue background on the cover art.

"Oh, yeah. This is the game you had asked for, right? It's not as new, so your father and I weren't sure if we'd be able to find it." Prisma said. Tessa nodded enthusiastically

"Yup! I'm gonna play as the Oshawott, cause he's the cutest," Tessa squealed, picking the case up and hugging it.

Gallian rolled his eyes. "Oh, brother. We both know you're going to give up at the first boss and come running to me, begging me to beat it for you."

"I will not," Tessa huffed. "My friend Stacey told me this one's much easier than the last one."

"How would you know? I seem to recall I played through that entire game for you," Gallian scoffed. "And it would've been so much easier if you'd just let me do the personality quiz. Vulpix and Riolu are a terrible combination."

"Hey! I like Riolu," Tessa said, her cheeks puffing up. "And Vulpix."

"Gallian, what did I tell you? Quit teasing your sister," Prisma scolded. "My, how easily you seem to have forgotten that you used to always come to your father and I for help with your games."

"Here, here," Rory agreed, raising his glass. "Who could forget trying to solo Blue with an overleveled Pikachu?"

Gallian's face flushed and he started poking dejectedly at his spaghetti. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, why don't you?" he grumbled.

"Besides, I seem to recall you enjoy playing games with your sister," Prisma declared.

Gallian shoved a forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. "I guess. Just don't tell the other moms in your parent group or whatever."

"Deal," Prisma promised, winking. They finished off dinner and then proceeded into the living room, where the rest of Tessa's presents sat. She gleefully tore through the wrapping paper. The first box contained a new dress, courtesy of her parents. Then there were assorted posters for her bedroom and some DVDs.

"… heh. Saving mine for last, I see," Gallian declared. "You better like it. I spent good allowance money on it."

"Allowance money that we gave you," Rory muttered under his breath, before Prisma elbowed him in the gut.

Tessa raised an eyebrow. "This is just a package," she said, staring at a brown postal box.

"Relax, sis. Take a look inside," Gallian said, nodding at the present.

Tessa carefully used scissors to cut along the tape and spread the box open. A big grin appeared on her face and she dipped her arms into the box. She pulled out two stuffed toys: an Absol and a Vulpix. "Aww, they're so cuuuuuuuuute!" she squealed in delight, wrapping the plushies up in a big hug. "Thanks, Gallian!"

"No problem, sis," Gallian said, before leaning in and whispering, "and if you liked those, just wait until Christmas." A broad grin appeared on Tessa's face and she looked down at the toys.

"Wow, I can't wait," she chirped. "I got you something really good, too. But Mom said I can't spoil the surprise." She stepped back, tightening her grip on her toys. "Come on, you two. We've got a game to start playing."

"Hey now, what about cleaning up all this wrapping–"

"Thanks for the presents," Tessa called as she ran past her parents and toward the stairs. Gallian chuckled and slowly followed along after her.

"–paper?" Rory leaned over and sighed.

"Easy there, honey. This barely qualifies as a mess. I'll just throw this stuff in the kitchen garbage," Prisma declared. She hastily cleaned all the wrapping paper and brought it toward the large garbage bin in the kitchen. "Hey, Rory, did you get the mail today? I don't see it here."

"Ah, nuts," Rory said, snapping his fingers. "I knew I was forgetting something. Do you want me to head out and grab it?"

"No, no, it's fine. I'm still dressed. I'll just throw on my boots and jacket and go get it," Prisma exclaimed. She geared up for the cold and then proceeded out her house's back door. A blast of cold air awaited her and she quickly pulled up her coat hood. Snow was still falling down. Her first steps saw her sinking into the white, powdery ground. The snow reached halfway up her lower legs.

"Hoo boy. I sure hope the plows can make it here overnight," she said, rubbing her gloved hands together. Slowly, she stomped forward, making her way through snowstorm. She pulled a flashlight out from her pocket and shined it ahead of her. It unveiled the mailbox, barely sticking out from the snowdrift pile that had gathered around it. Prisma reached it and opened it up, taking out its contents. She tucked the mail under her arm and started returning toward her house.

Prisma had made it halfway up her driveway when she brought a hand up to her temple. 'Unngggh… w-what–?'Her vision flickered and she blinked rapidly. 'Where's that ringing coming from?' She cupped her free hand over her ear, but the ringing only grew louder. Her vision flickered once again, before everything went white.

"R-Rory!" Prisma shouted. She tried to reach her hand into pocket and grab her phone, but her arm stiffened. Her other arm followed suit. The mail fell to the ground. "Rory!" she shouted even louder. "Help! Call 9-1-1! I think I'm having a–"

She felt the ground disappear beneath her legs. The air rushed out of her lungs and she immediately lost consciousness.

~Aeon Observatory~

"… Lucario? Hey, Lucario? You feeling alright, pardner?"

Prisma snapped to attention, blinking her eyes rapidly. "B-Braviary!" she gasped, a blush coming on. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Yer room? Hoss, yer in the hallway in the veterans' quarters." He stepped back and lifted a wing to showcase the hallway.

"O-Oh…" Prisma fidgeted with the bandanna around her neck. "Whoops, silly me." She laughed nervously. "I must've gotten, y'know, taken in by the snow." Prisma glanced out the window, watching snow gently drift down onto the ground. Braviary stepped up next to her.

"Ain't nothing special about this, really," Braviary thought aloud. "You've seen yer fair share of snowstorms hitting Aeon Town, ain't ya?"

"Of course I have," Prisma replied hastily. "But... I dunno. I guess it's just nice to see it falling again."

Braviary gave her a skeptical look. "Uh-huh. How long ya planning on staring, exactly? It's almost sundown, you know."

Prisma's aura feelers stood on end. "I-It is?" she squeaked.

"Course it is. Ol' Incineroar's been counting the minutes. You know how much he looks forward to his Winter Solstice party. Feller wouldn't stop yapping about it all day," Braviary said with a laugh. "He took off to get the kids an hour ago. I reckoned you were already home."

"Oh gods, I forgot about the party," Prisma groaned, smacking her face with a paw.

"Well then, I'd shake a tailfeather if I was you," Braviary chuckled, turning to walk toward the staircase. "Yer family's waiting for ya, after all." He hovered in the stairway and waved a wing at her. "Happy Winter Solstice, Lucario."

Prisma raised her paw and slowly waved it. As soon as he was gone, she turned back toward the window. Her grip on her bandanna tightened. "My family's… waiting for me," she whispered.

Her paw slowly slid underneath the bandanna and pulled out a small piece of paper. She unfolded it and stared at a photo of her, Rory, and their human kids in front of a large fountain. Everyone wore big, enthusiastic smiles. Her free paw clenched into a fist and she grit her teeth.

"My… family…"

Her eyes watered and red energy crackled across her fist.

Hope you all enjoyed this. It was quite a lot of fun to write.

Next time: Team Radiance learns of their disciplinary assignment, and tensions run high. Can a little UB-Adhesive keep their relationship from falling apart completely?