"That's very…um…pink."

Kunzite peered over Nephrite's shoulder at the monitor. Clicking the Buy It Now option to purchase the old Easy Bake Oven, Nephrite nodded. "I know. But it's for Makoto, so it's all right. She'll love it. I'm just lucky they still make the little cake mixes and frostings for those things. Note to self. Must buy candy sprinkles."

Logging off, he turned away from the computer and picked up a small gift-wrapped box, tossing it lightly into the air. It seemed to weigh nothing at all.

"What's that?" Jadeite asked, eying the tiny box speculatively. "We said no jewelry this year."

"This?" At the nod, Nephrite smiled faintly, fingering the tangled emerald curling ribbon. "Well, I saw this old picture of Mako when her orphanage took the kids to the ice rink. Nearly every other girl I could see in the photo had some little yarn pom-pom things tied to the laces of their skates…except Makoto. Her rented skates looked so bare in comparison. So I looked around until I found some directions on making them on a craft site. It's amazing what you can do with a little pink and green yarn and two cardboard disks with holes in the middle."

Zoisite raised an eyebrow. "You made them yourself? And went to a crafting site to learn to do it? Really?"

At Nephrite's nod, a worried frown creased Kunzite's forehead. "Damn."

"What?"

"It's just that it means I'm going to have to up the ante," Kunzite explained. "Because idol lover or no, the Mr. Microphone toy I found for Minako isn't going to cut it when she hears that you made Makoto something by hand. She's going to think that was the sweetest thing ever and if I can't come up with something as good…"

Kunzite's voice trailed off meaningfully. A smug smile flitted across Nephrite's lips and he flipped the pom-pom gift box in the air again. Makoto would love the gooey sentimentality and thoughtfulness of it and all the girls would definitely hear about it later. "Not my problem, Kunz." Mentally, though, Nephrite made a note to buy himself and Makoto each a pair of sound-deadening earmuffs. 'Mr. Microphone indeed.'

"I'm the one who needs help here, dammit!" Frustrated, Jadeite dragged a hand through his hair rumpling it wildly. "Rei's Shinto, for crying out loud. She never celebrated Christmas as a kid. And she's never been the most forthcoming woman anyway. How am I supposed to find out what toy she wanted as a kid but didn't get?"

"Shhhh…keep it down," hissed Zoisite, making a shushing motion. "You don't want to spoil everyone's surprises by letting the girls overhear you, do you?"

"You could get Rei a voodoo doll of her father and a bunch of sharp pins," Endymion interjected, only half joking. He was busily wrapping up a collection of UFO catcher dolls for Serenity, who'd never been physically coordinated enough to win them herself as a girl. Through much hard work and dickering with some very rabid collectors, he'd managed to find one of each Senshi, a rose-bearing Tuxedo Kamen, Luna, Artemis and even a set of the Shitennou. She'd get the whole court in plushie form.

"Serves you all right if it's hard for you. It was my brilliant idea to get Makoto something she always wanted as a kid but never got. And then you all stole it." Nephrite's tone was distinctly unsympathetic, though he did pick up one of the old Searsu Wishbook catalogues they'd unearthed and start flipping through it.

"How about a wood burning kit?" Kunzite, as usual, sounded serious, but Jadeite shot him a 'Get real!' look that had the tall, silver-haired man looking mildly embarrassed. "It was just a suggestion."

Zoisite peered at his catalogue, perusing the games section. "How about a Ouiji board?"

"Are you nuts?" demanded Jadeite. "She'd probably predict the next friggin' apocalypse with one of those things. I want something fun for her. Something light. Something that won't find my ass in a sling on Christmas morning."

"Did you ever find that toy doctor's kit for Ami?" Nephrite inquired, glancing over at Zoisite. "I can't believe she never got one of those as a kid."

"Her mother didn't think they were sufficiently…authentic," Zoisite replied, with a shrug of his shoulders and a roll of his bottle-green eyes. "But yes, I did. It was hard to find one that was complete, though. I finally had to settle for one that had everything but the eye-chart."

Nephrite snickered. "An eye-chart? So THAT'S why I saw you laminating that page the other day that said stuff like 'Zoi is sexy' and 'Mercury loves Zoisite' and 'Kiss me, I'm a Shitennou' in all the different sized type."

The four other men laughed easily as a dull brick red color burned across Zoisite's cheekbones.

"Help me, guys," moaned Jadeite. "I can't do this. I wish Rei's grandfather were alive so I could ask him."

Zoisite grabbed a black orb off of Endymion's office shelf, shaking it. Theatrically he intoned, "Oh mystic Magic 8 Ball, reveal to us what Jadeite should give Rei for Christmas."

Slowly the fortune-revealing triangle swam into view through a haze of murky purple liquid. "Ask again later," Nephrite read off, deadpan. "So much for asking the special powers of beyond for help."

A dark-eyed, scowling Jadeite slammed his fist down on the desk, making Endymion wince for his furniture's finish. "That's not funny, Zoisite."

"I've got an idea," Kunzite said suddenly, tapping a finger against his jaw.

Suddenly hopeful aquamarine eyes fixed on him. "What is it? Speak up!"

"Jadeite, you said it yourself. She was raised Shinto and never celebrated Christmas as a kid. Simple enough, then. Just dress yourself up in the suit and give her Santa himself as a present. You can get her to sit on your lap and tell you just what she wants"

A wickedly amused glint seemed to warm Kunzite's cool grey eyes. He wasn't married to the Senshi of Love for nothing, after all. "We'll just not expect to see you both in public until sometime after New Years."