AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm sorry for not updating for the past few days. Sunday, I was at a Super Bowl party (awful game), and Monday I had a lot of work to do. I will not be able to update every day from now on, but the story is almost finished anyways. Also, quick format change: Past conversations will appear italicized so to avoid confusion. Thanks for all the support! As always, enjoy and review!-Manic-Catastrophe
Christmas. A familiar holiday even for Karkat, though like all holidays, he had never celebrated it. His holiday experience was limited to walking past decorated shops and houses, though he rarely stopped to look. Even he had a few less painful memories from Christmas. His dad never abused him on Christmas Day, and he usually had a good-sized meal as well, though for the last few years that had happened rarely. The entire process was foreign to him.
Since his attempted suicide and the resulting events, he had legitimately begun to recover. His new cuts had healed and left only small scars, and were not replaced by new ones. His dreams, while still disturbing and violent at times, no longer woke him up screaming. When he smiled, it made him want to smile more because the smile was real. Kanaya and Rosa noticed the change, and his newfound happiness quickly infected both of them.
The change was not complete or instant, however. He had relapses, as could be expected. Some days he walked around with a cloud of gloom around him. Those days, he and Kanaya would talk for about an hour on their way home about it. Both of them were grateful, because both were able to unload their struggles and pains onto their counterpart. Karkat's most prevalent issue was his lingering guilt over his dad's actions, still unable to remove blame from himself.
"Karkat, remember. His actions are not in any way, shape, or form your fault. His deeds are despicable, but they are his, not yours."
He looked over at her and smiled a rather sad smile, "I know that, Kanaya. I just… can't really believe it, you know?"
"I understand, Karkat. I still feel guilty for leaving that hospital room. The resulting events weren't my fault, but my absence allowed them to happen."
Karkat took Kanaya's hand, "You had no idea that was going to happen. Besides, I wasn't exactly… Well, you know."
They were walking down one of the main thoroughfares in the city. It was a windy, grey day and their moods reflected the sky. As they passed street front shops, Kanaya couldn't help but laugh when she saw Karkat's face light up like a child's as he saw the front window displays. Their grey mood was dispelled like mist as they saw the merry display of twinkling lights in both the shop windows and their street-facing side. Finals were set to begin the next day, but neither was worried. Kanaya was, after all, an impeccable student and Karkat had ascended to excellence by her example. There is a lot to be said for role models, that's for certain.
Suddenly, an unsettling thought came over Karkat. "Hey Kanaya…?"
"Hmm?"
"Isn't it like… a part of Christmas to get friends and family gifts?"
"Well, yes it is, but you don't have to-"
"I know I don't have to, but I want to. You've given me pretty much everything I have, including my life. I at least want to get you something…" He let the implied question hang in the brisk air.
"Well, I'm not really into the girly-girl stuff like makeup and perfume," Kanaya rarely ever wore makeup, but nobody could tell because her skin was perfect anyways, "Although…" she trailed off in thought.
"I do know how you love chess," Karkat had learned quickly that Kanaya was a formidable chess player, and she had taught him the basics of the game. Kanaya looked at him and tilted her head as if to say "Well, you've got me there". For a moment, Karkat despaired, thinking that he still had no pocket money. Rosa had alleviated that problem quickly after his arrival, giving him an allowance, just like Kanaya.
"Well, if you're ever going to go out into the world, you're going to need to know how to manage money. This way, you can set goals to strive towards." Rosa was still astonished at how little Karkat knew about life.
"Well, all of this is useful when you're grown up, right? I don't think I would have reached 18 with dad…"
Instantly, Karkat thought of a chessboard he'd seen in a fancy board games store display. It was more complex than the classic board, having more tiles and terrain that affected troop movement, as well as an increased number of pieces. It looked more like a real battlefield with real armies than a chessboard. He knew instantly that she would love it. As for Rosa… "Do you know what Rosa might like?"
Kanaya gave a sharp note of laughter, "She can be a nightmare to shop for!" At Karkat's surprised expression, she elaborated. "She won't usually make known what she wants. So… improvisation is the name of the game."
They had reached their apartment building and entered by now. The lobby was taken up by a massive, heavily decorated tree. The smell of fresh pine needles saturated the room, so the tree was real. The doormen's uniforms had been augmented with a red ribbon across the shoulders and down the sides. The effect was quite striking. Riding up the elevator, Karkat caught glimpses of other floors, each one decorated uniquely.
His floor was decorated with sprigs of holly and wreaths on every door. The carpet had been covered up by a festive green and red doppelganger. With amusement, they both realized that the carpet was the exact shades of their eyes. Walking through the halls, appetizing odors had seeped out of the various apartments, creating a marvelous smorgasbord of smells. When they opened their door, a wave of warm air rushed out, saturated with the scent of chocolate and mint.
"Hey kids!" Rosa called from the kitchen, "Makara had us go early today. He also gave us the rest of the year off, even those who are out of vacation hours."
At the mention of Rosa's erratic boss, both teens chuckled. "Well, I do suppose it beats juggling half-full booze bottles, huh?" Karkat grinned wider at Rosa's snort of laughter.
"Yep, got that right. Although it is kind of fun when he spikes the coffee pot with Irish whiskey." She let loose a full throated laugh. "He only does it in the winter months, says it 'helps with productivity in cold weather'. I just think he enjoys watching the chaos. Still, no complaints here. That's good quality whiskey." All three were laughing hard, thinking about an office full of professional businesspeople, all stone drunk.
They got over their laughing fit soon, and Karkat and Kanaya went to go study for their finals. The next day was easy for the both of them, but the day after was going to be hard for Karkat. Strider's and Lalonde's finals the same day? He groaned in dismay, then pulled out his Algebra notes.
By the time dinner was ready, Karkat could have sworn he saw numbers dancing in front of his eyes. Still, he felt he had sufficiently reviewed Algebra and was about to start on Social Studies when a tap on his door dissuaded his from that course of action. Also, the words spoken had something to do with it. "Dinner's ready!" Two words that worked miracles. Sighing in relief, he set aside his book and notebooks (yes, notebooks,) for Social Studies and got up, ready to eat whatever was producing the wonderful aroma.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Mostly a filler chapter, but still some character development. Does anyone else want to work for Makara? Also: I will update THIS chapter before the next one, alright?