Ivan put on his coat carefully as he prepared to leave his home for Alfred's. The boy had invited him over to decorate for Christmas. He didn't know entirely what that would entail but he accepted any excuse to be near the other. Especially if it was Alfred's idea. Their relationship was advancing wonderfully in his opinion and he didn't want to jeopardize it in any way.

As he was about to leave though, the phone rang angrily. It broke the silence of the home (Toris was out at the moment) and made Ivan hiss in displeasure. He absolutely hated phones. He disliked the idea of being able to contact someone at any time, even when other people had important matters to attend to, such as going to Alfred's home. Grudgingly, he stepped away from the door and picked up the device.

"Da?" He spoke into it, annoyed that he might be late because of this imbecilic call. There was a sharp intake of breath on the other line but nothing else. Perhaps they were confused at what he had said?

"Hello?" He tried but still there was nothing except... he wasn't sure if it was another intake of breath or a muffled sob. I must have just been a breath and after a moment the line went dead. He furrowed his brows in confusion as he wondered if that was some strange American custom. To him it just seemed rude, but, then again, there were many rude things Americans seemed to accept. He brushed it off, much more focused on leaving the home in favor of Alfred's.

It couldn't be anything important.

"We're back!" Alfred called into the house, leaving his brother to untie the tree from the car in order to notify their parents of their return. He heard a few curses upstairs and some shuffling. Great, now he knew what his parents had been doing. Surely this house was where innocence was killed repeatedly thanks to Papa.

Arthur stumbled down the stairs, his hair messy but all his clothes thankfully on. "Ah, wonderful." he coughed out, trying to see if he had any hopes of denying what he had previously been doing. Of course it didn't work.

"Dad, do you two have to do it every time we leave the house? Its reall-" There was a muffled shout and thud from outside that reminded Alfred he had left his brother alone. He cursed under his breath before hurrying toward him.

"Mattie? What happened?" Alfred asked, seeing his brother cradling his hand with the tree on the ground beside him instead of on the roof of the car.

"You left me to do this by myself! And now I'm covered in splinters." Matthew complained, showing off his right hand as proof. Arthur, who had come out as well, made a tsking sound at Alfred, coming forward to lead Matthew back into the house in order to help get the splinters out. Alfred pouted, looking down at the tree and realizing that now he was the one who was suppose to carry it back inside alone.

He looked at the tree thoughtfully, planning out his strategy. He absolutely detested splinters so he definitely wanted to avoid them. Maybe he should wait until Matthew was ready to help again? But he wanted the tree inside now! Sacrifices had to be made. Alfred bent down, thinking he would just grab it by the trunk and drag it in.

"Hello, Alfred."

Alfred straightened up immediately in surprise, looking up to see Ivan standing in front of him with a curious look. He had on his trademark smile though Alfred could tell this one was a sincerely happy one. He had come to be an expert on Ivan's smiles, it was something he picked up from being around him so much.

"Am I too early?" The Russian questioned, tilting his head slightly from the surprised look he had received. Perhaps he had miscalculated how long it would take to reach the others residence and had arrived at the wrong time.

"No! Actually, you're perfect. Help me carry this in, would ya?" Alfred quickly asked, motioning to the tree with his hand. Wow, that was really lucky! See, life could be nice to him sometimes! And it even involved Ivan! Then again, the Russian had been pretty cool lately. And they were sort of dating... He still wasn't sure what they were doing but he didn't think they were boyfriends yet or anything... Or maybe they were? It was all still too weird. At least Ivan wasn't pressing him too much on trying to understand what the hell they were. He needed time to figure everything out.

"Da." Ivan answered simply, leaning down and curling his fingers around the trunk of the tree. He was wearing his thick coat so the needles didn't effect him and his gloves allowed him to grip the prickly bark with ease. Wearing gloves had many advantages,other than the primary one of protecting his hands from that awful fluid.

Alfred leaned down as well, grasping the trunk carefully. He hissed, retracting his hand quickly. Damn it!Why were they do easy to get? He hated splinters, abhorred them. Aww man, and it was one of those small ones that never come out! Ivan let go of the trunk as well, peering at him curiously.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, still with his creepy smile but Alfred caught how it was turned down slightly; Ivan was worried.

"Stupid splinter." Alfred explained glaring at his hand.

"Ah, would..Would you like to use my gloves?" Ivan offered hesitantly. Alfred grinned, oblivious as usual and nodded his head excitedly. With gloves he could pick up the tree with ease and be the hero of Christmas! Ivan hesitated slightly before peeling the black gloves from his hands. He handed them over quickly before he could change his mind. This was for Alfred, he would be fine. He wouldn't get hurt or bleed or anything. And afterward he could get his gloves back. It would be fine. Or at least, that is what he continued to repeat to himself.

Alfred put the gloves on, they were slightly big on him but he didn't care at the moment. He bent down to pick up the trunk, the splinter in his hand hurting him slightly but not enough to complain...yet. He looked up, realizing that Ivan now had to pick up the trunk without any protection. Shit...that was a kind of ass thing to do..

"Hey, you can keep the gloves. I mean, I'll suck it up..." He quickly stated since he didn't want to feel like a jackass.

"It is fine." Ivan replied easily, picking up his end of the tree. They shuffled into the house, through the hall and into the family room where Arthur had pulled out a stand for them. The pair hauled the tree into the stand and Ivan held it as Alfred secured it in place.

"There." Alfred said proudly, gazing at the awesome tree which was still wrapped in its protective wire string thing.

"Now?" Ivan asked with a tilt of his head.

"Now, we free it from its confines and decorate it. I think Gil is coming over too."

"Ah, may I have my gloves back?" Ivan asked tentatively.

"Hmm?" Alfred looked at him and locked eyes with slightly fear filled violet ones. And then he remembered the ordeal in the bathroom, the paint and the hysterics. How had that slipped his mind? Oh yeah Papa..and then his emotions and then Mattie. Well, he was going to get to the bottom of this once and for all!

"Thanks." Alfred merely said, taking off the gloves and handing them over. "And I want to know. Ok? Like tonight."

Ivan's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and so Alfred continued, "I want to know about what happened when you were little that caused that panic attack in the bathroom."

Ivan's eyes widened, "I...Alfred-"

"I mean it. I'm sick of you keeping secrets." Sick of secrets all together.

"Alfred, I do not wish to disclose this information." Ivan replied carefully. If he told him he would hate him. Things were going so well. He couldn't destroy everything he had worked so hard to make now!

"I have the right to know, I am your boyfriend." He snapped without thinking.

"You are?" Ivan asked surprised, had they made such progress? Without him even realizing?

"Uh..." Alfred reddened as he registered what he had just blurted out. He really needed to think before he spoke! "I mean...er...maybe? I-" He flexed his hand uncomfortably and remembered the splinter still lodged in his palm. "I have to go get this splinter out. Dad!" He yelled quickly.

"What?" Arthur called back from the kitchen, notifying his son of his whereabouts through the sound of his voice. Alfred quickly made his escape, leaving Ivan to ponder in the family room as he found his father putting away the tweezers.

"I have a splinter."

Arthur sighed with annoyance as he pulled the tweezers out and pointed to the chair. Alfred obeyed the silent command, sitting down on the table and extending his hand out. "Alright, how many?"

"Just one, its near my ring finger."

"One? You're brother had seven. You're old enough to be doing this yourselves, you realize." Arthur scolded softly, taking his son's hand carefully to bring it closer to his face. He took the tweezers, bringing them closer to the hand and heard Alfred make a whimper. "I haven't done anything yet."

"It still hurts!" Alfred whined like the four year old he regressed into during situations like this.

Arthur rolled his eyes, pinching the splinter only to have the boy retract with an 'ow'.

"Alfred! Matthew sat there quietly while I did this, you can do the same."

"But it hurts!"

"Man up, boy." Arthur snapped, grabbing the hand with more force so that the boy wouldn't be able to get away. Alfred started to whine louder, being over dramatic as always. Arthur ignored him, plucking the splinter out easily as Alfred made an extra loud sound of pain. Once the Englishman released him, Alfred held his hand to his chest as if he had broken it.

Ivan, peeking in from the other room, glared at the back of the English father's head. From his position he could only see Alfred's face, clearly watching as it distorted in pain. And what did his father do instead of stopping or consoling him? He made it hurt more. He gripped the door frame tightly to control himself.

He did not like him, not at all. A flash of those dark hateful eyes snapped in his head and he had to close his eyes tightly to get the image out of his mind. He couldn't do anything. Not now. He opened his eyes slowly with a calming breath and blinked as he found concerned blue before him.

"Dude, you ok?" Alfred questioned, looking at him curiously.

"Da, I am fine. When will we start decorating?" He asked in order to change the subject.

"Er, now I guess. Let me find Mattie, I don't know where he ran off to..."

"I'm right here Al." Matthew sighed from the kitchen counter as the pair turned around, surprised. Had he been there the entire time? Mattie definitely had some super power that made him invisible, which made him perfect as his sidekick.

"Oh, cool. When's Gil coming?"

"Soon, actually I think that's his car coming in." Matthew answered, looking through the window at the familiar car, the same one that had escorted them on their first date.

"The loud one is coming?" Ivan questioned, not very happy about the sudden turn in events. He was hoping to be with Alfred alone. Granted Matvey would be there but he was barely noticeable so it would of been fine. But the loud one always got in the way of things. Alfred snorted at the nick name and Matthew frowned, turning away to go and let his boyfriend in.

"So, what are we decorating?" Ivan asked, turning toward the American.

"The tree of course."

"The AWESOMENESS has arrived!" Gilbert bellowed into the home with his loud obnoxious voice and Ivan's mood immediately soured. Still, he would put up with the other for Alfred's sake.

Alfred's own eyes narrowed at Gilbert as he sauntered into the room, he found pleasure in that the others eye was still slightly bruised from their scuffle a while ago. He moved forward grabbing the others forearm.

"We need to talk."

"About what? Are you going to apologize for attacking me?" The albino countered.

Alfred gritted his teeth, "You're not helping your case Gilbert."

Matthew elbowed Gilbert in the side, a silent plea for him to behave himself.

"Fine, we won't talk." Alfred said lowly before leaning in very close to the others ear. "But if you hurt just one single hair on my baby brother's head I will personally castrate you and shove your head up your ass." He pulled back and gave him a bright grin, "You got that?"

Gilbert swallowed thickly but remained arrogant as ever, grinning cockily, "Sure thing future bro." Alfred shuddered at the idea of ever being related to the Prussian and turned away, moving back to Ivan who was peering at the scene curiously.

"Do you wish for me to hurt him? I can make it appear as an accident." Ivan offered because, frankly, he would love to be allowed to damage the albino in some way. It would give him much pleasure. Unfortunately, Alfred denied him.

"Can we just get started?" Matthew asked, annoyed as he ushered everyone into the family room where the tree stood bare and waiting. Alfred's mood did a 180 at the sight because damn did he love Christmas. Arthur had already pulled out all the boxes filled with decorations and the American quickly set to work unpacking them. Before they could start though he had to free the tree of its constraints. With a grin he began cutting away the wires, clearly having much more fun than he should have.

Ivan hung back as trio began untangling lights and wrapping them around the nude tree. He played with the end of his scarf, feeling quite out of place and wondering how his sisters were doing at this moment. Its was where his thoughts usually wondered when not engaged in Alfred related things. And once he got on the subject of his sisters, his mind would delve deeper and deeper until he couldn't take it any lon-

"Ivan! Earth to Ivan!" Alfred called, annoyed, breaking the Russian's train of thought. "I need your tall ass over here." He only called him over for help, not because the worrying facial expression on the other had made him concerned or anything... Not at all.

The pale haired teen blinked and padded over obediently. The tree the twins had cut down was quite tall, a head or two taller than himself he realized as he stood before it. "Yes, Alfred?"

"I'm lazy and I don't want to get the ladder. Lift me up so I can put the star on the tree." It was an order, he wouldnt ask the other for a favor. Ivan smirked slightly.

"Of course, little American. Though, I could probably reach it myself." It was always fun to boast about his height, especially since Alfred felt self conscious about being shorter than him.

Alfred glared at him, "I always put the star on the tree. And I'm not little! You're just huge and stupid!" Best come back ever. Why the hell was Ivan giggling at him? He should be crying from shame! And why was he, himself, blushing like some girl? Damn Ivan.

And suddenly he couldn't feel the wood beneath his feet.

"Shit! Could you at least give me a little warning?" He complained, getting his bearings as Ivan held him securely up. "Get me closer."

"Alfred, you know you should say please." Gilbert teased from the other side of the room where he was helping his boyfriend unpack ornaments. Alfred shot him a glare.

Ivan blinked at that and set the other down with a cruel smirk. "He is right, it is only polite for you to say please."

"I fuckin' hate you, you German reject." Alfred hissed out and Gilbert absolutely bristled.

"I'm fucking PRUSSIAN."

"That dumb country doesn't even exist anymore!"

"You're not going to exist anymore once I crush you with my aweseomeness!"

"Gil! Al! Stop it!" Matthew scolded and they both quieted, though, they did continue to glare at one another with open hostility. Alfred's glare was disrupted once more as he was lifted from the ground.

"Put the star on the tree, da?" Ivan said, skillfully distracting the American from his feud. Nobody should be allowed to fight with his blond except him. Nobody should be able to consume all of his fiery attention except him. He would make sure of it.

"Oh right...er..thanks" He decided to add before stretching his arm to try and place the star on the tree. He probably should of gotten the ladder... Ah oh well, the hero always prevails in the end! "Closer!" He ordered and Ivan obliged though his arms were getting tired.

"Alfred, place the star. You are heavier than you think."

"I am not fat!" He snapped self consciously, "And it has to be perfect so don't rush me!"

Finally, Alfred was able to 'perfectly' set the star upon the tree. He grinned at it as Ivan put him back down on solid ground. It was brilliantly placed, in his opinion at least. He then crouched down to fish out some ornaments as Matthew and Gilbert finished wrapping the lights around the tree.

Ivan's next job, as Alfred kept assigning them to him, was to put the highest ornaments on the tree. He did so easily, smirking at how Alfred had to get on his tippy toes to reach the 'spot destined for this certain ornament' because he didn't want to ask for any more help.

With the top of the tree done, Ivan stepped back to give Alfred and his twin more room for the rest of the tree. He enjoyed watching Alfred decorating much more than actually doing it himself. How Alfred's blue eyes sparkled in joy as his Christmas tree came to life. There was no denying the others love for this particular holiday and Ivan only wished Alfred could find the same sort of enjoyment from time spent with himself. He frowned at the improbability of the thought ever being realized.

Gilbert had also stepped back from the tree but for a completely different reason. From here, he had the perfect view of his boyfriends ass as Matthew bent down to search for more ornaments. It was to the point where the albino couldn't help but smack it, eliciting an adorable little squeak from the victim. Matthew reddened in embarrassment and straightened up, sending the Prussian a scolding glare that Gilbert promptly ignored.

Ivan tilted his head at the interaction and looked over to Alfred, who, completely focused on Christmas, was oblivious to what had just happened to his little brother. Is spanking something couples normally did? He had read it in a sexual context in one of the magazines in Alfred's french father's closet... Matthew and Gilbert had just done it and he had seen Alfred's parents do it as well. He did enjoy Alfred when he was red and embarrassed just as Matthew had been moments before... He wondered what would happen if he did so as well.

Alfred, humming some sort of carol or another, bent down innocently in order to reach one of the ornaments he had made when he was younger. This particular one he had made when he was seven for an art class. He remembered it clearly, he had made it specifically for Dad in the shape of a tea cup with snowflakes on it. He flipped the peace of ceramic over to see his chicken scratch on the other side and smiled softly. He almost dropped it when something struck his ass.

He yelped in surprise, swirling around to see Ivan smirking at him. "What the hell was that for!" Alfred snapped, his face reddening slightly as he realized Ivan had just spanked him. What the hell!

"Gilbert did it to Matvey." Ivan defended simply, tilting his head toward the albino.

"Yeah, well they've been dating for a while a- Wait what?" His blue eyes widened and he swiveled toward the white haired teen. "Don't you dare disrespect my brother!"

"Al, please don't do this. Its fine, ok? I can deal with him myself just fine." Matthew pleaded, sick and tired of the two fighting. If this continued he'd have to play the baby brother tactic and perhaps bring 'Christmas spirit' into the mix.

Alfred frowned and was about to continue anyway when Gilbert's voice broke the tension. "Hey, look what I found!"

The twins turned to him curiously as Gilbert brought over one of the boxes. Inside, old VHS tapes of the classic Christmas tales resided. From Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer to Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

Ivan peered in, not recognizing the titles but recognizing from Alfred's facial expression that they held some sentimental value toward the teen.

"We should totally watch one right now!" Alfred exclaimed happily, grabbing one of the tapes at random. Matthew sighed, knowing that Alfred would turn 'one' into all of them and they would get nothing done.

"We need to finish the tree, Al." He reminded, hoping his brother would agree with him.

"Yeah, but... Ivan what do you think?" The American turned to the taller teen, hoping he would agree with him and let him watch one of the specials.

"I do not know. I have never seen these so I couldn't give you a correct opinion on whether it would be better to watch them or decorate the tree." Ivan answered honestly, not expecting the reaction he received from his words.

Alfred's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as he stared at the Russian in shock. "You've never seen them? H-how? This is my entire childhood, man! Holy shit!"

Matthew sighed, "I'll go make the popcorn." There was no way they were getting out of watching the specials now.

"Alright, this is an emergency. Ivan sit your ass down on the couch. We're going to fix this problem ASAP. Gil, what should we watch first?"

"Well, Rudolph is definitely the key to all of these specials..." Gilbert mused, a serious expression on his face and Alfred quickly agreed.

"Rudolph?" Ivan spoke up, slightly confused as Alfred plopped down beside him. Gilbert put the tape into the TV before sitting on the ground, his back resting against the couch.

"Yeah! Hes like the hero of Christmas. Santa can't do shit without him." Alfred explained, grabbing the remote to turn up the sound. He could hear the popcorn popping and licked his lips in anticipation.

"Santa?"

"...You do know who Santa is right?" If Ivan didn't, well then they'd have to have a serious talk. How could he not know who Santa was?

"Da. But do you think he exists?" Ivan replied, he had come to know the odd old man of American lore from his stay in the states. The man appeared everyone once December came along, from store adds to television commercials. It was impossible to escape him.

"No, course not. But its still a good story! Stop trying to kill the Christmas spirit." Alfred said, hoping they were done talking so they could watch the special. The beginning was extremely important!

"So, we are watching this?" Ivan asked, looking over at the screen to see a talking snowman... Well this was going to be interesting.

"Yeah! And then we're watching the year without a Santa Claus" Matthew came back into the room, holding a big bowl of popcorn which he handed to Alfred out of habit. He was the one who would eat most of the bowl anyway. The younger twin then proceeded to sit beside his boyfriend, hoping Alfred would be so consumed by his special that he could perhaps make out with Gilbert. Only a little of course!

"Any reason?" Ivan questioned.

"Dude, it has like, the best song in it." Alfred made a duh face.

"What song is it?" Ivan asked innocently.

"Oh god, Ivan why did you ask?" Matthew cried out, knowing the monster had been unleash. Suddenly, Alfred started singing obnoxiously loud and off key. Damn it! Why did Ivan have to ask?

"I'm Mr. Green Christmas, I'm Mr. Sun! I'm Mr. Heat Blister, I'm Mr. Hundred and One! They call me Heat Miser, whatever I touch, starts to melt in my clutch. I'm too much!" Ivan imediately regretted his decision at the sound but thankfully it wasn't that long of song. Or at least thats what he thought as it appeared to be over after Alfred went 'da da dun dun'.

"Come on Mattie." Alfred had stopped singing because, like when they were little, Matthew was supposed to sing the other brother's part. It was a tradition, a custom! Still Matthew refused to sing until Alfred kicked him lightly in the shoulder. With a sigh of defeat he started in a soft voice.

"...I'm Mr. White Christmas, I'm Mr. Snow. I'm Mr. Icicle, I'm Mr. Ten Below. They call me Snow Miser, whatever I touch, starts to freeze in my clutch. I'm too much." Gilbert whispered his congratulations for a beautiful performance before he was elbowed in the ribs by an annoyed looking Matthew.

The room fell into silence as their attention turned back to the television and the story of Rudolph. Ivan found it at least somewhat entertaining, especially how Alfred seemed to derive immense joy from it. He must have a lot of happy memories from watching these shows with his family.

Ivan felt a little jealous that he couldn't have been as blessed. He wondered why he had deserved such a horrid childhood, and then he remembered he was a murderer and thus deserved every single thing that had happened to him.

"Ah, the Christmas specials?" Arthur spoke up, coming into the family room after checking in on Francis who he hoped would take it easy. If the sounds coming from the stairs were any indication, he could tell that the frog wasn't going to stay in bed. He was probably going to go cook something or another instead of resting. "I still cant believe they were able to fit the American Revolution in one of them. Bloody Americans," It had shocked him when he saw that particular scene the first time. Were Americans that egotistical about themselves?

"Wrong special, Dad! That's the one where they save New Years" Alfred corrected without having his eyes leave the TV.

"How does one save New Years?" Ivan asked, perplexed.

"No, they saved the baby."

"What baby?"

"Happy!"

"Why did you just yell out an emotion?"

"No! Ug, never mind. We'll watch that one after."

"Will you guys shut up? Hes going to misfit island." Gilbert growled, the show being much less annoying than the conversation. The room returned to silence and Arthur left the boys to their devices. He thought it was adorable that Alfred and Matthew (mostly Alfred) still enjoyed watching those specials as much as they did when they were little.

He still remembered their first Christmas when Alfred had asked him if Rudolph would be ok and if he would get friends.

"Of course he does Alfred. In fact, he ends up being the hero." Arthur assured the little boy looking at him worriedly from his lap.

"Does that mean we'll be ok in the end too?" He asked sadly, playing with his shirt with a frown. Arthur blinked and tilted his head at the blond.

"What do you mean Alfred?"

"Everyone hates us here 'cause we're different. So, we'll we be ok in the end, will we get friends and stuff?" He explained, squirming closer to his father in his insecurity.

Arthur felt absolutely horrible in that moment and made a mental note to search even harder for a new home. For now he only comforted the boy with a warm hug and soft words, "We'll be ok soon Alfred, you will see. We'll be happy again."

"Will I be a hero like Rudolph?"

"You're already a hero."

"What are you reminiscing about Arthur?" Francis broke through his thoughts, limping over to his frowning husband. Arthur lifted his head and scowled at the other.

"Why are you down here? You are suppose to be resting, bloody git."

"And leave my family to fend against your cooking? Never." The Frenchman teased with a mischievous smile. He peered into the neighboring room to see two more teens than he expected.

"Are they staying for dinner, as well?" He asked, if so he'd have to make more food. Oh, maybe he could make a nice big dinner again! It had been a while and he surely missed doing so.

"I'm not sure..." Arthur frowned, what time was it anyway? A quick glance at the clock assured him it was only around two.

"Oh! Arthur we should invite Ludwig, Feliciano and Toris! Wouldn't it be nice to have another dinner party?" He really missed cooking for so many people. It was one of his favorite pass times and he'd be damned if a minor injury kept him from his kitchen.

"You're suppose to be resting! And its such short notice..."

"But Arthur, it has been so long! When was the last time we had the Beilschmidts over? Especially now that Matthieu is dating Gilbert!" Francis insisted in whiny pity filled tone.

Arthur frowned but sighed in defeat,

"I'll go make some calls."

I'M BACK!

Sorry for the longer wait than expected. During my vacation I had aboslutely no time to write. When i got back (i had missed like a week of school) I had all this work to catch up on! And Midterms are this week! Gah!

But I'm back and Clinging will follow its normal schedule of updating every Sunday. Sentenced will be updated hopefully this weekend because i feel bad about it.
Thank you guys so much for all the love and reviews! You're all such amazing readers.

And thanks for pointing out my 'reefs' mistake. That's embarrassing. Here's some advice, never edit a chapter while packing for twenty day trip that leaves tomorrow morning. Things don't go well.

I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and aren't sick of Christmas. :)

Next chapter is another fun dinner party and Feli is going to be there! Yay!

You guys are amazing and I hope you're all still enjoying this story as much as I am writing it. Wish me luck in my exams, and I wish luck to anyone also taking them!

See ya next week!