"Can you give me a hand with the tree, Kid?" Liz said, as she stood on the stepladder that helped her reach the top of the family tree. "Liz, I need to supervise from over here" he said, with glass of eggnog in hand, standing next to the island in the kitchen. "Without me being over here, how will we know if it's symmetrical?"
"Fine, if no one wants to do anything fun, I'll do it myself," Patty Thompson said before gleefully charging her way through the kitchen and jumping on the ladder, causing it to wobble. "Patty, you're gonna get her killed!" Kid shouted. "Silly Kid, she can just transform and be fine, stop having heart failure" she said, placing the star on top of the tree with an impish delight.
"Speaking of heart failure, you almost gave me a heart attack, Patty" Liz said, a look with a mix of mirth and annoyance on her face as she regained her footing. "Well, there's no time for that, it's almost midnight, and everyone will be over here tomorrow for Presents, I mean, Christmas" Patty opined. "Goodnight everybody!"
The next morning, Gallows Mansion was in full operation, from the gingerbread DWMA on the dining room table, to a design of Lord Death's mask entirely made out of Christmas lights. As people began to pile in, Kid began to greet them:
"Good morning, Maka, Merry Christmas"
"Nice to see you Kid, Merry Christmas"
"Merry Christmas, Soul!"
"Hey, Kid. Merry Christmas"
"Merry Christmas, Tsubaki"
"Merry Christmas, Kid"
"Happy Hanukkah, Professor Stein"
"Merry Christmas, Kid."
"Hey, Crona, Merry Christmas"
"Thanks, Kid, Merry Christmas"
"MERRY CHRISTMAS, KID!"
"Merry Christmas, Black Star. Now, can you stop suffocating me with that hug?"
"Merry Christmas, Kid!"
"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Marie."
"Now, where are the others?" he asked Marie.
"Well, I know the other weapons and meisters are having a party of their own, but I imagine that Spirit and Lord Death himself are probably just drunk somewhere"
"Of course they areā¦..well, thanks for coming."
"Any time, Kid."
The next several hours were delightful for Kid, who got joy in the happiness of others far more than anything he ever received. Whether it was seeing all the couples jockey for position under the mistletoe, or just watching them unwrap gifts that he had spent the year curating for each person in attendance, it felt like the perfect day.
As everyone left to go home, he headed up to his room for a long and refreshing nap. As Liz got into bed, she wrapped her arms around him and said "you know, you really do know how to show a girl a good time."
Just before they drifted off to sleep, however, they heard a loud voice from the other end of the house, belonging to one, very loud, Patricia Thompson:
"SO, WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR NEW YEARS?"
