A/N: Song featured is "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music.
Artie looked around in a happy nostalgia as he found himself surrounded by his old team at BreadstiX. Glee had given him a dream, a voice, and experiences that had taken him to one of the best schools in the country. He'd discovered his passion with these people, and felt nothing but appreciation about being with them again.
"Home for the holidays," Quinn stated happily as she accepted the basket from Kurt. "Just like we promised."
"I'm surprised we all could tear ourselves away," Finn added. "What with Mercedes and her big singing career, and Britney teaching—"
"Plus all of the divas in New York taking the world by storm," Santana added with a smirk.
"I'm glad we could all come home too, Santana," Rachel replied with a smile. "I just feel bad we don't see each other more often."
"You still haven't used that train pass I bought you," Quinn reminded her right on cue, causing both girls to grin.
"And what with Mike so close as well," the brunette continued. "I just don't feel like we're doing a good job staying together."
"Well, Tina and I are barely an hour and a half away from each other, and we don't see much of each other either," the wheelchaired boy offered with a shrug, looking over at the Asian girl. "Although I'm glad I was able to make it for your dance showcase—you and what's-his-name were amazing."
"Marty, and thanks," Tina told him graciously. He smiled, knowing that Tina had been rarely appreciated by the team at McKinley, despite almost single-handedly keeping their costumes ready and being an amazing vocalist and dancer. She was now at one of the best performing arts schools available, and thriving, and her best friend felt she deserved to be recognized for it.
Of course, bringing up Tina's showcase caused Rachel to delve into her own school's Winter Showcase (which she had of course won), veering the conversation toward the New York-based alumni.
Quinn, meanwhile, had turned back to the bespectacled boy and leaned over. "So I hear that your brother and my sister recently broke up?" she asked softly.
Not quietly enough. "Yeah, since when did you have a little sis, Q?" Santana demanded, interrupting the others' conversation. "I've been over to your house, like, a million times and I've never seen so much as a photo. Was she like born a boy or something?"
Quinn gave the Latina an irritated look. "Of course not," she replied. "Caroline was my best friend growing up." Artie looked at the wistful expression in the blonde's eyes and wondered if, especially in her "Lucy Caboosey" days, the younger Fabray hadn't been her only friend.
The Yale student continued, "But she was smart—gifted, my parents told us. All the time. And so they sent her to a very exclusive boarding school overseas." Quinn shrugged. "They went out to visit during holidays the first few years, and then—I don't know. Maybe they thought she was better off without us." She rolled a forkful of noodles around her silverware. "I wouldn't be surprised if my mother hoped bringing her home wouldn't be a way to have a sort of fresh start—some sort of apology for basically ignoring her all of these years. I feel like she may be deluding herself though, or at least between me and her."
"Come on Quinn," Finn spoke up. "She's your sister. Trust me: one day they say they'll hate you for the rest of their lives, the next they are asking for twenty bucks so they can buy some cute shoes or something." He grinned as Kurt rolled his eyes in amusement.
"I personally feel envious of siblings," Rachel added. "As an only child of two gay fathers, I feel like it would have been more advantageous to have someone sympathetic to my situation and that always had my back. I honestly feel like that's one of the best parts of being married." She gazed over at her fiance, then his step-brother next to him. "Not only will I be forever joined with Finn, but I'll be instantly linked with my best-friend and have a brand new sister!"
"Except for the fact that Annie hates your guts," Kurt reminded her.
"I know we got off to a rough start at first," Rachel argued, "but I feel like now we have overcome our initial misconceptions about each other and are well on the way to a profound, significant bond."
"I can't stand her." Annie had been ranting for almost an hour, and she knew it was ridiculous. She had called Hayden because she'd wanted to get her mind off of unpleasant, evil Rachel Berry, and he seemed like the perfect distraction. However, the words just couldn't seem to stop pouring from her mouth.
"It's bad enough that I haven't seen Finn in months," she continued as her feet carried her around the table where the blonde sat calmly. "But now, when he finally comes home to visit, he brings her? And she can't even let me have him for one meal? Or my mom? What the hell is that about?" She huffed angrily, slumping into the chair beside Hayden. "She's evil."
"I thought your brothers and Rachel and Blaine were all meeting up with all of their friends," the blind boy asked carefully.
"That's not the point!" The brunette's Cheerio skirt swished angrily as she stood quickly and resumed her angry pacing. "The point is she's all wrong for him and a horrible person and they shouldn't be engaged in the first place." She shuddered in horror as the memory of them almost being married last year flashed to the front of her thoughts. As horrible as she'd felt, she'd silently thanked God for stopping it with Quinn's accident (and then promised to never text in a car again as an apology for such a horrible thought about the blonde). "Kurt used to be on my side about this; he used to completely understand, but then she brainwashed him or something."
"Annie," Hayden spoke up gently. "Are you sure you're not just projecting your worry about Finn moving away and your connection fraying a little from your separate growths?"
"You weren't here, Hayden, you don't understand." Annie gave him a patronizing look, knowing full well he couldn't see it. However, she did move to the table to allow her fingers to hit the table as she made her points. "She's a self-absorbed, scheming, neurotic beast who will do anything to get what she wants. She's got a manipulative bitch streak a mile long, she's hypocritical, and she's a grade-A diva."
"You know you've just described most of McKinley, and quite a few girls you're good friends with," Hayden countered.
"I would never be friends with anyone who had such awful qualities as that midget," Annie insisted. "And I will never think she's good enough for my family, especially my brother."
The sophomore raised herself slightly, putting a hand on the blonde boys across the table. "Thanks for listening Hayden, but I think I'm just going to be in a crappy mood until she's gone again." She sighed unhappily as she continued, "Even if that means I won't be able to enjoy my brothers being around as well."
Emma strode from the A/V room in a huff. Bailey hated her: she was now 100% sure. The stupid Asian girl had always done the tech work for winter projects—she was pretty much known for it—and now, days before the Winter Festival, she had suddenly pulled out of her obligations with barely more than an "oops, sorry". Where would the sophomore find a replacement among all of the other billion things she had to take care of?
She was so lost in thought she didn't notice the body that moved in front of her until she literally ran into it.
"Ouch! Oh, sorry," she apologized haphazardly as she looked up at Liam, who smirked at her intensity. "Look, I really don't have time today; I have so much work to finish, which now includes a bunch of media work I just don't know how to do, so please just go bother someone else?"
"Wow, it's like the temperature dropped like six degrees in that sentence," the boy commented with a frown.
Oh great, the brunette internally grumbled as she watched Michelle pop up between them, her expression doubly curious and cautious. "Hey guys, what's up?"
Liam tilted his head. "Just trying to figure out why the coordinator of the Christmas Festival is forgetting that the titled holiday is supposed to be about being jolly."
"Winter Festival." Emma sighed unhappily as she pulled out her list of last-minute details. "I just want all of this to be perfect, and now it's just going to look like a first-grade class put it together," she whined.
"Let me see that," the gangly boy demanded, grabbing her paper and looking over it as she protested loudly. "This is what you're worried about? Emma, you could forget all of this and no one would notice."
The brunette's eyes narrowed into slits as she glared at the slacker. "One: it's the details that make the event—the things that you don't notice are what make the night the most memorable. And two: that garish phrase tacked onto the bottom? You really think anyone will not notice that there isn't any A/V support for this? No lights, no music, no video coverage for the end-of-the-year videobook?" The girl found her voice pitching as she railed against the poor bystander. She knew it wasn't his fault that this had dropped on her, but she'd rather feel rage than break down in tears any day.
Even more shocking was that, though the petite Cheerio looked properly daunted, the Clark Kent wannabe didn't seem to break a sweat. "Look, Bailey's not the only one who can string together a good set—I bet Bert and Ernie have got some guys on hand, and Ev and Michelle know plenty of stage shadows that can do a thing or two, right Audrey?" The freshman's eyes lit up happily as she nodded, immediately pulling out her phone and setting to texting. "I'm willing to wager you've already got the specs and materials all together, I bet they can set it up from there. And Andrew and me will take care of the video: so don't worry about it, okay?"
The small girl stood slack-jawed for a moment, staring at the boy. "Why would you help me?" she asked suspiciously.
"Because Schue said to, Bailey is an ass, Christmas is the season of giving, blah blah blah." He shrugged and moved to let her pass. "Just take it, okay?"
Emma still eyed him warily, but she had so much else to focus on, she simply had to take what he was offering. She thanked him and insisted that he be ready for the instructions she'd be sending him by the end of the day, then continued down the hall with Michelle by her side as the two girls talked resources.
She had to admit as the tiny Gleek flitted beside her, the tension in her shoulders felt minutely relieved.
"Guys, I've got things to do," Ashwin insisted as his group roamed around BreadstiX. "Why are we even here?"
"We're planning, Kumar," Walt replied as he nudged Puck and pointed to a corner. The stocky boy turned to face his friend. "That's what pro-active people do to prepare for social gatherings, isn't it now?"
"Yeah, massively babe-tastic and all around some-getting gatherings!" Puck added with a laugh. Ashwin rolled his eyes—basically, what the "planning" had been was the players discussing the best parts of the restaurant to get some dark-corner time with a girl were and how to stack the single girl ratio in their favor by table placement. All of which had been interspersed between stupid stories about the boys' own exploits, with Coby providing commentary on every other sentence.
"Look, Ash," the junior spoke up, putting out a hand to prevent the brown-skinned boy from turning and exiting. "You've been wound too tight for too long. And how long have we all been bombarded with Christmas culture? This is just a way for us to give a little Shout-out to the Jews and Indians of the world."
"Hindus," came the swift correction.
"Exactly," Puck replied, though to what Ashwin couldn't say. "It's time to show those girls that the snow season is more than just for Santa Claus and Jesus."
Puck strummed a rock chord on his guitar with a grin. Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, he sang, and Ashwin watched in astonishment as Walt and Coby each pulled a girl from their lunch tables and spun them around.
The alumni kept up as another girl came up from behind him with rainbow-colored gloves and put her hands on his biceps, Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things
Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes, Wally sang as two such girls leaned into him and kissed either side of his face.
Coby lifted a girl as she hung decorations from the ceiling, Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things
Puck grinned as the chord changed, When the dog bites he belted
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad
Ashwin watched in disbelief as numerous girls began running around with themed-outifts, dressed as elves and reindeer as they strung up blue-and-white lights and placed Puja thalis on the tables, all the while dancing and spinning around the three boys in front of him.
When the dog bites, Puck sang out again
Walt stood next to him When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad, Coby added
Puck raised his hand up to slam the chord on his guitar, I simply remember my favorite things
All three boys harmonized together as the girls danced happily in conclusion, And then I don't feel…so bad!