Worst Christmas Ever

Summary: When the Pussycats get sick a few days before Christmas, Melody asks Alexandra to pick-up a present from the jewelry shop. When Alexandra finds out it's a woman's wedding ring, her imagination goes crazy.

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Outside the Cabot mansion, in the middle of a cold winter day, Mr. Cabot smoked a cigar and watched as dozens of people crawled all over the mansion, stringing Christmas lights and putting up other decorations. The ground was covered in a layer of fresh snow and the bitter cold had frozen long icicles off the mansion's gutters and overheads. Alexander was standing on one side of the mansion, pointing and barking directions at the man who appeared to be in charge of the other men.

Inside, Alexandra lounged on the couch near the roaring fireplace. Sebastian had made himself comfy on her lap, curled up in a tight, warm ball. The living area was silent, until Mrs. Cabot's footsteps thudded against the carpet. She was throwing on her long, faux fur coat, a fashionable winter hat already on top of her head of short, brown hair.

"Are they still out there?" Mrs. Cabot asked the elder housemaid, Darla who was close behind her to help with the long jacket.

"Yes Mrs. Cabot," the maid reported. "And Alexander as well."

Mrs. Cabot scoffed with a smirk. "Double-teaming them? We'll lose half the crew in an hour."

Darla tried to hold back a laugh, but was unsuccessful. "Yes ma'am."

Mrs. Cabot spotted Alexandra on the couch and smiled admirably. "Now that's my smart girl, staying inside where it's warm." She walked over and placed her hands on Alexandra's cheeks and squeezed her face. "I wish I could as well."

Alexandra spoke once her mother released her face. "Leaving so soon? You'll…be back for Christmas, right?"

Mrs. Cabot patted Sebastian who woke with a surprised purred and stretched sleepily with a big yawn. "Of course! I'll be back in time for the Christmas party this year, I promise."

Darla hesitantly interrupted them. "Mrs. Cabot, the jet is waiting for you."

Mrs. Cabot planted a kiss on Alexandra's head and scratched under Sebastian's chin. "Okay everyone, good-"

Suddenly, a loud crash interrupted them. They turned just in time to see a large, light-up Santa decoration plummet from the roof and stop in midair with a string of Christmas lights around his neck. Darla and Sebastian shrieked with fright while Alexandra and Mrs. Cabot jumped slightly, taken aback. Closely after the hanging Santa's appearance, Mr. Cabot's loud voice boomed from outside, hollering and yelling.

"Oh no," Mrs. Cabot sighed and hurried towards the front entrance with Alexandra, Sebastian, and Darla on her heels.

Mr. Cabot pulled at his hair. "THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO DO RIGHT ABOUT NOW!" He pointed to the hanging Santa. "HANG MYSELF! HANG MYSELF!"

Mrs. Cabot grinned as she stepped over to her husband. "Oh good, that'll leave me with a lot of money and free time."

Mr. Cabot inhaled his cigar and turned to his wife. "This is no joking matter! I will not be beaten this year! I will not!"

Alexandra stood in the doorway, hugging herself against the cold, wearing only a red sweatshirt and jeans. "Oh, Daddy. We might not be the best at decorating, but we still throw the best parties out of all the rich people in this area. Isn't that enough?"

Alexander marched over to his sister, chest puffed out. "Dear Sister, I am shocked and appalled at that attitude!"

Alexandra briefly eyed his loud Christmas sweater and green jeans. "And I am shocked and appalled by that outfit, dear Brother."

Sebastian snickered loudly.

Alexander ignored her, placing his hands on his hips and smirking down at her. "As you should know, we Cabots have to be the best at everything! And this year, we will gain back our crown for the best mansion decorating from the Lodges!"

Mrs. Cabot had her arm around Mr. Cabot who was still angrily puffing on his now stub of a cigar. "Well, in our defense, it is hard to beat having the Rockettes dancing on your roof…"

Mr. Cabot sputtered, almost swallowing his cigar. He let the cigar drop from his mouth and turned to his wife, grabbing her shoulders. "That's it! We need something bigger than those dancing fools!" He made his way over to Alexander, waving his finger in the air. "And you have them!"

Alexander's eyebrows rose from behind his sunglasses. "Yeah! I do!" He turned and held his hands in the air as if he was creating a giant sign. "Josie and the Pussycats!"

Alexandra scoffed loudly. "Josie and the Pussycats? You're comparing them to the world-famous Rockettes?"

Mr. Cabot turned to his daughter, grinning and waving his finger. "It's not about how famous they are…or aren't…it's about the attraction! Their music will attract everyone in the neighborhood to the mansion! It'll make headlines!"

Alexandra had to admit, that much was true.

"And no scheming, Alexandra," Alexander warned. "This is for the Cabot reputation!"

Alexandra scowled at her brother. "I know! I wasn't planning on it anyway!" She turned and went back inside. "It's too cold for any living being to be outside!"

She stopped and thought about that. If the plan was to bring the band to the roof or one of the balconies of the mansion, that would mean they would be outside. In the cold. Melody would be cold. Alexandra thought about that for a second. Melody was completely immune to the cold, it seemed, and oftentimes showing up at the doorstep in snowstorms wearing a miniskirt, not even realizing it was cold outside. Still, Alexandra couldn't help but worry. A sick Melody meant no alone time, no romance, and no Christmas! …Well, that was over-dramatic, but Alexandra was the over-dramatic type. She looked back at her family, seeing her father and brother eagerly making plans and pointing to the balcony several times with big grins. Mrs. Cabot was hurrying to the limo, followed by Darla and the driver carrying her bags. Alexandra sighed. Without her mother, it would be impossible to talk her father and her brother out of their insane plans…and even worse, she couldn't do her normal sabotaging without being shunned by the family if they lost.

"What am I going to do, Sebastian?" she asked her cat.

Sebastian meowed and shrugged his shoulders sadly with a shake of his head.

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"Golly, I can see my house from here!"

Melody peered off the balcony down the gated hill which protected the Cabot mansion from the rest of the world. It was now night time and a soft rain of snow was gently falling across Midvale. Melody was dressed in her Pussycats costume and seated behind her drums. Melody beamed up at the blue Josie and Valerie who were also dressed in nothing but their Pussycats costume and bare-colored stockings.

"I-I-I-I-I'm g-g-g-g-g-g-going to k-k-k-kill A-A-Alexander!" Valerie hissed through her chattering teeth.

Josie turned her head to her friend, also talking through chattering teeth. "C'mo-o-o-on, V-V-Val… I-it's o-o-o-only a f-f-ff-f-few songs-s-s-s!"

Melody beamed at her frozen companions. "This is going to be fun! Everyone in the neighborhood is going to hear us play and see all the pretty lights and decorations on the mansion! I just love Christmas time!"

Valerie grumbled, "B-b-b-bah-h-h-u-umbug."

Josie knocked some icicles off her guitar strings. "I-I-I-I-I'm s-s-sure once w-w-e-e sta-a-art pla-a-aying, we'll wa-wa-wa-warm up."

Melody looked back and forth at Josie and Valerie with wide eyes. "You two are cold?"

Josie and Valerie stared at her.

Meanwhile inside the mansion, Alexandra was in the attic attempting to untangle a long, black wire attached to an old heater. Sebastian watched gleefully as she struggled, snickering when Alexandra would growl loudly in frustration. She finally managed to untangle the wire and bunched it into one hand while the other picked up the heater. Alexandra was planning on sneaking up to the balcony and put it behind the band (but mostly behind Melody). She snuck towards the attic exit and carefully opened the door.

"What are you planning?" Alexander asked, startling Alexandra when she saw him standing outside the door.

Alexandra shrieked and dropped the heater with a loud clang, causing Sebastian to screech and leap up onto her head. She quickly recovered and her fright turned into anger. "What do you think?! Making sure your band doesn't freeze to death!" She leaned over and picked up the heater. "Didn't you know? A long-term investment in a rock band means THEY HAVE TO BE ALIVE!"

Alexander rolled his eyes. "Please! Once the spotlights we have out there shine on them, they'll warm up!" He grabbed the heater from her hand. "If you plug this in, it could cause a black-out!"

Alexandra put her hands on her hips. "Oh yeah, that would be the real tragedy instead of, you know, our friends dead on our balcony!"

Alexander scoffed loudly and marched away. "You're just jealous that Dad and I planned this together!"

Alexandra wanted to storm after him and wring his neck, but decided it against it. With a frustrated growl, she crossed her arms and turned away. She was defeated by her own family. Sebastian climbed off her head and onto her crossed arms, looking up at her questioningly.

"I guess…Melody will be okay. It's only for two nights after all," Alexandra sighed.

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Alexandra stared in disbelief at her brother selling tickets outside the gate. The two days turned into three days, then four, then five…now Alexander was pledging a mini-concert every night until Christmas Eve. After massive crowds showed up from all over, Alexander and her father decided that they should sell tickets to those who wanted to go past the gate. Even with selling the tickets at only three dollars a person, they were making another fortune. Meanwhile, Alexandra could only watch helplessly – even Melody was starting to look cold. She guessed it just took a long time for her brain to process things, including the cold. Worse still, after the first days of Alexandra helping Melody "warm up" when the mini-concert was over, Melody now just went straight home with Josie and Valerie, all looking weary as they bundled up in layers of jackets. She glared at Alexander, but he was too busy offering half price tickets to a group of beautiful women to notice. Alexandra stalked off back up the driveway to the mansion.

Once there, she threw open the door and stormed inside, face red and a deep frown on her face. Her expression of pure rage turned into concern when she was the scene in the living room. The Pussycats were on the couch, bundled in blankets and looking very sick. Valerie emphasized their sickness by sneezing loudly and then sitting back into the couch with a groan. Felicia the housemaid was crouched by Josie, holding an ice pack to her head. Melody shivered under her blankets, feet in a pan of steaming water.

"Alexandra!"

Alexandra turned to see a very worried looking Alan dash up to her. He was wearing a green apron and holding a large bowl of chicken noodle soup. "Alan! What's going on?"

"Not us!" Valerie snapped, her voice muffled because of a stuffed nose. She sniffed miserably and continued, "We're not going on, Josie."

Josie rolled her head to Valerie, the ice pack covering her eyes. "C'mon, Val…our fans are…are…" She sneezed into her hand. "…Ah…waiting for us…"

"But I don't want fans, I want heaters," Melody mumbled with closed eyes.

Alan looked down at Alexandra, biting his lip. Alexandra rushed over to Melody and felt her head, quickly pulling back once she felt the heat.

"Yeesh!" Alexandra exclaimed. "Felicia, call the doctor."

Felicia stood up, allowing the ice pack to remain on Josie's face. "Yes, Ms. Cabot."

Once the maid hurried out of the room, Alexandra stomped her foot. "Ooo! That no-good brother of mine! I told him this would happen!" She paused. "…Well, I told him you'd all be dead…but this is close enough!"

"Dying sounds pretty good right about now," Valerie admitted with another weary sniff.

"Oh Val, what a silly thing to say," Melody scolded weakly. "We're too sick to dye t-shirts."

Valerie groaned.

Suddenly, the front door flung open and Alexander briskly walked into the living area. He stopped and put his hands on his hips. "What are you girls doing lying around?! We got a show to put on! Come on!"

Josie began to get up, but Valerie stopped her with her arm. Alexandra's face turned ten shades of angry while she practically ran up to her brother's face.

"THAT'S what you have to say about all this?! What do you think they're doing, slacking off?! Take off your stupid sunglasses and look at them!" Alexandra barked.

Alexander lifted the sunglasses off his face and peered at the three sick women. He put his sunglasses back on over his eyes and shrugged nonchalantly. "They seem fine to me."

Alexandra balled her fist and raised it to hit Alexander when Felicia's hand snatched her wrist.

"Ms. Cabot, please, I sent for a doctor for their fevers, not for Alexander," Felicia teased.

Alexandra sighed angrily and put down her fist. She pointed her finger into Alexander's face. "They're not going on, unless you want to be known as the one who killed Josie and the Pussycats."

Alexander sniffed and turned on his heel. "Great! Now I have to go return all that money! Thanks a lot!" He stormed off, looking at the three sick girls accusingly. "Tsh, women!"

Valerie slowly pushed herself up. "Felicia, please call another doctor who knows how to set broken bones."

Josie caught her hand. "Come on, Valerie, we're not going on. Relax." She turned her head to Melody who was fast asleep. "Look at Melody, she's relaxing."

Alexandra looked at her lover, unable to hide the small smile that spread on the corners of her mouth. Josie's voice interrupted her.

"Thanks Alexandra," Josie said.

Alexandra hugged herself nervously. "Yeah, well, you know…what am I going to do all day if you three freeze to death on me?" She looked at Melody and then shook her head. "Anyway, I'll have Jenkins call your families."

"Now hold on a moment," Valerie called out. Alexandra stopped and turned to her. "I don't want to get my family sick for Christmas because of what your family did to us."

Josie agreed, "Couldn't we stay here, Alexandra? There's plenty of room…"

Alan perked up. "I say let them stay…and let them sneeze on Alex's doorknob…"

"Don't tempt me," Valerie replied with a grin.

Alexandra made a grand show of thinking. "Hm…let you three stay and infect my dumb brother…? I think that's a great idea."

Valerie smirked and pulled out her cellphone to text her parents. "I think it's the best idea I've ever had."

Melody woke up groggily. "What idea?"

"We're having a sleepover here until we get better," Josie replied.

Melody's eyes brightened. "Oh goody! I'll stay in Alexandra's room!"

Alexandra turned ten shades of red. "W-w-why would I want you in my room, Dumb-dumb?! There's plenty of room here!"

Melody covered her mouth, realizing her mistake. "Oh whoops! Silly me! Hee hee hee!"

Josie laughed, "Sorry Alexandra, she gets a little…weird…er…when she's sick."

Alexandra screamed internally. Taking care of Melody in her room was a scene right out of her cheesy romance novels...and she wanted it to play out. But with the others… She clenched her fists: she was going to kill her brother.

Alexandra shook her head out of her thoughts and put on her usual snobby and cool expression. "Well, as long as she stays with you two, I don't have to deal with it, so, whatever."

Melody watched her with her usual blank but warm expression. Alexandra felt her heart go into her throat and tried her best not to break down in tears.

"Oh! I forgot the bowls!" Alan sighed, looking down at his soup.

Alexandra quickly ran towards the kitchen before Felicia could reply. "I got them!"

Alan looked after her, confused. "Oh…thank you, Alexandra."

Valerie curled back under her blanket. "At least one of the twin terrors is being nice to us."

"Does…Alexandra look like she's going to cry to anyone else?" Josie asked.

Melody smiled brightly. "She's so worried about us, I think it's cute."

Valerie let out a short laugh. "You think she would be happier about our show being ruined."

Alan shook his head. "You don't give her enough credit, Val. Alexandra has a heart, she just doesn't like to show it…a lot…or…like…at all..."

A light sobbing sound came from the kitchen followed by a repeated bang of a frying pan being smacked against a forehead.

"…Do you guys hear something?" Valerie asked, looking around curiously with the others.

Felicia shrugged. "This old mansion is always making weird noises. I wouldn't worry about it."

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After being looked over by the doctor and all being ordered for bed-rest, medicines, and lots of liquids, the three Pussycats decided that the pull-out couch they were currently on was a good enough bed for them for the night, but not before taking a bath.

"My bathtub has a Jacuzzi," Alexandra announced in her normal rich pride tone in her voice whenever she announced she had something special the others didn't have. "You're welcome to it."

Alexander jumped into the living room, rubbing his hands together. "I have a hot tub in mine! Who wants to join me?"

Valerie smiled pleasantly at him. "If I join you, can I drown you in it?"

Alexander paled and scooted out of the living room. "…Right. Still angry. …Don't know why, though…"

Valerie rolled her eyes and yanked another tissue out of the tissue box she was holding. Josie sighed and continued to flip through the channels of the giant-sized television hanging on the wall infront of them.

"Your room is upstairs, isn't it? No thanks, I'll just crawl to the downstairs bathroom," Valerie sighed, wobbling up with her blanket bunched around her and her tissue box still in hand.

Josie agreed, "I'm too afraid I'll fall down the stairs. I'll use the other bathroom down here in a few minutes."

Melody looked up at Alexandra, noticing the millionairess was looking directly at her with gleaming eyes. The blonde smirked and stood up shakily, quickly helped by Alexandra.

"I like Jacuzzi music, so I'll go," Melody announced.

Josie laughed, "Okay, Melody."

Alexandra guided Melody up the stairs and into her room. She let Melody sit on her bed while she ran the bath water. Sebastian made his way into the room and jumped on top of the bed, stretching at full length in the middle of the bed to sleep. After the bath was full, Alexandra helped Melody get undressed and into the tub where Alexandra had the water jets running. Deciding to let Melody relax, Alexandra contented herself by filing her nails on the bed, resisting the urge to go into the bathroom and join Melody. She was sick, Alexandra told herself, and miserable. Relationships had to be more than just the physical aspects (though Alexandra really, really liked the physical aspects). A pervy grin smeared across her face as she thoughtlessly filed one nail almost down to the bone.

"Poor Josie and Val," Melody sighed. "We were going to go Christmas shopping this week – they haven't bought anything for their families yet."

Alexandra mentally counted the days until Christmas Day: six. It wasn't a long time, and Alexandra guessed with their busy concert schedule, it was hard to buy presents without servants.

"I'll have our house servants get your lists and go shopping for you three," Alexandra replied, wincing at the too-filed down nail.

"Gee, that's so nice Alexandra!" Melody proclaimed.

Alexandra smirked triumphantly and began filing another nail down. "Of course – I'm a Cabot. We're the generous types."

"Oh, and I have a really important order too at the jewelry shop," Melody remembered with a gasp. "It'll be ready…" She sneezed loudly and Alexandra heard water splash out of the tub. "…Tomorrow."

Alexandra stopped filing: an important order at the jewelry store?

"It's really important, and a secret, so tell them not to tell anybody, okay?" Melody continued.

Alexandra heard her heart thump loudly in her ears as she stared at her nails. An important secret?

She hesitated, biting her lower lip, and then turned her head towards the open bathroom door. "…You…you can't even tell me?"

"Nope, sorry!" Melody sang a bit too brightly.

Alexandra's face turned bright red, the filer unwittingly dropping out of her hand. Was it was she thought it was? No – it was probably a necklace: a necklace with puppies and kittens shaped in the gold pieces, like Melody gave Josie one year. Alexandra shook her head with a smile – even after running away together made them closer, they definitely weren't ready for marriage.

"It's a ring!" Melody called.

Alexandra fell off the bed, startling Sebastian out of his sleep.

Melody's voice continued as Alexandra lied twisted on the floor. "But that's all I can say! Hee hee hee!"

Alexandra clutched her heart and sat up, now panting out her breaths. [Keep it together, Alexandra. It's probably a ring for her mother. Yeah, of course. But why can't she just say that?]

"Alexandra?" Melody's voice echoed in the middle of Alexandra's thoughts.

Alexandra stopped and turned to the door. "W-wha?"

"I said I'll leave the receipt with Felicia," Melody answered.

Alexandra nodded dumbly and began crawling back up to her bed. "Yeah…good idea." Her eyes brightened. "…Great idea."

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"Alexandra Cabot, for the last time, I will not," Felicia scolded an hour later as she dusted the large, jeweled vanity in the Cabot parents' room.

Alexandra crossed her arms and tilted her head up in an attempt to claim her superiority. "Hey, you work for me!"

Felicia cocked an eyebrow at Alexandra. "I have morals. …Also with the money I've made I could retire right now, and I will if you force me to break my personal ethical codes."

Alexandra groaned and hung her head. She and Felicia acted more like sister and sister rather than master and servant. Felicia was hired to tend to Alexandra when she was in her early teens, but, unlike Cheryl Blossom or Veronica Lodge who made their servants do the simplest things for them such as tying their shoes, Alexandra was more independent. Thus, bickering with Felicia was normal.

"Look, I really need to know who that ring is for," Alexandra explained, looking back up at Felicia with pleading eyes.

Felicia turned back to dusting. "But how would we find out? Unless she told the jeweler…" She paused. "…Melody does tend to blab a lot."

Alexandra couldn't argue with that. Melody was the type who could make conversations with total strangers – long conversations, as if they were old friends. She would also disclose personal or embarrassing details that those strangers had no right to know.

Felicia continued thoughtfully. "It is strange though, telling you it's a secret. If it was a ring for her family, whom we practically never see, it's not much of a secret."

Alexandra studied Felicia for a moment, seeing curiosity and wonder suddenly appear in Felicia's eyes. She grinned. "…You want to know too."

Felicia scoffed and whirled around to Alexandra with a red face. She put her hands on her hips in an attempt to look offended. "N-no! It's none of my business!"

Alexandra chuckled and began to slowly walk towards the door of the room. "Uh-huh…"

There was a long moment of silence before Felicia turned back to dusting. Alexandra's smirk widened as she paused in the doorway and glanced at Felicia's twisted face.

Finally, Felicia said without looking at Alexandra, "…I'll meet you downstairs tomorrow at ten; the store will be open by the time we get there."

Alexandra grinned. "See you then."

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Josie woke up the next morning with a running nose. "Ugh…"

Valerie and Melody were already awake, staring vacantly at the television. Josie looked to see what they were watching, only to see a static screen.

"Fever dreams, man," Valerie mumbled. "I had a dream the stage was a boat…and we were in a storm…and the waves were rocking and rolling…"

"Golly," Melody said with a sniff. "I didn't know the sea could play music too…"

Neither Valerie nor Josie had the energy to correct her or even do their usual "oh, Melody" sighs. Alexandra entered the living room, making a point to stand further back than usual after seeing their worsening conditions. She held several pieces of paper in her hand – the lists the Pussycats gave her for their Christmas shopping.

"Alexandra Cabot to the rescue," she bragged. "The servants and I are going shopping for you pleasant peasants." She glanced down at Josie's list in her hand. "…Though your tastes are dreadful… I might have to improvise."

Valerie pointed at Alexandra without looking at her. "Stick to the lists."

Alexandra sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Fine, it doesn't matter to me if you give your relatives awfully…simple…gifts anyway."

Valerie groaned and Josie rolled her eyes.

"Simple suits me fine!" Melody sang happily.

Alexandra opened her mouth and then closed it.

"The car is ready," Felicia informed, holding out Alexandra's expensive, long, black woolen coat.

Alexandra slipped into it and then waved at the sick girls. "Good-bye. Don't forget to sneeze on Alexander's stuff."

Valerie grinned weakly. "…Oh, I already have…" She pulled out a familiar green sweater from behind her back and rubbed her face into it. "Ah…the world's most expensive face towel."

"You're a sick individual Valerie…in both ways," Josie said seriously. She held out her hand. "Hand me his scarf, would you please? I feel a sneeze coming on."

Melody lied back and put on a familiar pair of sunglasses. "You were right, Valerie, I do sleep better with these on."

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The eldest Cabot housemaid, Darla, inspected her troops outside the Midvale Mall. They were a group of hired young people and Cabot household servants, all nervously bunched into small groups, each with a list in their hands.

"Today, troops, the shopping will be more difficult. As this was a last minute request by Miss Cabot's friends, we could not get the mall to close just for us as it does when we do the Cabots' Christmas shopping. You will see grievous acts done by fellow human beings who have turned into animals. People will try to steal from your carts, push you out of the way, cut in line, and generally be the complete opposite of what you saw in those Christmas cartoon specials where everyone was nice and cheerful. All lies," Darla spoke like a commander, hands behind her back and pacing slowly back and forth infront of the groups.

"Oh! My favorite was Yogi Bear's First Christmas," a young woman said excitedly.

Darla snapped her head to her. "You there! New girl! Fifty push-ups for the interruption!"

The woman stared at her. "Wha…? Seriously?"

She looked at the other people in the group who nodded nervously in her direction. The woman gulped and fell to the ground to begin doing her push-ups.

"Darla, Darling, it's Christmas time. Have a heart," Alexandra said from her spot leaning against the limo, smirking down at the woman doing push-ups.

Darla sighed. "Yes, Miss Cabot. Make that twenty push-ups, and hurry because we've got shopping to do!"

Alexandra rolled her eyes with a smirk and turned to Felicia who was standing next to her. "Come, Felicia, we have to go to that jewelry store."

They climbed back into the limo and ordered the driver to go to the store. After a few minutes of driving, they pulled up infront of a small jewelry store squeezed inbetween a deli and a pharmacy. Felicia and Alexandra got out and entered the small store, greeted by a ringing out a small bell hooked over the door. A jeweler was standing behind the counter, dressed in a black suit with a bold, red tie.

"Welcome!" he greeted cheerfully, leaning over the glass case of shining gold and silver jewelry.

"We're here to pick-up for someone," Felicia announced. She glanced over her shoulder at Alexandra who had slipped on a pair of sunglasses and brought her jacket collar up over her nose, as if she was in disguise. Felicia shook her head a little as the millionairess nervously prowled the store, and then turned back to the jeweler. "Melody Valentine is the name."

The jeweler briefly looked at Alexandra with a puzzled expression before he headed towards the back office. "Ah, yes! She called and said someone else was going to pick it up for her. Poor Miss Melody – sick!" He sighed dreamily. "A creature like her doesn't deserve that."

Alexandra scowled and rolled her eyes behind her sunglasses. After a minute, the jeweler re-emerged with a red ring case and a bundle of red roses.

"Here is the ring," he said, handing the case to Felicia. "But I sealed it with plastic so no one could open it, as she requested."

Alexandra cursed Melody's moments of good thinking.

The jeweler looked bashful as he handed Felicia the bunch of flowers to her other hand. "And here is a get-well gift from me and the other boys."

Several voices from the back began to hoot and holler. "For Melody!" "I love you, Melody!" "What a babe!"

Felicia glanced over her shoulder at Alexandra who was now standing with her arms crossed, completely red in the face from held-back anger. "Oh…uh…thank you…?" She bit her bottom lip and then looked back up at the jeweler. "But how will we know it's what Melody wanted?"

The jeweler looked dead serious. "I would never mess-up Melody's order! It's an important one too!" He paused and looked bashful again. "…Or so she says… I don't even know who it's for; she just laughed when I asked her."

Alexandra felt her heart travel up her throat.

"Yes, she was very mysterious about the entire thing," Felicia continued, putting on a sweet, girlish voice that made the jeweler's cheeks turn a visible red. "What does the ring look like?"

The jeweler shook his head and resumed his serious face. "All I will say is that it's a ring – a woman's wedding ring."

CRASH!

Felicia and the jeweler looked to see Alexandra on the floor along with turn display of cheap earrings on top of her. She quickly got up and fumbled with the display before placing it back upright.

"Are…you okay, Miss Cabot?" Felicia asked slowly, raising an eyebrow at the profusely sweating and blushing heiress.

The jeweler's eyes brightened as an older man rushed out of the backroom to gawk at Alexandra.

"W-welcome, Miss Cabot!" the older man proclaimed, rubbing his hands together. He shouldered the jeweler hard into his ribs. "Daniel will be happy to assist you should you choose to make any purchases!"

Alexandra stared off into space. Was this ring really for her? It had to be, if Melody was so secretive about it, didn't it? She heard the pounding of her heart in her ears.

"Miss Cabot?" Daniel's voice interrupted her thoughts.

Alexandra shook her head and turned to the others who were staring at her. She paused and then stepped towards the counter while chewing on her fingernail.

"Felicia, why don't you go wait in the car?" Alexandra suggested.

Felicia nodded. "Yes ma'am."

Felicia stumbled out of the store, dropping several flowers behind her. Alexandra looked down at the case infront of her: rings. Lots of rings. She had bought Melody rings in the past, but they never meant anything besides "here's that ring you said you wanted." These rings, they meant something, at least, symbolically. Alexandra would have never imagined picking out a ring – all her life she had an image of a man groveling at her feet for marriage and then, when she would finally be bored of teasing him, let him put on his hand-picked wedding ring onto her finger. For a long time, the man she imagined was Alan, and the feeling it gave her was sly triumph, especially when she imagined Josie being a witness to this scene, crying her eyes out. Right now, she pictured Melody at her feet, Christmas Day at the mansion, asking for her hand in marriage, and it scared her to death: did Alexandra deserve it? Would she mess up their marriage and cause Melody to leave her? Alexandra felt sweat bead down the side of her head.

Maybe…this was true love. Terrifying and yet, nothing could make her happier.

"Let me see that ring," Alexandra finally spoke, pointing to one.

After thirty minutes, Alexandra emerged with a bag. She had bought the perfect ring…and the perfect necklace in case she was horribly wrong about the entire situation. (Knowing her luck, she was.) The limo driver quickly climbed out of the front seat and rushed around the limo to open the door for Alexandra. Alexandra climbed inside, letting the driver shut the door behind her.

Felicia eyed her bag with a smirk. "I thought we were shopping for Melody."

Alexandra smiled smugly. "Think of it as supporting small businesses during the holidays."

+0+0+0+0+0+

Alexandra tried her best not to look too suspicious (or crazy…crazier…) to her sick friends in the living room. The limo dropped Felicia and her off and went back to the mall to await Darla and her army of shoppers. Felicia gave the ring case to Melody in private and Melody hid it in her jacket: the jacket that she was wearing under layers of blankets on the couch with Josie and Valerie. Alexandra paced up and down the front entrance of the mansion, peeking into the living room where the girls sat further away, watching television. She would then sneak away before she was spotted and continue to wonder obsessively about the ring.

Then, she overheard it.

"Why do you look so pleased? Ever since Felicia and you spoke, you look like the cat that caught the mouse," Valerie asked Melody with a chuckle.

Valerie still had Alexander's sweater around her neck and Melody still wore his sunglasses.

"Well…" Melody said, turning to look at Josie.

Josie grinned. "You're looking at the wrong person, Mel."

Melody took off her sunglasses, surprise in her eyes. "Again? How does Alex wear these inside anyways?" She tossed them aside and looked at Valerie. "Let's just say someone is going to be really surprised!"

Alexandra had her back pressed against the entranceway, heart pounding in her chest as she continued to listen.

"Well, I can't see any reason why you need to keep it a secret from us," Josie said as sweetly as possible.

Melody smiled and laughed through her lips. "Oh, there's a pretty good reason."

Alexandra's face turned red and she brought a hand to her heart.

"Can't you just tell us, Mel? We're your best friends!" Valerie tried to butter her up.

Melody paused and put a finger on her chin. "Hm…well, okay, I'll say something else – it's a wedding ring for someone really close to me."

CRASH!

Josie, Valerie, and Melody whipped their heads around to the crash in the front entrance hall to see the antique grandfather clock that once stood near the entrance on the floor with Alexandra lying on her back underneath it to break its fall. Alexandra looked at the wide-eyed girls and casually pushed the clock back up as if nothing strange happened. With a short clearing of her throat, she strolled away with her nose in the air.

Melody broke out into giggling, but then began to cough. She managed to say through her coughing, "I've heard of time flying, but never falling!"

Valerie and Josie groaned.

"What is Alexandra up to?" Valerie wondered. "She's been acting strange since we got sick."

Josie shrugged. "Whatever she is or isn't up to, she hasn't been bothering us, unlike her brother."

As if on cue, Alexander entered the room. "Someone call little ol' me?"

"Who's Little Ol' Me and why would we call him?" Melody asked, confused.

Alexander groaned and rubbed his forehead. "Nevermind, Melody." He paused and looked around. "Has anyone seen my green sweater, scarf, and my other pair of sunglasses?"

The girls shook their heads innocently, so Alexander walked over to the other side of the room and began searching. Valerie, Josie, and Melody looked at each other and quickly threw his pieces of clothing to a far corner of the room, then settled back into the couch.

"Oh, I think I see them over there!" Valerie said, faking surprise.

Alexander perked up and grinned at the mess of clothing in the corner. "Ah-ha! There they are!" He gathered the clothing and accessories into his arms as Valerie, Melody and Josie tried to gather themselves before they started bursting out into laughter. "Thanks! Now work on getting better faster! I want a Christmas Eve show for our party!"

He rushed out of the room and up the stairs. Once he was gone, the three girls burst into uncontrollable laughter through fits of coughing and sniffling. Suddenly, the front door burst open and Darla led her group of weary and battered shoppers into the front entrance hall.

Darla turned to them. "Okay, how many did we lose?"

The new girl spoke, clinging to six large shopping bags. "We lost one in Toys R Us Express when he tried to take the last 'Pie Face' game."

Darla closed her eyes and bowed her head. "A moment of silence for the fallen."

The shoppers imitated her, except for a young man who looked confused, one eye blackened and swollen. "Uh…I'm okay, really…"

The three Pussycats exchanged puzzled glances before looking back to the scene. Darla spotted their stares and signaled the shoppers to follow her.

Josie and the girls gawked at the haggard and roughed-up shoppers as they stepped up one at a time and placed shopping bags at their feet. "Omigosh…are…uh…is everyone okay?"

Darla fixed her gray hairs tied back into a tight bun. "It's all part of the job, Miss Josie, don't worry."

Valerie looked down at the presents. "Well, thank you everybody!" She looked at Josie and Melody. "It sure is nice getting the royal treatment sometimes."

Melody beamed. "Now we're all ready for Christmas!"

+0+0+0+0+0+

Later that night, Alexandra lied awake in her bed. Sebastian had long fallen asleep, stretched across the foot of the bed. She looked at the comfortable cat and then looked at the clock: 11:37 p.m. She puffed out a breath of air and turned back to staring up at the ceiling.

She had to know who that ring was for. Alexandra felt the sneaky and obsessive side of herself she was desperately trying to change slowly creep its way back into her body. She began scheming – maybe she can visit Melody's parents, or the cousin she was close to, and weasel the truth out of them. Alexandra shook her head: no one, as far as she knew, was aware of their relationship, so if the ring was for her, Melody would have lied about it. Then she could try…

"Alexandra?"

Alexandra's body almost crashed through the ceiling from surprise. She clutched her heart and rolled over to see Melody now only a foot away from her bed.

"Melody! Jeez! How do you do that anyway?!" Alexandra panted through the pounding of her heart. She paused, seeing that Melody was still sick and drenched in sweat, her normally bright blue eyes looking miserable. Alexandra got off the bed and approached her with one of her blankets. "…I'm sorry, you surprised me. Are you okay?"

Melody sniffed and nodded as Alexandra wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. "I can't sleep."

Alexandra massaged Melody's shoulder, feeling the thin blanket stick to the sweat-soaked pajamas. "Why not take a bath? It'll cool you off."

Melody glanced up into Alexandra's eyes which were studying her. The blonde opened her mouth, closed it, and then sighed. "Okay."

Alexandra felt her heart go into her throat again. Did Melody want to say something? Then, true to her nature, the question burst out of her lips. "Is there something you want to ask me?"

Melody looked up at her with wide blue eyes.

Alexandra blushed visibly and looked down. "Uh…nevermind."

Melody hugged the blanket closer to her frame. "Actually…" Alexandra snapped her head up, eyes wide and heart beating in her ears. "...No, forget it. I'll ask at Christmas."

Alexandra's teeth chattered behind her pursed lips. "W-why…at…Christmas?"

Melody pouted. "Well, it's a really important question, and I want everyone to be there, especially your family."

Alexandra's face turned so hot steam practically exploded from her ears. "O-oh…w-well…they'll definitely be there…"

Melody looked down again. "Do you think they'll approve? Of what I want to do?"

Alexandra looked down as well. "I…I don't know. They should, though!"

Melody nodded. "It'll be a beautiful event."

Alexandra grinned. "Of course, Darling, we're beautiful."

Melody looked up, her glum expression instantly turning into amusement. "You're funny, Alexandra!"

Alexandra couldn't believe it – it had to be Melody proposing to her. What else could it be? She paused and thought about the long history of misunderstandings Melody caused for her and the others. Still, whatever Melody was asking on Christmas, it was important to her: and whatever was important for Melody, was important for Alexandra.

Melody seemed pleased, swaying side to side as she played with her fingers. "Well…" She paused and there was an extended silence between them. "I'm going to take a bath."

Alexandra nodded and watched the blonde slowly make her way into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. The heiress finally exhaled the huge amount of breath she was holding back. She paced giddily, and then stubbornly shook her head. It was too good to be true, it always is. Alexandra sighed and climbed back into bed, not acknowledging Sebastian's sly kitty grin. She turned her back to the bathroom door, still feeling hot in the face.

Alexandra woke suddenly to the bathroom door opening. She had unwittingly fallen asleep for almost an hour. Alexandra turned to see Melody exiting the bathroom, pressing her back against the bathroom door as she tried to close it as quietly as she could. She jumped when she noticed Alexandra watching her from the darkness of the room.

"Welp…good-night!" Melody sang once she recovered.

"Good-night, Melody-dear," Alexandra replied. "Be careful on the stairs."

Melody slowly began walking towards the door, looking back at Alexandra a few times. The corners of Alexandra's lips lifted into a smirk.

"Melody," Alexandra called as nonchalantly as possible. Melody stopped and looked back at her hopefully. "Would you like to sleep in my bed tonight?"

Melody perked up, but then looked uneasy. "You don't care if I'm sick?"

Alexandra shook her head and pulled away one part of the bed's blankets. Melody smiled and climbed into the bed, curling under the blankets, back facing Alexandra. Alexandra smirked and massaged the blonde's back, waiting until she heard Melody's breathing fall steady in sleep. She turned around and settled into her pillows, falling asleep quickly.

For the first time in a long time, she couldn't wait for Christmas.

+0+0+0+0+0+

"HA-CHOO!"

Alexandra snorted miserably on the couch Christmas Day. Mr. Cabot and Alexander, both looking equally sick, sat closeby on their respective chairs. The couch and two chairs were pushed all the way to the back corner of the room, away from the crowd inside the Cabot mansion living room. Josie, Valerie, Melody, and Alan all with their parents turned their heads sympathetically towards the sick family members. Josie and the girls were back to normal, no more sickness, but the three Cabots had caught the virus. Mrs. Cabot sat on one of the many other couches in the room next to Melody and Josie's mothers.

"It's your faults," Mrs. Cabot said pointedly.

Alexandra sat up. "Why me? I was actually nice…" She paused to think. "…Good… …Better… …Pretty okay this year!" She sat back and dramatically put her arm on her forehead. "What did I do to deserve this?"

Valerie agreed. "Alexandra was nice to us when we were sick."

Alexander chuckled at his sister. "Yeah, but, she has a lot of bad karma still coming her way from every other year."

Alexandra weakly raised her fist, but let it fall with a weary sniff.

"You know the Cabot twins are really sick when they don't throw punches," Alan whispered to Josie with a grin.

Mrs. Cabot's face fell. "Oooh, Alexandra, I wasn't talking about you… You're also a victim in their scheming."

"Humph," Mr. Cabot snorted weakly. He held up a certificate from under his blanket. "But we won the mansion decorating contest this year."

Alexander nodded, shivering under his blankets. "Ha! And the Lodges didn't have any fancy acts this year, so it was easy!"

Mrs. Cabot casually sat back. "Well, I had an interesting chat with Mrs. Lodge. Turns out the Rockettes sued the Lodges…because they all fell ill after their outside performances."

Mr. Cabot and Alexander froze, looking even paler.

"O-oh! W-w-well! Luckily for us, my girls forgave us completely!" Alexander stuttered, nervously glancing at Josie and the girls. "Right, girls?"

"How much did they get?" Valerie asked Mrs. Cabot, smirking in Alexander's direction.

Mr. Cabot quickly interrupted, "What are we all sitting around for?! Ha ha! Time for presents! Yes! Presents!"

Alexandra tried to stay awake, but fell in and out of sleep. Sometimes she would wake up to see someone holding up the gift they just received, sometimes she would wake to Felicia or Darla checking on her, and the final time Sebastian was in her lap and Mrs. Cabot was seated next to her, holding her head on her shoulder.

"Mom, you'll get sick," Alexandra whispered sleepily.

"She wants to," Mr. Cabot said, pointedly looking at Mrs. Cabot.

Mrs. Cabot tried to look offended, but failed miserably. "Me? Certainly not with the Henderson get-together coming up soon! They are totally not boring and creepy nor do they have a murder room in their basement!"

"A what?" Valerie's father asked with a yelp, almost dropping his coffee.

Mr. Cabot rolled his eyes. "Honey, it's his hobby room, that's all."

Mrs. Cabot mumbled to herself and Alexandra. "If his hobby is murder, sure…"

"Oh no!" Josie suddenly cried.

Everyone turned to see Josie crawling on the floor, looking through the few remaining presents.

Josie's father watched his daughter. "What's wrong, Josie?"

Josie sat up on her knees, facing Valerie and Melody while tugging at both sides of her head of hair. "We didn't get Alexandra anything! We left her off our lists so she wouldn't sneak a peek at her presents!"

Josie, Valerie, and Melody's parents all let a unified, sad groan.

"It's okay," Alexandra reassured with a teasing smirk. "You'll just have to buy me double presents for my birthday."

Valerie grinned and put her fists on her hips. "Alexandra Cabot, you have everything anyway!"

Alan got up, holding a present in his hands. "Yes, the Cabots certainly do! But don't worry, I got her something!"

Alexandra sat up with the help of Mrs. Cabot. "Oh Alan M. How kind of you. Thank you, Sweetie."

Alan sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Y-yeah. Merry Christmas, Alexandra."

She opened it to reveal a set of mugs, all with Sebastian's pictures printed on them. Alexandra was use to Alan's terrible gifts, but at least the boy tried and seemed to put heart into it. Everyone else exchanged secret uneasy glances before sheepishly complimenting or ooo-ing at the gift.

"They're lovely. Now I can see my dumb cat's face all day long," Alexandra laughed.

Sebastian snickered loudly from her lap. Alan seemed happy and proud as he strode back to his seat next to Josie on the floor.

Alexandra suddenly felt a sneeze come on. She grabbed a tissue and sneezed loudly into it, the mugs falling from his lap and into Mrs. Cabot's quick hands. Alexandra gathered the mugs back from her mother and tried to inhale through her nose.

"Ah…excuse me," she said through large breaths.

"Okay, you three, time for bed!" Darla proclaimed. "Your presents are done so…"

Darla began to take Alexandra's arm to haul her up. Alexandra remembered the ring and quickly protested, trying to squirm out of the elder woman's strong grip.

"No, wait, please, I have to-" Alexandra pleaded.

"Wait!" Melody's voice cried.

Everyone froze and turned to the blonde who was now standing in the middle of the room. Alexandra fidgeted out of Darla's grasp and sunk back into the couch, watching Melody with a red face.

Melody continued. "Before anyone goes nighty-night, there's something really important I need to do!" She walked over to her father, a middle-aged man who looked like an old hippy. He had long hair tied back into a ponytail and a rough beard on his face. "Daddy – here."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the ring case. Alexandra's heart stopped beating – it wasn't for her? Melody nodded at her father and skipped away, glancing at Alexandra's puzzled expression with a big smile.

Melody's father turned red as he got up and approached his stunned wife. "Every five years my wife and I renew our vows…and this time, I wanted it to be on Christmas." He got down on one knee and opened the ring case. "Honey, will you renew your vows with me?"

Mrs. Valentine nodded happily, holding back her tears. Alexandra slapped her own forehead and sunk deep into the couch.

Melody rushed over to Mr. and Mrs. Cabot. "I was thinking…maybe we can hold the ceremony here at the mansion? It's so beautiful here and-"

Alexandra covered her face with both of her hands and slid down the cushion. That was what Melody meant when she asked if they would approve.

Mrs. Cabot laughed while reaching down to pull Alexandra up. "Of course, Melody! How romantic!"

Mr. Cabot grumbled something under his breath, causing Mrs. Cabot to shoot him a look.

"And where's your gift to me?" she asked.

Mr. Cabot froze. "Uh, well…I was busy and uh…"

"Daddy asked me to get it!" Alexandra ended. She sat up and reached into her pants pocket. Alexandra fingered the case and a sad sigh. [Well, I don't need this anymore.] She saw the perfect wedding in her head quickly fade away as she pulled out the ring case from under her blanket. "Here, Mumsie."

She pulled out the ring case and presented it to Mrs. Cabot.

Mrs. Cabot opened it and gasped, "Oh, Alexander the Second! You still have amazing tastes."

Mr. Cabot looked confused, glancing at Alexandra. "I do?" Alexandra nodded at him. Mr. Cabot finally caught on. "Erm, yes! I do! Only the best for you!"

Alexandra rolled her eyes as Alexander smirked at her. He mouthed 'close one' to his sister.

+0+0+0+0+0+

Later that night, Alexandra groaned miserably in her bed, hearing the party going on downstairs. Even her traitor cat, Sebastian, was at the party…and he took her mugs too.

"What's that crazy cat going to do with my mugs?" Alexandra grumbled into her tissue.

"Alexandra?"

Alexandra shrieked and almost jumped through the ceiling again. She turned, holding her heart, to see Melody watching her curiously.

Alexandra sighed in relief and flopped down back onto the bed. "Melody, Darling, I love you, but you need to stop sneaking up on me like that!"

Melody giggled and tucked the blankets back around her. "Sorry."

Alexandra sighed as Melody brushed back some loose, wet strands of hair away from her face. "I forgive you."

Melody smiled warmly and sat down at the edge of Alexandra's bed, watching the heiress struggle to keep her eyes open.

"Y'know… Josie and Val didn't get you anything…but I did," Melody said playfully.

Alexandra slugged open her eyes. "Oh, Melody, you are my gift. …But I'll take whatever you're gonna give me."

Melody laughed with a big grin. "I think you'll really like it!" She sighed and looked down sadly. "Well, after you get better."

Alexandra sat up on her arm. "Melody…don't tease me again! I thought that stupid ring was for me the entire time!"

Melody stared at her, shocked. "Golly! I'm so sorry! I didn't…" She trailed off, her expression lighting up. "You thought I was going to-"

Alexandra's face turned ten shades of red as Melody laughed, turning on the bed and flopping backwards over Alexandra's hips and legs.

"W-W-What's so funny about that?!" Alexandra barked. "You kept it like some big secret, so what else was I supposed to think?!"

Melody's laughter trailed off and she crawled up to Alexandra's face. The blonde looked into Alexandra's red face, barely holding back her laughter. "You're cute." She patted Alexandra's cheek playfully. "If I was actually going to do that, I would keep it a really, really big secret!"

Alexandra groaned and fell backwards into her pillows, covering her eyes with her arms. Melody looked down at her lovingly but playfully, feeling giddy that Alexandra was this upset over not being proposed to. She lied down on Alexandra's chest, listening to the loud heartbeat.

"I even bought you a ring," Alexandra grumbled. "That ring I gave my mother from my no-brained father…"

Melody looked into Alexandra's face, or what she could see of it. "It was a beautiful ring… You picked that out just for me?"

Alexandra nodded. "And now my mom's wearing it…which is kind of creepy if you really think about it… Looks like I'm the real dumbie of our relationship."

Melody laughed lightly and settled back down on Alexandra. "You're a good daughter, Alexandra. I'm sorry you're sick on Christmas…" Her expression turned sad. "I'm sorry I got you sick."

Alexandra shook her head under her arms. "I probably got it from Alexander touching everything, not knowing Valerie and you girls were using his stuff as tissues." She sniggered. "If this is the price to pay to watch my brother suffer, so be it."

Melody giggled. "You're a good daughter…but a mean sister."

Alexandra grinned. "I'm mean and you're a bubble-head. This is how we work, Darling."

Melody giggled again and wrapped her arms around Alexandra's ribcage. There was a comfortable silence between them before Melody spoke again.

"I'm sorry I made you feel silly," Melody whispered.

"So…no marriage?" Alexandra asked weakly.

Melody giggled. "Not yet…" She looked up to see Alexandra's mouth twisted with her arms still over her eyes. "One day, when we're really ready, okay?" She lied her head back down, feeling Alexandra's heart begin to beat rapidly again. "When the touring slows down…and everyone knows…and we find out what happens after they do." She smiled. "Besides, we're barely in our 20s! Let's have some more fun before we tie-dye the shoe laces knot, okay?"

Alexandra laughed wearily. "Sure, Melody. What you said." She uncovered her eyes, sitting up on her shoulders again. "Well, what are you waiting for? Tell me what my present is!"

Melody sat up on her elbows which rested on either side of Alexandra. "Well…remember when we were shopping at that store with all the pretty underwear? And you were staring at the mannequin that looked like me? The one with the blue and black kind of silky underthingies?"

Alexandra's face turned red. "I-I wasn't staring!"

Melody grinned. "I bought them."

Alexandra went wide-eyed. "Y-y-y-you-?"

Melody sighed sadly and rolled off Alexandra. "But the doctor said you need to rest for at least a week, and I promised I would make sure you do. So I can't let you have your gift until then!"

Alexandra was still stuck on the underthings. "Y-y-y-y-you-?"

Melody paused and looked at Alexandra's bright red face. She put a hand on Alexandra's now red-hot forehead. "Oh no! Your fever is getting worse!" She tucked Alexandra in. "Don't worry, Alexandra, I'll make sure you get plenty of rest!"

Alexandra's brain was broken. "B-b-b-b-b-bought those…?"

Melody kissed her head. "Welp, good-night! Merry Christmas, Alexandra." She climbed off the bed and pranced towards the door. "I'm going back to the party so you can sleep! I'll see you later!"

Alexandra stared wide-eyed and opened mouth as the door shut after Melody.

Outside in the yard, Sebastian and several cats sat in a circle with fish and containers of milk in the middle. A gray cat stood up, holding one of the mugs with Sebastian's picture on it and began to meow elegantly in a speech. Once he was done, the other cats meowed and swung their mugs in the air. Suddenly, a high-pitched shriek made all the cats but Sebastian leap into the air with fright.

"OOOooo! THIS IS THE WORST CHRISTMAS EVER!"

Sebastian looked up towards the window of Alexandra's room and snickered.