Here we have the second and final chapter. Decided to post it early. Enjoy!
"Wake up! Wake up!"
Buster groaned softly before he yelped as a piglet jumped onto his middle, forcing him to sit up.
"Merry Christmas, Uncle Buster!" Lucy cried.
"Can't be morning already, can it?" He asked, glancing at his watch which read seven in the morning.
"It is, Buster! It's Christmas morning!" Gunter cried, jumping up.
Mia groaned as she covered her head with a pillow. "I swear, Gunter has more energy then the little nippers." She said. She yelped when Casper leapt onto her middle. "Or maybe not."
"Alright, kids!" Meena called, though a majority of the kids were already onto of her and Johnny. "We have to wait till everyone's up before we open gifts!"
"This won't take long." Norman said, chuckling.
"Don't be so sure." Buster uttered. "Ash and Johnny are too of the deepest sleepers I know."
Casper, Lucy and Mickey exchanged looks that said practically screamed "sounds like a challenge".
Buster understood and stretched, nodding his head to his two teenage kids as he did. "Go for it, but I warn you, it ain't gonna be easy."
The three piglets crept over to the two older kids and jumped on their backs. Their only rewards was a grunt from Johnny and a sticking from Ash's quills.
Gunter smirked as he walked over and began tickling Johnny's exposed foot.
Nothing.
He tried the same with Ash and yelped when she kicked him away.
Buster chuckled as the scene played out.
"Allow me." Mia said, standing and dramatically rolling up her sleeves before putting her paw to her mouth. "Oh, my gosh! Chocolate chip pankcakes!"
Johnny snorted as he woke with a start. "I'll have twenty! With chocolate milk!"
Mia crossed her arms and winked at Buster who scoffed. "Fair enough." He responded.
Johnny looked around and frowned. "No pancakes?"
Rosita laughed. "No, but if that's what you all want for breakfast, that's what I'll make."
"Awesome!" Johnny cried, with four piglets chiming in excitedly.
Buster stood up and cracked his knuckles. "I guess a dad's gotta do what a dad's gotta do." He walked over to Ash's sleeping bag and whispered something in her ear.
A split second later, Ash awoke, gasping as she started brushing herself off. "Get them off, get them off!!!"
"What'd you tell her?" Meena asked.
"I told her a roach was crawling on her back. She hates roaches." Buster said, laughing before he was hit square in the nose by a pillow.
Ash glared as she went and recieved her pillow seconds later. "Five more minutes." She begged.
"But it's Christmas!" Lucy cried, hopping into Ash's arms.
The porcupine couldn't resist the pitiful look on the kid's face and finally sighed in defeat.
"Okay, let's open gifts."
"Yay!" The piglets cheered.
Norman got up and plucked a gift from the tree which he handed to Gunter. "For me?" The dancer cried, taking it eagerly.
"Yeah, Rosita and I picked it out. Hope you like." Norman smiled.
Gunter ripped off the paper and gasped in delight as he took a large blue tooth speaker. "This is like, totally fantastic!"
"Figured your other one was getting pretty used up by now." Rosita smiled.
Gunter hopped up and picked two gifts which he gave to Norman and Rosita.
Their expressions were both filled with joy as Rosita received a brand new tool kit, complete with the newest and latest electric drill whilst Norman's gift was a box set of his favorite tv show.
Ash excitedly plopped herself next to Buster and handed him his gift whilst he gave his to her, which was wrapped in blue paper and nearly as big as he was.
Buster brightened as he opened his. "A record player! This is great! And records, too!"
"Those are from me and Porsha." Nooshy smiled as she slipped into her new hoodie, a gift from Johnny. Porsha smiled she nodded, only half listening as she ran her paws on a new red and gold sweater that Miss Crawley made for her.
"T-thank you, Miss Crawly." She said, wiping away tears. She'd never received a gift where someone took time to make it. Miss Crawley smiled before the wolf hugged her tightly.
"I got you this." Porsha said, handing a wrapped box to the old lizard.
"Ooh! It's a new coffee machine!" Miss Crawley cried, happily.
"Yeah, it's the latest model!"
Ash smiled as she held her gift from Buster, a new guitar, complete with a cleaning/care kit and new picks. She placed it gently on the ground before tackling Buster in a tight embrace.
Mia handed Johnny her gift and smiled as he opened it to find a new skateboard. "Blimey! The new Tony Hawk style too!" He cried.
Gunter passed a gift to Meena who opened it to find the newest model of an automatic mixer, baker's dream. Wordlessly, Meena took Gunter into a tight hug, before the dancer tapped her arm, signaling that he still needed to breath.
Amelia smiled as she put on the trench coat Ash had given her. "It's perfect!" She said.
Rosita gasped as she unboxed a beautiful necklace Norman got her. She smiled as her husband took it and placed it around her neck.
The piglets hollered with delight as they unwrapped their gifts of different toys. Caspar laughed as he made his new remote control car sail up the wall and around the tree whilst Lucy clutched her new doll, nervously eyeing her brother, Rory's new chemistry set, hoping he wouldn't decide to use her new doll as a prop. Gail giggled to herself as she set up her new telescope. And all the rest of their siblings were busy running around the theater or enjoying their own Christmas gifts.
Clay felt his eyes well up with tears as he ran a gentle paw over his new motorcycle bag.
Buster smiled as he passed Mia a gift. "For those slow nights." He winked.
Amelia admired the complete collections of Sherlock Holmes and smiled as Buster hugged her. Buster's ears then caught the ringing of a bell and gasped in shock when he saw Johnny roll in a bicycle. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Buster!" He said.
Rosita smiled as she affectionately ruffled the tuft of fur upon on Mia's head and passed her a box. "Use it safely." She said.
Mia gasped as she unwrapped a beautiful knife with a woodened handle.
Ash squealed as she quickly put on the Jack Skellington Hoodie Meena gave her while the elephant smiled in delight at the new set of headphones she received from Ash.
"Merry Christmas!" Marcus cried as he, Berry and Stan walked in with more gifts. Berry smiled as he set down a big red bag and began handing off little stockings filled with goodies to the piglets who squealed with happiness. Stan took his own sack and gave out bigger stockings to the the teens while Marcus handing stockings to the adults.
Buster smiled in delight at the new video game he held in his paws, a gift from Mia.
Johnny tugged his dad and uncles over to the tree to give them the gifts picked out by the theater group.
It was nearly nine when all the gifts had been recieved and unwrapped.
Mia stretched on her sleeping bag, her tail resting over Caspar who had fallen back asleep, clutching his car to his chest. The fox chuckled. "I like Caspar's idea. It's nap time."
"Don't count on it." Rosita said. "As soon as he smells breakfast, he'll be up. Speaking of which, Meena, Miss Crawly, you two want to help me get started?"
"Miss Crawley is already in the break room trying out her new coffee maker." Johnny replied.
"Hope she makes enough." Buster yawned.
Amelia sat up and glanced around. "Come on, while they're making breakfast, we'll start cleaning up all this paper."
"Sounds like a plan." Marcus said, putting down his new back massager that he had gotten from Rosita.
Once the trash was picked up, the smell of chocolate pankcakes filled the air and Johnny was the first to the kitchen.
Rosita set down a large plate of various pancakes as the rest of the group crowded by the table.
"We have plain, blueberry and chocolate pankcakes." Rosita announced as she stacked a few plain onto a plate which she passed to Amelia who usually appeared last for meals.
"Also, biscuits, gravy, eggs- Caspar! 10 is enough! Put some back!" Rosita called to her son.
Buster chuckled as he grabbed the milk pitcher and poured himself a glass whilst Ash opted for orange juice.
Clay yelped as he caught Lucy from nearly falling off the chair as she attempted to pour syrup onto her pancakes herself. "Easy, kiddo! Let ol' gramps help with that." He said.
"Thanks!" Lucy said as she watched eagerly as Clay poured the sticky goodness onto her meal. "More please!"
"I pour anymore and you're gonna be bouncin' to the ceiling." Clay advised.
"Yay! I'll be able to fly like Santa!"
Miss Crawley hummed to herself as she poured a cup of steaming coffee for herself, Buster and Mia. "This is the best gift I've gotten in a long time." She smiled.
Buster gasped, dramatically. "What about that robe and slippers I got you?" He asked, a hurt expression etching it's way across his face.
"Oh, well, second best." Miss Crawley smiled sheepishly as she buried herself in her cup.
"Hello!"
The group looked up to see Alfonso peak his head in. "Merry Christmas!" He smiled.
Meena squealed as she ran into his arms and he embraced her lovingly.
"Merry Christmas!" Replied the Moon gang.
"Grab a plate, Al! Plenty to go around." Norman greeted.
Once breakfast was consumed, the group was gathered back on the stage, watching a Christmas movie on the projector when Lucy ran in. "It snowed again last night!" She cried.
The troupe gathered at the front entrance to admire the newly fallen blanket of snow.
Mia smiled as she clapped her pawd together. "Instead of gawking at it, how about we dive in?" She asked.
"Can we!?" Caspar squealed.
"Everybody grab your coats!" Buster announced.
Within minutes, the group piled outside the back entrance where they suddenly found themselves in their own private winter wonderland as the fence surrounding the back of the theater was blocking the public.
"This is great!" Johnny said, falling into the snow and immediately making snow angels. He didn't complete it for he was then tackled by several piglets.
"Help me make a snowman, Johnny!"
"No, me!"
"Let's make him 20 feet tall!"
"We can call him Frosty!"
"Kids, whoa! I'm only one gorilla!" Johnny laughed.
"Right, son! So let's make it four!" Marcus bellowed, pulling his son up from the snow. "Come on, you lot! Let's get to building on that snowman!"
The piglets cheered as they followed the gorillas to a secluded spot where they began work on their snow man.
Buster smiled as he breathed in the afternoon air. Suddenly, he felt himself soaring up. He looked down below him and saw Amelia smiling up.
"Where did you come from?" Buster asked.
"Under the snow!"
"I didn't know foxes burrow!"
"This one does!" Mia then set him down and dived once into the snow where she disappeared. The only evidence of her in the area was the lump of snow that followed her movement. She suddenly leapt from the snow and landed next Ash and Rosita, spraying them with snow.
"Amelia Jules Holmes!" Rosita cried, but the smile twitching at the edge of her mouth proved she wasn't really angry.
Amelia smirked before she was tackled into the snow by Gunter.
Buster laughed as the scenes unfolded. He glanced at the snowman the piglets were building with Johnny and his family. Clay had joined the group and was lifting Lucy and Rory up so that they may attach the little black rocks that would be the eyes.
Buster was taken aback when he finally saw how big they had made the snowman is such short time.
It was already beginning to tower over Marcus and Clay. Johnny took another arm full of snow and packed it in.
"I found a hat!" Porsha said happily as she ran out of the theater. Buster recognized it as one of the props they used for their Christmas Carol show.
"Jà, and I have a pipe!" Gunter called.
Once the snowman was built, the group gathered as Johnny, Marcus and Clay began decorating. Two black stones for eyes, a long carrot for the nose, a scarf that Berry had, the hat of course, the pipe, two long sticks for arms and a piece of blue string for it's smile.
"Looking pretty good." Clay commented, smiling.
"Wait!" Ash said as she ran inside.
She wasn't gone a minute before she returned and set down her old guitar which she set by the snowman.
"We have new cast member!" She said, earning a laugh from the group.
Rory suddenly sneezed and shivered.
Clay chuckled as he picked up the piglet. "Guess that's our ticket to go inside."
"Miss Crawley has got hot chocolate inside!" Meena said, waving them in.
"More marshmallows, dear?" Miss Crawley asked as she passed a plate to Nooshy.
"Cor, thanks, Miss Crawly!" She smiled as she grabbed a pawful of placed it into her mug.
"Blimey, Nooshy, want some cocoa with those?" Mia asked.
"Mah, takes away the flavor!" Nooshy said, popping a marshmallow into her mouth.
"Mom, Dad, can we go play with our new toys?" Lucy asked her parents.
"Sure, hun, but be careful of the tree." Norman replied.
Buster sighed happily as he glanced around at yet another successful Christmas with her family.
"I say it went well."
He shifted his gaze to Mia who was walking over. "You read my mind." He said.
Marcus joined them and saw down. "We got a pretty good thing going here, Moon."
"I'll say!" Rosita chimed in.
"Jà, I never much celebrated the holiday until I met you." Gunter commented. "Usually I'd go to whatever bar was open. I'd make friends with whoever was there at the time and we'd sample different holidays drinks they have, sing terrible karaoke and party till midnight. Fun, but a bit lonely going home."
Ash nodded. "Lance and I used to celebrate. We'd do gifts and stuff. Neither of us cooked, so we'd just get Chinese from somewhere and watch movies. Never felt very Christmassey though."
"Daddy always found an excuse not to celebrate Christmas with me." Porsha said. "Always had a business meeting or last minute board meeting. He got me amazing gifts though." She frowned as she rubbed her arm, embarrassed. "Guess he doesn't have to make up excuses now."
Nooshy patted her arm. "I didn't celebrate. Never had money. I performed a lot though. Believe it or not, but I played an elf or two around Christmas. Payed pretty good. Got me a good turkey dinner."
Clay sighed. "Ruby loved celebrating Christmas. And when she died, I guess my Christmas spirit died with her." He glanced around. "But... thanks to you all, I seem to be getting that spark back."
Buster stood and smiled. "A few years ago, none of us knew each other. Now we're spending a beautiful Christmas together. Ever since I met these amazing cast of talented animals, I realized there was more to the theater then just the stage or lights. It's about community and unity. This theater brought us all together. And it gave us a chance to find ourselves within our hearts and gave us the courage to push ourselves to our limits and in doing so, we went on to perform in bigger places and made our little family bigger along the way. So, whether you were alone or lost a loved one, just remember that now, now you are all a member of the New Moon Theater Family."
Ash stood. "I agree with every thing you said... but the theater didn't bring us together. As much as I love this place, it was you, Buster."
The group agreed and Buster smiled again, his heart over flowing with love and affection for his friends.
"Merry Christmas, everyone!" He said.
"Merry Christmas, Buster!"
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Hope you enjoyed it.