Joseph and Cassandra were walking down a misty forest road hand in hand accompanied by Bela, Elena, and Daniela. They were all in a good mood today as Donna had invited them all to her estate to help her make Christmas cookies for the upcoming holiday, and the group immediately said yes. Joseph was especially looking forward to it. He had never been to Donna's place before and based on what his girlfriend had told him, it was a beautiful estate to look at. So he was naturally curious as to what he would see.

Not to mention, it was a great way to temporarily take his mind off martial arts training and the stress of getting gifts ready, especially the so-called 'special' gift Cassandra had for him. Apparently the whole Dimitrescu family knew about it, but they were keeping a very tight lip. Joseph couldn't even get Daniela to spill. So naturally, curiosity was killing him. What was this gift? He decided to put it out of his mind for now as wondering about it wouldn't help anything.

As the group made their way down the path, they eventually came upon a clearing that had what looked like a grave site in the middle. It was a single gravestone with what looked like a stone coffin in front of it, and was surrounded by flowers. As they got closer, Joseph could make out the name on the tombstone that made him pause.

'Claudia Beneviento'

Seeing the look on his face, Bela spoke up.

"That was Aunt Donna's younger sister. She died shortly before she became a lord. It's one of the reasons why she was reclusive for a while."

Joseph felt his heart sink as he felt a personal connection. He didn't know Donna had a sister, and even though his own sister didn't die, he understood to an extent how she must have felt. He wished he knew that earlier, otherwise he would have made something special for her for Christmas.

Almost as if she read his mind, Cassandra squeezed his hand.

"It's okay. You didn't know, and she's been a lot better with it in recent years. Come on. This is supposed to be a happy time of year, remember?"

That worked in lifting Joseph's spirits.

"You're right. Come on. Let's not keep your Aunt waiting."

They made their way to an elevator (which confused Joseph as to why there would be an elevator leading to an estate), and as they made their way to the top, Joseph was amazed at the sight in front of him.

Donna's manor was indeed a beautiful sight. While it looked worn and weathered in some parts, it still managed to give off the same gothic feel that the castle did. The roof had turrets that stood in the far corners that were pointed. It also had elegant spires that had a stylish look to them. The roof shingles were dark in color to contrast the lighter sides of the house. And to top it all off, the house sat in front of a beautiful waterfall. Joseph was amazed at the sight. It looked like something one would see out of a postcard.

"You weren't kidding when you said it was a nice estate." He said to his girlfriend."

The brunette nodded.

"Just wait till you see the inside."

When the group reached the front door, Joseph gave a few good knocks, and after a moment, the door opened to reveal Angie standing there.

"Hey guys! Come on in! Donna is in the kitchen already."

Again, Cassandra wasn't exaggerating. The walls and staircase had a nice wood finish to them, and there was a fancy chandelier hanging from the ceiling. By the staircase was a portrait of Donna and Angie. Notably, Donna didn't have her deformity on her face. It could have been made before she became a lord.

Joseph couldn't help but admire the painting. It must have been made by someone who was very skilled. He couldn't help but ask about it.

"Who made this portrait, Angie?"

"Oh, that was Vampy!" The doll said. "She made that for Don Don years ago."

Joseph raised his eyebrows.

"Really? I didn't know Alcina was a painter."

"It's one of her favorite hobbies." Bela said. "She hasn't done it in a while though. It's a real shame too. She would make some of the most amazing portraits."

"Maybe we can talk her into doing it again after Christmas!" Daniela said.

"There's an idea." Joseph said with a smile. Let's talk about that later though. We shouldn't keep Donna waiting."

""You read my mind!" Angie said. "Follow me!"

The doll led them down another hall and to another elevator which surprised Joseph and Elena.

"Lady Beneviento has her kitchen in the basement?" Elena asked.

"Yeah, I don't get it either." Angie replied.

Joseph was a bit perplexed, but just shrugged. As long as it worked for Donna, that was the most important thing.

….

The basement looked just as nice as the ground floor did. It had the same style of architecture, wallpaper, and paintings, but it was a bit more claustrophobic as the hallways were more narrow than the ones on the ground floor. The group didn't mind this however. The only thing on their minds at the moment was making some delicious Christmas cookies.

They made their way to the kitchen where Donna was already preparing some cookie dough. She had her veil off and was wearing an apron that resembled the Italian flag. The lord herself came from an Italian family, so she always honored her roots. Joseph smiled at that as he himself came from an Italian family.

"Hi Aunt Donna!" Daniela greeted.

The lord turned and smiled at the group.

"Hi everyone! You're just in time too. I was just getting the dough ready."

"What are we making?" Bela asked as everyone walked over.

"Well, right now I'm making some Italian Knots, but I also have plans for Russian Tea Cakes, Cinnamon Twists, and Rainbow Cookies as well.

Angie groaned at that last one.

"Not those again. They're such a pain in the ass to make!"

Donna chuckled.

"True, but we have a lot more help this time so it should be less strenuous for us."

"Yeah, Angie." Joseph said. "And all that hard work makes the final result all the more satisfying, especially if it's a great desert."

The doll perked up.

"Good point! Alright maggots! Get your asses in gears and let's start making these cookies, pronto!"

The group all turned to Daniela and gave her a look.

"Just a reminder, watching Full Metal Jacket last night was your idea." Cassandra said.

The redhead nervously laughed and scratched the back of her head.

"Yeah. I think I'll volunteer to make the Rainbow Cookies."

They all nodded.

….

Thankfully, Donna could only take Angie's drill sergeant attitude for so long and eventually told her to stop, and once that happened, the room became much cheerier.

Joseph and Cassandra were making the Russian Tea Cakes, Bela and Elena were making the Italian Knots, and Daniela, Donna, and Angie were making the Rainbow cookies. Cassandra thought it was odd that Joseph didn't want to make the Italian cookies, but he said he knew how to make Russian Tea Cakes from his grandmother. The brunette could tell there was more to it than that, but she didn't press it.

They were all chatting and having a good time, but of course it didn't take long for them to start making a mess with the flour. They tried to clean it up whenever they could to avoid doing it all at once at the end, but it was clear they wouldn't get all of it. Especially when it came to the food coloring.

At one point, Daniela stopped and looked at her hand which had red food coloring on them, and this made her uncomfortable as it reminded her of what her life used to be like, but she took a deep breath and remembered that that was all in the past now and continued her work.

As she did, she noticed her sisters and their partners looking at her and they all gave her a thumbs up. This really lifted the redhead's spirits.

Before long, all of the cookies were in the oven baking and after they were done, the group got to work putting the finishing touches on them.

As Cassandra was rolling the cookies in powdered sugar, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Joseph was looking at her with a mischievous look.

Her eyes turned wide and she turned to face him. She knew exactly what he was thinking.

"Don't you dare." She giggled.

But instead of speaking, Joseph flicked a touch of powdered sugar into his girlfriend's face while he chuckled.

"Oh, you are dead meat, Brody!" The brunette laughed. As she flung a larger chunk of powdered sugar at him. He tried to dodge it, but he forgot how much faster his girlfriend had become since she started her training and got hit square in the face.

They then proceeded to have a mini food fight with them throwing chunks of powdered sugar at each other, all while the other looked on laughing. They were thankful they were baking at Donna's house and not at the castle. If Alcina saw Joseph and Cassandra making a mess like the way they were now, she would throw a fit.

"How can those two be so mature one moment and so immature the next?" Bela said in between laughs.

Just then the Blonde felt a slab of icing slap onto her cheek. Shocked, she turned around to see Elena with her arms behind her back and giving an innocent smile.

"Oh Bela, you have some icing on your face. Do you want me to clean it off?" She said sweetly, but clearly she was guilty.

"You have just sealed your fate, Elena." Bela said with a smirk.

Soon, the whole gang got into a food fight, and the aftermath took hours to clean up afterwards. They considered it a miracle the cookies weren't ruined.