C9: Three Cousins And A Scrooge.

Downstairs in the dining-room, Hope exited the kitchen through it's wooden knobless push-open door, carrying two glasses of eggnog, and went over to the table where Devin was sitting. Everyone had already unloaded their luggage, gotten out of their winter clothes, and were all set to spend Christmas week up here in the snow mountains of Snowville here in the cabin.

"Okay, let's drink some eggnog." Hope said before placing the two glasses on the table.

"Okay." Devin said before Hope sat down next to him. She and Devin picked up their glasses of eggnog and started drinking them.

"Mm. Yum, yum, yum. Mm." Hope said, enjoying her glasd of eggnog.

Bonny came out of the kitchen. "When am i gonna get to read your Christmas novel? I'm anxious to know what it's about." She said.

"So am i. I just can't figure out what the title should be." Hope said as Bonny walked over to the table and sat down next to Devin.

"I thought the title was called 'The Christmas Express'." Bonny said.

"It was, but i had a change of mind on that after three days." Hope said.

"Well, you're the writer, change the title." Bonny said.

"I can't. I've already written six chapters concerning the title. It's hard to change it after that." Hope said.

"Look, Hope, i know that you're the creative one in the family...but i gotta be honest with you. The Express part is messing up your book." Bonny said.

"Those first six chapters were some of my best writing." Hope said. "You liked the title, didn't you, sweetheart?" She said to Devin, looking at Devin, who was drinking his eggnog.

"Mm-hm." Devin said, enjoying his eggnog.

"Well, what's the book about?" Bonny asked.

"A train taking children to a place called Christmas Town on Christmas Eve night in 1991." Hope answered, refocusing on Bonny.

"Didn't they do a movie similar to that back in 2004? Wasn't it called 'The Polar EXPRESS'?" Bonny said.

"What, you've never heard of inspiration?" Hope said, looking at Bonny.

Ebony entered into the dining-room, no longer wearing her fur coat of her gloves. "Are we ever going to eat? My stomach is about to shut down."

"It won't be long, i hope you like meat-loaf." Bonny said as she got out of her chair and faced Ebony.

"Never had like meat-loaf. Maybe your's is different. Does it have meat in it?" Ebony said.

"...Yes. Otherwise, it would just be called loaf." Bonny said with a forced smile and happy tone.

"If you say so." Ebony said.

Bonny turned away from Ebony and her smile turned into an annoyed frown.

"I think i will take my son upstairs and put on a Christmas movie for him and the other kids." Hope said as she got up from the table, followed by quickly drinking the rest of her eggnog and putting the now empty glass on the table. "Come on, Devin."

"Alright." Devin said before finishing his eggnog, putting the glass on the table, getting up from the table and leaving out of the dining-room with Hope.

Bonny then got the two empty glasses off the table and carried them into the kitchen, with Ebony following her.

"Oh, you're fixing fried fish, i love fried fish." Ebony said as she went over to the sink where Bonny was placing the glasses.

"I'm glad." Bonny said. "You're gonna love the tarter-sauce i bought. James says it's one of your favorites." She said as she went over to the stove where the fish was cooking in the frying-pan.

"Can't be one of my favorites. I don't eat anything from Mississippi...or Texas...or Kansas...or Colorado or Utah or Missouri or Tennessee." Ebony said.

Bonny forced a smile on her face and turned to Ebony. "Miss Scroogeman..." She began happily as she went over to Ebony. "you've had a hard day. We've all had a hard day. Why don't go back into the living-room and relax?" She said with her forced happy tone.

"Okay." Ebony said before leaving out of the kitchen.

"Cause i got one nerve left and you're working on it." Bonny said, no longer smiling, before she went back over to the stove to resume cooking the fish.

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