Let's move on! Sorry that I'm only posting now and had to keep you in the lurch for a long time, but it goes on!
Unfortunately, the Halloween story won't be published until next year. I hope you'll forgive me for that.
Anyway, the story continues now even though Christmas is only two months away. But never mind. I can only say that I won't have much time to publish new chapters in the next few weeks. Please understand that.
But the next chapter will be out before Christmas!
Until then
The season on the Inkwell Isle's usually never passed by so quickly. It adapted to that of the normal world. At least that was the case in the book Cuppy and Lucifer came from. But the Inkwell Isle's in the show were a lot different. Not only did time fly by, but so did the seasons. A few days ago, the colorful autumn leaves were everywhere until suddenly the landscape was covered in snow. Icicles hung from the bare branches, roofs, gutters and other buildings and structures. The snow continued to fall, making it difficult for the residents of Inkwell Isle to clear their paths or cars. Others even had problems getting out of their own homes as there was a mountain of snow right outside the front door.
But shoveling snow never hurt anyone. Not even the three cups that removed snow from the path and the front door day after day. Of course Blood, Alicia and Lucifer helped when the snow was too much or the three cups were exhausted. Who removed the snow was of little interest to Elder Kettle. "As long as it's gone," he said every time the snow had to be removed. However, the snow not only heralded the arrival of winter but also the Christmas season, which was drawing closer with each passing day. Alicia's annual nightmare. She didn't like the Christmas season. Cuppy and Lucifer knew that. But the others didn't. That's why she hid in the guest room when she heard the singing coming from the living room.
When I think of Christmastime
This is what I know
On his armchair sat Elder Kettle, who was not only singing but also sprinkling fresh tobacco into his wooden pipe. In the background, the fire crackled in the fireplace, which Lucifer lit with ease by sending his fingers into flames and firing individual small flames onto the freshly cut wood. Like little dancers, the flames that had come to life danced on the wood, turning in circles and settling on the wood.
It's all about tradition
Stockings, gifts and snow
There were several Christmas socks hanging by the fireplace. Nine of them to be precise. Next to the fireplace itself were a few presents wrapped in wrapping paper, each with a thick loop on top. The goat lay at the foot of Elder Kettle's bed and enjoyed the warmth of the fire and Lucifer's caresses so that she quickly fell asleep. Of course, not only the fireplace was decorated, but also the rest of the cottage.
But nothing else says Christmas
So very clear to me
The banister where Mugman stood was wrapped in tinsel that looked like pine leaves or fur. Small candy canes and baubles peeked out from it while a garland hung above the door to the guest room. Blood had just hung it up before the still-singing Elder Kettle slipped in between him and Mugman, making them both smile.
It just quite isn't Christmas
Cuphead and Cuppy both hung a wreath on the front door at the same time. It hung in the middle and was beautifully decorated with Christmas baubles and a loop. Elder Kettle casually walked past the two as they held the wreath one last time before letting go to look at their work. Her work paid off because not only did the front door look beautiful but the cottage in general. It resembled a Christmas house you could say. From the kitchen you could already smell the aroma of freshly baked cookies just waiting to be eaten. Swinging an axe in his hand, Elder Kettle glides into the living room past Lucifer and Nyx, who were themselves hanging garlands and decorations to make the room look even more beautiful and Christmassy. The room looked nicely decorated but one thing was missing.
Without a big ol' Christmas tree
Yes, the Christmas tree was missing. It was the cherry on the cake, the highlight of the whole room, the light in the spotlight you could say. The most important person or object that was missing from the cottage.
O Christmas tree, Christmas tree
Shining oh so bright
Without hesitation, the three cups, Elder Kettle, Lucifer and Nyx grabbed their warm clothes and went outside. Elder Kettle wore a light brown winter coat with dark brown buttons on the front that held his coat closed, red winter boots instead of the sandals he usually wore and a green pilot's cap that kept his head warm. Cuphead wore a pine green coat with a white and green scarf around his non-existent neck. His equally non-existent ears were warmed by wine-red ear warmers.
Mugman wore a purple winter coat with a dusky pink scarf. His non-existent ears were protected and warmed by green-blue ear warmers. Cuppy, on the other hand, wore a quartz gray winter coat with a blue-gray scarf and oxidite red ear warmers. Lucifer himself wore nothing except for a light blue scarf decorated with small figures sewn into it that looked like a dragon. Nyx wore a small purple hat on her head which was knitted by Elder Kettle and had small openings for her ears. Only Blood wore nothing to keep warm from the cold of winter. Why should he when he had a thick fur coat on?
Plug you in and watch you glow
They all sang and were soon looking forward to putting up the wonderful Christmas tree. The axe that Elder Kettle carried over his shoulders was not there for nothing, they would need it for better or worse.
Adorned with colored lights
The idea of how beautiful the tree will look when it is decorated with fairy lights, tinsel and Christmas baubles delighted the three mugs. And the others too, of course. Especially because it's Nyx's first Christmas. She didn't even know what Christmas was until recently. Well, who blamed her. Until recently, she was just a drawing on a piece of paper. Nothing more.
O Christmas tree, Christmas tree
Ho-ho!
We shout it out with glee
Hee-hee
But all that was quickly forgotten, because now there was something much more important. The Christmas tree had to be bought. And the two brothers and Elder Kettle knew where they could get one without having to search for a long time.
It just quite isn't Christmas
Without a big ol' Christmastree
The three cups walked ahead like three soldiers, not noticing that Elder Kettle was slowly walking backwards towards the front door, leaving the three behind him, or rather in front of him. "Whoo!" he said as his hand reached the door and slammed it shut without hesitation. The three mugs heard this, as did Blood, Nyx and Lucifer. The latter turned around in confusion while the three cups ran to the front door in panic, banging on it as if their lives depended on it. "Hey!" they continued banging on the door with their yellow (in Cuppy's case rather white) gloves until Elder Kettle opened it.
"Yes, boys?" Elder Kettle asked with a neutral expression on his face, as if he didn't know that he had just locked out the entire group without saying a word. The adults remained at the fence gate, watching the conversation from a distance while the three younger members of the group commented on the old Kettle's sudden behavior. "Elder Kettle, aren't you coming?" Cuppy asked, curious and confused at the same time. Cuphead and Mugman remained silent and waited for the answer. "No, boys. No I'm not." was his reply. "I've done the tree all these years, but now keeping the tradition alive is up to you.".
All three of them gasped in horror as if they had not realized that the day would come when they would have to fetch the tree themselves. Normally this was different for Cuppy. He, his brother Mugman and his Elder Kettle got the Christmas tree themselves from the nearby forest. Every year, just before Christmas, they went into the forest with an axe in their hands and picked out the best and most beautiful one they could find. Even if it wasn't as easy as they imagined. After all, the trees could defend themselves. So all three of them took an axe in their hands.
Fortunately, both brothers kept the things they had bought from Porkrind. That's why they liked to use the whetstone as an emergency solution if the axes weren't enough or the smoke bomb to confuse the tree. Both always helped. But here in this world, Cuppy couldn't use his powers, let alone grow an axe from his straw. So the task they had been given was no longer as easy as usual.
"You three head down to Porkrind's and pick out a tree." On the other hand, he was glad that they only had to go down to Porkrind. So no fight against an angry fir tree. That reassured him on the one hand, but something else made him think again when Elder Kettle took $5 out of his coat pocket and put it in Mugman's hand. "He'll ask for ten, but don't offer more than five." His tone changed drastically as Mugman tried to take the bill from his hand but Elder Kettle held on to it until he let go and stared at all three of them with a very serious look.
They knew he was serious about what he was about to say. So serious that he poked Mugman's nose and made him even more nervous than before. "Given half a chance, old Porkbutt will take you for all you've got." Without saying anything, he grabbed the dollar bill and continued talking while the youngest of the three cups swallowed nervously. Cuppy calmed him down a little by gently stroking his back. His nervous swallowing disappeared as quickly as the serious look on the kettle's face "But, if you stick to your guns, you might even come home with change in your pocket." Waving the bill in his hand, he handed this Mugman over.
Of course, Elder Kettle didn't let go of this one, which is why the younger of the three cups pulled on the bill several times. "It's very important that you come home with change in your pocket." His tone was serious again and Mugman swallowed again before Elder Kettle let go of the bill and wished the three of them good luck. "Then you get to haul the tree home and decorate it." That may sound simple to an ordinary person, but not to Cuphead. He wrinkled his eyes and scratched his chin. "Sounds like a lot of work," he said. "Yep. Merry Christmas!" replied Elder Kettle with rolling eyes, who was just about to go into the cottage when Mugman stopped him again.
"Elder Kettle, wait!" he shrugged again before turning around and looking for the three cups. "How will we know what tree to pick?" asked Cuppy surprisingly and not Mugman while Cuphead just looked suspicious as if he suspected Elder Kettle had planned something while they were gone. "When you find the perfect tree, you'll know. And if you have trouble maybe one of the other adults will help you." his gaze wandered from the three others who were still starting at the fence gate and didn't know what was going on. "But what does that even mean?" Mugman asked himself, trembling. He didn't know exactly what to do. But the other two did.
"I don't know but we could ask Alicia if she could help us." Without hesitation, both brothers turned around and quickly realized that one thing was missing, or rather someone was missing. Cuppy knew who it was and so did the others. "Um where exactly is Ali?" asked Mugman in a whispering voice. Cuphead shrugged his shoulders and was about to give his answer when Lucifer spoke in the middle of his sentence and interrupted him. "She's in the guest room and will probably be in there for the rest of Christmas." This shocked the two brothers. "Why is that?" 'Christmas is the best time of the year, why doesn't she want to celebrate with us?' they both asked.
Lucifer and Cuppy looked at each other, nodded and whispered to the bottom two cups who now knew with their mouths wide open why Alicia wasn't out here. Both now knew about her past, about the one Christmas morning that changed Alicia's Christmas joy forever. "But how can we get her to enjoy Christmas again?" asked Mugman, while Cuphead didn't hesitate for long, went into the cottage and knocked on the guest room door to lure Alicia out.
Or at least to get them to open the door. After all, they wanted to ask her if she could help them with the Christmas tree. "Ali, please come out," Cuppy begged as the two brothers knocked on the door, ignoring the fact that Elder Kettle had just come into the room with a tray of freshly baked cookies. They could wait, after all, she had a job to do that they couldn't do without Alicia's help. So they knocked even harder on the door than before.
"Okay, that's fine, I'm already coming out." the three cups heard on the other side of the door. Their faces showed joy, which quickly turned to guilt when they saw Alicia, who didn't look happy as usual, but rather annoyed? Bored? Pissed off? Hard to tell, her eyes glowing yellow like Lucifer's. "Uh-oh I think we annoyed her too much." Cuphead mentioned with a nervous swallow before the other two gave him an annoyed and meaningful look that said: Oh really now. The hectic knocking on the door would also really annoy her. Especially if you wanted your peace and quiet. Unfortunately, Cuppy and Mugman weren't innocent either as they also knocked on the door like two stupid monkeys trying to get through the door in a morbid way to get fresh bananas. "What's up?" Alicia asked annoyed as she looked at the decorations throughout the house before her yellow, snake-like eyes fell on the three mugs who still didn't answer her but remained silent until Mugsy spoke up. "Sorry we got you out of the guest room Ali but we were wondering if you could help us pick out a good Christmas tree?".
Her eyes looked at all three of them, perplexed. Especially Cuppy. The reason was clear as glass because he knew that Alicia didn't particularly like Christmas. So he also knew that it would be difficult to persuade her to come. Fortunately, he and the other two had an ace up their sleeves. After Alicia said no and wanted to disappear into the guest room, Mugsy asked her to turn around. "Okay, Mugsy." Sighing, she turned around with the assumption that the three mugs had planned something to change her mind. She thought it was a hug or something. But that wasn't the case because instead of a hug, the young adult was surprised by three puppy dog eyes. Or were they cup eyes?
Well, whatever you called it, Alicia seemed to be enchanted by the googly eyes with which the three cups were staring at her. She couldn't say no to the three of them, "Okay, you've convinced me." Without further ado, she went to the clothes rack, grabbed her navy blue winter jacket and red winter boots and got changed while the others just watched her from outside and were partly delighted but also amazed at how quickly Alicia changed her mind. Of course, her opinion was still the same when it came to Christmas. She didn't like it and that remained unchanged. But she decided to put her hatred of the holiday aside and help the three mugs find the perfect Christmas tree.
"All right, where do we get this Christmas tree?" she asked, standing outside the cottage while Cuppy closed the front door behind her. Nyx landed on Alicia's shoulder and rubbed her head against her neck before Alicia wrapped her scarf around it. The scarf was purple and had an ornament of a wolf on it similar to Lucifer's scarf. "We have to go to Porkrind." 'He sells Christmas trees,' the two brothers explained. Mugman still held the $5 bill in his hands and explained to Alicia that the pig usually wants $10. "And you only have $5?" the irony was palpable as Mugman hid the bill in his pocket and grinned nervously while Cuphead gave himself a face palm.
She knew why the three cups needed her help. Porkrind wasn't someone you could easily persuade, let alone get to do something for free or lower the original price. He was strict and stubborn. Quite unlike his counterpart. Although she never really got to know him. But Cuppy said he was quite nice despite his annoyed look. As long as you pay him well, of course. Unlike Porkrind here in this world. He seemed more annoyed than anything else. Squidward and he could be good friends. They had a lot in common. They wanted their peace and quiet and hated customers. Or annoying customers.
As far as customers were concerned, Porkrind seemed to get a lot of customers just before Christmas, just like every year. His Christmas trees stood in rows around his store, which the individual customers looked at before deciding to buy one. The group had just arrived and encountered several customers with Christmas trees under their arms or pulling them on a sleigh. Big or small, it didn't matter. Each tree was reasonably priced for the individual residents of the Inkwell Isle's. "Busy place." Nyx mumbled as she looked at the individual Christmas trees that were still for sale or had already been sold.
Just as she was about to land on a Christmas tree, a deep if scratchy voice rang out. "Ten bucks, folks." trembling, the Sprigoon flew back to Alicia and the others to hide between Lucifer's horns, which were thick enough for Nyx to disappear behind. "All my trees are ten bucks." came the voice again, belonging to none other than Porkrind standing in front of his store and repeating this sentence several times to avoid talking to any (in his eyes) annoying customers about the price.
"Tree dies before Christmas? Not my problem." However, the price was not always the reason why he was annoyed to talk to customers. "Find a squirrel in it? Not my problem." He also didn't care what happened to the trees after they were bought. Whether they were still green by Christmas or whether some animal had hidden in them was of little interest to him. The only thing that mattered to him was the money. A mother duck who was also shopping with her young child held $10 in her hand ready to pay for the tree she had tucked under her arm. "Merry Christmas, Porkrind," the duckling wished him as he followed his mother. "Whatever." was his reply before hiding the money in his pockets and waiting for the next customer. "Nice trees you got there, Porkrind." a female voice asked him. Perplexed but also flushed, the pig woke up before looking around to see where the voice was coming from, ringing in his ear with passion.
His previously tired eyes widened when he saw Alicia, who was not alone but with the three cups, the wolf and a furry something with two white horns? Who or what that was standing next to Alicia was of little interest to Porkrind. "How much ya askin'?" Mugman interrupted Porkrind's stare at Alicia. The pig was no longer staring at her but at the three cups, or rather at Mugman and Cuppy.
Lucifer saw the seductive grin on his face which turned into an annoyed frown in a few seconds. The Christmas greetings, price reductions of his trees or any kind of small talk really annoyed Porkrind. But not as much as the presence of the three cups and the reason why they were here. He knew why and had already mentally prepared himself to negotiate the price with Elder Kettle again, which was $10 like every year. But for whatever reason, the old kettle managed to persuade Porkrind to sell him the tree for less than $5 and give him back the rest of the money. Porkrind didn't want to know exactly how he did this. He was only interested in the money and that his store was free of fir trees. And as he said himself, legal liabilities are transferred to the customer as soon as the tree is paid off. So it's no wonder that people from the city preferred to buy their Christmas trees there than those who lived in the countryside or in the forest, like the two cup brothers and Elder Kettle.
"Ten bucks." Porkrind replied to the question of the cost of the trees. I should have known. Alicia rolled her eyes as Nyx slowly peered out from behind Lucifer's horn, still trembling and completely ignoring how annoyed Lucifer was. Not at her, but at Porkrind himself, who wasn't even looking at the group, but at their backs. The others knew that he refused to talk to the cups. But even Blood knew it was childish behavior on Porkrind's part.
"I'll give ya five. Firm." Mugman replied as his eyes wandered to the rest of the group who silently supported him with a thumbs up. "Price this year is ten bucks." but the silent support seemed to do little good "Price last year was ten bucks. Price next year? Ten bucks." Yes, we get it! Alicia rolled her eyes in annoyance while Nyx made herself comfortable around her neck. Mugman giggled nervously, not knowing what to say, so Cuppy decided to take charge and talk to the pig. After all, he knew him well. "Uh, listen Porkrind. How about we give you a crisp five, you give me a tree, and then we and the kid get out of your hair." Mugman pointed with pride in his eyes to his brother, who revealed himself to be the aforementioned Kid.
"I'm the kid!" replied Cuphead "What do you say, Porkrind?", "Let's close it up at five." Porkrind was about to speak against it until Alicia spoke in and changed his mind abruptly. "Five bucks? Of course I'll take Five Bucks!" Without hesitation, Porkrind grabbed the $5 and handed them a tree 'Sold to the lucky cups.' The joy on their faces as the tree fell on them was writ large. They were happy to have gotten a tree before they were all sold. Which was true in this case. All the trees that had been standing around his store just a second ago had been sold.
Much to the annoyance of a certain light bulb boy who slowly disappears into the distance with his head bowed. They had the tree and thus not only the tradition was secured but also the presents that would end up under the tree. However, they first had to bring the tree back so that it wouldn't disappear or anything else would happen to it. "I wonder what the tree will look like when we decorate it?" Nyx asked herself as she looked at Blood, who carried the tree on his back before placing it on the ground to protect his back. After all, the tree wasn't exactly small. It was already considerably bigger than Alicia herself.
"Oh, we have lots of decorations for the tree up in the attic." Cuphead answered Nyx's question, "We have tinsel, Christmas baubles and a beautiful poinsettia." he counted while Mugman asked Alicia a question she wished they'd never have to answer. "Tell me, Alicia, do you also decorate your tree at Christmas time?" Cuppy swallowed nervously as Alicia paused to answer the question the young mug had asked her. Cuppy and Lucifer knew she didn't like Christmas because of a certain thing. But the others didn't. Mugman sensed the sudden silence coming from Alicia and, startled, covered his mouth with both hands as if he had just said something bad. Well, not really, but he felt like he had. "I haven't decorated at Christmas time for years," she replied and bowed her head. "Since I was ten to be exact." With her head bowed, she turned away from the group and walked on without saying a word. The others looked after her, Blood put the tree down and was about to say wise words but left it at that.
Even wise words didn't always help. Especially not if the person you want to say the words to is not in a good mood. Alicia may not look sad or angry, but her posture and her distance from the group clearly indicated that she wanted to be left alone. The others accepted that. However, there was a small argument between the two brothers about this very thing. "Why did you ask her that, Mugsy? You knew Al didn't like Christmas!" Cuphead shoved his brother, who almost fell into the snow but managed to balance himself on one foot to stand on solid ground.
"I wasn't thinking okay?" he shoved back in response. Cuphead was less lucky and landed butt first in the snow. Like his brother, he was also annoyed. An argument broke out between the two that got worse by the second. "It's your fault that Al is sad!", 'And it's your fault that I have a cold butt now!' they both shoved at each other. Blood and Lucifer heard it and decided to end the argument without further hesitation. The wolf leaned the tree against a rock before he and the demon king stopped both cups from hurting each other.
Cuppy remained neutral but decided not to stand idly by and break up the fight. But before he could do that, Alicia spoke up "Uh guys?" but no one heard her "Guys!" she tried again but realized it was useless. The group was busy dragging both cup brothers out of an argument and didn't hear Alicia's words, which were also important. "I can't believe I have to do this..." Alicia sighed before crying out loud and the group stopped what they were doing. The attention now fell entirely on Alicia, who pointed with an outstretched index finger to the tree that was hurtling down the snow-covered slope.
Without hesitation, the three cups shouted and followed the trail the tree left in the snow as it moved further and further away from the group. "Uh, should we?" Nyx knew the answer to her question even as Blood, Alicia and Lucifer, the latter grabbed the Sprigon before following the others. The tree slithered further down the hill. Cuphead, Mugman and Cuppy were the first to approach it and tried to stop it. But a tree and a snowman stopped both brothers. But not Cuppy. He managed to jump onto the tree and steered it to stop him.
Well, it was more like a stone that the cup stumbled over. The fact that it landed on the tree was pure coincidence. Unlike Cuphead and Mugman. After several attempts they managed to land on the tree. He was racing down the hill and was out of sight of the others, who could only hear the scream of the three cups clinging to the trunk. "We should speed up! Otherwise we'll lose sight of them!" Blood didn't hesitate for long and ran on all fours instead of his hind legs as he usually did. Alicia and Lucifer turned into a wolf and a dragon before giving chase.
Just in time, because the three cups are racing with the tree straight towards Sugar Land. "Oh, I hope the Baroness doesn't hold this against us." Alicia swallowed nervously before she and the others walked through the now destroyed gingerbread gate.
A lot had changed in Zuckerland. Houses made of gingerbread, marshmallows and candy canes stood surrounded by Whippet Creampup. The castle slowly opened its eyes and watched a few children playing in the powdered snow that was scattered all over Sugar Land. From snow angels to snowball fights (or rather marshmellow ball fights) and building snowmen, the individual inhabitants of the small kingdom ruled by the Baroness Von Bon Bon enjoyed themselves. She herself was out and about in the town, helping some of the inhabitants with the decorations on the houses, lanterns and the large central Christmas tree made of candy canes and sprinkled with powdered sugar.
"There we are." Satisfied with her work, she ordered a gingerbread man to turn on the tree and all the other decorations. With a flip of the switch, the small town lit up in Christmas lights. You could see and hear the joy in the inhabitants. Children clung to their parents' hands and pointed at the many colorful lights, the older residents propped up their glasses and wiped away the steam to get a better view of what was going on. Everyone was happy and clapping. The Baroness liked the praise. After all, it was the first Christmas she hadn't spent alone in Sugar Land. But with its inhabitants.
But no matter how happy she was to celebrate Christmas, it was soon destroyed by two of her subjects. "Baroness Von Bon Bon, we have terrible news," said a large gobstopper with a red-colored outside shell. "Terrible News indeed!" added a large brown-colored, slightly cupe-shaped, flying waffle with squarish eyes and nutcracker-like teeth. The hat and the wings themselves were made of butter.
"Sir Waffington III, Lord Gob Packer what's the trouble?" the Baroness asked them both with a puzzled look on her face. She had never seen them both so out of breath, let alone panicked, as they were now. Both took a breath before pointing their eyes, or in Waffington's case wings, in the direction from which they had run/flown. At first she saw nothing, squinting her eyes until she saw the tree Cuphead, Cuppy and Mugman were sitting on in the distance. Running after them were Alicia, Blood who was now sitting on Lucifer's back with Nyx sitting on his head.
On the one hand, she was happy that her goddaughter was visiting again. On the other hand, the Baroness was worried because the tree wasn't exactly approaching the town slowly, but at full speed. It was as fast as a train, you could say. So it was no wonder that most people fled and left everything behind. Everyone knew that it would end in chaos if the tree reached the town. However, no one suspected that the tree would change direction at the last moment and completely ignore the town, heading into a field of candy cane trees instead.
Relieved, the residents exhaled and went about their business. Nobody minded that a tree with three cups on it had almost crashed into the town. However, not all the residents had been spared by the tree. As the three cups raced through the candy cane forest, they came to an open field where two children had just finished building a snowman. Although it wasn't real snow but marshmallow, the children didn't seem to mind. They took an old hat made of black licorice, a red and white striped scarf made of sugar, a sugar carrot and black chocolate balls and decorated the snowman with them.
"Maybe, if we sing that song, he'll come to life." said a lollipop child wearing a pink scarf as she wrapped the scarf around the snowman's neck. A cupcake child with a blue cream on his head with ear warmers in the color white put on his hat and answered the lollipop child's question "Ready?" He nodded and both kept their distance from the snowman, cleared their throats and began to sing.
Oh, there once was a snowman…
But before they could continue singing, the tree raced towards the snowman and flung him into the air so that he landed on the three cups. Three pairs of eyes looked out of the three snow balls that made up the snowman. Cuphead, who was stuck in the top ball, freed his head while the rest of his body was still stuck in the snowman. "Sorry!" he called after the two children, who looked confused rather than sad. "Maybe we didn't sing it right." mentioned the lollipop child while the cupcake child shrugged with his shoulders.
The others followed the trail left by the tree as it raced towards the other gate guarded by two gingerbread men with their armor and spears. Both looked bored at first and yawned "Oh man, this job is boring!", "Tell me about it. Nothing happens here all day." They both nodded and were about to yawn again until they heard the three cups screaming from afar as they raced towards them with the tree. "What the...!" Before either of them could finish their sentence, the tree was already hurtling through the gate, leaving a hole just as big as the one at the other entrance.
Their shocked faces continued to stare at the gate and not at the three other people who were also striding through the gate and merely said "We're very sorry!". Both gingerbread men shook their heads before taking a closer look at the damage. The top half of the gate, from which a royal label dangled, threatened to fall down with every second it swung back and forth. "Do you think the baroness won't be very pleased that her gate is destroyed?" and the label fell "Are you crazy! She'll kill us when she sees what's become of the gate!" both gingerbread men nibbled anxiously, shaking their fingernails.
Out of Sugarland, all three cups breathed in and out deeply. The hunt for the tree was exhausting enough. But steering the tree through the city was another. Of course, this was all unintentional on the part of the three of them. They didn't want to cause chaos and terror. "Wow!" Cuppy commented as he wiped away a tear of sweat 'Luckily we didn't destroy anything,' Cuphead added with relief. "Otherwise we'd have an angry baroness and her subjects after us." The idea was enough for the three of them. "Yeah. And we barely escaped with our lives.".
You could say that if the three of them weren't entering a carpentry workshop. "Get it?" Mugman nudged his brother and Cuppy, who couldn't hear what he was saying. The only thing they heard was the whirring of saws. "What?" both Cupheads asked, lifting their right ear warmer at the same time to hear Mugman better. "I said-" the latter wanted to say until 'WHAT?!' both Cupheads yelled at him because they still didn't understand what he was saying. Of course this went on for a while until Cuphead said the following "I can't hear you on account of all these buzz saws!" Only now did it click in their heads. They now knew where they were. But the others didn't.
So they didn't know what kind of danger the three cups were in when the machine at the end of the conveyor belt decided to turn the tree and the three cups into kindling. If Alicia were here she would probably say that the whole thing reminded her of that one Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze level and of course she would try to make sure that nothing happened to them all. But she wasn't here. Just like Blood, Lucifer and Nyx. The latter looked out of the window next to the machine into the carpentry shop and saw everything. "Oh no!" Without hesitation, she flew to the others and reported where the three missing cups and the tree were before they continued their search.
"Down there! There's the carpentry!" Alicia's eyes widened as her ears heard the panicked cries of the three cups fighting for their lives while the machine just laughed mischievously. "Don't tell me we're too late." The sound of saws cutting through wood mingled with the screeching of the three cups. It sounded like something out of a horror movie. But luckily Alicia was in a cartoon world. So no damage should have been done to the three cups. She hoped so, because the Christmas tree with the three cups on it flew out of a metal shaft.
The cups were fine and that relieved the young adult, the demon king, the wolf and the Sprigon. All four exhaled with relief before they were brought back to reality by the death screams of the three cups. Although the three cups had escaped the machine in one piece, they were still in mortal danger. Gravity kicked in again and the tree threatened to land on the hard ground with them were it not for two large reptilian claws that grabbed at the now not-so-nice looking tree.
The three cups knew who the two claws belonged to. They were Alicia's claws. "Are you three all right down there?" she called, lowering her head to look at her foot claws. Cuphead nodded to her while Cuppy gave a thumbs up. Only Mugman seemed worried about the tree "Our tree! It's all mangled!". He was the only one to notice that the tree they had chosen now looked like it had been through the shredder. Which wasn't exactly wrong. "This can't possibly get any worse!" Ashamed that they now had a tree that looked a mess from top to bottom, the younger of the three cups buried his face in his gloves. "Alicia will definitely hate Christmas and us!" his tears made their way down to his cheek.
Alicia's eyes widened "Hate you? Why should I hate you just because the tree looks like that?" she asked the sniffling Mugman. "I'm not going to hate you because of the messed up Christmas tree." Mugman wiped away one last tear before sniffling, "Really?" her nod answered his question. "There's another reason why I don't like Christmas." But she didn't want to reveal it. Not because she wanted to reassure the three cups, but because it was personal. She didn't even want to tell Cuppy or Lucifer the reason. Even though they had both known her for years.
"Thanks Ali.", "Yes, really Al. You're the best!" As if on command, the tree straightened itself and added new branches and needles to the bare spots so that it looked like it did before it ended up in the carpentry shop.
However, Elder Kettle didn't seem to like the little excursion through the snowy landscape. "What in Sam Hill is taking those boys and the others so-" He walked out of the door and seemed worried about the others until a huge shadow overshadowed him. He noticed it as well as what belonged to the shadow. It was a large figure that came flying towards the old cauldron with a loud flapping of wings. Elder Kettle screamed in fear until he realized that this creature that landed before his eyes was not just any creature but none other than Alicia who was carrying the others on her back. She still held the tree tightly in one of her foot claws.
"Boys?, Blood?, Luzifer?, Alicia?" he asked to be on the safe side. "Yes, it's us Elder Kettle!" Mugman confirmed as he slithered down the tail followed by his brother, Cuppy and the others. Alicia opened her foot claw so that Lucifer could take the tree and bring it into the cottage before Alicia changed back into her human form. The tree sparkled in the glow of the fireplace despite the little adventure it had to endure. It looked wonderful but not quite yet. The decorations were missing. Otherwise it wouldn't be a Christmas tree. So everyone grabbed a box containing various decorations and decorated the tree.
Fairy lights, Christmas baubles and tinsel were hung on the tree. It looked beautiful and glittered magnificently. But the others didn't want to switch it on yet. One thing was missing: the star at the top of the tree. The group put it to the side for a reason. Every year, one person was chosen to hang the star on the tree and make it shine. Elder Kettle and both brothers kept this tradition since they were little. Each year it was a different one. Last year it was Elder Kettle and this year it was supposed to be Cuphead. However, he gave the star to Alicia.
She looked at the star and then at Cuphead. "What am I supposed to do with this?" she asked, confused. Of course she wasn't stupid. She knew that the star belonged at the top of the Christmas tree. But why should she, of all people, put it on? Don't tell me the three of them are trying to get me into the Christmas spirit. "Al, we had a long discussion and decided that because you've helped us out so often, it's only fair that you hang the star at the top this year and switch on the Christmas tree lights." A simple task. For someone normal, but not for Alicia, who thought of the past when she saw the Christmas tree. A past she would like to forget.
Her hands trembled and held on to the star as if she were holding on for dear life. But she calmed down and did what was asked, put the star on top and went to the others. "Now then, I think you Alicia should do the honor." Elder Kettle held two power cables in his hand, each with a plug and adapter at the end of the other. It wasn't rocket science to figure out that both needed to be connected for the fairy lights to turn on. The small bulbs flickered briefly before lighting up brightly and making the tree look even more beautiful. The ball was reflected in the light of the fairy lights, adding even more beauty to the tree.
Everyone gasped at the sight of the tree until Alicia dropped the cable. She didn't do this because she really wanted to get rid of the cable, but because the power line had just started to spark and was moving towards the Christmas tree like a string of dynamite. When it reached the tree, it burst into flames, leaving a bare black and slightly burnt tree with the rest of the decorations hanging from it.
"Oops!" Alicia felt guilty about what happened to the tree, even if it wasn't her fault. She hated to make the three cups cry. "We ruined Christmas!" Cuphead sobbed as he clung to Elder Kettle and continued to wail "We ruined the tradition!" wailed Mugman "We ruined Alicia's Christmas!" sniffled Cuppy. He clung to Alicia's leg. "We ruined everything!" the three howled simultaneously before Elder Kettle and Alicia calmed them down. "Now, now. The tradition isn't just about the tree." 'It's not?' asked Mugman, confused and still with tears in his eyes. 'No. It's about being together, doing things as a family.' added Alicia as she gently stroked Cuppy's head. "As long as you boys, Blood, Lucifer, Nyx and Alicia are here, whatever tree we've got is just perfect.". With these words, the previously burnt Christmas tree lit up again and was back to its old self.
Nobody really wanted to know exactly how the tree was restored to its former glory. Whether it was magic, a Christmas miracle or demonic powers, none of those present were interested.
O Christmas Tree, Christmas Tree
We shout it out with glee
Quite the opposite. The group began to sing Christmas carols merrily into the night. Even Alicia sang and delighted the group with her angelic singing voice.
It just quite isn't Christmas
Without a big ol' Christmas tree!
The snow continued to fall to the ground and the lights on the tree and the rest of the house went out. It was time for bed and everyone in the cottage quickly and quietly went to bed, unable to wait for tomorrow. It wasn't Christmas yet, but there were still presents to be bought. And Elder Kettle wanted to leave early so they wouldn't have to wait so long to get to a store, let alone into town.
But unnoticed by the planned Christmas shopping, a pair of binoculars peeked out from one of the many snow-covered bushes. They were looking in the direction of the cottage, more precisely at the window that belonged to the guest room. "Do you see her?" asked a scratchy, trembling voice hidden in the bushes, "No, I don't see anything! The lights are off in the house and all I can see is black!" answered a growling voice. "Should we go closer? I mean are you sure the boss thought she was here?" the first voice asked again before she was hit hard on the head and stars spun over his head. "No, we're not going to do that! We'll keep watching her and then let the boss know when she's alone." Without a word, the two figures disappeared into the bushes and the depths of the forest.
Song: Big Ol' Christmas Tree by Ego Plum