The Advent Calendar of Christmas Drabbles

[DrTrollinski]

December 1st

​

Spoiler

December 24th


'I'm... Dreaming... Of a white... Christmas... Just like those ones I used to know...'





The radio played the all-so-famous Christmas carol in the bar, 5pm. It was early, and only one person sat there today at the bar, one old man wearing his simple Christmas sweater, drinking a coffee with a glass of cognac. It went very well with it, and this year, here he was, once again, sat alone. He was wondering what he could do this year that would be different to all the other ones. He wanted something more exciting. He didn't know that, though, seeing as time was really beginning to get on now, and his life was running shorter every year. He didn't walk as fast, didn't speak as loudly, didn't live as lively. Things were slow.


"Hey, Joe. Turn this one up, will ya'?" The elderly man asked, simply.


"Sure." He said, turning around and walking to the radio. He cranked it up a little bit more, and the elderly man gave a wrinkled smile as he sipped on his cognac and then lifted the coffee to his lips and sipped on that, too. No sugar, no milk - It went nice with the alcohol, all bitter, but a smooth taste, strangely. He couldn't ask for much more on Christmas Eve. Joe's only son was all grown up now and had a family of his own to spend Christmas Eve with, but he'd be seeing him tomorrow, of course. He'd be here until midnight, probably, maybe later. He'd sit here with the old fella - Walt. Or Walter. Whichever you prefer.


When the door swung open, Walter was thrown off of the song and looked over to it - He saw a young man walk in, or a late teen, one of the two. He was no older than 17 or 18. What was he doing here on Christmas Eve? Either way, he walked to the bar, his head hung towards the ground. He ordered a coffee, quite simply, and once he'd been given that, disappeared to the back of the bar and sat down in the corner booth, staring at the table.


'I'm... Dreaming... Of a white... Christmas...


With every Christmas Card I write...


May your days be merry and bright


And may all of your Christmases be white...'





Walter picked up his cognac and his whiskey and wandered on over, placing himself down in front of him. The boy gave him a look of almost disgust. He couldn't really blame him.


"How old are you, kid?"


He looked down at the table, "Why does it matter?" He grumbled.


"Because it's Christmas Eve and you look too young to be sitting in a bar on your own."


"Seventeen." He snapped, clearly getting tired of Walter's presence already. "Just leave me alone? Please?"


"Why would I want to do that?" He asked, leaning back in his seat and sipping his cognac, then his coffee right after.


"I..." He paused. "Dude. Please."


"You should be at home with your family."


"Why?"


"Because your someone's son, someone's world. Someone at home thinks a lot of you."


"That's bullshit. I don't care. I'd rather be here on my own."


"Why would anyone want that?"


"Because none of them understand me. They don't get why I don't like being there, why I don't like being festive or anything like that. They'll never get that, so I'm staying away and leaving it to the rest of them. They'd be better off without me there to shit on the mood." He explained, abruptly, then looked away.


"Any brothers or sisters?"


"Three brothers."


"Oh, a big family." He nodded. "Reminds me of myself, you know. I had two daughters, two sons. Son, daughter, daughter, son." He said. "In that order, they were born, I mean. They're all grown up now... My eldest son... He lives in Italy with his wife and three children. My daughter, the eldest, she... Lives in Paris now, I think. I don't hear from her much. She never cared for marriage, or relationships. Married to her job out there." He explained. "Youngest daughter... Two kids, married, lives in Russia, would you believe it." He shrugged. "Are you and your brothers close?"


"Sorta. We used to be closer." He said. "My eldest brother... He's 23 this year. He's not coming home for Christmas."


"Busy with work?"


"No... He's dead." He said, nearly whispering. Walter looked down at his cognac and took a bigger swig of it, followed by a gulp of the coffee.


"What about your other brothers?"


"12 and 5."


"Why aren't you at home with them?"


"Because the older one is still hurting about the death of our eldest brother. The younger one... He gets mixed up in all of it. He doesn't speak to me much."


"That's still no reason."


"Just what the fuck do you want?" He snapped at him, looking up. "Can't I sit here and drink my coffee in peace? Is it any of your business, anyway? Why do you even give a shit?!" He yelled at him, going red in the face but then looking away as his eyes filled with tears.


"Because from the moment you walked in I knew that if you start this when you're young, it'll continue your whole life, and it'll get to the point where you have two or three children of your own hoping that you'll leave the bar and come home for Christmas Eve so you can spend time with them. Your wife will either be praying you don't come back late, nor drunk, or she'll be packing up hers and the kids' stuff and getting ready to take them to her mother's house, all while you drink away your sorrows - You go home, find you're all alone, and have to make the walk of shame to another house and apologize to your family for not being there." He explained. "Is that really what you want?"


He was silent for a minute, but his voice was weak when he spoke. ".. It's... It's just a coffee."


"That's because you're not 21. In a few years time you might be lying in the gutter outside in the freezing cold, and that could risk your brothers losing you, too." He said.


He said nothing.


"Losing someone is not a reason to lose everything else, kid. You either learn that while you have the chance, or you learn it the hard way when it's too late. You see... I see that you're still hurting about your brother. I see it in your eyes. Did you two spend a lot of time together?"


He nodded.


"Then it's time you took his role, don't you think?"


"I can't." He choked. "I've fucked everything, mister. My brother will never make a strong bond with me. Ever. I ruined that chance."


"You only ruin it when you give up." He whispered. "It's Christmas..." He sighed. "You shouldn't be here... You should be at home doing all that stuff that the kids will love. Baking Christmas cookies, hot cocoa before bed, getting the little one all excited for the visit from Santa. Not sitting here on your own." He said. The boy started crying almost immediately, straight into his hands. Emotion was spilling now.


"Then why are you here?" He blurted out.


"The only person I had left was my wife, son. She passed away two years ago." He said. "No one's flying over from Europe to see this old man, I tell you. I got a visit from the daughter in Russia the year my wife died, but, I haven't had one since." He explained. "I've done my time. You need to get out there and do yours - Make the most of it, because life's the thing that happens while you're busy planning it, and your brothers... They ain't gonna' be kids forever, and you see, that's the difference. I'll be brutally honest and tell you this - Your brother is never coming back." He said, leaving the boy in even more tears. "As much as we wish we could bring people back, when we put flowers down on their grave every week, month, year, whenever... We realize that we can choose to either be alone in this world, or be with those we have left." He looked at the table and sighed.


"Make the most of it, kid." He mumbled.


The boy looked up at him, simply, still crying heavily. "What's your name?"


"By the time you're home, my name won't matter, kid. Get outta' here. And Merry Christmas."


He looked at him blankly for a moment, but soon enough, he gave Walter a few quick nods and jumped to his feet, slowly wandering out of the bar with tears running down his cheeks. As soon as he was outside... Well, he started to run.


Walter went back to drinking. For the first time since his wife had passed away...


He felt at peace.

​

​

 

[Dusky]

It's two thirty AM, but if I use that as an excuse I'll only keep getting behind, so here, have a half-finished poem. I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open so frankly I'm not 100% sure what it says? Good niiiggghhhhttt

December 1st

Christmas carols on the radio.


And then he smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum… Me and my drum.


I have every gift fit for you -


I’m rich in gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Metaphorically speaking, of course.

But the flitting drumbeat of my heart


is something you can only take my word for,


and it’s the most important thing, so


our puzzle piece fingers clench around whatever

keeps them from each other.

But it seems increasingly plausible that


my tempo will only ever match yours.

 

[AngstyAlb]

The Lion and the Lamb

Prompt: Come on, it's lovely weather; for a sleigh ride together with you.

My Character: Josiah Murdoc Castagnier

Borrowed Character: Fahy Maccailin

​

Spoiler

“I can’t believe you talked me into this,” a tall and brooding young man grumbled as he stood near a cheery old man feeding his pair of draft horses carrots.


“It’ll be fun Jo, look see how much the horses love the attention and exercise!” The much smaller boy was gleaming with excitement as he looked at the horses.


Relinquishing his grip on Josiah’s arm, Fahy stepped carefully in the deep snow to the old man inquiring if he could pet the horses. Josiah watched with his lips twisted in a contemplative expression. He wasn’t a fan of the cold weather, and being around smelly horses in the cold wasn’t exactly his idea of getting into the holiday spirit. Not to mention his holiday spirit had long since died in a ditch somewhere.


Josiah rubbed his hands together as the driver stepped over to the sleigh and picked up a step stored under the driver’s seat. Fahy struggled to push his legs through the snow and step up on the platform to then finish the climb into the sleigh to sit on the inside. With little fuss Josiah pushed his legs through the snow and hopped on platform and then into the sleigh.


As the driver made his own climb into the driver’s seat where his faithful husky waited for him, Fahy snuggled up into Josiah’s sigh which Josiah had been trained to respond with by putting his arm around his tiny boyfriend’s shoulders. It was rare he did this in public, feeling lame for showing affection where people could see. It was just them and an old man who wasn’t looking at them, so he supposed he didn’t mind.


With their body heat combined the bitter cold wasn’t so bad, but given Josiah rarely let anyone have an easy time of it he still kept the same sour expression that was the default setting of his face.


The husky in the driver’s seat turned his head back to the pair and instantly locked eyes with Fahy who adored pets. Suddenly the warmth at Jo’s side was gone and he turned his head to the side to hide his displeasure and slight jealousy that the dog was getting his attention. This gave him a moment to appreciate the scenery.


The path the sleigh ride took was through the outskirts of a forest that had an established path for them to ride along. The fir trees were coated with snow, and other than the crunching sound of hooves and wheels on snow there few sounds to be heard. It was serene, and this made Josiah let out a sigh in response.


“Finally relaxing?” Fahy inquired as he pulled away from the dog to return against Josiah’s side.


“It’s a new experience that I’m not opposed to. Still not loving the cold, at least not while doing some kind of training. Then there’s no time to be cold,” he teased the thought of later today going for a run using the snow as an extra obstacle. Fahy had already insisted before that this would be a day for them to spend together before going to his home for Christmas, and with Josiah training was a several hours long affair.


“Mom’s excited to meet you, she’s glad I’m bringing someone since…since…” Fahy didn’t realize what he was beginning to say until it happened and his voice started cracking. He started to take several deep breaths to calm him, and Josiah used the hand not around Fahy’s shoulders to grab one of the boy’s hands.


“Quinn will come back to her sense, girl’s are fickle. Val-shithead has got her wrapped around his evil little finger but eventually she’ll see what kind of creep he is,” Josiah did his best to reassure him.


To normal ears it would sound like Fahy was dealing with his best friend ditching him for a boy, but the circumstances were much more dire. She went rogue, made a complete 180 and left with him. Josiah learned that in these moments Fahy didn’t want logic and truth, he wanted hope.


“You’re right, I’m just getting worked up for nothing.” He wiped his eyes of frozen tears.


“That’s what I’m here for, to bring you back to where you should be,” Josiah offered a slight grin as he pulled his boyfriend closer against him and rested his chin on top of the other’s head.


Just like you do for me. Words that would go unsaid for now, but Fahy could feel that the older boy appreciated him just as much as Fahy appreciated his grouchy protector.


There was a drawn out period of silence, Fahy chewed on his bottom lip as he pondered whether to bring something up or not.


“If I ask you something, will you promise not to get mad at me?” Fahy craned his head upward to look at the stern face above him.


“Well, if you have to ask me that you probably shouldn’t ask it at all.” Usually when Fahy asked that before something it was related to his family, because otherwise Josiah didn’t have it in him to be angry Fahy. He usually just got angry for him at someone else’s expense.


“I know your family has done a lot of bad things by you, but I think there’s one person you should give a chance,” Fahy spoke partially muffled as Josiah rolled his eyes for what he knew was coming.


“I really want to invite Aster too.” Fahy braced for the outlash. He wasn’t sure if Josiah would leap from sleigh and run back or possibly rip a part of the side off.


Instead, however, he remained somber and looking forward.


“Normally I would be strongly opposed, but I think the forces of the universe are doing that for me. He left, Fahy, he ran away from home and no one can find him. The little shit was living the life of Riley and gave it up like the chicken shit he is. He’s too pathetic to be considered my relative.” Josiah started breathing heavy and with the cold one would almost mistake him for blowing off literal steam.


“Oh, that’s a shame then,” Fahy replied in a partially disappointed voice. Luckily Josiah was dense and didn’t pick up on the insincerity in his voice.


It was best he didn’t let on, but Fahy had already been in contact with Aster through letter. He found a letter Aster had sent Josiah in the trash without even being opened and had been corresponding with him since. Josiah would just have to find out then when Aster showed up.


“Merry Christmas, Jo,” Fahy whispered to himself as he burrowed in closer.

 

[UnquietDreams]

November 30th: A Card for Someone Not Seen in a Long Time


Character: Brody Warfield

Spoiler

Was there any better way to spend the holidays than this? The thought passed briefly through Brody’s mind as he perched on a cushioned bar stool, sipping coffee liberally laced with Irish whiskey in the comfort of his own kitchen. Outside, the snow fell slowly and prettily to the ground, coating New York City in a powdery layer of white. His lover slept tangled in the sheets, while the man he loved was sprawled out in the guest room. Pleased with the very thought of that, Brody set down his coffee, turned towards the pile of mail waiting for his attention.


Dutifully, he opened up any official-looking envelopes first. The bills, he quickly decided, could wait until he had pants on. As could his alma mater’s donation request. Had it only been a year and a half, he mused, since he’d last walked the halls of Mystic Fountain? Suddenly nostalgic, he picked up the first of several Christmas cards, grinned at the familiar dramatic flair of his mother’s handwriting. The card featured a greased up male model with a strategically placed Santa hat, and immediately earned itself a place on his fridge.


Amused and at peace with the world, Brody made his way through the stack of letters. Some were from family, others from old classmates. Still more were from old lovers and fans. They ranged from the ridiculous to the religious, and particularly ear-piercing singing one rated a first class flight to the trash bin. Snorting out a laugh, he shook his head, shook back the shaggy mane of chocolate brown hair he’d decided to rock this morning. Before the day was through, he could very well be sporting his signature Mohawk, and would’ve probably opted to get rid of the soul patch. He really wasn’t sure if he was feeling the soul patch. It made him feel far too much like his older brother.


Even as he scratched at the facial hair in question, he picked up the last card in the pile, turned the blue envelope over to read the name of the sender. For a moment, surprise widened eyes the color of Ireland’s rolling hills. Automatically, he looked over his shoulder, ensured that he truly was alone in the room. Satisfied, he turned back to the card, tapped the edge of the envelope on his palm.


“Well, well…” Intrigued, he ran a finger over her clear, neat handwriting. A year and a half since he’d graduated, he mused, and ten months since he’d heard a word from Danni Rinaldi. No, he corrected himself, it was Belmont now. Danni Rinaldi-Belmont. A friend that he hadn’t seen since the political farce that some had dared to call her wedding day.


Because his love for her was simple and absolute, Brody held the card a bit more reverently before he carefully broke the envelope’s seal, slipped out the thick cardstock. The cover was simple enough, a blend of blue and silver, with the hint of stars through the light fall of snow. His girl had never cared for Santa Claus. This, he thought, suited her more. Sipping his coffee once more, he opened the card, smiled a bit at the straight lines of careful text. Always so serious. Shaking his head, he leaned his elbows on the counter, and read the words of an old friend.


Brody,


I trust this letter finds you quite well, as I’ve rarely known you to be anything but. Henri tells me that it is customary to send letters to those you care for during the holidays. It was only proper, then, that I send one to you, for my affection for you runs deep. But you know that.


I’m sorry that we haven’t spoken since February. I think you know that it’s difficult for me to face those who I was close to, after everything that had happened. I follow your success in the newspapers and magazines, and keep a scrapbook of your exploits. I know I never told you, but I flew in to see one of your shows during the fall. You were fantastic. Brilliant. I was so very, very proud of you.


Perhaps it’s cruel of me to ask this of you, but could you tell me how Ialo is doing? Beyond what the papers say and what can be found online, I want to know that he’s well. That he’s happy. It’s not my place, perhaps, to ask such things about him, but some habits are harder than others to break. We parted on such hard, bitter terms, but I cannot forget that he was a friend to me. Please, do not tell him that I asked about him. I do have some pride.


There is one other reason that I haven’t sought you out in so long. Again, my pride perhaps got in the way. But more, I can barely face myself, much less a friend. I’m a mother now, Brody. I have a daughter. I have done all that is within my power to keep this news from spreading beyond the family. Three months is the time I’ve been given before the media will be told that a Rinaldi heir has produced a child. By January’s end, my life will be in the public eye once more.


Brody. Please. Come see me. Come and tell me lies. Come and tell me that I will be a good mother to this child. Tell me I will be a good wife to a man who has shown me kindness and patience. But if you cannot lie, your presence is enough. Just come. Please. I could very much use a friend.


Danni


Very slowly, very carefully, Brody lowered the card to the counter, read it three more times as it lay there. Then, just as carefully, he slid it back into the envelope, slipped it into a drawer beneath the counter. Rising, he strode out of the kitchen in neon pink boxer shorts, made his way directly to the guest room. Without so much as a knock, he flung open the door, loud enough to wake the man who was stretched across the mattress.


While he normally would’ve stopped to appreciate the white hair, the pale skin, the sleepy eyes, now Brody only tossed the blankets aside, gestured to the clothes piled up on the chair beside the bed.


“Get up. Get dressed. We’re going to Paris.”

 

[UnquietDreams]

December 1st: Carols on the Radio


Character: Evangeline Dawson and Benjamin Taylor

Spoiler

“Ben.”


“No.”


“Benjamin.”


“Absolutely not.”


“Benjamin Taylor, we are driving through rural Pennsylvania. Exactly one radio station comes in as anything but static.”


“I really don’t think you’re appreciating the beauty of silence.”


“If you don’t do it, I will. Turn the radio back on, Ben. Bring on the Christmas carols.”


“It’s only the first week of December.”


“Last time your excuse was that it was still November. Do it, Benjamin. Or I may just drive us into the nearest corn field.”


With a long-suffering sigh, Ben shifted slightly in the passenger seat, winced in anticipation as he turned the radio on once more. As he’d feared, the bright, hopping beat of Jingle Bell Rock beat back the static to come in loud and clear.


Right on cue, Eva joined in, bopping along in the driver’s seat, navigating through a blizzard with what Ben considered to be an unwarranted amount of confidence. The snow fell in wet, messy heaps, battling with the windshield wipers that moved at max speed. Eva drove as though it were a clear, sunny day, taking a winding turn with all the gusto of a professional racer. Ben wondered why the hell he hadn’t just wrestled the keys from her instead of agreeing to the coin toss. He was certain that, somehow, some way, she had cheated. Somehow


It wasn’t that he hated Christmas, Ben assured himself as the radio announcer happily reminded all the listeners that they were in the middle of a five-hour Santa Claus holiday special. As the song switched over to Frosty the Snowman, he thought fleetingly of Georgia’s mild climate and abundant radio stations.


“How long until we reach your parents’ house?” At the question, Eva grinned, gestured to the GPS attached to the windshield. Following her gaze, Ben blinked, groaned, and then reached for the pillow Eva had thrown in the backseat. All the better to muffle his hearing, he mused. For the next eight fun-filled hours. God help him.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Spoiler

December 20th





"I don't want to." The young girl protested. Seven years old, and complaining about a sleigh ride.


"Come on, sis... It'll be fun!" He said in response. Fifteen years old, brave, good at faking a smile, and very protective. He reached down and gently adjusted her headscarf, sighing a little but smiling through every ounce of sadness he felt whenever he had to do that. When did life become like this? Where his sister ended up on the verge of death at one point, at such a young age. He was so worried. Sure, he had a brother, but the brother... He was only 2 years old. Every sibling has a connection that differs between each one of them. Sure, when his brother was older, he figured that it'd be okay and they'd be spending more time together, but right now... His little sister was the one he was focused on more than anything. "Why don't you want to go on it?"


".. Because I'm scared, James..." She looked at the floor for a moment and sighed, then walked to him and put her arms around his body, and her head against his stomach. "I'm scared and I don't want to go." She whimpered. No... No, he didn't bring her along to this just for her to cry. Just for her to be scared. He'd paid the money but that was the least he cared about. He didn't want her to miss out. He ducked down and pulled her into a hug.


"Hey... Come on, what do we usually do whenever we get scared?"


"I don't do anything... You do." She sniffled.


"Oh, come on now..." He said, rubbing her back and holding her close. "You know that's a lie. You do a lot, too. You're a fighter, you are, you're much braver than me." He said. "You won a big fight recently, didn't you?" He asked. "Remember what that one was?" He asked.


"Yeah... I beat cancer." She said, simply. Ah, that word still sent a pang through James' body, every single time. Especially when he heard it come off of her lips.


"You did... And this... This is a big reward for you being so brave and strong. If you can beat something as scary as that, I'm sure this'll be like nothing to you." He said, letting out a little chuckle. "Come on... I'm gonna' be right there with you, remember?" He explained. "How about we walk up there slowly?" He asked.


She simply nodded, so he rose up and took her hand, leading her down the pathway to where the sleigh and the reindeer were. At first, his little sister was nervous, but as they walked through the winter wonderland, seeing all the winter birds fly above their heads and watching chunks of snow fall from the branches of the trees, James noticed how she seemed to relax a little bit. It was definitely a nice thing to see, a thing he wanted to see more often. This year was going to be a wonderful Christmas, he was sure of it.


And just like he thought, she was over the moon when she saw the reindeer, all ready to pull the sleigh along. Of course, manning the sleigh was 'Santa' himself. That was when he watched her face light up.


"James, look!" She squealed, and he had to hold back the tears of joy as he watched her pull away and run right up to the sleigh, first smiling at the man sitting in it, but then gently petting the side of one of the reindeer. James didn't need to help her up into the sleigh, because by the time he got there, she was already shouting for him to hurry up.


In he got, and his arm went right around her. It was the perfect day for a sleigh ride, the perfect weather, too. It was perfect for a sleigh ride with his favorite person in the entire world - He was sure that as he listened to gasp in amazement at some of the things they passed that the only way was up from here.


--






December 5th





'Dear, Emma.


Today the kids helped me (or more like I helped the kids) put up the decorations in our house. It's amazing, you know, how big they've got, how strong they all are. Another Christmas is going by and all I'm trying to do is make sure that theirs is as great as it usually is. This time, family will be visiting us, instead of the other way around, although I do have to help pay for some of the flights. It doesn't bother me too much, though, because I have the money to spare, especially for my family. I watched our eldest son as he ran around with his little brothers, making sure that they got a piece of tinsel wrapped around every framed photo on every wall in the house, and I watched the little ones hang the little foil-wrapped chocolates from the tree while eating half of them themselves.


This year, I feel, will be better than ever. With the pain of the past being a distant memory, I think that we can finally live on in a normal life once more. I know that this may be hard to read, and it may even sadden you, but please remember that our children are happy, clothed, fed, and clean. They all sleep well at night (well, the eldest has the occasional nightmare now and then, but that's been a thing that occurs ever since it happened), and every night I still do the same thing I've done for longer than I can remember - I've gone in and checked on all of them, every single night, made sure they weren't too hot nor too cold, making sure they were tucked in, and making sure that their nightlights are all still working.


Can you believe that the eldest is nine years old now? Yeah, it's crazy, I know.


He found a picture of you, you know. It was from a long time ago, back when he was only three or four. He came to me with tears of what looked like both happiness and sadness in his eyes and asked if we could hang this one up in the family room this year. It was a brave move by him, one that I haven't seen ever since everything happened. When I asked him if he was okay, he just nodded, and of course, made sure he was the one that hung the picture up and put some silver tinsel around the frame.


The picture was from Christmas that year. He was in a little Santa hat, sat there on the couch with you with his favorite present from that year. He stood there and looked at it for a while, but, in the end I saw him smile. He hugged his two younger twin brothers close and just stood there, and so did they - Even though they don't know much, I think that they get it in their own little way. They understand it to a certain extent, as much as four-year-old kids can, you know?


Despite the fact that it's been a long and hard four years, and despite the fact I've moved on, I still feel a heartache when I write this letter to you. I still feel that little piece of emptiness to know that my one and only is now someone who I only have memories of. I promise you, I understand that you'd want me to move on and be happy. I think I'm going to, you know, I think this is what I need to get on with my life, to make the kids' lives even better. I'm going to ask Ellie to marry me.


I made myself cry writing that - Now that the kids are asleep they luckily won't walk in on their strong ol' dad crying over a piece of paper. I'm sad that our wedding never happened, but, I feel like I've started to make lemonade out of the millions of lemons that life gave me after you went away. I and Ellie have been going well together for two years now, and my god, she's been wonderful. I promise you she's been good to the kids, you know that I wouldn't have her in our lives if she wasn't. The eldest doesn't call her mom very often - I think that's only because she hasn't said that he can. I'm going to speak to her once I'm done writing this - That'll be his early Christmas present. I feel like he needs to hear that from her. The youngest ones love her to pieces, they all do, and she does nothing but wonderful things for them. No matter how sick she is herself, she'll care for all of us - She'll sit in their rooms and soothe every stomach ache, every fever, and even every bout of tears (whenever they occur (not often)). I'm glad I found a woman so wonderful, wonderful like you were. Looking at her doing all that with the kids comforts me, because I know that you'd be happy with that - I know you're watching us, keeping an eye on us all.


I can proudly admit that I'm ready to move on now, to get married, to settle down. We're only young - I'm not even thirty yet, isn't that something? Me and Ellie... I think we're going to try for a baby, too. I... I'm nervous, yes, but... I think it'll be worth it in the end, don't you?


I know that you live on through our children. I'll write to you again sometime, I assure you. Right now, it's time to go and give those kids (and my hopefully wife-to-be) that Christmas they all deserve.


I'm sure one day we'll meet again, and we'll tell each other all the stories of our lives apart.


Merry Christmas, Emma.


Lots of love,


Michael.'

 

[Elle Joyner]

December 1st

Carols On the Radio

​

[media]





[/media]
For several seconds Molly stared at the card where it landed on the floor, unable to move, unable to think. Why would he do this? Why would he put her through all this? All she had wanted for almost six years was an answer and he had never delivered. Her eyes moved from the card to the ring, circling her finger, the flickering flames glinting off the princess cut diamond. It had been three weeks since Chris had popped the question. Since she’d said yes.


She jumped at the sudden sound of horns and turning, realized she’d left the radio on when she’d finished her bath. The rich, smooth alto of Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘Sleigh Ride’ filled the house and leaning back in her chair, Molly began to cry.

3

​

no slide no slide

 

[welian]

You guys are all doing fantastic! Sorry for the radio silence, I've dealing with stuff IRL (otherwise I would TOTALLY be writing drabbles along with you all too), but I'm quite proud of everyone, no matter how many times ya'll have (or haven't) posted. : )

 

[SepiaInk]

December 5th

Prompt: Krampus

​

Chains

​

It was dark. It was quiet.


Not quiet enough.


She could still hear herself breathing, heart hammering against her chest. It was too loud, it would hear her, she was sure.

Then she heard it. One tap. Two taps.


Then she saw it. One hoof. Two hooves.



​

The air got stuck in her throat. She clamped a hand over her mouth to stop herself from gasping and curled in on herself to look smaller, even though it couldn’t see her under the bed. The two hooves were so close, but she didn’t dare move an inch lest it hear her. Her eyes were wide as she watched those hairy legs move closer to the foot of her bed.


Chains. It dragged them across the floor. Whenever it stopped, they would shake and rattle like a snake, and bells would ring, though she couldn’t see them. They rung like the bells in mom’s church. As if it were calling out to her. They made so much noise that she was able to scoot back further beneath her bed without giving herself away, back hitting the wall at the other side.


But then it stopped. For a full minute it did nothing and made no sound. And she was afraid that it had heard her after all, when the hooves turned and lumbered over to the foot of her bed. It was all she could do not to scream. She tried to scoot further back but the wall wouldn’t let her.


It got closer. And closer. Then it stopped a final time. She could see every strand of black hair. The cracks in its hooves. The shine of its chains.


Then a hand, as big as her head, with nails as long and as black as her hair, peeked under her bed frame. It clutched a birch rod, and she could see every sharp twig as it scrapped against the floor towards her.


She broke down in sobs right there and there. Words tried to come out too fast and she shocked on her own spit. Shutting her eyes, she trembled and cried until something finally came out of her mouth.


“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”


“Agata?”


The crying stopped.


She blinked her eyes open, trying to see through the tears.


“S-sis? …” she rasped back, lips quivering. Wiping the tears with her sleeve, everything turned clear. The hand reaching out to her was smaller, nails short and clean. There was no birch rod to hit her, no chains to tie her up or bag to stuff her in. There was only the worried eyes of her sister, peering at her from the gap under her bed.


As Agata stared at the busted lip, the bruised cheek and swollen eye of her sister, tears began to well up once more. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” she cried out, shaking.


The hand reaching towards her twitched and clenched for a second, before stretching out further across the floor. “Hey, it’s okay.” A voice soft as a pillow, a busted lip turned up in a smile that melted the chains around her heart. “I forgive you. Get out from under there, silly.”


Agata sniffed and smiled. Her hand reached out to clasp her sister’s, and she let herself be dragged out from under her bed.


Her sister’s hands were cold as ice.

 

[welian]

Awww yeah! Bask in that Christmas glory!!

 

[Elle Joyner]

(*will definitely be posting -four- tomorrow* *lol* Doesn't IRL understand that I need to write!?)

 

[AngstyAlb]

The Devil In Me

Prompt: Putting up decorations

Character: Tyler Jackson Bolero​

Spoiler

His eyes were red and swollen, things were beginning to become a blur.


A man, or rather monster, sat in his chair and stared at the wall opposite himself. The guitar he had been holding moments prior was lying on the floor near him, his fingers too tangled to produce a single chord.


It was that time, a frequent visitation that never arrived late. His chest swelled with his strained breath, muscles in his arms and feet clenched.


The mostly finished bottle that was on the table beside him was lunged across the room, shattering against the wall and spreading shards all about the room.


He stood up from his chair still unable to really see, but the visage of a face showed clear as crystal. That fool, the one who never saw his family again. The one slain by the devil that night many years ago.


The liquor was the trigger. Drink long enough to forget, longer still to remember, and top it off to end it for a night. He stepped forward, glass shards piercing his skin, to go to the cabinet for another bottle.


Quite a Christmas Eve, many would think, a home decorated only in guilt and shattered bottles.

 

[AngstyAlb]

Christmas with the Forsooths

Prompt: Gingerbreads

Characters: Nikolaus Claude Brandt, Justin Forsooth, Alex Forsooth, and Jacob Forsooth​

Spoiler

A sneaky hand crept closer to a sheet of gingerbread cookies cooling on the stove. Right at the moment of success, a wooden spoon whipped him on the back of the hand causing him to pull back.


"Those cookies are for the party at the police department, Nikki. If you want some then you'll have to come too," Alex warned as she went back to her son waiting in his high chair for his mother to come back and continue feeding him.


"Tch, you haven't been at zhis schtick too long Alex but you've already got zhe eyes and reflexes of a mom." Nikolaus couldn't see it but she was grinning while spooning mashed sweet potatoes for Jacob.


"I also lived with brothers and have been married to your brother for four years now, so I know how to handle sneaky boys looking for snacks," she paused as she cooed at Jacob who was giggling at her expressions.


"Really though, won't you come tonight? I know he doesn't say it but Justin is proud of you and wants his coworkers to meet the little brother he always talks about," Alex spoke as she stood up to place the bowl and spoon in the sink.


"I just zhought I vould stay here and hang out with the little one," Nikolaus shrugged as he went over to sit next to Jacob. "I have to start teaching him how to be cool before he learns to be lame like his father." Nik teased as the baby wrapped his fingers around his much larger index finger, giggling at him all the while.


"I am not lame, and Jakey is coming with us tonight. Everyone down at the station is dying to meet him," Nik's big brother Justin came up behind him to pick up the baby and hold him.


Nik looked over at Alex as he did in many situations where he didn't know how to respond to his brother. She just winked at him and nodded while she walked off to take her turn getting ready.


"I zhink you don't trust me with him. You're probably worried he'll speak English vith an accent like me, but come on an accent is zhe secret to getting laid big brother and vhen he's an adult he'll zhank me for it big time," Nikolaus grinned while he crossed his arms over his chest peering down at Justin.


"First of all, please don't ever say that sentence to me again. Second of all, we want you to come, the Forsooth-Brandt family isn't complete without the Brandt part." Nik's brother gave him that stupid look when he wanted his wife to give him an extra piece of cake or for him to run out to the store for him to a pack of cigs without telling his wife on particularly stressful days.


In the end, Nikolaus gave in and went with his new family, and while Justin was putting Jacob in his car seat he hung back to put on his coat while Alex turned all the lights off.


"I'm not dumb you know, if you really wanted to sneak and get a cookie without me knowing you can use your powers to move silently at the speed of light," she said giving him a suspicious look holding the plate of said cookies.


Nikolaus rolled his eyes but then gave her a small wink. "Can't slip anything past you, can I?"

 

[AngstyAlb]

Night Watch

Prompt: Krampus

Character: Diamant​

Spoiler

"Haven't you any better use for your existence than this one?" A tall, shadowed figure stood ominously in the hallway as he peered down at the crouching being lurking in his halls.


The hunkered, but still large creature jumped in shock as he turned on his hooven heels. Looking up into the piercing red eyes he relaxed slightly but still remained defensive.


"Oh, Lord Diamant, how long's it been now, fifty years since we bumped into each other?" The monster shuffled his feet as he re positioned the bag of what sounded like metal tools on his back.


"Forty-eight actually. I see you're up to your old ways of tormenting children who've lived up to your definition of naughty. Or rather, ones filled with enough negativity to feed off their anguish," Diamant verbally prodded him with cold and malicious eyes.


"The jig's up! Look, I'm real sorry, if I knew this was your territory I wouldn't have been within a state of you. It's just..." the demon, one who stole the name Krampus from the myths, attempted to explain before being cut off.


"It's just you couldn't resist the pull of this place, however a whelp like you should have known a more powerful master would reside here. A very foolish mistake, Krampus, and it might be your last one." Diamant cracked his knuckles in anticipation of his own brand of punishment.


Ever since the destruction of their world, the demons that had survived were of course doing their best to survive in this new world with a whole new natural order of things. It was dog eat dog, and an omega happened to step within the territory of an alpha. Nothing personally.


Krampus had already fallen to his knees, but he couldn't spare as he did before. This school held something too valuable to him, something that didn't need to be spread around or discovered by the Magic Council he had to work alongside as principal of the school.


Quickly, missable within a blink of an eye, Diamant's clawed hand was around his throat. Krampus squeaked and gasped as he clawed to get out of his grip. Tighter, tighter, he continued to squeeze until it almost looked like his eyes would pop right out of their sockets.


His other arm swung open the robe he never went anywhere without. Underneath it hid a mouth, a large mouth that took up a good portion of his torso. Diamant pushed the demon within and before he could react he was already crushed within the powerful jaws.


Readjusting his attired and his now fussed hair, he was pleased to notice that not a drop of blood had spilled from his second maw. Wrapping himself in shadows, he continued on with his night watch over the halls. Just another day in his new life.

 

[Dusky]

I'm so behiiiinnnddd D:

 

[welian]

I'm so behiiiinnnddd D:

Look, I haven't even started, and it's my own thread! DX


I'm just glad my dad will be home for Christmas.

 

[Elle Joyner]

December 3rd

...Decorations of Red on a Green Christmas Tree...

​

She’d put the card away in a box on her dresser. She wanted to throw it away, to rip it to pieces and throw it in the garbage and never look at it again, but in her heart she knew she’d never have the strength. She never did, when it came to Ian. Down in the living room, Ella had long since ceased her crooning and she could hear Elvis, now, singing about Blue Christmases. How many times had she heard that song and thought how miserable it was, how it felt so out of sorts with the happy-go-lucky festive feelings that Christmas normally brought. Now, hearing the words, she couldn’t help but agree with The King.


She was so lost in thought, she didn’t hear the doorbell ring until the second time. Rising from her chair she made her way to answer it, pulling it open to see Chris standing there, his arms full of poinsettias. Blinking for a moment, Molly stared at him.


“...You forgot, didn’t you.” He said, as he stepped inside, stomping the snow from his boots, “...The tree?”


“The… OH! Right! The tree! I’m sorry.” Chuckling, Molly, took one of the red flowers from his arms and waved him into the living room, “I tried to get out to the gym, and my car was a sheet of ice and I slipped and fell, then I fell asleep in front of the fire.”


“Are you okay? You didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”


“Mostly my pride. It was right in from of McCrotchety.”


“Ugh. Sorry, babe. You want me to clear your car off for you? Where’s your scraper?”


“In the car.”


“...Wow. Good job.”


Laughing, Molly set the plant down and whacked him in the arm, “Anyway… I already got the decorations down yesterday. Thanks… for helping me.”


“You realize of course, you just thanked your fiance for doing something I definitely think I’m obligated to do…?”


“You aren’t obligated to do anything, Chris…”


“But for you, Mol…” He said, and he stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her waist, “I’d do anything…” He leaned in and kissed her and Molly smiled, but in the back of her mind she couldn’t shake the words in the card… and the unconscious thought of what they meant.

5

​

no slide no slide

 

[Helral]

Well I will at some point post like 7 or 10 at once.... when I have time again . I'm probably already 8 behind.

 

[SepiaInk]

November 30th

Prompt: A card for someone not seen in a long time


Original Story: Hourglass


Character(s): Friday
​

November something of whatever year


Almost Christmas
​

Brother,


Don’t mind the blood.


It’s not like I’m dying over here or anything, I just cut myself. There are glass shards everywhere upstairs. Don’t know who’s paying for that, but it ain’t gonna be me, that’s for sure. Kind of broke at the moment. Business’ been slow, people just don’t appreciate clocks anymore. Can’t blame them. That damn ticking gets under your skin pretty quick.


I know you hate the sight of blood. Just pretend it’s ketchup or something… Wow, that was awful, forget I wrote that. Would start over but this is my last piece of paper. It’s become scarce. Like water, blankets, matches and cat food (Paradox’s none too happy about that last one. She’s been real quiet these last couple of hours).


So tired. Haven’t slept a wink. Wonder how long a human can last without it. They say you go mad, but… I think that ship has sailed a long time ago. Oh, it’s not so bad. You kind of get used to it after a while. Like that constant ticking that worms its way deep inside your brain. It’s just … there. Nothing you can do about it. And no, smashing the clocks, while loads of fun, doesn’t stop the ticking. Don’t ask me why.


Sorry about that smudge of ink. Heard a noise. They’re starting to bang at the door. You’d be surprised at how big ass of a barricade you can make with all the stuff in a basement. Pretty sweet job, I have to say. You’d be proud.


Wished they’d just sod off. They won’t get in though. And soon the sun will rise. Poof, no more Shadows. I hope they burn. I hope it hurts.


They will never get me. I’m a woman of my word.


But … enough about me. How’s life treating ya? Hope the Game isn’t being this much of an ass to you. Probably not. I make an enemy every time I sneeze wrong. You’ve always had a way with people. Then again, maybe that’s a problem. Listen, brother, don’t trust any Gamer out there. They’ll stick their knives handle deep in your back the moment you turn around to-


I have to go. You stay there. Wherever you are, you stay put, understand? I’ll come and get you, don’t you worry. You’ll see, I’ll find you and we’ll be throwing snowballs at Mr. Baines before christmas. Like the good old days. You and I, dancing and acting on that stage again. Just-


Sorry I have to

 

[AngstyAlb]

For Family

Prompt: Sunday best

Characters: Aster Emil Castagnier and Martel​

Spoiler

"Do you think they'll like me?" A young warlock inquired of his owl familiar perched near him on the top of his mirror. He was adjusting the scarf around his neck to look a certain way in combination with his coat.


"I think you've got bigger things to worry about, like, how your cousin is going to be there and will probably kill us both," Martel spoke with a squawk as she flapped her wings for emphasis.


Aster twisted his mouth around in thought as he turned to look himself over in the mirror.


"That's one of the few good things about this 'gift' I have, I can't be killed. Not easily anyway. Leo especially won't have it and might even kill him in the process of protecting me. Josiah knows that, even if his temper will get the best of him most likely," Aster replied matter-of-factly to Martel. She was always the worrier, he was passive, this dynamic was how their partnership worked all these years.


"So you're just going to antagonize him even more and possibly get found out because chances are high he'll tell your uncle. No, you're right, it's the perfect plan," Martel huffed as she shuffled her talons.


"After the way they've mistreated him I don't think he wants to talk to them anymore than I do, and I'm hoping after this visit at his friend's, I'm guessing boyfriend from what's going on, that we can reconcile our differences. I want him to know that I don't want what I got anymore than he does," Aster added with a frown as grabbed his house keys off the dresser and began to make his way to leaving his small home/store.


Martel flew down from her place to glide gently down onto Aster's shoulder, her favorite spot. She made light hoots and hums to express she still wasn't certain about things, but that she didn't have any kind of outright protest.


Once the pair left the building, he paced down the small alleyway that housed his tiny fortune telling store. Aster pulled his coat tighter around his small frame as his condensed breath billowed from his mouth. New England was harsh in the wintertime, and he was highly aware the Midwest wouldn't fair him much better. He tugged the travel bag back firmly on his shoulder, prepared for several days away from his "home" if he may call it that.


"Grandfather would be sad to see his grandsons at ends like this, I owe it as much for what he did for me to fix this. It's all my fault... it's all my fault." With realization ringing in his ears he made his way to the train station to board a train for Nebraska.

 

[AngstyAlb]

Right to Freedom

Prompt: Dashing through the snow, on a one-horse open sleigh.

Character: Cajus Dag Fritz​

Spoiler

With hooves to match their own, they would never know he had sneaked into the horses stable. It is true his were much smaller, perhaps they would blame it on a loose animal.


Cajus burned with a fiery passion deep in his chest to know that these proud, majestic creatures were confined to a small box and were only released to pull around a cart for the amusement of humans. He hated humans, they had no regards for a life other than their own. The Sables' were different, they were beyond human. More like angels, for taking him in.


This man drove his sleigh to Copenhagen ever day in the snowy times to drive people around for money, when it wasn't snowy it was a buggy. He always gave Cajus such a horrid look, believing him to be a demon because of the way he looked.


The satyr couldn't stand that man, and he could see the sadness and apathy in the poor eyes of the horses whose spirits were broken. It was then he knew what he had to do.


Late that Saturday night he made his way to the man's farm, into the stables where the horses stalls were. They were all bedded for the night, but that wouldn't last for long. He undid all of the latches on the horses stalls and removed halters from those who wore them. Once all the horses were aware of his presence and awake, but not afraid of the boy, he wandered to the back of the stable to begin.


Cajus got down on all fours and ripped up a snarl from his throat, imitating that of a wolf or other predatory animal. He dug his fingers into the dirt and started charging back and forth through the stable. Occasionally he would slam into the wall and let out growls and snarls, and soon it started a domino effect.


One by one the horses were charging out of their stalls and fighting to get their way out of the stable. Ending his ruse Cajus stood up and grinned before running off behind them. Soon the stampede was running past the owner's house and all the lights were illuminating in the house. The "devil" boy grinned as he hopped on the back of a horse he was closest to.


The owner came outside in his night close wielding a rifle and lantern, but all that could be seen at this point was a herd of his horses fleeing into the snowy horizon with a single boy riding on the back of one of them leading the stampede.


They never found out who did it, but Mrs. Sable sure did give him an earful when she saw it on the news.

 

[Helral]

Ok, here goes. Just missing the 4th of december in this sequence.


I think they can all fit the 'Slice of life' genre.

Spoiler

writing prompt: Carols on the radio.


type: slice of life, The Grinch


*Why the Grinch stole christmas*


Everyday of the year the Grinch enjoys listening to the radio. Listening to all kinds of songs. But once a year all the songs he enjoys are taken off the air, because of ~Christmas~. It was a monday morning at the start of December, and here it went again. "Oh the weather outside is frig..", "Jingle bells Jingle be..", "... caller on line two, Welcome to the show. What are your plans for Christmas?' 'I'll be singing quite a few christmas songs like Jingle bells..". The Grinch turns off the radio, his day ruined before it even began. Finally he arrives at work grumpy he sits down for his desk job.


In the background you can hear the christmas carols playing on the radio. At some point some of the employees there even start singing along with them. 'Rudolf the red-nosed reinde...' The Grinch tries to ignore it but it does not work. His boss walks by and sees the Grinch turned all green. "You don't look so good. If you're not feeling well you should call in that you're sick, and stay home." The Grinch looks at his boss and in his mind he's shouting and yelling about them christmas songs not shutting up. Instead he just simply nods at his boss, sends an email saying he's sick and goes off home. It is time to make plans for stealing christmas.






writing prompt: Come on, It's lovely weather for a sleigh ride with you.


Type: slice of life


*Nostalgia*


It's christmas eve 2016. This is not a white christmas, the average temperature doesn't get below five degrees celsius. There has been no snow yet. Sighing you think back to when you were young. Ow the view outside was white and the water was solid ice. you remember someone saying, "Come on, It's lovely weather. Let's go for a sleigh ride". In the nearby park there's a large pond. The water frozen cold can hold you easily, the surrounding hills make for great sleighing. You remember sitting on the sleigh, and being pulled forward through the snow. In front you see a large person dragging the sled forward. On top of a hill you stop, you can see several people ice-skating, other people with sleds, and even some just watching. And then suddenly arms and legs surround you, keeping you safe. The sled starts moving forwards down the hill, its speed increasing by the second. You love it and shout out in glee. Next thing you remember is sitting back home with a cup of hot-choco in your hands telling your mother about it. Again you look outside and face reality, the hot-choco you're sipping is still good even though there is no snow.






writing prompt: Putting up christmas decorations


Type: slice of life, magic use


Have you ever had the problem that no matter how you tried, the end result never seemed to be as you imagined it to be. You might think that magic will be a solution to your problem. Let me tell you, it just added to the problem. So it was the christmas season, the christmas tree was placed in the house. All the years before we manually decorated the tree, but never succeeded in getting it as we wanted. So this year we decided to use magic. Of course it started with deciding what to put on first. The lights? The christmas balls? The headpiece? other decorations? Well we decided to start with the lights, using a animate object spell we ordered the lights to hang themselves in the tree. This went quite well. So far so good, next up where the other decorations. Why not the balls first?, you ask. Well we decided to place these about last so that they can reflect the lights and other decorations better. So here we went, using simple spells we could easily position them about the tree. Sometimes we changed the positions of the lights, but nothing that we thought would really harm how the tree would look in the end.


This is where it all went wrong. As we turned around to take the boxes with the christmas balls, we heard stuff thumping onto the floor. Looking back we noticed that the decorations weren't in the tree anymore. Thinking that perhaps we put them too close to the end of the branches we decided to arrange the decorations again. Having that done we turned around, and you can already guess what happened. Yes indeed the decorations were falling out of the tree again. Here is what really happened, we used animate object and gave it the order to hang itself in the tree. We did this by projecting a specific state of it hanging in the tree. As the decorations were not part of that image, the wires kept removing those which would be in the vicinity of them. Which in this case would be all of them. The worst part was that we did not have a counter spell ready for this case. So what we tried was animating the tree and ordering it to hold the decorations. If we took a moment to think about it we could predict what would happen. The lights which were already plugged in started to fight with the tree. In the end we had to use a fire extinguisher to put out the fire that had started. Well we learned our lesson.






writing prompt: Krampus


Type: Slice of life.


I hang my sock at the fireplace, hoping for something sweet during the advent for christmas. The following morning I found a bundle of twigs wrapped together in my sock. The first thing that went through my mind was, "I was naughty?". I started looking back over my shoulder at every corner, expecting the Krampus to come and take me away. I haven't been naughty, well I did eat some snacks at home without asking my parents permission, haven't you? But I've never stolen anything of value from someone else. I've never caused harm to others. Why would he go after me? The next morning I see my sister chewing on a twig. I ask her about it and she tells me that the twigs that were in the sock are edible. Sometimes I do think that I must be the dumbest person alive.






writing prompt: Sundays best


Type: Slice of life


It was almost christmas time, which means the meeting was soon to take place. All who came, were dressed at their sundays best. The hats that they were wearing had a broad rim, the top ended in a point, at exactly two thirds from the top it had a fold, changing the tops direction to be horizontally aligned with the fold when worn correctly. The dress was woven in olden times, back then they knew how to make dresses that really lasted ages. Even now it was still warm when wearing the dress, as if it completely isolated the internal temperature from the outside temperature. The designs on the dress were specifically made for your family, every family had their own design. And by that design you could recognize who someone was. Without this they would all look about the same, dressed as they are. Faces mostly hidden by the dress' high rim. Yes looking like this you would be fine at the witches convention. Looking in the mirror you make slight changes and then you're ready to go. The bell strikes midnight, the convention begins.


still have to catch up to today....


[edit] fixed typo's

 

[SepiaInk]

Here’s another one. I’m sooooo far behind. Will have to catch up once I have time

December 10th

Prompt:

Original Story: The Red in Your Eyes


Character(s): Red and Jack
​

Shards
​

“What the hell are you doing?”


At the sound of Red’s voice, Jack stopped squirming and snapped his head backwards to get a good look at the entrance. “Hey, Red, old pall! How ya doing this fin-“


“Shut up.” She cut his greeting short, voice as dry as sand paper. Not that Jack was expecting anything else. But he respected her request and kept his jaws shut, humming a low tune instead as he watched the moving shape of the woman treading over to him.


Red looked kind of funny upside down. She should try that look more often.


The human got as close as she could get without stepping on the mess he’d made and began circling him like an animal seizing up its prey. His head followed her movement, turning all the way around even as the wires tightened around his skull.


The world was just a pallet of blurred greys to him, but he could feel her stare bore through him. “What’s wrong with your skin?” she sounded disgusted for once. He must look pretty bad.


A cackle burst out before he could stop it. “Ah, well, it tried to grow over the wires.” He shook his head like a dog, catching a glimpse of bits of flesh falling to the rubble beneath him. “Didn’t go that well.”


He’d bet all his bones that Red was rolling her eyes at him right now. But all he could see was that hair of hers. Those red, red locks. Delicious, all consuming, eye-poping blood red-


As she bended over to pick something beneath him, Jack swayed forward and tried to bite her bangs, but was too slow. The wooden planks above him whined under the stress.


Dammit, so close.


Red straightened up and thrusted whatever she had in her hand in his noseless face. “Do you know what this is?”


Jack squinted at the object, but he didn’t really had to. It was one of those shinny red balls that he’d been smashing and throwing against the walls earlier. Guess one of them survived. That should be rectified.


“Nope. Let me tell you though, they are not apples and taste awful. Would rather eat eyeballs.” They were squishy but at least they were edible.


“Jack, do you even known what Christmas is?”


“Nope.”


“Should’ve figured. Were you snooping around in the basement?”


“Yep.”


“That hole was your doing?”


“Heh, the termites helped.”


“Did you eat anyone?”


“Nah, this place is deserted. Plus, had a snack on my way here.”


It seemed the interrogation was over when Red sighed and rubbed her forehead, messing up her bangs. After scouting the house, she came back and let him munch on what she called a ‘christmas bauble’ as she cut the ‘christmas lights’ holding him up with her knife. Jack yelped as he fell skull first onto the rubble of shards, stone, plaster and decorations.


“Idiot,” the woman called him for the hundredth time, feeding fresh cartridges into her gun as she sauntered over to the front door. “Let’s go. There’s a blizzard coming.”


Covered in dust, Jack staggered over to her, cackling as he lopped one of those sparkling garlands around his neck. “So, you gonna tell me all about this christmas thing, Red?”


“Maybe another day, Jack. And stop calling me that.”


“Aye, aye, mam.”

 

[Elle Joyner]

(OMG SO BEHIND)

December 5th

...Krampus...

​

“You’re insane…” Molly said, as she adjusted herself in her seat.


“I swear to God, Mol! It’s true… and if you don’t straighten up, he comes and he eats the children! It’s a real thing… Well, I mean, it’s not true, but it’s a real story, at least.”


“That is sick! That’s like… a thousand times worse than the Grinch. Or coal…” Molly laughed, and Chris nodded.


“But I never had to to think twice about it, as a kid… behaving around Christmas time. My parents told me about Krampus, and after that, I was an angel.”


“Oh, see… Now I know you’re full of it.”


“Hey!” Chris poked at her side and Molly gave a squeak, “I will call my mother, right now, and you can ask her for yourself. All she had to do was say the word, and she had my knees shaking. It was traumatizing. I spent six therapy sessions talking about it.”


Molly shoved him with another laugh, shaking her head, “You’re terrible!”


Catching her arms, Chris yanked her forward, pulled her into his lap, and with a sigh, Molly curled against his chest. Wrapping his arms around her, Chris kissed the top of her head, “You wanna talk about that letter, yet?”


“...Mm. No. Not yet.”


Maybe not ever. Maybe it wasn’t worth it. She was happy with Chris. So happy, and somehow dragging Ian into it didn’t seem like it would benefit them. But why had the card come at all? Why open those old wounds…


“Well, whenever you’re ready, Mol. You wanna watch another movie?”


Smiling, Molly tipped her head backwards, looking up at him, “It’s pretty late. You gonna stay over?”


A brow quirked, as Chris looked down at her, “...You… you sure?”


“We’re gonna be married in a few months, Chris. I think I can handle a sleep over.”


“It’s just…”


“I know. But I’m okay. Really…” Leaning upwards, Molly kissed him, “Thank you, though.”


“I’ll stay down here on the couch.” He returned the kiss with a small smirk, “But if I’m gonna get a crick in my neck, we’re watching one more movie.


“Deal…” Molly said, curling up comfortably in his arms.

7

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no slide no slide

December 7th

...Dashing Through the Snow...

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“Can we go faster, Daddy!” Molly shouted, clapping her hands.


Her dad laughed, shaking his head and tugging her back down onto the bench, “It’s a sleigh ride, baby girl… not Nascar.”


Giggling, Molly shrugged, “It’s just so fun! This was the best Christmas present, ever, Daddy!” Maybe it was a silly statement to make. She was sure to get a boat load of presents the next day, stacked under the tree at her grandmother’s house, but for a nine year old, it was an adventure unlike any other.


But as she sank down in her seat, there was a sudden weight that pressed down on her like no little girl should ever experience.


“Hey, daddy? I need to tell you something.”

9

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no slide no slide

 

[AngstyAlb]

In Her Honor

Prompt: Lightshow

Character: King Leon Cataria​

Spoiler

King Cataria sipped the sake from cup, a heated blush already coloring his cheeks. It was the reception after his wife's funeral, the Queen of Cataria, where the mourning would end and the celebration of her life began.


Leon did not love his wife in that deep, earth shattering manner that fairy tales are written about. It was more of a marriage between friends, the consummation of their marriage only occurred for the sake of an heir. Leon continued to attend to his concubines and other kits he was interested in, while the queen did as she saw fit as well.


The King mourned the loss of his friend and the mother of his son, who was far away from all of the events as he dealt poorly with the whole affair. Ashton, Emilin's personal servant, stayed by his side so Leon had no fear that his son would be alone.


At Leon's own side was his faithful friend, his adviser, and castle wizard Ivor. The red haired kit sat beside the king with a small smile. The fireworks were about to begin, and through his magic they would tell the tale of Queen Cataria to honor her.


Maybe he was too drunk, maybe he was just overcome with grief, whatever the cause may be as the sky lit up to show their small family Leon reached for Ivor's hand and held it tight within his own.


Ivor squeezed in return as tears streamed down the king's face.