Merry Christmas from the Folklore Trilogy Gang! Christmas came in two parts this time. They had a small Christmas party at the school before going home for the holidays.

Lee and Tess planned the whole thing. Lee got ridiculously excited about decorating, and assembled a team to deck the halls, consisting of Anna, Amy, Talia, Harrison, and Alex. Tess was the overlord of the planning team, and organized everything, from food to music and more. Deynan remarked that he had never been more scared of Tess than when he almost broke one of her boughs of holly.

Isaac had been placed on music duty, and dragged Amarie into keeping him company. She was secretly pleased; parties were a little frightening to her. She mostly talked to him the whole time, keeping him company while he played guitar. He tried to get her to sing with him, but she hadn't heard any of the songs before. Christmas was a new concept to her.

Sierra tried to plan a Secret Santa gift exchange, but no one was really able to bring gifts, as there were no shops on the island...so that kind of fell through.

The party itself was very relaxing. Natasha and Ms. Catalona had made tons of food, which pleased Deynan in particular quite a bit. He was even more overjoyed to see that they had included latkes in the lineup. His Jewish heritage was so often ignored.

Juan and Giselle came too. They sat in a corner and listened to the music, Juan occasionally leaning over to say something to her. Sierra brought them some food later in the evening. Giselle seemed a bit surprised.

She was even more shocked when Sierra hugged her and wished her a merry Christmas.

The night ended soon after Deynan started putting up mistletoe plants in doorways. The only thing that ended up happening was Sierra kissed Sophie on the cheek in laughter and Audrey punched Alex in the jaw.

The next day, the students were allowed to go home for a few days to celebrate with their families. Audrey stayed at the castle with her parents, and got to help Dr. Smith bring in a huge fir tree from the mainland. They decorated it in the main hall with whatever they could find that could constitute as an ornament. The tree ended up looking a little silly, but to the Simones, it was perfect.

Sierra and Ravi headed back to North Carolina, and Ravi mentioned that his family didn't really celebrate Christmas. So Sierra invited the entire Jindal Family to her house for Christmas dinner. Once she cleared it with her parents (who were beyond overjoyed), she messaged him her address and the Jindal's headed over. The Claget's only lived an hour away.

The evening was filled with laughter, love, and camaraderie. The parents got along instantly, and Wyatt took an immediate liking to Aasha, almost idolizing her mischievous schemes. And if Ravi and Sierra disappeared at some point in the evening...the parents didn't question it, but shared sly smiles the younger children didn't quite understand.

Sierra showed Ravi her favorite place to look at the stars—or, at least, the night sky with what stars could be seen. He apologized for not having a Christmas present, but she had none of it, smacking him lightly on the chest. His family was the gift. He was the gift. As for her gift to him...she gave him a sleek black leather journal and a fountain pen that she had bought for him the last time she was home. He was speechless.

Silently, he vowed to return her generosity.

Isaac returned to his boisterous family, Amarie accompanying him. It almost seemed understood at that point. His mother hadn't even batted an eye as she walked in. The Mexican Christmas season is traditionally much longer than that of two nights of gift giving, an elaborate time of going house to house simulating Mary and Joseph's journey, piñatas, and plastic babies baked in cakes. (The latter alarmed Amarie quite a bit, but Isaac seemed to love the game.) The entire family tried to shove the Christmas season into the few days their son was Home, so Amarie got nearly the full effect, learning how to cook tamales and several carols in Spanish.

Deynan still hadn't contacted his parents. He had resolved to stay in the castle, until Sophie shared her surprise that her father wanted her to come home. She tentatively offered if Deynan wanted to come—solely because she didn't want him bothering Audrey while staying at the castle. That was the only reason. He accepted.

Sophie's father was a tall man, often seen with a drink in his hand, somewhat tipsy at all times. He had hugged Sophie when she walked in the door, and she accepted it stiffly. He ignored Deynan. In fact, he ignored the two most of the time they were there, which Sophie seemed to have suspected.

Deynan wasn't sure how to celebrate Christmas. After all, Hanukkah had passed, and he had only ever done that. But on Christmas Day, Sophie wordlessly got on her coat and boots and gestures for him to follow her. They walked downtown to a local soup kitchen, where she walked in and signed up to volunteer. The organizers seemed to know her well and warmly welcomed her.

Deynan was surprised...and touched. As someone who had lived on the streets, the action was more important to him. Sophie didn't know his story. Of course she didn't. But she was here all the same.

He insisted his eyes were tearing up from the cold.

Tess allowed Lee to come with her. Lee hadn't even asked before Tess told her that, Fine, she could come along if she insisted. Tess's house was lavishly decorated for a party her mom was throwing, and the two girls were banished to the rec room for most of the vacation. They alternated between watching movies (Lee discovered that Tess had an unnatural attraction to horror movies), playing video games (which Lee had never really done before), and messing around with the various objects the room provided. It was the most uneventful vacation Tess had ever had. Yet, oddly...one of the best.

~~~

Everyone was back on the island for the celebration of the New Year. Juan and Abigail had rigged up fireworks, and Talia and Amy constructed a large woven ball to drop from the top of the castle at midnight. It was a small thing, but exciting nonetheless. When the countdown ended, several of the Myths transformed into phoenixes, adding to the magnificent light show. It was truly something spectacular.

~~~

Happy Holidays, guys! Hope you enjoyed! :)

~Margot