Before going to the party, Zane had been stressing over whether or not to go. He wanted to do so for Aphmau's sake, but he didn't like parties. When he eventually decided to go, he realized he didn't have a gift and would have to buy one. He cursed himself for not having bought a gift, but he hadn't bought a gift because he hadn't been sure he would go, and-- well, everything just kind of spiraled into a mess that was all his fault.

With nobody to blame, he grabbed his keys with a huff and went out to buy something. Aphmau didn't really drink wine or like the typical hostess gifts, so he would have to find a shop at the mall that sold My Little Pony ponies and make the "I swear this isn't for me even though I would totally buy this for myself" excuse. God, this would take forever. He was going to be late...

Unfortunately for him, it really did take forever. He got stuck in 1'o'clock traffic and he had to go to multiple different stores until he eventually found one that sold what he wanted or had it in stock. He knew what stores sold My Little Pony ponies, but it seemed that a lot of people had done some last-minute shopping because none of them had anything except the My Little Pony dolls which neither he nor Aphmau liked. When he finally found a good gift and suffered the mildly judgmental stare of the employee ringing him up, he only got a few miles out before his car ran out of gas and he had to go fill up a gas can from a nearby station.

Zane's misfortune continued the entire way to the party, like when he parked in his driveway and struggled to wrap the gift before walking to Aphmau's, and especially when he arrived and realized that, despite vigorously triple-checking, he had arrived an hour early. He had left his charger at home, so he hoped the battery wouldn't run out. He helped set up even though he didn't really want to while he waited. When people started filing in, he sighed. Great.

———

Opposingly, Travis had been ready for the party all week and was happy to be invited. He wasn't good friends with anyone here, but he knew Aphmau well enough. He had bought a hostess gift already-- a case of Seagrams, since he knew she liked tropical/fruity flavors-- and had changed into a green sweater in order to fit in with the festivities.

He left the house and walked to Aphmau's place through the cold wind, a thin scarf tied neatly around his neck. He then realized he forgot the gift and doubled back. He ended up tripping in his rush, but he thankfully didn't skin anything and it only stung slightly. When he eventually got to Aphmau's again with gift in hand, he took a deep breath, made sure he had his phone, and rang the doorbell to be let in.

———

On the day of the party, Laurence had showered and put on some festive clothing— including a red sweater with a Christmas tree sewn on the front that he had gotten from a friend a few years ago. He had gotten a hostess gift two days ago when he realized the party was this week, and he had wrapped it as neatly as possible. It was a book about dogs and special tricks to teach them, since he vaguely remembered that she had a dog— Celestia?

He brought his phone and a charger, just in case. He then helped Garroth find and bag his gift, and the two departed with Dante across the street with the chilly wind beating their  backs. They were quick to go inside after ringing the bell.

———

Speaking of Garroth, he had gotten so caught up in what he was going to wear to the party that he had forgotten to wrap his gift. He had planned a specific outfit-- light blue sweater (he didn't have a Christmasy one), khaki pants, and some light makeup (because, he didn't just "look this good", in his eyes)-- and it had taken him almost the whole day leading up to the party to decide if he should buy/borrow a Christmas sweater or just wear the blue one. He had also lost said gift, and he only realized that when it was time to go. Granted, it wouldn't take him and his housemates that long to walk to Aphmau's, but his room was a mess.

Eventually, with Laurance's help, Garroth found the gift and decided to just bag it since they were running late. Then he walked swiftly across the street with Dante and Laurance in tow and they rang the bell to be let in.