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Christmas eve had arrived at last, and the members of TWRP were eager to spend it together. All of them came from planets and timelines where no such holiday existed, but since coming to earth and seeing how much joy it brought to the families around them, they decided that they should spend it together. Doctor Sung was eager to host and dove headfirst into the world of Christmas. He was surprised how much work went into this one day, but he was never one to back away from a challenge. But as always, chaos seemed to follow TWRP everywhere and they found themselves scrambling to get everything ready in time.
Sung was busy in the kitchen preparing dinner, he had never made such a large meal by himself and it was made extra hectic by needing to prepare some vegetarian options for himself. He had called Havve over to help, and while his robot companion was happy to help in the kitchen, things started to go south as soon as he got his hands on a knife. So instead, Havve was relegated to decorating duty while.
“Hey bud, how’s it going?” Sung leaned out from the kitchen door to see the progress Havve had made in the living room. Havve seemed frustrated as he tried to tape up various decorations and banners that Sung had bought to add a festive flair to his home.
"Tape not working, huh? Well, maybe try some tacks or nails or something? Screw the security deposit, I'll worry about that later. For now, we gotta get some festive spirit in here!” Havve flashed a thumbs up and grabbed a box of thumbtacks with enthusiasm that worried Sung slightly. But all that mattered to him at that moment was finishing dinner. He returned to the kitchen, checking on the turkey and his own smaller tofurkey. Both were cooking nicely, and would hopefully be done by the time his friends arrived. Oh shit, he realized something was missing. Where were Meouch and Phobos? He pulled out his phone and opened their group chat.
‘Hey, Phobos and Meouch, where are you guys?’
‘Line at the liquor store is crazy, bro. Not even in yet, and it’s fucking freezing which isn’t helping.’
‘I’m stuck in traffic.’
Sung was a bit puzzled at Phobos’ reply
‘Weren’t you up in orbit in your ship though?’
‘Space Traffic.’
Meouch only replied with an emoji:
‘🤔’
‘Fine I overslept. I’m still at my city apartment, be there soon.’
‘Maybe.’
‘I can’t find my socks.’
Sung rolled his eyes, all the while chuckling internally. But he turned his attention to the stove as he heard the sound of water boiling over.
"Shit, I forgot about the potatoes!" Sung rushed over to pull the pot off of the hot element and removed the cover. He checked them with a fork, and thankfully the potatoes weren't overcooked. Phobos probably would never forgive him if he disgraced the noble potato like that. He put them into a colander in the sink and left them to drain while he went to check on Havve.
Havve had done just about as well as one could expect a murderous cyborg to do in this scenario. The decorations were up in abundance which filled the room with a definite sense of holiday spirit. However, they weren’t exactly hung with care or precision, more just tacked to the wall wherever there was an inch of space. As Sung examined Havve’s work, it filled him with a sense of pride. It wasn’t the most Instagramable setup, and certainly didn’t resemble any of the images he’d seen while researching online, but TWRP wasn’t exactly your average family.
"It looks great, Havve! I think it really suits us." Sung gave his friend a pat on the shoulder. While it didn't show on his robotic face, it was clear that Havve was grinning with pride and satisfaction on the inside. Sung especially enjoyed the stockings which he had put up by the tree. Everyone got their own, even Gooby, with their names printed on the front. But more than anything, it was the tree that filled Sung with the most joy. He knew that they had to decorate it together, but they went a step further in their mission to get it. Momentarily forgetting about the dinner he was cooking, Sung reminisced about the short adventure they had gone on.
“Are you sure we’re allowed to do this?” Sung said as the four of them trekked further through the snowy Ontario wilderness.
"Who's gonna stop us?" Meouch said with a smirk. "We just need one tree, we'll be outta here in no time! Now, let's spread out and find the perfect one.” Everyone headed off in a separate directly, while vowing to not venture off too far to avoid getting lost. They knew that the tree couldn’t be too tall or it wouldn't fit in Sung's apartment, but they didn't' want any scrappy looking bush either. After a while of searching, Meouch spotted Havve waving excitedly.
"Oh shit, he found one!" Meouch exclaimed, hurrying over to his friend.
“Wow,” Sung said in surprise. “that’s a good tree right there. Havve, you nailed it. Care to do the honours?” Sung had been guarding the saw but figured Havve was the best candidate to wield it. He made quick work of sawing down their Christmas tree, and in less than a minute it tipped backwards and threw up a small dusting of powdered snow as it fell into the bank behind it.
“You got the sled, Phobos?” Meouch asked. Phobos nodded, he had been dragging a small toboggan behind him to aid in getting the tree back to their ship. “Perfect, let’s get this bad boy home! After that, Tim’s on me? I could use a coffee right about now!” Everyone grinned as they ventured through the snow and returned to their ship, excited at the prospect of hot coffee and an evening together as they decorated the tree. Sung even surprised them with some fresh cookies he had made for the occasion. Despite the frustration of detangling lights, which they had assumed wouldn’t be an issue when they came brand new out of the box, and a mess of dropped ornaments, the boys thoroughly enjoyed their evening and grew even more excited at the prospect of Christmas together.
Sung was pulled out of his daydream as he received a message from Meouch. He had finally gotten out of the liquor store and was on his way over at last. Phobos had yet to respond if he had left or not, but he hadn't seen any of Sung’s recent messages. This could either mean that he had fallen back asleep, or that he’d left. Only time would tell which answer was correct.
“Havve, can you help set the table while I finish up the last of dinner?” Sung asked. Havve nodded as he began to pull out plates, cutlery, and napkins. He had no idea what the proper way to arrange them was, or even that there was a proper way. Instead, he folded the napkins in whatever bizarre shape he felt his friends would enjoy the most and fashioned little pyramids out of the cutlery by carefully balancing them together.
In the kitchen, Sung was almost there. The sides were done, and both turkeys were almost there as well. He began mashing the potatoes, as he heard a knock at the door.
“That must be Meouch, Havve can you finished the potatoes?” Havve gave a thumbs up, satisfied with his work in the table setting.
“Suh dude!” Meouch said as Sung opened the door. “Look who I ran into on my way in, this sleepyhead finally made it!” To Sung’s surprise, Phobos stood in the door and waved.
"Glad you finally made it! Come on in guys, "Sung ushered his friends in. As soon as they stepped foot inside, the sound of claws on wood filled the apartment as Rufus came rushing in wagging his tail excitedly.
“Hey there Gooby,” Meouch and Phobos both gave the friendly dog some pats as he greeted them with his bright eyes and some quiet woofs. He had a fancy Christmas bowtie fastened to his collar for the occasion.
"Dinner's almost done, take a seat wherever," Sung said as he returned to the kitchen.
“I got us beer and whiskey, figured that should do it ‘eh?” Meouch said holding out the paper bag. “Still cold from the store, so no need to refrigerate it even.” Meouch offered Phobos a can, and he nodded with a grin as he accepted it. Meouch and Phobos made themselves comfortable as Sung and Havve finished the last of the preparations. Rufus, still excited by the guests, curled up at their feet as they sat on the couch.
Havve held out a pot of thoroughly mashed potatoes. He couldn’t taste it himself, so he wanted Sung’s approval. Sung took a tiny spoonful to try.
“Tastes great, Havve! Just the right balance of butter and nutmeg. Meouch, do you wanna carve the bird? We’re good to go!”
“No worries, bud, let’s carve away. I’m fuckin’ starving after waiting in that line.” Meouch said as he stood up and headed to the kitchen.
Sung pulled out the turkey and his smaller vegetarian tofurky. He carved a few slices of his while Meouch got to work on the larger bird. Havve handed a plate to Phobos who began to fill his plates with some sides, mostly the potatoes and rolls. He only took a few vegetables and some turkey after Havve gave him a stern look. Meouch and Sung both filled their plates and Sung gave Rufus a bowl of his favourite fancy wet food, as well as a few pieces of turkey as an extra treat. They all sat at the table with their plates, except Havve who couldn't eat but was still glad to be included. Meouch insisted on choosing the music, as it was the one time a year he could get Sung to listen to jazz, and put on Vince Guaraldi’s Christmas album at a low volume.
“I’m so glad you guys could be here, this has been so fun to put together. I don’t always understand earth customs, but this is one I can get behind. I’m just so happy anytime we can all get together, you know? I love you guys, friends until the end!” Sung held up his beer can as he finished his little speech.
"I'll cheers to that bro, friends until the end!" Meouch and the others cheered their glasses before they dug into their Christmas Eve meal. They knew then and there that this Christmas would not be their last. The food was delicious, and the music and décor added to the cheery atmosphere, and afterwards they shared their gifts with each other. But the best part of it all was sharing each other's company. All four members of TWRP no longer had their families, and for a long time felt alone. But now, they had something better, something that filled the void they had all long felt. They had found a new family together, one that would be together till the end.