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As usual, Christmas morning was welcomed with excitement from the Sides, though in varying degrees. Roman, Remus, Patton, and Emile were the most openly excited, waking early and proceeding to wake up Virgil, Logan, Janus, Dice, and Remy.
Remy and Logan worked to make coffee for the group, while Patton and Emile arranged the furniture in the commons into a sort of circle, giving everyone plenty of space in the room. Once all of the Sides were assembled, some with cups of coffee in their hands, while others had cups of tea, hot cocoa, or warm cider. Roman conjured up elf hats for Patton and Emile, and the pair got to work, fetching the gifts from under the tree and distributing them to the others, while setting their own gifts aside.
It took a bit of time, with all the joking that went on between everybody, and the fact Patton and Emile kept stopping one another in their tracks to steal a kiss, something Remy also got involved in. Logan couldn’t help but roll their eyes at the goofing around, though they were distracted by Janus and Remus peppering their face with kisses.
Eventually, all of the gifts were handed out, and Patton and Emile took their spots by Remy. Everyone was able to finally start opening the rest of their gifts. The tearing of wrapping paper and rustle of tissue from the gift bags filled the room, along with surprised gasps and laughter.
Logan opened one of their gifts from Virgil first, the smart watch he’d gotten for them, along with the Agender flag band to go with it. Virgil found that Janus had given him an aroma diffuser for his room, and Janus opened up a new hat Virgil had gifted to him. Patton was practically overjoyed upon opening a gummy-bear shaped lamp Dice had given him, and Remus burst into pure cackling laughter when he opened up a lamp that looked very much like a butt that turned on when you slapped it, given to him by Roman.
Everyone seemed pleased with all the gifts they got, and impressed with the thought that went into various gifts. Towards the end of the event, five of the main Sides found they all had a gift of similar size, and all of them were from Remus, who urged them to open them up. The five small boxes were opened and soft gasps followed as the Sides pulled out their contents; custom made bells.
Logan’s bell was a medium shade of blue for the base color, which had darker blue hearts filled with a circuit-board pattern, and a black handle. Virgil’s had a purple handle, while much of the rest of the bell was black, with his signature patchwork patterning and white stitches. Janus’ bell had a yellow handle, with a black casting that had yellow scales over half of it. Patton’s bell had a pale blue base coat, with white hearts and light pink paw prints all over, and a white handle. Roman’s bell had a white base coat, with a red sash, along with vine and rose detailing going over part of the bell and up the gold-colored handle.
“Remus, these are beautiful,” Patton gasped.
“Indeed,” Logan agreed, looking over the bell in their hands.
“This is, really cool, Re,” Virgil smiled.
“They’re all hand-crafted,” Remus informed them, almost seeming shy under the praise. “And uh, they all sound different, too… I wanted them to all fit the Side they belong to.”
The other five main Sides all glanced at one another, then at Remus, before each giving their bell a careful ring. Just as Remus had said, each bell had a different sound, and felt like they really had been custom made.
As the bell-related excitement died down, Virgil looked around and spotted a gift wrapped in red with a purple bow on it still unopened beside Roman. “Hey Ro, you’ve still got one left,” he pointed out.
“Oh, I do,” Roman realized, setting his bell aside gently and picking up the gift. “And it’s from you!” he exclaimed, reading the tag and practically bouncing in his seat. He tore away the red wrapping paper and opened the gift box carefully, letting out a gasp when he saw what the box contained. “Oh, my Dark and Stormy Knight,” he breathed, running his fingertips over the gift, which the others still couldn’t see.
“C’mon, put it on,” Virgil urged.
Roman stood and set the box on the sofa where he’d been sitting, and pulled out his final gift. The others watched as Roman pulled on a white hoodie with red and gold plaid patches and gold stitching, with a patch depicting his logo on the left side of the chest. “Virgil, did you… Did you make this…?” Roman asked, with happy tears welling up in his eyes.
“Yeah,” Virgil replied, rubbing the back of his neck. “You keep stealing mine, so, I figured I could make you one that’s more, well, you,” he shrugged.
“I love it,” Roman smiled, a couple of tears slipping down his cheeks. He moved the gift box and sat next to Virgil, pulling him into a kiss. Virgil didn’t protest a bit, wrapping his arms around Roman and returning the gesture.
The group spent the rest of the day together, chatting, joking, and laughing. Patton, Logan, and Emile all made dinner, and everyone simply enjoyed the company of their chaotic friends, having a wonderful, happy holiday.