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It wasn't like Russia didn't celebrate Christmas, she in fact did that as much as she could, but the fact that the other room was filled with a bunch of dead people would probably be surprising to most.
All her subjects who were of Christian majority were in this room with her, yes, but she actually felt like she should probably check in with the other room. If only Moscow, Moscow Oblast, and the rest of the Rus Principalities' Righthands and Lefthands could see ghosts, they'd likely have a heart attack of seeing their own state eating with someone a millennia younger than them.
She was referencing Nikifor with that. He probably doesn't like that his nephews are all dead. Well, he is too, so does it matter?
After sending a few words to Moscow so that she could go to another room, Russia didn't quite particularly find her words too hilarious but let it be. It wasn't like anything that Moscow said was false, anyway.
Getting out of the dining hall was easy enough, it's more on the fact that she has to go quite the way to go to the much smaller kitchen in the back of the mansion. But it wasn't a hard task for her, she simply shifted through the land to get there as quickly as she could, subsequently surprising everyone within.
"Ah!"
Nikifor's yelling sounded like a squeak, now that he noticed her appearing right next to him. That made the other, perhaps less surprised, dead people turn their head to her way. She could see Vladimir, Novgorod, Beloozero, Izborsk, Tver, and Pskov. Of course, there were more of her family, it's more on the fact that they weren't part of Russia now, which included Turaŭ who gave his father a visit.
"What is going on outside there to be so loud?"
Izborsk questioned, her hand reaching out to the table to take a bite of some of the food her younger brother made. It will forever be hilarious that she and Nikifor's age gap was over nine centuries. Beloozero took one as well, taking a bite and quickly devouring it before Izborsk managed to do so with hers.
"All of my subjects who celebrate Christmas are here. Including Svyatoslava, Lyudmira, Georgiya, and Radomira."
"Oh, that is nice. Do you mind if I go see Svyatoslava?"
Vladimir was the one who spoke up afterwards. Russia avoided his eyes and nodded silently, of which made the man decide to float away as she closed her eyes. It was always hilarious that ghosts couldn't go through walls for as long as the living perceived it, that was why Nikifor closed his too.
"Um, I do want to meet Georgiya some time soon. Maksenty, you want to come later?"
"Arey... I do not think they can see us."
"Haunting them is alright, though, is it not? As long as grandmother perceives us, we can make things float."
Alright, that was definitely a valid reason to haunt them. Tver Oblast especially, because she reacted quite similarly to how Nikifor would. There was an already high chance that her third-born son copied how she acted when he was young, anyway. At least the way he gets surprised at things.
"Maybe both of you should stay here for a while."
"Oh, do not fret, Talik, I won't let them leave."
"Aww, this is why I like you so much, Zina."
"Leave it."
And Izborsk was right, from their first conversation. Seeing them like this actually does make her happy. And it wasn't like she didn't know that, it was quite obvious to her that it was indeed true. She pulled her chair back, and sat right next to the still-silent Beloozero, who had already eaten her seventh pelmeni by now.
"You don't seem like you'll stop."
"Forya has talent in cooking."
"Oh. Thanks."
"Fedya is not a liar like our mother here, so you should believe her."
Nikifor actually looked quite pleased with a compliment from his older sister. Russia, on the other hand, wasn't sure if she should even be offended or amused with how Izborsk supported her sister's claim. More on the latter, though, she really didn't find a reason to be offended much from such a simple statement. Especially one which is true.
Russia really missed things like these—being human.
It might seem mundane and even unassuming, but that was what she wanted the most, honestly. To forget of all her duties and to be human.