善良妈妈的朋友

Chapter 13

My eyes slowly opened and a squinted at my desk clock, looking at the time. 7 am. I\'d gone to bed around midnight so I knew I should get another hour of sleep. Ensure that I was completely well rested before I began dealing with Pegasus, the tournament, and all the madness that would come. As I thought about that though I began to think about all I could do with an extra hour in the morning. Think out what lies I would tell to cover my ass, work on my deck, sit on the toilet browsing Anime twitter (it was like regular Twitter except, oddly enough, far less Korean pop hashtags). The moment I thought about all of that I knew it was a completely lost cause to try and go back to sleep; I had just convinced myself to get up.

"Goody," I muttered to myself as I got up and stretched, grabbing my glasses before moving to my closet to-

Wait.

My closet.

Not the closet in Pegasus\' castle (\'Easy gay joke, we\'re walking, we\'re walking\'). As in the closet that was in my room in my uncle\'s building.

Now utterly confused I looked around, wondering if the entire world had glitched and I was having to replay everything. Had me making it to the castle first caused things to become screwed up and now reality was trying to reset? Was it like a video game where you hopped up the mountain and fell into an area you shouldn\'t? Had I messed things up being first?

\'Well, more than it was just by me being FIRST to the damn castle?!?\' I thought. But before I could truly begin to worry I looked over and saw my deck sitting on my desk, Endymion right on top. "Huh," I muttered before realizing there was a really good test to see if I had somehow tumbled into the past. Holding my hands near my chest, much as I remembered Bakura doing, I focused on a growing bloom of energy that swelled before forming into the Millennium Key. "Theory confirmed," I said, returning the key back to... wherever the hell it disappeared to... and moved to the mirror only to blink when I saw that I\'d finally gotten back my circle beard. "Hello old friend," I said, rubbing my chin as I moved towards the window, throwing open the drapes. "So what the hell is going-"

I stopped talking. My eyes went wide as I stared out the window. Domino laid spread out before me, just like it had been the first day I found myself in awakening in the anime, ripping from the real world and placed into the land of Ancient Egypt Laser Beams, Teens Saving The World In Leather, and Zero Child Safety Laws. The buildings, the billboards, the signs and shops were all there. None of them had been replaced. I hadn\'t ended up in Neo Domino or some alternate dimension where Domino was in Ancient Egypt or anything like that.

No, what had my attention was all the ADDITIONS.

Snow falling down, big happy flakes that managed to somehow land only in the most decorative of spots. On top of awnings and gathered up around the sidewalks but not actually ON the sidewalks so that the tiny people far below me that were striding upon them didn\'t get a speck on their shoes. The billboards no longer merely advertised new shops but instead showcases images of candy canes and gingerbread men surrounding bold proclamations for sales and limited time events. And on everything were strings of glittering lights that even in the lightening morning sky still seemed to bathe the world in good cheer.

I backed away before hurrying to my desk and grabbing my phone, checking the date.

December 18th.

A week before Christmas.

"I\'m in a Christmas Episode," I murmured to myself. "A Filler Arc, most likely not canon, easily skippable because it has no real affect on the story Christmas Episode."

I closed my eyes, took a breath...

...and let out a whoop of joy!

I knew that it would have been more trendy or cool to be aloof about the entire thing. Or even bitter and annoyed. Complain about the holiday and snark about it. Mock the traditions and the silliness and how people ruined the entire thing. Admittedly several years ago I had done exactly that. Written fanfics mocking Christmas. Scoffing about people making it so commercial. Getting into the spirit only at the very end, practically only days from it happening.

I also knew that it would be far more dramatic and entertaining if I started out as a Scrooge only for Yugi and his friends to teach me the true meaning of the holiday. With me making some grand discovery that changed everything and left me an altered man.

The only problem was that I had already seen my little Christmas pendulum swing in the opposite direction and now I LOVED the holiday and wasn\'t about to pretend that I didn\'t feel giddy about it being that special time of year!

Throwing on my bathrobe (\'Huh, must of gotten a new one after PaniK burned my last one\') and slippers I moved towards the door only to break down laughing as I saw an honest-to-goodness nightcap draped over my desk chair. "Why the hell not!" I exclaimed, pulling it on before I ran out the door and skidded into the kitchen where my uncle, finally out of his wheelchair, was eating breakfast. "You boy!" I declared, jabbing a finger at him. "What day is today?"

"Why its December 18th, Edwin," my Uncle Kipling said with a bemused smile. "You seem in a good mood."

"I\'m as light as a feather!" I said with a spring in my step, moving to the kitchen and pouring myself a bowl of mini wheats. "What do we have planned for today, Uncle?"

"Well, I suppose now is as good of a time as any to inform you that I\'ve decided to give you the next two weeks off." Uncle Kipling munched on a piece of toast before adding, with a chuckle, "Not that you actually need to work anymore, Rich Boy."

I shook my head at that, jabbing a finger at him. "You can never be too rich."

"Spoken like a very wise man. Still, I figured you\'d want a few days to relax and unwind before Keith and Joshua arrive on the 22nd."

It took me a minute to remember just who Keith and Joshua were (as for a brief moment I thought he meant Bandit Keith) and when my mind caught up and told me that those were the names of my father and brother in this world my excitement for Christmas managed to do the impossible and increase by ten fold. Before I\'d entered the world of Yu-Gi-Oh! I had talked to my father every day via Messenger and text and I\'d gotten to see him roughly once a week, making the nearly 75 minute drive just to spend time with him and my brother. Being stuck in Japan, even with all the amazing things I was experiencing, had been a blow and I had been missing them fiercely. My uncle bringing them both for Christmas was the greatest gift.

And not just because of the candy canes and all that.

My birthday was Christmas. My father was born on Christmas Eve. We\'d always celebrated together, even if it was just blowing out some candles on a small cake. Having him and my brother in Domino... it just made everything complete.

"Well then, I guess I need to get dressed and get going. Have a very busy week if I want to get the festivities taken care of before dad and K... Joshua show up."

My uncle raised an eyebrow at that, amused. "And what exactly do you have planned? Last I checked we didn\'t have anything planned."

"Oh, I\'ve decided to throw a Christmas Party. Never done it before but I figure with this place and a bunch of cash in my pocket I can afford," I paused, amused by my unintended pun, "to do something special. I\'m thinking of getting some of the best from Duelist Kingdom to come... actually be able to interact with everyone without there being a tournament with life and death stakes." And considering I had no idea HOW Duelist Kingdom had ended it wouldn\'t hurt to try and get some information, though I had a sneaking suspicion that thanks to the law of Filler Arcs nothing of importance would actually be revealed.

\'Meh, still a chance to have fun!\'

"I am thinking I throw it on the 20th, if that\'s okay with you? Give me a few days to throw things together, plus a day to recover before the family arrives."

"I suppose that would work. You think it\'s enough time for people to come?" my uncle asked.

I shrugged. "Most of them either live in Domino or are insanely rich and can afford to quickly fly in, so I\'m not too concerned. If you have anyone you think would be fun to invite, let me know... but keep in mind I will be inviting Yugi Moto and his friends so that means teenagers. So this isn\'t going to be a fancy cocktail party."

"So in other words we should be glad I own several floors in this building so there are no neighbors to piss off."

"Pretty much, yean," I said with a smirk, hunkering down to finish my breakfast, already making mental plans of where I needed to go.

~MC~MC~MC~

Mai Valentine was the very definition of worldly\'. She had decided well before her teenage years that she didn\'t want to live and die in the same backwater town as so many others in her family had done. It was safe to do that... to grow up, graduate high school, marry one\'s high school sweetheart and then settle down and have some kids and get them to do the same thing. In that little town everyone had known her and was willing to protect her and fight for her... so long as she followed the rules and regulations they had set up to determine what it meant to be a good woman.

But Mai had never wanted that. Not in the slightest. She wanted to travel and visit places she\'d only seen on TV and in books. That\'s why she\'d run away from her aunt and uncle\'s house with her life savings stuck in her boot and her head full of dreams. She had to alter herself many times in order to fit in but she\'d always had. Hell, \'Mai Valentine\' was merely the latest in a long string of pseudonyms. Chastity Goode had been her moniker when she\'d traveled with that church group because they were offering free rides to Washington DC. Allison Sharp had been the alias she used while acting as a dealer on a casino boat, tossing out cards to all the big wigs and fancy types as they moved up and down the Mississippi. Mai Valentine was merely the latest, and frankly longest, of her false names but it was the one that was shaping up to be the name she stuck with. After all she was earning fame and fortune with it... no need to pretend to be someone else when Mai Valentine was opening doors thanks to her dueling skills!

Yes, Mai had traveled the world, seeing the best Europe, North America, and Asia could offer. And in her years of travel she had spent plenty of Christmases in strange and exotic spots, as well as ones that would fit a Lifetime movie. From surfing in Australia to sitting in a ski lodge in the Alps she had spent the holiday in all sorts of ways.

But she had to admit that Domino certainly had a... magical feeling about it that no where else could compete with. There wasn\'t one single thing it did better than any other city... in fact in many ways it wasn\'t in the Top Ten for any one single thing. New York during Christmas was a buffet of every delight one could want. The beauty of Paris in December was a true treat. If one wanted to get lost and forget about the holiday Shanghai was the place to be. If one craved a more quiet Christmas there were plenty of places in Ireland that did the trick. Yet Domino seemed to take each little piece and blend them together in a way that no other city could compete with, melting them all together until they hardened into the perfect Christmas candy that was Domino City a week before the 25th.

As she walked down the street, sipping her peppermint coffee from a festive red and green cup, she looked about the sidewalks and marveled at it all. No one would claim her to be an optimist, though she thought at the very least she was getting better at being able to see the good in humanity and the world thanks to Duelist Kingdom and the people she\'d met there. Mai knew that she tended to look at things and instantly want to dismiss them or mock them. But she couldn\'t bring herself to mock Domino during Christmas time. Everyone was just so happy. And polite. Not in a sugary sweet, going to give one diabetes sort of way... no, it was an infectious joy that made her smile and put a bit more spring in her step.

\'And why shouldn\'t I be happy?\' she thought to herself as she did a little spin to avoid a child that had rushed out of a store. The little boy though, to her surprise, instantly apologized and bowed to her and she waved it off, unable to find it in herself to be annoyed. \'I set my own hours, do what I love, have plenty of money in my pocket...\' She\'d just gotten back from a tournament in Poland where she\'d come in first and claimed the entire purse; it wasn\'t millions and millions of dollars but it did set her up well for at least a year if she wanted to do nothing more than just sit around and relax. \'There is only one thing that would make this perfect-\'

Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out, stopping by a store selling purses and carry alls. Seeing who was calling she felt herself begin to beam and quickly answered. "Well, hello Edwin!"

"Hey Mai," Edwin said, is tone full of warmth and bubbly joy. It seemed she wasn\'t the only one getting into the Christmas spirit as Edwin sounded as if he\'d been struck with a sock full of the holiday delight. "Weird question but you wouldn\'t happen to be in Domino, would you?"

"In fact I am," Mai said. "I was going to send you an e-mail and let you know. I got back in two days ago and I\'ve been setting up a lease on a place for at least the next few months. No real good tournaments during January, you know?"

"No I didn\'t but good to know," Edwin said. "And hey, I wanted to see if you wanted to come to the Christmas party I\'m throwing on the 20th. Assuming you have nothing planned."

"I don\'t and I\'d love to. Formal cocktail or t-shirts and beer?"

"I don\'t drink so not the latter and seeing as I\'m inviting Yugi and his friends..."

"The former is out too," Mai said with a snort, imaging Joey trying and failing to eat a meal in a civilized way. "So something in-between?"

"That\'s what I am thinking," Edwin stated. "I\'m thinking starting it between 4 and 5, have people arrive and be able to nibble on stuff and mingle. Do an actual dinner at 6... I\'m arranging that right now, actually. Good food... nothing too fancy or bland. No pizza and no cherry-filled chicken." She could practically see him making a grossed-out face as he said the words; she didn\'t blame him. She\'d been forced to have cherry-stuffed chicken before and it was a sin against poultry. "After that more desserts while opening presents and then for those that want to stick around watch some Christmas movies. Some of the guests will probably leave before that... I\'m invited Mako and Rex-"

"Rex?" Mai said with grunt of disgust.

"Be nice," Edwin chided. "He seems like a good guy, just... intense. I\'m hoping if I get him around some other people that aren\'t like Weevil he\'ll mellow out."

"I suppose anything is possible," Mai said though she had her doubts. "Who else are you inviting?"

"Well Pegasus already RSVPed-"

Mai nearly dropped her coffee. "You... you invited Maxamillion Pegasus!?! And he ACCEPTED?!?!"

"Oh yeah!" Edwin said with a laugh. "He said he\'s really looking forward to it. He\'s the one that suggested we watch movies after dinner... he\'s bringing his copy of Frosty the Snowman, Rudolf, and Santa Claus is Comin\' To Town." There was some sounds in the background. "One sec... yeah, gift wrap those ones... not that one. I want to do that myself." More noise. "Sorry about that Mai. Anyway, before the movie I figure we\'ll open presents. People don\'t have to bring anything but I\'ll be giving out gifts to everyone so that way everyone walks away with a present."

Mai smiled at that. She could imagine how excited Edwin must be getting at picking out gifts for people; for a man that seemed to live on the cheap he did enjoy giving to his friends. "Well, I\'ll have to decide now what else to get you... I already got you a gift but I think you\'ll need another one for putting this all together." She paused. "Where are you at, right now?"

"Uh... 5th and... Westbrook?" He was quiet for a moment. "Yeah, 5th and Westbrook. I\'m grabbing Tristan and Yugi\'s gifts right now."

"You want some help?" Mai asked.

"With their gifts? Nah." Before she could get disappointed he added, "But I could use your help getting everything I\'ll need for the party. I want to have a bit of hand-made feel to stuff... not hire a crew but do it myself as much as I can."

Mai perked up at that. "Then I\'ll be more than glad to help. Where do you want to meet?"

"You know where Glenn Street is?"

"Of course. That\'s the fashion district."

"Let\'s meet there and the corner of 4th street. I want to grab some clothing. Now that I think about it you should probably help me with Tea and Serenity... wouldn\'t hurt to have a woman\'s touch with their gifts."

Mai couldn\'t help but tease him. "Edwin... are you seriously inviting me to go clothing shopping with you?"

"I am," he responded. "But I should warn you... before we begin I insist we get the proper attire."

"Oh Edwin..." she purred, "that won\'t be a problem at all!"

~MC~MC~MC~

Yugi looked at his friends, his lips turned down into a scowling frown as he considered just what he was seeing. He pressed a hand to his cheek, then slowly slid it up to his forehead before finally just flopping it down to his side.

He was standing on the sidewalk, wearing a puffy blue winter coat, classic fuzzy mittens that every kid had owned at some point on his hands. People occasionally paused to glance at towards him (though it wasn\'t him that was drawing their attention) but they quickly hurried on when they decided that whatever was going on they wanted no part of it. Honestly Yugi was wishing he could do the same thing.

"Alright," he finally said, "what exactly happened?"

"...it\'s all Tristan\'s fault!" Tea exclaimed, jabbing her finger at her friend.

"Hey!" Tristan exclaimed, throwing his arms out wide. "How is this my fault?!?"

"You are the one that dared him to do it!"

"And you\'re the one that egged him on by saying that Joey, and I quote, "doesn\'t need to prove a thing, we all know how tough he is"!"

"I was trying to get him to not do it!"

"It\'s JOEY! Of course he was going to take that as a challenge to his masculinity!"

Tea opened her mouth only to find no words coming out. "That... is sadly a fair point."

Bakura just shrugged. "I showed up a few minutes before you did, Yugi."

"Naaa! Naamaa Na!" Joey exclaimed. It was hard to tell just what he was trying to communicate to them, what with his tongue currently stuck to a frigid lamp pole. He tried to pull himself free only for his tongue to stretch and force him to snap his head back towards the pole, striking it with a metallic CLANG!. "Na maa Nuu!"

"He wants a good stew?" Tristan said.

"His hair should be blue?"

"I believe he said, "Come on Yug"," the Pharaoh said helpfully, appearing in his ghostly form beside Yugi. "You know, it is rather impressive that a bit of cold and salvia could trap him like that. Never seen anything like it. Though I doubt Egypt had any temperatures that ever got this cold."

"Uh huh," Yugi said with a dry sigh, taking a cup of steaming water from Bakura and reaching up to slowly pour it on Joey\'s tongue. It took a few moments but finally his friend was able to pull free, rubbing his cheeks for some odd reason that Yugi didn\'t understand. "Seriously, one of you HAS to be the responsible one when I\'m not here!"

"Hey!" Tea complained. "I\'m normally the voice of reason."

"Which makes it even worse that you couldn\'t stop this!" Tristan stated proudly. "Proving that it was all your fault to begin with."

"GAAAA!" Tea screamed, leaping at Tristan only for Bakura to pull her away.

"Mah. Mah mah mah." Joey stuck his tongue out a bit, flicking his lips against it. "Ga, that was wild," he finally said. "I mean I\'d heard that metal could freeze things quickly but I didn\'t expect my tongue to get stuck that fast! Wow!"

"Well now you know," Yugi stated.

"Yeah, and it only cost you your dignity," Bakura said helpfully.

"Exactly. All and-HEY! Wait a minute!" He wheeled on Bakura, who blushed and waved his hands about as he weakly smiled. "What is that supposed ta mean?!?"

"Well, a lot of people did see you Joey," Tea pointed out.

"Not \'a lot of people\'," he retorted.

"Dude, it\'s already trending," Tristan said, having pulled out his phone and pulled up Youtube. "There is even a remix!" He played it, the tinny sounds over the phone\'s speakers clearly having Joey\'s cries and grunts play along with Gwen Stefani\'s \'Holla Back Girl\'.

"Why those dirty rotten-hey, I sound pretty good." He bobbed his head to the music. "Think they got me singing to any other music?"

"Music is my thing Joey, remember?" Edwin said, walking up to the teens.

"Edwin!" Tea exclaimed, hurrying over and giving the clearly surprised man a hug. "It\'s so good to see you!"

"Good to see you too," Edwin said with a slight cringe and Yugi forced himself to smile; he had a feeling Edwin wasn\'t one that liked to be touched, especially if it were a surprise Tea hug.

"Hmmm," the Pharaoh muttered to himself.

"Be nice," Yugi chided him; the Spirit of the Puzzle and the \'Lord of Chaos\' as the media had dubbed Edwin after Duelist Kingdom still had issues between the two of them when it came to trust. "Hey Edwin, how is it going?"

"Good good," Edwin said with a slight shrug. "Doing some Christmas shopping."

"That why you\'re in that getup?" Tristan asked, giving Edwin a once over as Tea let him go. Edwin was wearing his standard blue jeans and hiking boots but he had on a soft and supple brown winter jacket, thick yet also fuzzy black gloves, and a black hood could be seen poking out of from under the coat. But it was his other choice in apparel that was getting the gang\'s attention: a matching scarf and cap, red and green with cheery gingerbread men on them stubbed with flickering little Christmas lights.

"Heh, I thought maybe ya lost a bet or something," Joey teased only for his mind to catch up with his mouth. Yugi, for his part, winced; while Edwin had never brought it up no one had forgotten what had happened that night during Duelist Kingdom when Joey had insulted the memory of Edwin\'s mother. Since then Joey always did his best to watch what he said around the man. "Eesh, me and my big mouth. I\'m sorry man-"

"No worries," Edwin said with a grin. "It\'s supposed to be tacky! That\'s the point!"

"It is?" Tea asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Of course! Fun of the season!"

Bakura nodded at that. "I think I understand. People take things that are seen as embarrassing when it comes to the holiday and decide to embrace them for that exact reason: they are embarrassing or \'uncool\' and that is what makes them so fun."

"And give two points to the Brit! I tried to explain that to Mai but she doesn\'t get it."

"Mai?" Yugi asked only to finally notice Mai trying to hide behind another decorated lamp pole. Of course thanks to her... er... curves... it was rather impossible for her to hide. "Oh, hey Mai! What are you doing over there?"

"Contemplating how I am going to kill Edwin!" Mai called out.

"Get in line, sweetheart, get in line!" Edwin called out. "Plenty of people who want to kill me already. Now come on out!"

"No!" Mai whined.

"Come on, what\'s the big deal?"

"Joey will laugh at me," Mai said petulantly.

"I\'m sure he won\'t," Yugi said with a smile. "None of us will."

The Pharaoh though shook his head. "It isn\'t right to lie, Yugi."

"I\'m not lying," Yugi told the Spirit.

"Mai is clearly distressed and will only be more distressed when Joey mocks her. Though I don\'t know why he will I can only assume, based on how Joey is, that he will-"

"YO YUGI!" Edwin shouted. Yugi jumped in shock and Edwin let out a sigh of relief. "Geez, don\'t scare me like that. You began talking to thin air and then went silent for like a minute. I thought you had a friggin\' stroke!"

Yugi blushed as he remembered no one could see the Pharaoh. "Uh... heheh, sorry about that."

"Don\'t worry about it, Edwin," Tristan stated. "Yugi is just talking to his imaginary boyfriend."

"Yeah, I am-wait, no I\'m not!" Yugi placed his hands on his hips and glared at Tristan. "He\'s not my boyfriend!"

"See Mai?" Tea said. "Every one of us is embarrassing. So you\'re in good company!"

"...fine!" Mai complained, leaving her poor hiding spot. Yugi looked her over... nice shoes, trendy pants, a sporty winter jacket over a tight turtleneck that flattered all her curves, a goofy white hat shaped like a snowman with ear flaps, earrings, a-

Yugi stopped and went back to the silly hat Mai was wearing.

"Snik."

Yugi slowly turned to see that it was BAKURA who was trying to hold back his laughter.

"What?" Joey asked the Brit. "What\'s so funny?"

"You," Bakura stammered out, "you don\'t... think that hat..."

"What about it?" Joey said, confused. "It looks great. Very festive." He turned to Mai and gave her a thumbs up. "I love it."

"...oh this is even worse!" Mai whined, tugging on the hat.

Edwin patted her on the shoulder. "If it makes you feel better I\'m honestly shocked you were able to put that hat on... you know, with all the-" He gestured around his head with his hands, making a \'puffy\' motion.

"Why are you wearing those hats, anyway?" Tristan asked.

"I\'m shopping for my Christmas party... you guys got my invites, right?"

"We did!" Tea said, excited. "I\'m waiting to respond once I hear back from my sister... do you mind if she is my Plus One?"

"Not at all," Edwin stated. "These are the required attire for our tasks today. So Mai and I are shopping for gifts and all that then we\'re going to grab lunch, head back to my place and make Christmas cookies, and then watch the greatest Christmas movie ever."

"Die Hard?" Tristan asked excitedly.

"Of course!" Edwin said with a double thumbs up.

"Hold on!" Joey said, pushing his way up to Edwin and jabbing a finger under his nose. "Are you telling me that in exchange for helping you shop for food and gifts I can get a free lunch, cookies, watch Die Hard, and wear a cool hat?"

"...I suppose I would be a jerk to be worth millions suddenly and not buy you lunch-"

"WE\'RE IN!" Joey exclaimed, much to the amusement of his friends. "Come on guys, let\'s get our hats!"

"I saw one that looked like a Saint Bernard that you might like," Mai stated, her embarrassment over her own hat dying in the face of Joey getting so excited to get his own.

"That is just perfect!"

"That seems about right," Edwin muttered. He motioned for the gang to follow after Mai and Joey and soon everyone was off, though Yugi hung back a bit, glancing at the Spirit who floated next to him.

"Yugi, I\'m not sure about this," the Pharaoh told him. "After all, Edwin-"

"Hey, so you wear whatever I wear, right?" Yugi asked with a sudden playful smile.

"Noooo..." the Spirit said in growing terror. "Yugi please."

"Hey Edwin!" Yugi called out, rushing to catch up.

"YUGI!" the Pharaoh cried out in a panic.

~MC~MC~MC~MC~

"You better watch out, you better not cry!" I sang, Tea holding onto my arm as the two of us practically skipped down the sidewalk.

"You better not pout!" Tea, who was wearing an elf cap with bells and fake ears, chimed in. "I\'m telling you why!"

"SANTA CLAUS IS COMIN\' TO TOWN!" the entire gang, even Mai (who I had completely and utterly infected with the Christmas Spirit thanks to singing... and my stop at a jewelry store to grab some gifts before shooing her out to grab her own), belted out. People were staring at us but it wasn\'t with annoyance or disgust but rather bemused and pleased smiles to see a group of teens and young adults belting out carols in the middle of Domino\'s shopping district. We had a few bags with us but I\'d arranged for one of my uncle\'s company cars to come and pick up most of our shopping (mine and the rest of the gang, as all of them had decided to take advantage of the trip to do some last minute shopping of their own) and take them back to my uncle\'s place so we could eat lunch without being overloaded with bags and packages.

"Man, this was a great idea, Ed!" Joey said, wearing a hat shaped like a Saint Bernard\'s head with a matching \'cask\' hanging around his neck that had a can of pop poured into it. "We need to do this every year."

"If we\'re all in Domino we\'ll make it a tradition," I told Joey. After all, I had no idea how long I\'d be in this world so it didn\'t hurt to plan ahead. "So I\'m thinking pizza for lunch. Any complaints?"

"Normally I\'d prefer something a bit more high end," Mai said before gesturing at their hats. "But considering what we are wearing I think pizza might be the best idea."

"I know a place where you can eat outside next to a fire that\'s in the center of the table," Bakura, who was wearing a santa hat... somehow... said.

"Alright, that sounds awesome. Lead the way."

But before we could get far a horn honked and a limo pulled up next to us.

"Friend of yours, Edwin?" Tristan teased as he adjusted his Christmas Tree hat.

"Just because I made several million dollars doesn\'t mean I know people who drive around in limos," I complained.

The window rolled down and, "Hey Edwin!" Mokuba declared with a grin, the puffy ball on the santa hat he was wearing bobbing about.

"Okay," I said, rubbing the back of my head, "I kinda walked into that one."

"Hi Mokuba!" Yugi said with a grin. He had chosen a pair of rather gaudy antlers on a headband (as even with the super stretchy material of the hats there was no way to get HIS hair under one) and kept glancing to his left occasionally and snickering. "What are you up to today?"

"I was dropping off the gifts that Kaibacorp donates to the local orphan each year." He stepped out of the limo and shifted a bit at that, clearly bashful. "Seto doesn\'t like doing it... not the giving gifts!" He rapidly waved his hands about wildly. "He insists we give more and more each year! Its just that going there brings back bad memories-"

"Say no more," I said quickly with a reassuring pat on his shoulder.

"Hey man, it\'s just great you did it," Tristan stated with a grin. "You wanna join us for lunch?"

"If that\'s okay with your driver," Tea added.

The chauffer though stepped out of the vehicle and merely nodded. "Mr. Chaos has been authorized to act as young Mr. Kaiba\'s guardian if his brother is not around and his actions do not go against the elder Mr. Kaiba\'s direction. As such there is no problem with him joining you for lunch."

I was a bit startled to hear that my arrangement with Seto continued even off of Duelist Kingdom but decided to roll with it. "We\'re also heading to my uncle\'s to watch movies and make cookies... you can roll by at 5 and pick him up, if that\'s okay."

"Yes sir," the chauffer said.

"Take the afternoon off, Alfred, I\'ll be fine!" Mokuba said with a grin. The driver actually smiled at that and soon we were off again, with Mokuba added to our group. Mai took the opportunity to take Tea\'s place in holding onto my arm as we walked and Mokuba was on my other side, away from the street and with Joey just behind him to make sure he didn\'t dart off or get yet again kidnapped. Tristan had taken the lead, as he was the only one who knew what pizzeria we were headed too.

"Seriously Mokuba, what you and Seto did for those kids was a great thing," I told him as we continued on. "You gave kids who aren\'t going to get presents this year a wonderful Christmas."

"Well, other than what Santa brings them," Mai stated.

I chuckled at that. "Yeah... \'Santa\'." I winked at her.

But Mai merely screwed up her face in confusion. "Uh... yeah. Santa. He\'ll have them all covered."

"Right," I said again, now confused myself by how she was acting. It was going to tip Mokuba off that something was up.

"Man, I can\'t wait to see what Santa brings me this year!" Joey said, rubbing his hands together.

"Me too!" Tea said excitedly. "I asked for some new dancing shoes, a sweater... what about you Mai?"

"Clothing of course... can\'t beat elf-made clothing. A new phone, though if I don\'t get that I\'ll be fine."

"What about you, Edwin?" Yugi asked. "What did you ask Santa for?"

"Uh..." I said, looking at them all before patting Mokuba on the shoulder. "Hey, why don\'t you give Tristan your suggestion for toppings. Or even better ask him what he wants and begin jotting them down so we know what to order."

Mokuba nodded rapidly at that. "Will do!" He rushed off to chat with Tristan, allowing me to talk to the gang without little ears hearing.

"Okay, what is going on guys?"

"We were about to ask you the same thing," Bakura said. "You\'re acting weird."

"Because you guys are playing up Santa really hard. You\'re going to make Mokuba clue in on the truth."

"What truth, Ed?"

"Uh... Santa?"

Mai paused, causing me to jerk slightly. "Edwin... what do you think we\'re talking about?"

"The fact that Santa isn\'t real?"

The gang just stared at me.

And that\'s when I learned that in the Yu-Gi-Oh! world... Santa actually existed.

Two hours later I had completely and utterly moved on from that fact.

"So where do you send the letters?" I asked as I put a tray of cookies in the oven. Yugi, Tea, and Bakura were helping me decorate the cookies while Mai, Tristan, Joey, and Mokuba were in the living room, watching as Bruce Willis ran through the office space that was currently being renovated, panicking about the death of the CEO Hans had just killed. Thankfully my uncle\'s place had no walls separating the kitchen, dining room, and living room so we were all able to watch the movie. Mai was curled up in an arm chair while the guys were sharing the couch.

"To the North Pole," Yugi told me as he worked on spreading some frosting on a cookie shaped like a snowman.

"I mean what\'s the address."

"The North Pole," Yugi said again.

"Right, but the address-"

"Edwin, love," Mai said, turning to face me, "it\'s just the North Pole. That\'s it."

"...seriously?"

"Of course!" Joey exclaimed. "Not like anyone else lives up there." He paused, pursing his lips together. "Well, except for Mrs. Claus and the elves but... there aren\'t any other houses, you know?"

"What about the Santas you see at the malls and ringing bells on street corners? Are those Claus\' army of minions? Soldiers of St. Nick?"

"Those are just guys in costumes, Edwin!" Mokuba said with a laugh, getting up so he might snaga cookie. "Everyone knows that."

"Everyone but Edwin," Tea pointed out with a small frown.

"How do you not know any of this?" Tristan asked.

"No Pharaoh, I don\'t think Edwin is so naughty that Santa skips his house," Yugi whispered a bit too loudly.

"HEY!" I snapped, Yugi blushing when he realized that I\'d heard him. "I just had a... sheltered... upbringing."

"I\'ve heard of people like that," Bakura stated as he added some green sprinkles to a Christmas Tree shaped cookie. "For whatever reason they don\'t celebrate Christmas."

"Yeah, they\'re called Jews," I muttered.

"Oh Edwin," Mai said, turning around to stare at me. "Is that why you are so excited? Is this your first Christmas away from extremists?"

"What? No! I just didn\'t realize that Santa was actually real!"

"He\'s the reason for the season though, Ed!" Joey called out.

I nearly bit my tongue to keep myself from going on a rant about Baby Jesus. There was no way 4kids would let me talk about THAT! Instead I snapped off, "No Joey, he isn\'t. The reason for the season is love, togetherness, family. It is about there being one day where we suppress our own dark desires and try and be decent and kind and loving. Santa is in no way, shape, or form, the soul reason for the holiday!"

The others grew quiet at that, leaving me to silently decorate the cookies.

~MC~MC~MC~

On top of the world there existed a large white and red striped pole with a golden ball on top. Looking like the candy canes that children and adults alike would happily suck on, this pole, the literal North Pole, marked the top of the world.

A mile and a half away from the pole, still visible to it but still far enough away to keep the sacred snowy lands around the pole safe and unspoiled, sat a massive workshop. It looked like something out of a picture book only swollen to massive size. A small medieval clobber\'s store only 10 stores tall and as large as a military base. It was festively decorated with garland and wreaths and both inside and out of the structure figures quickly hurried about their tasks. These included the beasts that called the workshop home, the crafters of all manner of items for the citizens of the world, and just general servants in charge of upkeeping the dwelling. Dressed in green and red outfits with long-tipped caps with bells, these pointy-eared figures, the long fabled Elven Race, went about their business all in the name of their master.

Their master... who currently stood on the highest balcony of the workshop, looking down upon his workers, at his eternal work. But this figure did not match the description of the \'jolly old elf\' spoken of in stories and songs. While once, perhaps, he might looked like the jolly fat man, but over the last few months he had changed and all the elves had seen it. Taller, stronger. His beard a wild mess streaked with gold and black and hanging down near to his belt. His famous \'bowl of jelly\' belly now a massive bath tub but there was nothing jiggly or wiggly about it for it was as firm as a battle ship. His thick arms, corded with muscle, tensed as he gripped the railing and narrowed his eyes. He was bare-chested, a pair of black pants clinging to his legs

"Santa?" one of the elves said softly, knocking on the door.

St. Nicholas quickly grabbed his red hat and tugged it on, hiding the circlet of gold that was currently on his brow just as the elf entered. "Yes Wipple?"

"Here are the reports we\'ve gotten for the day." He held up a thick scroll.

"Very good," Kris Kringle said, taking the report and glancing at it. His eyes skimmed past the naughty and the nice only to pause at one particular note, reading it far more slowly before rereading it again. "Hmmm... so this \'Edwin Chaos\' doesn\'t believe me real... and when presented with the truth claims that I am not the true patron and master of Christmas?" He tugged on his beard. "Ho. Ho. Ho." Santa looked back out the window. "Can a sleigh be prepared?"

"Tomorrow one can but it will be a slower one, sir."

"Very well. Make it so." The man known as Papa Noel lifted his burning gaze towards the horizon. "You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout. I\'m telling you why. Santa Claus is Coming. To. Town."