December 24th, 2016
Westland, United States
9:00 p.m.

Song: I'll Be Home for Christmas, cover by Michael Bublé

The doorbell rang, and Shelby rushed over to answer the door. The house was already beginning to fill up with it's assortment of guests. Japan, China, Hong Kong, and Sammi had been the first to arrive, then Dreamz. Next was the Canadian trio, then Thaovy and the Italians, and then Mexico and Jenna. Thaovy was refusing to speak to the other Texan at the moment. Finally, France and England had arrived.

"This house is not really dressed for the occasion." France observed as they stepped inside.

Shelby frowned, "Well, downstairs is where the party's gonna be. We were waiting for the rest of the guests. We're still expecting quite a few."

"I noticed. It's rather quiet, which must mean Australia hasn't arrived yet." Britain commented as Shelby took their coats and scarfs.

"Nope. Or New Zealand. Or the German brothers." Shelby huffed. "Honestly, you'd think people would be kind enough to show up to a party on time."

"Awww, lighten up Shelbs!" America laughed, gesturing the two guests inside. "Come on, Eyebrows, let's get a move on."

"Rude!" England snapped, but France led him further into the room as another knock rapped the door. Shelby opened it and peered outside.

"We're not, like, late to the party, right?" Poland winked. By his side was a very happy looking Russia.

"Kinda." Shelby grumbled, but there was a teasing sense to it as she let the two Slavs in.

Hope's eyes widened. "Ivan? I-I didn't think you'd be invited." She smiled and ran to him, very grateful to have another friend to keep her company at the party.

"I haven't been invited since 1917. I was quite surprised, especially given my governments recent tensions with America." Russia explained.

"In all honesty dude, I wasn't originally gonna invite you because of that whole Putin hacking the election thing or whatever," America started, "but Shelby said it wouldn't be the same if Ivan wasn't present, so here you are."

Ivan looked to Shelby in surprise. "Comrade Shelby wanted me to come?"

She crossed her arms, looking down at the floor, attempting to hide the slight flush on her cheeks. "Well, you're a friend too." She muttered just loud enough for him to hear.

His grin practically spread from ear to ear as he scooped up America and Shelby is a hug, their cheeks pressed to his as he held them close. Shelby gasped for air, while Alfred wriggled in an attempt to escape. "Americans are not being so bad, da?" He cheered.

"Da." They both choked out.

Suddenly, the door flew open. "GUESS WHO IS HERE TO MAKE YOUR CHRISTMAS PARTY AWESOME?!" A loud voice screeched from outside the door, and the countries of Prussia and Germany stepped into the house.

"Gilbert, please." Ludwig shook his head.

"Hush, West. You can not drown out mein awesomeness." Prussia mused happily.

"Gilbert," Dreamz started from across the room, "Shut. The fuck. Up."

"Ouch. That is sehr harsh, Bunny." The albino pouted. Then, he glanced around. "Hey, where is dumb und dumber?"

"Right here." Taylor stated, gesturing to Hope and Annalise. Hope clutched her chest in mock offense, while Annalise just nodded in complete agreement.

"No, I meant Austria and New Sealand. I thought they were invited." Prussia stated in confusion.

"Uh, I think you mean Australia and New Zealand. And we're right behind you, mate." Said a deep, accented voice, and Prussia practically jumped into Germany's arms in surprise. Behind him was the two Oceanic brothers, Australia looking rather tired and his younger brother in a wheel chair, a back brace keeping his body completely erect. Dreamz shifted nervously beside Sammi as they entered, Jett pushing his younger brother in.

Shelby stared at them, before shaking her head. "You know what? I'm not even gonna ask. Let's just go downstairs and play Cards Against Humanity or something."

"YES!" Thaovy screeched, grabbing Feliciano and Sebastian's hands and racing down the stairs. The rest of the countries and mortals followed more slowly behind her, leaving New Zealand alone at the door.

Cooper sighed. "Seriously?"

Shelby grabbed the game out of the desk, and Alfred walked over and whispered something in her ear. She smiled and nodded, and he winked, grabbing something out of his pocket and walking away as Shelby scanned her crowd of friends. "Dreamz, Gilbert, could you come here please?"

"Come, Dreamz, my presence is needed." Prussia stated, grabbing Dreamz's wrist and dragging her over to the American.

"Um, she called me too, dumbass." Dreamz sighed.

The pair arrived at Shelby, who stared at them with a serious gaze. Then, she turned the box of cards over and spilled them onto the floor. "Oh, wow, I'm so clumsy." She stated dramatically. "Would you mind helping me pick these up?"

"Are you serious?" Dreamz raised a brow. When Shelby didn't budge on her request, however, she sighed, and bent down with Gilbert to help gather up the cards.

When they stood up, they found that Alfred was holding a bunch of green leaves with white berries in the center over their hands. Both he and Shelby had wide smiles on their faces. "You know the rule, dudes. You gotta kiss under the mistletoe."

"No. Absolutely not." Dreamz stated defiantly, looking to the others for backup. But when she looked over, she saw most of them, including all the mortals, were smiling enthusiastically, muttering "Kiss, kiss, kiss!". Dreamz looked to Prussia for help, but found that his lips were already puckered and waiting. She sighed in exasperation. "Fine! One damn kiss." She sneered. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to Gil's, and he instantly took her face in his hands.

"Awwwwww!" All the mortal girls cooed, and Dreamz's instantly broke away, her pale skin flushed red.

"Okay, that's enough of that." She grumbled.

Turns out, Cards Against Humanity was not a wise idea with this group. Shelby kept pulling Jewish cards, Russia's were almost always sadistic and twisted, and America, Thaovy, Mexico, Prussia, Hong Kong, and Australia kept pulling the most inappropriate cards. Eventually, Canada and Japan had to walk away, and the whole group got a kick out of England and China's reactions. They didn't understand why people were laughing at such horrible stories, and then once they understood it wasn't real, they began questioning the whole object of the game. Eventually, the party just gave up and started to stuff their faces.

Jenna looked over the crowd pensively. "You know... I feel like we're missing someone."

"Well, Canada's right there if that's who you're missing." Mexico stated, jabbing a finger towards the blonde country.

"Hey!" He complained, crossing his arms in a pout.

"No, you moron, it's not Canada." Jenna smacked him upside the head. "Wasn't there a guy with curly hair? Like, two cinnabon buns in the wheelchair?"

Jett's eyes widened. "Oh. My. God. I forgot Cooper upstairs."

"This is why you're the biggest disappointment in my life." Arthur grumbled. Alfred fist pumped the air in celebration.

"Yeah, you bastards are the worse. What kind of friends leaves a fucking crippled up stairs, alone, in front of an open door?" A new voice announced, and everyone's heads instantly turned towards the stairs. At the base of the steps, Cooper's wheelchair (with Cooper in it) was being set down by a smiling Spain and an irritated looking Romano. "I thought I was a horrible person, but that's pretty freaking low." He stated, standing up and crossing his arms.

Taylor gasped from within the crowd. "Lovino?"

His eyes instantly softened, "Ciao amore."

"You made it!" She smiled, coming forward and hugging him excitedly. "What about your whole government thing?"

"I told them they could kiss my culo." Romano stated, squeezing Taylor between his arms, before letting her go.

Spain flashed a stressed smile. "Yes, that is what he said in fewer, nicer words. Afterwards I had Portugal come over to make them feel a bit better about not having the Italys around."

"Thanks, Antonio." Taylor smiled, giving him a quick hug as well. While he wasn't looking, the other girls in the room, and Feliks, took the opportunity to bask in the glory that was Spain's butt.

After everyone allowed Lovino, Antonio, and Cooper to get their fair share of food, the passing out of presents began. Feeling responsible as host and hostess, Alfred and Shelby got everyone a small little gift, such as little fandom trinkets for the girls. Other people also took the opportunity to exchange presents. Alfred got Shelby a pandora charm snowflake, and Shelby got him promise ring, which made him audibly squeal. Shelby also gave Poland a pair of hoop earrings, which he eagerly shoved into his earlobes, which were not previously pierced.

Cooper and Gilbert tried to give their gifts to Dreamz, but she had disappeared. Juan gave Jenna a bootleg copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and Jenna gave Juan a Trump mask (surprisingly, he was very excited about this gift). Thaovy gave Feli an Italian flag patterned soccer ball and Sebastian a pair of bejeweled sunglasses. In return, she received a Yuri on Ice shirt and a pair of very fancy looking ice skates.

Romano got Taylor an eyeshadow palette, but Romano would have to wait until he returned to Italy, where she had shipped his present. Annalise and Japan both got each other anime merch, causing them to giggle quietly, and France got Annalise a bracelet, making her swear she would wear it. Sammi got Hong Kong camera film, and China a detangling hairbrush, and both got Sammi a variety of anime shirts, and although they tried their hardest not to overlap, Sammi got double of a couple shirts, which was more so entertaining than disappointing.

Hong Kong had gotten China adult diapers.

"H-Hope?" A soft voice sounded, and the teen turned to face her ex-boyfriend, his violet eyes trained on the ground. He had a small box clutched in his hands. "I know we're split, but, I, uh, I got you something." He offered the gift to her, which she took hesitantly. She tentatively unwrapped the velvety box, and opened it, revealing a golden necklace with a trinket consisting of several jewels, which were connected by gold lines, creating an image that looked similar to two people standing with their arms linked.

"Is this... Gemini?" She asked, looking up in amazement.

"Yeah, that's your sign, right?" Hope nodded, and he shifted his weight. "I know you've been really into zodiac stuff lately, so I thought you might like it."

"I... Do. I love it, actually." Hope admitted.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Alfred asked as he appeared between them, holding mistletoe over their heads. "I mean, seriously, you guys made this far too easy."

"Alfr-"

"Nope, shut up, Neufeld. Rules are rules, and you have to kiss."

Matthew and Hope looked at each other, both of them wringing their hands, neither of them wanting to make the first move.

"Wait, have Canada and Manitoba broken up?" England raised a brow, glancing over at Annalise. "What did I miss?"

"Oh, well, basically, Hope found out-" Before the blonde could finished, France slapped a hand over her mouth, flashing England an awkward smile.

"We should not discuss this at the moment." He stated in a forced chuckle.

"Rules are rules!" Feliciano sang, swaying slightly.

"Yeah, get some!" Gilbert shouted, earning an elbow in the gut from his brother.

"Fine." Hope sighed, and leaned forward. Canada did as well. At first, they were rather stiff and awkward, but within a few moments, they seemed to melt into each other's embraces.

"Yikes fam. Keep your clothes on." Mexico laughed.

"Shut up, we have been Canadope deprived lately." Sammi stated, but Juan's comment caused the two Canadians to split.

"Canadope?" Arthur shook his head. "I swear, I will never understand you provinces and your- AGH WHAT IN THE BLOODY HELL?" He suddenly screeched, causing everyone to jump in surprise. He whipped around angrily to something behind him, revealing a sharpened candy cane protruding from his back.

France's eyes widened. "Uhh, England, I think you have a little something on your shirt."

England turned, slapping the Frenchman upside the head. "NO SHIT FROG! SOMEONE STABBED A-" Another candy cane shot forward and stuck itself right in Arthur's calf. He cursed in pain, collapsing and ripping out the now bloody candy cane.

"What's wrong, England? Don't like surprises much, mate?" A familiar voice asked, and the whole room turned to face Dreamz, who had eight more sharpened candy canes wedged between each of her fingers.

"Oh my god, she has prison shanks." Shelby breathed, hiding behind Alfred.

Japan's eyes widened. "She looks like Wolverine from X-Men, only Christmas themed."

"New South Wales? Wha- what the hell are you doing?" Arthur demanded, scrambling back.

"You've been sending me the twelve bloody days of Christmas!" She snapped, her eyes glinting with malice.

"I most certainly have not!" England sputtered. "Why would I waste my time and effort sending you presents every day? The very idea puts a foul taste in my mouth."

Dreamz faltered, considering this with furrowed brows. She glanced at Francis, "Is he telling the truth?"

The blonde nodded, "Oui."

She pressed her lips in a thin line. "Fine," she decided, "but cross me and I will stick all eight of these in those creepy eyes of your's."

"My eyes are not creepy, git." He pouted, but flinched as she made a threatening step towards him.

With Dreamz finally visible, she could exchange gifts. Dreamz gave Gilbert a flute (much to everyone's horror) and Cooper a Swiss flag. In exchange, she received a package of hot coco mix from Cooper, and a promise from Gilbert that she would receive her present tomorrow. With presents exchanged, the party moved to the TV and picked out a movie to watch, which ended up being The Santa Clause.

Well... Not everyone had exchanged gifts yet.

England elbowed France, making sure everyone else was absorbed in the movie.

The Frenchman glanced over. "What? Are your stab wounds bothering you?" He teased.

Arthur rolled his eyes, "No, actually, they've completely healed already. Which is rather stra-"

France covered his mouth, "What did you need, Angleterre?"

England shoved his hand away, "I wanted to give your Christmas present." He grumbled quickly. He grabbed out a small box and opened it, revealing a golden band. "I know Michigan already got America a ring, but I saw it and thought you would like it..."

France blinked in surprise, "Ohh... C'est tellement beau. I adore it, Arthur." He whispered, before frowning. "If I would have known you were getting something so extravagant, I would have gotten you something a bit nicer." He sighed, before grabbing something out of the bag at his feet. It was a green stuffed bunny with small wings on it's back.

England's eyes widened. "Is that... Flying Mint Bunny?"

"Oui. Remember that one day you were talking to him and I asked you to draw him for me?" France asked.

"Y-yes." England flushed.

"Well, I redrew it into something recognizable, and then made this." He smiled. "It's not a ring, but I hope you like it."

"I... Love it." England admitted, shifting uncomfortably. As he said so, mistletoe appeared over the countries heads, and they turned to see Shelby standing behind the couch.

"You two know the rules." She winked.

"Michigan, I expect this sort of behavior out of America, but you?" England stated, shaking his head.

"Yes yes, I'm a horrible person. But my arm is getting tired."

The two blondes looked at each other, before France smiled, gently placing his fingers under England's chin, and leaned forward, pressing his lips softly to his.

"This is my aesthetic." Hope whispered, as so not to disturb the couple. Thaovy and Hong Kong both snapped several pictures.

They eventually broke apart, England instantly clearing his throat as France chuckled. "C'était bien mieux que n'importe quelle bague."