The prompt for this week is 'Hot Chocolate' since it's Christmastime. One would think I might finally meet the word count (nope) or write some warm and fuzzy fluff fanfic (also nope). Hot Chocolate is warming and sweet, but is that all? Does it not burn your tongue sometimes or get cold before you can down the whole cup? Are there bad sides to the good? I hope you all enjoy the writing for this week!

>(<>)<

Lloyd couldn't ignore the bitter cold, no matter how many times he rubbed his gloved hands together and insisted to himself he'd be okay. It was below zero outside, with a gentle snow falling from the dark clouds above. He knew it'd pick up before nightfall, but right now he didn't really care. He'd been carrying on this tradition for years, and no coming blizzard was going to stop him now.

     The frozen gravel crunched under his feet as he made his way down the cemetery road. The graves that lined the fields were growing dark with the moisture soaking into them, and the letters faded as the snow-water dripped down into the creases. Lloyd couldn't tell which grave belonged to who, or whether or not they were recent. He could see no other heavily clad people out to wish their loved ones goodbye, which probably was a good thing. No one else needed to be out in this weather.

     When he finally found their graves, he stumbled up to stand next to them. So far, he hadn't needed a cane, but Master Wu's old staff had helped him quite a bit through his older years. Lloyd stopped in the middle of the circle, his eyes going over every single headstone. The city had decided to put them in a circle to show their unity, but it pained him every time to see the broken spot left in the circle.

     It was there for him.

     He made his way down into a sitting position, sitting where his headstone was supposed to be. He could imagine his friends sitting on top of theirs, laughing with the absurdity that it had been almost three hundred years and he still hadn't joined them. Lloyd wished he could laugh with them, but every time he thought about it, he became both anxious and saddened.

     He had to live through all of their deaths.

     He had seen Kai's fiery eyes extinguish. The poor guy had done something really stupid at an old age and landed himself in the hospital. Lloyd remembered Skylor's urgent call as the fire ninja's health declined. Kai had insisted he was fine all the way up until his last breath. Lloyd could still remember his final smile.

     He placed a package of spicy cinnamon sticks in front of the cracked grave.

     Lloyd could remember how both Jay and Nya had died from the same event. They were both getting on in their years, yet both of them risked their lives to save a family from a reckless driver. The family had made it through the crash. Jay and Nya had not.

     He set a couple candy cane rings in front of their shared headstone.

     No one really knew what happened to Cole. Some reports said a tree fell on him; others said it was the ghost of the wood coming to take revenge. All anyone ever knew was that he and his son went camping in a haunted forest, and neither of them ever returned.

     Lloyd sat down a giant bag of marshmallows in front of his empty grave.

     Zane had survived much longer than his friends, living almost one hundred years after their deaths. However, he wasn't able to keep updating to the current technology, and his nearly indestructible heart finally gave up. Lloyd had been there when it happened, when Zane uttered his last words.

     "Will I join them in the Departed Realm?"

     Lloyd shook a bottle of whipped cream and set it in front of Zane's spot.

     Then, he fished a thermos out of his parka's pocket and undid the lid.

     A steaming hot chocolate greeted him. Lloyd shivered, tucking his head close to the warm liquid. The snow was falling harder now, just like the forecast predicted. It wouldn't be long before it started sticking to the ground and piling up.

     Lloyd reached into his other pocket and took out a few plastic cups. He filled each one with the hot chocolate in his thermos, carefully setting each one by each grave.

     He dropped the cinnamon sticks in Kai's.

     He let the candy canes float in Jay and Nya's.

     Lloyd poured a little bit of hot chocolate into Cole's marshmallows.

     He made the most elegant whipped cream top he could on Zane's.

     Lloyd finally added a little bit of all the ingredients to what was left of his now lukewarm hot chocolate. He smiled at each of the graves and sipped down the liquid.

     No ghosts came to take their cups, no familiar faces ever greeted him. Lloyd's posture slowly slumped. Why did he do this again? It wasn't like the little ritual would ever bring them back. Maybe it was just him stupidly trying to hold on to a tradition that had died years ago.

     "R-remember w-w-when we used t-to—" Lloyd swallowed, rubbing his arms to try and bring back some warmth. "—w-when we used t-t-to meet up every w-winter and have a p-p-party? K-kai would always make the b-b-best—"

     It was so cold.

     Maybe too cold.

    The cups of hot chocolate slumped over in the piling snow, spilling their contents out onto the decayed gravestones.

     The circle was finally completed.

>(<>)<

 A/N

This was a bit shorter than my previous writing bits, so I'm making progress towards the wordcount! Make sure to check out @therearenooptions to see her half of this week's prompt. I'll see you all next week!

~squidneyxd