A Vague Attempt at Celebration

It was Christmas, and the demon-girl didn’t have a family anymore. She was trapped in another world, separated from all of them. Nobody would be giving her any gifts, today. Nobody would be there to tell her that they loved her, or that they still loved her, even if she looked like a demon now. The horns were actually kind of cute, in a way, Chloe’s mom would try to tell her. Her mother was always trying to win that unwinnable fight, to bolster Chloe’s self-esteem.

Chloe didn’t want to think about her parents, least of all good memories about them. The good memories were the worst. Those were the ones that made her hide her face, that made her blame some exotic tropical allergen for making her eyes water. She wasn’t fooling anyone, least of all herself.

She might not be getting any gifts this season, and her family was gone, but that wouldn’t stop her from at least trying to celebrate the holiday. There was at least one person she felt close to in this world.

It was Christmas morning, and the demon-girl was knocking on the door to Cheeto’s room. She held a small, gift-wrapped box, and she was wearing a big, red Santa-Claus-style hat.

“Hi, Cheeto.” Chloe managed to smile back. “Merry Christmas.”

The demon looked around the room. Ribbons, lights, even a little tree with gifts under it. It wasn’t anything like what she’d put together with her mom when they decorated the house, but it was a lot more than she expected from a dorm.

She tried not to think about her home. Better not to tempt those mysterious tropical allergens.

“I got something for you!” Chloe held out her gift-wrapped box. Shipping to an island in the middle of the pacific could get expensive, but she was able to get a little bit of extra allowance from the school for it. It was the only gift she would give: a replica Star Trek communicator badge. It didn’t work, of course, but it looked cool. Chloe thought it might make a neat accessory or something.

While Cheeto started to unwrap her gift, Chloe turned to her sister. “Hi Dorito.” She waved, trying to ignore the vague aura of hostility that she was getting from the orange-haired goblin.

At least Cheeto was happy. Contagiously so: that squealing sound was so adorable it made the demon-girl start giggling. “I’m glad you like it.” A few moments were spent fishing for a Star Trek reference to make, but she missed her opportunity. Cheeto was getting something from under the tree.

Chloe hadn’t expected a gift. Especially not one in such a cute little bag. “Th-Thanks.” She took out the snow globe and examined it in silence.

Thinking of you, it read.

The goblin explained herself. "I got it since, y'know, you might have a lot on your mind... But I wanted you to know that... Y'know, like… That people here had you on their mind, too."

Chloe’s smile was gone, now. Her eyes began to water. She sniffed, then looked at Cheeto for a second before snatching her up in an abrupt hug. It was a very tight hug. Maybe even uncomfortably tight. “I’m sorry,” she blubbered. “I promised myself I wouldn’t cry.” The hug tightened. “That was really nice… thank you.”

Chloe held the hug for a while longer, until she could get her tears under control. She let Cheeto back to her feet, sniffed, and looked at the snowglobe again, shaking it a few times. She was smiling now. “I mean it, though,” she said. “I wasn’t even expecting a gift.”

Her eyes turned to meet Cheeto’s. “Anyway, before I started crying all over you, I was gonna ask you something.” Nervous chuckle. “Are you, uh… doing anything today? I know I should have asked sooner.”

“I… I didn’t mean… I mean…” Chloe looked from Cheeto to Dorito and back again. There was something going on between these two, and the demon-girl’s mind was only beginning to process it. She didn’t want to make anyone mad, and Dorito was looking mad. She spoke before she understood what was happening. “I didn’t have anything planned. I was actually hoping I could join you guys for... um, whatever you were going to do today. If that’s cool.”

As soon as she was done speaking, she realized that she had made a terrible mistake. Cheeto wanted Chloe to save her from whatever festive holiday hell Dorito had in store. Chloe was the Cheeto’s last hope, and she just let her down. She would start apologizing to Cheeto as soon as Dorito wasn’t around to hear.

“I’ve never been to a Christmas party with college kids before.” Chloe smiled nervously at Dorito, trying to feign thankfulness for this wonderful opportunity.

Whatever horrors awaited Chloe and Cheeto at this Christmas party, at least they would face it together.