Heres a story for Christmas.  It got stuck in my head and I had to get 
it out.  Anyway, this one is all mine.  I didn't steal characters from 
anyone this time.  Enjoy.

Matthew Trotter, This office now doubles as a meat locker.
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Christmas Story
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Matthew Trotter
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   Jannet rushed out of the house.  The first flakes were just starting 
to fall.  They drifted on the breeze like little swaths of cotton.  
Jannet put out her tongue and caught one.  It was cold, but delicious.  It 
tasted like Christmas.  Some people thought Christmas would taste like 
egg nog, but to her it was the icy cold of the first snow.  Up the 
street, Arnold Baker was running around with his tongue out.  He and Sam 
were having a contest to see who could catch more flakes on his tongue.  
It sounded fun, so Jannet headed for Arnold's.
   On every street of the city happy children were rushing out to play in 
the snow fall.  It was genetic.  Children were always happy to see snow.  
And they wanted nothing more than to go run in circles playing in the 
first fall.  As a rule, they would all get tired of it in about thirty 
minutes and go in for cocoa.  Tomorrow would yield more fun.  Then there 
would be enough snow for snow men and snowball fights and sledding.
   About eight miles away, Brad Mordin looked up from the report he was 
keying in for his presentation tomorrow.  It was snowing.  Brad smiled.  
Sarra was going to be radiant tonight when he got home.  She had been 
telling him how much she wanted a white Christmas, and here it was.  It 
was going to be great.  He would bet money that there were kids out in 
the streets already playing.  He would have been.  He laughed as he went 
back to his report.
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   Fellowship smiled and hugged her arms around herself.  She loved 
Christmas.  It was the one time when the whole world was happy.  Emotion 
had been bouncing off the walls all week.  Fellowship knew Emotion was 
anxious to give Lucid a present.  It was good to see her so happy.  Now 
if only Sarcasm would start acting civil.  Everyone else was.  Anger, 
Doubt, even Hatred was acting more civil.  Except Sarcasm.  He hated 
Christmas.  Of course.  He hated anything that wasn't depressing.  
Actually, now that she thought of it, he hated anything that was 
depressing.  Sarcasm either hated something or just didn't care.  She 
didn't think she'd ever seen him claim to like anything.  It was annoying 
to have him start acting like this after being so nice to her on her 
birthday...
   Emotion rushed into the room and pressed herself against the wall.  
Fellowship was about to ask her what she was doing when Hatred ran up 
and looked in the door.  There could only be one explanation.  Hatred 
was playing tag with Emotion.  Hatred.  She had a bigger list of things 
she hated than Sarcasm did.  It was the Christmas spirit.  Nothing else 
could make someone like Hatred play nice.  Hatred looked at her and 
smiled.  Emotion bolted just as Hatred swung around the door frame.  
Fellowship felt her jaw drop open as Hatred chased Emotion down and 
tickled her.  It could only happen at Christmas.  Hatred jumped up...
   "Your it Emotion!"
   Hatred whirled around and ran for the door....and ran head long into 
Sarcasm.  Hatred sat down hard with a little squeak of surprise.  
Sarcasm took a step backwards and glared at her.
   "Don't run in the halls."
   Hatred looked indignant, "Who made you my mom?"
   "I was saying that for Emotion's benefit.  Your supposed to be old 
enough to know better."
   Hatred blushed a deep red.  She wasn't the type to be easily 
embarrassed, but if anyone could embarrass her, it was definitely Sarcasm.  
He would have made a good parent.  He could catch anyone if they were 
doing something that would embarrass them.  Just one of his many pointless 
talents.  Hatred looked like she was going to say something, but then 
seemed to think about it and change her mind.  She dropped her eyes 
before replying.
   "I'm sorry, Sarcasm.  We won't play inside anymore."
   "Whatever."
   Fellowship closed her mouth.  She had never seen Hatred back off from 
anyone or anything.  She was far from being Fellowship's favorite 
sibling, but there was just something about the way Sarcasm seemed to 
disregard her apology that struck a disharmonious cord for Fellowship.  
Hatred got up and dusted off her pants.
   "Come on Emotion we can go play cards with Doubt and Anger."
   "They never let me play..."
   "They can let you play or they can eat their cards and a knuckle 
sandwich."
   Emotion grinned.  They were just going to ignore Sarcasm.  After the 
way he treated them.  After he ruined their fun.  That was even more 
irritating than Sarcasm being a bully.
   "You aren't just going to let it go at that?"
   Hatred looked at her, "It doesn't matter Fellowship."
   "It doesn't matter?  He just treated you like you were a. .. a...
something not important."
   Hatred cocked her head, as if to see her from a new angle, "You don't 
know do you?"
   "Know what?"
   Emotion looked nervous, and Hatred looked thoughtful, "I guess it 
makes sense.  You wouldn't notice..."
   "What?  What wouldn't I notice?"
   "Look around Fellowship.  Everybody's happy.  Why?  Do you really 
think it's just Christmas?  Christmas is a mortal thing.  Nobody here 
would care if it weren't for him."
   "Who?"
   "Sarcasm, Fellowship."
   "What does he have to do with Christmas?  He's just a big old Grinch."
   "Can't you feel it?"
   Emotion put her hand in Hatred's, "She can't.  She doesn't tune in to 
it."
   "What are you talking about?"
   "Do you know why I'm not mad at Sarcasm?"
   "No..."
   "All the hate is gone, Fellowship.  There are millions of people who 
hate each other.  Some of them are going to kill each other.  I know 
because I feel it all the time.  Just like you can feel their love I can 
feel their hate.  But its gone now.  Do you know why?"
   "Because its Christmas.  Everyone is happy at Christmas."
   "No.  Its because he has it."
   "Sarcasm?"
   "That's right.  Its his present to us.  For one week, he takes 
everything negative and lets us enjoy ourselves."
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   There was one place she knew she would find him.  With the FIRST.  
Sometimes you were supposed to be able to feel him in his old room.  That 
was where Sarcasm went to be alone.  It was kind of creepy.  It wasn't 
the type of place that you went to hang out.  A perfect place for him.
   Fellowship looked at the empty room.  He wasn't here.  She decided to 
go look at the room anyway.  It was dark, it had a feel to it.  It was 
like walking into a dungeon.  It just felt that way.  There was no 
furniture, there was just one small mirror on the wall.  It had to be 
small.  Every other inch of the room was covered in drawings.  From when 
he went insane.  There were so many, she knew most of them...maybe by now 
she knew them all.  She found herself, and Emotion, and Anger, and Lucid, 
and Hatred, and Justice, and ....
   It was weird, she didn't remember the pictures as being so . . . right...
They weren't really of what you looked like, it was really more of what 
you were.  There was some physical likeness, but you just knew who it was 
with your heart.  She did know them all too...there was just one thing... 
one person who was missing .  .  .  Sarcasm.
   Fellowship stared into the mirror, her image gazed back at her . . .
and after a time, so did Sarcasm's.  She didn't remember him walking in, 
he was just there.  It was weird.  He looked like he belonged there.  
Just over her right shoulder.  Staring into the mirror...at her?
   "Your pictures not on the wall, Sarcasm."
   "Probably an artistic over sight on HIS part."
   "Why can't you be nice?"
   "Why should I?"
   "Sarcasm, if you can take their pains and sadness, why not take my 
happiness?  It would balance out."
   He gave her a sad little smile, "No.  It doesn't balance out.  Not at 
the same time."
   "How would you know?"
   "I can feel it.  Do you want to know what I feel?"
   "Yes.  It ca... .. ..."
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Jannet took a big gulp of cocoa.The man told Howard that he still didn't 
have enough for the bottle.The warmth spread down her like a pleasant 
wave.He had to go back out and try to get another four dollars,out in 
the cold.She couldn't wait for tomarrow,the snow was going to be so much 
fun.He hoped that the damn snow would quit soon.Brad saved the document 
and began to pack up to head home.It was so cold Wendy couldn't feel her 
legs.Tommy lay there on his stomach starting at the presents under the 
tree.They were going to try to lay down some shell fire before moving 
into the town,it was going to be a real blood bath in there.Dr.Sam looked 
her over,she probably wasn't going to make it through the night.Fred 
swallowed another cup of coffee and started to tell Mr.Tanaka about the 
BB gun he was going to give his son this year.Talinqua looked at little 
Dishwalla and hoped the missionaries brought some food around this 
year.Tommy knew the BB gun had to be under there,his dad couldn't have 
forgoten.Dr.Sam hoped her son would stop by tonight,it would be a bitch 
of a Christmas to have your mother die on you.Jannet went to take a 
nap.The man told Howard to get a job.Brad wondered if he should stop by 
The Home and see his mother before going home.Carol kissed John good 
night.Brad decided not to ruin his good mood.Jannet fell asleep to thinking
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   The pain and sadness were gone.  Sarcasm was looking at her with a 
strange look on his face.  It might have been sympathy.
   "It never gets any better, Fellowship."
   When she turned around he was gone.  All that pain.  It was inside 
him.  She understood.  He couldn't be happy with all that pain, it would 
drive him crazy.  Just like the FIRST.  It made more sense now.  The 
FIRST had created them to hold all the different emotions.  To keep from 
being insane.  But if the FIRST had painted the emotions into them where 
had he gone?  Fellowship looked into the mirror again.  It seemed out of 
place.  The only thing in the room that didn't really fit.  She reached 
out and lifted it off the wall.  There was a picture behind it.  It was 
just the head, but it had to be Sarcasm.  It had the same look, but, . . 
. . it had a sad little smile.  
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   At 5:45pm Brad Mordin pulled over and headed to The Home.  His mother 
wasn't doing terribly well, but was elated to see him.  At 11:45pm Clarisa 
Mordin didn't die a lonely woman.  The next day Dr. Sam Johnston chalked 
it up to a Christmas miracle.
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   Somewhere he smiled, a sad little smile, it never gets any better, but 
sometimes the endings change. 
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End.