Mel wagged her tail, delighted to see Kaelin again. They had had some good times at previous parties. "A little snow does a body good," she barked. "Lends a festive touch, in my opinion!"

She looked down at Noah who was probably ready to be constructively redirected once again. The ornament was no longer as interesting as it had been moments ago. 

"Have you met Noah?" Mel asked Kaelin. "He's new!"

Noah, hearing his name, turned to see Kaelin. He immediately held out the ornament towards her and began babbling excitedly. The clearest word in the sentence was "red", probably referring to the ornament's color. 

"Well, here we are," Dan Baxter said as he led his little family up the steps to the Mansion.

"It's been a while," his wife agreed. Various family issues had kept them away from recent celebrations, but they were back and ready to join in the fun this year.  "Better late than never," she added.

Grace hesitated.  "Maybe no one will remember us."

Angie crouched so she was eye-to-eye with her oldest.  "Good friends like Kaelin and Mel will remember."

Emma was walking now, but kept a tight grip on her daddy's hand.  She was nervous and excited all at once.

Dan sensed this and smiled down at her.  "We'll be with you the whole time."  He paused and opened the door.  "After you, ladies," he said with a bow.

His daughters giggled at this and went in. The adults barely had time to scan the surroundings before two excited voices called out, "Mel!" and the kids were off and running toward the big friendly dog.

"Hi Noah! Why, thank you!" Kaelin said, taking the ornament. "Should I eat it?" she asked, pretending to take huge bites and chew. 

Maeve stood with Delia for a moment, watching, then turned toward the door as the new arrivals...arrived.

"Hi Angie, Hi Dan!" she exclaimed. "Great to see you both."

"Nooo!" Noah squealed. He pointed to the ornament and babbled some more. One of the words might have been "throw". 

"What's all this, then?" Ian said, coming back with a full plate. "Hey, wow, I didn't know those were edible!" He reached up and grabbed a small purple ornament off the tree. "I bet this one's grape flavored." He pretended to pop it into his mouth, which reduced Noah to giggles.

As he returned the ornament to the tree, Ian noticed the Baxters. He beamed. "Rose! And Rose! No, wait. Grace and Emma! How have you been?"

Dan and Angie watched their daughters run off to play with Mel and then turned to Maeve and Delia.

"Hello!" Angie began.  "It's been too long. Sorry we missed last year but we're glad to be back.  How are the two of you?"

Grace and Emma gladly greeted Kaelin and giggled as Ian called each of them Rose and as he pretended to eat the ornament.  "Hi, Ian," Grace said.  "We're good.  Who is this little guy?"

Both girls seemed entranced by Noah; Grace because she loved playing "big sister" to Emma and her little friends, and Emma since it meant she was no longer the littlest one there.

Kaelin squealed and hugged Grace, wanting to jump up and down upon seeing the girl she considered to be her best friend. She hugged Emma too, and the joined them in laughing at Ian's antics, the ornament Noah had so recently wanted her to throw now long forgotten (and perhaps snuck back onto the tree).

~~

"We've been well! Just a little snowed in of late," Maeve chuckled. "How about yourselves? Emma's gotten so big!"

Gentle writers, it is now the 12th day of Christmas, and, with that comes the end of the holiday season. Soon, it will be time for the Mansion to shut its doors once again. 

You are welcome to continue writing, but be warned: the close of this week will also bring the Mansion to a close!

Signed,

D. Death

Grace likewise squealed happily as Kaelin hugged her, and Emma joined in as the three of them jumped up and down in their joy of being together again, however briefly.

---

"We've been well too,  thanks for asking," Angie replied.  "The girls certainly keep us busy."  She smiled with pride seeing her daughters greet their friends.  "Yup, Emma's growing like crazy.  Time's going by so fast; Grace is probably going to be asking for driving lessons and the car keys before we know it."

"I feel bad that we've missed these parties," Dan added.  "There were some illnesses in our extended family that kept us away, but it's all much better now.  We've really missed everyone."

Ian ruffled Noah's curls. "Oh, I picked him up at Cute Kids R Us on the way here. Do you like him? I kept the receipt, so I could return him if he doesn't work out." 

He scooped the little boy up and noisily kissed his cheek, making him giggle even more. 

"A toast to the New Year," Delia said, raising a glass. "May it be full of its own surprises!"

With that, it is time for our celebration to draw to a closer and the Mansion doors to shudder shut again. Keep an eye out, though...who knows what changes spring might bring around the Mansion grounds!

Poisoned kisses,

D. Death