*notices the attempt to change the suject, but don't fight it*
"Well, I got to save my money for the holidays. How about a bet of 100 instead".
She takes a seat and they both watch the race.
Naomi responds to Kurisho and looks around the Tea House. "Holidays... ooh crap, almost forgot about that! We have some shopping to do. Not to mention decorations.
I'll get Watsas to start putting up lights when he gets back. And we'll probably need a holiday tree... hmmm..."
Naomi got up and went to the supply room to get out the decorations and try to figure out what she was going to get everyone.
"Oh! That reminds me," Miharu said. She stood and walked over to a nearby table and pulled a hat out of the box she had sitting there.
"Would you like a hat, too, Lady Kurisho? I brought them back from Yanagi."
She sees the hat......thinking to herself, When do i ever get a chance to wear a hat?
She lets of a smile upon her Black painted lips and takes the extended gift.
Why, thank you very much......it's..................lovely, Miharu.
She places the hat next to her, then taps a few more notes on her datapad.
Hai, Naomi. Holiday decorations would be a good idea, however I would advised getting someone else to help put them up. Knowing Watsas, .... would probably use Prima-cord instead of Christmas lights.
And please.....make sure the tree isn't poisonous or can eat us. Do you remember the Christmas of Ouht`Six??
I thought that 'thing' was gonna kill us all.
*She shudders slightly, just thinking about it*
Naomi overheard Kurisho's comment, remembering that particular year and the tourment that followed, one that would have made even Watsas seem tame...
"Yeaaah... If that happens again this year... just let it and Watsas duke it out. They'll be fine.
But... keep him away from the decorations. I'll just put the lights up myself. Unless anyone here wants to help?"
Nobody initally volunteered to help.
"Umm... Now. Help me get the decorations out. Hopefully before Watsas gets back and messes everything up...
Ooh, speaking of which!"
Naomi walked out of the Tea house and activated a long-range communications device.
"Watsas, It's Naomi. On your way back, can you stop and get us a holiday tree? A regular tree. One that dosen't move. Dosen't thirst for human blood. Just a tree. Thank you.
Also, start thinking about what you want to get everyone for their gifts. And no wool sweaters. THINK before you buy. We good? Good." Naomi commented to Watsas over the communicator.
***
Watsas meanwhile, was still in L.A., and had just chucked the (now bloodied) sack, weighted down with several cinder blocks, into the ocean when he recived Naomi's voice communication.
"Frak, almost forgot about Christmas! I... Have shopping to do!" Watsas announced dramatically.
"Hmm... what to get?" Watsas pondered the implications of getting gifts for the various meats he would undoubtedly have to give... in the most Assed and selfish way possible, of course.
"I've got it! This... is going to be sweet... Muwhahahahahahahahhaha!
A few days have gone by. It is now the eve of Christmas.
The Tea house and the rest of the base, is decorated in a more holiday mode.
Some of the decorations are real....real Christmas tree lights, Christmas tree real ornaments ...all hanging on what Watsas had brought us for a 'tree'. More like a short Blue colored cactus.
But after the 'tree' spent a few days in Airlock # 3, we desided it wasn't gonna move or eat us.
Nether less, we wired a High-Voltage stun tazer with remote, to the 'tree'.........just in case.
The rest of the decorations are homemade or improvised.....One of the pilots wired a set of lights, from the spare parts bin. A couple of low power strobes, wing tip markers lights and a battery pack.
Other decorations are handmade. Folded paper objects in the shapes of cranes, flowers, birds and other shapes.
The wrapped gifts are few and far between. Some wrapped with paper, others wrapped in cloths. Most of them are nestled under the 'tree'. Some of the gifts set on the bar counter or tables. Tags on the girls range from Clearly Marked ( with To & From) to being encoded with numbers, to help slow down those that want to get a sneak peek.
A temporary work shift detail has been setup : Twice as many people working, but half the hours...giving many workers extra time to celebrate.
Meanwhile, the fighters, gunboats and other ships are fully fueled, armed and ready to go on a moments notice. One can never be too sure or too relaxed.
--------------------
Twas the night before christmas, and all through the station, not a creature was stirring, not even the Watsas.
This usually wasn't a good sign, as whenever Watsas quiets down means he's planning for something. He had been seen earlier with a lot of Gift wrap, boxes, and tape. After a few hours, Watsas finally revealed himself by barging into the tea house.
He was now dressed as Santa Claus, carrying a large bool of presents which he carried to and set under the Christmas cactus, before turning around and looking over the populace.
"Ho Ho Ho, merry christmas meatbags!" He bellowed cheerfully
"Happy holidays, commander." Steve, one of Watsas cybernetic minions, replied.
"Holidays...?"
"Yeah? It's the holidays."
"HOLIDAYS!?" Watsas exclaimed, angered by Steve's political correctness
"Awww crap..." Naomi shrugged as she anticipated the impending tourment to begin.
Watsas walked over to Steve imposingly. "It's not the holidays, it's CHRISTMAS Eve! Spiked Eggnog, Trees, Flying reindeer, and good ol' santa himself."
"Well... I don't know what religion everyone here is? I wouldn't want to offend anyone..." Steve replied
"What does Relegion have to do with anything? Christmas is supposed to be about spending hard earned cash on material goods to give to your friends and loved ones! That's how it's ALWAYS been!" Watsas exclaimed.
"Please, do not encourage this man." Naomi stated, trying to keep Watsas from getting some sort of ideas.
"...This is all part of the War on Christmas! They've been trying to destroy it since the puritans, the Democrats, and probably the AFA too. You don't want to be on the AFA's side, do you!?" Watsas continued.
"Well... no, I guess I don't..." Steve replied, trying to calm Watsas down.
"Just don't do anything... scary, Watsas." Naomi stated, before taking s gulp of Eggnog.
"No... No I have presents to wrap... CHRISTMAS presents." Watsas announced and left the Tea house...
...for a few minuites, before returning with what appeared to be a Refrigerator box wrapped up and covered in an elaborate bow. Watsas scooted the box to beside the tree before going to watch the holovision.
"What... the hell... is that?" Naomi asked, suspicious of such a large box.
"I ain't telling you, you'll see tomarrow. It's a surprise." Watsas replied, before turning his attention to the Holovision
Naomi shrugged, staring at the Box suspiciously as Watsas left, sipping her glass of christmas cheer as she did so.
"Hey, who spiked the eggnog!?"
THAT MORNING...
***
By this point, a sizable precentage of the population of Ainu were gathered in the Tea House, exchanging gifts, drinking down traditional spiked eggnog, and generally sharing christmas cheer. The majority were GC, though some Junker and Outcast smugglers, Consortium soldiers, and other random people who managed to gain access to the interior of the station without being shaken down and skinned alive by Watsas or Kurisho.
Watsas himself had been asleep... or whatever his equivelent would be, in the Tea house, largely ignored by the populace. By this point however, he had awoken to begin passing out gifts to the various patrons.
"Hey, Naomi?" Watsas asked, brandishing some sort of present.
Naomi, who was still quite buzzed from the Eggnog and a wee bit of Tequila, Replied heartily. "What'cha want watteh?*giggles*"
"Here, open this." Watsas handed Naomi the present. She eventually managed to open it, revealing an elaborately decorated Kimono.
"Wow! You actually got me something nice! Thanks, boltbag." She replied
"Okay, now who else is here?" Watsas stated, getting another present and searching for Lady Kurisho.
"That is very nice, Naomi," Miharu said. "Quite pretty!"
"Oh, Watsas!" she exclaimed. "I have something for you."
She reached under the table and pulled out a very large hat. "It's a hat! But not just any hat. My friend here," she said, gesturing towards a Junker who sat nearby, "helped me modify it. It has a miniature Suncannon built into it!"
"I just need to find Keiko now," Miharu added. "I have a hat for her, too..."
"OK, where do you want these?" A woman in a Junker uniform with short sandy hair carried a heavy-looking box into the Tea House.