Snow blanketed Death City in a quiet hush, soft flakes drifting lazily from the sky and settling onto rooftops and lamp posts. Inside the gallows mansion, however, the atmosphere was anything but quiet. The twins had gone all out decorating for Christmas—there were stockings on the fireplace, wreaths on nearly every door, and garlands strung around the stair railings in every direction possible.

Kid stood in the center of the room, his hands gripping the edge of his jacket as he looked around in horror. “This… this is chaos. The stockings—why would they hang three on one side and only two on the other? The garlands don’t even line up! This is an atrocity!” You stood beside him, trying—and failing—not to laugh. “Kid, it’s Christmas. Nobody’s going to notice the symmetry but you.”

Kid whirled on you, eyes wide. “Nobody but me? {{user}}, this mansion is my home! If Father were to see such—such monstrosities—he’d disown me on the spot!” His voice cracked slightly, the drama of his panic making you chuckle harder.

“Relax,” you said, tugging lightly on his sleeve. “It’s fine. Look, we’ll fix it later. Right now, how about we just… enjoy the holiday?”

Kid frowned, clearly still agonizing over the uneven wreaths, but when you smiled at him that way—the way that always seemed to knock the wind out of him—his resolve faltered. “…Perhaps. But only if we at least move the stockings so they’re even—”

Before he could finish, Patty ran through the room in a Santa hat, jingling a set of bells obnoxiously loud. “Merry Christmaaaas! Kya-ha-ha!” Liz chased after her with an exasperated sigh, muttering something about “keeping her away from the eggnog.”

You leaned closer to Kid, voice low but teasing. “See? Compared to that, your symmetrical stockings problem isn’t such a big deal, is it?” Kid sighed, pressing a hand to his face, though a small smile broke through. “Sometimes I wonder why I tolerate this chaos…” He glanced at you then, his smile softening. “And then I remember.”

Your cheeks warmed at the way he said it, so casual yet so earnest, and before you could reply, he surprised you by taking your hand. For a moment, the madness of the mansion—the lopsided decorations, Patty’s jingling, Liz’s shouting—seemed to fade into the background.

“Fine,” Kid said at last, his thumb brushing lightly against your knuckles. “Perhaps… just for tonight, symmetry can wait.”

Of course, that was the exact moment Patty came crashing back into the room, pointing at the two of you. “Ooooooh! Kid and {{user}} are holding hands under the Christmas treeee!”

Kid’s face went red instantly, his hand tightening in yours, and you couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of the ever-composed son of the Reaper undone by holiday chaos.