The tree was twinkling, a fire was crackling in the hearth, snow was falling gently outside the picture window, and Kyle was nestled on the couch with Hal, sharing kisses that tasted of spiced wine. It was turning out to be a remarkably peaceful and quiet Christmas this year. No galactic emergencies, no Earth destroying crises, no—
The front door slammed open, letting in a gust of cold air, and boots clomped across the wood floors. Maura skid to a halt, nearly sliding into the tree. Marty was right behind her with a handful of snow.
“Dad! He’s going to put snow down my neck!”
“She did it to me first!”
“Because you hit me in the face with a snowball, you jerk!”
“Only because you knocked me into a snow drift!”
“Okay, enough!” Hal yelled. “How about you both clean that mess up,” he said, pointing at the trail of melting snow from the door.
“She’s the one who ran in here,” Marty complained. “I shouldn’t have to clean up after her.”
“You followed her,” Kyle said. “You can both clean it up.”
Maura gave them what Hal called the ‘Rayner Puppy Dog Eyes’. “Can’t you just clean it up with the ring?”
Kyle wasn’t going to swayed by his pouting daughter. He pointed towards the kitchen. “Mop. Now.”
They both huffed in the way that only teenagers can, as if being made to clean up after themselves was a severe injustice. They stomped off to the kitchen, Marty leaving drips of water behind from the snow in his hand that was rapidly turning to slush.
Kyle used his ring to shut the front door, then turned back to Hal’s embrace. “Remember when they were babies and they just lay around being cute?”
There was a squeal from the kitchen. “Marty! That’s freaking ice! I’m going to kill you!” The back door slammed, then Marty ran into view in the yard. He disappeared in a puff of snow when Maura tackled him.
“Well, so much for a quiet Christmas,” Kyle said, watching as Maura stuffed a handful of snow down Marty’s pants. “Think we should go break it up?”
“I have a better idea,” Hal said with a grin. He used a construct to pluck their coats and gloves from the pegs by the door. “What better way to create peace than making them unite against a common enemy?”