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Continue reading for A Very Spectral Christmas, catch up with the Part One Recap, start at Chapter 1, or find where you left off.
Text copyright © 2025 Ed Herrington & Jan Herrington
Last time on TSA
With a sigh, I stood. For both of us, I clanked my sword with the others, glancing at each of them.
“That settles it. Tomorrow we go on the attack.”
“Wooh! Spectral Squad! Let’s gooo!” Chai exclaimed to no one but me.
While visions of friends and sugar plums danced in his head, Viktor went to sleep.
A Very Spectral Christmas
I awoke in the cabin, Kira sleeping soundly beside me. Opening the curtains, I saw it was snowing. There were already a few inches on the ground. I love snow and the crisp chill it brings. This was a great start for what would surely be a perfect day.
In the living room, the Christmas tree’s lights were emitting a yellow glow. It would otherwise be dark with the late sunrise. We always kept the tree lights on, giving the cabin warmth and holiday spirit.
Chai was still curled up on the couch, appearing to be asleep. Under the tree, I saw only four presents. One was still missing.
“Morning sunshine, how’d you sleep?” Chai asked, yawning.
“It’s Winter, the sun isn’t up yet.” I corrected.
“Viktor, I don’t think you know what sunshine is.”
I smirked. “Morning. Have you seen Rue? She hasn’t put a present under the tree yet.”
“She slipped out an hour ago, all tacticaled up.”
“Alright. I need some—”
“Coffee. Yeah, yeah, I’ll get it.” Chai offered, already moving toward the small kitchen to make a pot.
I sat down in the big leather chair, day-dreaming about the feast we would have later. My family stuck with the Russian traditions. I can taste the sweet kutya now. With the five of us, we’d have quite the mix of traditions. I wonder what everyone will bring to the table.
Chai handed me a cup, I took a sip. “Thanks, it’s great.”
“Yep, just like you like it, black and brooding.” he said, proceeding to scoop six spoonfuls of sugar into the milk-swirled brew in his cup. I wanted to gag—instead, I inhaled the steam rising from my mug.
The door to Finn and Rue’s bunk room opened, and Finn stepped out, still wearing silk pajamas. “Morning folks, what’s up?”
“Nothing, just wondering how Chai stays toned with that sugar intake.” I replied.
“Hey man, you can eat whatever you want as long as you work it off.” Chai proclaimed.
Finn’s face twisted in horror. “Actually, that stuff will kill you. To pack on and keep muscles you need to—”
“Oh gawd, can you guys shut up?” Kira interrupted. “Pour me some, please,” they said, sitting on a stool in their sleep shorts and narwhal tee. They plopped their elbows on the counter, dropping their chin into palms.
I passed them a fresh cup. “So, Finn, where should we look for Anna first?”
“Hey man, it’s Christmas, no shoptalk,” Chai gently admonished.
I nodded.
“How does everyone like their eggs?” Finn took orders and fired up the stove. I started cracking eggs while Chai cut strawberries and Kira made toast. We all got into a silent rhythm.
After breakfast, I washed dishes. We didn’t have a dishwasher, so I did them by hand, and Chai dried them. He was babbling about something, but the white noise of the faucet drowned him out.
“Did I miss breakfast?” a voice said from behind, making us both jump.
“Jeezus Christ Rue, you almost killed me!” Chai exclaimed.
“Yes. But there’s still some fruit in the fridge,” I replied.
“Good enough.” Rue headed to the fridge.
I sat back down by the fire, watching the snow fall. The sounds of the crackling fire, dishes clinking, and pleasant conversation calmed my mind.
“It’s for ammm-beeee-onnce,” Chai said, lighting candles on the table.
“But it will catch the tree on fire,” Rue cautioned.
“That’s like thirty feet away.”
“It will be fine,” Kira said, setting dishes on the white table cloth.
knock knock
We all looked at each other.
“Who could that be?” Finn asked.
I was closest to the door, so I got up and walked over, pulling the door open. “Oh, Olivia, I didn’t think you could make it.”
“Hi, yeah, they didn’t need me anymore so I hurried over,” she said, handing me a dish. “Macaroni—my mom’s recipe.”
She leaned in for a hug, a shopping bag on her arm bumping into my back. I held the heavy glass dish out and used my free arm to return the hug. She looked over my shoulder and whispered into my ear. “Who’s that——what is she doing here?”
“Oh, Rue, she’s mostly harmless.”
“mmhmmm”
Before I could comment, she held her hand, flat, palm down, in front of my eyes, a short string looped around her middle finger. “Here, this is for you.”
A small brass cog 1 dangled in front of me, slowly spinning, glinting light from the tree. “It’s to remind you that you’re still just a cog in the machine.”
“Um. Thanks.” I went to hang it on the tree. I kept reaching for ornaments to make more room, but none were there. Finally, I decided to hang it on all the branches. Soon, it reflected a thousand points of golden light throughout the cabin.
“Dinner’s ready!” Finn announced.
Everyone gathered around the table and started pulling out chairs.
“Hey, hey, guys. Read the placards, find your place.” Chai called out.
The rest of us glanced at each other, then down at the table looking for our own name. Collectively we began side-stepping over one another to get to our assigned seats. We all began passing dishes, scooping food on to our plates, and commenting on what we brought. All of it smelled and looked delicious. I couldn’t decide what to bite into first.
Tamales wrapped in corn husks, stuffed with pork schnitzel. Sautéed collard greens with fish sauce over rice. Olivier potato salad with pickles and peas. Sauerbraten, beef marinated for days, smothered in sweet-sour gravy. Kutya, mother’s old recipe with walnuts and raisins. Macaroni, four-cheeses lightly browned. Crusty bread and soft rolls.
Sitting next to me, Olivia and I caught up. It had been a while since we last spoke.
“So, which guy are you gunning for?” she asked, glancing between Chai and Finn.
“Gunning for?”
“Don’t be coy, Vik. Which one do you like? The tallest one has edgy blue hair. The other guy has a charming, yet goofy grin. They both have tattoos. Is tall, goofy, and handsome your type Vik?”
“Oh, uh—”
Rue laughed, loud and sharp, saving me from answering. Have I heard her laugh before?
Olivia shot her a glance. “Why did you invite her?”
“She kind of invited herself, but I like her.”
“Alright, time for dessert.” Finn sat more plates in front of me.
Strudel, flaky with soft spiced apples. Buñuelos, crisp with cinnamon sugar. Pryaniki, dense with honey and ginger. Pecan pie, gooey beneath a toasted shell. Black Forest cake, dark with rich cherries. New York cheesecake, creamy with a graham cracker crust.
I had one scoop of everything. All with two scoops of vanilla ice cream and a cup of espresso.
With a glass of red wine, I got comfortable by the fire. Everyone else followed with their own drinks in hand.
“Okay, so explain this again, this ‘Dirt Santa’,” I said to Chai.
“No, no. Dirty Santa,” he corrected. “We each brought one gift, now one of us picks a present from under the tree—”
“Can you pick the one you brought?” Rue interrupted.
“Nah man. That wouldn’t be in spirit.”
Rue frowned slightly.
“Alright, so you open the present, show it to everyone, and keep it,” he continued. “The next person can either open a new present or steal one from someone else.”
“Oh, like White Elephant?” Finn asked, snapping his fingers in Chai’s direction, to which Chai nodded.
“You steal their presents?” Kira’s jaw dropped. “That doesn’t sound very Christmasy.”
“Hey, it’s all good. That’s part of the fun,” Chai retorted.
“Doesn’t sound fun,” Kira muttered. “Who goes first then?”
I pulled my deck of cards from my pocket. “We can use these. We go in order of highest-to-lowest card drawn.” Rue won first pick.
“Shoot first, ask questions later,” she said, swiftly rising off the floor in one fluid motion. She came back and sat down with a small box.
She took out her knife, flipped it open, then gently moved it between a flap, cutting the tape without slicing into the paper. Then she proceeded by peeling back each corner, leaving no trace.
“C’mon c’mon c’mon” Chai couldn’t contain himself.
Rue ignored him, folding the last sheet open.
Before she could hold it up, Chai blurted out, “It’s my movie. The role of a lifetime. Special edition. Listen to the commentary, I tell all about—”
“I don’t have a Blu-ray player,” Rue interrupted, deflating Chai, and setting it aside.
“My turn!” Chai rushed to the tree, shaking boxes until Kira shouted, “Don’t shake that!” He set the big box down, chose a different one, and came back to the circle.
“This one’s nice and heavy,” he said, ripping the paper off to reveal a re-used shipping box. He opened the box, pulling out a Glock. “Uh, this is way more than the twenty-five dollar limit.”
“It was free,” Rue retorted.
“This looks used... You stole this?”
“They weren’t going to use it anymore.”
“I don’t really need one.”
“You never know when you will need protection.”
“Yoink!” Kira swiped the Blu-Ray from beside Rue, who didn’t blink, but said, “You still have a Blu-ray player?”
“I don’t trust those oligarchs with my data,” they replied. “Anyway, I like Chai’s movies.”
Chai beamed. “Thanks Kira. Okay Rue, you get to go again.”
Rue methodically dismantled the wrapping of a new present, like she was breaking down her rifle for cleaning. “A doll?”
“Yeah, I made it myself. Don’t you like it?” Olivia’s voice was bright, but her eyes weren’t.
“Did you forget to paint the eyes on?” Rue held it up for everyone to see. The small wooden doll had dark hair, the spots where eyes should go as smooth as the rest of its light brown body.
Olivia shrugged and picked up the smallest gift. She untied the string, unrolled the brown paper surrounding it, and held the clear crystal up to see the Christmas tree lights refracted inside.
“Thanks Vik, I love it.”
“How did you know it was from me?”
“I always knew.”
I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I said, “I found it in the woods around the cabin. It struck me as odd since its sides were smooth instead of the hexagonal shape they normally have. The pointed ends seemed great for channeling energy, which made me think of you.”
She smiled, eyes crinkling, wise beyond her years.
It was finally my turn. Clearly, Kira brought the big box and I know from past experiences to be wary of their gifts. So I went for a small cube and opened the simple box. A coffee mug, perfect under normal circumstances.
“World’s best detective. Seriously?”
“Of course, detective.” Finn laughed. But he wasn’t done, he walked over to me, putting his hand out. “I’ll take that.”
“But it’s your gift, you brought it.”
“It’s a nice mug—got it from Scar Flucks 2. Chai said I couldn’t pick my gift, he didn’t say I couldn’t steal it.”
I handed it over gladly. Unfortunately, that left the big box from Kira. I went to pick it up, and when I did, it meowed.
“Oh no, you didn’t.”
“Open it!” Kira said with glee.
Inside the box, a black cat with red eyes peered out at me. “But I’m allergic...”
“This cat won’t affect your allergies, and its black hair won’t show on your dreary clothes. They had a special for the holidays at the adoption agency—twenty-five dollars exactly. I thought it was perfect for some lucky person.”
I sat back in the leather chair. The cat climbed into my lap and laid down. Finn poured coffee into his new mug with a toothy grin on his face. He took a sip, as he did, the heat-activated color change mug faded to “World’s worst detective”.
Everyone noticed and laughed. Finn, startled, then caught on. He saw the new phrase and his grin got even wider. The cat began to purr as I looked around at my friends, my family. Outside, snow fell on the dark night as I drifted off into comfortable slumber.
I awoke in the cabin, Kira sleeping soundly beside me. I was breathing heavily and drenched in sweat. I pressed my face into my hands, sliding them back towards my ears like I was putting on a mask. My hand brushed against the earring, awakening Chai.
“Man, Viktor, that was a wild dream.”
Editor’s Notes
You might have noticed a bit of a style difference on this, well other than the obvious dreaminess of it. That’s because yours truly (Ed the Cozy Editor) wrote it. I proposed the idea to Jan Herrington and took a swing. I had fun writing it and Jan had fun listening to it. We hope you enjoyed it.
If you made it this far, it’s obvious this was all a dream. But in dreams Viktor’s sleep-deprived subconscious is working overtime. So there’s probably a lot more truth in this dream world than it seems.
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