15 An Earthly Holiday

Plot: Loki and the guardians get invited to celebrate Christmas with Pepper and Morgan.

Tone: Slice of life

"Any updates?" Quill asked, casting a glance at Rocket.

"Nothing," he sighed, pushing his screen aside. Everyone was sitting in their designated seats, gazing out into the empty void of space.

"Everything has been quiet since you guys went to Jotunheim," Gamora grunted, gesturing to Loki, Mantis, and Quill.

"That's not a bad thing," Loki replied, with a shrug.

"Yeah, I like when it's quiet like this," Mantis added, leaning back in her chair. "Saving the world can be stressful."

"Well, yeah, but I wanna do something," Rocket grunted, rolling his eyes.

There was a ding. Loki took out his communicator to see one new message from Pepper:

December 24th

Pepper: Hey, Loki. It's been a while, huh? So, I was wondering if you weren't busy, would you and your friends like to visit for Christmas? Morgan and I would be happy to see you.

��What's that?" Nebula asked, pointing at Loki.

"A message from Pepper," Loki answered, putting the communicator face down in front of him.

"Oh, is she inviting us for a visit?" Nebula asked, perking up. "That would give us something to do." She glanced at Quill.

"It's better than nothing," he sighed.

"She…" Loki glanced at everyone. They were all gazing hopefully at him, like the idea of having something to do was a treat. "She is," Loki finally answered. "It's for Christmas."

"What's Christmas?" Drax asked, tilting his head to the side. The others, apart from Quill, exchanged glances, clearing wondering the same thing. Loki looked away. Memories came back to him, of him and Tony spending Christmas together...

"It's a holiday on earth," Loki informed, tapping his foot restlessly. "The ones who celebrate typically exchange presents and decorate their homes with lights and greenery."

Loki remembered Tony explaining that he just celebrated the holiday for fun rather than the reason everyone else celebrated it, but Loki never knew what that reason was.

"That… does sound fun," Mantis replied, smiling.

"It's better than nothing," Rocket replied, pulling up his scanner. "Let's go check it out." Quill nodded and turned around, pressing some buttons to start up the ship.

"I have a question." Gamora raised her hand. Loki glanced at her curiously. "Who's Pepper?" Everyone glanced at her, their jaws dropped.

"How have we not mentioned her?!" Drax exclaimed, gesturing to Gamora. "You've been with us for months!"

"Well," Quill raised his hand as he spoke, "We usually try to avoid talking about…" He looked away, his eyes wide. "Um…"

"Tony." Everyone stared at Loki, their eyes wide. Loki looked away. "He… was Pepper's husband… and one of my closest friends."

"Oh…" Gamora dipped her head. "My condolences, Loki."

Loki didn't know how to respond. The others fell silent as well, going back to controlling the ship. Loki summoned his communicator and typed out a reply to Pepper:

Me: Sure. We're on our way.

Letting out a sigh, he flicked the communicator away with his magic. He stared blankly at the ground. Why am I doing this?

"Loki?" Mantis was staring at him, concern in her eyes. Letting out a sigh, Loki stood up and gestured to her.

"Where are you guys going?" Quill asked once Loki and Mantis were barely in the hallway.

"To get something," Loki answered, staring at Mantis hoping she would see through the lie. She nodded. The two made their way down the hallway and toward the bedroom, closing the door behind them.

Loki let out a sigh. "I really don't want to go," he admitted.

"Then why didn't you say something?" Mantis asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Because everyone else wanted to go, I didn't want to take that away from them just because I'm upset."

"You're not taking away anything." Mantis's eyes were narrowed, and her tone was surprisingly stern.

"Well, I'm not backing out now. I already told Pepper that we're coming."

"If you're sure…"

Loki wasn't sure, and by the looks of it, neither was Mantis. Loki and Mantis went back to the main area, sitting down in their seats. The ship zipped forward, slowing down as it neared the earth and descending slowly through the atmosphere like a feather. It landed with a clank. The bottom hatch opened as everyone undid their seatbelts.

Loki glanced outside. The trees had been completely stripped of their leaves, and the land was now covered in a thin blanket of snow. Well, thin compared to Jotunheim's snow at least. Icicles hung off the trees, shining in the sun like diamonds. Loki walked down the ramp.

"Hey, wait up!" Quill called, pulling his jacket on as he dashed to Loki's side. His arms were crossed as he shivered. "It's freezing out here!"

"It's not that bad," Rocket replied, shrugging as he brushed past them.

"Indeed not," Loki added. Nebula nodded at him.

"I am Groot," Groot complained, grabbing a coat that definitely wasn't his.

Mantis pressed against Loki. Taking the hint, he wrapped his arm around her, resting his hand on her shoulder. The group made their way through the woods. After a while of walking, Loki spotted the now snow-coated cabin up ahead. Along the roof, were some unlit Christmas lights. Letting go of Mantis, Loki walked up the stairs of the porch and knocked on the door.

Silence followed. Loki pressed his ear to the door, immediately recognizing Pepper and Morgan's voices from inside the house.

"I'm coming!" The door was pushed open, revealing Pepper. "Hey, Loki! And everyone else, glad you could make it."

"Guess we don't have names," Rocket grunted, rolling his eyes. Pepper ushered them all inside. Loki looked around, spotting the Christmas tree beside the television, with decorations strewn across the ground. Morgan was sitting in front of it. Her eyes lit up when she saw Loki.

"Uncle Loki! Aunt Nebbie!" Morgan dashed toward Loki, hugging him. Loki patted her head. Moments later, Morgan turned to Nebula, hugging her as well. Then she turned to Rocket.

"And Puppy!" She patted Rocket's head. Rocket let out a low growl. Loki glared at him, summoning a knife only the raccoon could see. So, Rocket allowed Morgan to pet him.

"Alright, leave Puppy alone," Quill insisted, smiling and gesturing Morgan away. Morgan nodded to him and stepped back, skipping back toward the Christmas Tree. Rocket's eyes were still narrowed.

"Don't hurt the kid," Nebula grunted, glaring at Rocket.

"You caught us in the middle of decorating the tree," Pepper informed, gesturing to the mostly barren Christmas tree. "Do you… want to help us finish?"

"Sure, I can help," Loki replied, raising his hand.

"As will I," Nebula added, stepping to stand beside Loki.

"We'll just… stay out of the way…" Mantis took a step back.

"Can we raid your kitchen?" Quill asked, smiling cheekily as he gestured toward the fridge.

"Don't take the cheese sticks or the apple juice!" Morgan protested, dropping an ornament. Loki caught it before it broke.

The guardians made their way into the kitchen while Loki, Pepper, Morgan, and Nebula remained in front of the tree. Loki and Pepper grabbed the lights and garland, stringing them up and around the entire tree. Meanwhile, Morgan put up the ornaments. They were all circular and sparkly, only differing by colour. Nebula held up a blue one.

"What purpose do these serve?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Nothing really," Loki answered with a shrug. "They just look nice."

"That is the point," Pepper commented, plugging in the lights to a nearby outlet. The tree began to shine with rainbow light. Nebula flinched back, covering her eyes and letting out a sound similar to a cat hissing. Loki chuckled to himself. Nebula glared at him. Clearing his throat, Loki stood up and took a step back.

"Well, I think we're finished."

"Wait, we gotta put up the star!" Morgan protested, jumping to her feet.

"I thought Tony broke… it." Loki's eyes widened as he trailed off. Pepper and Morgan stopped in their tracks, gazing at Loki with wide eyes.

"We got a new one," Pepper informed, casting a glance at Morgan. The child ducked behind the Christmas Tree.

"S-sorry." Loki sat on the couch, avoiding Pepper and Morgan's gazes.

Pepper made her way toward her daughter. "Do you still wanna put up the star, Morgan?"

"Okay, mommy," she sighed back.

Shame washed over Loki. His thoughts wandered back to Tony, as they so often did when he was in this house… So many memories. Loki watched Pepper hold Morgan up so she could put the star on the tree, suddenly feeling a pang in his chest. He remembered last year's Christmas, when Tony had broken the star by trying to get it down and toppling the whole tree over. Then he thought of the year before that and the year before that… and so on. Tony had introduced him to Christmas. Loki had never spent the holiday without him.

"Loki, you there?" Loki snapped out of his thoughts to see Nebula waving her hand in front of him.

"Yes, I'm here," Loki grunted, rolling his eyes. "I just… spaced out a bit." He looked away. Pepper had disappeared from the living room.

"You didn't want to come here did you?" Nebula asked.

Loki's eyes widened as he glanced back at her. "You all know me so well," he sighed, leaning back on the couch.

"Uh…" Nebula looked around. "I'm not equipped for this." She cast a glance at the dining room, where all the Guardians were clustered around the kitchen table with various snacks. "Mantis! Come here!"

Mantis perked up. Getting out of her chair, she made her way into the living room.

"What is it?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Um…" Nebula gestured to Loki.

"I already explained this to her, Nebula. I didn't want to come because I don't want to be reminded of what I lost. What's the point of celebrating this… holiday without Tony?"

"Well, you have us." Mantis gestured to herself, and the other Guardians in the dining room. "You can celebrate with us." She sat next to Loki on the couch.

He looked away. "It won't be the same."

"Well, of course it won't," Nebula cut in, rolling her eyes. "We're different people." Loki's lip twitched up.

Mantis took his hand, her antennae lighting up. "You can make new memories," she replied, smiling. "It could be fun."

"Hey guys!" Quill called. Loki glanced up at his friend, who was gesturing to him from the kitchen. "You gonna join us?"

Loki let out a sigh. "Alright, alright." He, Nebula, and Mantis joined the others at the table. Nebula and Mantis sat back in their chairs while Loki conjured up a new one, sitting down between them.

The guardians each had a snack in front of them. Quill had a bowl of potato chips, Gamora was stealing from those chips, not like Quill seemed to care, Drax was eating dry cereal, and Rocket was eating eggs. Seriously, just a bowl of uncracked, unprepared eggs.

Loki raised an eyebrow. However, he said nothing, conjuring up a bag of pretzels for himself.

"So… Now that we're here, what do we do?" Quill asked, lifting a potato chip.

"Yes, how do we celebrate this 'Christmas' thing?" Gamora added, slowly taking a chip from Quill.

"Well, celebrators usually exchange gifts," Loki informed, with a shrug.

"Ooh!" Mantis jumped up excitedly. "We should buy each other presents!"

"All of us?" Drax asked, glancing at everyone at the table. "But… there's eight of us."

"I really don't want to get that many gifts," Nebula admitted, rolling her eyes.

Gamora nodded. "It would be too costly."

"Or too risky," Rocket added, popping an egg in his mouth and biting down. It made a crunching noise that made Loki cringe.

"Are you eating eggs again?!" Pepper's voice exclaimed from the living room.

Rocket stiffened. "No…" he replied, shoving the rest in his mouth. Pepper sighed, shaking her head.

"Anyways…" Quill tapped the table to get the group's attention. "Mantis, I like the gift idea, but Gamora has a point, getting that many gifts is a bit… much."

"You could do a Secret Santa," Pepper suggested, walking past them.

"A what?" Loki asked, glancing at her.

"It's something large groups of friends typically do," she explained, rummaging through the fridge as she spoke. "Instead of coming up with a gift for everyone, you each get a gift for one person."

The Guardians gazed at each other.

"That would be a lot less work," Nebula commented, nodding.

"Do we choose the person?" Mantis asked, gazing hopefully at Pepper.

"Well, it's typically random and anonymous." Pepper replied, tossing the empty egg carton in the trash.

Quill smiled. "You know, I like the sound of that."

"We can each write our names down and put them in a bowl. Then draw them blindly," Loki suggested, grabbing a bowl from one of the cabinets.

"Yes, brilliant!" Mantis cheered. "Let's do it!"

Loki grabbed a piece of paper, swiftly cutting it into eight pieces with his dagger, then passed each piece, and a pencil, to the others. They each wrote down their names and folded the paper. Everyone put their names in the bowl and mixed them up.

Each of the guardians picked a piece of paper, having varying reactions when they saw the names. Nebula and Drax remained as stone-faced as ever. Mantis, Rocket, and Groot seemed excited while Gamora let out a grunt of annoyance.

"Anyone want to trade?" she asked, waving around her folded piece of paper.

Quill took the bowl, taking one of the final pieces of paper. He stared at it, completely puzzled. Finally, Loki took the last name from the bowl and unfolded it to see Mantis's name. Shit.

"Alright," Quill pocketed his piece of paper. "Guess we're all going shopping then…"

"But we still need some form of currency," Drax protested.

"Don't worry, I've got you all covered." Loki summoned some earth money with a flick of his hand, placing it on the table. Everyone grabbed a few pieces.

"How do you summon that money?" Quill asked, tilting his head to the side. "Like, does it come from somewhere or are you making it appear from nothing?"

"I do have to summon it from somewhere." Loki smiled and looked away. "Usually, from a rich person."

Quill snorted with laughter. "Of course. Who's the rich person this time?"

"The last president. Damn, I hate him."

"Same!" Pepper cut in, gesturing sternly to Loki. "But I do not condone stealing."

Loki turned to her. "Even stealing from a thief?" He challenged, raising an eyebrow.

"The last president was a thief?!" Quill exclaimed, his jaw agape.

"Well, he never paid his tax returns so pretty much," Pepper answered, shrugging.

"Didn't he also steal charity funds from children with life-threatening conditions?" Loki added, his fist clenching.

"What?!" Mantis gasped, gripping her heart. "That's horrible!"

The other Guardians shared looks of horror and anger. Even Rocket muttered, "Sheesh, that's low even for me."

"So, how are you all planning to shop?" Pepper asked, grabbing her keys off the counter.

"I mean, I was just going to take us all to another part of the planet on the ship," Quill answered with a shrug.

"I can drive one or two of you," Pepper offered, making her way into the living room. "I have to go out and buy new eggs anyways." She shot a dirty glare at Rocket. "Morgan, do you want to come to the store?"

Tony's daughter looked up at her and jumped to her feet. "Yes!" she cheered, dashing toward her.

"I'll come with you then," Loki offered, raising his hand.

"As will I," Nebula replied, standing beside Loki.

"Had enough of the others?" Loki muttered, smirking. Nebula nodded.

It took about an hour for them to get to the city and Loki had stared out the window the entire time, thinking about what to get Mantis. He was completely drawing a blank. Once Pepper parked the car, she and Morgan went toward the grocery store, while Nebula went a different direction. Curious, Loki followed Nebula.

"Where are you off too?" Loki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"There." Nebula gestured to a department store. "It looks like it might have what I'm looking for."

"Who's your person?" Loki asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Drax. I know exactly what to get him."

Loki smiled. "A weapon I'd suppose?"

"Yup." Nebula's lip twitched up as she gave a small nod. The two walked into the store, the doors opening automatically as they made their way toward them.

Nebula glanced at Loki. "So who do you have?"

"Mantis," Loki sighed, looking away. "I have no idea what to get her."

"She likes a lot of things, and she likes you." Nebula lightly punched Loki's shoulder. "Whatever you get her, she'll love it."

"I know, but I want it to be special."

Nebula rolled her eyes. Loki was about to say something when the cyborg walked away, toward what looked to be a store employee.

"Hey, where are the knives?"

"Um…" The employee's eyes widened, and they took a step back. Loki's heart skipped a beat.

"She just means where they are in the store," Loki insisted, resting his hand on Nebula's shoulder. She stepped away.

"I figured…" the employee replied, adjusting their vest. "I, uh, don't know though. I work on the front end… they never showed me around the store… I don't know where anything is." The employee awkwardly speed-walked away.

Loki looked back at Nebula. "You can't just randomly ask someone that."

"Why not?" Nebula asked, tilting her head to the side. The two of them made their way toward one of the aisles.

"They might get the wrong idea. In fact, you may want to be careful purchasing it."

"What should I do?"

"Just let me do the talking. I can deflect any suspicion."

The two made their way down each aisle, one by one, scanning every item on the shelves. Nebula stopped to look at some kitchen knives. She picked one up, tilting it around to observe it from every angle, and running her finger across the blade.

"Not sharp enough," she grunted, putting it down to look at another.

"Hey, you!" Loki stiffened at the sound of a new voice. There was a man in the aisle with them, pointing at Loki. "You're the guy from New York!"

"I have no idea what you mean," Loki replied, turning around and pretending to look at some silverware. "I've never seen you in my life."

"You destroyed the city!"

Loki's eyes narrowed. Taking a deep breath, he turned around to face the man. "Yes, but I also helped bring back everyone who disappeared and helped save the entire universe from annihilation." He flicked his hand, summoning a card. "You're welcome."

"Oh, uh…" The man looked away, shuffling awkwardly in his spot.

"Have a good day!" Loki replied, waving at him. He gestured to Nebula, and the two turned and walked away.

"What is that?" Nebula asked, pointing at the card.

"Tony gave it to me so that everyone would be less suspicious. It's just to inform people that I'm an ally of Earth now." With a flick of his hand, the card disappeared.

"Can I get one of those?" Nebula asked, smirking.

"Hm… I don't know. Are you really an ally of Earth?" His lip twitched up. "You seem like a threat to me." Loki elbowed her. Nebula elbowed him back, snorting with laughter.

"I could be," Nebula answered with a shrug. "But so could you."

"I was." Loki held his head up high, despite the guilt stabbing him like a knife. They walked out of the aisle and down another.

"Only because you had an army," Nebula argued, rolling her eyes. "I wouldn't need an army."

Loki smirked. "I doubt that."

"Want me to prove it?" Nebula asked, her lip twitching up despite her dark tone.

"No, thank you. I'll take your word for it." Both of them chuckled.

Loki looked up and down the shelves of every aisle. There were aisles consisting of shoes, bagged food, clothing, and an aisle toward the back, filled with daggers as if it were tucked away from the rest of the store. Nebula picked a pair of daggers and called it a day.

I should put more effort into my gift than that, Loki thought, looking around, though nothing they had seen so far seemed right. Finally, they found an aisle of books and movies.

"Perfect. You guys love watching stuff on your laptop." Nebula gestured to the shelves. "Just get her a movie or something." Loki looked around. "What about this?" Nebula held up a case that read: 'Avatar the Last Airbender The Complete Series.'

Loki almost laughed. "We've already seen the complete series… eight times."

"Eight times?!"

Loki looked away. "We've had a lot of free time recently." And that's not counting the times we rewatched specific episodes we really loved. He and Mantis had probably seen the finale alone at least twenty times.

"Then start a new show," Nebula replied, putting the case back on the shelf. "How about this?" She held up another case, labeled ��Steven Universe.' "Oh, or this? A Star Wars show?" She showed Loki a 'Clone Wars' case.

"We should all watch that one," Loki replied, gesturing to the Star Wars case. "I can find it online for us later." Nebula put the Star Wars case away. "I could find that other one online too, it wouldn't make a good gift."

"Fair enough," Nebula grunted, putting the other disc down.

Loki and Nebula continued toward another aisle, which was filled with several kids' toys. They were about to walk right by when Loki spotted something. Toward the front of the aisle, was a collection of Star Wars merchandise, including toy lightsabers. Loki picked up one. He pressed a button, making it turn blue, then with another click, it turned red.

"Would Mantis really use that?" Nebula asked, her eyes narrowed.

"No, but Morgan would." Loki turned the lightsaber off and began walking away. "I might as well get her this."

Loki and Nebula searched the store for a while longer before Loki got a message from Pepper telling him they were waiting for them and decided to call it quits. They made their way toward the cash register and put their things on the conveyor belt. The cashier's eyes widened.

"Woah…" She pointed at Loki. "Are you… the guy that destroyed New York and then came back to save the world?"

Loki smiled, summoning his card into his hand. "Indeed."

"Why are you buying knives?" the cashier asked, scanning them and placing them aside.

"They're for my friend here," Loki answered, gesturing to Nebula. "We need something to defend the galaxy with."

"Do you have a permit for them?"

"Um…" Loki held up his card, gesturing to it. "I saved the universe?"

The cashier's eyes were empty and soulless. "That's not a permit, sir. Sorry, store rules."

Loki stared at the cashier, peering into her mind and using his magic to influence her.

"Uh, but I'll make an exception for you," the cashier replied, scanning the toy lightsaber. She pushed it all forward. "That'll be seventy dollars and forty-eight cents."

Loki summoned that amount of money and placed it on the counter. The cashier rolled her eyes. She counted out every single bill and coin before printing a receipt.

"Have a good day," the cashier called, as Loki and Nebula walked away. They hid the gifts in an opaque bag and made their way toward the car.

"What did you get?" Pepper asked, as Loki and Nebula got in the car, Loki in the front seat, Nebula in the back.

"Something for Morgan," Loki whispered, gesturing to the bag. Pepper nodded and started the car. In the back of the car, Nebula and Morgan were practically drowning in bags of groceries. The ride back was mostly silent.

When they parked, Loki, Nebula, and Pepper each grabbed two bags and brought them into the house, placing them on the table. Nebula went back for the bag with their gifts in it.

"What is all of this for?" Loki asked, taking a jar of tomato sauce out of one of the bags.

"Food for tomorrow," Pepper answered, putting some bottles in the fridge. She cast a glance at Morgan, who was carrying a carton of eggs. "Be careful, hand those to me, sweetie." She held her hands out. Morgan handed her the eggs so Pepper could put them in the fridge.

Loki and Nebula helped them put everything else away, then cast a glance at the window.

"I'm surprised we got here before everyone else," Nebula admitted, making her way toward the window.

"They had more shopping to do," Loki replied, shrugging as he walked to her side. "They'll be along shortly." He pushed the door open slightly, gesturing to it with a tilt of his head. "Want to wait for them outside?"

"Nah," Nebula kicked back on the couch, resting her hands behind her head. "I'm gonna enjoy my last moments of peace."

Loki's lip twitched up. "You do that." He walked outside and closed the door, walking through the snow.

More snow had begun to fall when the ship zipped over him, landing nearby in the forest. Loki dashed toward the ship. The bottom hatch opened, and the guardians made their way down the ramp, each of them holding boxes of varying sizes, apart from Quill. Loki glanced at his friend. His head was hung low, and his gaze was fixed on his fidgeting hands. He must be having the same problem I am.

"Hey, Lokes," Rocket greeted with a wave. "Miss us?"

"Not really," Loki replied with a shrug. I was once separated from most of you for five years. A few hours, I can manage.

"Yeah, we weren't gone long," Quill agreed, nodding to Rocket, who walked away. Quill cast a glance at the ground, suddenly smirking mischievously. Scooping some snow into his hands, he chucked a snowball at Rocket's head. He flinched, letting out a gasp.

"Who threw that?!" he demanded, whipping around.

"Drax did!" Quill gasped, pointing at him.

Drax's eyes widened. "What? No, I didn't-" A snowball slammed right into his neck, splattering to pieces as he let out a gasp. Rocket scooped two more snowballs into his paws.

"You'll pay for that!" he exclaimed, chucking the two snowballs at him. Drax turned and fled. Quill and Rocket charged after him, firing snowballs relentlessly. Drax ducked behind a tree.

Immediately, Rocket and Quill turned on each other. The two grabbed the snow from the ground with no care of precision and threw them at each other, not even caring if they were oddly shaped. Drax peaked out from his hiding place behind the tree. Smirking he grabbed some snow and threw it across the clearing. Quill grunted as the snow hit his head.

Eyes narrowed, Quill chucked a snowball at Drax's face, giving Rocket the chance to throw a snowball at Quill. The man's gaze shifted between his two friends. Another snowball hit him in the face, though it wasn't from Rocket or Drax. Loki glanced at a smirking Gamora.

"I've always wanted to do that!" she exclaimed, grabbing more snow and pelting it at him.

Quill ducked away, laughing like a lunatic. Rocket threw a snowball at Gamora, who jumped to the side to dodge it, then quickly ducked under another snowball from Drax and threw a snowball at Rocket's face.

"I am Groot!" Groot exclaimed, jumping to Rocket's side. The two stood back to back, throwing snowballs at everyone else. The others surrounded them, hiding behind trees for shelter as they chucked snowballs everywhere. Loki and Mantis simply watched the fight.

"Should we do something about this?" Mantis asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Nah," Loki replied with a shrug.

Out of nowhere, a snowball was flung across the clearing, slamming right into Loki's cheek. His head lolled to the side. Loki glared at his friends, brushing the snow off his cheek. They had all stopped dead in their tracks though Quill's arm was raised and his eyes were wide.

Loki smirked. "A snowball fight with a jotun?" He held his hands out, summoning snowballs into them. "Not a wise choice."

"Oh sh-" Quill was cut off when a snowball hit him right in the cheek. Loki gestured to Mantis, who nodded and scooped up some snowballs. They both lunged into the fight. Gamora, Drax, Rocket, and Groot, were pelting snowballs at Loki from every angle as he ducked through them, freezing water into snow to throw at Quill as he inched closer to his friend.

"H-hey, that's not fair!" Quill gasped, backing away.

"I don't play fair. You should've thought about that." Quill squeaked and jumped behind a tree, peaking out to throw a snowball. Loki extended his hand. The snowball stopped in midair, then with a flick of his hand, split into pieces.

Quill's jaw dropped. "You-you've been practicing."

Loki smiled. "You knew that."

Another snowball hit the back of his head. He turned to see Gamora, Drax, and Rocket dashing toward him. Mantis threw a snowball at Drax. The group turned to her, and she froze on the spot. Loki dashed to her side. Mantis picked up more snow and the two chucked some snow at their opponents, ducking and dodging the onslaught as best as they could.

Eventually, it became too much. Loki and Mantis turned and fled, jumping behind a boulder for protection. A few snowballs hit the rock. The two peeked out from behind their hiding place, chucking snowballs at their friends before the group retreated. Loki and Mantis charged after them. The snowball fight continued on until well after sunset when it was too cold for everyone else to keep going.

Later in the evening, Loki was downstairs, sitting at the desk and wrapping the toy lightsaber he planned to give to Morgan. He still hadn't thought of a gift for Mantis. With time running out, his mind began running wild with possibilities but still, nothing seemed right. Footsteps echoed down the hall. Looking up, Loki spotted Quill in the doorway.

"You're getting that for your person?" Quill asked, gesturing to the lightsaber.

"Oh, no. This is for Morgan," he answered, pressing some tape on the wrapping paper. "I saw no reason not to get her something as well."

"Eh, fair enough," Quill responded with a shrug. "So what did you get your person?"

"I'm… still trying to figure that out," Loki answered, taping the last of the wrapping paper on and placing the gift aside.

"You are?" Quill let out a sigh. "Damn, so your person is hard to shop for as well?"

Loki rolled his eyes. "That's an understatement."

"Yeah, I just don't know what would be meaningful, you know?"

"Mhm." Loki nodded.

Quill looked away, muttering to himself. "I guess I could make something…"

"Hm?"

"Oh, nothing!" Quill exclaimed, taking a step back.

"Wait… making something." Loki looked away. "That's a good idea…"

"You're gonna make something too then?" Quill asked, raising an eyebrow. Loki nodded. "Well, at least I won't be the only one to look like an idiot."

Loki bit his lip. "I hope I don't."

"Oh…" Quill's eyes filled with mischief. "It's for Mantis then."

"No!" Loki gasped, his face turning red.

Quill giggled into his hand. "Dude, whatever you make, she'll love it," he insisted, flicking his hand dismissively. "You probably could have bought something. Heck, you could give her a pipe cleaner and she'd love it! She'd love anything from you."

Loki smirked. "That's more than I can say for you and Gamora," he added, teasingly.

"Well, uh…" Quill looked away, clearing his throat. "She's not my person." His eyes suddenly became the size of dinner plates. "Good lord, she'd hate me."

"More than she does now?" Loki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Probably." Loki and Quill both chuckled. Quill's smile suddenly faded as he asked, "Hey, we are leaving tomorrow, right?"

"Possibly tomorrow night," Loki replied with a shrug. "Why?"

"I don't want to be here any longer than that," Quill answered, looking away. Loki raised an eyebrow. "Well, uh, you should get to work on your thing, I'll work on mine. See you in the morning!" And just like that, Quill disappeared up the stairs. What was that about?

Loki glanced back at the desk. Maybe I can salvage something… Summoning some materials and tools, Loki placed them on the desk and immediately got to work. Hopefully, she doesn't think I'm an idiot...

The next morning, the guardians congregated at the kitchen table with their presents while Pepper and Morgan sat around the Christmas tree, the latter unwrapping her presents. Loki and Quill were seemingly empty-handed.

"So uh... who wants to go first?" Rocket asked, gazing at everyone.

"Oh!" Mantis raised her hand. "I will. Nebula, I had you, so I got you this." Mantis passed her a box. Nebula sliced it open with her knife and pulled out a red and green sweater covered in Christmas designs.

"Uh…" Nebula took the sweater, looking it up and down with confusion in her eyes. "Thanks, Mantis."

"Will you wear it?" Mantis asked, leaning forward.

"Oh, yes please do," Loki replied, covering his mouth with his hand.

"Ugh. Fine." Nebula pulled the sweater on, scowling, and folding her arms.

Everyone stared at her, smiling. "Aww!" they exclaimed, gazing at Nebula as if she were a kitten. Nebula let out a grunt, however, her lip was twitching up in a smile.

"Anyways, Drax I had you, so I got you some knives." Nebula put the knives on the table, sliding them toward him.

"Oh, hell yes!" Drax cheered, holding up his new dual knives.

"Keep those away from Morgan," Loki growled, glaring at him.

"I wasn't gonna put them anywhere near her." Drax insisted, his eyes narrowed. Loki raised an eyebrow. Drax cleared his throat, turning to Rocket. "Alright, Rocket, here's your gift."

He slid the box across the table to where Rocket was sitting. He stood up and tore the box open with his claws. His eyes lit up.

"Oh, yeah!" He pulled a mechanical arm out of the box, holding it up like a trophy. "This'll make a fine addition to my collection." Loki snorted with laughter.

"What? What's so funny?" Rocket asked, glaring at him.

"Oh, nothing," Loki replied, flicking his hand dismissively. Mantis was giggling to herself while Quill rolled his eyes.

"Alright." Rocket put the hand down. "Now, here's my gift to you Groot." He handed him what looked to be a new video game system, with red and blue controllers on either side of the screen.

"I am Groot." Groot's eyes were wide with wonder.

"Yeah, you're welcome," Rocket replied, sitting back down. "Don't go too crazy with it."

"I am Groot." Groot handed his gift to Gamora, who glanced at him with wide eyes.

"Oh is this… for me…?" Groot nodded. Gamora tore the wrapping paper away, revealing a pink scarf. "Um… what is it?" Gamora asked, tilting her head to the side.

"I am Groot."

"A scarf?" Gamora glanced at Loki. "Is this for strangling people?"

"Um… no?" Loki forced himself not to laugh. "Well, I suppose it could be if you set your mind to it, but typically-"

"I love it," Gamora replied, immediately tying the scarf into a noose. She cast a glance at Groot. "Thank you, Groot." The tree nodded.

"Well, earthlings usually use that for clothing-" Loki began to protest.

"Oh." Gamora untied the scarf, then tied it again in her hair. "Then I have an easy way to keep it. This shall come in handy one day."

"Gamora, that's not how you…" Loki trailed off. "Nevermind, it's fine."

"Anyways, who did you have?" Quill asked, gazing at her curiously.

"Ugh…" Gamora rolled her eyes. "I had… you."

Quill's eyes lit up. "Really?" He cleared his throat, his cheeks red with embarrassment. "Uh, what did you get?"

"Well, I've gotten sick and tired of hearing your annoying music on the ship so I got you these." Gamora opened the box, revealing a pair of headphones.

"Oh my gosh!" Quill gasped, immediately grabbing the headphones. "These are awesome! Thanks, Gamora." He smiled gratefully at her.

"Yes, this will be a saviour for all of us," Nebula cut in, smirking and nodding.

"Indeed. No more loud annoying music," Drax added, grunting in annoyance.

Quill chuckled. "Well, that's not entirely guaranteed." Everyone groaned. Quill turned to Loki. "Anyways, Lokes, I had you, and let me just say, you are a pain to shop for."

Loki smiled. "I can imagine." He recalled their exchange from last night and began to wonder, what did he do?

"So instead of buying something, I made you this." Quill pulled a necklace out of his pocket. The chain was clearly yarn and there were only a few beads on it, four of them containing the letters 'L,' 'O,' 'K,' 'I.' A few of the others chuckled.

"Yeah, I know it sucks," Quill sighed, looking away.

"Well…" Loki couldn't exactly disagree. "It's from the heart, Quill, that's what matters." He slipped the necklace on, where the end of it rested just above his locket. "Thank you," Loki replied with a nod.

"So, that just leaves Mantis," Gamora informed, gesturing to her.

"Ooh, what did you get her?" Rocket asked, his eyes lighting up as he gazed at Loki.

Loki glared back. "Shut it, Rocket." He turned to Mantis, his gaze softening. "So… Mantis…" He looked away. His heart beating a million times a minute. "I made you this." He held up one of the bracelets. "It's… kind of dumb."

Mantis took the bracelet. "What is it?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"It's a bracelet. You wear it on your wrist…" Loki took the bracelet, carefully slipping it on her wrist. "But um… this one is special. I have one just like it." He grabbed his bracelet and put it on. "When you press this…" Mantis gasped when Loki pressed the button, and the two bracelets glowed green. "Both of them light up."

"Oh, my gosh I love them!" Mantis threw her arms around Loki.

A burst of warmth surged through Loki. "I'm… glad," he replied, returning the hug.

"You're so cheesy," Quill muttered in his ear. Loki rolled his eyes.

"Uncle Loki!" Loki glanced at Morgan, backing out his hug with Mantis.

"Yes?"

Morgan dashed toward him, holding out a crown made out of paper with messy crayon marks all over it. It was clear Morgan had made it herself.

"Merry Christmas!" she cheered, handing the crown to him.

"Wow, you're just getting all the jewelry today," Gamora commented, her lip twitching up.

"Such is befitting for royalty," Loki replied, holding his head high as he put the crown on his head.

Tony's daughter smiled with delight. "Yeah, you're a king, Uncle Loki!" she cheered.

"Mantis's king maybe," Quill muttered under his breath. Loki pretended to clear his throat, glaring at Quill and motioning for him to cut it out. "Oh!" Quill's eyes widened. "I mean her future king!" he replied, even louder.

Loki's cheeks were ablaze. "Not better," he growled, glaring at Quill.

"Wait, you and Mantis are an item?" Pepper asked, looking up at them from the couch.

"Oh, no, no, no." Loki and Mantis's voices overlapped as they explained to Pepper.

"We're just friends-"

"-not ready for a relationship-"

"Everyone's just teasing us."

"Aww, you're in love!" Morgan exclaimed, her eyes lighting up.

Probably, but I really don't want to talk about this with a five-year-old. Before Loki could reply, the oven went off.

"Oh, let me get that!" Pepper jumped up off the couch and made her way into the kitchen. She turned off the stove.

"Is the food done?" Morgan asked, turning to her mother. Loki let out a sigh of relief.

"The spaghetti is," Pepper explained, grabbing some plates. "The pumpkin bread needs a few more minutes." Pepper cast a glance at Loki. "Loki, Mantis, the meat is separate so you can eat it."

"Thank you so much!" Mantis replied, smiling brightly.

The group stayed there for the rest of the day, watching holiday specials with Pepper and Morgan, exchanging stories, and of course, eating a ridiculous amount of food. It was nightfall when they made their way back to the ship, waving goodbye.

"That was fun," Quill admitted, gesturing to Loki. "I'm glad we came."

"So am I," Loki replied, a smile forming on his lips.

"You're truthful?" Mantis asked, holding her hand in front of him. Loki took her hand and nodded.