[Silver]

Kumoya was an absolute mess. Everything had to be perfect. Anything less was just not good enough. The entire last two days had been spent cleaning and preparing, with all too little help from her brother. It was like he just didn't understand, and to be fair he probably honestly didn't. If she were entirely honest, even she didn't know why she was so full of nervous energy. Or maybe she did know, but was reluctant to admit it.

Though she had managed to get everything clean, finish preparing some of the food, and set the table, she had not yet taken care of herself. Her feathery hair was pulled loosely into a messy bun, and she was still wearing the baggy stained clothes that she wore while cleaning. Now that she had most of the dishes on the table, she decided it was time to quickly get ready before her guest arrived. While she normally didn't care too much about her appearance, she was nervous about everything going well. The least she could do was put on clean clothes.

[Silver]

Silver was silently debating with herself as she approached the doorstep. Could she still leave now and make an excuse for not making it? No. That would be too rude. Besides, she had to admit that she did really want to be there, for as nervous as she was. The more time she could spend with her friend the better. Still, dinner with the family seemed like a bit much.

Nonetheless, Silver tentatively tapped on the door and waited. Silence. Just as she was reaching to knock again, the door burst open. Standing before her was Kumoya, looking rather disheveled. Silver was about to apologize, but she was rushed inside before she could protest. Once she was inside they took a moment to stop and smile. They were both worrying so much, but now that they were both here, they were happy to see one another.

[Silver]

Either he had great timing, or he was really lucky. Just as Silver stepped in the front door, Gen came into the dining groom with a platter full of turkey in his hands. "Heya!" he said, breaking the still silence. "Glad you made it! You're going to love this," he said, plunking the turkey down on the table.

Silver blushed softly, "Um, actually I'm vegetarian. I hope that won't be too much of a problem." It was already getting awkward. Wonderful. "I did bring some things, though," she explained, holding up the dishes she prepared. There was a mushroom pie and some of her favorite cookies. "I know you said I didn't have to bring anything, but I wanted to, really."

[Silver]

"No, that's great," Kumoya interjected. She was kicking herself for not asking more questions before she invited her friend to dinner. Suddenly all of the hard work she did seemed moot compared to the fact that she didn't even know Silver didn't eat meat.

"Well, the other stuff's good, too!" Gen said, trying to hold back an awkward laugh. He came over to the girls and offered to take Silver's food to the table. "Hey sis, you should probably go get ready for dinner, eh?"

"Oh, yes!" Kumoya said, trying to sound cheerful as she glared at her brother. "I'm so sorry. You don't mind waiting here for a minute, do you?" she asked, turning back to Silver.

"Nah, we'll be 'right," Gen said quickly before Silver could answer. In response she nodded and smiled, though she was honestly not sure what she should do.

[Silver]

Kumoya frowned at Gen before running off to her room to get ready. This was not at all what she had been expecting. Everything seemed to be falling apart already, and they were only a few minutes in. Now was not the time to dwell on that, though she was having trouble convincing herself. It would all go just fine from here, she would have to make sure of it. She just had to get dressed and put her hair up. That was easy enough. She paced around her closet, worrying that she had already been gone for too long.

Meanwhile, Gen offered Silver a place to sit at the table. She sat down stiffly and stared at the table, as she was still not really sure what she should be doing. The two of them had met briefly once before, but they hadn't had much time to get to know each other yet.

"Whatcha got here?" Gen said, gesturing to the dishes he had just placed on the table.

[Silver]

"Um," Silver began, looking over to her food. The question had caught her off guard at first. "This one is a mushroom pie. I made it this morning, so it should still be warm," she explained, gesturing to it. "The bowl is full of oatmeal cookies. Nothing too exciting, really..." The end of her sentence turned into a hurried mumble.

"Sounds awesome," Gen reassured. It was obvious that Silver was quite shy, so he decided he wouldn't push her too much. Maybe she would perk up a bit when Kumoya came back. "Would you like something to drink?" he asked, walking toward the kitchen.

"Yes please..." Silver answered, still staring at the table. Was she supposed to ask what they had and make a choice? Or would he just choose for her? She turned to look at him and ask, but he had already disappeared into the kitchen. Well, that answers that.

[Silver]

"Alright, I've got apple and grape," he said lifting one hand then the other to display the glasses.

"A-apple!" she squeaked. Then she quickly added, "Please!"

"Good choice." He sat the cup on the table in front of her and the other where he would be sitting. Then he went to grab the bottles and bring them back. When he returned, he noticed her staring quizzically at the glass. "It's sparkling cider," he explained. "We have it every year, have ever since I was a pup."

"It's nice," Silver responded with a smile. It was interesting to hear about their traditions. This whole holiday was a huge example of how different their traditions were. She had never even had a Thanksgiving dinner before. It just wasn't something she had her mother did, so she simply never thought about it before she was invited.

[Silver]

Finally, Kumoya was looking respectable again. Well, at the very least, she was finally clean. A little part of her was worried that she was under dressed, but she wasn't about to dress up even if that was the case, which she doubted. Now she needed to stop worrying and get back to the dinner table before Gen scared off her guest.

"I hope he hasn't done anything too awful while I was gone," Kumoya said to Silver as she came into the dining room.

"I've been a perfect gentleman!" Gen insisted.

"Oh, really, he has!" Silver insisted. "He gave me some fizzy cider," she said with a smile. Kumoya gave Gen a skeptical look, but she accepted their story for now.

"Is everything ready, then?" she asked, surveying the table. Gen nodded, so she finally felt safe to sit down and get started.

[Silver]

Kumoya reached out to grab a bowl full of potato that was sitting in front of her when she noticed Silver's deer in the headlights look. "Oh!" she said, plopping the bowl back down. "Usually we just grab whatever we want," she explained. It occurred to her that Silver's family may have done things differently. They weren't exactly the most courteous duo, after all. "How do you normally do it?" she asked, trying to be accommodating.

"Um, I don't..." Silver said, her voice coming out as a shy peep. Gen and Kumoya made eye contact and shared a confused look while they waited for her to elaborate. "I've never had a Thanksgiving dinner before," she admitted. Though she wasn't entirely sure why, she was starting to feel ashamed of that fact.

"Even better!" Gen said excitedly. Silver tilted her head, not sure what to make of his statement. "Now we can make new traditions as a trio!"

[Silver]

For once, Kumoya was glad to have her brother around. He really saved that awkward moment there. Maybe he was more clever than she gave him credit for. Maybe.

"That sounds nice," Silver said with a nod. "I like the cider, though, can we keep that one?"

"Of course!" Kumoya said with a laugh. Silver's shy innocence was just so cute, and her cheerfulness was infectious. "What else would you like?"

"Well, those rolls do look good," Silver said, suddenly realizing how hungry she was. Other than the turkey itself, most of the food here looked and smelled absolutely delicious.

"Free for all it is, then!" Gen cheered, causing the girls to laugh. Before long they were grabbing and passing dishes around the table. Though she had to pass on a few things, Silver was more than pleased with what she had. More than anything, she was just happy to have someone to share the meal with. No wonder families did this together every year!