[ToxicShadow]

It was that time of year again. The Evelonian holidays came one after another. They were similar to some of the holidays in many different worlds, and that was certainly interesting to consider. Halloween and come and gone, although, for just a little while longer, people to claim their prizes from their dedicated trick-or-treating. Two homes had come together for Thanks for Life Day.

For Toxic, it was much like the Thanksgiving of her original home. Of course, they didn't have savage, carnivorous turkeys running about on that day. That part was most certainly different.

[ToxicShadow]

Everyone had gathered at her home for the holiday celebration. Well, for the celebration of their lives, for each other.

At one point, she had been almost entirely alone. Before she had come, she had no idea of where she was going. There was no way of knowing. One day, as part of a desperate attempt for the survival of her race, she was chosen to be saved. What that meant, she didn't really know. But she was shoved into a machine, and then dropped in a foreign world.

[ToxicShadow]

She'd been one of the lucky ones. Sure, her family all had to stay behind, they didn't meet the qualifications. Her parents were too old. Her brothers, likely to be too unhealthy. But she begged to not have to go alone, so they permitted her to take her pets. Only those small enough to fit into the machine with her and her luggage. And, oh, did she ever make sure that they could fit with her.

Keira, Jinx, Misha, Ninja, the lot of them came along with her.

[ToxicShadow]

In this world, they gained new forms. They were only cats, at the start of their lives, but they developed a consciousness and self awareness equal to hers upon arriving in such a world. Everyone was changed. And, together, they survived landing in a strange, new world.

Later, someone else followed suit, someone dear to her. Toxic could never be more thankful that Z had followed after her. That he'd come to find her. With him, and the others, she was never really alone.

[ToxicShadow]

Z and his new companions had all stayed over the night before. It was tradition not to go out on Thanks For Life Day so, even though they were all certain that they could make the trip safely, Toxic had insisted otherwise. She didn't doubt them, but keeping with the tradition seemed sort of fun.

All of them, along with all of her companions, where bustling or lazing about the massive home. There was more than enough room for everyone. Really, there were almost too many mouths to feed.

[ToxicShadow]

Bustling about the kitchen, she was doing the final preparations for their family dinner. The pies were already baked, now cooling for after their meal. She'd made apple pie and chocolate pie, although she certainly had to make more than just one of each. The chocolate pie was her grandmother's own recipe.

There were enough dinner rolls warmed, ready to be buttered or dipped in gravy. There was enough mashed potatoes, lightly seasoned. So on and so forth, Toxic checked all the food, to make doubly sure that there was enough for everyone.

[ToxicShadow]

Yes, yes, everything was good. Right? Toxic was never entirely sure that things were as good as they could be, but it was time. There was no reason to keep fretting, not when it was dinner time.

"Do you need help with anything?" A familiar voice spoke out, from the entryway to the kitchen. It was Keira, her long time companion. While she wasn't exactly well versed in cooking, even less so than Toxic, she figured that there was probably something she could do to help out.

[ToxicShadow]

Keira rarely made any sound when she walked. That was just a part of being a cat, even while in the appearance of a human. Hearing her voice so suddenly, the woman in the kitchen jumped. Too preoccupied with the food, she was actually surprised. It rarely happened.

"Oh, Keira," she greeted her, simply. "Could you take these to the dinner table?" She asked, gesturing toward the basket of dinner rolls. "Oh, and the butter, too."

[ToxicShadow]

Keira nodded, moving across the kitchen to do what had been asked of her.

Toxic slipped out of the kitchen then, and into the living room. "Z, would you do the honors of carving the turkey?"

The man in question had been sitting on one of the sofas, chatting with Cizers. When he heard Toxic called out to him, his gaze shifted to her. "You aren't going to do it?" He wondered, but his tone seemed half teasing. That wasn't exactly out of the ordinary, though.

[ToxicShadow]

Toxic sighed and made a bit of a face. "You know you're better with knives than I am," she pointed out. "You specialize in them, not me. So, carving a turkey should be no problem for you, shouldn't it?"

She half expected him to protest at least a little, but he rose to his feet without another word. When he did, she turned around to return to the kitchen, and he followed after her.