***<\/p>\n
Angel watched Cordelia\u2019s brightly-coloured coffee cup drift back to the table, and swivel back and forth on its saucer. They were all huddled in a booth in the furthest corner of the food hall, sheltered behind a large potted plant, where it was less likely that early-morning shoppers would notice the strange sight of floating china, and little packets of flying sugar.<\/p>\n
Jack sat on the long moulded plastic bench, between Angel and Wesley. He\u2019d come with them quietly, and seemed more than shocked at the current situation. Angel could hear he had a heart murmur, and he definitely smelled human. Hardly the usual \u2018big bad\u2019, as Buffy used to call the villain du jour.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell?\u201d Wesley motioned to Cordelia\u2019s chair. \u201cWould you care to explain this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMissy, I\u2019m so sorry,\u201d Jack said, addressing Cordelia, but staring with unwavering attention at the serviette twisted between his bony fingers. \u201cI didn\u2019t mean for this to happen. Honestly, the last thing I wanted to do was hurt anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReally,\u201d Cordelia snorted. \u201cWhat kind of nasty old man goes \u2018round making Santas invisible?\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack\u2019s blue eyes filled with tears. \u201cThat\u2019s not what I was tryin\u2019 to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat *were* you trying to do?\u201d Angel asked, unable to help feeling sorry for the man. Sure, he\u2019d made Cordelia invisible, but the vibe he was giving off shouted \u2018victim\u2019 more than anything else.<\/p>\n
Jack raised his head to look Angel square in the eye. \u201cI wanted to hide.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wanted to make *yourself* invisible? Boy, did you ever mess up,\u201d Cordelia said.<\/p>\n
Angel held up a hand to silence her, and for once, it worked. \u201cWhat were you trying to hide from?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you don\u2019t understand,\u201d Jack said, his eyes sparking. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to hide anyone, I wanted to hide the lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia\u2019s cup banged against her saucer loud enough to make Wesley jump. \u201cCryptic, much?\u201d Her voice resonated frustration.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry, I\u2019m not explaining this very well.\u201d Jack cast his eyes around the table, and took a deep, shaky breath. \u201cWhen I was younger, Christmas was different. The kiddies looked at Santa and they saw the magic. They believed, you know? All those shining eyes, the little smiling faces\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I\u2019m going to barf,\u201d Cordelia interrupted.<\/p>\n
Jack shook his head. \u201cExactly my point. These days everyone is so — cynical. Even the kiddies seem jaded and old. They don\u2019t see the miracle anymore. I just wanted to hide the fact that the Santa in our grotto wasn\u2019t the real one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou do know Santa *isn\u2019t* real, right?\u201d she said. Angel could imagine the look on her face. And if they didn\u2019t get this fixed, he\u2019d have to make it a regular exercise.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course,\u201d Jack sighed, \u201cbut the kids should have some time to believe. They grow up too fast these days.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it was a concealment spell.\u201d Wesley got a notepad and pen out of his jacket. \u201cDo you remember what the ingredients were?\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel half-listened as Jack listed what he had boiled, dried, and ground up to sprinkle on the sugar-coated cookie. He wasn\u2019t much with spells. Mainly he was concentrating on the noises around him. The chink of cutlery, the murmur of conversation, footfalls and rustling bags — the sounds of humanity. It didn\u2019t bother him as much today as it had two days ago. Perhaps he was getting used to it, being around people.<\/p>\n
Doyle flashed into his mind. *\u2018She\u2019ll provide a connection to the world. She\u2019s got a very — humanizing influence.\u2019* Thank you, Cordelia, he thought, watching her bagel descend, partially chewed, onto her plate. Doyle had been right. Angel wondered if his friend would have been proud of him at the moment, drinking coffee at the mall, in the midst of the pre-Christmas rush. No, probably not. Doyle would have been too preoccupied with not being able to see Cordelia.<\/p>\n
Angel smiled and took another mouthful of coffee.<\/p>\n
\u201cA-ha!\u201d Wesley\u2019s exclamation brought his full attention back to the conversation at the table. \u201cYou say you substituted skink\u2019s eyes for newt?\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack nodded. \u201cIt\u2019s impossible to get newt at this time of year. Everywhere I went was sold out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA common amateur\u2019s mistake — or so I\u2019m told,\u201d Wesley said. \u201cResponsible for many a spell going wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you fix it?\u201d Cordelia asked. Jack and Wesley both looked in the direction of her voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe,\u201d said Wesley.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I\u2019m sorry miss. I didn\u2019t really know what I was doin\u2019 to start with,\u201d Jack said, at the same time.<\/p>\n
Angel could sense Cordelia\u2019s temper snapping, like the air around him shifted somehow. For a split-second he imagined an invisible Cordelia beating Jack to death with a half-eaten bagel. He\u2019d had too much caffeine, obviously. He put his cup down, and pushed it away.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you, Jack. I think we can take it from here.\u201d He rose and offered Jack a hand, helping the old man to his feet.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel,\u201d Cordelia said, and he could hear her teeth were gritted.<\/p>\n
\u201cLeave it, Cordelia,\u201d he said. \u201cJack\u2019s going to go home now, lay his uniform away, and never dabble in the dark arts again, right?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCertainly, sir. I\u2019m so sorry. So sorry,\u201d Jack shook his head towards Cordelia\u2019s seat and performed the customary tip of his cap. Wesley stood aside, letting the old man out of the booth. They watched in silence as Jack shuffled away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell him what happened to the other two?\u201d Wesley asked, putting his pad and pen away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat good will it do, other than give him a coronary?\u201d Angel said, thinking of the heart murmur.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, that would cheer me up,\u201d Cordelia sighed.<\/p>\n
\u201cReally?\u201d Angel raised his eyebrows.<\/p>\n
There was a long silence. \u201cNo,\u201d she finally said. \u201cI guess he learned his lesson.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI almost feel sorry for him,\u201d Wesley said. \u201cWhat do we tell Miriam?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing.\u201d Angel shook his head. There was no point. The police wouldn\u2019t believe a word of it anyway.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey!\u201d Cordelia\u2019s voice was so close to his ear it startled him. \u201cIf we don\u2019t tell her something, we can kiss our store credit goodbye. And, invisible or not, I want to shop. Of course, if I stay invisible, I might not need to pay for anything\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia, really,\u201d Wesley said, looking shocked. \u201cYou\u2019d steal?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOr I could walk up to the counter and scare the crap out of the assistant,\u201d she snapped. \u201cEither way, not getting much shoppy satisfaction otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here they go again, Angel thought. He rubbed his temples, willing the sudden yearning for a nice brood in the dark to disappear. Except disappear was probably an inappropriate word right now\u2026 \u201cWe\u2019ll tell Miriam what happened, just not who. He\u2019s learned his lesson. All he wanted to do was make things better. It backfired. It happens to all of us, now and then.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Cordelia stretched out on Angel\u2019s couch, nibbling on the sushi he\u2019d bought her and Wesley for lunch. Miriam had taken the news well, all things considered. The main thing was that she\u2019d promised to send vouchers. Hopefully they\u2019d arrive in time for the post-Christmas sales. That blue bra better still be there\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cEeeeww, God, Wesley, what the hell are you doing in there?\u201d she said, wrinkling her nose as the stench from the kitchen began to invade the rest of the basement apartment.<\/p>\n
\u201cWorking on your cure, I hope,\u201d he called. There was a small \u2018pop\u2019 and a puff of smoke, followed by the clatter of Wesley slipping off his stool.<\/p>\n
Angel rose from his chair, where he\u2019d been resting, eyes drooping, looking like any moment he\u2019d fall into a coma of vampiric proportions. Cordelia realized he\u2019d probably been awake most of the last three days.<\/p>\n
They hurried into the kitchen, where a sulphurous green cloud hung around the oven, tendrils creeping outwards like some ghostly form of ivy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that it?\u201d Angel asked, blinking through the haze.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think so.\u201d Wesley replied, as his head appeared over the top of the table again. \u201cCordelia, if you\u2019d like to try this.\u201d He poured the contents of the saucepan into glass beaker, and held it out in front of him. The mixture bubbled and frothed with a suspicious fervour.<\/p>\n
\u201cSure, it smells a lot like my cooking, so no big deal,\u201d she said, trying to convince herself it wouldn\u2019t be as barf-worthy as the odour suggested. \u201cWhat\u2019s in it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUh, probably not a good idea to ask,\u201d said Angel, who had accompanied Wesley into the little magic shop in Koreatown that they\u2019d stopped at on the way home.<\/p>\n
\u201cLizard guts. Got it.\u201d She smiled. \u201cI\u2019m smiling at you, by the way.\u201d God, it would be such a relief not to have to explain every facial quirk. Assuming it worked, if course. It was Wesley she was relying on here. Taking a deep breath, she wrapped her fingers around the beaker. \u201cI\u2019ve got it, Wesley, you can let go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Right, deep breaths, hold your nose, down it in one swallow, Cordelia thought. Don\u2019t dwell on the contents. She grasped her nostrils, screwed up her eyelids, and gulped the foamy liquid. Little abrasive chunks of something caught on the back of her tongue, and the vapour burned her throat and nose. She got half of it down, and then gave up, banging the beaker down on the bench top.<\/p>\n
Her stomach did a somersault, lurching and heaving. \u201cLook out, sushi coming back for an encore,\u201d she gasped, falling onto her hands and knees.<\/p>\n
A cool hand rubbed her back. \u201cTake deep breaths,\u201d Angel said. \u201cIt\u2019ll pass.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia gagged and swallowed, trying in vain to keep the vile liquid down. Angel\u2019s hand continued to glide up and down her back, and she was grateful he was there. It made her remember when she was a little girl, and their housekeeper would sit with her if she was sick. Once, after she\u2019d come back from having her tonsils removed, her father had come into her room and read her the Wall Street Journal until she fell asleep.<\/p>\n
But now they were both gone, taken away from her by the IRS, and she\u2019d ended up here, on Angel\u2019s kitchen floor, about to puke her guts out. Thinking about other stuff only worked if it kept your mind off the original stuff, she thought ruefully.<\/p>\n
She felt Angel\u2019s fingers hook under her hair, pulling it back in case she threw up. Thank-you, Angel. Nothing worse than having to wash puke out of your\u2026 \u201cHey, how did you know where my hair was?\u201d<\/p>\n
His hand stilled. \u201cSame way I knew where your back was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia opened her eyes, and there were her fingers, splayed on the linoleum in front of her. Sure, they were kinda stained-glass-window in appearance, and she could still see the floor though them, but it was a major improvement. \u201cWesley, if I didn\u2019t feel like I was about to go all \u2018Exorcist\u2019 here, I\u2019d kiss you,\u201d she gasped.<\/p>\n
\u201cReally? Have a peppermint.\u201d He bent down, holding a box of tic tacs under her nose. She held up a semi-visible hand to accept one.<\/p>\n
\u201cWill it get better?\u201d Angel asked, helping Cordelia into a sitting position.<\/p>\n
Wesley nodded. \u201cAs she digests the antidote, she should get steadily more — vivid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia took a few deep breaths, and popped the mint into her mouth. She felt a little better now, barf-wise, but very, very tired. \u201cCan I lay down for a while?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSure,\u201d Angel nodded. \u201cI was going to have a nap myself. Then I\u2019ll take you home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGreat.\u201d She smiled, thinking how wonderful it was that he could actually see it — or at least through it. \u201cWake me up at sunset.\u201d Hauling herself to her feet, she marched past Angel, through the living area, and flopped down on his bed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s fine, Cordelia. I\u2019ll take the couch,\u201d Angel\u2019s voice was sarcastic, but faint, and getting fainter by the second. Within moments, sleep took her.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Cordelia sat in Angel\u2019s car, outside her apartment building. Every ounce of strength had vanished from her body, but it was worth it. She looked down at her hands, now almost completely solid again. Thank God. Wesley had saved her, and she hadn\u2019t even had a chance to thank him properly. By the time she\u2019d woken from her nap, he\u2019d gone home.<\/p>\n
Angel came around and opened the passenger door. \u201cCome on, I\u2019ll help you inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m fine,\u201d she said, trying to stand. Her knees quaked and buckled. \u201cOkay, maybe a little with the damsel in distress.\u201d<\/p>\n
He pulled her to her feet, supporting her with an arm around her waist. \u201cAre you sure you\u2019ll be all right on your own?\u201d<\/p>\n
She shot him a suspicious glance, as he helped her along the pathway. \u201cYou been playing with that sensitivity stick again?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying with what? Oh — that. No.\u201d He chuckled. \u201cIt\u2019s just that someone recently told me that I should be more considerate of others, pay attention to their feelings, get involved more. I think maybe they had a point. I\u2019m trying it out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh,\u201d she said, taken aback just a little. \u201cSounds like this person knew what they were talking about. Dennis!\u201d<\/p>\n
Her front door swung open, and they staggered towards the sofa, collapsing in a heap on the cushions. Angel sighed, and looked around the room. \u201cWhy aren\u2019t there any decorations here? I though you were big with the tinsel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut not big budget with the tinsel,\u201d she replied, easing her shoes off. \u201cSince I spend most of my time at the office, I put it up there instead. Figured I\u2019d get to see more of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh.\u201d He looked uncomfortable. \u201cYou should take tomorrow off.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, duh, it\u2019s Christmas. If you want me to come in you\u2019ll have to pay triple-time.\u201d She shook her head in resignation.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, it\u2019s fine. Stay here. Are you sure you\u2019ll be all right?\u201d he asked, getting to his feet.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, go home, you\u2019re freaking me out now,\u201d she said, smiling.<\/p>\n
Angel backed towards the door. \u201cOkay, but any problems, call me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGo!\u201d she cried, waving him away. \u201cAnd, Angel\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMerry Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n
He smiled. \u201cYou too, Cordelia.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\n
Epilogue<\/b>: Saturday, December 25, 1999<\/em><\/p>\n The display on the clock said ten am. Cordelia stretched and yawned. Had she really slept for thirteen hours? It felt like it. She was warm, rested, and\u2026 She jerked upright in bed, her hands flying up in front of her.<\/p>\n They were solid. Not translucent, not even slightly fuzzy. Solid, solid, solid. Oh thank God — the best Christmas present a girl could ever have.<\/p>\n The smell of brewing coffee snapped her out of her silent celebration. Bless you, Dennis. Real coffee, too, not that nasty instant stuff she normally had to make do with. She wondered where he\u2019d gotten it. Maybe Dennis was a cat-burglar while she was off fighting the demons and other nasties of LA. Cordelia pulled the bedspread up to her chin, taking a deep, satisfying whiff.<\/p>\n Another smell caught her attention. Sage? Onions? Perhaps Dennis was making — stuffing? Oh, poor thing. She should probably break it to him that there was nothing to stuff. He was going to be so disappointed. Maybe she could spread it on toast or something — it would probably be tastier than plastic macaroni. To her relief, her stomach didn\u2019t heave at the thought of either. Actually, she was kind of hungry.<\/p>\n Someone knocked on the front door. Before she could lay a hand on her robe, she heard Angel\u2019s voice, low, almost whispering. \u201cCome in, Wesley.\u201d<\/p>\n What the hell was Angel doing in her apartment? It was Christmas morning. Wasn\u2019t he supposed to be back at Brood Central, vamp-napping the day away?<\/p>\n \u201cI must say, Angel, this had better be important, dragging me all the way over here on — goodness mmph.\u201d Wesley sounded like he\u2019d had a hand slapped over his mouth.<\/p>\n This was too weird. Cordelia tugged on her robe, jammed her feet in her slippers — hey, look, still visible — and marched into the living room. \u201cHoly crap.\u201d<\/p>\n The room was festooned with tinsel, and other Christmassy objects. A little tree sat on the coffee table, with tiny bud lights twinkling on and off. Angel stood in the center of the room — beside an equally startled Wesley — wearing the apron that she never used.<\/p>\n Cordelia blinked a couple of times, and pinched herself on the arm. \u201cAngel, what are you doing? Are you possessed?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d He sounded wounded. \u201cI\u2019m roasting a chicken. The store was all out of turkeys.\u201d There was a long pause. \u201cDennis is helping.\u201d A bang on the wall indicated that, indeed, Dennis was a willing participant.<\/p>\n She sank down into a chair, taking in the room one more time. \u201cI thought you didn\u2019t like Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe it\u2019s not so bad.\u201d He shrugged. A soft \u2018ding\u2019 came from the kitchen. \u201cOh, time to stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n As soon as he was out of the room, Wesley came over to Cordelia. \u201cI see you\u2019re looking, er, more like — something, today.\u201d<\/p>\n She glanced down at herself and smiled. \u201cThanks, Wesley. I mean it. You really came through for me yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n The sound of plates and cutlery rattling around made his self-satisfied grin vanish, and he nodded his head in the direction of the kitchen. \u201cThis is most unexpected. Are you sure he hasn\u2019t turned evil?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m pretty sure Angelus didn\u2019t cook. He liked his food raw.\u201d She shuddered.<\/p>\n Wesley rubbed his hands together. \u201cWell, I must say, if Angel can cook other things as well as he does eggs, I\u2019m looking forward to this. Fancy a game of Scrabble while we wait?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou carry Scrabble around with you?\u201d She tried not to laugh.<\/p>\n \u201cTravel Scrabble,\u201d he replied, as if that justified everything.<\/p>\n She rubbed her forehead with one finger, perplexed. So much for a lonely Christmas Day, sitting in front of the TV with a frozen meal and only a ghost for company. Instead, here she was with her two friends, a nice cooked lunch on the way, and she wasn\u2019t invisible anymore. On the whole the day had turned out really well. Perhaps this wouldn\u2019t end up as the worst Christmas on record, which, after everything that had happened over the last few weeks, was — unexpected. She felt the smile begin at her toes and spread all the way to her lips. \u201cWhat the hell. Just let me wash up and get dressed, and you\u2019re on.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Cordelia pulled on her clothes, squeezed the last of the water from her hair, and taking a hairbrush in one hand, wandered into her bedroom. Showering always made her think profound thoughts. Maybe it was from the hot water on her head, she wasn\u2019t sure. Today, for the first time in weeks, her shower thoughts hadn\u2019t been all about Doyle, and finances, and her stuttering acting career. They\u2019d been about the vampire stuffing a chicken in her kitchen, and the English guy setting up Scrabble on her coffee table. Okay, so maybe that didn\u2019t qualify as profound in most people\u2019s dictionary, but in the Cordelia Chase book of serious thoughts, it came pretty damn close.<\/p>\n She\u2019d laid out her gifts to Angel and Wesley on her bed, prior to getting in the shower. She\u2019d intended to give them out yesterday, but the whole see-through thing had kind of forced everything else from her brain. They weren\u2019t very exciting, but in the small time she\u2019d had after they finished Santa-ing, combined with her limited budget, it was all she could manage. With a sigh, she sat down beside them.<\/p>\n Hold on — there was something different. A third gift nestled beside them on the duvet, wrapped in silver paper and decorated with a glittery bow. A small rectangle of red card had the words \u2018From Santa\u2019 written in Angel\u2019s handwriting. With a small squeal, she picked it up, squeezing it. Soft. Little tingles of excitement fluttered in her stomach, just like when she was a little girl.<\/p>\n Okay, patience was not one of her strong points. It needed to be opened, and now. She slid her fingernail under the flap at one end, popping the wrapping open and peering inside. A flash of blue satin made her gasp.<\/p>\n \u201cOh my God,\u201d she breathed, tearing the paper off. How did he know? Her mind flashed back to him, watching while she wrestled with her conscience outside the Victoria\u2019s Secret changing rooms. He\u2019d noticed. Who\u2019d have figured? Without warning, her eyes filled with tears.<\/p>\n For no apparent reason, she suddenly thought of Aura and Harmony, and what they would be doing this morning. In their expensive houses, with their stuck-up families, and their piles of presents. And at that moment, she wouldn\u2019t have swapped where she was for the world.<\/p>\n The little piece of blue satin in her hands had more thought in it than any of the presents her friends were opening. She wiped a tear away with the heel of her hand, and began to laugh.<\/p>\n The squeak of a floorboard made her jump. \u201cAngel, how many times do I have to have the \u2018stalker\u2019 talk with you?\u201d She frowned, and he stepped into her room, looking embarrassed. She wagged a finger at him. \u201cI swear I\u2019m going to put a little bell on you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI just wanted to see if you liked it,\u201d he said, shuffling from one foot to another.<\/p>\n \u201cOf *course* I do. It\u2019s a bit — personal, I mean — hello, underwear — but I love it. Thank you,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n He looked at his hands, and then out of the window, avoiding her eyes. \u201cI didn\u2019t know what to get you, and you seemed to really want that. I know underwear is usually for lovers\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEw! Let\u2019s just leave it at \u2018thank you,\u2019 shall we?\u201d she said. \u201cAnd thank you for today, too. This is all so great.\u201d<\/p>\n He perched on the end of her bed, stiff and nervous. \u201cUh, are you all right?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAgain with the big sensitive thing. Did you inhale the aerosol snow?\u201d she asked. Twice in three days was just too weird.<\/p>\n He looked uncomfortable. \u201cWell, after what you said in the men\u2019s room the other day\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd isn\u2019t that a strange sentence?\u201d she interrupted. \u201cSorry, go on.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI was worried.\u201d He looked her in the eye. \u201cSo — are you?\u201d<\/p>\n She thought about it for a long, strange moment. About everything that had happened that week, and especially that morning, and there was only one clear answer. \u201cYou know what? I really am.\u201d<\/p>\n His smile changed his whole face. \u201cThat\u2019s — good.\u201d<\/p>\n For a moment they sat in silence, not quite sure what to say next, and then Wesley\u2019s voice floated through from the living room. \u201cI\u2019ve set out your letters, Cordelia!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, right, Scrabble,\u201d she said. \u201cI can\u2019t believe I\u2019m doing this. And I can\u2019t believe you\u2019re cooking something besides eggs. Who knew you were a gourmet?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d save your judgement until after you\u2019ve eaten,\u201d he chuckled, rising and motioning towards the door. \u201cComing?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn a moment.\u201d She nodded.<\/p>\n As soon as she was alone, she stripped off her top and threw the old, disintegrating bra in the hamper. Beaming now, she put the new one on. \u201cHello, silky goodness,\u201d she giggled, pulling her sweater back over her head.<\/p>\n Then she gathered up Angel and Wesley\u2019s gifts, and sighed a long, contented sigh. There was good food to eat, friends to share it with, mall vouchers on the way and new satin against her skin. It was a pretty good Christmas, after all.<\/p>\n