Welcome to Gaia! ::

At Jordan's door was left a six pack of beer, and a small box with a pocketwatch within hidden dear. There was no card, and no name. He would know just the same.

He didn't know his cousin as well as he wished, so Robert left her a digital camera, and had it runic'd. He left her a note, but signed it with no name; It said "Merry Christmas cuz, take a pic for me to frame."

The four Phoenix girls all did receive a pendant, with a birthstone to match each independent. There were notes stashed in each, written oh so clever; they said Merry Christmas! Phoenix Forever!

Jerry had already been given every gift that Robert could have thought, he'd run out of ideas, his attempts were all for naught. More music? More bad shirts? Or maybe a new guitar? Instead, Jerry got a single thing, the greatest gift by far.

"Dear Jerry," The letter said. "I'll choreograph your show." No ifs, ands, or buts left now, Robert was ready to go.

He'd seen Otto riding on that skateboard rather bravely, so Robert bought him this garish thing in hopes he would ride safely. He stuck a note right on the helmet, that said "MERRY CHRISTMAS SON!" And left it unsigned with a laugh - his fatherly work was done.

It displeased Mimsy to see that Candace was getting a gift, so Robert made it very clear how little he'd spent in thrift. It was a single candy bar, from a place called Ghirardelli. It looked so good, he wanted it, the smell turned him to jelly.
So when Candace opened her gift on that fateful Christmas Day, a single bite was missing for his stomach he could not betray.

Gale received a book this Christmas, from a Santa with no name. It was titled very simply; "Ball and Chain". It didn't sound that terrible, and the cover was benign, but if Gale chose to read it, he'd surely come to whine. The sheer amount of gay sex was probably quite great, but he was sure it was a book that he'd appreciate!

Shiloh got the same book that he'd bought for Gale this year. Though this time it was given to him thoughtful and sincere. It had begun as just a joke for his literary friend. But when he picked it up that day, he sensed a growing trend. He signed the card with "Seasons Greetings, I hope this isn't weird!" But it probably was, as Robert's sense of humor was worse than he feared.

The Hunter lead received a full length mirror, nothing more and nothing less. Robert hoped he'd get the point, and fix that awful mess.

Robert's boss was not the easiest target to shop for. So he didn't, and instead, stuck a card on his door. Outside the card was typical, wishing him the best. Inside the card was a promise. I'm going to pass the test. The Doctor likely did not care if Robert failed or passed. But he knew the man had never had faith, even though he'd never asked. He didn't think he needed the approval of the man, but it felt good to show him that he finally had a plan.

His neighbor received a cookbook, in hopes it pleased her man. She also received new nail polish, and a runic'd nail dryer fan!

Naughty children get coal for Christmas, this Santa was aware, but Robert chose to punish the man with just a little more flair. A named brown bag waited on the stoop, at least it was unlit. Inside, wrapped in nothing but anger, was a great big pile of -

For Lucky's sleepy Christmas, Robert did not waste a gift. Instead, he decorated the pod with tinsel, and tied the bows adrift. The pod stood covered in holiday garb, from top to bottom complete. Robert hoped if his brother awoke, he would think it sweet.

Shu got a bear named Duffy, but that was hardly all. She also found a mountain of outfits to dress the plushie doll. There were hats, and shirts and pants and shoes, and cowboy outfits too. All in all, the bear had thirty outfits to go through. The card said MERRY CHRISTMAS TO MY FAVORITE LITTLE CUB! And he'd signed it with a bear paw, accidentally smudged where he had rub.

But in the end, when all the fun had been complete at last, Robert visited the grave that haunted his near past. He knelt down in front of Clarice's name, and left her a bouquet. Then he whispered, with maddening fervency, a faith-filled promise;

"One day."

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Cat's Eye Nebula, and is tied neatly with a red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a small white rabbit.

Inside is a large bag of homemade sugar cookies of varying festive shapes, along with separated portions of colored icing and sprinkles to decorate them. Beneath the cookies is an outfit that closely resembles what Shu the White Rabbit had worn, replicated to the highest detail that Mimsy could recall to relate to a seamstress. Beneath the clothing is a cat themed tea set, along with several boxes of pink, heart shaped sugar cubes.

At the very bottom is a card, which reads: Merry Christmas, Shu!

I remain grateful to ALICE for leading us to each other. I have never questioned nor doubted why she considered you to be special and important, but you continue to prove precisely how wonderful you are.

Thank you for your kindness, and for your willingness to care about me. I am proud of you and love you very much.
-Mimsy

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Corona Australis Nebula, and is tied neatly with a red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a sun.

Inside is a small collection of framed pictures, largely from the day of the sixth wedding. The largest is an image of the bride and maid of honor together, with dried forget-me-nots pressed between the glass and the picture. Nestled beside them was a white and pink bear, which illuminates itself with violently neon lights when hugged.

Despite much deliberation regarding the whimsy of such a choice, the package is wrapped in paper depicting the Helix Nebula, often referred to as the 'Eye of God', and is tied neatly with a red ribbon.

Inside is a bird, anesthetized but presently living. Despite the appearance of an injury on its chest, the Luzon bleeding heart dove - a specimen of a near endangered species - is in pristine condition.

The meticulous, cursive note that accompanies it reads: There is scarcely anything that I could offer to a superior that I so greatly admire, who appears from my position to be capable of everything.

I hope that you enjoy the brief novelty of this puzzle nonetheless.
-MM

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Soul Nebula, and is tied nearly with a red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a shooting star.

Inside is a very wide assortment of cakes and cookies, all homemade. Each is individually wrapped and labeled with tags that list the confection's type and a suggestion of ice cream flavor to pair it with. They all seem surprisingly well-considered.

Attached to a copy of the 3DS game 'Fantasy Life' is an envelope, which reads: Dwight - Thank you.

The interior of the card lacks the same brevity:

Thank you for extending the limited resources of your time and energy when I require clarification on topics that may contribute to my betterment.

Thank you for your assistance in redefining the fundamental distortions of knowledge that facilitated in the prohibition of, among much else, my ability to be happy.

Thank you above all for believing in me, despite the veritable nonexistence of the person that you placed that belief upon. I am unspeakably grateful that you found something promising within me, and that you put forth the effort to dissuade my intentions of traveling to the European Center for Nuclear Research. I continue to hope that you will rediscover this promise when I have progressed to such a point.

Thank you for guiding me to Deus Ex. I apologize that I have not always been grateful in this regard.

Merry Christmas,
Mimsy

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Flame Nebula, and is tied neatly with a red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a phoenix - a (very singular) token of acceptance.

Inside is a large tin of loose leaf tea, with a label indicating that it is a custom blend. It contains passionflower and lemon balm to aid relaxation, with portions of dried apple and berries to offset the herbal taste. The tea is accompanied by a punny mana-tea infuser, a pack of honey sticks, and a comical mug.

Beneath the tea is a hand-sewn leather bound journal. The precise cursive of the note attached to it reads: Yours is a brilliance that should not be unwritten, whensoever you leave it unspoken.

My most sincere regards,
Mimsy

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Eagle Nebula, and is tied neatly with red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a star.

Inside is an evenly folded scarf, printed with the wings of an eagle. Beneath the scarf is a large packet of poppy seeds, should she feel mindfully patriotic.

A certificate for a (romantic) three course meal at One If By Land, Two If By Sea in NYC is also tucked into the box.

[the scarf resembles this style, with eagle wings on a light blue background.]

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Pencil Nebula, and is tied neatly with red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a cat.

Inside is a rich chocolate cake, the belated fulfillment of a 'subtle' hint. By some strange coincidence, this box also contains a certificate for a (romantic) three course meal at One If By Land, Two If By Sea in NYC.

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Bug Nebula, and is tied neatly with red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a bull.

Inside is a large tin of cocoa mix, and a handmade (by someone else's hands) skinning knife, because that was a safe choice.

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Cotton Candy nebula, and is neatly tied with red ribbon and an ornament shaped like a duck.

Inside is a fresh apple pie...accompanied by a small plush alpaca that closely resembles an alpaca from another place and time named 'Penny'.

The package is wrapped in paper depicting the Pipe Nebula during a period of time when the dwarf planet Ceres passed in front of it, and is neatly tied with red ribbon and an ornament resembling the aforementioned dwarf planet.

Inside is anything she might need to take up knitting - needles, a variety of yarn, patterns, instructional guides, and scissors, of course. There is no indication regarding whether or not it was as simple as another universe's Mimsy implied.

Inside was a pendant – another corner of paper read - “Both a guardian and for strength and prosperity… at least I’m pretty sure it counts for both. I’m not a carver of such things, but it suited you! Hope you enjoy! Sometime you and I will have to visit somewhere in New Zealand where I won’t be recognized, I think you’d enjoy it! – Zac.

PS: here is to building something that lasts!

Another Pendant, another shape – “We haven’t really talked but it seemed rude to leave you out – this is for friendship, harmony, and playfulness as well as family love! - Zac Wiremu.

It was a larger box and not only contained a Pendant but a note as well – “E ua papû ia'ue hiahia whakairo e koe he tetahi pai , engari whakaaro ahau i taea e tatou te whakamahi i nga kaitiaki katoa e nehenehe tatou e farii i . Koa farii i tenei Pekapeka! – Zac!”

There was also a card in English that offered to expand on Aro’s tattoos, including ‘something more traditional’.

A heavy black cord and a coiled piece of Green stone …there was a note under it that simply said. “Ask, and I’ll tell you about what it means.

Each of the presents beneath the tree for him were wrapped in paper depicting the Heart Nebula and tied neatly with a red ribbon.

The first gift, which rattled minimally if shaken, contained a stuffed bear.

At the instant the bear became visible, Mimsy launched into a tale of her brave venture into a mall again, where she discovered the store that actively encouraged the Frankenstein-esque concept of piecing together a stuffed animal to 'bring it to life'. This bear had two handfuls of tiny hearts within its chest, as per her insistence, and was dressed in a groom's suit. The remainder of what accompanied the bear in its box required little explanation: in its arms, which were magnetically curled into a hug, was a much smaller bespectacled rabbit (whose lacking ability to be customized had contributed to its lacking a heart, she added). Uninvited to the hug, but welcome for the possibility of friendship, was a similarly small dinosaur.

Placed to one side of the box was what had once been a standard Birth Certificate for the bear, which had since been heavily doctored to better suit their needs.

In the second gift, which rattled a lot if shaken, was a clicker training kit for pets and a starter agility training set. She suggested that this be used for Laika, the newborn quadruplets, or any combination of the aforementioned minipets, and went on to elaborate that establishing this training would provide greater ease when teaching more complex tricks in the future - even synchronized performances were within the realm of possibility!

In the third gift, which was heavy and clunked more than rattled, was a book. It was a very thick book, bound in dark leather, whose only external marking was a little heart embossed in bright yellow gold on the spine. Unlike the two previous gifts, it was not paired with any commentary; just silence and the attention of her tentative, watchful eyes.

The concept of its contents was not dissimilar from the notebook that she had offered to him months and months ago. It recorded their time together, from the very beginning to the near-present, but it was more than the lines upon lines of objective data she'd given him before. This was part scrapbook, part textbook, and the subject of all of it was obviously them.

Among the recorded memories were pictures, texts, notes, little scraps of things she should never have bothered to keep, smudges of ash for the things she failed to. Dirt. Seeds. Cloth. Crumbled icing. Each specimen, every portion of evidence that she collected and kept to herself, now resided among the pages of the book, preserved in more compact formats. Some would be familiar, correlating with mentions made in her research, but others had been kept as precious secrets until now.

The book stopped abruptly, leaving more than two thirds of it empty and waiting. Even the last page had no indication of finality, marked with a small (cont., vol II) on the lower right corner.

It was a clear step towards progress since the research notebook - not normal, but just normal enough.