Chapter 154 - Christmas Eve Gifts

“Mom, dad, you should try the potions.” Luna said.

“Sure.” Julia said.

Luna headed to the living room, grabbed the box of potions and returned. She handed one to each of them.

“So, this is the famous Raccoon’s potions!” Nathan said, “I’ve heard nothing but good things about them!”

Nathan inspected the potion, swooshing it around with interest.

“Hah,” Julia chuckled, “Did past you deserve to be cursed?” She said with an amused smile.

“Ahaha…” I scratched the back of my head, “Somewhat. I was pushing myself then.”

“What?” Nathan said, confused.

“The description says “Damn you past me!”” Luna said.

“Oh! Haha!” Nathan laughed, “I can relate to that a lot.”

“It’s also supposed to relieve your soreness and and muscle pain.” Julia commented.

“Ah! That’s perfect! My back’s been hurting lately.” Nathan said. He untwisted the cap and smelled it. “Smells like strawberries.” He commented.

“Indeed, are those same strawberries you gave us earlier an ingredient?” Julia asked, taking a whiff of the potion.

“That’s right!” I nodded, “You’ll like the taste a lot.” I smiled.

They had loved the strawberries earlier. In fact, every single strawberry I brought had been eaten.

Which, reminds me, I really need to upscale the strawberry garden. Luna likes them, her parents like them, my parents like them, literally everyone loves them! Plus, I use them as an ingredient in nearly all of my potions. The only reason I haven’t run out by now is because I’ve been focusing on the one potion that doesn’t require them.

When Luna and I move into the new house, I’m definitely setting a lot of space for it. I wonder if I can make a strawberry plantation?

Hm…That sounds like a good idea. And I’m positive that Luna would love that. Ah, but, I’ll probably have to hire people to help weed and spray…Eh, I’ll think more about it later.

“Cheers!” Nathan said, lifting his potion.

He downed it in one gulp like he was taking a shot of alcohol.

Julia, on the other hand, sipped it like it was a bottle of water.

Though, their reactions were pretty similar. A pleasantly surprised look appeared on both of their faces as they swallowed.

“Oho! These taste delicious!” Nathan said, “The hype surrounding them are not unforetold!”

“…Who even uses that word anymore?” Luna said.

“I see,” Julia nodded to herself, “Alongside the strawberry taste, your natural mana taste is quite good as well.” She said to me.

…My mama said the same thing. I wonder what level awakener Julia is?

“Hehe, I’m honored.” I giggled.

“Woah!” Nathan suddenly exclaimed, drawing everyone’s attention to him. He stood up and twisted and turned his body, “I feel great!”

“You should’ve had any soreness or fatigue washed away.” I said, “But, bear in mind, it doesn’t get rid of your fatigue quickly. So, like, if you’re working hard every day and are constantly drinking these to help, it’ll stack and eventually, you’ll be forced to rest.”

“That’s fine.” Nathan nodded, “I think I’ll drink one every morning! If I ever sleep badly, this’ll fix me right up!”

“Haha, they definitely help.” I nodded.

“Say, do you got one of these but to keep me awake? Like to replace coffee?” Nathan asked.

“A caffeinated drink?” I inquired.

“Yeah, but without the addiction, haha.” He chuckled.

Hm…That’s not a bad idea. He’s basically asking for an energy potion—something to get you through the day when you’re tired.

It’s not as if I haven’t thought of making one before, it’s just that I personally haven’t needed one. There’s also a lot of them on the exchange already, so, I didn’t bother. But…thinking about it, I could probably sell them well, no?

My biggest advantage is the taste. I’d have to research it a bit more to determine whether it’s viable or not, but, those could definitely be fun to make.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“I can definitely get you a box.” I said, “It’ll probably be after new years though.”

“That would be a huge help! I’ve been trying to quit coffee recently, but, I just can’t stop myself.”

“I’ve bought him energy potions before,” Julia said, “But, he didn’t like or stick to any of them.”

“Well, there’s no way dad won’t like the ones she makes.” Luna said, “He was snacking on those strawberries more than I was.”

“Okay, now don’t exaggerate.” I said.

To get the story straight, Luna one hundred percent ate the most strawberries. She ate two bowls worth while Julia and Nathan only had one bowl.

“Hahaha! Yeah, Luna, you were eating almost two strawberries a second!” Nathan laughed.

“That’s not even physically possible!” Luna exclaimed, “I only ate one strawberry at a time and slowly!”

“By the way, mother-in-law,” I said, turning to Julia. It still felt a little embarrassing to say, but, I was gradually getting used to it.

“Yes?” Julia looked at me with a warm smile.

“Um, what tier awakener are you, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“I’m officially a mid-tier awakener.” She answered, “When I was active, I wasn’t too fond of entering gates or the tower.”

“Mm.” I nodded.

“Yeah, my mom doesn’t like violence.” Luna said, “She’s a total pacifist.”

“That’s right.” Julia nodded, “Well, since we’ve finished eating, how about we all go to the living room?”

“Sounds good!” Nathan nodded.

“Alright?” I nodded, a little confused, “Can I use the bathroom first?” I asked.

“It’s just that door over there.” Luna pointed.

I gave her a nod before heading to the bathroom.

…

When I headed to the living room, I saw everyone sitting on the couch. So, I took a seat next to Luna.

“Did you wash your hands?” Luna asked.

I stared at her incredulously,

“Of course I washed my hands. What kind of question even is that?” I asked, baffled.

“I was just checking.”

I wanted to tease her a little, but, I stopped myself because we were in front of her parents.

Julia stood up and headed over to the stockings on the wall and grabbed them. She approached and handed them to us respectively.

“Merry Christmas, you two.” Julia said warmly, “I’ll bring you two your presents in a moment.”

My eyes drifted to the boxes under the Christmas tree. I didn’t know what to think.

I really wasn’t expecting to receive gifts from my parents-in-law. I thought the stocking fillers would be it, but, they actually got me something else?

“Bin, I’m dumping it right here.” Luna said.

I snapped back to reality and nodded. Luna dumped the stocking onto the couch and out came candy, chocolate, and m&m’s.

Her eyes lit up like stars as she immediately picked up one of the chocolates, unwrapped it and popped it in her mouth. She chewed happily.

I smiled and looked through my stocking. It seems like Luna and I got the same exact things.

“Thank you,” I said to Julia and Nathan, “I’ll enjoy these!”

“We asked Luna what kind of sweets do you like and she said that you like about anything.” Nathan said, “Though she did emphasize chocolate a lot.”

“Mm,” I nodded, “I love chocolate!”

“That’s good.” Julia smiled warmly as she carried boxes towards us. She placed them on the ground at our feet.

We both got two boxes each.

The boxes were wrapped all cutely; Luna’s boxes used wrapping paper with a mouse design on it while mine had raccoons all over it. There was even a ribbon tied in a bow on the top of them.

“This wrapping paper is so good!” I exclaimed, “Where did you get them? I definitely need to buy some for myself.”

“I just ordered them online.” Julia said, “Unfortunately, the stores nearby didn’t sell designs of those animals.”

“Yeah, these are really cute.” Luna said while chewing on some chocolate.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full.” Julia said.

“Mm.” Luna nodded.

Luna lifted one of her boxes and shook it. She was trying to listen to what it was…I think? But…

“Hey…” I said.

“Hm?” Luna looked at me.

“Can’t you tell what’s inside without doing that? Doesn’t your trait do that or something?”

“…” She stared at me blankly, “I could…Technically.” She nodded, “But, that’s boring so I have it muted. At most, I’ll be able to tell the general shape of it.”

“Fair.” I nodded.

I’d probably do the same if I had a similar trait. Surprises are half the fun of gifts, it’d be unbelievably boring if you just knew everything beforehand.

I grabbed a box as well and shook it. It didn’t make any recognizable sound, so, I was completely clueless on what this could be.

“Do you want to open yours first?” Luna asked.

“Sure!” I nodded excitedly.

I noticed Luna filming with her phone, so, I raised two fingers in a peace sign and smiled.

“I’m opening it now,” I said.

I untied the ribbon and carefully unwrapped it and it revealed a cardboard box.

And opening that cardboard box revealed…

My eyes widened slightly as a wide smile appeared on my face.

“Ooo! I love it!” I said.

They had gotten me a blanket! Lifting it up, I dug my fingers into the soft fabric before lifting it into my face. It was so comfy!

While panda gramps is working on the silverbin blanket, this is a perfect substitute! The blanket was pure purple in color and was large enough to easily fit on a king sized bed.

“Luna told us about how much you like blankets and that your main blanket is currently out. So, we got you one you could use in the meantime.” Julia said.

“Hehe! Thank you! I love it a lot!” I wrapped the blanket around my shoulders, “It’s super comfy!”

“Glad you like it.” Nathan said with a warm smile.

“Mm!” I nodded, “You next, Mouse!” I said, “Open yours!”

I started to film her.

Luna nodded with a smile and lifted her box onto her lap.

“Let’s see…” Luna carefully unwrapped it, revealing a cardboard box similar to mine.

She opened it and a brighter smile appeared on her face, I could see her excitement.

“What is it?” I asked. From where I sat, I couldn’t see inside the box.

Luna lifted the item out of the box and revealed a plastic box containing memorability for a movie we had watched together a while ago.

“This is the limited edition collectors merchandise that released alongside Carousel! I can’t believe you got it! When I went to buy it, it was all sold out!” Luna said excitedly, inspecting it from top to bottom.

In the box was a small carousel with the characters from the movie around it, and floating above the carousel were the monsters that were in the movie. Shockingly, this was one of the few horror movies that Luna liked.

Well…It was ‘technically’ a horror movie. Just without all the jump scares and bad decisions. It was more of a survival movie than a horror one. I also liked watching it back then.

“Haha,” Nathan chuckled, “Glad you like it. Had to talk to quite a few people to get it.”

“I love it! Thank you, mom, dad! I love you!” Luna said excitedly and hugged her merchandise.

Seeing Luna so happy made me happy.

“You two should open your last gifts together.” Julia said with a smile.

“Together? At the same time or?” I asked.

“At the same time.” She nodded.

Luna and I looked at each other before picking up our respective boxes.

Since our hands were fulls, Nathan took the role of recording.

We unwrapped them, revealing a familiar cardboard box.

“Countdown?” I asked.

“Three…Two…One.” Luna counted down and when she hit one, we both opened the cardboard boxes.

Sitting in the middle of my box was a small, plump raccoon plush. The raccoon was wearing a shirt with a mouse and a heart on it. It was unbelievably cute!

I lifted it out of the box and hugged it. It wasn’t as soft as the blanket, but, a plush is a plush. And I love plushies!

“Cute!” I said before glancing towards Luna’s gift.

She had gotten a mouse plush that was wearing a shirt with a raccoon and a heart on it. Our plushies matched!

“These are really cute!” Luna said, “Were these custom made?” She asked.

“That’s right.” Julia nodded.

“Thank you! They’re really good quality, these are perfect decor!” Luna said.

“Thank you!” I said as well.

Though Luna and I already had our respective plushies, you can’t go wrong with more! Especially when decorating! These’ll look good on the computer desk!

“I’m glad you two like them.” Julia smiled.

We all chatted a bit more before it was time for Luna and I to head home. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day, so, we wanted to get a good sleep. Eventually, we were all at the door.

“Thank you both for spending the Eve with us.” Julia said kindly, “It was a pleasure to meet you, Stella. Feel free to stop by anytime. You can think of this place as a second home.” She smiled.

“I’ll keep it in mind,” I nodded with a smile, “It was good to meet you two too and thank you again for the gifts and dinner. I really enjoyed today.”

“Me too,” Luna said, “Dad, you’re as good a cook as ever.”

“Glad you liked it.” Nathan smiled.

Luna hugged her parents.

“You too, Stella,” Julia said to me.

“Mm.” I hugged her.

“Alright, mom, dad, we’ve got to go.” Luna said, “Bin’s got a lot of work to do tomorrow.”

“Come back soon, you two.” Julia waved as we headed out the door.

…

“See? I told you they’d love you.” Luna said.

“You did.” I replied with a smile, “They’re great people.”

Luna started the car and I put on the music.

Looking out the window, I stared at the beautiful stars sparkling in the sky.

I really have a lot of work to do tomorrow…