Part Twenty Four by Sherry
The second mission van had finally arrived and transported Sherry, Davenport and Mentz back to Section. It was really late. Sherry knew North wanted everyone at the Thanksgiving meal on time, but she simply wasn't going to make it. The only thing she wanted to do right now was get into a nice warm bath and soak for about an hour. But, first things first ... she had to get the intel they retrieved to Operations.
Walking slowly through Comm, the three operatives parted company. Sherry headed for Operation's office to deliver the intel and debrief, while Davenport and Mentz returned their gear to Walter.
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Operations had invited North to his office for a pre-dinner drink ... just the two of them. He had Christopher bring them some of his favorite ... the eggnog. Christopher poured them each a glass and then left. He needed to get back to the meal. It was almost ready, just some last minute details to take care of.
Operations and North were sharing small talk and simply enjoying the day and each other's company. Operations proposed a toast to North and they each took a sip of their drinks.
Operations dropped the glass on the floor and North gasped.
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Sherry was just about to head up the stairs to the Observation Deck when the bellow was heard all through Comm.
"CHRISTOPHER! What did he do? Birkoff ... get me Christopher immediately!"
Sherry stopped in her tracks. It didn't sound like a good time to interrupt Operations. So, she turned on her heel and headed back to Comm. She stopped by Birkoff's desk.
"Hey Birkoff. Here's the intel we got. When Operations calms down, see that he gets it. And tell him to get in touch when he wants me to debrief."
Birkoff nodded and took the pda. Sherry then headed to her room for that long-awaited soak. She couldn't wait to hear the explanation of what was going on in Ops' office. What had Christopher done? Or ... maybe it wasn't Christopher. She'd have to catch up with the other girls soon and find out exactly what they were up to ...
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Part Twenty-Five by Rita
Rita hung up the phone when she finished talking to Sherry. She looked up from her position in Michael's lap. Michael's hand gently moved some hair away from her face. "I guess its time to get ready for dinner. I see you're already dressed."
He smiled at her. "You were sleeping so peacefully I decided to let you rest longer."
"That was very nice of you. But time to get up. I wish we could stay like this longer. Yet dinner should be ready by now. I hope."
"We will have time later tonight. I'll wait to escort you downstairs." He placed a gentle kiss on her lips.
"That would be wonderful. Just give me 20 minutes." Rita said as she stepped into the bathroom.
"No rush."
Michael was busy at the computer looking over some mission profiles to pass the time. He was not one to waste any of it. He also called Christopher to make sure there was champagne delivered to Rita's room for later on this evening. While Rita was busy getting ready someone knocked at the door. Michael rose and crossed the room to open the door. There stood Nabiki looking quite lovely in her Thanksgiving outfit.
"Hello, Nabiki. Happy Thanksgiving." Michael said as he stepped aside to let her in.
Nabiki hesitated she did not wish to interrupt anything. She knew how precious those moments were. She was looking forward to her evening with Roy tonight. "Well Hi Michael, Happy Thanksgiving. Is Rita available or I can come back later."
"No, no. She is getting ready we will be going down to dinner soon."
"Oh good."
"Please sit." The two of them sat on the sofa. "So I hear that you and Roy are making an evening of it tonight?" Michael decided to tease Nabiki.
Nabiki began to flush a pretty shade of pink. "Hmmm¦ Thankfully the door of the bathroom opened and Michael's attention shifted.
Rita stepped out of the bathroom dressed in a long black skirt with a silk red top. Her hair was piled on her head with some tendrils escaping. She had one shoe on and was grasping the other one in her hand. She was surprised to see Nabiki there. "Hey Nabiki! What brings you here? Any more ideas for tonight."
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Part Twenty-Six by Nabiki
"Wow, Rita, you look absolutely fabulous. Red and black are your colors", Nabiki said while she noticed that Michael was not speaking. Laughing, she saw that we was speechless looking at Rita.
"Thanks Nab. So is everything in order".
"Yes, it is. Curlly said to forget about the punch. It's a special brand specially for North and Trace", said Nabiki while smiling remembering how she had found Curlly trying to fix Grace's hair. She was a pro. "Have you heard from Sherry? Will she be able to join us tonight?"
"I hope so. She's doing her best right now. Any last detail for tonight?" asked Rita while finishing her makeup.
"No, not that I can remember. I'll leave you two to finish. I'll catch you guys later. Umm, just more thing, remember to sit on North's right side, leaving Trace and Gray on her left. OK?"
"Sure thing", Rita answered as Nabiki headed out of her room.
The moment she had been waiting for was here. She was supposed to join Roy in the dinning room before everyone got there to have a drink. Nabiki straightened her white long dress and fixed her long hair she was letting down tonight. She felt like she was getting ready for a mission. Well, she was; her mission was to win Roy's affection and she thought she was doing a pretty good job. She stopped right in front of the dinning room door and took a deep breath. "Well here goes my best", Nabiki said to herself.
Suddenly, she felt a hand in her shoulder and when she turned around....
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Part Twenty Seven/End by Northstar
"Hi Nabiki. You look very nice tonight." North said as she stopped her friend from heading into the dining room. "Where is Roy?"
"Oh hi North. You startled me for a moment there." Nabiki found herself letting go of the breath she had been holding in. "I am hoping he is in here. At least he told me he would meet me here. I had to go and see if Rita and Michael were ready yet."
"Good. It looks as though everyone is going to be here tonight." North smiled as she saw Operations heading her way.
"Hello Nabiki," he said as he came to stand beside North, "You look very fetching this evening. Are you ready for a wonderful thanksgiving dinner?"
Nabiki just nodded her head. Sometimes she still felt shy being around the boss man. She couldn't see what North saw in him but then that was her business. She spied Sherry coming down the hallway and quickly went to greet her friend.
"Hey Sherry. I'm so glad that you were able to make it after all." Nabiki said as she gave Sherry a hug. "Let's go in and find our seats."
"Sounds good to me Nab. Now that I'm here I am kind of hungry."
North and Ops watched the two of them head inside. "Well North, what are we going to do about our two culprits in regards to the eggnog?"
North chuckled. She hadn't taken as big a sip from her drink as what Paul did but either way the eggnog was undrinkable. "Well, I am sure that the two of them wouldn't be able to refuse a drink of the stuff from you. I know they both enjoy their nog as I have seen them drink it in the kitchen on numerous occasions. Especially if you make it a toast to the two of them." she suggested.
"North, I didn't know you had that in you."
"Yeah well that was horrid what they did. I honestly can't believe that Christopher would have allowed them to help in the kitchen. After that fiasco with the menu he should have known better. I swear these girls keep me on my toes constantly trying to figure out what they are up to next."
"Well most times you manage to keep ahead of them my dear. I'll head into the kitchen and get the drinks. Christopher already made up a new batch so if they see the rest of us with one in our hands they won't or at least they shouldn't hesitate in drinking up. I'll see you inside."
"Okay, I'll get everyone seated so that we can get started." With that North made her way into the dining room as Paul made his way to the kitchen.
The aroma coming from the room made North's mouth water. It had been a long time since she had actually sat down to a Thanksgiving dinner. It was nice to see most of the girls in attendance too. Making her way to the head of the table she took her spoon and started to tap her glass so that everyone would settle down and listen.
"Good, now that I have your attention, I want to wish everyone a very happy thanksgiving. It's not too often that we are all together like this with some of another or us always away on one mission. I just want to take this time to thank all of you for all your hard work and dedication in trying to make this world a better place. I am very thankful too for all the friendships I have made in the time that I have been here. You are all a very special group of people." North noticed that Paul had come in with a tray of drinks and started to hand them out. Once everyone had theirs Paul raised his in a toast.
"I also want to add my congratulations for jobs well done and in wishing you a happy holiday. May I propose a toast to our wonderful sisters here at CLHQ!"
Everyone raised their glasses and took a drink. All of a sudden, Curlly and her cohort in crime were spluttering and tears came to their eyes. But, neither one of them said a word as they realized that their prank had been turned back on them. North and Ops just looked at each other and smiled as they both thought that payback could bring a lot of pleasure!!
After the toast the food was brought out and the rest of the evening went off without a hitch. Christopher had outdone himself again and no one left the table without having had their fill of the feast. There already were requests for the same meal for Christmas but he just grinned as he made his way back into the kitchen.
After dinner the room was cleared and they made their way into the party room where they listened to music and had a good time socializing.
The end