Madder Hatter stared himself in the mirror as he straightened his suit. He looked over himself for the third time this morning, unsure what attire would be appropriate for an event such as the one he was attending. His eyes darted down to the invitation resting on the bathroom counter. It had perplexed him, since he was unsure exactly who had sent the letter to him. Madder reached over and picked up the letter again. Sure enough, it was addressed to him, inviting him to a Christmas party of all things. He had never been to a Christmas party in all honesty. He wasn't sure what such an event entailed but there was no use delaying it any further.

Madder turned the envelope over and shook it, a small golden key dropping out. The young man skimmed over the directions again, making sure he had this right before turning to a nearby door. If he understood this correctly then all he had to do was insert this key into a closed door, open the door, and he'd be at the party. Seemed simple enough. Taking one last look in the mirror, the magician slid the key into the door and turned the knob. Suddenly a golden glow began to emanate from the cracks in the door. Madder stumbled back a little and the door swung open, revealing the inside of a house. Madder tentatively stepped inside, only to be assaulted by a barrage of Christmas music, decor, and more.

The place was filled with so many people, some Madder recognized, some he didn't. The house seemed very large and he was currently standing in some sort of living room. Garland and tinsel lined the walls, a large tree in the corner covered in ornaments. One trend he noticed across the board was that everyone was wearing a Christmas sweater. Had that been a requirement? Madder did not recall it being on the invitation.

"Hey! It's Madder!" Everyone paused in their interactions to turn and look at Madder. Madder stiffened a little and tipped his hat in greeting, his preference having been to slip in quietly. So much for that. Madder glanced to his right to see if he could figure out who it was to blame. Beside him stood a tall, 5'11 guy with shaggy dirty-blonde hair, brown eyes, and a goofy smile. He was wearing blue jeans and a red sweater that read "I repeat things Miley says without knowing what they mean" in white thread. He was also currently holding a cup of what Madder assumed was eggnog. Madder wasn't entirely sure who this was, but if he had to guess, it was most likely Rox Argo of the Code Gijinka universe.

"Um… yes. Hello there and Merry Christmas," Madder finally answered awkwardly. He felt an arm wrap around his shoulders as Rox pulled him closer.

"It took you long enough!" Rox exclaimed. "We've been sending you invitations for two years now! But that's water under the bridge. Now that you're here, first things first. I need a sweater!" Madder drew his eyebrows together in a perplexed look at the comment when he heard someone shout from across the room.

"I have Madder's!" Madder looked over to see a young boy, somewhere around fourteen years old if he had to guess, waving a green sweater in the air. He had earthy brown hair and a giant leaf sticking out of his head. He was wearing a green sweater as well with the phrase "I argue with my team leader over the name of our team" sewn beautifully in red on the front. Given his approximate age and the leaf, Madder guessed this was Isaiah Masa from the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Team Gijinka universe. Madder had read a little bit about them but sadly most of the records were lost to time.

Isaiah threw the sweater over to Rox and Madder felt his hat get knocked before just before he was forcibly stuffed inside a sweater. Madder instinctively struggled but Rox was much bigger than him and easily got the sweater on him. Madder pulled at the collar, the sweater not fitting right on top of his suit. He pulled it out a little to see what it said. The phrase woven in red read, "World's Best Serial Killer". Madder blinked a few times before leveling a glare at Rox. Rox raised his hands in defense.

"Hey easy! It's a shame sweater. We're all wearing them. You can adjust in the bathroom. It's down this hall on the right. But you have to wear it. Isaiah's aunt made them special for all of us." Madder didn't need further invitation. He scooped up his hat and stomped down the hall into the bathroom slamming the door behind him. He began to angrily dust off his hat, really starting to regret coming to this party. What kind of animals were these people? They had to bring up he hadn't shown up the past two years? Stuffing him in a sweater too? He would have worn it if they had just asked.

Madder pulled off the sweater then undid the top of his suit. Leaving the undershirt on, Madder slipped the sweater back on. He turned his hat over and tapped it before dropping in the clothes he wasn't wearing anymore. They were sucked in, disappearing back to his world. Madder tapped the hat again then placed it on his head. He inspected himself again in the mirror and was about to exit when there was a soft knock at the door.

"Madder?" an unfamiliar voice called. Madder slightly opened the door. On the other side stood a tall woman with green hair in a bob cut and very voluptuous breasts hidden underneath a plain white dress and a red sweater that read "I took forever to tell the guy I liked that I was in love with him". Madder was not quite sure who this was. He had not finished reading up on everyone that would possibly be in attendance so it seemed. "Are you all right?" Madder adjusted his hat slightly then nodded.

"Yes, I am fine. Just need to cool off a bit. I…" Madder paused awkwardly, unsure if he should be admitting this but deciding to continue anyway. "I become very anxious in crowded spaces and I was a bit overwhelmed when I first entered." The woman giggled and nodded understandingly.

"Well you're okay now. Would you like to come out?" Madder gave another short nod, and the woman stepped out of the doorway to let Madder out. He scanned the other people as he stepped out, all their eyes on him. He glanced at his feet before looking back at the woman.

"And you are?" The woman's eyes brightened and she extended her hand.

"I'm Fei Lilith, from King Arthur and the Gijinkas of the Round Table." Madder instantly recognize the lady as soon as she stared her name. He took her hand and kissed it.

"My apologies, Princess, I did not recognize you." Madder had read a little bit about Fei after the news came out that King Arthur had officially picked her as the next in line for the throne. Fei quickly pulled back her hand and smiled broadly.

"Please, just Fei is fine. I don't want to be treated as a princess." Madder straightened a little and tipped his hat.

"Oh I see. I'm afraid I'm not too familiar with what customs and events go on in your world, Fei," he explained. Fei waved off the comment.

"It's all right. So how do you like your sweater?" Madder glanced down at his sweater again and shrugged.

"It's snug. I appreciate it not being itchy. I'm surprised they would dare to pick this as my shame though." Fei snorted a little, causing Madder to look back up at her.

"My thoughts were the same when I got mine. I half expected to get one that said "I didn't tell anybody about my abusive father for thirteen years" but when I didn't I just assumed it was because the topic was too dark but…" Fei gestured to Madder's sweater.

"I mean it's not like they had no choice. They could have gone with "I kissed a girl without asking her father's permission", "I took out half of London in two days", or "I had the king of hearts eat my adopted father". “World's Best Serial Killer” is okay though. I mean, I guess at least I'm the best?" Fei burst into laughter at that, making Madder smile a bit.

"You're funny. Who knew Jack the Ripper had a sense of humor. Come on, let's get you some eggnog and let you socialize a bit more. There's a lot of people here so just talk to anyone. I'm sure they'd be happy to meet you." Madder followed Fei to the eggnog bowl and poured himself a cup. Fei disappeared back into the crowd leaving Madder to socialize on his own. If he was completely honest Madder did not really want to socialize but he supposed he had no choice. Madder scanned the room, trying to decide who to talk to. He recognize two individuals the room as Sloane and Dylan. They were sitting on the sofa enjoying cups of eggnog with their partners, Excalibur and Becquerel at their feet. Madder started to lean towards speaking with them, since he had been in a few stories with them, but decided against it, not wanting to interrupt their discussion. He decided to look elsewhere, towards the fire next to the couch. In front of it lay a Leafeon dressed in Roman general attire. Next to him lay an Espeon wearing the jewelry of an Egyptian with seven small sleeping Eevees scattered around them. Madder remembered them as Rome, Alexandria, and their children from the short story “When in Rome”. Madder felt it was best not to disturb them either, so instead he took a sip of his eggnog.

“It’s your first time here too, right?” Madder glanced to his left to see a somewhat short man beside him with large brown wings extending behind him. His hair was the same brown, except for a spot in the front that was a bright red. He was wearing a red sweater with the phrase “I wear ties into battle so I can distract the guy I’m secretly dating”. Madder noted the man was wearing a black tie, as if he had been wearing it before he came in and refused to take it off once assaulted by a sweater. Madder did not recognize this individual but they suggested they were new so it made sense.

“Yes, though I’ve been invited twice before this. I have just never attended,” Madder replied. He extended his hand. “Madder Hatter, A Single Element and various other stories.” The man shifted his eggnog to his other hand then shook Madder’s.

“Ery Enkhjargal, King Arthur and the Knights of the Gijinka. I just came into existence about a month ago, if it was even that long. It certainly does not feel like it.” Madder gave a nod in understanding.

“Once they give you a backstory it can be kind of hard to remember when you were first conceived. If it makes you feel any better, often times I forget I’m only two years old, because most of my origin stories have me at over a hundred right now.” Ery stared at Madder for a second before chuckling.

“Well I can firmly say you don’t look a day over fifty.” This made Madder crack a slight smile. It seemed someone else here knew his type of humor. “Hey! I think I did the impossible. I made the infamous Madder Hatter smile.” Madder rolled his eyes and took another drink of his eggnog.

“Trust me, it’s not that hard. If you know what you are doing anyone can get me to crack a grin. Most people just don’t know what they’re doing.” Ery smiled at that and looked over the occupants in the room. The Christmas Spirit was definitely in the air. He stretched his wings a bit. Madder looked over at Ery. Something clicked in Madder’s mind. He had read something about Ery, he was sure of it. Madder frowned as he tried to place it. Ery raised his eyebrows in confusion.

“Are you okay?” he asked. Madder shrugged a little.

“I think so. I was just wondering something. I don’t read up much on other characters but I think I have read something about you recently. Aren’t you French?” Ery did not miss a beat, immediately replying,

“Yes, that’s my role. I’m the French leader of the Aerial Brigade for King Arthur.” Madder narrowed his eyes at Ery. Ery swallowed a little, as if he knew Madder was onto him.

“Enkhjargal is not a French last name, last I checked.” Ery’s eyes flicked to the side before returning contact to Madder. Tell tale sign of lying.

“I-It’s uh…” Ery’s grip tightened on his cup slightly. “I um… well-”

“It’s Mongolian,” Madder added, “which means you’re probably Mongolian, not French.” Ery quickly put a finger to his lips and shook his head.


“Shh! You know the rules! Don’t spoil stuff outside the stories. No one else knows yet.” Madder let his lips curl into his signature smile. So he had been right. This kid was a spy. Fear flickered across Ery’s expression.

“Oh don’t worry. I’m not the type to cause harm.” Madder paused then said, “Oh wait. Yes I am. Either way, if I don’t see you next year, I’ll just assume someone other than me found you out. Might want to pick a different last name, Ery.” Before Ery could reply, someone called to him from across the room.

“Hey! Ery!” Ery and Madder both looked in the direction of the call. Madder recognized him to be Reilly Cruise, the heracross knight. Ery quickly swallowed the rest of his eggnog then almost bolted over to Reilly. The Heracross’s blue hair was pulled back into a slight ponytail and he was wearing a sweater that said, “I usually can’t keep Sky and Tyler from fighting”. Madder was starting to wonder how people were fitting these phrases on sweaters but decided best not to question it. Madder decided to wander into the next room. He immediately noticed a group of three characters playing blackjack, with a seat open. Madder walked up and placed his hand on the empty chair.

“You wouldn’t mind if I joined you?” The three characters looked up. Madder surveyed them carefully, determining who he was up against. To his right was a young woman with brown hair mostly hidden underneath a blue bandanna with a skull on it. She was wearing a green sweater with white writing that read “I’ve done too many things to fit on one sweater”. In addition, the woman was wearing white shorts and brown boots. He recognized her as Kiosia Marinosa. While they had yet to be in a story together, they had been in stories in the same universe, so he was well acquainted with the pirate. Across the table from him, Madder spotted a Pikachu. He recognized this to be Zeus, a pikachu that had debutted in a series of stories written for a Community Nuzlocke for Yellow version if Madder remembered correctly. The pikachu was wearing a small red sweater that read “I relied on Akuma too much”. Madder vaguely recalled Akuma being the Nidoking in his team. He was not aware that pokemon could learn card games, but if the man could play, then he saw no reason to stop him. To his left, Madder spotted a man with scales, gills, and fins, which he recognized as the half-demon, Pace. He was wearing a white sweater with red lettering that said, “I never was able to figure out who my father was despite the fact that I have gills”. The only reason Madder recognized Pace divulged from the fact that Pace was technically older than Madder, though he had been recently revamped in a new story. Madder had to wonder if Pace was enjoying his new look.

“Sure,” Pace replied, nodding to Zeus, who worked on dealing Madder in, “just no cheating card tricks, Mr. Hatter.” Madder smiled at the teasing and sat down. He picked up his two cards and mentally added them together in his head when suddenly Kiosia sneezed.

“Ugh! What’s that smell?” she complained, “Zeus!” The pikachu threw his paws into the air and growled in offense, obviously not pleased to have been accused of passing gas. “Well if it wasn’t you then who was it.”

“There’s no telling,” Madder commented, “too many people around.” There was a silent thud as Zeus suddenly collapsed on the floor. Kiosia, Pace, and Madder all stared at empty seat before Madder and Kiosia simultaneously yelled, “I get his chips!” Pace glared at the two.

“Guys, this is serious! He could be hurt!” Kiosia opened her mouth to deliver no doubt a masterfully snarky reply when Madder spotted none other than Visions, from his original A Single Element universe, collapse as well. In fact, many characters were dropping like flies! Even Madder himself felt a bit dizzy. He watched in somewhat of a haze as Pace fell out of his chair. The last thing he saw before everything went dark was Kiosia reaching over to take Pace’s chips.

***

It was cold. That was the first thing Madder’s mind registered as he started to regain consciousness. He felt something cold and wet touch his face before fading away. Madder blinked a few times before his surroundings came into view. No longer was he situated in a house at a card table, but instead he, and everyone else in attendance at the party, were out in a snow covered plain. He slowly sat up before noticing several others were waking up too. What had just happened? Was this normal? Madder looked around and spotted several disoriented characters, but was unsure if this was their first time too or if they were returners. Then his eyes landed on Ivy, a meganium gijinka that was one of the oldest characters amongst them all. She looked just as confused as Madder felt. Madder pushed himself up and stumbled over to the young woman that towered over him at 5’11. Her earthy brown hair was cut just below her shoulders and her green eyes scanned the nearby area trying to get a sense of what was going on. She was also wearing a green shirt that read “I waited until he was nearly executed to tell my boyfriend I was a princess”. Ivy finally spotted Madder approaching and started to walk towards him.

“Madder!” she called, recognizing the second madness incarnation, “Do you have any idea what is going on?”

“Not an idea, Princess Ivy. I am assuming this was not in the scheduled programming?” he asked, just wanting to affirm what he was already getting the impression of. Ivy shook her head, continuing to look around for a sign or indication of what was going on.

“No! This has never happened in the five years of hosting this party! I cannot imagine who could have caused this. None of the characters invited have this kind of power! Or at least, not that I know of.” Ivy put a hand to her chin and began to think it over as a cold wind blew her hair back when Madder heard the snow nearby crunch as someone else approached. He started to turn to look when Madder felt himself and Ivy be tackled to the ground. Snow exploded into the air nearby, causing several characters to duck for cover. Madder grunted, trying to push whoever it was on top of him off. The person got up and offered his hands to Ivy and Madder.

“My apologies, Princess Masa, Sir Hatter, but you could have been greatly hurt.” Madder looked over the man as he got down on one knee in front of them. This person appeared to be like Ivy, half human half something else, but Madder knew he was not part Pokémon. If he had to guess, Madder thought this warrior might be half snow leopard. The half breed look up and smiled at Princess Ivy. “My name is Stribog, the Icy Claw, and I am a gladiator ready to protect you.”

“What’s the threat?” Madder asked quickly, drawing a card to his hand. This did not bode well at all. He knew he should have stayed home! Stribog’s ears flicked back and he growled a little.

“The author.” Madder and Ivy both gave the snow leopard confused looks before looking in the direction where the attack had come from. There, in the center of this snowy wasteland, stood a girl with pencils floating around her. She looked about 5’3 with long brunette hair and purple glasses. Madder couldn’t help but feel like she resembled someone but he just couldn’t put his finger on it. Not that it matter.

“Creations of mine!” she yelled out, “Good news, I’ve had a change of heart. I won’t be torturing you through stories anymore!” Madder heard what he had no doubt was Rox whooping in the distance. “Instead I’ll be killing you all here and now.” Now Rox was booing. “Don’t complain. I don’t want to hear it. I love you all so I must kill you. Ta ta!” Suddenly all the pencils went flying towards the unsuspecting characters. However, they never reached their destinations when a wall of green fire rose up between the pencils and the characters. It disappeared as quickly as it arose, and standing in the center was a person any character would recognize. It was the writer’s representative, Shaylava. Currently in her gijinka form, Shaylava shook her head at the writer.

“You don’t have to do this, author. I already told you, just purge the stories and be done with it. Don’t kill everyone you’ve worked so hard to develop.” But the author would not listen and sent more pencils shooting towards Shaylava. Shaylava snapped her finger and they all burst into flames. But before Madder could see what happened next, everything went white.

***

“MADDER!”

Madder jumped a little and looked around. He was currently lying on a couch in the party house, as if nothing had happened. Standing over him were Rox, Shaylava (in her usual form), and Sloane. He raised an eyebrow at the three, curious as to what happened that led him to be lying on the couch.

“Someone spiked the eggnog,” Sloane stated in an unamused tone. “Someone does it every year. Somebody forgot to warn the newbies.” Rox chuckled a bit nervously before shrugging.

“Turns out you can’t handle alcohol at all because you passed out randomly right as you got dealed in for blackjack. Ery got wiped out pretty bad too so it’s not just you. But are you feeling okay?” Madder sat up a little and shrugged.

“Yeah, I feel fine. Though I have a theory as to who might have spiked the punch.” It wasn’t a hard guess. Standing off in the corner of the room with the guiltiest smile on her face was none other than Life Vitam, a character from Madder’s original universe. She wore a green sweater with white writing that read “I chased away my man because of unspeakable acts”. If there was anyone that would do it, it’d be here. She winked at Madder and waved before calling,

“Merry Christmas to all! And to all a good night!”



This was fun to write. I recycled the idea of a crossover story from previous Christmas story ideas. I wanted to make a huge reference to the nutcracker at some point but I honestly got bored of writing the story after a bit so instead we got spiked eggnog. And yes, for those who don't know, Madder cannot handle any ounce of liquor. Even just a little and he's gone.

ANYWAY MERRY LATE CHRISTMAS.