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It had been a week since this all started, and there showed no signs of slowing. Around the huge tree, icicles and ornaments clung. Someone was starting to throw strands of tinsel, and another was looking into lighting it.

The only problem was that there were no electrical outlets quite near enough, and no one could find the extention cords. They had a pile of lights - probably nowhere near enough to decorate even a third of this massive tree (which showed signs of growing every once in a while too) - but no power.

Until a bright mostly bipedal, saurian-looking dragon strode up. Not quite as huge as a couple of the newcomers, but certainly taller than he was long when he stood up, he cleared his throat and announced himself.

"It is good to notice that I have arrived just in the nick of time to help you here. Come come, bring a generator out, or at least some batteries. I can assist."

Doing otherwise would probably have gotten him angry, so someone dug up a couple of used (presumed dead) car batteries, and lined them up near the cords. Egactae, that was his name, shifted his forepaws into what looked to be a metallic substance, and then - surprising everyone, blew a crackling bolt of electric breath across them. With each of his metal-clad fingers on a battery, they absorbed energy and all but hummed with life.

One of the Sangers nearby produced a few battery clips - don't ask why he has them, you should know by now... - and they hooked up a small converter before trying the lights. Of course, they worked.

Of course, they only covered the first three branches...

Name: Egactae
Gender: Male
Size: 39 feet long
Color: red, green, white
Abilities: Verbal Speech, Teleporation, Electricity Breath Weapon, Impervious to Fire and Heat, Alter Physical Structure: Metal
Personality: self-centered, punctual, on time

People almost thought that Egactae had blown a fuse, or something. But it turned out that the next day, another dragon had arrived to tend the tree. Though she came in a flash of electrical static, energy which crackled and made everyone's hair stand up (and caused the sand itself to dance in a field of electrons), she settled quickly into a very long, slender and somehow unusually fluid shape. She was clearly one of the biggest, well, longest dragons that the Healing Den hosted in a long while.

Someone commented that her hind end needed that extra pair of feathery wings, to catch up to the front end that had enough limbs to go around!

Fortunately, Atnul didn't take any offense at that. In fact she thought it was rather clever and funny.

"Hey! Can't find my way down, hello?" A voice called from somewhere around two-thirds up the tree. Atnul immediately stood up, somehow stretching herself up as easily as ... well, a person raising their head. But on this improbably long neck! She opened her mouth and from it came not a blast of fire or heat, electricity or anything, but instead a steady, soft white glow. She made an "o" shape with her long lips, and the beam cast around more focused and brightly. Soon enough, the Den worker who'd gotten tangled up while trying to attach more lighting in the tree was found and helped down.

Name: Atnul
Gender: Female
Color: rootbeer, blackberry merlot, champagne, cream
Size: 145 feet long (!)
Personality: reasonable, sensible, pleasant
Abilities: Verbal Speech, Teleporation, Telepathy, Light Breath Weapon, Bend Light, Alter Physical Structure: Electricity, Immortality

What celebration could be complete without a disaster? Well, Baeris hoped for once that there was nothing going to happen at this big festive party they'd set up around the tree. By now, she'd had to relent: it was fun, pretty, yes the jingles got to her but she kept a smile on her face at this point, and her kids appreciated it more than anyone.

Kali had scampered up to the trunk of the tree, hiding while playing with her brother Baelin and some of Ivo's four-footed offspring. It looked like there was another of Atrocity's xeno-shifter offspring in there too. When the tree began to shake, gently, people around thought it was just someone else climbing in it, like several dozen flitters who had begun nesting. The way time worked here, it looked like there would be a gigantic number of flitter eggs down under the tree along with the presents too.

But the shaking of the tree wasn't just some person climbing, the tree was being moved, by something no one could see or hear. Except for one... This brightly green-colored deer-dragon lept over to the lee of the tree's fall, and butted his head against the trunk. No one expected a dragon this size, barely even up to Dulath's own shoulder, to be able to move the tree back to its upright stance. But he did it, with minimal effort too. He scooted the children out from under it, and gave a glaring look above.

"That wasn't funny," he said, and mantled his wings over the children as they walked with him out to the entertainment center.

"... What's going on?" Baeris asked, while her kids excitedly took turns dangling from Nollaig's antlers.

"There is a presence that seeks to destroy these festivities," Nollaig replied, bowing gently and putting Baelin back on the ground after spinning him around his head. "I could see it, but I suspect it is something that no other here can detect."

"Well it's a good thing you were here then!" Baeris said, black eyebrows furrowing and unconsciously tugging her children (and Ivo's, and Atrocity's) toward her.

"It was nothing much, I would be happy to remain and make certain it does not interfere again."

"Please do," Baeris said, "please do. I can't thank you enough... We've already had two workers fall out of that thing, I wish they'd leave the high spots to the dragons..."

Name: Nollaig Chridheil
Gender: Male
Size: around 7 foot at shoulder
Abilities: Verbal Speech, Telepathy, Teleporation, Icemist Breath Weapon, Supernatural Physical Strength, Radar, Supervision: Ultraviolet and Infrared, Invisibility, Cosmic Awareness
Personality: modest, humble, self-effacing, dependant