We went home to see Dad that Christmas. We explained Mom’s hologram to the kids, told them how, just like the holographic games they played and the invisible Lego castles they constructed, Mom wasn’t actually real. Then we paid the extra money to add another two profiles to our account, hid all the sex, drugs, and alcohol, and let the boys log on with Grandma for a couple hours each day to prepare them for the upcoming visit.

The kids loved her. Even Theo had to admit that Nostalgia wasn’t as bad as he’d first thought. The boys could have their grandmother back, and we could have some alone time while she played with them in the living room. On the plane to Ohio, we were lucky to find a row with an empty seat, and we logged Mom on so she could entertain the boys while we napped.

Nin picked us up from the airport, and we talked on the ride back. Ever since Mom had returned, I felt closer to Nin. For the first time in over a decade it seemed as though we were actually sisters again. She had a new boyfriend, she told me. He was home in Connecticut for the holidays, so at night she’d excuse herself and sneak off to holo-chat with him.

The house looked good. Mom couldn’t clean, but she’d taught Dad to. Gone were the dirty dishes and piles of clothing we’d found during his weeks of grieving, and Dad had paid the extra money for Christmas Décor uploads so Mom could decorate. Though the living room looked no different with our contacts out, when we logged on, there was the Christmas tree glowing bright with white lights, ornaments, and intricately cut snowflakes in all the windows.

“She bosses me around, but we have fun!” Dad said as he put the turkey in the oven.

On Christmas morning we sang carols together and opened presents. Mom and Dad had bought the kids a hologame called Crossbows & Catapults, which Theo fell in love with. He and the boys built huge fortresses in the living room and launched flaming cannonballs at one another that the rest of us couldn’t see. Dad was entertained by Mom, Nin had her boyfriend’s hologram to talk to, the children had their games, and I caught up on some videobooks that I’d wanted to watch for months. It was, in many ways, the first truly stress-free holiday we’d had in years.