Chapter Two
The kids were picked up by their mother a few hours later.
She was still a little awkward around Alistair, but she was surprised and delighted when the kids handed her decorated cookies and drawings that they’d made the past few days while staying with Elijah and Alistair.
Elijah had made sure to suggest it, figuring she’d be missing her kids and would appreciate knowing they were thinking of her.
She offered him and Alistair a true smile as she gathered their things, and when she left, there was no awkwardness in the air to speak of.
A little heartache, Alistair hated to see his kids go, but they’d be back on the weekend.
In the meantime, they had a party to get to.
Alistair groaned, leaning against him heavily. “I forgot about that…”
Confused, Elijah turned to look at him. “Do you not want to go?”
Shaking his head, Alistair drew him into his arms. “It’s not that. I enjoy spending time with our friends. But we’ve had kids in the house for days. I was looking forward to having you all to myself.”
The suggestive tone made Elijah blush, his libido perking up at the thought of bringing his anchor to bed. Before he could suggest it, though, a knock at the door forced them apart. He opened the door, his smile just a little forced as Isaac greeted him.
“Isaac? I thought we were meeting you at the party.”
He grimaced and nodded. “I wanted to drop off presents for my niblings first. Did I miss them?”
“By a few minutes, yeah, but they’ll be at the annual ritual this year,” Alistair offered.
Isaac slumped, disappointed, but shrugged it off. “Alright. Can I leave them here? Flying with bags is a huge pain in the ass.”
Snorting, Alistair took the bags and beckoned him and Maverick in. “Where did you land?”
“A few blocks over. This place looks great! Very festive,” he complimented as he peeked into the living room.
Elijah took it in again as well, sighing happily.
He’d never celebrated a holiday quite like this before.
Sometimes he would visit home during the new year, but his parents didn’t celebrate holidays much and doing more than sharing a meal was considered a waste of time.
They weren’t the celebrating types. Seeing his home so filled with warmth and love now made his heart swell, and he wanted to bask in it for hours.
Chuckling, Alistair kissed his temple, putting an arm around his shoulders. “Come on, Eli. It’ll look even better when we get back and it's dark out.”
That was true. He smiled at his anchor, watching in amusement as Helios meowed petulantly in a demand for Alistair to bend and grant him access to his favorite perch.
Alistair did with a roll of his eyes and a wink at Elijah, dipping low enough to let Helios hop onto his shoulders.
They’d found it was easy to get Helios from place to place if they didn't try to stuff him into his carrier and instead let him ride on Alistair. The cat preferred the thick muscle to Elijah’s smaller frame, and Elijah couldn’t blame him. He preferred Alistair’s body, too.
If you aren’t careful, we’ll miss the party, Alistair warned with a heated look.
Elijah blushed, grateful when Isaac led the way outside and over to Alistair’s car. Alistair took the wheel, with Elijah in the passenger seat, Helios in his lap, and his brother and his mate in the back.
“Oh, did you grab the gifts?” Elijah asked before they could pull away.
Alistair made a face, putting the car back into park. “Damn it. I’ll be right back.”
Isaac snickered from the back seat. The kids’ presents weren’t the only ones he’d traveled with, but they’d been in Maverick’s care when they came in and Alistair must have missed them.
Elijah watched as his anchor jogged inside, his eyes sliding over the snow angels slowly getting blanketed by more snow.
The holiday wasn’t even over yet, and it was already the best he’d ever experienced.
A hand squeezed his shoulder, and when he looked behind him, Isaac smiled softly. “You look happy. Did you have fun with the kids?”
He nodded, twisting in his seat a little without disturbing Helios so he could share in their adventures.
Six months after Alistair came into his life, and he still wasn’t used to people casually touching him, but Isaac was one of the first to start, and his continued acceptance made Elijah unbelievably happy.
As Alistair returned with the gifts and they started on their way to the party, they chatted about the kids and the mix of new and old traditions they’d done with them.
Isaac in turn talked about the annual holiday party in the Saltoria Mountains with Maverick’s family and the shenanigans Maverick’s sister got up to each year.
They all agreed to keep her away from Taron and Kian, just to ensure the world wouldn’t implode, and laughed at the possibilities of what could happen if the three of them were in a room alone together.
“Woah. They went all out this year,” Isaac interrupted, leaning to look out his window.
Elijah spun around, gasping as he took in Avery and Ozen’s home.
Multicolored lights were strung up on the rooflines, the railings, and around the windows.
Garland was strung along the stoop walls, giving the castle-esque building a more festive feel to it.
And framed in the front window was an absolutely massive tree currently being decorated by a few of his friends.
Avery noticed his arrival out the window and waved at him, beckoning them inside.
Eagerness filled Elijah’s chest, along with a small amount of worry.
He’d never had a true holiday celebration before.
Especially not a human one. He wasn’t entirely familiar with the traditions.
Isaac told him about the gift exchange and how the items were supposed to be handmade.
That had been simple enough, he’d picked up plenty of hobbies while living alone, but he probably should have done more research beforehand. What if he did something wrong?
Relax, Eli. You know no one will leave you to flounder. Just have fun. I’m sure Taron will explain everything anyway. He won’t be able to help himself.
Elijah poked his anchor in the side with a mock frown. Be nice to Taron. He’s kind to me.
Alistair’s smile softened, and he nodded. Which is why I don’t complain about him hanging on you. Now come on. Let’s get you inside. I still need to get you a new coat.
Snorting, Elijah waited for Alistair to come around like he preferred, offering him Helios, who returned to his perch on Alistair’s shoulders to free up his hands so they could carry in the gifts together.
Ozen had already opened the door for them and scratched under Helios’s chin in greeting as they stepped inside.
“Welcome. We’re still in the set-up stage, so feel free to jump in wherever you’re most comfortable.”
Avery had explained this part to him, at least. When they started this yearly holiday tradition, they’d done so because Tony was sad and missed the traditions he used to celebrate with his family.
His favorite part was the quality time, so Avery designed the party to include setting everything up together.
Everyone pitched in and shared in each step together, and he said it was really fun and not as stressful as party planning usually was since everyone showed up to help.
With Helios still perched on Alistair’s shoulders, he wasn’t allowed in the kitchen. Elijah headed in that direction instead, smiling at Zephyr who was basting the turkey while Brennus poked at the potatoes.
“Hello. Can I help?”
“Depends,” Zephyr dipped his chin toward the empty pie dishes. “Do you know anything about pie crust? Our last attempt got thrown out, because someone tried to mess with the recipe.”
Brennus ruffled his feathers with a growl. “I told you, it should have worked. It was the same ingredients, just in different amounts. I thought I could make it more flaky.”
Pulling off his jacket, Elijah set it on an empty stool, giving Brennus an understanding smile as he moved to wash his hands. “You can’t improvise with baking, unfortunately. It’s more science than cooking. Exact amounts are important for the best results.”
“Well, I know that now,” he grumbled, coming to stand at Elijah’s side. “Do you know how to make it flaky? Phoebe usually bakes the pies, but the boys are sick so she stayed home this year.”
“Oh, that’s too bad,” Elijah frowned. “We’ll have to make sure to send plates home for them. And yes, I do happen to know how to make flaky pie crust. We can make it together if you want to learn?”
Brennus was open to that, and working together with his friend to make pies was a lot of fun.
Especially because he kept having to correct Brennus’s measurements.
A teaspoon and a heaping teaspoon just weren’t the same things, though Brennus couldn’t seem to understand why.
His friend was a smart man, but when it came to cooking, he was a little impatient.
“I feel like you need a snack,” Elijah snickered when he huffed for the third time after Elijah took away the crust to stop him from overworking it.
“Snacks are in the other room,” Zephyr pointed out just as Dorian came in to join them. He switched out with Brennus, allowing the griffin to get something to eat, and smiled kindly at Elijah.
“Do you need any help?”
“Um, sure. I’m making the filling next.”
Dorian nodded, grabbing the ingredients and bowls that Elijah needed.
“I’m surprised you’re here,” Zephyr commented. “Don’t you and Kian normally take a vacation this time of year?”
“We’re leaving tomorrow,” Dorian agreed. “Taron begged Kian to stay for the party, and they’ve gotten really close. Kian didn’t have the heart to refuse him.”
Elijah stiffened, spinning to give Zephyr a worried look.
Somehow, he got the feeling that Kian’s acceptance in coming to the party had less to do with feeling bad for his friend and more to do with the fact that those two were in a constant prank war and a party was a golden opportunity to lovingly torment each other.
“Um… Should someone check on them?” he queried uneasily.
Zephyr glanced toward the door with a frown. “They should be with everyone else…”
He said that, but they were both concerned anyway. Dorian looked at them, confused. “What?”
“Ah, Dorian. You are aware that Kian and Taron are in a prank war right now, right?” Elijah pointed out.
Dorian made a face. “Prank war? I know they play tricks on each other from time to time, but Kian never mentioned anything about a war. What are you–”
A burst of noise like party blowers, cheering, and bells filled the air.
The noise made all three of them jump, and they raced into the dining room, where the sound had come from.
They found Taron absolutely covered in glitter with little pixies dancing over his head.
Kian stood in the corner, a huge grin on his face, while the rest of the guests looked on in shocked silence.
“What just happened?” Avery breathed, looking between Taron and Kian.
“I don’t know,” Taron admitted. “All I said was that I was looking forward to presents–”
The pixies cheered and set off another glitter bomb, dumping it on Taron, and by proximity, Avery too for standing too close. Kian burst into cackles, hugging his middle, while Taron looked dumbfounded. “What did I say?”
“It seems like if you say something specific, the pixies will cover you in glitter,” Elijah offered helpfully.
“What? Presents?”
Another cheer, another glitter bomb, though this time Ozen snatched Avery away before he got covered again.
Taron narrowed his eyes on Kian, considering him for a moment.
Elijah saw it the same time Kian did, the moment when Taron decided to use the trick against its creator.
He darted away, and Taron chased him, the pixies following him with giggles, the little bells tied to their clothes jingling away.
Elijah started laughing, he couldn’t help it. He could always count on those two to make things entertaining.