Chapter 37
Chapter Thirty-Seven
PAISLEY
The days leading up to the Christmas Eve tree lighting ceremony have been nothing short of wonderful, and I can feel myself falling in love for the first time in my life.
Laithog …just fits.
He quickly adjusted to my schedule. Meaning , sleeping at night and being awake all day. He did say it was a bit odd, and I knew that he waited for me to fall asleep before he went back outside to check his wards and muck about outside during his preferred portion of a twenty-four-hour cycle.
It didn’t bother me at all. He’s a nocturnal creature, and I don’t begrudge him enjoying the night. I wake every morning in his arms and I am quickly growing addicted to it. I didn’t realize how much I longed for the simple comfort of sleeping next to someone who cares for me. Sharing a bed with another person hasn’t ever really been high on my priority list until now.
We fill our days at my shop on the square where I introduce everyone to “ Lance ” as my boyfriend (which I had to explain in detail to Laithog after he heard me say it the first time), and our evenings are quiet time with one another. Laithog is happy to spend time with me, no matter what we are doing.
My television has been an excellent tool for Laithog to learn about the modern world. The rate at which he absorbs information and learns new concepts is nothing less than utterly remarkable. He asks me a few questions here and there if he needs me to further explain something to him such as cell phones, the internet and electricity in general.
The only shadow that falls over our time together is an impending sense of doom. We both know that Rulzik is plotting something.
We just don’t know what.
However .
It’s Christmas , and I refuse to let that piece of filth ruin Laithog’s first time experiencing the magic that is Christmas . With that thought in mind, I broach the subject of teaching Laithog to read one evening after we returned home. I want him to be able to read English and enjoy the bounty of books within my personal library.
The joy that lit up his face took me by surprise. He hadn’t been trying to impress me at all. Laithog really did love to read and has been quite serious about learning. Far more so than I expected him to be. Truth be told, it gets me a little hot and bothered watching him applying himself so studiously. In fact, it’s only been a few days, and he’s learned the alphabet as well as how to read simple words. His ability to learn and adapt to new things is nothing short of astonishing.
Today is the day of the tree lighting ceremony. I posted my holiday business hours at the beginning of the week so folks know that I’ll be closed today, tomorrow for Christmas Eve , Christmas Day and Boxing Day . It’s not like I’ll lose out on a bunch of sales. Small town Texas mentality means that just about every business in town is closed in some sort of variation of the hours I posted. Family is still treasured over the almighty dollar in Taggart , and we like it that way.
Walking through the house, I open the door to my jewelry room, glancing around to make sure that Laithog isn’t loitering somewhere trying to peek in here. I’ve been working on something special for Laithog in my spare time. To keep it a secret, I come in here when he’s outside, or practicing his letters. Sitting down at my work table, I get to work. Today is the day before Christmas Eve , so I need to finish this as soon as possible. Smiling , I get to work. There isn’t a moment to lose.
Someone …or something has been testing my wards. I’ve yet to tell Paisley that particular piece of information. She’s under enough stress as is with the looming threat of Rulzik , and my mate so desperately needs the joy of her winter solstice celebration. Reaching out with my magick I probe the areas to see if the being left an energy signature.
Nothing . I sense nothing, and it fills me with frustration.
How am I to protect my mate if I cannot sense the enemy when they are right on our doorstep?
Clever demons.
A feeling deep in my gut tells me it can be nothing else and I’ve lived through many a skirmish by listening to my instincts. It appears as though they have evolved since last I battled them. Adding another layer of wards can’t hurt, so with that in mind I augment my existing wards, supplementing them even more with the excess magick I have from drinking from Paisley .
Just the thought of drinking from my mate makes my prick twitch inside my sheath. Forcing myself to focus on augmenting my wards, I can feel the layers building upon one another, creating an impenetrable layer of defense for my mate. I relax marginally after completing the final layer.
Diving back into the weave, I check the connections, assuring there are not any weak links before I turn and walk back towards the house. My mind turns to the outing my mate has planned as I exit the tree line and stride across the driveway. Paisley says we are going to something called a lighting of the tree ceremony this evening. I am hesitant to allow this. Especially knowing we are being watched and the wards are being systematically tested for weaknesses.
Humans have odd traditions, but my mate seems to enjoy this thing called Christmas . As evidenced by the excessive amount of décor, she’s artfully arranged all over her, now our dwelling. The items are not off-putting but…there are a great many of them.
A great many of them, and she’s added to her hoard in the short time we’ve known each other. My mate hoards her treasures like the dragons of lore I’m descended from. I am part dragon, after all. My curiosity finally got the better of me while we broke our fast earlier this rising, and I asked about all the festive-looking things in her home as well as the village.
Her explanation fascinated me, and it still does.
However , it does pose a slight problem. If gift giving is a tradition of her people for this winter celebration, what do I get for my mate for our first Christmas together? I do not possess this money she speaks of to procure her an item of some sort, but…maybe I do not need it. The making of crafts for one’s mate was a tradition amongst my people during the winter solstice. I do not see why this need be any different. Having magick makes crafting all that much easier, and I do not consider that to be an unfair advantage at all. I need all the help I can get.
So .
What do I make for her?
Pushing the yard gate open, I stalk through, allowing it to swing closed behind me as I make my way down the sidewalk to the back door. Entering her home, the scent of cinnamon and vanilla wash over me, filling me with contentment. Wiping my feet off on the rug just inside the door, I make sure my feet are clean before proceeding further into the dwelling.
My mate likes to keep a clean home, and it’s not an imposition for me to help her in small ways, like wiping my feet off. She is a maker of jewels and as I look around her home, I can see that she does not have a shortage of items. Maybe there is a seller of books in her village that would not miss a tome or two? There is no such thing as too many books as far as I am concerned.
I’m not above borrowing books…long-term borrowing, that is.
Prowling into the communal room, I seat myself on the couch, waiting for my female to finish her preparations for our outing. The lights on her Christmas tree twinkle in the low lighting caused by the closed curtains. To prevent anyone from seeing my true form, Paisley lowered all the blinds and closed the curtains the day after I arrived.
The jingling of bells pulls me from my thoughts as my mate and her two beasts walk out into the communal room. My mate is a vision of loveliness. An intricate-looking braid sweeps her dark red hair back, a bright green top that makes her eyes luminescent, and dark blue bottoms, that do nothing to hide her curves from my appreciative gaze, complete her ensemble.
A flash of something bright low to the floor catches my attention. “ What in the night gods have you done to the wee creatures?” I ask, my words filled with trepidation.
She’s put…apparel on them. It’s highly disturbing.
“ My mate, why do your dogs have on garments? Surely this is not a normal thing for humans to do with their pet creatures… Have they no dignity at all?” Looking closer, I see that the images on the garments look eerily similar to the fluffy tailed rodents that both of her dogs despise.
Shaking my head, I add. “ You have added insult to their degradation. The garb you have put on them has their mortal enemy painted upon it. You do them a grave dishonor in that, my little flame.”
The incredulous look on my face causes Paisley to burst out laughing. “ Laithog , those are doggie Christmas sweaters with squirrels on them! Aren’t they cute?”
The disgusted curl of my lip incites her laughter once again. As her fit of hilarity continues, she wipes tears of mirth from her eyes.
Grumbling at the indignity of it all, I roll my eyes and gain my feet, moving out from between the coffee table and the couch. Using my tail, I smack her delightfully full ass as I walk by, calling to the dignity-less pair of fluffy beasts as I go. “ Merry , Pippin . Come . Our human has assured me that this evening’s festivities aren’t to be missed. Perhaps we can convince her to acquire you… sweaters without your foe on them once we are done with this burning of the tree.”
In my haste to get out the door, I miss my mates’ smile at hearing me call her “our human.”