20. Xin
Xin
I trail behind my brothers and allow my rage from earlier to consume me. I quickly check in and Zaza is still asleep. My bond with my brothers is intact and if everything feels stronger now that I’ve finally mated.
The only thing to deal with is the scumbag; and deal with him I will.
“Anyone know who this fucker is? Where did he come from? He’s too tall to be a damn elf. What was he doing so close to the village?” Dan asks.
I turn his way, impressed that he’s as deeply invested as I am.
“Nah. Blitzen hung back when we were racing home. He found a bunch of hidden shit. Guy is the son of two elves. He just grew to full size.”
“Awe, that’s why. When that happens, they get exiled. Most just leave and live with the humans, he must have hung around.” Adds Donder as we reach a set of stairs to a cellar below.
The stairs creak as we descend, and my brothers explain to me that they have been taking turns keeping watch over him. If Santa knew they’d brought him back, he’d be furious.
“But what he did to Zara.” I chirp.
“Won’t matter. That jolly ol’bastard would let him off the hook in a heartbeat.”
I grind my teeth at the idea. Not with what he’s done. He needs to pay!
“Best you get a few jabs in before he finds out.” My brother says, stopping at a thick wooden door and iron hinges. Older, and clearly a forgotten part of the Ranch.
I nod in agreement, and push on the heavy door.
Inside is dim, one lantern lit off in the corner.
Not far from it is an uneaten plate of food and a man seated with his legs tied to a chair.
Erik. Zara told me about him. Said he was her ski instructor.
That she thought he was there to help. She assumed he was a part of a search party. Then it was too late.
My chest heaves at the fear still in her eyes when she was telling me. His actions will forever be imprinted on her. A ringing starts in my ears and my vision turns red. The rage I’d felt since being here was nothing compared to what was going on within my body.
Was this the added strength from mating? Is it my brother's anger mixing with mine? Who knows.
“Breathe, brother. You don’t want to kill him,” warns Dash.
“Sure I do,” I hiss without thinking, and next thing I know I’m charging.
Full tilt, body on fire, running at the man in the chair. Shoots cry out behind me as I shift, leaping mid air as my hind legs change. It’s like second nature. As if I’ve done this a thousand times, but it’s still new, no matter how normal it feels. So new in fact, I forget about my antlers.
They crash into the wall as I reach Erik. Our noses almost touch as I huff hot breath between us. You lucky son-of-a-bitch. He must be thinking the same, because he smirks as if he’s won something. Like I’m stupid…
I narrow my eyes and jerk back, breaking away from the holes I’ve left in the stone walls, and swoop so that I take him with me.
Still with the chair stuck to his back, I hook his shirt and rag-doll him.
We thrash about, his body hitting off the low roof and snapping the chair into pieces.
They fly out around us, some still taped to his legs as I continue to fling his body.
After a few more swings, his limp body falls to the floor. The hands of my brothers try to stop me, but I spin around and raise a back hoof over his head.
“That’s too far Xin!”
“You’ve made your point, brother!”
But I don’t listen. I’m too far gone. Everything is moving so fast. All I want is to bring my foot down and crush his skull. Santa and my duties to the North Pole be damned, but when I attempt to end him once and for all, I find I can’t move. My body is frozen in place.
“What is this?” Booms a loud voice. “Vixen, what have you done!? What have you all done!”
Santa stands stunned in the doorway. Despair and sadness filling his eyes. He shakes his head slowly, eyeing us all as he walks into the room. My brothers turn away, ashamed and embarrassed. This isn’t how they meant for it to go either. I too lower my head and suddenly I'm able to step away.
“I’m sorry. I only meant to—”
Santa holds up his hand to silence me. “You’ve done what you set out to do.” His words are laced with disappointment.
He makes his way over to the tall elf and crouches down beside him. The frightened man, who was apparently playing dead, looks up at the white beard in his face.
“I remember you,” Santa says, his voice softening. “You have your mothers eyes.”
He shies away as if annoyed.
“Yes. Yes. You were heavily bullied. As were many others before you. But you, you ran off. Broke your mothers heart.
Erik scoffs, “Yeah right.”
“You know just as well as anyone that I do not lie. Your parents never stopped looking for you. Sadly they passed on before I could tell them. You, however, can still benefit."
“From what” Dash blurts.
I can’t tell if he also doesn’t want Erik to get something, or just curious. Either way, I keep quiet and wait.
“Over the years, I’ve been working on a little something magical to help with the taller elves.
” This seems to get Erik’s attention and he finally makes eye contact with Santa.
“I’ve never liked the way my elves treated the taller ones.
The way it shattered the parents. So I created a concoction to, well, shrink you back. ”
“Shrink him back? But what about what he did?! He kidnapped my mate!” I snap, unable to hold back any longer. I stomp my front hoof and huff.
“He needs to be exiled. Properly this time.”
“That’s enough out of you lot. You’re just as bad. Look at this poor man!” Santa stands, chest out, with bulging eyes. “Now, I’m offering him a second chance, just like you are all going to get. Do you hear me?”
“Yes sir,” We all said, bowing our heads, some even taking a step back.
“That’s what I thought. Well, Erik. How does that sound, hmm?”
“You’d let me come back?”
“This is your home. You belong here after all.” Before Erik could sit up and nod his eager ‘yes’, Santa holds up a finger, “But there will be conditions for you, considering you are a special case. If this is to be done, you are to be Zara’s personal elf.
You will do whatever she needs, when she needs, how she needs for her next century in the North pole.
This will be your way of earning your way back into the workshops,”
“Wait? What? No! I don’t want him anywhere near her! He stole her and hurt her!”
“I didn’t want you to come down here and hurt this man, yet you did. Regardless, my word is final. Best you remember that, one and all!”
I lower my head and grind my teeth, before I will myself to turn back. Obviously this isn’t only a gift to Erik, but a punishment for me. He better say no. If I have to see this prick everyday for the next hundred years, I’ll lose it!
As we all wait to hear Erik’s answer, my ears start to itch and have me listening to things outside the cellar..
“Xin? Xin? Vixen!”
Oh crap, I told her I wouldn’t leave her side.
“I have to go. Zara’s awake and she needs me. Do what you will with him.” I say as if I had any choice in the matter, and take off running.
My chest tightens from the panic I can sense in her. Gods, please tell me she’s ok.