Author's Notes: Welcome everyone to the Second Annual Winter Veil Special! We're starting a little early this year as I ended up with six chapters instead of five. This is my Christmas gift to you, my readers: a big fat dose of all your favorite characters getting together to celebrate the holidays with each other. Laughter, tears, and a whole lot of love will follow.
This is set five years after the previous Winter Special. To catch up, feel free to give that one a read, as well as the one-shot Hope Springs, which is set about a year before this story. There is an illustration up on my deviantArt page, username zarabethedraws.
The crisp winter wind ruffled through her head feathers as Lorel soared over Elwynn Forest. It was always too cold here for her taste, but this afternoon, with weak sunlight filtering through the clouds and the promise of snow later this evening, it felt pretty damn nice. Of course, that was probably more to do with the quiet around her than the temperature.
Elwynn Forest in the dead of winter was mostly colorless, brown and grey interspersed with the occasional dark green of a conifer. Even the massive human capital of Stormwind, which she had just left, looked even more grey than usual. It was a far cry from the vibrant jungle that she now called home, but here among the low-hanging clouds, she thought she could see some of the draw to it. It was quiet here. The monotony seemed to have more privacy to it and the ability to get lost in a crowd. Lorel snorted to herself, or at least the bird equivalent, as she performed a lazy circle over a particularly dense section of trees that hid away a small clearing at the ground level. She could appreciate the quiet for a few days, but living here would drive her mad.
Smoke floated up from the chimney of a small cottage nestled in the center of the clearing tucked back into the forest. Lorel shied away from it and instead landed at the front gate. It had been years since she had taken a dare that had ended with her hitting the ground as if she had jumped, and the transition from stormcrow to night elf still gave her a twinge in her ribs. She had practiced over and over at shifting forms until it was fluid, until she could dive right at the ground and land on her own two feet, but she would always live with that physical reminder.
She shivered as she pulled her heavy cloak around her. This was the part of Elwynn she had no problem leaving behind. She'd take the humid, tropical jungle over icy winters any day. She hurried her pace as she approached the cottage. It smelled like snow, both up in the air and down below, and not just a light dusting either. She was glad she had packed for a few extra days away, just in case.
She heard wailing before she was halfway to her brother's front door. The door opened and the wailing intensified over the soft sound of her sister-in-law's voice.
"There she is, Zane, there's Momma."
Zarabethe stood in the doorway, wearing a heavy shawl against the cold. Perched on her hip, crying as if his heart would break, was her four year old son, Zane. He had an entire washcloth stuffed into his mouth with both hands, and as soon as he saw her, he wiggled and fought his aunt to get down.
"Zane, you aren't wearing-" Zarabethe began and then sighed and shook her head. Lorel hurried the last few steps and scooped her barefoot boy up in her arms. He snuggled down under her cloak, wrapping his legs around her waist and burying his face in her shoulder.
"Aw, it's okay baby, I missed you too."
His wailing died down to a muffled whimper as she staggered up the path. He was a solid boy, with huge feet and hands. She would never admit it to Tzun, but she was more than a little relieved when Zane had been born with ten fingers and toes, instead of three like his father. Not that she wasn't in love with her husband's hands as much as any other part of him, but it was hard enough to keep shoes on the boy as it was.
"Thank Elune you're back, your son hates me."
Her sister-in-law held the door open for her as she came in. The fire had been built up while she had been gone and the air inside was more to her liking. Zarabethe closed the door behind them with a wry look. Lorel planted an exaggerated kiss on her son before falling into the nearest chair with him.
"Well, he's not exactly a big fan of me right now either."
To emphasize her point, Zane gave a renewed wail as he wriggled around in her lap and tried to stuff the washcloth harder against his swollen gums. At three-quarters night elf, Zane looked the part. His skin was halfway between dark blue and lavender. His hands and feet, although large, had five digits each. His eyes glowed golden, like hers. Little bits and pieces, however, betrayed his Darkspear heritage. Most obviously was his bright red hair, already thick and coarse. Tzun'do's mother had strong hair genes, that's for sure. The other obvious marker was the cause for his current distress; Zane was right now teething his tusks. This was apparently really late for it-Tzun had admitted to her that he thought that Zane was going to have teeth like hers. Then his incisors came in, not any sharper than a human's and he was really confused. By all rights, the boy should have either fangs or tusks. But slowly, Zane's face began to swell and his tusks started to make themselves known. One was very close to erupting, and Lorel couldn't be more relieved. Zane was never happy. He clung to her or Tzun like an oversized monkey, and getting him to eat was a nightmare. She was more than ready for this to be over.
Zarabethe brought another cold washcloth in, and with some coaxing, they got her son to relinquish the current one to switch them out.
"Did you talk to Brekke?"
Lorel nodded as she wrapped Zane up in a blanket like a cocoon.
"She's working a double shift tonight, but she should be able to get away for dinner. She said she has tomorrow off, and she is going to spend it here."
Zara's face only fractionally showed displeasure, which to those who knew her, meant she was sorely disappointed. She settled in the chair opposite Lorel, wrapping her shawl around her and curling her feet up under it.
"I hope the snow doesn't settle in too quickly. I don't want her to fly in a blizzard."
"She'll be careful." Lorel rocked Zane, who felt like he was finally going to sleep. "You know she's the only one of us who has any common sense."
Zarabethe snorted in agreement. "Has she heard anything from Genne?"
Lorel glanced out the window to avoid the vulnerability in her sister-in-law's eyes. She felt like a coward for doing so.
"Sorry Zara."
Zarabethe's face pinched, and she stood abruptly and laid her wool wrap in the chair
"She'll come home when she's ready. No point in fussing about it."
She strode to the kitchen, and Lorel rocked Zane a bit longer before getting up to follow.
Genne had always been a free spirit, and of the two Silverleaf daughters, the most rebellious. Lorel admitted to stoking that somewhat: she saw so much of herself in Genne, and spending time around a miniature version of herself was just fun. But where as she grew up in a strict household that quickly turned stifling and then shifted downward into dangerous, Genne grew up in a house full of love. Parents, aunts and uncles, and soon little cousins all adored her, and she was still distant and kept to herself. She had joined the Stormwind Army, gone through her adult trials, and then just disappeared. She knew that she and Zara had butted heads on more than one occasion, and her brother threatened to ship her off to Stranglethorn more than once, but they loved her as fiercely as any normal parents would. Genne didn't seem to care about that, though. She sent letters every now and then. She used to come back at least for both Winter's Veil and the Kal'dorei New Year, and most of the time, her birthday. But the last anyone had seen of her was eight months ago. No word, not even a message sent through Brekke.
Lorel took the news personally. Brekke might have been one of her apprentices in the druidic arts, but Genne was her little blue-haired clone. She worried about Genne as much as she would her own daughter: after all, she had helped raise her. Zarabethe could pretend all she wanted that she had enough patience to wait for Genne to decide to come home, but Lorel had never been a patient person. Wherever Genne was at, she better stay hidden, because if Lorel caught wind of her getting into trouble, she had no problem dropping everything to drag her ass home.
Zane was finally asleep, so she eased him down into the chair and went to the kitchen. Zarabethe was checking on the boar roasting in the oven. They had made pies earlier in the day, and while they might not be as good as Brekke's, they would be sufficient, and Lorel was pretty proud of how symmetrical her apple pie crust had been.
"We have a small crowd tonight." Zara's voice was temporarily muffled, then she shut the stove and stood up. Lorel pretended not to see her red-rimmed eyes.
"Kalibose and Mae are staying home, since Mae's so close now. Once the snow settles down, I'll bring them some food."
"If there's any pie left after I get done with it."
"I made the chocolate one just for Mae, so you better save her a piece." Zarabethe pushed a coffee cup so it was in line with the others, then took them all out and re-organized them. "Tzun's not going to make it home in time, right?"
"Nah, you know his crazy mother's going to make him work the entire convention."
Her husband, Elune above she loved him, but whenever his mother said jump, he was there. She needed someone to work the entrance at a Cenarian Circle diplomacy convention, and no matter that it was the holiday, Tzun'do had agreed. He'd promised to try and leave early if possible, but she didn't expect to see him until she and Zane had already returned home. She tried not to be bitter about it: the woman only had one son, and no other living family. But as chummy as Tae'ra had acted toward Lorel, she got the feeling that she would always be considered the second woman in her husband's life, and not the first.
Zarabethe continued making her list as she moved to the second shelf and tackled the plates.
"So just you and Zane, then Elf, me, and Brekke. Next year ought to be big though: we'll have Kalibose and Mae's little girl as well."
Pushing the final plate back into alignment, Zarabethe turned around and leaned against the counter.
"I think it's time Zane got a sibling."
Lorel snorted loudly. "You carry it then. Being pregnant is hard when you're short. Felt like I swallowed a goblin airship."
"What, more babies already? I can't keep up." Elforen came in the kitchen, rubbing his hands together from the cold. He had been out in the shop most of the day, but whatever he had been working on must be complete. He moved to wash his hands. Lorel glared daggers at the back of his head.
"Hell no, I can't control the one I have."
"That's because you gave birth to yourself." Her brother didn't have to look up for her to hear the smirk on his face. "That's what you get for being a terror."
"No, that's what I get for marrying a troll."
She had started to rise to the bait, to engage her brother in a battle of wits, but she was distracted by a commotion outside the the house. Zarabethe must had heard it too, because she started for the door. It sounded like heated arguing, and if Lorel was honest, one of the voices sounded a hell of a lot like her younger brother. Zarabethe glanced out of the window without upsetting the curtain, then grabbed her wool wrap and headed outside. Lorel peeked out the window in curiosity. Sure enough there was Kalibose, bundled up in enough warm clothes to look like a tall pile of laundry. He had his arm around Mae and was leading her in, but she could hear the muffled sounds of their voices from here: he was not happy about something. Mae looked radiant in the chill winter air. Her woolen hat hid most of her bright silver hair and her cloak couldn't even cover all of her belly. She was arguing with Kalibose, then abruptly stopped. He jumped to peer down in her face, obviously concerned, but the glare that she gave him was so severe that Lorel burst into cackling laughter from her vantage point. Nothing on Azeroth would ever delight her more than to see her happy-go-lucky sister-in-law put her brother in his place. Whatever she said worked: he listened as she spoke to him in a curt voice, and he asked a question, tapping the center of his forehead. She nodded, Kalibose threw his hands up in exasperation, and was looking quite sulky by the time they met Zarabethe at the door. Lorel opened the door and caught the tail end of their conversation.
"-couldn't bear sitting at home with just us during Winter Veil. I've still got a month, I'll be fine."
Zara helped Mae into the house, and caught Lorel's eye as she passed. She was concerned about the weather as well, but it was Mae's choice whether or not to travel this late in gestation. Kalibose stomped in the house, and Lorel pounced on him, punching him in the shoulder gleefully.
He scowled at her as he rubbed his arm. "Cut it out, brat, I'm not in the mood for it today. Hey Elf, where do you want me to tie up a mount? We rented a horse in Stormwind."
"I'll show you." Elforen tried to move past Lorel, but she stepped directly into his path. He raised an eyebrow, and without warning picked her up by the shoulders. Lorel yelped as she was dumped unceremoniously to the side so he could get to his winter cloak.
"That was uncalled for!"
Her older brother gave her a wink as he headed out the door. "Don't be in the way then."
Kalibose followed behind, with a distinctively smug look on his face. Lorel scowled at the closed door after them. She would get them back later.
She joined the other two women in the kitchen. Zarabethe was putting the kettle on for tea and Mae was sitting in a chair with her feet propped in a second one. Mae made a pained noise and shifted position with one hand on her belly.
"I don't think she liked the ride up here."
Lorel caught a good look at Mae's face as she helped herself to a pumpkin cookie from the tin on the counter. She could sound upbeat and chipper all she wanted, but Lorel could see the weariness in her face. She was exhausted. Probably mentally as well: after so many losses, Lorel imagined that it was hard to trust yet again. She listened to Zara and Mae's conversation as she licked sugar off her fingers. They were discussing mundanities such as diapers and winter wardrobes, and Lorel remembered what Zara had said earlier, about giving Zane a sibling. For a moment she felt a twinge of guilt. Here in this kitchen were two women who had much of their family choices taken away. Mae, through having trouble carrying a child to fruition, and Zarabethe, rendered barren by a devastating miscarriage. And here she had to faithfully take herbs and give Tzun'do the cold shoulder more often than she liked just to avoid having an entire litter already. She dug into the cookie tin again, and this time handed one to Mae, before stuffing another cookie in her face. She was grateful that her fertility chose to come in after her wild years in Stormwind.
Zarabethe grabbed the cookie tin and moved it back.
"Save some for Brekke at least, pumpkin is her favorite."
Mae also licked the sugar off her fingers, and Lorel grinned at Zara's disapproving twist of her mouth.
"Is Brekke going to make it? What about Genne?"
"Brekke will be here for dinner, then she has to work tonight. She'll be here tomorrow though."
Zarabethe needlessly checked the boar roasting and her voice came back muffled. "I don't think Genne will be here."
Mae glanced up at Lorel and she shook her head. Don't push the subject. She set her feet on the ground and pushed herself to standing.
"Well I'll be happy to see Brekke, then. Can I help with something?"
"No!"
Both she and Zara jumped up and all but pushed Mae back down in the chair, despite her protests.
"Are you kidding? That baby's about to fall out of you!"
Zarabethe gave her an exasperated look. "Lorel means that with the snow coming in, we'd both be much more comfortable if you would take it easy."
Mae's face was rebellious, but she accepted her cup of tea with grace.
Dinner that evening was a muted affair. Brekke arrived a few minutes late, and by the way she had to lean on the door to keep the wind from blowing it open again, the storm was getting ready to move in. Lorel could feel the air currents moving around outside, and more than once, she got the urge to slip into cat form and prowl outside on the roof and watch it come in. She even walked all the way to the back door and stopped with her hand on the doorknob. She and Tzun'do often watched the weather that way, crouched against the slope of the roof and feeling the energy in the air. Lorel took her hand off the door and made herself turn back to the table. She was as independent as they came, but in these moments, she missed Tzun so terribly she wanted to cry.
The sound of laughter and silverware took her back to the living room. Zane had woken up from his nap in a much improved mood, and after eating a small mountain of mashed potatoes, he was now poking at the jellied cranberry tart on his plate suspiciously. Sweet thing that he was, he kept plucking at his uncle's sleeve and asking him questions about what really was in it, and if there was cinnamon, and what was cinnamon, and whether it had sugar because he liked sugar but Daddy didn't like it when he ate it out of the tin. Kalibose looked slightly uncomfortable at being seated next to his nephew, but he did answer his questions patiently and Lorel mentally gave him a few points in his favor.
She drug her chair over to where Brekke was taking a peek at Mae's baby, just in case. Lorel turned the chair around backward and leaned against the back as she watched. Although Brekke was not the most unconventional druid she had ever met (she once met one that taught himself to shapeshift into an otter) she definitely had her own style. From the beginning, she had little interest in changing her shape. Nearly every druid she had met had tried that straight off as soon as possible: who doesn't want to be a cat or bear? In fact, that was what nearly cost Brekke her adult trials: her difficulty in shifting fast enough. She made it though, barely, and as far as Lorel knew, never used her skill again except for travel purposes. She instead devoted herself to healing people. All druids had a sense of bravado: it's something that came naturally with having an innate talent that not everyone could do. But Brekke didn't care if she spent all day healing a person and they got up and walked away without an acknowledgment. If the person was healed, she was happy.
Of course, most healing druids were dabblers, and did a bit of everything. Brekke wanted to specialize. Specifically, in midwifery. She claimed it had nothing to do with the loss of her brother, but Lorel would never forget the look on her niece's face when she found her standing at the door staring into the kitchen at her mother. She did remember how full of fire Brekke had been when she came back from an internship at Raene's compound near Astranaar, and that seemed to be the catalyst. Brekke had not delivered any babies by herself yet, but she had attended lots of them, and Mae preferred seeing her during her pregnancy more than the other druids.
"She's sitting really low," Brekke murmured, her hand on Mae's belly and her eyes closed. "I wouldn't delay to head home after the storm is over."
"I'm not worried." Mae pulled her shirt back down and shifted position. Lorel wondered briefly if that's how she looked while pregnant: like she had inhaled an entire pumpkin and was trying to conceal it. Tzun'do was no help at all: the great hulking troll couldn't keep his hands off her while pregnant, and would be happy to have her waddling around round with child every day of the week. He was a beast.
Lorel cast a glance around the rest of the table. The atmosphere was very subdued tonight. Zane wasn't talking too much with his sore mouth, Brekke was tired from her shift at the hospital, and both Elforen and Zarabethe were not-too-subtly watching the door. Elf was at least engaging Kalibose in conversation and trying not to look too often: Zara was sitting with her arms folded around her middle, half of her food still on her plate and not talking to anyone. She was looking a little worn lately as well: her hair was looking thin, and there were shadows under her eyes. Either Genne's absence was keeping her from sleeping, or there had been other things wearing on her mind as well.
"Um, Lorel?"
Lorel realized that Kalibose had been trying to get her attention for several minutes. A huge grin lit up her face: Zane had apparently, in the middle of finally eating his cranberry tart, leaned over against his uncle and fallen asleep. Kalibose had scooted over as far away from his nephew's sticky fingers and face as possible, and looked at him as if the child had leprosy, but Lorel clapped both her hands over her mouth in delight.
"Awwww, look at my sweet baby! Poor thing is just tuckered out."
Kalibose looked at her as if she were insane. "Can you get him off me? He's drooling."
Lorel was already getting up to do so, and with some difficulty, transferred the sleeping child into her arms. "You're going to have to get used to that pretty soon, you know that. Babies drool and puke and poop everywhere."
Her brother tried unsuccessfully to wipe cranberry off his sleeve. "Yes, but that will be my kid, not yours. Which means by default, she will be much more well-mannered."
Lorel snorted loudly as she staggered off to what used to be her old, and more recently Genne's room. Since she wasn't going to be here, Lorel decided to commandeer it for her and Zane. He snored open-mouthed against her ear, and didn't even wake a little bit when she laid him down and tucked the covers around him. Poor thing, didn't even make it until presents.
When she got back to the kitchen, everyone was even quieter. Brekke had slipped out the door to return to work. Zarabethe was starting to half-heartedly stack the dishes, and Elforen caught her shoulder and squeezed it. He then turned to address everyone else.
"Since Zane's asleep and Brekke won't be here until tomorrow, is anyone opposed to opening gifts tomorrow?"
Everyone murmured their consent. It wasn't any fun if everyone wasn't here.
Elforen looked relieved. "Good. Because I think I'd rather crack open a bottle of wine instead."
Lorel cheered as he went to go fetch a bottle from under the cabinet. Mae grimaced as she pulled herself to standing using Kalibose's arm. "That's my cue to go to bed then. Walk me there?"
Lorel watched as they slowly made their way to Brekke's old room. Mae looked pretty uncomfortable, and she thought about going after her, just in case, but the crack-hiss of the wine bottle opening and the sight of Zarabethe setting out glasses kept her in the kitchen. If Mae needed her, she'd say something, wouldn't she? In the meantime, Elforen had pulled out the good dwarven red, and from the down expressions at the table, it looked like what everyone needed.
After everyone had polished off the first glass, Kalibose came back in the room and sat down with them.
"How's Mae?" Zarabethe handed him a glass. He took a sip, and kept his eyes down on the table.
"She's asleep. I can tell she's in pain, but she won't let me do anything." He drug his hands through his stringy blue hair and shoved it out of his eyes. "I wish she would not have pushed to travel right now: going back is going to be so hard on her."
Lorel was feeling extremely charitable at the moment, with the wine buzzing warm in her stomach and her brother's kindness to her son earlier. She did not tease him as she tipped her glass back, catching the last few drops of her second glass.
"Want me to check in on her?"
Kalibose considered the bottom of his glass. "I've already fussed at her so much tonight, I think she would actually punch me if I sent you in right now. Maybe before you go to bed?"
His face was open in its worry, and as he glanced up at her, she could see the vulnerability reflected in his eyes. It startled her for a moment, to see a glimpse of the little brother she thought she lost still tucked away in the hard shell he normally presented to the world. She reached over and patted him on the arm, and he didn't even flinch away from her.
"Don't worry Brother, I'll keep an eye on her. We've all got your back."
There was a murmur of acknowledgment from both Elforen and Zarabethe, and Kalibose looked slightly embarrassed. He downed the rest of his glass of wine in one drink.
"Don't we have some cards to play or something, or are we just going to sit here and get emotional drunk?"
Lorel grinned widely as she jumped up the grab the deck she knew was kept in one of the drawers. "So eager for me to kick your ass tonight I see."
She sat back down and helped herself to another glass of wine as she shuffled. Both Zarabethe and Elforen leaned in, and she smiled as she dealt cards out to all of them.
"Don't think I won't take you for every cent you have just because it's Winter Veil."
"If you didn't play to win, I'd think you were ill." Zarabethe's statement was wry, but some of the despair started to leave her eyes as she picked up her cards.
Lorel hoped that between the alcohol and the game they were about to engage in, everyone's moods would improve. It was too rare, among the people that she frequently hung out with, to have such a close-knit family that genuinely enjoyed getting together for the holidays. In fact, before Elforen had taken the steps to start their own traditions, she would have believed that the phenomena just simply did not exist.
But now that she was a part of one, she didn't want to waste even one holiday in a grumpy state. She inspected her cards, waggled her eyebrows at her younger brother, and pushed her chips into the pile in the middle of the table.
How everyone else felt after she beat them soundly at cards, however, she had no control over.