A/N: And now it's time for Christmas! This chapter is a little on the long side but I had to make it special for the triplets…enjoy!
Chapter Seven
Lucian and I walked slowly back into the mansion, the tree dragging along behind us. Lucian was pale and still shaken from our encounter with Tristan. Shortly after I threw the fireball, Tristan let out a soft hiss and ran off. Once he was gone I turned my attention back to Lucian. He was extremely pale and had tears running down his face. I kneeled down in the snow, dropping the axe and wrapped my arms around his small frame. He weakly fell into the embrace as he let out a shuttering sob. I started to shush him softly and rubbed his back soothingly. He clutched at the front of my shirt and buried his face in my chest.
"Listen to me," I said softly but stern, "we cannot tell your mother about this. I don't want her to worry about this. You have to erase your mind of this event. If you can, try to set up a block like your Grandpa Chris showed you. We must never speak of this again, do you understand? Not to your mother, your sisters or anyone. This will be our little secret."
He pulled back sniffling and wiping at his eyes. He nodded and looked up at me with slightly red eyes. I gave him a forced smile and ruffled his hair. He let out a shaky laugh as he shoved my hand away. He looked back at the tree where I left it and back to where we saw Tristan just moments ago. He nodded again and started to walk towards the direction of the house.
"Welcome back boys," I heard Dana call as she came down the steps.
"Finally found one," I told her triumphantly.
"Oh it's perfect," she said smiling as I stood the tree up to its full height. "Go set it up in the den and we can decorate tomorrow. But now it's bedtime for my little man."
She held her hand out for Lucian and he ran to grasp her hand tightly with both of his. Dana smiled and kissed the top of his head, leading him up the stairs and talking quietly about the tree. I kept my forced smile till I heard the distant click of a door. I felt the smile drop as I looked solemnly out the open door behind me. I could still smell Tristan as if he were right beside me. I glanced up as I heard footsteps approaching me. My father stood a few feet away from me, his expression unreadable.
"Nice tree," he said stiffly looking it up and down.
"You can smell him too?" I asked closing the door behind me.
"What was he doing here?" Father asked taking a step towards me.
"Lucian said that Tristan was thinking he had to get him to her," I said keeping an ear out for Dana. I didn't want to worry her.
"Who's her?" he asked showing mild concern.
"I don't know," I sighed running a hand through my hair. "But I'm afraid of who it may be."
X X X
The following morning I walked down the stairs and towards the den. Dana and the children were already sorting through several boxes of decorations with Dana's clan. Autumn and Victoria were rolling on the floor laughing as Cain tried to shake out the silvery tinsel tangled in his dark hair. Abel smirked as he dumped another box of the shiny material on his brother's head, joining the children in a bout of laughter. Dana giggled softly and turned her eyes up towards me. She smiled and motioned for me to sit next to her near the roaring fire. I walked over and dropped to the floor beside her giving her a gentle kiss.
"Alright now," Dana scolded jokingly, "quit picking on Uncle Cain. We need to put the tinsel on the tree and not on him."
Everyone let out a laugh. I glanced over at Lucian to see him staring into the fire. He was trying to smile but was failing. His eyes were solemn as he looked into the crackling flames. He looked up and met my eyes. I gave him an encouraging smile which he returned weakly. Dana looked from me to Lucian, her eyes questioning. Lucian quickly looked away and stood, walking over to a box next to the tree. He began to sort through it, inspecting the various ornaments inside.
"What's going on?" Dana asked softly turning her gaze towards me.
"Maybe he had a nightmare," I said with a shrug.
Dana pouted and was about to say something else when the girls began to whine about not decorating. She closed her mouth and smiled at them. Helios came in with a tall step ladder and a box filled with strings of lights. Helios, Cain, and I began to string the lights around the tree while the others watched, the girls hopping in anticipation. Once we were done they let out a squeal and began to choose ornaments, placing them on any branch they could reach. Lucian watched passively, clearly lost in thought. About an hour later, the tree was almost perfect; the only thing missing was the star.
I looked over at Dana and winked. Quietly, I snuck up behind Lucian. I ducked down, slipping his legs over my shoulders as I stood up. He let out a small shout and clung tightly to my shoulders and neck. Dana handed me the gold and silver star we found in the attic and I carefully climbed the step ladder till Lucian was eye level with the top of the tree. He blinked a few times as I handed him the star. His face broke out into a bright smile as he gingerly placed the star on the top. I smiled up at him as I stepped down the ladder and pulled Lucian off of my shoulders, still holding him in my arms. Abel took the electric hookup and plugged it into the outlet. The lights flickered to life and cast the room with a dim glow.
We all ooh-ed and aw-ed at the twinkling tree, Autumn and Victoria clapping their hands and giggling. Dana came up beside me and wrapped her arms around me. Holding Lucian up with one arm, I wrapped the other around her and kissed the top of her head.
"It's beautiful," she sighed snuggling closer to me.
"Yes," I agreed but smiled down at her devilishly, "but not as beautiful as you."
She gave me a warm smile and turned her eyes to our girls dancing around the tree. Lucian put his head on my shoulder, a faint smile playing at his lips as he watched his sisters and gazed at the tree. I could sense him slowly feeling at peace since our encounter and gently kissed him at the temple. He glanced at me briefly, his smile growing as he let out a content sigh. I felt a bit more relaxed. However, I still couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible was soon headed our way.
X X X
A Few Weeks Later
I had my arms wrapped around Dana, her small frame spooned against mine as we lay in our bed. My ears perked up as I heard the door creak open and three hushed voices whispered to each other. I cracked open one eye when the mattress dipped slightly under the weight of another body. A pair of bright red eyes blinked at me in the dim morning light flittering through the drawn curtains. I smiled as a small body wormed in between mine and Dana's. She let out a small moan as she peered over her shoulder at the dark haired girl smiling at us both.
"It's Christmas!" Autumn informed us in an excited hushed tone.
"Is it?" I asked in feigned astonishment.
Lucian and Victoria ran over to the bed and hopped up onto the mattress, jolting our reclined bodies. All three children started to bounce chanting "It's Christmas!" over and over. Dana chuckled under her breath as she scooted off of the bed and reached for the robe draped over the chair beside it. I let out a barking laugh as I shifted to the side and pulled one of my girls down onto the mattress, caging her in my arms. She let out a shriek, her thin legs kicking up in the air as I rolled her back and forth on the bed. Her siblings got tangled up with our bodies and tumbled on top of us. We all laughed as Dana watched in amusement.
"Let's go see what Santa left," she called over our laughter.
All three cried in agreement as the struggled off of the bed and ran out of the room. We could hear their shouts of joy echo through the hall in an attempt to wake the others. I braced myself back on my elbows and smirked at Dana. She raised a brow as she walked closer to the side of the bed. I snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her on top of me.
"Do I get a present?" I purred into her ear placing a nipping kiss just below it.
"Maybe," she said with a shiver. "Have you been a good boy this year?"
"Well yes and no," I said chuckling. "Some would think I've been quite naughty."
"Then no present for you," she laughed pulling away from me.
I pouted up at her and tried to pull her down for a kiss. She placed a finger against my lips and slowly shook her head.
"We had better get down there before they raise hell," she said sliding off of my lap and walking towards the door.
I sighed defeated and swung my legs over the edge of the bed. I reached for my robe and followed Dana as she walked from our room and towards the den. When we arrived, we were greeted by the sleepy smiles of our clans and my family. Davian and Raven both were glaring slightly as they looked at us accusingly. I snickered turning my eyes to the three children kneeling in front of the tree, trembling in excitement as they gazed at the large stack of presents placed carefully beneath the twinkling fir.
"Now we are going to pass out the presents to each person," Dana said taking charge. "Once everyone has their gifts we each take turns opening them up. Is that understood?"
All three nodded, eagerly looking up at their mother. She smiled and dropped to her knees, crawling towards the tree. She started to reach for the presents, calling out the names written on the small tags placed on each gift. When it was all done, no one seemed surprised that the three largest piles stood tall in front of each child.
"Ladies first," Dana said with a smirk nodding at Autumn, the eldest of the two girls.
Autumn clapped her hands and eagerly tore the bright wrapping off of the largest gift. Once the paper was torn into small pieces, a Victorian style dollhouse stood proudly. She let out a small gasp as she stepped around the house which was almost as tall as her. She reached for the latch on the side, keeping the house closed. She thumbed it open and the house swung open to show eight rooms and a large attic space at the top. Carefully crafted Victorian furniture filled each room and small, delicate China dolls were placed in various rooms: a Papa doll sitting in a study on the third floor, a Mama doll lounging in the parlor, and two small girl dolls playing in a small bedroom. Autumn's eyes filled with tears as she flung herself at my father, her small arms wrapping tightly around them.
"Thank you Grandfather," she squeaked.
I looked at my father in surprise. I knew the house was handmade but I never expected him to be the creator. He smiled down at her and smoothed down her hair. He looked at me a bit sheepishly as Autumn turned to the rest of her presents. A children's poetry book from Grandpa Chris, a beautiful China doll with curly black hair and rosy cheeks from Santa, new dresses from my mother and matching dresses for her doll from Uncles Abel and Cain; a toy oven from Uncle Helios, an elegant tea set including a table and chairs from Raven, and a large stuffed dog from Uncle Alex. The other members of my clan gave her a jump rope, a princess themed board game, and a small jewelry box decorated with roses. Her mother and I gave her a locket in the shape of a small mirror holding a picture of each of us.
"Thank you," Autumn whispered tears falling down her cheeks.
Dana kissed the top of her head and smoothed down her hair before looking at Victoria. She was practically bouncing with excitement and, like her sister, attacked the largest gift before her. It was another handmade dollhouse created by my father but much different than her sister's. Victoria's was modeled after a 16th century medieval castle complete with a throne room where a small King and Queen sat on richly decorated thrones. There was a colorful jester entertaining them and a small dancer doll as well dressed in fine silks. Attached to the castle was a small courtyard filled with knights training, standing guard, or riding on mighty war horses. In the highest tower sat a young maiden gazing down at a handsome prince astride his trusty white steed. And lurking in the dungeons of the castle was a wicked sorcerer surrounded by books filled with evil spells and enchantments.
Victoria quickly hugged her grandfather before diving back for more presents. A book filled with fairytales from Grandpa Chris, a China doll much like her sisters but with golden braids from Santa, beautiful silk ribbons and silver hair pins with tiny flowers from Mother and matching ribbons and pins for her doll from her Uncles Abel and Cain; from Raven an elegantly carved crib for her doll decorated with sparrows and flowers, an art set with an easel from Uncle Helios—Victoria was proving to be quite the little artist—and a large stuffed unicorn from her Uncle Alex. The rest of my clan had gotten her similar toys as Autumn with the exception of watercolor paints and her jewelry box was decorated with tiny sparrows. From us, her mother and I had gotten her a locket as well. This one was in the shape of a rosebud with a small ruby set in the very center. Much like her sister, Victoria whispered her thanks through tears hugging my leg tightly.
Lucian looked up at us with eager hope shining in his eyes. I looked at Dana and smirked before gesturing to his large stack of presents. He eyed the pile carefully before choosing one off the side, the largest present opened today. Hidden by the colorfully bright paper was a large wooden fort, handmade by my father yet again. Patrolling the high walls were dedicated soldiers, their rifles resting against their shoulders with the butt of the gun resting in the crook of their arms. Down in the yard below was a whole army of fearless soldiers standing at attention before a decorated general sitting upright and proud on his horse, looking over his loyal troops. There were more horses being loaded down with provisions for a long and hard march to face the enemy, who was whomever my son decided. He looked wide-eyed at his grandfather before giving him a quick hug and attending to the rest of his gifts.
He carefully picked each neatly wrapped gift, tearing the paper off carefully as if each gift was as fragile as a spun glass flower. Each gift brought a bright, wonderful smile to the boy's face. Once again a book from his Grandpa Chris—this one on battles throughout history up to the Civil War of America—a pair of soft leather hunting boots from Mother, a small bow with a quiver full of arrows from Santa, and more handmade toy soldiers from his Uncles Abel and Cain; a survival knife from his Uncle Helios with various tools, a handmade backpack from Raven, and a large stuffed bear from his Uncle Alex. Much to Dana's dismay, the rest of my clan gave Lucian other various survival tools and weapons including a leather whip just the right size for the young boy, more arrows, and even a few small throwing knives. Lucian looked around frantically for one more gift: the one from Dana and me.
"Lucian," I said looking down at my son. His eyes met mine questioningly. "Your mother and I have decided to give each of you something very special and dear to us. Your sisters got those handcrafted lockets designed by your mother and I. For you, we have each gotten you something from our childhoods."
"This is from me," Dana said pulling out a small wooden box from beneath the couch. It was made of a dark polished wood that gleamed in the morning light. Lucian took it from her and carefully opened it. Inside was a battered old copy of Tennyson poems, a silver pocket watch, and a broken pearl necklace. "These were my most prized possessions when I lived in the orphanage. That was my favorite book and I read it every day. And the pocket watch and the pearls were the only things left that my parents had owned when they were alive. The box even belonged to my birth father's father. I want you to have it."
Lucian looked up at his mother, tears shining in eyes so much like hers. I could tell Dana was fighting back tears of her own as Lucian hugged her tightly. I looked around the room to see Abel and my mother already tearing up as well while Cain, Davian, Helios, and my father shuffled around and tried to appear more masculine. I cleared my throat to get my son's attention and he wiped at his eyes, blinking up at me.
"Mine is a little more obscure," I said trying not to smirk. "This, ironically enough, was my childhood home. To put it nicely, I didn't care much for my time here as a child and longed for the day I could finally leave here and get away from my family. I respect that you love your grandmother and grandfather very much but one day you'll understand the need to escape from your parents. Hidden here in the mansion is my secret place. I found it when I was a young boy, just a little older than you are now. There I found peace and serenity. Later on I shall reveal to you the location of this secret place. It is yours to do with as you please."
Lucian smiled up at me and hugged me just as tight. I returned the embrace and peered over at Dana to see tears streaming down her face. She smiled softly at me and wrapped her arms around the girls. I pulled back from Lucian and kissed his forehead and ruffled his hair.
"Alright," I said standing up, "time for anyone else to see what Santa brought them."
The rest of the morning went by without a hitch. Everyone got to open their gifts. The girls decided that they would decide who got to open their gifts, saving Raven and Davian for last. Davian pouted when they told him he was to go dead last.
"How come I'm last?" he asked in mock hurt batting his lashes at the girls.
"You didn't get us anything," Victoria said with a shrug.
"Oh but I did," Davian argued giving her a wink.
"What did you get us Uncle Davy?" Lucian asked coming to stand beside his sister.
"It is something very special," he said holding up a finger. He dashed out of the room and came back a few moments later levitating three huge boxes using his shadows. "Inside these boxes are something called shadowlings. They are a very special kind of animal. You see when they are born they are these shadowy, shapeless creatures. But once they meet their master and see their face for the very first time, they take on the form of their master's inner animal."
"Are they safe?" Dana asked in her "mom" voice.
"Very," Davian said nodding. "Once they meet their master they are forever sworn to protect them at any cost from any harm. They never stray too far from their master's side, always looking out for any sign of danger. Your children could not be in safer hands."
He placed each box in front of each child. He gestured for Autumn to step towards her box. She did so hesitantly, looking over at her mother who smiled and nodded before removing the lid from the box. A dark, shadowy mist rose from the box. A pair of glowing white eyes gleamed down at my daughter who shrunk back in fear. The mist slowly circled around her once before settling down in front of her. The white eyes closed as the mist began to shift and take form. There was a flash of light and a small pop and in place of the shadowy mist sat a small golden lion cub. Autumn let out a squeal of delight as the lion cub purred and rubbed against her legs. She reached down and pulled the wild cat into her arms, rubbing her cheek against its soft fur.
Victoria's eyes were wide as she watched her sister and her new pet. She looked up at her uncle who nodded before lifting the lid off of her own box. Just like before, a shadowy mist with a pair of white eyes rose from the box and circled Victoria. She watched it with careful eyes as it settled down in front of her. Another flash of light and a pop left a tiny red fox cub blinking up at her. Victoria cooed down at it softly as she bundled the small fox in her arms. It made a strange barking sound, nuzzling against her chest. Both girls turned their eyes upon Lucian as he approached his own box.
Lucian took a deep breath before carefully lifting off the lid and placing it on the ground. His shadowling rose from the box and blinked its large white eyes down at Lucian. He met its gaze steadily, watching it move around him. When it finally settled down in front of him, it had already begun to take shape. Before we knew it, a wolf pup was crouched in front of my son. Its fur was as white and as pure as the snow outside. But its eyes were the most interesting thing. Unlike the girls shadowlings, both of which had golden eyes, Lucian's had eyes as green as his. Lucian blinked at it in surprise and it let out a yip before licking Lucian's face.
"These are your best friends," Davian told my children kneeling down to look them in the eye. "They understand you better than perhaps yourselves. They know all of your secrets, your fears, and even your hopes and dreams. They will always be there if you ever need them. They can even communicate with you somehow, someway."
"Thank you Uncle Davy!" all three children said hugging their new pets tightly to their chests.
"I think they need names," Chris said smiling down at the children gently.
"I'll call mine Curajos," Autumn said smiling down at her lion.
"Mine's Sagira," Victoria said softly kissing her little fox on the head.
"Eamon," Lucian said simply rubbing one of the wolf's ears between his fingers.
The three children looked at their new friends, then out the window, then back at us. I quirked a brow and looked down at Dana. She met my gaze and she nodded smiling at me. I chuckled under my breath and they looked up at me with hopeful eyes.
"Better go out now before it gets too cold," I told them. "And don't forget to put on some warm clothes."
They all three let out shouts of delight and ran from the den, their pets tailing not too far behind. We all had smile on our faces as we heard the shuffle of little feet, small animal growls, and then the pounding of feet running down the stairs and out the door. Dana laughed lightly as she started to clean up the endless sea of torn wrapping paper and discarded bows. Soon, with a bit of help from Mother and Abel, she had the den back to normal before the destruction of colorful Christmas paper. I helped my father and Davian move the children's' gifts to their rooms, arranging them in a way we knew would appeal to the children.
We had just moved Lucian's fort into his room when I heard a faint gasp followed by the sound of something breaking. We all looked at each other before hurrying towards the den. Raven and my mother were standing on either side of a shaky Dana. They eyes flashed over to us as we barged into the room. Chris ran into the room a few seconds after we did and went straight to Dana.
"What is it?" he asked urgently.
Dana said nothing but turned to face me. Clutched in her hand was a small, black velvet box. Her eyes were strangely dead and her skin was ashen pale. She walked over to me and placed the box in my hand. I gave her a questioning look before taking the box from her shaking hand. I opened it up and felt my heart drop. Nestled in the silk fabric of the box was a heavy silver ring with a large amethyst gem glinting dangerously in the light. Strange symbols were etched along the wide silver band. I looked up at Dana, a look of horror crossing my face.
"You're hiding something from me," she said quietly taking the ring from my hand. "Tell me."
"When Lucian and I went to get the tree we ran into Tristan," I said softly not wanting to meet her gaze. "I didn't want to tell you because I knew that would worry you. And with you still worrying about the children's rapid aging I didn't want to add that to your plate."
"There's something else though," Dana said narrowing her eyes. "I want to hear the whole story Darrin Cobalt."
I sighed and looked into her eyes. I let the mental block I made fall and allow her access to the dark memory I tried to shield her from. Her eyes grew wide when she was done digging in my mind. Her hand flew over her mouth as she tried to pull herself together.
"He's talking about Alice isn't he?" she asked her voice shaking.
"No," I said quickly. "I killed her remember? I ripped her cold heart right from her chest. She's gone and there is no way she can come back."
"Then who did Tristan mean by her and why does this have Lucian's name on it?" Dana snapped showing me the small tag on the bottom of the box?"
I gave her a look before looking on the bottom of the box. There was a small gift tag there with Lucian's name written in an elegant script. I looked at Dana to see fear shining in her eyes. I clutched the box in my hand, my heart growing heavy with dread.
A/N: Sorry to kill the happy mood but it must be done. Oh and fyi the names the kids gave their pets have special meanings. Curajos means "brave" in Romanian, Sagira is an Egyptian name meaning "little one", and Eamon is an Irish name that means "guardian" or "protector". Oh and Curajos is a boy, Sagira is a girl, and Eamon is a boy as well...just letting you know. Please leave a review on the way out! Thank you all for reading and I really do read your reviews and it just makes my heart happy! :)