Page 14 of Oh Christmas Tree
Grandma waves her hand. “It was years ago, not worth mentioning, just some girlish training, nothing like you can do nowadays. But anyway, that’s not important to this story.”
I snort and shake my head, quickly silencing when Grandma glares at me.
“We met on Christmas Eve. We were walking home from a Christmas Eve mass, and I knew I saw something moving in the woods next to the road. Aunt Lydia told me things are always moving in the woods and that the magic is strong during Christmas time. I couldn’t sleep that night, and when I looked out my window, I saw someone standing in the backyard. I know, I should have been scared, but something drew me in.” She sighs. “I can remember it as if it were yesterday. He was big, strong, and so otherworldly, I was sure my mind was playing tricks on me. But his hands, that texture on my skin…”
“Alright, that’s enough, Mom. No more wine if you go into details like that,” Aunt Gemma interrupts.
Grandma huffs but takes a daring sip of her wine. “Anyway, we spent the entire Christmas holiday together. I can teach you something about sneaking away at night, young lady, because you lack my skills.”
We all laugh at that, and I shake my head.
“What was their name?” Ced asks. “And how did they look?”
“His name was Baeye, and he definitely looked more piney than you. Seriously, I don’t know how Chloe ever thought you could be a Christmas tree.”
Ced smiles widely. “I cannot either.” They are quiet as they think. “I think I know them, Baeye. It’s hard toremember because we are solitary creatures and rarely truly connect.”
I down my wine, leaving Grandma and Ced to their conversation, before I rise to grab the bottle from the fridge to refill everyone's glasses. It’s not every day you find out that Tree people are real and that your mother/grandmother apparently had an affair with one of them. Uncle Ron just sits there giving unintelligible remarks, which we all ignore. So dad hands him the bottle of vodka, which seems to calm him down a bit.
It’s way past midnight when everybody is drunk off their asses and totally enamored with Ced. I’m just as drunk as my family, and I lean heavily on Ced when I rise.
“Wheyou gonna sleep tenight?” I slur with a yawn. “Itz cold outsai.”
They smile at me. I will stay with you until dawn, but I rest better grounded, so I will probably return to the backyard spot if that’s okay.
I yawn another HUGE yawn, and they scoot me in their arms. I snuggle against them and let sleep take me under.
16
CED
Soft voices wake me, and I feel something poking my trunk.
“So is it really, really true this tree can come to life like a monster?” I hear a child’s voice say.
“Yep, but they’re not a monster. They’re just Ced,” Chloe replies.
“So he doesn’t growl?”
“Nope.” Chloe’s laughter fills the air. “And they don’t bite either.”
That makes me laugh, and I hear startled shrieks before I open my eyes. One look at Chloe has the magic flowing, and I step out of the ground.
Two little faces are looking up at me in awe. “Hello there, I am Ced.”
“Wooooooooow… You’re a moving tree!”
I smile. “I am, and you are a tiny human.”
“I’m not tiny! I’m already 8 years old and 58,5 inches.”
“Yeah, and I am six and 53 inches!” the other states.
I crouch as well as I can. “My apologies, you are very not tiny humans.”
They laugh before they wave and run away.
Chloe gives me a warm smile. “Those are my nephews, David and Leo. Since we are apparently a very open-minded family and a Dryad is just any old Tuesday for us, their parents decided to just let them in on the secret. That way, you can move freely around the house.”
