“They would be welcome,” Sseith replied. He led her to a seat beside Alex. Her friend held Althiss in her arms and was patting his head.
“Is he okay?”Carlie mouthed, and Alex shook her head yes with a faint smile. She’d thought the boy was fine, but she was glad to have Alex confirm it. She heard the distinctive rustling of the bark they used for the prayer scrolls, and then she saw both Sseith and L’xat using their charcoal sticks to record their messages for the gods.
L’xat approached a small opening in the wall she hadn’t noticed previously. It was like a miniature fireplace, and she couldn’t imagine the Xithilene needing it for heat, even though the palace building was quite old. When she watched him light the small brazier, Carlie realized that this was probably its exact purpose—a way to safely complete offerings indoors. Sseith had rolled his bark piece back into a tight scroll, and he was sliding it across the scales of his neck, coating it in his blood. He better be planning to heal that right away with some of that salve he always carried. He’d said the plant was poisonous, too, not just parasitic and carnivorous.
L’xat removed his ceremonial dagger from his belt and made a small cut across the meat of his palm and let his blood drip onto his scroll like a civilized priest. “Lady, share your blessing with all of us here today and make our unions as enduring as your power,” he said solemnly. For once, Sseith allowed someone else to take the lead, and although she could see his lips moving in silent prayer, he didn’t speak aloud. They both dropped their scrolls into the fire at the same time, and the flames flared higher as they consumed the offerings.
When the men stepped back, Sseith was holding a small cloth to his neck and smiling. “T’kalinth,” he called, “are you finished with the u’ath stinger?”
“It’s destroyed,” a dry voice announced from one of the far corners of the room. T’kalinth strolled into sight. “A foul mess it made, too.”
Sseith frowned slightly before he glanced at her again. “I will have to find a different replacement for next year’s celebration. A pity. T’kalinth,” he called again, “I believe it’s time. Release the quetzals!”
Carlie heard K’thiss’ wings snap from across the room. T’kalinth ignored Sseith and extended his tongue to hiss at his friend. “Anything for our mates,” he said, inclining his head to the room. Then he walked quickly beneath the doorway where the so-called mistletoe had hung earlier.
“The quetzals?” That was Marta. Her mate L’allith was lounging beside her with his wings spread out so that one draped halfway over her shoulder. He bent his head towards her when he noticed Carlie looking. She smiled back. They’d gotten to know L’allith and Marta quite well during their work at the Lady’s Temple in Lisseethi. She wasn’t surprised to see that L’allith appeared unaffected by the events of the afternoon. He and Sseith were thick as thieves when they got together. He’d probably known about all of Sseith’s plans in advance—even the quetzals.
She wrinkled her brow as T’kalinth walked back into the room carrying two massive branches covered in the exquisitely beautiful birds the long ago Xithilene had stolen from Earth. Sseith had made a point of improving the breeding program at the temple to increase their numbers on Xithilene.
“We decided on twelve,” announced T’kalinth. “That seemed to be a common theme in the song about the gifts of feathered animals. For our mates, twelve quetzals flying,” he said, and then whatever stasis field had kept the birds restrained dissipated with a brief flash, and the birds launched themselves off of the artificial branches.
Their long emerald tails and red stomachs gleamed beneath the lights of the chamber. It truly was a beautiful sight to watch their graceful flight as they fluttered by, dipping and swooping through the space. Carlie thought it was almost like observing a dance. They all ended up settling on the various Christmas trees that filled the room.
It was the most unusual Christmas Eve she’d ever experienced, but it was also the most lovely. So much effort, thought, and work had gone into every detail. She glanced at Alex and her friend smiled softly, her eyes looking suspiciously shiny. So, she wasn’t the only one who felt it—the awe at everything their mates had done for them.
“Thank you,” Carlie said, “all of you. What a wonderful Christmas.”
Sseith beamed at her. “Just wait, my lovely one. This is only the beginning.”
“Who wants chocolate?”
Carlie tore her gaze away from Sseith to see V’esthiss leading in two attendants carrying trays laden with cups of chocolate. She knew then that she didn’t need an Earth Christmas anymore—not as long as their mates remained so eager to give them the Xithilene version.
“Me!” she called out, raising her hand.
She heard Alex and Marta laugh as she accepted the first cup from one of the attendants. Violet slipped onto the seat beside her, bringing her legs up onto the bench and curling against Carlie’s side. Someone pulled out a viewscreen and started playing Christmas carols, and she pulled Violet closer as she looked across the room at her mate. Sseith’s deep red eyes settled on them and his mouth relaxed into a soft smile.Yes,she thought,perfect.
Here Comes Santa Claus
ALEXIS
“We’re savingthe human food for tomorrow,” Kat said as more attendants entered the room carrying trays with fruit, grilled meat, and what looked like various salads. Alexis supposed those were a nod to human sensibilities, but she’d long ago grown accustomed to Xithilene fare, and she didn’t mind the somewhat limited selection.
“It looks great, Kat. Everything’s wonderful so far,” Alexis told the other woman. She didn’t know Kat as well as Carlie, Marta, and Alice, or even Mia, but she was eager to spend more time with her. Even with the development of the Mate Portal Program, there weren’t that many of them—human women—on Xithilene. They needed to stick together. It wasn’t an easy thing to build a new life on an alien world, even with the best incentives.
Alexis gently brushed her hand over Althiss’ soft crown feathers. Her son was practically asleep in her arms, but she was pretty sure that if she tried to move him, he’d suddenly be wide awake. She pressed a light kiss onto his head and felt his little wings flutter as his feathers rippled.
“He looks content.” K’thiss’ deep voice always seemed to melt into her bones. Alexis sighed as her mate sat down beside her and reached for Althiss. “You should eat, k’lisseth. I’ll hold him until he realizes he is also hungry.” She let go of Althiss and allowed K’thiss take him.
“Thank you. I think he tired himself out in the snow globe.”
K’thiss shuddered. “He seemed fine, but I must admit, I don’t understand the appeal of such a thing.”
Alexis smiled. “Maybe you have to grow up considering playing in the snow as typical. I enjoyed it, and I know Althiss did.” She met Mia’s eyes and gave the other woman a small smile and nod of acknowledgement before she turned her head back towards K’thiss. “It smells like a garden in here. How many attendants did it take for Sseith to bring everything inside?” she asked.
Her mate grinned. “Far fewer than you’d imagine—he had all of us,” he said, motioning to himself and the other men, “to assist him instead.” K’thiss looked down, seemingly at Althiss, but Alexis had the feeling he wasn’t really seeing their son. “I hope you’ll like the next surprise. It seems very strange to me, but Sseith assures me it’s a vital component of an Earth Christmas. We’ll need to wait until it’s almost dark and the children wake up, though.”
“Children? Are they both asleep?” she asked.