Page 10 of Dreaming of an Earth Christmas

“And you’d thought they’d be here for your Christmas celebration. I know—you don’t need to explain it to me. If the captain they originally contracted with was Xithilene, they need to give us his name so we can make a formal complaint.”

“I’ll mention it when I hear from Josh again. He’s supposed to let me know as soon as they find a way to come,” Mia replied.

She leaned against L’xat’s arm as the flyer began to lower to the ground and tried to shake off her pensive mood. She liked N’xalith, and she was looking forward to having him come along to the palace with them. It was always good to see L’xat with his son. He’d missed so many years, but at least her mate was no longer allowing the old ways of the temple to keep them apart. She still couldn’t imagine what it’d been like for L’xat to give him up.

“Has N’xalith mentioned anyone special lately?” she asked.

She’d sworn to herself when the boys were in college that she wouldn’t be the type of mother to beg for grandchildren, but there was a small part of her that secretly dreamed of what it would be like. At least she’d get her baby fix that afternoon. Alice, former Captain T’kalinth’s mate, would have their two month old son with her, and then there was Sseith’s child, a beautiful little toddler who wore more jewelry than she did herself. She’d heard the stories about the other little one that’d be there—Althiss, a half Lisseethi two-year-old. Apparently he left destruction in his wake, but Mia thought that sounded pretty typical for any small child.

L’xat was giving her a knowing look. He raised his feathers slowly and then dropped them before he grinned at her. “No, he hasn’t. I doubt he’d appreciate us asking about it either.”

“Probably not,” Mia admitted.

The flyer settled onto the ground, and she heard a chime from the cockpit area. “Let me power everything down, and then we’ll head inside the temple to fetch N’xalith,” said L’xat.

He opened the door to the front of the flyer and she saw him leaning over the control panel. The aircraft was capable of flying itself, but the start and deactivation sequences required some manual input.

Mia got up and opened the hatch as she waited for L’xat to finish. She wouldn’t bother taking anything with her now since they wouldn’t be staying. She hoped her surprise would go over well. Luckily V’kesth had identified and fixed the problem the evening before. He’d also discovered during their final testing of the device that he enjoyed making snowmen as much as he’d thought he would. Mia figured that augured well for the success of the device among the other Xithilene.

“Are you ready?” she called, eager to walk down the ramp.

“Yes,” he replied as he closed the cockpit door behind him. “Let’s hurry. I have much to anticipate today—seeing my son again and discovering what you’ve been spending the past four evenings perfecting with V’kesth. If I didn’t know better, I’d be jealous, my k’lallsa.” She felt L’xat’s firm forearm slide beneath her own as soon as she’d stepped onto the ground. He must’ve been right behind her.

Mia tipped her head back, offering her mouth for a kiss. Her mate didn’t neglect the invitation, and she let herself savor the moment. She loved their life in Ve’aska, but Verkissat—the temple—was where she’d first met L’xat. Just the smell of the air here brought it all back. By the time L’xat lifted his head, her hands were clasped around the folds of his crimson robes and she was feeling decidedly breathless.

They headed towards the main temple. Luckily it was only a short walk from the landing site. When they opened the nearest door and entered, L’xat released her arm to stride ahead. She smiled when she saw that N’xalith was already rushing towards them. He must’ve either seen the flyer himself or received word from some of the attendants that they’d arrived.

She fell back and let them talk after N’xalith gave her a brief hug. He still always seemed a little uncomfortable with the human gesture, but she appreciated that he made the effort. She liked watching the father and son chatter, and Mia had no intention of interrupting them. Soon they were walking right back up the ramp, and in minutes, L’xat had them in the air, headed towards the palace.

They’d landed there many times over the past two years, but L’xat seemed to have entered alternate coordinates. “Where are we headed?” Mia asked.

“I’m following the instructions we received from Prince V’esthiss. Kat thought you should set up your…giftin one of the private gardens, and the landing site he provided should be closer. Mia has something prepared for us in celebration of their holiday,” L’xat added as he turned towards N’xalith.

The young man lifted his head and gave her a speaking look of long-suffering. “Christmas,” he declared with a rustling of his crown feathers. “I’m well aware—the entire temple has been off schedule due to the high priest’s preparations.”

“Ka’alaniss? What does he know of it?” asked L’xat.

“He has a human mate. Have you forgotten?” N’xalith grinned, a bit ruefully. “I understand he wants to please her and make this year’s celebration as close to an Earth Christmas as possible, but truly, from what I’ve learned, it’s a very odd festival. Excuse me, Mia, if I’ve caused you any offense,” he added with an inclination of his head in her direction.

“Don’t worry. I don’t offend easily. After living several years now on Xithilene, I’ve seen my share of your people’s customs that I find strange. I wonder what Carlie’s told him,” she mused, half to herself.

Mia smiled softly. She was certain both N’xalith and L’xat would find the idea of her own Christmas surprise unappealing if she were to tell them now. If High Priest Sseith had turned the temple topsy-turvy to please his mate, she doubted he’d fail in the endeavor. She was looking forward to finding out what he had planned.

She looked out as the flyer began to descend. She could see the outline of the palace below them with its large courtyard and sprawling wings coming off of the main structure. She could see visitors strolling down the series of shallow steps leading to the gardens. Although she wasn’t averse to sharing their human customs with other Xithilene, she was glad that their celebration would be in a private area of the palace. She didn’t want to feel like they were on display, and she knew her own contribution to the festivities would garner a lot of attention if it were in the courtyard.

“We’ve arrived,” L’xat announced, rather needlessly. Sometimes he didn’t seem to realize he was still using his “temple voice” as she called it, making the simplest statements sound like momentous declarations.

“N’xalith, would you help me with my things while your father deactivates the flyer?” she asked. L’xat’s son bowed his head to her and she smiled as she motioned for him to follow her into the smaller storage hold behind the passenger cabin. She picked up the case for the main device herself, but she let N’xalith grab the rest of the items. Although it was possible for the tech to work without a visible physical barrier, achieving the effect she’d wanted necessitated some additional supplies. She was glad she had such a creative colleague. V’kesth had proven indispensable once again with his ideas on how to alter some of the manufacturing plant’s earlier products to produce the results she wanted.

“What is all this, Mia?” N’xalith was frowning down at the storage cases he’d picked up by the handles. She saw him wince as he attempted to move forward, and she quickly stepped closer so she could show him the small button on the side of the first case.

“They have hover capability—same spot on the other one,” she told him. Many Xithilene were resistant to tech that made physical tasks easier, but that didn’t stop Mia from using it as she saw fit.

N’xalith’s shoulders relaxed and his crown feathers extended with surprise as he looked down at the cases. She watched him lift them all the way up to his chest with one heave and stifled her laugh at his look of wonder. It wasn’t often that a human could astound a Xithilene with their species’ tech.

“Interesting,” N’xalith said softly as he walked towards the now open hatch.

L’xat was waiting for them with one foot already on the ramp, and Mia and N’xalith hurried to join him. They didn’t have to look long for the other humans. Mia could hear happy voices speaking a mix of English and Xithilene, including a few of those high-pitched, joy-filled screeches she’d expected from the children. She couldn’t hold back her smile.

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