Episode One Hundred and Fifty-Three: Surprises and Fun Times

It didn’t take long before everyone stuffed themselves full of food and candy from the stockings. It was in the post-meal lull that Lord Bennit pulled out the last surprise for him from his stocking. At first, he stared at it as my eyes flickered over to Indigo. She flew quickly in his direction, chirping. 

I hadn’t had a chance to warn her what ‘she’ got him as a present. The bright purple shirt had seemed like a great idea at the time, but now I worried. 

Indigo chirped again and landed on his shoulder before nuzzling him, saying something. Lord Bennit nodded and the shirt vanished. His eyes caught mine, with tears at the edges. He smiled brightly and scratched under her chin.

“What did you get him?” asked the Cat quietly.

“A shirt that says ‘World’s Best Grandpa’.”

“Ah, that makes the comment about the universe make sense.”

“Universe?”

“Well, he is a dragon. He will not be satisfied with just being the best of any one world now, is he?” The Cat’s words lingered in my mind, making me want to chuckle.

If Lord Bennit took it as a challenge, that was okay to me. Maybe it’d help him with his grief. He had so much to live for.

Lady Twilight stood up first. 

“We best be getting on our way,” she said. Her face, normally full of laughter, seemed pale and strained.

Then I remembered.

Her magic kept Liluth safe outside of her lands. While I didn’t understand what was happening, this had to weigh on her.

I stood with a smile, pushing back my chair. “Thank you for coming…”

From there Alas also stood, and soon, the three of them were at the door. I hugged each tightly before they headed out.

That left Lord Bennit with the three of us.

He hung back until the others left. Indigo perched on his shoulder and gave him a nuzzle before flying back toward the living room.

“Thank you for coming,” I said with a grin.

“Thank you for letting her visit.” He couldn’t meet my eyes for a moment. “I know it had to be hard. I needed that push to get off the ledge.”

I stepped closer to him. “Are you doing better?”

“As good as I can be.” This time he met my eyes. “I won’t let her, or you, down.”

“We will be fine.”

“Thank you again for the invitation to your holiday.” He bowed his head then headed out the door. It snapped shut and locked behind him.

Chirping came from the living room and I slowly made my way back to the doorway. Indigo and the Cat pushed buttons on the controller, looking at the various movies they might watch. 

All that remained under the tree were presents from my family. While part of me wanted to ignore them for now, I headed in that direction and took a seat on the floor. I pulled the first over to me.

A movie began, then I felt someone staring at me. The Cat perched on the back of the couch looking down, his bright green eyes glowing.

“My gift will come soon, it’s just delayed,” he whispered.

I nodded with a smile. “No worries, I know delays happen.”

The Cat paused, then slowly nodded his head. “Yes, a delay…”

“What movie are you watching?” I asked.

“Something about training dragons…” His tail flickered before he turned back in that direction and padded away.

While that might not be a great movie for Indigo, the movie itself was amazing. Hopefully, she wouldn’t be upset when she realized that it wasn’t about dragons learning about things and more about humans learning about dragons.

My attention went back to the tree when nothing came from the direction of Indigo and the Cat.

The first present was a tin covered in snowflakes, and I knew what it contained. I cracked it open with a pop and the smell of chocolate filled the air. The rocky road fudge made me drool, even though I wasn’t hungry. I popped a small piece in my mouth, chewing on the marshmallow and nutty goodness. Then I forced myself to set it aside, otherwise I might eat the entire box without really enjoying it. 

My mother knew my weak spots with sweets.

A few different books from my father and Umber were tucked inside a colorful box — one about how to cook, another about container gardening. Cerulean must have said something about my sad rooftop deck. I just couldn’t be bothered to try to grow any plants out there. There were plenty of plants inside, and they took care of themselves. I was lucky enough to keep the plant next to my bed alive, and that was only because Betty controlled the sunlight it received.

And it was magical.

Onyx’s gift was a sweater. Soft and green, with golden colors woven throughout. It might even have been handmade, and I couldn’t help but toss it over my shirt. It felt like a warm hug. Tears crept to my eyes, but I ignored them, even though it smelled like my family home. I took a moment to just relax with it on. 

Warmth pulsed up from the floor and I opened my eyes and patted the wooden boards.

“I’m okay, Betty, just thinking of the rest of my family.”

A small golden box remained from Cerulean. It reminded me of a jewelry box, but I didn’t know what it could be. Another bracelet wasn’t practical, and honestly, I didn’t know how much more I’d wear. Unless it was magical, then all bets were off. 

I popped the top off, and it must have been spring-loaded. Golden dust burst out everywhere like glitter. 

“Freaking brothers.” Laughter broke out as it swirled in the air. This time the tears won as they slowly trailed down my face. He’d freaking glitter-bombed me. The golden dust landed on the sweater, almost making it sparkle. More laughter poured out of me.

A chirp came from the couch and I gained enough control over my laughter to see Indigo staring at me.

“More gifts?” she asked.

“From my family,” I explained. “My dad and brothers got me some books, a sweater, and some fudge.” 

“Sparkles…”

“That’s from my brother. It's called glitter. Try not to get it on you.” I waved a hand in the air, though most of it was already gone. Betty must have been on top of the cleanup.

Indigo didn’t look convinced at all, and kept away from the bits that remained in the air. She blew out a gust of wind, pushing what remained away from the couch. 

It headed in my direction, and I started laughing again.

#

Power floated into the air and I raced to the back of the couch to find Sable giggling like a maniac. Bits of magic floated around the room, swirling back toward Sable. The sparkles landed on her skin, soaking in. 

What magic was this?

The shop didn’t mind, and hadn’t been alarmed.

Yet, I couldn’t get a good feel for where it had come from, or what it was trying to do. All I knew was it felt like Sable, and readily absorbed into her aura, making it glow even brighter.