by S. E. Smith
“Are you ready?” she asked, gazing up at him with eyes twinkling with mirth.
“Yes, but I’ll warn you, we are sneaking out tonight. My dragon is in the mood for some playtime,” Creon replied, reluctantly releasing her and stepping back.
“I think that can be arranged,” Carmen murmured, brushing her hand across the front of his pants with a seductive smile.
“Great! Here I go again!” Creon muttered, glaring down at the front of his pants which was bulging once again. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
Carmen laughed in delight and nodded. She glanced over her shoulder at Creon when he turned to stare up at the stars in an effort to cool his body back down. This is what she needed to pull her out of her melancholy memories: new memories filled with laughter.
Chapter Three
Carmen stepped back inside and glanced around the living room. She smiled when she saw all the kids seated at the miniature tables that Paul had built for them. Her gaze softened when she saw Riley and Vox. They were each holding a little girl in their arms. It reminded her so much of her and Creon when Spring and Phoenix were first born.
Their twins were identical with matching heads full of blonde curls and dancing blue eyes. When they smiled, dimples appeared like mirrored reflections on their cheeks. Vox was going to have his hands full when those two grew up. They were going to be gorgeous.
Their son, Roam, sat next to Bálint, Trisha’s and Kelan’s son, while Ariel’s and Mandra’s son, Jabir, sat next to Zoran’s and Abby’s son, Zohar.
“Are Cara and Trelon coming?” Carmen asked, glancing around.
“Yes, they were waiting for Emma and Ha’ven to arrive. Trelon had a new gadget he wanted to show Ha’ven. Plus, I think this pregnancy has slowed Cara down a tiny bit,” Abby explained, sitting down on the couch next to her mate, Zoran.
“Only because she is either eating or throwing up,” Trisha replied dryly.
“Here they are,” Morian replied, rising from where she was sitting when Amber and Jade, Cara’s and Trelon’s precocious twins bounded into the room in their dragon form.
“Oh, my! I totally love the nails, girls,” Riley breathed, staring at the row of tiny claws painted red and pink and decorated with miniature hearts. “I want mine done like that.”
Cara grinned. “I created a nail machine. The girls and their dragons are going through a stage where they want a different design every day,” she explained.
“Can I get one?” Riley asked with a hopeful grin.
“Please tell me this was not what you wanted to show Ha’ven,” Zoran replied with amusement.
“Of course – not. Well, maybe. It was more for Emma and Alice,” Cara replied with a grin. “Emma had been telling me about Alice’s fascination with colors lately.”
“Nice nails, Trelon,” Mandra laughed.
Trelon lifted his middle finger to his older brother. It was painted purple with small colorful balloons on it. Carmen chuckled along with the rest of them.
“How’s the new litter of Grombots, Mandra? I heard you had about a hundred of them now,” Trelon retorted.
Mandra’s face darkened and he shot his wife and son a quick glance. Carmen shook her head. The evening was well and truly about to get exciting if she didn’t start the cookie and story time.
Once a month, the family gathered to have dinner, spend time together, and share dessert and story time. Carmen had drawn the card to read or make up a story for the kids this month.
Carmen loved these gatherings because Vox, Riley, Ha’ven, and Emma always came. She wished that Tina, Viper, and their son, Leo, had been able to join them , but Leo had had a cold which he’d given to Viper. Tina said that Leo was fine; it was dealing with Viper’s grouchiness that had her about ready to scream.
Tonight, the twin dragons, Cree and Calo, their mate, Melina, and daughter, Hope had also come. Carmen loved watching Melina with the two huge warriors. She definitely had them wrapped around her fingers.
She bit her lip to hide her grin when she saw Cree and Calo glance uneasily at Alice when she came over to tickle Hope’s foot. It had taken a few days, but the story of what had happened while the women had been on a girls’ night out this past Halloween had spread through the palace. Creon had told her about how Alice had stolen the babies away from under their parents’ noses in order to prevent them from being taken by the Queen of the Demented Symbiots. Carmen hoped her story tonight wouldn’t cause as much chaos as some of the other stories told by Abby and Cara!
“Okay, does everyone have their cookies?” Carmen asked, stepping in front of the children and looking down.
“They’s hearts!” Amber exclaimed in delight.
“And they’s red and pink likes our nails,” Jade added, sliding into the open space next to Alice and Morah, Paul’s and Morian’s daughter.
“Yes, tonight’s story is about love, hope, and happiness, in honor of a very special Earth holiday called Valentine’s Day,” Carmen said, clasping her hands together in front of her.
“Looooove,” Zohar said with a wiggle of his nose. “So’s it’s got kissing? My mommy and daddy does that all the times!”
“Ours does, too, only it makes Daddy’s pants grow, so he can’t do it in front of us too much,” Spring announced.
“That happens to my daddy, too,” Bálint added, leaning forward to stare at Spring with a frown. “Mommy says I’ll understands when I gets older.”
“O…kay…, story time,” Carmen hastily interrupted before the kids could say anything else amid the adult laughter. “This is a Valentine’s Day story. Valentine’s Day is a day where you share the love you feel for someone. That love can be for a dear friend or for someone who means a lot to you. It is a very special day. This story is about a woman with a beautiful heart, who was very lonely, and about a dragon warrior who had forgotten what it felt like to be loved…”
*.*.*
Arilla turned to the balcony and waved to her sister to hurry. Arosa had taken her sweet time getting here tonight. She glared at her sister.
“You were gone a long time,” Arilla hissed under her breath. “You almost missed this month’s story.”
“I had to check on her,” Arosa defended.
“She will be fine,” Arilla promised.
“Maybe we shouldn’t have taken her memories, Arilla,” Arosa muttered as she landed next to her sister.
“We did the right thing. I know we did. Now, come, I don’t want to miss the story,” Arilla said, growing transparent.
“Whose turn is it tonight?” Arosa asked, following her sister.
“Carmen. She is going to tell about a holiday called Valentine’s Day,” Arilla replied before she vanished through the doors.
Phoenix scooted over on the small bench, and Arilla and Arosa floated over to sit next to her. A soft smile curled Phoenix’s lips as she quietly picked up two cookies off of her plate and placed them in front of the invisible Godesses. Arilla leaned over and affectionately brushed a hand over Phoenix’s dark hair.
*.*.*
Creon’s gaze shifted to his young daughter when he saw her slide over on the bench seat. He frowned when she smiled and patted the seat, as if waiting for someone to join her. A moment later, she carefully placed two cookies side-by-side on the table next to her.
A shiver of unease swept through him when he saw her hair move, as if someone was stroking it. His gaze moved to the doors of the balcony, but there was no breeze tonight. Concerned, he called for his dragon and touched the gold threads around his wrist.
What do you sense? he asked, returning his gaze to Phoenix.
The Goddesses are here, his dragon murmured.
Are they here to take Phoenix? Creon demanded with a tortured thought.
No… not yet, his dragon replied.
*.*.*
Carmen cleared her throat and stepped in front of the kids. She had been working on the story for the last few days. She rubbed her hands against her jeans before
she began to hide her nervousness.
“Once there was a woman whose heart had been broken so badly that she hid away from the world. In a meadow deep within the tall forest, this woman lived in a small, yellow and white house that she had lovingly painted when she hoped to raise a family there. But, it was not meant to be, so she lived alone in her house. Bereft of her love, her heart was filled with a deep sadness,” Carmen began before she paused when Bálint’s hand shot up.
“Yes, Bálint?” Carmen asked with a small smile.
“Does she like the forest?” Bálint asked.
“Yes, she loves the forest very much. It's peaceful and quiet there,” Carmen replied. Almost immediately, Jabir’s hand rose. “Yes, Jabir.”
“Does she have any animals?” Jabir asked. “Like Precious or Grombots? Daddy says animals make a house feel full. He’s always trying not to steps on them. Daddy, cans we takes her some of our animals to visit? They will makes her happy.”
“I…,” Mandra began before he gazed at Carmen with a hopeful look. “How many Grombots can I unload on her?”
Carmen laughed. “I don’t think Grombots would be a good idea. They don’t have them where she lives,” she said. “She did have a stray cat that came to keep her company for a few months, but even it moved on one day and left her alone. Now, if I’m going to finish the story, you have to listen so I can tell it to you.”
“We interruptings her too much,” Spring announced with a scowl. “You can tells us the story, Mommy.”
“Thank you, Spring,” Carmen replied dryly. “One more question, yes, Zohar.”
“Why does she live alone in the forest?” Zohar asked.
Carmen shook her head and chuckled. Out of all the kids, she had honestly expected Roam, Amber, and Jade to be the ones to interrupt her the most. The only reason they hadn’t interrupted her was probably because their mouths were full of cookies. With a loud sigh, Carmen pulled up the stool behind her and sat down.
“The woman was alone because her mate had died,” Carmen said softly, looking up to stare at Creon. “She was so sad and in so much pain, she didn’t want – didn’t think – she could live.”
“Oh, no!” Each of the children whispered, staring at each other.
“But, her symbiot healed her, right?” Jade asked with a bright smile.
Carmen shook her head. “No, sweetheart. You see, there are no symbiots to heal us on Earth. Even with one, I don’t think it could have healed the damage done. There is only one thing that can truly heal a broken heart.”
“Cookies?” Roam asked between a mouthful of cookies. “Cookies can heal a broken heart. They tastes yummy.”
Carmen laughed. “No, not cookies, but something close.”
“My mom and daddy can fixes a broken heart. They’s can fix anythings, can’t you?” Amber asked, turning to look up at her parents with an adoring smile.”
Carmen shook her head. “No, not even your Mommy and Daddy could fix this broken heart. It would take a very, very special dragon warrior to do that. A dragon warrior who thought he didn’t have a heart to give to the lonely woman. The trouble was the lonely woman couldn’t see him. You see, she was blind. The lonely woman was terrified of the dragon warrior when she first met him because he was different.”
“Different like me?” Phoenix whispered, looking up at her mother. “Would the lonely woman be afraid of me because I’m different?”
Carmen rose off the chair and knelt in front of Phoenix. Her hand brushed along her daughter’s cheek. Creon had risen as well and walked over to kneel next to Phoenix’s side.
“No, she would never be afraid of you. You are so beautiful that no one could ever be afraid of you,” Carmen said in a husky, fierce voice filled with emotion.
“But… she can’t see me. How will she knows I’m beautiful?” Phoenix asked.
Creon looked at Carmen before glancing down at his daughter. “She would feel it in her heart, just like the dragon warrior did when he first saw the lonely woman. He could sense her pain. He could feel her sorrow,” he explained. “The woman tried to hide it from him, but he looked not with his eyes, but deep inside himself, and his soul could see that her heart was broken.”
“How did he fix it?” Jade asked, looking back and forth between Carmen and Creon. “How can he fixes it if he didn’t thinks he has a heart?”
Carmen stood up and reached into her shirt. She pulled out a red heart. There was lace and glitter on it. The sounds of the kids ooh’s and aah’s echoed in the silence.
Carmen cradled the heart tenderly in her hands, and gazed at it as she continued the story.
“It took a little while, but the lonely woman realized that the more time she spent with the dragon warrior, the more alive she felt,” Carmen lifted her gaze to Creon, her eyes blazing with devotion. “She was no longer lonely or sad when she was with him. She felt safe – complete. And so, she did the only thing she could to keep the dragon close to her forever, she gave him her heart,” she held out her cupped hands towards Creon, smiling at his intense, loving expression. “For he had healed the broken pieces and filled them with love – a love she had never thought was possible, and she asked him to be hers, forever.”
Creon stood and stepped close to Carmen. He cupped his large hands beneath hers, stroking her wrists with his thumbs while the heart sparkled between them.
“What did the dragon warrior say?” Phoenix asked.
Creon smiled and scooped the heart out of Carmen’s hands and slid it into his shirt, over his own heart.
He held his hand over his heart as he said, “He told her that he was hers, forever and always, and he would never let her go,”
He slid his arms around Carmen’s waist. “For she had given him a treasure beyond measure – something he’d thought he would never find,” Creon said, his voice deep and meaningful. “and he asked her to be his, forever.”
“She said yes,” Carmen replied, gazing up at him.
“Is this the kissing part where his pants starts to grow?” Jabir asked with a frown.
Creon closed his eyes and released a deep chuckle that soon had the entire room laughing. Carmen gazed up at him for a brief moment, relishing the happiness on his handsome face, before she raised up on her toes and brushed a kiss across his lips. His arms tightened around her and he stared down at her.
“I love you, Carmen,” Creon muttered. “I will always keep your heart safe next to mine.”
*.*.*
“So, what do the younglings want us to do?” Vox asked later while the men were cleaning up the kitchen. He quickly scooped up the last cookie before Cree could, and popped it into his mouth. “Roam was telling me I had to help him make something.”
“They want to make Valentine’s Day cards for each other and their mothers,” Zoran said.
“Is that like the heart that Carmen gave you, Creon?” Mandra asked, turning around to glance at where Creon was wiping down the counters.
Creon nodded. “Yes, Carmen and the girls were making them earlier,” he said, tossing the cloth he was using to Kelan.
“What does it look like again?” Trelon asked, leaning back against the counter.
Creon pulled the glitter and lace heart out of his shirt. He carefully unfolded it and held it out for the other men to look at. The large group circled him and peered down at the heart with a frown.
“I could replicate it ,” Trelon suggested, looking up at the other men. “It would be easy.”
“No, you can’t,” Paul replied with a shake of his head.
“Why not? It would be simple,” Trelon said, looking at Paul with a frown.
“Do you love your mates?” Paul asked, leaning against the counter and crossing his arms across his chest.
“Of course,” the men murmured in slightly exasperated tones.
Paul carefully looked at each man before he spoke. “Then you need to give her a card and a gift that comes from your heart. That is what Valentine’s Day is about. It is a w
ay to show her she is the most special woman in the world to you and there isn’t another one who can fill that spot in your heart,” he explained.
“What will you do for Dola?” Zoran asked.
Paul smiled. “I’ll make her a Valentine’s Day card and write a special message for her in it. I’ll give her flowers and take her and Morah out for a picnic. If I can find a special piece of jewelry that she might really like, I’ll buy that for her as well. Most of all, though, I’ll let her know that she is the most beautiful woman in the world to me and how much I love her,” he explained. “I’ll also give Trisha one that tells her how much I love her and how proud I am to have a daughter like her.
“That is all?” Kelan asked with a frown. “You make a card, give her flowers and maybe jewelry, and feed her?”
“It’s a lot more work than you realize,” Paul chuckled. “But, it is worth every second.”
“So, we make these hearts and give our mates a special gift. We can do that… with your help,” Mandra said with a nod before he grinned at Paul. “We could meet tomorrow in the workshop downstairs. I am sure the women would enjoy a chance to go shopping together.”
Cree glanced at Ha’ven. “The last time the women went shopping, Alice stole our daughter,” he muttered with a wary expression.
Ha’ven waved his hand. “We will be there with the younglings this time,” he said before he grinned. “Admit it, you both had a good time, and Hope was perfectly safe.”
“I liked the balloon fight the best,” Calo agreed before grunting when his brother elbowed him in the stomach. “What?! We won!”
“It took weeks to get all the shining flakes out of our hair,” Cree reminded Calo.
“Yes, but Melina thought it was pretty,” Calo defended.
“Warriors are not pretty,” Cree reminded his brother.
“If it helps, Calo, Amber and Jade thought I was pretty, too,” Trelon laughed, slapping Calo on the shoulder.