Not So Silent Night

by Sheri Velarde

  They quickly went up the steps, both scanning the area surrounding the hotel as they did. Neither of them picked up on anything, not even with their supernatural powers. Inside, everything seemed perfectly normal. Alexander's family sat in the small restaurant, drinking coffee and clearly waiting for them to arrive. It did not appear as if anything was bothering them, until his mother caught a glimpse of them, and her smile faded as she looked at their upset faces.

  She quickly stood up. "What is it? Has something happened?"

  Alexander shook his head. "I was about to ask you the same question. Anna is having a premonition. Something bad is about to happen, and I think we need to trust her on this. She is special. Here, let’s sit. There are some things we should talk about, sooner rather than later."

  Alexander and Anna went over to the table and joined the family. "This is Anna, everyone. I wanted us to get to know each other under better circumstances, but we are going to have to rush into a few details we might have waited on otherwise." He gripped Anna's hand, clearly feeling her shaking beside him again. "This is my family. My mother, Tatiana, my father, Mikhail, and my brother, Mikhail." He hurried through the introductions, even though this should have been a joyous time of getting to know each other.

  He continued without preamble. "Anna's a witch. She knows what I am, what we are. We are so on guard because she had a strong premonition. Something is wrong. Something bad is about to happen. This is much more than being nervous to meet you guys. Her senses are giving us an early warning. We should heed it and be on the ready."

  "I think it has to do with the werewolf pack in town. They saw Alexander last night, and they are not happy that he is here. I’m not sure that they realize you are bears, but I’m sure that they are planning to make it clear this is their territory. They are not the nicest weres on the planet, or the smartest, so who knows what they are planning." As Anna spoke up, all eyes were on her, as she seemed to go into a trance-like state, trying to see what was coming so they could possibly prevent it.

  To her surprise, the younger Mikhail almost chuckled, though he quickly covered it with a cough when his mother shot him a look. "Do not worry about it; we can handle wolves. I am sure they have no idea what they are dealing with if they think that they could beat one bear, let alone four."

  Tatiana reached out and took Anna's other hand. "My son can come off as over confident, but he is right, dear. We can certainly handle an attack from wolves; bears are very hard to beat in a fight. It is too bad that we did not get to meet under better circumstances. Alexander was so excited about meeting you yesterday. Rest assured, whatever you are sensing, we will take care of it."

  Anna simply nodded. "This is not how I wanted to meet you either. I thought we'd get to know each other, eat brunch, then let you in on the fact that I am a witch." She gave a nervous laugh as the family surrounding her chortled along.

  "Well, imagine our surprise. You already know that we are shifters," the elder Mikhail said. "And leave it to our Alexander to find himself a witch. Did he tell you your kind is spoken of in the hushed tones of legend in our country?"

  "Yes, he did mention something along those lines." She gave a small smile. Though she could still sense something coming, she found herself able to relax a little with the support of Alexander's family. She even found herself hoping this could maybe be her family too in the not-so-distant future.

  Anna still felt tension as they ate brunch and got to know each other. Anna knew Alexander and his family were using their keen senses to stay alert for any danger, but she also knew she had the power to sense whatever danger was to come before any of them. It was strange to feel so much power and magic rushing through her veins once more. Alexander had definitely awakened more than hope and love in her. She felt like she had finally become the powerful witch she was always meant to be. The one both her grandmother and Justin had told her she would be one day.

  Just when she thought they might make it through their meal with no trouble, Anna went rigid and blank as she saw the immediate future for her and her new were family, as she already thought of them. "They're coming. Blake and the whole pack, they are coming to attack Alexander. I am not sure they know there are more of you." Her eyes cleared, and she snapped to action. "We need to create a distraction, to make sure the other guests and the staff here are safe. I can protect the property, but the showdown with the wolves is going to be inevitable. They will wait us out. I can feel it."

  The three men automatically stood up, clearly ready for a fight. Tatiana joined them, but she too seemed concerned about the others in the vicinity. "Can we have a false fire alarm or something? Get the people out?"

  Anna paid attention half to what could be coming and half to the here and now. "No, inside will be safer; there is no time to get them out. The wolves are almost here. I can put a protection spell around the hotel to keep the wolves from getting in here. I know it is possible to put people in a mass trance; I have just never tried it myself. It takes a lot of power, power that I am not sure I have. But we must do something to protect our secrets."

  Alexander gave her a soft kiss on the lips. "You have the power; remember the feeling from last night when you said you felt power surging through you. Just hold on to the happiness we have found in each other. You take care of the people in here; we will take care of the wolves. We will be fine, trust us."

  She nodded, feeling better about her powers thanks to his simple faith in her. She took a deep breath and began uttering a protection spell much like the one she had used the night before. They all watched as a mist formed all around the hotel before it thickened and then disappeared. Anna smiled, taking some satisfaction in her powers. "There, the wolves cannot enter the building. But they are almost here. I can feel them and their intentions."

  "We need to change. Can you handle the people in here, make sure that no one really sees or remembers what is about to happen?" Alexander asked.

  She nodded. "I think so. Being with you has helped me regain my powers, enhanced them more than I could imagine. I will keep them in a trance as long as I can." She leaned up and kissed him with force. "Be careful out there. I just found you; I have no intention of losing you."

  Tatiana came over and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We will be fine. Wolves are not a match for a single bear, let alone a family of four. Mikhail was not exaggerating. We just hope to avoid a major fight for their sake. You have the much more important task, to keep our secret safe."

  "I will do my part. But I still am worried. I can sense their thoughts, if not read them exactly. I am not sure they will stop; they are crazed with jealousy of Alexander being here in their territory, of my being with him instead of one of them. And they are scared not knowing exactly what you all are. They have never smelled bear before, I can tell. Angry and scared, not a good combination, especially when you add in that they are not the smartest either. They are dangerous," she said as she squeezed Alexander's hand one last time. "They are literally almost here. I need to work the trance now."

  She used all the concentration that she could muster, trying to reach out to each and every mind in the building and make them blank. Her mind kept reaching out and soon she could feel everyone in the building, every human at least, was now in a state of nothingness. She gave a curt nod to her bears. "Okay, I have everyone in the trance. I don't know how long I can hold them. Now go. The wolves are here."

  She was vaguely aware of Alexander and his family stripping off their clothes before heading outside. Even though she used almost all of her concentration and power to keep the minds of the humans blank, she had to move so she could be sure her lover stayed safe. He was her priority, and she would use her powers to protect him no matter what if forced to. She watched as they shimmered, and four huge bears appeared in the parking lot of the hotel.

  The bears looked otherworldly, standing there in line, waiting. Just then, a pack of six wolves exited the trees and came to a halt, forming a line across f
rom the bears. It was obvious by their actions, how jittery they appeared, the wolves had not been expecting to come face-to-face with four bears. They all seemed unsure what to do. They stood there facing each other for what seemed like an eternity. Anna silently prayed for something to happen. She knew she could not keep this trance up for long. Already, the drain on her greatly depleted her energy.

  One of the bears, Alexander she thought, walked forward in a confident but non-threatening manner, as if to make peace with the wolves. All but two of the wolves stepped back, afraid. However, the lead two, the Owen brothers, stood their ground. She could literally feel the hate coming from them, and she knew they were not going to stop until blood had been shed.

  Alexander must have sensed it too, for he roared and charged at them. His family followed suit. The two lead wolves charged too, but the other four scattered and ran, clearly choosing life over the pack. The wolves leapt at Alexander, both lunging for his neck, snapping and clawing at his jugular. But what the family had told her was true; wolves appeared to be no match for bears. Alexander easily threw the wolves aside and roared at them in warning.

  However, the Owens were insane with rage and clearly intended for someone to die, even if it had to be them. They immediately got back up and lunged at Alexander again. He easily swatted them aside with huge paws, his claws cutting one of the wolves badly. For a moment, Anna thought that the wolf had been nearly decapitated, until he got back up with blood rushing from a neck wound.

  By now, all four bears surrounded the wolves, growling and encouraging them to stay down. But the wolves geared up for another attack, again lunging at Alexander of course. This time, one of them drew blood at Alexander's neck before he could shake it loose. Blood spurted everywhere as one of the other bears grabbed the offending wolf and threw it to the ground. Anna felt her concentration slip for a moment at the sight of Alexander's wound, but then she doubled up her efforts to keep her end of the bargain up. She had to keep people from seeing and remembering this.

  Now both wolves were wounded and bleeding profusely, but they got back up and tried to attack. Two of the other bears struck them both down, and thankfully, this time neither of them got up. Tatiana and Alexander shimmered back into their human forms and went over to the wolves. From where she stood, Anna could not tell if they were dead or merely unconscious, but she sensed no thoughts from them anymore. Mikhail, senior and junior, shimmered back to human form too. They carried the bodies of the wolves to the tree line and out of sight.

  Meanwhile, Tatiana checked the wound on Alexander's neck. Everything must have been all right, for they then concentrated on trying to hide the blood in the snow, mixing mud with it until it blended away. By then, the Mikhails were back, and they finally headed towards the hotel. And not a moment too soon, for all the power that Anna had expended literally brought her to her knees. She thought she only had minutes, possibly seconds, before she lost control of the humans in the hotel. Desperately, she tried to hang on as Alexander and his family came back her way. She only needed to last until they were dressed; she would do that for them.

  As the family walked into the hotel once more, Alexander rushed immediately by Anna's side. "Are you all right?"

  "Hurry, dress! I am slipping. You must look normal. Hurry," she repeated tensely, using the last bit of her energy to make the trance hold.

  The family did not need to be told twice. They dressed in a rush, and Alexander wrapped a scarf around his neck to hide the wound there. He was then back at her side, holding her up. "It's okay now. You can stop."

  Anna turned and looked him in the eyes. "You're okay?"

  He smiled, "Yes, I am okay. Let go now, everything is going to be all right."

  She nodded and let go of the trance as he asked. She felt the last of her energy slip out of her as she did, then slipped into darkness.

  ****

  She heard voices around her, and slowly, she came back to consciousness. Anna opened her eyes, peering around and trying to figure out what was going on, where she was, what had happened. She was apparently in the hospital. Alexander sat next to her, talking quietly with Kevin and Rachel. He looked to be just fine, so she relaxed and must have let out a sigh of relief, for everyone turned to her and saw she was awake.

  Alexander immediately bent down and took her hand. "Are you okay? How are you feeling? Should I call the nurse?"

  "I feel weak and have a headache. But I think I am okay. What happened?"

  "You used too much energy. At first we just thought you fainted, but when you didn't wake up..." He trailed off, turning white.

  "How long have I been out?"

  "A little over forty-eight hours. We were really beginning to worry."

  "I told them to not worry. You just hate Christmas and were trying to sleep right through it just to save the hassle of dealing with people. And see, I was right. Christmas is over, and you wake up. Such the drama queen," Kevin interjected, lightening the mood as always.

  "I missed Christmas? What about my shop? There were people who were picking up orders..."

  She tried to sit up, but Alexander gently pushed her back down. "Your friends here took care of the shop. Everything is fine. You need to rest, not worry about business."

  "But I missed Christmas? Our first Christmas together?" She pouted, more upset about a silly holiday than she had anticipated.

  "Remember, I have my Christmas coming up. We can celebrate Russian Christmas together." He kissed her to keep her from objecting more.

  The doctors kept Anna in the hospital another day, wanting to make sure she had recovered from her "exhaustion" before releasing her. She learned that the Owen brothers were in the hospital as well, badly wounded from a "hunting accident." They had lost a lot of blood, but it looked like they would pull through. She hoped they had learned their lesson and would leave her and Alexander alone, even though they were not going to be staying in Vermont.

  Alexander had already asked her to move to D.C. with him, and she said yes immediately. She belonged with him; wherever he was, she would be. Besides, she had always been more of a big city kind of person, her loyalty to her grandmother and fear was what had held her in the small town for this long.

  When she was released from the hospital, Alexander took her back to her place, saying his family all agreed she still needed her rest. While still tired, she felt her energy coming back, and her powers even seemed stronger despite everything. For instance, she knew Alexander had some surprise for her at her place, but she tried to stay out of his mind so she really would feel the surprise.

  Sure enough, when they got to her house, he made her cover her eyes before he opened the door. She did as asked and allowed herself to be led in to her living room.

  "Okay, open your eyes, my love," Alexander whispered in her ear.

  She did and was shocked to see her entire place had been transformed into a Christmas wonderland, complete with an artificial tree and decorations. There were also what looked to be hundreds of presents under the tree, and her new family, along with her old, thanks to Kevin and Rachel being there, all there to celebrate with her.

  "No more Christmases alone," he promised as he kissed her and the celebration began.

  ***

  Later in the evening, after everyone went home, Anna watched as Alexander cleaned up while insisting she still rest. Once done, he came back over to the couch where she laid by the still-roaring fire, a goofy smile on her face.

  "What are you smiling about? Did you like your surprise?"

  "I loved my surprise. I love you. Crazy, but true, I love you. You have managed to even make this time of year special for me. I don't even know how to begin to repay you for bringing love and hope back into my world." She leaned up and kissed him, pulling him to the couch with her.

  He hesitated for a second. "Are you sure you are up for this? You just got out of the hospital. You were unconscious for two days."

  "I can't think of a better way to recharge." She
kissed him again, more urgently, and this time he did not resist.

  It was amazing how quickly two people could undress one another when properly motivated. Soon they were naked, and Alexander was poised over her, ready to enter her, when another vision struck her, causing her to startle. "Oh."

  "What is it?" he asked in deep concern.

  "Nothing," she smiled as she guided him into her. "Everything is perfect." They took their time making love, truly enjoying each other, feeling every thrust and caress, simply loving each other completely. They both shouted their climaxes into the silent night, ending the best Christmas she had ever had, but knowing even better ones were to come. It was the most intimate experience of Anna's life.

  Suddenly a vision popped into her head that must have brought a grin to her face, for Alexander stared down at her with his own smile, “What? Your face is alight with so much joy.”

  Leaning up and kissing him, she whispered, “I am happier than any person should be allowed to be. Not only do I have the love of a wonderful man, I just saw something that will make next Christmas even brighter. There will be a new bundle of joy gathered around the tree next year.”

  “Are you saying…” Alexander drifted off as his eyes beamed with pleasure.

  “Yes.” She brought his hand to her stomach and everything was perfect.

  Sheri Velarde, lives in New Mexico with her husband and their two dogs.

  Being an avid reader since an early age, she has wanted to be a writer for as long as she can remember. She has been writing all her life, but only recently started to actually try to pursue her dream of writing for a living. She specializes in all things paranormal and that go bump in the night. Her heart truly lies in exploring unknown worlds or adding the supernatural to our world. If it goes bump in the night or has magical connotations, Sheri writes about it.