A Tah'Narian Christmas

by M. A. Church

  Lindsey stared at Keyno for a moment. “Cross your heart?”

  Behind Lindsey, Dale was making a cross on his chest and nodding his head up and down. Keyno copied the motion. “I give you my oath. I would battle the darkest forces to ensure the jolly fat man arrives for you.”

  Lindsey studied Keyno a moment more, and then threw her little chubby arms around his neck. “Okay, Uncle Keyno.”

  Keyno buried his face in her sweet-smelling hair. A soft sob escaped from Dale, and sniffles echoed around the room. Even Evan had to wipe his face on his sleeve.

  “You’re welcome, Niece Lindsey.”

  A sobbing laugh escaped Dale. “Aw jeez, love, you’ve been looking at Earth books again, haven’t you? I really got to find those books. She is your niece, but just call her Lindsey.”

  Lyn had brought her camera and was taking pictures of all of it. Once they got the young to leave the tree alone, Keyno lifted Dale so he could put the star on top of the tree. Dale hugged Keyno hard, and then laid a kiss on him that had Keyno’s tail skittering on the floor restlessly. Once Keyno caught his breath, he lowered Dale to the ground.

  “I’ll start the final meal. Why don’t you spend time with your parents?”

  “We’ll help you.” Gibor and Doc stood up.

  “Okay, and thanks,” Dale said.

  Lindsey brought coloring books and was teaching the young how to color while the rest of the adults relaxed.

  “Okay, now that they’re gone, what about presents?” Lyn asked. “We had time to get you, Keyno, and the young something.”

  “We did the same thing.” Linda, Chad’s mom, winked. “Actually, Lyn and I went shopping together. John, we got things for you, Doc, and your young also.”

  “Oh wow, you didn’t have to do that,” John said.

  “Of course we did. You’re part of Dale’s family so, yes, we included you. We also got something for Ti and Cielo. And speaking of them…”

  “I talked to Cielo, Mom. They can’t come. They’re on Onfre right now, some tribal thing with their young, Takeo. Cielo also said Christmas wasn’t a big deal for him, but leave what you got. I’ll make sure they get it.”

  “That’s too bad. I do wish they were here. Will Malk and Kia be here?”

  “I doubt it. Neither is human, remember,” Dale said. “But if you got them something I’ll make sure they get it too.”

  “So it’s just going to be us, huh?” Chad looked around the room.

  “Looks like,” John said.

  “What are we going to do about gifts?” Chad asked.

  “We can reduplicate whatever we want.” Dale waved his hand, unconcerned. “That’s not a problem. What about Christmas dinner?”

  “I say we have turkey and dressing and the usual stuff, but add things that Keyno and the rest like. Like Susan said, a mixture of Earth traditions and whatever works for you,” Lyn said.

  “A Tah’Narian Christmas….” Wistfulness colored Dale’s voice.

  “Exactly, sweetie.”

  Later, the final meal—what Dale’s parents called dinner—was served. It was a simple meal, but had something for everyone. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and there wasn’t much time left. Chad, Dale, and John were in the kitchen with Lyn, Linda, and Susan. Everyone else was looking at the grill and admiring the upgrades Keyno had made to it.

  Soon the little ones were yawning, and everyone decided to call it a night. Chad and his family left, along with Doc and John. Everyone planned to meet back at Dale’s house tomorrow. Keyno had one of those portable homes which he set up for their guests.

  What looked like nothing more than a plain white cube about the size of a big Christmas present from the treetop was actually a six room house, complete with two nice sized bedrooms, two bathrooms, a small kitchen, and relaxation quarters. Dale took everyone down to the base of the tree while Keyno set up the house.

  “Oh my gawd, can I have one of these for camping?” Evan asked, awed. “I’ve heard of a portable crib, but this… this is the bomb.”

  “Dale had the same reaction the first time he saw it. He stared for a full five minutes, mouth hanging open.”

  “Did you live in this at first?” Evan asked.

  “No, my home was finished and had been for years,” Keyno said. “It was when I took Dale on the honeymoon.”

  Lyn leaned over and kissed Dale on the cheek. “You’ll have to tell us about that some time.”

  “The G-rated version,” Susan supplied helpfully.

  Dale blushed as he suddenly remembered what Keyno threatened to stick in his mouth if he didn’t shut it after watching the portable house they used set up. Then he really went up in flames when he remembered the flowers they had found by the lake on Aploi and how that had ended.

  “Whoa, check out the red cheeks and ears. Must have been some honeymoon.” Susan giggled.

  “Oh my God, shut up.” Dale blushed, and then blushed harder when Keyno winked at him, the infernal alien. Dale cut his eyes at his mate as an idea formed in his mind.

  “I’ll return the elevator down here once we go up. This way you can join us when you’re ready in the morning. I’ll extend the force field around the portable house for protection too,” Keyno said.

  Everyone said goodnight. Dale and Keyno checked on the twins and went to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day. Once Keyno was asleep, Dale got up and started reduplicating the gifts for everyone he loved. An hour later he slipped back into bed.

  Chapter Eight

  The next morning, the monitor chirped with the sounds of the twins waking. After easing out of Keyno’s arms, Dale dressed and went to get the young before Raiden found something new to get into. As he prepared the twins something to eat, he looked out the window toward the waterfall.

  A light mist hovered over the water, sparkling in the early morning light. So peaceful. The emotions that assaulted him over the last twenty-four hours left him wrung out but happy. Seeing his mom and dad, then Susan, on that walkway was a memory forever burned in his mind.

  Keyno had arranged the whole thing, knowing what he needed and doing whatever it took to give it to him. The damn pointy-eared alien had given him the perfect gift—family at Christmas time. Dale was determined they would always celebrate this time of year in their own way, and he had Keyno to thank for that.

  Keyno stood inside the door and watched Dale. The light streamed through the window, falling on his mate, framing him perfectly. The sunny brilliance danced in his shoulder-length hair. Keyno’s heart fluttered in his chest just as it had the first time he saw Dale long ago by a lake, standing in the light.

  Little did he know then the changes this small human male would bring into his life. But those changes were nothing compared to the two bundles of joy right now arguing over who would get the last piece of Earth- style bacon.

  “Hey, my chosen.” Keyno stepped behind Dale, wrapping him in his arms.

  Dale sighed. “What are you doing up? I purposely snuck out of bed so you could sleep.”

  “I know when you aren’t there. Just like I knew last night when you left.”

  Dale leaned back, tilting his head so his neck was exposed. “Can’t get nothing past you.”

  Keyno scent-marked Dale, rubbing his cheek against Dale’s exposed throat.

  Dale’s parents stepped from the elevator.

  “They really love each other,” Lyn whispered to her husband. “You can see it in Keyno’s eyes and the way he touches Dale.”

  “I know, I just never dreamed I’d have a son-in-law that was part cat. I’m not complaining, mind you. He’s a good man… ah, male.”

  Lyn grinned as they joined Dale and Keyno. Susan, Evan, and Lindsey were right behind them. Everyone joined the twins for a late breakfast. Once everyone finished first meal, Dale dressed the twins, and they gathered in the main living area.

  “Want to open gifts tonight or tomorrow?” Lyn asked, sitting down. “Dale, what do you want to do?”

  “I say
we open them today and have Christmas dinner tomorrow. Plus, Santa will be here in the morning.” Dale ruffled Lindsey’s hair. Lindsey had brought her Legos, and the three young were busy building.

  “Is the Santa coming to see us too?” Raiden looked up from what he was building.

  “Hmm, see, he keeps a list of who’s been naughty and who’s been nice. Where do you think you’d end up on that list?” Dale asked.

  “He’s nice,” Lindsey said.

  Dale lifted Raiden up and rubbed noses with him. “Yeah, I think Santa would agree. Raiden just likes to explore, and drag his twin along for the ride.”

  “Sounds familiar,” Lyn said. “So, today?”

  Dale looked at the tree they’d all decorated. There were mounds of brightly wrapped gifts under it now. “Yeah, I guess, but it’s almost too pretty to mess it up by opening gifts.”

  “I can remember a time in the not so distant past when how pretty the gifts looked didn’t matter to you and your sister.” Lyn hiked an eyebrow. “All the two of you wanted was to open them… and the sooner the better.”

  “Susan would sneak under the tree at night and shake her gifts.”

  “Tattletale! You wanted to open one end and pull the gifts out of the wrapping paper.”

  “Yeah, but the tape bandit over there had so much tape on them I couldn’t.” Dale sniggered.

  “Of course, why do you think I use so much to begin with?” Lyn winked.

  “Mom!” Dale’s mouth dropped open. “That’s just wrong.”

  “You kids always thought your mom and I were clueless. But I have to tell you, this little lady is devious. You two just never figured it out.”

  “I’m beginning to think we were the clueless ones,” Susan said.

  “Remember that as yours grow up.” Lyn smirked. “You gotta stay on your toes with little ones.”

  Raiden edged closer to the tree, his eyes on a fuzzy bow on top of one of the gifts. Szin told him he needed something to go on top of the building he had made with the Legos and he agreed. That box would be perfect. He scanned the room, and seeing that the adults were deep in conversation, reached out to bat at the bow.

  “Raiden, Santa sees all and knows all. He wouldn’t be happy if you tore that bow off there,” Dale remarked, his back to Raiden.

  Raiden’s eyes widened, and he backed off, scratching his head. Dale didn’t bother to point out he could see his young in the floor to ceiling windows. The elevator roared up the side of the tree house, and Chad and John stepped out with their families. Dayo came in at a full run, and Raiden rushed after him.

  “Now that everyone’s here, you guys ready to start?”

  Dale barely finished speaking when they heard the elevator coming up again.

  “Keyno? Who could that possibly…?”

  “Hola!”

  “Oh my God, oh my God… no way.” Dale jumped off the floor as Cielo and Ti walked in. Takeo immediately made a beeline towards Szin while Cielo hugged Dale, then Keyno, as the rest of the group made their way over. Keyno hugged Ti, and then introduced him to the newcomers.

  “We’re not too late, are we?” Ti asked.

  Ti was an Onfre starship captain and a very good friend. His skin was the silvery white of snow glistening in the moonlight, and his eyes were diamond-shaped. An opalescent membrane called a spectacle shimmered over his red vertical pupils. He had rear-facing fangs, a forked tongue and was just as big and muscular as Keyno.

  Cielo, who still went by his gang handle Colt on certain occasions, looked like a Mayan god come to life with his rippling muscles under all that bronze skin and his long, jet black hair. His eyes were black, and his body was heavily tattooed. He just screamed ‘badass’.

  He’d been the subject of two books, a movie, and an HBO special. He was a living legend among the Hispanic gangs. The U.S government added him and several others to the last harvest, but they shouldn’t have.

  The American government used the last harvest to get rid of a surplus of death row prisoners, and Colt had been one of many they’d off-loaded on the Tah’Narians. To say he was a killer was like saying Jeffrey Dahmer had an eating disorder. But he and Dale were as close as brothers. Their bond was so deep Cielo admitted his true name to Dale first.

  Once everyone returned to their seats again, Dale turned to Cielo. “I thought you guys had some tribal thing on Onfre for Takeo.”

  “We moved it to tomorrow. This was more important.” Cielo threw an arm around Dale’s shoulders. “I wouldn’t miss your first family gatherin’, bro.”

  “Cielo and I wanted to be here, with all of you.”

  “Christ, I’m glad you’re both here. Now it’s complete.”

  They crowded around and Dale seated himself near the tree to hand out gifts. There were many gasps of delights and a few questions as they opened gifts. Chad’s parents gave both Doc and John matching doctor coats. John busted out laughing when he saw Linda had sewed ‘Dr. Doc’ on Doc’s coat.

  From John, Chad got a sign that could be stuck on a car window—New flyer, give way—which had Gibor smiling.

  “See? Everyone knows.” Gibor ducked as Chad threw a pillow at him.

  Dale’s parents gave Cielo a blue baby blanket that had their young’s name, Takeo, stitched on it. It was one of the few times Dale saw Cielo close to shedding tears. The gift even affected Ti.

  “Thank ya,” Cielo said softly. “This… Yah, this means so much.”

  Dale grinned as the gangbanger—who was covered in prison tattoos and had killed more people than anyone cared to count—gently hugged his mom.

  “You’re welcome, hon,” Lyn said as Cielo buried his face in her neck.

  Chad’s parents gave Doc and John a blue blanket with Neo’s name on it. John gulped hard. “We—Lyn and I—hope those blankets were okay. Since neither of you have parents here—”

  John threw his arms around Chad’s mom. “Believe me, my own grandparents wouldn’t have thought of this. Thank you.”

  John wiped his face while Doc hugged Chad’s mom. To lighten things, John draped his coat over Neo. Lindsey added a special touch by sticking pieces of torn wrapping paper all over it. Raiden had balled up discarded wrapping paper into projectiles and had hidden so he could ambush Szin when his twin wasn’t looking. But when Dayo started pelting Raiden with balled-up paper, Raiden came out of hiding and took off after Dayo.

  Snarls, hisses, giggles, laughter, and an occasional loud yodel filled the room.

  Chapter Nine

  “Here, this is for you from me.” Dale handed Cielo a present.

  Cielo opened it and burst out laughing. He quickly stripped out of his vest and put on the shirt Dale had given him. Standing, he walked over to Chad. On the front of the shirt was an arrow pointing off to the side and the words I’m with stupid.

  “Hey!” Chad punched Cielo lightly on the arm. “You’re supposed to stand next to Dale, not me.”

  “He knows who to stand next to.” Dale snickered as Cielo walked around the room, stopping next to people. He made a point to stand next to Keyno several times. Dale had never seen Cielo act so… playful.

  Cielo came and sat down next to Dale. He leaned toward Dale, whispering, “If this gets me in trouble with Ti, I’m gonna have him send Keyno the vision, bro. And I’m gonna make sure Ti’s very hard on me so you’ll squirm when Keyno shares the vision withcha.”

  “Aw man, you two keep your sadistic play to yourselves.”

  “Now where’s the fun in that?”

  “Well, not tonight. I got plans for my mate tonight.” Dale handed Cielo another gift. “This is the real gift. Ti, this is yours.”

  Both gifts were soft brown Tah’Narian leather pants and vests. “Keyno came up with the idea for those.”

  Ti’s red eyes gleamed. “Thank you both.”

  As the torn wrapping paper covered the floor, Dayo, Neo, and Raiden hid under the mounds of paper and batted at whoever happened to be walking by. Szin took special delight in chasing
Raiden’s tail and sticking tape on it. Lindsey kept pulling back the paper, uncovering the young just as they got ready to spring out at someone.

  Dale waited to give his parents and his sister their gifts last.

  “Mom, this is from me and Keyno,” Dale said.

  Lyn opened the gift and sat staring at it. “My… oh my God, Dale.”

  “I know Dad got you the diamond tennis bracelet last year, so I thought this gold cross necklace would go nicely with it.”

  “You… sweetie, you paid too much for something like this,” Lyn gasped. The cross was inlaid with diamonds. “Dale, these are diamonds.”

  “Actually, they are of no value here. What you call a diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of—”

  “Yo pussycat, not a science lesson, please.” Cielo rolled his eyes.

  Dale snorted.

  “Wait, you mean diamonds are worthless here? Wow,” Evan said. “That’ll blow the old mind.”

  “Oh Lord, Dale…” Susan squealed as she opened her gift. She hugged Keyno hard. “Earrings? Diamond earrings?”

  “I hope that was okay with you, Evan.” Dale turned to Susan. “I made them half carats so they would go in your top holes.”

  Jerry was sitting stunned in his chair, holding a golf club across his lap.

  “Dad? You always said you wanted a Majesty Prestigio Driver.”

  “Son… dear Lord. This is...” Jerry got up and pulled Dale to his feet. “Thank you.”

  “I know you. You never would have bought it because of the price.”

  “Got that right.”

  Jerry turned to Keyno who stuck out his hand, something he’d seen Dale do. Nearly everyone in the room laughed at the shocked look on Keyno’s face when Jerry pulled Keyno into his arms for a hug. “Thank you, and I’m not just talking about the driver. Thank you for loving Dale so much.”

  “You are very welcome. Having Dale happy is the most important thing in my life, next to my young.”