Ash just didn’t have it in her to be the pretty little lady who sat at home knitting and waiting for Mr Right to come along and do her the favour of marrying him. She’d rather go for a big, burly warrior who’d fight alongside her. Even if she hadn’t ever received the warrior mark, that kind of life held no appeal for her. She wanted more. She wanted to live her life.
But, being a warrior didn’t mean that she didn’t care about every other aspect of her life. She wanted this. She wanted Christmas. Taking in a deep breath, she knocked on Professor Fieldman’s office door and waited.
Ash opened up the door and smiled as the professor told her to take a seat. She still wasn’t sure how to go about this, but Professor Fieldman was easy to talk to and she’d surely be able to give her some idea as to what to do to make it happen. That was, as long as she could get her on side, which was no guarantee. There didn’t seem to be anyone in this building with an ounce of Christmas spirit.
“How are you, Aisline?” Professor Fieldman smiled.
“I’m good.” Ash nodded awkwardly.
“So, what can I do for you?”
“Well, you know how it’s nearly Christmas? I thought we could do something about it.” Ash brushed a strand of hair that had come loose from her bun away from her face, looking at Professor Fieldman with pleading eyes.
“What do you mean, do something about it?”
“We should celebrate. It’d be fun”
Professor Fieldman smiled. “We don’t celebrate the season here. You know that. We don’t have time for it, what with all the training.”
“I think we should make time.”
“And do what exactly?” Professor Fieldman shut the laptop in front of her and looked at Aisline. This was the last thing she’d expected. They never celebrated Christmas. Plus, Aisline’s abduction had happened before last Christmas and she thought it would be a time of year that the girl would want to forget about. Evidently not. Aisline looked positively excited at the thought of it.
“I don’t know. Get a tree. Make the place look festive. Get a turkey! You know, all the usual things.”
Professor Fieldman shook her head sadly. “I don’t know about all that. It’s Christmas Eve tomorrow. It’s a little late for us to try and pull off something like that.”
“I’ve been trying! No one wants to help!”
“Doesn’t that tell you something? You’re all here to train.”
“There’s more to life than training.”
Professor Fieldman smiled. She’d loved Aisline’s fire. The girl always threw herself into what she believed one hundred percent and it was obvious how much she wanted Christmas. “It’s a lot of work. Why would you want to do this?”
“I think we all deserve it. It’s been a hard couple of months and we need to kick back a bit.”
The professor nodded in agreement. There was no denying that the tension in the academy was getting to everyone. Maybe a small celebration was just what they needed. “There is no way you could pull off anything extravagant.” She warned.
Ash grinned, knowing that she’d finally gotten someone on her side. “It doesn’t have to be. It just has to be good. Something we can all enjoy. It doesn’t have to be anything over the top. It should be pretty simple to arrange something small.”
“Do you have any idea how many people are actually at the academy? Even simple won’t be small.”
“But, I know we can do it!”
Professor Fieldman frowned a little. Who would have thought that one of the trainees would spring Christmas celebration on her? She felt a stab of sorrow when she realised she would never have been burdened with this deal if Kayleigh had been around. She would have been the one to organise something like this. “I don’t know.”
“Please? With a little bit of help, I know we can do this.”
The professor sighed. “You’ll have to speak to Master Warrior Kelton about this. We can’t do anything without his go-ahead. Even something small will be expensive and almost impossible to pull off at this short notice.” She actually loved the idea of everyone coming together in a moment of celebration and happiness, giving them a rest from the gruelling training schedule and life at the academy, but she knew that Kelton would never go for it. He had too much on his mind to even contemplate something like this.
Ash hesitated. That was going to be a major bump in the road. Taking a deep breath, she said, “So, if I can get Warrior Kelton to agree to this, you’ll help me?”
“I don’t see why not. It’s a nice idea. I just hope he agrees to it.” Professor Fieldman smiled. And, she did think it was a lovely idea. The thought of a Christmas dinner almost had her mouth-watering. She hadn’t enjoyed a good Christmas dinner in too many years to remember.
“Thank you! Thank you! I’ll go and see him now!” Ash grinned and jumped up from the chair, racing out the door before the professor could change her mind. One down, one to go. Once she’d gotten past the hurdle that was Kelton, she’d have a lot of work ahead of her to make this work.
And, she couldn’t wait.
“No.”
Kelton was stood looking out the window, in the same position and the same place he could be found every night after training.
It was obvious what he was doing. He was waiting for Kayleigh to come back. Ash really felt for him. Kelton looked such a forlorn figure, standing there, a silhouette in the moonlight. Dawn was slowly creeping up, but Ash knew that Kelton would still be stood there, waiting, for hours to come.
“You wouldn’t have to lift a finger. I promise.” Ash pleaded.
“And how do you propose to do it alone? What you’re asking for takes time and a lot of money.” Even Kelton’s tone soundless lifeless these days.
“I know that. I do. But, surely it wouldn’t cost that much? I’m sure that the kitchen could rustle up something that resembles a traditional Christmas dinner without going to too much expense. So, really, if you think about it, it’ll only be the tree and the decorations that will be a problem.” She hated to sound like a whiny little kid, but she desperately wanted this. Now that she’d actually got the ball rolling, she’d set her heart on it and would be devastated if Kelton dashed those hopes.
Kelton sighed. He really didn’t give a shit about any of it. He didn’t care what it would cost. He didn’t give a damn about any of it. But, as long as he didn’t have to get involved in any of it, he didn’t see the harm in letting the girl arrange things. After all, a Christmas celebration would help morale among the young trainees. He knew that he’d been riding them especially hard lately, so it would be good for them to cut loose. Just for one day.
“Okay.”
Ash gasped. “Okay?” She was stunned. “Really?” Ash really didn’t expect Kelton to go for it. Hearing that one simple word, she was ecstatic.
“Ask Doctor Phillippe and Professor Fieldman to help you. They can oversee the costing and collection of whatever you purchase.”
“Really?” Ash couldn’t believe it.
“Yes. Really. As long as you realise that you’re in charge of this. I don’t want anything to do with it.” Kelton didn’t look at her, keeping his eyes on the window.
“I promise! I’ve got this! I’ve got so many ideas…”
Kelton held up a hand and glanced at her briefly. “I really don’t want to know. I told you, I don’t want to get involved in this. That’s what Phillippe and Fieldman are for. They’ll be your points of contact for everything.”
“Of course.” Ash agreed readily, not believing her luck. Christmas was going to happen! She would have agreed to almost anything at that point, she was that pleased that Kelton had given her the go-ahead.
“I’ll call them both now. You’ll have to speak with the kitchen staff as I doubt they’ll have turkey and all the trimmings lying around.” Kelton raised his eyebrow at her and Ash grinned sheepishly.
“Thank you. I really mean that.”
Kelton nodded.
“Honestly, you w
on’t regret this.” Ash felt like jumping up and down, she was that happy.
“Make sure I don’t.”
“You won’t, I promise.”
Kelton stared out the window and said without looking back at her. “You’d better run along. You’ve taken on a big task and there’s not much time to sort it.”
Ash grinned at his reflection in the window before running off to speak to Professor Fieldman and Doctor Phillippe. She was starting to feel like she was running around like a headless chicken, but she knew that it would all be worth it in the end.
Knocking on the door of Doctor Phillippe’s office, Ash shuffled her feet impatiently.
“Enter.”
Ash breezed through the door with a big grin plastered on her face when she saw Professor Fieldman already sat there waiting for her. As she began speaking a mile a minute, the doctor held up a hand to stop her.
“Kelton’s contacted me already and Professor Fieldman has already filled me in on what’s happening.” Doctor Phillippe couldn’t help but chuckle at the girl’s enthusiasm.
“Sorry.” Ash laughed. She shut the door behind her and sat down in the chair next to Professor Fieldman. “So, do you think it’s a good idea?”
“I do. I think it’s a great idea.” Doctor Phillippe nodded thoughtfully. “We all need something to lighten the mood at the moment and this could be the perfect thing. Even those that hate Christmas will enjoy a big meal.”
“That’s what I thought, too.”
“But, it’s going to take a lot of work from all of us.”
“I can do it.” Ash said emphatically.
Doctor Phillippe smiled. “You can’t do this alone.”
Ash looked down at her hands in her lap before grinning sheepishly. “You’re right. I don’t even know where to start with this. I just thought it was a great idea and how good it would be for everyone and didn’t think about actually how I would do it.”
“That’s why we’re here.” Professor Fieldman stood up and clapped her hands together. “We need to get on with it.”
“But how?” Ash asked. Now that they had the go ahead and could actually get on with things, she had no idea how to go about it.
“Well, duh!” Professor Fieldman laughed. “That’s what the internets for! Let’s get started.”
The three of them crowded around the doctor’s desk and started searching for everything they needed to put together the perfect last minute Christmas.
“Keep on with the decorations and I’ll call down to the kitchen to see what they need to do this.” Doctor Phillippe offered as she reached over for the phone.
As Aisline listened into her conversation, it became clearer just how naïve she had been. There was no way they had enough food hanging around spare to make a Christmas feast. Her eyes started to bulge when she saw the list that the doctor was putting together, knowing that it was going to cost a bomb.
“Can we really do this?” Ash whispered to Professor Fieldman.
“Kelton may be preoccupied at the moment, but he recognises that this is a good idea for morale. We’ve got a free run with his credit card.” The professor grinned as she held up the plastic. “Not that it means we’re going to go wild, but we’re going to make it as good as we can at such short notice.”
Doctor Phillippe hung up the phone and looked at the list with a sigh. “Are you two done with the decorations? I need to get this lot ordered so we can send some people out to collect it all.”
“Wow!” Professor Fieldman exclaimed as her eyes ran over the extensive list of food required by the kitchen staff. “I think we’ll need to send out more than a couple of cars for this lot.”
“I didn’t realise how much we’d need to do this.” Ash admitted.
“But, it’s not impossible.” The doctor clapped a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. “It’s a damn good idea and one that we’re going to do our best to pull off.”
Aisline smiled gratefully and clicked the last couple of items into the cyber basket before handing the laptop over to the doctor to complete the food shopping list. This was crazy. Before, it had been just a crazy idea that she’d set her heart on. Now that the wheels were in motion, she couldn’t believe how much work it would entail. Most people got stressed at Christmas for hosting a meal for ten people, but here? There were at least a couple of hundred people to cater for. How the hell were they going to do this?
“Right,” Doctor Phillippe said, bringing Ash out of her thoughts, “We’re done here. That’s all we can do. Luckily, they’ve got most of the things we need, so all we need to do now is collect them.”
“Who should we ask?”
“I think Verynai isn’t on duty tonight. Maybe he’d come along with me and I’ll take a couple of the trainees.” Doctor Phillippe looked at them both to make sure they thought it was a good idea.
“Are you sure you’re okay to go?”
The doctor smiled at the professor. She knew that Professor Fieldman was still a little wary of the big badass warrior, even after all these years. It wasn’t any wonder, though. Verynai was big and menacing looking. It was only because she had been friends with him for so long that she was able to see past the vicious exterior. “Of course. It’s not a problem. I’ll need those boys and their muscles to lug all this stuff to the car!”
“I could go.” Ash said hesitantly.
“Not a cat in hell’s chance.”
“No way.” Doctor Phillippe shook her head. “There is no way that Kelton would allow you to leave the academy, especially for something like this. After what happened on the field trip…” her voice trailed off. She didn’t particularly want to remind Aisline of that time, but there was no way on this earth that Kelton would allow Aisline out onto the streets for something as ridiculous as Christmas shopping. There was no way he’d put her in that kind of danger. He’d pull the plug on this celebration before doing that.
“Well, I guess I could start preparations here.” Ash looked disappointed, but her mind was already whirling with ideas for where to put the tree. There was the perfect spot in the corner of the large dining room, but a space would have to be made. She’d have to get a couple of her friends to help her move the large, heavy antique furniture.
“Well, I’ll go and find Verynai, round up a couple of trainees and we’ll be on our way.” Doctor Phillippe said as she reached for her coat, taking the credit card from Professor Verynai and putting it in her pocket. “I shouldn’t need this, but it’s better to take it in case I see anything while I’m out.”
“You’re going now?” Ash looked shocked.
“No time like the present. It’ll be dawn soon but we’ve got enough time to get into the city and get back before the sun is up.”
Doctor Phillippe paused in front of Aisline and smiled. “Have we got everything you wanted?”
“Yeah, I think so.” Ash grinned. “I just want it to be traditional, you know? I want everyone to have a good time.” She could almost taste the turkey, she was that excited.
“We’ll make it work. I promise.” Doctor Phillippe leaned in to give her a quick hug before leaving the room. Normally, she wouldn’t get like that with the trainees, especially seeing as they were all male, but with Aisline? They had a bond, a close friendship and she wanted to do this right for the girl. It was a wonderful idea and she was pleased to be part of the preparations.
Doctor Phillippe was waiting in the reception area with Master Warrior’s Verynai and Riley. Aisline grinned as she bounded down the stairs with Trey and Dylan grumbling behind her.
“So, we’re ready? These are the helping hands you promised us?” Master Warrior Riley grinned and nodded a head at Trey and Dylan.
Master Warrior Verynai rolled his eyes and glared at everyone, “This is a fate worse than death. Shopping. I can’t believe you’re dragging me into this shit. I’d rather take on a group of Mortuorum, on my own with my hands tied behind my back!”
“Oh, man up!” Doctor Phillippe joked.<
br />
Aisline couldn’t help but giggle at the warrior’s expression. It had taken her a little while to get used to the burly warrior, but now she thought Verynai was simply amazing. He looked all kinds of hot and fierce with his tattoos and piercings, but deep down, he was one of the good guys who’d do anything to protect his people. It was a lethal combination. Plus, he had a wicked sense of humour and knew that he’d have fun on their little field trip.
“Stop moaning. You know you love shopping.” She teased him.
“Shoot me now.”
Ash laughed at the expression on the warriors face, he looked disgusted by the idea of a girly shopping trip out. She wished that she could go along with them, but knew that Kelton would never allow it. Plus, her worries about the enemy would have tainted the trip for her and she wanted this to be a time that she enjoyed. It was unbelievable to think that her plans were actually coming together. She’d even talked Jackson into helping her clear the dining hall in preparation.
“Have you got everything in hand here?” Doctor Phillippe asked. Professor Fieldman was busy making some last minute purchases over the internet for the group to pick up, so Ash was on her own to sort out the preparations.
“I’m on it. I’ve enlisted the help of the guys.” Aisline grinned wickedly. None of the boys were particularly happy about it, given the late hour, but they grudgingly agreed to make her happy.
“You know you’re on Brussel sprout duty for this hell you’re putting me through, don’t you, girl?” Verynai growled, but laughter twinkled in his eyes.
As she waved them off, she turned to find Jackson waiting for her. He was lounging against the wall and Aisline felt a surge of longing run through her. He looked goddamn perfect with his closely cropped jet black hair and piercing eyes that were trained on her. In his casual jeans and snug t-shirt, she couldn’t believe that he was hers.
Changing Fates: A Sons of Satrina Novel (The Sons of Satrina Book 3) Page 10