Chapter Two:
Blame Everything on the Person I Left Behind
Dmitri
For a week, everyone in the castle was acting really weird. They were happy due to the coming holiday, of course, but they kept giggling to one another and disappearing upstairs for hours on end. I was occupying myself with ample amounts of football games, snacks, and a few much-deserved naps, so I didn’t pay much attention to them… at first. After three or so days of this behavior, I began to go on a hunt to try and see where they were sneaking off to. I got close a few times; Riley happened to see my hair sticking out of a bush, and whacked me upside the head repeatedly with a scold to go back to my room.
It wasn’t until December twenty second, the day Cerelia scheduled for all of us to decorate the castle, that everyone was acting really odd. Riley, Andrew, Cerelia, and the Slane’s came downstairs after spending hours in the conference room, just as I had come home from the store. I was smuggling bags upstairs with a devilish giggle, which made the group raise an eyebrow at me. “Hey, Mr. Grinch, what the heck are you doing?” Andrew asked, which made me yelp and throw the cardboard container in my hands behind my back. The thing inside squeaked and made everyone tilt their heads.
“Me? What, nothing!?” I laughed obnoxiously.
“Uh huh…? Want to explain what your holding?” He nodded to my trembling arms.
“Pfft, this? Oh, it’s nothing!” I laughed casually, holding a free hand out to swish at him.
“You bought Stefan a hamster, didn’t you?” He snapped ferociously.
“PLEASE LET ME KEEP IT!” I screamed, throwing myself to the floor to grovel against his knees. Everyone laughed hysterically as I shook his leg desperately, “He’s wanted it for so long, and I'm so excited to give him one!”
“Dmitri… you know how I feel about rodents…?” He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as I continued to shake him.
“I promise, promise, PROMISE that he’ll always have a clean cage and never cause any problems! I’ll personally make sure he’s taken care of!”
“That thing will be dead in a week,” Ramah joked.
“Are you seriously going to pout until I say yes?” Andrew scoffed.
“I absolutely intend on causing a full blow scene until you do,” I taunted as he rolled his eyes, “In all honesty, I hate the fucking thing, but I want Stefan to be happy.” I said as I stood.
“I thought you liked animals?”
“Cats; I like cats. Anything else can stay the hell away from me.”
“You don’t like dogs!?” Slane cried.
I shook my head rapidly, “Um, no, not really. I’ll pet one if I have to, but I sure as hell will never own one. They slobber and bark and tear up everything. I’d much rather be covered in cat fur than dog slobber.” I declared, scratching Ramah’s human cheek to make him laugh.
“Blasphemy!” Slane sobbed, “I’ll never treat a single wound on you again…!”
“Oh my lord, fine, fine, you win. Keep the bloody hamster. But…” Andrew jammed a finger to my chest, “If that thing ends up running around my castle, it, you, and your roommates end up in the dumpster out back. Am I clear?” He scolded in a total ‘Dad’ tone, though his chuckles were bursting through at the way I bugged my eyes at him.
“Yes your majesty!” I cried, saluting him before dashing up the steps. He rolled his eyes heavily to the group, who shared a few more laughs with him.
“After you’re done with the rat, please join us in the lounge?” He called casually.
“I’ll be there!” I replied, darting into my room with an excited smile.
╬
After I had set up the new cage on Stefan’s desk, I put the orange and white furball in its portable ball and raced downstairs, humming happily to myself. I had spent around an hour decking out its new home, and even put a cool plaque with its name on the top of the cage. Stefan had seen the little guy a month ago, and begged Andrew for weeks to let him keep it. He said when he was sure it wouldn’t die Stefan could have it, and though Stefan understood, his heart shattered because of it. I was determined from that day forward to bring home his beloved Bartholomew, and now that I had, I could kind of see the appeal.
The lounge was full of excited chatter, music that played softly in the background, and the smell of hot chocolate as I skipped through the door and plopped on the couch beside Riley. He saw me carrying the hamster and erupted in laughter, “Are you serious!?”
“Hey, it’s Christmas for him too!” I grumbled as I scratched his little heard.
“Do not even think about replacing me for a rat!” Ramah snapped from Slane’s lap, now in his cat form, then blinked at himself, “Did I just say that out loud?”
“I think you’re spending too much time as a cat,” Slane giggled.
“Why are you always a cat, Ramah?” I asked as I pulled Bartholomew out of his ball and cuddled him under my chin.
“I never told you the story?” He asked as Slane lovingly scratched between his ears. I shook my head with an excited smile, which made him continue, “Well, when Slane and I first met, which seems like eons ago, she had a big, fat, orange cat named Rajah. She and Rajah were incredibly close and spent every moment they could together. He would sit on her desk in the clinic and greet all her patients, and followed her around the castle everywhere she went. Unfortunately, a few years after we had gotten married, he became very sick…”
“Aw, man… not the chunky kitty…?” I mumbled sadly.
“We tried everything to save him, but he was in so much pain that we didn’t want to prolong his suffering. It broke her heart to put him down, and she spent weeks crying. I had an odd idea to try and bring her a little closure, and started changing into Rajah. It helped her get through his loss tremendously, and after a few months, everyone just kind of got used to me being a cat, so the joke became the norm around here. It tends to cheer up our soldiers when I run around as an obese ball of fluff.” He chuckled, swishing his tail across Slane’s chin to make her smile.
“That’s so sweet…!” Riley whined.
“Yes, it truly is. I know it seems weird to you guys, but this is Ramah’s way of making sure I'm always happy. I love him as he is of course, but every time I see his orange tail whisk by, it reminds me of Rajah. It’s just a little romantic secret for he and I to share,” she cooed, kissing his nose with a smile.
“We’re a little topsy turvey around here, but we make it work,” Andrew joked, standing and patting his pants out, “Now, I have something special for you, Dmitri, if you don’t mind waiting a moment?”
I frowned automatically, “Special? I told you both I didn’t…?”
“Shut up,” he yapped, swishing his hand at me before going upstairs. I rolled my eyes as Riley took Bartholomew and moved to sit beside the Slane’s. Cerelia came over and told me to cover my eyes, which made me incredibly suspicious though I still complied. Andrew came back a moment later, sharing a few giggles and whispers with everyone in the room.
“If this is a prank, I’ll kill all of you,” I snapped, which made them laugh hysterically.
“It’s far from a prank…” he positioned whatever it was on the coffee table before me, then stepped back proudly, “Alright Baby Chicken, open your eyes!”
“If one more moron calls me Baby Chicken…!” I started as I dropped my hands. My voice trailed off as I stared at Andrew’s ‘present’. Cerelia nervously had her hands over her mouth, and was waiting desperately for some kind of reaction out of me. Riley was just as panicked, and gripped the tiny rodent close to calm himself. “Mom…?” I finally whispered.
Morgan smiled a beautiful, heart melting smile when I said her name, and took one of my hands to hold tightly in both of hers. “Hello, mon prince aux yeux bleus…?” She whimpered.
As soon as she said my nickname, a single tear slithered down my cheek. That action made a thousand pour from her, and a moment later, I wound my shaking arms around her, staring down at the ground in pure shock. She clutched me back so tightly I thought she would never let go, while little sobs hiccuped from her chest. Cerelia sighed in relief, and Riley pushed his lip out at the two of us. I finally broke the hug and moved my glasses to wipe my eyes, sniffling to myself as she did the same. “Do I even want to know how this is possible?” I asked.
“Eh, we’ll worry about formalities later.” Cerelia joked.
Morgan and I chuckled before she began to brush her hand over my cheek, “Look how much you’ve grown… How much I’ve missed…?” She sadly breathed.
“It would figure the squirt would end up being the tallest!” Riley jealously sniffed.
Morgan looked down to her lap, her hand shaking slightly against my face. I pulled her back into my arms, running my hand through her hair to soothe her. She wound her own around my neck before she began to say, “Dmitri… I'm so…?”
“Don’t; don’t even say it. Please, just, don’t. Nothing matters to me more than this moment, and I don’t want to ruin it by having you upset yourself…” I whispered. She was shocked by my words, but ended up nodding and hugging me closer. The experience was equally two things: extremely gratifying, and extremely numbing. Of course I was happy to be reunited with my mother after eight years of fighting for the chance to see her once again. On the flipside, I had no clue what to say to her. I didn’t know whether to be happy, angry, sad. I had never processed my emotions regarding my mother, and now that she was here with me, I was supposed to do so with everyone watching…?
How the hell did I feel?
Morgan slowly leaned back, looking up to me with empty eyes, “I know that this is a lot for you…” she began as if she could read my mind, “and I am more than ready to accept anything and everything you have to say to me. Of everybody involved in this affair, you are the one I expect to hate me the most, and I understand entirely if you do. The fact that I can even speak to you right now is enough for me, so please, do not hesitate to be honest about your emotions.” She said with such love in her voice that it pulled me in like a vacuum.
I looked at my hands for a moment, which picked at a string from my pants. She waited patiently as I processed the thousands of thoughts in my mind. “Are you going to leave again,” I murmured, “because my heart can’t bare anymore pain, and I won’t waste my breath if you are.”
She breathed a soft sigh and combed her hand through my hair lovingly, “Well, that all depends on what you and Riley decide. Andrew has offered me asylum, admittedly, in exchange that I help win the war. I am more than willing to help, and I would trade everything in the world to spend every moment of our lives together. At the same time, not only do I put you both first, but Andrew does as well. He has made it very clear that my staying is contingent on what you boys wish…” she trailed off, watching the blank look that came over me.
“I'm going to be completely honest with you…” I began to her horror, “This was not supposed to happen. I was never supposed to see any of you again. I left The West to leave all of you behind, where I prayed you’d stay for the rest of eternity. Yet, here we are. I always knew one day I would reconnect with Riley, and that part I could not be happier about. But you… you were never a part of that picture. I assumed the moment Alexei’s soldiers carried you away that it would be Riley and I against the world, and then, it became me against the world. Because of that, I trained myself to be in a state of utter solitude so I would never run back home.”
“Dmitri, I…?”
I held a hand up, which made her press her lips together. “I completely reworked my personality just so I could keep myself alive, and now, your presence jeopardizes everything I have worked for…” I slowly looked up to her with so much pain sitting in my throat that it choked me, “but I don’t want to be that person anymore… I don’t want to be cold, and lonely, and depressed. I want to surround myself with people I love, who love me in return. I want people to be excited by my presence, not intimidated. I'm tired of everyone hating each other.” I took her hands and gripped them tightly as I spoke, “At the same time, I cannot take any more pain that I have. I physically cannot handle it. It is taking every ounce of my God loving strength to keep myself from going insane, and even the slightest upset feels like it sets me back a hundred years.”
“I know, Dmitri… I know…” was all she could reply with.
I shook my head, “I’m getting off track. What I'm getting at, is that I truly don’t know what to do with you. Do I let go of my childhood pain and be appreciative that you’re here, or do I let it consume me and push you away? Do I pour salt into your wounds and tell you how much I hated you for leaving us, or do I take the time to work out my feelings with you in a constructive environment? I honestly don’t know what the answer is. With Riley, there was nothing to fix. He has done everything in his power to protect me, and never once did a thing to hurt me. Accepting him back was a no-brainer. With you, I am simply at a loss for words. I don’t know what to feel, how to act, or what to say. I'm sorry that it is that way, but I can’t help it…”
Morgan patiently listened to everything I said, her eyes never once moving from my lips. Once I trailed off, she took a deep breath and tilted my chin up to ensure I internalized all she said next. “I never expected it to be perfect. If I did, what kind of mother would I be? It is completely valid for you to feel this way, and I would never force you to do things you don’t believe are right. I could go on for years apologizing to you, Dmitri, but I have a feeling that isn’t going to do much. The only thing I can do, is validate my words with actions. It will take a long time for me to regain your trust, and that is completely understandable. If anything, I wish to be able to have the opportunity to try. I want to do my best to prove how much I love you and your brother, and be a part of your lives the way it was always intended to be…”
“You say that, but what will you do when war really erupts?” I cut her off, my words stern and realistic. It was a fear I could tell Riley had as well, as his jaw grew taut while he waited for her answer our burning question. “I have accepted many years ago that I will kill Alexei, and no one, including you, will stop me from completing that mission. Riley gave me an out, and I took full advantage of it. I did everything that was expected of me, and in return, people are finally beginning to trust me. It is a gift I never thought I would be blessed with and cannot afford to lose. I'm not putting my life on hold because Alexei is your son. I will absolutely comfort you through the pain of losing him, but do not think for a second that this war will end with he alive.”
“I feel the same way…” Riley cut in seriously.
I used my sleeve to wipe some falling tears from my cheeks, “I’ve taken the reins on my existence for the first time, and I like having the control. No one is going to treat me like a bag of sand anymore. I suppose you can say Andrew’s kingdom has tainted me, but it doesn’t make me any less of a man, nor a solider, to want to be happy. I believe I am one of those people whose happiness is supposed to come later in life, and now may be the time where things turn around. If you want to accompany me on that journey, you are more than welcome to. But if you have any ill intent, please, save us both the headache and just walk away now.” My words cut us both deep, and I knew that, but someone had to call out the elephant in the room. Morgan and I were going to get nowhere if we continued to live in the delusion that Alexei could be saved, and she knew her answer would make or break this entire thing.
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She was silent for a moment before flashing me a warm smile, “As I told Andrew, and I’ll tell you; I couldn’t save all three of you, and unfortunately, I tried to save the one who can’t be saved. I have given Alexei everything, yet he threw it in my face and tore our family apart. There is nothing more I can do for him. I am tired, just as tired as you and Riley are, and I want this to end. I will always cherish Alexei as my son, Dmitri, but he needs to be stopped. If it means he dies for the cause, then he dies for it. Levi and I… we tried. We tried so hard that it ruined our marriage, but nothing worked. After what he has done to me and my kingdom… He does not deserve another ounce of my time or energy. I have never favored one over the other with any of you, but I became so consumed with trying to save him that I forgot about who needed saving the most. You have been very patient and selfless for many years, and it is time you were repaid for it.”
My breathe caught in my throat at her words, as if my lungs didn’t want anything to interrupt what she was saying. She saw me seize like this, but continued with clear eyes and a steady, unrelenting tone of nothing but honesty. “Both of you… I could not be prouder if I tried. You were resilient, and brave, and kept your head high even when you were drowning. You held on for our kingdom, fought for what you believed in, and became the men I prayed your entire life that you would become. As for Riley, all of the pressure we left on his shoulders… it breaks my heart. He became your caregiver, and did everything in his power to protect you, even if it meant he fought till his last breath. He has been such an incredible brother to you, and to know that he sacrificed his life and much, much more to keep you safe brings me so much pride that I'm swimming in it.” Mom reached over to clasp his free hand as she spoke, her eyes glistening under the chandelier above us.
Riley squeezed her hand back, “You’re the one who taught us to be strong?”
She let out a weak puff of a laugh, “You two are the light of my life. You have been for many years, and you will continue to be no matter if you want me or not. I was too weak to protect you, and forced you to protect yourselves, which was the worst thing in the world I could have done to you. Yet you still persevered, and look where you are now. I may have missed a great deal of your lives, but I truly feel that I instilled just enough to help you be as strong as you are. If anything, I can walk away from this day knowing you both are going to be fine, even after everything that has happened, and that is the best Christmas present I could ever receive...”
I finally broke a smile for her and sighed softly, “I’ve been waiting eight years… to hear you say that…” I admitted as tears ran down her cheeks, “and it means more to me, than an apology you could ever deliver…” We embraced one another one final time, “Let’s give it a go, shall we? It would be very nice, to spend Christmas with my family again.” I sang, kissing her hair lovingly. Andrew threw his arms around Cerelia’s neck, making her choke off as he sniffled happily. Riley handed Slane the hamster and joined in on the hug, and for the first time in years, I felt like the three of us were a true family again.
╬
“Alright everyone, the time has finally come! Tonight, we assemble the best Christmas tree in England!” Cerelia exclaimed, which made us all cheer for her. She had us all in adorable, yet stupid, pajamas that were accompanied by Santa hats, and she herself wore a painted on red nose. She tried to make me wear a reindeer tail, but learned quickly that was not going to fly.
Andrew began passing down boxes upon boxes of ornaments, and instructed the group to find our favorites and head into the foyer. Each box had intricate and irreplaceable heirlooms, all the way from the couples’ childhood until this very evening when they had bought more. I found a few that I liked and got to work on the giant eighteen foot tree with a cookie sandwiched in between my lips. Riley was on a ladder while Cerelia handed him charm after charm, sweetly telling him where to hang each piece. Mom and Andrew were giggling over pictures of them as children, which were pressed into ceramic angels and snowmen.
Slane snapped photos of all of us while Ramah pranced about with a lopsided hat and a bell collar that jingled as he ran around handing people hooks for the ornaments. “Ramah! Hook patrol!” I called, finishing up my ninetieth cookie of the day as he bounced up and showed me his tail. I plucked a handful of hooks off and patted his head with a giggle before climbing my own ladder to reach the higher part of the tree.
“Cerelia, you better get off that ladder right now!?” Slane screamed as she stormed up to the laughing queen.
“Excuse me, I am perfectly fine!” Cerelia called.
“You won’t be if you don’t get down this instant!” I threatened.
“What’s the big deal? She’s just hanging ornaments?” Riley laughed.
I jumped down to climb her later and yank her down, “It’s my job to keep the royal family safe, and if she cracks her head hanging up a dumb bow, I’ll never hear the end of it.”
“DMITRI!?” She screamed as I cackled like a villain.
While she and I went back and forth the phone rang loudly, making Ramah roll his eyes and switch to a human so he could answer. “Hello, this is Ramah…? Oh, hello there! How is your vacation going…? Of course you want to talk to him,” he snapped, sighing before holding the phone out, “Hey Baby Chicken, the Big-Mouthed Squirrel is asking for you?”
“Stefan!” I cheered, racing across the room as everyone burst into laughter. “Thank you Ramah, hello?!” I cried excitedly as I took the phone.
“Helllllooooooooo!” Stefan dramatically yelled like a show host.
I threw my hand up, “It’s about time you called! What the heck, man?!”
“I know, I'm sorry; my parents surprised Mike and I with a trip to Scotland! We just got back this morning, and we’re prepping to start cooking tonight!”
“Tonight? Why so early?”
“I have seven siblings. We eat a lot,” he laughed, his voice full of life, “Plus, my Mom invited practically everyone over for Christmas. We’re having around forty people!”
“Oh, wow! How did you like Scotland?” I tried as a loud gasp echoed in the background.
“Is that Dmitri…? Dmitri, is that you!?” Michael screamed over the commotion of Stefan’s siblings running around in the background.
“Who the heck else would it be, pinhead?” I barked as he laughed.
“How is everything going back home!? Anything exciting!?”
“Oh, I would say it’s been pretty exciting…” I sighed, winking to my mother, “but it’s going great. I heard you guys went to Scotland?”
Michael shushed the kids running around him, “We sure did; it was truly stunning. Everyone wanted you to come, too, but we know you and Riley had some catching up to do.”
“That we did. Did you… see your mother at all?” I hesitantly asked.
He sighed deeply, his tone dropping a little, “I tried. She’s been in the hospital for a few weeks now, and they don’t know if she’ll make it longer than a year. She was pretty out of it, so I kind of just left. I tried, though, you know? I can give myself credit for that.”
“Yes, you can. On a brighter note, operation Bartholomew is a go.” I cackled evilly.
Michael gasped “You got him?! That’s awesome!? How mad was Andrew?”
“I’ll be scrubbing the foyer till I'm fifty,” I said before we shared a good laugh. In the background I heard a woman talking, followed by someone screaming for Stefan to retrieve his little sister. I blinked in shock and brought the phone closer, “Is that Gwen in the background?!”
“It sure is! Gwen, your boyfriend’s on the…?” Michael screamed before the phone went dead, making me raise an eyebrow.
The line buzzed slightly before heavy breathing erupted, “Ello?” Gwen slyly croaked.
“Hello?” I giggled back.
“DMITRI…!” She screamed bloody murder. I vibrated with her voice as the foyer erupted in hysterical laughter from being able to hear her all the way over by the tree.
“Gwenevere, my love, I'm not sure if you’re aware of this, but I need full functionality of both ears to be a Cavalry. If you could kindly not do that again, I would very much appreciate it.” I snapped as she giggled like a chipmunk.
“Sorry, sorry, I got too excited! How are you? I miss you so much…!”
“Oh Dmitri, I miss your dick so much…!” Stefan mocked in the background, which Gwen punched him in the face for as I rolled my eyes. I knew this because Stefan yelled a hearty, “Ow, my freaking face?!” As expected by that cartoon of a man.
“I'm fine, thanks. I take it you and Catherine are spending Christmas with the Squirrel?”
“As we do every year. I wish you could join us, but I'm so happy you’re with your brother for the holidays. I’ll make sure to bring you some of Amber’s stuffing; it’s, like, super amazing.”
“She’s told me about it; how is your mother, by the way?”
“Um, well…” she giggled awkwardly.
“You told her, didn’t you?” I groaned in horror. She wheezed a loud laugh, which made me smack a hand to my face. “Of course you did…” I growled through my teeth.
“Hey, in my defense she’s my best friend, so I had to. On the bright side, she isn’t mad at us, which is really good. She said, ‘as long as we feel we made the right decision, then it’s our derogative. We’re both adults, so the choice is ours’. It was backhanded way of saying I'm a whore but also accepting I'm not a child.”
“I know, because you’re running around sleeping with everyone in the castle,” I laughed.
Gwen’s tone shifted to a flirtatious teasing, “Hey, I did score some pretty big points with a few cousins for banging the prince.”
“Oh, my God, I am hanging up!” I roared, though Stefan and Michael were laughing hysterically in the background at her comment.
“No, Dmitri!” She cried as I broke into my own hysterics. “Ok, seriously now, I should probably go. I have a toddler attached to my leg who is insistent we play dolls,” she cooed as she picked up the little girl yelling at her side.
“No problem; we’re busy ourselves over here. Tell the boys I said bye, ok?”
“I will…” she paused, then with a smile in her voice whispered, “I love you?”
I grinned myself, twirling the phone cord like a teenage girl, “I love you too,” I breathed before we hung up. I turned to see Riley with his hands on his waist and a raised eyebrow, which made me throw my arms up in defeat. “Would you leave me the hell alone?!” I whined as he laughed hysterically and set to work mocking me for the entirety of the evening, while my mother smiled ear to ear at my newly acquired romance.
╬
Christmas morning, our family gathered around the tree in the foyer as the grand fireplace flickered to warm the place up. Riley was sitting beside me with a huge grin, and held a box with fingers that continuously tapped the sides in anticipation. I kept smacking his hands to keep them still, but wasn’t winning that battle anytime soon. “It’s tradition for us all to exchange a gift with someone special at the end, so, pick someone and we’ll begin!” Andrew declared.
“I have to have Dmitri!” Riley cried.
I raised an eyebrow at his excitement, “Geez, ya got an important gift or something?”
“I do!” He cackled dramatically.
“You’re starting to scare me,” I chuckled as he wagged his eyebrows devilishly.
“Ok, ok. Let’s get going!” Andrew bawled excitedly, physically bouncing in place.
Ramah kept trying to keep him in place, but was obviously failing miserably, “You should have seen him with our first Christmas; he bought a giant Christmas cookie for all of us to share, and we couldn’t get it through the door.” He snickered as he let go of Andrew’s shoulders to release him onto the present pile.
“That cookie cost me a thousand pounds…! First present!” Andrew exclaimed as he dove into the ridiculous pile under his ten ton tree. “Ramah!” He called and tossed it to him, “Slane, Riley, Cerelia, Morgan, Dmitri, me!” He stuck himself in deeper, his head and hands disappearing as his laughs could be heard echoing from the pile of presents.
“I got Ramah’s!” Cerelia called.
“I got Andrews’s!” I echoed, which made he and his wife burst into loud giggles. “Is a snake going to pop out again?” I accused, narrowing my eyes.
“No, I promise this year is snake free… Now, open your present everyone!”
I dove into my first box excitedly, but paused when another red ribbon awaited me. “What the…?” I undid the second ribbing, blinking heavily as yet another stared back at me. I kept opening ribbons and boxes, finally getting through four more before I slowly looked up to Andrew with a glare that could kill. Andrew stared laughing hysterically at my twisted expression of disgust, “Are you actually kidding me?” I groaned in defeat.
Andrew began snorting like a pig, “They didn’t have the cologne I wanted!”
“What’d he get you?” Riley asked. I held up the pink rose shaped perfume bottle with an eyeroll. “How many boxes did you need to put that in!?” Riley hysterically choked out.
“Don’t worry, it’ll go to good use,” Cerelia said and snatched it. “Aww Ramah, that’s so cute!” She held up the hand knit hat and mitts, her eyes bugging as he gleamed proudly.
“Aww, the pussy cat knit her gloves…” I mocked. He smacked the back of my head with his accursed rings for that, which I had to admit, I had grown used to.
“I got Dmitri’s!” Ramah cheered.
“I got Ramah’s!” I called back.
Everyone dove in, and as he and I did, we both frowned in disappointment. “What the, really?” He asked, which made me fall backwards from laughing so hard. I held my burning stomach as he pulled the bag of catnip out of the box, “And I got you such a nice present!”
I plucked the item out of the box, rolling my eyes. “I needed a new pair anyway.”
“Did you open them up yet?” He teased as I unfolded the underwear.
“You’re an idiot!” I laughed out.
“What do they say?” Mom asked.
“My name in rhinestones!” I exclaimed to the glee-filled crowd.
“Who got me this present!” Andrew screamed in pure child-like excitement. I waved sheepishly; he threw his arms around my neck and smothered me so much that I had to physically fight him off. “I got an airplane! I love it so much!”
“Now he’ll play pilot all the time; who’s getting decapitated first?” Slane snorted. “That one’s from us all,” She said and pointed to herself, Ramah, and Riley as I picked up her gift.
“Now I’m scared.” I croaked. I opened it and took out the small tree figurine. “Thanks?” I tried. There was a small beeping noise; “Do you hear that?” I whispered crazily. They giggled as I brought it close to my ear, blinking, “It’s the tree!”
There were three small beeps; Beep, Beep, Beep… BOOM!
I screamed and shot up as the tree exploded into tiny fire crackers, making the foyer erupt in uncontrollable laughter. “That’s not funny!” I cried, stomping on the sizzling tree.
“It’s hilarious!” Cerelia screamed.
“What the hell is so…? Oh, God damnit!” I flattened my burnt bangs down, but gave up and joined in on the laughing. I did get some normal and incredibly sweet gifts after the nonsense gag ones, though all the while, the anticipation was killing my brother. Riley picked up his final box, holding it tightly in his hands with a brilliant smile as Andrew declared it was time for the final gifts. Before I could give him his, he jammed the box into my arms and smooshed his cheek into mine with a beaming grin. “Did anyone teach you what personal space is?” I snorted.
“Shut up and open it!” He squeaked, pushing it towards me more. I rolled my eyes and popped the lid, but when I saw what was tucked under the wrapping paper, my entire demeanor changed. He backed up a little to watch my expression, and everyone else scooched closer to see what I was gawking at. “Admittedly, not everything I wanted is there, but that’s the most I could smuggle through. I think it should be sufficient enough though.”
I looked up to him with tears in my eyes that made his smile change from joy to empathy. “How did you get this…?” I breathed.
“That doesn’t matter; just enjoy it.” I turned back to my gift and pulled the first part out, which was an old scrapbook I had kept under my bed in The West. Mom recognized it automatically and gasped before inching forward to peer at it over my shoulder. There was a reel of tapes tied to the back as well, each marked with different dates and events. Riley laid a hand on my arm and patted it sweetly, “You don’t have to go through those now, but I thought that maybe in the future they would mean a lot to you.”
“What are they?” Cerelia asked.
“When we were kids I got a camera, and recorded as much of our good memories as I possibly could. It’s the only piece we have left of home…” he explained.
I set the package aside, and when my hand came into contact with the next item, my heart seized. When I was a child, all the way up until the night I left The West, I had always kept a brown teddy bear named Merlin by my side. It had a monocle, and wore a big red bowtie around its neck. Mom had given it to me as a birthday present when I was two, and from that day forth, I used it as a security whenever I was upset. The bear had been the only thing I could hold for many, many years, especially when I wasn’t with my mother or father. Underneath Merlin was a dozen or so copies of my most cherished books and essays, including my first copy of Othello, that had been my gateway into the reading and writing world. There was even a handful of my poetry and short stories, all which I thought would have been burned many years ago.
I pulled Merlin from the box and brushed my fingers over his ears, and when I brought him to my chest and laid my cheek in his fur, I couldn’t contain myself anymore. Holding him again was similar to holding my best friend, and all of the memories of safety he had brought to me washed through my soul. Riley was crying himself, and when I picked my head up, he welcomed my grateful hug with a big smile. “Thank you… I don’t know how you did this, but thank you so much…!” I sobbed into his shoulder.
“And here you thought I was just your annoying big brother,” he mocked.
“That’s Alexei!” I whimpered, which made everyone laugh hysterically.