Ill Tidings We Bring: A Here Be Dragons Christmas Short

Part 1

The snow fluttered and swirled around my face as I raced through the woods, my lungs burning from the frigid air tearing through my chest. My legs ached as I pushed them to take me faster, farther. I was quickly running out of time. They wouldn't have given me much of a head start, and they were most likely already in pursuit. But I couldn't let them catch me; I couldn't let them win. They cheated almost as badly as I did, and they wouldn't go easy on me, not tonight.

I was thankfully wearing shoes, but wanting to put as much distance between me and them as possible, I'd left my coat behind. With the holidays just around the corner, the temperature had dropped drastically, even for South Carolina standards, and I was shocked to see snowflakes drifting down from the sky. Though I wasn't wearing a coat, I had donned a pair of dark sweatpants and a black long sleeved shirt that might be North's judging from how much I swam in the material. Gabriel always had clothes that fit me perfectly, so it couldn't be mine. But it was the first dark colored shirt I'd seen in the closet, and I wanted to blend in.

It was a pretty clear night with a three quarter moon, and I complained under my breath as I pulled myself into a tree. Of course, the moon would be bright enough to see my light hair on the one night I needed to hide. Good thing I'd grabbed a dark colored beanie, and as I sat on a large branch, I quickly pulled my hair into a bun on my head and plopped the hat over it to conceal the light color. It was dark blue or dark green, which meant it belonged to either Silas or Kota, but judging from the subtle scent of spice, I assumed it was Kota's. Either way, I was glad that I'd grabbed it because it not only warmed my ears but hid my hair that could become a beacon in the darkness.

I was considering climbing down to find another place to hide when I heard the first sounds of pursuit. Someone big lumbered through the woods, not even trying to stay quiet, and I had an idea who it might be. North wasn't much for subtlety. He preferred the straightforward attack and using his raw power to his advantage. Unfortunately for him, it wasn't the most prudent of approaches to use tonight, here in the woods with lots of hiding places.

"How can someone so short make up so much distance?" A deep grumble reached my ears, and I smiled softly as I stilled on my branch to keep him from noticing me. "...Search all night and never find her...too slippery for her own good...wait till I get my hands on her..."

His irritated growls almost made me laugh and give away my position, but I bit my tongue hard enough to hurt to keep my giggles at bay. I couldn't beat North with strength, so I had to use stealth, surprise, and swiftness to aid me in this fight. I would have one shot to get this right, and I needed to make sure I didn't screw it up or else he'd catch me. I really didn't want him to catch me.

I finally saw his dark form moving through the trees, and I was shocked he was the first one to reach me. He was definitely not the fastest runner, though the others were much sneakier, so perhaps that was why he was here and they weren't. They were being more careful not to give away their positions, where North didn't seem to care. Either way, I was going to take advantage of his miscalculation, and my beast purred in delight at the prospect. Yes, tonight was going to be a very good night indeed.

North passed under my tree, and I coiled my body in preparation to jump down on top of him when an arm snaked around my waist and yanked me back into a hard body as a hand clamped over my mouth to muffle my surprised grunt. Vanilla filled my nose as Luke's long hair tickled my cheek, and I relaxed back against him in relief. If it had been anyone else, the game would've been over, but Luke loved playing games too much to call victory for catching me this early. He'd want to keep playing, and that was excellent news for me.

"Silas and Nathan are down there, too, sugar." Luke whispered in my ear so softly I almost couldn't hear him as his lips traced over my ear. "North is bait."