Christmas Present

by Lauren Wood

  Maybe I didn’t even get pregnant off of him… It’s happened before… Trish took a deep breath and looked around the room for anything else to check before going out. Steeling herself, she opened the door and walked through to find Keldin, the older looking, dark skinned man with long grey hair, standing outside impatiently tapping his foot.

  “Good God, Trishka! What the Hell were you doing in there for so long?” asked Keldrin with a raised brow and crossed arms.

  Trish nervously fiddled with her thumbs. No matter what it was, she always thought that Keldrin knew she was up to something or at the least had an idea. Before she could answer, he cut her off by saying, “Never mind, never mind! We’ve got a wedding to get you to!”

  ***

  It seemed like everyone from both tribes was present. On the right was Trish’s tribe—a few shifted into bears, and to the left was her soon-to-be husband’s tribe all present in their human forms. Trish had heard that things were different in the other tribe. That they didn’t feel as in tune with their animal side—that they thought it was a curse. She could never understand them and their ways as much as she tried to wrap her head around it, but as she walked up the aisle separating the two tribes it was all she could think about. Surely there’s got to be something else we’ve got in common…

  Unlike most marriages, this was seen as the highest honor in the tribe. As such, Trish had to walk it alone, but she could feel every set of eyes she’d ever known watching her—cheering for her in this moment. Glancing over, she could see her family nodding approvingly and Keldrin making his way to the stand to wed them just out of view. Trish’s heart sank into her chest as the realization came up again. That she wasn’t just keeping her secret from everyone, but her family as well.

  On the way to the end, she kept her head bowed in respect, but once she reached the step beside her groom, she just had to look at him. He pulled the veil off and looked into my eye with his icy blues. For some reason, I wasn’t expecting him to give me such a kind smile. It was the first time I’d met someone of his kind—a short haired, lighter skinned man with a well-kept face and tidy black suit.

  “Wow,” I said in a gasp.

  “Yes, my love?” he asked in a low tone, making my entire body vibrate with every syllable.

  “You’re…not what I expected…” Trish said shyly, trying to look away. There was something about him that made her usual confidence melt away—making her just as shy and bashful as the men she enticed. It was an odd feeling to be on the receiving end for once and Trish didn’t know where to look or how to act—let alone in front of both tribes.

  “Oh?” asked the groom as he cupped Trish’s chin with two of his fingers and tilted her head so that their eyes met again. “I didn’t mean to frighten you, love. Are you ready to begin?”

  “I… Could I know your name first, at least?” At least this should be out of the way.

  “Of course. I’m Heris,” he replied with a patient smile.

  “Trishka, but everyone calls me Trish.”

  Heris nodded and Keldrin interrupted them both with his booming voice. The ceremony was about to begin, but Trish already found herself saying, “I do.”

  A few moons passed and Trish found herself living happily with her new husband Heris. The two of them got along without having to use a lot of words. No matter what she was doing, Heris knew what to say every time he saw her. She never so much as seen him get angry with her, but the opportunity to tell him her darkest secret never seemed to arise.

  Looking for a way to tell him or the right words to use started to tear her apart as she sat on the couch beside him or listened to one of the lectures he was going to present to the tribe. To him, above all else, honor and trust were the highest values. This was reflected in everyone’s eyes in Trish’s new tribe, which made her feel as though she had to slink away to the darkest, most hidden corners of the village in order to continue hiding from everyone. Maybe now…? Now…?

  The amount Heris intimidated Trish was beyond all of her logical reasoning. The man had never so much as raised his voice at her, but she knew that he had great power. His large build, muscles, and voice could only give her the vaguest idea about where his strength truly lied and how much of it he could hold.

  Days turned into weeks of waiting for the right moment, but Trish’s pregnancy was starting to become more apparent. She was sluggish in the mornings and often sick to her stomach from eating her favorite berries. Trish hoped that Heris wouldn’t notice her slightly larger belly since she was already largely built, but the looming feeling of his ever watchful eye still made her tense up around him.

  To relieve some of the tension built up over the last month, she shifted into her bear form and decided to go and visit her old tribe. She wasn’t sure if the new scents given to her by the kubeba would override those of the heriks she was born with, but even if it did, she’d only have to greet a few choice people before leaving.

  Trish padded over to a few of the huts and sniffed them to see if anyone she recognized was around. Damn… Where is everyone today? She thought as her check came up negative. Quietly growling to herself, she went over to another one of the huts only for it to seem there was no one home yet again. Perhaps I chose the wrong time to come back for a visit… I can’t seem to do anything right these days.

  The bear sat down and groomed her paws, minding the claws that were previously covered in berry juice. Thankfully, Trish had managed to find particular berry that her extra weight didn’t mind, but it still didn’t make up for the others that had a more obvious effect on her. All was oddly quiet, but a rustling from behind caught Trish’s ear. Startled, she let out a slightly louder growl as a warning, but the rustling continued.

  Who goes there? Trish thought as she hesitantly turned around and bared her fangs at what looked like another bear, but with dark black fur instead of chocolate brown. The opposite bear echoed Trish’s sounds and got up on its hind legs to let out a loud roar that shook Trish to her core.

  She readied herself for battle, not recognizing the other’s scent, but right before the other bear charged at her it stopped and sniffed at the air around her. Trish lowered her head, all of her muscles tensing up as the other bear interrogated her. What do you want…? The other bear got a little closer to her, close enough for her to smell his scent. That’s when his familiarity started clearing up the clouds in her head. Oh my God… Mik, is that you…? Her eyes widened in surprise the moment she realized it and they both went quiet for a while, staring at each other.

  If there’s anyone to tell… It should be the man who got me pregnant in the first place… Trish thought to herself as she slowly started to revert back to her human form and Mik did the same. He looked just the same as he had when she last saw him and it brought a grin to her face. She never did look at a man the same way once she’d had them, but it was slightly troubling that it took her so long to remember his scent.

  “Trish…” Mik started to say with a small grin he tried to keep hidden away. “It’s been so long…”

  Trish nodded and said, “Yes, it has. How have you been?”

  Mik shrugged and said, “The same as ever. I got promoted from a warrior to a guard for Keldrin. He trusts me like I’m his own son now and you… You’ve got the life of luxury now, I’m sure.”

  Trish’s grin faded into a more somber look. “You could say that, but… There’s been something I’ve been meaning to tell you…”

  “What is it?” Mik asked as he crossed his arms.

  “It’s… It’s my husband, Heris, I don’t know what he’s going to do if he finds out about us…” Trish looked away as he forced the words out of her mouth, biting her bottom lip in fear of Mik’s reply.

  To Trish’s surprise, Mik coughed up a few dry chuckles and swatting the air, dismissing Trish’s words. “He’s not going to find out. How would he? The only way he could know would be if… Well, if you told him, of course.” He paused for a few moments to gather his thoug
hts, stroking along his jawline. “Or me, I suppose. But I’d be dead by the time I let that happen.”

  Trish shut her eyes tightly, pushing her next few words through grit teeth. “I… I’m pregnant, Mik.”

  Mik’s confident expression fell off of his face. “What…?” he asked absentmindedly.

  Trish took a deep breath and pointed a finger at Mik saying, “Y-you got me pregnant, Mik. I’m going to have to tell Heris about it whether the two of us like it or not.” Mik stayed silent, seemingly lost in his thoughts. “I’m actually glad that I got to see you before I told him… I don’t know what Heris will do when he finds out, but I don’t want him coming after you.”

  “He’ll come after me?” Mik asked with a raised brow.

  Trish hesitated before answering. “I… I don’t know. He could, but I’m not really sure.”

  Mik stroked his chin thoughtfully a few times. “How doesn’t he know already?”

  “Huh?”

  He added a few hand gestures as he spoke, twirling them in the air. “You know… He’s your husband, so shouldn’t you have…?”

  “Oh. No, he hasn’t asked for that. I can’t imagine why, but he’s never so much as approached me with the prospect of it…”

  Mik nodded twice. “Maybe he already…knows…” He looked Trish directly in the eyes and said, “I’m going to have to go, Trish. When this all blows over, I’ll come back, but I don’t wanna risk anything for either of us.”

  Trish took a step forward, holding her hand out to stop Mik, but he’d already started shifting back into a bear. “I’m sorry…” she said quietly to herself to the man now turned a bear. He walked over to her and rubbed his head against her body, letting her pet the top of his head a few times before running off to the trees surrounding the village.

  A deep sadness swallowed her heart and yet, Trish felt as though a great weight had been lifted from her chest. Even if Mik had to leave, he’d still be safe from Heris when she told him. As she thought about Heris, she remembered that he was going to be the one making dinner for the two of them this evening. Of all the times they didn’t speak to one another with words, sitting down at dinner was always the hardest to keep a straight face because it was the only time they actually talked to each other. Heris would go over his plans for the morning and Trish would listen.

  However, it seemed that Trish had something else in mind for tonight’s dinner. Trish shifted back into the form of the bear and as she padded over to the kubeba village, her mind was made up: she’d tell him tonight.

  The smells of hickory smoked ham, broiled steak, and mashed potatoes filled the room as Trish walked in. She sat down at her spot opposite of Heris’s. Unlike most higher ranked members, Heris kept his table short so he could easily share his meal and conversation with Trish without the extra effort associated with a long table. Trish trembled in her seat as Heris neared, humming to himself as he set down a plate full of food in front of her. “Decided to go with some of our favorites and just kind of…mash them all together. What do you think?” Heris asked with one of his kind smiles.

  Trish could never stop herself from grinning back—at least a little. “That’s fine with me,” she said nervously, trying not to make her voice squeak or crack.

  Heris nodded slowly. “All of you?”

  Trish swallowed dry air, fidgeting in her seat. “Huh?”

  “Your stomach has been acting up lately. We want to make sure all of you enjoys it, right?” Heris asked as he set down a plate at his end, but waited just a second before going back into the kitchen.

  “Oh… Yeah, right. I wouldn’t want to have another morning like I did yesterday…” Trish’s words drifted off as she looked down at her plate full of food. The smell was a pleasant mixture that made her mouth water, but it wasn’t enough to keep her mind off of the scenarios playing in the back of her mind.

  Heris disappeared into the kitchen for a few moments and then came out with a bottle of wine. Trish winced as he poured some into her glass and then his. He sat down and raised his glass to toast and hesitantly, she raised hers as well. “To another night happily married to my wife,” he said with a smile and took a sip. He looked to Trish a certain way, as if he was expecting her to mirror his actions.

  Trish tentatively brought the glass to her lips and gingerly sipped, hardly tasting any of the liquid. She set the glass down and idly poked at the food for a little bit before taking her first bite. As she chewed the perfectly cooked meat, she looked around the room for distraction, but only managed to keep staring at Heris and wondering how to start what she had to say.

  Eventually, she reached the conclusion that there was no way she’d be able to find the right words. There were only the best words that she could use to tell him as gently as possible. Before she realized what she was saying, she blurted out, “Heris, I’m pregnant!” and dug her teeth into another piece of meat.

  Heris was silent, seemingly not responding to her words at all. Fearing she’d have to say it again, she asked, “Dear, did you hear me?” Heris nodded slowly, his face starting to twitch a little. Trish wanted to get up and go over to him, but her body was frozen in place.

  “You’ve waited so long to tell me, love…” Heris said in a quiet growl just barely able to be heard by Trish. She gave him a confused look and he went on to say, “I’ve known it from the moment I met you, Trish. I could smell it a mile away, but don’t worry—no one’s nose is as good as mine.”

  Trish looked down at her food, unable to keep looking into Heris’s. “So…”

  “Yes, I knew the whole time, but I waited because I thought that it’d show how much you trusted me if you told me. If…” Heris trailed off for a moment. “If I didn’t have to confront you myself.” Heris noticed that Trish’s head was still down, so he slammed his fist on the table and shouted, “Trish! I’m your husband!” Her head shot up immediately. “Why do you think I haven’t asked you have you as my own? I can still smell the male on you… The one who did this to you, but I won’t be having any more of it.”

  “I… I don’t know what to say, Heris…” Trish was at a loss for words even though her mind scrambled to come up with an answer.

  “You don’t have to say anything,” Heris said as he flicked his wrist and grabbed his glass of wine. He took a few sips and then said, “I’m going to seek that boy out and I’m going to challenge him.” He set the glass down and sighed. “It would be the…honorable thing to do after all.”

  “B-but, Heris...” Trish started to say as she reached out to him. “No one has to know… It could be our little secret…”

  Heris shook his head slowly, cutting into his steak. “No, no, no, my dear. I’m afraid I can’t be doing that. There’s no honor in keeping secrets.” He glanced up at Trish. “This isn’t your fault, you know, your people don’t see things the same way mine do, so…”

  “So what?” Trish blurted out. Her body was tense and her confidence fading, but she couldn’t let another battle break out—especially because of her. “If you get into it with him, then it could start another battle between our tribes—or worse. Does that sounds honorable? The best for your people? Our people?”

  Heris slowed his chewing, pondering Trish’s words. Once he swallowed her shot her a questioning glance, which told Trish that he was lost himself. “You…bring up a good point, my dear…” Heris’s voice sounded a little lighter and his words lacked the depth that they usually held. He leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table and resting his head on his hands. “So, how do you propose we remedy this then, Trish? I can’t live feeling that my honor has been threatened, which means that I must take up some sort of revenge, but at the same time…”

  Trish tapped her chin, trying to focus on a way to resolve the conflict. Every answer she came up with only led down another road of blood, but there was one she thought had the possibility of working. How do you appeal to a man of honor? “Well… I’ve been thinking… this child might be born, but under diff
erent circumstances…”

  “I’m listening…”

  “There’s nothing more honorable than having a son to pass down everything to, correct? Well, it was a beta-male that gave me his seed in the first place, but we both know that that’s an easy fix.” Heris stroked the light stubble at the bottom of his chin, thinking over Trish’s words. “If I had, say, your sperm inside of me then I’d get impregnated by your son instead of his. That way your honor can stay intact.”

  Heris grinned. “Ha-ha… I don’t know if that’d work or not, but it sounds like you’re going to great lengths to have my seed.” Trish was silent, unsure of what to say again. “Is it really so important for you that no harm comes to this so-called ‘beta-male’?”

  Trish nodded, standing up and walking over to Heris. “Yes, but… Like you said, you’re my husband and I’ve been wanting you since I saw your face for the first time.”

  The man couldn’t keep from coughing up a couple of laughs, leaning back in his chair. “Do you really mean that or are you getting my face mixed up with my loincloth?”

  Trish added a swift shashay to her steps and traced two fingers around Heris’s chest as she said, “Baby, I love all of you not just one part.”

  Before Heris could say another word, Trish leaned over from Heris’s side and pressed her lips to his, tasting his gruff lips and letting his tongue come into hers. She could still taste the meat in his mouth as her ear caught a low growl from Heris’s throat. Am I really doing this right now? Trish wondered as she felt one of his large hands grope her breast through the thin fabric covering them. The sensitive nipples dug into Heris’s palm, earning a gasp from her that tumbled into his mouth.