Starlight Christmas - Holiday Edition Read online

  They lined up in order – Ryder, Daniel, Elias, Marcus, and Kai on the opposite side of the island as I stood by myself, facing them.

  Marcus cleared his throat; his cheeks turned a light red.

  "I told the others about what we had discussed yesterday." He began, his voice low. I blushed, feeling a tad embarrassed by my little breakdown yesterday, but at least, it was to my other knights and not complete strangers who didn't know my background, so I didn't feel offended.

  "Okay?" I replied, still not understanding where he was getting at with the confession. He continued.

  "While you were sleeping, we decided to plan something that would give you a new outlook on Christmas." Daniel nodded, smiling.

  "So, we made a few calls and arrangements." I crossed my arms, tilting my head in confusion.

  "Arrangements for…?” I pushed them to continue, still not following. Elias smirked, walking away from the line to pull something out of the book he was reading. He returned to the formation, placing the six rectangle tickets on the island.

  I leaned forward, reaching out for one of them and pulling it to my eye level to read the lettering.

  "Christmas Art Galleria. December 23rd at Madison Hall..." I trailed off, blinking at the ticket. Where the fuck is Madison Hall?

  Multiple snickers broke out; my eyes looked up to boys who laughed at my "inner" thoughts.

  "Earthala." Midnight announced in my mind. I gawked; the event finally made sense.

  "We're going to Earthala? For some art thingy. Do we get to see Scarlet too?" I bounced on my feet, gripping the ticket like it was life itself.

  I’d already been to Earthala once before, having met Scarlet and her group of private investigators – Jaxson, Junho, Ethan, and Christian. There was one more person, but I never got the chance to meet him.

  Kai chuckled.

  "It's an Art Galleria that happens twice a year, one during the rotations that shift from Lunar to Solace and one during Christmas month. Yes, Scarlet will be there. She's one of the artists featured in this year's event." He explained.

  Marcus elbowed him in the side; Kai cursed before glaring at him.

  "Oh, don't give me that look. He forgot to mention, Mako, that he's one of the most wanted artists on Earthala and will be accepting an award along with Scarlet as the top two artists. He even has a section just for his work."

  My jaw dropped; my eyes trailed to Kai who rubbed his side. His copper tinged eyes locked on mine before his face became red. He fidgeted in his spot turning to look at the cupboard as he crossed his arms.

  "It's not a big deal." He mumbled under his breath.

  "Totally a big deal." Daniel whispered to Ryder who nodded. Elias also nodded his head in agreement. It only made Kai blush more, his face now as red as a tomato.

  I smirked at his embarrassment; Kai always got embarrassed when he received praise.

  "When are we going?" I questioned. Elias put his hands in his pockets as he smiled, taking a side glance at the others as if wanting their approval. After a moment, his eyes returned to mine – those emerald eyes filled with excitement.

  "We decided that instead of us going back home...we'd go down to Earthala and spend the next week celebrating Christmas." He revealed. Daniel nodded.

  "I already contacted Michael, and he's setting up a whole schedule for us." He explained. Who’s Michael?

  The boys stared at me with grins, glancing over at Daniel who chuckled.

  “You’ll find out when we get there, Makoto,” Daniel reassured me, giving me a wink. Marcus put his hands behind his head, continuing.

  "Yup, and I contacted Junho too. Thus, the reason why we were able to snag these VIP tickets. We even get a private tour of Scarlet's and Kai's galleries." Marcus winked. Ryder nodded, continuing.

  "Yup. This week will be dedicated to showing you what both humans and shifters do during Christmas and all the joy it brings. Would you like to accept our offer, Princess?" He proposed.

  They all placed their left hands on their chests, bowing their heads as they waited for my answer. My hands shook as I slowly blinked, trying to stop the tears from pooling in my eyes at my knights compassion.

  They went all the way to plan a week of activities just because I'd never experienced Christmas before. They always did things that reminded me of how blessed I was.

  "I'd be honored, my knights. Raise your heads." I whispered; my voice low—not from sadness but adoration. I loved these men and all they had done and would continue to do to make me happy.

  I walked around the island, placing the ticket on the marble surface before returning my attention to see their smiles.

  I was ready to ask who was going to give me a hug first when Daniel stepped out of line, being the first to embrace me and kiss me on the cheek.

  Marcus laughed, Kai and Ryder groaned as Elias came to my backside, joining the hug and giving me a quick kiss on my neck.

  Marcus placed his arms around Kai and Ryder, dragging them over.

  "This acceptance of our love deserves a GROUP HUG."

  "UGH." The five of them attempted to escape but it was too late; Marcus' arms squished Ryder and Kai against our current hug. I let out a bunch of giggles, always enjoying the boy's verbal disapproval of the group embrace.

  "Alright, alright break it up, I can't breathe." Daniel complained.

  "MEW."

  I peeked through the space between Ryder and Daniel, noticing my familiar jump onto the island, staring at our group hug.

  "Come here, Nightmare. You're coming too." I encouraged. She leapt off the island onto Ryder's shoulder, hopping on each knight’s shoulder before landing on mine in the center. She purred, nudging herself against my neck as her grey markings glowed pink.

  We finally dispersed, after Elias complained he was claustrophobic from all this love.

  They each took a moment to pet Nighty who relaxed on my shoulder, enjoying the attention. I took one more glance at the tickets, carefully holding them in my hand before looking up at my knights who were waiting at the doorway for me.

  "I guess it's time to pack a whole new wardrobe." I announced, putting the tickets down and skipping towards the boys.

  This is going to be fun.

  Chapter Three

  DECEMBER 18th, 5032

  "We can't travel with your motorcycle?"

  "No Firefly. It's winter time. The roads are way too slippery for my bike’s tires."

  "You mean we'd fly off, straight to our demise?"

  "Most definitely. We don't want that now do we?" He whispered against my neck before he returned to look down at me after fixing my puffy, pink scarf.

  My Seven Dates of Starlight started off with Marcus as my date.

  In order for them to evenly share me, they decided each day would be designated to one star knight – Marcus was first.

  It made sense since he knew Earthala the most, Elias and Eli next up in the Earthala department, followed by Daniel, Kai, and Ryder.

  I was now in the downtown district; Marcus' hand in mine as we strolled the busy streets of Scarlet's city – L.A.

  I wore a white, knitted sweater with pink sparkles scattered around the bottom half of the oversized piece of clothing and a black tank top to shield me from the cold that would seep through the holes. It matched with my pink scarf with white glitter, black PINK wool leggings, and black Sorel branded boots, all courtesy of Marcus. I looked fashionable in the cold weather.

  Marcus wore something similar – his white, knitted sweater had an ombre effect from white to navy blue, his black sweatpants tucked into his black Timberland boots. His hair was in a neat man bun, showing off the navy blue and black scarf he wore.

  Daniel had done my hair which was in loose curls and rested neatly down my back, covering my ears from the cold breeze. Marcus ended up wearing contacts; his sapphire eyes now black to avoid attention. I wished I'd copied him, already being asked fifteen times whether my eye color was real or contact lenses – Marcus had
to explain to me their usage when he applied them in the washroom of Junho's humongous house.

  Junho was Marcus' best friend down here on Earthala and was currently dating Scarlet. He mentioned he wouldn't be staying there this year seeing as his family get-together had suddenly been canceled, and he'd be spending time with Scarlet and his other coworkers.

  This allowed us access to the entire property, housing the three-level mansion, to ourselves, having cleaning service and a chef to cook us anything we desired, free of charge. I was blown away at the white structure when we had arrived, unable to fathom how someone who looked like they were in their late twenties could afford to live in such luxury.

  I thought our house in Knightwood was beautiful, but this house put our "little" home to shame. The interior held seven rooms and four bathrooms. The theatre room, gaming room, sauna, gym and workout rooms weren’t included in that total, either.

  The backyard was massive, the vast forest similar to Knightwood, minus the snow. Apparently, there was an ice rink in the middle of the woods and a hot spring nearby.

  There was so much to do and just so little time. I was beyond excited to see what the boys had in store for me, and my morning started with myself and Marcus going Christmas shopping.

  Marcus pulled out his phone, removing his mittens before his fingers flew across the keyboard. We stood on a section of the sidewalk that wasn't blocking anyone from passing by; people of all shapes and sizes walked swiftly up and down the blocks. I watched a bunch of kids play with one another across the street, while another pointed at the window display of a toy shop, showing her mother what she was interested in.

  I smiled, wishing that the kids I once knew at the facility had such a chance to experience this innocence; myself included.

  Marcus’ arm went around my waist, pulling me into him as he looked down at me, frowning.

  "Mako." He whispered; the cloud of breath escaped his lips. I smiled, leaning up to give him a quick kiss; his warm, pink lips inviting.

  "Sorry, did you say something?" I questioned. He gave me a look before shaking his head. I knew he didn't like whatever expression I had just portrayed – sadness reflected in my eyes. I made a mental note to try and stay in the present and not dwell on the past.

  "Nope. What I was going to say is our Uber will be here in a moment."

  "What's an Uber?" I questioned, scrunching my face. That sounds weird.

  "It’s a car service, love. Think of it like a taxi. The cars you read in books that pick-up people who don't drive or have the time to take other means of transportation. A driver comes and picks us up and takes us where we want to go."

  "Oh. That's pretty cool. Where are we headed?" I inquired.

  "There's this mall I've been wanting to check out ever since I heard the advertisement for it. It's some VIP mall. It may be a tad busy today but seeing as it's still morning it shouldn't be too bad and there won't be many kids either. It's a mall more for adults and the upper class, so we may be lucky." Marcus explained.

  "Are we upper class because of our uh...you know, status?" I questioned lowly. A mall designated for only high-class people sounded like the resort we had just come from in Minato; the fact we were royalty favored us and allowed us to avoid the six rotations wait list.

  "I guess we are. Our status doesn't necessarily count here in human eyes, but the shifters among the humans know royalty when they see them. It's kinda a vibe they get. EliaseAnne and I are the usual visitors down here, but Kai is well known across the realms and is given much respect. All I need to say is I'm a friend of Kai or Junho, and I get into everything." Marcus confessed.

  I wrapped my arms around myself as I rubbed them up and down, hoping to create some heat. I didn't feel cold when we walked, but now that we stood still, the cold began to bother me.

  My spirits slept, and I didn't want to bother Lily. Not to mention Marcus didn't want us using any magic while in view. He put his phone back into his pocket, pulling me into his arms.

  I sighed in relief at his warmth, enjoying the hug.

  "How are you so warm? Without using Ryuu's magic?" I pondered; my voice muffled in his sweater as I enjoyed his pine scent that fit perfectly with winter.

  "Dragon spirits always run on the warmer side compared to all other spirits. You may not count because you have multiple, but pure dragon shifter’s temperature is warm. Or me, whose body temperature alternated between hot or cold, depending on my environment.

  I lifted my head to look up at him.

  "You get special privileges huh?" I purred, smirking.

  "Yes Firefly, I do." He replied, leaning down and kissing me. I smiled against his lips, the thought of us kissing freely on the side of the street while the snow began to fall from the clouded sky made me happy. It was something I had never dreamt about and enjoyed being in Marcus' arms.

  "You two lovebirds can continue kissing in the car. I'll even use the soundproof window, so you have privacy."

  We pulled apart, turning to see a familiar, tall man with amethyst eyes. His hair was gelled to one side; the violet purple, short locks highlighted with silver. He wore black dress pants, a white dress shirt, and a black coat. His black tie had white polka dots, and his black leather gloved hand held the door open to the massive black vehicle.

  "Christian!" I beamed, remembering Scarlet's fourth boyfriend.

  "Oh, look it’s the sexy boy number four." Lexi pointed out.

  "Isn't he the one who Scarlet refers to as Mr. Grey?" Hope questioned.

  "It's from that book humans rave about." Lily admitted.

  "Oh, the sex book." Rose replied.

  "Yes, the sex book, now didn't we agree to take a vacation from interrupting Mako?" Midnight scowled; the others bailed out of my mind before I could reply. I smirked, giving Midnight quick thanks before she left my mind.

  I guess I forgot to mention Scarlet and her five boyfriends or love interests as she called them during our first introduction when we visited Earthala a few rotations back.

  "Nice to see you again Makoto. I'd bow, but I know you don't like that." He winked, remembering my dislike from our last visit. I giggled.

  "Bonus points for remembering." Marcus let go of me, so I could give Christian a quick hug before making my way into the brown leather seated car.

  Marcus gave him a pat on the back before they exchanged greetings; Marcus entered to sit next to me as Christian closed the door, making his way to the driver seat.

  "Christian, you're driving us today? I thought you were going to be with Scarlet?" I questioned, confused. He smiled in the rearview mirror.

  "This time of year is a tad busy for me, especially with that new mall that opened. All the celebrities and higher class want the fancy treatment, so I'm officially booked through the twenty-third. Don't worry, I volunteered to drive you guys when Junho informed me you wanted to go to the mall.”

  Marcus helped me with my seat belt, before he buckled himself in, relaxing in the soft, oversized seats. I pulled off my pink gloves, feeling much warmer in the comfort of this high-class car. I placed my left hand into Marcus' awaiting one.

  "That seems rough but are you going to get time off to celebrate the new cycle?" I questioned.

  "Yes. I should be off. Unless something drastic comes up from my other job, which I really doubt. Crime rates are super low in the shifter world during the holidays. Most shifters head back to their designated realms to see family, so very few shifters are left unless for business reasons." Christian explained. Marcus pulled me into his side, letting my head rest on his shoulder.

  "I'm glad you at least get some time off. You don't really need the money. None of you do." Marcus pointed out, referring to Christian and the others in their team. Christian chuckled.

  "True. I think it just keeps us busy." He replied, putting the car in drive, flicking a switch that made a light go on and off. Marcus has explained it was a signal to indicate that the car wanted to enter the road.

  I didn't
think cars were very interesting, so I hadn't bothered to learn anything about them. My previous motorcycle ride with Marcus a few rotations back was the only motivation to dedicate five hours in research of different bikes and if girls could drive them too.

  When I had asked Scarlet, she informed me we could, and she'd teach me someday. To my luck, we’d had a good time during my first visit to Earthala.

  I relaxed against Marcus, closing my eyes as Christian put on some soft, Earthala tunes. We'd gotten up super early to get a good, sweaty workout done. We'd both been slacking on our weight training workouts, hardly using the large-sized gym with almost every piece of equipment and weight I could remember from Knightwood available for our disposal.

  Now that I relaxed in these comforting seats and in the pine scented arms of my lover, I felt exhausted, letting out a yawn.

  "You tired, Firefly?" His hand gently brushed the hair out of my face as I kept my eyes closed, enjoying the moment.

  "A little." I replied.

  "It's going to take about thirty minutes to get there. Why don't you take a nap?"

  "Okay." I agreed, feeling tired. A nap would be nice.

  "I'll wake you up when we get there." He promised, kissing me on the forehead; his finger trailed in a circular motion on my arm, the continuous motion and the soothing music enough to help me fall asleep.

  “What’s so special about this mall?” I questioned; Marcus pulled me along as we exited the elevators.

  We’d just finished at a fancy restaurant for lunch, followed by Christian picking us up and driving us to this all exclusive mall. Marcus had explained it was preparing for a big launch and was currently open for exclusive invites.

  We’d been given the chance to enter thanks to Junho. I didn’t know if he was royalty or something, but it seemed he had connections to a lot of stuff.

  “It has a lot of high-end brands. Think of it as a place where royalty would come to first if we were back in Minato, or the other realms.” Marcus explained.