Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Shelby and Drift were on a mission.

It was Christmas Eve, and the castle was already adorned with baubles and twinkling lights. Garlands and wreaths were strung up in the ballroom and foyer, filling the rooms of the castle with the scent of evergreen. The only light besides the decorations was the light that streamed through the red tinted windows. There were even lights along the bridge outside.

All in all, it was absolutely perfect. Shelby and Drift had worked hard this month to put up all the decorations in time for Christmas Eve. Every year, the vampires living in the castle hosted a Christmas Eve dance in the ballroom with everyone from Oakhurst invited. Shelby and Drift were in charge of decorations, and they took their job seriously.

There was only one thing missing.

Shelby took a deep, technically unnecessary breath, missing the way the air used to fog when she breathed out as a human. It was freezing, in a way that promised snow. She and Drift stood in the frigid air at the end of the bridge. Vampires didn’t really get cold, but the biting wind still wasn’t exactly pleasant. Drift pulled her hat further down over her ears and turned to Shelby, her smile large and contagious. Shelby grinned back, excitement and anticipation blooming in her unbeating heart.

It felt like hours before they heard the familiar rattle of wagon wheels and clip-clop of hooves coming down the road. Shelby cheered as the rickety wooden thing came into view, wobbling down the path. They hurried over to greet the two men sitting in the wagon, waving excitedly. “Ren! Martyn!”

“Shelby!” Martyn called back. “How’s it going?” He pulled the horses to a stop, gesturing for the two to hop on. Shelby and Drift squeezed themselves beside Ren, who scooted over a little to make room.

“Good!” Shelby smiled as the horses began moving onto the bridge. “This is going to be the perfect finishing touch to the decorations.”

“Oh, it looks so beautiful,” Drift chimed in, twisting around to look behind them. Shelby followed suit. The Christmas tree was huge, barely fitting in the wagon, and most likely causing many of the creaks they had heard earlier. It truly was a beauty, more than anything Shelby had ever been able to afford before- but now she had Scott. And even if she had been able to, typical houses didn’t have very tall roofs. The castle was the perfect excuse to go all out.

Ren and Martyn hadn’t grown the tree, but they had agreed to bring it after it arrived at Oakhurst. They didn’t want the poor Christmas tree delivery person to have any unfortunate run-ins with vampires. Even though nothing would probably happen, better safe than sorry.

“Do you need any help putting it up?” Martyn asked, bringing Shelby out of their thoughts.

Shelby grimaced. “Yes, please. Even us vampires will struggle with that. It’s huge!”

Martyn laughed, following as Shelby hopped down from the wagon and reached up to untie the tree. It took all four of them to lift it once it was untied. Shelby cursed Scott’s insistence that the door had to be kept closed at all times (and her forgetfulness to open it beforehand), kicking at it and yelling until Avid finally came to the door.

“Woah…!” Avid’s eyes grew large as he stared, quickly darting out of the way and helping them inside.

With some struggle, the tree was set up in the corner of the ballroom where Shelby had placed the stand earlier. It had taken Scott a while to find the old stand he had had before, and it was rather dusty, but would serve its purpose.

“It looks very majestic, don’tcha know,” Ren said, the others agreeing with out of breath murmurs. Since he was a vampire, his cursed tongue was cured, but old habits die hard.

Shelby wrapped Ren and Martyn into a hug. “Thank you guys so much! I hope we’ll see you tonight?”

“Of course, lass,” Ren chuckled, patting her shoulder cheerily.

“I do believe the decorations are the best they’ve ever been,” Martyn remarked.

Drift beamed. “Thank you!!”

“We’ll be on our way, then, don’tcha know,” Ren said. With one final wave goodbye, he slipped out into the cold, Martyn following close behind.

Not a second after their departure, Drift grabbed Shelby by the shoulders. “We have to get decorating!!”

Shelby laughed. “Why don’t you start, while I go gather some other people to help?”

“Sounds good,” Drift replied, already tugging over the boxes of ornaments cluttering up the corner of the room.

“I’ll help!” Avid piped up from his place at the table. “I already finished my job.”

Shelby left the two to work, bounding off to find more willing helpers.

They found Scott in the crypt, cleaning up the guest rooms for those who didn’t live in Oakhurst anymore to stay overnight. It always surprised them to see him getting his hands dirty, but he had come a long way from the Scott she had first met all those years ago.

Then again, she thought as she watched him grimace at a speck of dirt on his cloak, maybe not.

“Scott, hi!! The rooms look great! The tree’s just arrived. We’re decorating it now, wanna help?” Shelby called.

Scott glanced up, placing his pickaxe carefully down. “Erm, sure. I suppose it’s better than doing this. But they better not fight over being the one to put up the prettiest decorations again. That was a nightmare.”

Shelby giggled. “No promises. Come on!” They grabbed Scott’s hand and pulled him along, ignoring his exasperated noises.

“I brought Scott!” Shelby sang, swinging the door open. “How’s it g-” they paused and burst out laughing. “You’re supposed to decorate the tree, not each other!”

The two had apparently decided the latter was more interesting, as tinsel was placed precariously on Avid’s head and tucked into Drift’s ponytail. The tree itself had lights wrapped along the bottom, but evidently the decorators had gotten bored of the task; they were nowhere near finished and fell limply off the side of the tree.

Owen was standing off to the side, looking as if he had walked in and gotten caught up in the mess. A stray piece of tinsel poked out of his hair, which looked like he had recently run his fingers through it. Probably in an effort to get the stuff out, though Shelby wasn’t about to tell him he hadn’t fully succeeded.

Avid looked up sheepishly, frozen in the act of trying to grab an ornament from Drift. “Sorry, Shelby. Oh, hi, Scott!”

Scott wrinkled his nose, but Shelby could tell he was holding back a smile. “Hi, Avid,” he said in the tone Shelby knew he saved just for the younger vampire. “I hope you two will be cleaning all this up when you’re done.”

Drift giggled. “We will!”

Scott let out a dramatically long sigh and slipped over to stand by Owen. Shelby paid him no mind, instead bounding over to grab some red tinsel. They attempted to fix some into their hair, but it kept falling out.

Drift laughed. “Here!” She carefully tucked it behind Shelby’s ear, securing it and pausing to look at her handiwork. “You look pretty,” she said bashfully.

Shelby blushed. “Thanks.”

Avid gasped. “Oh my gosh Shelby, you do!! Drift, you really have the magic touch!”

Drift flushed a soft pink, tucking a strand of pale hair behind her ear. “I wouldn’t go that far,” she smiled.

Shelby grinned. “You totally do. Oh,” they turned to their fledgeling, “Avid, will you help me with those lights?”

Avid nodded. “I grabbed the ladder earlier!” he exclaimed, clearly proud of himself. “We’ll probably need a helping hand…” he glanced around, eyes landing on the elder vampire standing to the side and watching the shenanigans through half-lidded eyes. “Scott, could you stand on the ladder and help with the lights higher up?”

Scott straightened, turning to take in the current state of the Christmas tree. “Sure,” he agreed.

Shelby grabbed the fallen strand of lights and handed it to Avid, who began wrapping it around his side of the tree. They smiled, looking around the room in delight. Everyone was working together, even Owen, who had come forward to help Drift untangle another strand of lights.

Their family meant so much to them, and seeing everyone happy and together was the best kind of holiday magic.

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

It took the rest of the day and a couple snack breaks, but finally, the tree was decorated and the ballroom was perfect. Just in time, too, because soon after a knock on the door announced the arrival of the group of vampires in charge of music. Every year, Scott somehow used his connections in the vampire social world to call a group of friends to play the music for the ball. Shelby never interacted with them much, letting Scott do the welcoming and pleasantries. He was the best at it; after all, he’d had lots of practice back when he was the lord of the castle and hosted all those parties.

While Scott handled that, Shelby sat with Drift, Avid and Pyro at the table in the main hall, waiting for other guests to arrive. Owen, who liked to act like all this celebration stuff was below him, was off somewhere in the castle, but Shelby knew he would reappear at some point. Probably around when Legs arrived.

Shelby sat with their knees tucked against the table. They had picked out a black dress with gauzy skirts that reached the floor and floated about them, making them feel like some sort of vampire fairy. The bodice of the dress had red swirls embroidered on it, something Shelby had particularly liked. Bloodred rubies hung from their ears and adorned her tiara. She had had the option to switch out her tiara with another, fancier headpiece, but had chosen to keep it, having grown fond of it over the years.

She had figured all of that out, with the help of Scott’s fashion expertise, but couldn’t for the life (or death) of her figure out what to do with her hair. Drift, always the one to come to her rescue, had offered to braid parts of it and let the rest be loose. Shelby had liked the idea, and now she sat at the table with Drift’s deft fingers pulling at their hair.

“What do you think I’ll get this year?” Avid wondered excitedly. He sat across from Shelby, tapping a rhythm into the table with his claws.

Pyro shrugged, not looking up from whatever he was scribbling in his notebook. Shelby fought to keep a smile from her face. Every year, the Coven and Oakhurst did Secret Santa, and this year Shelby had to get a gift for Avid. The sweater they had knitted for him lay nicely wrapped and tucked away in their room for safe-keeping. There were multiple vampires in the Coven who could knit, since decades in the castle left plenty of time to learn.

Drift finished braiding Shelby’s hair and tied it off with a piece of red ribbon. “There,” she said, satisfied.

Shelby pulled the braid to the front, smiling. “Thanks again.”

“No problem!” Drift reassured her. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun with two strands of curly white hair left to frame her face. She wore a dark red dress that hugged her body and flared out at her feet, with a slit for easier movement. It was simpler than Shelby’s, but just as beautiful, though Shelby had to credit most of Drift’s beauty to Drift herself (however flattering the dress indeed was).

It didn’t take long for the first guests to arrive. Shelby bounced up to answer the knocking at the door, opening it wide and embracing the two women standing there. “Cleo, Pearl! Come in, come in!” Shelby ushered the two inside, closing the door gently behind her. “You guys look beautiful.”

Pearl smiled. Her dress was a crimson red with black beadwork trailing down the bodice and skirts. It was off-the-shoulder and left her pale shoulders bare, except for the white ringlets that tumbled over them. “Thanks, so do you!”

They followed her to the table, sitting down and making themselves comfortable. Shelby zoned out as their friends made small talk, only coming back into the conversation when they heard the click of Scott’s heels against the castle floors.

“Oh, I see you guys arrived. Welcome, welcome.” Scott pulled out his chair and sat, folding his hands neatly on the table. “The others should be arriving soon, I believe.”

Cleo squeezed their girlfriend’s hand. “We’re looking forward to seeing everyone again,” they sighed. “It’s been too long.”

Drift nodded. “Us too. Eternal life is great and all, but it can get pretty boring here!”

“What, are we not interesting enough to you?” Scott teased, smirking.

Avid giggled. “Drift is all high and mighty, not finding us commonfolk worthy of her.” Drift scoffed. “Reminds me of someone, actually,” Avid nudged Scott, looking pointedly at him. “At least at first.”

“Oh yes, she does remind me of Owen,” Scott said. “You should go sulk upstairs with him.”

“Hey!” Drift exclaimed indignantly. “I don’t think that was who Avid was talking about.”

Scott rolled his eyes. “Of course that was who he was talking about. Who else?” He grinned at Drift, playfully daring her to argue.

Before any more chaos could ensue, a knock on the door signalled the arrival of more guests. “That’ll be Ren and Martyn,” Scott said, getting up and making his way to the door. The two were let in in a flurry of snow and greetings.

Snow! Shelby gasped, jumping up. “Is it snowing?”

Ren nodded. “Just started, don’tcha know.”

Avid yelped, jumping up and down. “YAY!”

“That means there’ll be snow on Christmas!!” Shelby cheered.

Cleo nodded. “You’ll still be coming over, I assume?”

“If that’s alright with you,” Scott nodded.

Pearl grinned, “Always.”

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

The first to arrive from out of town was Sausage. Hugs were given all around, and the hall began to fill with the chatter of people catching up after a year of not seeing each other. As it began to feel crowded, Scott suggested they move into the ballroom.

Shelby proudly led the way, entering the large room. It was even more pretty now that it had gotten dark. The lights sparkled and glittered, lighting up the room in a festive glow. The music quietly started up as they entered. Shelby’s eyes were immediately drawn to the table on the opposite side of the room laden with platter upon platter of raw animal meat. Stacks of it lay soaking in blood and each plate was labeled, though Shelby knew everyone here could easily smell the difference between, for instance, chicken and lamb. Bowls of ice-cold animal blood, resembling fruit punch, sat on a side table beside jugs of hot animal blood, so people could choose what they wanted. Fancy glasses Scott had scavenged from the crypt stood waiting to be filled next to them. The blood fountain the Coven had made all those years ago still spouted blood, though it was periodically replaced so it didn’t go bad.

Shelby walked over to the blood fountain and sat on the edge, watching happily as the room filled with friends and family. Everyone spread out to continue their own separate conversations, making idle chatter as they waited for the rest to arrive.

“Shelby!” Shelby startled, looking around in surprise. Their eyes landed on Sausage, who stood grinning at her a few feet away. “Can I sit here?”

Shelby nodded. “Of course! How’s it going, Sausage?”

Sausage plopped down beside her, red eyes twinkling. “Guess what I brought.” Shelby gasped as he pulled a leather bound journal out of his satchel. “The first draft of another book I’m writing! And I was wondering if you might want to be the first to read it.”

Shelby’s eyes widened. “Yes, oh my gosh yes! A thousand times yes!” They reached for the book but paused and glanced at Sausage. He nodded in confirmation, and they took the book carefully in her clawed hands, holding it like something sacred and breakable.

“You can keep it, I have it written down elsewhere. Think of it as a Christmas present, from yours truly.” Sausage smiled at Shelby’s giddy expression.

“You’re sure?” Shelby double-checked. “This is priceless!”

Sausage laughed heartily. “How sweet! I’m honored you’d say so. Really, it’s for you. Merry Christmas.”

Shelby clutched the book to her chest and hugged him tightly. “Thank you so much, Sausage! I’ll treasure it.”

Before Sausage could respond, the door to the ballroom opened, and everyone quieted as Scott stepped in, followed by Apo and her wife, Cherri. The noise soon exploded again, though, as everyone rushed to greet them.

It was a little while before it quieted down enough for Shelby to reach the two. Apo was wearing a simple burgundy dress, their typical color scheme. Shelby liked the sound their skirts and heels made when she walked. Swish click swish click. It was very Apo sounding, very put together and intentional.

Beside her stood Cherri, dressed in a light pink that nicely complimented Apo’s dark, rich red. Shelby liked Cherri; she had kind eyes and a smile that lit up the room. From what Apo had told them, she had turned Cherri a little while after returning home, at Cherri’s insistence.

“Shelby, hey,” Apo greeted them, smiling hesitantly. Shelby noticed she was holding Cherri’s hand tightly. The first time they had introduced their wife, they had been very protective. She had come a long way, though, and Cherri was good friends with a lot of the Coven.

“Hi, Apo, hi, Cherri!” Shelby hugged them, smiling. “You guys look great.”

“Thanks, you too!” Cherri beamed. “Everything is so nice this year. We were actually just about to go get some food, it looks so good!”

Shelby laughed. “Go ahead! But make sure not to eat too much. The dancing should start soon, after Abolish and Legs arrive.”

“We won’t,” Apo agreed. “I’ve gotten used to it, but I’m still not the biggest fan of blood.”

Cherri waved as they dragged their partner off. Shelby waved back, already feeling overwhelmed by all the socializing. However much she loved everyone here, she was still tired.

Legs appeared, with Abolish following not long after. Scott pulled Abolish aside to talk with him about something to do with paperwork. Shelby knew Abolish worked for some organization to keep vampires a secret from the rest of the world, and so he kept in touch with Scott.

The music began to start up again, and Shelby noted with satisfaction that Owen was poking his gloomy little head in to talk to Legs. Pearl had pulled Cleo onto the dance floor and they were now happily twirling. Cleo looked happier than Shelby had ever seen her look before.

“Hi,” a soft voice by Shelby’s ear pulled them out of their thoughts. Shelby jumped, looking up to see Drift standing beside her. “Do you- uh, do you-” Drift stuttered, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers. “Do you want to, um, dance?”

Shelby blushed, eyes wide as they stared into Drift’s red ones. “Yes!” they exclaimed, then felt her face flush even more. “I mean. Yes. I would like that,” she coughed.

“Great,” Drift laughed nervously. Shelby fought to keep a smile off her face as she followed Drift onto the dance floor.

They stood there awkwardly for a moment, not quite knowing what to do. Drift swallowed, avoiding Shelby’s eyes. Shelby decided she had to do something, so they took Drift’s hand. Drift’s head shot up in surprise, and Shelby laughed quietly. “We do have to touch each other to dance, you know.”

Drift flushed a pretty shade of pink. “Oh, yeah, obviously.” In a sudden burst of confidence, she grabbed Shelby’s other hand, looking determined. Shelby held back an adoring giggle.

The music was lively and fun, and Drift attempted to spin Shelby. It was not the most graceful; in fact it was the opposite, but Shelby felt like she was flying. Even as she accidentally tripped and Drift stepped on their toes.

“I am such a wonderful dancer,” Shelby said seriously, unbeating heart fluttering when Drift laughed in response. More people joined them on the dance floor, but Shelby found they barely even noticed. Their gaze was on Drift, and Drift alone.

After a few minutes of laughter and more of Shelby’s wonderful dancing, the fast dance ended and a slower, calmer tune took its place. Drift met Shelby’s eyes, but quickly blushed and looked away again. She did, however, wrap her hands around Shelby’s waist and carefully pull her closer, successfully flustering Shelby into silence.

The two rocked gently back and forth, trying to step in time with the music. Shelby suddenly wished she had taken the time to learn to dance. It wasn’t as if Drift knew how either, or cared that she didn’t know, but Shelby still wished she could’ve surprised her. Maybe next year.

Drift looked beautiful in the twinkling lights. Her red eyes reflected them, and blinked warmly at Shelby. They swayed back and forth as the music swelled and bended around them, spinning slowly. Shelby thought she would stay here forever as long as Drift kept looking at her this way.

The song ended, and Drift let go of Shelby. Shelby found herself missing the cold of the other vampire’s hands. “That was nice,” they said, wishing they could put how she was feeling into better words.

Drift nodded, smiling. Shelby hoped she understood. “Yeah. Do you want to get some food? It’s getting late.” Shelby agreed, and they walked over to the table. Shelby served themself a variety of things, trying not to choose too much of one thing so they didn’t get bored.

Shelby found a free place around the fountain and sat, plate on their lap. There were benches and tables, but she liked hearing the calming fountain in her ears. It helped distract them from the loud voices around her. Drift sat beside her, content to eat in silence.

Shelby watched her friends around the room. She was happy to see that Legs was dragging Owen around and forcing him to socialize. They were currently talking to Abolish and Pyro, the former having finished talking with Scott.

Speaking of the elder vampire, where was he? Shelby looked around, unable to see him anywhere. They would have thought he’d be with Avid, but Avid was over by the tree talking to Ren and Martyn.

Before Shelby could ask Drift if she’d seen him, their question was answered. Scott stepped up onto a stool and clapped his hands briskly, effectively bringing the conversation to a halt.

“Hello, hello,” Scott began. “I’ll make this quick, since I’m sure you all want to get back to having fun. I’m so glad everyone could make it this year, and it is wonderful to see everyone. I will be coming around with a couple bottles of human blood to fill your glasses. Donated, of course,” he added, smirking as he glanced at Abolish. “Merry Christmas!”

Shelby cheered, gulping down the rest of her animal blood so her glass would be empty. Human blood was a delicacy, since they only had it from whatever Scott did to get blood donations. It was super generous of Scott to share the Coven’s limited supply every year. It still wasn’t as good as fresh blood, but Shelby definitely preferred it over hurting people.

Eventually, Scott reached the place where Shelby and Drift sat. “How are you two doing?” he asked, pouring as he spoke.

“Good,” Drift responded. “Thanks for hosting every year.”

“I take pleasure in it,” Scott grinned. After filling Drift’s glass, he moved away to Apo and Cherri. Shelby smiled, sighing contently.

“What is it?” Drift asked, poking Shelby and smiling fondly at her.

“I’m just happy everyone’s here.”

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

The night continued on and the silvery red moon moved further up in the sky. One by one, those who lived in Oakhurst left to sleep in their own beds. Of the guests from out of town, Abolish was the only one who didn’t choose to stay overnight, instead opting to travel back home. Apparently he had some sort of important meeting he had to get to. Vampires didn’t need sleep, anyways, so he would be fine.

Scott had paid his vampire friends and escorted them out, and now Owen was helping him get their guests settled in. There were enough empty rooms in the crypt that they were able to host guests easily, provided they took the time to clean the dust off the furniture first.

The rest of the Coven was gathered in a small room that had been added a decade or so ago. Shelby had helped build it onto the back of the castle. It was cozy, meant for sitting and reading in on sunny days (as stage 3 vampires, they tended to stay inside more on sunny days than on rainy ones). Two plush armchairs sat on either side of the fireplace and a large couch stretched across the back wall, covered in blankets and pillows at all times. Shelby, Drift, and Avid sat snuggled up on the couch now, with Pyro sitting in the armchair beside them. Drift’s head was on Shelby’s lap as she read aloud a new chapter of the fanfic she was writing. Blankets were piled around them, with Avid somewhere buried underneath. Pyro had their nose stuck in some book, slippered feet propped up on the coffee table. A warm, inviting fire crackled in the fireplace, filling the room with a cozy orange glow. The vampires didn’t need it to stay warm, but it had been a unanimous decision to add it.

“Everyone’s settled in for the night,” Owen announced, walking in with Scott on his heels. “Ooh, nice, you got the fire going.” He picked up the blanket on the unoccupied armchair sitting down and spreading it over him comfortably. “I’d bring beverages, but I assume we’re all full.” Nods of confirmation met this statement, so he reached down and grabbed a book on the coffee table to read.

Avid popped his head out of the large pile of blankets on the couch. “Scott! I have nail polish!” With some struggle, he managed to stick his hand out as well, and pointed to a small bottle of nail polish on the table. “Pleaseee can you paint my nails? Pretty please?”

Scott snorted, but grabbed the bottle and sat on the couch next to Avid. “You’re gonna have to find a way out of that cocoon you’ve made for yourself, though.”

“It really does look like a cocoon!” Shelby laughed as Avid started fighting his way out. “The blankets are green, too.”

“It’s my leaf cocoon,” Avid said, voice muffled. It took him a couple of moments, but finally he managed to untangle himself. “There!” he exclaimed.

Pyro sighed from where they sat curled up in their chair. “Can we be a little quieter? I’m trying to read.” He glared at Avid, but Shelby could see the twinkle of amusement in his eyes.

Avid wrinkled his nose at him. “Party pooper.” Pyro laughed and went back to reading his book.

Shelby continued reading to Drift, but quieter this time. Scott began carefully painting Avid’s claws. The two were so close together that Shelby had to hold back her teasing. Not that I can talk, they thought, glancing at Drift’s sleepy face in their lap.

The fire continued to crackle and pop as the family of vampires sat around it, comfortable and happy together. The snow fell hard in the freezing darkness outside, but they were warm and safe in their little room in the castle. It was Christmas Eve, and everything was perfect. The sort of perfect that was only perfect because of their imperfect family.

Chapter Text

Ding dong. Ding dong. Ding dong.

Avid fought to open his bleary eyes. “Mmph…What…what’s happenming…?” his voice was muffled, and he realized sleepily that his mouth was covered with some sort of blanket. The loud bells that had woken him up stopped singing, but the damage had already been done.

“Aviddd…” someone moaned. “Get off.” It took a moment for Avid’s tired brain to place the voice, but he realized it was Scott. A second later, he tensed as he realized Scott’s voice was coming from right beside him. The “blanket” his face was pressed against was actually Scott’s shoulder.

“Scott!” Avid squeaked, face bright red. He raised his head, still struggling to clear his sleep-addled brain. “What’re you doing in my bed?”

There was a second of silence from the other vampire, then a muffled laugh. “What?”

Avid paused. “What do you mean, what-”

“Avid. We’re not in your bed. We fell asleep on the couch, and look, everyone else is here too.” Scott pushed himself up onto his elbows, smirking at Avid. Avid finally took a moment to look at his surroundings, the events of last night beginning to rush back to him. Shelby and Drift were asleep beside him, legs tangled up in their blankets. Pyro and Owen were each fast asleep in their chairs. Someone had at least had the foresight to put out the fire so it wasn’t dangerous, but it was surprising that they had all fallen asleep so easily.

Avid flushed an even darker red, which was impressive for such a pale vampire. He supposed he had had a full meal yesterday, so the amount of blood in his system was higher than usual. “I-uh-“ he hid his face in the actual blanket, embarrassed beyond words. At least his friends were still fast asleep, and hadn’t heard that.

He could hear Scott holding back laughter. “This never happened,” Avid insisted, glaring at Scott’s smug face. (How did he still look so perfect after sleeping on the couch like this?) Scott shrugged, sitting up fully and stretching. He still had the remnants of a smirk on his face. Avid wished he could wipe it right off. In a very normal, angry way. Yes.

Shelby stirred on the other end of the couch, and Avid gratefully turned his attention away from the very distracting vampire beside him. “Why does Oakhurst have such loud bells?” she groaned, rubbing her eyes. “What’s going on?”

“It’s Christmas morning!” Avid realized with a gasp. “That’s why the bells- oh my gosh it’s Christmas morning!!” With an excited yelp, he jumped up, tripping over the blankets on his way to the door. Scott caught him, steadying him.

Shelby squealed, gently shaking Drift awake. “Drift! Drift! It’s Christmas morning!”

Drift opened her eyes, blinking in confusion. “Shelby?” Shelby repeated their urgent message and Drift sat up, hair mussed and eyes bleary with sleep. “Yay!!” she giggled happily. Drift was slightly less energetic in the mornings than Shelby and Avid.

“Can you all keep it down!?” Owen yelled, voice muffled underneath a blanket. “This was the first good sleep I’ve gotten in a while!”

Shelby laughed, jumping up and pulling the blanket partially off of Owen, just so they could see his grumpy face. “It’s Christmas morning!” they exclaimed, patting Owen’s head fondly. Avid failed to hold back a snort.

The glare Owen gave Shelby was beyond withering, but she remained unfazed. Pyro groaned from their chair, stretching and wrapping the blankets tighter around himself. “Must we wake up this early?”

Avid frowned. “It’s Christmas!” Pyro’s exasperated look told him that they didn’t particularly like this argument.

“Cleo and Pearl will be expecting us this morning,” Scott said, standing up and letting the blankets fall around him. “We should go get ready. Bundle up; even though it’s cloudy the snow makes everything bright."

“Good luck getting those guys to come,” Avid laughed. “I’m outta here.”

Shelby squealed in outrage. “Just because I’m the only one who actually cares if everyone comes does not mean you get to leave me here!!”

Avid giggled, running after Scott before she could catch him and drag him back.

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

At last, everyone was ready to go and out the door. Shelby had somehow managed to convince Owen and Pyro to come along, though they didn’t look happy about it.

The sun was safely hidden behind the clouds as the six vampires walked to Oakhurst. Shelby pulled a cart of presents with them through the snow, taking turns with Drift when they got tired. Snow still swirled down from the sky, but it wasn’t as aggressive about it as it was last night. Their guests had already left, staying only for a bite to eat before leaving.

Avid opened his mouth, head thrown back, trying to catch snowflakes as they walked. “I love the snow!”

“It is a lot nicer when I’m not freezing all the time,” Pyro agreed. “Oh, good, we’re almost there.” Avid looked down for a moment to see.

Oakhurst came into view ahead of them. Clearly someone had been putting up decorations, as pine garlands were draped on the walls. Avid could see lights glimmering inside them.

The vampires made their way to the town, closing the gate behind them. Hearing them arrive, Pearl poked her head out of the door of her and Cleo’s house, waving excitedly at them. “Hi, guys! Come in!”

They filed in, cramming themselves into the living room. Martyn, Ren, and Cleo were already inside. It technically wasn’t big enough for them to fit super comfortably, but Avid kind of liked the clutter. It felt more Christmas-y to have everyone in the same room.

One of Oscar’s descendents, Olive, brushed against Avid’s legs and purred, begging for attention. Avid bent down to pet the adorable kitty. When he went to sit on the couch, the cat jumped up on his lap. “Aww, what a little cutie,” Avid cooed, scratching Olive's head.

Scott, who had sat next to him, grimaced. “Ugh, cats.”

Avid looked over, surprised. “You don’t like cats?”

“Cats are evil,” Scott said, wrinkling his nose. “They don’t like me.”

Avid giggled. “Okay, big evil scary vampire.” He continued to pet Olive, cooing softly at him. “He’s so cute, how could you think he’s evil?”

“Hmph,” Scott said crossly.

Avid laughed. “What, you jealous?”

Scott scowled. “That thing is cute, but I’m evil?”

Avid paused, peering at Scott’s face. “Are you jealous?”

Scott rolled his eyes, shaking his head no, but Avid decided the evidence said otherwise. “Aw, don’t worry, you’re cute too. Even though you’re a big evil scary vampire.” Scott looked surprised, and turned a pretty shade of pink.

“Alright, everyone,” Pearl said happily, clapping her hands. “We have lots of presents to open, so let's get started!” Cleo handed out each person’s presents. Avid was given a present wrapped in red paper with snowmen printed on it. It felt squishy when he poked it.

Everyone took turns opening their presents. Avid had gotten Cleo some gardening supplies and seeds, since they’d mentioned she wanted to start a garden in the spring. When it was Avid’s turn, he ripped open the paper, squeaking in excitement when he saw turquoise knitted wool underneath. He pulled out the Christmas sweater, hugging it. “I love it!!” He took his coat off and tugged it on, putting his coat again on over it. From the other side of the room, Shelby watched her fledgling happily.

The present opening was over too soon, as always, but the joy and excitement still lingered in the air. It was Christmas, after all.

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

Avid squinted, staring at the snowman as if it had personally offended him.

“It’s not that bad,” Drift grimaced. “Okay, maybeee it is.”

The snowman did not represent the second half of the word well. They had, however, nailed the snow part. It was mostly just a lopsided pile of snow. Drift had tried to give it shape, but had only managed to make it smaller and more lumpy. Avid, for his part, had poked two holes in the “head” and called them eyes, then drew a smile.

“It’s kind of cute,” Drift shrugged. “If we put the carrot…” she stuck a small carrot into the middle of the face. “See?”

Avid laughed. It did look quite cute, though it was less of a snowman and more of a snow blob. “I think we won.” He looked over to Scott and Shelby’s snowman, which was…
actually really good. They seemed to have struggled less with the body. It actually looked more like a classic snowman, with 3 parts and stick arms. It also had a very fashionable scarf, courtesy of Scott.

“I almost forgot, we need arms!!” Avid exclaimed, waving his own and looking around wildly at the expanse of stick-less snow around them.

Shelby, who overheard, shouted, “CHEATER!!”

“It’s not cheating!” Avid shouted back indignantly. “Your snowman has arms too!!”

“Exactly!” Shelby yelled. “You stole the idea!!”

“Arms are very common!!!!!!”

Shelby stuck out their tongue, reaching down and grabbing something. Before Avid could react, a snowball was flying directly at his face. He let out a high pitch scream, trying and failing to duck. He ended up falling backwards into snow, partially crushing their snow blob.

“You killed him!!!” Avid wailed. “Blobby noooo….”

“Oh my gosh, I’m sorry-” Shelby gasped, but was quickly interrupted by Avid’s dramatic “COME BACK TO MEEEE!!!!”

Avid took a deep breath (all for show, since he didn’t actually need it), and pretended to tear up. “I swear…. I will avenge you, Blobby.” He grabbed a piece of snow, hoping it wasn’t a part of Blobby. “I’ll make sure to kill them for you.”

Drift giggled. “Me too.” She grabbed her own snowball, then turned to face Shelby and Scott. Shelby’s eyes widened, and then she vanished. “Oh, great,” Drift rolled her eyes. “We’re bringing vampire abilities into this. That’s not very respectful to Blobby’s memory!! He wouldn’t have wanted this!”

Avid patted Blobby’s half crushed “head” and stood up. “This is gonna be an epic fight,” he informed Drift. “We gotta go prepare.”

Scott, who was still standing by his and Shelby’s snowman, coughed lightly. “Am I expected to be included in this?”

“Who else is gonna help Shelby?” Drift giggled. “Come on, pleaseee?” She directed large puppy eyes in his direction. Scott really stood no chance.

“Fine,” Scott agreed reluctantly. “I better go find her, then.” He vanished.

“Go get Owen and Pyro, maybe they can join our team,” Avid whispered to Drift.

“I heard that!!” Shelby yelled from somewhere beside them. Avid jumped.

“Fine, you can get them! We’ll take Cleo and Pearl!!” Drift grinned, dashing off to go convince the two, who were off to the side blissfully working on their own snowman.

Avid grinned at where he thought Shelby was, then vanished. Luckily, the snow had been shoveled off the pathway, so no one could see where he went unless they looked
closely. He ran out of Oakhurst, slipping to the side of the gate to wait for Drift.

She eventually exited with Cleo and Pearl following behind. Avid appeared, pulling the three to the side. “Alrighty! Who’s ready to destroy those murderers?”

“Murderers?” Pearl looked confused.

Drift shook her head. “Don’t ask. So, Avid, what’s the plan? Is this going to be our base?” She paused. “This is giving me flashbacks, actually. Except we were the ones inside Oakhurst.”

Cleo barked a laugh. “Now that you mention it, yeah,” she chuckled.

Avid grinned, lowering his voice. “Okay, so, we should make as many snowballs as we can. Shelby and Scott should be in the town, possibly Owen and Pyro too if Shelby can convince them to join. But here's the most important part: We rush them invisibly and throw as many snowballs as we can! Snowballs flying everywhere! Kaboom!” He mimicked explosions with his hands.

“Please let’s not blow up Oakhurst,” Pearl said, laughing. “Other than that, I love this plan.”

“It’s not much of a plan,” Cleo scoffed. “It does sound fun, though.”

“Alright, let’s start making snowballs!” Avid cheered. The four set to work, the pile of snowballs beside them steadily growing. When they were ready, they gathered as many snowballs in their arms as they could and snuck toward the gate.

Avid vanished and poked his head around the corner. Shelby and Scott were nowhere to be found, but voices drifted from behind Cleo and Pearl’s house. Avid recognized Pyro’s deep voice along with theirs, so it seemed Shelby had convinced at least one of them.

“Come on,” he whispered to Drift, who had come up beside him. “I think they’re behind- ACK!” Avid screeched as frozen snow hit him in the shoulder, knocking him backward. Owen’s familiar raucous laughter filled the air from somewhere close in front of them.

“GO!” Drift yelled, abandoning stealth entirely and hurling a snowball in the direction of Owen’s voice. Clearly it hit its target, as it broke apart somewhere midair, accompanied by a grunt.

Avid tried and failed to hold back giggles as the four vampires stormed Oakhurst, rushing around the house to confront Scott, Shelby, and Pyro. The three had definitely heard them coming, and were invisible, throwing snowballs as Avid’s group came around the corner.

Utter chaos ensued. Snowballs were flying in every direction, with everyone invisible, so the scene looked quite strange to any onlooker. Owen had pretty quickly rejoined the fight, so there was an even number on each team. Avid couldn’t tell friend from foe in the chaos, so he was literally just chucking snowballs and hoping for the best. Whenever someone was hit too many times, they would reappear, which quickly made them an easy target for the other team.

Half-way through the fight, this exact thing happened to Pyro, and Avid had an idea. Invisible, he ran out of Oakhurst, so no one would see where he went. Once safely out of sight, he shapeshifted, wings unfurling from his back and body morphing into something much smaller. He flapped higher, clutching a snowball in his tiny claws.

He flew to hover above Pyro’s cowering figure. They were being absolutely pelted with snowballs from Avid’s team. Avid almost felt bad.

Avid dropped the snowball, and it landed directly on Pyro’s head. Pyro jumped out of his skin, yelling and looking up in shock. Avid burst into uncontrollable giggles, wings collapsing. He fluttered down to land on Drift’s shoulder, who had appeared out of sheer surprise.

“Hey!” Pyro yelled, grabbing a snowball and throwing it at Avid. Avid quickly turned back into a human, which caused Drift to collapse with him sitting on top of her.

“Oops, sorry, Drift,” Avid apologized. He stood up and helped Drift up.

“Using your bat form is brilliant, actually,” Shelby grinned. “Thanks for the idea.”

So of course everyone had to turn into bats, and start dropping snowballs on each other. What Avid had failed to tell them was that holding a snowball as a bat wasn’t easy, and constantly swooping back down to get more snowballs was exhausting. Especially when moving lower than other people caused you to get snowballs dropped on you, which was not fun as a small and fragile bat.

Avid turned out to be a lot more successful at hitting the bats out of the air, or at least distracting them enough with dodging so they couldn’t try and drop snowballs on his team. He wasn’t that worried about hurting them since vampires healed so quickly, but he did try to lean more on the “keeping them distracted” side.

Avid was completely focused on this task when a dignified looking black bat holding a snowball zoomed toward him too fast for him to hit it. When it was right above him, it twirled, wings morphing into a cloak so fast Avid didn’t even process it was Scott before a snowball was flying towards his face. Avid squawked, getting a mouthful of snow and sitting down hard. Scott floated gracefully downwards, smirking at him.

Avid laughed through the snow still in his mouth, throwing another snowball at Scott. It landed quite to the side of the elder vampire, which wasn’t surprising since Avid could barely see through the snow in his eyes.

Scott reached down and brushed the snow out of Avid’s hair, a smirk still plastered on his face. Avid flinched and stared up at him. A snowball lay ready to be thrown beside him, but all Avid could think was that was so hot.

A yell of victory from Shelby broke Avid out of his trance. They swooped forward, dropping a snowball on Avid’s head and transforming back again. Avid couldn’t help but laugh, even though his dignity, already nonexistent, was heading into the negatives. He threw the snowball originally meant for Scott, hitting Shelby in the stomach and causing Cleo to cackle above them.

Bats began dropping from the sky as everyone realized how good Scott’s tactic was, and Avid was caught up in the chaos once more. Oakhurst’s town square was a whirl of snowballs, bats, and invisible bodies.

Eventually, everyone ran out of snowballs. There was still plenty of snow, but the break from throwing it gave everyone a chance to realize how hungry they were. Using their invisibility and bat forms so much was draining.

“Who thinks we should go eat lunch?” Pearl asked, glancing around to see if anyone argued. Shelby dropped the snowball she was half-way through making, looking relieved.

“Yes, please,” Cleo said, speaking for everyone.

“Did someone say lunch?” Martyn called from inside his and Ren’s house. “Ren and I have some ready!” He came into view, holding an armful of flasks. “We thought this would be easier, since there’s not enough room inside for everyone to eat.” He began handing out the flasks. Avid took one, readily taking a large gulp and sighing as his stomach stopped screaming in hunger.

“This is great, guys! How did you get enough blood?” Shelby asked, sipping from her own. “I understand the flasks; we do the same thing with bottles, but this is a lot to share with us.”

Ren, who had just exited laden with flasks for those who hadn’t gotten them yet, grinned. “We’re good hosts, don’tcha know? This year, we were prepared.”

Martyn smiled. “Ren wanted to make sure everyone had enough to eat, so he’s been hunting a lot this past week.”

“We could have helped with that!” Cleo exclaimed, looking worried. “You don’t have to do all that by yourself.”

“It was my Christmas present to all of you, don’tcha know.” Ren smiled reassuringly. “Don’tcha worry about me.”

Shelby ran forward and wrapped Ren into a large embrace. Her heart was always so full with love for everyone they met, and Avid knew from experience that their hugs reflected that. “Thank you,” she said. Ren patted her shoulder fondly.

The group of vampires gathered around, chatting happily over lunch. They didn’t mind eating outside, as the cold wasn’t a problem, though most chose to stay in the shadow of the houses.

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

“I am so tired,” Owen groaned, flopping down facefirst onto the snow. Taking their chance, Shelby started pushing snow on top of them. Owen let out an exasperated growl but didn’t move.

“Me too,” Drift agreed, flopping down beside him. “Shelby, if you do that to me you’ll regret it.” Shelby laughed and patted her head.

“Can we go home?” Avid begged, turning to Scott with pleading eyes. “I want to go home.” They had spent most of the day at Oakhurst playing games, and everyone was exhausted.

Scott nodded, snorting at the two vampires at his feet, one half buried in snow. “I’m ready to go, too. We should let Cleo and Pearl have some time alone, anyway.”

Pearl laughed. “We appreciate it, guys. And thanks for coming!”

Hugs were exchanged and everyone got ready to leave, holding their presents tightly. Avid patted Olive goodbye, and after a couple minutes of pleading, convinced Scott to give him a small scratch as well. Progress. Avid would make that man love cats if it was the last thing he did.

All bundled up, the Coven set out towards the castle. It was already fairly dark since it was winter, but the snow (and vampire night vision) made everything bright. As the castle came into view, still glittering with all the lights Shelby and Drift had put up, something warm grew in Avid’s heart. This really was home, in every sense of the word.

The sky was surprisingly clear compared to earlier that day, and Avid stared up at it in wonder. “We should all sit and look at the stars,” he suggested to Shelby, who was walking beside him.

Shelby gasped. “That’s a wonderful idea! Although,” she paused, glancing behind her, “I think some of us are really tired. And I really want to read this book Sausage gave me…” she looked wistfully towards the castle.

Recognizing that Shelby didn’t want to but was hesitant to say no, Avid nudged her. “That’s okay. You should go relax. I can stargaze by myself, it’ll be peaceful.”

Shelby smiled thankfully at him. “Alright. Goodnight, merry Christmas.”

“Goodnight! Merry Christmas!” Avid hugged her. He shifted into a bat and swiftly flew up to the castle, alighting on the roof and turning back.

The stars twinkled in the sky, looking as if they were happy to see him. Avid sighed, leaning back and yawning. The moon stared down at him, an unblinking eye that watched always, even when you couldn’t watch back.

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

“Hi.” Scott’s voice broke the silence Avid had settled deep into. He had been on the verge of sleep.

Avid jumped, letting out a squeak. “Shelby says you should come down soon,” Scott informed him.

Avid frowned. He knew Shelby. She had no reason to want him downstairs, and if she was reading like they said they would be, they would under no circumstances leave the book for any reason, even to talk to Scott.

Unless they were trying to do something. Shelby read too much fanfiction. Avid wouldn’t put it past them to send Scott up just to see what would happen, so she could write about it later, or tease them, or something. Probably just for the chaos.

It just so happened Avid liked chaos too.

“Hey, Scott?” Scott had been making to leave, but paused to look back at Avid. Avid pushed on, anxious but determined to not make Shelby’s effort in vain. “I was actually thinking about going for a walk, or maybe flying around as a bat or something. Would you want to come?”

Avid held his breath. Every second Scott hesitated felt like forever, but he eventually smiled. “Sure, if you’re willing to face Shelby’s wrath afterward.”

I doubt it, Avid thought, but decided to double check anyway. “Uh, she didn’t seem really excited about me coming down, or anything? Did they mention a specific reason?” Scott shook his head, further confirming Avid’s theory. “Okay, then I think I can handle it.”

Avid lunged down from the roof, waiting for Scott to follow before he started across the bridge. Scott walked beside him, long strides setting a brisk pace that Avid had to jog every now and again to keep up with.

The trees loomed over them in the dark, weighed down by heavy drifts of snow. It had stopped snowing by now, but it was deep enough that it was hard to walk through. On his way by, Avid brushed against a branch. Snow fell down in clumps, covering both vampires.

Avid shivered, shaking the snow out of his hair. “What if we fly instead?”

“What smart thinking,” Scott said, shaking out his cloak with a grimace. “I like the way you think.”

Avid shifted and flapped his wings, pushing himself above the trees with Scott following. He glided over the forest, feeling the wind brush through his fur and over sensitive wing membranes.

Avid had the sudden urge to flap higher, the stars taunting him from where they floated above. He fought his way upwards, giggling as he spun and tumbled through the air. The stars created a swirling blur of light around him as he flew, too fast to make them clear and sparkling like before.

Avid was nowhere near the fastest flyer of the Coven, in fact he was the opposite, but flying was still one of the best things vampirism had to offer. It had once been a far off, impossible dream, but for the past decades, it had been reality, and truly nothing compared to it.

Avid put on an extra burst of speed, adrenaline pushing him forward as he laughed in glee.

Slam.

Avid hit something solid, head immediately pounding with pain. His first, hazy thought through the fog of pain was that he had hit a tree, but he realized quickly that the thing he had hit was much too soft. And it had grunted in pain when he hit it.

Avid’s head began to clear remarkably quickly, due to the perks of being a vampire. It didn’t take him long to realize that he had crashed full speed into Scott, and they were both currently barrelling towards the ground.

Avid shrieked, desperately trying to stop their downward tumble. He only succeeded in hitting Scott in the face several times with his wings.

“Turn back!” Scott yelled, smacking Avid back. Avid was pretty sure it was out of spite, since he didn’t seem to be trying to stop their fall. “We’ll float down!”

Panicked, Avid only managed to flap harder, doing nothing to slow their fall but everything to annoy Scott more. Scott quickly morphed into his normal self, and attempted to catch Avid but ended up losing him since Scott had begun floating more slowly to the ground.

Avid plummeted downwards, trying desperately to turn back but failing. Every time he tried to picture his normal form he was distracted by the ground growing steadily closer. Scott cursed above him, and suddenly he was below Avid, lunging so fast Avid couldn’t see him. Avid was caught roughly out of the air, though he supposed he deserved it after running so hard into Scott.

Avid’s little body tried hard to replicate what it was like to be alive, his body wracked with shivers. Scott stroked his head, purring softly, which embarrassingly caused Avid to go limp and start to calm down.

As he relaxed, Avid was able to turn back to normal, meaning that Scott was now holding him in a princess carry. Scott landed gracefully in the snow below them, setting Avid down carefully.

“I am so sorry,” Avid groaned, covering his face with his hands. “I can’t believe I couldn’t turn back, I just couldn’t think straight-”

“I never think straight but I was able to turn,” Scott grinned, fangs flashing in the moonlight.

Caught off guard, Avid burst into giggles, still filled with nervous energy from the near-death experience. (Not that it would have been permanent, but “dying” in any way was never fun.) “Sorry, anyway. Also for running into you. I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“It’s fine,” Scott reassured him, brushing some snow off Avid’s shoulder. “It’s really not a big deal. I saved you, anyway. Quite romantically, I might add.”

“True.” Before Avid could think better of it, he pressed a quick kiss to Scott’s lips. “Thank you, handsome.”

IjustdidthatIjustdidthatIjustdidthatIjustdidthatIjustdidthatIjustdidthat.

Scott stared down at him, his eyes wide and his pupils dilated. Something unreadable flashed in his gaze, but before Avid could decide what it meant, Scott’s mask of indifference reappeared. He smirked, “You’re welcome.”

“We should get back before Shelby really has to worry,” Avid said, rushing his words a little and avoiding Scott’s gaze.

However beautiful that gaze is.

Shut up.

They were quiet on the way back, the sounds of the forest at night filling the contented silence.

⋆꙳•❅*• •*❆ ₊⋆

“You did WHAT!?”

Avid could see that Shelby was actively holding back a scream of happiness. Probably multiple, knowing her.

Avid, Shelby and Drift were gathered together on Shelby’s bed. Avid had rushed there after he and Scott returned to the castle, if only out of sheer panic.

“Mhm,” Avid groaned, voice muffled by the blankets he was pressing his face against. “I can’t believe it either.”

Drift giggled, hugging Avid tightly. “He didn’t kill you. That’s a good sign.”

“That does not help,” Avid laughed, burying his head deeper into the blankets. “Thanks a lot.”

“I can’t believe it actually WORKED!” Shelby squealed, hugging a pillow so tight Avid felt bad for it.

“Wait- what?” Drift turned her head sharply to look at Shelby. “What did your evil schemes do this time?”

Avid lifted his head, grinning. “I knew it! You sent him up there for a reason!” Shelby just grinned evilly.

Drift groaned. “You are a menace.”

“A very pretty menace, though,” Shelby giggled, poking Drift’s shoulder. Drift turned bright red.

Avid covered his face with the pillow again. “Stop being cute! I’m trying to complain about my own love life, here!”

Shelby gasped, attention immediately on Avid. “LOVE!?”

“YOU KNOW WHAT I MEANT!” Avid tackled them, giggling. The three vampires stayed there for the rest of the night, gossiping and laughing together.