The tree did nothing. It didn’t chitter or move. Nolan felt like an idiot.
He reached for another ornament and got splashed in the face again for his troubles. He squawked and tried to lurch away but landed on his ass, cold water dripping from the end of his nose. At the same time, he heard the tree unplug its lights and skitter across the living room with a series of soft thumps.
“It’s on the run!” he shouted. “Block the exits! We can’t let this thing dart down the block in the middle of the day.”
Sky’s squeal filled the house, followed by the thunder of roots across the floor. Boxes tumbled, and bells jingled softly. Nolan shoved to his feet and charged through the living room, trying to figure out where the tree had darted off to.
“Front door! Get the front door!” Sky shouted from the rear of the house even as the pounding of roots hitting the floor grew louder.
Nolan leaped over a box and slid in sock-covered feet across the hardwood floor, just barely getting ahead of the tree as it ran for the entrance. Nolan slammed his back against the door and cackled. “Ha! Beat you!”
The tree retreated and squatted on all its curled roots, seeming to contemplate its options.
“If you go upstairs, you’ll be trapped. No escape,” Nolan argued.
The tree froze for a moment and then, one after another, the ornaments hanging on the ends of its branches were drawn into the tree, disappearing from sight completely.
That was the end of it as far as Nolan was concerned.
“I hope you didn’t have any of your favorite ornaments on that tree, because they belong to the tree now,” Nolan stated, lifting his voice so Sky could hear him.
“No, but…” Sky’s voice faded as he left the kitchen and entered the foyer to stare at the tree. “Oh. You got the ornaments off.”
“Nope. The tree sucked all the ornaments into the inside of its branches. If you want them, you can stick your hand in there.”
“What?” Sky gasped, half laughing. “Why won’t you do it? It’s not like it can bite you.”
“You sure about that? We’ve both heard it making that chittering noise. Where’s that noise coming from if it doesn’t have a mouth?”
Sky swallowed and gazed at the tree. “You know, on second thought, the ornaments are handmade or easily replaceable. Let the little tree have them if they make it feel special. That’s fine with me.”
“Uh-huh,” Nolan muttered. Sky’s cheeks grew redder the longer he stood there. This “pet” was turning out to be far too crafty for them. He was beginning to fear whether they’d be able to get it out the door when winter was over.
“All right.” Nolan sighed heavily and pointed at the living room. “Back to your pan. And no more splashing the water about, or you’re going outside tonight.”
A happy noise escaped the tree, and it turned toward the living room. Sky closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around Nolan’s waist.
“You’re such a softie,” Sky murmured, pressing a kiss to his jaw.
Nolan looked at his boyfriend and felt a smile tugging on his lips despite his best efforts to maintain his glare. “Only for you.”
As they walked into the living room to continue their work, they found the tree in its usual spot with its lights glowing and its ornaments glittering under the light.
Yeah, they’d been outmaneuvered by a freaking tree.
Epilogue
March 20 (Spring Equinox)
Today was the day.
To say that Nolan was excited was something of an understatement. This wasn’t about parties or magical rituals his boyfriend Sky took part in with the rest of his coven.
No, this was about getting the tree out of their house at last.
The odd thing had been squatting in their living room for nearly four full months. It needed to remember that it was an outdoor tree, and it had to return to its natural habitat.
The problem was that it had gotten very comfortable living indoors next to the front window. They brought it fresh pans of water each day, and it didn’t have to worry about being stuck in cold, crappy weather. Not to mention, it had its own set of twinkle lights that it plugged in each night.
