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The small group quietly watched the three humans as they traipsed through the thick forest. Their leader turned and surveyed the others. After a series of short grunts and a couple of additional head nods, including one headbutt against the rear end of one of their younger members, the group spread out to keep eyes on the intruders. Not wanting them to get too close to their sleeping young and the others protecting them.
After a short distance, the smallest human stopped the other two. "Your brother was right, Transylvania has some wonderful specimens to choose from for a Christmas tree. Let's see if we can find one for Charlie's place from these before we go further into the forest."
I don't know what you humans are planning to do with a tree, the leader thought, but the sooner you find what you're looking for and leave, the happier I'll be.
Looking around, the leader spotted the rest of the small group also hidden amongst the prickly trees. Snorting in impatience, they shifted their stance and rasped a hoof against the ground.
The same human from earlier looked around and spoke again, "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what, Hermione?"
Hermione the human turned back to the speaker. "I heard a scratching sound," they pointed in the general direction of the leader, "over there somewhere."
"You and Fred keep searching for a tree and I'll check it out."
One of the other humans left the first two and slowly made their way towards the leader.
Taking a couple steps back, the leader planted all their feet on the ground. Their breath forming in the cold air and curling upwards in small trails.
The human looking around walked right by the leader, but returned a couple seconds later. Their eyes widened. "Well, I think I found what was making that noise, Hermione," they called over their shoulder.
"What is it?"
The leader dropped their head and snorted. The human took a few steps backwards.
"A reindeer," they said.
The other shorter human looked at them in confusion. "That doesn't make any sense. Reindeer live up north in Scandinavia and Russia. Not in Transylvania in the middle of Romania."
"I know that, Hermione, but I'm staring right at a reindeer and he looks quite upset. And he's," the human tilted their head to the side, "glowing. He's a magical reindeer."
"Well, that explains why they're so far south." The smallest human came back into the leader's view as they stepped around the taller one. "Oh, she's beautiful."
The leader preened at the compliment, but also noticed the wild hair surrounding their face.
"She?"
"Yes, most male reindeer have already lost their antlers by now but the female's antlers don't fall off until after the beginning of the year. Plus, she's a little too small to be a male. She's either pregnant or her young from last year may still be around, which is why she's upset. Plus they're usually in herds, so I doubt she's alone." Tugging on the other's hand, they stepped back. "Let's get back to Fred and look for a tree somewhere else."
"I think that might be a good idea."
"Hey, guys," the third human said. "Can I get some help?"
The other two humans and the reindeer looked up to see the last of their group trying to move the tree he'd cut down onto a flat surface. The two humans started laughing at the sight. Every time he tried to place the tree where he wanted it, the tree would start flopping around. At one point, the tree actually hit him in the head.
"Oh, Merlin! What happened, Fred?"
The leader watched as the third human finally stopped what they were doing and frowned at the other two.
"I don't know what happened, but all I know is that it attacked me."
The two walked back over to their companion.
"You poor thing," the shorter human said as she stopped in front of him.
A quiet exchange passed between them that the reindeer couldn't hear. The wild-haired human then turned and smiled. "It's perfect."
Between the three of them they were finally able to get the felled tree where they wanted it.
"Now, that we have the perfect tree," the human with only one ear said. "Let's take it back to Charlie's and have some of that," he turned to the shortest human, "what was it again?"
"Citrus sangria."
"Ah yes, that's right." He wrapped an arm around 'Hermione's' shoulders. "We'll have some of that and then maybe we can finish where we left off when we got distracted earlier. What do you think, Forge?"
"I think that's a rather splendid idea, Gred." He joined the other two. "Hermione?"
"Hmmm. I think I may need some convincing on our way back to Charlie's."
"We're very convincing blokes, so…"
"Challenge accepted, love."
"Plus, Hermione needs to kiss and heal all the spots where the tree attacked me."
The three humans laughed as they turned around and disappeared back the way they came; their fallen tree trailing behind them.
Once they were gone, the leader stepped out into the clearing and signalled to the others to follow her back to the rest of the herd.