Warning: language, abusive relationship, partial nudity (kind of)
"Mom! Mom!" Trevor said excitedly. "When's Dad supposed to be here?"
Luna smiled at her son. "He should be here any moment now."
"I have a game on Saturday, I hope he can make it! Coach says I'm a brilliant player, a natural leader, just like my Dad!"
Luna tousled his hair. "Of course you're brilliant, Cupcake."
Trevor ducked away. "M-o-m!" he complained, "I'm eight years old now, I'm not a baby! Please stop calling me that, it's embarrassing!" Just then Trevor caught sight of his Dad looking through the front door window. "It's Dad!" He yelled, and he raced for the front door, and threw it open.
Trevor really hoped that his Dad could make it to his game. He knew his Dad was busy, but sometimes he wished his Dad would spend a little time with him too. His Mom said that his Dad loved him very much, but Trevor wasn't so sure. He always felt like he disappointed his Dad somehow, but he could never figure out exactly why.
He really wanted to hug his Dad, but his Dad didn't like it when he did that. He said only sissies did that, and Trevor didn't want to be a sissy. He stood there awkwardly, looking up at his Dad, his mind going a million miles a minute. What should he say? He hadn't seen his Dad in three months, was a simple hi the right thing to do? He waved, and then felt a little stupid. "Hi Dad!"
His Dad frowned in response. Trevor smiled hesitantly. "Hey Dad, I..."
Devin interrupted his son. "I don't have time to listen to your nonsense Trev, I need to talk to your mother, where did she go?"
Trevor's face fell and he looked down at the ground. "She's still in the house."
"Look at me when you speak to me boy." Devin's voice was curt.
Trevor looked up. "Yes Sir."
Devin forced a smile. "Much better. Now, take me to your mother."
"Yes Sir." Devin turned around and headed into the house, his dad right behind him. His Dad sounded kind of mad, and Trevor hated it when his Dad was mad. He would yell at his mom, and make her cry. Trevor had even seen his Dad hit her, his Dad told him that his mom had made him. That she had a smart mouth. Trevor hoped he didn't have a smart mouth, he didn't want to get hit.
Then he remembered that his grandpa was at home, and his dad was always nice when his grandpa was home. So he relaxed a bit, everything should be okay. "Mom!" He yelled, "Dad needs to talk to you!"
"Mom? Where are you?"
"The bathroom!"
Trevor led his Dad to the bathroom, the door was open, and his mom was brushing her teeth. "Dad needs to talk to you." Luna nodded.
"Luna you need to teach the boy some manners."
Luna rinsed her mouth out, and then turned to face Devin. "He was just excited Dev, he wanted to tell..."
"That's no excuse."
Trevor hated it when his Dad talked so meanly to his mom. "Dad, " he piped up, determined to help his mother out, "Tanner says I'm the politest, nicest boy he knows. And he's a scientist, he studies human be...be...behavior so he knows about these things." Trevor wished his Dad could be more like Tanner, but then he always felt bad for thinking that.
Luna winced, as Devin growled. "Did he?"
Trevor nodded his head. "Uh huh." He said helpfully. "I always say please and thank you, don't I Mom?"
"Yes, you do."
"I think we need to discuss this further at our house, Luna." Devin commanded in a cold voice.
"Dev..." Luna's voice faltered at the icy glitter in his eyes. He was furious. Her shoulders drooped.
"Whatcha gonna talk about Dad?"
"Oh, how I made the All Star team, and I've been transferred to Bridgeport, and on my off time I've been looking at apartments for us."
"Really!" Trevor said happily. "That's cool! Can I come too Dad? I want to hear about Bridgeport too!"
"What do you think Luna, should we bring the boy with?"
"Please Mom! Please! I'll be good, I promise!"
Luna smiled sadly. "I know you will Trevor, but not this time." She hated having to tell him no, and his crestfallen expression tore her up. He just didn't understand. "I know you'll be good Trev, I just need to talk to Daddy alone, okay?" Devin's mood had turned ugly the moment Tanner's name had been mentioned. She only hoped she could turn his mood back again, but either way, she didn't want her son to witness yet another fight.
"Okay. I understand." Luna knew he didn't really, but she had to protect him, as best as she could.
~<>~
Jack eyed the hunk of junk on his work table.
Turned out robots were much easier to make than transporters or time machines. His first one hadn't turned out too well, it kept running repeatedly into walls, windows, doors, couches, tables, and people. Grandpa Alder and Grandpa Ryder both objected to the last one. A little bit of tweaking though, and he had a half way decent bot.
Jack had named him Bob. He thought Bob was a good solid name for a robot. Bob didn't help him too much with quantum theory or equations like Jack had hoped, but he made up for it in other ways. Bob fetched him food, so he didn't have to leave his lab. He carried messages, he was an extra set of hands, and when he opened his mouth, Jack's favorite radio station played.
Soon other people heard about Bob, and they wanted Jack to build them a bot too. At first Jack had refused, it would take valuable time away from his very important job, saving his family.
The problem was, Jack was stuck. Everything he tried, failed. Failure after failure after failure. It was disheartening. Digital Ethan was of no help, he just said cryptic words like, when the time was right, Jack would know. What would he know? That he had failed his family? Digital Ethan just smiled at him. It was quite maddening.
So in the end, to keep from going crazy, he started building bots. It was mindless work, so it allowed him to mull the problem he was facing over and over inside his head. Building a bot only consisted of fabricating some pieces from a special type of aluminum alloy, a few electrical components and wires, and some gear driven shafts. Then he just put them all together, and added a few trait chips into a positronic brain, and presto! A fully functioning bot. Mindless work.
Easy as eating strawberry pie. Jack frowned. He sure wished that building a transporter and a time machine was just as easy.
~<>~
Hawk softly kissed his wife's hair, and gently stroked her back.
"I want to be a mother so badly." Skye sobbed.
Hawk tightened his arms around her. "I know Kitten, I know." He whispered soothingly.
"But every month it's the same thing." She cried harder. "Other than that one time, I get my period, like clockwork." Skylar had miscarried at five months a few years earlier, the pain of that still haunted her. She tried not to be jealous of her sister Luna, but it was hard when every night Luna got to tuck her baby into bed.
"It'll happen, when the time is right."
Skye couldn't stop the flood of tears, it was all too much. Every month hoping against hope, and then nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Just lifeless blood. "I'm so afraid Hawk. Afraid I'll never hold my own baby."
"It'll happen." He repeated. "When the time is right." He believed that, had to believe that. The prophecy would be fulfilled, they would have a child, a son. He looked at the woman he held in his arms. She was so brave, and gentle and kind, so pure to his darkness. Some days he almost felt guilty at his own deceit.
~<>~
Luna jumped when her bedroom door opened, and she quickly hid her face. "What part of leave me alone don't you understand Tanner?" It had to be Tanner, her family knew to respect her boundaries, only Tanner ignored them. She felt him sit down beside her on the bed, and then heard his horrified gasp.
"What the hell happened?"
"I'm clumsy, and I fell."
Tanner cursed. "On your face? Don't lie to me Luna, it was him, wasn't it? Wasn't it?"
Luna started to cry. "We broke up again. It was my fault Tanner."
Tanner started to get up from the bed. "I'm going to kill him." He vowed. He didn't care that Devin was physically stronger and much bigger than him, hitting women was unacceptable in Tanner's book.
Luna reached out a hand, and stopped him. "Please Tanner, don't leave me, I don't want to be alone." She also didn't want to be responsible for the death of her best friend on top of everything else. Devin would kill him.
"Just hold me, please?" Tanner sighed heavily, and then gathered her close. She snuggled into him with a soft sigh. He would leave Devin for another day, he couldn't leave her the way she was.
"He needs to be arrested Luna. What he did was wrong." Tanner said, as gently as he could. Surely she could see that? He felt her stiffen.
"I started it, because I'm a stupid, fat wh*re." She started crying again. "It's not his fault Tanner, I drive him to do it. If only I could be smarter, or prettier, or..."
"That's a bunch of bull." Tanner looked at her, and he wanted to weep along with her. "Luna, don't you know, you are so beautiful, and giving, and smart, clever, funny..." He paused for a moment, "How could you ever believe otherwise?"
"You only say that Tanner because you're my friend, only Devin could love someone as ugly as me, love love, not friend love."
"No, I say it, because it's true." He stared into her eyes, willing her to see the truth in them. He wasn't sure which one of them made the first move, but their lips touched, tenderly at first, hesitantly, before quickly heating up, along with his blood. His heart thundered in his chest so loudly, he was sure she could hear it. She pushed him back against the bed, almost aggressively.
Tanner knew he should put a stop to this before things got too out of hand, he just wanted to savor a few more moments. He had dreamed about her for years, yearned for her to see him, to see how much he loved her, and not just as a friend. Then she unbuttoned her dress, leaving her breasts exposed, and he knew the time to stop it had already passed.
She reached down to unsnap his pants, but he stopped her, and kissed her softly to take the sting of his rejection away. She was almost too frantic, too aggressive, and he wanted to slow things down, take his time. This was a dream come true; he wanted to savor every moment of it. "Slowly Luna, we have plenty of time, there's no need to rush." He kissed her again, oh how he loved this woman, with every fiber in him.
Luna was a little confused. Take their time? Devin had always wanted it quick, and hard, most times he wouldn't even bother with getting undressed. He also liked leaving marks on her while they had sex, he called them love marks. But Tanner, he was...different.
She had just wanted to feel loved again, and when she had looked into Tanner's eyes, she had seen love there. And through his eyes, she had even felt...beautiful. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt that way.
She winced when his hand skimmed her ribs, and Tanner growled at the bruises he found there. "It doesn't hurt much." Luna lied, she didn't want him to stop, or worse, pity her. She wanted him to finish what they had started. He was so gentle with her, like she was precious, and for one night she wanted to feel like she mattered.
She helped him take off his shirt, and she explored his chest with her hands, feeling the smooth skin beneath her fingertips. He watched her, a slight smile on his lips, that turned into a groan as her hand slid lower and lower. He caught her hand, and kissed it. He surprised a giggle out of her when he flipped her over, and he peeled her dress away, one kiss at a time.
Luna found him to be a playful lover, and giving, and she had never known that sex could be...so wonderful. She had always enjoyed sex, but sex with Devin was almost punishing, and about getting off, while with Tanner... She moaned. It was a magical journey of touch and pleasure, and fun, and laughter, and...her thoughts drifted away. She was lost in a sea of sensation.
They made love several times more, Luna couldn't call it just sex, it felt like so much more. After each time she would curl up in his arms, and he would hold her tightly, and she felt safe. And loved.
The morning came much too early for Tanner. He would love nothing more than to just laze the day away with Luna, but first things were first. The night before he had been ready to tear Devin apart with his bare hands, he still wanted to do that, but his reason had returned to him. He wasn't a match for Devin, but he knew who was.
"Tanner?"
Tanner turned and smiled at Luna. "You should go back to sleep, Luna, it's still early. I'll be back in a bit." He got up before she could change his mind, and started to throw his clothes on.
She followed suit, and once they were both dressed, she turned to him. "Tanner, we need to talk."
He frowned. "We'll talk later."
She shook her head, and refused to meet his eyes. "No, it's best that we talk now."
He saw the determined look on her face, and sighed. "Okay. Let's talk." Luna looked straight at him then, tears in her eyes, falling down her cheeks, and he felt his stomach drop. "Hey, it can't be that bad." He tried to joke, but the joke fell flat.
"Don't hate me Tanner. Please, don't hate me. I couldn't bear it if you did."
"I could never hate you Luna, I l..." Luna placed a finger over his lips, stopping his confession.
"Devin called me really early this morning. He felt really bad about what he did, and he's getting help. He wanted one more chance."
Tanner could feel the bile rising up from the stone pit that was his stomach. "Don't tell me Luna..."
She smiled sadly at him. "You're my best friend Tanner, and I don't want to ever lose you. I love Devin though, and I have to think about Trevor, and what's best for him. He deserves to have an intact family. Devin is going to see a counselor, and get help, he has promised me this. So, yes, I said I'd give him another chance. But this is the last one, I swear it!"
Tanner shook his head, his heart in glass shards at his feet. "I have heard you say that so many times over the years Luna. I don't believe what I'm hearing. You're giving him another chance, after what he's done to you, all these freaking years!" Tanner's voice rose on the last few words, and he made an effort to lower his voice and regain his control over himself. "And what about us? What about last night? Didn't that mean anything to you?"
Luna winced. "Tanner, last night was...great, it really was, and I really care about you, a lot, but you have to understand..."
Tanner couldn't take anymore. He said bitterly, "No, Luna, I'm tired of trying to understand. I don't understand why you let him do what he does, and then run back for more."
"Please Tanner, just.."
Tanner shook his head. "I need a break from you Luna. I'm sorry, I just can't go back to being just your friend right now."
Luna started to sob, "Tanner, please, don't hate me! I don't want to lose you!" She reached out for him, but he shook her away.
"I don't hate you Luna." He said sadly. "But I can't do this right now. I need some space." He walked out and closed the door on her tears, and her pleas. He felt shattered, and still he wanted nothing more than to run back into the room and tell her he was sorry. Tell her that he would be just her friend, if that is all she wanted from him, just so he could keep her in his life. He sighed wearily. He had to face facts, and realize that he needed to stay away from her, for his own good.
At least until he could purge her from his heart for good, and think of her only as a friend. Maybe then. However, he still had one thing left to do for her, because it was the right thing to do, and because he did love her.
...
~<>~
Luna felt utterly, and completely miserable. Her stomach roiled like a witch's cauldron, her eyes ached from all her tears, and worst of all, worst of all, her heart hurt. It had taken her two weeks to realize what an awful mistake she had made. To realize that she had cried more over Tanner, than she ever had over Devin. That she had missed Tanner with a fierceness that had surprised her, she felt as if a vital part of her had been suddenly and irrevocably amputated.
Four more weeks had gone by before she found the courage to break things off with Devin, for good. He had screamed and yelled at her over the phone, and called her horrid names, told her that if he couldn't have her, no one could. Especially not Tanner. She'd had to tell Devin about Tanner, because he needed to know that she didn't know which one of them was the father of the baby she now carried.
He had not been pleased to hear that she had f*cked him, like he had accused her of so many times before. She had corrected him, and told him she hadn't f*cked him, with Tanner it had never been about f*cking. They had made love, and she had thrown it all away. And for what?
She had hung up on Devin, and his vitriolic rage, it had felt good too, but she knew his threats were not idle. Only his death would stop him. She used to fear him, but she didn't feel anything right now but emptiness. She didn't want Trevor to get hurt, or pulled into Devin's war against her, so she had finally fessed up to her dad. Every little bit, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
He had been so quiet, she almost didn't think he had heard her. Then she had found herself engulfed in a hug, and she had cried then, big ugly sobs. When she had finally calmed down some, her dad had told her he was flying out to Bridgeport soon to meet with Devin. That he would take care of it, and not to worry about Devin anymore. So she had tried not to.
She still worried though. She worried that her father would kill him, part of her even hoped that he would; Devin would never be able to hurt her again if he was dead. An equal part of her feared that her dad would kill him. She didn't fear it out of love for Devin, she just didn't want to see her Dad sitting in jail on murder charges.
Her life was a shambles, and she had no one to blame but herself. Devin had been like a drug to her, one that she could never seem to give up. She didn't fully understand why herself, but she was seeing a counselor to help her figure it all out.
She groaned as another wave of nausea hit her.
Maybe if she didn't feel so sick all the time she could cope with things better. As it was, she wasn't coping well. She just felt so depressed over how badly she had screwed up her life. How she had screwed things up with Tanner. He was so distant lately, only coming by to spend time with Trevor, and she couldn't blame him for that. She missed his warm smiles though, his quirky jokes, the way he had always listened to her without judgment.
She sighed heavily. She should be thankful that he was still around. He had stoically accepted her awkward announcement that she was pregnant, that he could be the father, but she really wasn't sure. She winced. It made her feel like such a tramp. Only a tramp wouldn't...she forced the thought away as the Counselor had taught her. Sometimes it was hard to catch all the negative messages she sent herself.
If she wanted to get better though, for Trevor, for this baby, for herself, then she needed to change her way of thinking. "One day at a time." She reminded herself. A second wave of nausea over flooded her. "Oh sh*t!"
She heaved her guts out, and when her stomach finally settled, she sank wearily onto the steps. This pregnancy was so different from her first one. She was mentally and physically exhausted, and sick all the time.
She missed her dad. He still hadn't returned from Bridgeport.
She missed Tanner most of all.
~<>~
Skye smiled at her sister, and tried to be happy for her. Well, she was happy for her, really. It was just so painful to see Luna pregnant with her second child, when Skye still hadn't been able to have one. Month after month, year after year of trying, and still no baby of her own to hold.
"So, would you want to go shopping for baby stuff with me? I gave most of Trevor's stuff away, I didn't think I would need them again, but with this baby due any day now, I really should get some things for the baby."
Skye's smile faltered, but she bolstered it up. Her sister needed her, and she wanted to be there for her. Skye still felt so badly that she had been so wrapped up in her own life, she had failed to see what Luna was going through. "Sure Luna, I would love to."
Luna heaved a huge sigh of relief. "Thank you! You know how much I hate shopping! We could make it a sister day and go see a movie or something too." Luna suggested. "Unless, you're doing something with Hawk?" Luna envied her sister sometimes, she had the perfect relationship. Skye had managed to not royally mess up her life, unlike Luna.
Skye rolled her eyes. "Hawk is out looking for ingredients for his potions, he'll be tramping in the mud and the muck for the rest of the day, so I'm free. What movie should we see?"
"Hmm, well there's that new one with Matthew Hammond, maybe we could see that one?"
Skylar agreed. "That sounds like fun."
Luna made a face. "Other than the shopping part anyway."
Skye chuckled. "It's not that bad Luna. Besides, shopping for babies is a lot of fun, all those adorable outfits! And best of all, showing every single baby item that we buy off to the guys." They both giggled. Skye asked, "Who do you think will bail first?"
Luna pretended to think about it. Then they both said at the same time, "Jack!"
Jack was more interested in bot talk than baby talk.
Jack still didn't have a girlfriend, he only mumbled he was much too busy working on important life changing projects to go out on a date. Skye was sure that girls just scared him, so he retreated behind his scientist facade. He did have a penpal that was female though, she traveled all over the world and sent him post cards.
Skye caught him once with a waste basket full of crumbled papers, a clean sheet of paper in front of him, pen in hand, muttering to himself. She had offered to help him out, but Jack had turned a deep red color, and told her no thanks, he didn't need any help. She hadn't even known that her brother could blush!
It had really made her curious about who he was writing to. She had only managed to see a first name on the envelope though, Maxine, before Jack had shooed her away. Sometimes Jack was as closed mouthed as their father.
None of them knew, even now, all these months later, what had happened while their dad was in Bridgeport. Only that Devin Winter had suddenly disappeared. A massive search effort by police and volunteers had ensued, with no results. He had simply vanished without a trace.
Skye wondered a great many things, but she kept her silence. She had noticed that Luna had visibly relaxed and smiled more once Devin was completely out of the picture. Some things she just didn't want to know, and besides all that, she found her husband's reaction to it all amusing.
It was a bit mean of her, but her inner prankster couldn't help it. She knew that he had nothing to worry about, but he sure didn't. She grinned to herself.
"What a mischievous expression you have." Her sister observed. "Care to share?"
Skye laughed. "Maybe later. We better get going if we're going to see a movie too."
~<>~
Unlike Trevor who had decided to be born in the middle of the night, this baby chose the middle of the day.
"Yeeeoooowww!" Luna hollered. There was nothing different about this pain though. It hurt! She was startled when the door flew open and Tanner ran in.
"Luna?! Are you okay?" She watched his face pale as he realized what was going on. "The baby's coming?!" He sounded as if he was in shock.
Luna panted through another strong contraction. "I forgot how much this hurts! Tanner, snap out of it, the baby's coming now! I need to get to the hospital before it's too late!"
"Too late?!" He echoed. His eyes widened. "Too late?! Aaaah, I don't know how to deliver a baby!" He panicked, and spun around in circles. "We need water right? Hot water? Oh, and towels, yes, I think I saw that in a movie once. Clean towels! Oh! A bed! Good grief Luna you can't have a baby while standing up!"
Luna smiled despite the pain she was in. "Tanner! Tanner!" She kept repeating his name.
"We'll need warm blankets for the baby! And clothes! Oh no! Does the baby have any clothes?! And it's messy right?! We'll need lots of washrags. And scissors, isn't that how you cut the umbilical cord? Oh! They'll need to be sanitized! Where's the rubbing alcohol? Do you even have any rubbing alcohol?!"
"Tanner! We need car keys!"
He stopped for a moment and stared at her, confused. "Car keys? Car keys?!"
She loved him. Really loved him. Despite how upset he was with her, whenever she needed him, he was there. He didn't know if the baby was his or not, but he had told her it didn't matter, that either way the baby still needed a father. That he already felt like Trevor's father, and he would be more than happy to father this one as well.
She wished she had seen it earlier, seen that all she had ever needed in a guy had been right next to her since grade school. She didn't deserve his forgiveness, but she sure hoped that someday he forgave her anyway.
"Car keys." She panted. "To drive us to the hospital to have the baby."
"Oh!" Tanner said. "Car keys! I'm on it!" He raced out the door. Luna, a little bemused, followed him out. In the state he was in, she sure hoped he didn't drive off without her!
~<>~
The sound of his grandson crying brought him out of a good nap. He yawned, and stretched, and then headed for the nursery. He had been traveling a lot lately, looking for a new place to move his family to. Midnight Hollow held too many memories, and he was convinced that they all needed a fresh start. At least he had been home when Kalen had been born.
"Hey there big guy, what's all the fussing about?" Colin smiled as he bent down to pick Kalen up.
Colin loved being a grandparent, it was way more enjoyable than being a parent. Being a parent involved hard work, and sometimes a lot of heart ache. "What do you think big guy? Eh? Should we leave this dark depressing town behind, and head for sunnier places?" Kalen gurgled and waved his arms and legs. "I agree. Sunny it is. Now to just let everyone else in on our plans."
Colin had been searching for years for the right place, the right job. Nothing had ever felt quite right though. But then he had received a phone call from Mr. Nickolas Alto the fiftieth, or whatever the h*ll he called himself. Colin had met Nick while in Bridgeport searching for that jacka*s. Turned out that Nick owned the team that Devin had played for, and knew right where to find him.
The phone call had been a job offer of sorts. The big wigs of all the wealthy families had joined together on a joint project. They had sunk trillions of dollars into restoring Sunlit Tides to it's former glory, before the war of the red eyed demons. Back to how it was when Colin's own ancestor Kona had lived there.
Nick said they were turning it into a playground for the rich and the richer, and since the Kahekilis were richer, did they want to join? it was an exclusive offer, only given because the Kahekilis had amassed a huge amount of money, and...Colin had the midas touch. Everything he touched turned to gold.
He frowned. Business wise anyway.
Personal wise, things were not always so golden. Kalen cooed, and Colin smiled at him. Then again, there were perks, and his grandkids were the best kind of perk. No matter how they came into the world.
Colin was pretty sure that Tanner was Kalen's biological father. The fae blood could have come from the Kahekili side, but Luna herself didn't possess that much of it. Luna had offered to have a DNA test done, but Tanner had rejected that idea, saying it really didn't matter to him.
Which just proved to Colin, that while no one was actually good enough for his daughters, Tanner came pretty close. He wouldn't go so far as to say he liked him, but he wouldn't mind having him for a son in law either. Too much anyway. "And maybe this new start will help your parents out too." He told Kalen. "Too many freaking bad memories here." He chuckled. "And just think Kalen, your ole grandpa here is going to be a lifeguard for the upper snobs. I can still make those bit...female dogs swoon, just you wait and see."
~<>~
Hawk brooded as he stared out the window.
He didn't understand the Kahekili way of doing things. They held a family meeting, and then voted! Voted of all things! Voted on whether they would move or not. They had all been excited about the possibility of moving to a place where it rarely rained, even his wife had been excited about it.
Hawk liked the rain. It suited him, but, he had to admit, sunshine suited his wife. He had never known someone like her, and though he had tried to fight it, he couldn't help but...admire her. She never had a bad word to say about anybody. She was always the first to volunteer to help out with charities, school projects, or whoever else might need a hand. She always managed to somehow drag him into it too.
Moving. The only objection he had heard came from Jack, who had asked what about Bob...that blasted robot that followed everyone around. Sometimes Hawk thought Jack wasn't as scattered brained as he seemed, that he set the robot to follow him on purpose, to keep him from finding the Book.
If it even existed. Hawk had to wonder. In all the years he had lived in the house, he had poked and prodded every nook and cranny, and never found a thing. Was his mother wrong? He shuddered. His mother.
She would need to be told. Told they were moving elsewhere. She had been pushing him to rape the other sister, who obviously was more fertile than the one he had chosen, but he had refused. Reminded her that she had promised to do this his way, and his way, it would remain. No matter how long it took.
She had not been happy about it. In fact, she had been furious, but he had stood firm. He was not interested in rape, nor was he interested in seducing the other girl, she held zero appeal to him. Only Skylar held his attention. His wife drew him in ways he had been unprepared for.
He now knew the secret to why Ivory had turned. He knew what it was about the Kahekilis that changed her, and why his mother could never understand it. Love. While they had been raised separately from each other, he knew that neither he nor Ivory had ever received that from his mother. He had even scoffed at the notion of it, as he had been taught. It made you weak and pathetic, and in some ways it did. He now had something to lose. Someone to lose.
All of that he had realized last night as he watched his wife sleep. She was simply beautiful, inside and out. That awareness in him now, that somehow she had wormed her way into a heart he hadn't even known he had, was dangerous. His mother would know immediately, know that he had been compromised, and then...it didn't bear thinking about.
He knew who she would go after first, and it would not be him. No, it would be Skylar, because he loved her, and his mother destroyed anything that he had ever loved. Including his own father, so he had simply stopped loving things, people, pets, anything. It had been much easier that way.
He was not stronger than his mother, he knew that. Knew in a power against power match, he would lose. But his son on the other hand, he knew what the prophecy spoke of. Knew the kind of power that would run through his child's blood. The old Camulodunum magic mixed in with the fae, mixed in with his own djinn powers, and the little bit of his mother's powers that he carried within him, his child would be truly powerful.
Powerful enough to defeat his mother. To defeat the one thing she wanted more than anything. Seemingly overnight, though he knew in reality it had been coming for a while now, Hawk's plans had totally changed. Instead of teaching his child to hate, to use his power for ill, Hawk would teach him how to defend himself. How to defend those he loved.
What to tell Skye? That was the question, and the reason for him to stand, brooding, watching the rain fall from the sky. If he told her now who he was, he would lose her. His mother would know that he had failed. She would know why he had failed, and his Skye would be sent to that awful place, where he could only hope that she died quickly. He would be forced to conceive a child with Luna, and once that child was born, if they were lucky, they would be killed.
If he waited, until they had a child, well, that had it's own trouble. He could not hide his identity forever, his mother would force the issue eventually. What he needed now was time, and he hoped against hope that when Skye did find out, she would be merciful.
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Notes: Eventually I'll go into more detail about what happened in Bridgeport, but Luna is not ready for it, so you all will have to wait, lol :P I will say though, Devin will no longer be a problem. I will not miss him at all, he ended up being more awful than I originally planned on.
What? Has Hawk really changed? Yes, in the same way that Ivory changed, so it is permanent. He has himself in quite a pickle though, one he didn't see coming, lol At some point, Raven will come, it is inevitable. Hawk knows her better than anyone, and he is going to do all that he can to protect his family. Yes, she is stronger than him.
In game he is a genie (called djinn in story cause it sounds cooler)/witch mix. Raven is witch/vampire mix, and Hawk's father was a genie. I've never done much with genies yet, and decided this was a good time to try them out. He does look pretty cute while he's doing his genie idle thing:
Aaand---yes I moved them again. To Sunlit Tides, where this legacy first started. I sort of liked the idea of ending it where I had started it, all that full circle stuff, lol
Luna has some stuff to work through, that she couldn't possibly do on her own. So she's seeing a counselor, it will be a long, lifelong process, but she's on her way. I know, I know, about time, lol
As for Tanner and Luna---well, we'll see what happens. ;)
Thanks for reading! And for leaving comments, I always enjoy reading those. If anyone has a question, ask away, and if I can, I'll answer it. Some of it I might have to say, sorry---spoiler! Haha!
