Title: My Christmas Wish
Category: Fanfiction
Subcategory: TwiW
Characters/Pairing: Quil (both V and VI)
Rating: K+
Genre: Family
Words: 2521
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
AN: I wrote this for the Tricky Raven winter wonderland contest (actually started it for the TR Christmas contest LAST year, and finally finished it up in time for this year). Just a feel-good Christmas story, a little bit late ;)
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My Christmas Wish
"Come on guys, you know Santa's not real."
Every wolf both inside the house and out immediately froze in their tracks. Their mates looked around in confusion, rolling their eyes when the wolves hushed their questions.
Out in the trees, Paul turned and nipped Quil's side, chastising the father of the oldest wolf cub. He clearly hadn't been keeping a good eye on Six, and now the little ones were paying the price for his boy's verbal gaffe.
Ow! Dang, Paul! What'd you do that for? I'm not the one who said it! Quil was trying to hide his embarrassment and worry—he always felt off-balance when it came to his son. The past ten years since he became a single, teenage father hadn't exactly been smooth sailing.
While his friends were busy imprinting and marking their mates, and learning to live within the pack, Quil was living large as a sixteen-year-old playboy. Then one rainy afternoon his life turned upside down. A blonde-haired girl from Forks brought him an obviously Quileute newborn baby and told him she just couldn't do it anymore.
Little Six hadn't seen his mother since then, and with Quil suddenly facing full-time single parenthood, there hadn't been many prospects for a new one. The pack families grew around them while they forged ahead with only Quil's mother and aging grandfather for guidance.
Back in Sam's yard, the pack kids had gathered around their self-appointed leader, their faces showing varying degrees of shock, disappointment, and dismay. A few, however, were angry.
Jake and Bella's little girl was standing with her hands on her hips, staring down the boy who was just a few months older than she. "Quil Ateara, you better shut your stupid mouth," she ranted, digging her dainty finger into his rather burly chest. "Why on earth would you say something so mean?"
Six ducked his head, abashed at her scathing tone. He'd recently started to notice girls, and he compared them all to Carlie Black. With her wide brown eyes and soft black curls, he was sure no other girl could ever be as pretty as his best friend.
Looking around at the younger kids who had drawn closer at his words, he began to think he'd made a mistake speaking out there. Their dads had probably all heard him, and he wouldn't be surprised if his own namesake was getting chewed out by his pack brothers. The wolves seemed to think that Quil V was directly responsible for everything Quil VI did—or everything bad at least.
Six didn't think that was always fair. He loved his dad, and he knew Quil did the best he could. He didn't have things easy while his boy was growing up. All the other pack kids had a mom and dad working together, but Quil had to do it by himself.
Thinking about that brought Six back to his original statement. He looked down at Carlie and shook his head, trying to keep the tears back that always came when he thought about his biological mother. "He can't be real, Carlie. I've only asked for one thing every year, and he's never brought it. Not once."
Levi Uley herded the younger kids back inside and came over to talk some sense into his friend. Levi had his mother's quiet compassion paired with his father's level head, and he usually worked as a mediator when Six and Carlie were at odds.
"Look, I don't know what your problem is, but I don't see how you can't believe in Santa," Levi stated quietly, his dark eyes glowing with surety. "I mean, our dads and aunt are literally magic—they change from human to wolf! Are flying reindeer really that much of a stretch?"
"Yeah," Carlie chimed in, ready to press her case. "You know our parents aren't rich—the rez isn't exactly Park Place. But every year we get toys just as nice as the kids in Forks, and new clothes and shoes to go with them! How else can you explain it if it's not Santa?"
Inside the house, Jacob let out a growl, pulling his Bells close at the reminder of the Cullens' lingering influence years later. She hadn't wanted to take the money they pushed on her after the newborn battle, but she'd finally accepted it on behalf of the tribe. With the hefty interest it earned, she urged the council to help out the young families at Christmas, making sure no child would be left hungry or wanting.
Bella kissed him softly before turning back to the salad she was making. Thanksgiving dinner for the pack was no small affair, and whatever drama had the boys occupied was not enough to stop the women from their work.
Back in the yard, Six looked at his friends, and then lowered his voice as he glanced toward the trees where he knew his dad was out patrolling. "He can't be real," he whispered, trying not to be overheard by the sensitive ears nearby. "If he was real, he would have brought me a mom by now. It's been ten years."
Paul caught Quil just before he cleared the trees, pulling the wolf back and telling him to wait. Six didn't need his dad right then.
Carlie looked at her friend with new eyes, surprised by the tears she was seeing. Six was not one for dramatics, and if anyone would be crying it was usually Levi, or one of the younger kids. Six was just like his father—always ready with a joke and a smile. His tears let her know he was serious.
Stepping closer, she put her arms around her stocky friend and hugged him tight. She didn't have the words to reassure him, but she decided that she had a request of her own for Santa. Six needed a mom.
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While Quil Ateara may have been irresponsible in his youth, he had grown into a man that anyone would be proud to know. Charlie Swan sure was.
The chief had given Quil a nudge toward the police academy as soon as he graduated high school, promising the boy a position with the Forks police force. It turned out to be the perfect profession for Quil.
Driving the last of his round on Christmas Eve, however, Quil wasn't thinking about his career. For the past month or so, Six had become increasingly withdrawn and uncharacteristically quiet. Quil was worried about his boy, but he didn't have the foggiest idea how to help him.
Flashing hazard lights up ahead drew his eye to a car parked on the side of the road. Even with his enhanced eyesight, it was hard to make out the details of the vehicle through the heavy falling snow.
Quil turned on his own lights and pulled over behind the stranded car, thankful for his unnaturally high body temperature as he stepped out into the frigid air. He pulled out a flashlight for the humans' benefit as he stepped up to the driver's side window.
Tapping on the glass, he took a step back as the driver rolled down the window. As the heated air drifted out, an intoxicating scent came with it. Quil shuddered with pleasure as he inhaled deeply.
"Hey! Are you a real cop? 'Cause Nana said cops are good and they can help us, but Daddy don't like cops. Is that a real gun? Do you shoot bad guys with that gun? Can you turn your siren on? Does it go 'whew, whew, whew, whew'–"
"Okay, Claire. That's enough, honey. Let the man speak." The softer voice soothed Quil like a calm summer shower.
He bent down to look into the car and met the brightest pair of brown eyes he'd ever seen. Something about those eyes and the heart-shaped face that framed them looked familiar to him, though he couldn't place where he might have seen them.
The little girl looked to be about two or three years old, and she wriggled in her mother's lap attempting to reach Quil through the cracked window. "I'm Claire," she announced, holding up three chubby fingers. "And I'm this many!"
Quil couldn't hold back his chuckle, completely charmed by the tiny girl. But he knew he had a job to do, so he shook his head and glanced past the girl to the woman holding her.
He couldn't see her face, set deep in the shadows of the small car. Not wanting to hurt her eyes by shining the light directly into the window, he settled for pointing the flashlight toward his own face as he spoke. "I'm Officer Ateara. Are you ladies having some car trouble?"
The woman nodded, hugging Claire tight. "Yes, I was trying to reach my sister's house, and we got a flat tire," she explained, as one hand stroked smoothly down the child's back in what Quil guessed was an attempt to soothe them both.
"Well, if you'll pop the trunk I can get your spare put on so you can be on your way," Quil offered, already turning toward the back of the car.
The opening door startled him, and he watched transfixed as the petite woman stepped out, shifting Claire to her hip as she did so. Her hair hung in a long black curtain, flowing down past her slender hips. She ducked her head, allowing her hair to fall over one side of her face, and she never quite raised her eyes high enough to meet Quil's.
"Don't bother—I already checked. The spare is flat, too."
Mind working quickly, Quil pulled his phone out and had his alpha dialed before she finished speaking. "Hey, Jake, can you or Embry bring the truck and meet me out on 101, just before the turn to the rez? We need a tow."
As he hung up, the woman spluttered her refusal, trying to tell him he shouldn't go to the trouble, and she had no way to pay for the tow. Quil held out his hands in supplication and shook his head with a gentle smile. "It's no trouble, and no charge. My friends and I look out for each other. Now, can you tell me where you're headed so I know where to bring you?"
Quil was stunned when the woman immediately burst into tears. She sagged back against the side of her car, still holding her daughter tight. Quil looked on helplessly as Claire hugged her mother, patting her hair with one small hand. "It's okay, Mommy. See? Auntie Em was right—the police is nice! He can help!"
At the mention of her name, it all came back to Quil. He had seen this child before, and probably the woman as well—in the pack mind. Taking a chance, he ventured, "Are you Lily? Emily's sister?"
The shock brought her eyes up finally, and Quil never knew what hit him. Her eyes were unusually light, given her smooth bronzed skin. The soft sea green was mesmerizing, and startlingly similar to his own son's. As he continued to stare, however, other, more alarming details made themselves known.
A dark shadow marked her face, just below her left eye, and he could tell that the tender skin was swollen as well. No wonder she'd tried to hide behind her hair earlier.
She flinched as Quil reached up without thinking, stopping with his hand mere inches from her skin. Her face dropped in shame and he caught sight of a poorly healed gash on her forehead near her hairline. It took everything he had to suppress his growl.
In the end, it was Claire reaching across the distance to take his hand. She confirmed that her momma was in fact named Lily Young, and they were on their way to see her Aunt Emily, but it was a surprise. Quil realized it was probably more of a last minute escape than a surprise visit, but he didn't say a word as he helped the girls into his patrol car.
Lily gradually relaxed as Quil and Claire talked, and she even smiled when Quil pulled up pictures of Six on his phone. Claire thought that Six was the silliest name she'd ever heard, but Lily looked thoughtful as he explained the line of Quils in his family.
When Jacob arrived with the tow truck, he took in Quil's gleaming smile and protective stance in an instant. "Congrats," he told his oldest friend quietly as they set about hooking up the disabled car. "I'm happy for you."
Quil smiled and nodded, bouncing with excitement as the time grew closer to take Lily and Claire home to La Push.
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One year later
"Six, can you reach those last few cans of green beans for me?" Even after months of cooking for the pack, it was still hard for Lily to believe how much the wolves could eat when they all got together.
"Sure thing, Mom!" At age eleven, Six already had almost two inches of height on Lily, and seemed to be growing right before her eyes. Those eyes filled with happy tears as she watched him stretch to retrieve the cans she needed. She felt so lucky to have found both her boys.
Right on cue, two hot arms wrapped around the nearly invisible swell of her belly, and she leaned back contentedly against her big teddy bear. When she met Quil the previous Christmas, she was a mere shell of the woman she would become under his gentle care and attention. While she had planned to stay with her sister, there wasn't much extra room in the Uley house, and everyone was concerned that her ex—Claire's father—would come looking for her.
The Atearas offered her Old Quil's little house, since the elder had moved back into the family home several years earlier. The two room cabin was perfect for Lily and Claire, and in that little house she slowly regained her confidence and fell deeply in love with her jovial wolf.
Her love for Six didn't take quite as long to develop as her love for Quil. Six had her heart the first time their matching green eyes met that cold Christmas Eve. As loved as he was by his family and the pack, he had a huge hole in his heart just waiting for a mother to fill it. And if there was one thing Lily knew, it was how to be a mom.
Once she accepted the imprint, their little family melded together perfectly. And now it was growing by one more. They would share the news of their new baby on the way at the Pack Christmas dinner that evening.
"Here you go. Need anything else, Mom?" Six had only begun to call Lily 'Mom' a few weeks before, but once he started he rarely passed up a chance to use her new title.
Watching Six put the cans into the buggy, then bend down to lift Claire up, making her laugh with delight, Lily shook her head fondly.
"No, I think I have everything I need right here."