Puppies for Vanilla Mortals

by Lady Channta

This story was inspired by an RPG role playing game based on the Dresden Files. Every name is either a character a friend of mine played or an NPC non player character . Teca and Elle are my characters.

While lying in the long grass, Teca watched the clouds float lazily by. Alex was stretched out next to her his dark fur drying from his previous splash and swim in the stream. It was a warm early spring day and the insects weren't quite out yet. A breeze blew some hair across Teca's face, and she looked next to her. The large charcoal wolf met her eyes, as she gazed back at him and marveled at the intelligence that lay behind the black eyes that bore in to her soul. He blinked and gave a large wolfish grin. Thinking back on the day brought a smile to the woman's face. It started with good morning kisses with both varieties, the sloppy wet kind and the kind that involved stubble and a murmured 'good morning'. The sloppy wet ones had come from her dog, who was half Alaskan Malamute half wolf. His name was Kota, and had come in to her life quite by accident. About three years ago, Teca found him being terrorized by a group of rowdy boys. She told them off and rescued the small puppy with large paws. Ever since then he has been a constant companion and best friend. The kisses with stubble came from her sweetheart, Alex.

Alex just so happened to be a werewolf. Not one that needs a full moon and it doesn't take silver to kill him, that's a different kind all together. He just as mortal as the next guy, but just learned a small piece of magic that turns him in to a wolf. There was a darker time in Alex's life where he was something called a hexenwolf. Alex had once had a talisman turned him in to a wolf, and through usage he started to loose his humanity. He had started to become more beast than man, and made deals with people who ended up enslaving him. Somehow he found his way out of that world of hate and agony. By a great strength of will he gave up his talisman and started to walk away from that life. The life he found after all that was different and the people he met changed his out look on life.

Their morning started the way most of their mornings did with the clamor of an old fashioned wind up alarm clock. Alex slapped it to stop the onslaught of noise, kissed Teca, then went to get his shower. When clean he came back to the room to get dress. By this time Teca had gotten up as well, grumbling her greetings to the day. They cooked breakfast together, while their house mates Guinevere and Harry went through their morning exercises out in the back yard. While the other house mates, Lucas and Persephany, were downstairs still sleeping and would be for a few more hours. It was around five in the morning, sometime in March. The sun wasn't up yet, but the birds were awake and singing. It was a Saturday and Alex and Teca had nothing planned for the day. When their breakfast was finished they went for their daily run. Teca loved running, it was the only time during the day where her thoughts were her own and could wander as far as they liked. Alex loved it just for the mere sense of speed and physical activity, and Kota loved it because it was an activity that his humans included him in. As they ran they decided that a ride on the Harley would be in order for the day.

They rode all through the Black Hills, enjoying the warm spring day, and the warm air against their faces. The snow had all melted and signs of new growth were everywhere. They pulled over at a trail head and hiked for a while. Alex went behind a clump of trees and tall bushes and changed out of his cloths, right down to his skin, and in to a wolf with a few murmured words. His fur matched his hair, which was black and very long. He normally kept it in a ponytail, Teca loved his hair and enjoyed brushing it for him. He came out of the bushes with his cloths in his mouth, he trotted up to Teca, who put his clothing in the saddlebags on the bike. Alex loved the feeling of his fur about as much as he loved long rides on his Harley. He had once tried to explain to Teca just how good it felt, and the best he could come up with was "Freedom, complete and utter freedom."

Together they started down the trail, Alex trotted happily by Teca's side. When they had first met he had been a little hesitant to let her know what he could do. And when she found out, instead of turning away from him in horror she squeed and almost fell in love right there. She didn't think it was odd, in fact she was delighted. Teca had her own gift that had recently awoken in her. The people around Teca have always felt she was special, even if they couldn't put it to words. It was like she was touched by power, and had the potential for great things. Teca's gift was the ability to "hear" the thoughts of canines and those who shared a canine spirit.

Over the last year and a half that Alex had been in Teca's life, their bond of friendship blossomed in to something deeper. They were in a way dating, but Teca just saw it as spending her time with someone who meant the world to her. When Alex first met her, she was trying to cope with her past. She had lived a violent horrific life, and had been running from it for years. Alex had tried his hardest to awaken the silent strength that he saw in her. Although she was battered and scarred, he saw a fiery passion that burned deep with in her. And it took him the better part of a year to bring that fire to the surface. Now that fire burns bright and fills Teca with a confidence that hadn't been there the year before. It amazed him just how much she grew, she had come in to his life a wounded scared girl and made her own transformation in to a strong confident woman. A woman that he found very easy to be near. They used to exchange 'I love you's, but now they rarely said it. There was no need for it to be spoken, when they both could feel it through the telepathic link they shared.

The trail brought them close to a stream that ran through field. The stream was deep and flowed swiftly fed by the ice and snow melting off the mountains. Alex took off and jumped in to the stream, sending his delight to Teca. She laughed as she watched the wolf swim around and try and bite the water. He invited her in claiming the water was just a little brisk, but she turned him down, content to stay on land and dry. When done playing in the water he got out and shook himself dry, he made sure he was far enough away that Teca wouldn't get too wet but would be hit with some of the water. When she got hit with the icy cold droplets she chased the wolf around the field, sharing her feeling of joy and playfulness. Her laughter seemed to ring off the mountains around them.

Tired of chasing him, she plopped down in the tall grass and stretched out. Alex came and joined her, the sun warmed his dark damp coat and it felt good. He could feel the sun's warmth touch his skin which made him sigh in contentment. They laid there together for about half an hour, just watching the clouds and enjoying the wind's caresses. When Alex's coat was nearly dry, he shifted back to his human form. When he shifted it looked like mist engulfed him, reshaped, and cleared away with him in a different form. And it was the same this time as it had been before. He rarely changed forms in front of any body, Teca included. It wasn't that it bothered him, it was just when he shifted he was naked. Not many people want to see that, but Teca didn't mind. When she looked at him, she felt heat race to her face. Even though they had been with each other for over a year, they never went further than heavy petting and making out.

The reason for that was her past. Teca was still deeply scarred by what had been done to her at the hands of her father. Though, she felt the word 'father' wasn't accurate, she preferred 'genetic donor' instead. Her genetic donor was no longer in her life, and never would be again. He wasn't dead, and she hoped he lived a long life, but there were so many worse things than death. What he was living through was by far worse than death. Somewhere around nine months ago John, Teca's father, had willingly entered in to a contract with the Winter Court.

The Winter Court is one of the courts of Faerie. They are cold and cruel, and at times murderous their land through the Nevernever was forever frozen. Queen Mab was the winter queen, and now owned the life of John Running-Mouse. There are two courts of of the unseely courts. The Summer Court could be just as cruel but they hid their cruelty behind a softer, warmer facade. Trolls, gruffs, pixies, and some sprites are all members of either court, there has always been members of the Fae who chose not to side with either court, these are known as the Wyldfae. The Nevernever is a realm that is parallel to our own and is where the Fae live. When they want to and are strong enough, the fae can cross over from one realm to the other. The same can be done with mortals but a talent for the arcane is needed and the will power to pull it off.

Before she could lapse in to embarrassment Alex caught her lips in a kiss, and held her close against him. As she grew comfortable with the kiss, he deepened it. Their tongues, shyly on Teca's part, played with each other and their breath mingled. Soon passion swept through her, and where they would normally stop, she kept going. Her hands moving along his broad well muscled shoulders and back, her fingers curled themselves in to his long hair and her breathing started to come out as pants. Soon he got her tee shirt off to reveal a blue sports bra. He could feel her need through their link, her need mixed with his own and soon he was finding it hard to think clearly. All he knew was her, and her desire for him. Soon they were both naked, and enveloped with in each other. Where the lines between one thought process ended and the other began blurred. Where she inhaled it was he who exhaled, and when he blinked it was her eyes that closed.

They moved together, and after a moment they laid together panting. Sweat glistened on his chest, and little love bites were starting to show some color on Teca's collar bone and neck. Amazement was the only thing she felt, never in her life had she imagined sex to be anything but painful and frightening. Slowly the realization of what they had just done started to settle in to Teca's thoughts, and the blushes started to color her cheeks again. He allowed her to feel his happiness and how relaxed he was, he pulled her close and spooned with her. Their bodies soaking up the warm spring sunlight, and gooseflesh erupted on her arms and chest when a chill breeze brushed against her bare skin. "Thank you" was the only coherent thing that Teca could think. Soon she shivered and moved for her abandoned clothing. He watched her move, his eyes tracing over her olive skin, and over her scars.

He remembered the first time he saw her scars. She had gone swim suit shopping with Elle, a dear friend of Teca's, and the manic goth convinced the timid Teca to buy a two piece string bikini. She even convinced Teca to go out side to the pool with out a cover up. Elle had been her best friend since Teca had moved to Rapid City, South Dakota in middle school. From day one Elle clung to Teca and soon they become the best of friends. When she had come out side with her friend, Alex remembered how she tried to cover her scars with her arms. She had scald burns that covered the majority of her stomach and across part of her breasts, they were heaviest on the right side. What shocked Alex, was when she turned around and he saw her back. It was covered with a lattice of belt marks. Each scar painfully pale against her naturally tan skin. He remembered how his heart ached to see the evidence of her childhood, and he remembered the anger that flared and was aimed at her father.

Teca turned and caught Alex staring at her. He smiled and remarked at her beauty, he felt her swell with pleasure and a hint of pride at the compliment. Since the day he first saw her scars he has made it a point to tell her how much he enjoys looking at her body. At first she didn't believe that he could find her attractive, but slowly over time she learned to accept the words as true. His honest admiration also helped her feel less ashamed of what was left behind as a reminder. She pulled her shirt down and smiled, which was not missed by Alex. He watched her get her pants on, smirking to himself as she hopped a few steps. While Teca's back was turned he shifted back to wolf, and came up and leaned against her. She reached down and scratched him behind his ears, through their link he conveyed his pleasure as "Oh, yeah." His eyes drooped and his jaw slacked open, his tongue lolling in and out. Loudly her stomach rumbled, and Alex's ears picked up the abdominal protest. He turned from her and started to trot back towards the trail. Together they walked back to the Harley, and once there Teca got his clothing from the bike and set them behind the same clump of greenery that he had used before. Soon she heard him getting dressed, and he emerged fully dressed and hair slightly mused. Teca came up to him and hugged him, slowly finger combing his long black hair. He bent down and caught her lips with his, then held her closer to his body. Hair forgotten, her fingers fell limp as she started to loose her self in the kiss. He smirked at her as he broke her spell, and pulled his hair back neatly in to a single tail. He got the bike rumbling to life and Teca climbed on behind him. She barely had time to wrap her arms securely around his middle before they took off.

The telepathic link between the two always came in handy during bike rides, when the engine was too loud to talk to each other. As they rode on the twisting roads that ran through and around the mountains, they discussed what they should do for dinner. The sun was starting to set, the sky was painted varying shades of red and blue as the flaming disk that is the sun sidled down behind the hills. They agreed on the Alpine Inn in Hill City, since that town was closer. Fifteen minutes later they found a parking space not far from the restaurant and walked hand in hand towards the building. When seated Teca got up to wash her hands, and as she walked towards the restroom Alex's eyes followed the gentle sway of her hips. While she was gone, he thought of the day and of what she allowed him to do. He wondered if maybe she had healed enough that he could stop being so careful with her. Alex wanted nothing more than to have her completely healed, but on the same note he didn't want to scare her either. Any other time they'd get close and Teca would stop on her own volition. He never pushed her to go further than she wanted to, and had be very patient with her progress. A smile passed across his lips when she came back from the ladies room.

They ordered and chatted through out dinner, Teca was feeling a little shy and tried hard to hide it from him. Through their link he could feel the slight under current of her emotions, but left it alone. They rode home in silence, the night air was getting slightly chilled. They both had on leather jackets, and Alex wore leather chaps over his jeans. He had wiped out on his bike before, and the road burn just wasn't worth it. The stars winked above and the full moon was just starting to peak over the Hills. It caused a soft glow and lightly illuminated the road that curved and wound around and through the mountains. The Harley was one of the things that helped Alex walk away from his hexenwolf talisman, it is on his bike that he feels the most free. Where the troubles of the world can melt away and leave in its wake peaceful joy. The rides almost held a sacredness to him, and Teca felt very lucky that he included her on random rides like today's. Soon they arrived back at the house, and he helped her off the bike.

The house was ablaze with laughter when the couple walked in. Lucas was for the most part their resident bard. He wasn't just a musician but a good story teller as well. It seemed to Teca, that Lucas knew every song ever written. This, of course, wasn't exactly true, what was true was that he did have an extensive memory for any thing musical. He was sitting in front of the fireplace telling a story to the family. Not one of them shared a drop of genetics, but they might as well have been. Harry and Guinevere were playing with their three month old twins, and Persephany was fluffing air around the babies faces which earned her toothy grins from both kids. That was Persephany's gift, wind magic. She could adhere her will to the air around her, and over the last year her control over it increased dramatically. A wizard is normally what some one of her, Lucas', and Guinevere's talent would be called. Technology normally wouldn't work well around wizards, and when looking around the house there was nothing newer in the house than 1960. They had a gas stove, and an icebox. They had electricity wired through out the house, but it was rarely used. Most any light bulb or anything you'd plug in would die a slow and horrible death. Somehow Guin had figured out a ward that went around the hot water heater, and allowed them to have hot water.

Alex went to go change out of it his riding chaps, and Teca settled down on one of the couches. Having been left home all day, Kota came up and started to tell her about his day. He was very happy to see her, and even happier to smell her to see where she had been. Shortly after he settled down on top of her feet and her sweetheart had come out to join them. He settled down next to her, and they seemed to melt in to each other. The twins were having a blast, but too soon for their liking it was bed time. When Harry and Guin had taken them upstairs you could hear the children fuss as they were laid down. They didn't fuss for long, and Harry's gentle voice could be heard drifting down the stairs. Lucas picked up his guitar and strummed along with the Knight's lullaby. The mood in the house started on a calmer note. Once the twins had fallen asleep, their parents came down the stairs and settled down again. Lucas started to play quietly, working on a new song, and everybody else settled in to their own books. Nine o'clock came and Teca kept finding her self yawning in to her book. Alex also could feel her mental barriers start to droop and fade, and her emotions were a little clearer for him to feel.

Not being able to keep her eyes focused, Teca headed to bed but first stood and stretched. The half wolf stood up too, following the nightly ritual. She let him out side, then went and changed in to some sleep cloths. By the time she had changed, the puppy was ready to come back in. Once in he'd then made his nightly rounds of the family to get the last pet of the night. Alex got up and while Teca was brushing her teeth, he changed in to a pair of sweatpants. Then switched places, but while he brushed she made the bed. This was something Teca always did, she loved sliding in to a freshly made bed, but normally wasn't awake enough to make the bed in the morning. Once made she stripped down to just a tee shirt and panties, and slid in to bed. She sighed as the cool cotton settled around her body, and for a moment Teca just laid there and enjoyed the sensation. Alex came in and snuggled up with her, he didn't care if the bed was made or not, he just enjoyed being able to lay down and relax. They cuddled up together, laying so that they could kiss. They made love again, and fell asleep with their naked bodies intertwined with each other.

Life in the house continued as it normally did, and time passed with out notice. Teca and Alex started to add 'naps' to their daily work out, but always made sure to use a condom. Harry started to make a tree house in the back yard, that would be ready long before the twins could enjoy it. Later that week Elle, another house mate and Teca's best friend, came home from a week long training. Elle was a First Lieutenant officer in the Army National guard, stationed at Camp Rapid. She was also a nurse and was qualified to work on both the field and with in a clinic. She stood five in a half feet tall and preferred the style of the goths, but had a personality that was chipper and cheerful. Back in middle school Elle had met Teca and from that day on they have been best friends. The goth medic also had a few gifts as well. Elle could see disjointed fragments of the future, but when she would tell anyone they normally have a hard time accepting what she says as true, this is called Cassandra's Tears. Her other gift is called Psychmentry, this is where she will see a very brief history of an object that she touches with her bare skin. It ranges from that last person who had touch that items to where it came from. She had to always make sure to wear gloves at all times, if she touched too many things with out them she'd get a splitting headache.

With Elle home, there was rarely a quiet moment. It wasn't that Elle was a loud person, she just had a habit of causing a commotion no matter where she went. It would sometimes feel like some one had turned the energy up to nine when she would walk through a room. The weather started to get warmer and soon warm enough to fill the pool in the backyard. Every morning, Elle would wake up at four and swim laps for about an hour, Harry and Guinevere would fence while the goth swam. They would practice much more than fencing, and would use different kinds of swords than just foils. On a normal day, Guinevere and Persephany would work around the house and get some chores done. Harry would work in the backyard on the tree house. Elle normally worked during the day either at her desk or in the clinic on base. Lucas was more of a drifter and would roam from home to his friend's place and back. His friend's name was Griff and he would sometimes come over and jam out with Lucas and sometimes Elle. Elle had a garage band named the Elle-phants. Alex and Teca normally started their day with a brisk two mile run. Every one in the house was learning a form of self defense of one form or another. Before lunch Harry, Alex, and Elle when she was home, would rotate and train Teca.

One nearly hot day in early April, Elle and Teca were fighting in the back yard. Both women dodged and weaved their fighting styles changed and shifted, never staying with just one style. Once in a while Elle would land a blow and send her near sister flying. The fighting style Harry and Alex had started her off on was one that used a lot of tumbles and extreme flexibility. She could be literally thrown a few feet and she would roll as she landed and come out on her feet. Her movements were very feline in nature. They had taught her that one first, because she seemed to get knocked down a lot when she first started. Now that base foundation had saved her skin a few times, and made her hard to get a hold of. She may not be able to hit with a lot of force, but someone wouldn't be able to catch her if she didn't want to be caught. Alex watched the two women dance around the backyard with pride. His sweetheart had learned a lot and had become one of the better fighters, still by no means the best, but her improvement amazed him. Half way through, the Native American woman paused one hand fluttered to her stomach, and Elle landed a kick to the very same spot. It threw her back and she promptly rolled to her side and was sick. Both Elle and Alex were over to her as fast as they could.

"Teca, I didn't think you'd let me kick you. Are you alright?" The goth helped her friend up. Alex came up and wanted to know why she had paused and if she was ok. She coughed and tried not to dry heave.

"I'm OK, you guys. That was going to happen weather I got kicked or not." She gestured to the sick on the ground. "That's why I paused, I wasn't sure if I was going to loose it or not." Elle looked concerned and got Teca in side to rest. Teca agreed to lay down, not feeling right. Vomiting was something she rarely did, and she didn't feel sick, just a little tired and slightly dizzy. She figured it was just dehydration and upped her water intake. The rest of the day she spent playing with the twins and paying attention to her stomach, she had only gotten sick that once. The evening activities wound down and Teca went to bed early.

Sometime before the alarm clock sounded Teca got up and spent about thirty minutes hugging the toilet on the ground floor. When he woke alone, Alex gave a mental nudge to locate her. He found her pale and laying on the cool tile on the bathroom floor near the toilet. He got her a glass of water and sat with her until she felt better, which didn't take long. Once the glass of water was down, her stomach started to rumble about food. Feeling a little shaky, Teca sat at the kitchen island, with her head on her arms. Alex made her toast and she nibbled on it plain. While she picked at her toast, Alex suggested that she stay home from their morning run, she felt anger roll through her and out her mouth. This took Alex back, Teca would yell when angry but it took a lot of prodding and poking to get her to let it out. What confused him was that Teca didn't have an explosive temper, and normally things lie this would just get a shrug out of her. She sat there yelling at him, and then the anger turned to tears and she sobbed in to her arms at the island. Guin poked her head in to see what had gotten Teca riled up. The mother side of Guinevere took control and soon she was holding the sobbing woman. Alex just stood there confused, he felt her emotions and how quickly they shifted. What bothered him was that she honestly did not know why she felt the way she did or what brought on the emotional spikes. Soon the tears subsided and Teca felt normal again, she looked right in to Alex's eyes and started to apologize.

By this time Harry had come in looking for his wife and sparring partner. He found the group of them, decided not to get in to what ever it was that had taken place, and went back out side. Alex could feel Teca's confusion and guilt through their link. He came over hugged her and kissed her forehead then told her rather matter-of-factly that he loved her. And started their breakfast, he made sure Teca was up for a normal breakfast. Their meal went with out any more incidents, and the same went for their run. Alex slowed his pace in hopes that would encourage Teca to take it slow, he also made sure to stop and retie his shoes every half mile, claiming that they kept coming loose. Teca really hadn't noticed the slowed pace, her thoughts were else where, which wasn't lost on her running partner. There was something that was pulling at the back of her mind, but she just couldn't figure out what was bothering her.

It wasn't until after they had gotten home that she was able to figure out what it was. Elle came out from her room and asked loudly if Teca had a tampon she could use. She didn't respond at first, then went to grab one for her friend. On her way back she counted in her head, and realized that she was really late for her cycle. Looking for an excuse to get out of the house, she tried to start a grocery list. Only to find that Harry had gone shopping the day before and he hadn't forgotten any thing either. Finally she decided just to go the Walgreen's that wasn't too far from the house. She left the house with out a word to any one, just got in her jeep and left. Only a few minutes passed before she felt a question about her location and well being from Alex. She didn't respond at first, not sure how to answer. Lying to him was out of the question, but she was a little scared to actually say what she was up to. When she did respond she chose to tell him something close to the truth. She told him that she wanted to get some stuff at Walgreen's. By his response she could tell that he believed her and was content to leave it as it was. She bought some tampons, a take home pregnancy test, and everything she needed paint her toe nails complete with foam toe separators. She made sure to get the non digital test, knowing full well she'd get false results if any results at all, if she brought that in to the house. Teca tried not to fidget as the elderly woman rang up her items, and bagged them for her. The ride home was a little tense for her, and she couldn't help but to glance at the plastic bag on her passenger seat.

When she got home Teca threw the box of tampons at her adopted sister, then went to put the rest of her bag away in the bathroom. She put the box under the sink, and put bottles and boxes on top of it and around it, trying to hide the pink box. Then set out her pedicure kit. She sat on the counter in the bathroom and painted her toes, trying hard not to seem nervous or jumpy. She knew it was only a matter of time before Alex or Kota would pick up on her mood and alert the other. They did that to her sometimes, and would both corner her until she told them what they wanted to hear. They normally did this when she woke from a nightmare, or was upset and didn't want to say why. It was annoying but also a key point in helping her heal. Persephany came in looking for her, and nearly made Teca jump out of her skin, smearing paint across her foot. Trying to hide a guilty expression, Teca focused on cleaning off the pain from her foot. Apparently Lucas had a gig that night and everyone was going. Teca declined claiming that she just didn't feel up to being in public. She quickly asked Alex if he wouldn't mind staying home with her, with out asking why he agreed. This was working out better than Teca had hoped it would. She wanted Alex to be near by when she took the test, and wanted to tell him before she even got that far. Persephany shrugged and left her to continue on her toes.

About five minutes later Kota came snuffling in to the bathroom. His head came just below the counter, he stood on his hind legs and snuffled Teca's face. He licked her chin and part of her neck, she could feel his love seeping over the link that she shared with all canines. Teca tried to smile and scratch the back of his jaw and ears with enthusiasm. She could tell he didn't buy it, he got off the counter and trotted out of the bathroom. When nothing happened she started to clean up. Someone knocked on the door frame moments later, Teca looked up and found Alex standing there. He looked calm and relaxed, and he just looked at her. His hair was down and hung loose over one shoulder, it normally came to just below his shoulder blades. She tried not to look him in the eye, and tried to continue to finish up with her mess. With out a sound Alex was behind her, his arms snaked around her middle and just held her there. Teca watched him in the mirror, his eyes were a dark brown and always reminded Teca of chocolate. He had a two day beard which brought out his jaw line, a scar stood out pale among the dark facial hair. It wasn't big and normally hardly noticeable, and it was one of Teca's favorite parts of his face. He bent his head down and kissed the top of her head, he closed his eyes and inhaled her scent. Silently she leaned in to him and felt a tear roll down her face, shocked she reached up to touch the damp stream on her face.

Concern colored his face and he turned her around asking what was wrong, and looked in to her eyes. He watched them well up and waited for her to answer. Not trusting her voice she explained what was occupying her mind with her telepathy. He listened and when she was finished she started to cry. Her shoulders shook, and she tried hard not to give in completely to her tears. Alex held her close to him and encouraged her to get it all out. At some point Harry knocked on the door frame and announced dinner. A silent agreement went on between the men, Harry wasn't going to say a word about this to any one until Alex or Teca gave the OK. Soon Teca calmed down and voiced her fears. The "what if's" came pouring out, she barely paused to take a breath. He said her name properly in Lakota. "Tay-cha, calm down. Everything is going to be alright, and no matter what the test says I'll be here with you. I'm not going to go anywhere, we'll face this together." As he smiled his eyes crinkled which helped to soothe the woman's nerves. He hugged her tightly encouraged her to wash her face and come join the family for dinner. Minutes later Teca came out and was able to smile if not laugh during dinner. The native woman volunteered to watch the children, so Harry and Guin could go to Lucas' gig. At first Guin said she'd stay home, but between Alex and Teca she agreed to go. Soon it was time for everyone to head out, and holding the children Alex and Teca waved from the door.

The evening passed quickly and soon it was time for bed for the little ones. They both voiced their protests to being laid down, but where soon sound a sleep. Teca rocked the little boy as he drank his bottle of his mother's milk. She felt proud holding him, and felt her heart swell as he yawn and let sleep claim him. Very carefully she put him down and moved out of the way so Alex could let the boy's sister join him. Teca shut the door and a whole rabble of butterflies erupted in her stomach and fluttered against her ribs. Questions started to bubbled up in her, but she had to force them back down. Those would just have to wait until she got her answer. It amazed Teca that having to pee on a stick was one of the scariest things she has ever had to do. She never really thought about being a mother before, and the idea of having a child now scared her silly. She really didn't have anything that took up her time.

And no longer had any financial problems, ever since Harry accepted her adoption. Among the Lakota people some one could adopt some one else as a family member, but the adopted person would from that day on be family. Just as if they had been born from the same mothers. The Knight took the adoption very seriously and shortly after she found out about his massive amounts of wealth. He told her that she would never need to worry about money again. This was still weird for her, since she had grown up dirt poor. It helped that Harry lived modestly, and stayed out of the public eye. They could have a baby and everything would be fine, money wise. That wasn't even that part that had Teca worried. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized that she didn't really know why she was so scared. Other than the fact that it would be some small little stranger's life she was going to be affecting. Suddenly Teca was aware of how young she was, 24, sure most of her class from high school were already married and or divorced and had at least one child, but Teca didn't feel like it mattered.

These thoughts were starting to run a rut in her mind. She went straight to the bathroom and bravely took the test. She set it on the counter and walked out, not even bothering to look at it. She knew it was cowardly, but a double pink line was a scary thing to her. Alex was sitting on the arm of the couch furthest from the bathroom facing her. "Well?" He asked, such a simple question and Teca couldn't answer him.

"I didn't look. I don't think I can." She hugged her self, fear was evident in her posture. He motioned for her to come to him and pulled her on to his lap. Nothing was said, but comfort was both given and received on both ends. "What do you want it to say?" She asked half whispering. He shrugged and confessed to being happy with either way. It wasn't that he didn't want to have a baby with her, it was just such a huge step. Soon he asked if she would prefer him to look for her, and she nodded in to his chest. Kota raised his head and watched Alex walk to the bathroom, he came out and couldn't help but smile and he nodded. Teca was wringing her hands, and couldn't stop fidgeting. She started to pace back and forth, each breath coming in faster than the last. An anxiety attack was starting to creep in and take over. Alex was over to her in seconds and was holding her. He rubbed her arms and tried to get her to calm down. When she didn't seem to hear him he switched to their internal link. Her thoughts were incoherent and coming only in pieces. Calm started to filter through her chaotic thoughts, wrapping around her like a soft blanket. Alex looked in to her eyes and informed her that everything was fine and she had nothing to worry about.

"Tay-cha," again he said her name correctly her eyes flickered to his. "I love you, and I have to say I'm a little excited. Yes, this is big, but baby you and I can do it. You are so compassionate and I think you will be a fantastic mother. And I can't wait to be there with you, every step of the way." Slowly her breathing returned to normal and she smiled. She knew that if he was there with her everything would turn out alright. They had already been through so much, and Teca couldn't imagine the rest of her life with out him. Now what what the question that ran through both of their heads, more predominately in Teca's. One of the twins started to fuss and cry from up stairs, to clear her mind Teca went up to see what was up. Alina, the girl of the twins was the one who had woken up. Teca got her picked up and started to gently bounce her step as she walked out of the twin's room. She didn't want her to wake her brother. They walked up and down the hall way for a bit, Alina's tears slowly stopping and soon yawns were starting to happen more frequently. As Teca walk with the little one, she thought that in nine months or so she would have her own little one to do this with. The thought pleased and scared her at the same time. When she fell back asleep, Teca gently put her back down. On her way downstairs, she felt a sense of warmth pass through her and she shared it with her sweetheart. He seemed to beam back, and emit little flashes of excitement.

The pregnancy was easier for him to accept, because as of late it had been on his mind. At the time he had tried hard not to give it much thought. As time went on he realized that his life with out Teca would seem pale in comparison. From the first day that he had, literally, ran in to her, she has always seem to draw him in. Almost like a moth to a porch light, at first he had tried to keep her at arms length. That didn't work so well, he couldn't explain it at the time but he would catch himself thinking about her. He found it almost annoying to be away from her, and when she worked at a local bakery he would find himself getting excited when her shift was getting close to ending. A few months after meeting her and being in her life as a friend he had enough and moved in to her life on a more permanent basis. What drove Teca crazy was at the time she felt like a teenage girl around him. She was a helpless romantic who fell almost immediately in love with him. Having realized what he did about Teca , made accepting the idea of a baby so much easier. He wasn't planning on settling down for a while, but he didn't mind the early change of plans.

The couple spent the rest of their evening not really talking much, once in a while Teca would blurt a question out, but they spent most of the night reading. Trying to sort out her feelings Teca wrote in her journal, and ended up writing about four pages front and back before she was too tired to focus on the page. It was around ten when she got up and started getting ready for bed. She didn't want to think any more, she just wanted to sleep and maybe things would be clearer for her in the morning. Alex watched her get up and go to bed, he let her know that he was going to wait up for the family to get home. Once the bed was made she laid in the dark just starting at the wall. Slowly she started to count her breathing and not long after was asleep. Her dreams left her feeling warn out and confused when she woke the next morning and couldn't remember much about them.

As wakefulness started to set in, Teca rolled over only to find the bed empty. Concern and a slight hint of fear crept in, with out conscious thought she sought out Alex's mind. He was in the kitchen having breakfast with every one. He let her know that he had let her sleep in and it was about nine thirty. Slowly she stood and stretched, a few of her joints popped and cracked. If she was going to be honest with her self she really wasn't feeling all that chipper. The dreams had bothered her and lingered but not enough for recollection. Teca has never claimed to be a morning person, she would tell people that she would rise but she would not shine. Normally coffee was the magical elixir that would turn her from grumpy zombie to a more or less grumpy Teca. And now she wasn't sure if she could even have coffee. Up until last year Teca had never really been near pregnant women, and Guinevere claims her pregnancy was really easy and she didn't have some of the issues that other women could.

She stumbled out to the kitchen and instead of her normal cup of joe, she sought out a tall glass of orange juice. Lucas openly stared at her, and she tried hard to ignore. She hadn't realized that that her morning coffee was something people noticed. He made some comment about it jokingly, with out a word she growled at him, then flipped him the bird as she shuffled to one of the stools around the island. This was a common sight in the mornings if any one had the pleasure of talking to her before she had at least one to six cups of java. Lucas knew she didn't actually mean it, and he had to admit she was kind of fun to pick on in the morning. Guin watched her friend as she sat down with her glass of juice. She didn't say anything, but filed some information away for a later date. This was something Guinevere did, she was a bibliophile as well as a very astute. She reminded Elle of an elephant, simply because she had an amazing memory. She paid attention to most everything some one did, not out of paranoia or malevolent intent, but just because human behavior fascinated her.

As breakfast pasted, very slowly Teca started to wake up, although her mood failed to improve. Toast, a waffle, and a piece of bacon were the only things she ate, but really that was all she was hungry for. While she ate Alex and her discussed when they should tell the family. Teca pondered this and looked at each of the members of her strange family. Teca really didn't want to say anything until they knew for sure, but Alex pointed out that he wasn't sure they could hide it for that long. Not to mention that the family might be hurt if they found out they were withholding information. So, they compromised with telling them that night at dinner, but it was up to Alex to make sure every one was there, because she didn't plan on telling them twice. He could feel her moodiness, and felt it wise to treat her as if she was having a bad month with P.M.S. He stood up, gathered her empty plate, and kissed her on her head as he walked by. Through their shared link she felt his love slowly surround her as he willed her to feel it. She caught his eye, and smiled. She was rewarded with a smile of his own, and his eyes seemed to twinkle and shine.

Teca spent her day in sweatpants and a loose tee shirt, and didn't leave the house all day. Around lunch time her stomach started to give her trouble again. Alex made her some rice cooked in some chicken broth, he figured at least that way she could get something else from it other than a way to fill her stomach. When she came and sat down at the island, he set a small bowl of it in front of her, and briefly he caught her smile. The rest of the day passed slowly in Teca's mind, and as the day went on she felt the need to move. She restlessly paced around the back ground enjoying the high 70's, and eventually decided to swim. It took her a minute to find last years swim suit, and it brought a smile to her face. It was a deep blue string bikini and Elle had convinced her to buy and wear. Every time she put it on, Alex had a tendency to follow her with his eyes. He would also randomly compliment her while in it. Sometimes Teca thought he did it solely to see her blush, but deep down it made her feel like she was glowing.

She put her suit on and looked at her self in the mirror, and realized that this maybe the last time in her life that she will ever look this good. She stood there turning this way and that, trying to see all of her near naked body in the glass. Soon she started to strike poses, that slowly became more and more provocatively. Alex stood in the door and watched her, this was the most comfortable he had ever seen her act while exposing so much skin. He slowly let her know he was there by sending a sense of arousal to her. She spun and tried to cover herself. "Don't" was all he sent to her, and showed her what she looked like to him. She looked like a pin up model, but instead of detracting from the image, her scars seemed to enhance the sexiness and beauty that he showed her. A deep crimson started to creep up her neck and across her cheeks, but felt pleased that he found her so attractive. "You are beautiful, and I have to say I like looking at you. Especially when you seem so comfortable with your self like that." He came up and held her, his hand felt really warm against her bare midsection. His thoughts became playfully lewd and made her laugh out loud, she gently slapped his wandering hand and shook her finger at him. Her mood was greatly lightened, she seemed to prance out of the room.

Kota's ears pricked up and asked about swimming. Teca found it odd that he loved to take plunges in the pool and at the stream at the dog park, but yet hated baths. She informed him that if he got in to the pool then he could not come inside until he was completely dry. He whined and considered weather or not it would be worth it. Without knowing about the conversation, Guin informed both of them that dinner would be in an hour or two, and he would not be dry enough by then. His ears drooped but he came out side anyway, and stayed close to the pool but just watched his mistress swim lazily across the cool water. The sun felt good and gently warmed her front as she floated on her back. A flick of water landed on her cheek, she looked to see who was disturbing her moment of peace. Alex stood on the side of the pool in a pair of black swim trunks with two towels hung over his shoulder, he was smirking at her and inquired if he could join her. Before she could answer she heard a loud whoop and soon was swept up in a small tidal wave, as someone cannon balled in to the pool. Elle surfaced grinning like the Cheshire cat, shrugging Alex made his way in to the water. His entrance much more dignified and a lot less dramatic than Elle's.

Elle started to swim laps but instead of moving to a side of the pool that wasn't being used, she would just swim under what ever was in her way. Teca was able to continue to float in the middle of the pool and it didn't disturb Elle in the slightest. Alex lounged against the edge of the pool, and watched both women. He could tell his that his love had a lot on her mind, and was working it out quietly as she floated under the sun. Once Alex had asked Elle why she wanted to swim laps like that. She told him that Teca was really the only person she'd do it to with out asking, and it was part of what she considered training. In the army it was something she picked up, and thought it valuable and continued to hang on to it. After a while Elle stopped swimming and floated on the water with her sister. Lazily Teca rolled to her stomach and swam sloth-like towards Alex. A smile touched his lips as he watched her lazy languid movements through the water. She swam right up to him and wrapped her legs around his middle and held on with her arms around his neck. He held her there for a little while, then gently picked her up and lightly tossed her about two feet away. She twisted under the water and came back up smiling. Guinevere came out with Alina on her hip and went over to where her husband worked. Soon she came back across the backyard stopped out of splashing range and informed the swimmers that dinner was nearly ready.

All three of them moved to get out of the pool, and dried off. When they got in to their room Teca got dressed quickly. He could feel her unease and understood why, he was starting to feel a little nervous to say the least. Her movements although graceful seemed stiff, almost like she was in pain and trying to hide it. Silently he came up and hugged her from behind. He told her to relax, she took a deep breath and when she let it out, she let some of her tension flow from her. It helped to take the edge off, allowing her to think clearly. Finally dressed he kissed her forehead and together they walked out of the room, Teca's fingers intertwined with Alex's. Feeling the warmth of his skin helped to comfort her.

An average dinner was set up buffet style along part of the counter, the family would get their food. Harry would get the twins set up in high chairs at the island while his wife would get their plates. After that it was first come first serve, but there were always left overs. Who ever cooked, normally would make enough to feed about fifteen to twenty people. What ever was left over got consumed before the next dinner. Harry had the appetite and metabolism of a teen age boy. When every one was served Teca then took her turn making herself a plate. This oddity was something that her family tried to get her to change at first, but after a while they learned why. Teca refused to go before anyone with most anything, this was part of her upbringing and culture. To be adopted, to the Lakota Native Americans, was a great honor. To show your gratefulness of that honor the adopted person would always put others before themselves. Especially with the family that brought you in as their own. This act of selflessness was something that Teca held dear. She had realized a long time ago that she was part of a dying race, and it was up to each person to try and preserve what little was left of their heritage.

Teca settled neat the edge of the island, pushing her food around on her plate. Alex stood close to her leaning up against the counter. He was about to poke her mentally, but she cleared her throat and stood up before he could. Everyone looked at her questioningly. "Um... Alex and I have something to say. We're ah..." She glanced around her family then back down at her plate. Her love came up and squeezed her hand encouragingly. After a deep breath she continued. "I'm ah, what I'm trying to say is..." Panic was started to settle in.

"What she mean's to say is that, we're going to have a baby!" His voice was excited. Everyone in the family made happy surprised noises some of them Teca was sure were words, but she really couldn't make them out. Elle was the first to give them both hugs. She enthusiastically hooted about becoming an aunty. Alex had his arm around her, more to keep her upright than anything. Guin had gotten up to hug her and to make sure she heard her congratulations. Tears started to swim through her eyes, and her bottom lip started to tremble. Not meeting her eyes Guin got her attention and asked what was wrong. Teca answered honestly,

"I don't know." Guin smiled and hugged the other woman tightly as she cried. It helped Teca feel better knowing that there was a woman here who had been through the same thing not long ago. Soon the torrent of tears stopped and dinner was able to continue. The conversation for dinner that night was centered around Teca mostly, but she watched the evening meal pass a in blur of color and sound. The whole family was excited, and after dinner Guinevere decided to call Sarah, Harry's near twin sister. She was technically born two days after he was, he always joked that she just so comfortable that she didn't want to leave yet. She lived at the house, and had a room upstairs, but she was in Edinburgh, Scotland at the time visiting the family seat. Alex pointed out that they needed to tell her aunt Claudia, Teca's only sane living relative. The only other relative Teca had was her mother, but Angela had lost her grip with sanity long ago. And was no longer aware of the world around her. Teca didn't include John, her genetic donor, and had no way of telling him the news even if she had wanted to.

After dinner Harry came up and hugged her tightly, but not nearly as tight as he normally would. She flinched and gasped in pain, her bigger younger brother looked down at her confusion coloring his eyes. Color flooded her cheeks as she covered her chest with her arms. She explained that her breasts were tender and he had hugged her too hard. Matching color tinted his face as well, and he patted her head as he walked off. Getting Harry to blush wasn't hard to do, and Elle excelled in doing it since the day she met him. He was, for lack of a better word, innocent. He could cause holly terror with most any sword or bladed weapon if he so desired, but bring up sex and he would get socially awkward. It was these traits that made Teca trust him right away when she had first met him. She found him adorable and would sometimes let him know that. They actually had frescoes and murals painted on the ceilings so when embarrassed Harry had something interesting to look at. They also found that the ceiling art was also something that would keep their kids interested once in a while. As their eyes tried to focus on the different colors.

Alex called Claudia and arranged for lunch the next day, so they could tell her the news. Teca's aunt was really the closest thing she had to a real mother. As much as Teca loved her mom, she was never very good at it, although not for a lack of trying. When Sarah was called Teca could hear her scream in excitement from across the room. Although not sure how she felt about the whole pregnancy, hearing that reaction from her sister brought a grin to Teca's face. As the night wore on, Guin had gotten out one of her pregnancy books for Teca to read. She read as much as she could before her eyes betrayed her and could no longer focus on the pages or pictures. The book was able to answer a few of her questions and put some fears to rest. Even though she could no longer focus on the book, she kept trying to comprehend it. Alex noticed his darling's difficulty, and tried to convinced her to go to bed. She didn't really want to, there was so much that she could learn from that book if her eyes would just cooperate with her. In the end she lost the battle and ended up falling asleep on the couch. The children hadn't even gone to bed yet, the day had just been very eventful and draining on her. Alex got up and gently draped a blanket over her, and decided to let her sleep there until she either woke up or he went to bed. She slept the whole time, and didn't even stir when people moved around her. Soon Alex was standing in an empty living room, the fire in the fireplace was starting to die down to embers. Before the light faded completely he carried Teca to the bed room and laid her down.

He took care of Kota, and then started to get his love bed worthy. He stripped her down to her panties and left her shirt as it was. There was no way he was going to be able to get her bra off with out waking her. When he finally got her settled in bed, he went and let the dog in. He curled up with her and fell asleep with the woman he loved in his arms. Around three thirty, Teca woke with a start. She hadn't been dreaming and wasn't quite sure what woke her. Slowly she crawled out of bed and went to the kitchen, the candle light flickered and wavered as a draft through the house played with the flame. She had brought her borrowed book with her, made a quick stop in the kitchen to eat some crackers while she read. Something she had learned from the book was although no one really knew what caused morning sickness. A prevention for it that worked moderately well was to snack on crackers before you got moving too much in the morning. Soon she heard some one moving around upstairs, and shortly after she heard heavy foot steps on the stairs.

Harry seemed surprised when he saw her up, but didn't say anything. He just came up and hugged her very gently from behind, then started to make a quick breakfast and asked if the soon to be mother wanted any. She accepted, and soon the smell of cooking meat, eggs, and toasted bread permeated through the air. Moment's later, Guinevere was heard coming down the stairs, her footsteps light on the stairs, but they squeaked in protest of her slight weight. It was nearly impossible to move quietly through the house, and would be a good challenge to any ninja wanting to try. Even when no one was moving about, the house would creak and moan as old houses do. Teca loved the house, and it's audible charms that came with it. When breakfast was ready Harry dished up plates for everyone awake, and for once he didn't cook enough to feed six armies. That was one of his faults, he had a hard time understanding what was enough and what was too much. So the house was always fully stocked on everything at all times, but food rarely went to waste. The knight still had the metabolism and appetite of a teenage boy.

The inhabitants of the house would come and go as they pleased, along with a few friends and family who did not live there but sometimes you couldn't tell. This was how Guin liked it, these people were her family and she saw her self as the mother. She delighted in having people to take care of and to love. The house was a source of laughter and a safe place to land, and she had worked very hard to get it that way. And took great pride in it, she wouldn't call her self a home maker, more of a ring leader of a circus. There were times when she just gave up on trying to ring lead and was content to just sit by and watch.

The married couple sat quietly next to Teca, and started to devour their meal. She ate slowly while her mind wandered. She thought of her life and how she had gotten to where she was, and felt a sense of pleasure at the turn of events. Maybe the pregnancy wasn't so bad, she had to admit her life was pretty sweet. She had already gone to college, and although hadn't even used her degree yet, it still gave her a feeling of pride. Finances were no longer a problem for her, and she felt like she was in a good place in her life. Although she wasn't quite sure if she was ready or wanted to settle down yet, the turn in events wasn't a bad one. Then her thoughts settled on Alex, and her heart fluttered at the thought. Ever since the day that when he had nearly tackled her, when they had met for the first time.

There were some ghouls that were following her on her run that morning. It was the one day she had left Kota at her old apartment, Alex and the group took care of them for her. She remembered looking up at him stunned when he was on top of her when he had knocked her down. She had felt as if she were in a daze through out the rest of the day. For the weeks that followed, Alex was never far from her mind. She would be at work and catch her self daydreaming and thinking of him. At the time this freaked Teca out, she had never been the one to give guys much thought let alone let one occupy her thoughts as much as he did. Through the twists and turns of events they grew closer, and now here she was.

Guinevere and Harry got up, their stools scraping slightly against the hard wood floor, startling Teca out of her revery. As the Knight passed her stool, her food barely touched, he patted her shoulder. Although small she had always treasured those little actions of affection from her brother. Feeling her stomach start to complain she nibbled daintily at her toast, in hopes of not needing to go hug the toilet. The wind up alarm clock went off, ringing rudely in the other room. Teca had always hated waking up to that vile machine. But then again, she wasn't too fond of mornings, or anything that would interrupt her sleep. She felt Alex sleepily roll over to slap the clock to get the clanging to stop, and felt his groggy confusion at her absence. He stumbled out of the room, the door not far from where she sat in the kitchen, in just his boxers. He stood there and rubbed the sleep from his eyes his long raven hair in a messy disarray. Alex had always been able to greet the morning a little more gracefully than Teca ever could. If she ever felt like scaring her family all she would have to do, is to try and act cheerful before her first cup or six of coffee.

It seemed this morning he was having a harder time greeting the day with the same grace and charm that he normally did. While he went about his morning routine they chatted silently, almost as if they were sending each other mental text messages. It turned out that he had not slept well and had been chased by disturbing dreams all night, although he couldn't remember them. He showered and Teca could feel his relief as the hot water poured down over him. Although electronics and technology normally disagreed with wizards, with her brother's help Guinevere had figured out a protective ward around the hot water heater. Amazingly enough it worked and only needed to be renewed every eleven months or so. Sooner if the tempers of the wizards in the house were running high for any extended period of time.

The pipes rattled and wheezed as Alex turned off the water, he came out wearing a rakish grin and a towel. On his way back to the room he gave her a good morning kiss, then sauntered in to the room. It seemed that the shower had turned his mood around significantly, which settled Teca's mood. Kota padded out of the room then went and sat by the sliding door to the backyard and stared at his mistress. Moving slowly she got up and let him out side.

"Looks like rain." Teca commented to her self as she slid the door open for her puppy. The clouds were thick, dark, and rolling threatening with rain. Lightning could be seen flashing occasionally like a tourist's flash on a camera. She could smell the rain, and it brought a smile to her face. Rain was one of those things that had always brought Teca joy. She loved the smell of clean earth and water. When she was a child, while her parents fought inside, she'd sit on the porch and enjoy the world storming around her. Teca stepped outside and inhaled the earthy scent deeply, from the looks of the clouds this was going to be the first real storm of the year. When she felt some one come up behind her and put their arms around her, she jumped and let out a squeak. The half second of panic, was soon replaced by comfort.

"It's just me." Alex's mental voice was colored with a chuckle. The jumpiness was really all that was left from a violent childhood. She didn't jump as much as she used to, and was getting better at relaxing around her family. It was really only bad for her, when she was stressed or had a lot on her mind. Something Alex could understand, his thoughts were a tumbled mess he couldn't imagine what her thoughts would be like. "What are you thinking about?"

"The rain." And she shared with him her memories and happiness from the smell the rain. There was a time when any memory from her past would cause some serious emotional turmoil, but now all he could feel from her was a sense of calm. He was very proud of her, it took a while but she found her hidden strength. There were still a few things that bothered her, but the list was shrinking. Together they stood there watching the clouds over the trees, while Harry and Guin were still sparred. "What time are we supposed to be over to auntie's? And will mom be there?" Alex knew how much seeing her mother bothered her. Morning-Star had not recovered well and could only live in the past, back when John was still apart of Teca's and her life. He could understand how she felt, to be honest with himself, he didn't feel at ease around her either.

"11 and I don't know about your mother. Claudia didn't mention anything about her, and she normally will give us a heads up. Did you call your doctor yet?" Guilt colored of her thoughts, as Teca had not yet called. "You should do that today. I don't know what we need to do, but I'm pretty sure a visit to the doc will be helpful." His stomach rumbled loudly, which got him to chuckle heartily. "I'm going to get something to eat. Do we want to start taking walks in place of running?" She agreed and decided to remain out side, so she would watch the storm and her siblings.

Teca settled in to one of the patio chairs and was content to just sit and watch the world around her. Kota came up and set his large head on her knee, while looking at up her with large brown puppies eyes. Absentmindedly she petted him and scratched him behind his ears and under his jaw, and he grinned and allowed his eyes to close in pleasure. She allowed that time to let her mind wander. Lunch was not something she was looking forward to. It's wasn't her aunt's reaction she feared, but more of the uncertainty of how her mother would react.

From inside the kitchen Alex, watched Teca from the kitchen window. He started to make himself some breakfast, his movements were methodical. His hands moved on their own, while his own thoughts meandered randomly. From the way she sat he could almost see the stress and anxiety drip off of her. Her back stiff and rigid, movements clipped and lacking their regular grace. After lunch he was hoping to be able to disappear for a little while, to sort his own thoughts. He had to be honest with himself, he was scared and nearly terrified. He and his own late father never really got along, in fact they fought most of Alex's life. There was the fear of being the same or worse than his own father. He wasn't exactly sure if he was ready to be a dad. His omelet finished while he was deep in thought, and he ate in the same metal state. If asked he wouldn't be able to comment on the quality of his meal, due to the fact that he hadn't pay attention to whether it had tasted well or not.

After his morning meal he got out his sparring gear, he was currently learning sword-work from Harry. He wanted to vent out some of his pent up emotions before he went on a walk with Teca. Guinevere and Harry had just finished their bout when the werewolf walked out side again. Guin headed in to shower then get her children up. Alex asked if the Knight was up for another round, and soon the men saluted and the dance between the two of them started. Sometime during their work out, Teca had slipped back in side and had found a quiet corner to read in. While the men sparred, Alex started to attack more viciously. He was soon growling and snarling as they fought.

"Slow it down mate." Harry called, but his words fell on deaf ears. Alex was starting to loose himself in the fight. "Alex! That's enough. Bless it man, I said that is enough!" Harry turned from defensive to offensive. That may not have been a good idea, because with a howl Alex's form rippled and shifted, and the telltale mist covered his form. When the mist dissipated it left behind an angry dark wolf. His muscles bunched as he prepared him self to launch himself at the man with a sword. In mid leap he was thrown aside and off course. Kota stood between the Knight and the pissed off werewolf. The half wolf's hackles were raised and from deep inside his chest a menacing rumble emanated from him. Alex attacked, no longer seeing friends or family, but threats on his territory. Kota met him in mid leap again and the two wolves tumbled together, teeth and claws flashing.

"Mom! Help!" Kota called to her. Teca heard the scuffle and came running outside. What she found was Alex on top of Kota his teeth mere inches from her puppy's throat. She wasn't quite sure how she did it, but she summoned all her emotional turmoil and projected it in to her voice.

"Alex Loup, you will stop now!" Her voice was deep and not quite her own. It filled the whole backyard and most of the house. Everyone stopped, including both wolves. Alex turned his feral eyes on to her and it looked like he was struggling with something. "Get off Kota, *wanah!" Slowly the charcoal wolf slowly backed off of the half wolf, his tail between his legs and his ears drooped down. Slowly he trotted up to her his eyes wide and sincere.

"Tay-Cha, I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened." He willed her to feel his anguish and confusion. He really didn't know what had happened. "It's like I lost myself." He was now standing at her feet. As a way to to let him know he was forgiven without having to say it, she reached down and scratched his ears. She walked away from him, tears starting to fall from her eyes. Harry just continued to stand there, not sure if the danger was over yet or not. Alex proceeded in to the house and in to their room. Teca tottered up to Kota and checked him over, he would be sore but was unharmed from his scuffle with Alex. Her dog leaned up against her and tried to lick the tears from her face. Slowly the Knight made his way over to his older little sister.

"Little one, is he alright?" He motioned to the dog. She nodded, not trusting her voice to stay steady. "Are you alright?" Unable to lie she shook her head in the negative and stood up to hug him. He wrapped his arms around her and let her cry. He didn't need to ask what was upsetting her, because he knew that she wouldn't know. When Guinevere was pregnant, random and spontaneous tears had become a common thing to occur. He had gotten used to holding her during such episodes, and it was turning out that his smaller sister would be the same. Although he could understand why she would be upset after a fight like that. A little while later her shoulders stopped shaking and her tears just became muffled sniffles.

She turned to go inside to go confront her sweetheart. "Don't be too hard on him, love. I'm not sure he was aware of what he was doing. Remember that you love him, keep that in mind as you talk to him." She nodded to him and walked inside. Guinevere came up holding both kids on her hips, she asked what had happened. Teca tried to explain it the best she could, Guin looked pensive but left it be. When Teca opened the door to the bedroom, she found Alex still in wolf form, curled up on the love seat. His dark eyes followed her as she shut the door and came to sit down next to him. She looked at him, and her heart melted when she saw the remorse in his eyes.

"Kota's fine, by the way." His tail gave a tentative tick-tock. "Baby, what happened out there?" He gave her the impression that he had no idea. He sat there struggling to put what he had felt in to words.

"I just remember wanting to spar with Harry, and then things got angry. I don't really know how to put it. Before I knew it I was in a battle frenzy. Kind of how I get during my fights." Alex for a good chunk of his adult life fought underground and made a pretty penny doing it. It wasn't until recently that he had started fighting in legal matches. The money wasn't as good, but he really didn't need the money like he used to. Not since his parents passed away last spring, leaving him everything they had. He was an only child, and inherited enough money to retire and the option to travel the world too, if he so desired. "Towards the end when you..." He paused trying to find the right word. "Yelled?" He showed her instead, and what she saw startled her.

She saw her self standing, hands on hips and fire in her eyes. Her voice wasn't loud just, powerful and full of emotion. Before she had said anything, everything was tinted red. As she spoke, it was almost like the red haze cleared. It started around Teca, then slowly moved outward. For a brief moment Teca was the only thing he could focus on. The memory ended, and Alex needed to nudge her with his nose to get her to return to the present. His cold nose startled her, but she tried to cover it by scratching behind his ears.

Teca gave him about an hour to calm down before their morning exercise. During their walk it had seemed to her that what had happened earlier didn't bother him. His step was relaxed and was more of a quick saunter. She had always admired his gait and stride, he shifted step by step seamlessly and had a feel of a hunting animal. She had to admit that he was graceful for a man, at time it made her feel clumsy in comparison. She kept her thoughts to her self, although it didn't seem to bother him. That morning's excitement still scared and bothered her. She had seen him like that once before, but back then he hadn't changed forms. Once in a while she'd nudge him then smile at him when he looked at her. Although upset about earlier, she still loved him and wanted him to know that. It was a little cooler than she had thought and it wasn't long before she was shivering under her light sweatshirt. This wasn't lost on Alex, he took his sweatshirt off and gave her his. Underneath he wore a black tee shirt that accented his muscles and chest nicely.

The rest of the morning passed with out incident. Teca played with the twins when they got home, trying to get used to interacting with a baby. Alex swam in the cool brisk pool, to take the edge off before they went to see Claudia. He was feeling a little more snarly than he normally did, and didn't want to take it out on anyone else. Lucas was trying to teach Persephany how to play the guitar, and so far she could plunk out Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. And Harry and Guinevere watched Teca play with their children, all the while beaming at the native woman. She was awkward with them at best, but they took it as a good sign that she was trying. Soon it was time to get ready to go to Claudia's house. Teca and Alex both dressed a little nicer than they normally would. She wore a blue button up blouse with Khakis and her usual black and white all stars. He wore a black button up with a nice pair of blue jeans. About that time the butterflies arrived in her stomach and they were having a grand time. She paused in the room as he walked out, he noticed that she wasn't following and stopped to wait for her.

"I'm scared." Was all she had to say, he turned around and pulled her in to a tight hug.

"How come?" She leaned in to him and inhaled his scent. He always had a musky woodsy smell and she loved it. He smelled clean with a hint of chlorine left over from the pool. She thought of all the reasons why she was scared, trying to rationalize them. It wasn't really her aunt that scared her but more of how her mother might react, if she's coherent enough to notice the world around her. Instead of answering she shrugged and buried her face in his broad chest. He kissed the top of her head, then gently lead her to the Jeep. To get a smile out of her he opened the door for her and held her hand as she climbed up. When he got in he leaned over and got a proper kiss from her.

Alex normally didn't do things like open doors or pull out chairs. Although he was kind to her he didn't go out of his way to be chivalrous, that was Harry's job in his mind. But occasionally he would do something like that just to make her smile. He could almost feel her tension and nerves, and he wasn't sure if he was feeling it or if he was just reading it off of her. The radio played music on the way there, and at some point a commercial came on for the Red Cross and brought Teca to tears. They pulled over and switched spots so they wouldn't be late. He was starting to feel that her emotions were going to be like riding a roller coaster with a blind fold on, exciting and unexpected. It didn't take them long to get to the West side of town and to Claudia's.

Teca stood for a while staring up at her aunt's large house, surrounded by evergreens and sheer rock faces on two sides of the backyard. She always hated interacting with her mother around Alex. For some unknown reason it always made her feel self conscious. With an effort of will she got her feet moving up to the door, and she clung to Alex's hand like a life preserver. Claudia opened the door with a huge smile on her face.

"Tay-Cha! I haven't seen you in a while, you should come up and visit more often!" Her eyes crinkling in smile lines as she grinned at her niece. Claudia was actually Teca's great great aunt, but she really didn't look a day over fifty. She wrapped her up in to tight squeeze then moved to hug Alex. "And Alex it's good to see you too. You been keeping my girl out of trouble?" Teca blushed and looked away, but he just chuckled and admitted to trying. She winked at him and took both of their hands and lead them inside. She chattered as she lead them inside, she had always been a warm and loving woman. "Morning-Star is here too, I've been getting her in to gardening. She seems to like it. Star, your daughter is here to see us. Teca dear, why don't you go help your mother. And Alex and I will go finish cooking lunch." The young woman went out to the backyard to see her mother with out a word. She watched her niece walk out, "She seems upset, but I suppose that's why you guys called for lunch." Claudia had an uncanny way of "guessing" the future, and for the most part was correct. Teca also shared the same gift, but she didn't trust it and tried to ignore it. "Come along now, come help and old woman in the kitchen. It really is good to see you two again." She took his arm and led him in to the kitchen gossiping the whole way.

Hesitantly Teca stepped out side, her mother was wearing some old cloths and a large floppy sun hat. "Hey momma, how are you doing?" Morning-Star looked behind her, her eyes searching Teca's face for some kind of recognition. "It's me, Tay-Cha." The woman's face light up with happiness.

"Oh my little girl! Come here and help me garden. Claudia has been teaching me." It nearly tore Teca's heart right out of her chest to see her mother reduced to a child-like state. Her mother, although never a great one, had always been strong in her own way. Although she was beaten she couldn't be kept down, and now. Her hair was unkempt and she was barefoot with her feet dirty. Quietly the girl obeyed her mother and soon stripped down to a white camisole and started to help her. Morning-Star hummed to her self as she played in the dirt. Soon both women were working and planting seeds. With her hands busy, the butterflies (which had turned to condors before they arrived) seemed to fade and she was able to think clearly. Moments later Alex came out to gather the women for the mid-day meal.

He gave her a hand up and waited while she brushed dirt from her hands and brushed off her knees. "How are you holding up?" Her mother walked inside, and Claudia was heard reminding her to wash her hands before she sat down. Teca watched her mom and sighed.

"I'm tired. It hurts so much to see her like that. It's exhausting pretending I don't notice." With out saying a word he drew her close to him and rubbed her back. Although she wanted to she didn't cry. Of her own volition Teca pulled away from him and went to wash her own hands. When finished she looked herself in the mirror. She saw a lean face with chestnut eyes. A slight scar bisected her right eyebrow, and her lips were less than full but were beautiful in their own right. The woman who stared back at Teca was, she had to admit, very pretty. She took a deep breath then headed out to join her mother and aunt.

Everyone was about to sit down when she came out of the bathroom. Alex gave her an encouraging nudge as she joined him. They all sat down and Claudia started to babble about her neighbors, and what who was doing at church. Teca really didn't mind, it gave her some time to steady her self. Lunch consisted of home made fry-bread, fresh wojapi made from frozen cherries, and a pot roast with carrots, potatoes, and onions. There also was a salad and a variety of dressings, Teca's mother was almost drenching her's in ranch. As they ate Claudia suddenly asked,

"So, what brings you kids here? You normally don't come by often." Teca dropped her fork and got her to swear. The butterflies returned and were having a party with her half eaten lunch. Alex squeezed her hand and nodded at her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, steeling herself for the worse.

"Mom, aunt Claudia, I'm- ah. You see, um, what's going on is-." She struggled and stumbled over her words, tears started to swim across her vision. Again a deep breath, then she looked firmly in Claudia's eyes. "We're going to have a baby." It came out in a rush and she flinched away from everyone at the table, as if she were half expecting to be hit. Claudia burst out with many congratulations and near squeals of joy. Morning-Star's reaction was slow in coming, and when it hit it was almost violent. She pounded her fists on the table, rattling silverware and plates.

"No! No, no no no no!" In the instance it took for her to react, Alex watched Teca shatter in front of him. She continued to scream, "No! You don't get to have a baby! No, no, no, no!" Teca watched her mother throw a temper tantrum and felt a pain so deep in her chest she thought she might double over from it. Claudia was trying to calm the woman, and tears fell unheeded from the almost-mother's eyes. Without a word she stood up and walked out of the house to the backyard, and held her self in the sunlight. She cried to her self bitterly, the warmth of the sun doing nothing to lift her mood. She felt a heavy hand on her shoulder and warmth next to her.

"Your aunt got her calmed down again. Are you ok, baby?" She shook her head and continued to weep. "Do you want to talk about it? I know why you're upset but maybe if you voice it?"

"No, it won't help." She hugged him fiercely and allowed her broken heart bleed on to his shirt. The sliding door to the house opened and Claudia stepped out. The normal cheer that exuded from her was had been dimmed to a mere glow.

"She's gone down for a nap and is content to stay in her room for now." The older woman noticed Teca's tears and gathered her from Alex's arms. "There, there. Let it out. I know it's not easy dealing with her fits, but know deep down she does love you deeply. I think this news just caught her off guard. You know how she doesn't handle change well. It's going to be alright, wachincula (little girl). Let's go wash your face then finish lunch." Together the women walked in to the house. The meal was finished in near silence. After wards Claudia made coffee and offered cookies in the front patio. This was Teca's favorite room in the house, it was completely enclosed and had muted light no matter the time of day. It had a porch swing, where as a teenager she read countless amounts of books. It also had white wicker chairs that gave it a comfy cozy feel.

"Now, tell me about the baby. How far are you? What are your plans? How do you feel about it?"

"Well, I just found out the other day. So I don't know how far yet. I have an appointment a Native Woman's Health next month so we'll find out more then. And for the plans, I don't know what you mean." Teca sat on the swing with Alex leaning against him eating a cookie.

"I guess this is a blunt question, and maybe not appropriate. But do you intend to keep the child?" The question did catch her off, and she really thought about the answer. Although pro-choice Teca could never have an abortion. And giving her baby to strangers who might treat her worse than she had been, was out of the question. That left keeping it and raising it her self. She looked at Alex, she wasn't even sure if he wanted to stick around for it.

"What do you think? Do you want the baby?" He looked down at her and in to her eyes and nodded.

"I want you and the baby comes with you, so it's like a prize in the cereal box. My father, as you know, and I have never gotten along. And I want to make sure our little one has a good father. So, if you'll keep me, I'll stay. I, kinda want to keep it. Who knows this could be an adventure." His eyes crinkled at her. "Do you want to keep it?" She nodded tears starting to blur her sight again.

"We're going to keep it. I'm not sure how I feel. Scared I guess, a little excited." Claudia nodded.

"Good, I'm glad you two talked about it. It's very important to make sure your on the right page. I'll talk to your mother, I'll get her to come around." They chatted awhile longer until Teca's eyes started to droop and she could no longer hide her yawns. With out missing a beat Claudia urged them to go home, claiming she had a lot of stuff to get done around the house. The return trip home was a quiet, but they held hands giving and receiving comfort. It was nap time in the house when they got home. Guin and Harry were reading in the living room, and apart from the children were the only ones home. Teca joined them and began to read as well. Alex went out back and started to split wood for the fireplaces in the house. That was something that was never done, chopping wood. The fireplaces were the only way to heat the house, the house had a furnace. And although it was in the same warded area as the water heater, it tended to go on the blink more times than not. Every one would have a turn at either chopping wood or hauling it in.