Disclaimer: I don't own Zorro nor any of the recognizable characters, plots, story lines or references. The main plot and idea, however, is mine.
A/N: Here we are again, not Addams Family but just as cute a couple. I just couldn't let this one go, so here we are and I hope you enjoy!
She knew it was what he had to do; she knew it was a part of him. Somehow, he seemed to connect his brother's death and his life as a younger man with the mask. He was unable to let them go and so it was with Zorro. The people no longer needed him, not really, in a way; he had done his gob too well. Still, waiting up every night, wondering he would come home, Elena could not help but to fear for the life of her husband.
She had tried leaving him once, tried repairing the Z etched into her heart, but she had failed. Alejandro had glued their family back together and Joaquin looked up to his father in a way he hadn't for many years.
Joaquin was too young to worry about his father's safety, not since he watched Alejandro win a thousand and one times as Zorro. What he didn't know was how many of those times Zorro had come to losing. How many of those times Elena had covered for him saying he was ill while he recovered.
But still, she worried so, every time that bell rang her heart beat a little faster and she held her breath to see how many times the metal chimed. She was supportive and she understood why he had to go, but she wanted to lock him up close to her and never let him leave. She was able to put on a brave face but he saw through her, she knew. It was near to one o'clock in the morning now and Elena began to fear the worst, as always when he was gone after midnight.
For all she strayed and tried to hide her feelings for this man she could not. She had been enamored from the first time she saw his masked face while she was out riding so many years ago. And then she saw him, he was riding at a full gallop toward the cave. Elena ran from the balcony where she had been waiting for him. She ran through the house to the cave where Alejandro was just coming in. She stopped in the doorway breathing heavily. He took care of his trusty stead and put his cape and mask up, revealing a stark white shirt and a handsome face beneath. When he caught sight of Elena his eyes lit up and her heart skipped a beat, how was it he still had this effect on her after all these years? A dashing smile broke across his lips and she could not keep a similar expression from gracing her features. And then she was in his arms and her mouth was pressed hard against his. They broke apart breathing deeply after a few short minutes.
"I told you not to wait up, Elena," Alejandro broke the silence first.
"I couldn't sleep, you know I never can when you go out," she said, her eyes were downcast as she recalled her previous thoughts while she was waiting for him to return.
"I know… That is why I have decided to put my mask up for good," Alejandro didn't look at her when he said it. Knowing how much this meant to both of them she placed her hand on his cheek and made him look at her. She searched his eyes for any sign that he may be lying to her but all she found there was love and concern. Why he was concerned for her she had no idea… It wasn't like she went out every night to test the fates.
"Alejandro, I know how much this mask means to you… how much you need it. Don't give it up because you are worried about me or Joaquin, we are fine. I worry, yes, but I worry more that you will not be the man I married if you give up Zorro," Elena was touched by what Alejandro was giving up for his family. For her. But she also knew that he would not be the same man, knowing that there were plenty of bad men waiting for him to rest.
"I know," Alejandro leaned into her touch then, closing his eyes and collecting the pieces of his broken heart, "But my family means much more to me and I need you more than I need that mask. You proved that to me when you left. I never want to drive you away again," It pained her husband to say these things, Elena could see it.
"Alejandro… You can't drive me away. Not ever. I love you; I have only ever loved you. That will never change. It didn't change when we were separate and it won't change now. Joaquin is almost fifteen, on his fifteenth birthday you can start training him if he wishes to follow in your footsteps. When he turns sixteen or when he is ready he can assume the mask of Zorro and then you can retire. The people may not need Zorro now, but they will again. And when they do they will have a younger, more able bodied defender. Alejandro?" Elena had been speaking of things that had been on her mind for a while. She did not want to give her child up to the life that her husband walked every night but she saw no way to stop him. He was ambitious and wanted the life of Zorro as his own. With what she suspected, what she hoped, was another child on the way she did not want the father of her baby in peril, but she saw no way to prevent it and still provide the people with a savior. But then Alejandro had begun to flinch and droop, he slowly sunk to the ground, clutching his side. When Elena made him remove his hand so she could see the issue she saw his shirt was covered in blood and his hand was as well now. With a cool mind she relieved him of his shirt to review the wound with more definition. It was not very long but it was deep, it looked as though it had just missed his lung. Carefully she lay him on the ground and retrieved the bandages and alcohol from the trunk.
She cleaned and dressed his wound with steady and expert hands. He passed out from the pain shortly after she had started. Once his cut was taken care of she went to the trunk again to replace the bandages and oil with some salts to reawaken her unconscious husband. He came to with a jerk and she soothed him into laying back down slowly. She placed the salts back in the trunk and returned to her husband. His eyes closed and he groaned slightly. Now was not the time to discuss such matters as were on her mind so instead she coaxed him to his feet and helped him to their room. There she carefully laid him on their bed and bid him sleep. The world could wait to be saved for at least one night.
A/N: Please, please, please review! Thanks for taking your time to read it!