Chapter 10 - The Past and a Picnic

Disclaimer: I love playing with the ideas and characters from Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, but sadly I don't own it. I do own the characters I created and what I'm calling a plot.

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Eventually I was able to extricate myself from Roma's embrace so that we could both get some much needed sleep. I returned to a quiet house, but even the quiet wasn't enough for me to fall asleep - I tossed and turned, wishing I could be holding Roma rather than a pillow.

Finally, I gave up on sleep and went into the kitchen. I made some fried chicken and potato salad, leaving some for Quil for his lunch, but packing most of it in a picnic basket with ice packs, along with a blanket, some apples, and a couple of Cokes. I figured I could pick up some juice boxes on the way to Roma's house for lunch.

I brought the basket with me to work, and even with all my cooking I got there before Jacob. I put the basket in a corner of the office, and found a car that had been dropped off overnight with an unusual problem - something that could actually grab my attention!

Jake called a good morning to me when he got in, but it wasn't until a bit later that I figured out what was wrong with the car, and looked up at the clock. 10am. A great time to call Roma!

I went to wash my hands, when Jake yelled to me. I looked up. "Embry, Sam called earlier."

"Yeah?"

"He wanted to remind you it's your night for patrols."

"Crap. I wanted to spend it with Roma." I said, annoyed.

"I know, dude. I went through that, too. But the res doesn't protect itself." Jake replied. When did he become so wise? He used to be so impulsive.

I picked up the phone and dialed Roma's house, "Hi Roma, it's Embry."

"Hi! I'm so glad to hear from you this morning!"

"I've got to do some work for the tribe tonight, so I can't see you then."

"Oh, no! Really? You can't do it a different time?" The disappointment was palpable.

"I'm so sorry, love. We all take turns, and it's my turn. Do you think you and the kids would want to go on a picnic at lunchtime, though?"

I could hear Roma's smile through the phone. "Sure, but how much food do I need to pack?"

I laughed. "I packed the food, I just need juice boxes for the kids. I didn't want you to have to interrupt your work making lunch."

"Oh, thank you so much! You're so thoughtful for doing that! I've got to get back to my work - Madison and Ethan are with Claire right now, but I'll be back with them around noon."

"I've got to get back to work, too. I'll see you for lunch" I said, and hung up the phone. Thank goodness! I didn't scare her off with the whole soulmate / Imprinting talk! Now how will I tell her about the werewolf part?

I got through the rest of the morning, and told Jake I'd be taking a slightly longer lunch than usual. Since it was mid-week, it was slow. People tend to take their cars in for service right before or right after the weekend. Mid-week is much quieter.

I arrived at Roma's house right as she was returning with Madison and Ethan.

"It looks like you had fun!" I said, receiving nice big hugs from them. "You might want to wash off the paint, though, because we were going to have a picnic."

"Cool!" Ethan said. "Can we practice growling at a picnic?"

I smiled, "Of course."

"But only after you've eaten your lunch!" Roma added. "Maddie, could you help Ethan wash his hands? I need to get a couple of juice boxes."

"Can I have grape juice?" Maddie asked, and when Roma nodded, she took her brother into the house.

Roma and I followed Madison into the house, but I managed to steal a kiss once the kids were washing their hands. Roma quickly grabbed a few juice boxes, and we tossed them into the cooler.

"Thank you so much for doing this, Embry. It means a lot to me that you want to do things with the kids." Roma said, hugging me.

"Of course, Roma! I like spending time with them. And you." I kissed her gently. "I was worried I scared you off yesterday with the tales of imprinting and soulmates, though."

"Trust me, it would take a lot more than that to scare me." Roma replied, smiling sadly. "I was researching some of the Quileute legends this morning, and I found references to imprinting being like the mating-for-life of wolves, as they are the spirit warriors."

I nodded. "That's exactly what it's like. One of the guys' wives was asked if she was nervous about marrying him young, and she said no way - Quileute men mate for life."

Roma smiled. "That is a big comfort whether you're marrying young or not!"

Our conversation was cut short when what sounded like a herd of elephants came through the bathroom door. "We're ready!" chorused Maddie and Ethan, so we tromped out of the house, into the forest, and a little further in until we arrived at a clearing.

"This is so cool!" Madison exclaimed. "There were trees everywhere, I didn't see a path, but you brought us right to this clearing!"

"I've lived here all my life, I've learned a few things about the woods. Remember that you shouldn't be wandering out by yourselves looking for clearings." I said.

"Not like Little Red Riding Hood! There could be a Big Bad Wolf in the forest!" Ethan exclaimed. I tried to hide my laughter.

"Or you could get lost like Hansel and Gretel and get eaten by a witch!" offered Madison.

"But you could call a Spirit Warrior to help you!" suggested Ethan.

"Oooh, how do you call a Spirit Warrior, Embry?" asked Madison.

I thought for a moment. "Gee, I don't know. I think you are supposed to ask for help from the spirits - calling out for help. Even if a Spirit Warrior doesn't find you, someone else can if you stay in one place and call for help."

"I don't want anyone else to find me, just a Spirit Warrior." said Ethan firmly.

"Well, I think we all need to eat if you're going to try to learn how to growl," Roma suggested, and I passed out the food.

After everyone had eaten, I growled for the kids, and they tried to growl. I suggested they try to run like wolves growling, and they ran around the clearing. Roma relaxed against me, putting her head in my lap. I ran my fingers through her hair, and started braiding pieces of it.

"I saw you hugging the kids in line for bowling shoes last night - what was that about?" Roma asked, quietly.

"They were all excited when I said I'd take them bowling again. Then they told me you got lonely, and asked if I was going to leave." I replied, not sure if I wanted to tell her all of the conversation, but she did have a right to know.

"What did you tell them?"

"That I've lived here all my life and I'm not going anywhere. Madison clarified, saying she meant dying. I said I wasn't planning to die soon, and she accepted that answer."

"Oh, gosh. They've gone through too much." Roma said, and I could see tears in her eyes. I leaned over and kissed them.

"I hope some time in La Push can help them heal." I said, hoping it would help heal her, too.

"So do I. This place feels so protected - between the forest, the small town, and the legends of the Spirit Warriors. I feel so safe here."

"I'm glad you feel safe. I want you to be safe. While the kids are playing, though, can you tell me what happened to your sister?" I asked.

"You should probably know, otherwise they will tell you, and their version is edited." Roma replied, taking a deep breath. "You know that Nathan was involved in a gang, right?"

I nodded. She continued, "Well, Rowan and I were trying to get him out of the gang, but he refused, saying that he had family in the gang. After losing his parents and his aunt and uncle in one day, he was pretty needy. Rowan and I were also trying to raise her two kids, who were needy little ones. We probably didn't give him the attention he needed."

"I know you did your best. Sometimes things just happen in a way you weren't expecting." I said, not wanting her to blame herself.

"Regardless, Nathan was involved in a gang. A rival gang was up in arms because of some territory dispute or something - I never got the full story, and I wasn't sure I wanted to. Rowan had waitressed the night before, so I had let her sleep in, and had taken the kids to a park nearby for a couple hours. When she woke up, she went outside to sweep the front walkway. It was November, and there were a lot of mushed up leaves and everything. She always wanted our little apartment building to look nice. Unfortunately, she was outside at the wrong time and in the wrong place. Nathan left the house, hugging Rowan goodbye, and then walked around the corner to go meet some of his friends." She paused.

"You don't have to finish, love. This must be so hard for you." I said, cradling her in my arms.

"No, you should know. A couple of the guys from the rival gang had seen Nathan hug Rowan, so they decided to drive past and shoot at her and the house. A neighbor heard the noise, looked outside, and called 9-1-1, but it was too late. When I walked back with the kids, there was blood on the ground and our neighbor was telling us Rowan was taken to the hospital. Nathan had run back when he heard the shots, and he was sitting on the steps, sobbing."

"Oh, sweetheart!" I held her tighter, her tears wetting my shirt. I hoped my warmth was comforting her.

"We went to the hospital, all four of us. The doctor was very clinical about what had happened, and all four of us were shocked. We went home and huddled together crying. In the past six months things have gotten better, but I think La Push is incredibly healing - I'm seeing smiles and laughter again!" I could feel Roma relax against me, and I looked down at her. She wasn't looking at me, she was looking at the kids, playing in the clearing, laughing and trying to growl.

"La Push is a good place for them, Roma. I'm so sorry your family went through this, but I know that you'll heal here. I'll do my part, and the rest of the village will help the kids enjoy being kids. I hope you can trust me when I tell you that the parents here are incredibly protective, and the kids are very safe."

"I know. Thank you. And thank you again for telling them the Spirit Warrior legends. If they are true, then I am thrilled there are spirit wolves protecting us in the forest. If they aren't, then at least the thought of them are helping the kids sleep. They slept so much better last night!" Roma smiled.

"I'm glad they did. I had a hard time falling asleep, myself." Roma looked at me, and I winked, then kissed her.

"Aaaaah, young Romeo!" She smiled. "Someday when you're older, you won't let those thoughts disrupt your sleep!"

"You're not older than I am." I said. "You've just had different responsibilities."

"How do you know I'm not older?" she asked.

"That is a story for another time." I answered. "Because now we need to go back. I have to return to work, and the kids might need a little down time."

My prophesy was correct. Roma and I ended up giving piggy-backs to Maddie and Ethan on the way home, as their legs had gotten tired from all the wolf-running.

The next couple weeks passed peacefully - I would do patrols some nights, and on others I was with Roma. Sometimes with the kids, sometimes blissfully alone. We were together as much as we could be, given our work and the demands of the Pack. I was getting more and more comfortable with Roma, and thinking she would react OK to the news that I was a werewolf, when Sam reminded me that the full moon was approaching.

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A/N: Thanks for reading! I really don't want to beg for reviews, but I'd love to know what you think!