It was the day Tess was dreading, the day she'd have to face Max's parents and explain Zan. She had only had about three days to heal and recuperate, and now she was about to face…well…two very frightening people.
Tess laughed at herself as she sat next to Max in his jeep, as he drove Michael, Isabel, Zan, and her to meet the parents. She shook her head, she couldn't believe herself. She who survived a possibly fatal alien pregnancy, she who stood before her people to speak of lost hope, she who withstood the tortures of an alien dictator, she who took him out…was afraid of two humans that she could subdue using all the power of her pinky finger?
"Are you alright?" she heard Max ask.
She looked over at her former husband, still unable to believe that he seemed to be choosing her over Liz 'can do no wrong' Parker. "Yeah," she replied, "Just a little nervous, I guess…"
"You?" Michael asked, starting to laugh when Isabel playfully punched him in the shoulder.
"Yes me." Tess shot back. She looked down at her son, sleeping peacefully in her arms.
"Trust me Tess," Michael said, "You have nothing to worry about, you took out all the skins and Kivar, I think you can handle two humans."
"Yes, well," Tess trailed, stroking Zan's face, "Never get in the way of a mother trying to protect her children, no matter the race or power status. If a mother feels threatened, she'll attack."
"Mom wouldn't attack you." Isabel said firmly. "Neither would Dad…I don't think…"
"I wish I had a dad…" Tess said softly to herself, unaware that she had said it out loud. As much as she hated to admit it, she missed Nasaedo. Especially how he acted when they arrived in Roswell, when Liz came to the house… 'That was the most affection, fake as it was, that he ever showed me' she thought to herself.
"Me too," added Michael softly, letting Tess realize what she had said.
She looked at the three aliens sitting around her, the final pieces of the Royal Four. "When he died…" she started, unsure of whether she wanted to continue. "I found skin pieces all over the house…I knew that Kivar had done that…and I knew that it was a warning for him…" She trailed off unable to tell them exactly what Nasaedo had tried to get her to do to them, how he tried to get her to betray her family. "I knew something was going to happen, something bad, but I didn't know what…till New York…"
Max glanced over at his past wife, noting the guilt in her eyes.
"What happened in New York, exactly?" Isabel asked.
"When Max and I were walking, Rath and Lonnie grabbed me and tried to make the scaffolding fall on Max. I tried to call out to him, but Rath covered my mouth. I'm sorry Max…" She trailed, looking away. "I mind warped you to see Liz across the street…" She looked down at Zan before rushing on, "It was the only way I could get you to move in time, it was the only way I could save you. If it were me there you'd not have noticed but I knew that if it was Liz…"
A gentle hand settling on hers broke her from her rant, she looked up to see Max smiling humorously at her, eyes still on the road, "It's alright Tess, you saved my life."
She smiled a small smile, looking down at his hand resting on hers. He moved to hold it, squeezing it slightly, somehow knowing she had more to explain. She took a deep breath, "They took me to where Kivar and Nicholas were connected to their human bodies, and they tried to get in my head and see where the Granolith was. You see…I knew." They looked at her, waiting for her to continue. "Nasaedo told me where it was, just in case something happened, at least I would be able to leave for Antar. I knew where it was the whole time, but I couldn't let them know. So I fought. I managed to get into Kivar's mind, and I saw a plot he was working on. He wanted Vilondra back."
Tess glanced at Isabel, who had gone stiff and a little pale. "I couldn't let that happen so I as soon as I got back I talked to Alex about the book and we got to work on translating it. I was hoping to get to Antar in time to stop him from awakening Vilondra."
"But I thought you said that Vilondra was taken advantage of," Michael said, putting a comforting arm around Isabel, "She wasn't really evil."
"No she wasn't, but Isabel didn't know that then." Tess sighed, "If he were to reawaken Vilondra and had Lonnie plant a seed of doubt at Vilondra's goodness, then Isabel would be susceptible to believing that she loved Kivar and wanted to overthrow Zan."
The group was silent, processing this new information as Max pulled slowly up to the house. They all sat there for a few more minutes, preparing themselves till Max looked over at Tess, "You ready?" He asked, giving her hand one more squeeze.
Tess took a deep breath before nodding, returning his gesture with a small squeeze of her own, before getting out of the jeep, taking Max's hand once again.
I
I
I
The all sat in the living room, Michael and Isabel sitting on two chairs, with Phil and Diane Evans sitting on a sofa across from their son and his…son and his…well, they didn't quite know who she was or what she was to Max, sitting on the love seat.
Tess held Zan as close to herself as humanly or alienly possible, nervously looking from Max to his parents to Zan, yet unable to look anyone in the eye. It was a pity she couldn't, otherwise she would have see pure joy showing through Diane Evans' eyes.
"So Maxwell," Phil said sternly, "Care to explain?"
Max glanced at Tess, who was currently very fascinated with the floor, before looking defiantly up at his father. "Well, it's simple really. I met Tess, I love Tess, we had a baby, and you have a grandson."
"Maxwell…" Phil warned, not liking the tone Max was using with him.
"Sorry dad," Max sighed, "I met Tess in school, and we got to know each other really well…"
"Obviously," Michael muttered, only to be silenced by Isabel playfully smacking him upside the head.
"We got really close, and things sort of…just…happened…" He trailed off, watching slightly amused as Tess' face changed from pale white to rosy red. "I don't regret it," He said, looking back up at his parents, letting them know with his eyes that he didn't care whether they supported him or not.
Phil sighed, "Well, what are you planning to do now?" he asked, hoping that Max had some shred of dignity left that he would do the right thing.
"Well, as soon as we graduate, we're getting married…"
At this, Tess' head shot up and she looked at him surprised. Max stared at her amused at how she seemed unable to keep her mouth from hanging open.
Max heard Michael choke, pretending to gag, on the other side of the room, but ignored it for it was silenced fairly quickly by Isabel elbowing him in the side with a dreamy expression on her face. He smiled, of course he had plans to marry her before graduation, he had already made the decision to go to Antar…most likely indefinitely…after all, where there's a Queen there's a King, and he was not about to loose her again…
Tess couldn't think, she had not been expecting Max to even consider marrying her after all that she had put him through. But there he was, telling his parents that he wanted to marry her. Tears welled in her eyes, all the dreams she had had as a child came rushing back to her, of her very own fairy tale ending.
She shook her head; still not sure she had heard him right. Max leaned over, gently shutting her mouth before dropping a kiss on it. When he pulled away, he raised his hand to stroke her cheek, wiping a lone tear away with his thumb. He smiled; the kiss was all that he had needed as an acceptance of his wish to make her his wife.
Diane rested a hand over her husband's noticing a small smile make it's way onto his face. Even he could see how much their son had come to love the small blonde woman who already felt like family. He nodded, he understood, that was all she could ask for.
Tess' gaze on the man before her broke, when she felt a hand on her knee. She looked over to see Max's mother smiling at her. "Can I hold him?" She asked, hopeful.
Tess stared for a moment, but seeing the acceptance and caring in the aged woman's eyes, Tess nodded, lifting the bundle in her arms to the awaiting hold of his grandmother…