Disclaimer: Annette Curtis Klause invented these characters, and this setting. So here it goes… the second chapter. Please review.

Chapter 2

Willem, Gregory, Finn and Ulf were waiting for Vivian to come home with Uncle Rudy from the DMV. Esmé and Tomas were in the kitchen making popcorn and getting a six-pack of coke for the movie night, when Vivian walked into the cool and dimly lit house grinning from ear to ear. The rest of the Five got up and crowded around Vivian, wanting to see the little piece of plastic that was her license. When they clapped and whistled low, Esmé walked in dropping the cokes onto the table and marched to her daughter's side to admire the picture. "Are you posing? Vivian!"

Uncle Rudy chuckled and took a look at the picture. Her golden hair was tumbling from a ponytail, and her head was leaning a little to the right, and she was smiling and pouting slightly. This looked like a model's headshot more than a driver's license picture.

"Those poor guys down at the DMV, they didn't stand a chance. She could've passed the test with her eyes closed, with how much the instructor wasn't paying attention." Vivian smirked and remembered the pitiable guy's face and his rapid heartbeat as she sped up to just under the speed limit. Vivian grabbed a coke and let the little bubbles fizz on her top lip before taking a sip. She looked around, and her shoulders fell slightly. Gabriel hadn't been with her to take the test; he needed to go get the papers to have them signed in Vermont, but he promised he would be back soon. Everyone crowded into the living room to watch some incredibly gory old movie. Gregory and Willem sat on either side of her, and kept smushing in closer and closer to annoy her, but she was excited enough she didn't care. Finn and Ulf were sprawled out on the floor, and Tomas and Esmé were sitting on the loveseat next to her. Uncle Rudy sat at the dinner table drinking a beer.

The dark haired girl on the TV was running for her life when, surprise surprise, she trips over some rock or twig thing on the floor and the beast jumps out of nowhere to rip her leg off with a horrible crunch and gushes and gushes of blood. The loup-garoux in the room weren't horrified however, they were howling with laughter. Vivian got up from the sofa to go make some more popcorn when a tall man with dark hair and wide shoulders entered through the front door, beaming.

He walked up to her and snaked his arm around her waist, pulling her close while she held onto his neck to keep from falling. Recently, the very sight of him made her legs turn to jelly. The others didn't seem to notice them. Or maybe they just weren't going to admit to how much they liked their alpha-male and female together. "How did it go?" he whispered in her ear, while she pulled out her license from the back pocket of her jeans and showed it to him. He continued holding her up, with one hand around her waist, and looked at the license in his other hand. She felt his low chuckle through her arms. "Nice picture, I must say. This will get you out of any ticket for sure." He bit at her neck, softly, causing Vivian to grin and press her lips to his for only a second. But of course, Gabriel wasn't going to act like a normal person. He bit her bottom lip and made her breathe in sharply before letting her down back onto the seat. The rest of the Five were grinning, and her mom was flushing with pride. "Let's go out."

"Go out? Why?"

"Because I said so, that's why. We're going out to celebrate!" he announced. Esmé and Tomas grumbled, but Uncle Rudy got up and went to go put his boots back on. "You heard me. We're all going down to Tooley's to celebrate Vivian's license." Everyone got up and made their way to the front. The rest of the Five piled into the back of the black truck, Esmé rode with Tomas in the back of his red Harley, and Uncle Rudy got into his vintage Harley. Gabriel got in next to Vivian, and watched her turn the ignition on.

"I can't focus if you keep staring at me like that." He protested silently, and forced himself to look out at the front, to avoid staring at his mate. Vivian made her way down to Tooley's effortlessly, without speeding up too much, and best of all, without hitting anything.

Tooley's was packed with random visitors and the rest of the pack. They celebrated Vivian's license with free drinks, "on the house" from Gabriel, and a free round of burgers, rare, for the pack from Esmé. People were laughing and singing to an Oingo Boingo song on the jukebox, and various couples had gotten up to dance together. Vivian was nervous about dancing with Gabriel. He didn't seem like the kind to dance with anyone, but he proved her wrong, yet again.

"My party is moving outside" he stated with an amused look in his eyes, and the members of the pack gathered outside and drove to the wildlife reserve grounds, to shed their clothes and celebrate as loup-garoux running free under the moon and stars. Aunt Persia and Esmé were running next to Vivian, for a little while, until Vivian picked up speed and only Gabriel could catch up to her. Vivian howled with pleasure at everyone's happiness and the promise of getting to run free together again in Vermont.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vivian yawned, rolled over, and got further tangled in white cotton sheets. They smell like him, she thought. But when she opened her eyes, he wasn't there anymore. He had left to Vermont yesterday, and would be back in two days. Vivian had spent most of the day lying in his bed, willing two days to pass as quickly as possible, and nursing a hangover. Get a grip Vivian, he's only gone for two days, she thought as she drove back to her house.

Esmé stared at her daughter as she slumped down onto the sofa in a stupor. "Get up from that sofa Vivian. Girl, he's only gone for two days! Get up right now, and quit being so selfish." Vivian sprang up from the sofa, to face her mom.

"Don't you talk to me about being selfish." Esmé winced, remembering the fits she used to get into when her husband died. "I'm sorry mom, I didn't mean it." Vivian got up and walked outside, jamming the keys into the ignition. I need to get out of this house. I'm losing it. Moon goddess, please let him be safe.

The truck was running low, so she stopped at the nearest gas station to fill it up. Her stomach flipped a somersault when she recognized the yellow Volkswagen in front of her. It's been almost a month since the shooting. Aiden walked out of the gas station holding a plastic bag which contained a bottle of Dr. Pepper and a can of Pringles. She memorized the color of his green paisley shirt and the way his hair flicked with the wind. This may be the last time I get to see him. His constant grin faded, and he paused dead in his tracks when he saw her leaning against the side of a big black truck. Vivian flinched when she noticed him looking around in a panic.

"No one's here. I can fill up a gas tank by myself." She wished she didn't sound so harsh and cold. Aiden gazed down at the ground, probably out of shame. He walked up to Vivian but stopped a few feet in front of her, just to be safe.

"How are you?"

"I'm going to be fine. And you?"

"I'm okay. Look Vivian, I'm so sorry that whole thing happened. I just- I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Vivian wanted to talk to him about everything, to joke about their last year at school, and apologize to the Amoeba. But Kelly came out of the gas station, and walked up to Aiden, holding his hand and standing in front of him protectively. You wish you could protect him from someone like me.

"Goodbye Vivian."

"Bye Aiden."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun was shining and the blue gray sky was mostly cloudless. Esmé and her daughter were sitting out on the porch together on the lawn chairs, watching Will and Gregory wrestling out front. Then a blond haired male came running up to the house, glistening with sweat, his shirt mostly stuck onto him. "What's wrong Tomas?" Vivian's heart started pounding hard against her chest. She feared the worst.

"You need to get down to Aunt Persia's right now." Tomas was breathing heavily and ran back down the street from where had come from. Damn! Not now! There's only one more day. Vivian made her way down to Aunt Persia's as fast as she could, and opened the door. The room was stifling hot and several of the pack females were holding down a red head that was squirming around. She's pregnant. Vivian's eyes widened as she realized what was happening. She's going to have the baby right now! Aunt Persia came out of the kitchen holding cloths and a hot water bottle.

"What do you want me to do?" she ran to Aunt Persia's side and started folding out the cloths and dipping them into the hot water.

"Nothing, sweetness. You're the queen now. You need to sit here and watch, and learn." Vivian struggled for breath as she watched the child being born. It was a lot more graphic than she could've imagined. The child lay in its mother's arms changing for a while. It couldn't decide what it wanted to be just yet. Sweat was streaming down Vivian's back from the open fire and the collective heat in the room. Some woman howled with delight, and the rest of them took up the cry. "You've just witnessed the miracle of birth. As queen bitch, you have to wish something for the child."

"I wish for it to see a peaceful world where it can be what it was born to be." Vivian caught her breath as she realized what she had just muttered. Maybe this leader thing grows on you. Vivian howled.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Vivian was sitting outside on the porch, watching the red headed mother cradle her baby girl as Esmé told her all she knew about being a mother, when the roar of a motorcycle came towards them louder and louder. The child hadn't stirred from it sleep, and both mother's laughed. Vivian recognized the broad shoulders and sparkling blue eyes as soon as he stepped off the bike, and started running towards him, like she hadn't seen him in years.

Gabriel had barely turned around when his mate pounced on him, wrapping her legs around his waist and tangling her fingers in his hair. He laughed and kissed her enough to make up for his absence. "Maybe I should leave more often" he murmured, as he let her down onto the concrete. "Everything is set. The inn and the land look like a postcard, and there's so much green everywhere, and so much running space, and you should see how close the moon gets, close enough to touch it with your open hand." Vivian could see their future through his eyes, and her insides coiled with excitement. They walked towards the old house, arm around waist, and everyone followed.

They had a noisy crowd at the dinner table, as Gabriel told everyone about their new home, at the land they had just purchased next to the next to the Green Mountain National Forest. The inn was a bit of a fixer-upper, but it was just as promising as the land. Finally, after almost two hours of excited talking, the guests returned to their own houses, and everyone went to sleep, to dream about the future. Vivian sat upright on his bed, stroking his hair for a long time. He got up suddenly, and looked at her square in the eyes. "How did everything here go? No incidents?"

"Everything here was just fine. I was worried for a while about the Five acting up. We had a birth while you were gone. It was nothing short of amazing." Vivian noticed the hopeful look in his eyes. He was imagining their marriage, and one day, their own children. She smiled and kissed him, bringing him back to reality with a happy growl.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

U-Haul trucks were in front of a select few houses, including Uncle Rudy's, and Aunt Persia's. It would've been suspicious if a whole crowd had decided to up and move on the same day, so they were leaving in intervals of a week. Uncle Rudy had already decided he wasn't going to move, but visit often, and Vivian said goodbye to him with a knot in her throat and tears brimming her eyes. She wiped them away as she slung her leg over the seat of Gabriel's Harley, clutching to him to stop trembling. Esmé and Tomas were in her black truck riding behind the U-haul, behind Gabriel. As they rode, sadness was quickly replaced with joy as her future crept closer. The night sky enveloped the pair, and Vivian let out a small howl. Gabriel laughed above the roar of the engine, and squeezed one of the slender hands that wrapped around his waist.