AN: Thanks as always to those who leave me reviews to feed energy off of, and to Annette Curtis Klause, for a wonderful original vision. I must say, everyone needs to go see the Blood and Chocolate movie, despite the brand new and questionable storyline, and I shall continue pushing the Gabriel and Vivian relationship, because I like it best. And Laya, I did look it up right after you mentioned it, and in fact, Gabriel's hair is black, and Vivian's is gold. And now, without further ado, here comes…

Chapter 9 (please review)

There was rain on this night, and the event was originally planned to be an outdoor ceremony. But that didn't stop the pack of loup-garoux gathered to shed their clothes and become their true forms under the millions of cold darts of water. Vivian's mother, Esmé, was positively glowing in her golden fur, and so was her new husband Tomas.

Vivian didn't know what her father would've thought of Tomas. She liked to think he would've been happy for Esmé, for picking up the pieces of her life and moving on. Oh moon goddess, let her be happy for a long time this time.

There weren't normally weddings for loup-garou, just as it was very rare for one to be totally committed and faithful to another. Vivian's mother had done a wonderful job with this ceremony. There were little white lights scattered amongst the trees, like rogue fireflies, and the ceremony had been thankfully short, with Aunt Persia improvising her own version of loup-garou vows.

A drop of rain hit her nose, and she sneezed, which prompted a brilliant pair of blue eyes to turn towards her general direction. Gabriel had promised he wouldn't become overly protective, but he wasn't doing a very good job of it. Still though, she loved him, and she loved the idea that she had been tamed enough to have a child soon. The jet black furred loup-garou strode over to her, and muzzled her gently, a symbol of affection as well as an urging to get out of the rain, especially in this cold weather.

But her mother only got married once before, and Vivian planned to make the most of this ceremony, so her amber gold eyes shone brighter and she whimpered once in anticipation. Tonight they would run, and they would celebrate in running, for her mother. Gabriel cocked his head in acknowledgement, and his lips curled over his fangs, like a crooked smile.

The pack gathered in a large circle around the king and queen, and the newly weds. Vivian's eyes scanned the blur of multi-colored fur, and the brilliant eyes reflecting back at her, recognizing the new pairs, like the half-human cub, the dark haired loup-garou that was strangely taller than the rest, and the one with the mischievous green eyes next to the Five. Will and Ulf had no problem accepting Nathan and his brother into their group, which was a positive reflection of what this pack had become. Accepting.

She arched her back, and then curled her shoulders back; letting out a howl in time with Gabriel's echoing bass one, to signal the start of the run.

Vivian wasn't any slower now than she had been before, and was very soon far in the lead. Gabriel was only seconds behind her… growling, and snapping his sharp teeth. Of course he didn't want her to be this far ahead, but it didn't matter. Soon she would lose her beloved speed and abandon, and so she needed to make the best of the few runs she was still allowed to lead.

Her paws sank slightly into the damp earth as she pushed for longer strides. Through her wet fur she could feel the temperature slowly drop. The rain had become even more like darts that went right through her fur to her skin, and all across her muzzle. But still she kept pushing for more speed, loving the thrill of a careless run. She heard more steps pounding behind her, and turned around briefly to acknowledge them. The Five, Adam, and Nathan had come close enough to catching up with Gabriel, and Vivian growled happily.

They had grown. She had to know that. And more and more each day she noticed the changes that occurred to her too. She wasn't scrappy Vivian anymore, rough around the edges and down on her luck. And she wasn't bitter Vivian, looking for trouble and trying desperately to get away from it. Deep down she knew she wouldn't go against the tide forever.

Still though, even now part of her wanted to push onwards, and keep her lead ahead of everyone else, but for once she slowed down just slightly enough for them all to catch up with her.

They made a crescent moon shape under the real moon, howling in unison, the rain calming down to a soft drizzle. Esmé and Tomas stood by Gabriel and Vivian, and then the beautiful silvery gray loup-garou strode forward.

Vivian watched Aunt Persia half-change and finish saying the blessings, with her long and shiny gray hair getting plastered to skin and fur. She bowed her head, and they all bowed their heads, to the full moon goddess above them that had given them this good run, and their life, and health.

All of the loup-garoux gathered raised their heads up in unison, letting the great primal cry escape them. Vivian's eyes opened wide, and she was startled at first, not sure from where she got the power to cry out like that, but then she heard the deep and wonderful bass voice behind her, and decided to add her tenor voice to match it.

The men fought for show amongst the women, who lay on their bellies watching and being entertained. Vivian's nerves were always on edge when she had to watch the fighting. Even play fighting made her nervous. Gabriel didn't really have to join, being the alpha-male, but he always had a bit of a show-off inside him, so he joined the circle of men gathered in the middle of the large circle of females.

Vivian laid face down on the damp earth, smelling the wet grass and rain, and saw her mother fully stretched out beside her. Of course her mother would enjoy watching this. At least she has someone now, and it's not Gabriel, she thought.

Gabriel's edges had been smoothed down considerably by her too, she noticed. When they were together he was a completely different person than from the one she saw now. He was, first and foremost, a fighter. Then he was her lover. Vivian watched as he took down three, four, and then five considerably larger than him. Some of the smaller ones, including Tomas, had decided to stay out of his way, or else step down. She laughed when the blonde took his spot next to her mother. He's never been one for fights.

None of the loup-garoux would be harmed more than a few scratches, but those would heal inhumanly fast. The Five had already taken each other out, and in the end it was just Nathan and Gabriel. Adam, the one that used to be possessed by a wendigo, was not allowed to join the fights sometimes. The pack wanted to keep him safe, mostly from himself.

Uncle Rudy had to call the end of the fight, because Nathan was getting too riled up. Gabriel had kept calm, considering, but there would be some scratches on Nathan that ran deeper than the others tonight. Still though, Gabriel was the winner, because he had Nathan up against a corner, hypothetically, and because he was the alpha-male. They half changed and shook hands, and then went to join their group.

Vivian noticed her lover's eyes sparkle. He longed for fighting. She knew that deep down they were both still the same as always. He was always looking for more bunny than he could chew.

As the moon dipped, the loup-garoux headed back towards the inn. All of the humans in the inn had been asked to leave, for some last minute internal improvements, so the pack was free to do whatever they wanted. In a few hours Vivian's mother would be whisked away to start her life over and Vivian would be gathered in the living room with her age mates, and her pair bond.

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The rest of the pack that was still up late. So they watched cheesy horror movies, for old time's sake, and to calm down the adrenaline flow. There was a lot of fake blood, and the scream of the girl running through the random woods was interrupted by several misplaced howls, and various pitched laughter. Then Ulf changed into his loup-garou form and walked over to the TV, placing his ferocious face next to the screaming girl's… a decided improvement on the movie.

Adam and Nathan had grown into the pack, and spent a lot of the time with the Five. Adam had made a lot of progress in his recovery recently, but he still looked and smelled a little different from the rest of them. And Nathan had stopped hurting himself. At least, Vivian was mostly sure of it. Her thoughts were interrupted when Adam threw a cushion at a snarling Ulf by the TV, and he turned and barked at him. Then they started play fighting.

Vivian picked her legs up off the floor and held them close to her while Gabriel got up and shoved the coffee table, carved out of several beautiful pieces of driftwood, out of the way. If they had to play fight, at least they shouldn't break something.

Adam was clearly stronger than Ulf. Then the rest of the Five, with the exception of Willem, stepped in. Sensing an unfair advantage, and still looking for a fight, Nathan changed to give his brother backup. But the play fighting started getting more vicious, and the barks were getting a lot louder, and Vivian worried Adam would get too excited, so she nodded to Gabriel, who was crouched near the center, like a makeshift referee.

They stepped down, and changed back, pulling shirts on and settling back down on the sofas, after shaking hands and thumping shoulders with palms in truce. Where's Will? She thought, taking another sip from the bottle of water she constantly had in her hands, at Gabriel's urging.

They went back to watching the movie, which had been paused, when Willem entered. He had found a ratty blonde wig, and stuck several pillows under his stolen dress, which looked like it may have been one of Aunt Persia's, rested his hands on the small of his back, and waddled into the living room towards Vivian. The group erupted into laughter, and Willem did his best to keep a straight face. "Move over honey," he said, nudging, the pushing Vivian out of his way. She sat on Gabriel's lap and he rested his hands snugly around her waist.

"Willem…"

"It's Willemina, honey." The rest of the Five rolled around on the floor, laughing.

"Fine… Willemina. What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm preggers, honey! What? Do you need me to draw you a picture? What you need to be asking is who my baby's daddy is … and the answer is… I can't remember." Willem then proceeded to rant about various problems he had faced trying to locate the baby's daddy out of the pack. "I swear, I've asked everyone… Uncle Rudy didn't even answer me. But then again… goodness knows that old fart is in no mood to be having children."

Her ribs hurt from how hard she was laughing. And Gabriel had real tears running down his cheeks. "Oh come here honey, take a listen." Willem put his hand on Vivian's face and pulled her to his cushioned belly. Then he pushed his stomach out once sharply. "Oh would you look at that? It's kicking. Do you want to know what I shall call it?"

"It?"

"Yeah, you know how it is; they look so alike when they're that age." Gabriel raised his brow, but kept chuckling. No one knew where this conversation was going. "I call it Willemina Junior… or Millard, depending on how much its kicking. Imagine, Millard and Jacob, best friends forever. And soon you'll be this big." The chuckling died down a little. No one could really imagine all of that happening to Vivian yet. "What I waddled over here to say is, you should have a baby shower. And I'm throwing you one. The old biddies can throw you another one later, like a proper one, but Willemina is throwing you one this weekend, and all of you stingy asses in here better come. And bring something good." The man in drag proceeded to get up and push those lying on the floor around to prove his point, warning them to get their stingy asses over to the baby shower of the year.

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"That was sweet," she said, pulling on a long sleeved cotton shirt and long pants. Recently Vivian had traded in satin for flannel, to mark a change of weather.

"That was ridiculous" he said, pulling out the comforter and jumping onto the bed. He could never get used to the idea of wearing a pajama shirt, but she would never mind.

"Yeah, but you laughed. Everyone did… I'm excited for my fake baby shower."

"Me too." Vivian raised one eyebrow turned to face him. He was looking at her the same way he usually did when he thought she wasn't looking. And she could tell all he was thinking about at that moment was her. "You know, I can't imagine you that big yet."

"Good!" she said, flushing and running her hands to her still taut stomach. He laughed and reached out his arms, so that she could take her place next to him. "You know, I worry about you sometimes."

"Me?" he said, his voice a comforting thunder in her ear.

"Yeah, I worry once I get that big you'll forget about … me… and just focus on Jacob. I've seen it before; they greet the belly before they greet the mother… Oh, but that's so messed up though… I shouldn't think like that."

"No, it's not. And I won't…Mmm, how could I?" His skin warmed, then burned her through her flannel pajama. Then when he nipped at her neck, she could feel the extra energy from the moon still coursing through her veins. That just needs to be burned off, she thought.

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At breakfast Vivian was happy enough to share some quiet time with Uncle Rudy. "What?" she asked when she noticed he was looking at her in a strange way.

"It seems like only yesterday you were thirteen and without a home. And then you and the pack came to stay with me. I remember wondering so many times why She would do this to you, to us. How time flies… I always knew you'd end up with someone good for you, though. You're a good person, baby. And Gabriel, he couldn't have anyone better." It was poignant and strange that he was saying all of this, and Vivian's eyes brimmed with tears. She watched Uncle Rudy get up, carrying his mug of coffee to the kitchen sink, and was left all alone in the living room.

Sometimes, especially during quiet alone time, memories would flash by in her head, like pictures on reel.

Calling out to her father while the roar of fire rang in her ears.

Watching Gabriel hand a baby to its mother while her home burned in the background.

Drawing an upside-down star on Aiden's hand.

Being accepted, and then rejected from the Amoeba.

Getting teased by the Five, including Rafe.

Winning the title of alpha-female, and then running away from it as fast as possible.

Getting shot, and getting stuck as neither a loup-garou nor human.

Kissing Gabriel for the first time, and realizing then how much more she wanted out of life.

Getting her driver's license.

That summer with Gabriel, when neither of them knew how far they had already fallen.

Watching a mother give birth to a loup-garou child.

Her nineteenth birthday, when she got everything she wanted, and when Gabriel got new scars on his back that just would never heal.

"Viv," a soft thunder in her ear woke her up from her dreams. She had rested her head down on her arms on the table for only a second, and had fallen asleep. Her cheeks were flushed and her heartbeat throbbed in her ears. "What were you dreaming?"

She leaned her head up and tangled the fingers in her left hand through his black hair, pulling him down and kissing him ardently, like she had the very first time. She could hear the familiar rumbling deep in his chest, like a purr. "Ah, I see" he said, when her lips had finally ceased. Sometimes they joked around and said they could read each others minds, and sometimes, like just then, Vivian really believed that to be the truth.

For a moment, neither of them knew what to say, and had entirely forgotten what they had to do in the first place. Vivian liked those times best, and she laughed. "Damn it Viv… you've done it again…" Gabriel could not for the life of him figure out what he had gone to the living room to say. He smirked and shook out his shorter hair. Vivian had cut it for him recently, so now it reached just above his collar. But she could never fully get rid of the five o'clock shadow he always had on his face, which she reached her hand out to feel.

"Hey! Sorry, am I interrupting?" Nathan leaned against the living room's doorway, crossing his arms over his chest in a relaxed pose. Instinctively her eyes went to his wrists, which were neither red streaked nor elastic band adorned. "You… we are supposed to be going down to the ravine? … And then biking down to the beaver pond?" She noticed his green eyes were brighter, and the mountain air had done him good. He wasn't as pale, and working for Gabriel had made him less lanky. Still though, he couldn't lose the cocky swagger.

"Yeah, sure. Let me just go change into something" she replied, getting up from her chair with the empty plate, where her bagel had been, and headed towards the sink. She heard Nathan's steps leave the hardwood floored living room and head back towards the lobby.

The hired help had been asked to take a couple of weeks off, for her mother's wedding. So, one of the older women would usually be in the kitchen doing a little washing up, but no one was around today.

From the open curtains in the large window by the sink she could see the day outside. Everything was vivid, and the grey blue sky was clear. Autumn was having the last of its few good days before the winter came.

Vivian turned the sink on and sprayed her plate, and Uncle Rudy's mug. Then she reached over and picked up the sponge, and gave the plates a quick rinse.

She could feel the heat radiating off of his body, and his special scent, and from the way her body fit against his, knew who it was even before she turned around. Again, a memory flashed back from a long time ago.

Once she hadn't enjoyed it when Gabriel stood so close behind her. Once her hands trembled and he had to cut apart her bagel before she sliced herself.

Now Vivian was perfectly capable of finishing up washing the two dishes in the sink, while he rested his head on her shoulder, and wrapped his hands around her ribcage. She put them on the rack to air dry and ducked out from under his arms.

Vivian ran up the stairs and down the hall to her room, giggling, and noticed her backpack had already been put on the bed. It was hardly filled, since they could rely on what nature gave them when they were in their loup-garou form, but sometimes, especially when leaving the inn and going to the reserve, there would be some random tourists. The ravine they were headed towards was in the very deep woods, as was Aunt Persia's lodge. "What's all this for? I thought we were just going down to the ravine?"

"Yeah, that was what I was supposed to tell you. We're …camping out. Just the group from last night. Will planned this all out, and I approved it."

"You did? What about the ones here?"

"Uncle Rudy, and Aunt Persia are here, and we have capable men in the pack."

"And Adam?" the question slipped out, almost like an afterthought, but she just never felt completely safe around him, and didn't want him to be alone too long.

"Adam will come with us." Gabriel used his diplomatic, yet reassuring, tone of voice.

In less than an hour the group from last night was hiking up towards the ravine, wearing backpacks that would soon be thrown on the floor in favor of more comfortable fur. The trees echoed with the sounds of laughter. Willemina hadn't abandoned her pretend child.

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That night, the temperature dropped to 40 degrees but the group barely noticed. Willem had everyone gathered around the campfire, still in their human forms, wearing makeshift crowns. Vivian looked like a wild forest goddess with the flowers in her hair and the gold of the firelight playing against her skin.

"And now, please present your presents to her highness. They'd better be good. Or else." Willemina shook a fist in Adam's face, who laughed and pulled another leaf out of the ground to stick into his hair. Gabriel didn't want to wear a crown, but Vivian made him tuck a feather behind his left ear. The eight people gathered brought out their backpacks, which they hadn't abandoned yet, and presented their presents.

Oingo Boingo played in the background, from a stolen boom-box, against various woodland noises as Willemina grabbed Gregory's backpack from him. Gregory blushed furiously and clenched his hands into fists as Willemina rummaged through and finally pulled out a teddy bear.

"Tis a cuddly stuffed mammal, for you my queen, from Sir Gregory. May it serve little Jacob well." The group clapped, and Willemina tossed Gregory back his bag.

The rest of the ceremony proceeded in much the same way.

"Tis bottles with little… doggies… on them from Sir Adam"

"A bag of diapers from Sir Ulf"

"A soft woolen, or maybe cotton…something… blanket from Sir Nathan. It too has little… doggies."

Vivian laughed the whole time, and thanked her friends for the gifts, and then Willemina disappeared for a few moments, and came back with a big black trash bag. "This is my present to you."

"What is it?"

"Open!"

Vivian half-heartedly untied the knot on the bright yellow plastic strings. She looked inside the bag and found a huge egg. She picked up the big plastic egg, and held it up to the firelight. It was see through, and she saw an enormous amount of much needed baby supplies; bottle cleaners, rattles, pacifiers, and bottles of shampoo. The whole thing was blue, and decorated with… little doggies. She laughed and her eyes became blurry, but not wanting to cry in front of anyone, she forced them back and didn't shed a single one.

"Now it is time for the games!"

"What?"

"Baby showers have games. Duh. The first is a sample tasting game, since I had originally bought this as part of the gift, and then realized it won't be fresh nine months from now." Willemina again disappeared, and then reappeared with a white plastic shopping bag. From the bag came dozens of little glass jars filled with baby food. Vivian's eyes grew wide, and she laughed again at the quantity of them. There must have been at least twenty little glass jars. He then handed everyone plastic spoons, and a jar. "First, a toast, to baby Jacob. May he rule with an iron fist, like…"

"Alright, that's enough" said Gabriel, raising one eyebrow. They clinked little jars and then opened them with a satisfying pop. Vivian was reluctant to have a taste of the mystery contents, but everyone else was game, with the exception of Gabriel who looked just as nervous as she did. Finally she just stuck her spoon into the jar and took a spoonful. A tasty sweetness filled her mouth, with just the tiniest bit of tartness to it. Apple.

"Now you must announce to the group which flavor you got. Please note that these are special jars, some are for when he's really little, and then some are for when he's got little teeth."

"Oatmeal" said Adam with a calm expression on his face.

"Creamed spinach" said Nathan, clearly scrunching his nose.

"I got sweet potato" said Gregory, taking another spoonful.

"I got apple," chimed in Vivian, wondering if she wanted another taste. "And you?"

Willemina responded that she was fortunate enough to get the one called "fruit medley."

Gabriel had been silent the whole time, and Vivian wondered if he was having any fun at all. This wasn't the kind of thing he would ever do, and she wondered if maybe he felt like all of this was stupid. "What about you, babe?"

"Beef" he stuck the spoon back in, and the little jar clinked loudly. It was empty. The group howled with laughter and proceeded to finish the rest of the little jars. By the end of the game, there was a plastic bag full of empty jars, and the group had decided Jacob would probably like apple, beef, carrots, sweet potatoes, fruit medley, and peaches the best. They spent the rest of the night playing stupid games, like who could drink out of the baby bottle fastest, Gregory won, and dancing to Oingo Boingo.

That night they put away sleeping bags they wouldn't need, and changed into their loup-garou forms. Vivian shivered as she lay down on the dry and crunchy leaves, but then a comforting weight sank upon her. Gabriel had lain his head down on her shoulder blades, and she wasn't cold anymore. She stayed up watching the fire die out, and the embers fizzle, while all around her the heavy breathing of loup-garoux mixed with noises of the outdoors.

How could this get any better? She thought, and then felt a soft hand scratching behind her left ear. Gabriel knew her weaknesses all too well. Vivian fell asleep with a happy purr caught in her throat.