The Rose and Her Thorns
The days after Jaylon's death passed in a blur, each hour passing by with numbing indifference for Ivy. The boys seemed to be almost catatonic as they moved through the everyday tasks of life. Eddie and Harley were getting worried, as the little boys moved without their usual spunk and enthusiasm. Even the pack was listless, Fang and Thalia keeping Sunni constant company. Ivy and the teenager seemed to be taking Jay-Jay's passing the hardest, both of the two not moving for hours at a time. But Eddie wasn't worried. They would heal with time. Everyone heals as the time passes. Right?
December 12th~Noon
Now Eddie was worried.
The pack, the new members included, had managed to cheer the older children up slightly. Camden was still very sensitive, but Ziva and Snow's constant encouragement helped him along quickly. Lyall and Gabe were quickly becoming best friends, the bright silver wolf and the blond twin constantly by each other's sides. Even Drake found a friend in the most unlikely of places; Hayden had taken an unusual liking to the dark wolf, constantly laughing at him while the canine did absolutely nothing.
Steel and Dea were constantly watching over Miles, the pair as close as they could be. The only wolf that wasn't constantly with a child or Eddie was Akin. The male white wolf had become attached to Ivy, as she had been the first one to thank him when he got back to the house. But Ivy and Sunni were still absolutely lifeless.
After Eddie came home, Ivy had secluded herself in her room, only leaving to go to get a drink or to help Harley with the babies. Akin had stayed with her almost the entire time, cuddling and constantly trying to coax her to go outside. Sunni was constantly lying on the couch, Cocoa cradeled in her grasp while Thalia and Fang watched over her.
His chest might have still been sore, but that wasn't about to stop Eddie from getting Ivy out of that bedroom. Entering the darkened master, he could immediately make out Ivy's form on the bed. Akin was lying next to her, bright blue eyes pitch-dark with sorrow. He whined as Eddie entered the room, pleading with the man to help his human friend.
"Ivy? Are you awake?"
A slightly muffled sniffle eminated from the bed, and a mass of tangled red hair rose from the silky green sheets. Once so shiny and voluminous, now the auburn curls were tangled; limp; and lifeless. Tear-streaks ran down her face, bright red against the pale green. Her eyes were dark and watery from lack of food and water, and poor Ivy could barely lift her head for starvation-induced weakness.
"Eddie?"
Sadness creeped into Eddie's eyes as he strode over to the bed. He crawled under the sheets with her, pulling Ivy into his lap. She was alarmingly light, not protesting as he squeezed her tightly. "Ivy what have you done to yourself?"
Her voice was barely more than a whisper as Ivy spoke, the tone raspy and filled with hurt. "I miss my baby."
"I know, darling."
Gently, he shifted her in his arms to where she could rest her head on his shoulder. "Did you just call me darling?"
Eddie smiled, knowing that his favorite red-head's customary intelligence was still there. "Yep. Do you like that name, or would you rather I go to Harvey's old name for you?"
"Do I even want to know?"
"He called you Itchy Hotness before you tried to kill him. Then he called you another name that I'm not going to repeat."
Surprisingly, Ivy chuckled slightly, snuggling further into his grasp. "You're probably the only person besides Harley that could get away with mentioning Harvey Dent's name in my presence without being utterly destroyed. You know that right?"
"Yes. Yes I do."
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While Ivy was starting to heal with Eddie, Harley was in the kitchen with Jonathan. Eli and Gabe sat at the table with Steel and Lyall at their feet, watching silently as Harley made lunch. Somehow, the harlequin had managed to coax the ever-reluctant Scarecrow into a conversation with her. She was trying to explain the wonders of the magnificent arm-flailing tube men you find in car dealer parking lots. For a man with the brains of Einstein, Jonathan could really be thick sometimes.
"I'm tellin' ya Johnny! The tube men are real!"
"Harley, you are like a child in ways that you can't even imagine."
"Hey, why don't ya take these sandwhiches into the living room and take one to Red and Riddles?" Harley paused for a moment before adding sternly, "And don't wake up the babies! Red might not be feeling too hot right now, but she'll still have your head on a pike if you wake one a' her babies up!"
Crane grumbled that he wasn't anyone's slave and swiped the grilled cheese sandwhiches off the counter. From underneath the counter, Lyall and Steel gave a slight snort at the incredibly thin man's backside.
I can't believe Ivy allowed him to stay here. I mean, he shoved poison into Sunni's face!
I know how you feel Lyall. Just wait for a while. Sunni's been talking about asking Ivy to move into their old mansion. The lawyer that had taken care of Jaylon's burial records said that legally the house was hers to do as she pleased with.
Cool! A mansion on the outskirts of this hellhole? Count me in!
Now, as Lyall and Steel were discussing residence possibilities, Thalia and Fang were trying to coax some life back into their teenage packmate.
Come on Sunni. You need to eat...and take a shower. Your starting to make my nostrils burn.
No Fang.
Why not little one?
Because I let my baby brother get killed. It's all my fault. I was off playing hero while he was defending Harley and the others from a deranged clown! It shouldn't have been that way Thalia. Why couldn't it have been me?
The alpha female's inner voice was gentle as she answered the girl's question. Because it wasn't time for the Father Wolf to take you yet. Jaylon gave up his life to save anothers. You should be proud of him for that kind of bravery. And you need to be here for your other brothers. How do you think this entire ordeal has affected them?
Listless eyes turned to study Camden and Jasper as they watched cartoons. They sat side by side, Jasper trying to disappear into his older brother's side as a somewhat startling part of the episode erupted onto the screen.
Thalia was probably right. But she just couldn't get over what her father had said in the hallucination. I'll see you in hell. I'll see you in hell. What kind of father said that to his daughter, even if it was a toxin-induced hallucination? Did it really mean that she was a monster and was going to go to hell? That thought terrified Sunni as she snuggled into the soft pelts of her packmates. She could hear the conversation Snow and Ziva were having on the floor, but she tuned them out because all they were talking about was Jonathan.
Ziva, I'm tellin' ya! That scrawny man's got it in for us!
He does not Snow. You're over-exaggerating again.
From down the hallway, Sunni could hear Drake's irate voice as Jonathan checked on the sleeping boys.
What the hell are you doin' in here Stick Boy!
The response Crane gave to the growl was an instantly shut door and a slight yelp. He certainly didn't want to be on the recieving end of wolf fury, especially not after what Eddie had told him about Steel's bite.
A light sigh escaped Sunni's lips as she listened, slowly drifting off to sleep and to a dream that was going to lead her to a new revelation.
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Jonathan got the surprise of his life as he entered Ivy's bedroom. "I've got lunch here and, OH MY GOD!"
There, curled up on the silk sheet with Akin hiding his eyes on the floor, were Eddie and Ivy. They were making out, and serious about it. In fact, it kind of looked like Ivy was trying to suck off Eddie's face. They didn't even stop their lip-lock when Crane screamed.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?"
No response. The blatant make-out session was starting to creep Crane out, so he left immediately. Taking a deep calming breath, he muttered, "That is the creepiest thing that I've ever seen in my life.
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Yo! Wat up? :) Sorry I'm feeling gangstery today. Please review and say your mind, but flames are not welcome here! Trust me. I freak out whenever someone flames me and go all Green Beret Homicidal on people. Just ask my cousin. He still has the scars. *wicked grin*
With lots of love and insane glee,
BlackRosePoetry