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The White Dove Pt 22 - Wakanda

The White Dove Masterlist

The newest chapter. Took me a few tries to get through this edit due to its size. Hope you guys like it and let me know what you think. Got the trip to Wakanda, there will be a second later for what I will realize I missed adding to their first trip to the hidden kingdom. So if you have any ideas you might like to see for the second trip on bonding with other characters let me know. :)

...

“Okay, here’s the plan,” Eddie said. Making you grin over a weekend lunch months prior after his having bought a VW van for cheap you would fix up. Together with his mechanic friends at their shop the entire interior and mechanics of it was stripped. To be given a safer means of travel through possibly harsher locations on vehicles than another jeep.

Around a kinetic engine to swap out the combustion engine, that would have you at the mercy of remaining between gas stations with more rugged axels, supports and tires. Now you had the freedom to drive or park out however long you wanted. New parts would guarantee lesser chance of being stranded in rougher surroundings that had no mechanics. While the cubbies, kitchenette and built in bed atop a storage system would let you not be reliant on hotels or tents like you had the summer before. Same as an overhaul on his bike to have the same reliability and durability, that the last summer trip had his bike requiring a few roadside repairs to show necessity for them. He had been to Africa before to travel the harshest parts even before Venom, and with you there he didn’t want any risk at all against your safety. Parts of the continent that had already had daily lives harsh, to say the least, had been affected even worse since the blip, and he knew there were extra precautions required.

Maps had been consulted. As well as books on the languages, natural foliage and animals to the areas you planned to visit. All to gain more knowledge and be prepared ahead of time, certain countries were still blocked off entirely due to the political troubles while they repaired their infrastructure, otherwise there was a good deal of the continent to see. One of the most secretive being Wakanda, that was notoriously secluded from the world. Word through other contacts Luke Cage had sent word to King T’Chaka Misique was planning on heading to Africa this summer. That offer when you were 14 was authentic, and they would treasure a visit from you and Venom. And with your permission, your number he got in touch with you for trouble, was shared with the King to warn when you would be close.

Summer again was looked forward to. However today, you had sat for a series of exams at Midtown. Prior to the hassle filled trip to Columbia for your exams on campus there, you were seated in the base of a staircase. Folded forward, with your face on the books rested atop your lap, “You okay, Pluto?” Morita asked in his pass of the hall you were hiding in.

Off your books your head lifted, to catch his gaze and nod, “Just, um, two exams on campus after this after seven checkpoints.” He smirked, able to sense a tension in you as you ruffled your hand into your hair in frustration.

“Is it the checkpoints or the exams?”

“If I could fly I would. As if half an hour back and forth several times a day wasn’t bad enough now lines and,” you sighed and said, “They can’t lock it down forever while they hunt down that stupid Orca box.”

“I think by fall things should change. Do you have any plans for summer?”

“Ya,” emphasized with a nod, you said, “On a vaccine schedule to prep for Africa.”

“Wow,” he said, smiling at you in recollection of his past trips there, “Been there, vaccines don’t help with energy but it is worth it. All over again, like last summer?”

“We hope so, bought a VW bus and we’ve been turning it into a camper for the trip so we don’t have to bring tents. Even made a kinetic engine for the bus and his bike so we don’t have to worry about gas or getting stranded or things like that. Plus the remodel has kept my mind off the soldiers.”

The admission had a momentary shift of his expression for the weight of what it meant, “Have they been bothering you?”

“It,” you sighed, and drew in a breath to say, “Back in Russia I was under constant surveillance. I couldn’t even go to get my hair done alone or talk to the stylist when I was there. Just old memories I have to push through. They’re doing their job,” you said. He nodded, remaining silent as you paused to wet your lower lip, in thought of how to finish that statement. “Therapy and Eddie have been helping. Have to test those scars eventually to know if you’ve moved past them or not, right?”

He nodded, “Within reason, yes. I truly do wish there is more I could do to assist you.”

“I know,” you said. The bell rang, soon flooding the hall with bodies parting the both of with a trade of kind goodbyes.

The break alone was enough to get you with a grin. And back to the Columbia campus. Beyond seven checkpoints and seven soldiers you wanted to punch through their pleasantries to get out of your way.

For all of the worries in gaining friendships when your prior year at Midtown had began, now that you were about to lose a majority of them to distant campuses, every time you had to return after classes at Columbia in time for Color Guard rehearsals it almost didn’t seem worth it. Not if they wouldn’t be in the marching band waiting for chances to slip away after for movies or trips to shops. Sure Ricky would still be here; and his list of friends greatly clouded yours, so you could only sit and ponder if this was more a surge of fear or jealousy creeping upon you. You’d never wish them ill, you wanted all of them to succeed, but having been in the Red Room being pitted against your friends and sisters to murder any in hand to hand duels this was painful. It hurt, no other way to say it. You wouldn’t end their lives, but still they wouldn’t be there next year.

It couldn’t just be Bucky and Eddie to be left alive after being irrevocably bonded to you. One as a brother in arms, and the other as an actual brother who would protect you from anything or anyone; all these checkpoints had those days creeping into your dreams nightly ,and fear with it that one by one your relationships after gaining freedom were doomed to fail. All you could really cling to was the once given hissed assurance from Venom that once a Symbiote had bonded they would never abandon their family. That was your hope, in the end the phantom Bucky had grown to be and Eddie with Venom attached were in your life for good.

There wasn’t the slightest clue on what you thought of your former teacher, who seemed even in his mental haze fixated on you, often seeming to increase lessons to not be away for too long. A fact that became harder to grasp after your loop back in time. Perhaps glimmers of memories from that encounter had him clinging to someone familiar prior to his hell he still was trapped in. You were glad it was just dancing and what you imagined to be thinly veiled flirting on his part, either intentional or not, to not complicate the muddle of thoughts on how to deal with him if the Avengers ever did find him. All the more reason to worry on if you should help smoke him out or to let them eventually stumble across the sights of his guns.

All through your lessons, until you were able to match him, he seemed to almost regret what he was forced to do. At least to you compared to others who interfered with your lessons or on your first few missions together. And when you had first knocked him on his back, showing you could bring him down, that double sided reluctance grew, out of order more than anything. He was not permitted to kill you, and you were not permitted to kill him. They had to save their top two assets. So dancing together, pretending to be cordial in given roles in public on missions, his lessons with contact involved, none of that was beyond what you were comfortable with. Only that time you gave yourself the mission orders, and he was merely a side piece to the plot. How that dynamic would change when he was free was up in the air. If he would jeopardize your freedom, or hunt you down out of his own trauma where you would have to issue that death blow to keep all you had built.

For now that would have to be compartmentalized. Focus shifted for you to take up the usual seat on the long table of tiered seating in your first exam. Everyone honed in on the packet the Professor gave permission for it to be broken open to get started. Two more exams later, and somehow earlier than you were meant to be after changing you sat blankly on the side of the practice field with a box of raisins you were snacking on. Not particularly focused on anything; at least until a particularly bold raven came to land in front of you, sounding out into the silence to make you focus on it. It took a hopeful hop closer share some of your food. “Do you like raisins?” you asked. Offering it a few, that one by one it lifted to vanish between its open beak. Shaken and empty the box was accepted by the grateful bird who flew off to make use of it somehow.

“You’re early Pluto,” the Coach said. The sudden voice lured a reflexive grin across your lips and eyes to fall upon them.

“Ya, not sure how I did that, sort of blinked at Columbia and I was back here. Just exam nerves I guess,” you said. To get your blood pumping back into your legs you climbed up onto your feet.

“Still a bit jet lagged after the decathlon in DC?” they asked with a chuckle, out of the corner of their eye watching you bend a leg back to begin stretching them while they set their chair. After which they set the folded table up they’d carried out, same as always.

“Think it’s more so vaccines, have a whole slew to get ready for our summer travels.”

“Oh that’s the worst,” they replied, making you giggle. “Did a whole tour through Africa and Asia in my gap year and I was sick as a dog. It will pass. Unless you are waiting on your yellow fever shot, then you might need to make use of that in flight sick bag.”

“We’re hitching a ride on a carrier actually. A friend of his is flying out with preventative fire gear for a summer spot for a fire crew on the Savannah around reserves.”

“Oh,” they said, with brows raised in asking, “Is that, cheaper?”

And you let out another giggle. Beginning to stretch your arms behind and beside you after releasing your second foot, “We fixed up a VW bus to drive in. It’s cheaper to fly that out on it.”

“Oh that makes so much more sense. Then, yes. By all means, if you get all of you over in one go, do that then. I do hope you find a Titan free continent to roam, there are still a few up and about the news said on their daily updates.”

“Now where would be the fun in that?” you asked, making them smirk and turn away in notice of the arrival of the rest of the team.

“Johannesburg here we come,” Eddie chuckled. Driving the fully loaded bus you had designed onto to the airstrip that had an open bellied plane just waiting for it to be loaded inside. Strongly hands were clasped when the Symbiotes inside Eddie and Phage’s Other demanded control of their hands as their rivalry lingered on even as father and son. “Right on time,” he said and gave you a grin, and a softer handshake once their grip had released. “Head on in, we’ve got your bus, get it bolted down by code.”

Nodding at the order, you took a shared first step to the open ramp. Unconsciously shifting a bit closer to Eddie’s side, “What are we doing first?”

“Eat,” he joked, and slung his arm around your back, “Then we hit up the classic museums there and the Maropeng and Sterkfontein caves, and the exhibits, full slew of reservations for all of it. Then the reserves after that, no tickets for that,” he said with a smirk, “But I can imagine we can find a way to explore the wild on our own.”

“You know what, I think we can.” You replied with a giggle.

“Just 15 hours away,” his eyes over your head moved to the other volunteer fire crew; their group midway to the seats lining the square of passenger seating near to the cockpit. Well after sunset, at least for the flight you could get the sleep you were missing out on and just imagine how many emails and messages you would wake up to from your friends.

Shutting your phone off, you closed out of the image of a group photo from the mock prom thrown to see the end of high school era for those who weren’t going to be coming back next year. Having shared the target of this summer’s vacation, everyone was excited to follow along like the year before on your social feed that had comments racking up to a single posted snap of a book on Africa, captioned simply ‘Three guesses where we’re headed.’ Only of course bringing up the question of if Misique and Venom were going with you, and from nature reserves clear pleas to set some poacher proof barriers with social pages were posted and gaining traction.

Once buckled in, leaned together you and Eddie both dropped off to sleep. At least until Phage’s Other threw a bagged lunch at Eddie’s chest, waking the both of you to the in flight meal, yours of which was handed to you to enjoy. Phage’s Other sat down across from you and made sure you kept your grin through their teasing conversation that began then filled the rest of the time to landing.

Passports were stamped, and out of the airstrip, the bus you had both climbed into the front seat of, was fired up and driven off onto the main road. Where there were soldiers everywhere back in NY, this area of the country at least seemed free of that suffocating sea of bodies to pass by daily. “Another Symbiote has shared the best place to eat within this territory,” Venom said, and guided the way to a small place.

There, while dressed casually in light jeans, a tank top and open flannel with bolero hat to keep the sun off your face, pairing well with Eddie’s t shirt, jeans and boots matching your own to be ready for the caves later, the bus and mannerisms had you supposing you stuck out like sore thumbs. All the same, the food was savored, and fueled the drive through town to the Maropeng exhibit you would be seeing first.

Every turn and stretch of road had Eddie smiling wider seeing how excited you were getting to the new museums and intellectual stops; just the beginning of a long trek through rough countries, all leading to the mysterious country of Wakanda. The mystery of which would surely build in stress for you until you were there.

A car length beyond a lifting bar barrier a final stretch of road curved to reveal the parking lot that only had a few cars in the lot. The emptiness making you look his way. “Won’t be crowded,” he said excitedly once parked, and ticked his head to the side grabbing his ball cap he pulled on when on his feet. Outside of the bus the locks sealed, and to his side you walked, looping a finger with his so you could look around and not get lost on the way while taking in the dry but noisy brown and green surrounding open space.

Cobbled copper colored pathways fed into a courtyard that held the gift shop. A familiar symbol had you say, “Ooh, bathroom.” Softly he chuckled and made his own stop to the men’s room, watching your trot across the empty space between you to the even more eerie bathroom echoing the nothingness that fought the sounds you made until you were outside again and had hold of his finger again to follow the pathway.

Noise of strangers calmed you at least a little bit, to discover a group of fellow travelers willing to risk encountering a Titan from around the world. While not near the numbers the caves were used to, any amount of group was welcome and prized, so in this group of ten others you took up the back for a full slew of tours others had voiced they would be joining everyone else there as well to give all the guides a good run of their routes today.

One of said guards smiled in accepting the first of your sets of tickets, then exclaimed, “Everyone is here, now we can begin the tour!” He waved his hand to usher you all onwards.

Along the way to the building, a plaque lined few set of stops were shared on, to be followed by a five minute release of you all inside a lobby filled with displays you all could look over. Just awed by it all, even if you had read it before, you went from one to the next, lining up on cue for the tour to move onwards. Down a series of steps the group moved to a hall lined with timelines of discovered fossils and evolution you looked over to sound of a warning from the guide that talk online of monsters on the boat ride ahead were false.

More an orange round metal raft than a boat, in groups of four, you split to ride through a dark water drip echoing hall lit on the walls by figures and neon images of Earth’s past between flashes of thunder audio sound bites. Just a few minutes later on the other side you came out in a new hall of displays on evolution of continents ended in a room focused on DNA and fossils.

Sterkfontein after everyone was through browsing, a second guide called for the tour ahead, and out again to the courtyard you went to follow a path lined with more plaques. Louder the nearer you got, noises of the creatures around you muffled the rules for inside the cave by the second guide.

A staircase next fed to a lift to take you in groups of three, including the operator, to the next staircase to 40 meters under the earth. And while he might have assumed it to be as quiet for you as it was him, Eddie heard your whispered confirmation that you could hear numerous creatures inside these limestone caves. Taller endless caverns gave way to a path you had to crouch to pass underneath to get to a bit where they showed the conditions of old miners by shutting off the lights for a minute. Then far too early for your liking it seemed to be over, and still at the back the next interior exhibit tour guide came to fetch you to begin his leg.

“I hope they have a rock plushie,” Eddie said at the table assigned to you in the restaurant inside, that seemed overly eager for all of you to partake from their services as well, having heard of a decent sized tour today.

“I’m sure they have something equally as adorable if they don’t,” you replied with a smile to prove you were still buzzing with excitement.

“Better to have something nice to take away before the depressing drop of the evening. We don’t have to go, you know. The apartheid museum will keep for another trip. They were remodeling last time I came to town.”

“It’s fine, plus it will fill the gap to cover the slip to sunset. So we can park and slip away.” Orders were given, and a tiny bit amusingly question of where you were from arose when your accent had them a bit puzzled, especially when they had heard you translate a few things for Eddie on the tour not in English. “I do think it’s nice they added Sekhmet and Mokele-Mbembe to the second exhibit. Be nice to see how the Titans blend in to future exhibits.”

“Bet they’ll make them be plushies soon enough,” he teased, and joined you in thanking the waiter for the drinks.

“Where are you headed next?” one of the guys at the table beside yours asked, having recognized Eddie when you’d both removed your hats to sit down and eat.

“Nambia,” Eddie answered, “Gonna try to zig zag through what we can.”

“We heard they shut down Nambia transport last week,” the man replied.

“Ah, we’ll go over our notes then over dinner.” Eddie answered with a grin your way, assuming they wanted a leg up on where Misique might be as the woman beside him poorly stole a picture on her phone to go with a warning on where he was.

Another nearly empty lot surrounded the ghostly museum, that as you timed it had you exiting the grim reminder of the past of this country right at sunset. While the press here was circling a message from President Mandela himself concerning his thoughts on Misique possibly visiting the country and continent, under cover of nightfall atop the backs of two sizeable eagles over the nearest nature preserve your hair and eyes ignited when you jumped off their backs. Right in the center of the white rhino exhibit your feet met the ground.

Beams of light from guards on watch fell upon you mere moments until a country wide glittering yellow mushroom cloud exploded out of your tiny body, tripling the natural foliage to the area and numbers of wild animals and insects, aside from flies and mosquitoes. Borders of the nature preserve were laid out so that tours could still be held but no animals could be harmed under the watch of bee drones or taken outside of these lands to protect them.

A lot had been chosen earlier when you had shopped at a local market, to cook inside the van, and set up camp for the evening as the world settled to this regrowth, that to those in Egypt and Sudan, took note of the Titans who reacted to it. While distantly still the change had them turn to look in that direction and seem to be excited at said change the presumed tiny Titan was setting off.

Back into its hidden cubby you hid your mask, lighter armor of your own metal and thin long sleeved shirt and gold heavily pocketed vest were hidden to Eddie’s fetch of the notebooks of plans. “Okay, rehash of the plans,” he said, checking online for the latest allowances of tourism to adjust the road path ahead.

“We don’t have to do each country like last time,” you said while dicing some peppers to mix with the cooking ground beef sizzling in a pan on the small oven.

“I just don’t think if we’re land locked we can do anything but Hot Wheels it over the ocean to get around. And that would only tire you out more.” A pathway however was settled, and after eating you were off to bed.

An early morning found you eating again, to fuel a brief trip around the buzzing country, on the way to the next safe border to cross.

Border after border popped up, sealing in a now flourishing series of wild habitats flooding the world with formerly near extinct creatures and those forgotten about the Earth reminded you once dwelled here. Let loose into the ocean your mechanical jellyfish got to healing the reefs and reducing waste humans had dumped to improve quality of oceanic homes for the aquatic life as well.

For two days however, when you reached Sudan, a hotel room had to be found after your largest blast yet that unexpectedly enveloped the lower half of the Sahara Dessert. While it didn’t reverse the entire dessert, it did an impossible amount of difference on satellite images as trees and patches of green spurred on sudden rainstorms to fill voids with pools of water with wild creatures there to maintain the change. All the way across the upper half of the continent your blast had spread, ignoring country borders split by shifting sand, the effects of which left you bored and stuck in bed unable to wander around like you wished until you had recuperated.

Mokole- Mbembe. The Titan with massive snake-like tail, four thick legs, a curved horn on its head pulsing with a very faint green light, a head that looks something like an earless elephant, except that its tusks turned down, rather than up, and a mouth that opens like a crocodile's, revealing thousands of teeth, seemed to enjoy it most of all. Found to be scurrying around the changed environment closer to what it knew the last time it was awake over ten thousand years prior.

Even Sekhmet, the Sphynx shaped Titan, had taken a visiting day trip before returning to Egypt. Satisfied at seeing what it had with hope to be back to be home when Misique would arrive there to follow the clear glowing path on satellite images now placing her somewhere in Northern Africa.

As soon as you were up though explorations were back on, freeing you to hear from the elated people, and seedier side of this continent, that the barriers were holding to protect the new wetter green lands attracting rain. Mines and dumps alike now were flourishing with life and with help of your jellyfish the water levels were improving.

Yellow and black homemade or drawn masks seemed to beat you to the cities ahead on or displayed people who hadn’t caught sight or sound, except for when the blast would go off. Though Egypt was the most amusing to tour, with historians lining the streets and all possible social pages to send out plans to recreate the majestic lush cities that lined the Nile. Images, that to the best of your ability, around the downright wiggling Titan, through the country you had toured as a desert was fresh to be toured again in jovial new light flooded with green and colorful blasts of wild flowers and fruit giving trees and bushes. Tours filled with colorful birds and insects to flood the air with their songs above, and animals down below, the curious people around you admired all that had been returned to the beloved country.

Tourism had hit the locals hard here, on still sparse food shortages, and a surplus of freshly grown food and livestock would change that. Sekhmet took to inspecting each body who came close enough for the secretive tiny Titan hiding amongst the humans. Footage however would be replayed on the news for days to come of an image of Misique atop the side of a pyramid beside Venom, by a news chopper casually checking on what Sekhmet was up to, that filmed you speaking to her as you had Mokole-Mbembe in Sudan. A time to sleep, when the talk of their pleasure in the changes of their territory had been shared, was named by the pair of them who returned to their dwellings for an overlapping week of naps to wake to the sounds of the newly settled foliage.

Halfway through Chad on the single safe road permitting tourists under heavy guarded lanes of highway your communicator sounded off, and you had to smirk at the latest message from Wakanda. Their message had you both instructed of a stretch of wild savannah to leave your vehicle in, with coordinates to follow with packs, only to hike blindly to a pickup point to be taken to the capitol city.

Just a simple border without any guards concealed a series of hidden scanners that, against the shield the bus engine let off, could not get a good look at distantly caused concern on what might be hidden inside. All the same to the coordinates of an empty circle of dirt ending the dirt road you drove, already masked, while Eddie in the back readied the bus to be left behind for however long you were allowed to stay or a quick getaway if you had to rush an escape if things took a wrong turn.

Parked alone in the open space you let out a breath and turned to ease into the back. The sides of your hair were woven back, in spiraling braids a cluster of your bees latched onto to keep near to you. The top strip of hair was brushed back to join the ends of the sides of your braided sections you might tie into a ponytail later. Armor was left simple, a honeycomb patterned chest and back plate, with arm braces for your biceps, were strapped into place before a bright yellow button down shirt was settled back on covering the figure obscuring layers of protection.

“Ready?” Eddie asked, looking you over once his pack was secured at the top.

“As I’ll ever be, fingers crossed this isn’t a trap.” You said, making him chuckle as you removed your necklace and rings to seal in the cubby with your armored pants, and he drew in a breath to Venom’s ripple over his body. He opened the door and out you both stepped to seal it behind you, hoisting your packs onto your backs to begin the walk ahead. “About an hour towards that hill looks like,” you said eyeing the navigator rested on your palm.

“Nice,” Eddie said, then joked, “Trying to wear us down with a long walk.”

“Certainly underestimate our love of hikes,” you joked back.

And for an hour you walked closer to the first sights of a mud and grass hut filled city in the far distance, beyond another hill and a herd of sheep closer under watch of a Shepard, who nodded his head to the pair of you. Clearly warned of visitors his eyes, and those of a farther group of horseback men off to the road ahead, seemed to be taking note of your progress, the only pause being noted by another set of men working a path of land who stopped to follow the same trumpeting you had heard.

Distressed around a hidden hole a band of adult elephants turned at the sight of you and Venom, while not known by them, like other people they hoped you would help and split to let you peer down at the toddler elephant trapped far below down in a hidden cave 30 feet trumpeting from obscuring shadows.

“Just a moment,” you said. Dropping your bag to jump through the hole to all but vanish from sight. Down in the darkness, the scared toddler standing taller than you, rocked on its feet and looked you over where you had landed a few feet away. “I know you’re scared,” you said. In its try to back up, to shouts of the men above you recognized the language it must be accustomed to, and spoke those words again to the toddler who stilled, understanding you now. “Let’s get you out of this cave, hmm?” curiously it trumpeted softer. Turning its head to your move closer to its side, and timidly it let you pat its side and smooth your hands across it to let it see you weren’t there to hurt it.

Above, its family sounded again to a sudden trumpet from the toddler when you hoisted it in your arms. Their sounds only grew louder when you leapt up out of the opening of the cave. Up between the group heads raised to watch you and the toddler arch into a soft landing a good ten feet away.

From the opening in a rush the adults flocked, to check on the toddler who melted back into its family unit, gladly accepting their contact as you stepped away back to Venom’s side. From his grip you took hold of your pack and simply turned to continue on to the city. The men in relieved chuckles at the family’s evident glee returned to their work. But even they had to smile wider when the elephants turned to hurry after you and Venom to thank you thoroughly and memorize you both. Especially your glowing self, who could speak to them unlike other humans. Afterwards they turned themselves off to continue a search for food.

“We like these elephants,” Venom said and began sharing on creatures from Klyntar who were similar to them, one of the few parts of his home planet he could come close to missing. Beyond the second hill in sight of the city of huts you stopped, causing the Dora Milaje inside of the shielded ship awaiting your approach, to draw in a breath, worried for a moment if you had caught hint of them. All the same down to a crouch they watched you lower a hand to touch an otherwise unimportant spot to their eyes, making them wonder all the more at the surge of brighter light to ripple through your hair and eyes.

“A root, Yggdrasil says something old fell here, and they’re shielding it.” Up onto your feet you rose adding, “Rainforest isn’t as dense as they let on.” Venom chuckled and joined you in continuing on the path.

“Misique!” a child in the village called out luring more over to the clearly bright yellow glowing stranger they recognized.

Before you could reach their waving selves the shield on the ship dropped as a staircase did, revealing the first of the three guards in dark blue wraps covering dark armor and clothes, “Take it they are our ride,” Eddie said lowly as you and Venom stopped to watch them come closer.

“Misique,” the man in front stated with a nod of his head, “And Venom, King T’Chaka has ordered us to escort you to our capital city.”

“I like your ship, reminds me of an old fish I read about. Gives off a nice hum,”

His brow ticked up, “Our ships are silent.”

“To you perhaps, the world is far louder than you know.”

His eyes swept over you, and he said, “Our King is waiting for you.” To the ship they led you, divided they surrounded you and Venom. Once inside he gestured to one of the bench seats along the wall, “Sit there.”

Brushing off the clear tone, showing they had an impression of intimidation over the both of you, was made to seem valid by your choice to sit down to simply see where this ship was going. Silence filled the ship that even Venom could hear the engines that worked off magnetic pulses far louder than your kinetic engines. Even from the back, clear view of the lush plains and cliffs showed to be filled with herds and wild animals seen below right to the rainforest. Smirks rippled over the faces of the guards who watched the fake trees ripple away when the ship passed through to the advanced city beyond it, that pulsed with a hum all its own you recognized but hadn’t heard this loud.

Down on a ledge the ship landed, across from a parallel lined group of guards, split by gender and colors of armor, up to the King and his family who waited to greet you. “Our King is waiting,” the guard spoke again, stealing another sweep of his eyes over the chest plate visible more-so when you stood in the beam of sunlight that shone through the open windshield.

Out of the ship you walked down the steps to pass between the lines of guards whose hands subtly shifted their grips on their weapons. Ignoring that, calmly you walked to stop in front of King T’Chaka, who smiled and stepped closer, “Misique, our people welcome you to Wakanda. I see you have grown.”

“Half a foot,” you said with a giggle, “Glad for it too, now only tall cupboards can best me,” you joked making him chuckle. At his side you took notice of Prince T’Challa’s brief smirk. “Quite beautiful, Yggdrasil was not kidding when they said something old fell here. Whole kingdom is echoing with the hum of Vibranium.” You said parting his lips.

“Who is this, who told you of our Vibranium?” he asked softly making the guards tense up, readying to attack if ordered.

“Yggdrasil, the tree that connects the Nine Realms.” You said lifting a hand. When your palm began to glow, created a small hologram of the Nine Realms and the great tree connecting them, each of the realms you named for them. “Yggdrasil speaks to those who listen.” And in a point to a spot beside the stairs on your right, that cut off a pattern of planted small figures along the platform, showing signs of being dug out before that had begun to sprout grass again, “Ever wonder why that particular spot refuses anything buried there?” Eyes shifted subtly to the spot and back to you, “There is a root there. Other kingdoms try to dig through the roots too, none have succeeded, only my people have managed to gain favor by the Norns to link to them through the gods.”

“No tree gods dwell here,” the main guard from the ship retorted, making King T’Chaka look at him pointedly.

“Wakabi,” he said, gaining a nod from the guard, then the King looked to you. “This god,”

“Yggdrasil is not a god, but a mediator between the heavens and the living. I mean no offense, Yggdrasil is alive, yes, and far beyond possible our capabilities to dream of harming, it dwells peacefully linking all the realms and has woven itself throughout the planet’s surface connecting all continents.”

Princess Shuri asked, “And who are the Norns you mentioned?”

“For my people they are female beings who create and control fate, including the gods, binding us all to our destinies.” You answered. “I am certain you recall Prince Thor of Asgard who landed in America last summer, he falls prey to their will. Gods for the gods.”

“You are of the Norse faith then,” King T’Chaka said with a simple chuckle, “That would explain the axes.” His hand gestured to the side, “Come inside, let us share with you our faith and you can share more of the song our kingdom sings to you through this great tree.”

Outside the opening double doors a tapestry topped table sat, two guards on either side, both of the Dora Milaje, the taller who stated, “You will leave your weapons and packs here.” The packs were simple to remove, and while the Royal family passed through the doors the guards following them all turned their heads to see the first of a series of weapons you began to remove while Venom waited.

Daggers from pockets, waistband, under the hem of your shirt and between your shoulder blades first had the two women beginning to fight smirks that broke free at the twin axes you pulled from above your hips on your back. Then joined by a pair of curved blades that once your outer shirt was removed were pulled from the openings on your back plate behind your shoulders. Again you added your shirt and removed the lightning and freeze guns from two of the pocket holsters on your thighs, with pouches of stun darts, before you nodded and with Venom turned to head inside. When you had passed through at the impressive hoard of weapons the shorter of the women snickered to herself only to fall silent and look back at you in your trot back to the table to settle down the grapler chord holsters and another set of daggers, muttering, “Forgot those,” then hastily trot back.

Aloud more of the Dora Milaje let chuckles and hushed comments free in amusement and wonder on where you had hidden those after seeing the amount of weapons that took eight of them to hoist the tapestry up to take down to the lab for inspection. And when you returned to Venom’s side you heard the King continuing to name things special to their people along the way to the throne room where other Elders had gathered to welcome you all stood to greet the King and then look to you.

The Border Tribe’s leader Wakabi was the youngest in blue, he stood beside the woman in darker blue leading the Merchant Tribe. Both across from the man in a lime green suit and lip cup to match leading the River Tribe who was on the left of a woman leading the Mining tribe in red with hair wraps to match ended in what you took to be brown feathers to match other accents to her jewelry.

All of them were named, alongside the King’s own Queen Ramonda and daughter Shuri, then he said to them, “These are Misique and her brother, Venom. Misique saved my life and that of my son.” He turned to speak to you again, “And all of us wish to show you the very best of our kingdom to help you rest after doing so much to restore this continent to its greater glory.”

The leader of the River Tribe asked, “Your family must be proud of your growing legend.”

“Venom is my family,” you answered.

And the Symbiote with a pat on your back stated, “And we are very proud of our sister.”

Ramonda asked, “You, the two of you, that is all that is left of your bloodline?”

“Well my parents were killed when I was six, and shortly after I met the King and Prince here Venom adopted me as his sister. He has several relations on the planet, but they are not a family, so to speak. My parents’ other relations are not able, or willing to care for a child.”

Wakabi asked in shock, “Your parents were killed? How?”

After a glance at him you answered, “I was seen by Leviathan agents using my powers, they came, murdered my parents, burned our house down and stole me away. Eight years later I escaped and went to New York, where it all sort of built to where we are now.”

“How did you escape?” the Merchant Tribe Elder asked.

“I killed everyone who stood in my way. Not my initial plan but I heard they planned to steal my ovaries and end my bloodline,” your head ticked to the side, “So I moved onto plan b.”

“How old are you?” Queen Ramonda asked, evident pain in her voice.

“Sixteen,” you said, instinctually her body moved to place a hand on her daughter’s back who was the same age as you. “I’m not a spy by any means, I do still have a sword on me,” you said making the guards behind you snap their eyes to you, “But it’s Asgardian, it sort of followed me home from a museum. It’s named Eir-Gram and no matter where I leave it the sword just follows me until it hops back into my boot. An exiled Beserker says it must just be bored after centuries of being buried then being on display. Which if you think about it the blade was forged by the God of Mischief Loki, so it is fitting.”

By the end of the ramble grins began to split onto people’s faces. The King spoke again, “So, you are of the Norse faith, may we know from where you were stolen and where you Venom, hail from?”

“I was born in Sweden,” you said parting Shuri’s lips.

And she said, “Maybe you can translate a text we found.”

“Sure,” you answered.

Venom answered next, “We are from Klyntar, our Other is from New York.”

“Other?” The Mining Tribe’s Elder asked. “What Other?”

And you explained, “Venom is a Symbiote, a race from another planet named Klyntar in another galaxy, he and more like him, landed here on a meteor and found hosts to survive. Far nicer than it sounds.”

The awed Princess gawked at him while her father said, “For now, we shall give you a tour of our city.” Outside through a side hall leading to another side of the palace you listened to all that was shared.

Until your arrival inside in an open field, a duo of young rhinos, who broke into a debate after you’d mentally complimented them on their size, had you giggle and interrupt Wakabi in his share of the area for their war rhino pens.

His brow arched up and all eyes turned to you making you say between giggles you lacked the ability to stop, “Sorry, they’re arguing over location of a hole a guard got stuck in last month for half a day.” He and the others looked at the rhinos who cried out, calling their older brother who trotted a bit closer then ran to the hole not far away and he called back, making you giggle again to chortles from others from the Border Tribe guards. Each who recalled the scene as you said, “Found the hole.”

Shuri closer to you moved with a curious glance at your glimmering curls asking, “You speak to animals?”

“And plants, insects, Titans on occasion, I can also hear frequencies metals and explosives give off.”

Shuri asked, intrigued, “Frequencies? Could you share more on that? I can test the metals we have in my lab,” she looked to her father, “Baba, can we go to my lab?”

“Tour, then we eat, and you can show off your lab after,” he said with a chuckle and she kept close as Wakabi continued to share on his leg of the tour.

The markets were next. A nice chance for you to delve into their varied fashion avenues to take, allowing excuse to ask some amongst the group of significance of patterns, materials or designs. More and more for this short stop the group warmed up to the considerate curious guests out to admire and honor the culture of new friends unlike others who had focused on simply more valuable resources.

A brief glimpse at the River Tribe homes in the distance was granted on the walk back to the Palace. A long table of food was settled, and performers were ready to share a greater history of their people through the meal, that for your spot did not have foods with the allergies you warned about.

Curious on taste and ingredients the Prince beside you named each dish and tried to not be amused as others seemed to be at each required tilt of the bottom of your mask to eat the spread of options usually eaten by hand atop a new sort of bread you’d be trying to remake later when returned home.

When the show ended talk of locations you had stopped at already in Africa and planned stops ahead were shared. Right up to the empty of drinks and plates that signaled Shuri and Prince T’Challa amongst an armed group of Dora Milaje to escort you both to her lab. “I don’t need a guard,” Shuri whispered in their native tongue only to be reminded you were both strangers.

Though their heads turned when Venom asked, “Sister, what does this say?” at a sign posted on a mannequin with a cloth draped over it that you translated.

“You speak our language?” One of the Dora Milaje asked turning your head to her.

“I learned a majority of the languages in Africa for our trip. I like to be prepared and tend to find people in danger when I stumble into traps. And the occasional elephant too.”

Shuri asked, “Multi lingual, able to project holograms, Baba says you are strong, fast.” Gently on your arm plate her finger tapped, “By the armor, not bullet proof, I was told you were shot when you met Baba and my brother.”

“I tend to get shot a lot. Would have brought my Kevlar but it’s a bit too bulky to carry around, and this breathes more.” With her subtle gesture you walked more into the lab onto a seemingly normal panel on the floor that gave off a subtle glow at your body weight.

The secretive scale gave off a glowing readout that had Shuri state, “You are 85lbs, hmm.” With a smirk you stepped off the scale that Venom stepped over as she asked, “What metal did you choose for your armor?”

“Metal my bees can create. Still thinking of a name, Venom does agree ‘Impozzibee’ would be rather adorable. I know I want a good bee pun in there. Not fully as resilient as Vibranium, but it matches Kevlar for what I need while traveling.”

A table not far away was noticed by you, all your weapons laid across it; a dagger from which Shuri lifted to ask, “Same metal as this?”

“Yes,”

“We tested it, and it seems to have something inside of the metal and is topped with a honey based colored coating.” She stated.

“Cheaper than paint,” you said with a shrug.

“The substance in the metal?” The Prince asked.

“Bee DNA,” you said parting their lips, “My bees make it, they leave a sort of, touch spreading DNA like saliva or skin cells while shaping it.”

“Those must be special bees, who can create metal,” the Prince said, “Where did you find them?”

“I make them. When I was first taken I was beaten and locked in a makeshift sensory deprivation cell,” you said, stunning the guards and the siblings, “After, my head felt like it was splitting. Yggdrasil showed me how to make my bees to calm the pain the process kicked off when they chained me to my bed again.” You said lifting a finger to lure attention to the bees still resting in your braids.

“Those are not weapons are they?” a guard asked, you shook your head.

“They’re a part of my hive, help me with tasks and to keep monitored on a few things across the globe while I focus on keeping my daily life together.”

“You used those for barriers,” T’Challa stated.

“Not exactly, these have metal body casings, I create electro magnetic bees for barriers, they can fade away after use, these remain constant with their bodies but can fade on will when trapped or injured so I can make them a new body.”

“And where do they go when they fade?” Shuri asked, having fetched a scanner that she lifted. You nodded, signaling one of the bees to wake up and fly to your raised finger to land and be scanned.

“Back to my head,” you said, making them all look at you again. “Bit complicated, but I make them and as they grow in my head I get to know them and create them bodies to join the rest of the hive.”

Like lightning the bee sparked up and she said, “There are no mechanisms, pure energy within the casing. What do you use them for?”

“Well this is Chester, he likes to help me with my basic notifications and projections on the go,” over his back his screen popped up, to play a clip of a panda video you had been watching earlier, spreading grins before he shut it off and flew back to latch onto your hair. “Also keeps me linked back to my hive back in New York ensuring everything goes on schedule while we’re away. As well as any new panda videos posted online.”

“What schedule?” one of the guards asked.

“Water schedule, for my garden.” You said gaining a few chuckles.

“My brother says you are strong,” Shuri said, “How strong are you? We have our own footage of what you have been filmed doing back in New York. Up until you caught a building we capped your possible strength at five tons.” She said signaling with a tap of her finger on her bead bracelet to show on the screen hidden in the wall on your right of a few of your best strength defining clips.

“Well, I can catch 500 tons,” you said gaining a few stunned scoffs, “But I can lift more. they just ran out of things to throw at me, quite literally, to see how strong I really am. I’ve caught buildings mid collapse before, but with my size usually the force of the fall goes against me in reducing damage done.”

She pointed to a clip of you punching Iron Man before, “Then he would be dead.”

“I never said I wasn’t pulling my punches. Not a pleasant feeling to liquefy a person’s heart in one blow, and I can do that, but I usually end up fracturing my arms or hands afterwards when I let my strength slip out fully and stop myself from punching through people. Which sounds a bit ridiculous, but it just happens.”

“Do you have super healing?” she asked next apparently building your skills biography.

“Yes, part of why Hydra started testing on me. Started with daily stabbings and worked up to a monthly gunshot wound they’d send me to bed with, removing patches of my skin, acid, fire, toxins both airborne and ingested, ending with them trapping me in enforced bunkers and setting off warheads to see what I could heal from.” That had jaws drop and you said, “Have to say the drowning tests weren’t all that pleasant either. And thanks to the serum they gave me I can’t eat nuts, mushrooms, bananas or lavender, which is also a bit ridiculous as well but at least I came up with my own allergy attack compounds to help when I do have a reaction to avoid hospitals.”

“That makes no sense,” the Prince said, “How can you withstand a bomb but not a peanut butter cookie?”

You shrugged and said, “Something about the introduction of the Vibranium based serum they use to make Super Soldiers into human dna to an exposure of gamma radiation. And we don’t even die, we swell up to the cusp of death and it’s a slow painful recovery to normal for two weeks after the attack if we aren’t treated.”

“Super Soldier,” another guard said, then asked, “Then Captain America is also allergic to things?”

“Rogers, or?”

“We are aware of Isaiah Bradley’s record,” the Prince said, “We have invited him here several times after he was free. That is odd you both share the same weaknesses to the same foods and flower.”

“The translation!” Shuri exclaimed, making you smirk as they led you to a formerly excavated artifact coated in Old Norse Runes and a mixture of Danish and Swedish you read, and with a notepad given to you was translated around a series of underlined names mentioned within the text.

Noise however sounded and announced the arrival of the Jabari tribe. Curiosity from the group had you and Venom shown outside, to watch their chanting walk up onto the platform behind their gorilla mask wearing leader. Who raised his knot ended staff, designed for clubbing people, to aim at you and Venom. King T’Chaka stated, “Lord M’Baku, what is the meaning of this?”

“You dare to bring outsiders into Wakanda?!” Back and forth they argued until he stormed past the King, triggering the Dora Milaje to aim their spears at him, and the Border Tribe to draw their scoop shaped swords.

Just an aim of the club within a foot of you and angrily Venom hissed, expanding his body with jagged spiked tentacles, ready to attack the now wide eyed Lord who was debating lowering his club. “You are not welcome here,” he repeated.

“There a reason you don’t like me or is it just that you don’t know me?” you asked plainly only to have him shout back at you.

“You do not speak here colonizer!”

“My people are warriors!” you shouted back making his mouth fall open at your lack of fear, “My ancestors fought side by side with the greatest Kings and Shieldmaidens of Norse history, men fell to silence when females of my line were merely whispered of and I will speak when I see fit! King T’Chaka has invited myself and Venom here, I don’t recall your name upon the invitation, Lord M’Baku.”

His head turned to the King to mutter in their native tongue, “This impertinent creature, you invited her here?”

And in their same language you replied for the King, “That is what I just said.” Angrily he glared at you, “You have an issue with me, speak your piece, air your grievances and learn otherwise or state a way to calm your ignorance driven fear.” If the guards weren’t already growing fond of your tiny feisty self they were starting to be now at this challenge.

“You earn the right to speak,” he issued a challenge, and onto the grass you walked, to be inside a matching pair of lines of his fur wearing guards and Dora Milaje.

“Is this a ‘to the death’ fight or a ‘till he yields’?” you asked the Prince, who smirked back at you to Venom’s unamused huff at his side.

“Until he yields,” Prince T’Challa replied. Zuri, a man in purple robes stood as an apparent referee of the match, and standing still peering up at the loudly huffing Lord across from you, building his ego to chants from his group to egg him on.

Rushing forward with club straight out he charged at you. The crowd curious as to why you hadn’t moved while he imagined fear had you frozen. To the side your body suddenly eased to grab the side of the staff in a leap up to loop a leg around his arm. Hard and fast in a tumbling mess his body flew, casting up dust while you landed from the flip you did to send his body in a flip of its own. One handedly twirling the staff right side up to stab it into the earth to watch the sore and stunned M’Baku scramble to his feet.

Right back at you unarmed he charged, hunched forward as if to tackle you, only to feel your hand latch onto the back of his armored shirt. Dropping jaws at the breathless lift of him straight up over your head as he let out a stunned shout. Back onto your backs, before he could move or think you fell hard, releasing the hold of his shirt to catch yourself to be in a handstand, enabling you to drop your legs and stand on his chest. Up at you he peered, releasing a painful whine as his lungs struggled to fill with air whilst your glimmering hair fall around your masked face and torso at its own whims.

“Fair warning, I can catch 500 tons and hold more. I don’t know you but I don’t particularly want to spend the next half hour knocking you into the dirt, I will if you want me to, unless you accept you’ve made your point and we can start over from here.”

“I could last much longer than that,” he rasped and patted his hand on the side of your knee. “I yield.” And in a hop you were off his chest and had hold of that hand to have him pulled off his back, blinking a bit unsteady on his feet to cough a few times to fill his lungs fully. To the King he looked and said, “These two, these two are welcome here.” Making the King smirk at your move back to Venom’s side. “When is the feast?”

Supper came next with the ruling family for a smoother meal that had you all growing a bit closer to friends. Them sharing more of their own people after you had stunned M’Baku again at naming the source of the pelt draped over his shoulders and back. Culture, that guests rarely were invited to, was to be shown during the stay to prove a budding friendship.

A bedroom with a good view of the star lit sky was assigned to you and Venom with a large enough pair of beds to make the both of you feel a bit ridiculous on using both of them. Once changed you both laid down, to sleep under watch of your bees to get ample rest for what was possibly coming the next day after the group breakfast with the ruling family.

The barriers around your bodies on the beds sparkled in the sunlight that shone through the uncovered windows for the pair of women sent to wake you. Both who smirked seeing the pair of you with blankets and pillows over your heads; though mainly for you curiously with black hair in a wild braid instead of your glittering curls. Sharply you inhaled and turned over, igniting your hair at the warning of company. In a battle against returning to sleep to squint at the women you moved the blanket and pillow away, which proved you slept with your mask on. “Breakfast is being prepared, we are here to ready you for a tour of the River Tribe today.”

“Oh,” you said. Post trip to relieve your bladder and brush of your teeth, the pair were there still holding the bright yellow and black one shouldered midriff bearing dress they had been ordered to help you with.

“This will go over your swimming suit.”

“Okay,” you said, and went to your bag to bring out the one piece suit that you went to the bathroom to change into and return in the black based suit, with green leaves and flamingoes on the patterned material, lined with black strips giving the illusion of being like a corseted top.

Over your chest they wound the base of the top, that up over one shoulder was knotted with a bow. The skirt material folded in half was looped around your waist then angled down over one thigh, unfolded to loop around the first layer to feed out around the other thigh for a skirt that would end up open in overlaying layers in the front and hung to cover your backside and most of your thighs fully. Sandals to match when the dress was finished were slipped on.

Venom, now at your side, joined you. With hold of a tube of sunscreen he used their distraction on the path to slide the white layer over your upper back and arms, while you took the spare bit to cover your chest and front of your neck. Awkward slips of your hands over your legs for coatings on them behind the women were managed and back into Eddie’s hidden pocket the tube was hidden to be used again later to avoid burns.

“Quite lovely on you,” Queen Romanoda stated when you approached the table. “Are those, flamingoes?”

“Yes, there was one with colorful fish but it had an opening that kept moving and would slip off my chest when I moved in the dressing room. Mostly they only had see through or tiny thong based suits and those were a no go.” She chuckled. You settled into the chair assigned to you. There you waited to listen to the full tour lined up for today.

At your side Shuri, who after yesterday and this morning in brainstorming talks had more than a few guessing you might possibly be Mates. Having blended so seamlessly into brainstorming talks on possible inventions or ways to improve on things she was stuck on, she walked with you to the hover cart that would carry you the distance. And when you got in sights of a certain teen in wait for you all, she explained, “That is Nakia, she is training to be one of our spies, every time my brother sees her he freezes.” Making you giggle to yourself. His argument lasted until he did just that in front of her, which had Shuri bump her arm into yours to free a giggle from the pair of you when she joked, “Oh no, not like an antelope at all.”

The Water Tribe elder broke the silence between the awkward pair of teens to begin a tour of the city. To give his people more time to ready for the series of games that kicked off for an amusing morning that ended with curious kids to lead you to the water to play. Laughter from the adults echoed from the apparent music filled party they entertained themselves with, while you and Venom were focused on the kids and teens in the water with you. The littlest of them all stealing their chances to clamber onto your back or sides to get a closer look at your glowing hair and eyes.

By lunch warming on the banks of the river talk of waning marine plant life and fish, filter feeders especially to help keep the water cleaner, was brought up by an elder in response to new illegal mining efforts in the country near to the mouth of the river feeding through Wakanda.

A thinly veiled ask for help, but one for which you finished off your final bite of food to dive back into the water. Luring all eyes to the surface, soon rippling with an explosive wave of glittering mist, that upon your surfacing revealed the change of the watery depths below. One request, that for the next couple days you were asked to stay, had small favors of people and animals alike to have their own keep sake of sorts from the new friend of Wakanda. Until the final breakfast before your flight back to where you were picked up with a promise, to let them know when you received your Mate box and to keep in touch, while they would do the same.

“Oh I can feel air on my elbows,” Eddie now free of Venom said. Making you giggle in the climb back into the bus he had cranked the ac back on to air out the heat trapped inside. “Niger ahead, what’s in the notes on them again?” he asked, seeing you unload the bag of supplies and things you had bought and were gifted in the marketplace the day before.

“Droughts, high mortality rate on babies, not a lot of seniors.”

“Ah,” he said, turning around to reach better for the water bottle you offered him. “Looks like they need a forest then.”

“Yup, plus maybe we can handle that illegal Uranium mine they mentioned a few days back.”

“Definitely,” he said and watched you close the doors now there was a decent temperature inside to remove your armor and mask. Changed into less conspicuous clothes your locket was rested on top of again to the seal of the secret cubby. “Then off to Algeria to see those paintings and we meet our plane in Morocco. Then we can drive around the US a bit to fill the rest of the summer, last year we had the whole continent to explore, feel bad.”

That had you giggle, “You didn’t shut down the world over Titans, and we can head home. Besides, I think I might be able to rack up some serious cash now that I’m on the floor at the candle shop and you can get back at that new guy trying to inch into your space,” making him chuckle as you sat on the passenger seat.

“And who knows what your Seal guy is up to this time.”

And you giggled again as he shifted gears to take the loop in the road to head back to the border, “They locked him in Rikers apparently.” That had him chortle at how badly that would go, “That’s gonna go well, they don’t even have a roof on Rikers.”

“Apparently they’ve tapped Stark for that,” following the directions given to take the right break in the road to reach Niger’s border, the imagination on how badly this could go lasted to the gate with surprised guards there.

The stunned trio who were close to prolonging the encounter to simply have something to talk about later on in what has to be one of the most boring posts they had been put on, with rare if any travelers to let through and stamp passports for. And beyond that, and the next two countries, an open ferry to Spain had Eddie content that a much more relaxed end to your summer trip for two weeks of explorations filled the time to when the flight home had been delayed to.

Pt 23

All –

@sherala007, @mariannetora, @jesgisborne, @knitastically, @catthefearless, @theincaprincess, ggbbhehe4455, @lilith15000, @alishlieb, @fizzyxcustard

Not nsfw(smut) - @otakumultimuse-hiddlewhore

X Marvel-Cast - @himoverflowers, @theincaprincess

@jiminapickle

#Escaped Child Assassin #Eddie Brock #Venom #Out of the barricades #Wakanda #Wakanda Royal Family #Dora Milaje #Wakanda Tribe Elders #Lord M'Baku #Traveling and healing continents #Titans of the prowl #Marvel

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blazingtheway · 10 months

Text

A Mothers Blood Will Never Flow Without Pain – Storyline 14 – Together - Part Two

•- Embry Call -•

I looked down at my phone reading her message as I slide the rest of the lasagne back into the oven. The only reason I left any; was so mom would have food when she came home.

[Thanks for looking out for her too. Let Mom help you, you know how much she likes to feel needed. And I never do… Everything is going to be fine, Leah.]

I cleaned my plate and glass and scrawled;

Thanks Mom, I love you.

On the back of the note that she had written for me.... because I was just as bad at the texting thing as she was.

I climbed into my Jeep and pulled out my phone again to text Leah... now that texting was on my mind.

[And get some sleep, Trouble. Seth can handle the night shift. Sleep… Your mom is going to need you and that means you need to be fed, watered, and rested. Trust me… I’ve burnt out, and it ends badly for everyone. The Kid has got this.]

Then I started the engine and made my way to the club.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

‘Who is that?’ #TheKid asked as my phone went off again. He wasn’t used to hearing the sound of my phone, which remined me to set it too silent.

“Call, I told him were keeping his mom for the night.” He nodded handing me a cup of coffee before coming to sit on the floor of the living room beside me. We sat there drinking our coffee’s before he spoke.

‘Aren’t you going to reply to ‘Bry?’ Pushing my phone towards me.

“Do I need to?” I asked with my eyes on the cup in my hands.

‘Sis…’ He could feel his eyes burning into me. Picking up my phone I replied.

[Ms C is helping more than you can imagine. And you are only getting this reply because the Kid is making me. Now get to work. I am fine. -L]

“Happy?” I pushed my phone to the far side out of the way. He turned himself around, laying down with his head in my lap.

‘I was so scared sis.’ He finally said. One hand moved to stroke his hair, listening to him. ‘When I came here, and the scent of the blood…. The… sight of it… it wasn’t so much… but… it… it was… hers….’ I felt his tears fall into my lap and soak into my jeans. ‘I… I couldn’t think… I was….’ I knew what he was trying to say.

•- Embry Call -•

One Republic blared through my stereo as I drove to Forks. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and I figured it was Leah. I didn’t try to reach for it while I drove. I’d reply when I got to work.

I pulled into the staff-only car park behind the club and spotted #JoeWalker’s car… he wasn’t supposed to be here today at all after swapping shifts with me yesterday. The sight distracted me enough that I didn’t stop to check the text message on my phone before I went inside to see what was going on. I found him inside chatting up one of the bartenders. But he excused himself the second he saw me.

“I didn’t think you’d be here today.” I said, stuffing my keys into my pocket.

‘I just wanted to pop in and see if everything was okay.’ Joe replied. ‘What happened?’

I explained to him that my Auntie hurt herself and ended up in the hospital overnight I was helping out her kids. That ended with me needing to explain to him that on the Rez most elders were Auntie and Uncle and the Chief was Uncle or Grandfather depending on your age. I told him that everything was going to be okay and that it was Mom, but she was with the family now helping out. This made Joe chuckle.

‘She’s some woman.” He said as though he knew her well. “Sick herself and still lending a hand to a friend in need.’

“That’s my Mom… I have a feeling she’ll be spending the night there.” We walked to the office together and I cocked in.

‘Will she be okay? Doesn’t she have meds to take?’ He asked.

“She’ll be fine Leah will make sure she has everything she needs.” I realised my slip immediately. I had only given him vague details, adding in just enough small ones to discourage too many questions.

‘Oh… This is Leah’s mother then? The lady that got hurt?’ He gave me a knowing smirk. ‘The knight in shining armour routine. Why didn’t you just tell me that on the phone.’

I shook my head and laughed. “It wasn’t like that… her brother and I are close friends, he called me asking for help so I helped.”

‘So, she didn’t call you, the bother did?’ He tutted shaking his head. ‘You have so much work to do on that one, Call.’

“You’re an arsehole.” I laughed and elbowed him. “Now fuck off, it's supposed to be your night off.”

Joe finished up a few things that really could have waited until tomorrow while I started the fire check. After checking the last door, I remembered my phone. I replied to Leah:

[𝙰𝚕𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎. 𝙷𝚎'𝚜 𝚊 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚔𝚒𝚍... 𝚂𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙, 𝙲𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚠𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛.]

Then I text Seth. [𝙼𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚋𝚋𝚘𝚛𝚗 𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜 𝚐𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙. 𝚃𝚎𝚡𝚝 𝙹𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝. 𝙷𝚎'𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍]

I had no guilt volunteering Jake’s time just like he would none volunteering mine. I would have offered up #Quil’s too if it wasn’t his night with #Bear.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

The house was quiet, the light out. The windows in the living room opened by the kid because he knew the song of the spirits would help to settle me. I didn’t need to ask, or say anything. He had just gotten up, opened them and then curled back down with his jeans on my lap.

My phone flashed on the floor beside me, with Embry’s name and message. And then #TheKid’s phone buzzed next to mine with his name and message on it. Embry Call was in his way looking out for the Clearwaters. Slowly I shifted #TheKids head off my lap, and onto a pillow under him. Slipping out of the living room, listening to the two breathing waves from upstairs.

It was the best sound I could hear. Ma, #MsC and #TheKid fast sleep.

Looking at the time I went into the kitchen looking at the pain meds for Ma, taking the ones she needed to take, and then I looked over the med bag for #MsC. Two glasses of water in a tray, the meds I went up softly waking them for them and then letting them go back to sleep.

I didn’t know how they did it, but this wasn’t the first time they had slept like this. It mostly happened when #MsC had bad nights. With Embry working night at the club, Ma would find reasons to stay over. Even if they lived close.

When I made my way back downstairs, I scented them outside in the back. Opening the back door, to walk to the back of Ma’s yard with my hands pushed into my back pocket.

To anyone looking at me they would think I was talking to the trees, but hidden in there stood a dark, ashy-brown furred wolf. And a reddish-brown patch work furred wolf.

“She is okay pups, you shouldn’t be here. Your petrol is due to the far side of the cliffs tonight.” They whimpered and I knew why. “You can come see her tomorrow, she is asleep right now.” Theirs brown eyes moved to the top floor of Ma’s home. To her window, before they both nodded, stepping back into the woods.

•- Embry Call -•

The hours dragged by… I mean, slow nights happened but tonight I felt like I needed to be somewhere else. It was even longer. I knew that I couldn't drag her to bed with me so that she would finally sleep, so the heat and heartbeats or whatever it was when we were together could lull her into a real sleep. But even if I could just... be there... It wouldn't be suspicious. I always made myself annoyingly present when shit like this happened.

On my break a replied to a few texts from the pups telling that had dropped by and that Leah told them Auntie Sue was okay. I replied to them all saying the best thing they could do for the Clearwaters right now was to fulfil their duties and be ready to help if they were needed.

Because I couldn't help myself I text Leah while I was sitting on the loading dock getting some sir before I had to go back inside.

[𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜?]

Then added

[𝙸𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝙸'𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚙𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚗'𝚝 𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐]

I laughed at myself. "Way send mixed signals, Call." I swigged the last of my beer and chucked my pizza box into the dumpster nearby before heading back inside to take up my least favourite post, Joe's usual role... manning the door.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

I was sat on the back porch looking up at the overcast sky when I heard his foot steps.

“Why are you awake?”

He held out my phone to me, with a small frown. ‘Why is Embry texting you this late?”

Raising my eyebrow, my chin dropped to glance at him.

“I just meant it really late.” He was back tracking now. He knew the rules. And saw walls had been coming down, but some were still up and in place. Taking my phone I opened the text and read it. Showing #TheKid the first one.

[𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜?]

“He is checking in your mom, and his mom who I kept here tonight.”

He winced as he read the message. “That is the first and last time you are seeing any messages on my phone.” My voice told him I wasn’t kidding here.

‘So—‘ cutting him off. “If you are about to say sorry, stop. If you used your brain to think. You wouldn’t have needed to over step.” It wasn’t deflection, this was fact. No man was going to get away with talking to me that way. No even my baby brother.

“Go to sleep, I’ve got this watch.” I told him and watched him go back inside before closing my eyes and breathing. Going into my phones settings I turned off message preview before replying.

[𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚘𝚝𝚑 𝚏𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚊𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚙𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜𝚗’𝚝 𝚜𝚌𝚊𝚛 𝚖𝚎.]

•- Embry Call -•

The night hadn't picked up much... but considering this as the one and only nightclub in Forks and the only place open after midnight; a slow night was almost at capacity and a slight queue at the door... just to lure people in. There was room inside to let these folks in with breaking fire codes... but the line outside was a hook. And one I kept moving enough to stop people from giving up and going home.

I pulled out my phone smiling and tucked it back into my pocket. There was a good chance #Seth was keeping a close eye on her sister, hoping for the chance that just once she might let him look after her even if all that it entailed was staying awake s she could sleep... Maybe, someday she would let the Kid have that. Or it was possible the guys who could get away like #Jay, #Sam or #Jake would stop by. If I was texting her all night, it would be a giveaway.

Plus... I knew without a doubt that even now... with everything that was happening with Everything happening between us... she still was not even a little worried about m being mad at her or not. I smiled again at the thought.

One of the turn-offs of relationships for me had always been the dependency... the idea that someone's day, week or life would hinge on whether or not another was mad at them or missing them. But Leah would never be like that, she was her own compass.

I wondered then if that was why it was so easy to talk to her... I wasn't worried That my sadness or stress would drag her down... or talking about a good day would be seen as self-involved because she had a bad one. She just heard me out... and then if she was so inclined... shared a little something too.

I wasn't sure how long I had been lost in those thoughts, so I allowed in the next group of people. Some nights... manning the door really wasn't that bad.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

When I finally came back inside to my spot in the living room. Sitting on the flood, with my back against Ma’s couch, and with my legs outstretched. #TheKid took his place too. His head in my lap and he turned to fact me.

He used to do it when he was much younger. Hide his face in my stomach and close his eyes. Then tell me a secret or share something that had happened to him.

Now the conversation from outside, gone. My eyes in a book that I try to read. My fingers Playing with his hair. Stoking it like I did back then, not needing to think of my action until a thought came to life. I missed his hair. His long silky dark hair. He never let it grow back now. Some of the others in the pack grew theirs out a little. I had grown mine out completely. But not #TheKid.

‘Sis?’ Arms curled around a cushion as he spoke.

“Hmm?”

‘Are you alone?’

Still reading I answer “No, I’m with you.”

He sighed. ‘No. Wait. It’s not what I mean.’

“Okay.”

There was silence again for a while as I turned the page. ‘Are you lonely?’ His voice is a soft whisper.

“No, I have you and Ma.” Turning the page again.

‘You know that’s not what I mean. I know you don’t like talking about … well…’

“Kid. Do you really want to hear about my sex life?”

He shuddered and shifted to sit up. Taking the book out of my hands. And then he sat crossed legged facing me.

‘1. No. And B. Not what I meant. People can be surrounded all their lives, with thousands of people , and still be lonely. Are you lonely?’ His light brown eyes were watching me.

“No. I’m not lonely. People are lonely when they can’t be happy with themselves. When they can’t have happiness in being… just being… I am not that kind of person. I am happiest when I am with my own thoughts. Why are you asking this?” He’d never asked me it before.

‘Just…’ he shifted his tall body to lay his head back down where it was.

•- Embry Call -•

The night went smoothly, most nights went off with a hitch, and fights weren't common. Most of the time people were thrown out for being too drunk or too wasted. Tonight, it was the usual few drunks tossed and no big hassles.

Lock-up seemed to take as long as the rest of the shift and I knew that it was because I was wondering how things were at the Clearwater's... and not just about #Sue and Mom. I wished I knew how #Seth and #Leah was too. They had both been so shaken in very different ways.

I wasn't naive enough to fool myself that my concern for Leah wasn't any different than it would have been a few months ago. Then I would have thought she was fine, that she was rationalising everything and coping by managing the situation and being her usually responsible self. But now I knew better.

And yes, everything I would have thought then was true and sill was now, but there was more. So much more. She would be wrecked with guilt, thinking she should have been able to stop the accident, that if she had anticipated her mother's needs better maybe she wouldn't have even gone to the shed, to begin with. All of these things were outside her control... and even if I could be with Leah now, I couldn't convince her of that.

Not that I would try to... but there it was. The reason I wished I could be with her. She knew I wouldn't try and convince her not to punish herself for this... So she would voice all of it, let those thoughts run free in the world and maybe... just maybe it would make things a little bit lighter. Maybe if she lay next to me with all those sounds and scents that accompanied us being together she would sleep.

Maybe.

But I knew that wasn't an option. I told myself she was fine... she was with #Seth and even though most people looked at him like he was one that needed taking care of... he was good at looking after others. He just wasn't afraid to need people too.

That train of thought kept m company the whole way home.

I resisted the urge to text either of the Clearwater siblings on the way inside. The house smelled like #Bear and popcorn. there was a book on the couch that I picked up and opened to the bookmarked page...

I cringed... Some dude covered in bandages getting busy on a couch... not fourteen-year-old reading material. But I could deal with that in the morning.

I grabbed a beer and a guitar and headed out to the back porch where I sat on the back step and swigged from the beer.

It was cold and dry... the clouds weren't too thick, and the house was close enough to the beach to smell the salt in the air but not quite hear the waves. Home was the sound of trees and the smell of the sea for me.

I picked up the guitar and played... for the Clearwater's, for #Sue to heal quickly and for #Seth and #Leah to know that they weren't alone in this.

(Music: Leave A Light On - Tom Walker (Guitar arrangement) )

youtube

•- Leah Clearwater -•

The house was quite once again, with the moms fast asleep upstairs. (I knew because I never stopped listening to their breathing and hearts.) And #TheKid was now fast asleep with his head still in my lap.

Allowing myself to close my eyes after watching my baby brother for a long while, try to understand where his questioning came from tonight. But it didn’t make any sense to me. Somethings were never solved, I guessed this would be one for tonight.

They started to dance, and then they sang. The flurry of the wind came in from the windows I’d opened in the living too. And I knew without a doubt what and who had caused it. Embry was home, and he was playing.

It was something I started to notice since Seattle, the fact that their joy was connected to our joy, and their sadness was too. They had been a soft hum all day today, the sound of the spirits praying and calling for protection over Ma. But now it had changed a little. They still prayed for her, but they also danced in the spirit of the Warrior who played in his back yard without know what reaction he cased in them.

Reaching out and shooting over a text.

[Get some sleep, it’s been a long day and night for you. -L]

•- Embry Call -•

I picked up the phone on the step beside me and chuckled at her message, she always knew.

[𝙸'𝚖 𝚐𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎, 𝙸 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚎. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞? 𝚂𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙... 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢'𝚛𝚎 𝚘𝚔𝚊𝚢.]

I didn't like this feeling, I felt like I needed to be there the feeling of being in the wrong place at the wrong time was undeniable.

[𝙸 𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚍𝚘, 𝚒𝚝 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕𝚜 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎.]

I hit send, knowing that was a message were would both need to delete too. I picked up the beer to take a swig. I knew I would have to get to bed soon... but I couldn't help but want to be next to her so I knew that she was at least trying to sleep. Part of me had no doubt that she would sleep, we both would... if we were together.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

I knew when I saw my phone flash that he was still aware, even if the spirits had slowly died down outside. I also knew the need to unwind after work. I couldn’t just go home and crash. And I had learnt he was the same.

[𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘. 𝚆𝚘𝚛𝚔 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎. 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖..]

The sleeping sounds from upstairs and from the kid with his head in my lap, I could tell that we were on the way out of this nightmare.

And yet Sleep still couldn’t take a hold of me When I noted the time, I knew that the moms would soon need their meds again. And then after an hour of two they would need feeding. So really, was there any point to sleeping now? I could do it later? Or at least I thought it was possible.

•- Embry Call -•

I set the guitar aside and took another mouthful of beer before I replied to her.

[𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚖'𝚜 𝙸'𝚖 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝, 𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜. 𝙸 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚑...]

I paused and took a breath because I wasn't sure how to say what I wanted to say.

[𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚢𝚘𝚞. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚊𝚢 𝚒𝚝, 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘... 𝚒𝚝'𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘. 𝙸'𝚖 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝙸 𝚍𝚘. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝙸 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚟𝚎 𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜. 𝙰𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜.]

I hit send wondering if that was the right way to say what I was trying to say. I went back inside to take a quick shower... maybe it would make me feel a little more prepared for sleep... but that was when I noticed Claire wasn't there.

I knocked and Quil's door and he explained she was sleeping at Emily's... I wanted to know more but I let him go back to sleep and I could find our tomorrow.

I took the quickest shower ever.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

It took a long moment for unpack the meaning behind what Embry was trying to say when I read the replies. I hadn’t known him to be someone who hadn’t the words to say how he felt, and yet here we are.

Sitting here I looked over the screen feeling the reply and then I began to form my own words.

[𝚆𝚑𝚢 𝚍𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎?]

I wasn’t one to ask questions, however this path meant I couldn’t wait. I was learning to step up at times like this. Hitting send before there was time to rethink or changed my mind about this conversation. It would have been one of those we’d have shared in the bubble. But this was different.

•- Embry Call -•

Standing in my room in a towel I read her message.. and I had absolutely no idea how to answer that question.

I pulled on a pair a boxers and climbed into bed, picking up my phone again.

[𝙸'𝚖 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎... 𝙽𝚘𝚛𝚖𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝙸 𝚐𝚘 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚘. 𝙸 𝚊𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚜𝚞𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚞𝚗𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚍𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐. 𝚁𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞... 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚒𝚏 𝚒𝚝 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗𝚜 𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚊 𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖.]

I chuckled when I hit send and followed it up with...

[𝚆𝚑𝚘 𝚊𝚖 𝙸 𝚔𝚒𝚍𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐? 𝙸 𝚖𝚎𝚊𝚗... 𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚝. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚋𝚎 𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊 𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚢 𝚖𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚎... 𝚒𝚏 𝚜𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚊 𝚖𝚒𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚕𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛.]

•- Leah Clearwater -•

I’d made it back into the kitchen, this time a fresh pot of coffee had been put on and I was looked in the freezer as to what I could cook everyone for breakfast in a few hours.

Finding a fresh loaf of bread, I set the oven on to bake it, knowing the rest would be easy. Ma has some rolled oats soaking, bacon and eggs. Some muffins. It wouldn’t be a bad start at all.

When the texts came in, I had to lean on the counter to read them, hearing his low voice in my mind as the words registers. What could I say to that? He felt like he wasn’t where he should be? But he had to be there. #Quil and #Bear needed him. He wanted to make sure I slept. We both knew that wouldn’t happen, not here, not tonight. Not while I still felt like I failed to be there when Ma needed me.

I stood watching the screen, trying to find the words for all that I was feeling. But I couldn’t. I wished sometimes that I could put all that was in my head into letters and words. But that wasn’t who I was or would ever be.

[𝚆𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚗’𝚝 𝚊𝚕𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚐𝚘 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘. 𝚂𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚜. 𝚆𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚎. 𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎. 𝙰𝚕𝚕 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚍𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚖𝚘𝚖 𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜.]

I didn’t say anything about him wanted to see me at peace. Because what would that even look like?

•- Embry Call -•

With my headphones in and music playing I read her reply and smiled.

[𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚜𝚞𝚌𝚔𝚜. 𝙱𝚞𝚝 𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙼𝚘𝚖 𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚊𝚏𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚢 𝚋𝚎. 𝙸'𝚖 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞... 𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚞𝚙 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜. 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎'𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎? 𝙽𝚘𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸'𝚖 𝚜𝚞𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛... 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘.]

I closed my eyes, leaving my phone on the bed next to me. I knew she would understand if I fell asleep before she replied. I turned it over and over in my head, I knew that Leah was blaming herself for all of this. #Seth... hopefully sleeping but I knew that he had not only his mother’s wellbeing on his mind... but then his worry for his sister that he had expressed to me earlier as well.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Sipping on the cup of coffee in my hand I shook my head. I knew what he had been trying to tell me. What he had openly told me. That he was here for me, that he wanted to be in the same room as me. And it was something new. That he would want that? No. But that I could see him sat across the kitchen table from me right now. Yes.

And that realisation was….

‘Sis? Did you sleep at all?’ #Seth came out of the living room, with his heavy feet padding on the wooden floor. He made a point to walk in Ma’s house with heavy footing so that she could hear him coming. ‘Why are you cooking breakfast. You know after the day we all had yesterday there is no way the moms will be up at the crack of dawn.’

I pocketed my phone before turning to look at him stood in the door. “Just wanted something to do.” I told him as he came to still beside me, taking my cup of coffee and drinking from it.

‘I know you won’t believe me. But you need to sleep too. come on.’ Setting the cup down he curled his fingers around mine standing and making me follow him to the couch. ‘You sleep, I will take the next watch. I will give them their meds when they wake up and I will keep my ears on them at all times.’

Setting me down, he pulled the throw over my legs and kissed my forehead. ‘Please. Sleep.’

Giving his hand a squeeze, I turned to free my hair from under myself before curling my legs to fit on Ma’s couch. Thinking of Embry’s words.

‘𝙸'𝚖 not 𝚜𝚞𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛... 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚛𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘.’

Taking my phone out I sent a quick short message hoping he will see it in the morning after he had slept.

[If only you knew what having your close by has done for me.]

•- Embry Call -•

My alarm blared... well... not really because my phone was permanently on vibrate. But my head ached from the lack of sleep, so the buzzing was the most irritating noise I had ever heard right now.

My phone was still next to me, I lifted it and cancelled the alarm. Snooze was never something I needed; it was one of those things that people found shocking about me... they assumed my laid-back approach to life meant I liked to stay in bed. But I was a morning person.

I read her text and smiled. Because I could imagine... If it was even half of what she did for me? Well... that would be something for sure.

I knew it was true and knew that it wasn't easy for her to say even that much. I knew she could never ask me to be there for her... but maybe that was exactly why the ancestor steered our paths this way. I never needed to be asked or invited, I was really good at just showing up anyway.

[𝙸 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚎 𝚝𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝... 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚋𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔... 𝚜𝚊𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚕𝚞𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎? 𝚙𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚊 𝚋𝚊𝚐, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚊 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛... 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚋𝚎 𝚊 𝚗𝚊𝚙.]

My patrol would be finished at about that time and I could spend a few hours with her if she could ta herself away... but this was Leah. The chances of her putting her needs first were slim. But I would just keep trying.

I got up and headed out to the main room of the house... it was only when I saw #Quil, up and dressed that I realised the house smelled of coffee and bacon.

I looked around the room... "What the hell? What's wrong? Why are you up?" It was normally my waking him up... but breakfast was a bowl of cereal... not... I followed the smell. It was making my stomach growl.

'Littlesea dropped off breakfast... he figured we all had a day yesterday.' #Quil stuffed his face with a sausage. 'Damn that pup can cook!'

I laughed. It was true. But was a greasy fry-up... not his usual healthy version. "He's a great kid... I never even heard his truck."

'He walked up from down the road; he didn't want to wake you up because you had been working.' #Quil explained.

"Of course, he did." I laughed and made myself a plate from the food wrapped in tin foil on the counter.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

The sound of the truck wasn’t new to my ear. I knew that sound anywhere. #TheKid was walking towards the front of the house before the wheel had turned into Ma’s drive way.

‘Did I wake you?’ the soft voice whispered.

‘No, not at all. I was just in the shower.’ The scent of soup was in the air. Not that #TheKid would lie.

‘Good, I made you all some breakfast. I wanted to make sure you all had some down time this morning.

#TheKid laughed. ‘Sis made breakfast at the crack of dawn. But you know we will never say no to your food Pup. Come on in.’

I sat up on the couch, pulling my hair up into a messy bun before standing and stretching my body out.

‘Good morning, Leah, did you sleep at all?’ #Collin smiled from the living room door.

“Is that your way of saying I look bad?” I asked narrowing my eyes at him.

‘Uhm… no… n… No… not at all…’ his face and ears were turning red.

“So, now you are checking me out while you are standing in my Ma’s house?”

‘NO! NO… I promise you….’ The pup moved from foot to foot pulling on the collar of his shirt.

‘Sis, would you stop messing with the pup. He brought us all food.’ #Seth placed a protective arm around the pups shoulder and squeezed him. ‘She’s always in a bad mood when she doesn’t sleep. It’s why I put her to sleep.’

The pup’s eyes moved from my brother and then to me and back again. ‘I should go.’

“No... No, you shouldn’t. get your arse in the kitchen and eat some breakfast with us, and then I promised you, and Fuller that you could see Ma today.” Looking out at the street and the other Pup made his way up the path. “Speaking of.”

Letting the boys set up breakfast I went to brush my teeth and clean up, seeing the missed text from this morning from Embry. I knew he was right, but I also knew myself. And I wasn’t going to be able to leave Ma, not while she was hurting.

[I can’t make promises I have no plans to keep. I know I should, but I can’t leave her like this.]

•- Embry Call -•

#Quil and I ate, and I had the mid-morning run. For #Quil, it was time with his imprint, and I would probably go to see Mom for a while before I spent a little with Bear too... before she had to go home.

I waited for #Quil to go to the bathroom before I took out my phone and smiled at my phone.

[𝙸 𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚍. 𝙾𝚗𝚎 𝚝𝚎𝚡𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸'𝚖 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎... 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗, 𝚘𝚛 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍. 𝙶𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝙼𝚘𝚖 𝚊 𝚔𝚒𝚜𝚜 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚞𝚙. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚂𝚞𝚎 𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚏𝚊𝚋𝚞𝚕𝚘𝚞𝚜 𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚎.]

I felt the need for a Shower... but i didn’t see the point. would just grab one at Jake's after my patrol and save myself a trip home.

I finished eating and washed the dishes. by the time #Quil was done in the shower, we made short work of tidying up and putting the leftover food in the fridge. There was enough left for both of us to get a decent dinner. That young pup always planned ahead.

"I'll tell Mom and Sue you said hello." I told #Quil before we got into separate vehicles.

'You know there's no way Claire will leave with seeing Sue and Momma T... tell them we'll drop by for a visit. We won't stay long so they can get their rest.'

I just smiled and promised I would before I pulled out.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

The Mom’s both awoke to a house full of worried people. I helped Ma to shower and change before #TheKidd carried her down the stairs. ‘It’s my arm not my feet that is damaged.’ Ma said still not quite herself yet.

‘I don’t care, I’m carrying down and that’s that.’ He laughed.

Then came a soft laughter of #MsC and her giggles. ‘Put me down young man.’ Someone had taken a hold of her too?

‘Nope, you are both being carried like the goodness of the Rez.’ #Brady was following the lead of #TheKid.

‘You’re listening to what’s happening inside.’ #Sam was beside me holding the door of the shed open. While I checked over everything that was in there. All the tools were backed away safely, and it was clean in here, however still Ma had injured herself.

“I like to keep an ear out.” #Sam stepping in to grab some clippers and move them to their rightful place.

‘Yeah, I know. But no sleep, thinking it’s all on your shoulders, not asking for help. Leah it’s all going to come to a head.’ Turning my head as my hands reset my Da’s tool box.

“And yet here you all are. At the hospital, now, so do I need to ask for help?” His wife could be seen from the kitchen window, the sound of laughter coming from the house that had too many people in there which was why I made myself useful out here.

‘And you’re out here hiding from them all.’ #Sam finished off.

“I don’t hide. Just…” he shook his head as I spoke.

‘Sure, sure. You came out here to investigate, how Sue was hurt, and how it can never happen again. Things happen Leah, we can’t watch over them all the time.’ There was some truth in his words, I knew it. But some part of me still couldn’t let go. ‘Come on, Emily brought some food with her. And the Pup did well with the food he brought too. We should show them some love by eating it.’

I threw a car wash sponge at his head. ‘Hey, I know you can eat too.’ of course he caught it.

“How about you get your arse in the kitchen and let you wife sit down.” Snapping my teeth at him that just made him laugh.

‘Have you forgotten I’m banned from ever going close to her or anyone’s kitchen?’ He was laughing.

“Stop blowing up the toasters and they will let you back in.”

‘Leah, Sam. Come in lunch is ready.’ Emily opened the door and called out. We both looked to the house, knowing that Emily had only done that because #MsC was there.

#Sam rushed off inside giving me a moment of alone time. Stepping back my eyes evaluated the changed I’d made in here. Bringing tools Ma was likely to come looking for lower and to the front, meaning she wouldn’t have to go hunting.

When I finally read the message Embry sent I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead, making my way inside. I watched the people inside trying to make space and still over taking the kitchen. It was an extended family that was all here to help look out for my Ma.

Walking around Emily and Sam, I went to wash my hands before Kissing Ma and then MsC on the head and sitting down to my bowl of soup and grilled cheese. “Your son has been checking in all night. He thinks I’d have you out all night dancing by the way he has been acting.”

‘He is a good boy.’ She spoke smiling. ‘And he knows you would take good care of me.’ Squeezing my arm.

‘Speaking of.’ #Emily held out two bags making my frown. ‘You and Seth need to go home, we have the day shift covered.’ I shook my head. ‘Leah, trust in us.’ she added giving Seth his bag. ‘Take your sister with you. I will call if anything changes of if we need you. But as much as I know you will say you don’t need to sleep. You do.’

“When did you become so forceful?” I asked my cousin.

‘The day she gave birth.’ #Sam replied earning himself a slap from his wife. ‘Hey! You know it’s true, beautiful. He kissed her cheek and then went to sit beside #MsC.

#MsC watched every moment between us as she took it all in, her hand reached out and she stroked #Sam’s cheek gently like a mother. ‘You are so luck to have such a beautiful wife who loves you so much. Make sure you never take a moment with her for granted.’ She smiled that warm smile that the Calls kept for those they cared for.

‘I promise Mama T, I will never do that. Ever.’ He kissed her forehead placing an arm around her shoulder to keep her close. He had noticed the same shiver that I had, and he knew too, that #TiffenyCall did like to be ‘handled’ due to her illness.

‘Time to got Leah.’ #Emily told me. ‘I have an over night bag and #Seth has remade his bed for me. I’ll be here.’ Because she knew that I would say that she should be taking it easy and resting too. ‘The ladies and I will be going up for a nap soon anyway, and then we have some shop talk to do.’ Winking at the two Moms who nodded their heads in unison.

“Why do I feel like it’s a conspiracy going on here?” I asked crossing my arms looking between them all.

In the end it was Ma and #MsC who had told us to go rest, and not to worry. I knew MsC was here to help her friend and sister. But it didn’t feel right to leave them. And in that moment, I understood now what Embry had been feeling last night. Feeling like you are in the wrong place… it was a strange sentiment.

•- Embry Call -•

When I arrived at the Black’s house to pass off Mom’s beeper to Billy for my run… once I arrived, I had been questioned about where I hadn’t swapped my run after the day I’d had yesterday. “The pups need their day to see that #Sue is okay. And I know the young ones really wanted the check on Seth too.” I said right as a message came into the group chat. #CollinLittlesea sent a picture of #BradyFuller and Seth on the stairs, fireman-carrying #Sue and my mom down the stairs. I laughed and showed #Billy.

‘Wow… They are really hunkering down over there.’ He chuckled.

I replied saying: [Tell Fuller to stop flirting with my mother!]

A reply from another pup not at the Clearwater house shot in.

[He always had a thing for older women! Better watch out Call!]

The exhaustion I was feeling left my body when I made it to the small grove behind the Black's house. My wolf lurched into being and brought with him an abundance of energy. As soon as the other's minds linked with mine that were asking what was happening and how #Sue as I blocked out the conversation, I had with Leah that night by showing them all the image of the moms getting the royal treatment.

"They're okay, Sue has recovery ahead of her, but she'll be well looked after." I assured them all, and I got them all back on track. We had a job to do and #Sue would not be impressed if we didn't do it to the best of our abilities.

Today that was the only motivator I needed to get them on track today.

After my run, I showered at Billy's place, and read through the conversation that had occurred in the group chat in my absence. Laughing at the back-and-forth banter about who I was going to thump for flirting with my mother.

Instead of replying to them, I text Leah.

[Finished my run... is everyone still at your Mom's place?]

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Standing under the water I closed my eyes. Visions of my Ma in the hospital flashed on a loop. The scent of her blood remained in my nose, the memory of the way I found her made my heart stop. “I should have been there.” I told myself.

Keeping my hands flat pushed against the wall was the only way to keep the younger Leah from breaking out.

‘No, you need to understand that accidents happen. You where there when you were meant to be.’ My wolf spoke to me softly, trying to talk me down from the ledge I’d been climbing onto.

By the time I was done, with a towel wrapped around my steaming body, another in my hands drying my hair. I stepped out of the bathroom, walking my way back into my bedroom. The sound of my phone going off brought me to the phone charging on the side.

I hadn’t replied to his last text, knowing he would be on his run and his phone wouldn’t have been with him.

[How was the run? Do they need me out there? I can take the next run. No, no one is there. Emily kicked everyone out. She wanted the moms to rest.]

Hitting send, I went to stand before my closet. Thinking, maybe I should head out for a run? The others had picked up my slack, and I hated it..

•- Embry Call -•

I stole a razor from under the sink and shaved… I notice that my hair was at that awkward length where I either needed to cut it or deal with it falling into my face for another few weeks. I swept it back off of my face while it was wet and pretended as if it might just stay there after it dried. It wasn’t going to happen.

I read Leah's message and shook my head. “Of course, she did.” I chuckled to myself quietly. I had really wanted to see Mom before work today… but I still had an afternoon to kill before my shift. I could let the moms have a nap and see them later… I was sure they had to be exhausted.

[They’re in good hands… Wait? Does that mean she managed to kick you out too?]

I sent back… not really believing it. She had to have meant that she kicked everyone else out and not her too. I mean… #EmilyUley was a formidable woman, but would she really have talked Leah out of her mother’s house? Even if it was for her own good. I made my way out to the kitchen and poured myself a coffee.

‘I thought you would be racing off to see your mom.’ Billy said from behind a copy of The Talking Raven.

“Apparently, she has been sequestered away by Emily.” I chuckled and took a sip. “I’ll wait a while; I’m sure I’ll get a chance to see her before my shift starts.”

‘Yes, yes…. Working late nights is no problem for the young and energetic.’ Then he examined me. “Although… you aren’t looking particularly energetic right now.’ He added.

“I didn’t sleep great… fretting about Sue, she was still really pale last time I saw her.” I admitted, and it was true… but Leah and Seth had been on my mind too.

‘You should have just stayed there last night. Sleeping on a floor is a better night's rest than tossing and turning in a bed.’ He folded one corner of the tribal publication.

“I’m not so sure Leah would have stood for that… It was a miracle Seth talked his way into staying.” I chuckled.

‘Ah… yes. Leah… I find with that one… sometimes. Asking for permission isn’t nearly as effective as just doing what it is you feel you need to.’ He smiled.

“Well… not all of us are her elders.” I smiled back.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Rolling my eyes when his message flashed up onto the screen.

[Have you tried to flight a prego woman? Add to it when she is an imprint of an Alpha who is taking her side, and she has both the moms emotionally blackmailing too? I know Em will take care of the moms. And if by leaving for a few hours it given them three a sense of peace of mind. I will do it. -L]

Just how stubborn did he think I was exactly? Sure, I was hard headed and sure it was kind of killing me not hearing the beating heart of my Ma, however I could respect someone’s need for space. And their need to feel like they are achieving something too. And both the moms where so alike in some ways. Ms T wanted to feel like she was helping, and I know E would be there to keep things in check.

I found myself standing in the kitchen as my mind worried over everything I need to do to pay back the time all the others have put in to pick up after the Kid and I. Both in the pack and with the bar. Turning in a full circle I ended up filling a glass of water to take over to the couch. Could I eat? Yeah of course, but I wasn’t feeling the pull towards cooking. So, grabbing a banana I ate it disgracing the peel before sitting now and hitting play on my phone. Something needed to calm the uncertainty I could feel building,

A small smirk escaped my lips when I heard the song the shuffle gods had picked for me. “Of course.”

(Music: Sam Hunt – Outskirts)

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Lifting my feet up off the floor I shifted my butt, laying down outstretched on the couch, listening to the music, the words, with my eyes closed and my arm dawned over my eyes to close them with a little darkness.

•- Embry Call -•

I sipped my coffee and read her reply… once… twice… three times. ‘You know I’ve found that no matter many times you read something the words never change.' #Billy raised his cup to me.

I smirked. "No... but our understanding of them can."

He gave me that look like I had exceeded his expectation and laughed. 'Touche, my boy. Touche.'

I took another big gulp of the coffee and then stood up pouring the end of the cup into the sink and and setting it on the side.

'So, now you're in a rush?' #Billy chuckled. 'Where are you off to?'

"Somewhere else I don't have permission to be." I grinned at him. "Mind if I leave the Jeep here for a while?"

'You should... even my old ears can hear that old girl coming a mile away.' #Billy picked up his paper again.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Uncle." I called to him already heading down the hallway to the front door. I heard the floorboards squeak as he wheeled himself to the kitchen door.

'It's been a long time since called me that, Embry.' He said with a small tremble in his voice. I knew why... but the second the word slipped out; I had felt a catch in my own throat.

"Far too long." I smiled back at him.

'Let's not leave it so long next time, shall we?' The chief nodded.

"You got it." I tried to hold back a smile.

'Get outta here will you... I'm a busy man.' He showed me with his paper, and I laughed. Head ing out and making my way where I wanted to be.

The walk from here was a little longer, but with music in my years but really it was just five songs. I smiled, my mother often measured time in song lengths.

But there it was... five songs later and I was knocking on Leah Clearwater's door.

And instantly remembered I hadn't texted her back. "Damn it!" I laughed at myself and pulled out my phone to turn off my music.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

I must have drifted off to sleep, not sure how long had passed when the spirits came to life and began to sing, they kissed my skin with the air with a scent of….

“Embry?”

His name slipped from my lips, as Brothers Osborne’s were singing Stay a Little Longer now.

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But it was the spirits I honed in on. They were talking about him, and his scent hit my sleepily mind, making me wake up with a shock Reaching out I checked my phone, there were no messages or missed calls on it.

I heard the sound of his footsteps, the whisper of his music. Making me Jump up from the couch, I was across the living room and up the small hallway to the door just as his knocked.

The door hadn’t even fully opened when I asked.

“What happened? Are the Mom’s, okay?”

Only then did I notice the smile on his lips. He was smiling? That had to mean they were fine, right?

My eyes moved past him to the street, but there was no jeep, no bike, no one else.

“What’s going on?” Asking with confusion in my eyes.

•- Embry Call -•

I laughed and rolled my eyes at her. "Every once in a while, they sneak up on me before I get my shoes on to run."

I smiled when she invited me in... even if it was to stop her neighbours peeking out their windows. "Oh, I know you 𝕔𝕒𝕟 look after yourself, Leah." I said and slipped out of my boots next to the front door before I followed her.

"I just also know you won't when you feel like someone else needs you."

I stood next to her at the fridge. "Hey... you don't need to be a hostess right now. I just wanted to see how you were doing. Are you okay?"

(Music: Dean Lewis – A Place We Knew )

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•- Leah Clearwater -•

Freezing with my fingers curled around the handle of a jug, the other resting on the door of the fridge. Times like this the need and want to lie was strong in me, but it didn’t happen often as people never questioned me so directly. Except for Embry, of course.

Continuing to pull the jug out I closed the door holding it up. “The Goofball came with some stuff. And Em sent me off with this.” The red liquid looked vibrant and delicious. “Watermelon juice.”

Moving to take our two glasses, I poured thinking of how to answer his question.

‘Are you okay?’

“No…” finally saying it I set the jar down and flattened my hands on the top of the kitchen counter. Shaking my head slowly from side to side. “I’m not okay… but I will be… I….”

The waterfall of emotions that I had been bottled up were pushed at me and I pushed back.

•- Embry Call -•

I breathed a sigh of relief when she said she wasn’t okay. I know that might seem callous but when it came to Leah, it was a good thing that she was admitting her feelings. It was the better option than bottling them up like she normally did. I watched the way she braced herself on the counter and I stepped up behind her; wrapping one arm around her. The other slid slowly down her arm. “I know.” I whispered, leaning my cheek against the side of her head. My fingers brushed over the back of her hand, and her fingers, waiting for her to release the tension in her hands and let it all out.

“I’m not okay either, I hardly ever remember seeing #Sue look tired. Seeing her in that bed was…” I shook my head. Closing my eyes, trying to push away the image. “I know what that’s like… and I wouldn’t want anyone to feel that.”

I kissed her temple, still holding onto her from behind. “Don’t hide from it, Leah. Just for a moment… fall into the feeling. I’ll catch you.” Then I whispered too softly in her ear. “I’m here, I’ve got you."

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Of course, if anyone understood everything fighting inside of me right now it was Embry. With everything his mom and he were fighting in a daily battle, the good days and the bad ones. The hospital visits and the dialysis… And I couldn’t hold it together with this?

My hands fisted so tight that my nails bit into my palms. But I didn’t flinch or stop myself.

I closed my eyes when I felt his support, his touch and then his words. Because they really mean something to me. To have someone who understood the importance of the relationship between my mom and I, because he had the same with his own mom.

“It… it’s not easy to do that. It feels too vulnerable.” Once again, I was being honest with him and myself. I wasn’t used to showing this side of me. Showing how lost I felt… this was new that he was able to witness it.

I’ll catch you…

I’m Here…

I’ve got you…

All words… word that had no emphasis on my life… Before Embry Call.

Now….

Now I leant back into his hold. I swallowed back the emotions still trying to free themselves. I stood in his arms.

“I shouldn’t be this way… not when you deal with so much more everyday...” but he felt it too. “She… they... they’re so fragile Embry... both of them… Billy too… Spirits… I can’t…”

•- Embry Call -•

“I know it does,” I whispered. I forced my finger between hers when she clenched her fists. Finding the other hand too and doing the same. She might dig her fingernails into her own skin, but she wouldn't do it to me, or anyone else. Even if that person would heal in moments.

I kept hold of her hands wrapping my arms around her and her own as well. “But there's some vulnerability that no one ever tells you.” I kissed her hair again, feeling her lean back into me. “Without it there is no such thing as bravery. So be brave, for your mom.”

I flashed back to moments ago, the look on Billy’s face when I called him Uncle. #Sue, smiling though all her pain. Mom, curled up on the couch with one of her fevers. #Harry… already lost to next world. She was right they were. And we couldn’t ignore that fact. “I know, I know they are. And you can, Leah. Let me show you how.” I let it hit me then all at once, and let the tears come. Squeezing her hands, a little.

“Everybody is safe, recovering… taken care of. Now we can cry… or scream or hit things, we can be afraid. We can’t hide from it or bottle it up because they still need us. And holding it in eats away at us. We can’t afford that because we need to be strong when they need us again.” I took a long shuddering breath. All those faces in my mind. “They did it for us all our lives, now we do it for them. We hold it in… until the right time. Then we let out all that pain.”

(Music: Save Me · Noah Kahan)

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•- Leah Clearwater -•

My hands unclenched the second he placed his in them. I wouldn’t… I couldn’t bring harm to him. My heart stopped and didn’t start for a few best while I pushed harder and hard while he told me off this ledge, I had brought myself too.

Until now I could have drowned myself in something, work, dealing with the pack, or the imprints, or even fixing my baby until I could stop thinking of whatever it was, I wasn’t ready to face.

But Embry was making me face it, here and now There was no hiding when you were being told you aren’t alone.

My breath caught in my throat, thinking of times when I looked up to the strength of my elders, and then came a day when I passed them. I… we…. Now were the stronger ones…

I closed my eyes trying to fill my lungs with air, but then I heard the crack in his voice, and it broke me. His hands held me to him, his body curled around me. But he was crying… and my stone heart broke.

“We’ve got this…” the tears Came at last, flowing down my cheeks. The harder I tried the more they fell.

I turned myself around in his arms. I didn’t tell him it will all be okay; I didn’t wipe his tears away. I hugged myself to him, my forehead touching his and I let it all flow free with him, because he was right... this was our time… our time to be there for our elders.

•- Embry Call -•

I felt the tension leaving her hands as the subtle message sank in through touch alone. She was leaning into feelings and not letting them burn away beneath the surface and bearing them all alone.

She was leaning in and opening up and allowing the pain of the last two days to be felt. I unlaced our fingers as she spun inside of my arms, resting my forehead against hers. “We’ve got this.” I returned the sentiment that meant so much to both of us. I didn’t expect tears or sobs… even if anyone else in her position would be fully allowed the scream, cry… whatever it took. Spirits know I did when they put my mother on the transplant list. But she wasn’t me… and she didn’t need to feel in any way other than what came naturally.

“I’ve got you.” I whispered. “And that means all of it… all of this. Your mom… #Seth.” I pressed a kiss to her cheek and closed my eyes. “All of you. I’ll take it all exactly as you are.”

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Closing my eyes I let the time pass. Allowing his words to sink in, because here in my kitchen, a place where many people left me to be. Embry Call pushed in at first, then he became comfortable, and now I looked forward to seeing him on my doorstep.

But now… crap! By the Spirits I had to let my wolf listen and replay his words again and again..

‘I’ve got you. And that means all of it… all of this. Your mom… Seth. All of you. I’ll take it all exactly as you are.’

It wasn’t that I needed anyone to hold me or my family together. It wasn’t that I wanted anyone else to be around to hold the walls up. It was the fact that he said it knowing me. Knowing that it came straight from the depths of his heart.

‘I’ll take it all exactly as you are.’

Exactly… as… you… are…! He didn’t want to change me, to adapt me. His lips felt warm on my cheek. Making my arms close tighter around his shoulders.

The words Thank You, seemed underwhelming. Saying anything in this moment felt wrong. I didn’t have words; I very rarely did. But I knew he understood me. Even if at times, the words helped.

So I moved my head to rest on his shoulders, my arms moved around his waist and I held him. Not hiding, not holding back, trying to tell him, his offer was understood, and I was grateful for him choosing to be here when he could be anywhere else.

•- Embry Call -•

I stood there with her, silently. Holding onto her, and her holding onto me. I didn’t say anything else, there was nothing else that was needed. For years and years Leah had been left alone in this kind of pain, I wasn’t about to let that happen again not for as long as she wanted me here. And from the way she lay her head on my shoulder and hugged me close… Then I was all in.

If she didn’t want this, I would ensure that she knew I was and let her feel this in her own way. We stood there for several long moments, my fingers painting circles on her back where they rested, these tiny things were what helped me be still in moments like this. But, with Leah… the unease and restlessness never seemed to build. She helped me feel at ease in silence and stillness.

I finally lifted one hand to her cheek, and tilted her face to mine, pressing a kiss to her forehead before I took her hand from around my waist and laced my fingers between hers, leading her out of the kitchen and into the hallway towards her bedroom. As we walked, I set a two-hour timer on my phone and when I sat her down on the bed, I showed it to her before I set on her bedside table.

l Lifted her legs up onto the bed and sat next to her, still never uttering a word…. I really was learning from her.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Time seemed to still, the hum of the spirits growing silent while I stood in his arms. The tension in my body slowly easing to the point I stopped clenching my jaw.

There were still spurts of anger at myself. I knew mentally how wrong it was to think I could have stopped my Ma from hurting herself by doing someone as simple as wanting to put up a new picture on the wall. I knew that telling her what to do, wasn’t an option. Spirits, I was her daughter! But still… When my feet began to follow, my mind still felt full of a whirlwind of thoughts. All trying to push out at once. But his kiss silenced them.

He had learnt my language, the one were words said nothing but your action screamed from the rooftops.

I could have pulled my hand free, stopped walking, shook my head to say “No I can’t.” But I trusted him. I trusted him enough to give him this. When my head rested on the pillow, I turned towards the side table. My eyes on the phone sat on top of it. The two hours on the clock giving me the permission and knowledge that this sleep wouldn’t take me away from my responsibilities. And yet my eyes still wouldn’t close.

In that moment the energy in the room changed and I heard the voice whispering.

‘Galvdi Ayoli, Uha Gohiyudi Nasgi asgaya.’ (Sleep child, have faith in him.)

But I did, I had faith in him. It was why I lay my head to rest. Reaching out I placed my hand on his lap. Just a small touch. My way to say, “thank you.” As my eyes closed finally.

•- Embry Call -•

I hadn’t actually believed that she would surrender and rest, but I had hoped. And the worst-case scenario… she knew that I tried… I cared, and she would do whatever she was going to regardless.

But with next to no objection, she was laying down, I brushed my fingers over her cheek. It was strange, being here like this… tucking her in as I reached for the blanket at the foot of her bed and pulled it up to her shoulder. She didn’t need it… none of us did, but it was a comfort, a human desire that never seemed to fade.

But the strangeness of looking after her was a welcome one… even if I wasn’t naive enough to believe she needed me to. She was more than capable of looking after herself, it was the trust she was putting in me more than anything that made that new kind of warmth spread across my chest.

I pulled my legs up and lay down next to her, resting my hand on her cheek and pressing a kiss to her forehead. Watching the features of her face relax, slowly. I listened to her heart as it became steady, and her breath grow softer.

One more kiss to her forehead, telling her I was here… and there was no where else I would rather be right now.

•- Leah Clearwater -•

Sleep… for the world the meaning was simple;

‘A condition of body and mind that typically recurs for several hours every night, in which the eyes are closed, the postural muscles relaxed, the activity of the brain altered, and consciousness of the surroundings practically suspended.’

A place where the;

‘Consciousness of the surroundings practically suspended.’

And at this time is when a person, dreams or has nightmares. When their body rests l, and their mind takes the time to process the events of the day.

It wasn’t the same for me.

I didn’t dream, my nightmares came to life in the waking world. My body rested sure, but my mind never stilled as it traveled the night with the spirits. Learning and listening to the lessons of our ancestors, and that of #TheGreatWolf himself.

Only a handful of times do I recall being able to wake with the knowledge that I had dreamt in the night, I could count them on one hand. And now, the spirits were allowing it again.

They eased me into a sleep, with the touch of the man who I cared for keeping watch over me.

My heart began to beat out of rhythm as the images of the day flashed through. How it all had started, where it had gone, and then the deep brown earthy eyes that looked down at me before I closed mine to drift.

Each vision told its own truth, the fact that destiny was defined before the act even took place.

That I had lost faith in those who had sworn to protect the peoples of our land. Of which my Ma was one. That when I was told her time hadn’t come, I had still taken on the guilt of what had happened. And that no matter what they said, they knew that this part of me wasn’t going to change.

‘The path of a great warrior is not and easy one. Making a mistake is not what holds you back. It’s not learning and repeating the same mistake over again that does.’ Their voices sang to me.

The cold darkness I came to expect from my heart when sleep came had now been replaced with warmth, light, and a touch that told me ‘I’ve got you.’ In which I knew my faith was unconditional.

Not sure how much time had passed; my eyes slowly began opening as sleep let its fingers uncurl from around my body. I didn’t speak, I didn’t move, I just slowly opened my eyes feeling the heat radiating into my side. And I knew he hadn’t left me. He had stayed with me.

= The End =

#LeahClearwater #EmbryCall #TwilightRP #TwiRP #AUWorld #HotHeadSheWolf #SpiritsHotHead #BabBoyEmbryCall #sueclearwater #tiffanycall #Youtube

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