Pure Moonlight (closed)

[heartofcourage]

Telma was completely oblivious as she handed Ruben a few items and he was there nuzzling against her. She smiled at him, laughing softly as she thought he was simply being playful because his mother was finally awake and talking.

"What has gotten into you?" She finally murmured, pushing him away playfully as she turned to tend to the roasting boar on the fire courtesy of Boar.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Nothing," Ruben answered nonchalantly, taking a couple dishes to the table. When he returned, she felt his gentle hand on her waist and he let his rest against hers for a moment.

 

[heartofcourage]

Telma leaned against her mate as he rested his hand against her waist, a smile on her lips as she enjoyed the simple contact with him. He had been worried and stressed about his mother and it was nice to see him back to the normal, loving wolf that she had always loved.

"Can we go for a run in the woods after dinner?" Telma asked him softly, her gaze turning towards his. "I have the need to run."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Sure we can," Ruben nodded and turned to see a few more family members return to see Selena. "I hope all of this makes Ma realize how much she means to us... She practically refused to believe that anything would change if she were gone. I'm still trying to make her see that Dad just wouldn't make it if she died."

 

[heartofcourage]

"She has a lot that she needs to work through and think about." Luna murmured as she looked at her brother. "Everything she has ever done in her life has been either for us, for Dad, or for her siblings. I don't think she really even knows who she is."

"We need to make more of an effort to be there for her." Glancing at Jan, Telma and Ruben, Luna was telling them all that they had a stake in Selena's happiness. "Visiting more often. Helping her with different things. At least for the time being."

 

[KieranSoares]

Each of them nodded, and Jan spoke up, "Maybe start with those family dinners again. They sort of tapered off with all that's happened."

"And I'm sure they could use some help with the garden. Ma can still do it just fine, but Dad's old wounds make it harder for him to keep up," Ruben commented.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I could move back in to help them." Luna offered, glancing towards Jan. "She was happy when I was here in the house with her."

"I don't know if that would be good." Telma murmured. "She needs to get use to a new way of life. You and Jan can't live here with them forever if you do mate."

 

[KieranSoares]

"She has to learn how to be happy without someone to take care of," Ruben agreed. "Her entire life has revolved around being a mother and a sister. I've never seen her let herself be happy without someone to take care of. I think she's afraid of being useless."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I could teach her how to weave." Telma offered, looking at Ruben as they all searched for ways to make Selena happy.

"Dad already suggested a hobby. I'm not sure that there's anything that really captures her fancy." Luna murmured as Ghell stepped into the kitchen to see what they were up to. "Is everyone ready to eat, Uncle Ghell? Jan and Ruben need to finish setting up the tables."

 

[KieranSoares]

"They are," Ghell nodded, but he stopped them before they could continue. "So what's going on in here?" He asked, having heard bits of their conversation.

 

[heartofcourage]

"The plotting of children against their mother." Luna said with a soft smile as Ghell asked them what was going on. "Just trying to think of ways to help her with all of this."

"You don't have to be so suspicious, Da." Telma teased as she stepped away from Ruben and kissed her father on the cheek. "It's all for the best."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Help is something Selena accepts through gritted teeth, loves," Ghell reminded them. "The family even being here to help embarrasses her. She's a stubborn, lost woman. And I think it's high time she found her own way rather than wait for fate to drop something into her life again. You can offer her ideas, but I'd be careful. She's more stubborn than you know."

 

[heartofcourage]

"We'll be careful." Luna said with a soft smile as she motioned for Jan and Ruben to finish setting up enough tables and chairs for everyone. "Trust me, I know just how stubborn my mother can be."

She watched Jan go, a smile following him before she turned to help Telma, hoping to lessen her load if she really were pregnant. It wasn't up to her to suggest that she was with child. She decided to leave that to Ruben instead.

 

[KieranSoares]

By the time the food was done and the table was set, everyone was gathered for dinner. There weren't enough places for everyone, so the younger adults and any children sprawled through the den anywhere there was room. Taqu'un and Ellen and Adane arrived just in time to join them, and it was just like any family dinner at the keep, only packed into the small house. Kreston was his wife's right hand, making sure she was comfortable and ate enough. As if Kitty wasn't already concerned enough.

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena was feeling overwhelmed by so many people at once, but she was holding herself together. It was nice to have a family that loved and worried about her so much. However, she found herself shaking as Kreston sat beside her. The watchful eye of her mother was also on her. It didn't really matter, she thought to herself as she slipped her hand into her mate's hand, squeezing it tightly as she tried to get her bearings.

 

[KieranSoares]

Kreston kept a close eye on Selena through dinner, and it seemed her siblings were fairly aware of how overwhelmed she was so they tried not to question her too much. Durban especially had always known that his sister was not a woman for crowds despite their big family. Any group larger than her siblings had always made her uncomfortable. Among other reasons, the constant crushing presence of Oliver Colton's men when they were young had played into all their fears.

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena picked at her food as the meal went on. The conversation was a dull buzz save from the younger children who were simply being children. They were louder than the rest, but she wasn't angry with them. She simply wanted to escape the confines of her little house and be where she could breathe better.

She glanced across the table at Durban, her dark eyes begging him to save her from the moment. He knew better than anyone about the torment that she still dealt with. He had been there when their father had tried to force her to marry a man that she didn't know or love. He had been there when Ghell had tried to help her escape. He had tried to help her so many times in the past and now it seemed he was still there doing the same.

 

[KieranSoares]

When Durban met Selena's gaze, he knew immediately it was a silent cry for help. He excused himself from his conversation with Jan and Luna, and he rose from his seat. "C'mere, little sister," he murmured softly as he came to scoop Selena up from her seat, knowing she was still weak. "We'll be back," Durban told everyone. He carried Selena outside into the fresh night air and hugged her close. "Y'alright, love?" He asked her quietly as he had every time he'd rescued her as a child.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I suppose I will be." Selena murmured as Durban sat down with her protectively in his arms. "I just hate crowds."

She had a slightly sad look on her face as she glanced into her brother's familiar dark gaze. "I can't hate him forever, can I?" She asked Durban softly. "My brain tells me I have to after all of the awful things that he did. The beatings, the coolness, the way he treated Ma. My heart...wants to forgive him though."

She went quiet for a long moment after she asked that, leaning her head against her older brother's broad shoulder. "Do you know that Ruben's middle name is Tamblin? I haven't told anyone that. Not even him nor Kreston. When he was first born I had the sudden urge to give him Da's name. It was like something came over me and it all felt right. I was so ashamed that I hid it."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I don' know if I've forgiven 'im either, love... But Seamus' middle name is Courser, so we're in a pretty similar boat... I nearly changed m'name when I left. But I couldn't. I think... I think we were all tha' was best in Da. An' as much as I 'old men accountable fer their own sins... I always remember tha' Oliver's the reason why Da couldn't love us openly. Da wanted to... Gods, looking back, I can see it. He wanted t'love us. But we were kids. We couldn't see it. We couldn't see when 'e saved Kayla's favorite horse from bein' put down... We couldn't see it when 'e would remind us t'stick together an' asked you an' I t'protect our siblings. Even when 'e spared no expense an' gave up sleep t'keep Ma alive. We jus' couldn't see it."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I wish I could remember those good times." Selena murmured in a soft tone as she tried to push the sadness out of her mind.

"Now...well, now I'm getting to be an old woman who has no idea what to do with her life." She glanced up at her brother with a rueful smile on her lips. "I was never the type to sit down and knit like Ma. I always had someone to care for, whether it be Boar or Ashien or Kayla. Then I had Ruben and Luna to look after. Now, I realize that I never really had anything to make myself content."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Yer a mix o' Ma an' Da. Always takin' care o' someone, an' not content when there's no project t'be done... Maybe take a page from th' old man's book an' do what you think is important. Da was the greatest protector Inverness ever 'ad til Brogan. The only battle's he ever lost were with 'imself an' Brogan. It was Da's passion. You jus' need t'find yours. Yer a stubborn, independent, passionate woman. Ye'll find something. Ye just gotta look."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I don't think I have it in me to be a fighter anymore." Selena said softly as she looked at her brother. "I want a quiet little life. I don't want to be a princess of Inverness. Kayla was always more suited to that title than I was. The greatest joys I ever had was when I became a mother. It gave me such a sense of duty."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Y'know there's a lot o' little lasses an' lads tha' could use someone like you," Durban told her softly. "An' much as Kreston seems alright... He's pretty lonesome without his cubs too."

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena looked at her brother as he talked about the other cubs out there that needed someone like her. "I'm too old to have a cub in the house, Durban. And even if I did, it would only be putting a bandage on a gaping wound."

Still, the idea sounded better and better each time she thought about it. She was meant to be a mother. She had learned from the best and had a large heart. It was enough love to go around to her children and any others that came their way.