Status: Finished.
More Than Just Baser Instincts.
The Silence
"Elaine! Oh, thank you, thank you!" Anne shouted with her hands raised into the sky before she fumbled up to me. "I was afraid you wouldn't come back!" she blubbered, engulfing me in her arms.
I gasped wordlessly for air, but it didn't even damper her good spirits that she was killing me!
"Anne, dear, you'll be the one to kill her," Bryce muttered, carefully detaching his mate from me. I stumbled backward from the light-headedness. Bryce gave me a warm smile as he still held onto Anne, who was literally trembling.
"Are you okay?" I asked her once my face returned to its normal colour.
"Me?" she squeaked. "What about you!"
I glanced to Quince, who was being awfully quiet during this whole affair, as he finally stepped up to the group and snaked one arm around my waist. There was a sad smile on his face.
"Oh..." Anne grinned. "I bet that bastard wasn't counting on this!"
"Counting on what?"
She looked pointedly at Quince, so I gave her a weird look. She blew an exasperated breath and pointed at the little boy who was sleeping in the nook of Quince's other arm.
"You guys had a cub! Now little Lia has someone to play with! And they'll get married... Oh, this is going to be great! We can lie about their birthdays so they can share parties, and then on their wedding day we can explain the lie! It'll be an adventure in itself! Oh, but what about Natasha? We have two chances! If Lia and him don't get along, surely Natasha and him will!" She blushed then. "Oh, you didn't know, did you? I had the babies while you were gone. But this is perfect timing, isn't it? With you and Quince having a cub, too!"
"Anne—"
"Shut up, Bryce!" she shrieked, pushing him away and darting up to Quince. "Oh, he has your nose!" Then she gave me a sour look. "Hey, there's still hope. Maybe he'll grow into that schnoz like Quince never did." Then she patted Quince on the shoulder in consolation. "No one's perfect, big guy. Either way, you two do make a cute baby. My little girls will probably fight over him!"
She pulled me away from Quince and into yet another deadly bear-bug. The spectacle should have been hilarious... I just wished that I could laugh.
"Anne, it's not mine."
She froze, and then she glanced down to me, still holding me too tightly.
"What does he mean? What does that even mean?"
I blinked before any tears could dare form.
"But... But he looks just like you. Are you sure there isn't some mistake?" I managed to wriggle out of her arms, but the victory wasn't much of a prize. She looked ready to crumble. "It's a mistake, right?"
"Anne, maybe we should let them get settled," Bryce murmured, nuzzling her affectionately.
"But I—"
He grabbed her hand and dragged her away. The silence... When did it become so uncomfortable?
"Quince—"
"I'm fine," he promised, forcing such an awkward smile. "Let's just get him settled. Poor little guy is knocked out."
"You don't have to do this. I can call up Tiberius and—"
"That's a name I don't care to ever hear again," Quince growled, throwing the door open carelessly. "Stop it. I'd say that no one has to even know about it... But everyone already knows. I wonder if they'll still keep the rule about first born being the lead male."
"I don't expect you to just accept this, you know. You're allowed to be mad. Don't think you need to spare my feelings," I persisted as I followed at his heels.
He whirled around, gawking at me as I closed the door behind me.
"Spare your feelings? How the hell can you say that to me? I know what happened, so cut the crap already, Elaine! You were... And it's my fault. Of course I'm going to 'accept this.' What choice do I have? It's my fault!"
"I don't believe that for one second."
He smiled grimly. "What kind of lead male can't even get his pride behind him when their lead female is in danger?"
"There's a lot of protocol, I'm sure. Quince, I'm serious. Tiberius will be more than happy—"
"You're not giving my cub to him! That's final! So just shut up about this, okay?"
"Quince..."
He slammed his eyes shut and turned away from me, but his body was much too still. I placed my hand tentatively on his shoulder, which caused his body to jerk only once.
"I just... He has to be mine," he whimpered, his voice trembling. "One day we're going to wake up... And he's going to have olive eyes, right? It's just a cub thing. They'll change colour, I know they will."
"Okay. They will," I mumbled, wrapping my arms around him from behind. "They will."
His body tightened again, and I moved to release him as he turned slowly to face me. But the soft, albeit confused gaze was focused on the babe in his arms, who was reaching up and grabbing at Quince's face. Quince looked so tortured, like he wanted to be happy but something was stopping him.
Ha, I knew exactly what that "something" was.
"What's his name?" Quince mumbled, tearing his eyes away for the two seconds that it took to ask the question. He then leaned closer to the cub and allowed him to grab the end of his nose.
"It was never...official. I was just basically told that he would be Rory."
He nodded, and the soft-spoken smile on his lips all but killed me.
"I don't have very many memories with my mother, but I do remember how she always tucked me into bed at night and tell me about my theoretical brothers and sisters. She and my father wanted a big family, but she always said that I was more than enough... But I know it killed her that it was so hard for them, that she was only able to have one cub."
Quince smiled at me, obvious pain in his eyes.
"I asked her once, why she chose 'Quince' for me. She had listed name after name, so how did she pick just one? She said that... I should have been her fifth son. She had been unable to carry my four older brothers or sisters to full term. So she said it was easy, it just came to her.
"She said that you don't name a baby; the baby comes with a name, you just have to find it."
"So how do we find it?" I murmured, running my fingers gently over the baby's bald head.
He looked down. "She never told me that part."
"What does Rory mean?" He gave me a weird look. "I just... He was so adamant about it."
"Oh. Well, it was my mother's first unborn cub's name. She said it means 'red king.' Since he was to be the firstborn, he was going to be the next lead male, so she said it fit. And he would have red hair, like my mother and father did."
I mulled over it for a moment.
"Weird. It's almost like...Tiberius named him for us. I mean, specifically for us."
Quince curled his finger around the little hand that had reached up to grab Quince's hair.
"Wishful thinking, huh?"
I leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to Quince's cheek.
"Quince, he must be exhausted. Why don't you put him in the crib with Arianna's cubs?"
"I'll be back in a second," Quince mumbled, still staring at the cub. "I'm just going to sit here with him for a little bit. Just until he falls asleep."
I gasped wordlessly for air, but it didn't even damper her good spirits that she was killing me!
"Anne, dear, you'll be the one to kill her," Bryce muttered, carefully detaching his mate from me. I stumbled backward from the light-headedness. Bryce gave me a warm smile as he still held onto Anne, who was literally trembling.
"Are you okay?" I asked her once my face returned to its normal colour.
"Me?" she squeaked. "What about you!"
I glanced to Quince, who was being awfully quiet during this whole affair, as he finally stepped up to the group and snaked one arm around my waist. There was a sad smile on his face.
"Oh..." Anne grinned. "I bet that bastard wasn't counting on this!"
"Counting on what?"
She looked pointedly at Quince, so I gave her a weird look. She blew an exasperated breath and pointed at the little boy who was sleeping in the nook of Quince's other arm.
"You guys had a cub! Now little Lia has someone to play with! And they'll get married... Oh, this is going to be great! We can lie about their birthdays so they can share parties, and then on their wedding day we can explain the lie! It'll be an adventure in itself! Oh, but what about Natasha? We have two chances! If Lia and him don't get along, surely Natasha and him will!" She blushed then. "Oh, you didn't know, did you? I had the babies while you were gone. But this is perfect timing, isn't it? With you and Quince having a cub, too!"
"Anne—"
"Shut up, Bryce!" she shrieked, pushing him away and darting up to Quince. "Oh, he has your nose!" Then she gave me a sour look. "Hey, there's still hope. Maybe he'll grow into that schnoz like Quince never did." Then she patted Quince on the shoulder in consolation. "No one's perfect, big guy. Either way, you two do make a cute baby. My little girls will probably fight over him!"
She pulled me away from Quince and into yet another deadly bear-bug. The spectacle should have been hilarious... I just wished that I could laugh.
"Anne, it's not mine."
She froze, and then she glanced down to me, still holding me too tightly.
"What does he mean? What does that even mean?"
I blinked before any tears could dare form.
"But... But he looks just like you. Are you sure there isn't some mistake?" I managed to wriggle out of her arms, but the victory wasn't much of a prize. She looked ready to crumble. "It's a mistake, right?"
"Anne, maybe we should let them get settled," Bryce murmured, nuzzling her affectionately.
"But I—"
He grabbed her hand and dragged her away. The silence... When did it become so uncomfortable?
"Quince—"
"I'm fine," he promised, forcing such an awkward smile. "Let's just get him settled. Poor little guy is knocked out."
"You don't have to do this. I can call up Tiberius and—"
"That's a name I don't care to ever hear again," Quince growled, throwing the door open carelessly. "Stop it. I'd say that no one has to even know about it... But everyone already knows. I wonder if they'll still keep the rule about first born being the lead male."
"I don't expect you to just accept this, you know. You're allowed to be mad. Don't think you need to spare my feelings," I persisted as I followed at his heels.
He whirled around, gawking at me as I closed the door behind me.
"Spare your feelings? How the hell can you say that to me? I know what happened, so cut the crap already, Elaine! You were... And it's my fault. Of course I'm going to 'accept this.' What choice do I have? It's my fault!"
"I don't believe that for one second."
He smiled grimly. "What kind of lead male can't even get his pride behind him when their lead female is in danger?"
"There's a lot of protocol, I'm sure. Quince, I'm serious. Tiberius will be more than happy—"
"You're not giving my cub to him! That's final! So just shut up about this, okay?"
"Quince..."
He slammed his eyes shut and turned away from me, but his body was much too still. I placed my hand tentatively on his shoulder, which caused his body to jerk only once.
"I just... He has to be mine," he whimpered, his voice trembling. "One day we're going to wake up... And he's going to have olive eyes, right? It's just a cub thing. They'll change colour, I know they will."
"Okay. They will," I mumbled, wrapping my arms around him from behind. "They will."
His body tightened again, and I moved to release him as he turned slowly to face me. But the soft, albeit confused gaze was focused on the babe in his arms, who was reaching up and grabbing at Quince's face. Quince looked so tortured, like he wanted to be happy but something was stopping him.
Ha, I knew exactly what that "something" was.
"What's his name?" Quince mumbled, tearing his eyes away for the two seconds that it took to ask the question. He then leaned closer to the cub and allowed him to grab the end of his nose.
"It was never...official. I was just basically told that he would be Rory."
He nodded, and the soft-spoken smile on his lips all but killed me.
"I don't have very many memories with my mother, but I do remember how she always tucked me into bed at night and tell me about my theoretical brothers and sisters. She and my father wanted a big family, but she always said that I was more than enough... But I know it killed her that it was so hard for them, that she was only able to have one cub."
Quince smiled at me, obvious pain in his eyes.
"I asked her once, why she chose 'Quince' for me. She had listed name after name, so how did she pick just one? She said that... I should have been her fifth son. She had been unable to carry my four older brothers or sisters to full term. So she said it was easy, it just came to her.
"She said that you don't name a baby; the baby comes with a name, you just have to find it."
"So how do we find it?" I murmured, running my fingers gently over the baby's bald head.
He looked down. "She never told me that part."
"What does Rory mean?" He gave me a weird look. "I just... He was so adamant about it."
"Oh. Well, it was my mother's first unborn cub's name. She said it means 'red king.' Since he was to be the firstborn, he was going to be the next lead male, so she said it fit. And he would have red hair, like my mother and father did."
I mulled over it for a moment.
"Weird. It's almost like...Tiberius named him for us. I mean, specifically for us."
Quince curled his finger around the little hand that had reached up to grab Quince's hair.
"Wishful thinking, huh?"
I leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to Quince's cheek.
"Quince, he must be exhausted. Why don't you put him in the crib with Arianna's cubs?"
"I'll be back in a second," Quince mumbled, still staring at the cub. "I'm just going to sit here with him for a little bit. Just until he falls asleep."
♠ ♠ ♠
The only bad thing about writing...is that I write about characters that I wish existed, but then I realise that they're just figments of my mind! I do love Quince so much, though--as much as one can love a figment without going completely bonkers anyway.As always, thanks for reading :)