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It was December and there was snow on the ground. It was a few weeks out from Christmas, and the pack was preparing for a holiday where, for once, they didn't have to worry about anything coming after them. Livingstone and Michelle were dead, Carter and Gavin were not mated, with Gavin slowly learning how to use his voice and words more and more. And Robbie was finally back home, back with Kelly.
Robbie had managed to guilt them all into putting up holiday lights and decorations. Everyone was more than happy for the festivities, even though Gordo grumbled about it the whole time, but everyone saw the soft looks he gave Robbie. How he reached out to Gavin more and more, little by little.
“Fuck, dude,” Carter said, “I just realized this is gonna be my first Christmas with you.” He said to Gavin.
“Don’t call me dude,” Gavin responded. “I was here for Christmas.” He added. “Gave me rabbit.”
“Er, I mean yeah as a wolf but I meant, you know. This is the first time since you shifted back….”
“Oh.” Gavin said, a contemplative look on his face.
“Well, either way, it’s nice to have everyone together,” Elizabeth told them as she fumbled with decorations on the ceiling.
“And to not have anything over our heads, for once,” Gordo grumbled as he helped hand her decorations.
“Yeah, the only thing over our heads will be that mistletoe you’re under,” Robbie pointed at as he sat next to Kelly.
Gordo blushed, his head whipping to stare above him, and right then Mark came in, causing them all to burst out laughing. Mark raised an eyebrow in question. “What did I miss?”
“Nothing!” Gordo exclaimed, “Nothing important, that is.” He grumbled, folding his arms across his chest.
Elizabeth smiled at them both, “We were just pointing out that your mate is standing under some mistletoe.”
Gordo narrowed his eyes at her. “Traitor.” He mumbled, and she winked at him. “It’s a plant; doesn't actually mean-” He was cut off as Mark cupped his face, tilted it towards his own, and kissed Gordo right there. They pulled apart, leaving Gordo blushing and Mark giving his secret smile.
***
It was Christmas day, and the pack members gathered at the Bennett house. The Christmas tree in the corner took up most of the living room, the pack members crowded on the couches that surrounded it. They had finished opening each other’s gifts, the wrapping paper scraps littering the floor. Now, they were all chatting amongst themselves, some of them assisting in the kitchen with setting the table and helping to make lunch. Gavin sat on the floor in front of the tree, holding up more pink clothes he had been gifted, Carter sitting beside him as he rambled on, his face flushed red.
Ox and Joe were milling about, going in and out of assisting in the kitchen to observing Carter try and fail at flirting with his new mate. Robbie and Kelly sat on the couch, talking and laughing to themselves, in their own world. Gordo, Mark, and the rest of the members were outside in the snow, where they were attempting to shovel the driveway while some of them made it impossible by throwing snowballs.
Elizabeth came in from the kitchen and sat on the couch, where Kelly and Robbie were, causing them to pause whatever it was they were talking about. “Robbie,” she started, looking right at him as he sat beside her, Kelly on his other side.
“Yeah?” He asked, unsure.
“I have something for you. It being Christmas and all, I thought now might be a good time. I… I should have given it to you a long time ago.” That was when they noticed she held a package in her hand. It was thick and rectangular, only wrapped in simple brown paper, forgoing any of the traditional holiday wrapping.
“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” Robbie said, taken aback. Kelly squeezed his hand.
“It’s alright, I insist. Here,” she gingerly handed him the package, as if there was a significant weight to it. Carefully, he took it and slowly peeled apart the tape, careful of not ripping the paper.
He looked up at her, confused. “Your Yearbook?”
She nodded, giving him a small smile. “Open it,” she said.
Carefully, Robbie opened the front cover, and there-
He let out a small exhale; what he saw made his heart break. His gaze lingered on the writing inside for a moment, his heart breaking all over at the memory – he was a boy again, hidden in a tree, then he was in a different women’s arms and they were running - the image of his mother’s corpse was the last time he saw her. Quiet as a mouse, she had told him. “Is this-” he looked up at her.
She nodded, “I told you I didn’t really know your mother. But I found this and saw her writing in it, and thought you should have a piece of her.”
Robbie looked at Elizabeth, his eyes roving her own as her image became blurry, his smile watery. He looked back down at the cover, blinking away the burn in his eyes. “Elizabeth, have a great summer – Beatrice,” he read the scrawled green ink that was his mother’s handwriting aloud.
“Oh, Robbie,” Kelly said, leaning over to look.
“I don’t know what to say,” Robbie told Elizabeth.
“You don’t have to say anything. It’s yours. Like I said, I should have given it to you a long time ago. Here, there’s even her picture.” She started to flip through the books pages as it sat on Robbie’s lap until she came to the right page.
There, in front of him, looking impossiby young was a black and white photo of his mother. Her black hair was down, falling in waves down to her shoulders, her eyes-his eyes-stared back at him. She had a faint smile; the only thing missing about her was her glasses, the same ones he was wearing now. Most likely because the photographer had her take them off for the camera.
“Let me see,” Kelly gingerly dragged the book closer to him, “Wow, Robbie, you look just like her.”
“You think so?” Robbie asked wetly.
“Yeah,” Kelly gave him a sad smile, then wrapped an arm around his mate, tugging him close.
“What are you all looking at?” Carter spoke up from his spot on the floor beside Gavin. Joe and Ox had just walked in and turned their heads at Carter’s question.
“Mom’s Yearbook.”
“Oh, cool, can we see?” Carter wandered over, Gavin trailing behind him; they both sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the couch, Carter leaning on Kelly’s knees, always touching. Joe glanced over from behind the couch, peering down as Ox stood at the side of the couch, next to Elizabeth.
“Elizabeth, you’re in here too, then – where is your picture?” Robbie asked, looking up.
“Let me find it right -aha! Here I am,” she said. She looked the same, only younger.
“Wow, you look just like Carter. And a little like Joe.” Gavin said, leaning forward to peer at Elizabeth’s picture
“She looks like you, too,” Robbie told Kelly.
“What about-” Kelly spoke softly, a tremble in his voice. “Is Dad in there?”
They all turned to him, a pause in the air, as if they had been given an answer to a question they didn’t know they had.
“He is,” Elizabeth said softly. She turned a few pages back.
There was Thomas Bennet, looking younger than any of his sons had ever seen him before. He wore a mischievous grin, an air about him that didn’t quite register him as being an Alpha.
“Wow, look at Dad’s hair!” Carter said.
“That was the style back then,” Elizabeth said, defending her late husband.
“That’s unfortunate,” Gavin spoke up, his tone somber, which caused them all to smile.
“Anyways, I thought you could use it. It’s yours, Robbie.”
“I-thank you.” She squeezed his hand. “Well, I’d better go make sure no one is burning my kitchen down. I could use some help, boys.”
“Coming,” Joe said as he and Ox trailed her out of the living room. Carter and Gavin both stood and followed.
“That’s…” Kelly started once it was just the two of them again.
“Yeah,” Robbie breathed, turning some of the pages.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I think so. You?”
“Yeah,” Kelly smiled. “She looks like she was really nice.” He said, looking back down at the page that had the photo of Robbie’s mother.
“She was.” Robbie paused. “Your dad looks…. nice too,” he tried.
Kelly shrugged. “He did his best.”
“Well, between him and your mother, I’d say you lot turned out all right,” Robbie told him, lifting his gaze to where Joe and Carter had left.
Kelly laughed. “Thanks. Your mom did pretty well herself, “he nudged Robbie’s shoulder with his own.
Robbie stared down at the photo, then flipped back to the front cover, his fingers tracing over the handwriting there, proof that she had existed. That he had lived.
Kelly stared at him for a moment, then squeezed his hand, giving him a small smile. He sighed, “C’mon, I think I hear that snow outside saying you can’t beat me in a snowball fight.” He said as he stood up and pulled on Robbie’s arm, then let go as he ran out the front door.
“Kelly!” Robbie set the yearbook down on the coffee table and ran after him, his tether strong in his mind.