Epilogue

Epilogue

Callisto

Eight Months Later

"Rory seems happy," Sophia said as she took a mouthful of her coffee.

Rory is always happy, Callisto signed, with a grin.

Sophia laughed. "Well then. You seem happy. That's a big change."

Callisto rolled her eyes. Here you go, sweetheart. She signed to Bay as she helped her pick up a block.

"Thank you," the little girl said, her hands signing it out as well.

"Mommy, me too!" her sister demanded.

Callisto smiled and signed, What's the magic word?

Please, Sireen signed back, her toddler hand going to her chest, moving clockwise in circles.

"Oh my goodness! Why didn't you show me what you could both do last night when I got here?"

The twins both gave Sophia huge smiles. They'd been sleepy and ready for bed by the time she'd arrived from Yellowstone.

We wanted to save it for you this morning, Callisto signed as she watched the twins play. They were almost three years old now, sometimes she couldn't believe how fast went when you're happy. And she was happy. Not just Rory

Sophia breathed deep and exhaled slowly in that blissful way that people often did. "I'm so happy that I'm here." She reached for Bay and Sireen, pulling them both into an eager hug.

They asked about Auntie Sophia all the time. Recently, they'd both started talking up a storm, pretty much in full sentences. They'd learned so much ASL that Callisto was worried it would delay them talking, but it hadn't. They just spoke when they were ready.

I'm glad you're here too, Callisto signed. Glad doesn't begin to cover it.

Before everyone got misty eyed again—Callisto had pretty much broken down and wept when Sophia pulled up the night before and they'd stayed up so late catching up that Rory had to call it a night, long before they were ready to—Sophia signed just for her, because Rory was in the kitchen, humming away while he made breakfast.

Fraiser had yet to roll out of bed, but it was pretty much ungodly early—especially for a teenager. The twins, excited about Sophia's arrival the night before and thrown off their routine, decided they needed to get up at six. It was an hour after she and Sophia had gone to bed, but they were both running on so much adrenaline that neither of them appeared or felt tired.

Rory still doesn't know yet? He hasn't caught on to all your scheming?

Nope. Callisto responded. He thinks that we're doing a family dinner at Elowen's restaurant tonight. Just me and him, the twins, you, and Fraiser.

But in reality, the whole clan is going to be there.

Callisto bit down on her smile so it wasn't a wolfish grin. That would scare Sophia, seeing how much she'd changed. She had to hold it together. She couldn't be gushy and sickly in love. She knew how much that would delight her best friend and she was trying to mitigate the whole ‘I told you so'moment which was inevitably coming.

Bay crawled into Sophia's lap. "Braid?"She asked.

"Sure, sweetheart." Sophia wasn't just good at hair. She was great.

They haven't had a good braid since you left. We're all useless at it.

"That's okay. I'll fix you both right up. If you want, Sireen?"

"No!" She shouted and got up, running around the living room, laughing. "No hair. Tag."

"Tag before breakfast. Goodness," Sophia said as she got Bay settled on her lap. She smiled at Callisto, "I've missed this so much. I've even missed pounding fenceposts and digging holes."

You have not.

"Okay, so I haven't." Sophia threaded her fingers through Bay's fine hair, whipping the impossible strands into a neatly tamed French braid. Callisto pulled an elastic out of her own hair so Sophia could attach it all neatly into place at the end. She'd have to replace it with one of the girls' little clear ones or it would fall right out, but it would hold through breakfast.

Hopefully.

Sometimes things got a little wild. Two days ago, Bay spilled apple juice all over her pajamas and wanted to get dressed, so Callisto helped her and then she went back to finish the juice and spilled the rest all over herself again. It wasn't a bother. Clothes were easily changed. She always told the girls that. She'd known true hardships as a child, and she never wanted the girls to know even a second of what she'd gone through.

She made sure they knew love, that she hugged them, that they always felt safe. She took the time to listen to them, to find out what was important to them. She wanted to know what they were learning, what they loved, how they saw the world, what fears they might have. The thing was, she hadn't known how to do any of that at first. She'd learned by watching Rory and Fraiser. Fraiser was just like his dad, his patience was endless. When he left for college in the fall, she was going to miss him so much. Not nearly as much as Rory, who had spent a lifetime with his son. It was going to shatter him to let Fraiser leave, no matter what he said.

He said he was proud, and he meant it. Fraiser hadn't sent out his applications yet, but there was no doubt that he'd be accepted into one of the colleges in Seattle. He was going to study astronomy, which blew Callisto's mind. Space was complicated and so was math and science in general, but Fraiser was good at all of that.

Rory would have loved to have him do his college online, and maybe he would switch after a year, but he wanted to see what the city was like. Yes, he'd be a bear and a shifter out there and that was worrisome, but he wasn't the first person from Greenacre to leave and come back. Rory knew it was good for his son to see the world. He'd never done that for himself, and he wouldn't deny Fraiser anything that he truly wanted to do. Fraiser said that it wouldn't be the same and that they didn't have the right equipment in Greenacre for him to be able to properly complete his classes and he was probably right. Rory would have given his son the sky and all the stars in it if he could have, but it just wasn't possible for him.

Callisto knew that Rory would give her anything that was in his power to grant as well. The same went for the twins.

You're lucky it's Rory we're talking about here, when it comes to surprises. If it was anyone else and the whole clan jumped out at them, there might be a bear incident.

Callisto nodded, getting up because Sireen wasn't going to let the tag thing rest. She was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. That's so true. He'll love it, though. He won't jump out of his skin. He'll probably figure out something is up before the day's over anyway. The place will be like a ghost town. It will be kind of suspicious. That and shifter senses.

Do you guys like- run together and stuff? Do you do bear things with each other? Sophia asked, her eyes half on the kitchen door making sure Rory couldn't see.

Callisto had told her that he'd gotten quite good at ASL so gone were the days of their secret conversations. Not that she wanted to keep anything from him these days—aside from this evening's surprise.

We do! We have. I saved you another secret.

Sophia's eyes widened. You're not- oh my god!

No! No. Callisto quickly dispelled that notion, shaking her head wildly. No. Rory and I feel that our family is complete. I never wanted to have my own biological children. I'm a mother three times over and it's everything I ever needed.

You never thought you'd fall in love either, and yet, here you are, Sophia gave her a grin.

And yet, here I am, Callisto signed back.

Is it a good place to be?

Callisto felt her face almost split apart her grin was so big. Yes. You asked me if I was happy. I'm more than happy.

Are you teaching ASL at the school?

Callisto threw her hands on her hips. It was very exaggerated and the girls both laughed at her for striking a silly pose. I can't surprise you. It's impossible when you know me so well. I'm also working at the clinic part-time, Josephine needed help and as I have some medical training it seemed like the ideal job.

"Wow!" Sophia exclaimed. "That's fantastic news,"

There was a noise from the kitchen as Rory started laying the table for breakfast. Sophia leaned towards Callisto in a conspiratorial manner and started signing.

Here's a surprise for you. Will you let me walk Fraiser and the girls to school so that you and Rory can have a moment together before you start your day? You know? A special birthday moment all to yourself? You won't get home alone tonight, and after such a big gathering, I know you'll be exhausted. Callisto reddened and Sophia noticed. She laughed. "I guess it's possible to surprise me after all. I've never seen you look like you do now."

I invited my parents. Jem too. We extended the invitation to all of Pinefall because our secret is still a secret, for a little bit longer. It's not just mine to keep, and I'm okay with that.

"Oh my gosh. That's a surprise too. It's a great surprise. I think?"

Callisto scooped up Sireen and turned her upside down in her arms. She forgot all about tag and squealed and laughed, trying to kick her way out of the trap. Callisto set her down again and signed, Yes. We're trying. It's been slow, but maybe one day, years from now, we'll get there. It's better with Clay and Taylee and Jem. Easier.

"Sophia! Me too!" Bay demanded.

"Your braid is going to shake out."

"We can make it again, can't we?"

"Sure. Sure, we can. Let's give it a try."

"Goodness." Rory walked in to see what all the screaming was. Both girls hung upside down, wriggling like they'd stuck their leg in a trap and got hoisted into a tree. "I was going to say breakfast is ready, but I've made a mistake. I made eggs and bacon and oatmeal and oranges. I don't think that's appropriate food for monkeys. We're all out of bananas. What are we going to do?"

He was lived in and lovely, her mate, from his plaid flannel shirt to his worn soft jeans, to his bare feet—because he didn't like putting on socks and boots until he went downstairs or out in the morning.

He always took such care with his clothes, even his work ones. They were never stained, though he did wear various aprons and boots downstairs. He carefully laundered them, hanging his shirts to dry. When she'd started doing their laundry, including his, he'd never said a thing when she'd thrown them in the dryer. That was back in September, when the air was already crisp in the morning. They hadn't shrunk, since they'd been washed so many times, and Rory hadn't said anything for weeks. She hadn't figured it out until one morning he'd got up early and surprised her with a sparkling clean house, all the laundry done—everything hanging fastidiously on the line outside even though it was so cold they froze. He'd finally admitted that he liked the fresh air scent, the natural crispness it gave the shirts, but any way she wanted to wash them was okay with him.

Upside down, Bay signed something. Rory stared at her blankly.

"Uhhh…"

"Don't worry. Rory." Sophia set Bay down and popped her back onto her feet. "Why don't you try that again? It's hard to read signs as it is, let alone not the right side up."

Rory still beat himself up about not being faster at grasping ASL, but he was getting there. Kids picked it up so much faster, and some adults had a talent for it, but like any language, it took time. Eight months wasn't enough to learn a language. Callisto would never tire of showing him. Sometimes, when he was most frustrated, she got to take his hands and guide them into the shapes they were supposed to make. Often, it happened late at night, when they were in bed, trying to stumble their way through a conversation. After she guided his hands, he usually guided her body into whatever shape he wanted, teaching her a new language of his own.

Bay repeated her sign for her dad. Callisto swung Sireen around, grasping her around her waist and spinning her into her arms.

"Coconuts and bugs!" Sireen yelled proudly.

"I did catch bugs," Rory said, scooping up Bay and reaching for Sireen. "I suppose that's a great treat for a monkey. But I still only have bacon."

"Bacon!" Sireen screeched. She clapped her hands wildly right into Rory's face. He pretended to munch on her hair, which made her sister laugh even harder than she was, since she could see the silly expression on his face.

Callisto still didn't eat meat, but she was no longer sickened by the smell of it cooking. She was even okay with watching her mate cook it. Maybe finally her brain had managed to separate the memories of the spoiled meat she'd been given, with the fresh cuts her mate prepared.

Rory turned, taking the girls to the table. "Fraiser?" He called. "Fraiser, time for breakfast." He shook his head. "Up half the night reading. I told him not to get started on that book, but he couldn't help it."

He'd ordered a few new astronomy textbooks. Callisto had never seen anyone so excited to get started early, but they were the books he'd no doubt need for college.

"I suppose my getting here didn't help anyone's sleep."

"It didn't bother me any."

That's because you sleep like a bear. A hibernating bear.

She waited until he'd turned so he could see her hands. He grinned, getting the gist of that. "It's true."

It was because he worked so hard during the day. He started mornings early with the girls, went all day, and then ended evenings with Fraiser and the girls like he hadn't given one hundred percent of his energy on feeding his clan all day long. He always had enough time for everyone. Friends who dropped in, unexpected meat requests, meetings and councils, dinner invitations from her siblings, and at the end of the day, sweet, private moments alone together.

Rory sat the girls at the table and Callisto quickly signed to Sophia. If I don't wish him a happy birthday, he'll either think I forgot, or he'll know something is up. I'm not so cold and mean anymore that I'd forget something like that. I might be a bear, but I have a memory like an elephant. He told me once, when it was, and I would never forget something like that.

Wait until I take the kids to school. Then, you can wish him happy birthday. Sophia winked and Callisto found herself having to duck away to hide another blush and a wave of happiness. Her best friend could see her changed, and that was okay, but there was a limit to how much she liked to admit she'd gone soft.

Fallen in love in every conceivable way when she'd been one of those people who was a pretty firm believer in never.

Halfway through breakfast, Fraiser stumbled in, bed-headed and red eyed, but dressed and starving. Sophia got them out the door on time, even after a few spills and part of an egg, which landed in Bay's hair after Sireen launched it like a monkey—taking the whole thing way too far.

"You're not going with Sophia?" Rory asked when Callisto stayed behind.

She shook her head and signed for him, clearly and slowly. She volunteered. I have a surprise for you. Will you wait here?

"Alright." He studied the mound of dirty dishes beside the sink. "If I can get started on these."

Callisto ran off while he filled the sink. She wasn't going to let him get far enough in to do any of them. No one should have to do dishes on their birthday, no matter how many birthdays they'd had.

She changed quickly and then skipped—yes, skipped—down the hall, careening to a stop in the kitchen.

Rory spun around, dripping water and suds all over the floor. He gasped. "Oh." That was all he could get out.

She'd put on the white dress. The one she'd sworn up and down she'd never put on again. The one given to her when she'd mated him. There was one sign he was used to for the past few months. One that she'd always made very clear to him, even if she was so painfully shy about it the first time she'd ever made it.

I love you. And then, so he couldn't mistake it, she spelled it out. Happy Birthday, Rory.

"Ahh. Did you plan this? Getting Sophia to arrive last night just so we could have a few extra moments this morning?"

He had the best surprise coming. She'd thought he'd figured it out long before, but he didn't know what was coming for him. All his friends, everyone he knew, his family and his clan, ready to celebrate the fact that such a wonderful man existed in the world.

"I love you too, Callisto. Very much."

She grasped his soaking wet hands and slipped them around her waist. She leaned up into him and kissed him slowly, speaking the other language they shared. It wasn't just today, on his birthday, that she was grateful for this man. She wanted to celebrate him, his quiet goodness, his calm, steady patience, his endless energy and boundless love, not just on his birthday, but every single moment of every single day.

Thank you for reading!