Chapter 35.
Arriving home was not as bad as I had feared. My mother had greeted me with open arms and a loving smile. The surrounding pack members bowed their heads in respect, knowing better than to disrespect my parents and me. I was their Alpha's daughter, and I was visiting. They couldn't do anything else but deal with it. My father had pulled me into a huge hug, a smile clear on his face as he embraced me. Rylan was soon to follow, Kory just behind me to do that same.
I was greeted with nothing but kindness and congratulations. However, I felt like I wasn't the one they should've been congratulating. It was my parents who were getting married. I corrected them, explaining that this was my parents moment to celebrate for themselves, not for me to be celebrated. Oliver came out of the pack house followed by Lilura, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion.
"What do you mean not congratulate you?" He asked in astonishment. "You are healthy now, and that's something to be thankful for."
"I know." I smiled coyly, placing my hands on my stomach for comfort. "I just want this to be about mom and dad."
"Oh, it is Sweetie!" My mother chuckled, watching as my grandmother came bursting with her voice. "Celia and Cooper are getting married! I've been waiting for this for so long."
"We know Emilia." My mom placed her hand happily on her arm. "Let's get you cleaned up and ready for tomorrow. It's a big day!"
"Shouldn't I be saying that to you?" I giggled, walking with my family as they guided me inside.
I was able to catch up with everyone the night before the wedding. My parents happily discussed the occurrences in the pack. Apparently, I was always a big discussion, but their opinions about me started changing the more my parents spoke to them. They were very strong and convincing leaders, equally talking to the pack and reversing their opinions. It was a great tactic that they were able to help my name.
My parents left not long after I arrived to go to sleep. She would be waking up earlier than him to get her makeup and hair done. She seemed nervous when she went to bed, almost as if she couldn't believe she was actually getting married. My dad sent a wink my way, a grin on his face one I knew meant that his wedding day was something he had really been looking forward to.
I spoke with Lilura, excited with her that she was sharing the same joy I was going through. She was only a month pregnant, but she was looking forward to the child. Her concern could be clear in her voice, and I couldn't understand why. I found the courage to ask her, and her response caused me to worry as well.
"Werewolves have never been mated to a witch in all of their existence," Lily explained as she rapidly talked with her hands. "This child could risk getting bullied or it can be put in danger for being a half breed. There could be both species wanting my baby dead, or the child's power could be stronger than what both Oliver and I can imagine."
"You have nothing to worry about Lily." I tried to console her, but even I was a bit nervous for her. This was something that was new, and people would probably not take it lightly. Of course, I would support my best friend in any way I could. "The child will always have people who will protect it."
"I sure hope so." She gave me a soft smile before she went to bed. My eye caught Olivers, who I immediately had been listening in on our conversation.
I could only assume that she had shared her worries with him, but the look on his face showed that she didn't go into exact specifics with him. He was probably wondering as well what could happen to his child, but he probably wasn't imagining the same thing Lily was. His hands were gripping the armchair he was sitting in as he looked at me, his heart racing.
"She'll be fine," I said to him, but he didn't seem to relax. "She's under a lot of stress right now, let her stress it out before she talks to you about it."
"I just want her and the baby to be safe." He sighed, ignoring the other conversations that were going on around him. "But I'll take you up on what you said, now isn't the time to talk about it. I just wish we talked about it before she got pregnant."
"But you wouldn't wish it any other way now would you?" I smiled, leaning over to Lucian who was mid-conversation with Kory. "I'm going to go to bed."
He stopped whatever conversation he was having and turned to me. "Okay, goodnight Penny. Sleep well and I love you."
"I love you too." I got up and pecked his lips before heading up the stairs. It was time for me to celebrate and watch my parents get married.
«.»
I double checked my makeup before applying a singular layer of lipgloss. After happy with my work, I wobbled my way of the bedroom. I was in a beautiful lavender gown, happy that this one still fit me perfectly. It was comfortable and stretchy, making it exceptionally loose around my pregnant belly. I was proud that I was able to fit into a pair of heels, though it wasn't as high as I had preferred. Lucian picked out the shoes, saying the last thing he wanted me to do was to fall and get hurt. I was happy to agree with him.
A beautiful chapel was not far from the pack house, and it was built near the lake my father had first proposed to my mother. It was fairly new, and I heard from Aunt Paige that there were a lot of windows. I couldn't wait to see the inside of it. I was going to be seeing my mother get married to the love of her life, and I was going to watch my father marry the woman of his dreams. Nothing could be more perfect.
After descending the stairs, my mate stood in his tuxedo with a matching bowtie. He looked incredible with his blonde hair slicked back and his face clean shaven. Lucian held out his hand for me to take, and I happily obliged. A grin was plastered on both of our faces, both excited to see something good come out of our lives. After so much pain in the last year, life had finally begun turning around.
"You look beautiful." He noticed the way my hair had been done, much to the painful experience I had been through with my Aunt Paige. "Did Paige do it?"
"Excruciatingly, yes." I joked, watching the stairs as we descended towards the limo. "Who's joining us?"
"Me."
My heart stopped and my eyes widened as the brunette girl took a step out of the limo. She was dressed in a stunning champagne colored dress, a revealing slit down one leg. Her breasts were pushed up only slightly, and her earrings dangled like crystals on a chandelier. She looked like a goddess with the bracelets and the way her hair was done. Small little jewels and glittered hairspray coated her updo.
In her arms was Felix, kicking his feet as he ate his own hand, drool finding it's way onto his mothers dress. He cooed, kicking away with his cute baby booties. His mother had dressed him wonderfully for the wedding, and I could only imagine how much time it took her to get his jacket on. He had on a cute white bowtie, perfectly finishing his look as he hardly had any hair to comb back.
"London?" I asked, taking a step forward and releasing my mate's hand. "Oh my goodness!"
I wrapped her body in a loose hug, knowing that I was pregnant and she was still holding her son in her arms. She was crying, but it wasn't tears of sadness. She must've just come back from the place where they helped her, and I could only imagine how much she missed her pack. She was smiling, looking at me with his big brown eyes. She looked so much better, and it wasn't the makeup she was wearing. She was practically glowing.
"I missed everyone so much." She said happily, looking at her son in her arms. "I didn't even get to raise him properly. He only went to visit me only a couple times a week."
"Well, you're here now." I touched her shoulder gently, watching as she looked at me with such pride.
"And you seem so much better." She told me, giving me a grin. "Cooper told me how much you've improved."
"You saw my dad?" I hadn't gotten the chance to see him when I woke up this morning, I could only assume he was in a rush to finish some last minute wedding planning and to get ready for his big day.
"He was the one who picked me up at the break of dawn to grab me." She rolled her eyes a bit. "I love my beauty sleep, and the damn man woke me up."
"All in good mind."
"All in good mind." She repeated with a nod before gesturing towards my stomach. "I see the baby is treating you well. What's the gender?"
"A girl."
"It's a surprise for both of us." I glared at Lucian at his response. Neither of us knew what the sex of the baby was.
London laughed, looking down at Felix. "Illumination Dreams are the best, I was happy with the name the Moon Goddess had chosen for him."
"I didn't have one."
"Interesting." Her eyebrows scrunched together in confusion but she quickly shook her head and pointed towards the limo. "Shall we?"
I entered the limo not so gracefully, and I half blamed the baby for it and the other half I blamed the dress. London laughed, buckling Felix into a car seat before tapping on the glass for the driving to get a move on. The car immediately started and we all grinned. A wedding was what we all needed, and it was the perfect distraction for everyone who lost loved ones. I most certainly couldn't wait to be able to watch this wedding. It would be the first time I would watch my parents express their love in front of me.
When we got to the Chapel, Felix was crying his eyes out. Lucian was giving me a nervous expression, confirming that he would not do well with our child crying. It made him concerned, but I only shook my head. Babies cried for many different reasons, and by the smell, Felix just needed a diaper change. Lucian, however, didn't seem to notice the smell and jumped out of the limousine the second it stopped. I chuckled, waiting for his hand to help me out of the car.
Lucian gave me a charming look after composing himself, a smile on his face showing a perfect smile. We watched as people were slowly walking into the building, and my eye caught Oliver and Lilura standing just outside. They saw London and their eyes went wide before a smile showed on both of their faces. This day was turning out to be breathtakingly magical.
London hugged both of them, surprising each as they hugged her back. Lily gave me a look, but I just shrugged my shoulders and proceeded up the long stairs towards the inside of the chapel. Lucian followed suit, holding his hand in mind as we guided the other up. I was slowly getting out of breath, but I didn't want to make a scene or complain. I was content with walking up a few flights of stairs, even if it felt like they went on for miles.
We walked into the building, and I immediately noticed the windows Aunt Paige had talked about. I turned around the entire room, looking at the way the sun came into the area. It was the perfect natural lighting, besides a large chandelier on the ceiling. I looked around at the seats and noticed just how many people had arrived. Alpha's from places I hadn't even heard of stood up briefly to acknowledge us. We both nodded our heads and returned the greeting.
I saw Aunt Paige and Uncle Adam standing near the altar, my grandmother frolicking around complaining about the arrangements of the flowers. I laughed, watching my grandfather run after her, a stack of small programs in his arms. He looked slightly flushed, his gaze switching from his son to the front door where my mother would soon be walking in.
My aunt saw me, her eyes widening as she approached me. She grabbed my wrist which surprised me, and it took me a moment to realize that she too was wearing lavender, only a different dress. I turned to Lucian who found his family sitting down near the front. He watched me with a smile as I was dragged up towards the altar.
"Celia wanted you right here." She informed, placing me to stand directly across from my cousin Shaw. He beamed at me, a grin on his face. She began turning me so I was faced inward. "There you go that's a good girl."
"Why am I standing up front and not sitting?"
"You honestly think that lavender dress just happened to show up in your suitcase?" She laughed. "And it happened to fit your pregnant tummy? Lucian put it in there when you weren't looking."
It made sense why he had told me to physically get his parents before we left for the wedding. He had been planning on slipping the dress into the suitcase. Still, it didn't make sense why both my ant and I were watching in color, and why I was standing at the front of the altar.
"You're your mother's bridesmaid Penny!" She shouted, her arms going up in the air. "Your brother, cousin, and uncle are your father's groomsmen."
"It's not even?" I looked at her confused and watched as her face faltered a bit.
"The third bridesmaid was supposed to be Sage."
My heart dropped just a bit, and I looked down at the ground in sadness. I missed her a lot more than I thought I would've. She crossed my mind on a constant always wondering why she was never guaranteed a mate, and why she had been played around like a puppet. My mother had watched her grow up and had met her at such a young age. It was devastating to know that my mother had watched so many young people who should've had long lives die. Savannah was another one, and my heart ached for both of them.
"Your mother wanted Savannah as well." Paige commented. "She used to play the harp for her when she was younger. But then she died and your brother was lost to us so she wanted something. She wanted four bridesmaids and four goomsmen, but here she is with two bridesmaids and three groomsmen."
I felt tears prickle in my eyes, and a singular tear fell down my cheek. Aunt Paige was sniffling too, but she kept fanning her eyes. When she noticed that I was crying she took out a hankercheif from her purse and patted my eyes. She felt the same pain I did, if not worse. She had lost her younger sister, and I couldn't imagine how my grandparents were feeling.
"We can't have you crying on your mother's wedding day." Her voice craacked as she fixed my makeup. "Your makeup needs to be perfect and your eyes not red from crying so you can loook absoltely beautiful for the cameras."
"I know." I tried wiping them but she just slapped my hand away. Her tears still evident in her eyes but refusing to fall.
"Sage wouldn't want you crying over her on your mother's wedding day." She shook her head. "She admired Celia so much, she would want this to be the happiest day of everyone's lives."
"I know she would." I couldn't help but feel more tears threatening to fall, but I blinked them away. Much to my luck, I was successful.
"Now." She grinned, her tears finally gone from her eyes. "The music will start and first my parents will walk down and then your mother."
"What about my dad."
Aunt Paige pointed, and on queue, my dad came walking in. He was wearing a perfectly white dress shirt, his tie not looking exactly like a tie. There seemed to be these frills that accented the way he looked. They fit his personality, because it was neat and exceptionally organized. He came strutting down the aisle, everyone watching him as he had the largest grin on his face. He dress pants barily touched the ground, and his perfectly polished shoes shined against the natural lighting. His curled were held together in gel. It didn't look necessarily messy, but it wasn't neat either. He seemed perfectly put together.
My dad winked at me when he saw me, and turned his back to the alter to look down the aisle. He was waiting for his future wife, and his mate. There was nothing else he wanted to look that, and I couldn't blame him. My eyes moved to my own mate and he was already looking at me when I did so. A smile was on his face, but I couldn't see his beautiful teeth. He seemed content with just looking at me, and I felt the same. All I felt for him was pure love.
The music started, snapping me out of my trance. I turned to look down the aisle where my grandmother and grandfather had just begun walking down. It was the longest aisle I think I had ever seen. They walked slowly, glancing at their sun before looking at each other with a proud look on their faces. They knew how much this meant to my father, and they knew how much this meant to my mother. I couldn't wait to see how beautiful she looked.
My grandmother Emilia was dressed in a beautiful petal pink gown. It was a light color, and gistened with small little emroideries. They looked to be small little gold flowers stitched in, and it looked absolutely beautiful. A few gems rested near her neckline, but the jewelry she was wearing were the most interiguing. They sparkled whenever the light hit them, and I immediately recognized as them being crystals. Even in her older state, she looked absolutely beautiful.
The music seemed to slow just a little as my grandparents stood on opposite sides of the alter, their eyes locking to each others once more before they turned to look down the aisle. As if on a queue and beautifully rehearsed, the chapel double doors opened and in came a large stream of sunlight. They closed just as a figure walked in, and that figure was my mother.
I could hear her heels clicking as she walked on the few tiled before the red carpet came, and finally, I was able to see her. I heard my father's breath hitch, and I gave him a side eye as I saw him staring at her in complete awe. I knew in that moment how much he loved her, and how badly he wanted to see how beautiful she was each and every day. I felt my heart warm at the interaction between my parents.
I finally caught the perfect sight of my mother, and almost immediately I thought she was an angel or the Moon Goddess. She looked so breathtaking I could believe it. She wore a long sleeved lace dress that was an incredible mermaid style. She looked like a princess with the small specles of glitter in the skirt and the gems that liitered in a strategic pattern on her chest. Lace covered her arms where you could still see the skin, and from what I could tell from the reflection in the background mirrors, her entire back was showing.
She was smiling, her light pink glossed lips glistening with just the slightest hit of glitter. Her makeup was done beautifully, and I knew it was the work of my Aunt Paige. The same with her hair, which was placed beautifully in a large bun that was covered in tight small curls. My mother's bands were straightened and perfectly sweeped to the side. Her eyes were showing and the violet could be seen for miled.
A tiny tiara was placed just below the bun where it connected to her roots. Glittered hairspray kept every flyaway in place. The tiara had a small aquamarine gem at the top, while the other gems that coated the top of the crown were diamond. They sparkled given any chance, and I could help but watch in complete awe as well. The flowers she was holding were pretty blue and white roses, some looking almost purple as well. They complimented her tiara and her eyes. The veil didn't cover her face, but it looked like a fairly long train.
When she reached to look at my father her face was oozing with excitement. This was the day she was looking forward to, and now it was here. She seemed so happy, and I wanted nothing more than for it to continue. I raised my hand to the ceiling discretely, watching as a few flower pedals began to dance to the ground. They were white, and they seemed to form a halo around both my parents. My gift to them I thought to myself.
"Good morning." The man said, looking between my parents. "We are gathered here on this beautiful morning to witness the marriage of Celia and Cooper."
Everyone in the crowd was looking at each other with such excitement, and I couldn't contain my own. I was smiling and looking forward to it. These were going to be the best moments of my life. I would be able to have the opportunity to see my parents get married, something not a lot of people got the change to see. I was overwhelmingly excited.
"I do." My father said, his eyes glistening with unshed tears as he looked at his soon to be wife. I hadn't even noticed that the vows were being spoke as my excitement consumed me.
"I do." My mother repeated, and they both exchanged rings. My mothers eyes filled with tears as she spoke again. "May we run and flee from our fears, but continuously stay for love."
________________________________________________________A/N
These emotions oh my gosh.
Just give me a moment...I'll stop crying...Okay......almost....okay I'm good....nope...okay..now I'm done crying
Just an Epilogue and then we say goodbye to these beautiful characters that I grew up with. Some comments about how you're feeling about this chapter and the end of this trilogy would be amazing
VOTE/COMMENT/SHARE/FAN
Love you all to pieces
-Pamela