Gathering of friends

[survivesitall]

It had taken a lot to convince Clayton this was a good idea. He didn't like having people around his home he didn't need to, and liked crowds even less. But Elena had insisted, some of the people invited as close to Pack as they'd have here, and others hopefully trusted friends. He'd even coughed up a name or two when she pushed, something that made her happy. She found she had a lot of leverage since she'd agreed to start trying for children, even if that was something that scared her no matter how much Jeremy had told them of their future.

The setup was simple enough. They'd opened up the doors to the barn and set tables around in front of it. Clay had set up a spit with a deer, and it was likely better if no one asked how they'd caught it. There was a regular grill sizzling with sausages and for whatever people brought, and a bowls of salads for anyone who wanted them. Elena wsn't sure of how much others ate, but she knew she and Clay could pack away enough for three humans. There were pies inside the house for later, once they'd all eaten their fill of everything else.

There might have been a chill on the air, but that just made the day more special to Elena. There were only a few more weekends they could do this before it got too cold for most.

Comments

[survivesitall]

"We had an Alpha. Jeremy, he was here for a little while." And then just as quickly he'd gone, making them miss him all the more. "He said that I'd be Alpha someday, succeed him. I'm still not sure I believe that."

[notaretriever]

Luke's gaze drifts away then, knowing the only way his pack would have found a new leader was with his death. "It's different where I'm from," he says with a faint twist of a smile. "Pack leaders have to die to be replaced. Die or be challenged for the role."

And even that almost always resulted in death.

[survivesitall]

"They do as far as I've known too." Not that Elena has known another Pack leader than Jer, but she's read the histories. "Apparently he plans to retire. Things changed a lot, I guess."

[notaretriever]

"It happens now and then where I'm from," he admits. "I left my first pack after a few years and they replaced me without the new leader tracking me down to challenge me." He'd been a good leader, even at a young age, and he knows his pack hadn't wanted him to leave, but they had known. His heart had belonged with Jocelyn. With Clary.

[survivesitall]

"That's a good thing. Otherwise you wouldn't be here would you?" Elena keeps it light, knowing that their conversation could easily move in another direction. "I've never met anone who gave up being an Alpha. I guess, other than Jeremy."

[notaretriever]

Luke smiles, the expression a little grim. "I might still be here." He's never lost a fight with another wolf before and while he prefers to never have to be in such a situation again, if it were to come to that, he likes to think he'd still be more than up to the challenge. His years of Shadowhunter training benefit him when it comes to fighting. He's not just a wolf, he's a trained assassin.

"But it's nothing worth worrying about here now," he says. "I have no interest in being a pack leader in Darrow."

[survivesitall]

Elena has to nod at his words, knowing that she's in a similar boat. "I'm not either. With Clayton and me, it's different, I'm happy to take the lead. I suppose I more ust want to know we have people out there. Who think like us."

There's something unspoken in her words, and she wonders if he'll pick it up. In case we need it, she thinks, knowing both the things her own world threw at her and this one had too.