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714 Words
"This is weird..." Elizabeth squirmed slightly beside Sawyer as they waited for someone to open the door at his sister's house.
He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her a little closer to his side.
"Elizabeth, please just be nice to Francesca," he whispered close to her, despite the fact she didn't need him to say it, and it made her shiver.
She cast a glance at him, and noticed that there was concern in his eyes.
"What exactly are you expecting me to do?"
"I'm never entirely sure what to expect where you're concerned," he tightened his grip on Elizabeth slightly, and she blushed fiercely just as the door opened.
Francesca seemed not to notice Elizabeth as she hurried them into the house and shut the door firmly behind them.
"I didn't expect you to show up here," she said, not giving either Sawyer or Elizabeth time to respond. "If you're here to see the baby..."
"...congratulations," Elizabeth muttered.
It caught Francesca off guard, and she wasn't really sure how to respond; she was expecting Elizabeth to make a sarcastic comment and she hadn't really anticipated her showing up at the house with Sawyer at all.
"Thanks..." she responded after a moment, looking between the two of them a little hesitantly.
"Sawyer told me I should come over here with him... I wasn't really sure you'd want me to, and...it's not like..."
"It's fine," Francesca interrupted Elizabeth quickly, subtly glancing at her brother as she tried to determine what he had said to get Elizabeth to join him. "I'm glad you came...it's good to see you again."
"It is?" Elizabeth sounded confused, and her tone made Francesca feel a little awkward.
"I didn't know whether you would come back or not. You went to so much effort to hide that I assumed you were trying to get away from everything. I wasn't sure whether you were planning on disappearing for good."
"I just needed some time to think," Elizabeth mumbled awkwardly, rubbing her arm and staring down at her feet.
"I wasn't criticizing you; I just want you to know I'm glad you did come back here."
Elizabeth smiled politely, but she was sure Francesca was only really happy about her brother coming back, and she was beginning to regret the fact that Sawyer had persuaded her to come with him.
"Do you want some coffee?"
"Congratulations..." Elizabeth mumbled awkwardly again when Jonas appeared in the kitchen doorway.
It made him smile, despite how awkward it was, and he took the opportunity to usher Elizabeth into the bedroom Saga was sleeping in because he was proud of his daughter, and he hadn't had a chance to show her off to anybody yet.
He suspected Francesca wanted to talk to her brother alone, anyway.
"She's beautiful," Elizabeth smiled at the sleeping baby in the crib, but she hadn't really looked at her closely and Jonas wasn't sure whether she was disturbed by the thought of seeing a white wolf.
"I think so..." he nodded, "I guess I may be a little biased, but I think she's absolutely perfect."
"You may be biased but you're not wrong; she looks perfect to me, too," Elizabeth smiled appreciatively.
"Do you want to hold her?" Jonas laughed at the look of panic on Elizabeth's face, and shook his head. "You don't have to, I just..."
"... you just?" Elizabeth raised her eyebrow.
"I just thought you might like to."
"Is there anyone here he hasn't told about the intimate details of our private life?"
"He's excited, Elizabeth."
"I know," she sighed, "I wasn't criticizing him for it or anything, I just...it's embarrassing."
"I don't see why it should be; we're all adults here."
"It just is, OK? I didn't expect him to run over to tell Francesca, and I hadn't thought about the fact he would want to ask Selene first. I wasn't expecting an offhand comment I made to make such an impact."
"Does that bother you?" Jonas leaned over the crib and fussed over the baby in an attempt at making Elizabeth feel less uncomfortable talking to him.
"No...not really. I'm glad he's excited - I know he's wanted this for a long time - I just didn't expect it to be quite so public."
- Writer
