The Last Dance

Chapter Two

(Chapter Two)

Ember walked into the house, Elara in his arms as Dragon followed. He had taken time off from his job, having had vacation days saved, and brought Elara to see his mom and grandparents.

He wanted to move back to his home state, having moved away when Luna was still with him, knowing that she didn't want to leave her parents with her death date so close.

It was always too close in his opinion.

He wanted to be near his family, the only thing keeping him from doing it, was Luna's parents and his job.

"Ember!" He hadn't even realized that his grandmother had come to him. He smiled, putting his free arm around her and hugging her.

Elara giggled in his arms, putting her arms up towards Ember's face. "Da!" After she got the one thing out of her mouth, she starting trying to get down, not wanting to be held anymore.

Ember set her down, his grandmother laughing when she used his pants leg to help herself to stand. "Da," she called again, looking over at the kitchen, where she saw Emerald.

Emerald and Ember hadn't been in contact for most of the last two years, since Emerald had called him stupid once he told her about Luna and him.

Ember continued to talk to his grandmother, ignoring his small daughter's pulls on his pants leg.

Emerald's head was in complete view from around the corner, she was on all fours on the kitchen floor, peeking at Elara and making the girl giggle as she held herself up by Ember's pants.

Ember looked down at the small girl that was latched onto his leg; Dragon had run off to Ember's old bedroom.

"Yeah, I planned to look for an apartment while I'm in town," he told his grandmother, crouching down after a moment to see what Elara was so interested in. He looked where the girl was pointing at, as she giggled, and saw nothing.

His grandma started laughing, shaking her head as she watched him, and he looked up at her, his eyebrows raised. He heard laughter from his side, and looked over to see his sister right in front of him.

Ember jumped a little, falling back on his butt, and almost knocking over Elara, but she stood where she was, clapping her hands before she threw herself down onto the floor.

She started to crawl away, but Emerald grabbed her before she could, and Ember stood up, instinctively dusting his pants off. Elara giggled, screaming "Da" again.

"She sure likes to call for her dad," Ember's grandmother said as he passed the siblings and began towards to the kitchen. Ember shook his head slightly.

"Actually, this is the most she's spoken since she's been able to say it," he said, and Emerald raised her eyebrows. She opened her mouth to speak:

"She's only said it a few times." Ember looked at her and nodded, grabbing Elara from her arms.

"Exactly," he said as he began to walk to the kitchen. "I don't think she likes city life too much."

"None of our family was made for city life," his grandfather said, getting up from his chair and coming to kiss Elara's forehead. Ember couldn't help but wonder how long he had been in here.

Getting the thought out of his head, Ember shrugged, setting Elara in his grandma's arms when she motioned for him to. He placed his hands in his pockets, now having nothing to do with his hands.

"That's what I've said so many times to Luna's parents," he said, pulling a seat out and sitting on it. "They never listen, though, so I'm just going to look for an apartment tomorrow."

"Nonsense," his grandpa said, shaking his head and placing his cup back down on the table, "you can just stay here."

Ember raised both eyebrows, before shaking his head back and forth. "You don't want to be woke up all night by Elara wanting to play."

"She wants to play at night?" Emerald asked, looking at the baby yawning in her grandmother's arms. "Elara, I'm going to get along just fine with you."

Everyone laughed at her joke, and Elara looked at everyone. She was always curious about what was going on.

"Then, Em, do you want to help me look tomorrow?" He asked, looking up at his sister, who nodded.

"Yeah, I can help," she said it so smugly, as if she'd find the perfect apartment for him. Ember remembered that she always had a matching thought about everything everybody owned.

"Also," Emerald started, pointing at the small Elara, "where did the brown hair come from, I remember Luna's parents had blonde hair." She looked at Ember, who shrugged, saying that they had guessed it was from his side of the family.

Since his side consisted of people with red hair, which normally turned brown the year before everyone got grey hairs.

She nodded, looking at him before looking away after a moment. Ember looked up at her anyway, speaking after a moment of hesitation.

"Where's Mom?" He asked, getting a look from his sister before she shrugged.

His mother had called Emerald out on her faults after she had got back from rehab, which left Emerald upset with her for the last, half year or so.

"Last I knew," Emerald actually spoke about her, "she was on her way." Emerald didn't stay much longer, taking her niece and escaping the kitchen to the toy-filled room that was near the back of the house.

Ember stayed in the kitchen, talking to his grandparents and waiting for his mother for about another hour, but when she didn't show, he went to his room and pulled out an old journal.

He opened it up. It was filled with important things of his, most of the notes having to do with Luna. He'd never touched it since he and Luna had had Elara.

A blank page stared back at him as he picked up a pen, pressing the tip to the page.

It's been seven months since Luna's passing, and yet, I can't stop thinking about her. I shouldn't be this obsessed over it, but I see her every time I see Elara.

Her freckles across her small cheeks, her almost bi-colored eyes. It was Luna's favorite feature of her daughter, if she had to pick one.

She had celebrated Elara's first birthday at four months, with just Elara and I attending. When I asked her why, she'd tell me that it was exactly a year from when she found out, since she had found out the month after prom.

Although, it was anticipated.

Ember stared at the words, a frown on his face as he remembered that day. Luna could barely stand to wait, saying that she hadn't remembered the date for nothing.

Ember looked at his finger, that contained a small band around it. They had never actually been able to get married, since Luna was in the hospital most of her pregnancy, and the days she wasn't, her parents were taking her.

Ember had only used their days together to spend together, not worry about a marriage license. To each other, they were married, it was legally done in their minds.

And Elara just seemed to clarify it.

A sigh escaped his lips as he closed the journal, hiding it once again before he went to get his daughter.

Emerald looked up at him when he entered, having an asleep Elara in her arms, and they carefully changed who she was with.

Emerald stayed in the toy room, saying that she was going to clean up before she went to bed. But Ember, he went to his room and crawled into bed, Elara tucked in right beside him since she didn't have a room at his grandparents' house.

He wasn't worried about it, though, because he knew that the second she woke up, he'd be up with her.