Welcome to the Family (Ally)

[Luke Martin]

"Ha ha!" Jen laughed out loud, digging Luke in the arm, "you lose." Poking her tongue out at her brother, she skittered off down the beach towards the other two, Luke hot at her heels - the near foot of height difference gave him an unfair advantage. But instead of running past her, he scooped her up in his arms. She let out a squeal which echoed around the beach, followed by a rare giggle, which probably made Luke feel proud of himself for being the cause of it.

"Kid?!" Georgie said indignantly, even though she was still out of breath, "pffft." Flapping her arms once, she didn't move from her spot in the sand, "I should get something from Luke too, as a pity thing." Luke caught up with them at this point, depositing Jen in the sand. "You want me to treat you for losing? You know what they say about throwing good after bad," he shook his head at her as he stood over her. Looking at Ally, he said, "who knew I had to get you to run down the beach to have dinner with me."

[Alliana Porter]

Ally chuckled at Georgie's comment, then turned and unexpectedly threw all caution out the wind. She chuckled to herself and aimed her hands towards Georgie's ribs and attacked her in a fit of tickles. Ally giggled right with her, feeling as if they were already bound in blood. She already loved his little sister as if she were her own.

The moment broke when Luke plopped Jen down into the sand next to them. She smiled at Jen, still hoping to win her approval over. There was bound to be something they could do together to bond. Georgie had been easier because she had latched on like a lost puppy already, but that didn't mean Jen was any less important. "I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have a choice anyway in the matter." she chuckled, propping herself up a little. "It's either eat at your house or don't eat at all." Ally worked herself to her feet, dusting off her rear and back, then reached a hand out to Georgie's hand to pull her up. "Maybe we should just try walking this time, eh?"

[Luke Martin]

Georgie squeaked loudly as Ally tickled her, desperately trying to bat the woman's hands away, but was somewhat incapcitated as her stomach strained from the laughter. "Nooo, nooooo, it's... tick.... it tickles!!!!" Eventually, Ally relented in order to talk to Luke, and she rolled away so she wasn't vulnerable to another attack. She frowned up at Luke, "but I'm your baby sister." She batted her eyelashes and jutted out her bottom lip. "And you love me." Ally caught her attention again, and helped her too her feet. "Why walk when I could be carried?" she grinned, clambering onto Luke's back, not giving him a chance to protest.

Luke pretended to have his legs buckle under Georgie's weight, making it look like he was going to fall over, so she let out a cry. He snickered as she ruffled her hair. Looking at Ally, he chuckled, "that's true. You can experience another meal from my small arsenal of recipes." "I'd ask for Mom's cooking if I were you," Jen advised Ally, "it's much better than Skywalker's." This earned Jen a prod in the ribs, and Georgie stuck her tongue out at Jen over Luke's shoulder, which made her roll her eyes. "See what I have to put up with?"

[Alliana Porter]

Ally chuckled, wiping her jeans one last time. His sisters meant the world to him and loving him meant loving them as well, not that there was ever a problem with that. They were wonderful and brilliant and beautiful. The love they shared simply radiated and she only hoped to share it one day.

With a cheeky grin, she reached over to him, cupping his face gently in her small hands. Ally leaned in and kissed him fiercely, pretty much for the sole purpose of embarrassing Georgie. When she finally pulled away, she reached up and shuffled the young girl's hair playfully. "I'm pretty sure you'll get me back somehow."

[Luke Martin]

While Luke certainly wasn't complaining about the ferocious kiss that Ally just planted on his lips, it had two effects. Georgie, perched on his back, let out an almighty "BLEUGH!" with the intent of it being heard. "I would say get a room, but Luke would just carry me into it." She wrinkled up her face, poking Ally as she could still reach. "Yes, yes, I'm concocting up plans of revenge right now, be fearful!" She would have rubbed her hands together, but she had to hold on if she wanted to be carried back to the car.

Jen, on the other hand, merely turned and walked away towards the trees in silence. She wasn't ready for that. Luke saw her go, and took a breath, trying to decide whether to go after her or not. Gently, he patted Georgie's hand to signal her to get off, then stroked Ally's cheek with his thumb. "I'll meet you ladies at the car. Georgie, you're in charge till I get back." He pointed at the young blonde before jogging off beyond the tree line. Georgie looked at Ally, now back on her own two feet, "don't worry about it. Jen's mostly grumpy, she'll get over it. Come on," she seized Ally's hand, "we can take our time on the way back."

[Alliana Porter]

Ally's first mistake had been kissing Luke in front of Jen. She hadn't considered her reaction just yet and now she was regretting kissing his soft lips. It wasn't that she was being selfish she just was lost in her own emotions and the pure fun of messing with Georgie. The kiss was simply too much for her.

Her face fell as Luke touched her cheek and headed off with Jen. Ally was only beginning to feel the repercussions for her actions. Georgie's hand around hers lifted her a little, but not enough to change the look on her face. Hopefully she could mend this with Jen but she knew Luke had to work with her first. Jen was in Luke's life first after all.

[Luke Martin]

((-snorts- Wow xD have fun reading this one.))

Georgie did her best to lift Ally's spirits as they meandered their way back down the beach. It wasn't easy though, when this lady felt guilty, she felt guilty. "Don't worry," she said, "you know Luke's a smooth talker. And if anyone can talk Jen round, it's him. You know, because he's magical too." She offered Ally a grin, leading her off the beach and back over to the car. Jen and Luke hadn't made it back yet. That meant Jen was being awkward. Wonderful.

Luckily, Jen was tiny, so she hadn't managed to get far ahead when he caught up to her. "What are you planning on doing, walking all the way home?" he called after her, as she stormed on, kicking dead twigs and leaves as she went. "It's a long way you know. And you don't want to get blisters on those perfectly formed feet of yours." After another couple of angry strides, Jen finally drew to a halt, dipping her head so her face disappeared behind her hair. Luke stopped beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder which she shrugged off. "Come on, this can't just be about Ally."

Jen seemed to be working herself up into a state, as she finally said, "why did you bring her here? It's Christmas, Luke. You haven't been home for Christmas in two years, and when you finally do, you bring her? Christmas is supposed to be time for family! We wanted to spend time with you, Mom wanted to spend time with you." She had tears dribbling down her cheeks now, "but it's not like we can be ourselves with her around. We have to be nice and polite and happy. And you all make me feel guilty when I don't! I don't want to have to try, Luke, it's too hard. You have no idea what's going on."

All of what she said troubled him somewhat. Sure, some of the blame was flung at him, but there was something behind her words that was causing this outburst that he didn't know about yet. Reaching out, he pulled her into a hug. At first, she tried to resist, but eventually, she buried her head in his chest, the tears soaking his shirt. "We'll sort something out, okay? You'll get time with me. And I'll talk to Mom. I promise."

Eventually, Luke and Jen emerged from the trees, Luke with his arms around Jen's shoulders. "We're alive, don't worry," he said to the ladies at the car, noticing the solemn look on Ally's face. It looked like Jen wasn't the only lady in his life he needed to talk to, he now had to add his Mom and Ally to the list too. This was turning out to be an interesting Christmas. "Come on, let's get back to the house, I don't know about you lot, but I'm hungry." "Starving!" Georgie chirped, her ever happy self.

[Alliana Porter]

Ally swung Georgie's hand a little as she watched her feet shuffling in the sand. She almost had to keep her tears at bay when she looked up at Luke and Jen. It was clear now that she had disrupted the delicate harmony between Luke and his sisters. Maybe she shouldn't have even come.

"Jen's probably upset that I'm here." she breathed quietly to herself. More to herself than Georgie. Obviously Georgie would be the positive one, trying to make Ally believe it wasn't her fault. No matter what she tried to make Ally believe, the guilt was already settling in.

[Luke Martin]

Jen climbed in the back quietly, followed by Georgie, who immediately took up her hand once they were strapped in. Luke opened Ally's door for her, giving her shoulder a squeeze as she climbed in. He'd talk to her once they were back at the house, and alone. The journey back was fairly quick, even though there was silence throughout the car. Once they reached the house, Jen got out first, arm in arm with Georgie - it was probably a good idea that they spent some time chatting now that Georgie's friends were gone.

Luke held out his hand to Ally as he stood on the sidewalk, "come on, let's go talk." Leading her around the back of the house through the back gate, he took her down the end of the garden to a copse of trees. Reaching behind one of them, he tugged something, a rope ladder falling down from the branches above. Looking upwards, there was a fair sized tree house sitting up in the tree, it was still in pretty good condition, and Jen had even left the rope back in the right place when she'd brought her boyfriends up here. "After you."

[Alliana Porter]

The ride back was silent and awkward. She caught fleeting glances at Luke every once in a while before resting her head against the glass with a low thump. She sniffled back a small tear and stared out at the trees passing them by.

When they got back home Georgie automatically took Jen inside, leaving Luke with Ally. She followed him without another word into the backyard. She rose a curious eyebrow as he pulled down on the rope ladder. Giving him another look, she heaved herself up towards his tree house.

[Luke Martin]

Once they were both up in the tree house, Luke sat himself down cross-legged, admiring how such shape the place was still in. He was surprised more of the old wood hadn't rotted. Obviously, he'd built it well. Maybe he should have gone into designing and building ships rather than flying them. Eventually, he looked across at Ally who was still wearing the same expression that she had been for the past half an hour.

"Why so glum, chum?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer. "Don't worry about Jen," he told her, as Georgie probably had, "apparently I have some catching up to do with the family. There's something that's upsetting Jen, which is making everything else seem worse than it actually is." He already had a head full of worries about what that might be, but he'd wait until he talked to his Mom before he fully panicked. "It's not anything that you've done," he reached across to take her hand in his, "okay?"

[Alliana Porter]

It smell like old worn wood and if the walls could talk, the memories they would speak would definitely be plentiful. She almost wished she had a place to escape like this as a child. It was still nothing compared to this. Between her brother and her parents constant fighting, all she had was great oak tree in the backyard. She gave a small sigh and adjusted comfortably. Ally pulled her knees in close and stared across at Luke until he opened his mouth to speak.

She rose her grey eyes from the patterned wood into him with the same solemn face. He already knew, before she had a chance to open her mouth. Come to think of it, something else did seem wrong. She knew it the moment she arrived by the look in his mother's eyes, and even more so when they had coffee together that morning. There was defiantly some big secret lying underneath the smiles here. Jen had just snapped from it. She let out another small smile with her sigh as he reached for his hand."I....Know....it's just I...can't help but feel to blame for some of it. Jen wasn't ready for us and I...I wasn't thinking. "

Giving a small squeeze, she tossed a few bangs back and scooted to sit next to him. She still felt guilty for being so affectionate in front of Jen. It was far too much, but she hadn't even thought of her consequences. Ally rested her head against his shoulder, staring aimlessly at the other end of the small treehouse. All she wanted was peace, but it was already becoming a rocky road to get there. "Their opinion is the most important thing. I just want to make a good impression."

[Luke Martin]

Luke shrugged his shoulders gently, "maybe the kiss wasn't the best idea, but there's no point regretting it," he told her, "Jen'll get used to it in time, just gotta give and take a bit, give her some time and some space, but don't feel shy. I promise, they're all happy about it, whether they show it or not." That much had been made clear. It was something else that was getting the family down. Luke figured he hadn't heard of it yet because they hadn't wanted to disturb Christmas with any news, but he'd catch up with his Mom later. She always retired to her room to read in the afternoon, he'd do it then.

Twisting his head to the side, he kissed the top of her head gently. "You're making a great impression, don't worry." Not that they had any of his other girlfriends to compare to, but there'd been some rocky meetings with some of Jen's boyfriends which hadn't gone down well. It was possible that was irking Jen too. "Just keep being yourself, everything will be fine."

It wasn't long until lunch was ready, and the both of them were called back into the house from the garden to eat. Luke went for a chat with his Mom in the afternoon, then set about making dinner for everyone with help from Ally and Georgie - Georgie making the most mess. Dinner was followed by board games (Jen won twice), then they were ushered off to bed before 'Santa came', even though none of them believed any more. Luke had glanced out of the window before bed, despite his chat that afternoon, a smile crept across his face. They were in for another surprise in the morning.

[Alliana Porter]

"I hope so." she breathed quietly. There wasn't much she could change. Ally loved Luke with her whole heart and denying that in any way was denying herself. She desperately wanted to believe he was 'The One', but who was she to control fate? All she could do now was hope, pray and love. In all honesty, she was trying her hardest. She just wanted all of this to matter, wanted them to like her, lover her and accept her. She had never fought so hard for an impression in her life. Then again, none had been as important as this one. She was almost believing his words. If anybody could lift her spirits, it was him.

The meals had been amazing, both lunch and dinner made her feel as though none other food could ever compare. Much better than the food on board, that was for sure. The day blurred by from fun in the kitchen to laughing and losing with board games. There was no comparing with Jen. She Knew the game better than anyone else and Ally was so close to giving up even trying. Luckily, they ended soon so she wouldn't have to admit defeat.

Not soon after, Luke's mom pushed them all to bed so they would rise early. Ally changed and readied herself to bed. She was about to snuggle under the covers when she saw Luke staring thoughtfully out the window. Walking over to him, she wrapped her arms around his waist and tenderly rested her face against his shoulder blade. "Whatcha thinkin about babe?"

[Luke Martin]

Luke rested a hand against the arms which she had woven around his waist, thinking over the question she had asked, and the answer to it. He could tell her it was nothing for now, discuss what he'd talked to his Mom about this afternoon with her once they got back on board the Venia. He didn't want to spoil Christmas for her, like his Mom hadn't wanted to spoil Christmas for him. The only reason Jen knew was because she'd figured something was up and asked straight out, then they'd had to tell Georgie; that girl could put on a brave face through everything. But he didn't want Ally feeling left out, and after all, she was supposed to be there for him, and he needed her right now.

"The chat I had with my Mom earlier, you know the one while you and Georgie demolished the rest of the party balloons?" Everything they'd said had been punctuated by popping and giggling. "You remember how I told you my Mom had breast cancer? Well," he gulped, "it's back. She's having chemo, but they don't think..." he shook his head, "it's only a matter of time." Bowing his head, he squeezed her arm, telling himself not to cry, he'd done enough of that earlier, and he didn't want to break down on her. He hadn't yet, and he was determined not to.