Love Heals - Teen/CC

[Ti88]

Title: Love Heals

Author: Roselle aka Ti88

Email: roswellgoddess2001@yahoo.com

Rating: Teen

Fandom/Pairing: Roswell/CC

Author Notes: This fic is for the Support Stacie Challenge. It is a fic of healing and hope. I choose a Roswell fandom fic because for me the show is about healing and hope and heck I love Roswell. Stacie my prayers are with you and your family. Hope this fic makes you smile. Miss you. Sending you lots of cyber hugs and love.

Disclaimer: I own none of these things. If I did Dreamers, Candy, Stargazers, Lamptrimmers, and Untuckables would rule. The characters show, etc all belong to the writers, producers, networks etc. This gives me a nice warm fuzzy feeling to be able to share and get these things out of my head. To quote another show…’Keep the Dream Alive’

Summary: Five years after Tess came. A lot of things happened and a lot of things didn’t. I’m not going to list them all, just enough so you can follow the story. In part cause I haven’t figured out every little detail and in part cause I like to have some mystery. So the things that you need to know are as follows. 1) Tess came to town and things between her and Max and Liz went down as they did on the show minus the whole Tess sleeping with Max. 2) Alex is alive. 3) Season three just did not happen.

Five years after Tess shows up.

She smoothed the baby blanket down placing a kiss on the little girl’s face. She could not believe she was a grandma. She was too young to be a grandma. And not only a grandma but an alien grandma. Well she wasn’t an alien but she was the grandma of one or at least the grandma a hybrid – wait that sounded like a car. And it wasn’t regular hybrid either. It was a 2nd gen.

“Amy breath. I can hear you rambling all the way over here.”

“Ha Ha very funny Jim. So are you ready to start this first history lesson. This is just too weird. So she’ll remember everything we tell her and when she’s older she can access it. It totally gives new meaning to the concept of an oral tradition.”

Jim smiled at his wife. “Yes. Ready. I just hope we get this right. And I hope she stays sleep through the whole thing. At least the first time around. Oh man we are going to have to do to this on a regular basis aren’t we.”

Amy laughed. “Yep Antarian schooling and human schooling. Just wait until we get more parents on the bandwagon. Right now we are outnumbered by the kids. We have to turn the tables on them soon.” Jim shook his head in agreement and came to stand next to her.


“Well princess your story actually starts over 50 years ago among the stars. Your mom was searching for where she belonged. Or more to the point to where she was told she belonged. And that’s something your Nana Amy wants to promise to never do to you. Your dad…”

Jim decided to take up the tale for a bit. “Your dad…well your dad was just searching. Because all the places he should have belonged were not there for him. And that’s something your Grampy Jim promises to never let happen to you.” He felt Amy squeeze his hand. “Five years ago your mom…”

Five years ago.

“NOW TESS HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN IT TO YOU?”

“But…I like it here. I don’t want to go to the freaking desert. Its desert. There is nothing out there. Nothing at all.”

“NOTHING. NOTHING. LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THIS NOTHING. THAT NOTHING YOU SPEAK OF WITH SUCH DISDAIN AND DISREGUARD IS YOUR HERITAGE. IT IS YOUR BIRTHRIGHT.”

Tess threw her head back and laughed. And it ended on a cry. “My heritage and my birthright. Please. We were killed by a crazy man trying to overthrow the throne. A throne that I don’t remember really. And I’m not sure I even wanted. From what you tell me the country was in chaos then and its still in chaos now. And let’s not forget my king. An arraigned marriage. With my best friend. I so don’t think so. We were all forced into something that we hated over 50 years and how many light years ago. None of us loved each other. At least not the way we should have, to be married. So why do we need to go to the desert. And where in the desert are we going?” She knew she was pushing things with her ‘guardian’ but she couldn’t help it. She was 16 and all she wanted was to fit in, she wanted to go to junior prom and senior prom and be homecoming queen and head cheerleader and date the captain of the football team. She wanted to do all the things she saw on TV. Well maybe not everything. But she was getting a bit tired of living her life like she was John Corner’s long lost sister.

The air in the room started to crackle. “Tess I have been more than patient with your need to make yourself common with this sickening desire to blend in. But it ends now. We leave for Roswell, New Mexico tomorrow. Once there you will rejoin your king and your husband. His sister the princess and his second in command her husband. AND THAT IS FINAL.”

The present.

“…Tess arrived and things went south. She brought with her destiny and division. Or more to the point the division was brought to light with her appearance. Everyone was just trusting everyone else just enough to be safe. She went after her birthright with a vengeance. But Nascedo never put stock into human emotions and as hybrids she was a much human as she was alien. The king did not want his queen back for he had found a new queen. A new queen who had in a moment of fate snatched everything your mom never wanted but desperately had to have away. Again leaving your mom with no where to be. But then your dad got involved and Nascedo died. Your mom came to live with us. And things seemed to be mending itself…”

Five Years Ago

Kyle knocked on the door as he went in. He wasn’t sure how he felt about aliens in general, but she had made a point at the Crashdown. And he knew what it was to feel lost and lonely. “Um, I just wanted to say sorry again. As hard as this is for me, it must be worse for you. You can stay. I want you to stay. No one should have to feel like the 5th wheel. Or in our case wheels seven and eight. So I figure we need to stick together. Buddha says…”

Tess started laughing. And she hadn’t had much to laugh about in recent days. “Oh come on Buddha Boy. You expect me to hang out with a human.”

Kyle let a hurt look cross his face. She didn’t fool him though. He had seen for just a moment how happy she was when he said she was welcomed to stay and they needed to stick together. Some protector that Nascedo guy was he had all but crushed Tess’ spirit to the point where it looked like she was starting to believe the crap feed to her for the past 16 years. If the rest of her race was as cold as he was, he understood why Max had no desire to go back. “Yes, but not just any human. I’ve been brought from beyond. I’m hot and manly. You couldn’t find a better stud if you tried.” Kyle flashed his trade Valenti grin that had all the girls going.

Despite herself she couldn’t help but giggle. “A stud huh?” She walked over to him and smirked.

“Hey!!! Hey!!! Get them off of me. Get them off of me. Dad! Dad! Call the Orca man. We have spiders. Oh my God.” Tess fell on the bed in fit of hysterics as Jim came running in the room and saw his son waving his arms around and running in circles hitting at his clothes and hair. As Kyle was about to pull his clothes off he shot Tess a look and she dropped the warp. “Hey…”

Kyle stopped and looked around. “Where did all the spiders go?” Jim couldn’t help it and joined Tess in laughing. “What? What? Tess!!!!!”

“Sorry Kyle you asked for it. Where’s the manly stud?”

“Ha. Ha! Very funny. Ever sense Alex made us watch Arachnophobia in the 6th grade I have had a fear of spiders.”

“OK you two. I’m going to meet Amy for dinner. Behave.”

“Oh gross Dad.”

“Have fun Sherriff.”

They watched Jim leave for his date. “Don’t worry Kyle I’ll protect you.” Tess smiled at him shyly….

The present

Amy took a deep breath. “Until a foolish plan to make it all right threw it all in for a tale spin. You’ll have to get the details from your Uncle Max and your Aunty Liz. We won’t go into it. It’s really not our story to tell. But needless to say it drove the group apart. There was mistrust and secrecy. And what you have to remember what we all have to remember is that we are a family that has to be able to trust each other. No matter what. We can’t be lone rangers and try to solve things on our own. We need the help of each other. We are stronger together.”

Jim squeezed Amy’s hand. “We forgot that for a while. And in that time someone came in and nearly took it all away. A trap had been laid and we almost walked into it. We thought with the disappearance (Amy smirked at his euphemism for death) of your mom’s guardian that everything was ok. We did not realize that there was a back up plan in place to insure a deal went through. But your mom was stronger than that. And she finally had found her place. With your dad. And nothing could make her change her mind. She figured the images she was getting was past memories of her past life.”

“She took them as that and passed them off as nothing. The past was that. Past. But it wasn’t. And it started to backfire on her…”


Five years ago

The gang was all gathered in the Valenti household. They had just let Amy in on the I know an alien club. She had shown up and demanded to know what was going on. Amy had started spouting government conspiracies, cover-ups, and cults. She had threatened to take Maria away and no one would be able to find them. She had threatened to tell Liz and Alex’s parents as well if she did not get an answer. She knew something was up and she knew it was something big.

“Fine” Michael had broken the silence. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know. But you are not taking Maria anywhere and you’re not telling Liz and Alex’s parents anything either.”

“Michael are you crazy?”

“Young man are you threatening me. I will show you threatening. I will do whatever the heck I please.”

Michael looked at Jim with a please do something expression on his face. Jim deciding to take a page out of Michael’s book reached over and kissed Amy. She just stood there in shook. “Well what do you know it works for humans as well.”

“Max I’m not crazy I just know now what you felt like that day in the Crashdown. Maria is my life. And Amy is resourceful enough to try and make good on her promise. I have to have Maria with me. So I will do what I have to do to keep us together.”

“Oh great now he chooses to show emotion and be romantic. I tell you Michael do you think of …”

“Hush Iz. You know you have been waiting for this moment. And to see Michael take the plunge first is just making you all happy. Even if it’s throwing wrenches in your carefully mapped out plan of “How to tell the Parents.”

Isabel quieted down and gave Alex a kiss on the cheek. No one understood her as well as he did. And he was right. That was ok. She still had four sets of parents to initiate in the I know an alien club to plan for.

By this time Amy was sitting on the couch. “Well you see Ms. Delcua…”

Present

“Let me tell you something. You aunt Isabel is a force to reckon with. She’s still planning the telling of the other parents. She says everything has to be perfect. But you uncle Alex is always their by her side keeping her grounded and protecting the rest of us. When your uncle Michael and everyone finishing telling me I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. So I just started yelling and accusing them of magic mushrooms. But finally they convinced me. And as the shock wore off I was in awe. Not of everything they could do, but despite everything they were completely vulnerable and entangled with us humans. It humbled me. All the things I had been trying to do and stand for despite how flaky I came off much of the time were standing in front on me the forms of nine people. By this time your mom had started to complain of a feeling tired and went to go and lay down….

Five years ago

Things had gone well with the telling and making Amy an official member of the I know an alien club. Tess was resting. And Amy was finally getting to properly know her daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend. “So Maria you went running out the Crashdown. And Michael don’t think alien power or not I won’t still take a paper to you. So….”

A piercing scream went through the house. Alex, Isabel, Maria, Michael, Amy, Jim, Max, Liz, and Kyle rushed to Kyle’s room to check on Tess. Tess was standing in the middle of the floor holding her head. Kyle reached her first. “Tess! Tessie what’s wrong?”

She lifts her eyes to his and they are filled with pain. “It hurts. Oh God. It feels like someone is trying to rip my brains out my ears. Make it stop.” She finishes on a whisper and collapses in his arms. He picks her up and places her on the bed.

“Max get over here now and do your thing…please”

“I’m right here Kyle.” Max walks to the edge of the bed. He kneels so is level with Tess. “Tess. Tess. Come on Tess. Look at me. Tess you have to look at me. I know you hear me. Open up your eyes.” He reached out to shake her and Kyle grabbed his hand.

“Hey lay off El Presendite.”

“Kyle.” Liz had come over to the two of them. She had a feeling what Tess was doing. She had done it herself for so long. “Tess. Tess. You need to look at Max. He needs to make a connection with you. Hopefully he gets good enough at this so one day he can do it on unconscious people if he had to, but right now he needs you to help him heal you.”

“NO.” It came out as a whisper. Tess shook her head from side to side. “I can’t. I won’t. Connections are intimate. Kyle still has images of Max and of how Max sees you. Max and I are not that way and never should have been that way in either life. It’s not fair to you or Kyle.”

Isabel went to step in. “Maybe I can dream walk her? You know get Max in that way.”

Alex stopped her. “No Iz. This is something the four of them have to work out. We have been in the middle long enough. You, me, Maria, and Michael worked ours out. They need to work their’s out.”

Kyle looks between the three of them. “I hate destiny he mumbles. Tess. Tessa you have to. If you don’t…If you don’t…I can’t. Please.” He looks at Max. “Please. Do something.”

Max looked at the two of them. “Tess. Tess listen to me. I remember that previous life now. And in that life you were my best girl friend. Much the way Maria is now…guess I have a thing for short blonds for curly hair. You just can’t die like this. Not when I can do something about it. I couldn’t then. I remember I loved you in that life. Not in love but I still loved you. You are my family and I love my family and will do anything to protect you. Anything. Don’t make me force the connection. You may not be my queen in this life but you are still subject to my authority as king. And as former queen you can fight the connection but I have the ultimate power and although I do not want to and in a normal situation would not in this instance I will force it.”

Liz touched Max’s arm. “Let me try. Tess I’m sorry. So sorry. I never once ever looked at things from your point. Never saw it through your eyes and for that I am so sorry and hope that one day you can forgive me and we can be friends. I have a thing for short blonds with curls as well. I’m not threatened by you. What Max and I have is the same thing Michael and Maria; Isabel and Alex and You and Kyle have. Each pair of us shares a bond. A bond that nothing can break. Do you think that just because Max healed Kyle and they connected that Kyle and Max are going to end up together. I don’t think so. Maybe in some alternate fiction story out there. But this is real life. Please Tess. I’m not ready to lose a member of my family yet.”

“Tess. You have to. You just can’t go out like this. Don’t put Max in that situation. As much as we all know El Presidente loves a good power trip. This is not fair to him. And it’s not fair me. That’s right Tess. I am gonna pull the selfish card. I thought you and me had gotten past the whole Max and Liz thing. I am tired of living in their shadows. When do we get our time? Our moment? I thought we were working towards that. Everyone has had theirs. Michael and Maria and Isabel and Alex. I want ours. If that makes me a selfish petulant child then so be it and I’ll take it up with Buddha latter. There is only one reason…actually no I can’t think of any reason for you not to let Max in unless he’s the one cause this then that’s different. Or maybe you can’t live without him. Is that it? You really want to be queen and figure death is preferable….”

“Kyle. Lay off.” Max was looking at him like he was crazy. But that’s how he felt crazy.

Max shook his head. He had no idea how things had gotten screwed up. Every time they appeared to be getting unscrewed something like this popped up. He looked at all of them “When this is over we are sitting down and talking. All of us. This has got to stop.”

“Oh no fearless leader is back.”

“Ow! What did you hit me for Maria?”

“This is not the time to joke.”

Tess sighed. “Kyle I don’t want the throne. I never wanted the throne. All I wanted was to be loved. That past life none us made any of our own choices and I was jealous cause in this life they got to make choices. And I’m sorry as well. But we are having our moment. And it scares me. Kyle. I love you.” At that she opens her eyes, looking first at Kyle then Liz and then Max. The connection is instant. He gasps as he sees the extent of the damage done and doesn’t understand how she held on for as long as she did. Her mind is in literal pieces.

“My God Tess how did you manage to go for so long. It looks like when we are in New York Nicholas decided to place a time release mind warp on you as payback for Nascedo refusing some sort of deal. He knew in the end Nascedo would change his mind. He couldn’t resist a direct order given by either of us. But you fought it the whole time.” Max took his time mending the delicate brain tissue. He gave an extra surge to areas so they could repair themselves. Finally he sat back and waiting for her to open her eyes again he collapsed on the floor. Michael and Kyle hauled him up and placed him on the same bed as his best friend and former queen. Kyle and Liz each took up a chair on each side of him leaving everyone else to lounge on the floor.


Present

“Tess and Max woke up a few hours later as good as new if not better. You see beautiful baby what you and your siblings to follow will find out is that love has always and will always heal this family. It holds us and binds us.” Jim and Amy finished.

They looked at the baby still sleeping and then looked at each other and realized why the two of them was giving this task to tell this part of the tale to all the children that were to come.

“Jim raising Maria has never been easy by myself. And I never thought…”

“Me either Amy. Once Kyle’s mom was gone. I just figured it would be us two bachelors forever and I watched how it affected him…

“Same here. Maria was the same way. There was always a longing that was there that I could never take care of…”

“But love heals…”

“Yes it does.” And with those parting words the two of them left the nursery knowing the roads ahead would not always be easy but with love in the middle there was nothing they couldn’t over come.

[cardinalgirl]

Roselle that was so good! I loved it. Such a great way to fix everything up, and I loved the back and forth way that you told the story, between the present and the past. All of Kyle's speech to Tess at the end was just so sweet, I loved it, and you had all the characters down so well. Thanks for sharing!

Also, this line in particular cracked me up:

Do you think that just because Max healed Kyle and they connected that Kyle and Max are going to end up together. I don’t think so. Maybe in some alternate fiction story out there. But this is real life.

ROFL I'm sure it's been done somewhere...

[Angie]

I love a story like this where Tess lives and is able to be happy! I also liked how you kept Isabel with Alex - Alex being alive - and that the story let Tess project a human side that showed she wanted more than just a destiny driven life. Great story!