My Brother's Keeper (Lina, Mara, etc.)

[Roland Ferrera]

He accepted the tea, but only because she had already made it. "Thank you."

He turned away from Mara and walked back to the sofa, sitting down in the exact spot where he had been before. "I'm not trying to make you feel guilty," he told her. "You're not doing anything wrong. Cyrus is the one who needs to be a man and make a commitment. And I wish I could convince him of that, but I'm afraid it makes me sound somewhat hypocritical. I thought... maybe if my parents could meet Mara and learn to accept her first... maybe it would give Cyrus a little more courage."

[Lina Harper]

Lina nodded. "I agree. But you're still assuming Cyrus has the backbone to come over here and get her. I swear, Roland, if you show up and Christmas day to take Mara, I'm done. I will leave town and get away from all of this, and I will take Mara with me."

Lina was a girl who had been kicked down one too many time, and she made it very clear now where she drew her line. "If he can't be a man, he at least needs to be a father. You understand, don't you?"

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland took a sip of tea, simply because it was there. "I do understand," he said. "And I agree with you. I'm just sorry that it had to come to this. And I'm sorry that I'm the one who's here right now, and not Cyrus. But I promise you, if anyone comes to bring Mara over for Christmas, it will be Cyrus. I'll talk to him... convince him, somehow."

[Lina Harper]

Lina nodded slowly. "I'm sorry that you have to do this, Roland." She was sorry for both of them, actually. "I've always liked you, and I never imagined that this is how I would spend time with you."

She never imagined that she would ever threaten to leave Cyrus, either, but obviously, life threw its curveballs.

"On to other things... right? How have you been?"

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland smiled, almost embarrassed. "I've always liked you, too, Lina. And no matter what anyone else thinks, I think you're good for Cyrus. I just hope he hurries up and figures that out soon."

He sipped at his tea awkwardly. He looked oddly out of place holding the danity tea cup in his large hands. When she asked about him, he just shrugged. "I'm fine. I've just been busy working, and the family's been fussing over me, as always. You'd think I've been gone longer than 5 months."

[Lina Harper]

Lina shrugged. "That's part of being loved, Roland. It's part of being in a family. They mean well. Just... do me a favor and try to not get too frustrated with them, okay? You have no idea how much I want my family to fuss over me."

She gave him a pointed look, one of those you don't know what you've got til it's gone looks, and set her tea cup down. "In the meantime, I'll just fuss over Mara and my brother instead."

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland smiled slightly. "I know. And for what it's worth, I hope your parents come around. If they don't... well, at least you have your brother and Mara. And me, if you want me." He carefully didn't mention Cyrus. No matter how much he hoped Cyrus would come around, ultimately, it was up to him. Roland couldn't force him to come.

"I just wish they'd stop trying so hard to get me to eat. Does it look like I'm wasting away?"

[Lina Harper]

Lina paused for only a second and she laughed, though it was quiet. She didn't want to risk waking Mara, since Merlin knew any time a baby slept was good.

"Well, now that you mention it... I think I have some leftoves in the fridge." She smiled and shook her head. "No, Roland. You look fine. Cyrus told me once that you never eat... might that have something to do with them feeding you?"

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland groaned, but he was still smiling. "Not you, too," he said. "I do eat... but I've always been a picky eater. Not like Cyrus. He used to eat everything in sight."

There was a secret in this that he'd never really admitted to anyone. In fact, he wasn't even entirely aware of it himself. A big part of his poor eating habits came from an odd need to make sure his younger siblings had enough to eat. It wasn't like his family had ever been wanting for anything, or that there had ever been a lack of food or anything else. Yet he preferred to let them indulge first, which caused him to have a reputation for not eating that continued even now that he was living alone.

[Lina Harper]

Lina nearly laughed. "No, not me too," she assured him. "But you are welcome for dinner if you're ever in the mood. You haven't met my brother yet... I think you might actually like him. I'm not going to make you come over though. It's up to you, and the invitation is always open."

She nodded as he mentioned Cyrus. "He still does. He'll eat anything if it's not nailed down. I used to love cooking for him."

[Mara Ferrera]

Mara blinked slowly awake, staring at the light ceiling above her. She had grown to like this house, although she wasn't entirely comfortable in it. There was the man, he was missing. And it seemed like no one was really happy.

The voices around her swirled down, and Mara realized that the Lady was not alone. She had company, with Dark Man. Dark Man was nice, he held her once or twice. He was big and safe. Like the other Guy that lved with them. But Man was not around. Man hadn't been seen by Mara for a very long time, and sometimes Mara would cry for him. Man used to come running. The Lady was not happy when Mara cried, so she tried to keep the tears to a minimum. She loved Lady.

She sighed lightly, hoping that the Lady or Dark Man would come to pick her up. She was tired of laying, and wanted to see these things around her. The weird shape that people sat on was one of her favorites, it's was extremely cushy.

[Roland Ferrera]

"It's sweet of you to offer," Roland said. "I'll try to stop over some time." Sometimes he had the feeling that if he tried, he could get a dinner invitation at someone's house every night of the week. He really should take more of them up on their offers; all the takeout food wasn't good for him.

Mara was stirring and he heard her sigh. Nodding over at the playpen, he said, "It looks like she's up."

[Lina Harper]

Lina heard her baby girl sigh as well, and it brought a smile to her lips. Cyrus sighed the same way when he woke up, as if they were both lamenting the loss of their dreams and deciding it was alright to join the land of the living.

She was off the couch and picking the girl up a moment later. "Mara, baby, someone came to see you," she cooed, her voice gentle and loving. "You remember Uncle Roland," she added, coming back to the couch, her eyes asking Roland if he wanted to hold her.

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland smiled and held out his arms to take Mara. After his initial fears about holding her, he now felt much more at ease. "Hi, sweetheart," he said, his voice gentle. "You've already grown a little since the last time I saw you."

He stared down at the baby for a moment. What was wrong with Cyrus, anyway? How could he possibly stay away from this little girl? He'd always thought his younger brother was smarter than people gave him credit for, but maybe he was wrong. Cyrus would have to be an idiot not to see what he was missing.

Looking back up at Lina, he shook his head. "Do you want me to beat some sense into my brother? Because seriously, I can. If Mara were my daughter, I would never want to let her out of my sight."

[Lina Harper]

Lina smiled softly. "Let come to us on his own," she said. "I'm learning more about him the longer her stays away, and Mara doesn't lack any love from it. She's got me and you and my brother... Jensen fawns over her."

Yes, she needed her dad, but not if his presence was forced. "Thanks for the offer, though," she added with a slightly brighter smile. "You know what, Roland? I think I'll be okay if Cyrus never does change his mind. Mara and I will make it all right."

[Roland Ferrera]

He glanced up at her, hearing a note of finality in her voice. She sounded very much like a woman who had given up. She had made peace with the separation. If Cyrus didn't hurry, he'd lose her completely.

"This whole thing is such a mess," he said. "Our mother refuses to accept you... She even makes it clear that Mara is invited for Christmas without you, and yet, she insists on inviting my work partner instead, even though we don't get along. How ridiculous is that? She won't accept you, yet she has the nerve to try and set me up with someone against my will?"

[Lina Harper]

Lina didn't respond for a minute, but then she met Roland's eyes, a very serious, contemplative look in hers.

"What do you think your mother would do if I should up with Mara anyway? Would she give up seeing Mara to kick me out, or would she grin and bear it like I've had to do since I got pregnant?" She was seriously considering it... waiting for the woman to come around obviously wasn't doing any good, and Lina was sick of being the good, patient little girl.

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland felt a smile tugging at his lips. "If you showed up with Cyrus and Mara... I don't think she would kick you out. She probably wouldn't be particularly nice to you... But she probably wouldn't make you leave. My mother would never be openly rude. Especially if I am already there with Riley... she'll want to give a good impression to her, and not chase her away. She doesn't realize that it's already hopeless."

[Lina Harper]

Lina smiled, almost sadistically. Maybe it was just some small revenge, but she felt she had the right at this point.

"Then it looks like I might have plans for Christmas dinner." She would spend the early part of the day with her brother, but he would certainly understand her need to go. If Cara was going to accept Mara, then she'd have to accept that Lina was her mother.

"Frankly, I think it will do Cyrus a world of good, too. You know... seeing someone stand up for something."

[Roland Ferrera]

Roland smiled. "Well, I for one will be very glad to see you there," he said. He felt a bit of perverse pleasure at the thought of it. It was almost like revenge for her insisting on inviting Riley. Just as she was deliberately making him uncomfortable, he was part of making her comfortable. Maybe later he'd find it in himself to be ashamed of this thought, but for now, he was enjoying it.

"I"m proud of you," he said to Lina. "It takes a brave person to stand up to my mother. I can't even do it sometimes."