I stared at the unassuming house intently. The flutter of the curtains a few minutes ago let me know that my a-bú had peeked out and was more than likely amusing herself with my hesitance.

"So are we goin-"

"Shush!" I glowered at him. "The last time I was home, my a-bú told me that my troubles with my magic would be my own." I didn't want to hear her gloat about me losing my magic, or hear about how she was right and I was wrong. "She never wanted me to be a white witch. She told me it would break my heart." Well she had been correct in that assumption. There had been nothing but heartache for me but I hated admitting I was wrong.

Bastian gave me a look of confusion, tilting his head slightly, his shaggy hair falling forward into his eyes. "You said your parents would accept you no matter what happened to you." He looked far too attractive and my fingers twitched to brush the hair from his eyes.

I forced my gaze away from him and to the steering wheel. "They would but I don't want to hear her say 'I told you so'." I really didn't want to hear that. It was all I would need right now. I just wanted life to be normal for a moment before the shit show started again.

A knock on my window had me jumping, my heart in my throat. I slowly turned and my a-bú gave me a look and gave a sharp gesture down. I slowly rolled down the window and braced myself. "Chickpea, I did not raise you to lurk about. You are home, get inside. Lunch is waiting and your papa will be sorely upset with you if his tempura is cold." Her Taiwanese was chiding and I winced.

"I'm sorry, mother." I let out a heavy sigh and glanced at Bastian who looked between the two of us with an expression of sheer confusion. I didn't blame him, it wasn't like he could understand us.

"I don't need apologies. The neighbours will start asking questions if you don't move your little butt. In the house, now." She bent down, her eyes landing on Bastian. "Go inside, lunch is ready. No need for your belly to be empty because chicken is too worried about I told you so's to move." She gave him a soft smile and he blinked rapidly as he looked at me.

Heat rolled up my cheeks and I glared at my a-bú from the corner of my eyes. "Its chickpea, not chicken!" I swore she did it deliberately to antagonize me.

She only gave credence to that belief as she gave a lazy shrug. "English hard, I know few word only." She deliberately over pronounced her accent and my blush only deepened.

"Oh stop it! You are so embarrassing!" I gave a sound of disgust as I pushed open the car door and stepped out. She acted like that all the time growing up and her twitching lips only made me that much more agitated with her.

"My son, out of the car!" She tilted her head as she gestured to Bastian, her bracelets jangling on her wrist. "You need to eat. Lunch is waiting." She headed for the house and I ducked my head back into the car to look at Bastian who was looking at my a-bú with wide eyes.

"Just ignore the weirdness. We need to go eat." I closed the door and followed after her. I could hear Bastian getting out of the car and I stopped, waiting for him to catch up. It was not fair to throw him to the proverbial wolves and leave him to figure it out by himself.

He limped his way towards me, his expression a grimace. "You didn't have to wait for me."

I waved him off as I started walking once again. "I actually did. You are going to be entering a house with some very strange customs. I'm going to give you a heads up." There would be a few things that would be strange for him. "My papa isn't as strict with the rules, which drives my baba crazy. He's the black sheep but still remove your shoes before entering." We reached the front door and I slipped off my runners, tucking them into a cubby before grabbing my old slippers and putting them on.

Bastian was struggling with his boots and I waited, watching him carefully as he tried hard not to wince as his leg refused to work properly. "Also bow to my father when you see him." At that his head jerked up and a low rumble exited his chest. "And don't growl at my parents. I will neuter you." He could try and see if I was bluffing but my parents were everything to me, despite how my a-bú was an irritation at times

"Alpha's don't bow." He gritted his teeth but managed to finally get his boots off.

"You are a guest in my parent's home, not an Alpha. You will respect our traditions." He would do what was proper. The last thing he needed was for my father to dislike him. "In Japan you greet people by bowing and as you will be meeting my father, you are going to bow low, as is polite." It came out clipped and after a few tense moments of a stare down he gave a short nod.

I turned and pushed the door open and stepped inside, the scent of spices and home hit me like a ton of bricks. "Papa, I'm home. Where are you?" I waited until Bastian was inside before I shut the door.

"Waiting to eat, Lynn chan, hurry up, my belly is grumbling like a dragon!" The teasing was evident in his voice and I couldn't help how my mouth turned up into a smile. I had missed my papa dearly. Just hearing his voice made me feel comforted.

"You have probably already started sneaking bites, papa. I know you." I couldn't help but tease him back and his response was a laugh. I made my way to the dining room and Bastian stuck close behind me. He was wary and nervous, I could feel it in his energy.

I stepped into the room and my papa held out his arms from his spot on the floor next to the chabudai, his smile so wide it crinkled the corners of his eyes. "Aye there is my favourite daughter." I couldn't help but grin back at him.

"I am your only daughter, papa." No matter how long I had been gone, it was like stepping right back into my childhood when I came home. Nothing ever changed.

"Matters not to me. I have missed you." He got up from his spot and came over, wrapping me in his arm, his energy soothing and calm.

I hugged him back just a tightly. "I missed you too, papa." I closed my eyes tightly, pressing my face to his shoulder and inhaling his scent deep into my lungs. He always smelled like incense and happiness to me. I knew happiness didn't technically have a smell but if it did I knew it would smell like him.

He let me go, pressing a kiss to my forehead as if I were just a little girl before he turned to look at Bastian. "And who is this you have brought home, Lynn chan?" He looked Bastian over and I fought the urge to heave out a sigh.

"This is-"

My papa waved me off before giving a small bow to Bastian. I waited, my heart in my throat before Bastian slowly, and with a tense jaw, bowed low to my papa. I relaxed and my papa let out a laugh. "So formal, my boy! My o mae has made us a wonderful lunch and you are part of the family. Please, come sit." He gave another laugh, a jovial sound that had my mouth dropping open as he guided Bastian towards the low table, showing him where he could sit. "Do not let your mouth stay open too long, Lynn chan. It will catch flies." My papa looked at me, giving me a small wink that had my mouth snapping shut as I moved towards the table, sitting down in my usual spot. Bastian was trying to settle his bulk like my papa was but his leg was inhibiting the movement.

I nudged him so he would look at me and I shook my head. "You don't have to sit like us, put your leg in the position it's most comfortable in." I didn't want him to be in serious pain. My parents would understand his need to have his leg straight out. He gave a small nod and gave me a small thank you as he shifted his leg out to the side and sat down.

My papa looked at Bastian as he settled into his spot. "I can feel the coldness it has from here. It's a bad injury. Just let it lie and after lunch I will work on it some." He gave Bastian a friendly smile and I stared at him.

"Papa. What is going on?" I didn't appreciate this entire ease he had. I could only imagine what my a-bú had been telling him about Bastian and I. For one, we weren't married and the last time he found out about a guy I slept with he threatened to chop him in half with the ceremonial family sword.

"Did you think your mother did not tell me about your surprise of delightful misfortune?" He gestured to Bastian as he leaned forward and adjusted some of the dishes on the table. "I was growing a bit afraid you would not find yourself a man locked in that convent." He said it lightly and I made a noise in my throat.

"It was a coven, papa, and I had boyfriends." Quite a few of them. I glanced at Bastian, glad he didn't understand what we were saying.

"Pah, nothing serious. Now this one you can't scare off. I can have a son now too. My family is complete." My papa nodded before looking at me with a soft smile.

"Seriously?" I glowered at him before gesturing to Bastian. He looked between the two of us with wide eyes. "He kidnapped me!" I didn't appreciate my papa being all happy about this situation. I thought he would be the reasonable one that would sympathize with me. Not be all excited about having a son-in-law.

"And returned you unharmed." He pushed up his sleeves and picked up his chopsticks. "Perhaps being tied to you is punishment enough for his sins. Evil cause, evil effect." He gestured to me with his chopsticks and I gave a disgruntled exhale as he gave a tiny teasing smile.

"So now I am evil?" I expected that type of teasing from a-bú but not from my papa. He either really missed me or was in a very playful mood.

"My little devil." He winked at me and I rolled my eyes, a smile fighting hard to escape. He had definitely missed me.

"Listen to you bicker. It is like you never left, chickpea." A-bú came into the room, holding two more dishes that she set down. She settled down beside papa and gestured to Bastian. "Pick up your chopsticks. Its time to eat." She picked up her own and I grabbed mine as papa pulled the lids off the various dishes. I reached over and snagged a dumpling, biting into it. My eyes closed and I gave a happy sigh as the taste spread out across my tongue. That was unforgettable. I grabbed a little plate and set my dumpling down and reached over for some lemon chicken.

"Help him." My papa gave me a stern look as he lightly gestured to Bastian and I slowly set my little plate down.

"Do you know how to use chopsticks?" At my question Bastian shook his head, his cheeks darkening as he looked down at the floor, his hands in his lap. "That's fine. You can use your fingers." I grabbed another plate for him and nudged him lightly. "Do you want this?" I pointed to the dumplings and he nodded and I went around the table, loading up his plate with everything he nodded at.

I went to hand the plate over to him but yanked it back before he could take it. "You have to speak up. Its a free for all. Perhaps a-bú will teach you how to use chopsticks later." After he gave a nod I handed him his plate before picking mine back up and returning to my food.

"He is your husband, he is your problem." A-bú raised an eyebrow at me before she picked up some noodles.

"A-bú!" I glowered at her and she smirked as she stuffed her mouth full to avoid responding. I muttered angrily underneath my breath as I picked from each dish, eating the food rather happily. I missed my a-bú's food. She was a master chef in my opinion.

"Do you like it?" My papa looked at Bastian as he picked up a second dumpling.

"I do. Its different than I am used to but it's good." He looked almost bashful as he wiped his fingers on his pants.

"Give the man a napkin, Lynn chan. Don't let him dirty his pants." His voice was scolding and I rolled my eyes as I reached over and picked up one of my a-bú's cream coloured napkins and handed it to Bastian. He nodded at me as he chewed his mouthful. I could only imagine he was wanting to start interrogating Bastian. "So you are a... werewolf?" Papa gave him a side eyed look, as if he were concerned he got the word wrong and was checking to see if he had or not.

"We are called shifters but yes." Bastian had the napkin on his lap as he ate the food on his plate. I could see a few things he was avoiding and I picked them off his plate with my chopsticks and replaced them with the things he seemed to enjoy more. He gave me a soft smile of thanks that I nodded at.

"Ahhhhhh... a wolf that likes Asian cuisine. A testament to my o mae's cooking. You won't find a better woman or wife." He leaned over and kissed her cheek while her face reddened as she gave a girlish giggle, hiding her face behind her hand. I rolled my eyes and took some sashimi, I set it on my plate and reached over for the tempura. "Although I think you might prefer Lynn chan." He gave a broad grin and I narrowed my eyes at him.

"She is a kind female, a good one. She means a lot to me." Bastian's voice was low and I could feel his want to touch me and I resisted the urge to shuffle away from him. My cheeks heated up as I felt his gaze on me and I turned my face away, grabbing some stir-fry.

"It is good to hear, my boy." Papa nodded happily, looking between the two of us slyly. I didn't appreciate the look in the slightest. I gave him a warning look as I pointed at him with my chopsticks.

A-bú gestured at Bastian before picking up the pot of dumplings. "Eat, you need to fill your belly!" She used her chopsticks to push a few more dumplings onto his plate. "You are too skinny. Much too skinny." She put down the pot of dumplings before picking up the plate of vegetable tempura. "You want some?" She lifted the pot and Bastian gave her a smile and nodded.

"Thank you, ma'am." He gave her a low nod that I appreciated. It showed respect and I was happy he was showing it.

"Call me a-bú, you are with my little chicken and that makes you part of my family." Her mouth twitched upwards and I gave a low sound of embarrassment.

"Chickpea, not chicken." In response she gave a small shrug as if to say she didn't understand and I narrowed my eyes at her. "Such a pest, mother. Forget about me scaring him off, you will end up doing it for me." I picked up the piece of sashimi from my plate and she gave another shrug.

"He won't run away from you. He is enamoured and cares deeply about you. His soul is wrapped around your own as if you are his comfort." She said it as she looked between the two of us. She slowly shook her head and tsked. "The poor man, he has suffered enough. Sadly fate saw fit to give him you." Her eyes twinkled and I gave her an insulted look.

"Hey! Don't be rude!" I turned to papa and gestured to a-bú. "Papa!" I wanted someone on my side but watched as he gave a slow shrug.

"Evil cause, evil effect." His mouth twitched just as much as a-bú's did and I gave a sound of disgust.

"You guys are rude." So very rude, teasing me mercilessly just because they could.

"If you are done eating, Lynn chan, you need to meditate. Your energy is muddied and grey." My papa waved me off and I felt my shoulders slump as I groaned.

"Papa..." I didn't want to meditated. Papa never said I did it right and I could spend hours meditating until he was satisfied.

"No talking back. If you are done, go." He gave me a stern look and I shoved my last dumpling in my mouth before scowling at him as I gently set my plate down before I picked a few more things from the dishes and put them on Bastian's plate. He seemed to be enjoying himself, someone had to in this situation.

I set down my chopsticks and moved to stand up when Bastian grabbed my wrist, his energy entirely on point and wary. "Where are you going?" He asked it low and my papa waved him off as I shook off Bastian's grip.

"Lynn chan is going to meditate, her energy is muddied and needs to be cleared. Don't worry, she will be in the next room." At the words I stood up and couldn't help myself as I reached down and gave Bastian's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. My cheeks burned at that and I hurried from the room, heading to papa's work room. It was where he has set up his meditation/Reiki area.

The room was just as I remembered it and it smelled like oils and incense, a strong smell that had a calming effect on me. I moved over to his stereo and pushed play on his cd player. I settled down on the soft mats and gave a heavy sigh.

I hated meditating. I really did.