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I watch him grab the noodles and smile. I haven’t had stir fry with the noodles before, but I’m sure it’s just as good. I grab a cutting board and set it up on the other counter. I wash my hands before grabbing a knife.

”Hey! I made you and your dad a pretty delicious breakfast the other day. And I can cook, I’m just not always the greatest or enjoy it. I like prep work. It’s like mixing ingredients for spells or the potions in the store I sell.” I pull the beef out of the package and start slicing it into long strips.

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I can’t even tease her about the cooking, because the way she explains prep work stuns me. ”God, you’re adorable.” I tell her, quickly giving her a kiss on her head before I get to work on the noodles. “I’m happy to let you do the prep work often then.”

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I pause in my cutting and look at Nic when he calls me adorable. I think how ironic it is that he is calling me that. If he knew what I could actually do with my power, I don’t think he would be calling me adorable anymore.

”Well, good. We’ll make a good team then,” I say and continue working.

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I make my way back across the yard, pushing the sleeves of my sweater up over my elbows as I go. I look over towards the forest, looking for nothing in particular. It’s still light out, so I know the Chicago pack won’t be out hunting. I’m not even sure they will come today, but tomorrow night could be interesting.

I turn my focus back to the house and see the kitchen staff outside, laying everything out on the table. They turn on the heat laps and the table. It’s a fire table, so the centre of the table comes to life when the propane is turned on. It’s a lovely night for it, and I’m looking forward to being outside.

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“I think we make a pretty perfect team.” I knock her hip with mine gently. Once the water is boiling, I go ahead and put the noodles in. That’s when I hear my front door open and I look at Cass with a feigned look of horror before I grin.

“Hey dad! You’ll never guess who’s come over.”

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I’m sitting in on of the lounge chairs as the staff flit about when I spot Avery making his way over. “Long time, no see.” I say as I watch him. “Nice jumper.”

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I smile when Nic bumps my hip, and I finish cutting the meat. I’m rewashing my hands when I hear the door open.

Nic might not actually be worried about his father coming home, but I am. I’m wearing Nic’s pants. Goddess help me, I think to myself. I stay behind the counter, smiling and waving when I see Nic’s father. ”Hello Mr. Wu, how are you doing?”

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I look at Kimiko and chuckle. ”Same. Space cowboy? Really?” I tease. I look over the table and the side table where the food is all setup. It smells amazing. The others aren’t down yet. I’ll give them ten minutes before I start without them. In the meantime…

”Can I make you a drink?” I offer Kimiko.

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My dad rounds the corner and grins in surprise. “Cassiopeia!” He says excitedly. “What are you doing here?”

I stand behind my dad, watching with amusement as Cass tries to hide her legs from my dad. “She’s here for dinner - helping me make stir fry. And no, there’s nothing you need to help with.” I tell him before he asks.

“You can bear hug her when dinner’s ready. Go relax a bit.” I redirect him to my couch and television before I give a knowing smile to Cass with a wink.

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I shrug. “It’s comfortable.” I tell him simply when he teases my shirt. He asks if I’d like a drink and I smile.

“Sure, I’d like that.” I say. I wonder briefly where Nero and Caden are, but I’m sure they’ll be here soon.

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I grin at Nic’s dad, watching him go and relax before I look at Nic. I whack him on the arm when he winks at me. Oh, sure. He doesn’t have to worry about meeting my parents and making a good impression, but me on the other hand. I start fiddling with my hair, looking over at Nic’s dad periodically.

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”Anything in particular?” I ask, making my way over to the drinks tray that was pulled outside.

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I laugh when she hits me before I pull her into my side. “Relax, it’s okay.” I tell her when I catch her fidgeting. Once the noodles are cooked, I drain the water before I got out my wok pan to start throwing all the ingredients together.

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I sit up on the chair to look over at the cart. “Does he have gin on there?” I ask Avery.

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”Easy for you to say,” I mutter, ”you’re in your own clothes.” I don’t stop fidgeting but I feel better standing closer to Nic. I pull my eyes away from the living room and look down to see Nic mixing everything together. It looks good and my stomach growls in anticipation.

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”He does,” I say and mix Kimiko’s drink how she wants it. I decide to mix myself a rum and coke before I bring her drink over. Finally, I hear the upstairs patio door open.

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”As are you, my little imp.” I slip my hand into their hair, tilting their head up and leaning down to kiss them deeply. I pull back after some time. ”Now I’m ready,” I say. I pull my hand back and intertwine my fingers with theirs. I lead them from the bedroom, down the hall to the doors that are upstairs and lead outside.

Avery and Kimiko are already mingling, drinks in hand, and I lead Nero down the stairs. ”Apologies for keeping you waiting,” I say.

Avery looks over at me, a hidden question in his eyes and I smile. ”I’m fine. Had a bit of a scare, but Nero helped me,” I said and looked at them, squeezing their hand.

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”I doubt he’ll even notice.” I tell her with a small laugh. I hear her stomach growl and offer her some more bell peppers. “To tide you over.” I tease lightly, using my other hand to mix the ingredients together.

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I take my drink from Avery with a nod of thanks before I notice Nero and Caden finally arriving. “About bloody time.” I say, giving Nero the silly stinky face they usually give me before they could do it first.

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I look down at our hands when Caden squeezes mine before looking up at him and beaming. “That reminds me though, Avery can I have your number?” I pull out my phone with my free hand and holding it out.

“In case next time my angelic voice doesn’t work.” I joke, but I squeeze Caden’s hand to make sure he knows I’m not serious. “What’s for dinner?”

Kiki stands and walks over. “Lamb lollipops with a red wine reduction, grilled asparagus, and mashed potatoes with gravy.” She says, flashing a smile.

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I try to let my paranoia go. After all, I’m fine with Nic’s father knowing that we are dating. I guess I’m just nervous if Mr. Wu thinks Nic and I had sex before he got home. Not that it would be a bad thing, but Nic and I just started dating. I didn’t want to rush into anything. The man hardly knew me after all, and I was just starting to scratch the surface with him.

I take the offered bell peppers from Nic, mumbling a thank you before I lean back against the fridge. I munch on the vegetables, finishing them before I move. ”Do you want me to set the table?” I ask Nic.

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I relax when Caden says he’s fine. I look at Nero when they bounce over to me. I chuckle, setting my drink down to add my number to their phone. ”You’re just going to spam me with TikTok videos, aren’t you?” I tease them. I hand them back their phone and pick up my drink again.

Kimiko announces what is for supper and my stomach grumbles. ”That’s why it smells amazing,” I couldn’t remember the last time I had a good lamb.

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”Wonderful choice, Kiki,” I say and head to the drinks tray myself to pour Nero and I a drink. ”What did you two get up to before supper?” I ask Avery and Kimiko.

”We started on some training,” Avery said.

”And how did that go?” I asked with a laugh.

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I laugh. “You’re supposed to be the guest here.” I tell her, but I get the bowls out for her, setting them down on some of the free space left on the counter.

”This drawer has placemats,” I say, tapping the one immediately under where I placed the bowls before I reach to point out the drawer to the left if it. “Utensils in here. My dad and I prefer chopsticks, but I promise we will not judge you if you want to use a fork.” I tell her in earnest.

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”Thank you, I’ve been craving it for a bit now.” I say, doing a little ‘cheers’ motion to Caden with my drink. He asks about what we got up to and I groan.

“This man would not stop teasing me.” I say with a playful glare in Avery’s direction. I watch as Nero stays close to Caden once they got their phone back. They almost always were touching him in some sort of way. It’s quite adorable.

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I follow Nic’s instructions and gather three placemats with the bowls. I start setting up the table. I may be a guest, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t help. I liked helping. Besides, it would help with my fidgety energy.

”I actually know how to use chopsticks. Caden and I spent a stint in Japan and I learned there. I wouldn’t say I’m great at it, but I don’t make a mess,” I say, proud of that minor accomplishment.

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I hand Nero a drink, wrapping my arm loosely around their waist and take a sip of my drink. ”Oh, really? So, I don’t have to worry about replacing my entire gym?”

Avery laughed and shook his head. He started to dish up a plate of food for himself. ”No boss. Although next week might be a different story. I said I would take it easy on Kimiko and Nic for the first week, but after that, I won’t be so generous.”

I guide Nero over to a chair next to mine and pull it out for them before sliding it back in. ”I’m certain Nic will appreciate that as well,” I conclude and go help myself to a plate of food as well. I pile it up, taking a bit more than usual in case Nero feels like picking off my plate. If not, I could use the extra calories.

I sit down, brushing my knee up against Nero’s leg and start eating.

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I grin. “Dad’s gonna freak out over that.” I tell her with a smile. It felt completely normal being in the kitchen with her as I cooked and she flitted about setting things up.

“In a good way.” I assure her before pulling out glasses for everyone and setting it on the counter.

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“So generous of you.” Kiki says with a roll of her eyes. But it’s not mean-spirited. I glance between the two as I sip my drink and Caden guides me to my seat.

Now seated, I look up at Caden sidelong with a knowing smile. “Ich glaube, sie kommen jetzt miteinander aus.” I say in a whisper, but Kiki hears and flips me off before taking her seat. Laughing, I steal one of the lamb lollipops off of Caden’s plate.

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”He’s gonna freak out or you're gonna freak out?” I joke and come back for the glasses. I'm highly tempted to lean over the counter and give Nic a kiss but I refrain and walk back to the table. This is fun. Making a meal together.

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I chuckle and nod. ”Hoffentlich hält es,” I say, and smile at Kimiko. We fall silent for a moment, all enjoying our meals. Avery eats his first plate quickly, already standing to get seconds.

”Kimiko, for Nic tomorrow and the blessing, is there anything you need us to do?” I ask her.

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I’m tempted to muss her hair but refrain. “Well of course I’m freaking out - I’ve never been to Asia in general so I’m incredibly jealous.” I tell her, wrapping up with the cooking. I take the wok pan with me to the table and divvy out the stir fry onto everyone’s plates, giving myself and Cass bigger portions than my dad’s.

“Dinner’s ready dad.” I say towards the couch. He ambles up and makes his way over to the table. I grab water and iced tea out of the fridge and set it down on the table before I take a seat.

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I shoot a playful glare at Caden’s words, but soon get distracted by the food. My favorite part about this meal is that you don’t get any of the gamey flavor from the lamb. That taste always just reminded me of when I have to hunt as a fox.

I look up from my nearly empty plate when Caden asks about Nic and the blessing. “Not really anything to do, if I’m honest. It was his father and mother that had the blessing, so I just hope to get any info I can from Nic tomorrow and then hopefully get answers from his dad as well.” I finish my plate before I get up to get seconds, but smaller portions than my first place.

“Is there anything I should be aware of tomorrow?”

Nero pipes up. “Nic is very tall.” I laugh lightly through my nose.

“Kleiner Kobold, everyone is tall for you.” I tease.

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I sit down, smiling as we all come to the table and take our seats. The food smells delicious and I'm looking forward to it. ”How was your day Mr. Wu?”

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I chuckle and pat Nero's knee when they offer their help. ”Yes, Nic is tall and very new to this world. Try to give him as much detail as you can and feel comfortable giving him when he asks questions. Also, he has a thing for Cassi, so don't scare him away or you'll have her to deal with,” I joke.

”He's pretty nice,” Avery added.

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“Please, call me Ren, but my day was good. Qǐng màn yòng.” My dad and I speak the Chinese phrase almost in sync before we grin at each other.

I put my right hand on Cass’ thigh. “It’s basically Mandarin for ’bon appétit’.” I say for her benefit.

“How was your day? Nic said you two were going to Uncle Jerry’s - we went there so often when the kids were young… Well before we realized Nic here is lactose-intolerant.”

I have food in my mouth already so I can only give my dad a flat look so he doesn’t go into detail about how bad the intolerance was back then.

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“Doesn’t she have a thing for him too?” I ask, swinging my legs as I finish the piece of lamb. Surprised by how tasty it was, I actually get up quickly to grab a plate for myself and bring it back to my seat next to Caden.

My comment surprises Kiki. “She does?” She asks, looking at Caden with a little bit of surprise and shock.

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I smile in thanks when Nic fills me in on the saying. I wait for the others to start before I pick up the chopsticks and finesse them properly. It's been a while since I've had a meal where chopsticks were needed. After the first couple bites I get back into the groove of it.

”We did. It was really good. Definitely worth the drive,” I declare.

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I smile, watching Nero get up to make their own plate. Any progress is good progress. I look at Kimiko and nod. I finish my bite and grab my drink. ”They went on a date today. Their second I believe.”

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My dad nods with a smile before digging in. When the plates become empty, I place my hand back on Cass’ leg. “Dad, do you remember donating a painting to the museum in Cary?” I ask.

His face scrunches as he thinks about it for a moment before a shocked expression of realization appears on his face. “Oh, yes! The one that your grandmother, mother, and Kiki all worked on? I’d forgotten all about that.” He rubs his chin and closes his eyes like he’s trying to imagine it again.

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I wiggle excitedly in my seat at this news. “I fucking knew it.” I declare with a mouth full of food. Kiki seems impressed and still surprised, but I see a ghost of a smile on her lips. I put my free hand on Caden’s thigh as I do a little happy dance from both the news and the tasty food.

“Did he ask your permission?” Kiki asks with a smirk, making me snort.