Ana shivered. She had been standing on the front porch for the last ten minutes, pacing as she waited. Wulf had left a little while ago to pick up Cirrus and Chi-Lan from the airport. They were finally coming back from their honeymoon and the wait for them to return from the airport seemed longer than the actual trip.

Autumn was on its way. It was only the middle of September, but the breeze was a little chillier than usual. Maybe I should have grabbed a jacket. Should I get one now? No, they might pull in while I'm getting it and then there wouldn't be much purpose in the jacket. I'll be fine.

The front door opened behind her. Loki was poking his head out when she glanced back. "Hey," he said. "Whatcha doing?"

"Waiting for Mom to get home," she replied, hugging herself.

"Ohhhhh." He stepped out, closing the door behind himself. He put his hands in his pockets, drawing in a deep breath. "It's a nice day."

She nodded slowly. "It is."

He glanced over at her. "I'm excited for Papa and Chi-Lan to come home. They've been gone for a long time it feels like."

She nodded again.

Silence caught in the air, but Loki refused to let it stay. "Al mentioned you are having problems with someone at school." She glanced at him sharply and he held up his hands. "He didn't give any details, he's a good person to tell stuff like that too. He just mentioned that you were having a little bit of a hard time. I know I'm a year younger than you, but if you ever need any help or something, I'll be there. We're family now, Chrissy. We'll take care of you, okay?"

Ana smiled. "That's really nice of you. Thanks."

He punched her arm playfully. "Anything for my big sis." He went back inside, leaving her to mull over his apparent devotion to her.

They're a really close family, and they want to bring me into it. I don't have anything to worry about.

With a long sigh, she put her hands into her jeans' pockets, tilting her head up towards the bright sun. It was still warm, even if the breeze's heat was dulling.

It seemed like an eternity later, but finally the family SUV finally pulled into the driveway. Ana smiled, eyes brightening. She ducked back into the house, running to the garage.

Loki was plucking at the piano in the side room, but he stopped when she zoomed by. "They're home!" he shouted. He sprang from the piano, running up behind Ana as she skidded to a stop to yank the garage door open.

The SUV was still backing in, so the two of them waited by the door. They were soon joined by Anastasia, Alastair, and Ebony. As soon as the side doors opened, the family flooded their parents.

Ana reached her mother first, launching herself into the older woman's arms. "Oh, honey," Chi-Lan said, hugging her tightly. Even after her travels, she still smelled like home. "Oh, I missed you!" She kissed Ana's head with a resounding smack of her lips. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too," whispered Ana hoarsely, tears coating her eyes.

"Chi-Lan!" Ebony cheered, throwing herself into their hug. "Welcome home!"

Chi-Lan untangled herself so she could give the vampire a proper hug. "Hello, Ebony. I'm so glad to be back."

It seemed the siblings were done hugging their father as they now attacked their new mom, leaving Ana to take a step back. She glanced at Cirrus, unsure of what to do. I don't feel like I know him well enough to hug him.

He smiled warmly at her. "Hi, Christiana." He stepped over and enveloped the girl in his arms.

Oh. I guess he feels like we are close enough for that. She lightly hugged him, backing away quickly. "Good to see you," she said softly.

"I'm hungry!" announced Loki. "Can we have some lunch now?"

Ana stared at the family as the other siblings agreed. I already had lunch... it's past 1:00 for crying out loud! Why would anyone wait to eat so late?

The family piled back into the house, spreading out into the large kitchen. Loki and Ebony skipped over to the pantry in search of a meal, while Wulf opened the fridge. Anastasia sat at the table with Cirrus and Chi-Lan, and Alastair at the island, carefully feeling the marble countertop.

Ana sat beside her mother, taking a hold of her hand and leaning on her shoulder. Chi-Lan smiled, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.

Alastair spun around on the stool to face the table. "So, how was your trip?"

Cirrus grinned, white fangs flashing. "Where to start? The homeland hasn't changed a bit since I was there last. Lannie was very impressed with our architecture." He nudged his wife. Apparently, the nicknaming was an inherited trait.

Giggling, Chi-Lan nodded. "There were so many beautiful buildings, I couldn't believe it."

They spoke at length about their vacation; the funny things they saw, the difficulties they encountered, the places they visited. The family had some lunch while they talked, but Ana refrained, still full from her own small meal, although she did snack on some fries.

Finally, all the questions had been asked and all the tales had been told, so Cirrus and Chi-Lan excused themselves to unpack. Before she left, Ana pulled on her mom's sleeve.

"Can we talk when you're done?" she whispered in her ear.

Chi-Lan kissed her forehead with a smile. "Of course, sweetheart. Just give me a few minutes to get my stuff in my room."

Ana nodded. She went to her room to wait for her mom. When they were living by themselves, they could talk anywhere, a bedroom, the living room, the kitchen, without worrying about others listening, but now in this big house with so many people, Ana wasn't really sure what else to do. Her room felt safe at least. Could vampires hear through walls though?

Even if they can, I'm sure they won't. I think they try to let me have my privacy.

A few minutes later, Chi-Lan knocked, stepping in with a soft smile. "Hi, honey." She came and sat beside Ana on the bed with a long sigh. "So, how are you?"

Tears stung the bridge of Ana's nose. This was just like at home; sitting shoulder to shoulder, just the two of them. "Not great. There are a lot of things I didn't want to talk about over the phone."

Chi-Lan made a sympathetic noise, putting an arm over her daughter's shoulder. "You can tell me whatever you want to, Ana. I'm home to help now."

Ana leaned into her warm embrace, sniffling as the tears formed into a puddle in her eyes. "There's so much to tell. For starters, Saylor..." The words poured forth in desperate relief as she explained everything to her mom—Saylor, Roy, her new siblings. There were so many changes, so many hurts, she was talking for the better part of fifteen minutes.

When she was done, Chi-Lan pulled her into a long hug. "Oh, honey... That's a lot for you to have just carried around. I'm sorry I was gone for so long."

"It's alright," Ana said, her jaw bouncing off her mom's shoulder as she held her tightly. "I feel a lot better now that you're home."

"I'm glad." Chi-Lan rubbed her back, then pulled away, looking directly into her eyes. It was a relief to see her mom's calm, dark eyes instead of the Konstantinov blue. "If that boy really makes you uncomfortable, you should talk with the principal or someone. They'll understand."

Ana shrugged. "Maybe. It's not like he did anything wrong though." Other than beating a girl up.

"It doesn't matter," her mom said firmly. "If you don't like being around him, I'm sure I can get something changed around so you don't have to see him."

Ana shrugged again. "We'll see. I don't want to do anything crazy just because I don't like being around him. A lot of people don't like being around someone."

"Well, if he ever bothers you, like, really bothers you, just let me know."

"I will."

"What about Saylor? Have you talked to her at all?"

"Not really. She's texted me a few things, but nothing important."

"It's not alright for her to act like that, Ana. She might not even realize that she's doing it. You should have a chat with her about the situation, so it doesn't happen again."

That's what Anastasia said. Ana rubbed her face, feeling traces of tears still there. "But she's been acting so weird, what if she takes it badly? What if she gets mad at me? I don't want her angry and I don't want to do something that might end our friendship."

"Better to have it ended than to be unhappy with it," Chi-Lan said gently. "Saylor was being selfish—sometimes people just need someone to point it out for them because they can't see it themselves. If Saylor gets angry at you, what kind of friendship do you really have? If you can't point out things that she does that hurts you, and she can't do the same, how are you going to grow and enjoy spending time together? She's just a kid like you, she's got a lot of growing to do, and she won't be able to do it unless someone helps her along."

Ana nodded slowly. But how do I even start? How do you tell someone that they hurt your feelings without hurting their feelings?

Rubbing her shoulder, Chi-Lan let out a sharp sigh. "Now, about your siblings."

"I know that they like me," Ana said quickly. "It's just hard to adjust sometimes."

Her mom smiled. "I know. It seems like you're doing pretty well despite all the other things going on right now. Anastasia sent me a picture of you and your siblings having a family sleepover. It looks like they're trying, honey. It's kind of weird for them to have another sibling too, you know."

"They act like everything is normal," Ana said.

"They're trying to make it normal for you. I know these kids. They're a close family and it's not easy to let someone else in. For example, Wulf is the oldest, so he feels responsible for his brothers and sisters. Since you've joined the family, he now has another sister to watch over, another sister to care for, another sister to help. He takes his responsibilities very seriously, so just having you is another thing on his mind. But he's alright with it, happy even, because he likes having another person to take under his wing. He loves watching over his siblings and protecting them. It's in his nature, and just by being a part of his family, you are a part of that nature."

Ana looked down at her hands, rubbing her thumb over her fingers. It seemed like everything had come so easily to her siblings, the way they welcomed her, the amount of time they spent with her, all their attentions, they made it look effortless. She hadn't thought about the fact that they might be struggling to adjust as well.

Chi-Lan patted her shoulder. "You know, you should hang out with Cirrus. It might help you understand his kids better, and he is going to be in your life for a long while." She laughed a little. "Why don't the two of you get some ice cream tomorrow after school?"

"I won't know what to say to him," she admitted.

"That's okay. He's good at doing the talking. Would it be okay if I set that up for you?"

She's right. I should at least try to get to know him. He is my stepdad after all. "Sure."