"So..." Willow pointed to the two men standing in the entrance of the dojo from her seat on the couch. "What the hell is this supposed to be?" she demanded.

Aiden, in a short-sleeved grey polo shirt and designer jeans, flashed a brief grin. "We'll be staying here as of today," he announced.

Bren, to his left, in a black muscle shirt and gym shorts, chuckled. In front of him were two large, rolling suitcases. He raised his hand and waved, grinning like a madman. "'Sup, roomie?" he greeted Willow.

Willow shook her head vigorously. "Uh, no. Nope. Who said you could weasel your way into my house?" she growled, rising to her feet.

Peeking his head around the corner of the double doors, Kazuo wore a nervous smile. "Um, that would be me?" he raised his hand, like he was in a school room.

From behind Kazuo and Aiden, Prophecy bounded forward, smiling in victory. "I did, I did!" she jumped up and down, holding a hand up in the air.

"You traitors!" Willow hissed, raising a hand to her chest and posing dramatically. "I expected this from Dad, but even you, Prophecy, would betray me?" She pretended to faint back onto the couch.

"Yep!" Prophecy declared. "Me and Pawpaw make two, so you loose Mommy. Dad and Uncle Bren get to stay!" she giggled happily.

Willow groaned loudly from her slumped position on the couch. In a much quieter voice, she sighed. Honestly, she wasn't surprised. She knew the two of them had been up to something for the last couple of days. After getting the results back proving that Prophecy was Aiden's daughter, Willow hadn't been able to find any words to argue. Instead, in a quiet voice, she told everyone that she wished to go back home. Surprisingly, none of the others had offered any resistance to her decision. The Chesters had passed through the Gate in St. Louis within the hour, returning to their home in time for dinner.

Part of Willow had thought of running so that Aiden would never be able to find them...She so desperately wanted to do it...but she stopped herself. Honestly, how much more childish of a choice could she make, if she did that? Instead, she resigned herself to trying to find the strength of will to stay and see what would come of it.

Raising her head from the couch, she looked Aiden in the eye, across the distance between them. Voice completely serious, she spoke. "Alright, fine. But if you even think of trying some crazy thing like marrying me and 'trying to take responsibility', you might as well leave right now."

He was wearing the contacts so his eyes were dark green. He studied her face, slowly shaking his head. "Truthfully, I have no wish to do so. All I want is to get to know my daughter, to be a father to her."

Willow stared back, not flinching from his gaze. "Okay. I just wanted to make that completely clear before you got any stupid thoughts in that head of yours." She shifted her gaze to the taller man. "What about you?"

Bren stepped forward and lifted Prophecy up into his arms. "I'm here to be a plaything for the little squirt," he growled playfully, making the girl giggle. He glanced back at Willow's face. "As well, I just wanted to see your pretty face again," he teased lightly. Then he smirked. "I'm also here as your very own personal tool for when Aiden's bugging you and you need me to be a human wall."

The man in question narrowed his eyes, glaring at Bren. "You brought this upon yourself with that comment," he warned the older man. "Sit, boy!" Aiden ordered sternly.

Bren's face paled for half a second, and then he was shifting Prophecy is his arms as he slammed his ass to the floor. Once there, he blinked.

Prophecy twisted slightly, her cheeks puffed out in irritation. "Dad, that was mean!" she glared, rubbing at Bren's head. Her hand ruffled through his shaggy locks like through a dog's fur.

Bren leaned back, keeping careful hold of the girl. He tipped his head, frowning up at Aiden. "Yeah, Dad!" he whined like a child. "Why do you have to be such a meanie?!" He stuck his tongue out. "Meanie face!"

Prophecy nodded. "Meanie face!" she repeated, sticking her own tongue out at her father.

Bren leaned his head close, stage-whispering into Prophecy's ear. "We're totally going to put shaving cream on his face later!"

Prophecy started to nod, but quickly stopped. "Ye...No, we aren't. Dad wakes up before we can," she explained in her own stage-whisper.

Willow wondered over, crouching down, putting her face close to the other two. "Can I get in on this action?" she asked. "I saw we draw faces instead. How good is your artwork, Bren, wasn't it?"

Kazuo burst out into loud laughter, wiping at his eyes, bending over with the force of his amusement. "Can we just make you three a TV show I can watch Pay-per-View?"

Aiden's right eye began to twitch in irritation. "Willow, you are a grown-ass adult! Bren, you are older than me! Stop teaching Prophecy bad practices!"

All three looked up at him and sighed. "Dad, stop pooping party," Prophecy grumbled.

Kazuo proceeded to laugh even harder.

Aiden let out a long breath. "The correct way to say that is 'Stop being such a party-pooper,'" Aiden instructed Prophecy stiffly.

The girl nodded. "That's what I said."

Willow fell back onto her butt, giggling. "Bren, I get a feeling that the two of us are going to get along very well."

Bren flashed a smile. "Oh? What happened to skewering me with a katana? Is that still on the table?"

Aiden, deciding he had had enough of this idiocy for now, started up the stairs. "I'm going to find my room now and start unpacking. You fools can laugh until you're all blue in the face," he muttered, taking his suitcase with him.

Once he was gone, Willow straightened. "Where, exactly, are these two going to stay?" she asked Kazuo.

He shrugged. "We have five extra rooms up there, so I gave them a room each."

Sighing heavily, Willow nodded. She turned her gaze to Bren. "I don't really believe your stories about why you came here. But that's mostly because I don't trust people. I figured I'd just go ahead and let you know. Please pass that along to your 'boss'. I also hope he realizes how serious I am about not trying to 'do the right thing' bullshit."

Bren's face grew a little more serious. "Don't worry. I think he knows just how much you can't stand him by now," he muttered.

Willow climbed to her feet, nodding her head. "Good. I'd like to keep it that way," she murmured. Shaking out her curls behind her head, she stretched out. "I'm going to go for a run," she decided. She leaned down and kissed Prophecy's forehead, hugging her briefly. She patted the pockets of her shorts, making sure she had her keys, phone, wallet, music player, and headphones. Once everything was accounted for Willow left, waving bye to the other three as she put in her headphones.

Once she was gone, Prophecy and Kazuo stared after her for several long seconds. Kazuo sighed heavily. "We certainly have our work cut out for us, don't we, sweetie?"

Blue eyes cloudy, Prophecy nodded. "Yep," she agreed. "I want Mommy to be happy though..." Her voice trailed off, as if just realizing something. Her eyes grew wide.

Kazuo eyed the girl, as did Bren, uncertainly. "Um, Prophecy?"

The girl swallowed. "I-I never Saw that before. It's different."

"What do you see?" Bren asked cautiously.

Prophecy lifted her head, staring up at the huge man. She swallowed again, looking nervous herself. "I saw the toy."

Up the flight of stairs, out of sight from the front doors, Aiden leaned against the wall. He had his eyes closed, breathing in slow, even patterns. He was careful, cautious to not be caught. Despite what he had said earlier, he couldn't help but be curious about Willow, the woman he had made a child with. And considering how closed she was he got the feeling it might take more than one eavesdropping session to discover more about her. Especially when he couldn't just walk right up to the woman and ask bluntly. Who knew what she'd do in retaliation to a simple, honest question? Bren hadn't been joking. Aiden knew full well that Willow despised him...The problem he had was why? If anything, he had reason to be pissed and hateful. After all, he was the one who had nearly been killed-the reason for which he still didn't know.

He let out a low sigh, raising a hand to run over his face as he heard Willow leaving. But his ears twitched a minute later at Prophecy's words. The toy? he wondered in interest.

"Toy?" Bren repeated in confusion.

Kazuo frowned, before his frown slowly lifted in understanding. He coughed, hard. Bren watched in fascination as his old master's face began to turn red. Kazuo reached out to grab hold of Prophecy, shaking his head. "Sweetheart, turn your Sight away from that, right now!"

Prophecy blinked several times in quick succession. Very slowly, her eyes focused back on Kazuo's. After another second, she let out a sigh. "I didn't see bad things," she explained. "I saw the toy."

Bren and Aiden, hidden away, were still as confused as before. "U-uh...?" Bren rubbed at the back of his neck, glancing between the two Chesters. "Is this something better left not asked about, Sensei?"

Kazuo flashed him a tight smile. "Hmm? Uh, yeah. Yeah, it is." He coughed loudly again. "W-well, look at the time! I think you should follow Aiden upstairs to get unpacked. I left little notes on the doors for your respective rooms."

Not looking very convinced, but deciding to retreat, the giant nodded. "Yeah, I probably should," he agreed. Reaching down, he took hold of his suitcase and turned, leaving through the open doors.

Kazuo turned his attention to Prophecy. "Prophecy, what do we not do with boys we don't love?"

She tilted her head to the side, smiling a little. "Kiss and cuddle," she answered firmly.

"That's damn fucking right," Kazuo muttered. He lifted Prophecy up into his arms, kissing her cheek. "Love you, you little minx," he murmured.

Her smile grew brighter. "I love you too, Pawpaw!" she threw her arms around his neck.

O O O

Dinner was a slightly awkward and tense affair. Willow came back from her run an hour later, covered in sweat, but feeling a bit better. She took a quick shower and by then it was nearly five in the afternoon. She began making a stir fry, asking in a low mutter if her two new guests had any food allergies. When she was given the all clear, she took up permanent residence in the kitchen.

The others were currently playing a game of Uno, but Prophecy was making the newbies realize how easily she could beat them. The worst part? She didn't even try.

On the third game, Aiden leaned back in his chair at the dinning room table. He let out a long sigh, shaking his head. "Gods, Prophecy..."

All of a sudden, Willow's voice broke through his thoughts, making him lift his head and look to the kitchen. "Oh! This is my jam!" She jumped over from the counter where she had been chopping up an assortment of vegetables, moving to the far counter. A radio had been on, playing so softly it had faded into the background of Aiden's mind. Now it was suddenly up much louder, making him blink. But he froze as he began to watch Willow dance lithely around the kitchen, thankfully after having placed the knife on the counter by the cutting board. Still, it shocked him as he silently watched her. Apparently this song really was 'her jam', with the amount of almost blissful, child-like abandon she was singing along. The woman's voice on the radio was full of soul and something akin to heartfelt, bittersweet agony, which Willow reflected wholeheartedly.

In fact, Aiden was almost sure she had completely forgotten everyone else was in the room.

"You took my heart and you held it in your mouth. And, with the word, all my love came rushing out." Her eyes closed, Willow's expression looked near tears as she cradled her hands to her chest. "And, every whisper, it's the worst. Emptied out by a single word. There is a hollow in me now."

He watched, fascinated, as her dark eyes popped open and her expression twisted. It was determined and yet uncertain, brave, defiant, but fragile. She raised her hands above her head, slowly bringing them back down.

"So I put my faith in something unknown. I'm living on such sweet nothing. But I'm tired of hope with nothing to hold. I'm living on such sweet nothing. And it's hard to learn, and it's hard to love, when you're giving me such sweet nothing. Sweet nothing, sweet nothing. You're giving me such sweet nothing." Her hands fell down, her eyes closed, swaying to the music.

Across from Aiden, next to Kazuo, Prophecy smiled sadly. "Sweet nothing," she sang along quietly. Aiden's attention turned to the little girl for half a second, but his gaze was once more dragged back to Willow by her voice.

Her eyes opened and she almost looked regretful, staring at a spot somewhere above everyone's heads, but also a million miles away. She raised a hand, shaking a finger, as well as her head. "It isn't easy for me to let it go. 'Cause, I swallow every single word. And, every whisper, every sigh, eats away at this heart of mine. And there is a hollow in me now." She resumed the way she had been during the chorus before, though her expression was much more fierce than the first time. "So I put my faith in something unknown. I'm living on such sweet nothing. But I'm tired of hope with nothing to hold. I'm living on such sweet nothing. And it's hard to learn. And it's hard to love. When you're giving me such sweet nothing. Sweet nothing, sweet nothing. You're giving me such sweet nothing."

As he watched, shocked, tears began to fall down her cheeks, though she didn't even seem to realize, caught up in the song as she was. "And it's not enough to tell me that you care when we both know the words are empty air. You give me nothing! Nothing!"

Willow sucked in a sharp breath, feeling her emotions, her magic start to bubble up. She turned on her heel, suddenly remembering everyone else. She pressed a hand to her mouth, stopping the noise of a sob that suddenly wanted to rip through her. Closing her eyes tightly, she fought it down, but it wouldn't stop. All the emotions, the pain, the longing. Released with the words of the song, she couldn't hold them back.

Kazuo quietly rose to his feet, the others watching in silence. Aiden eyed the two, blinking. Willow was quickly growing fainter and as he watched, she began to sink through the floor, the counter, all of it. He shook his head, realizing she was doing what she had to escape his fury, that night.

Leaning over his daughter's nearly invisible form, Kazuo let out a long breath, before inhaling deeply. "Willow Chester, snap out of your little pity party!"

Blinking rapidly, she raised her face to his, looking lost and confused, like a child. She flinched for two seconds, but just as quickly, reached out her hand for his. Kazuo took hold in a firm grip, widening his stance and bracing himself. "One, two, three!" he heaved, pulling her out of the floor, where she was half inside. She had pressed her free hand against the floor to help push and he caught her against his chest as she stumbled straight into his arms. As she came out of the floor, her body solidified.

"Thanks, Dad," she mumbled gratefully under her breath, quickly wiping away her tears. Then, pushing away, she turned up a 60 wattage smile and moved back to the counter. "You should have warned me I was going to be such a clumsy fool, baby," she told Prophecy.

"I just thought you would trip, Mommy," Prophecy explained, not sounding the least bit awkward as Kazuo returned to his seat.

Aiden and Bren glanced between the three, both thinking She's obviously not okay, so why are you all acting like this?

Clearing his throat, Aiden focused his gaze on Willow. "Do you really think it's such a good idea for Prophecy to be exposed to such depressing music?"

Hand pausing in the motion of slicing chicken breast, Willow's black eyes collided with his. "Excuse me?"

He took in a deep breath. "You heard me. That music was so depressing, it made you cry. Shouldn't Prophecy be in an environment that reflects something brighter and happier?" He cut a glance to the girl in question, seeing her slowly saddening expression. "You see?" he pointed to her.

Willow let out an angry huff of breath. "'Sweet Nothing' is not depressing. It's a bittersweet realization of how most 'love' really is. It's reality, Aiden."

He glared, feeling his temper spark-though, honestly, he didn't even really know why. Something about this woman always seemed to rub him the wrong way, set off his temper, which only made him angrier. He was normally the calm one, the one who stayed cool and rational at all times. He never let his temper run away from him, never let his fire fill him. He was cold, filled with ice, the Lord of Winter at all times. So why did this woman again and again remind him that he held more than one element? One that was much more unruly, more passionate, and therefore more troublesome. "What kind of pessimistic view is that?"

Willow shook her head, returning her attention to making dinner. "It's not pessimistic," she replied calmly and slowly. She wasn't even hiding how much she seemed to think Aiden was like a child, her voice saying it all. "Once again, it's just reality," she shrugged.

His jaw clenched. "This is ridiculous!" he hissed.

She nodded sagely, glancing up at him over her knife, pausing. "I agree. You're being ridiculous, starting a fight for no reason."

His hand clenched in a fist at his side. "What did y-?"

A heavy hand on his shoulder made him jump, turning his head to his right. "Aiden...both of you just need to cool your jets. It was just a song. Take in a few deep breaths and move on. Maybe you should work out some of that aggression with a Wii game, hmm?" Bren kept his voice down, at a low whisper.

Hearing his words, Aiden closed his eyes, acknowledging the man's advice was most likely correct. Nodding his head, he let Bren know he would be alright now. "Thanks," he murmured quietly.

"No problem," Bren smiled briefly before leaning away once more. "Okay. I think we should all get up and get active. What do you say?"

Prophecy was quick to agree. "Yes!" she squealed in excitement, jumping up from her seat and rushing to Aiden's. "Dad, let's go play. I'm going to beat you at 'A Whole New World'!"

Forcing back his irritation, Aiden let a low rumble of a laugh lift his mood. "Oh, are you?" he challenged, following the girl's lead into the living room section of the first floor. Smiling, Bren went with them.

Kazuo, on the other hand, remained in the kitchen, leaning against the counter Willow was working at. He crossed his arms over his chest, propping himself up against the silverware drawer. "You sure about this?" he asked quietly. The colorful music of the game starting drowned out their conversation. "Not everything has to end on 'Sweet Nothing'. Not everything has to turn into that..."

She raised a dark, hooded gaze to his own. "Yes, it does," she answered simply, voice emotionless. "You know it does. None of it can ever not be that. You taught me that, remember? You and Shannon." After a second, she let out a sigh. "Well, I suppose you also taught me that sometimes miracles can happen. But you can only have one miracle in your life and I've already gained it. Besides, I prefer the one miracle I had over any others that could possibly happen in my life. I've said it before, haven't I?"

She raised her gaze to look her father in the eye. "Dad, all I need is you and Prophecy. No one else will ever matter to me in the way you two do and I don't want anyone else to. Do you realize what would happen to me if I lost either of you? I wouldn't b-b-be..." She sucked in a sharp breath, trying to keep herself calm as the terror of the idea tried to break to the surface.

The older man's expression tightened in a twisted mixture of rage, sorrow, and pain. "W-Willow, I-"

"Don't!" she said forcibly, hands tightening around the handle of the knife. "Don't," she repeated in a softer voice. "I'm not mad... I'm grateful, for all of it. That's all I meant. The two of you taught me a lot, good and bad. So now...how can I see the world any other way?" she asked quietly.

Letting out a long sigh, Kazuo rubbed at the back of his neck. "Alright," he gave in reluctantly. "I just wanted to try and remind you that things don't have to be this way. All of this...It could all be a lot different. You just need to take a leap of faith and let it." When his daughter stubbornly remained silent, he straightened, pushing away from the counter. "Yeah...fine. I love you, baby girl."

"I love you too, Dad," she whispered to his back as he moved to join the others. "Gods know, I wish things weren't like this. But this isn't a damn fairy tale and miracles don't just happen ever Wednesday or anything. If I let myself hope, pray, or wish for more...The gods will surely smite me for my selfishness..." She let out a low, choked whimper.

Staring down at the cutting board, she shook her head. "Buck the fuck up, Willow Chester," she told herself firmly. "You've got a war to fight. You have to make sure Aiden doesn't want to stay." But even as she said it aloud, she sighed. I'm going to have to accept him at least partly in my life, she admitted to herself reluctantly, hurrying up with the rest of her cutting. If nothing else, Prophecy deserves a chance to possibly have a father...

At the thought, she shuddered, pausing in her cutting to not accidentally hurt herself. 'Father'...Such a simple concept, but one that never failed to fill her with despise. Shaking her head, she forced herself back to her work. M-maybe Aiden will be different...Even as she thought it, her grip tightened around the knife. She would kill him...She'd carved out his heart, if he proved otherwise.

Twenty minutes later, the food was done and she called everyone to the table. Aiden volunteered to help her serve everyone and she simply nodded, giving him a fake smile. "Thanks. The plates are in that cabinet, to the left of the stove top. I'll grab the cups and the silverware." The entire time, she was careful not to touch him, but he seemed similarly inclined.

Once everyone was served and sitting down, things calmed down a bit more. Willow and Aiden spoke to each other, a little, but it was always tense when they did. The others tried to lighten things up and Willow didn't try to stop them. She smiled warmly anytime her attention wasn't on Aiden and the man in question noticed it, which only served to piss him off even more, for some ungodly reason.

Even so, Aiden couldn't help but smile-just the tiniest amount-when he heard her laugh. It was rich, warm, and welcoming. Gods knew why, but he felt more than a little sad that it was never directed at him.

He planned to help with cleanup, but Prophecy, jumping up and down in excitement, begged him to read her a bedtime story. Unable to say no to her hopeful expression, he followed her up to her room.

The other three watched the two leave. Bren started on washing the dishes, Kazuo rinsing and drying, while Willow put away the leftovers. "Any requests for breakfast?" she asked around a yawn. The day had been very tiring, having to deal with uninvited guests.

"Clothes?" Kazuo asked in an amused voice.

Bren jumped at that. "What?!"

Willow glared at her father. "Fuck you too, Dad."

"No, seriously, what the hell is he talking about?" Bren's nostrils flared as he turned to look Willow up and down. "Shit, do you sleep in the nude or something?"

Tilting her head to the side, Willow returned his gaze, propping her hip out to the side. "What would you say if I told you yes?" she asked sweetly.

Bren laughed boisterously. "Well, I'd love to say 'Hell yes!' but, Aiden being my boss and everything, besides best friend...Sorry sweetheart, but it doesn't work."

Her smile turned more than a little sadistic. "Well, I'd say fuck all of that and just drag you into a closet. You really aren't bad on the eyes and I'm a fan of your type of man..."

Despite himself, Bren couldn't help but feel a spark of interest. He could just imagine this woman as a package of wild, powerful sex. And fuck it all, but that sounded amazing. His lips twitched in amusement at that. She's making me want in on some of that 'jungle fever' action.

"Too bad for you though, you've already broken my rules, so it's a no go."

He let out a small sigh, smiling regretfully. "How did I know you'd say that?" he asked as he eyed her expression.

Willow flipped a few stray curls over her shoulder. Her dark eyes were alight with teasing laughter, which made the longing Bren felt just a little stronger. "Maybe you're psychic?" she asked.

Kazuo cleared his throat. "Willow, can we stop talking about you having sex, please?"

Willow's gaze flicked to her father. "Don't be such a dad," she rolled her eyes. "I'm a grown adult. Besides, I was a minor when I got pregnant. You've known all along, Dad."

Kazuo's eyes tightened at that. "Yes..." he hissed. "But damn it, I am a dad so I'll act like one! I don't care if you're freaking fifty, you're my baby girl and I don't like the idea of knowing men are..." He crossed his arms over his chest, looking peeved and miffed.

Bren laughed, as did Willow. "Wow, Sensei. It's really crazy. I never pegged you for the overprotective, over possessive type of dad."

The man in question glared at his old student. "Bren, shut the fuck up, okay? It's perfectly natural for a father to be like that with his daughter. Until you have a kid of your own, you aren't allowed to talk, okay?"

Bren smiled widely. "Sorry, Sensei, but I don't have to follow your orders."

His words made Willow blink, realizing something she'd observed more than a few times now. "Speaking of orders, you really do seem to love following Aiden's and Prophecy's. Are you just that whipped?"

Bren turned his head, keeping his gaze steady and focused on the dishes as he dug in the soapy warm water, cleaning them of all the food. "I suppose you could say so," he admitted quietly. "I like to think it more of as I'm a very loyal servant to the Frost family. I have been for almost twenty years now."

Willow eyed him in renewed respect. "Wow, twenty years? Holy fuck. I certainly couldn't do something like that. If nothing else, his family would drive me up the wall after one year. Did you see that little punk asshole, um...Felix, wasn't it? The younger brother who looks sort of like Aiden. I was ready to drag his ass away, lay him low, and bury the body." She sighed, pushing a few strands of hair that had fallen into her eyes out of the way. "Any man who thinks they're a gift to women everywhere are the type I stab," she muttered darkly.

Chuckling, Bren let out a long breath. "Maybe that's the type of woman Felix needs. If things don't work out with Aiden, why don't you see how long it takes Felix to make you want to kiss him, huh?"

Willow glared. "Taken out of context, you words sound like a good thing, I hope you realize that. There is nothing good about me kissing people," she sighed. "I'm heading to bed. I'll just make whatever I feel like in the morning," she grumbled before turning on her heel and leaving.

Bren twisted a little to watch her go. He turned his head back to Kazuo. "What did I say this time?" he asked in annoyance. "Geez, Sensei. Your kid's got so many issues, I don't even know where to start. Have you thought about consoling or something? What did you do to her as a kid to mess her up that badly? In fact, where the hell were you hiding her when you would teach me during those summers? Was she still with her mom or something?"

Sighing wearily, Kazuo closed his eyes in pain. "Bren, please don't ask...I may...Hell, I'm sure I'll tell you some of the secrets in this family one day. Maybe even sometime soon. But for now...don't ask, don't question, and don't pry. For now...pretend like everything is okay." In a much quieter voice, he continued. "Prophecy and I are hoping that her vision will come true. For that, we have to follow some rules. There are certain patterns, certain paths that have to stay the same, that can't be disturbed. To that end, I can't tell you yet. But trust me...When I do tell you, you aren't going to like it. Sometimes, some secrets are better left untold."