A/N

I know, I know. I really shouldn't be starting another fanfic when I'm currently working on so many others. But, inspiration comes as it will, and who am I to pass up plot bunnies when they come hopping into my brain? After all, I've either got fingers itching to write or hard core writers' block. I'm just gonna go with it. Wish me luck!

I don't know how long I'm gonna make this fanfic…it might not end up being as long as I plan my others to be. I'm also currently working on the next chapter of What Could Have Been. Sorry if that one isn't your favorite, but I think I'm gonna start having some sort of order to my writing. Unless I suddenly get undeniable inspiration for one specific fanfic, I'll probably update whatever is at the bottom of the pile. At the moment, that's What Could Have Been. Of course, now I'm adding another one into the mix, so here goes.

Disclaimer: I still do not own HON. Nuff said.

~Smiley

Chapter 1

"It's just for the couple weeks," Rephaim said to himself, shoving random clothes into the duffle bag. "How bad could this possibly be?"

It had been three weeks since Nyx had granted him the blessing that allowed him to be fully human at night. It had been three weeks of knowing true happiness with the beautiful girl he loved so much. It had been three weeks of making new friends and receiving glares from those who will probably never trust him. But overall, it had been three weeks of bliss.

Bliss decided not to hang around anymore.

"How on earth did I get roped into this?" Rephaim asked himself for what seemed to be the umpteenth time.

Well, considering you have a really hard time saying no to her, this really shouldn't be too much of a surprise, Rephaim thought to himself. And how long did you honestly think you would go before meeting her family?

Obviously, he had not thought this one through. Rephaim sighed. Maybe he was nervous about the whole thing. Maybe he kind of wanted to puke at the thought of meeting her family. Maybe he wanted to run screaming away as fast as he could.

But…it just made her so happy. Stevie Rae was so excited when she told him that things had calmed down just enough for Zoey to be okay if she went to go visit her family for a little while. (After all, he had been informed that although she had spoken to her mother, the rest of her family hasn't seen her since her "death"). She had been jumping up and down, causing her curls to bounce in her exuberance, when she had asked him to come with her. She had been bustling around the room, shoving completely random necessities into her little suitcase, smiling hopefully at him and giggling with pure happiness all the while. She had said that she would understand if he didn't want to go, but the look in her eyes…he just couldn't say no. It didn't matter how much it scared him. It made her happy, and that's all that Rephaim cared about.

He had just finished zipping up the bag when Stevie Rae hurried into the room, doing some strange mixture of skipping and bouncing and running. Forcing himself to give her a brave smile, he threw the bag over his shoulder just as she grabbed both his hands and squeezed excitedly, suppressing a squeal of pure joy.

"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon!" she said, practically dragging him out of the room.

"I'm coming," he said, laughing. He didn't have to force his smile this time.

Looping her arm through his, she made him skip/run to where the little car was parked outside. Zoey and Stark were waiting by the bug's open truck. Stevie Rae's suitcase was already inside, and Rephaim placed his next to it while Zoey and Stevie Rae were hugging and saying good-byes.

"And if you need us to come back, then just give me a call and we'll be back so fast it'll be like we were never gone," Stevie Rae told Zoey.

"Yeah, yeah, okay. Go enjoy yourself! You deserve the break, and you definitely need to catch up with your family. We'll handle the stuff down here. After all, we need to clean up the tunnels and just regroup before we go back to head-to-head fighting with Neferet," Zoey said. Rephaim closed the truck door, and after one last hug, Stevie Rae got into the driver's side.

Stark, who normally didn't talk to Rephaim much, clapped him on the shoulder. Rephaim could tell he was holding back laughter. "Good luck," he managed.

"Thanks," Rephaim said.

"You better be careful. I think her dad's got a gun," Stark told him. He couldn't hold back his laughter anymore as Rephaim's eyes widened. Stiffly, Rephaim got into the passenger side of the bug, which Zoey had so generously leant them for the trip.

He closed the door, sealing himself in his own doom. Stevie Rae backed out of the lot, driving away to Zoey's waving and Stark's mocking laughter.

Stevie Rae had told him the car ride was about an hour, possibly up to two if they hit a lot of traffic. That gave him an hour before he met her family. An hour before he found out if her parents would accept him or cast him away. What if they didn't like him? What if they forbade him from ever seeing Stevie Rae again? Could they even do that? Oh, he didn't know! But he had an hour of anxiety before he could find out. By all the gods, this was torture!

But then he felt her hand, small and soft, slide into his hand. She intertwined their fingers and gave him a reassuring squeeze. It gave Rephaim the strength to meet her gaze.

And what he saw made it all completely worth it. In her beautiful blue eyes he saw compassion and kindness and happiness and, above all, love. Always love.

Rephaim smiled back at her. He could do this. For her, he could do anything.

A/N

I know, it's short, but they'll get longer, promise! Review please! I have midterms this week, so getting some feedback would be awesome. Like Rephaim, I need some stress relief. Thank goodness writing is always good for that!

Also, I know Stevie Rae had three older brothers, but I'm running out of names for them. I'm not sure if I want to use the ones I've used in other fanfics…

AND BEFORE YOU STOP READING! I really, really need help with naming Stevie Rae's dad. HELP WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED! Leave a review or PM me if you got name ideas please!

~Smiley