Everything you recognize belongs to the brilliant SM on temporary loan per prior imaginary agreement

Through the eyes of another's pain

Will you see the cleansing rain

Amy didn't seem able to look at Paul directly. Paul seemed to understand that Amaya was testing her mother somehow and him as well. He didn't know what to do.

"It's nice to meet you Mrs. Song. I hope we can get to know each other much better in the future." "I understand you think you're supposed to mate with my daughter. You do realize she's only fifteen?"

Ah, so that was the problem. Paul sputtered. Emily stifled a laugh and Amaya glared.

"Mom!" "Mrs. Song I assure you-" "I think that's enough for the moment. Everyone get inside before the food gets cold."

Paul looked gratefully at his alpha and hurried to help Amaya into the house when she reached for him, pulling angrily away from her mother. Amy let Emily steer her into the house under Sam's supervision. Claire was minding her own business and making another plate of food for Paul.

Everyone sat down and picked up forks when Amaya stopped them.

"Sam, would you say the blessing to the ancestors please?" The others looked at her like she was crazy, some of them were slightly uncomfortable. Her mother was confused but shrugged her shoulders and continued to glare at Paul as she clasped her hands together and waited.

"I suppose so. Um, I ask a blessing on this meal and on this house and those within. Watch over us and guide us as we walk our path on this earth. Ancestors we give praise to you as we protect our people and we ask your wisdom as we build our strength. May the spirits be with you." "And with you."

Amaya gave the return blessing and the others followed a beat behind her.

I stopped and wondered where that had come from. It felt right but it was not something I had been taught. Emily smiled at me and my mother frowned at me. Sam looked thoughtful. That worried me. The smile on Paul's face would take getting used to.

We ate in silence for a minute.

Mom was still glaring daggers at Paul, who was sitting next to me. He was trying to be careful and not touch me, probably because my mother was glaring. I was being contrary, also because my mother was glaring. I let my elbow graze his forearm at every opportunity. I bumped my knee against his and watched him jump. I leaned against him when I reached for something.

My mom got mad and Paul got tense. It was pretty funny.

"Amaya that isn't funny." "Come on mom, it was pretty funny." Paul was turning five shades of red as he tried to clean the potatoes off the table where they'd flown when I sagged against him and sighed. He'd jumped sky high as I'd done it. It was a little mean to him but still pretty funny.

"If you would just lay off it wouldn't be a problem." "If you would act your age it wouldn't be a problem." "I'm fifteen. I'm supposed to be all over my boyfriend at the dinner table to gross out my mom." I met her glare for glare. Paul was trying desperately to find some ground to stand on. He didn't want to get on my bad side but he also knew he needed to make peace with my mom if he wanted to hang around. Sam and Emily and Claire were just enjoying the show.

"I think dinner is just about over. Why don't you go get ready for bed. Claire, could you help her please? Paul, I'll escort you out." "I'm not ready for bed. We're still talking. If you're tired you can go to bed. I know what a stressful day you've had." "Oh no. At no point in time are the two of you going to be unsupervised. Do I make myself clear?"

Emily took that moment to shoo Claire and Sam away to the kitchen where they started clearing away the dishes so we could have our family dispute in semi-privacy. It didn't matter to me or my mom, we were going to have it out regardless. Paul was the only shy one.

That was the funny thing I was discovering about Paul. From what I'd heard he wasn't shy with anything. His temper was as short as anything and he flaunted his flirtations as publicly as he could. Obviously a part of that was to make sure the girls knew they were nothing more than what they were. There was nothing private, nothing more intimate than a show and tell for the boys, a fun time to be had.

So who would have thought that he would stutter and blush like this? It was cute.

But I was the only one allowed to make him do it.

"Mom, neither of us asked for this whole imprint thing to happen. He didn't do it on purpose and he hasn't made a move on me. When I told him to leave me alone he did. He has been nothing but a gentleman and he won't do anything that I don't want him to do. So chill out, please. You're embarrassing everyone who can possibly be embarrassed."

She glared at him some more, narrowing her eyes and taking a good look to see if she could spot a lie that had gotten past me.

"Surely Sam explained all of this to you." "He did." "And you don't have a problem with him being a giant wolf, just the imprinting?" "The wolf isn't trying to have sex with my fifteen-year-old daughter. The wolf is a protector." "So is Paul. They're the same. They're one and the same and they both love me for me, mom. And he imprinted on me almost two years ago! He's had loads of time to take my innocence and virtue."

She looked utterly appalled and Paul looked like he wanted to die. I took pity on them both and took a deep breath.

"You know what I forgot when I was gone this time?"

She blinked at the topic change, trying to figure out what I was getting at.

Usually the thing I forgot was easy to spot. It was big or important or I admitted it right away or by accident. This time I had kept it to myself. She was so curious but afraid to bring it up and hopeful that it wasn't anything.

"I forgot who I wanted to be. I knew who I was. I knew who my friends were. I knew you. But I didn't know where I was supposed to go from there. I lay there in that hospital bed and I had no idea what the next step was. I didn't know if I wanted to be a writer or a singer. I didn't know if I wanted to grow up and be a mom, like you. I didn't know if I had any future or if I wanted one. It was all as blank as my past sometimes is. As scary as it is to wake up and not know the people who love you or what your own name is, let me tell you, it is so much worse to wake up and not know if there's anything left for you to live for."

I had to look away. I couldn't stand the way her "warrior mom face" broke as I spoke. I could see that she knew exactly what I was talking about. She had woken to those moments herself. She had remembered her reasons.

"I didn't know if I would ever remember. Every day that you came back into my room at the hospital I told myself that you were the reason I kept looking and kept trying. But I worried that some day I would forget and that wouldn't be enough to keep me here. I was worried about you, mom."

I looked at Paul and saw him standing there, straight and tall and desperately trying to hold himself together as rage and grief and desperation tore through his mind and his body. I reached out to him and wove my fingers through his. His body stilled at my touch and I smiled.

"I remember now. I remember who I want to be. That's why Paul and I are supposed to be together. That's why the Spirits brought us together."

I kept looking at him, taking strength from him as I spoke, "I know you're uncomfortable with the age difference and his reputation but none of that matters now. You have to trust me to make my own choices. Don't try to cage me now, mom. It never works out and I need him to hang around long enough to at least figure out if I like him or not." we grinned at each other before I faced my mom again.

"No one seems to know what's wrong with me and I've never wanted to drag another person into that. The Spirits seem to have a different plan. They may even know what they're doing. Right now, this is the right choice for me."