Fia and Haven dragged themselves out of bed, slowly but surely since they both knew there was no way to get out of their predicament. Parents' Weekend was one of the few rare occasions when Fia would refuse to get up early on a weekend and that Haven didn't immediately take to coding. Instead, both girls could be found tidying up the house - or, in Fia's case, removing all of the chemicals from their apartment and dragging them down to a nearby storage locker facility. She refused to endanger her family or let her family endanger her with their brash behavior.

Fia donned a white, collared button-up shirt under a pin-striped, empire-waist jumper. She rolled the sleeves of her shirt up to her elbows and tied a green ribbon around her neck in the place of a tie. Pulling on dark stockings and running a brush quickly through her tangled mass of hair, Fia ran out to wait in the living room with Haven. She sat poised like a doll - If she didn't seem perfect by the time her mother arrived, there would be hell. Haven and she shared sympathetic glances.

Haven was dressed in a nice white blouse, pleated black skirt, and black knee-high socks. She wasn't wearing her normal tie, but opted instead for a droopy, oversized pink bow. She too sat up straighter than she had since this time last year.

The girls noticed the boys had just gotten up. Nagisa smiled and Karma yawned as the two found their way into the living room.

"Good morning," Nagisa called. He took note of their nervous dispositions and rigid postures. "It'll be alright," he tried to reassure them. Both girls murmured something incoherently in response.

Karma, by contrast, made his way to the couch and took a closer look at the girls. "Are you two actually wearing skirts?" he laughed.

Haven shrugged, "My mother wants me to."

Fia blushed profusely. "Sh-shut up…" The redhead stepped back and whipped out his phone, snapping a few pictures. Fia jumped to her feet and, cheeks on fire, she tried to grab the phone from him. "What was that for?!" she demanded.

"Entertainment, duh~" he responded with a smirk.

Nagisa face-palmed. "So it's come back to this," he sighed.

"You know, Nagisa. I still have that picture from the class trip and those - "

"DELETE THOSE ALREADY!"

Feeling dejected, Fia sat back down on the couch. "Why did I have to wear this…?"

Karma laughed. "C'mon, even Haven is wearing a skirt, and you don't hear her complaining about it. You know, Haven, in certain fields of work, there's a great advantage to being able to pull off both genders - ask Nagisa."

"Karma," Nagisa sighed. "Just leave the girls alone."

Fia opened her mouth to speak, but she heard a knock at the door. "Behave yourself," she mouthed to Karma as she went to the door. Taking a deep breath, Fia slowly turned the lock. It flew open with a bang, sending Fia sprawling. Two teenagers rushed in, both locking arms and dressed in navy blue school uniforms. They looked around with sharply observant eyes until their shared gaze fell on Fia.

"Ah, Sorella is on the floor," they both said flatly. "You're such a clutz!" Giggles harmonized as the two yanked Fia onto her feet.

Fia winced, but she gently patted the twins' heads. "Mio, Mia. It's good to see you again."

"Hahaha!" they laughed mischievously. "It won't be soon enough!" the two chided.

"Mio, Mia," a stern voice called. The three turned to see an elegantly dressed man and woman enter through the doorway. The woman removed her sunglasses and handed it to the pre-teen boy clinging to the back of her black and gold designer dress. The man removed a young girl from his shoulders and placed her on the floor before taking the time to straighten out his suit.

"Fia," the woman said calmly, "I see that you are well."

By contrast, the man rushed to grab Fia in a gigantic bear hug. "MIA BAMBINA!" he cried as he rubbed his stubbled cheek against hers.

"M-Mami! P-Papino!" she choked out.

The small girl scowled. "What about me?" she demanded.

The large man reluctantly released Fia. "But Guadalupe…" he whined, "we haven't seen your sorella in forever!"

"Giovanni," the woman warned. "Do you plan to keep our daughter all to yourself?"

He laughed, a deep, hearty laugh. "Not at all, mi amore Florence! Gio~ Come stand by your Papino for awhile! What do you say?"

The pre-teen sighed and turned his nose up at his father's offer. "I think I'll pass. Seriously, how did I get named after the likes of you!?" he spat.

Giovanni's eyes flooded with tears of hurt. "How could you say something like that to your dad!?"

Florence approached Fia and grasped her face in her hands. Fia sweat-dropped, knowing that she was being put under extreme scrutiny at that very moment. Florence sighed and turned away, rubbing her temples as if to show her extreme annoyance and disappointment.

In the meantime, the twins seemed to be literally kicking their dad while he was down. Roaring, Giovanni lept to his feet and began chasing the twins around. Despite his angry expression, the three were laughing.

Fia smiled warily and looked to her little brother. "How are you, Gio?" she asked politely.

"What's it to you?" he grumbled. His cheeks flushed pink. "It's not like you care."

"That's not true, and you know it," Fia said with a sigh.

Nagisa and Karma sweat-dropped simultaneously. This was Fia's family? Sure, the girl had her outbursts now and then, but that was nothing compared to the level of noise her family was making. Crashes and yells resounded all around them, causing the apartment to shake slightly.

Haven remained tense, but, as usual, she remained indifferent to the chaotic Timo family.

Frustrated by the lack of attention being given to her, Lupe stormed over to the living room. That's where she caught sight of Karma. Instantly enchanted by the redhead's good looks, she skipped over to him with glittering eyes. He shot her a questioning glance.

"Will you be my prince?" Lupe asked the redhead. Hearts flashed through her eyes as she clasped her hands together in a pleading gesture.

"No, but I know someone who will. His name is no one," Karma responded flatly.

Fia looked in dismay between the two. She quickly rushed to her sister's side, hoping the girl wouldn't throw a tantrum. "You wouldn't want to marry Karma," she said flatly, "he's the prince of darkness, Satan's steward."

Lupe pouted and stomped her foot. "But that would make me the queen of the underworld! I wanna be queen! I wanna be loved and adored forever!"

Mio and Mia piped up. "We'll beat you to world domination~!" they chimed together.

Fia sighed softly and smiled. "Isn't there anyone else you would like to marry?"

"Does Brad Pitt count?" the child asked.

Gio scoffed. "He's already married, idiot!"

Lupe's face turned red and her cheeks swelled. "I. Will. Cry."

The rest of the Timo children all dead-panned and paled together. "DIO, NO!" they all shouted at the same time. All of a sudden, Lupe was hoisted up onto a throne of pillows with twin fan-servants, a kiss-my-feet loser, and a personal chef for all the confectionary sweets she wanted. Lupe smiled with an air of satisfaction. Then, she spotted Haven.

"Will you be my prince, Haven?" she asked sweetly. The girl twirled a curly pigtail around one of her small fingers.

"I'm sorry Lupe, but I'm not qualified. Like I've said for the past two years, I'm a girl. See, I'm even wearing a skirt today," Haven replied calmly.

"But that girl is wearing pants," Lupe protested, pointing to Nagisa. He sighed, having been used to this kind of reaction.

"That's different and he's not a girl," Haven sighed.

"But I've seen Mio wearing Mia's clothes, and Mama makes Gio - " the little girl began.

"We promised never to speak of that!" Gio screeched.

"It's not my fault you're the perfect size for my pre-teen collection," Florence huffed.

The twins laughed as they wrapped their arms around the other. The twin that was supposed to be Mio shrugged, saying "We like to have our fun."

Fia laughed slightly; the twins had switched identities again today. Pinching Mio's cheek to show Mia she had caught them, she shook her head with a smile and turned her attention back to her other siblings.

Gio pouted as he poked at Nagisa's pigtails. "If you're not a girl, what's with this hairstyle?"

Lupe was pulling on Haven's skirt, trying to get a look under. "Prove it!"

Fia warily pulled Gio and Lupe away from their victims. "Nagisa, Karma, this is my family." She laughed dryly. "The twins are Mio and Mia; Don't give them an opportunity to cause chaos, because they will. These two are Giovanni and Guadalupe; those two are both allies in a race to take over the world against the twins. Giovanni is all about scheming and Lupe likes to manipulate people into getting her what she wants, so beware of them too. And this - " Fia gestured to the couple, " - is my mom and dad."

Nagisa smiled warily. "Thanks for the warning. It's nice to meet you all," he said, addressing Fia's family. "I'm Nagisa Shiota, Fia's housemate."

Florence pursed her lips but she nodded. "Note taken," she responded curtly as she claimed an empty spot on the couch.

Giovanni rushed up to the blue-haired boy and shook his hand vigorously. "I've heard about you!" he said cheerfully. "Grazie for taking care of my little Fia~!" The older man paused for a moment. "You have a strong handshake and something fierce in your eyes," he grinned. "You don't seem like much on the outside, but you strike me as someone deadly. I like that. I would have loved to have someone like you on my side back when I - "

"Giovanni!" Florence snapped.

"Yikes! Scusa, I said too much," Giovanni chuckled.

Karma leaned back and shot Fia's dad a smirk. "Oh no, please continue. I would love to hear all about it."

Fia paled and she grabbed her father's arm. "Papino! We can't - "

"And who are you?" the man asked with a toothy grin. "Would you happen to be the boy who's been teasing my daughter?"

Lupe pouted. "No! He's my prince!"

"Well, he's the only real guy here," Gio grumbled, rolling his eyes. "That one is your stupid sorella and those two are who-knows-whats."

Florence looked down her nose at Gio. "She's your sister too. Or did you forget that we. are. a. family?" Her voice dripped with venom.

He trembled under his mother's gaze. "N-no, M-mami!I"

Karma shrugged. "So what if I am? If you dislike it that much, you can take me out as well as my parents."

Giovanni moved over to Karma and loomed over him with a serious expression. He then ruffled the redhead's hair with a hearty laugh. "I don't know your situation, kid, but famiglia is famiglia. In any case, I like your spunk." Karma grumbled, not appreciating the gesture. "Still - " Giovanni mused, "I would tell you that I'd kick your ass if you mess with my girl, but…"

Fia tilted her head. "Papino?"

He grinned and shot a look at Karma. His smile was friendly but a gleam of bloodlust shone through his eyes. "Considering her bloodline, I wouldn't be surprised if Fia decided to take you out herself."

Florence and Fia simultaneously blushed. "WE DON'T TALK ABOUT THAT!"

Nagisa and Karma exchanged glances, unsure of how to interpret that.

"About what?" two voices chimed. "This?"

Fia turned to see that the twins had raided her closet and pinned all of her underwear to a poster board. In big black letters were the words "The Evolution of Fia: The 'Breast' Explanation Possible." Fia shrieked and ran to get the board but the twins hoisted it over their heads and began running around the couches with it.

"It started when she was a young girl - " Mia giggled as they ran " - that she discovered that she might have problems growing up.

"It started when she was a young girl - " Mio laughed as they leaped over a table " - that the expenses started."

"SH-SHUT UP!" Fia's ears glowed red as she chased them. Gio stuck his foot out and sent Fia flying. She hit the carpet with an "oof!"

The twins guffawed as they stretched a bra between themselves. "It started when Fia decided she never wanted to get attention from anyone and started dressing plainly!" they both stuck their tongues out. "How boooooorrriiiiiiinnngggggg!"

Nagisa and Haven both shared expressions of concern. "Are you alright?" the bluenette asked.

Karma laughed. "She's fine. Fia has the hardest head here."

"Hey!" Fia shot Karma a dirty look. He grinned back, as if tauntingly asking her to try and argue against him.

Lupe looked between the two of them and scowled. "Are you two dating?"

"HAH?" Fia felt as if she had just been hit by twin trains - driven by a particular pair of twin drivers. "No way! W-what gave you th-that impression?!"

Karma laughed. "No, we aren't, but sometimes she just can't keep her hands off of me."

Gio's jaw fell and the boy pointed at his sister with a huge blush. "YOU PERVERT!"

"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" Fia protested. She shot Karma a look. "I WAS TRYING TO STRANGLE YOU, CAZZO! Merda, I never get a fucking break!" For the first time, the boys heard Fia's Italian accent slip through. Worse, it seemed to be flickering in and out under the influence of her family.

Giovanni gasped. "Mia bambina, where did you learn such vulgar language?" he demanded.

Florence and all of the Timo children gave him unamused faces. "You!" they shouted together.

There was a knock at the door. Nagisa went to get it.

"Haven, dear!" Pearl smiled as she walked in.

"Mother," Haven greeted was a big smile plastered on her face.

"Have you been eating well?"

"Yes, Mother."

"Getting enough sleep?"

"Yes, Mother."

"Doing your homework?"

"Yes, Mother."

Pearl dragged Haven out the door. "We'll go to every activity the campus is holding this weekend," she smiled.

Nagisa, Karma, Fia, and the rest of Timo family silently watched as Haven was pulled away.

Florence smiled wryly. "It looks like Pearl hasn't changed very much," she commented.

"You still have to admire her enthusiasm as a mom~" Giovanni chimed.

Nagisa sweat-dropped, wondering if that was what Haven meant when she had said she didn't see eye-to-eye with her mom. He slowly stood. "I'm going to head out," he said to his housemates.

"Where are you going…?" Fia tentatively asked. She apprehensively shot a glance at the people she would be left with.

He pulled a couple of envelopes from his pocket. "I wanted to send some letters to my mom and dad," he admitted.

Giovanni gave Fia an exaggeratedly teary face. "Why don't you send me letters?"

Fia face-palmed. "I call you whenever I can!" she protested.

Florence scowled slightly. "It would be nice if you sent some pictures now and then of you wearing the clothes I designed for you."

Red raced up from Fia's toes to the top of her head. "I-I can't w-wear those!"

Her mother glared at her.

"E-eep! I-I just m-meant to s-say th-that I-I-I-I-I - " Fia immediately shut up and hung her head. Sinking to her knees, Fia slumped against a wall. It didn't take long for her to realize her mistake - three of her siblings were approaching her with evil looks on their faces and outstretched, groping hands. "DIO, NOOOOOO!"

Nagisa shot an apologetic look to Fia and left as inconspicuously as he could.

The twins and Guadalupe all jumped on her at the same time, trying to force her into one of the dresses that Florence had brought. Fia screamed as she tried to push her siblings off of her. Tired by his siblings' abrasive behavior, Gio sighed and sat down next to his mother to lean against her, where he quickly fell asleep. Giovanni sat on the other side of him and turned to turn talk to Karma as his lovely children screamed in the background.

"You have your history, and we have ours," Giovanni started, "but Fia does seem to have taken a liking to you guys. She speaks highly of you."

Karma smiled. "Nagisa is a good friend. I've known him since middle school."

"He means you, idiota," Florence interjected.

Karma looked from the pair to Fia. It appeared that the twins had fallen asleep against Fia's chest and that Lupe had begun to snore softly in her lap. She was leaning against the wall with her eyes closed and hands resting lightly on the twins' heads. If her mouth hadn't been moving, Karma might have thought she was asleep too.

"What is she singing?" he asked Giovanni.

"You are My Sunshine," he chuckled. "These guys might be trouble, but she really does love them," he explained.

"That I do," Fia whispered softly as she opened her eyes. "I'm not exactly Felix, but I do try to be a good older sister."

"Unlike Felicia," Florence muttered under her breath with a scowl. Unwilling to bear the emotion, Florence sighed. "I'm going to take Gio back to the car first."

Giovanni nodded. "We'll bring the other three down in just a little while, amore."

Uncomfortable, Karma stood, rubbing the back of his head. "I'll help," he offered.

Giovanni grinned and slapped Karma on the back. "Atta boy!" He then turned to Fia and smiled kindly. "Can we talk?"


Nagisa exited the campus post office and began making his way back to the dorm. The day was very warm and bright, considering they were well into fall.

From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a white-haired girl. He began making his way towards her and her mother.

"Haven, how's Earnest doing?" Pearl asked.

"He's been doing fine," Haven replied dutifully.

"Joy says that he's been thinking about attending this college," Pearl smiled gently.

"I thought he was planning to take a gap year," Haven replied.

"Yes, I think she did mention something like that," Pearl mused. After a few moments, she added, "Do you hang out with anyone besides Earnest and Fia?" Nagisa stopped in his tracks.

"Well, there's Benny. You met him two years ago and there are my new housemates, Nagisa and Karma," Haven said.

"Are you interested in any of them?" her mother asked with a coy smile.

"Mother!" Haven blushed a bit, "No!" Her mother gave her a knowing smile.

"Maybe? I don't know!" Haven bit her lip and turned a little pinker. Haven and her mother moved out of earshot.

Earnest? Who was he? Nagisa had thought he knew Haven relatively well, but he had never seen or heard anything about this Earnest person. He would have to ask Fia when he got back to the apartment. With that, he spun on his heel and headed back there quickly.


Giovanni wrapped his arm around his daughter as she curled up into him. Fia sighed softly as she nuzzled into his neck.

"I missed you, Papino…" she murmured.

He kissed the top of her head. "I missed you too, mia bella. I'm sorry that the family got so out of hand today."

She laughed softly. "But they wouldn't be the family otherwise. You all put me on edge, but I do love you all."

Giovanni's forest green eyes shone with both happiness and pain. "I'm glad that you said that, bambina… I was very worried when we moved here that all of you would come to resent me," he admitted. "At the time I met your mother, I was afraid to love anyone from the family because the thought of losing someone that close to me was unbearable. Alas, I couldn't help falling in love with her anyway."

"Papi…" Fia locked her arms around her dad tightly.

"You're old enough to know. When you three were born," he continued, "I realized I wasn't just afraid to love because I didn't want to lose anyone. Rather, I was afraid to love because I realized what it meant to have to leave those precious to me… That's why when the Collapse happened, I grabbed your mother and moved you three here to the states. I know we might never be able to go back, but all I wanted was for us to stay together… I'm sorry, my decision must have put a lot of hardship on you," Giovanni sighed and nuzzled his cheek against the top of Fia's head.

Fia nodded slowly to show her understanding. "I miss those days…" she started, "but my heart lies wherever you are." Fia gleamed, "I would do anything for those I love too, Papino."

Green eyes met and Giovanni chuckled. "That's my girl~" He ruffled her hair. "Do you have anyone you're afraid to lose?" he asked.

Fia blushed, startled by the question. "U-um, all of you…" She paused to think for a moment. "And all of my friends: Benny, Haven, Nagisa, Karma." Fia smiled. "They're the best."

Lightly pinching his daughter's cheek, Giovanni raised an eyebrow. "Really? Even Karma?"

"Gghn!" Fia swatted away her father's hand and grabbed his cheeks, stretching them out.

"Ouch!" Giovanni grabbed the girl's hands and began tickling her. "How dare you do that to your father!" The two laughed together for a few moments before Giovanni gave Fia a serious look. "I'm serious, amore."

"I'm not sure what you mean," Fia admitted with a sweat drop. "Sure, he picks on me a lot and you'll usually only ever find me annoyed if he's been talking to me, but he's helped me out a lot over the last month or so. I feel like I can depend on him when it counts. Karma's a good friend."

Giovanni gently tucked Fia's hair behind her ear. She looked at him curiously. "You keep saying that but, attento, Fia."

"Be careful with what?" she tilted her head, obviously confused.

His eyes softened. "Your heart, Fia. I felt the same way about your mother when we met."


Karma rolled his shoulders as he re-entered the apartment. He walked over to Fia, who was cooking and humming in the kitchen, and poked her cheek.

"Hm?" Fia tilted her head. "Karma?"

He leaned against the counter with a playful grin. "Are all of the members of your family big eaters?"

"Hey!" Fia laughed a little and she blushed, hearing her father's words once again in her mind.

Orange eyes searched olive ones. "What are you thinking about?" Karma asked quietly. "You look lost."

"Eh?" Fia bit her lip and stopped to think. "Well… About a few things, mostly family. Karma, earlier you said that… my dad could take out your parents if he wanted to. What… What are they like?" she inquired tentatively.

Karma looked up at the ceiling and shrugged. "They're hardly around and, even when they are, why would they spend time with me? It doesn't really matter."

Fia tucked her hair behind her ear and turned back to her cooking. "Papi and I were talking about what it's like to lose someone important to death and to be lost to death when you have someone important…" she said slowly. "I never thought about being dead to someone. I hope I never lose have to lose anyone else important to me. Being alone is…"

Karma ruffled the girl's hair. "I know - but don't worry, I'll be here to annoy you for a long time to come~!" he laughed.

"So you admit that you are annoying!" Fia exclaimed in excitement.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Karma laughed as he stole a taste from the sauce Fia had whipped together.

Fia's face flushed. "Hey! Thief!" She began chasing him around with a ladle.


Mio and Mia: We're taking over the comment box!

Fia: Get out!

Mio and Mia: You're here every week. Let us do one!

Fia: 5 lines. You get 5 lines.

Mia: You're so mean!

Fia: 4 lines left...

Mio: This is kind of unfair!

Fia: 3 lines -

Mia: (interrupting) FIA'S A DOUBLE D!

Fia: 2 lines - HEY!

Mio: Actually, her exact measurements are - (starts reading Florence's notes)

Fia: (slapping a hand over Mio's mouth) 1 line!

Mio and Mia: You suck! (runs away)

Fia: Get back here!

Gio: Next time, I'll get what's coming to me! I'll take over the world!

Lupe: Not if I beat you to it!

Nagisa: Weren't you two supposed to be allies?

Lupe: Will you be my prince?

Nagisa: N-no thank you.

Lupe: I'll marry the pure, white one. Where did he go?

Florence: Would you all just behave yourselves?!

All: (Bowing down) We love you, mother!

Florence: Fia, have you been keeping up with your dancing and singing?

Fia: N-not in p-particular…

Florence: And why not?

Fia: I-It's embarrassing! H-how could someone with your level of confidence p-possibly understand?

Giovanni: Don't question your mother, Fia.

Fia: But you do it all the time! We get it from you, you know… (huffs)

Giovanni: Right, don't tell your mother and I'll buy you some creamy gelato~

Fia: Really?! (eyes sparkle)

Fia and Giovanni: (Tries to creep away)

Florence: Where do you two think you are going?

Giovanni: Nowhere in particular, mi amore~

Fia: Look, Guchi!

Florence: Where? (turns to look)

Giovanni and Fia: (Sprints away)

Florence: They ran away! After them!

Mio and Mia: (grabs a road roller and a bulldozer, laughing maniacally)

Lupe: (kicks Gio over and hops onto his back) GIDDY UP, HORSEY!

Karma: (lazily enters) Narrator, you gonna start the preview or what?

Narrator: Nah, this is much more entertaining.

Karma: (pulls a knife) I'm not in the mood today to mess around.

Narrator: (Sweatdrops) In the next chapter, someone hits the big 20!

Haven: I don't see the appeal in celebrating one's birthday. One's worth is not gauged by one's age and quite frankly, it gets more and more depressing to celebrate the older you get.

Fia: (sulks back, having been caught) If we're not going to celebrate, can we at least have Gelato…? (watches kids attempt to subdue Giovanni while he rampages like Godzilla, yelling "GELATO!" like a madman)

Narrator: Who said anything about not celebrating?