So, this is working off of Itisha's parents meeting and all. Of during the short time Itisha and Ash had been dating, Itisha took Ash to meet her mother. Because well, it is her Mom and she wants them to meet.

Enjoy and thank you for reading! :)

"I face nightmares, monsters, demons, and everything else and meeting your mother is what scares me." Ash admits as he runs his fingers through his hair.

"Given who your mom is, I really am surprised about that." Itisha checked over the kitchen again and the notes she left for Alexion and Danger. They were good with the kids, and Simi would definitely enjoy playing with them all.

"Not really fair that you knew mine first before you met me." He pointed out with a bit of a smile. Watching her busy body about the room. The red and gold dress she wore danced and swayed around her as she fussed.

"I mean if you looked at the sky, you kind of knew her. She is from the constellation Draco. So everyone has seen her. Well, anyone who lives in the right place to see it."

"This is not entirely comforting to me."

"Why not?"

"Because while I am a fierce badass and can wipe the floor with a lot of people, pretty sure you could kick my ass into a wall if you really wanted to. Angry mothers tend to get protective over their kids, your mom would probably hand me my ass if I hurt you."

"I think that was a compliment to my fighting prowess, so I will take that one. Don't worry, if Mom didn't kill cousin Ren when I was a kid, she isn't going to kill you."

"Ren is your cousin? Wait... you know Ren?"

"Well, sort of my cousin. I call his mom Aunt Sterope. My mom and her were friends and like sisters so she doted on me a lot. I try to carry messages and gifts back and forth when I am able. Flying all the way out there is insanely exhausting. I can see why mom taxi's via comet."

"I have this horrible feeling that the song It's A Small World will be stuck in my head for centuries."

"Oh good, I was wondering if I thought it hard enough if you would hear it."

"Well stop thinking the song so hard. My brain is trying to make a verse in Atlantean."

"Oooooh, i want to hear you sing it. I'll totally sing a verse in Celestial Dragon. Oh and demon. Wait, I need to get a book on all the really old languages. We must make a historical version of this song! Zarek can help sing it!"

"I changed my mind. Meeting your mother is less terrifying that that idea." Ash laughed though as her eyes sparkled. He held his arm out to her when she assured herself everything was fine. It was early morning, so the kids were asleep for now. They would be heading off to school soon. Last day was coming up. Itisha focused. She had been tracking the comet with a telescope for a while. Wanted to do this right. Thank the gods that Ash was a god or this would fail badly. Hugging his arm closer to her, she ported them. A flash from her kitchen and soon they were standing somewhere much darker. The tail of the comet offered light to their surroundings.

"Yay! I did it!"

Ash blinked as they stood on the comet that was so very far from Earth. Given how fast the thing moved, it was pretty damn impressive of her aim. If given time to focus on her magic instead of other things, he wondered just how terrifying the woman could have been, "Should I be worried about what would have happened if you failed?" He teased.

Then Ash looked around. Sterope he knew of. Though he blinked at something that shimmered when it moved. It seemed almost an aftereffect that seemed more solid if you didn't look directly at them.

That after effect turned towards them and smiled as soon as dark eyes landed on Itisha. Arms spread as she took several steps forward. A mark shone on dark skin, even if iridescent. A dragon whose head rested on the palm and wrapped up the arm, "Hello, My Heart." She greeted with a croon, wrapping her arms around Itisha. At the touch, she seemed suddenly more solid. As though Itisha helped her linger.

"Hello, Mom." Itisha said with a smile and looked over to Sterope who came over to give a hug as well. A smile as Itisha gave her something and a kiss on her cheek.

"Thank you, little one." A glance towards Ash who suddenly shifted from one foot to another. Did not normally let it bother him, but being studied like that made him feel vulnerable, "You brought a friend?"

"Ah…" Itisha was not sure on the word to use. Boyfriend? Lover? She had a claim on him, but also didn't. He was not really hers to claim but… the look in his eyes made her realize that for now they had a claim on the other. He seemed to always be waiting for someone to just refuse their claim on him, "My heart." She finally explained and then lifted her mother's hand to motion to the mark. He was as much a part of her heart as her kids after all.

Onna's eyes glimmered and she looked to Ash then and smiled. Even moreso as Itisha went over to him and tugged him over to get closer to them. He seemed hesitant, but he relaxed a bit when she laced her fingers with his and snugged against him. He couldn't help but to cuddle her against him a little and kiss the top of her head.

"I was beginning to worry you were going to become a hermit. You adopt children like some people do cats."

"Well I mean, some of the kids are cats, so not too far off the truth." Itisha mused and then added, "Ash is very good with all of the kids though. It is incredibly sweet." And she smiled up at him with adoration showing.

Ash could not breath for a second. She was so very openly… affectionate. With him. Around others they both tried to tone it down a little. In either of their homes they were a lot more snuggly and passionate. In front of her mother, she was just as adoring and he didn't ever expect that. She was just so very happy right at that moment, "I would disagree, but it is very hard to win an argument with her. She logics you to death."

"Logic and my daughter in the same sentence?" Onna asked, brow rising as she laughed. She watched Itisha stick her tongue out at her and she tapped the end of her nose, "I must have finally imparted something on her. Here I thought she got all of her sense from her father. We met because he was trying to catch the comet." She laughed at the memory. "I spooked him so badly he went prone. He wanted to so badly fly among the stars."

"Well, he got to fly with two of them." Sterope mused and then gave a small bow, "I am going to work on a message and gift a while, Itisha. Thank you for the unexpected message. A pleasure to meet you, Ash." Then she vanished to the home on the comet.

"How is Dad?" Itisha asked. Her voice softened.

"He is well. His afterlife is full of stars and planets for him to explore. I am glad the fields allow him to explore his dreams. I imagine when we are both ready to reincarnate, he will be a star."

So, she really was dead. Which made Ash wonder how she was there and interacting with them. He canted his head a little, but gave Itisha a gentle squeeze when he could feel her sadness tugging at her. She missed them. He wondered why Itisha had not mentioned her mother not being among the living.

"Stars can seemingly shine for years after their after burn." Onna said.

That startled Ash and he blinked at her, "What?"

"You had that look. You were wondering how I remain here. The light of a star can shine for many years even after it has gone out, mind you I went out with a bang. Stars are especially easy to reincarnate. The debris do eventually form a new star. I am simply hoping my mate can be reincarnated with me. For now, I am stubbornly remaining. I would prefer my larger form, but I do not wish to exhaust the energy more than I have been." A warm smile shone, "I wish to try and be here for my daughter as much as possible."

"You are very dedicated." Ash said finally, "She is very lucky to have you as her mother."

"Stubborn. I inherited all of her stubborn." Itisha said with a soft smile. Then she added, "But her stubborn is getting used up. I think the last time I see her will be when the comet swings by. I am all big and grown and Dad is going to need her. Especially if he wants to be a star. Someone has to teach him."

"Yes well, have to make sure someone teaches you as well. Which you are learning beautifully. Your aim for teleporting has certainly improved. You actually made it on the comet this time." Onna mused. A sad light in her eyes, but she looked to Ash and studied him, "You entirely inherited your attraction to tall dark men from me. I think if he went any more goth, his skin would be the color of ink."

Ash stared owlishly and he swore he felt a heat creeping over his cheeks and down to his neck.

"Mm no, it is a really pretty blue. Marbly even." Itisha mused, looking up at Ash who just sort of looked like a deer in the headlights.

"Oh really now. You know, my mate had cobalt skin." Onna grinned at him, "Next you will tell me he has horns and wings."

"Well, I mean, he does have horns. I like them. Course I like everything about him so it works."

"I would hope so, else this would be slightly awkward." Ash says in exasperation, though he was smiling. Especially as Itisha giggled a bit and hugged him around he waist.

"In other words we are making him uncomfortable. Which means we ought to stop." Itisha mused softly and nuzzled his chest a bit. Of course the conversation had been more to redirect from the part about her mother finally vanishing. Saying goodbye was always hard, frankly she was not ready to do that quite yet.

"I don't mind. You hadn't told me yet about your dad trying to catch a comet." Ash assured her.

"Or touching the moon." Onna added with a smile.

"Oh yeah." Itisha smiled and then she dug inside of her dress pocket and held up the worn leather strap with two pitted rocks hanging off of it. Gold with a fire opal settled in the divet of the larger rock, "Dad tried to get to the moon when he was a kid. He did it and brought back a rock… and a cold."

Ash blinked and then started laughing, "Well, that explains the tesla coils then." Clearly inherited the insane ideas from her father. And the fact that they worked, "Ah, Onna, you would be glad to know that Itisha is the second moon orbiting Earth. She is a goddess now."

"Well, the smaller moon and a sun. I am a star after all. Fire and all that fun stuff."

"Right, my mistake." He muses.

Onna beamed at them both, "I am happy to hear it. If you two ever figure out how, you should let her haul you around for a tour of space. Should see how excited she gets about Jupiter and Saturn. Not to mention the Andromeda galaxy."

"I think you should see how excited she gets about all of the different food Earth has." Ash offered with amusement. He hugged Itisha a bit more to him before studying her mother. A moment of hesitation before speaking, "Thank you for bringing her to Earth. If you had not, I think the world would be a much darker place without her light." Not just for him, but a lot of people.

"Thank you for taking care of her, Ash. I am very glad you both are there for the other." Onna responds softly. A warm smile showing as she studies her daughter looking off towards the other stars in the distance.

"I think she takes care of me more than I do for her. She mothers at everything." Nagging and all, and he loved her for it. He loved her. It scared him and delighted him. The dragoness tucked in his hold. Though he could see a wistful look in her eyes. When was the last time she had ever been among the stars? Definitely a question for later.

"That one is all her. I don't know if Auzrin and I fussed at her quite as much. First few minutes of Earth and she vanished on us. About gave us heart attacks."

"She is good at that." Ash said absently as he still watched the look she gave towards the stars, "Hey, Tish." He spoke softly to her. One finger gently touching her chin to get her attention.

"Hm?" She looked up at him. Blinking the dazed look from her eyes, "Yes, Ash?"

"Why don't you fly around a bit. I can talk to your mom. I am sure it won't be too hard." Ash smiled at her a little before touching his forehead against hers, "Besides, I haven't seen your full form yet."

She could fly around? Did she even remember how to? Itisha only really flew when the comet came by. Which tended to panic a ton of people seeing a 'shooting star' so she learned to port better. Yet… she could fly up here. Fly out in the large solar system. Show him her full form too.

That was right, she had never gotten to do that yet. Looking at the necklace she held, she moved and looped it around his neck, careful not to touch it, "Hold this for me then, please." A move to then steal a soft little kiss from him and a murmured 'I love you' before she hugged her mom, "Play nice." She warned playfully before starting off at a run for a far more open area. Her form started to glow bright then before she shifted into a massive opal dragon. The horns and spines all looked like carved moon stone. Eyes shone brightly as she looked at Ash. Her massive head moving to gently nuzzle him before she turned and took off. A trail of shimmering light following her as she danced and flew around the comet.

"Beautiful isn't she?" Onna asked, pride in her words, "I see her horns finally came in."

"Very." Ash agreed. A smile showing finally after the shock wore off. He raised a brow. Finally?

"Dragons take a very long time to age. Stars even moreso. Although I think she may become the longest living star with immortality. Her light will forever shine." Provided nothing tried to snuff it out, "As a dragon, she has been a very young adult for a long time I believe. Eternally stuck at the human age of 18 for a while can be exhausting."

Ash snorted laughter and coughed, "Yeah, I can't imagine that at all. Nope. Not at all. At least she can drink without being carded."

Onna raised a brow, "What is being carded? I don't know all of the customs. Except for when Itisha visits." Which was entirely how she knew about the goth thing.

"Ah… in some places you need to be a certain age to drink. I think we froze her just at the age of looking like she can drink legally." He mused. Of course being a god might have boosted the maturity. Though if she was aging that entire time, she looked pretty damn good for her age. Frankly he would not have wanted to go through puberty that long. Ever.

"Ah. Yes well luckily she became an adult a while ago. Just dragons keep maturing for far longer until we get our horns in. Despite being a god, she may keep getting larger. Celestial dragons can get awfully massive. It is just a good thing she is a blend. I nearly set fire to so many things the times I did visit."

"Well, I think the only thing in danger is her baking." Ash smiled. He watched the white streak grow distant but still remain just slightly visible. A bit unnerving, but he had no doubt she would come back.

Onna laughed. Eyes glittering as she watches her daughter soar among the stars, "I do not doubt that at all. It is hard to contain a star. Thank you for encouraging her to fly. I know Auzrin did every second he could when night fell. Her and I stood out too much."

"Well, I know she tries to fly with just her wings. Simi and Xirena enjoy it."

"Oh good, I am glad she has not entirely given up her wings." Onna sounded entirely relieved. There was so much she wished she could show her still. So much of the universe, "I had wanted to teach her so much more." She rubbed her hand against the mark, "If I could have, I would have taken Auzrin with us. Grant his wish and then maybe…" Maybe they could have both stayed with their daughter for a little while longer.

"I think you taught her everything she needed." Ash assures her, "She is fierce and compassionate. Always willing to help people and kick anyone in the head that harms the innocent. She loves so much, I am glad all of those kids found a home with her. Plus Earth has space programs and science. I am sure she loves learning about her other home that way too." He was so going to take her to a space center now.

"She very much loves granting wishes." Onna admits softly. A smile showing as she watches the little white streak dance in the distance, "Please cherish our star. I am always afraid the wrong person will take advantage of her heart and leave her hurting beyond repair."

There was a whisper of Itisha's words in his head. Her reminder that he one day was still destined for someone else. He could not imagine her being right. Not when he wanted to cradle the dragoness to him and love on her. "I will take care of her, Onna. She has a lot of people who care about her."

"Thank you." She smiled and watched the white streak get closer to them and twirl lazily around the comet. A smile at the interesting lines the light created around the comet's tail. A glance towards the house as Sterope walked out of it, "Itisha! Time to come down now, Aunt Sterope has something for you to take home!"

The streak of light turned small and zoomed around like a bauble of light around them all. Stopping to snuggle Sterope and then Ash before forming into a woman again. She looked like she had just run a marathon. Eyes bright and glittering as the rest of her glowed. The red dress she wore swayed around her legs, "That was fun." Nearly panted words. Gods she was out of shape for that.

Onna laughed softly, "I am glad you enjoyed your flight. You should practice more often. I am sure with your porting now, you could feign to be part of a meteor shower. I heard those are quite frequent." A motion towards Sterope and she watched Itisha bound over to her aunt.

Ash smiled as she hugged on her aunt and spoke to her softly, "I am going to meet you back at home, Itisha. I have something I need to do. Take your time with them. I'll make sure the kids are okay." He moved over and gave her a kiss. Hands cupping either side of her face as he did so. Drawing back, he nuzzled her before moving over to Onna and offering his hand so he could kiss the back of it, "Thank you. It was a pleasure meeting you." And then a similar act for Sterope before vanishing.

Itisha had stayed a little bit longer, but then knew she had to get home. A little more conversation with Sterope and Onna had done a lot to make her feel better. Though she felt bad having to leave. She made sure to drop off the gift for Ren before coming home. It was dark when she got home and she realized how much time she had spent out there and how tired she was.

Which made it all the more surprising to see little twinkling lights all over the kitchen. Strings of LED lights blinked slowly in the kitchen. She slowly followed them through to the living room and up the stairs. When she got to the bedroom, she laughed softly at all of the lights in there. The ceiling was decorated heavily in them. As well as some Styrofoam planets that had been painted rather recently. Likely by tiny hands. And sitting on the bed was Ash, looking comfortable in loose pants and a shirt with a box on his lap.

"Trying to give me my own little galaxy?" She mused softly as she crossed the room and planted a kiss on his lips, "It is beautiful."

"Well, I figured you must have been homesick." Ash responded and kissed her back, "The kids were happy to help decorate. They want to turn the whole house space themed now. I managed to keep it to just the room for now."

"I have been. The lights help. Thank you." Itisha kicked off her shoes and moved the mysterious box aside so she could climb onto the bed and onto his lap, "Thank you for coming with me today."

A nuzzle against her and he looked at the box she moved. "Thank you for taking me. I did get you something else." He picked up the box and set it in her lap.

Itisha blinked and carefully took the box and opened it. She very gently lifted a smoothed stone out of it. It certainly was not a blend of anything she had ever seen on Earth before. It spoke of something that echoed space far more. Greys and tans streaked through it as she ran her fingers on it. Nestled in the center was an opal sun. The center of the sun had smoothed cobalt around a fire opal. Not as brilliantly red as her mother's hair, but the colors still meant something. It was a necklace that settled in her hand. Gold intricate chain shimmered in the lights.

Her breath caught on itself as she held the treasure in her hand, "Ash… I…"

"Your favorite planet from this solar system is Pluto, right? I had gotten this part from there." He brushed his fingers over the stone and moved to brush his fingers on the necklace she did wear regularly. A gift from Artemis. Itisha did not always wear it, but he knew it was something treasured. Though one constant was the bangle the dragoness wore of her pearl.

"You got me a piece of Pluto?" Itisha nearly squeaked and stared at him. Then she looked down at her necklace and then looked at him, "It is missing something. It needs lightening bolts." Her voice was a hushed whisper. Her god symbol lacked that bit. The sun set into a circle was her sun and moon. But sometimes it was also a reminder of Ash's father's symbol. "I can carry you with me then."

Ash blinked at her and then smiled at her. A little focus and he ran his fingers over the necklace. Three golden bolts appeared on it, "Better?"

"I love it, Ash." Itisha set it down gently and wrapped him in a tight hug, "Thank you. I love it so much. I am going to wear it all the time." She moved to unhook Artemis' necklace and set it on her end table and motioned towards the new one, "Can you help put it on me?"

Ash couldn't help but grin at her delight and he nodded, helping to latch the necklace on as she held her hair out of the way. It settled over her heart and she played with it before he was bombarded with kisses. It had him laughing.
"I am glad you like it, Itisha. I love you. I figured this way you could have some home with you." Without risking damaging the lunar rock and comet that she treated so gingerly. That he had tucked away safely for her.

"Well, it isn't the only thing that makes me feel at home." Itisha snuggled Ash and gave a tiny yawn, "I have you. And that works for me. I love you Ash. Sadly… I am tired. I am an out of shape old lady."

That made him laugh as he pulled the covers back and shifted to tuck her into the bed, "Well you are nearly as old as I am. We need to get you back into shape. I want to see the Andromeda galaxy after all." Then he kissed the top of her head, "You're home too."

Itisha laughed and then yawned as she held the pendant in her hand and burrowed deeper into the bed, "We will work on that. Good night, Acheron. I have something for Simi and Xirena, so we can give them that tomorrow." She closed her eyes and let sleep claim her.

"Good night, Itisha." He murmured and brushed his fingers over her hair before burrowing down in the covers beside her for a little bit until someone inevitably would need to call him.