Luka's eyes follow every of Himawari's actions, she seems to be…scared of him or maybe it's just his illusion? But currently, the girl is trying to avoid him? He frowns, the usual calm expression has finally shown some emotion, and Juleka, his sister, notices this side of him immediately. She looks at Himawari and then back at her brother, who is staring at the poor girl intensively, eyes shining brightly as if she just discovered something interesting...

Juleka has thought that her brother likes Marinette but that doesn't seem to be the case here…

"Auntie!" Himawari walks to the living room "Dinner is ready!"

"Ah, thank you, sweet pea! Come now Mrs. Couffaine, you must be hungry."

Invites Mrs. Couffaine to sit down, she grabs two glasses and a bottle of red wine while assigning the kids to have juice and pour one for her guest. Himawari sits near her aunt, only to be startled by a figure who plops down next to her.

Oh…this is not going well…

Luka sits next to her, clearly trying his best to stay calm and collected while his sister sits on the opposite chair. Mrs. Couffaine looks at her children, surprised to see how the seats are planned out. She turns her gaze to Himawari, who is focusing on putting the entre on each plate but when she turns to Luka, the poor girl freezes as she can feel a cold aura surrounding her.

"Luka, enough…"

The raven head looks at Mrs. Couffaine, wondering if she really sees through what's going on because the guy next to her is now fixing his gaze on something else rather than just staring at her. Well, at least she gets out of the weird situation…

"Oh, I forgot about the apple pie!"

She puts down the tong and runs to the oven, signing in relief as her pie hasn't been burnt in the oven. Taking out the pie, she left it on the cooling tray before returning back to the table. Her aunt looks at her, smiling in approval of how the food has been plated on the table. Japanese are very serious about being a host of an event, a party, or even just a small thing like hosting a dinner. They want the guests to feel the best and it seems like Himawari has succeeded in this because of how enjoyable the Couffaine family is when eating the food she makes.

"Oh my, you cook all of this, my dear?" Mrs. Couffaine asks "My god, the man who married her will be the luckiest guy."

Himawari blushes heavily at the compliment, glancing at Juleka who is clearly enjoying the food then at Luka. Even at the dining table, his etiquettes are still very calm and polite, which makes the raven head quite disappointed as she wants to know whether or not he likes her food. Cecile grins and talks about how her niece is the best when it comes to cooking, following up with Mrs. Couffaine's praises which makes Himawari smiles a bit.

At least most of them like her food…

After finishing the main course, Himawari brings out the pie that she has spent more time than ever to make. The aroma is nice with a hint of spice along with the apples that have been cooked through in the oven. Sharing the pie at the dining table is one of the best experiences everyone can have, that's what she's learned from her mother back in Japan as she always bakes an apple pie each and every month of the year. Himawari obviously picks up this habit from her mother, she did live in Japan with her parents for almost 15 years after all.

"My god…" Mrs. Couffaine smiles as the sweet and sour taste of the apple pie blend so well together "Cecile, your niece will become a fine cook one day."

"Oh, you don't have to say that, Mrs. Couffaine." her aunt looks at her "Himawari, what do you say?"

"Thank you, Mrs. Couffaine!"

The praises and compliments are nice, but she wants to know the opinion of Luka Couffaine. He has been quiet since dinner which makes her feel a bit uncomfortable at the sudden change of the atmosphere around them. Juleka quietly observes the pairs, mainly Himawari's attitudes toward her brother and smiles to herself. It seems like Marinette is not the only option for Luka after all…

Cecile's phone rings as she apologizes and looks at the ID of the caller, grinning widely, she turns to Himawari and gives her the phone.

"It's your parents!"

"Oh, really?" she beams upon hearing her family call and picks up immediately "Hello? It's very late in Japan and you guys haven't slept?"

She leaves the table to find a comfortable seat to talk to her parents, they've been eagerly waiting to listen to her first week at school. The blonde woman smiles as Himawari leaves the dining space to spend time with her parents while Mrs. Couffaine questions about her life before moving to France.

Himawari smiles at the phone, her parents aren't able to sleep so they decide to call her, they want to know their daughter's first week at school and whether or not she's having any trouble. Being the first of her three siblings to study abroad, her parents are both very worried about her well-being, especially after Cecile reviewed that their daughter has been avoiding meals altogether due to homesickness.

It's a hard decision but her mother really wants her to study in France, believing that it'll be the best for her daughter. Himawari understands why, in a male-dominated society like Japan, she has to work harder to achieve her goal and if she ever decided to return to Japan, her French background might get her some advantages when it comes to job-seeking. Every parent wants the best for their child, there's no doubt about it. But to Himawari, she feels like she's being trapped in her mother's vision and wishes nothing more than to break free from it. She's glad that her parents, especially her mother, care about her future like that but forcing her to leave everything behind to start a new life in France is complete nonsense.

"Himawari, are you still angry at me?" said the blonde woman in the softest tone "I'm very sorry for doing this to you, honey…"

"If you know that I don't like it, then you should never have done it in the first place." she mumbles "I know that you want the best for me, but please, at least let me know rather than put me in this kind of situation."

Himawari is angry at her mom, the more she thinks about everything she has to sacrifice for her mother's vision, the angrier she becomes. Cecile has tried to consult with her, admitting that what her sister had done was wrong but at the same time, she's willing to be the 'antagonist' in Himawari's life so that she can have the best of the best.

"I've told you that I never want any of this, but you just never listen…" the raven head bites her lips "Why don't you understand that I never want to come here? That I want to be with my family? That I want to have that beautiful youth experience in my home country?"

Through the phone screen, her mother sighs and lowers her head in shame, wondering if her daughter will ever forgive her for doing such things to her.

"Do you know how hard it was for me? To be here all by myself? Even if I live with Cecile, I still want to be with my parents and my brothers, I want to feel our family bonds, I want to go home…"

"Himawari…" her mother looks at her, eyes filling with tears "I'm very sorry…"

Seeing her mother's tearful face is the last straw for her as Himawari breaks down and cries. She cries out loud, not caring if there are guests in the other room. The raven head needs to let all of her negative feelings out, she wants to let her mother knows how upset she is because she's been hiding all of this for too long. Tears stream down her eyes as her mother is also sobbing on the other side of the phone, Himawari lets herself be vulnerable in front of her parents, a clear statement that she's clearly very upset at their decision.

Her father sighs as he tries to bridge back their soon-to-be broken relationship. The mother-daughter bond between Himawari and her mother is very strong, he believes that even if his wife has done a bad thing to their child, the raven head will always accept her apologies but this time…this time is a whole different story… He knows that his wife will never forgive herself if Himawari decides to never speak to her again, that's why he advises her to call their daughter, to let her know how sorry she was for forcing the raven head into this mess. Even if Himawari is their eldest child, she's at a very vulnerable age and a small negative action can leave a scar on her heart.

"I'm very sorry, Himawari…" her mother sobs "I want the best for you but I was wrong…I was wrong for never stopping and considering your feelings…"

Cecile walks out to the living room with the Couffaine family after finishing all the clean-up, Mrs. Couffaine looks at the scene and turns to the young woman, asking whether or not they should intervene. The blonde woman sighs and walks up to Himawari, who is curling on the sofa, sits down and pulls her niece into her arms. The Couffaine family sits on the other seats, with Luka plopping down on Himawari's other side.

"My dear, why are you crying like that?"

"Cecile…"

"Auntie…"

Himawari doesn't mind if Mrs. Couffaine and her children see her in such a miserable state, right now, she's having a mother-daughter bonding experience and no one can stop her from doing what she wants. Cecile smiles and tightens her arms, looking at her sister to reassure her that she can handle this.

"Himawari, look at you, baby girl…" she pulls out the tissue and wipes her tears "You're having fun crying with your mom? Jeez, didn't I tell you that you're not beautiful when you cry?"

She holds onto her aunt, and steals a glance at her mother who is wiping her face with tissue paper. A guilty feeling spread out inside her heart as Himawari realizes that she just made her mother cry and she finds it horrible. No matter how much she hates her mother for doing this, the raven head never wants to be the reason for her mother to shed a tear. She might act all upset and angry, but she still loves her parents, nonetheless.

"Mommy…I'm sorry…"

The blonde woman looks at the screen and covers her mouth to stop the small gasp from escaping her lips. Her daughter, sweet Himawari, is sitting straight with her head hanging low and forefingers are twiddling each other, a sign of asking for forgiveness.

Luka, who is silenced the whole time, witnesses the scene and he finds it adorable. It's hard to find such a mother-daughter scene like this in Paris, often time people just say sorry and that's it. With Himawari, she's clearly asking for forgiveness from her parents, even though it's their fault for doing this in the first place. The young boy smiles, he had heard her complaints while sitting in the dining room, she was very vocal about what she liked and doesn't like. But right now, looking at Himawari's shy reaction when she sees her mother's tears, he realizes that she has a very soft spot for her mother and wishes nothing more than to make her happy.

"You're just so adorable, my dear!" Cecile hugs her and squeals.

She covers her face with both hands, blushing at the compliment. Peaking through her fingers, Himawari sees her mother smile as she brings touches her lips with her fingertips then presses them at the screen, a kiss from a mother to her daughter.

"It's late, dear sister. You should go to sleep."

"Yeah, I will." looking at her daughter one last time "Good night, sweet one. I'll talk to you later."

"Good night…"

Turning off the phone, Himawari buries her face in Cecile's chest, an action that she used to do with her mom back in Japan. Her aunt smiles and pats her back gently, separate from the family at such a young age gives the raven head a lot of anxiety and self-doubted. She understands the feeling very well because she had gone through the same experience, the only difference was that she was willing to go while Himawari was forced to go. It's hard for her, to go through all of this by herself. Even with Cecile right next to her, there are things that she can not share with anyone but her mother.

Luka looks at her, sighing. Soft and gentle Himawari, the girl who never talks back to anyone and always keeps a smile on her face yet this is the first time he sees how vulnerable Himawari is. It can't help when she has to separate from her family at such a young age, finding her way to adapt to the new life in Paris. She's like Juleka, his sister, always keeping everything to herself and as quiet as a mouse. At least in his sister's case, she can still rely on him for words of advice but Himawari…well…she has no one but herself…

"Feeling better?"

"…"

"You want to go to bed?"

No response…

Cecile checks her niece, only to see the peaceful sleeping face of Himawari. Crying so hard then falling asleep, how ladylike…

The blonde woman shakes her head, trying to gather her niece in a firm hold to get the girl to her bedroom. Mrs. Couffaine looks at Cecile then turns her attention to her son, sending some silent signals. Luke glances at his mother, stands up and opens his arms as an offer to carries the sleeping girl to her room. Cecile smiles at the young boy, it's better for him to do this because she can not carry her niece all the way to the bed without waking her up.

"Let me help you."

Luka scoops the small body into his arms and carries her as if she weighs nothing.

"Her bedroom is upstairs, the second door to the right." said Cecile as she kisses his cheek "Thank you, dear."

He smiles and starts walking upstairs, ignoring the eyes that are glued to his back. Looking down at the sleeping girl in his arms, he remembers that one time when he did the same thing with Marinette, lifting the girl up on air when they were skating with Adrien and his friend, Kagami. That time, Marinette commented on how strong he was and he just gave her a smile as a thank you. It's not hard and he even saw Adrien at one point easily carry the bluenette without any complaints, but Marinette's compliment did flatter him a lot.

The second door to the right…

Spot it…Her name is written on a sunflower-decorated door plate.

Gently opening the door, Luka carries hers into the room and lays the small figure on the soft bed. Himawari immediately turns her back to him and spreads her arms to hold the stuffed bunny on the bed. Take a brief look at her bedroom, he fixes his gaze on the picture frames that she has put around the room.

A family photo with her, her parents, and 2 younger male siblings.

A photo of her in her school uniform, standing in front of the school gate with her parents.

A photo of her wearing a yukata, enjoying the summer festival.

A photo of her hanging out with her friends at the school's culture festival.

A photo of her holding out a 1st place flag with her whole class at the school's sports festival.

It seems like Himawari is willing to put every part of her memories in a frame and displays them around the room. He looks at the 2 large bookshelves that store many of her mangas and books, her main source of inspiration for drawing. Aqua eyes then move to her computer desk, where the drawing book is still open with lots of sketches arts about some characters in the series that she's currently reading.

Taking a closer look at the sketches, Luka smiles to himself. Marinette and Himawari sure have a lot in common, especially when it comes to drawing. While the bluenette focuses on clothing designs, the raven head leans more on doing visual storytelling as he notices a book about phrases and dialogues for stories.

"Uhm…"

Her soft hum surprise Luka as he turns his attention to her, smiling as she is now facing him. The moonlight shines through the window, illuminating her face as she sounds asleep. Stepping closer to Himawari, a warm hand caresses her cheek then moves to her hair to untie her signature blue ribbon, letting the dark onyx locks spread across the pillow.

"Good night, Himawari. Have a sweet dream."