Two Dog Night

Your Blood Is My Blood

Giselle POV

The sun hung high in the sky, warming my skin, as Momma and I lounged on top of the rocks. Squinting against the harsh light, I cupped a hand over my eyes even as Momma's own fingers worked double time to sign her annoyance.

'Gizzy, baby, you have lots of work to do.' Pointing between me and the workbooks spread out in front of us, she raised a brow as if waiting on me to continue working. But it was math and I hated it! 'I know math isn't your favorite- it wasn't mine either- but that doesn't mean you can't do it. We all have to do things we don't want to sometimes, and math is just one of those things.'

Scowling, I grabbed the long ago discarded pencil I'd stuck between the pages of my workbook and began working, though my mind was anywhere but on math. Instead, I watched with keen eyes as Daddy dropped Uncle Milly to the ground; from our place on the rocks, I could look out over the Packs' territory, and had often neglected my schoolwork because I was staring off into space.

'Gizzy,' Momma warned, playfully holding a hand over my eyes in an attempt to get me focused back on my homework, 'Baby, the sooner you get done with this, the faster we can go get ice cream.'

As if I were still some child she could ploy into behaving with ice cream! Scowling, my fingers worked twice as fast as hers as my blood began to heat up. 'I'm not a child anymore, Momma! I won't always do whatever you want, just because you think you can use my love for ice cream against me! I am 17 now, for goddess' sakes!'

'As long as you live under my roof, Giselle Eleanora, you will obey me, young lady! I don't care if you're 100 years old, if I tell you to do something, you'd better do it!' Her green eyes blazed angrily as she shoved a finger against the pages of my workbook, her no none sense attitude coming out to play. 'Homework. Now.'

Rolling my eyes, I thumped my pencil against the pages as the list of numbers rolled through my head. None of this made the slightest bit of sense! But, if Momma was right about one thing, it was that the faster I finished my homework, the quicker I could go down the hill and see Daddy. So, finishing math homework, it is!

A whole hour later, I squealed and threw my arms around Momma as she dismissed me with a quick nod of her head. 'I love you, baby, be careful! And come back in time for supper!'

'Love you too, Momma! Of course I'll be back in time for supper! I'm sorry for my attitude earlier...' Pressing a kiss to her cheek, I made my escape before she could keep me there any longer. We might have occasionally had our differences but at the end of the day, she was still my Momma and I still loved and respected her.

As I picked my way down the hill, Uncle Milly looked through the trees towards me with a grin as Daddy finally turned away from their sparring match, a wide grin on his own lips. 'Finally finished math...?!?'

'Finally!' Throwing my arms around his neck, I squealed as he spun me around in tight, almost dizzying circles before setting me back on my feet beside him and Uncle Milly. 'I wish I could just stay down here with you and Uncle Milly all day... I hate math, and Momma isn't exactly the best teacher.'

'I know, little one, I know,' he signed slowly, the slow release of his breath raising the hair on my arms, as he tipped my chin. 'But you have to know math, and your Momma would kill me if I kept you away from it.' Chuckling, he smoothed a hand through my hair with a wink, 'Besides, your Momma is one of the scariest women I've ever seen when she gets too angry or doesn't get her way!'

My giggle was cut short by a squeal as Uncle Milly grabbed me around the waist, spinning me in the same circles that Daddy had. 'Uncle Milly,' I whined playfully, a pout on my lips, 'Put me down!' Once he had, I smacked him on the cheek with a giggle and grabbed Daddy's hand in mine, tugging him after me towards the Pack House. 'Let's go see Noná and Popá!'

~000~

'It's about time your mother let you come see me,' Noná signed, throwing her arms around me as we all paraded into the kitchen to help with supper. At least once a week every week since I'd been born, we'd all get together for a family feast.

And by all of us, I mean all of us: Me and Momma and Daddy, Noná and Popá (Luna and Alex), Bisnonna and Bisnonno (Alex's parents, Allegra and Edmondo), Uncles' Edmondo, Garrett and Antonio, Aunt Mary and Uncle Dino, Uncle Milly and Aunt Vinny, and Aunt Filly.

'I had math all afternoon, Noná, or I would've come to see you,' I signed with a playful roll of my eyes, as Daddy sent me into the dining room loaded down with plates. 'Momma just wouldn't let me get away!'

Playfully flicking a dish towel at Momma in passing, Noná wrapped me tight in her arms with a kiss to my forehead. 'She'll just have to let you go earlier from now on, won't she?!?'

Nodding enthusiastically, I skipped around Daddy as he brought the first dish to the table. 'See, Momma!?! Noná thinks you should let me go early!'

Momma merely raised a brow down at me as she took another dish to the table, growing frustration mirrored in her eyes. 'Noná isn't your teacher, is she?!?'

'Oh, Bella, you leave that poor girl alone! She's suffered enough from an afternoon of math... Let the child sit down and eat, won't you?!?' Grabbing me tight around the waist, Noná led me to the table that was now full of food and surrounded by my family.

As soon as Bisnonna and Bisnonno had filled their plates, the rest of us began to dig in; being part wolf, and respectful of others, a pecking order had long ago been established. The oldest Alfa and Luna- Bisnonno and Bisnonna- got their fill first, then came the next oldest- Nonâ and Popâ- and lastly Momma and Daddy. The rest of us went at it practically like a bunch of children.

"Ow!" Uncle Ant might not have used his fingers to sign his exclamation, but it was obvious what he'd meant. 'Did you seriously just stab me in the hand with a fork!?!'

Like I said, we went at it like children... 'You know how much I love chicken legs, Uncle Ant,' I pouted, giving him the look that was so famous for getting me out of trouble- with Daddy, at least. 'Please, Uncle Ant?!?'

Huffing, he practically threw the chicken leg onto my plate even as his eyes shone playfully. Grinning, I skipped around to where he sat and threw my arms around his neck. 'Thank you, Uncle Ant!'

'And you resist this child how exactly?!?' Raising a brow between me and Momma, he smirked and blew me a playful kiss across the table. 'Is it because she looks so much like her father?!?'

Scowling, I launched a spoonful of mashed potatoes through the air to launch in a heap on his plate. 'You're just jealous 'cause you're not near as handsome as my Daddy!'

Sometimes my family drove me crazy, but I wouldn't trade them for anything or anyone else in the world. They were my family, after all. All of their blood was all of my blood.