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As we piled into Suho's car after the ritual, my mind was racing with questions. When would I start school? Could I finally get an education? What did my dreams mean? The only thing I didn't question was whether my coven trusted me and wanted me here. The moment we all connected was the moment I could feel how they felt about me. And despite my fear, it was nothing but trust, happiness and even something like love that I felt from them, if my mind wasn't playing tricks on me. Now that I have a new family, I'm not immediately filled with fear, but with hope. Hope that everything will be resolved somehow.

"So, you're a Warden? Why didn't you mention it before?" Suho asked, breaking the silence. Only then did I realise that we were already on our way home. The word 'home' felt strange, even in my head. Strange, but still wonderful.

"Well, first of all, we haven't talked much, so it would have been difficult to introduce myself to you. Besides, I didn't want you all to look at me differently as soon as you found out who I really was." I replied, trying to keep my thoughts from overwhelming me. It was somehow surreal to have a normal conversation with Suho after all the fights we had.

It was a quiet day, and the sun was beginning to rise. I couldn't help but wonder how much time had passed while we were in the forest. It felt like only minutes.

Suho just hummed in response, concentrating on the road ahead. Strangely, I felt an unexpected sense of calm, as if all my fears had evaporated the moment Suho resumed driving. It is still very difficult for me to understand when our emotions are intertwined and when it is just me, but Lys said that after some time I will be able to immediately recognise when I am sharing emotions or connecting with someone and with whom.

I opened the window slightly to let in a cool breeze. Then I closed my eyes and relaxed, tuning in to the harmonious morning symphony of birds and rustling leaves in the forest, inhaling the scent of wet grass and wood.

"Francis, I'm really looking forward to having you at our school. This will be your first time at a public school, right?" Anna's voice gently prodded, and I responded with a hum. The ceremony had utterly drained my energy, and I felt so exhausted that I could—

"Francis? Francis!? Wake up!" someone called, shaking me awake. I opened my eyes and slowly realised that I was back in the mansion, in my own bed. Anna was beside me, urging me to get up.

"Yes, yes, I'm awake. How did I get here?" I asked, scanning the room to confirm that I was back in my new quarters. Sunlight streamed in through the windows and my bag was in its usual place.

"Oh, Suho picked you up from your seat and brought you to your room," Anna informed me as she stood up and opened the curtains. The warm sunlight flooded the room and I had to shield my eyes with my hand. Still, the soothing rays brushing my skin felt welcome.

"I thought he despised me. I expected him to wake me up in the car with a comment like, 'Get up, you lazy bitch,'" I snickered, trying to adjust to the light.

"Trust me, he's not so terrible. Now that you're officially a member of our coven, he'll show you that he cares about you too. He genuinely cares for every member of the coven, even those he initially dislikes. Robert and Suho, for example, hated each other at first. It was probably even worse than what you had to experience. Anna explained with a cheerful smile as I got up and headed for the bathroom.

"Really? Why were they fighting? They seem pretty close now," I asked as I started to wash my face.

"Oh, Suho used to be quite a jerk. He was mean to almost everyone and most of us avoided him because of his passive-aggressive comments. Fortunately, when Robert joined our coven, he'd had enough of his nonsense and confronted him about his behaviour. Their argument lasted a month, took three hours of private conversation and a hug to resolve. After their argument, Suho started taking care of all of us as if we were his own children, taking responsibility for every little problem we had," Anna explained.

"Wow, I never thought of Suho as the hugging type," I chuckled, toothpaste still in my mouth.

"Yes, I was also shocked when Robert told me the story. Suho denied everything, of course, but we all know who to trust with such information. So don't worry about Suho, in due time he will really care about you and, well, you can see he's already started or rather feel," Anna hinted, her eyes flicking towards the bed.

"I'm still not that good at sensing other people's emotions, but I'll take your word for it, I guess," I replied, spitting out the toothpaste.

" "I'll go down and wait for you in the dining room. Lys wants to talk to you," Anna announced before leaving my room. Once again I was enveloped in silence, with only the gentle chirping of birds outside to fill the void. I looked down at my clothes and sighed - a white t-shirt and blue jeans. I desperately needed new ones; this was the last pair I had.

Moments later, I left my room, stealing a quick look at myself in the mirror. As I walked down the stairs, I could already hear the bustle from the dining room.

"Adam, be patient. Francis will be here any minute," Anna pleaded, her voice full of weariness.

"Yes, yes. I hope he hurries. The shops close in five hours and it takes time to get into town," Adam replied hurriedly. I entered the dining room to find Anna and Adam waiting for me, one more impatient than the other. Before I could greet them, Lys entered the room.

"Francis, you can go shopping with Anna and Adam for now. Just know that your magical lessons begin tomorrow," Lys conveyed to me and the others. We all nodded in acknowledgment.

"Good morning, I hope you are well?" Adam came over and hugged me. I was a little startled, but hugged him back anyway. How could I not when he was almost sprinting towards me, like a puppy who'd finally seen his owner.

"Morning. Yeah, I feel great, sleep does wonders for you." I chuckled.

"Great, that means we can go shopping!" Anna replied, taking my hand and pulling me away from a confused Adam.

"Wait for me!" Adam ran after us.

With everything settled, we left the villa and got into my car. To my annoyance, Adam insisted on driving, saying, "You don't even know your way around. After some back and forth I had to give in, although I was beginning to feel that my time with these two was becoming a form of torture as I watched them argue over the smallest of things.

Sitting in the passenger seat, I looked out the window at the picturesque scenery. I was in awe of the fusion of history and modernity in Strasbourg, where modern architecture coexisted in harmony with medieval structures and the most advanced technology. It was somehow unreal to see a medieval city well next to a modern glass building.

"So you actually took your clothes off in front of the whole coven?" Adam asked after a moment of silence. I turned to him and giggled.

"Yeah, pretty much the whole coven. Ailee and Eryk weren't allowed to be there because of their age, but the rest were there," I replied. He hummed and seemed to be deep in thought. When he finally came out of his deep thoughts, he asked Anna a question.

"Anna, did you really see everything, even his... um, 'little man'?" Anna laughed at his question and the confusion in his voice.

"Yes, we saw everything, but believe me, when the ritual began, our attention was elsewhere," she explained. I waited for Adam's response, anticipating his reaction.

"Yeah... right," Adam commented as he turned into another street.

"Why are you so interested in whether everyone has seen my penis? Do you want to see it too?" I joked, giving him a funny look.

As soon as the sentence came out of my mouth, his ears went red and he gave me a shocked look.

"Of course not! That would be weird! I just can't believe it's all true, OK?" he insisted as Anna and I started to laugh and after some more teasing we relaxed, and I turned my attention to the passing scenery outside. A few minutes later we parked the car and got out.

The torture begins.

" It was fun dressing you up, Francis. I know Jess will be furious with me for not letting her in on our shopping adventure, but she's off to Italy today to meet another coven," Anna remarked as we enjoyed our ice cream. We were sitting outside a cafe enjoying some rest after a strenuous three hours of shopping. It had been quite exhausting, especially with two people choosing completely different clothes for me.

I sighed and looked around, enjoying the day and my chocolate ice cream. Anna had also chosen chocolate, while Adam had opted for stracciatella.

"Why does she have to go to Italy?" Adam asked, sounding somewhat annoyed by Anna's explanation.

"The European covens have a cooperation agreement. It's like a partnership. When the Italian Coven of da Vinci asked for help, every European Coven that could send members did. For us it was Jess, Lucas and Robert," Anna explained. I nodded in agreement.

In my previous coven, we had sent aid and interacted with other covens too, thanks to the pact.

"So, you're telling me there's some kind of European coven alliance or something?" Adam inquired, sounding even more confused. I looked at Anna and signalled that I would explain.

"Well, sort of. Our alliance is more complicated. We function like the European Union if it helps you, with laws that each coven must abide by. Our high witches and wizards meet annually for the Great Gathering, where we amend laws, make new ones, perform rituals, and even deal with global crises involving magic or supernatural beings. What makes it unique is that every decade we celebrate the 'Blue Moon'. During this celebration, every European coven and some from other regions gather with their entire membership. It's also during the 'Blue Moon' that the Listener is found. When a Listener is identified, they gain complete authority over all the covens in the Alliance. The Listener holds the highest position and enjoys many privileges," I explained, summarising the crucial aspects of our pact.

"OK, but still, werewolves wouldn't willingly give so much power to non-pack members, and especially not to one person," Adam noted, furrowing his brows.

"Yes, I understand the werewolves' point of view, but for witches, unity is vital. It's a source of strength that allows us to perform significant rituals with ease. Having a hierarchy ensures that everyone knows their roles and responsibilities. And for the Listener, you need to know that we don't find them very often. We look for them every Blue Moon, but normally a Listener only appears once every hundred years or so. And Listeners are given so much power because they are literally the direct line to the Universe itself, able to hear its voice, as the name suggests. That's why witches are so willing to give so much power to one person, because they are linked to the source of all our magic itself. Besides, this pact has existed since the time of the pharaohs," Anna added.

"All right, can we stop discussing all this boring stuff and get to the point?" Adam suggested.

"And what exactly is 'the point'?" I asked, only to see Adam's cheeky grin.

"When are you coming to school?" he asked with a mischievous smile. My own smile promptly faded. What a way to kill the mood. Dont get me wrong I am happy that I can finally go to a normal school, but school is still school. Besides, I could already see the upcoming drama approaching me like a horde of zombies.

"Yes! I can't wait for you to come to our school. It'll be so much fun. You know, Suho goes to a university nearby, so we can all get together during breaks," Anna chimed in with an excited smile, almost jumping out of her chair in excitement, which ended with her ice cream splattering on the floor next to her.

"Oh no! Not my ice cream!" Anna cried in despair.

Oh God, I think I'm going to have a mental breakdown, stuck at school with these two. With a heavy sigh, I got up, collected my bags of new clothes and headed for my car.

"Hey! Francis! Where are you going?" Adam and Anna shouted in unison as they ran after me.