“
Alyssa this is yours and Marc
’
s home and before we go in, we need to do a traditional blessing ritual.
”
I think my mouth fell to the ground. I
look up
to the house in disbelief and then back at
Dad
. Letting me know that this is reality I feel Marc gently squeeze my hand.
Bubbling with elation I turn to my dad grinning,
“
So, does this mean your kicking me out?
”
My dad grins back and strolls over to my mom,
“
Remember that wine I brought back from
Italy
, well, we will be breaking it out when we get home.
”
Mom laughs and they kiss, and I mean they kiss, to the point that Marc and I want to tell them to
g
et a room
,
but then I remember the kitchen at my house earlier and laugh at my thought. I would not have my parents any other way.
I think that they forgot about us for a moment and then my father clears his throat and continues with,
“
Now then, shall we, um, bless this house
.”
He leads us all towards the front of the house. Marc places his hand on my lower back, over the crescent mark, and I instantly feel the bond of our connection.
Walking up to the main entrance,
Dad
turns to me,
“
Your mother and I have already performed the cleansing ritual.
”
Placing his hands on the main doors he begins to chant,
“
Tout, tout, tout, within and without,
all
negativity get out, get out, get out.
”
Mom
holds a small wooden bowl with a blend
of rue
, vervain, valerian, and crushes them further dropping the herbs into my fathers open palms. Dad adds these herbs to another mixture, and faintly I hear him whispering a blessing. His eyes close for a moment and I know he is visualizing the energy in the herbs as he requests their power in keeping this home safe.
Dad hands me the herbs in the bowl. Mom hands Marc a clear glass pitcher with salt water in it and I begin to sprinkle the herbs as Marc pours the water in the same way, tracing my steps. We make a protective barrier around our house. This ritual provides a complete circle of protection for us and our home. I continue until I come back full circle. Going to the front of the house,
Dad
hands
Marc half of a profilerum.
“
Marc, take this and dig a small hole in the ground, right here in front. Place half facing the house and cover it up.
”
With that step complete we walk to the back. Marc makes another small hole and this time I kneel down and bury the other half of the profilerum, making sure
it
faces towards the house.
Turning to Marc, I start to explain,
“
The reason we make sure the two halves face each other, is
to form
a line between the two that will only permit those who belong here, or who we may inv
ite
into our home.
”
“
Now
let
’
s
go inside and
finish the blessing,
”
Dad says as we walk back to the front. As I walk in, I really look around taking in our new home. The calamander flooring is a slightly dark
er
wood with golden streaks, and the main rooms have this great open feeling with the entire front and back of the house made of glass. I
can
just look out and right there are the woods. It
’
s so beautiful, I move from one room to the other when I hear my dad commenting from the kitchen.
“
We had all new appliances delivered
in.
”
My mom sidles up next to
me
and queries,
“
So, how do you like it?
”
I turn, hugging her
with every once of strength I have and reply
,
“
Like
,
is not the word I
’
m looking for,
it
’
s
absolutely perfect.
”
“
Monica and I brought the furniture here
,
and if there is something you would li
ke to exchange just let me know,
”
Dad states
to Marc.
“
I think it
’
s great, now, what
’
s going to be fun is to see how long it takes for my parents to figure out I
’
m not living there anymore,
”
Marc says
with a gloating smile
.
“
Marc,
you
can
’
t move in here with Alyssa, it
’
s against the witch law,
”
Dad counters back humorlessly
.
“
Wh
-- Wh
at? Are you serious?
”
Marc stammers out shocked
.
“
Dad, stop teasing Marc
,
”
I yell
over
to them.
Once
I step into the kitchen I find
Dad
has his arm casually over Marc
’
s shoulder. As if they have just shared a secret, they both watch me expectantly.
After
my dad clears
his throat and rubbing his hands together like a plan had played out perfectly,
“
Ok
ay
, well then, shall we finish the blessing, so you two can have some time to enjoy your new
home?
”
My mother hands us all a white candle and
Dad
waits
for
Mom
to pick up hers. He stands in front of us and simply snaps his fingers
once
, and everyone
’
s candle flickers with fire at the exact same time. We begin walking through all the rooms as my mother sprinkles ritual salt throughout.
His chant seems to make our candles burn brighter as each word stirs in the spellbinding air,
“
By the grace of our lord and thy lady, through my will, and power, this dwelling is now blessed and protected. May all within share in this blessing and be
protected. So m
ote
i
t
b
e
.”
We
s
ay
together,
“
S
o
m
ote
i
t
b
e.
”
Dad gathers the extinguished candles and Marc helps him take a few things downstairs, I start to follow when I feel a slight tug on
the hem of
my shirt from
Mom
.
“
Come, I want to show you the different color palettes for the
bedrooms, and the bathrooms.
”
I
’
m grateful that my mother took the time, which I knew she loved to do, decorating the house exquisitely. I also realize she wants to give Marc and my dad time to talk alone together. After we finish the tour of all eight color coordinated bedrooms and four baths, we start walking back downstairs,
and
Mom
reaches out for my
hand and gives a loving squeeze.
“
You have found your
lifemate
Alyssa,
and cherish
him just as much as he cherishes you.
”
Over my mother
’
s laughter, entering the living room, I can hear my father telling Marc,
“
I
’
m glad that you were there, I
’
ll have someone come pick up her car tomorrow and
I’ll
have it fixed within the next few days.
”
Walk
ing up to my father and drape
my arms around him.
“
So? What else should we find out about the Dela Dante
’
s father?
”
He gives out a good hearty laugh and rubs his
chin in thought as if he debating
a serious matter.
Marc
rises
his hands up in a surrender type motion,
“
I
’
ll tell you everything I know, okay?
”
Now
Dad
and I both laugh.
“
I suppose you have a Dela Dante for a son.
”
“
I suppose so.
”
He
k
iss
es
me on the top of my head.
My parents decide to leave and call it a night. Marc closes the doors
and confides,
“
Daniel and Monica are two of the most amazing parents I have ever m
et, Alyss.
”
I smile at the compli
ment he gives my mom and
Dad
. It
’
s getting late, but Marc wants to fix a snack before we check out the bedroom. I begin scrutinizing as I watch him move about the kitchen withou
t any hesitation and then I ask,
“
You knew all along, didn
’
t you? You
’
ve been here before.
”
He stops right in the m
iddle of making his sandwich,
looks up at me with a
sly, quick grin
and says,
“
Alyssa, let
’
s just say your father made it very clear not to spoil the surprise for you.
”
“
You could
’
ve given me a little hint, couldn
’
t you?
”
I
tease
wink
ing
back,
and nibble
on my lower lip.
He takes a drink of water, spins the cap back on and adds,
“
Your father is pretty persuasive.
”
I jump up, sitting on the counter beside him and cross my legs.
“
Am I as persuasive?
”
I press him
d
rumming my nails against the marble top.
“
I don
’
t know for sure, maybe you should show me how persuasive you can be?
”
Game on
, I think.
“
Let
’
s
play a little game, shall we?
”
As the last syllable leaves my lips I shift off the counter as fast as I can to the next room. My form materializes and I slip out of my shirt quickly, dropping it to the floor
, then
call out seductively,
“
Marco?
”
I twirl around and shift to another area. I
’
m concentrating on shifting as fast as I can because I know Marc will be on me in a heartbeat. I shift into one of the bedrooms and shimmy out of my
jeans as
fast as I can, then again
I
yell,
“
Marco?
”
I am now only wearing my red silk bra and lace panties. I can almost feel Marc
’
s essence; he is so close,
too close
.
I shift back down to the kitchen and
take off my bra, letting it descend
to the floor, yelling once again,
“
Marco?
”
This time I feel a light touch from him. I
’
m not sure if I am going to make it to the bedroom, which is my next destination. I feel his mist swirling with
in
mine, and then
vanish
. I realize that he has to be
touching me to shift with me. Fi
nally
, I
make it to the master bedroom and land on
the bed, shimmy
off my panties and start to yell again,
“
Marco
?
”
I feel Marc
’
s mist form on top of me as he whispers into my ear…
“
Polo
.
”
I hug him tightly and start kissing his irresistible lips. The rest of the night we spend in a state of unimaginable bliss as we make love over and over.