I watched my father flinch and close his eyes as I swung my sword at him. But when he opened his eyes and looked at me, they were full of fear.

"I won't kill you." I told him and watched the blood flow down his cheek from the cut I made just below his eye. I turned around and limped away from him. The cut on my calf, sent pain up my whole leg and I honestly just wanted to collapse to the ground. But this wasn't over.

"It is tradition!" My father yelled after me. I turned back to him angry.

"To hell with tradition!" I yelled back at him. "If you want to follow tradition so bad then kill me!" I told him and threw my katana down. I held my arms open for him to attack. But he didn't move.

"You should be with your own kind!" He told me, and I laughed.

"And you shouldn't be such an asshole, but here we are." I said and shrugged. "So get over it." I turned back around and walked back to Sero. He was smiling at me and wrapped an arm under me and helped me get into the house.

He took me into the bathroom and set me down on the rim of the tub. He started running water while I cut my pj pant leg off. My ears twitched when I heard my parents arguing, but with the water running I couldn't make out what they were saying.

"You were amazing out there." Sero told me. I smiled at him and he carefully washed the large cut on my leg.

"I'm sorry I dragged you into this." I told him and he looked at me. I closed my eyes and tears rolled down my face. "I should have told you what would have happened. I shouldn't have brought you here."

"Hey, hey, hey." He whispered and scooted closer to me on the edge of the tub. "It's okay. It's over now, right?"

"Yeah." I said. "But I'm pretty sure that I'm going to get disowned now."

"I'm sorry." Sero told me, and pulled me to his chest. I buried my face in his neck and allowed his scent to calm me down.

"But you're safe and mine." I said and looked at the red mark on his neck. "That's all that matters."

I heard footsteps coming towards the bathroom and summoned my katana and held it to the open door as my father stepped in the doorway with my very angry mother behind him.

He looked sad, and angry at the same time. After a couple of moments my mother smacked his arm.

"As much as I don't agree with this." He said and pointed to the two of us. "It's not worth losing my only kit over it." He looked at me, but I didn't lower my sword. He was quiet for apparently too long because my mother motioned for him to continue. "I'm sorry. And I hope you can forgive me, for wanting to follow tradition."

"Traditions aren't always a good thing." I said, and he nodded.

"You fought bravely, and strongly." He told me. "And for that I yield." I flinched and lowered my katana. "I am still proud to call you my daughter. And maybe one day, I'll be proud to call you my son-in-law." He told Sero. "And if you break her heart, I'll break your legs."

"Yes sir." Sero said and nodded.

"Goodnight you two." He said and walked off to his room, my mother winked at us with a smile before she followed him. I laughed and hugged Sero.

"I love you." I told him and he squeezed me tighter to him.

"I love you too, me amor." He whispered in my ear and the sound of his tongue rolling, sent shivers up my spine.

I kissed his claim mark and he shivered in my hands. We both laughed and he finished cleaning and patching up my cut. Luckily I wasn't going to need stitches despite how deep it was.

Sero picked me up off the tub bridal style and carried me into my room. He grabbed me a new pair of pants.

I tried to stand up and slide my pants off, but Sero stopped me and laid me on my back. He got on top of me and moved my hair out of my face.

"Oh, no no." He told me and kissed me on the lips. "Let me take care of you." His lips caressed my jaw as he moved down to my neck and started kissing my mark. I just a small touch and the mark sent tingles all over my body, making my back arch off the bed.

"Sero." I breathed out as I felt his hands slip under my the hem of my pants.

"Hmm?" He hummed in my ear. He slowly slid down my body, and kissed down the center of my body through my shirt. He slipped my pants off and started kissing my thighs.

"I . . . ." I started to say, but in reality I didn't know what to say. I wanted him, but I was so nervous, I couldn't make myself say anything.

He kissed all the way down my legs to the bandages on my calf. He gently kissed my cut through the bandages and gauze, holding my legs over one of his shoulders in the air with his nails grazing my thighs.

"What do you want to say my love?" He asked me and rested his face lightly on my ankles, while he continued to tease my thighs. And god, he had such a beautiful look on his face.

"I don't know." I told him, and I couldn't help but grip the sheets at his finger tips trailing all over my thighs.

"Do you want me to stop." He asked me.

"No." I told him. "And yes."

"You're nervous." He said, and it wasn't a question. I nodded and he slipped my legs through a pair of pj shorts. He pulled them up and over my hips and laid down next to me. "Well I waited this long for you to claim me, so I'll wait until you are ready to continue. Or you're in heat again, whichever comes first I guess." He laughed as I smacked him.

"You're such a pervert." I laughed and cuddled up to his chest. I hiked my hurt leg up onto his torso and my bottom leg around one of his. He held my thigh in his hand and rubbed his thumb over my skin.

"Remember that when you're all hot and bothered next time you're in heat." He told me, and I flattened my ears at him.

"I hate you." I told him and he laughed and held me closer to him.

"I love you too." He whispered to me and we fell asleep.