"Your Father is home," Mom said, when I came in the door from School at the start of winter break, "He's in the den." I walked over to the den to see a man who looked like this body in an eerie way.

"Elkish Brine and pensioners," the man, who was this body's father, said when he looked at me. This was the sentence I didn't understand. It took me 3 tries to understand the man that was told to be my father. 3 tries to understand the first words he said to me when he arrived at the house during Winter break.

"What?" I asked

"It's nothing," he said, "I'm back, son."

"Welcome back?" I asked.

"I better tell you about something, Artie," he said.

"What is it?" I asked, slightly irritated that this man I never met before was calling me a nickname that I didn't use.

"I might be home a lot more often," he said, "In hiding, but it's because I fought with some really bad men and won. Killed off a lot of bad men."

"Are you a warrior or something?" I asked.

"No, a spy," Father said, "So more like a stealth character... What is it called again? A ninja?"

"Nay," I said, "Not a ninja. It's called a thief."

"Yeah, then I'm that one," Father said, "Which one is yours?"

"Warrior or Warlock," I said, "Started off as a Warlock, but became a Warrior when I was a bit older."

"What is a Warlock?" Father asked.

"Male witch," I said, "I got to Sage level in both."

"You want me to find you a DND group?" Father asked, "It might make things easier for you in this new area?"

"I would rather not," I said, "I already have Roxanne."

"You got a girlfriend, already?" Father asked, "Do you love her?"

"I enjoy her presence," I said, "I am not really sure about things to do with love."

"You're only 15, almost 16, Artie," Father said, "You're just a kid, you have plenty of time to learn."

"Plenty of time..." I repeated trying not to become disillusioned by his words.

"Why do you look like I just told you that your pet died?" Father asked. Mom walked into the room and stopped in her tracks.

"Don't tell me you used the 'T' word," Mom said, "The doctor said not to mention it in front of him."

"I didn't think it was really a thing," Father said.

"This isn't the same boy you saw last year," Mom said, "You have to accept that."

"He is still my son," Father said.

"He doesn't know you, dear," Mom said, "Took him 2 weeks to warm up to me and your Mom after his accident, and you didn't show up until now."

"Is this true?" Father asked.

"You now acknowledge the truth?" I asked.

"I didn't realize that they were being honest," Father said, "You've acted off before, but this seemed too much of a change than what you typically do."

"Thank you for your input," I said, "But I still don't trust you. You don't seem to acknowledge things easily."

"That's pretty harsh," Father said.

"I've defeated more evil than you can even imagine," I said.

"I don't defeat evil," Father said, "I defeat people who plan on hurting our country. Not all of them were evil, but the difference is hard to find sometimes."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Some people are seen as evil," Father said, "Because they do acts that are perceived as evil due to the loss of a loved one and revenge for that loved one. Not all who do evil acts are truly evil."

"Why are you telling me?" I asked.

"Because something tells me that it's best you learn this lesson now," Father said, "And I'm sure that you're smart enough to figure out why if you really think about it."

"Can I go visit with Roxanne?" I asked.

"As long as you don't have premarital relations with her," Father said. Mom chuckled.

"I'm not planning on doing anything of the sort," I said, "I just want to visit with her."

"Dear, you should meet Roxanne," Mom said, "She's a very sweet girl. I think you would like her."

"You already met her?" Father asked.

"On multiple occasions," Mom said, "You should see how close the two of them are."

"Can I just go, already?" I asked, my impatience finally getting the better of me, "I want to play video games with her as it's our favorite thing to do together."

"Isn't he cute?" Mom asked.

"Okay, fine," Father said, "I'll take you to see your girlfriend."

"Roxanne is my only stabilizer," I said, "Without her, I might not have the guts to face this world."

"Arthur, you have all the knowledge you need inside of you," a mysterious voice said out of nowhere. It was a familiar one, but I could place who it belonged to. All of a sudden, a ghost of an older man appeared.

"Who are you?" I asked, hoping that my parents didn't hear me.

"I am Germaine Brown," the ghost said, "And I have locked you in a state of pause. The others won't hear us while we speak."

"So, which world are you from?" I asked.

"Your world, child," Germaine said, "I'm actually your great-grandfather and I was supposed to be your guide in the old world, but for some reason I couldn't be. I do have to let you know that you can use your magic here, but it is too dangerous to use on whims. You have to hide your magic usage until you are strong enough to use them against strong enemies. I can't exactly explain what this means or what is going to happen, only tell you to prepare for it."

"But why here?" I asked, "This world is peaceful."

"That's the problem," Germaine said, "It's not. This world has a mask and one day the mask will be ripped off. I'm telling you to prepare for it. Even if it doesn't happen until you're gray and old."

"So, do I have to start from scratch all over again with my magic?" I asked.

"Not necessarily," Germaine said, "But your body has as much mana as you did at that age. You need to increase your mana as well, just as you did back home."

"Okay, but why did you show up now?" I asked.

"Because I had no choice," Germaine said, "I get whatever I get. Not my doing."

"Oh, thanks," I said.

"I'm going now," Germaine said, "I'll drop by whenever I'm allowed to." Then, he disappeared and the room started moving again.

"You ready, Artie?" Father asked. I nodded. We got into his car and he took me to see Roxanne, she was a bit confused when she opened the door.

"Roxanne this is my Dad," I said, "Dad this is Roxanne."

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Brown," Roxanne said.

"It's nice to meet you too," Dad said, "Call me when you want to be picked up, Artie."

"I will," I said, "Have a safe trip home."

"Uh, thanks," Dad said. Dad left and Roxanne and I went into her bedroom.

"He seems nice," Roxanne said.

"He is trying," I said, "Not being here while I am ill and suddenly showing up demanding that I treat him as my Father is a bit much.”

"You need to let it go, Arthur," Roxanne said, "Things aren't always going to be messed up."

"Thanks, Roxanne," I said. She kissed my cheek. I felt my body warm up.

"I'm here to help, Arthur," Roxanne said, "Mostly because I love you, but also because I want to help you. I owe you a debt from our last life after all."

"You do?" I asked.

"Of course I do," Roxanne said, "Why else would I want to be by your side helping with things you don't understand?"

"That's true," I said.

"I just wish I knew a way to gain your affection," Roxanne said.

"Maybe you could teach me affection?" I asked.

"In the way someone teaches you a foreign concept?" Roxanne asked.

"Yes," I said, "Because I don't know how to show you affection. Love is a foreign concept to me."

"I'll give you some homework, Arthur," Roxanne said, "Watch your parents, take notes on how they act towards each other, and tell me what you see them do. Watch other couples, take notes on them too, and get back to me. If there are similarities between different couples, and how they treat each other, tell me about that too. Just make a note of it and save it."

"Actually, I have kissed my wife before..." I said, "But it was only once at our wedding. It was mostly because I was forced to marry her without any affection towards her."

"Do you want to try kissing me?" Roxanne asked. I sighed, I wasn't sure yet if this is what I wanted, but I did really truly care for the girl.

"Not yet," I said.

"Oh, okay," Roxanne said, in a defeated tone. For some reason, that made my heart skip a beat and I was thinking that maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I kissed her. The look of shock when I grabbed her chin to pull her into a kiss was a bit priceless. Her lips tasted like cherries, which was a bit unusual. "I thought you didn't want to?" She said after the kiss.

"I changed my mind," I said, "Besides why do your lips taste like cherries?"

"Cherry chapstick," Roxanne said.

"Oh," I said.