Bay sat sandwiched between Savannah’s highchair and Will. Bay’s younger half-sisters, Astrid and Tova, were currently talking away about their classes—Tova was in her first year in university and Astrid was taking early college classes through her high school. Tova was tall and willowy, while Astrid reminded me of a chipmunk with her animated chatter and bright eyes. Papa Bjorn and Mama Ami sat at the end of the table, close enough that he could lean over and kiss her cheek, like he was doing now.

And while they traded good-natured bickering, I sat in awe of the fact that I was seated at the dinner table with a handful of animal mages and—worry over the looming examination aside—I felt fine. Better than fine, really. I liked Lou’s family a lot. I trusted that they wouldn’t hurt me.

The dining room boasted a long wooden table, which told me that more often than not, there were extras for dinner at the Larsen house. Family photos littered the walls, featuring Lou and her mom just as often as Bay and his siblings. You couldn’t look at the array of photos and not see that this was a family who loved each other fiercely.

“Oooh, my favorite.” Astrid spooned something that appeared to be chicken—but I’d been told was not, in fact, chicken—onto her plate.

Astrid handed me the not-chicken, and I ladled some onto my plate, curious to see what it was like. I poked it with my fork. It looked a lot like chicken. I leaned closer surreptitiously and sniffed. Didn’t smell like chicken. Did smell delicious, though—like the garlic, green onions, and spices they’d cooked it in. My stomach rumbled.

There were also green beans, a rice dish, and what appeared to be fried tofu. A few other dishes hadn’t made it my way yet, so I wasn’t sure what they were. I didn’t even realize I was putting some of the tofu on Lou’s plate until I looked up into her face. Her expression was serious, but she was laughing at me—I could see it in her eyes. I slowly returned the serving spoon to the bowl. “I wanted to make sure you got some of the vegetarian dishes.”

“Thank you.” Her tone was grave, but her mouth twitched.

I suddenly felt very silly. “All the food on this table is vegetarian, isn’t it?”

Lou nodded, but her happy expression made me feel a little less ridiculous. “Except I suspect the tofu involves fish sauce.”

“You can tear my fish sauce from my cold, dead hands,” Mama Ami said with a snort. “Some exceptions must be made for my own happiness.”

“No one is judging you, Mom, geez,” Astrid said, rolling her eyes. She frowned. “Where’s Mama Jory, anyway? I was going to have her look over my homework. I’m taking a basic automotive class as an elective.”

Lou took the plate of tofu from me and handed it over to Will. “Yeah, where is Mom? I was sure she’d be here after the fun of the tribunal.”