166 Aunty Mama

The next day Macha and Tyr went to the marketplace before meeting with Tai Shan and his daughter. She picked up a stuffed peryton doll that shimmered with iridescent fur; the vibrant yellow, green, and blue fur reflected the sun's light, and it had large hummingbird wings on its back. The stag portion was made to look adorably cute and the stuffed animal possessed beautiful glass eyes. They also got a variety of sweets from a candy store that had been shaped into various animals.

It was the afternoon when they arrived at the park. This square was located in the Carnelian Kumas guild's district. It had a small man-made waterfall with a red bear statue at the top, overlooking the seats and tables below. The splashing water created a relaxing noise which lent people enjoyed while on picnics. During the summers, many children played in the cool water.

Tai Shan sat at a table and watched his daughter color with the new crayons he bought her. Since coming back, she seemed open to the idea of him being her father. Luckily she liked him and was happy that she had a parent.

While he was away, some of the other youths had teased her. His household staff had explained that the other children would tell her that no one loved her and that she did not have parents.

He stood up when he saw Macha and Tyr approaching. Today he wore a white cotton shirt and a pair of black leather breeches. He gently touched his daughter's shoulder to get her attention, "Jóhanna, this is your Aunt Macha," after a pause, he glanced at Tyr and added, "and your Uncle Tyr."

Macha crouched down so she would be eye-level with the bright-eyed four-year-old, "Hi! Nice to meet you. Your uncle and I got these for you, I hope you like them." She presented the child with the gifts and hoped they would be accepted.

Jóhanna's grey eyes barely looked at Macha, instead, they focused on the colorful stuffed animal. Her mouth made a big 'O' shape, and she bounced in her seat. Taking the pertyon, she began to pet it and hug it tightly. "I love you," she declared to the stuffed animal as she nuzzled its soft face.

The reaction caused Tai Shan to feel a comforting warmth in his chest, but he did not like that his daughter forgot her manners. He crossed his arms over his chest and reminded her, "What do you say to your aunt and uncle?"

The girl hid behind the large stuffed animal and peeked her eyes through its horns, "Thank you…" She was nervous to meet the two new family members. Uncle Tyr looked scary, but her Aunt appeared to be really friendly.

"You're welcome. What are you doing here?" Macha asked as she turned her attention to the coloring book. The child used bright colors of orange and yellow to scribble lines across an illustration of a dragon. Beside the picture, she drew two figures holding hands.

Pointing to the dragon Jóhanna explained, "This is a dragon, I'm going to have one when I'm big. Here is me and my papa." She felt proud of her picture. This was the first family picture she ever drew.

Macha smiled, "Oh, you draw very well. I could tell that was your papa right away. His hair looks exactly the same. You even made sure to use grey for both of your eyes."

When Tyr saw how happy Macha was while she interacted with the girl, he felt guilty. For as long as he had known her, she had always enjoyed children. This caused him to wonder if he should ask her if she wanted any. The conversation was something he preferred to avoid because a few other couples he knew, broke up because of a difference in opinion on this topic.

As the day progressed, Jóhanna slowly forced her way into Macha's lap. The excitement of the day made her sleepy, and she decided to take a nap.

Tai Shan noticed that his daughter fell asleep and offered to take her, but Macha claimed it was fine. She did not want to wake the girl.

"Father wanted to know if you could come for dinner sometime? He said since you are part of the family now, so you should come over and visit for a family dinner." His father was not angry at all that he made a blood bond with Macha. His judgment was always trusted and his father did not hide his happiness that she had good connections.

Gently rocking Jóhanna in her arms, she asked, "When is a good time? I'd love to do a dinner."

His father had specified that any day would be fine, so he suggested, "How about today? If you're not busy that is. If not, it can be whenever."

Macha turned to Tyr, "We don't have anything to do today. Is that all right with you?" They just got back, so she realized they might be busy, but she did not remember anything being on the calendar.

Tyr's dark green eyes slid over to eye Tai Shan. So far the man did not seem romantically interested in Macha, but he still felt insecure about how close they were. His voice held no emotion when he replied, "I can pick you up after. I have to see Freyr and pick something up."

The conversation woke Jóhanna, causing her to rub her eyes. Still sleepy she murmured, "Mama, I wanna go home."

Before Tyr could do anything, Tai Shan took his daughter, "Aunty Macha isn't your mama. She's your aunt." He did not want his sister to get the wrong idea. It was also important that Tyr not misunderstand the situation.

The sudden change in her father's voice upset her. "I want a mama!" she pushed away from her father and grabbed at Macha's sleeves, "Aunty Mama..." she began to cry. All the other kids always teased her that she did not have a papa or a mama. It was not fair, and she did not understand why her papa sounded so upset.

Tai Shan glanced between Tyr and Macha, "I'm sorry. Don't misunderstand, this is a child's whims." He could see the cold look in Tyr's eyes and realized that this agitated him. He bit his lower lip in frustration, he was still new to being a father and did not know how to punish her appropriately.

Macha smiled sadly. She understood wanting a mother. Allowing herself to be drawn in by the toddler's small hands she declared, "You can call me Aunty Mama, that's fine." She looked at Tai Shan and explained, "If you don't mind, Mama is close to Macha, It's fine. I had an aunt that I called Aunty Mimi, her name was actually Michelle."

When she announced that it was all right for Jóhanna to refer to her as Aunty Mama, Tyr closed his mouth. He was going to voice his disapproval but glanced away instead. He did not know why this development irritated him so much. Whenever he saw Macha and Tai Shan together he became bothered. It did not help that Jóhanna had dark hair like Macha's. Someone could easily mistake her for the girl's mother because of the hair coloration.

After Jóhanna was back in Macha's lap, Tyr warned, "Just make certain she keeps the Aunty part in front." The last thing he wanted was for his girlfriend to see some other man's child as her own. Nothing about this situation put him at ease, but because Macha seemed happy, he kept his opinions to himself.

Before he left he made sure to give her an intimate kiss in Tai Shan's presence. Although it was out of character for him to be so affectionate in front of others, he felt the need to drive home the fact that Macha loved him. It was childish, but it still made him feel better.

The rosy blush on Macha's face from his public display of affection made Tyr smile. He enjoyed seeing her act so shy from time to time. While he straightened her hair, which the wind ruffled throughout the day he declared, "I'll pick you up at the Swat family home when I'm done."

She played with his shirt buttons and looked up at him, "Could you pick up some gifts for us to bring? I won't have time to go shopping." The dinner was so last minute that it was impossible for her to buy anything. Meeting her new family made her nervous and she did not want to make a bad first impression. They had been open minded and she wanted to thank them.