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"Dinner's ready!" Song called out, knowing that it wouldn't be long before all the chairs around the table would be taken.
And just like she thought, her family emerged from their rooms, one after one. They took a seat by the table, starting to fill their plates with food.
Kipo looked at the unfamiliar food in the pot with a curious expression. "What's that?"
"It's a new recipe that I wanted to try. Let me know if you like it!" Song said with a smile, excited to try something completely new.
The Oak's didn't need any prompting beofr they began digging into their food. Content hums filled the silence as they tasted Song's new food.
"You've outdone yourself, babe!" Lio praised, taking a bigger bite.
The rest of the kids were quick to agree. All except Wolf.
She loved Song's cooking, and she always ate what she served her. But this... She wanted to spit it out so badly, but she knew that she couldn't. Song had worked hard on this recipe, and she had to be grateful. She remembered the days when she'd been forced to go to bed hungry becuase there was nothing to eat. Now, she didn't have to live like that anymore. Song and Lio provided her with endless amounts of food, and she was not going to be disrespectful.
Plus, she didn't know if she would get to eat again. Anything could happen, even if Kipo had created peace in Las Vistas.
Wolf had grown up forcing herself to eat anything that was edible. It was survival. She wasn't going to start getting picky just because she didn't have to worry about starving anymore. She wasn't weak.
"Wolf? What did you think?" Song asked, and all the attention turned to Wolf.
Wolf forced herself to smile, grabbing her spoon to scoop up some more food. "It's really yummy! I love it, mom!" She put the spoon in her mouth, trying not to make a face as she chewed and swallowed.
However, despite how much Wolf tried to act natural, Song could see through her lies with her mother sense. "Wolf? Are you sure that you like it?"
"Mhm," Wolf replied, knowing that she would just make things worse if she used actual words.
Song frowned. "You know, you're allowed to dislike things. You don't have to lie to make me happy," she reassured, although it just made Wolf even more nervous.
"I'm not lying! I-it's good!" Wolf tried, but one look from Song made her look away in shame.
Song stood up from her chair and moved to kneel on the floor in front of Wolf. "Honey, it's okay if you don't like certain foods! I don't like everything either!"
Wolf gulped. "You won't get mad?"
Song felt her heart break. "Of course not! I could never be mad at you for something so little. If you don't like something, you don't have to eat it."
"But... I don't want to be picky..."
"Why not?"
"It makes me... Weak..."
Song gasped. "Not at all, honey! Having normal human emotions is anything but weak. You're one of the strongest people I know! Disliking something doesn't make you weak or picky. What gave you that idea?"
"On the surface, being picky gets you killed," Wolf confessed with shame in her voice. "So I always ate everything because I would be seen as weak otherwise."
"Aw, Wolf! You don't have to do that anymore. You're safe here, and we have enough food for you to never go hungry again. If you don't like something, all you need to do is tell me and I'll make you something else. Nobody's going to hurt you for not liking certain foods!" Song wrapped Wolf in a hug, relieved when her youngest daughter melted into her and relaxed.
She held her daughter for a couple of minutes, wanting to make sure that she knew that she was safe. When she let go, Wolf looked less afraid.
"Now, what did you think of my new recipe?" Song teased, laughing when Wolf pushed the plate as far away from her as possible.
"It was gross," Wolf admitted, a cheeky smile on her face.
Song kissed Wolf's forehead gently. "So, what would you like instead?"
Wolf hummed in thought. "A hamburger?"
"A hamburger with extra cheese coming right up!" Song grinned, standing up and walking to the fridge to find the ingredients.
Wolf sank back in the chair, relaxed now that she knew that Song wasn't mad at her for disliking her food. She was so lucky to live with people that loved her as much as they did.
But she was the most thankful that they kept reminding her that she wasn't a survivor anymore, and that she could be the kid that she had always wanted to be.