"Todd!"

"I'm nae comin' out!"

Rose O'Meara heaved a martyred sigh. For all that her son was twenty, he acted like a child most of the time, but still expected to be treated like a man. She only had herself to blame for it - he and his twin Rosaleen had been young children when their father died, and she'd spoilt them something outrageously - but she had hoped he'd gain a little more respect since her eruption.

But no. He was sulking in his room like a teenager because she refused to have his cheap tramp of a girlfriend over. The last time the girl had been here, she'd laughed at the statue of Ganesha that sat in the lounge room, complete with marigold garland and burning incense, complained about the curry Rose had cooked up and made comments about the fact the women of the family wore saris in summer. Rose had put her foot down this time, and now Todd was pouting.

She suspected that he was embarrassed that his mother was Hindu in a predominently Catholic neighbourhood of Dublin. Though Rose spoke with the Irish brogue of her father, it had been her mother who was the main influence on her life. It was disconcerting for most people to see a half-caste Hindu woman, complete with nose-ring, sari and red dot between the eyes, come out and speak like an Irishwoman. When Rose was in a nood for mischief, she took great pleasure in surprising people, but at the moment, she was at her wits' end.

"Come out or I'll drag ye out!" she warned. Todd's derisive laughter revealed that he'd somehow forgotten the biggest event to happen to the family since Maya's baby daughter was born. She felt the strange lightness in her body take over as she summoned her 'ghosting' ability, and then stepped into her son's room, which was messy as always.

"Are ye comin'?" she demanded tartly as her son hurriedly stuffed the Playboy magazine under his bed and yanked his hand from under the covers. For a man who was a grown adult, he was such a child.

She turned around and ghosted through the door again, resuming her proper tangibility once outside. It was New Year's Eve and there were things to be done.