The Devlin Family

"Bron!" Your mother calls out.

"Ves!" You say. "Gentle! Gentle!"

She looks down at you then hurls him back across the garden to slam into the central fountain. He crumples against it with a loud yelp but he is still alive.

As you spin back Ves is already hurtling toward her attackers. "Stop!" You cry. "Everyone stop!"

As three tentacles come slamming down your grandmother with a blur of unnatural swiftness rolls off to one side, the force of the blow shatters the cobblestones beneath where she once stood. One of Vespera's arms grasp toward your father but with a blue spark and a clap he is gone before she gets a grip on him.

"Gentle Ves! Please! Everyone stop this!"

Your Dad reappears about 30 feet away and you hear him mutter something to himself. As Ves looks left and right, deciding which caster to pursue...your father raises the gun and points it straight at you!

"Dad?" You gasp.

"Samael!" Your mother begs, grabbing young Lucian's head she turns his stunned gaze away. "Samael, don't! Please!"

Ves seems to understand the threat. Even with her great speed she is too far away to protect you or stop him. She stops, her dark body trembling with pent up energy.

Your father's eyes narrow as he stares into you. "You foolish, stupid, disobedient boy! Look what you have brought here!"

"Dad, please just..."

"It has used you to destroy this family. It is a harbinger for things that will destroy this world. You truly have no idea what you have wrought upon us."

"And you have no idea about Vespera!" You shout back. "She's not how you think she is. She is...caring and funny and sweet and loving! She wants her family! It's YOU that don't know!"

He scoffs, humorlessly. "And what do you think you know Jacob? A day ago you didn't know about any of this, now you're the expert?"

"I know my sister. She's one of us Dad. She's a Devlin."

The look the comes over your father's face is deeply pained. "I'm sorry son. You are her anchor. I have to protect my family."

"Dad?"

The pain leaves your father's eyes replaced by a grim acceptance of what he must do. As if in slow motion you watch his finger squeeze the trigger. Never did you think this would be how you met your end. You stand tall and face him, your eyes meeting his, showing him that in your last seconds that you were not afraid of him.

A moment before the muzzle flashes you see a purple jelly body reform from out around the garden plants to stand directly in front of you.

***

A fraction of a second later and it would have been too late. Trixie's sudden appearance in front of you, shielding you, stays your father's finger. Barely. Though it remains firmly held to pull the instant he could.

"Beatrix, get away from him." He orders her.

"No!" She stands, stretched taller and flatter than normal so she could eclipse all of you.

"Beatrix. This would kill you." He says, his eyes flitting back and forth between you and Vespera. Probably calculating if he had the time to cast another spell. "And you can't stop the bullet anyway. It would still hit him. Get away, you don't understand."

"I won't let you hurt Jake." She mewls, you can hear the tremble in her voice and see how she shook with fear. Probably the first time you'd ever seen her truly scared. "If you hurt him...I'll never forgive you Daddy. Never."

He sighs. "Beatrix, please."

You see that same grim determination settle in your father's eyes. From his point of view he was trying to save the world. He knew things that you didn't, but the reverse was also true. If Ves made a move you had no doubt he would pull the trigger and end both you and your little sister.

"Trix." You whisper. "Go back with the others. You can't help me this time."

Tears begin to roll down her cheeks, only visible to you thanks to her clear body. "No. I won't let him. I won't let him Jake."

"Shhh. I couldn't forgive myself if you got hurt. This isn't your battle."

"She's my sister too."

Just then Lucian pushes off of your mother and darts for you, passing right by Vespera along the way without even a glance. "Luci!" Your mother cries but her limber little son is too fast.

He runs up to you and throws his arms around you. "You fought for me...now I fight for you." He whispers. He too turns to your Dad and stands in front of you like Trixie did, trying to shield you though not very successfully given his size. "I will fight you Father!" He calls out to his dad as he balls up his fists in anger, he thumps his chest. "I am a man! I am my own man! I am a Demon! Son of Lilith, Grandson of Satan! I will fight you with everything I have!"

Your father's face twitches with rising impatience. "Lilith, get him out of there!" He gasps as he is startled by the sudden appearance of his eldest child directly in front of him, not a foot away from the barrel his magical gun the tall blonde elegant figure of your older sister stands.

Devany holds her hands out wide not even attempting to move the pistol that is pointed right at her chest. "You'll have to kill me too father."

"Devany." He whispers. "Not you. Stand aside. You know the stakes here."

"I know you are about to tear this family apart. I know that I trust Jacob enough to at least hear what he has to say." She slowly walks backwards, keeping her body between you and your father, and comes to join the others. "The one thing I don't know right now is the man holding the gun on his family. Who is this man threatening to kill his son? I don't know him. This man I see before me isn't the same man who raised me."

"Dev!" He pleads.

You hear labored breath and faltering steps coming up from behind you. Bron, back in human form, holds his ribs as he steps up beside you. "I don't trust that thing." He grimaces in pain as he motions toward Ves, he then looks over into your eyes. "But it could have killed me...and you stopped it. I know you, I know you got reasons. I got your back brother."

"You too Bron?" Your father says. "Why can't you all understand? There is a bigger picture here! I don't want to do this! I have to!"

From behind him you see tears of pride welling up in your mother's demonic eyes as she saw her children standing as one, protecting one of their own. "Samael. Put it down."

"Lilith, surely you understand."

"I understand. It's the whole world. The multi-verse itself. Heaven and hell could fall to these powers." She glides forward, her gaze shifting from you five to the other child. The child she never got to truly know. She approaches Vespera, her arms held open. "If it is a choice between the world or my family. I choose family. Every time." She enters into the range of Vespera's shifting tentacles and moves in to take her daughter in her arms. She holds Ves by the shoulders, tears flowing, and stares into her eyes. "I am so sorry child. Please forgive me."

"Lil!" Your father whispers. "No."

"Mother." Vespera says as she embraces her Succubus mother. "Love."

"She says she loves you!" You call out. "She's always loved you."

"You can talk to her!? You understand!?" Your mother looks back at you with hope and surprise. You nod. Your Mom weeps bittersweet tears and turns back to hold her daughter close. "Oh! I love you too! Oh my dear Vespera."

Your grandmother's staff lowers, her shoulders relax, and she eases out of her combat posture. She plants the staff on the ground beside her and leans into it. "This is one battle we're not going to win son." She says to your Dad, glancing at the pistol then toward her grandkids she adds. "The cost is too high. It was always too high."

"But...they...don't understand." The gun trembles.

"It's over Samael."

"But..."

You step through your gathered siblings to face him directly. "I love you Dad."

"Jacob?" His gun shakes even more.

"You are wiser and smarter than I could ever be, but on this you're wrong. You need to trust me Dad."

"Jacob." There is one final nerve wracking moment where you are unsure of what he would do...but his arm falls and his head drops. He shakes it, already in mourning of the terrible mistake he is sure he is making. He looks back up to you. "If you are wrong about this son..."

"I'm not." You say with rock solid confidence. "You just need to get to know her. Then you'll understand."

"I...I have a lot to learn." He holsters his gun. "You win. God help us if you're wrong, but you win." Ciara flies down to pat her master's slumped shoulder.

All at once the fear and violence and tension drains from the air and everybody breaths a sigh of relief. You spin back toward your siblings. Looking into each of their faces one by one with an unspoken...thank you.

"Come on." You say with a smile. "Come meet Ves."

"YEAH!" Trixie cheers then inundates you with a slew of questions and comments as the five of you go to be the sixth of the Devlin brood. "Oh my God! What happened to you? Are you okay? What happened after you left the room? It's so cool you can talk to her! Look how happy Mom is. Did you see what she did to those beasts? I don't think Daddy would have actually done it. Woah! What happened to your eyes? That's soooo cool!"

With Beatrix nattering on in a release of nervous energy, not even waiting for an answer to one question before moving to the next, and nobody listening the six Devlin kids gather around their very happy mother in one great family embrace. Vespera's long limbs wrap around the whole lot of you the lot of you hug her back in return. Even gruff Bron gets in on the action pretending the whole time that he didn't love this just as much as the rest of you. The Devlin children were all together at last, the family was whole.

Standing and watching is your father, grandmother, and Ciara the pixie. A look of acceptance and shame and deep relief on your father's worried face. You could see his hand trembling, shook to the core by what he'd almost done. Grandma puts an arm around her son and says some soothing words to him. His eyes meet yours, looking at you now not as an impudent child but as an equal, and he nods.

You nod back. He almost killed and yet...you could understand where he was coming from. It didn't mean things were cool between you but there is an understanding. And that fact that he never actually pulled the trigger left the question open as to whether he could have in the end. It would not mend between you overnight yet you had faith that the Devlins would come together in the end as they always did.

Looking around at the happy excited faces of your monster family, demons, vampire, werewolf, slime, and being from another dimension, you feel truly blessed to be among them. The lone human among them but you were right where you belonged.

Peering up at the glowing face of your twin you give her a warm smile and you feel that warmth beaming right back at you. Vespera finally had the family she always wanted, the family she deserved.

"Home."

"Yes Vespera." You say. "Welcome home."

The End