Sitting at the table, surrounded by the strained faces of my family, my mind fixated on Mom's words, "To let you live." The phrase echoed in my thoughts, initially shrouded in confusion. What exactly would be the treat. I mean, my life had threats, but that was normal. I would protect him. It felt like a cryptic puzzle, one I was desperately trying to solve. Then, as the words churned in my head, my mind froze as a jarring clarity began to set in. That phrase wasn't just a statement; it was an admission. An admission that Jake was actually her son.
The realization struck me with a force that left me momentarily breathless as I sucked in a breath. Jake was not my cousin but my brother. This truth was kept hidden for years, unraveling so many memories and tinting them with new meaning. The laughter, the fights, the shared secrets - they were all cast in a new light. A myriad of emotions swirled within me – surprise, disbelief, and a profound sense of loss for the brotherly bond we could have had.
As I absorbed this new reality, I felt the foundations of our family shifting beneath us. The family I thought I knew was fracturing, breaking apart under the weight of concealed truths. The kitchen seemed to be growing colder. The colors seemed to be draining.
"JUST TELL US THE TRUTH!" Jake screamed, tears streaming down his face. The sudden outburst caught me off guard, and I jumped. Time and color went back to normal.
"Hey-" Uncle Paul looked like he was about to chastise Jake for his outburst, but Dad - no, our dad - raised a hand to stop him.
"What do you want to know?" Dad asked gently.
Jake raised his hand to his face, glanced, and saw the blood, turned his hand over, and wiped his face with the back of his hand, smearing snot and tears. I handed him a napkin at the same time Julie did. He took both of our tissues, wiped his face, and said, "Whose child am I?"
My mom, Aunt Fraya, Uncle Paul, and my dad exchanged glances as if silently debating who should answer. Mom and Dad spoke up at the same time. "Biologically ours," they said in unison.
Dad glanced at Uncle Paul, who was studying the tablecloth as though it held the secrets of the universe. "But Paul and Fraya raised you," Dad added softly.
The weight of their words hung heavy in the air. My mind froze. Now, my mental vision of my family was shattered and shuffling, trying to fit the broken pieces back together. I tried to fit Jake into my family tree, ripped off from his branch, and tried to attach it next to myself, but stuff just didn't fit.
I glanced from Jake to the parents and back to Jake. I tried to imagine how Jake must have felt, knowing that the people he had believed were his parents had lied to him for his entire life. But as much as I wanted to understand, I couldn't fully grasp the depth of his pain.
"Is that really all there is to it?" Jake asked, his voice wavering. "You're my biological parents, but you gave me up? Just like that?"
No one responded. I didn't respond. What could I say?
I looked at the adults at the table. They were silent, exchanging glances, going from pale to red to pale again. I glanced at Julie. She was shrinking in her chair. KyGerNi hugged his head around her. Silvia extended a wing and patted Julie's head.
I looked back at Jake and noticed the smirk spread across Jake's face, even as he fought to control his emotions. It was a mixture of disbelief, sarcasm, and pain all rolled into one. He was indignant at the silence of our parents. "Why?" He asked, his voice shaking with barely suppressed anger.
Dad sighed deeply, raising a hand to his face and rubbing his forehead as if trying to ward off an impending headache. "That's a hard and long answer," he admitted, glancing around at everyone in the room. "I guess I'll start?"
Aunt Fraya and Mom, both wiping away tears, nodded their agreement. Uncle Paul continued to study the tablecloth, mumbling a quiet "yes" under his breath.
"First, let's start with the fact that magic allows magicians and many magical beasts to have extended life," Dad began, leaning back in his chair. "That's just a fact that Fraya, your mom, and I are in our late 70's, and Paul is 42."
As Dad reiterated the well-known fact about magicians' extended lifespans, I felt confused. Jake and I had already discussed this a week ago, so why was Dad emphasizing it now? His words hung in the air, thick with a significance I couldn't quite grasp. His statement about their ages, while factual, seemed unrelated. I found myself wondering if there was a hidden purpose to revisiting these basic truths. Sad truths. Bitter facts about the soon-coming death of Jake, without the life extension of magic. But why did Dad start there to explain why Jake was given up and not raised by him and Mom.
Dad paused, as he did when he lectured, waiting for any questions or objections. When none came, he continued with a heavy sigh. "Then, about 25 years ago, when your grandfather was murdered, Fraya was there. The assassins used attack spells that targeted magic circulation. This killed our father after a long period in the hospital. Fraya survived because she was younger but lost all use of magic circulation."
The room seemed to grow colder as the story unfolded. Still not sure how it connected, but it was tragic. I shivered involuntarily, my heart aching for Aunt Fraya and the loss she must have experienced. I glanced over at Jake, whose face had gone from bitter to pale and confused, trying to process the information, just as me.
"Magic circulation," Jake echoed, his voice barely a whisper. "So that's what makes you age slower?" He looked around the table, searching each of our faces for confirmation.
"Yes, well, sort off," Mom replied, her voice cracking with emotion. "Magic circulation allows for cell regeneration on an innate level. If you want, I'll explain the science of it later." She trailed off, looking at Aunt Fraya.
Aunt Fraya sniffed, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "That's when I started aging," she began, her voice thick with emotion. "I also didn't feel safe in the magic realms anymore, so I moved to the non-magical realm." She looked around the table, her eyes lingering on Julie and Jake.
"After moving around for a while, I met Paul," she continued, a small, sad smile gracing her lips. "He claimed he loved me. I laughed at him, but his confidence didn't falter." Her eyes locked onto Uncle Paul's profile, who was still staring intently at the tablecloth. He seemed obsessed with the thread count. "Eventually, we got married. Even though I warned him, I was likely infertile, on top of our lower chance of having children from me being from a magical race."
Uncle Paul finally looked up, meeting Aunt Freya's gaze. In broken and horse voice, "Before we got married, Fraya brought me to Zepher and Beatrice's home," he said quietly, his voice trembling with emotion. "Zepher explained everything, but I still loved Fraya, so we got married." Aunt Fraya blushed, her eyes fluttering to her husband.
I might admire their love, but i was still confused on how this was relavent to Jake or me. But I didn't have enough bravery to ask.
Jake sniffled hard, wiping away the remnants of his tears. His eyes were dry now, but the hurt, bitterness, and anger still lingered on his face. "How does that affect us? Or in particular, me..." He glanced at me, and I could see the turmoil in his eyes.
Our dad sighed, steeling himself before continuing. "After your grandfather died, I took over his seat in the lower chamber of nobles." My jaw dropped as I snapped between Mom, Dad, and Aunt Fraya, unable to believe what I was hearing. Dad must have noticed my confusion. With the briefest of smirks, he said, "Oh, I guess you didn't know that he earned his title in the first part of the last great war. I inherited his title and was endorsed for his position by vote. So, I took a sabbatical from being a teacher in the Capitol University and joined the lower nobles chamber."
Shock rippled through me, thoughts fragmenting in a chaotic cacophony. Dad, a noble? His casual revelation felt like a jolt, upending everything I thought I knew even further. How? Why? Questions collided in my mind, each vying for prominence. The Lower Chamber... a teacher at the Capitol University... Did I even know anything about my family? My heritage? It was too much to take in all at once. My gaze darted between Dad, Mom, and Aunt Fraya. My face snapped to Jake, his expression a mirror of my own bewilderment. Secrets upon secrets, layers unraveling. What else didn't I know?
I had to ask, putting John's fate on pause for a few seconds.
"Wait," I interrupted, needing to understand more. "Dad, you were a noble? A teacher at the Capitol University?" The words felt strange on my tongue, like pieces of a puzzle that didn't quite fit together yet.
"Yes, John," Dad answered, his voice heavy with the weight of the past. "But that's a story for another time. Right now, we need to focus on helping you both understand your history and how it affects you. Both of you." His eyes focused on John.
I blinked, trying to process everything that had been revealed so far. Mom looked at Jake and me with sad eyes as if she wanted to say something comforting but didn't know where to start. She looked at Dad, who motioned for her to continue the story. Their silent communication bordered on telepathy.
"Then I got pregnant with twins," she began, her voice cracking slightly. "That would be you two." She pointed to Jake and me, who stared back at her blankly. "I took maternity leave from my coven and research position at the university. You were born just over 18 years ago."
She hesitated, her gaze shifting towards Jake. "And Jake, you were born with a mutation. You have a magical circulation system, but your glands don't accumulate mana. That means you can't use magic. This is a relatively rare mutation. But it's not unknown or unheard of. That being said, it was a scandal. I was excommunicated from my coven, fired from my research team..."
Her voice trailed off, and I could see the pain in her eyes as her eyes drifted to Silvia. I clenched my fists under the table, lowered my eyes to my lap, anger bubbling up inside me on behalf of my mom, my dad, my grandfather and Jake. Dad picked up the conversation smoothly, raising my eyes to his face, his facial expression somber.
"There was a vote of no confidence about my seat in the lower house of nobles. This vote passed by a slim majority," he explained. "It was a convenient circumstance to get rid of my voice for the equality of all magical races. I also speak up for the removal of hardened power in the upper chamber. But that's another conversation for later. Just understand that prejudice against the non-magical was a good excuse to vote me out."
He sighed deeply, running a hand through his hair. "After everything settled out, we moved here because the clinic here didn't have a witch doctor, and the school didn't have a principal."
I glanced around the room, taking in the expressions on everyone's faces. Aunt Fraya and Uncle Paul looked pained and regretful. Uncle Paul went back to studying the table cloth. Julie seemed like she was trying her best to hold back tears. As for Jake, his face was a mixture of hurt, anger, and confusion, mirroring me.
"Is that why you kept all this from us?" I asked quietly, my voice shaking. "So that we wouldn't be dragged into the scandal? How does that connect to Jake?"
Mom nodded, her eyes filling up with tears again. "We wanted to protect you both," she said softly. "We didn't want your lives to be defined by bigots and danger."
"Protect us?" Jake scoffed bitterly, glaring at our parents. "By keeping us in the dark? By pretending to be my aunt and uncle instead of my real parents?"
I could see the heartbreak in my mom's eyes as she met his gaze, and it felt like someone had punched me in the gut. I didn't know what to say or how to make things right between them.
Aunt Fraya cleared her throat, drawing everyone's attention. "Paul and I came here and offered to raise you, Jake," she said softly. "All four of us knew what your life would be like as a non-magical in the magical realms. Paul experienced it firsthand. I witnessed it firsthand. People... not everyone, but enough are prejudiced and would bully and torture you. Worst case scenario, you would be murdered as well... Most magic realms would be dangerous for you to be in until you learned to defend yourself simply because you didn't have magic. Even this realm probably has at least a few people who would love to punish you for your birth..." she trailed off.
Our dad nodded solemnly, his face etched with concern. "You experienced the prejudice the other day. You were attacked for being non-magical. So you know that it was dangerous. We didn't want you to go through that your whole life. We didn't throw you away, Jake. We tried to give you the best possible life."
The room was heavy with emotion, and it felt like a storm cloud had settled over us, ready to burst at any moment. I couldn't imagine the weight that Jake must have been feeling. It seemed like everything he'd ever known had been upended. I mean, my world was ripped into confetti as well. But Jake was the focus point of the emotional tempest.
Jake sat there silently, taking it all in. I searched for something to say, some small piece of information that might help make sense of everything. That's when it hit me. "But you did get pregnant, Aunt Fraya," I blurted out, looking at Julie.
Aunt Fraya blushed, her eyes darting toward Julie before meeting mine again. "Yes, it was a very low likelihood. That was a surprising blessing." Julie beamed, but then she looked at Jake, and her smile faded, and she sank back into her chair.
Jake's gaze remained fixed on our mom and dad, his expression unreadable. "So you made a choice to give me up?"
I could see the pain in my parents' faces, the regret that gnawing at the back of their minds of choices made decades ago. But it was a decision made out of love and a desire to protect him. I just hoped Jake could see that, too.
My heart clenched as I watched my parents' faces crumple with hurt. Dad spoke up first, his voice barely above a whisper, with the least confidence and pride I've ever seen him have. "At the basic level, yes."
Mom added, her voice strained, "It was the best way we could give you the best life." The pain in her eyes was unbearable to witness. Her words didn't seem to convince her own guilty consciousness.
Dad's gaze softened as he looked at Jake. "And we maintained our relationship with you the best we could, but it was the best thing to not confuse you."
Jake's jaw tightened as he sighed and looked down at the tablecloth, his fingers absently tracing the intricate patterns woven into the fabric with a bloody finger. I could almost feel the weight of the emotions bearing down on him.
"Did we give you a good life?" Uncle Paul asked, not raising his face, a single tear rolling down his cheek. He looked like his heart was breaking, and I could see why. I couldn't imagine going through that situatio and making those choices.. This was a lot for all of us to take in. And He made the choice being only a few years older then Jake and Me.
I watched Jake's face snap up to stare at Uncle Paul, his expression unreadable with how fast they were changing. After a few minutes of tense silence, he finally responded. "You gave me an amazing life, Dad."
Uncle Paul sucked air in with a deep sob, relief and love shining in his eyes. He raised to look Jake in the face. Jake sniffled and continued, determination clear in his voice. "You loved me, raised me, and taught me to be a man."
He then turned his gaze towards our parents, and I could see the bitterness in his eyes. "Uncle Zepher, Aunt Beatrice... Thank you for giving birth to me. But you chose to be my Aunt and Uncle instead of my parents." Mom let out a choked sob, but she didn't say anything.
I felt my own emotions swirling inside me – anger, sadness, confusion - but also a sense of understanding. Our parents had made a difficult decision that they believed was best for Jake. And while I couldn't comprehend the depth of Jake's pain, I hoped that maybe, just maybe, we could find a way to heal and move forward as a family.
Jake glanced at me, his eyes searching for something I couldn't quite discern. I held my breath, waiting for him to speak. He turned to Julie and asked, "So now, what are we going to do?"
Dad furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?" His voice sounded strong again.
Jake smirked, and I could see the flicker of determination behind his eyes. "We came here to help Julie. John and I were a secondary problem and revelation. At best, we're the side quest for this mission."
Uncle Paul let out a soft chuckle, looking at Jake with equal parts pride and amusement. Dad nodded, the weight of responsibility settling back onto his shoulders. "Well, ideally, we figure out what is going on with Julie so we can know all the facts."
Mom wiped her nose and eyes, trying to regain some composure. "I think after we clean up, it might be better to stop by the clinic for a quick exam."
"Great, more exams," Julie muttered, rolling her eyes.
I felt a pang of guilt as I thought about the heavy burden Jake had just been handed. We had all been blindsided by the revelation about our family, but he had borne the brunt of it. He was strong enough to not buckle under the pressure. He made choices I didn't even have a framework to decipher. He was strong enough to push his own emotions to the side to focus on someone besides himself.
"Sounds like a plan. Let's help out Julie and find the best solutions for her." Uncle Paul agreed, his voice still thick with emotion. He looked at Jake and added, "We'll all be there for you, son."