Disclaimer: I do not own YJ, they belong to DC. I own my OCs.
House of Mystery
February 25, 02:43 UTC +1
The trio stare at him like he lost his marbles. Out of the three of them, Miguel's the first to speak.
"What do you mean "destroying reality"?"
"Sounds exactly what it means. Your sister plans on ripping reality in half…for fun."
"This is all my fault," all eyes turned to Mia, "If I hadn't defied Ra's none of this would've happened. If only I had followed through with the match then maybe—"
"Bite your tongue," Tulio growles.
Mia flinches at her brother's tone. She looks over to see determination burning in his eyes yet he's scowling at her.
"Don't you dare go down that rabbit hole. Mia, if you had followed Ra's al Ghul's order then you wouldn't be here with us. We wouldn't be part of the Team or be in relationships. You would be an assassin following your orders down to a "T". Evan wouldn't be in your life, the Allens, Wally, Dick and the others. None of this wouldn't have been possible if you hadn't defied the Demon."
"But Tulio—"
"He's right hermana," she looks over at Miguel, "Not all of this is your fault. We're to blame as well. Please don't add any more weight onto your shoulders, you have too much as it is."
"Miguel," tears of joy swell in her eyes.
The siblings have a moment and it's touching. In fact, it's so sweet Constantine can practically feel his blood sugar spike.
"The one thing you can count on the Fuentes family is their loyalty to their friends and family." "This is sweet and all but I suggest we get a move on before we all die," Constantine cuts in.
"Zatanna said that Ana might be somewhere in Ireland but she couldn't get an exact location," Mia states.
"Lucky for you three, we're already there."
"Say what?"
He leads them back to the front door. The door opens itself to reveal the ancient site of Knowth.
Dogheda
February 25, 02:45 IST
They exit the House. When the door closes, the House disappears.
"Where'd it go?" Miguel wonders.
"Everywhere and nowhere," Constantine answers.
"That's real helpful."
"It's in a pocket dimension. Stays hidden from prying eyes," he muses.
"What is this place?" Tulio scans their new surroundings.
They stand in front of a giant hill-like dome covered in grass. The structure's made of stone with only one entrance. Even without magic, the trio feel this place seems off as each of them notice how eerily silent the area is.
"Welcome to Knowth, one of Ireland's many ancient sites. The blokes who built this were tracking the Lunar Phases. Knowth is older than the pyramids, much older. Not much is known about it only when the time of the Equinoxes comes around this place surges with magic," Constantine explains.
"And Ana would be here because…"
"Since your sister has been under Klarion's teachings for the past eight years, she's become very powerful in dark magic. With Klarion as a Lord of Chaos, Countess is able to manipulate reality as well just not as powerful as Klarion. However she might be stronger than Klarion himself in spells and rituals."
"So how do we stop her?" determination coursing through Mia's veins.
"You can't. The only way that she can stop is if you get her to break the oath she made with him."
"And how do we do that?" Miguel chimes in.
A natural down to Earth smile graces Constantine's face. "Remind her that you're her family."
Out of nowhere, the ground begins to shake. All eyes turn to the site. Without a word, Mia grabs Constantine's arm and the boys hold onto her as she teleports them inside. The inside of the dome is somewhat spacious with enough room to fit ten people. At the center of the room is a diagram of the Lunar Phases.
Within the center of the diagram stands a young girl with a height of 5'6, hair black as a starless night reaching down to her waist. She wears a strapless black cocktail dress stopping at the knees with three-inch heels on. Everything about her radiates power and darkness, silently ordering her foes to fear her. The siblings know better, this young girl who's trying to become an adult is none other than Ana Sophia.
"Ana," Mia gasps.
Hearing her name, Ana turns around to see who called. Her eyes widen with shock as she looks at them.
"Mami? Papi?" she quietly asks.
Mia blinks in surprise. The Twins give each other worried looks. "Why would she call us that?" Mia glances over to her brothers. She sees Miguel standing behind Tulio which means Ana hasn't seen him. "They are the spitting image of Papi and people on the island always told me that I looked exactly like Mami. I can see where she might get confused."
"Ana," she looks at Mia. "I'm not Mami. It's me, Amelia."
"And we're not Papi," Miguel says as he stands next to his brother.
Her eyes refocus and finally notice her siblings plus Constantine.
"Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in. If it isn't my big sister who abandoned me and my older brothers back from the dead," Ana Sophia states smugly.
"I didn't abandon you!"
"And we were never dead!"
She scoffs. "Whatever," she looks at Constantine seductively, "Johnathon."
Constantine shoves his hands into the trench coat's pockets, "Countess."
"Are you here to make my night again?"
"This is more business than pleasure."
Something clicks within Mia. She looks back and forth between them as realization washes over her.
"He didn't—" "You two had sex?!"
Constantine turns his gaze towards a wall. Ana Sophia cadn't stop the smug look on her face.
"I've got to say, Johnathon truly knows how to give a woman a good time in bed. Where was it again?" She taps her chin. "Ah yes. I believe it was in Greece inside the Parthenon. The stars were shinning brightly that night."
"Ok! We don't need to hear anymore," Miguel states. "I really don't need to hear this."
Mia glares at Constantine. "You…you wanker of a tosser! H-How could you have sex with a minor?! She's only 15 for God's sake."
"Actually I'm 18," Ana states as a matter of fact.
The siblings stare wide-eyed at the youngest member of the family.
"What?" Mia murmurs.
"That can't be possible. You're younger than us by five years," Tulio states.
"Each of us held you in our arms when you were a baby. You can't be 18 already," Miguel notes.
She shrugs. "Time flows a bit faster back home."
It takes them a second to realize the meaning of home to her is with Klarion. Every fiber in Mia's body restrains the tears even though she can feel them building up inside her.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I would like to finish destroying reality."
Flicking her wrist, the four of them are thrown back into the wall. They try to move but are stuck.
"Yats ereht kcuts ot eht llaw," she chants.
Turning her attention back to the ritual, Ana Sophia extends her arms out and slowly begins to float while chanting a spell in the language of the Druids. Constantine instantly knows what she's saying. "Bloody hell." Glancing to his right, he spots the Ramires siblings struggling against the spell.
"You better stop her or we're done for." "Esaeler!"
The trio are freed but not Constantine. In confusion, Mia looks over at him with a look of What are you doing?
Constantine smirks. "I agreed to help find her, not fight her. Besides love, this was never my fight to begin with," it morphs into a natural smile, "Now go get your sister back."
Tears of joy trickle down her cheeks. Mia swiftly wipes them away then straightens her back as her eyes shine with determination.
"Once this is over, we're going to have a talk Constantine," she turned to her brothers. "Let's go!"
And they leave him alone. Constantine has never been so scared for his life until now. Although Mia's comment sounds innocent, there's the underlying tone warning him he won't survive to see sunrise.
"Damn these Fuentes kids," he nervously chuckles.
They struggle to reach the center. The wind picks up and starts to form a sort of protective barrier around the caster.
"Ana Sophia!" Mia shouts over the sound of the wind.
Looking down, she sees her siblings struggling to reach her.
"You don't know when to give up do you? Give it a rest already. You've done nothing but cause me grief and misery. Leave me alone before I kill you!"
Mia stops in her tracks. "She's right. I haven't done her any good. Why am I still pursuing her anyway?" The words of Kent Nelson before he died echoed in her mind.
"What happened, happened. You cannot dwell on the past forever. Be free Mia and bring your siblings to the path of good."
A soft smile appears on her face. "Thanks for the confidence boost Mr. Nelson. If you see my parents, tell them I will do my best to make us a family again." Lifting her head, she locks eyes with the younger girl.
"You know how we Ramires' are, too stubborn and hardheaded for our own good. Now stop being a spoiled brat and end the ritual before it's too late."
Ana Sophia scoffs. "What gives you the right to boss me around? You have no authority over me."
"I'm in charge since I'm the oldest. I mean, I could always get our parents. Oh wait," she looks around then back to Ana, "They're dead."
"No, they're not. They left us just like you did all those years ago."
"Who told you that load of crap?"
"Klarion."
"Of course, he did." "He lied. They're dead."
"Lies."
"If you think I'm still lying, look into my memories of Papi's death," Mia challenges.
"I will!"
Even though Mia's mind is protected by a barrier designed to repel any psychics from entering, it can't stop magic. Ana Sophia chants a spell then a cloud appears over Mia's head. It begins to show, from her point of view, Luis' death. The boys know their father died when they were younger but never knew the details about it.
Watching their father's dead body hitting the ground brings tears to their eyes. Tears built up in Ana Sophia's eyes but she blinks them away. Mia's face holds no expression but her eyes shine with unshed tears.
Ana clears her throat. "You...you could've made it up."
Mia opens her mouth to speak but Miguel interrupts.
"Are you kidding me?! There's no way in hell that Mia made this up. You know, it happened right before you were born. When Mami heard about his death, it sent her into labor. Eventually you were born. What I want to know is why you would even think that a six year old girl can imagine her father's death for fun?!"
He glares at his younger sister with burning rage. The tone in his voice makes her flinch.
Ana Sophia straightens her back. "Fine. I will admit that Papi is dead but that bitch we called our mother was—"
"DON'T—" this time all eyes turn to Tulio, who's shaking with pure rage. "You ever call our mother a bitch again or else."
"Or else what?" she challenges her older brother.
"Or else I'll end up doing something that'll hurt me more than it'll hurt you. Now cast that spell again to look at our memories of mother's death. You will watch and you will be quiet."
Reluctantly she did. A cloud appears over each of the Twins' heads. All three show the fire burning their house. From Miguel's view, he only saw the fire as tears ran down his cheeks. Tulio saw two figures in the kitchen window and tries running over there but one of the neighbor's held him back.
He yelled. "There's someone else in the house! They probably started the fire."
"There's no one else in there Tulio."
"But—"
Then the fire completely engulfs the house and a scream was heard over the roar of the fire.
In Mia's cloud, she hears a familiar annoying nasally voice complaining then she sees her mother's face one last time before the fire consumed her. Carmen appeared to be at peace when she laid eyes on Mia. She smiled mouthing, "Te amo Amelia. Take care of them."
The memory clouds disappear. A curtain of silence comes down on them. Tears begin free falling down the older siblings' faces yet they stand tall. Ana Sophia's in a state of shock. Slowly she begins floating back down. Once her feet touch the ground, her knees buckle and falls flat on her butt.
Constantine, who didn't open his mouth once, witnesses the memories too. He's surprised to learn all of them had been traumatized at such young ages. Looking over at Mia, he now understands why Daniel is helping her. "This woman witnessed the cold-blooded murders of her parents and taken upon herself the responsibility of caring for her siblings at such a young age. She could've gone down a dark hole and become something else but she didn't. Amelia Rosa Fuentes Ramires is the strongest woman I've ever met and I'm glad I did." Constantine smiles.
"Now that you know the truth…" Tulio starts.
"What are you going to do about it?" Miguel finishes.
Now the ritual's incomplete, the wind becomes nothing more than a gentle breeze before stopping completely. The trio finally reach the center of the diagram where their baby sister sits with eyes as big as dinner plates. Mia gets down on her knees and gently pulls Ana Sophia into her arms. She begins to softly run her fingers through Ana's hair like she did when they were younger. Taking a deep breath, Mia opens her mouth and begins singing Carmen's lullaby.
~ "A la nanita nana nanita ella, nanita ella
Mi niña tiene sueño bendito sea, bendito sea.
A la nanita nana nanita ella, nanita ella
Mi niña tiene sueño bendito sea, bendito sea.
Fuentecita que corre clara y Sonora
Ruisenor que en la selva cantando llora
Calla mientras la cuna se balansea
A la nanita nana, nanita ella.
A la nanita nana nanita ella, nanita ela
Mi niña tiene sueño bendito sea, bendito sea.
Fuentecita que corre clara y Sonora
Ruisenor que en la selva cantando llora
Calla mientras la cuna se balansea
A la nanita nana, nanita ella." ~
Once the lullaby finishes, the only sound that can be heard inside the dome are the cries from one Ana Sophia Celestia Fuentes Ramires. She had no idea how long she yearned to hear Carmen's lullaby again.
These past few years hasn't been all rainbows and sunshine for her. Klarion never cared about her, only her powers. Although she was a natural, Ana Sophia had been mentally abused by the Lord of Chaos. Sometimes she wouldn't eat for days all because he would forget. Ana Sophia quickly learned that the only way to get what she wanted was to follow Klarion's example and act like him.
Once she did, he began treating her "better" but he still mentally abused her by showing false images of everyone leaving her and telling lies that they never cared about her well being. The Lord of Chaos reminded Ana every single day for the past eight years and slowly she came to believe that everything he's said was true. When she was at her lowest, Ana made the oath to Klarion proclaiming that she'll be forever by his side. Luckily there's a loophole; if she has come to see the error of her ways the oath becomes null and void.
Still crying in her sister's arms, Ana hugs Mia for dear life. The boys join in and it becomes a family group hug. Each of them happy and relieved their family is back together. After a few more minutes of hugging, Ana frees herself. Standing and taking a few steps back, she breaks off the amulet on her dress and smashes it onto the pavement.
Raising her head, she loudly proclaims, "I will no longer be on the Lord of Chaos' side for I have seen the mistake I made. With this proclamation, I am now free from his grasp."
A wave of energy bursts out from the amulet then silence envelopes the dome. Minutes pass as everyone waits for something to happen but nothing did. The trio stand back up on their feet and smile proudly at the youngest member of the family. They're having a moment then Constantine has to ruin it.
"I hate to intrude on such a lovely family moment but would you mind letting me down?"
"Ugh. Fine" Ana snaps her fingers and he was free.
"Thanks pet," Constantine straightens himself up. "Now that's all settled, I'll be taking my leave."
He takes one step then Mia instantly appears before him. She has her arms crossed against her chest and foot tapping in annoyance. Her eyes change color from brown doe eyes to pure black like Dagon's. If looks can kill, Constantine has already died a million deaths. Eyes that once held compassion, joy and love now holds malice and rage. Constantine can't even move a muscle because of Mia's arctic cold gaze.
"And where do you think you're going? We still need to have that talk."
