A/N: Sorry for skipping October. I didn't know how I wanted to end the chapter.
Posted: November 20, 2009
Chapter Thirty-six: Father
"They are already so broken, if you go through with this, they may not recover from it," Johnathan reminded Spud of a fact he didn't need to be reminded of.
"Don't you think I know that?" Spud replied. "I'm not looking forward to what has to be done."
"His name is Jeremiah," Trixie smiled as she told the father of her child the name of his son.
"He looks so much like you at times, that I have to stop myself from calling him Spud," Jake revealed.
Spud smiled at them, but his heart ached within his chest as he saw and heard the love that was in their voices as they spoke about the boy.
"It's just," Johnathan began. "Time is running out. His thirteenth birthday is about two weeks away." He let be known.
Spud sighed. "What am I suppose to tell them?" he asked for his brother's guidance.
Johnathan only shook his head. "No matter what you tell them, they aren't going to understand. They went through so much after the death of Francis. Nothing you say will be justified in their eyes."
"I can't wait to meet him," Spud interrupted Trixie as she was telling him about how smart Jerry was and the gifted school he was attending. At his words he noticed Trixie's smile slightly falter. His smiled fell as well. "Did- did I say something wrong?" he asked.
Trixie pursed her lips. "Umm, I'm not really sure if that's uh. . ." she trailed off.
"I think we owe you an apology," Jake stepped in. "You had been gone so long," he began slowly. "We lost faith," he admitted.
"Jerry thinks you're dead," Trixie cut to the point. Spud leaned back in his seat at the news. "You have to understand. He asked about you and we hadn't heard from you in years. He needed to know something. And telling the truth at that point seemed like a crazy idea," she tried to explain. "Then again, at that time, what I was telling him. . . I thought was the truth."
Spud nodded. "It's okay. I understand, really. I left you guys in an impossible situation and for that I'm the one who's sorry."
Spud groaned. "I thought war came to our home world, because you weren't there to take the throne, but now I see it's because that boy merely exist." He shook his head. "There is peace now, but that won't last," he concluded. "If he is allowed to live, the curse of the first born will arise." Spud looked apologetic. "I don't think I'm strong enough to fight back that kind of power."
"I am," guilt was clear in the older brother's voice. "If I had just taken the throne, none of this would be happening."
"I told you, this isn't your fault," Spud assured him. "You have the right to live your own life."
"And me doing so may cause you yours!" Johnathan yelled. Spud didn't seem to know how serious his crime was.
"Brother," Spud spoke softly. "That's a sacrifice, I'm willing to make. But," he stressed, "it won't come to that. I'll take care of the problem."
"No," Trixie shook her head as she protested. "It's not right for him to think you're dead. I want him to know who you are. I want you in his life."
"I appreciate that. I know the way I left, how I left, gives you every right to be mad at me. But the three of you here in front of me, smiling and happy to see me," he sighed, lowering his head, "it more than I expected."
"Hey," Jake gave the other a friendly a punch on the leg. "You should know us better than that. No matter what you did, what you do, who you are, it's always going to be friends for life."
"And friends for real," Trixie finished their vow.
"You say that, but don't forget, that the people you love most in this world, call that problem part of their family."
"Yes." He understood. "I also can't forget the fact that when I kill the boy, I'll lose them, but if I don't and he calls on The Power of Ari, I could lose them anyway. And I rather have them alive and hate me for the rest of their lives than dead for the rest of mine," he told his brother before walking out the kitchen and into the living room.
"I've missed you guys so much," Spud told them again softly, sadness buried deep within his eyes.
OoOoO
Haley walked into the kitchen. On the table her dad had prepared dinner. She grabbed a plate and started scoping some macaroni and cheese into it.
"All this time, you knew," Jake walked into the kitchen and closed the door behind him. "You were never going to tell me, were you?" he asked and she said nothing. "Haley!" he barked when he didn't get an immediate response.
Haley placed her plate on the table and turned around to greet her brother. "I wasn't the only one with secrets, Jake," she made him aware. "You had plenty of opportunity to tell me about Spud. And not once did you mention him."
"I didn't think you remembered him," he replied honestly. "I thought you would think I had gone off my rocker or something."
"You could have still talked to me." She pointed to herself. "I would have told you everything, if you had just confident in me. And I would have told you about this." She then reached into the collar of her shirt and showed him the black pendant around her neck.
"The Jewel of Eskaw," he whispered.
"I would have told you, that you could have taken it off any time and you still would have remembered him. . . because he's our family."
"That's what I don't understand. Why wasn't I told? If you could handle the truth why not me?" he wanted to know.
"Because he was afraid," she spoke of Spud's fears. "Afraid you would come after him. He thought, if you knew, you would try to find a way to him and get obsessed with it."
"I wouldn't have-"
"Yes, you would have," she cut him off. "You don't see it about yourself, but you aren't you when you get obsessed about something. Nothing else matters when you set a goal. It doesn't matter who you hurt trying to achieve it. Even if you're only hurting yourself."
Jake's eyes widen at his sister's take on him. "I'm-" he began, his anger slipping away. "I'm not like that," he knew he was lying.
Haley sighed and sat down. She picked up a fork and played with her food, suddenly not hungry anymore. "Things haven't been easy for me either Jake," she admitted before her brother sat down next to her.
"I know, but things are better now," he tried to tell her.
She scoffed. "Are they?" She looked to him. "When was the last time you had a real conversation with Dad. Or grandpa for that matter?" she asked him. "I even bet Trixie had to drag you here today." Jake rested his chin in hand as he looked up at the ceiling for a moment.
Haley shook her head. "I just want us all to be a family again. I mean, don't you miss that? Even just a little?"
"Of course I do, but you act as if I'm the one who started this?" Jake wanted to remind her. "Gramps is ashamed of me."
"That's not true. He would never say that." Haley was convinced.
"He never wanted mom to marry dad because he was human. He didn't want his precious bloodline tainted. In his eyes we are tainted," he made clear. "And who knows what he'll think when he learns Dad may not even be human." Jake took a slight pause. "Fuck!" he suddenly yelled. "I don't even know if we're human!" Jake took a hard breath before leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest. "What the hell are we, Haley, huh?"
Haley lowered her head. "I don't know," she said softly. "I never bothered to ask."
There were several moments of silence before one of them spoke again. "I love Trixie," Jake confessed out of the blue, causing his sister to once again look at him. "And there was no way, I was going to let her go and be with Greggy. I fought with everything I had to win her back," he spoke. He then took his crossed arms and placed them on the table before leaning his head on top of them. "But Spud is back now and. . ." he trailed off.
"How do you compete with someone's first love?" Haley finished the other's thought.
"Me and Trix, we have issues," he scoffed, "and lots of them, but there is nothing I wouldn't do for her." He then closed his eyes as the next words were hard to say, but true. "Even if that means letting her go. Because she may not always admit it, but it's always been Spud and Trixie."
"Do you really think, she would just cast aside everything she has with you for Spud?" Haley asked.
"That's just it. I don't know. I mean, I left her for Rose, so what would stop her from leaving me to be with Spud?" he wondered out loud. "I'm happy Spud is back and that he's okay, I am!" he assured his sister. "But him being back just leaves so many things up in the air. I don't know how to feel."
"Trust in Trixie," Haley offered. "She may surprise you."
Just then Trixie came through the door. Jake sat up as she came over to him. "What are you guys doing in here?" she asked.
Haley shook her head. "Just talking."
"Well, after you finish eating, Spud wants to go out. He's craving a pizza from that spot on sixty-eighth street," she let them know. "And I was thinking we could hit up a movie. Spud has missed so much." Trixie couldn't stop smiling. "God, I love having him back," she said before heading back in the living room to talk with Spud again.
OoOoO
It was nearing four in the morning as Spud stood outside the home of his two best friends. Tonight, spending time with them, meant more to him than they would ever know. They, along with Haley had gone and grabbed a few slices of pizza, they then headed to the movies where they caught a show.
And for a while, a small moment in time, it was like nothing had changed. It was like they were fourteen years old, just enjoying life growing up in the city. Spud was able to put aside who he was and what he had to do, for one night, and for that he would forever be grateful to them.
He sighed. Him coming home was suppose to be a happy occasion for them all, but a raincloud appeared above Spud's head the moment he heard there was a first born. All Spud had really planned for this trip was to spend some time with his friends and ask Trixie to come back with him, to stand by his side as his Queen. But that was out of the question now. "She said she would wait for me," there should have been sadness in voice as he said it, but there was anger within it.
He remembered their first and only night together, how she had promised to wait for him, even if she didn't understand exactly what she was saying to him. The thought of one day being with her again, is what got him through many a nights in his own dimension. She was the love of his life, so the idea of trying to love any other woman, seemed impossible. Hell, he had even tried it before. He remembered being fascinated with a girl named Stacey, when he was younger, but in the end, she was no Trixie. But Trixie had had a life without him, loved a man that wasn't him. He didn't know how to handle that.
Suddenly, Spud felt hurt, betrayed even. But he knew, most likely, he would never see her or Jake again after this, so any emotional ties he had to them, had to be severed here, or he would never have the stomach for what had to be done next.
Spud took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and whispered an incantation. Within a moment, he stood inside the home of his childhood friends. He walked up the stairs and down the hall.
There were several closed doors and he was careful to be quiet as he opened each one trying to find Jeremiah's room. He found the master bedroom first. He frowned as he felt his heart ache at the sight of Trixie and Jake sleeping peacefully. Trixie with her arm protectively around Jake.
It should have been me, he thought, jealously running through his blood. Trixie was always suppose to be his. He knew it the moment they met, even if they were only children. Spud then slowly closed the door and headed to the next door across the hall.
There he finally found the sleeping child. He was beautiful. And as he slept, he could see so much of his mother within him. Spud stood over him for a moment before reaching out and gently stroking his curly hair. He then wondered, if he and Trixie's other children would have looked this precious as they slept. And as he realized, he would never know that answer, his eyes flashed gold.
He straightened up and rose his hand above his head, a spell on his lips as he looked to be grabbing an invisible rope and pulling it down. With the spell completed, he knew nothing would be heard outside this room.
Spud then leaned back over the sleeping child and touched his face with both his hands. Another spell was whispered as he slowly lifted his hands away. A blue smoke escaped from the child's mouth, as Spud stole his life force. But before Spud could complete his task. Jeremiah's eyes suddenly opened and most of his life force was sucked back into him.
Panic invaded Jeremiah's body as this strange man stood over him. "Get away from me!" he yelled. He went to push Spud away and a bright light shot from his hands sending Spud flying to the other side of the room. "Who are you?! What do you want?!" Jeremiah demanded, the light around his hands not disappearing as quickly as they had with Jake.
Spud stood up as he wiped the blood from his mouth with the back on his hand. "I see some of your powers are already coming to you. I wasn't expecting that," he admitted.
"Who are you?!" Jeremiah demanded again.
"Don't be foolish," Spud's voice was calm as he spoke. "With your powers, you gain knowledge of your history."
Jeremiah seemed confused for a moment before looking down at the light he held in his hands. "This is the gift of Ariel, first born daughter of Empire Ezekiel." Jeremiah looked frighted for a moment. Not knowing how he knew that.
"Yes, the Power of Ari," Spud confirmed. "And do you know who I am?" he asked.
"No," the young boy answered truthfully.
Spud's hands suddenly came aglow with a dark purple light and before Jeremiah could register what was happening, he found himself glued to the wall behind him. He watched as Spud walked towards him. He began to shake as Spud's hand gripped his throat and slowly began to squeeze. "I am King Arthur, one of the seven kings of the Dinya dimension. Descendant of Empire Ezekiel himself. Now," he squeezed just a little bit harder, "again. Who am I?" he asked.
Jeremiah's expression filled with fear, but he now knew the answer, ". . . Father."
To Be Continued. . .
A/N: Okay, I have an idea for the next chapter, but I'm not sure if it should be its own chapter or not. If you have read my Harry Potter story 'Tulip in the Sand', think chapter 23. That's kind of what I want to go for. A story within a story, based on Ariel, and the Power of Ari. Here's hoping I can make it work.