It was another day in Safe Haven. The mellow dawn sunlight striking the skyscrapers and fields on the free and peaceful land of Save Haven. Birds chirping with barely any clouds on the sky. The vibrant day gives off a nice vibe to the citizens of the city. In a housing area, we see a familiar house belonging to a familiar jackal. Outside the house was a female jackal crouching down. She has a brown tan on her fur, her tall lean body, a bit weary due to her age. Her face wrinkled only by a bit which is a suprise for someone her age.
This... was Mindy Wells, proud mother of Jackson Wells, our Bad Luck Jack.
Her tail swishes around as her hands was busy holding a pair of hedge trimmers, trimming the leaves of her Azalea plant. The beautiful, bright pink coloured flower flourish throughout her lawn. It was her favourite flower, so beautiful and nostalgic, carrying more meaning to her than it's beauty to a normal person's eyes. She then puts the hedge trimmers down and plucked a flower gently from the plant creating a soft rustling sound. She then brought it to her nose, sniffing it as her nose twitches. The fragrant smell invading her nasal cavities sending familiar impulses throughout her veins. A grins forms on her face as she brought it to her ears and placed it there. It was her usual style of self décor which she admires. She sits crossed legs, her hand touching the grass feeling the rough yet soft texture on her hands. Her face then rises bringing her gaze up to the sun as she basks in the smooth lighting.
Her ears then suddenly flicked like a radar when she picks up a small vehicular sound coming near her. She extends her neck above her bushes to see a car coming and parking in front of her house. She immediately stood up and brushed some of the leaves of her dress as it lands ever so slowly on the grass. She then moves towards the sidewalk near the parked car. Suddenly, the door bursts open as she saw a pair of brown feet touching the ground. Her eyes was then brought upwards to see the owner of said feet. It was a female brown kangaroo wearing a fashionable jacket with a black skirt. The kangaroo then turns her head towards her and smiles before walking closer towards her.
"Hello Ms. Wells! It's nice to see you!" The kangaroo greeted. Mindy's eyes instantly shot open as she remembers her voice. How could she not, it is one of her son's best friends from when he was little.
"Kayla? Is that you?" Mindy asks softly.
"Yes, Ms Wells! It's me!" Kayla answered.
Mindy immediately ran up to her and hugged her tightly. Kayla was surprised but she welcomes it anyway.
"Ohh, Kayla! It's been sometime!" Mindy said as she separated from her and takes a closer look at her.
"My, my... how've you grown! You're so beautiful... no wonder so many guys are into you!" Mindy compliments her nonchalantly holding her chin to observe her face.
"Thank you Ms Wells!" Kayla chuckles at her.
Mindy's eyes than shot open when she realises that her dress was all dirty from the earlier gardening.
"Oh, I'm sorry for the messy look. You see... I was having my routine gardening earlier and I didn't expect a guest to come!" Mindy apologises, a frown forming on her old wrinkled face.
"It's quite alright and I actually didn't come alone..." Kayla spoke to her looking at her car.
"Who else is...
Mindy then gasped when she saw another figure walking out of the car.
...with you..." Her voice soften as her memories came back to her. In front of her eyes was a red furred jackal wearing black hoodie with a red outline and a pair of jeans. Mindy instantly walks to him as he stops on the sidewalk. She was then inches from him, he stood a few inches taller than her but she couldn't reallysee his face. It was blocked by the shadow from his hoodie but she never forgets a face.
"Damian?" She soft calls at him.
She could see he flinched for a second meaning it was true. After a few hesitant seconds, he then brought his hands up towards his hoodie and lifts it off revealing his face. Her eyes observes his face closely, overlooking the changes on his face but instead focusing on his expression. He carried a frown on his face, a hint of regret washing over his eyes. She could see his hands trembling a bit seeing her.
Our of nowhere, Damian could feel her hand slowly reaching for him, touching his cheek bringing his gaze towards her.
"It's been a long time Damian! I really missed you!"
Missed... Those were the words he never expected to come out of her mouth. After all those times, years ago, she never even held a grudge for what his family did to her, what he did to her son.
"Yeah... it's been sometime Aunt Mindy!" His voice trembles as he tries to suppress the bile in his mouth from escaping.
But what she does next was even more surprising. She immediately embraces him in a tight hug, her head placed behind his shoulder. His eyes grew in suprise, his hands frozen in place. Alas, a smile begins to carve it's way on his face as his hand reaches for her back as he also hugs her. His guilt with her slowly washing away. Kayla who was on the far side get to observe this side of Damian again, a side she wished she knew long ago as she sheds a tear feeling glad.
"You've grown taller! And more handsome!!!" She says chuckling. She could see his face matured, and a pair of horns protruding from his forehead.
Damian switches back to his original demeanor and puts on his signature grin.
"Well, couldn't stay a little gremlin forever!" Damian jokes at her chuckling. Mindy laughs at his home followed by Kayla.
"Now.." She turns her gaze at Kayla and then Damian.
"Let's head inside!" She invites them as she walks to her house.
"Umm... aunt Mindy... is Jackster around?" He asks her with his hands inside his pockets.
"Yes... he's probably sleeping so... I'll wake him!" She says.
She then opens her door, revealing her house, it was old fashioned and nostalgic. Kayla who went and studied with Jack back in the days embrace the nostalgic feelings washing over her. Damian who has been to her house only once or twice before still feels the same vibe he used to feel when coming here. Wooden floor with the beige painted walls, pictures hanging around her house. Mostly pictures of her and Jack and sometimes flowers.
"You both can settle down, while I'll go and wake Jack up!" She says as she walks up the stairs to his bedroom, the stairs creaking with every step.
"You remember this place?" Kayla asks walking around looking at the pictures. Damian who was admiring the paintings suddenly froze when he saw a particular picture. It was framed in a brown wooden frame. He brought the picture closer to him not realising Kayla was behind him.
It was a picture of Mindy and his uncle holding Jack when he was just born. He never saw his uncle but he knew the legacy of Jack's curse falls back on his hand. He then felt a light brush on his shoulder as Kayla places her hand on it giving him a sombre yet calming smile. Damian smiles a bit and puts the picture back as both of them sat on the table.
Inside of Jack's room he was seen in his bed snoring and he slept soundly. A trail of drool running down his chin landing on the mattress.
"Jack!! Wake up!! We have guests!!" Her mom yells from outside his room.
"Wha-!!!" He shot up from his bed hearing what his mom said. His body flew up as his head suddenly crashes with a shelf above his head making him stumble back down with a headache. His mom hearing the commotion raises her eyebrows in worry.
"Jack, what's with all the ruckus?" Mindy asks her voice full of concern.
"Nothing! I'll be down in a sec!" He tries to suppress a groan of pain from escaping his mouth as he rubs his head trying to cope with the pain. After the pain subsides a little, he grabs his phone to see the time. He was shocked to see that it was almost noon.
"Oh come on!!" He complains as his bad luck got to him again as his alarm didn't go off. He sighs feeling annoyed before going to his bathroom and showering quickly. After a few minutes, he was all dressed up to greet the guests. As he walks down the stairs, he heard a sound that made him smile.
"Hi Jack!!" Kayla beams at him from the table. A smile forms on his face as he's always glad to have a friend around. However, that smile completely disappears replaced by a frown when he saw another person.
"Heya there Jackster!!" Damian greets him from besides Kayla.
"What is he doing here?" Jack grunts at Damian with am angry look on his face.
"Well... I haven't seen you in a long time so I thought I'd be a bro and hang out!" Damian says trying to lighten the mood.
"Perhaps it's better if you didn't!" Jack mutters softly. Damian who heard it immediately retracts his hand and rubs his head in uneasiness. Kayla who senses the tension between them looks at Damian with pity.
"Anyways, sit down Jack, I'll go prepare us some snacks and beverage!" Mindy says as she head to the kitchen.
Jack pulls up his chair and sat the opposite direction of Kayla and Damian but his eyes averting Damian's gaze. It was a moment if uncomfortable silence between the three of them when Kayla decides to end it by clearing her throat.
"So... Jack... how are you? You're doing good?" Kayla asks him. Jack immediately smiles at her.
"Yeah! I'm doing great!! With my evaluation done, I'll be the new assistant director of the observatory soon!" Jack replies to her.
"That's great Jack!!! Damian and I are glad for your promotion!" Kayla says which shocks Jack.
"I never thought I see the day that you two would get along. It's... surprising!" Jack spoke.
"Well, to be fair, I'm quite the charmer!" Damian jokes which earns a slight chuckle from Jack.
"Yeah! I bet!" Jack said sarcastically. Suddenly, Jack switches from his smile to a serious frown as he stares at Damian.
"Listen Dame... why are you here?" Jack asks him.
Kayla then brought her gaze to Damian as both of them looked at each other. Damian then sighs and puts his hand on the table.
"Well Jackster... I actually came to see you and aunt Mindy...
Jack just rolls his eyes and crosses his arms at that statement.
"And... I came here to apologize!" Damian confesses looking at Jack. Jack was actually surprised to hear that but tries to maintain as serious face.
"For what?" Jack asks him, this time his eyes not leaving Damian's.
"For everything I did back then!" Damian says not missing a word as he looks at Jack dead serious. Jack suddenly looks at him with an angry frown.
"You mean all the times you tortured me, bothered me, making my life a living hell?" Jack rages but he controls his voice so that his mother wouldn't here it but still loud enough to make a statement.
"Yes!"
Jack was surprised at that. Not one moment of hesitation, something he didn't expect from someone like his demonic cousin. But even then, Jack lets a scoff escape his mouth.
"Did you think I would forgive you after what you did? Did you think it was that simple? Walking into my home one day, expecting an apology from your cousin you haven't seen in 7 years!! 7!!!" Jack wasn't able to control his anger.
"Have you ever called me or my mom? Left a text? Anything? None!!"
"It's surprising to see that it took you seven years to even do it!" Jack scoffs again. Kayla who couldn't stand this wanted to defend Damian as she stood up.
"Listen Jack, I know things between you and Damian weren't always good but please give him a cha..." Her plea was cut off when Damian raises his hand motioning her to stop. Kayla immediately understands his notion and sat back down.
"I know... I've been a jerk to you all those years and it took me seven long years to apologize... I'm a coward!! And... I know it's hard for you to forgive me and I'm not expecting it!" Damian says to him.
"But I want you to know that I'veve never spent a day in this seven years, not regretting what I did to you or aunt Mindy. I know what I did was wrong, and nothing I do now would change the fact that it already happened but if I had the chance to change everything back then, I would take it, every chance I have because I realized...
"You're the only family I ever had!" Damian confesses at Jack. Jack who heard this was shock to hear that one word, one single word he never thought Damian would refer to him as. Mindy who already prepared everything was eavesdropping from the kitchen as she heard everything.
"Family" Jack thought deeply of that word.
Who was Damian to him? Just a nuisance in his life. A plague he wanted cured, a parasite he wanted to rid off... Perhaps... All the times at the ZPA, memories he despised but it was true... In the end, he's family, it's the undeniable truth.
Suddenly, Damian stood up followed by Kayla who looks at him with pity.
"Thanks for having me... I'll see you around..." Damian says to Jack before moving to the kitchen.
"Thanks aunt Mindy... for everything!" Damian thanks her. Mindy was shocked by it all but she didn't know what to do. In the end, all she could do was hug him as a form of comfort.
"It's okay Damian!" She says to him which he took it all in. He then proceeds to walk to the door before turning back one last time to look at Jack.
"Good bye Jack!" He waves him goodbye as he and Kayla left the house.
"I don't understand it! Why does he keep bothering me?" Jack complains at someone sitting behind a desk. A female figure wearing a gray shirt and a white skirt.
"Listen Jackson, I know it's frustrating to deal with someone like Damian!" Cameron explains it to him.
"But you don't get it Ms Walden! He just... use every chance he got to... bother me! I've had enough! I just wished that he wasn't...
"Jackson listen to me, I know a lot of people who've said what you were going to say, and trust me... they lived the rest of their lives regretting that moment. Regarding Damian, even if he's a bother, he's still family! Now, I don't know far does your relationship go but you have to give him a chance..." Cameron softly spoke to him.
"Perhaps, even a single form of forgiveness might do the trick, that is if he's willing to apologies..." Cameron added but Jack just shrugs it off as he curls himself on the purple bean bag resting near the wall.
"Listen, it might seem farfetched and cliche but blood is truly thicker than water. No matter how... different they are, no matter how different he is... he's family... your family and family always comes around!" Cameron explains with a smile up her face.
"Just... give him a chance, trust me... things will turn out better in the end!" Her voice fading into muffles as Jack slowly regains his focus.
As the memories fade but her words still fresh in his mind, Jack decided on that moment to not regret what he did. He jumps from his chair and dashes towards the door. He turns the knob swiftly and opens the door with full force as it bursts open.
"Wait! Dami...woaaah" Jack yells as he slips on the floor and his body thrown forward due to his rush. His hand fails to grip the knob as it slips causing him to continue his tumble. He then came tumbling down the steps of his porch as grunts of pain filled the air every time his body collides with one step at a time until he came crashing on the course grass.
"Owww!" He groans as he pushes his elbow on the ground. Soon, a shadow envelopes him belonging to Damian. He then saw Damian extends his hand for him and he took it as he was helped up.
"You're okay Jackster?" Damian asks him concerned.
"Yeah! I'm fine, thanks!" Jack thanks him as he rubs the blades of grass sticking on his shirt. Soon, both of them simultaneously rubbed their heads in embarrassment and diverted their gaze for a while.
"So, Jack! Why did you bursts out like that?" Damian asks him.
"Well... I just thought that I couldn't go on hating you forever. You did f*ck up a lot back then but... I'll forgive you this time!" Jack says to him which earns a smile from Damian.
"Plus, you can't just leave when you just arrived right?"
"But don't go pulling any of that sh*t in the future all right?" Jack warns him.
"Thank you Jack!" Damian beams pulling him into an awkward hug.
"On second thought, I'll take it back!" Jack says as he was feeling awkward with Damian hugging him though somehow it felt nice.
"Na'ah! No takie backsies!" Damian jokes at him earning a slight chuckle from Jack.
"Come on guys, let's head back inside!" Jack invites them. Kayla then looks at Damian giving him a grateful smile as both of them walk back inside together.
"Oh yeah, been meaning to ask you..." Jack says as he took a seat next to his mother who was sitting opposite of Kayla and Damian.
"What's with you two? You seem awfully close..." Jack asks him. Kayla then gave Damian a certain look to which Damian blushes.
"Well, Jack, you see...
"WHAT!!!!!!" Jack yells at them surprised.
"Y-you two have been dating for a month now?!!!" Jack added to his suprise.
"Yeah!! Jealous?" Damian teases him.
"Well, it's more to suprise to be honest! But how did you even... both of you were... he was..." Jack stammers unable to find the correct words.
"Well like they say, love got no boundaries!" Damian added.
"You can't be serious?" Jack asks turning his head to Kayla.
"Well, like Damian said, he's a charmer!!" Kayla giggles cutely at Jack.
"Oh god!" Jack exclaims as his head was still trying to process everything that happened today. Meanwhile, his mother carried a very excited and hopeful face for the couple.
"Congratulations Damian!" Mindy says to them beaming.
"Well thanks Aunt Mindy!" Damian shyly thanks her.
"Your parents must be glad for you!" Mindy said to which Damian looks at Kayla with a serious face. He then looks at Mindy.
"Well, we're still trying to work on that! Not sure on how to lay it out to them about us." Damian confesses to her.
"It's okay. I'm sure they'll come around!" Mindy comforts the both of them. She then turns her head towards Jack.
"You're okay Jack?" Mindy asks her son with a soft voice.
"Man... everyone's getting hooked up... I'm missing out!" Jack says to them as he reconcile the fact that he's still single. Damian and Kayla just chuckles at him.
"Aww, don't worry Jack! I'm sure you'll find the right girl one day!" Kayla exclaims at him.
"Yeah... I hope!" Jack says as he rubs his head.
Suddenly, Damian looks at his phone as a message was sent to him. He read it as he grins looking at the message.
"What's with the smirk?" Jack asks him.
"You'll see!" Damian said shortly as he stood up. The exact moment on which he stands, suddenly a whirling noise can be heard from outside. The sound of howling wind travels throughout the house as Damian makes his way and opens the door. The three of them followed after him to see what it was.
As he opens the door, they were able to see a pentagram being formed on the grass. As rays of red light begins to engulf the area, suddenly, they could see a silhouette of a person inside the pentagram. After a while, the light slowly fades out revealing a female figure. It was a cat demon with purple fur wearing a royal guards gown as a tail was seen protruding from behind. The cat demon that looks around for a while before looking at the group. She then walks towards the group and kneels a few inches in front of Damian with her head brought down and one of her hands fisted to the ground.
"Vice Commander Jill reporting for duty, your highness!" The demon reveals herself to them.
She then looks at Damian giving him a weird look before asking.
"So... what do you need your highness?" Jill asks being weirded out by the whole situation as there were a group of people staring at her.
"Well nothing much... I just wanted to introduce you to someone, you two might know each other!" Damian says as he steps aside.
"What do you me..." Jill pauses as she sees someone from her past. She just stares at him frozen like she was in a dream. Jack did the same as he laid his eyes out on her. He then took a step forward and walked to her passing by Damian who gave him an encouraging look. Jill also stood up as Jack reaches her.
"Jill... it's been a long time!" Jack says to her awkwardly. Jill suddenly frowns before rushing towards him. Jack panics as he was afraid she might be angry with him but instead he was welcomed with a warm and loving hug.
"Yes it has... dummy!!" Jill winces as she hugs him tightly. Jack missed her so much, her warm embrace bringing back memories from when they were young. He responded by hugging her back locking his hands behind her. Both of them stayed that way for a moment.
Kayla felt overwhelmed by the sight of the two as she moved to Damian hugging him by his side. Damian gladly welcomes it as he kisses her on the head. Meanwhile, Mindy was seen shedding a tear seeing her son being happy.
It was a rare but blessed sight for her.
After a while both of them separated as Jack looks at Damian.
"So, this was your plan huh?" Jack asks.
"Eh, it's nothing! Just thought that you might need it!" Damian says to him.
"Well, why don't we head back inside and give you two some privacy? After all, you got a lot of catching up to do!" Damian says as he moved back inside with Kayla. Jill's eye bulges when she saw a familiar face. She immediately went to Mindy and bowed.
"Hello, Ms Wells! Sorry for coming on such short notice!" Jill says to her.
"It's good to see you Jill!" Mindy says as she hugs her to which Jill replies.
"Well, why don't I leave you two alone? If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask!" Mindy explains as she heads inside as well leaving both of them outside. Jill suddenly turns her head to Jack who was walking towards her.
"Now... where were we?" Jack asks her.
"Lucky bastard! I'll forgive you this time!" Jack thought of Damian before both of them conversed under the sunlight.
Today, forgiveness was uphold between family. What awaits Damian and Kayla on their symphony as lovers? What awaits Jack on his meeting with someone from his past? Time will be the answer to all those questions.
A/N: Woohoo, glad to have finished this. So, just a heads up, bonus chapter for Jack coming up next! Anyway, if you have read it up until now, always appreciate the love and support, appreciate the comments. So enjoy and I'll see you in the next one. Peace!!!