3 - Belief

Hyde had his arm around Jackie, gently rubbing her back. She was curled up next to him on the couch in the living room, wearing his Led Zeppelin shirt and pajama pants. She'd woken up with a headache and thrown up just as the Top 40 was ending. She'd taken three ibuprofen already.

Hyde tried to get some chicken soup into her at lunch, but she wouldn't take it. He was worried that the demon was going to try and starve her.

"Are we here because Jackie is sick?" Fez asked. It was his twelfth attempt at guessing the purpose of the emergency meeting in the fifteen minutes he and Buddy had been there.

"Fezzie, stop asking. He'll tell you when everyone gets here," Buddy said, patting Fez's knee gently.

"But I am curious!"

"Curiosity killed the cat," Jackie muttered. Hyde smiled a little and continued rubbing her back.

"The party has arrived!" Kelso said as he and Forman entered the room.

"This isn't a party, man. And keep your voice down, Jackie's got a headache," Hyde said.

"Well, whatever this get-together is, it better be good. I don't like being around Randy and Donna more than I absolutely have to," Forman said.

Hyde rolled his eyes. "Just shut up and sit down."

"What's going on? Randy knows but he won't tell me anything. I've tried kicking him in the nads, but he won't budge," Donna said as she and Randy came in.

"It's Jackie and Hyde's thing to tell you, not mine," Randy said.

"Wow, I'm surprised Randy has integrity," Forman said.

Donna rolled her eyes. She and Randy sat on the couch Hyde and Jackie were on while Kelso and Forman joined Fez and Buddy. "Well, this is everyone," Fez said. "Tell me what's going on!"

"Not everyone is here yet," Hyde said. "Four more people."

Just as he finished speaking, the doorbell rang. He sighed and got up to answer the door, wondering why they couldn't just let themselves in like everyone else. Outside, Mrs. Forman was holding a tinfoil wrapped plate and smiling, with Red scowling beside her. W.B. and Angie stood behind them, smiling.

"You wouldn't tell me what kind of get-together this was, so I made cookies," Mrs. Forman said.

"You didn't need to, but thanks," Hyde said. "Come on in."

The second Hyde sat down, Jackie cuddled into him and buried her face in his chest. He wrapped his arm around her and gently rubbed her shoulder. "Oh, dear," Mrs. Forman said. "Jackie's sick? If I'd known that, I would have brought soup!"

"Wait…" Forman said. "If Jackie's sick and you called everyone here… Is Jackie pregnant?"

Mrs. Forman gasped and Red crossed his arms over his chest. "If you dumbasses got pregnant before you've even finished college-"

"She's not pregnant," Hyde said. "We checked. She's not."

"Damn, I thought I was gonna be a grandfather," W.B. said. "Well, someday." He gave Angie a pointed look.

She ignored it and said, "If you're not pregnant, what's going on?"

Hyde looked around at everyone. It was unfortunate that Jackie was sick because now he had to tell everyone something completely unbelievable. "Jackie's possessed by a demon."

The room was completely silent. "Are you sure?" Mrs. Forman asked after a moment.

"Yes. Jackie said she kept seeing a demon and she kept hearing it in her head. Randy proved it."

"I did. Her voice got all gravelly and her eyes went black. The demon said its name was… Oh, damn, I forgot."

"Valamon," Jackie said, but her voice was deep again. Hyde pulled himself away from her quickly. Her eyes were black and she was grinning. "The Pure One. The destroyer."

"Holy shit," Angie said.

Jackie uncurled herself and crawled onto the floor on all fours. "You're making my work difficult. So many people who have witnessed me. All have to die."

"Is this some kind of sick trick?" Red asked, his face turning pink. Mrs. Forman was hugging his arm tightly.

"I swear it's not," Hyde said.

"How could it be a trick? Ye of little faith never see me for what I am. It makes your descent to madness all the more satisfying." Jackie grinned evilly.

Forman let out a small shriek and clung to Kelso, who looked terrified beyond reason. Fez and Buddy were clutching each other and keeping their eyes on the demon. Randy was sitting on the couch like normal. Donna was gaping at Jackie. W.B. seemed to be in shock, with Angie hiding behind him and peeking over his shoulder at Jackie.

"You will be fun to destroy," Jackie said. Then her neck cracked as her head twisted around to an unnatural angle.

Randy stood up and quickly walked to the dining room. He came back with the crucifix. He held it in front of Jackie's face and said, "Our father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name…"

Jackie hissed. Mrs. Forman joined in on the prayer, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven…"

Jackie's hiss turned into a scream, and Hyde shut his eyes. He couldn't take seeing her in pain and listening to her scream. It would make him want to interfere, to stop the cause of her pain. But he couldn't do that.

Randy and Mrs. Forman finished their prayer, and Jackie's head pushed itself back into a normal position. Then, she dropped to the floor. Hyde was by her side in a second. "Jackie?"

She whimpered in response. He frowned and sat down on the floor with her.

"Okay, I believe you, you have demons," Forman said. "Everyone else believes them too, right?"

They all nodded. "Great," Hyde said. "Now we need a plan."


Hyde drummed his fingers on the too long dining room table. It was designed for events, for fancy dinners with wealthy socialites. It hadn't been used for such an event in years, but it served their purpose, which was to be able to seat eleven people.

It would be twelve, but Jackie was asleep in her room upstairs. After the demon's appearance, she'd asked Hyde to help her to bed and get her water and ibuprofen. He did what she wanted, leaving some of Mrs. Forman's cookies in the room with her in case she decided to eat.

Randy was seated at the head of the table. They'd all but declared him leader, since he knew the most about what they were dealing with. Hyde's own knowledge about demons went as far as The Exorcist.

"So, we need to get her an exorcism. That's the bottom line," Randy said. "Anyone know an exorcism-certified priest? I'm ordained but I can't actually perform exorcisms, even with the Vatican's permission."

"My uncle is certified," Buddy said. "He's on a religious retreat right now, but he'll be back in a couple days."

"A couple days? I don't think we can wait that long," Hyde said. He didn't want Jackie's suffering to last any longer than it absolutely had to.

"I don't think anyone else knows an exorcist," Randy said.

"I only know the one back in my homeland." Fez paused and looked up at the ceiling. "Actually, it's likely he's dead now. He was not the most… legal with his practices."

"In any case, I don't think he's available," Forman said.

"My uncle's really good. He's done a few exorcisms before. I never believed in them, but now… Well, I'll stop calling his career fake behind his back," Buddy said.

"We'll get in contact with him as soon as possible," Randy said. Buddy nodded.

"What can we do for now?" Mrs. Forman asked.

"Oh, Kitty, don't tell me you're getting involved in this," Red said.

She gave him a look. "Of course I am, Red. Steven is our son and Jackie means a lot to him, so I am going to do whatever I can to make it easier."

Hyde smiled at her a little. "Thanks, Mrs. Forman."

"Well, I didn't mean it like that," Red said. "This thing is clearly dangerous and I-" he glanced around at everyone in the room. He sighed and continued, "I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I said exactly that to Jackie yesterday," Hyde said. "And you know what? There's not a damn thing I can do to prevent her getting hurt. I get it if you don't want to take the chance. I know I wouldn't."

Red nodded. He looked at Mrs. Forman, who had an 'I'm-doing-this-whether-you-like- it-or-not' look on her face. "No, we'll help you out. However we can."

"I will too," W.B. said. "And don't take this the wrong way, but it's fascinating. It's awful and I wish Jackie didn't have to go through it, but it's… Well, I've never seen anything like it."

"Me neither," Hyde said. "Angie?"

Angie sighed and looked around at everyone. "I mean… Someone has to help you get time off from school and work to deal with this. I'm good at convincing people of things."

Hyde smiled. "Thanks. That leaves Kelso, Donna and Forman."

"What about me?" Fez asked.

"You're roped in with Buddy," Hyde said. Buddy smiled and nodded at him. Fez shrugged.

"I'm in. I'll kick this demon's ass if I need to," Donna said.

"I'm in too," Forman said. "I'm fricking terrified, but I'll help you out. And hey, I always said Jackie was the Devil's spawn."

"Donna," Hyde said. Donna punched Forman on the arm. "Not funny, man."

Forman rubbed his shoulder. "Excuse me for trying to lighten the mood."

Everyone looked at Kelso. He held his hands up. "No, no, no. I can't- Jackie's freaking possessed. I'm not getting that close to a demon."

Hyde leaned closer to him across the table. "You've hurt her countless times. You've cheated on her, you've lied to her, you've betrayed her. You never really apologized. You owe her at least a little help. Maybe think about someone other than yourself before you chicken out."

Kelso glared at him. "I don't need to help her just 'cause I cheated on her. She was a terrible girlfriend. And I don't want to be in danger because you guilt tripped me."

"Yeah, well, Jackie's my family. She may have been a terrible girlfriend to you, but she's not to me. So I'd appreciate it if you could help out just a little. Don't think of it as helping Jackie if you don't want that, think of it as helping me, one of your oldest friends."

Kelso sighed. "Fine. But if something goes wrong, I'm out."

"That's fair." Hyde leaned back in his chair. "Thanks for helping out, everyone."

"Just let us know what we can do," Donna said.


Hyde sat on a chair next to Jackie's bed. Forman was seated next to him, his arms folded by his lap. Jackie was asleep.

"So, uh… Earlier you said Jackie was your family," Forman said. "Are you proposing soon or what?"

Hyde gave him a sidelong glance. "You been hanging out with Jackie? You sound just like her two years ago."

"No. But I know you pretty well and I think you and Jackie should tie the knot already."

"You don't get to give me pointers on my love life when yours is in shambles."

Forman gave him an affronted look. "It's not in shambles, it's just not ideal."

Hyde hummed and returned his focus to Jackie. She was sound asleep, so he said, "I'm planning to propose once we graduate."

"I got Donna to say yes when we were only seventeen, so if you want any pointers, I'm your guy."

"Yeah, and look at you and Donna now. I think I'll figure it out on my own, thanks." Forman didn't respond. Hyde turned away from Jackie to see him tugging at the material of his shirt and staring at the floor. "I was kidding, man."

"No, I know. I just…" he sighed. "I wish it wasn't like that between me and Donna."

Hyde leaned back in his chair. "Okay, look, I know asking this question is gonna lead to you being all mushy, but I'm asking it anyway. 'Cause you're helping me and Jackie out just by being here. What would you like it to be like between you and Donna?"

"I…" He chewed his lip for a moment. "I want to be with her again. I just don't know if it's possible after everything that happened between us."

"All right, well, look at this way. You figured things out after the whole Casey thing and Donna running off to California. I think you can figure out Donna's brief thing with Randy and your breakup from Africa."

Jackie turned towards them, still asleep. She held out her hand and made a small noise in the back of her throat. Hyde took her hand and laced their fingers together loosely, in case she pulled away. He rubbed his thumb over hers gently.

"See?" Forman said. "This is why you two should get married already. Jackie's freaking possessed and could turn into a demon and kill you at any second, but you're still holding her hand to make sure she's safe while she's asleep."

"You'd do the same for Donna."

"Maybe with some convincing from an outside party. But… I don't know how to say this in a way that doesn't sound weird."

"I don't care if it's weird, go for it."

"Seeing you with Jackie makes me feel like Donna and I weren't meant to be. You two are so clearly in love and it's obvious how deeply you care about each other. I don't feel like I had that with Donna."

A little bit of heat pooled in Hyde's cheeks. There had been a time when no one, not even Jackie, knew for sure that Hyde loved her. Now, apparently, it was as clear as the sun in the sky. He wasn't sure when that had changed.

"It's different 'cause you and Donna are different people," Hyde said eventually. "Donna's not like Jackie. You're not like me. The way that you two show love for each other is different from our way."

Forman looked at the ground. "Huh."

Hyde patted him on the shoulder. "You'll figure it out. I know you will." He smiled. "Six years ago, who would've thought you'd be coming to me for relationship advice?"

Forman chuckled. "Definitely not me."

Hyde returned his gaze to Jackie. "Me neither."


When Jackie woke up, she was alone in her room. Steven poked his head in through the door. "Hey."

"Hi." She sat up, combing her fingers through her probably tangled hair.

He entered the room, holding a tray of food. He sat in the chair near her bed. "You slept for a long time. I thought we could eat dinner together."

"Oh. Okay."

"Don't eat. I don't want this garbage," the demon hissed at her.

"I haven't eaten all day," she said quietly.

Steven looked at her, slightly confused. "No, you haven't. You gonna eat now?"

"Yeah." Jackie picked up the grilled cheese sandwich and took a bite. The demon made her want to spit it out, but she pushed through it. She had to eat, or else she'd starve. And if she starved, she'd die, ripping her apart from Steven.

"Do you like it? If you don't, I can make you whatever else you want," Steven said.

"This is perfect." She wrapped her fingers around his hand and squeezed it lightly. "Thank you."

He raised their hands to his lips and kissed her knuckles. "No problem, grasshopper." He took a bite of his own sandwich. When he finished chewing, he said, "So… everyone separated into shifts. That way we can have people around and others can take breaks. Buddy's uncle is an exorcist, so we're trying to contact him. He's actually downstairs calling him right now."

"And… you think that'll work?"

"I hope so."

"It won't work," the demon said. "No exorcist has ever defeated me."

"What are the shifts?" Jackie asked.

"Randy's staying here full time. He doesn't have much else to do. Plus, he works at Grooves and W.B. agreed to keep paying him for helping me out even though he's not at work. Buddy and Fez are here now. Tomorrow it's Forman, Donna and Kelso. Then Red and Mrs. Forman. Then W.B. and Angie. I'm here full-time, of course. I'm not gonna leave you for anything."

"Thank you."

"I didn't do anything."

"You're being a good boyfriend." A small pang of discontentment hit her chest. She wanted him to be more than just a boyfriend. She wanted to be able to call him her husband.

"If he hasn't proposed by now, he never will," the demon said.

Shut up, Jackie thought.

"You can keep ignoring me. If that's the way you want to go. But if you keep neglecting to listen to me, I will simply take over for you. Maybe even… hurt Steven? That seems like it'd be fun. Seems like he wouldn't fight back. Or maybe he would, and he'd be the one to hurt you instead of me. Oh! And he'd be just like his parents then!" The demon's voice had turned excited, and it terrified Jackie. "I could tear his mind apart in seconds."

Jackie put down her sandwich and wiped her fingers on a napkin before taking Steven's hand in both of hers. "Can you make me a promise?"

"What is it?"

"Do not let the demon get to you. Please. No matter what happens to me, do not let that demon take you."

"I can't make that promise," he said. Her heart sank. "If I see that the demon is hurting you or… killing you, I am going to do everything I can to help you. If that means putting myself in harm's way, I'm going to do it."

She frowned at him. "Steven, please. You are the most important person in the world to me, I couldn't live with myself if anything happened to you."

He gave her a pained look, but his love for her was clear in his eyes. "And I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you either. Jackie, I love you more th-"

The door opening cut him off. Buddy peeked in, grinning. "I called my uncle- Oh, wait, am I interrupting something?"

"It's fine. What happened?" Steven asked.

Buddy entered the room fully. "I called my uncle. I didn't think he was gonna respond because he's on retreat, but I caught him at the right time. He said he'll be back in two days, maybe three if they ask him to serve at their final mass. At the latest, he'll be here Thursday."

"That's great," Steven said.

"Yeah," Jackie said. She wanted the demon gone, but she feared if it left her body it would end up in Steven. And she'd rather the demon kill her than take Steven.

"All right, I'll leave you two to whatever you were talking about before." Buddy waved and closed the door behind him. Jackie heard the stairs creak as he went to rejoin Fez.

"What were you saying before? About not being able to live with yourself if something happened to me?" Jackie asked.

Steven ran his thumb over the side of her hand. "Jackie, I love you. And that means I'm going to put your safety before mine. Always."

"Oh, he would be easy to torture," the demon hissed. "His insecurities make him weak. He would be destroyed within days."

"And how do you think I'd feel if something happened to you? What about my happiness? I'm happy when you're okay," she said.

"You'd be fine if something happened to me. It might hurt at first, but you'd be okay." The earnesty of his voice and his expression startled Jackie. He really believed that she would be able to move on from him. He believed that her love was temporary.

Jackie was about to tell him that her love was most certainly not temporary, that her love would last forever, but then she got dizzy. She was vaguely aware of Steven moving towards her and asking something, then she passed out.


When she woke, reality felt altered. She was standing on a cold, hard floor and her feet were bare. She was surrounded by shadowy darkness. It was absolutely silent; there was no background noise whatsoever. She was terrified, but she didn't know why.

Out of the darkness, a figure materialized. Its edges were viscous, never keeping the same shape. Red eyes appeared near the top of the figure. When it spoke, she nearly screamed. "Oh, Jackie, darling. Do you have any idea how difficult you're making this? Just submit to me. It will be easier for everyone, especially Steven. You think he enjoys dealing with you like this? He wouldn't have to have that burden if you just handed yourself to me like a good girl."

"I would never," Jackie said with steely determination. "I would never put Steven in danger like that."

"Oh, but he wouldn't be in danger. His mind is weak, I'd break him easily. But I wouldn't have to break him if you would just let me have control."

The demon melted into the ground and materialized behind Jackie, with its clawed hand on her shoulder. "Come on, darling. Just submit to me. Let me take over for you. Stop fighting. Take a break. It's the right thing to do."

Jackie closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and screamed, "NO!"