iCarly: iMeet the Relatives, Chapter 17: Reunion, and a Secret Revealed
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I don't own iCarly. It's really a crying shame.
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Chapter 17: Reunion, and a Secret Revealed
"But, but what's happened?" Spencer was trying to comprehend it all. Where had everybody gone? Where had the sun gone?
"It's….complicated, Spencer. I'll try to explain it as soon as I know what it is myself." She went before him, trident at the ready. She's holding it like it's a weapon, thought Spencer. Why would she be doing that? For that matter, how'd she come by it, in the first place? What was she doing with a freaking trident? "I'm not complaining, understand, but I thought you didn't want to see me anymore."
She sighed, even as she kept her guard up. They were on the street outside the Groovie Smoothie, and, Spencer admitted to himself, it was a little unnerving how there was nobody else in sight. "It's complicated, Spencer. I didn't want to not see you anymore. It was…just a good idea. It was supposed to be for your own protection."
"My own protection?"
"Is there an echo out here? Yeah, for your own protection. Grif and Carly…thought it would be best, and I had no choice but to go along with 'em. Now, c'mon. I don't sense anyone nearby, but we've got to find the others. I think I know where they'll be." She moved up beside him. "Now, don't panic or anything, but you're about to find yourself someplace else." And with that, she whipped that strange looking cape up and over them both…
"Spencer! I was so worried!" Carly flung herself onto her brother, who looked around, shocked. They were back at the apartment, with Grif giving Jillian a stern look.
"I thought you said you'd keep your distance."
"And I would have. But I sensed he was in danger, so I brought him here. Are you complaining?" He didn't say anything, but, from the look on his face, two different emotions were warring in his soul.
"Okay," said Spencer, disengaging from Carly. "What the hell is going on here?" He didn't notice his sister flinch. "Why'd you guys make Jillian promise to stay away from me?"
Grif sighed. "Spencer, do you believe I'm an angel?"
"I guess I may as well. Why? What's that got to do with anything?"
"Because," Jillian spoke up, "I'm just the opposite. I'm a demon, Spencer. And they were afraid I'd steal your soul, or hurt you in some way."
Spencer looked at her levelly. The red tunic, the trident, the blacker-than-night cloak… "You're a demon."
"Yeah. If you're looking for horns, don't bother. No horns, and, as you can see," she gestured to Grif, "no halos, either."
He turned, fully facing her. "Demon, huh. So…was the other night all fake?"
She didn't answer for a long time. Carly and Grif both watched. Then, in a very small voice, almost a whisper, "No."
Spencer turned to Carly. "Carly, I'm a big boy. Are you really supposed to make my decisions for me? Is that the way you feel?"
"Spencer, you don't understand-*"
"How about if the tables were turned? Suppose I didn't want you hanging around Grif? Would I be out of line? After all, you are my little sister. Or has that changed while I wasn't looking?"
Jillian spoke up. "Spencer, in all fairness, they were…only trying to look out for you. I can't steal souls—none of us can—but, but sometimes we, we play with mortals. I guess she was afraid I'd be doing that." She wouldn't meet any of their gazes.
"And were you?"
"It doesn't matter."
"Yes it does. Tell me."
Another long silence. "No."
He turned to Carly. "What about Susan, two years ago? She played me like a violin. And to hear you tell it, I was the only one who didn't see it coming. You didn't say anything then."
"Yeah, but Spence, this is different…" Carly wrung her hands in exasperation.
Grif came up to them. "Spencer-*"
Spencer held up his hand. "Grif, all due respect, but stay out of this. This is between me and Carly."
Carly blew out a breath. "O-kay. Alright. You can make your own decisions—for better or for worse. I just was afraid you didn't know what you were getting into."
"Alright then." He pulled up a chair from the dining table. "So tell me. Tell me everything."
…..
"What the hell was that?" Sam was just then emerging from underneath Devlin's shadowcloak. "And, and where-*" The sudden change actually shocked Samantha Puckett into silence, a feat normally reserved for the Guinness Book of World Records.
"Come on, Sam. We've got to get out of here." She noticed he was carrying a trident as long as he was tall, made of some yellow material. He led her out into the silent streets. Looked up at the sky. "I'm very much afraid I know where we are. And it's the worst place we could possibly be."
"Where's that?"
"It's called the Darkness, Sam. And if it is—and I'm almost sure it is—we don't have long to exist here."
"Wait, wait. Carly was telling me something about the Darkness earlier. Her, her boyfriend claims to be an angel, supposed to be guarding the Earth from this Darkness…you mean, this is the Darkness? We're in it?" Sam couldn't deny that there was something more than just a lack of light here. It was like something was drawing something out of her, sucking out something vital. Just a little now, but… "And, and just how do you know about the Darkness, anyway?"
He faced her squarely, there in the empty street. "That's what I was going to tell you, Sam. You've seen that Gryphon is an angel. And you know about Jillian, that she's a demon, correct?"
A wary look. "Y-yes…"
He sighed. "Well, I'm a demon, too."
She groaned. "What is this, Drive Sam Crazy month or something? You're no demon! I've known you since grade school!"
"Yes, you have. I decided then that I wanted your soul. I mean to have it. But the only way I can have it is if you give it to me voluntarily. I can't just take it.
"That's part of what I wanted to talk to you about, earlier."
She groaned again, looking around for something to sit on. There were fallen slabs of masonry littering the sidewalks; she sat on one of those and held her head in her hands. Her one rock-solid anchor with reality had just turned into silly putty.
"Excuse me a moment," he said, and was momentarily engulfed in flames. When they faded, he was attired in the same sort of uniform she'd seen Jillian wear: crimson red tunic, pants, black leather belt and boots. And holding his trident at the ready, looking around.
Sam was looking at him, shocked by the transformation, and also by the uniform he wore. It was identical to the one Jillian wore. "You…you really are a, a…"
"Yes, Sam, I am. But I'm not here to hurt you. I never wanted that." He moved over towards her. "Explanations will have to wait, but we need to go find your friends. I can't sense anybody else here but them. So it follows we—all of us—need to stick together."
Sam felt her temper starting to boil. "You lied to me! All these years…..!"
"No, Sam, I never lied to you. It's true, I never told you the whole truth, but I never ever told you anything that wasn't true."
"You said you worked for WorldCorp!"
"I do. That's my uncle's business. It's, well, I guess you could say it's family owned and operated."
She sat there, her head still in her hands. All around her, the stillness, the silence, the dark…all took a back seat to this revelation. "I….I don't know what to think anymore."
He came up to her and knelt down in front of her. His expression was one of utmost sincerity. "Sam. It's true. I'm a demon. And I do want your soul.
"But you have the totally wrong idea as to what that means. It doesn't mean I want to condemn you to eternal torment. It does mean I want to keep you safe. And, yes, it means I want us to be together. Forever.
"Now, I think we'd best go find your friends. Come on, okay? It's going to be alright, Sam. You've my word." But privately, he wondered: would it be alright?
He hadn't been able to contact Uncle BenDarian. That boded ill.
For her part, Sam was still recovering from the shock. Here, someone she had been seriously considering to be boyfriend material….wasn't even human.
On the other hand, neither was Carly's. "This," she sniffled, hating herself for feeling this way, "this is gonna take some getting used to."
"I know. I was going to tell you anyway. That's the only way I could ever have your soul, Sam. You'd have to give it to me, freely and voluntarily, knowing what I am and what you'd be doing. In a way, it's kind of like a marriage."
Marriage? Marriage? Sam had never given that any thought whatsoever. "You're…you're not serious."
"Well, at least let's go to the others. There's no point in standing around here. We need to pool our resources. Now, don't be alarmed, but I'm going to teleport us to Carly's apartment. Just close your eyes…"And he flipped his shadowcloak over them both…
"Sam? Is that you?" Carly was the first to notice the couple appearing out of thin air.
"Yeah, Carls, it's me. And boy have I got something to tell you."
Both Grif and Jillian were eyeing Devlin. "You," said Jillian, "You utter bastard!" And with that, she launched herself straight at him in a clearly murderous attack.
To be continued...
