Jaden: HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY! *goes crazy with party stuff and confetti*

Chazz: ... Remind me again why I hang out with these slackers?

Jaden: *glomps Chazz* Because, deep down, you know you love us!

Chazz: ... Hell no. *pushs Jaden onto the floor and stalks off*

Syrus: *sighs* Well, Cali's working again, so that's good... even if it's a little slow right now...

Bastion: *comes in* Hey, where's Die?

Jaden: Out attacking people for waking her up with fireworks when she was trying to sleep.

Bastion: Sounds reasonable.

Syrus: ... Neither Cali nor Die own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or the song "Given Up" by Linkin Park.

Chapter Sixteen: Holy Family

I hyperventilate

Looking for help somehow somewhere

And no one cares

I'm my own worst enemy

I've given up

I'm sick of feeling

Is there nothing you can say?

Take this all away

I'm suffocating

Tell me what the fuck is wrong

With me

Chazz snatched his phone up from the table, breaking the kiss he was bestowing on Bastion. "Hello Branwen," he panted, having recognized the song as the one he had pre-set for the girl.

She bypassed his oncoming preamble. "They're here."

He froze, obsidian eyes wide even if the other demon had already hung up. Bastion instantly reached out for the demon. "Chazz?"

The Obelisk darted across the room, hastily yanking on his clothes. "Stay right there," he growled, yanking his blue jacket on with more force than necessary. "I mean it. Today is not a good day for you to be wandering around."

"I'm supposed to stay in here all day?"

"Yes," the Princeton responded harshly. "You are to stay here, do some formula work or something, just please, do this for me. I don't… I can't… I won't let them find out we're together."

He bit his lip, torn between fighting and just complying. He settled on the latter. "Fine."

Chazz's wings drooped as he sighed, the appendages folding against his back. He knew better than anyone what it was like to be ignored, and that wasn't the reason why he was hiding Bastion away. In a vague attempt at an apology, he crawled into Bastion's lap, resting his head on the other's shoulder and awkwardly wrapping his arms around the angel in a loose hug.

Bastion smiled softly, pressing a soft kiss to Chazz's forehead. "It'll be dull without you."

"Trust me, I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't important," the demon soothed. "I don't want to leave you either."

"Good to know." Bastion said, resting his forehead against the demon's.

Chazz sighed, entirely unwilling to move. "I should probably go…"

"Go." Bastion whispered, kissing his lover's forehead again. "I'll be waiting."

"May I present," Nix announced with a flourish, "the jewel of the Ravenwood household, Branwen!"

The smaller girl blushed darkly, disliking that she was being put on show to the two elder Princeton brothers but not having the courage to protest it. She held herself still under Slade's stare, the elder trying to examine her entirely without taking her dress off. "She is quite the prize," Jagger mused, "but I'm not sure she would be strong enough to bear Chazz's young."

Aster sucked in a breath, doing everything it took not to strangle the demons where they stood.

"True," a cold voice acknowledged from behind them, "but then again, my daughter has always been one for surprises."

Nix sunk into a deep curtsy. "Father," she acknowledged.

Aster's eyes narrowed. This man was so familiar, so reminiscent of evil-Branwen. Then of course, it clicked.

"Bran?" the man murmured, bloody eyes narrowed, "don't you have something to say?"

"Hello Father," she whispered softly, only the slightest tremble to her wings showing her fear. Slade and Jagger nodded appreciatively at the display of obedience from the girl, something they wanted so that Chazz too would be dependent upon them for support and protection.

Aster, in stark contrast, clenched his fists, forcing down his growl. He had to keep control. For her.

"Slade, Jagger, how many fucking times do I have to tell you that I'm gay before you finally get the concept through your thick skulls?"

"Chazz!" Branwen cried, flitting forward and throwing herself in the grumpy demon's arms. She had always been encouraged to be more exuberant with him in the hopes that the two families could combine, but the two youngest siblings had never felt anything for each other aside from the friendship they had gained upon entering the school and she had permitted him to feed on her blood whenever he got hungry.

The male demon wrapped his wings around her, the urge to protect her overriding his fear of being detected as having a mate.

Good. She's safe with him.

A slim brunette popped up in front of Jaden and Syrus. "Jaden!" The woman bubbled, haphazardly throwing her arms around the boy that was so obviously her son. A basket of muffins hung from her slim arm, emerald eyes twinkling excitedly. She crushed her son to her chest, squeeing him so tightly he almost lost breath. "It's so good to see you!" She pulled him back, hands remaining on his shoulders as she looked him up and down. "Oh, you're so grown up! I still remember when you were just a baby and needed me for everything! You were so adorable!" She sighed, smiling broadly. "So how are you baby? And who's this?" Her eyes fell to Syrus, curious and shockingly similar to Jaden's.

The brunet didn't say anything, having already plundered the muffin basket while she was hugging him. Instead, the angel had to take the initiative. "I'm Syrus Truesdale," he murmured, offering her his hand. "And as for Jay… well… it's kind of a long story."

Her smile brightened as if the last part had flown over her head—there was a reason she was Jaden's mother. "Oh, it's so nice to meet one of Jaden's friends! Speaking of which, have you seen Cienna? I really ought to thank her Uncle Ryou for the muffins. I swear, without Cienna's family, we'd have starved by now."

"She's likely with my older brother Zane. The two of them have gotten kind of close…"

Jaden let out a low growl as he swallowed the remains of the muffin, pulling Syrus close to him, dark wings coming out protectively around the smaller. "Sy is not one of my friends, Mom," he stated.

"What do you mean cl-" Her words cut off, the sight of Jaden's wings freezing her where she stood. "J-Jaden? W-What happened to your wings?"

Syrus peeked over the ebony feathers, smiling sheepishly. "I tried to tell you," he explained. "Jaden fell a little while ago." His own ivory wings came out then, taking up the remainder of space inside of the demon's embrace.

Her mouth opened and closed for a moment, making her resemble a fish out of water, but she settled on a sigh. "Well, at least he has you, Syrus."

The little blue-haired boy blushed. "Yeah, well, about that," he murmured. "We're boyfriends."

Though appearing a little shocked, she still managed a smile. "Well that's wonderful."

"Um Jaden," the Truesdale murmured, "you can let go of me now."

"Don't wanna," the Yuki answered back childishly, tightening his grip and burying his face in sky locks.

His mother laughed, eyes twinkling with joy and a slight sadness. "He's always been like this. And I promise you it'll never go away."

"Jaden, I'll give you a muffin if you let go of me."

The brunet had to think about it for a moment, but he slowly retracted his arms, pouting all the while. "Don't want a muffin," he stated.

Cienna appeared behind his mom, smiling slightly. "Then why the hell did you let go of him?"

Jaden's mother turned, grinning at the blonde. "Hello Cienna."

"Hey Mrs. Terra." The two females embraced, laughing at each other.

"Is your Uncle Ryou here yet?"

"Nope. Malik got distracted..." She laughed. "But what else is new?"

The mother laughed. "That is incredibly true."

Jaden pouted at being ignored but patiently waited until the two calmed down. "I let go of him because I wanted a kiss instead."

"Aw!" Cienna cooed. "You two are so cuuuute!"

"They really are." Jaden's mother replied with a soft grin. "My little baby's growing up."

"We all are." Cienna giggled, sliding her arm around Zane's waist and pressing her face into his chest for a moment. "We're all falling in love."

He nuzzled her hair, reaching out to ruffle the blonde strands in a substitution for her wings. Strange, he mused to himself, I would have thought Chazz would be here, if only to try to find Branwen Ravenwood.

The blonde turned her gaze up to him, a bright light dancing behind her eyes. I love you. Her expression read, You mean everything to me. Her fingers reached out to his other arm, pushing up his sleeve to eye the gashes on his arm once all attention had turned to Jaden and Syrus again. She ran her fingers over the healing gashes, an all-new kind of sadness washing her face pale.

He twisted his arm, catching her hand and pressing a kiss to the cut on her own wrist, the one that he had drank from the night before. And you to me.

Small tears appeared in the corner of her eyes, but she brushed them away. Upon his concerned look, she gave him another easily readable look. I'm fine, love. I promise.

"Why don't you go see that angel of Chazz's?" he murmured softly, not really wanting her to go but realizing she needed more than just him to keep her happy. "You haven't seen anything of him today, and I can assure you that they won't be having sex since Chazz has people to entertain."

"But my fathers." She whispered. I don't want to leave your side, can't you see? I worry.

He smiled softly, nuzzling her. "I'll come with you if you want."

"I can't leave my... dammit. I have no idea where Dad and Daddy are..." She shook her head. "I'll send Father to look for them and we can go talk to Bastion. Jaden and Syrus can entertain Mrs. Terra and it'll all work out. My parents can meet up with us at lunch if not before." She grinned up at him. He reminds me of Damian... "And my uncles should be here by then."

"THERE YOU ARE, YOU LITTLE BRAT!" Looks like Mariku finally managed to surface. But where was Bakura?

"HAHAHA, WE HAVE SOMETHING PRECIOUS TO YOU, STREET-RAT!" Oh, there he was.

"JADEN, HELP, I'VE BEEN GRABBED AN EVIL VILLIAN AND HIS CAT!"

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

"NOT A KITTY!"

"It only gets worse from here." Cienna whispered. "Let's run while we still can."

"I can live with that," Zane replied. "Those two scare me a little."

"You have no idea." She whispered, sneaking a backwards glance at her family. She and Zane slid away, only noticed by Yami—who smiled knowingly and gave her a small nod. Once they reached the dorms, she giggled. "I haven't actually been in my room since I walked in on Chazz and Bastion..."

"Yeah, you only do that once before the images scar you for life," he agreed.

"Eh." She shrugged. "I've walked in on my parents enough times that it doesn't bother me. I've just been at your place since they stopped their fanatic fucking..."

Bastion let out a sigh, throwing down his math book and padding over to his bed. He missed Chazz, and here, the site of their lovemaking, smelled strongly of the other male, which soothed the pain in his heart somewhat. The door slid open with a small whoosh, exciting him. Chazz is back! However, it was the inseparable couple—Cienna and Zane. She smiled at the sight of him. "Hi Bastion!"

"Hello," he replied, dropping back on the bed, trying to hide a soft smile when he landed on a part of his pillow that smelled particularly strongly of the Princeton. "To what do I owe this visit?"

"Well besides the fact that it's my room too," she giggled. "My parents are here so I obviously needed to get away. And all of that aside, I haven't seen you in a while."

"Yeah," he sighed. "Chazz and I have been pretty busy…"

She giggled. "Yes you have." She ran a hand through her hair, eyes falling to her bed. "By the way, you're washing my sheets if you haven't already." She offered a quirky smile, "And I don't suppose I really have anywhere to sit in that case..." She dropped to the floor, cross-legged and laughing.

The angel flushed scarlet, unsurprised to watch Zane sink down beside her, his ebony wings wrapping around her as he pulled her into his lap. Chazz never lets me do something like that…

She smiled, leaning back against him. "So how are you?"

He shrugged. "Chazz is so… difficult to read. He expects things without having to ask for them, and he's extremely defensive, but I wouldn't have him any other way."

"That's good." She smiled excitedly. "Are your parents coming?"

"No," he answered. "I wanted to meet Chazz's, but he asked me to stay here today."

She frowned. "You're stuck in your room on Parents' Day? Bullshit! Come participate in the chaos that is my family."

"I don't know, Cienna," he replied. "Chazz did seem rather freaked out by this…"

"It's got to be insanely boring in here. I mean, I'd bring my family here but there's no way we'd all fit. Especially when my uncles get here."

He looked away. "I just… don't want to hurt him. He's so damn bipolar, I don't know what will or won't set him off."

Cienna sighed, tugging her lip between her teeth. "I know, but really, you might actually like my family. And Jaden's always happy to spew embarrassing childhood stories. My fathers are maniacs, but they're fun. You'll be missing out."

He sighed. His equations were rather boring, and he did rather miss being out in the sun… his room was just so boring now that he'd known what it was like to have a reason to leave. "Fine, I'll go."

"Yay!" She giggled, doing an odd sort of dance as best as she could in Zane's lap. The demon closed his eyes, pretending that he wasn't getting excited by the way she was wriggling against him. She tilted her head back to grin at him. "My uncles should be getting here soon. They're usually calmer than my parents." Impulsively, she brought her lips up to his. He kissed her back, reaching up to cup her face with a hand. She pulled away after a few minutes, grin widening. "We can't do that in front of Daddy. Father doesn't cavity-search him."

"That's vaguely disturbing, you know," Bastion muttered, pulling on his yellow Ra jacket over his wings.

She looked bemused. "Is it?"

"Yes. Having to cavity-search your significant other in order to prevent death is not a normal thing, you know."

She shrugged. "I guess I'm just used to the weirdness. Dad and Daddy are maniacs. Just being at my Uncles' house is odd because someone actually cooks."

Malik didn't really want to wake up either of the two angels sleeping against his arm, but since it was time for them to land, the half-angel turned to the albino, the smallest boy against his other side already beginning to stir. "Just leave him, Mal," the smaller murmured sleepily, his wings stretching as he tried to wake himself up. "Ry's been working really hard, so it's probably for the better that he sleeps some of it off."

Light lavender eyes softened. "Okay, Yug," he sighed, wrapping tanned arms around the pale boy, "but only because I love you both."

Just outside the window, they could see a blonde bouncing enthusiastically, hair flying everywhere. Yugi chuckled quietly. "Ci's waiting for us."

"Of course she is," Malik answered. "She'd just better not wake up Ryou, otherwise I am so dumping her in the middle of the ocean."

"And Bakura would kill you." He laughed. "You know she's Daddy's little girl."

"Nuh uh, not if it was in defense of his yadonoshi," the tanned angel defended, too caught up in the argument to notice the bump as the helicopter landed fully on the helipad.

The spikey-haired male nodded. "Granted." He peered out the window, eyeing the boy standing hand-in-hand with their oldest niece. It's a miracle Bakura left him alive... "Looks like Ci's got a boyfriend." I wasn't sure she would date again after Damian...

"… I give him an hour."

"For her sake, I hope he lasts longer. I wasn't sure she'd open up after Damian..." He said quietly.

"I just hope he doesn't leave her like Damian did."

"Ry-ry!" Malik looked down at the soft chocolate eyes of the angel in his arms.

Yugi eyed the boy in question, catching Cienna's eyes. She smiled and waved, he returned it, replying softly. "Bakura would kill him. But Ci's getting suspicious. Let's go."

"Okay," the tanned demon replied, childishly taking Yugi's hand as he tightened his grip on Ryou.

"You know, I can walk on my own," the pale demon murmured softly.

"You're tired." Yugi contradicted, scrambling down first only to be tackled by his niece.

"Uncle Yugi!" She squealed excitedly, throwing her arms sloppily around his neck and giggling. "You're heeeereeee." She sang.

"… Okay, who let you at the cookies without my say-so?" Malik growled, wings fluffing out as he tightened his grip on a drooping Ryou.

"I haven't had anything sugary all day." She turned to hug him, throwing her arms excitedly around the two left-over uncles. "It's just been a fantastic day so far!"

Zane made his presence known then with a gentle, "Let go of them, Ci, before you choke one and completely compress the other."

She let go in that moment, springing away. "Damn, sorry!" She wheeled away, twisting her hand into Zane's grip instead. "It's just good to see you..."

"So, are you going to introduce us?" Malik said coyly, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

She shot him a glare. "Uncles, this is my mate, Zane. Zane, these are my Uncles—Malik, Yugi, and Ryou."

Ryou raised a delicate eyebrow at the word 'mate'. "You must've really wooed her," he noted tiredly, his exhaustion making him not nearly as guarded with his tongue as he usually was. "She always told us she never wanted to mate with a demon because she wanted to try to keep out of the world of politics Yami was in."

Cienna's eyebrows rose, an aggravated, "What the hell?" escaping her lips. "Uncle Ryou!"

"What?" he answered sleepily. "It's true!"

She held back a glare, staring at the ground firmly. "He's tired, Zane. He doesn't know what he's saying."

He chuckled dryly, pulling her close. "It's okay, tenshi," he murmured softly. "In fact, I'm honored you'd violate a promise you'd made to yourself when you were younger just for me."

She snuggled closer, pressing her face into his chest with a gentle smile. "You're worth it." She breathed in his scent right as Malik was tackled by Sylvia.

"Maaaaalik!" The blue-haired girl giggled, "Uncle Ryou! It's good to see you!"

"AHHHH! SMALL CHILDREN! I DID NOT SIGN UP FOR THIS!"

"MALIK, THAT WAS RIGHT IN MY EAR!"

"NO, RYOU, I WILL NOT TAKE YOUR CLOTHES OFF AND ASK BAKURA TO DESTROY THEM!"

"MALIK, WHAT THE HELL?"

"WHY ARE WE YELLING?"

"SHUT UP MARIKU!"

"SHUT UP!" Cienna shrieked, shoulders tensing and devil tail peeking out of her skirt hesitantly. "WE ARE GOING TO DO OUR BEST TO BE CIVIL AND AT LEAST REMOTELY SOCIALLY ACCEPTABLE! AM I EFFING CLEAR?"

"YAY, NOW WE'RE ALL YELLING!"

Ryou reached up and cuffed Malik around the head at the same time Bakura did Mariku, the two albinos scolding their whining tan lovers.

Off to the side of all this, Bastion smiled forlornly. He didn't belong here, not without Chazz. Sighing, he turned around, wanting to go back to his room in hopes that the demon would be there.

Cienna caught sight of him, dropping Zane's hand and running after him. "Wait Bastion! Where ya going? I know they're insane but I swear I can tame them!"

"I just… I really miss Chazz," he sighed, unaware he was clutching at his chest right over his heart.

The worry on her face melted into sympathy as her hand moved to his shoulder. "You can go if you want. I just wanted to try to cheer you up." She offered a forlorn smile. "Guess that didn't work though..."

"You did though," he reassured her. "I just… I feel like unless he's at my side, I'm not complete, you know?"

She nodded, working up the energy to crack a joke. "Try going a day and a half without talking to him, then we'll talk."

He shuddered at the thought. "Yeah, well, you weren't mated to him then like I am to Chazz," he muttered darkly.

"That's true." She replied. "I couldn't do it now. It'd kill me."

He couldn't take it any more. With a call of "Sorry Cienna!', he darted off, wanting and needing to pull Chazz into his arms and feel the demon's heart beat against his own.

With a soft, understanding smile, she turned and made her way back to the chaos that was her family.

Chazz sighed and leaned against the wall, having gained a moment to himself while his brothers were in a business conference via their phones. He wished he had enough time to go back to Bastion and bury himself in the angel's arms, but with the way Branwen's father treated her, he knew he had to stay close by to try to prevent her from being hit. Sure, Aster Phoenix had a reputation, but he didn't put it past the pretty boy to not want to sully his hands with such trash as demons, especially pureblood and broken demons like Branwen Ravenwood.

As if reading his first thoughts, Bastion appeared out of practically nowhere, drawing the demon into his arms. "Bastion?" the Princeton purred in surprise, "what are you doing here? I thought I told you to stay back in our room."

"I missed you." The Ra student whispered, leaning his forehead against the demon's.

Obsidian eyes softened. "I missed you too," the Obelisk murmured back.

"Aw, how cute, a whore and his bitch, reunited at last."

Chazz tensed, wheeling and spreading his dark wings to try to hide Bastion from Mischief's view. Branwen ran forward then, putting her hands around her father's forearm. "Father, please, don't," she pleaded.

He backhanded the girl, causing her to fall to the floor and slide a foot or two. "Don't talk back to me!" he yelled, eyes burning as he turned around to face Chazz and Bastion again. Chazz trembled when he raised his arm again, squeezing his eyes shut, but he opened them again at the harsh sound of flesh on flesh. Branwen's shaking form stood before him, her wings shielding them protectively and a large handprint visible on her cheek.

The two angels in the room were shocked, the difference in their reactions being how they handled it. Bastion was frozen, unused to the idea of such abuse coming from someone in the family. Aster, however, stepped in quickly. He stepped in front of Branwen, throwing a gentle look at her over his shoulder before turning on her father. Expression firm, eyes blazing, he let out a growl. "I'd say this is over."

The man laughed. "Cocky little punk," he chortled in amusement. "Because you amuse me so, I'm going to give you one chance, just the one, to remove yourself from in front of my daughter."

The angel stood his ground, keeping his gaze level with the demon's. I have to keep Bren safe. I have to.

"You know," Branwen said, her body trembling as she echoed each word that her father uttered the same moment she did, "you really should get out of the way, Aster Phoenix."

He flinched, a minor spasm of disbelief. But no, it was her father controlling her. He couldn't leave her. Not abandoning her. "I really can't."

She shrugged, mirroring her father. "Your choice." Her dark wings surged forward, knocking him to the ground where the shadows came up to chain him there. She then strode towards Mischief, their bodies twining together in a parody of an intimate embrace. "You may think you can rescue her, but you are wrong. I am her, and there is nothing you can do about it."

Bastion pulled a frozen Chazz behind him, clawing out at the demons with blindingly white magic. It leaked between them, pushing them away from each other like a wall. Rage flew across Mischief's face as his control over Branwen was lost, her own face scared. The bonds that held Aster to the ground were gone and he pulled himself to his feet, wrapping Branwen in his embrace of arms and wings, cradling her close. The barrier of angel magic faded after a few shimmering moments, leaving Bastion looking confident and drained at the same time.

Branwen burrowed into his embrace, crying softly. It was over. It was finally over. Mischief growled at them, but he recognized he had lost. "Nix!" he roared, "You're in charge here!" He then wheeled about on his heel, the shadows wrapping around him and whisking him back to his home.

Chazz looked at Bastion with wide eyes, his body trembling, before he darted off, tears leaking from the corners of his obsidian eyes. He should have known it was too good to be true, he should have figured it out. An angel and a demon were forbidden to love each other, and with Bastion being revealed as a full-blooded angel, he had to get away, run far away and hope his mistake would cost him nothing more.

Atty: DUN DUN DUN, CLIFFHANGER! YOU'LL NEVER KNOW!

Zane: ...

Die: ... Oh yeah, that reminds me... *chucks a cookie at Zane's head* AND NO, YOU CAN'T HAVE MY ATTY! HE'S MINE! *grabs Atticus and cuddles him to her protectively*

Zane: ... Okay then.

Aster: *sighs* She's this easy to distract. *walks in front of her*

Die: ... *tackles Aster and cuddles him instead*

Atty: Well then, if you review, I will use my Magician of Love powers to help you get a date! Ta-ta! *runs off to go cuddle with Aster and Die*

Zane: ... Yeah, I've given up on trying to help them. *walks off, munching his cookie*