Illiam knocked on the door of Jiro’s bedroom. He could hear his son crying within. “Jiro? Jiro, can I come in.”
“Sure.” said Jiro, and Illiam entered the large, luxurious bedroom. It was full of bookshelves, but not nearly enough to contain the vast numbers of books that spilled out from them, covering tables, chairs, even a few on the floor. Jiro sat in the middle of his enormous bed, wrapped up in a mass of blankets. He looked clearly upset.
“Jiro, darling, what’s wrong? Can I sit down?” Jiro moved over slightly, and Illiam sat down next to him. Jiro looked sadly at his father.
“Do you remember Botis?”
“That nice demon boy you told me about?”
Jiro shook his head. “Turns out he wasn’t very nice at all. He just… he was pretending to be interested in me as a joke! He said nobody would ever be really interested in me, that it was hilarious that I’d think so!”
Illiam literally hissed. “What?! How dare he! Do you want your father and I to do something about this?”
Jiro shook his head, tears falling from his eyes. “No, that would just be petty. I just… do you really think it’s true? Will nobody ever like me, for real?”
Illiam shook his head and cupped his son’s chin in one hand, stroking his long, blonde hair with the other. “Oh Jiro, darling, of course people will love you. You’re intelligent, resourceful, and very handsome. You look so much like Elian, sometimes…” Illiam let out a sigh as he patted Jiro. “Don’t worry about what other people say to you. I know you’ll find somebody special.”
“But what if that never happens? What if it doesn’t? Ugh, why do I always have to have these sorts of problems! Why can’t Sevvie have one for once!”
Illiam hugged Jiro and laughed. “I’m pretty sure that Sevvie is never interested in anyone, and never will be. Your father is having a hard time accepting that, but he has a hard time accepting anything.”
“Please don’t tell him about this.” said Jiro, tensing up. “If he hears about this-”
“He’ll probably eat Botis. I know.”
“Sure.” said Jiro, and Illiam entered the large, luxurious bedroom. It was full of bookshelves, but not nearly enough to contain the vast numbers of books that spilled out from them, covering tables, chairs, even a few on the floor. Jiro sat in the middle of his enormous bed, wrapped up in a mass of blankets. He looked clearly upset.
“Jiro, darling, what’s wrong? Can I sit down?” Jiro moved over slightly, and Illiam sat down next to him. Jiro looked sadly at his father.
“Do you remember Botis?”
“That nice demon boy you told me about?”
Jiro shook his head. “Turns out he wasn’t very nice at all. He just… he was pretending to be interested in me as a joke! He said nobody would ever be really interested in me, that it was hilarious that I’d think so!”
Illiam literally hissed. “What?! How dare he! Do you want your father and I to do something about this?”
Jiro shook his head, tears falling from his eyes. “No, that would just be petty. I just… do you really think it’s true? Will nobody ever like me, for real?”
Illiam shook his head and cupped his son’s chin in one hand, stroking his long, blonde hair with the other. “Oh Jiro, darling, of course people will love you. You’re intelligent, resourceful, and very handsome. You look so much like Elian, sometimes…” Illiam let out a sigh as he patted Jiro. “Don’t worry about what other people say to you. I know you’ll find somebody special.”
“But what if that never happens? What if it doesn’t? Ugh, why do I always have to have these sorts of problems! Why can’t Sevvie have one for once!”
Illiam hugged Jiro and laughed. “I’m pretty sure that Sevvie is never interested in anyone, and never will be. Your father is having a hard time accepting that, but he has a hard time accepting anything.”
“Please don’t tell him about this.” said Jiro, tensing up. “If he hears about this-”
“He’ll probably eat Botis. I know.”
Georg rolled his eyes as Dominik tried not to cry. “Okay, son, let’s go over it one more time. You’re not a guy. But you don’t know what you are. And this unknown thing keeps changing. And you’re not really sure what it is. Dominik, I just- I can’t understand this at all.”
“What’s there not to understand?” asked Dominik. “I experience more than one gender, but I can’t really describe them, and only one at a time. None of them are male or female, but some of them are masculine or feminine.”
“And what’s the difference?” asked Georg.
Dominik opened his mouth to reply, but Sebastian cut in. “Look, Georg, darling, you don’t have to understand precisely how Dominik identifies to respect their identity!” But Georg shook his head.
“It just kind of sounds like you’re being a teenager, Dominik. Look, I know you want to feel like you’re unique, and special, and you are. You’re my son, and you’ve got cool psychic powers, and you were born because otherwise the universe would be awful.”
Dominik blinked. “Okay, say that last one again.”
Georg looked over Sebastian curiously. “What, you never told the kid the ‘why you were born’ story? With the Starry One, and you dying, and-”
“That’s not why Dominik was born!” exclaimed Sebastian. “They were born because we wanted another child, another radiant lightbeam to shine in the world.”
Georg shrugged, clearly not agreeing. “Yeah, maybe that’s why you wanted him, I wanted him because you would have died and Xander would have taken over the world and shit.”
The teenage tiefling could no longer hold back the tears. Standing up, they shrieked, “How can you never have told me this? Why were you keeping this from me?”
Georg shrugged again. “Look, I hoped that your dad told you this. Sebbie, why didn’t you tell him this?”
“Oh, that’d be a wonderful story to tell our child.” muttered Sebastian. “Should I have included the part where you attacked Lukas, and the part where Monroe-”
“YOU SHUT UP!” screamed Georg. “I wasn’t in my right mind then!”
“Just because it was upsetting doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen!” retorted Sebastian. Then, suddenly, both of them looked around.
Dominik was gone.
“What’s there not to understand?” asked Dominik. “I experience more than one gender, but I can’t really describe them, and only one at a time. None of them are male or female, but some of them are masculine or feminine.”
“And what’s the difference?” asked Georg.
Dominik opened his mouth to reply, but Sebastian cut in. “Look, Georg, darling, you don’t have to understand precisely how Dominik identifies to respect their identity!” But Georg shook his head.
“It just kind of sounds like you’re being a teenager, Dominik. Look, I know you want to feel like you’re unique, and special, and you are. You’re my son, and you’ve got cool psychic powers, and you were born because otherwise the universe would be awful.”
Dominik blinked. “Okay, say that last one again.”
Georg looked over Sebastian curiously. “What, you never told the kid the ‘why you were born’ story? With the Starry One, and you dying, and-”
“That’s not why Dominik was born!” exclaimed Sebastian. “They were born because we wanted another child, another radiant lightbeam to shine in the world.”
Georg shrugged, clearly not agreeing. “Yeah, maybe that’s why you wanted him, I wanted him because you would have died and Xander would have taken over the world and shit.”
The teenage tiefling could no longer hold back the tears. Standing up, they shrieked, “How can you never have told me this? Why were you keeping this from me?”
Georg shrugged again. “Look, I hoped that your dad told you this. Sebbie, why didn’t you tell him this?”
“Oh, that’d be a wonderful story to tell our child.” muttered Sebastian. “Should I have included the part where you attacked Lukas, and the part where Monroe-”
“YOU SHUT UP!” screamed Georg. “I wasn’t in my right mind then!”
“Just because it was upsetting doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen!” retorted Sebastian. Then, suddenly, both of them looked around.
Dominik was gone.
The Alkavovs gathered at the dinner table. Anya, as usual, was not present, but Helorie, Varya and Dmitri were already there. Tavis, Kir and Jakob were in Vembrisa, visiting, and Bara was meditating in an attempt to finally focus her mind to the point where she could become ten thousand geese, squawking in unison, so it was unlikely that anyone besides Pyotr would show up. Suddenly, Pyotr arrived, dressed in a flowing black and white robe, beaming cheerfully at his relations.
Helorie sighed as he looked at his son, pressing his face into two of his hands. “Pyotr, please go back upstairs and change into your usual self. You know you’re not allowed to be in other personas outside the designated training time.”
Pyotr sighed as he dropped into his chair. “I don’t like you calling me a persona, father. It… it makes me sound like a character or something. I’m a person too, you know. As much as the person you call my “usual self” is. He’s only his usual self.”
Zarya rolled her eyes at Pyotr as she speared a shrimp with a fork telekinetically. “Other Pyotr, you are only a fragment of our true sibling, a mere reflection by which the true you manifests your powers. I’m not sure when you began insisting you’re a person, but you’re not.”
Pyotr sighed. “I don’t like being called Other Pyotr. I’ve got just as much a right to that name as he does. And I have just as much a right to this body as he does. It’s our body.”
“It’s your body. There is only one you.” said Zarya. “And your family would prefer it if you stopped this nonsense and returned to being your normal self. You can just change back.”
“Don’t bring me into this.” said Dmitri. “Pyotr can be whoever he wants to be.”
“You don’t understand!” said Pyotr, banging his fists on the table. “It’s not like I’m a different mindset, a different overlay, like I’m one person looking out of multiple colored windows! I am multiple people! And when you say go back and be ‘regular pytor’, that means that I don’t get to have dinner with my family, which I never have. I don’t get to experience this world like he does! He finally- he finally let me have this, and you’re making me give it away! It’s just one night! Just one dinner!”
Helorie looked to Zarya, who was rolling her eyes. “I don’t know when you got confused as to how your powers worked, but your mother will be hearing about this. Now, go upstairs, stop this foolishness, and maybe we can all still have a nice dinner.”
“THIS IS THE LITERAL WORST!” screamed Pyotr. “My family doesn’t even believe I exist!” Pyotr twisted around and stomped upstairs. Dmitri thought about following him, and telling him that he probably did exist, and that the rest of the family was being asses, but didn’t. He was more than okay with his brother being multiple people, or having multiple brothers, or however it was. But he didn’t want to be lectured by his father either, so he just sighed and took a bite of shrimp. It was nice and spicy.
After a few minutes, Pyotr finally came down the stairs again, dressed in a black jacket and red skirt. “Um, what happened?” said Pyotr. “I was in my room and I was really upset and-”
Varya sighed. “You don’t have to lie to us, Pyotr. We all know what happened.”
Pyotr sat down at the table, deeply confused. “No, I… I really don’t. I switched over to go to my sorcery lesson and…”
Helorie patted Pyotr’s hand. “It’s all better now. We can have a nice dinner. No need to worry about any of that.”
Helorie sighed as he looked at his son, pressing his face into two of his hands. “Pyotr, please go back upstairs and change into your usual self. You know you’re not allowed to be in other personas outside the designated training time.”
Pyotr sighed as he dropped into his chair. “I don’t like you calling me a persona, father. It… it makes me sound like a character or something. I’m a person too, you know. As much as the person you call my “usual self” is. He’s only his usual self.”
Zarya rolled her eyes at Pyotr as she speared a shrimp with a fork telekinetically. “Other Pyotr, you are only a fragment of our true sibling, a mere reflection by which the true you manifests your powers. I’m not sure when you began insisting you’re a person, but you’re not.”
Pyotr sighed. “I don’t like being called Other Pyotr. I’ve got just as much a right to that name as he does. And I have just as much a right to this body as he does. It’s our body.”
“It’s your body. There is only one you.” said Zarya. “And your family would prefer it if you stopped this nonsense and returned to being your normal self. You can just change back.”
“Don’t bring me into this.” said Dmitri. “Pyotr can be whoever he wants to be.”
“You don’t understand!” said Pyotr, banging his fists on the table. “It’s not like I’m a different mindset, a different overlay, like I’m one person looking out of multiple colored windows! I am multiple people! And when you say go back and be ‘regular pytor’, that means that I don’t get to have dinner with my family, which I never have. I don’t get to experience this world like he does! He finally- he finally let me have this, and you’re making me give it away! It’s just one night! Just one dinner!”
Helorie looked to Zarya, who was rolling her eyes. “I don’t know when you got confused as to how your powers worked, but your mother will be hearing about this. Now, go upstairs, stop this foolishness, and maybe we can all still have a nice dinner.”
“THIS IS THE LITERAL WORST!” screamed Pyotr. “My family doesn’t even believe I exist!” Pyotr twisted around and stomped upstairs. Dmitri thought about following him, and telling him that he probably did exist, and that the rest of the family was being asses, but didn’t. He was more than okay with his brother being multiple people, or having multiple brothers, or however it was. But he didn’t want to be lectured by his father either, so he just sighed and took a bite of shrimp. It was nice and spicy.
After a few minutes, Pyotr finally came down the stairs again, dressed in a black jacket and red skirt. “Um, what happened?” said Pyotr. “I was in my room and I was really upset and-”
Varya sighed. “You don’t have to lie to us, Pyotr. We all know what happened.”
Pyotr sat down at the table, deeply confused. “No, I… I really don’t. I switched over to go to my sorcery lesson and…”
Helorie patted Pyotr’s hand. “It’s all better now. We can have a nice dinner. No need to worry about any of that.”
Morti woke up in the middle of the night, clearly startled. Her friends were in trouble.… Morti knew what she had to do. She had to help them! It was her job.
Author's Notes: Samiul chooses a new name in the next chapter and we all breathe an enormous sigh of relief. Thanks, Sam. I think all of these are relatable teen issues, and all of them, except for Jiro's, deal with not having your identity respected.
Morti has a dream in this chapter because she's psychic. I know that people without souls can't canonically have dreams, but this is an exception.
Length: 1339 words
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