Chapter 38:
Everyone including myself were silent. They all stared at me and I stared at them. None of us knew what to do. The collective power in this house was immense. I had never felt anything like this before. We were all connected to one another through magic and they were feeding off one another. It was almost scary how much power there was in just this one place. My nails were once again digging into my chest as the other dug into my palms as I squeezed my hand tightly in a fist.
I looked at each of the unknown faces trying my best to figure out which family they belonged to. Most of them had silver hair and looked like what you thought grandparents would look like. I counted seven of them, one of the grandfathers weren't there at the moment. I could tell they were all close since they were all huddled together, seeming to have come together to the house.
"Hi, Blair," one of them said.
"Hi," was all I could manage to get out, awkwardly raising my hand and giving a pathetic wave.
"We're sorry to barge in like this but we just wanted to meet you too," a woman stepped forward, smiling at me.
"How about you come down and we can get you introduced," Mrs. Perry sweetly spoke, gesturing me to come down the stairs. Though I tried to hide it, the panic within me was written over my face for everyone to see. Maybe that was a good thing.
"Blair? You okay?" Reid asked, grabbing my attention away from everyone else. He had this strange ability to do that. He was definitely concerned, one foot on the stairs ready to come to my side if needed.
Clearing my throat, I spoke, "Yeah, I'm fine." But he didn't believe me. "There's just a lot of... energy hitting me right now. I need a minute to get used to it," I revealed.
Immediately getting what I was saying, Tyler stepped in and said, "Let's give her some space. She's going to stay up there and come down when she is ready to meet everyone else."
Am I going to be ready to meet everyone?
It's going to be a long night.
"You all go ahead and go to the living room. I want to meet my grandbaby girl," the woman from before said, pushing past Pogue, who didn't dare stop her, and made her way up the stairs.
"It's only right we meet her first," a man followed, I assume her husband and the grandfather.
The woman had ombre hair going from dark to silver. Her hair was the color of mine. His entire head was covered in silver hair and I could tell that he was just the older version of Pogue and Mr. Perry as they helped each other up the long staircase. They both came straight to me and the surprising part was that I wasn't scared. She reached her hands out, placing them gently on each side of the cheeks holding onto me, beaming with happiness. The man looked at me, his face more serious as he saw up close and personally. He slowly placed his hand on the side of my head, rubbing hair with his thumb. He looked amazed to see me yet so proud. I could see tears forming in both their eyes as they held onto me. A bubble formed in my chest, something I had never felt before. It grew bigger and bigger within me, making me feel like I, myself was going to cry.
Finally speaking, the woman proudly spoke, "She looks like me!" The whole room erupted in laughter and I naturally joined in.
"She does look like you," the man agreed.
"You're just more beautiful," she gushed. I smiled at their compliment. I never thought I would ever hear someone say that. Never did I think I would find my biological family or find someone who would say that we look like each other.
"I'm sorry, I don't know what to say," I managed to say, awkwardly laughing.
"It's okay. You don't need to. We're just so happy to finally meet you," the man said, stroking the side of my head. "And in case you didn't know, we are your grandparents," he chuckled, making the both of us laugh.
"Now we know this is a shock and everything is overwhelming, so we are going to go downstairs and help with dinner and you stay up here until you are feeling ready to come down and meet everyone else," my... grandmother said, pulling away my grandfather down the stairs. "Everyone is going to love you," she gushed excitedly, then following the lead of her husband down to everyone else. Her arm was linked into his as they slowly but surely made it down the steps together, whispering to each other happily.
As soon as they turned into the living room, out of sight, I collapsed to the stairs. The power in this house alone was great and it pulsated through my entire body. It felt connected like it was trying to connect with me somehow. It was familiar and I wanted to connect with the energy, but I couldn't let my guard down. My heart raced as I realized that the connection was not just through the powers but through the three generations of magical beings that were right in the house in this very moment that I shared that bond with. Not just magically but through blood too. It felt like my mind and the magic were fighting one another in me to be the one I focused on more. Everything felt like crashing ocean waves during a terrible world windstorm.
Catching my eye, I saw Pogue emerge from the living room, leaning against the banister at the end of the staircase. "How's it going up there, baby sis?" he asked in a gentle tone, like he was trying his best not to startle me.
"I don't know," I chuckled, running my hands through my hair. "Can you feel it?" I asked, now starting to feel like I was crazy for feeling all the powerful energy.
"Yes, but I'm used to feeling it. You are not," he reminded me, making his way up the stairs. "You have eleven people in this house alone with powers and then yourself. I think that is the most that you've ever been exposed to," he told reaching me. "It's okay if you need longer to process," he whispered, taking a seat next to me.
"How did they find out about me?" I asked curious to know how this somewhat small dinner gathering turned into a large dinner party.
Laughing to himself, he said, "Apparently, Uncle Joseph and Uncle Glenn decided to call up nana and papa to let them know that dad was hiding something from them. Which then sent nana on a mission to figure out what he was hiding."
Out of nowhere there was a loud commotion erupted from the living room. A mix of yelling and laughter came through intriguing me as to what could be going on. I looked at Pogue confused but he seemed to have an idea of what was going on.
"Want a laugh?" he asked, standing up and reaching out his hand for me to take. Thinking a laugh is might not be a horrible idea, I took his hand and he led me downstairs to the excitement.
I couldn't believe my eyes as we entered the space. Mr. Perry was being chased by his mother who had her shoe in one hand as she yelled as if he were a child. He was running scared like a child too.
"Ma!" he yelled dodging a hit and gaining more distance away from her. "You're going hurt yourself. Your fragile!"
"Did you just call me old?!" she yelled back at him officially throwing her shoe and whacking him on his side. I covered my mouth to hide my shock and immediate laughter that followed. I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. I tried my best to contain my laughter but it was so hard. Pogue was losing it to the side of me to the point I think tears were in his eyes. Everyone else was laughing at the scene that was unfolding. It was like everyone wanted to watch but not help out. Maybe they were afraid of grandma Perry?
Retreating to his wife, Mr. Perry rubbed his side showing the pain that came from the hard hit he took. "Have you learned your lesson?" she asked, huffing at him. Noticing me, he didn't say a word but instead looked away at him wife grumbling about his mother. I recomposed myself as everyone's attention was once again directed back at me.
"Hi," I said, giving a small wave. "I'm Blair," I introduced, thinking that it might be the best way to get to know the rest of the new group.
Look at you, putting yourself out there.
I know...
You have grandparents now.
I know...
How do you feel?
I don't know...
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Author's Notes:
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story! If you liked it, feel free to give this chapter a vote and/or comment. I would love to hear what you guys think, who your favorite character is, anything you would like to say! Again, thank you for your support. See you at the next chapter!