Doomsday Creators (The Umbrella Academy) Book Three

29. Speeches

Everyone in the room watched Reginald with trepidation, as he slowly entered the dining area, and headed for the buffet table.
He filled up his plate, before awkwardly sitting down at an unoccupied table, while everyone continued to stare at him.
"What is he doing here?" Lucy asked Five.
"I don't know. Klaus said that he told the old man to stay upstairs. Clearly Reginald has changed his mind, and decided to come down and join us" replied Five.

"Well, he is certainly not wanted down here. He fucked us all up pretty bad, and we don't want him taking the fun out of this day. If he tries to make this night all about him and his plans to save the world, I will jam a knive into his neck. This day is about Sloane and Luther, and I won't let anyone ruin it" informed Lucy.
"If you decide to do that, I won't get in your way" informed Five.

A few uncomfortable minutes later, Reginald made his way over to the microphone, drawing everyone's attention back to him.
"I know it is customary for the father of the bride to give some advice to his daughter and her new husband on the eve of their wedding" he started.
"Oh God, he's going to give a speech" whispered Lucy.
"This should be interesting" replied Five.
Allison rolled her eyes at Reginald, and got up from her table, and headed to the other side of the room.
Intent on making things up with her, Viktor followed Allison.

"Sloane, ever since you were a little girl, I've always known you were exceptionally bright. And although I can't say that I know Luther all that well, from the moments we have shared, it seems that you have found yourself an adequate partner" continued Reginald.
"Shit, did he just call Luther adequate" mumbled Five.
"That's the nicest thing he's ever said to him" admitted Diego.
"You're not wrong there" agreed Lucy.

"I acknowledge that as a father, I was not without my faults. I hope these shortcomings are seen as only a rough patch, on an otherwise verdant lawn... I am proud to call you all my children. Even those whom I raised in a revenant version of myself. I hope that tonight we can create a few special memories, in whatever precious little time we have left. And now in closing, I would like to share with you all, a poem... The sun rises over a lilies field. A mother veiled, her lips concealed. The mourners come in droves of black, to bury what their hearts unpack. With shallow breath, and time eclipsed. I pray you miss, death's gentle kiss" finished Reginald, before raising his glass of champagne to the happy couple, and taking a sip.

The siblings all began to clap and cheer, as Reginald stepped away from the microphone.
"I didn't think the old man had it in him" whispered Five.
"I guess this version of dad is full of suprises" mumbled Lucy.
She looked around the room and saw happy looks on everyone's faces, despite their dad's appearance.
All except Allison, who looked as miserable as normal. She headed straight for the lift, and exited the party.
Lucy glanced over at Viktor, who was in tears, and had clearly failed to make up with Allison.

Allison was unable to let go of her pain, and she placed it in front of every single person in her life.
As Lucy watched Allison leave the party, she took this as her sisters way of leaving behind the family, that she clearly did not want to be a part of anymore.
If Allison did not want to be a member of their family any more, then Lucy wasn't going to bother trying to be nice to her. And she would make no attempt to patch things up between them.
Allison's actions spurred Lucy to jump to her feet, and make her own way towards the microphone.

"Hello. Now, I don't think it's traditional for the maid of honour to give a speech. However, this isn't a normal wedding, and we are not a normal family. I want to say a few words, so that's what I'm going to do" started Lucy.
"Wooo, yeah!" Shouted Diego encouragingly.
Lucy grinned, before turning slightly, so that she was facing the newly weds.

"Sloane, the two of us have not known each other long. And I have to admit, that when Luther first told me about you, I was sceptical that your affections for him were real. You were from the enemy camp, so I did not trust you nor your intentions. I was worried that you would hurt Luther, who was new to the whole dating thing. The more he spoke about you though, the more smitten I could tell he was with you. I wasn't sure that this was a good thing, until I met you for myself. You weren't some terrifying super villian or master manipulater, that I had made you out to be in my head. You were just a kind woman, who really was in love with my brother" continued Lucy.

Lucy took a deep breath, before continuing.
"Ever since we met, you have been nice to me, and tried to include me in your life. You welcomed me as your sister, and to my surprise, I welcomed you in return, with open arms... When I came to this timeline, I said that the only people I could trust, were those in my family. I had been hurt before, so I didn't intend on making that mistake again. But you and Luther showed me that sometimes trust can be a good thing. You proved to me, that taking a leap of faith and following your heart, can lead to good things. Your love for each other is clear for everyone to see. And I don't doubt for a minute that you were meant to be together. I am glad that you two have found happiness with each other. And I wish you a long and happy life together, even if that life ends up only being a day or two... So, I want everyone to raise their glasses to the happy couple" announced Lucy.

Everyone lifted up their glasses in unison.
"To the happy couple!" Everyone said at once, before downing their drinks.
"Now that all the soppy speeches are done, I think it's time this family had some fun for once. Chet, hit it" instructed Lucy, as she pointed at Chet, who began to play the first record, making everyone jump to their feet, and head towards the dance floor.

"That was incredibly touching of you" commented Five, when he reached Lucy.
"I can be nice you know" replied Lucy, as she began to dance along to the music.
"I know that. And now, so do all of them. I'm proud of you. You've come such a long way since we first arrived in this time period" smiled Five.
"Thanks... I'm glad that we got to have this final night together as a family"
"So am I... And now, as a family, let's get horribly drunk".

"Sounds good to me. But be careful, don't forget that you're in a teenagers body. And I don't think that body can handle the amount of alcohol that you're used to" warned Lucy.
"Don't worry about me, I know what I'm doing" reassured Five.
"You'd better. Because I don't want your hangover to affect me in the morning, since we can feel when the other one of us is not doing good" reminded Lucy.
"You worry too much. Tonight is all about having fun and letting loose. So, let's have some fun!".