RISE

13 - Can You Not

As they approached the room where his family argued, Aaron tried to overhear as much as he could so that he was a little more prepared when they made their presence known. His improved hearing helped, and from what he could gather, Irene was completely convinced that Elvorix had turned Aaron to the dark side and that the two were now on a mission to bring about the apocalypse. Aaron's parents defended Aaron, but seemed to think he was the victim of El's nefarious schemes. Lydia and Meredith were the only ones to come to El's defense, which Aaron was extremely grateful for, and his grandparents were trying to keep everything calm and orderly, although they seemed on the fence between agreeing with Irene or with Aaron's parents.

Aaron experienced a strangely surreal moment as he strode confidently into the room with his head held high while Elvorix trailed behind, shoulders hunched and looking down at his hands that he wrung anxiously. It was much easier, he thought, following Elvorix around Hell submissively while he just tried to stay out of the way, but El was out of his depth here, and Aaron needed to step up.

The family stopped and stared at the pair for a moment, before Irene approached them, immediately shouting accusations. "How dare you try to play nice with the family while you're sneaking around killing thousands of innocent people! You couldn't even have the courtesy to warn us that this was your plan all along! We should never have followed through with the deal, now the world is ending, and all of our futures are hopeless! I've raised my children to be successful, and it was all for nothing!"

Aaron put his hands up placatingly and spoke in a calm tone. "Aunt Irene, I know you're afraid right now, but Elvorix and I had nothing to do with the disasters that have been happening. We are going to return to Hell and try to find out why this is happening."

Irene scoffed, folding her arms across her chest and cocking her hip. "You really expect us to believe that? How can we believe anything you say now? All that demon talked about at dinner was his plans to take over the world, and now he's doing it!"

"Mrs. Ashton," El interjected meekly, "This destruction was never part of the plan—"

Irene whirled on him, pointing a sharp fingernail at his face. "You have no right to speak here!"

Everyone started talking at once, then; his mother, who was crying, started begging Aaron to leave Elvorix and stay with them, Meredith shouting at Irene to be stop treating Elvorix like a criminal when there was no proof he'd done anything wrong, and his grandfather asking that they all sit down and discuss this peacefully.

Aaron stood as tall as he could, reaching back to link his arm with Elvorix's in a show of loyalty to his husband. "There's no use discussing this when none of us understand what's going on. Elvorix and I will return to Hell immediately and we will contact you with an update as soon as we are able. I know this isn't something we're prepared for, and it's difficult to know who to trust, but I'm asking you, as my family; I need you on my side for this."

No one said anything at first. Irene looked about ready to burst with rage, but Meredith was the first to speak. She stepped forward, standing next to Irene. "Go and find out what you can. We'll wait here for you to contact us."

Aaron nodded resolutely and turned to leave the study, pulling Elvorix with him. His eyes burned with unshed tears, and he felt nauseous. He just wanted some answers, he hated not knowing what to do.

The two of them stood in the same ornate circle that served as the doorway between worlds, where his luggage was already waiting for them. Before Aaron could ask how they were supposed to actually leave, the feeling of being sucked downward came over him.

Though he'd only traveled that way twice before, it was much easier to orient himself this time, possibly due to his new abilities. They appeared in the same stone room Aaron had before. Elvorix, already in his full demonic form, spread his wings as far as they could go as though stretching them after being cramped tightly for too long. His taller form wouldn't have fit in the human outfit he'd been wearing before, but he was now wearing a sort of vest hung over his shoulders, a pale gray fabric with a layer of dark red lace, and a matching piece of fabric tied around his waist. Aaron was surprised at how relieved he was to see his husband in his natural form.