I, Ian

Chapter Ten

Andrews Residence, south Torrance...

"I still can't believe that my best friend is now a gay dude, and all because Deveraux and that stupid coffee shop couldn't make a simple iced caramel frappe to perfection," Pilar complained for what felt like the umpteenth time to her parents as they and Pilar's younger sister Andelle sat down to dinner. "I mean, it's not her fault that Antoine Deveraux is just another wannabe Harry Potter who got pissed off because he's a dirty faggot who practices magic or whatever. If anything,  that coffeehouse needed to be shut down and the family exiled back to where they belong."

"Pilar, Antoine Deveraux and his family in general is not someone to be messed with," Andelle said as the live-in housekeeper quietly sat down plates of grilled salmon and steamed vegetables. "And you already know that Ivy Levine- or rather, Ian Levine-  did piss off a lot of good people."

"Quite right," Mr. Andrews commented, pausing to sip on his glass of wine. "And just so you know, Levine did get what he deserved with the wish he made back when he was a she. Not only that, Levine did make some disparaging and distateful comments against the LGBTQ community and the male population in general."

"Which was rightfully made because you already know how Ivy hated guys and faggots," Pilar rebutted. "Come on! Those two groups- especially men in general- need to be eradicated from the face of the planet."

"Pilar," her mother warned. "You know that your father is a man."

"That's irrelevant, Mom. Dad's a law-abiding, Bible-believing man whom you married. Ivy's dad left his wife all because he decided to live away from what Mrs. Levine's mother believed. You all know the story and why Ivy did all of this."

"And you already know how it all turned out," Andelle shot back. "She pissed off a lot of people before the incident at Mama Kaneva's and ended up becoming eternally hexed into a gay dude, just like you will after you bullied another one of Antoine's cousins who almost killed himself."

Pilar only shrugged her shoulders. "Please," she scoffed. "I wouldn't date a guy of Louis Fabatier's caliber even if Lucifer himself paid me to do it. And I wouldn't dare become a gay guy even if Deveraux's curse ended up to be real and potent anyhow."

Mrs. Andrews shook her head. "Oh, but you will," she said tersely as she glared at her oldest daughter. "That boy you bullied and harassed almost died from alcohol poisoning and a near overdose of Prozac and Vicodin. If it wasn't for your father and his team of lawyers, our family would've been on the wrong end of the Deveraux-Montrose-Fabatier clan. This is all on you, young lady, as this family has had enough of your antics just like Olivia, Joseph, and Victor had enough of Ivy's back when she was still a woman. When this curse is fulfilled, you'll be given a set of rules from Antoine Deveraux that you and Ian will follow down to the letter. And just so you won't dare to go against the young voodoo prince, you'll be magically bound to do their bidding."

Pilar scoffed. "You can't be serious," she said vehemently, a fire of rage lit in her eyes.

"She's dead serious, young lady," Mr. Andrews replied, also glaring at her. "As your grandfather would warn me, so say I: it's time to reap your just rewards after sowing your seeds into the fields of life. Believe me when I say, you will indeed reap what you've sown in multiples. What you've given life is what life gives you back."

"Thank you," Andelle drawled. To Pilar, "I suggest bracing yourselves for the inevitable, sis. Savor your womanhood as long as you can because the end of your version of normal is closer at hand than you can ever expect."

Pilar rolled her eyes, snorting loudly as she stood up from the table. "Some family this is," she said sharply. "This curse isn't going to happen, not as long as I have anything to say about it. And when it doesn't happen, I will laugh at your feet before heading to Deveraux's house and spitting in his face."

She stormed out of the dining room just as the clock struck nine, heading up to her bedroom.

As soon as they heard the door slam shut upstairs, Adelle turned to her parents. "She'll learn," was all she said as they returned to their food. "Everyone knows to never piss of a voodoo prince and expect to get away with it. Too bad Pilar never got the memo."

"It's all on her," her mother intoned as she sat back in her chair. "But at least it'll be good to have a son in the house, and a gay son no less."

"True," her husband agreed. "I can only imagine when it will all take place, though."

Just then, there was a deafening clap of thunder from outside as the lights began to flicker while a torrential rain began to pour.

"What the heck?" Mrs. Andrews breathed just as Mr. Andrews' phone rang.

Mr. Andrews pressed the ANSWER button on his phone. "Hello?" he said, placing the phone on speaker

"Mr. Andrews, this is Antoine Deveraux," the honeyed Creole drawl of the young man in question said in a snake-charmer purr. "I just had to call to let you know that my plans for Pilar's transformation have changed. Instead of waiting until midnight...I decided to accelerate things so your daughter will see what happens when you mess with my clan."

Mr. Andrews gulped loudly, knowing that it wasn't for debate. "My family and I understand the situation fully," he replied, keeping his voice even and firm.

"Damn," Andelle said sotto-voce.

"Good," Antoine's voice replied. "Tell Mrs. Deveraux that I've arranged for some folks to drop off some new clothes for Pilar. Or rather, your son Patrick. Have yourselves a blessed evening. I know I will.

The call disconnected as another clap of thunder followed by a flash of lightning echoed throughout the skies outside just as the lights inside the Andrews household went out briefly.

"Oh, dear," Mrs. Andrews said worriedly. "What do we do now?"

A bloodcurdling scream that sounded like a man's soon filled the house. Mr. Andrews sighed deeply, knowing that Antoine's curse was fulfilled and would never be revoked under pain of death. "I guess we greet our son," he said. "And so it begins."

***********

Meanwhile...

"And so it begins," Antoine Deveraux, fresh from the Levine dinner party, cheered to himself as he was back at his studio apartment. "Pilar Andrews and Ivy Levine are no more. But Ian Levine and Patrick Andrews are now under my command. They got their wish, for better or worse. And my word is law, so it can never be reversed!"

He served himself a glass of red wine before downing it in one gulp. He let out his signature cackle that would flow through the apartment complex as the impromptu thunderstorm continued on throughout all of Los Angeles.

It's not my best chapter, but it's not my worst either. All the same, Pilar is now Patrick as Ivy is Ian, both of them now cursed to live their lives as gay men and under the rules of Antoine Deveraux.

As for Ian, he's about to get his first taste of reality in the next chapter as he's starting school at Santa Monica. Stay tuned.

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