Recap: Cid ventured into the future and saw only flashes and images that didn’t make a lot of sense to him. He did overhear some future generation of Thrones saying the name ‘Cid’, however. Russel and Feign aged up into young adults and chose their Lifetime Wishes.

Irwin’s bones were beginning to feel brittle. He found he had a very difficult time performing the simplest of tasks. He still felt the need to clean up the house, but it was becoming more and more daunting. He could no longer pick up heavy loads of dirty laundry to put into the washing machine. He could hear his back cracking as he bent over to make the beds after everyone woke up. He was starting to get a little short of breath just by walking to and from the kitchen.

Irwin was now in his nineties. He knew he would not be around much longer.

Feign had already pumped out his first novel and immediately sold it to a publisher. He expressed his excitement to everyone in the family, especially his twin brother Russel.

Russel felt nothing except for jealousy as Feign’s smile engulfed the rest of his face. Now that the two of them were young adults, they had both officially picked their Lifetime Wishes. Feign wanted to be a professional author… no surprise there… and Russel wanted to be a hit movie composer. It didn’t seem very fair that Feign was already starting on the right track to achieving his goal while Russel hadn’t even found himself a job yet. He could already taste the envy on his tongue that would emerge the second his brother reached his wish first… if that was the case.

Cid’s birthday arrived and, in traditional Thrones fashion, no party was thrown. He simply aged up in the kitchen.

A few little wrinkles appeared on his face, but they were hardly noticeable. Cid changed his wardrobe to a more mature look before patting himself on the back for everything he had accomplished in his life thus far.

One morning, Irwin awoke feeling more fatigued than he ever had in his life. He dragged his feet to Feign’s room to make his bed and breathed a heavy sigh. Suddenly, his body felt light. He could hear his own heartbeat slowing down. He knew what was about to happen.

His mortal body disappeared and in its place stood a ghostly figure. A bright aura began to shine around Irwin’s new form, indicating he was, indeed, a Master of Mysticism.

Feign entered his room for a brief moment to see the transformation occur. He shouted for the rest of the family to enter and witness the horror that was taking place.

The Grim Reaper materialized in front of Irwin. He stood before him and watched as Irwin fell to his knees.

“Hello, Mr. Reaper,” Irwin greeted.

Grim nodded slightly and held out his hand, silently offering to help him stand.

Irwin shook his head. “Please,” he began, “I don’t know if I’m ready to leave this world yet. I feel there is so much I still need to do!”

Grim stood still, not speaking a single word. He turned his shoulder towards Irwin and pointed in the opposite direction. A bright light appeared where his bony finger ended. Irwin knew his plea hadn’t made a difference. It was his time, and there was nothing he could do about it.

He hesitated, taking in his surroundings. This house he had built from the ground up with nothing but money from fishing in the beginning. He had started off in Moonlight Falls with a less-than-flattering reputation and met aliens along the way who assisted in lifting his confidence enough to start reading the futures of others. He had been abducted and, while he simply denied it at first, birthed a son who had his whole life in front of him. Cid would do great things not only in Moonlight Falls, but all over the world. Irwin had met and fallen in love with the perfect woman and had two more children with her — children who would leave their own individual mark on this plane. He had rescued a stray cat and given him a home to live in for many years to come. Irwin had also changed the lives of every client who walked through the doors of the gypsy trailer he worked at. At 96, Irwin had done so much more than he would have originally expected. While it was hard to officially say goodbye, Irwin knew he had lived a full life. It was up to his children now to continue on his legacy. Irwin smiled at each member of his family. Waffles mewed a few times, calling for Irwin to remain here with him. Irwin held out his hand for a moment and winked. He would always watch over them all… including future generations.

Irwin stood up on his own, realizing he was no longer feeling any pain from his old age. He watched the Grim Reaper walk into the light and slowly began to follow him, eager to see what was waiting for him on the other side.

Cid exited the house before anyone saw the tears forming in his eyes. He walked to his garden with the intent of weeding it. Rather than use his energy to care for the plants, Cid stood rigid, clenching his fists and glaring at the ground.

A rage was eating away at his insides, but Cid did not have a chance to let it out. Fantine had run outside to where Cid stood and burst into tears. She collapsed in his arms and sobbed into his shoulder.

Cid then understood he was now the man of the house. He knew he needed to be strong for everyone.

No one was able to sleep that night. Cid cooked everyone a variety of meals and Russel and Feign joined him at the dinner table to discuss what to do. They knew the people of Moonlight Falls had known who Irwin was, so it was decided they would host a gathering at their household for anyone who wanted to pay respects.

By the time Fantine was able to get any shut-eye, it was early morning the next day. She fell onto her bed and quietly cried herself to sleep. Waffles walked into the room and sniffed the sheets of the bed for a moment just to get Irwin’s scent back in his mind and then crawled up onto his side. Waffles curled himself up and fell asleep there, partly to comfort Fantine, partly to comfort himself.

On the day of the gathering, Russel sat himself down at the piano and played. He didn’t want to talk to any of the guests as they arrived, nor did he feel like sharing his own feelings. He drowned his thoughts in the melodies emitting from the instrument and continued to play until his fingers started to cramp.

Cid heard a strange noise outside and could sense an odd presence making its way to the door.

He walked closer to the doorway and watched as a strangely colored woman entered the household.

“Excuse me,” Cid began, “I don’t believe I know you… did you know my father?”

The woman’s facial expression remained stoic as she folded her hands in front of her. “You are Cid, correct?” she responded.

Cid raised an eyebrow. “…Yes. Might I ask what your name is?”

She extended her arm, placing her palm upon his shoulder. Cid felt startled. “My name is Faon Exipelh. It’s nice to finally meet you, son.”

There was a thick tension between them that suddenly appeared. Cid moved back a little bit and looked at this woman up and down. This was the alien who abducted Irwin. This was Cid’s mother. He had never even considered the possibility of seeing her, let alone getting the chance to talk to her. Cid, having grown up motherless until Fantine entered his life, never felt like he was missing any part of himself. He had no emotional attachment to this woman standing before him. He would have been perfectly happy never knowing her. After all, what good was it to have her in his life? Any alien abilities she may have passed to him he happened to learn on his own. She knew nothing of his human side, so what advice would she have been able to give him? Did she even understand what kind of hell she put Irwin through by impregnating him without his consent?

Faon shook her head. “I am not expecting anything from you,” she stated, her voice lowering with every syllable. “I am simply here to pay respects to Irwin.”

Cid inhaled sharply, holding his breath to calm the mix of emotions he was feeling. He didn’t even know what to say to her.

For whatever the reason, Cid could no longer hold any of it in. Tears started pouring out of his eyes. He whimpered before stifling a shout. Faon blinked a few times as Cid began his breakdown. He leaned forward, aching for the arms of someone he didn’t need to be strong for. He needed someone to be his own rock, and in this moment, it was Faon.

He wrapped his arms around her and she accepted his embrace, allowing him to cry upon her shoulder.

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

In the days that followed, everyone was learning how empty the house felt without Irwin. Russel started to notice how dirty the place really was thanks to his slobbish ways. He made a conscious effort to tidy up after himself now that no one was around to willingly do it.

He felt he never got the chance to really impress Irwin thanks to his lazy attitude in school and his lack of motivation to get a jumpstart on his career. He left the house without telling anyone and walked to the theater to apply for a job.

Luckily, they happened to be hiring. Russel landed the job without even needing an interview. He merely played the piano for the stagehands and directors and proved he was musically gifted.

He wasn’t particularly excited for his first day, however, as he had to start from the bottom of the career ladder. Right now, his title was nothing more than ‘Fan’. His job description was to show up at every performance at the theater and cheer on whoever was on stage.

He carpooled with his boss, as the Thrones family still has yet to own a car. Russel’s boss gave him the rundown of his co-workers on the way, but Russel wasn’t really paying attention. He hadn’t planned on making friends anyway — all he cared about was getting to the top of the music business.

Feign wasted no time starting on his next novel. He hadn’t even discovered how successful the one his published was yet, but this novel could not wait.

It was nonfiction and it was entitled Irwin: The Legacy.

Cid had been thinking a lot about his promise to Irwin to watch over future generations. He absolutely had to fulfill it now.

Slowly, he started piecing things together. Irwin wanted Cid to keep future generations safe. How would he be able to do that without actually being there himself?

Then, he remembered hearing the name ‘Cid’ said over and over in the future. He initially guessed it was because a future family member was named after him… but what if that wasn’t the case?

What if his name was being said because those future generations were actually talking to him?

Cid pulled out his old chemistry set and mixed together whatever made sense to halt his aging process. This had to be it. This had to be what Irwin meant when he asked Cid to complete this seemingly impossible task. He would not let his father down.

Without a second thought, Cid downed the potion he created. He felt his body tingling. Adrenaline pumped through his veins. His skin tightened, his mind was able to quiet itself, and he felt warm. He had done it. He had fulfilled his promise.

He had become immortal.