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"Are you really sure we should do this?" Vee asked, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. She, Luz, and their mom were all sitting in the family car, loitering in the parking lot just a few hundred feet away from the rest of the extended family.
"They'll love you, Vee," Luz replied. "The real you. I promise." She paused. "I mean, Abuela might take some convincing that you aren't gonna steal our souls or whatever, but everyone else will be fine."
Camila brushed a stray speck of dust from her sweater and checked her reflection in the small mirror that hung from the visor. "Luz is right, mija. Everyone is going to love you. They've all been dying to finally meet 'Veronica', and you being a magical creature is just a bonus."
The mother laughed. "Aye, I'm pretty sure that Miggy and Grace are going to have to be attached to you at the hip when they see your basilisk form."
Vee gave a small chuckle. "Heh, here's hoping." She took a deep breath. "I think I'm ready to go in."
"Yes!" Luz gave a fist pump. "Let's do this! I can't wait to give a billion, trillion, zillion hugs and kisses to everyone!"
Camila just sighed and shook her head while the two kids got out of the backseat. "Just be careful when hugging Abuela, yeah? Her back is still recovering."
Luz gave a sharp nod. "Noted. Only soft, gentle hugs for grandma."
The trio then made the short walk up to Abuela Maria's senior living center, which was doubling for today as the family reunion venue. Camila lead the pack, as she was the only one who actually knew the security code to get in. After punching the combo into the keypad, she held the door open and ushered her daughter's in.
Vee looked around as she entered the building. The interior was very... inoffensive. The walls were a mix of beige and white, with the occasional wood panelling and a few paintings thrown in. The flooring was a light brown tile, and the air smelled, well, like old people.
"So, where's the party again?" Vee asked, stopping to look at the guest book.
"Maria is on floor 2. We've got her apartment, and also the common room on that floor for the big dinner," Camila explained, leading the two girls to the elevator, hailing it with the press of a button.
"Ooh, wait," Luz interrupted. "Is Joe gonna be here?"
Vee paused. "Who's Joe?"
"Joe Ma -" Luz started, before giggling and killing the overused joke. "Sorry, bad joke, bad joke. Joe is our nephew Sammy's boyfriend. He's a really cool artist guy, and I always try to show him my Azura fanart so I can get tips and stuff."
Vee smiled. "He sounds fun."
"Yes, Joe should be here," Camila responded finally. "Well, hopefully. I think I saw his car in the parking lot."
"Awesome," Luz said with a smile.
The elevator doors opened with a chime, and the trio stepped out into the hallway. Letting Camila lead the way, her daughters followed her to room 204, the door already propped open. Knocking on the door, Camila announced the group's presence. "Hola, familia! It's us!"
The trio entered the room, and Vee found herself getting immediately swarmed by the rest of the family. Aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, grandparents, all of them wanted to meet 'Veronica'. "Oh, Veronica, you're just adorable!" one of Luz's aunts exclaimed, looking Vee up and down before wrapping her in a bone-crushing hug. "I'm so glad you're part of the family now!"
Vee found herself uncontrollably smiling. After a few seconds, Aunt Sara , as Vee would later learn, finally relinquished her death grip, allowing Vee to breathe again. "Thanks," Vee said quietly. "And, uhh, you can just call me Vee."
"Vee," Aunt Sara repeated, trying out the hypocorism. "Short and sweet, like you!"
Vee blushed. "Yeah. Veronica just seems too formal, I guess."
"So, we finally get to meet Luz's baby sister," another voice said. The speaker was a mid-20s looking guy dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and a ball cap. "I'm Joe." He extended a handshake to Vee, which she accepted.
"Excuse me, I thought we agreed that I was the younger sister," Luz interjected, crossing her arms defiantly.
Vee stuck out her tongue. "Skill issue. I'm the young one now."
Joe looked confused. "Wait, huh? How do you get to, like, decide who the younger one is?"
Vee shrugged. "Nobody knows when I was born, me included."
The man was somehow now even more confused. "What?"
"Don't worry about it," Luz said emphatically, stepping in. "It's a long, long, looooong story, and we don't talk about it."
Joe raised his hands defensively. "Sorry, sorry. Just curious, that's all."
Vee waved a hand dismissively. "You're fine. So, uhh, care to introduce me to the rest of the fam?"
Joe smiled and nodded. "Oh, yeah, sure." Craning over his shoulder, he called out. "Sammy! Kids! Get over here! I want you to meet Luz's sister!"
After a brief moment, another mid-20s guy came over (this time donning a polo shirt and jeans), followed by two kids. "Ahh, the fabled Vee," Sammy said, wrapping her in a hug. "Hope Lucecita hasn't been too crazy. Sisters, and all. Got some experience with that myself."
Camila barked a laugh. "I was a great sister, thank you very much."
Sammy scoffed. "Your obsession with Cosmic Frontier would beg to differ. You tried to get us to film a fan movie, and I'm pretty sure I'm still emotionally scarred from that."
Vee looked to her mother. "Ooh, Mom lore."
Camila rolled her eyes. "Cosmic Fan-tier: Into the Unknown was bound to be a blockbuster. You just didn't see the vision."
Joe laughed. "Oh, God. Sammy showed me the old VHS tapes of that. It was... unique."
"Unique in a good way, I presume?" Camila asked.
"Sure, let's go with that," Joe replied, doing his best to keep a straight face. "The effects were very ambitious."
Vee chuckled, then turned to the two kids. "So, you two are Miggy and Grace, right?"
The boy around 8 or so nodded. "Yeah! I'm Miguel, but Miggy is more fun to say."
The girl, who was a little younger, smiled shyly. "I'm Grace. You have cool eyes."
Vee smiled. She had her natural basilisk eyes, like always. "Thanks! These are just contacts, though. My real eyes are boring. Your eyes are really pretty, too."
Grace beamed, her shyness overpowered by the compliment, which caused Vee to smile even more. After a quick glance at Camila and Luz, both of them giving near imperceptible nods, Vee decided to take a leap of faith. Bending down on one knee, she got up close to the kids' ears. "Do you two wanna know a secret?" she whispered.
The two nodded fervently, their eyes going wide at the prospect. "Follow me," Vee said, standing back up and heading towards the tiny guest bedroom that was attached to the apartment. Now alone, Vee closed the door behind the kids. "Alright, so, I've got a really, really big secret," she said, her voice low. "Camila and Luz already know because, well, I live with them, but nobody else does. I'm gonna tell the rest of the family later, but I wanted to tell you two first. Are ya ready?"
"What is it?" Miggy blurted out, too excited to keep quiet.
Vee laughed. Quietly she said, "I'm not a human. I know I look like one, but this isn't what the real me looks like."
The kids' mouths fell open. "Woah," Grace said, her eyes wide. "What does Real Vee look like?"
Vee put a finger to her lips. "You two have to be quiet, okay? Do you two promise to not freak out? The real me takes some getting used to."
Miggy and Grace nodded eagerly, their curiosity piqued. "We promise!" they said in unison.
Vee nodded. Here goes nothing, she thought. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and focused. A moment later, her human form melted away, revealing her true basilisk self. Doing jazz hands, Vee smiled. "Ta-da!"
Miggy gasped. "WOAH, YOU'RE SO COOL!" he shouted, his voice way louder than Vee wanted it to be. "You're like a, like a, a dragon snake thing!"
"Miguel, what have I said about -" Joe started, opening the door to the bedroom, stopping dead in his tracks when he saw the basilisk. He blinked a few times to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. "I... what the ... how... where's Vee?"
Vee froze, her plan having already gone down the toilet. "Uhh, Vee is me. I, well, ahh farts," she said quietly. "Umm, surprise? This is what I really am."
Joe paused. "Are you gonna eat my face or whatever now that I know?"
Vee gagged. "Eww, gross no. Do you think the kids would be here if I ate people? I eat magic, thank you very much."
"Magic?" Miggy gasped. "Magic's really real?"
Vee nodded. "Yeah, but it doesn't exist on Earth. Well, not much of it, anyway." After a beat, Vee added, "Should I, just, like, tell everyone else right now? Don't want to have to explain this twice."
Joe slowly nodded, still trying to process the fact that his niece was a magical creature. "Sure?"
Taking a deep breath, Vee quickly morphed back into her human form. "Alright. Let's hope this goes over smooth and nobody tries to kill me." Slipping past Joe and the kids, she reentered the main room. Climbing to stand on the couch (even though it was a bit rude), she loudly cleared her throat. "Hi, hi, excuse me. Can I have everyone's attention?"
Luz rushed over to stand by her sister. "Vee, what are you doing?" she hissed.
"There's been a change of plans," Vee replied smoothly. "Secret's coming out now."
"Don't you think we should, I dunno, ease them into it?" Luz asked, her voice low.
"Or we can just rip off the band-aid," Vee countered. "Trust me, Luz. I'll be fine."
Luz gave a long exhale, thinking. Eventually, she put words together. "Alright, fine, let's do it."
The rest of the family looked quite confused by the two sisters' exchange, but Vee eventually hopped off the couch. "Okay. Uhh, so, umm... I'm Vee, as you guys already know. But, uhh, well... I'm not human. This isn't like a joke or prank or whatever. I'm a magical shapeshifting creature called a basilisk. I'm not even from Earth, so I guess I also count as an alien."
Guessing by the stares and silence, the family had no idea how to properly react to the revelation that Luz's sister was a magic alien creature. Looking from adult to adult, Vee saw Camila smile at her, motioning for her to continue. "Back in the... other place, I had a pretty cruddy life, but I eventually found a portal to Earth and snuck through. That's where Camila, er, Mom, found me and took me in. Best decision of my life. You're awesome, Mama."
Camila rushed over and hugged her daughter. "Do you think you're ready to show the real you?" she asked quietly.
"Wait! Wait! Hold on, hold up a sec," Uncle Leo interrupted, raising a hand and rubbing at his forehead. "You said you're a basilisk? Ain't basilisks the ones that turn you to stone if you look at em?"
Vee frowned. "I, uhh, no?" she said cautiously. "That's a gorgon, and I don't think those exist. I can't turn people to stone, but I can eat their magic. None of which you have, so you're safe, b-t-w."
Aunt Sara looked skeptical. "Veronica, are you on drugs?" she said flatly.
"Sara!" Camila shouted, glaring at her sibling. "Take that back right now! That's a horrible accusation, and my daughter is not lying."
"I'm just saying, that sounds like something a druggie would say," Aunt Sara shot back.
"Okay, fine!" Vee shouted, already getting frustrated by seeing her mom and aunt fight. "You want proof? Here!" Right there, in front of her entire extended family, with no forewarning whatsoever, Vee shifted back to her true form. She spread her arms wide, showing off her scales. "Do you believe me now?"
Aunt Sara's eyes went wide. "I... oh..." Suddenly, her eyes rolled back in her head, the woman collapsing to the floor in a dead faint. Sammy barely caught her before she had an unfortunate meeting with the ground, hooking his arms under her shoulders.
Vee cautiously slithered over to the unconscious woman. "Is she, is she okay?" she asked quietly. As she reached out, Sammy quickly shuffled away, holding Sara protectively. Noticing this, Vee paused, pulling her hand back. "Oh, sorry, sorry. I just wanted to - Sorry."
Slithering back to her mama, Vee quickly shifted back to her human form, Luz quickly wrapping her sister in a hug. "It's alright, Vee," she said. "Auntie will be fine."
Camila moved to position herself between Vee and the rest of the family. Taking a deep breath, she readied herself. "I think introductions are in order. Or, rather, reintroductions. Everyone, this is Vee. Yes, she really is my daughter, I have the paperwork and everything. More importantly, though, is that alongside being mi hija, she is also a kind, sweet, loving, beautiful girl." Camila paused. "She just sometimes looks a little bit... different. Still, I hope you all treat her with the same love and respect that you give me, Luz, and everyone else here. She is part of our family, and I won't hear otherwise. And if I do hear otherwise, I will kick your butt."
"Yeah Mom!" Luz cheered, pumping her fist in the air.
The room was quiet for a few seconds, the rest of the humans slowly processing the information. Eventually, Sammy spoke up. "Uhhh... Weird question, but you said you eat magic, right? What does that... taste like? Is it spicy, sweet, salty? What?"
Vee chuckled. "I, well, it depends on what kind of magic and how 'fresh' it is. Like, fire magic can be really spicy, while construction magic is more of a... hmmm... earthy flavor? I dunno, it's hard to describe. And, like, the age matters. Fresh magic always has lots of flavor and feeds me well, while more... dead magic is bland and not as filling."
Sammy nodded. "Huh, cool."
"Any other questions?" Vee asked, looking around the room. "We can just rapid fire 'em or whatever."
Aunt Sara groaned, Sammy's talking apparently having woken her up. "Ugh, what happened? Did I pass out? I swear I saw this giant snake thing..."
"Hi," Vee said, waving politely. "That was me. Sorry for spooking you."
Sara blinked rapidly. "Either Hell looks remarkably like a Abuela's apartment, or I'm still alive."
"Did you think I was gonna eat you or something?" Vee asked, tilting her head to the side.
Sara rubbed at her forehead. "Maybe?"
"Well, uhh, eating people is gross, so you're safe," Vee said. "Now, back to the questions. Miggy?"
Miggy was waving his hand in the air like he was at school. "Can you turn into other things?"
Vee smiled and snorted. "Anything you can think of, dude."
"Can you turn into a dragon?" he asked excitedly.
Vee chuckled. "Probably not a full size one, since I don't want to break anything, but..." Vee closed her eyes and focused on the morph. Slowly, her form shrunk down. Her scales became more draconic, and her arms shortened. Legs sprouted from her sides, and her tail grew a spiked tip. Finally, a pair of wings sprouted from her back, and her face elongated into a snout. Smiling with all her now incredibly sharp teeth, Vee scuttled over to Miggy, brushing up against him.
Miggy looked like he was about to explode with energy. "Woah, that's awesome! Can you fly?"
Vee cocked her head. She wasn't able to speak in this form, so she did her best attempt at a shoulder shrug as if to say 'I don't know'. Backing away from the family, Vee flapped her wings with all her might, but it all amounted to her just falling onto her side.
Quickly shifting back to her human form, Vee chuckled. "Just cause I can look like a dragon doesn't mean I can fly like one. Don't have the dragon know-how, I guess."
Miggy looked a little bit disappointed. "Dang. Dragon you is still cool, though."
Vee smiled, giving the scamp a ruffle of his hair. "Alright, any more questions? Just, uhh, I don't have much magic left, so I can't really do much shapeshifting. Consider human Vee the default for right now."
Luz, with the stupidest grin on her face, raised her hand. "Oh sister dearest, I have an inquiry for you to answer posthaste!"
Vee groaned. "Oh no, what?"
"Tell me, oh sister mine," Luz said, laying on a heavy posh accent, "your answer to this question: Dost thou allow the likes of the pine of apple to be placed upon the dish the laymen call pizza?"
Vee stared at her sister. "Huh? What?"
"Pineapple on pizza, yay or nay?" Luz clarified.
"I... don't care?" Vee replied, shrugging.
Luz booed. "Boo! Give a real answer!"
"Fine, yes, sure whatever," Vee said, rolling her eyes. "Pineapple on pizza is fine. I don't care."
Luz nodded, content with the answer. "Good, I don't have to disown you."
"You can't disown me from being your sister, that's not how that works," Vee said, crossing her arms.
Luz paused. "Crud, I didn't think of that. I guess I can remove you from my favorite siblings tier list, though."
"I'm your only sibling," Vee pointed out.
Luz shrugged. "I'll drop you from S to A tier, then."
Groaning, Vee playfully shoved her sister away. "Titan, you're the worst."
"Thanks, I try," Luz replied.
"Excuse me, but I have a question," Abuela Maria said, finally speaking up. "How... how did you... get here? Earth."
Vee paused, looking to Camila and Luz. "I, uhh, well, it's not just my story to tell. The long and short version, though, at least from my end is that I was born in an alternate dimension that had lots of magic and supernatural creatures, but I wasn't liked there because I needed to, y'know, eat magic to survive. One day, though, I found a portal to Earth and snuck through. Then, Mami found me, she took me in, and, well, yeah. Here I am."
Maria seemed content with the answer. "Hmm. So which do you like more? Earth or that other place?"
"Earth, 100%," Vee replied instantly. "I've got my family here, I don't have to worry about constantly looking over my shoulder. On Earth, I get to just be me. The real me."
Maria smile. "Well, then I'm glad you're here, Vee. Welcome to the family."