To Sky and Star, it felt like weeks that they were there in this strange place. Though, it was impossible for them to actually know, since time there was nothing like it was in the home they had always known. Then again, it had been pretty difficult to tell the passage of time during their imprisonment as well. Thankfully though, their time spent here was nothing near as nightmarish as that time of their lives. The time they spent here was actually spent learning to use their powers without any kind of forced intimacy. And eventually their well-lit companion, who apparently was actually a female named Veda, told them they were nearly ready to return home.

All that was left for them to do before returning home was to put together all they had learned and hit that ‘reset’ button on their lives, as they had begun calling it. As Veda took them to another strange room with a brightly lit orb in the center, Sky just had to turn to her with a case of last minute nerves, “and we’re sure this reset is going to work? On everyone? Even the people our parents work for?”

“It’s only changing you, or rather, the memories they all have that pertain to the two of you. You’re strong enough now, and it’s what your soul needs to survive” Veda assured them, a smile in her strange voice.

“And when will it be when we return?” Star asked with her own worry, “how do we explain being gone all this time?”

“You’re going back to the same time as when you left” Veda assured, “now just concentrate, like we showed you. Think of the memories that you wish were yours, and those will be theirs now.”

“And we can do that, from here?” Sky asked, “no sex needed?”

“You’ve learned now. Just concentrate” Veda repeated as the two moved to stare into that strange orb with her, and after a long moment, they once again vanished.

When the two became aware again, it was with a start, at the sound of their names being called. It was then that they both sat up, looked around, and each realized they were back in their own bedrooms, at their old, unflooded house, in all their old clothes surrounded by all their old possessions.

“What the?” Star stated under her breath as she pushed herself up from her own bed for the first time in nearly three years. She quickly moved to her black book bag, which was, apparently filled with books for her senior year classes. Shaking her head at that, she moved to grab for her phone. Indeed the screen told her it was still early morning, that first week of September, just as it had been when their lovemaking shattered time and space to cause them to be whisked away to finally meet the other half of their family tree.

That was when Sky pushed open her bedroom door, “did you look at the phone?” he greeted her, a bit breathless.

“Yeah, it was with my books, for senior year, apparently” she choked, head shaking in disbelief.

“Come on kids, breakfast is waiting!” Brie called to them again from downstairs.

“Brie?” they both mouthed her name in unison. Then Star added, “well look where we are.”

Sky shook his head as he looked around, “doesn’t look like it ever flooded either” he then lowered his voice, “odd, I still feel like I took your virginity in that shower” he couldn’t help as he gestured to the bathroom nearby.

Star just shook her head as well, “do you think that they still think...” she wasn’t sure if she should finish that sentence.

“What? That we’re just a set of really fucked up twins?” Sky offered.

“Veda said, memories that we wanted to be ours” Star whispered thoughtfully, “I wanted us to be able to have at least the last bit of our childhood back... with parents who actually loved us instead of just wanting to study us.”

“And if they don’t remember making us, and how they did it...” Sky took a breath, “then they must just believe what the so-called adoption agency said was true. And they probably believe those fake birth certificates downstairs, if they’re even still there.”

“So, we’re back to being twins who want each other way too much?” Star scoffed.

Sky attempted a small smile, “but now we’re not just fighting the urge to finally give in. We’ve already had each other, a few hundred times” he had to add, as she just narrowed her eyes at the comment, “chances are it’ll probably be a little easier to pretend we aren’t dying to touch each other every second now.”

Star shook her head, “but is this really the reset we want? Having to pretend not to be lovers for the rest of our lives here, just to preserve the lie?”

“Not necessarily.”

Star narrowed her eyes again, “how do you figure?”

“Well, first, we need to find out if they do believe we’re related by blood, not just by law” a slight pause, “then we need to find out if those bogus certificates do exist in this new version of our lives. And if need be, adoption agencies can make mistakes, can’t they? We’ll just have to arrange one if it turns out they do think we’re blood relatives.”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

“Arrange?” Star asked him skeptically.

“We reset the whole fucking world, I think we can arrange a phone call, right?” Sky smiled down at her.

“Come on kids!” Brie called again.

Star shook her head back up at him, “I guess it’s breakfast time.”

“Can’t wait” Sky returned sarcastically as the two finally headed down the stairs to see what exactly this new version of their parents would be like without all of their own lies and scientific scrutiny.

The two warily entered the dining room, suspiciously watching Brie and debating on what this encounter was bound to be like. But Brie simply smiled at their arrival before sliding their bagels and glasses of juice into their spots at the table.

“So, you two must be very excited” she continued with the same smile.

“About?” Sky asked cautiously as the two took their old seats at the table once again.

“Come on, you’ve had a week to settle into senior year. Are you ready to rule the school yet?”

“Have you seen us?” Sky replied, still watching Brie as though she were the science experiment right then.

“Well, if any of the kids continue to treat you badly, you know it’s cause they’re just jealous” she assured as she took a sip of her own juice.

That was when Star spoke, “what could they possibly be jealous of?”

“That you two have the guts to be yourselves. It’s hard for teenagers to do that. It takes brave souls to actually show some individuality.”

“Soul” Sky stated softly.

“Pardon?” Brie asked as she took another sip.

Sky only shook his head, but could say nothing more, as Connor then returned from the porch where he had gone to get the morning paper. He actually smiled as he entered the dining room too then, before speaking, “there’s my three beautiful girls” he then let out a laugh and ruffled Sky’s long locks, “sorry, you know I gotta give you grief now and then” and with that, he took his own seat at the head of the table.

That was when Sky couldn’t possibly hold his tongue, “so, you’re actually cool with the way I look?”

Connor chuckled again, “you’ve looked this way for years Sky. I think I’m pretty used to it by now. I don’t have to understand it, but if it’s how you wanna look, who am I to stop you?”

“Ok, this is apparently a different episode of the Twilight Zone” Sky muttered as he took an awkward bite of his bagel.

“What?” Connor chuckled again, “was it my comment earlier? I was only teasing, Sky. You know that I’ve given up on trying to control everything you say or do... or wear. I mean, you and your sister are seventeen now. Eventually I gotta let you be yourselves, right?”

That was when he and Star both looked down with a bit of discomfort before Sky finally spoke again, “yeah I guess me and my sister are seventeen now, huh?”

Then Brie interrupted with concern, “what? Did you want us to stop calling you that?”

That was when Star spoke up, “calling us what?”

Brie scoffed with a bit of confusion, but continued, “calling you brother and sister. I mean, I know it’s not technically true, but we’ve always raised you that way, and you two always got along as well as twins would. Didn’t think it bothered you.”

The relief on both their faces was almost tangible at that point, “so we do have actual proof that we’re not blood-related then?” Sky couldn’t stop himself from asking.

“Well, the blood tests were apparently inconclusive, but they could tell that you didn’t have enough common DNA to be related. So I guess we just kind of went with that result” Brie assured.

“Is there a reason why you’re so concerned with not being blood-related all the sudden?” Connor had to ask, his skeptical mind apparently still in there somewhere.

Though the looks on both their faces said more than words. That was when Brie spoke up, “oh boy. No wonder you two have been acting so strange.”

“Pardon?” Star choked out.

“We knew you two always got along much better than most any siblings ever did. But is something changing here? Changing about the way you two feel about each other?” she asked with what seemed like genuine concern more than shock, though there was a bit of that buried there too.

“Um...” Sky stammered, trying to find the appropriate response to a question he never thought they’d be asking them at all.

“We kissed” Star interjected loudly, figuring it was the most innocent way to brooch this new subject at all.

“Wow” Brie stated as she looked down, then she quickly spoke again, “I’m not judging, I swear. It’s just... we’ve always raised you as....” she took another breath, “it just...” another pause, “you both have to live here, under this roof for at least one more year. And if you’re actually starting to have these kind of feelings for each other... well, the logistics could get a little dicey.”

“Wait, let’s just back up here a second” Connor finally interjected, causing Star and Sky to both brace for the angry flare up they were sure was coming. Connor then continued, “now, just so I’m fully understanding what you’re trying to tell us here; the two of you actually kissed... each other? Like not a brother-sister kiss?”

“Do those even exist?” Sky scoffed, already ready to go on the defensive.

Connor let out a small chuckle, “I mean, like on the cheek, or the lips?”

Star shook her head, “god, dad, if it was the cheek do you really think we would’ve even mentioned it?”

“So, lips then” Connor shook his head, eyes down, “and was there tongues involved?” he couldn’t help asking.

“Dad!” Star retorted.

“Sorry it’s just... It’s a shock” Connor decided on, then continued, “I mean, I never was sure that Sky even liked girls.... let alone...”

“Dad” Sky repeated Star’s earlier exclamation.

“It’s a valid assumption, Sky” he told him as he gestured to his son’s appearance.

“Yes, I like girls, and boys too, for your information” Sky’s own nerves couldn’t stop that confession.

“Ok, can we just tap the brakes a little on the confession-train right now?” Connor shook his head, putting his hand up as he spoke, and just causing Sky to scoff again. He then moved on, “not judging, son, I swear. I just, need time to... absorb.”

Sky rolled his eyes again at that. Though Brie spoke then, “and how do you know for sure that you like boys and girls both? Again, not judging, just a little worried about what you may have done already, aside from kissing your sister” she then paled at her last statement, “ok let’s just erase that last bit” she stated hurriedly, her cheeks reddening.

“For fuck’s sake” Sky mumbled under his breath. It was obvious this conversation was more than a bit uncomfortable for all parties involved. However, when Star and Sky looked up from the table, and their eyes met, they realized this was the first time in their entire lives they actually felt like normal teenagers, with normal parents who actually did seem to love and care about them. The memories they wanted to be theirs actually did seem to be the ones their parents now had. Now if only they could keep it all from falling apart all over again. Which they were sure would be much easier said than done.