Jade's father was waiting for her at the airport. He rushed forward as soon as she left the security area, wrapping his arms around her and squeezing tightly.

"Jade!" He gasped, emotion choking his voice. "You're okay! You're really okay."

"I am… I'm back, Dad."

Jade was surprised to feel tears welling up, and quickly wiped them away. No matter the difficulties their family had faced over the years, this was still a homecoming for her. The thick walls she'd hastily erected around her heart in response to being torn away from her life had always held cracks in them. Now, at last, they began to buckle.

"I'm okay…" She sniffed, pressing her forehead into his shoulder.

Her father didn't say anything, but she felt his arms tighten around her. When was the last time they'd embraced like this? She… she couldn't recall. Jade took several deep breaths, calming herself. Finally, she stepped back, getting her first good look at her father. He was a tall man, slender, with a slightly receding hairline. Dark circles clung to his eyes, as if he'd barely slept in weeks. Even so, he managed a warm smile, holding her by the shoulders and looking her up and down.

"How much did they tell you?" Jade asked, struggling to keep her emotions at bay. The crowded terminal wasn't helping. Even keeping a tight leash on her demonic senses, she could taste the stress of countless harried travelers pressing in on all sides. It was making it hard to truly relax.

"Everything, I think." He said, his smile fading a little. Her father glanced at the glowing sigil on the back of her hand. "You're really one of them? Those people that have been on the news?"

Jade had no idea what sort of news reports were being run on wayfarers, but she was glad that she didn't have to explain the entire situation from the ground up.

"Probably, yeah. Can we talk somewhere else? It's…" She gestured at the people flowing around them. They were causing something of a traffic jam at the terminal exit, and people were starting to stare. A few were whispering, pointing at Jade.

"Of course." He nodded. "Let's get you home. Your brother's waiting."

It only took a few minutes to get to the car, and Jade felt immediate relief upon getting away from the throng of people. She rubbed at her temples, trying to banish her growing headache.

I need to get better at managing crowds…

It was about a half-hour drive back to the family house, nestled in a quiet suburb between Ann Arbor and Detroit proper. Winter was in full swing, a characteristic February sleet storm sweeping across the city. Jade watched the dark city streets roll by in silence, entranced by the glistening urban lights. It was so different from the untamed wilderness of the Labyrinth, yet so familiar.

"The lady with the government…" Her father said at length, not taking his eyes off the road. "She said that you won't be staying long."

It was a statement, not a question. Jade could taste her father's concern and uncertainty. It was unnerving, especially considering he had always seemed so in control. The man who had always had an answer to their family's many issues didn't know what to do, now. Or maybe it had always been that way, and he had just been that good at pretending. Now, the illusion was revealed. It felt like an invasion of privacy, and yet again Jade wished she could shut off that aspect of her powers.

"That's right." she sighed. "It's complicated, but L-Ref… Do you know what that is?" he nodded, so she continued. "They need help from people like me."

"It's dangerous, isn't it." Again, it wasn't a question.

"Yes." Jade said, looking away. "But I've met some good friends. We're watching out for each other."

Her words felt empty even to her. Jade didn't know exactly what her father knew about the Labyrinth, but the public was clearly better informed than she'd assumed they would be. But what could she say? Going back wasn't optional, not until she completed her trial. And even if she could abandon it, she wasn't sure she'd be able to bring herself to do so. Not with the Labyrinth chipping away at the foundation of their planet.

Again, they fell into silence. This, at least, Jade was familiar with. How long had it been since she'd had a real conversation with her father? She'd barely seen the man in years. Jade was self-aware enough to recognize the resentment she harbored towards him for his near-total absence from her life was completely unfair, but that didn't stop her from feeling it. Alan's illness was exorbitantly expensive to treat, and her father had been required to work long hours to finance his round-the-clock care. That sort of life didn't leave much time for family.

Because Jade had long since cut her mother out of her life, she had been left to look after herself. School events, athletic meets, holidays, Jade had endured most of them alone. At this point, she wasn't even sure how to interact with her father normally. The man had poured everything into providing for his children and, somehow, he had succeeded.

All it had cost them was their father.

Jade had a chance to change that, now. L-ReF needed them, needed her, to help with this crisis. She was going to make sure that, in exchange, her family was taken care of.

----------------------------------------

It was too late to cook a proper meal by the time they reached the house. Jade's father dropped her off in the driveway, promising to hurry back with some takeout. Apparently, not everything was closed.

"Go in and see your brother." He urged, gesturing for her to get out of the pelting sleet. The weather had taken a turn for the worse, and Jade had to hold up an arm to shield her face from the biting wind. "I'll be back soon."

Jade nodded, one hand still on the open car door. Part of her wanted to say something, but she couldn't find the right words. Repeatedly facing down death had given her a new perspective on her family situation. Problems that had seemed insurmountable mere months ago now felt almost trivial. Maybe it was time to try again.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

But no matter how much she yearned for it, the words wouldn't come out. In the end she just nodded, gave her father a tight smile, and shut the door. The car backed out of the driveway, tires crunching on frosty pavement as Jade trudged up to the front door.

Why? Why was it so hard to just open up to her family?

Because we haven't been a family in years. She thought sourly, keying the access code into the smart lock and opening the door.

Maybe that was okay. She couldn't just sweep a half-dozen years of familial isolation under the rug and pretend it hadn't happened. Even if she could, it probably wouldn't be healthy. That lost time wasn't coming back, but that didn't mean they couldn't make something new.

Though none of the lights were on, Jade's enhanced senses had no difficulty piercing the gloom. Not that she needed them here, she could have navigated the whole house with her eyes closed. She made her way towards the stairs, where a single shaft of light was filtering down from above. Jade hesitated on the first step, not sure what to expect. Her brother was home, that had to be a good sign, right? She should have asked for more details on the drive home. Hell, her father should have just told her any news.

Beep.

A soft chime sounded in Jade's mind, accompanied by a blinking icon in what remained of her Labyrinth interface. The timer had just rolled past the '7 day' mark, continuing to tick away what little time she had here.

No time to waste.

Jade took a deep breath and climbed the stairs.

As she expected, the light was coming from her brother's room. The door was cracked open, leaving a gap just wide enough for a shaft of light to illuminate the stairway. She paused outside, knocking three times.

"Hey, anyone home?"

The door swung inward under the force of her knocks, opening to reveal her brother's bedroom. The shelves were lined with an eclectic collection of youth baseball trophies, videogames, and books, alongside piles of poorly organized medical supplies. It was a sight Jade was all too familiar with. Her gaze glossed over it, coming to rest on the lanky teen sitting at the room's only desk. Alan was on his computer, scrolling through what looked like a newsfeed. He stopped at the sound of her knocks, spinning his chair around to face the door.

"Hey champ." she grinned, stepping inside. "How're you doing?"

"Jay!"

Alan jumped to his feet and then stopped, throwing out a hand to brace himself against his desk.

"Easy." Jade said, her smile slipping a little. "You okay?"

"Just stood up too fast." he brushed off her concern. "Don't worry about me. I'm not the one whose apartment exploded in the middle of the night."

"It didn't explode." Jade corrected him, trying to help him back into his seat. "It just got sucked into another dimension."

He ignored her attempts to get him to sit back down, pulling her into a hug instead.

"It's true, then?" he asked. "You really got pulled into that other world? It's all over the Internet."

"I don't know what they're saying but yeah. And the truth is probably crazier than whatever people are posting."

He eyed her skeptically.

"There's some pretty crazy stuff online."

"Well, I made it back." She released him, taking a step away. "And I'm better than ever."

He looked her up and down, eyes going wide in surprise.

"You're walking normally! Is your foot-?"

"It's doing better."

Her brother smiled, finally sinking back into his chair. He looked frail, more so than she remembered, although Jade wasn't sure if that was just because it had been so long since she'd seen him. His eyes still held a vibrant energy, though, glimmering with that spark that had always made him the center of every group.

"Will you tell me about it?" he asked, leaning forward eagerly.

"Definitely." She sat down on the edge of the bed, instinctively finding her familiar spot. How many weeks had she spent here while recovering from her injury? Time spent reconnecting with her brother, being introduced to his favorite games and shows. Who knew that experience would prove to be so practical in the game-like world of the Labyrinth.

Before diving into a summary of her experiences, Jade got fully up to date on her brother's health. There wasn't much of a change. He was still in and out of the hospital, his condition fluctuating on a monthly basis, and mostly was having to keep up with schoolwork digitally. He had always hidden it well, but her new succubus senses let her feel the pain he kept walled in behind his cheerful exterior. It hadn't been until Jade had suffered from a condition of her own that she began to understand how incredible her brother's boundless optimism was, and now she could see the truth of his struggle.

After that, at his insistence, she related an abridged version of her time in the Labyrinth. She chose to focus on the more magical aspects of the world, painting it as a place of wonder and magic rather than of death and fear. Her own complicated feelings about the current crisis aside she wanted, no, needed, this night to be a happy one. As she had with everyone else on Earth, Jade kept her transformed nature to herself, although for a different reason. She trusted Alan implicitly and had no doubt that he would think that her transformation into a demonic entity was more badass than anything else.

Instead, she was worried the knowledge would make him want to enter the Labyrinth to seek his own transformation. If such an event had cured her injury, could it repair his body as well? Jade had no idea, and no way to find out. Unfortunately, it wasn't possible. Damos had been quite clear that no more Earth wayfarers would be accepted, not until the current pool completed their trials. She couldn't bear to tell him that salvation could be so close, but unachievable. At some point she would have to come clean, but now wasn't the right time.

That didn't mean she couldn't offer some hope, though.

"I've seen some incredible things, Alan." Jade said a while later, holding up her hand and showing her brother a flicker of her manifested aura. The blueish-pink energy flickered and danced in her hand, entrancing him. "And not all magic is about fighting. I can't promise anything, I don't know how any of it works, but there are people with healing powers. One of my new friends, Siora, is an alchemist who specializes in restorative potions. I talked to her about it, and she said she'd help me find something I could bring back for you. Something that might be able to help you get better."

Jade expected him to be excited, or at least intrigued by the idea, so she was surprised when he deflated at her words.

"Aren't you-" He waved his hand. "All of you 'wayfarers', I mean, supposed to be helping protect our home? I can't ask you to get distracted from that just for me."

"Don't worry about that. Naomi and Luis, the friends I was telling you about? They're always saying I need to slow down, that we need to take time to rest and recover. We can't fight all the time. If there's anything that can help, I'll find it." she took his hand. "I'll bring it back."

"Can you bring me back a badass magic sword?"

"I'll see what I can do." Jade laughed.

The sound of the front door opening caught her attention. Their father was home, and it smelled like he'd delivered on his promise of good food.

"Jay?" Alan asked as they got up to head downstairs. She took his arm, helping him stay up. This time, he didn't protest.

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you're okay. I was worried about you. The whole family was."

His sincerity washed over her like a wave. Even after several weeks she wasn't fully used to feeling other people's emotions. It was a powerful sensation. Unfortunately, the sense being demonic in origin gave it an unpleasant twist. The care, concern, and joy her brother felt at their reunion tasted acrid and bitter to her mind, as if the emotions were anathema to her nature. Jade struggled to hide a grimace, balling her free hand into a fist and feeling her nails dig into her palm.

You aren't taking this from me. She thought, frustrated. Love is not a weakness.

That other demon, Malice, would probably disagree. Jade didn't give a damn. Other demons could bask in the perverse pleasure of negative emotions if they wanted to, but she wasn't going to give into it.

"Thanks." She said, keeping her inner turmoil hidden. "It's good to be home."

Jade didn't have much time here. There was a lot to do before they were ready to dive back into the Labyrinth, and they were on a literal clock. But tonight, she was going to put all that aside. Tonight was for family.