3.14 Intruder Alert

Apollo heard a sickening thud as he fell on the ground. There was a darkness surrounding him, he couldn't see a thing, only feel the pain in his limbs.

"Apollo, wake up!" He felt someone shake him and then light illuminated the area.

"What the...?" Apollo, with the help of Frost Bite was able to stand up. 

"Crap!" She exclaimed. "We're right in the open. Couldn't Angel have landed us in a more secluded area?"

"Frost!" Apollo shouted to her. "What the hell is going on? Where are we!"

"You said that you wanted to see Tommy right? Well, here we are. Tommy is here, in this place unreachable by humans on their own. Exciting, huh?" Frost twirled to face the now frantic boy.

"Wait, what? I didn't mean right away! What about my parents, and Ambrose and Lynette?!"

"I don't think you should be worrying about that too much now. What you really should be freaking out about is if anyone saw us land here! Remember how I said this land was unreachable by humans alone? Theres a rule set in place here. In order to bring a human to Moonlight Falls you have to fill out a request form and have the headmaster approve it. He knows the scent of every inhabitant. We'll be able to lay low for a few days until he find us, as long as no one saw us here. I don't see anyone, but stay hidden ok? I'll be back in a few moments."

"Wait a second!" Apollo called out, but it fell on deaf ears. Frost Bite hurried away anyway. Apollo had so many questions. First of all, if they'd be in trouble if they were caught, why did she leave him here? She knew he couldn't fend for himself if he tried! Secondly, if humans had to be approved...than what species lived here?  Were they vampires? Werewolves? Demons? Who was the headmaster? Filling out a paper and handing it to the headmaster was something you did in school. Getting permission to live somewhere was unnatural. Who got to decide these things?

Apollo was so deep in thought that he didn't realize the person who was now standing in front of him, arms crossed.

"Frost, thank goodness you're back---"

Without any warning, Apollo felt himself being thrusted backwards. "You have some nerve showing up here, you human scum. This park is a sanctuary only for supernaturals. Get the hell out of here. NOW."

Apollo moved to sidestep the angry green male but he only advanced closer. "Where do you think you're going?"

"You just told me to leave..." Apollo said nervously. This was exactly what he feared. Frost, where are you!?

"You weak little humans, you do whatever we say, huh? Just not to get the crap beaten out of you. Pathetic." The green male spat. "Tell me, who is the supernatural that brought you here? Where are they? Abandoning their little human pet."

Apollo stayed silent, unable to answer. What would he tell him? He couldn't exactly sell out Frost Bite, otherwise he wouldn't be able to get home. 

"Nothing? Just what I expected." Apollo felt himself flying backwards as the stranger's fist made contact with his face. "Absolutely pathetic."

Apollo could feel the blood spewing out of his mouth. The stranger's fist felt like a ton of bricks. Apollo tried to wipe his mouth but he had no energy to even lift his arms. "What...what did you do to me?" Apollo choked out.

"It wouldn't be much of a problem if you were a supernatural," he smirked. "Let this be a lesson to you. Go back to where you came from and don't come back. You have no damn business here. I don't know who you are or what sorry excuse for a true supernatural brought you here, but this will be my ONLY warning. I'll make sure you never leave here alive."

"David...." A low but intimidating growl made it's way to Apollo's ears. He involuntarily flinched. Apollo tried to cover his face and hide to the best of his ability. He was in a bad situation, he could feel it. What the hell was he thinking, letting Frost just whisk him away to a strange land? Love made you do stupid things. Apollo tried to push himself up from the cold pavement. He needed to get out of here, he needed to get to Tommy. If Apollo was in this much trouble, what did it mean for Tommy?

"Headmaster..." David stuttered in shock. He took a step back from Apollo's struggling body and whipped around to face the angry black haired male. "It isn't what it...I didn't....he was..."

"Enough, David. I don't want to hear it. I am the only one who gets to decide which people stay here and which go. Not you. This is the last strike. You will be punished." The headmaster's words were calm, yet menacing. His very presence was enough to strike fear in even the most courageous of people. 

"Punished?" David's eyes widened. "You can't do that...! I'm just trying to teach these humans a lesson. I refuse to be prisoners to their experiments any longer! Those people are like vultures, poking and prodding us supernaturals, trying to diagnose us like we've got some sort of disease!" 

"Not every human is like that, just as not every supernatural is a victim. Humans are scared of our presence. It's understandable that they want to see what we're made up of. One human being will not be able to destroy everything we've built, especially not on his own." The headmaster's eyes bore into David's fearful, yet impassioned face. "I cannot tolerate someone trying to dictate the will of the people."

Apollo began to speak, not even fully realizing it himself. "What about you? What are humans to you, pets? Not all of us are disobedient animals? Don't punish him." Apollo let out a hoarse cough, with more blood dripping from his open mouth. "I get it, you're afraid that I'm going to come in and take over. I won't. I know someone who would hate me if I pulled an ignorant move like that." Apollo thought back to his conversation with Tommy. All of this was for Tommy. Apollo lifted his eyes to meet with that of the headmaster and what he saw nearly took his breath away,

It was the same pearl orbs he had spent the last three (well, sort of...) months with. "Damian....?" Apollo coughed.

"Nice to see you again," Damian smiled kindly. His entire demeanor had changed. He held himself like a prince or a noble would, with such honor and class. It was so unlike the brooding man that quietly roamed the dorms. 

"What...the hell?" Damian leaned down to lift Apollo off of the ground. 

Damian scowled at David and spoke again. "You used your magic against him?" 

"I...uh..." David looked away.

"How does your face feel?" Damian turned to face Apollo once again. 

"Like you stood up on the top of a building and dropped a bag of bricks on me, while I was looking up straight at it." Apollo rubbed his jaw, startled by the amount of blood that had dried around it.

"David, take him to the nymphs, they'll heal him right away. When he's done, make sure you personally escort him back to my house and we will talk then."

"Wait...!" Apollo tried to protest, but Damian cut him off.

"I already know why you're here, and I can assure you that he is safe. We will discuss things at length once the nymphs have healed you. Magic should not be used on humans. If you go untreated, your wounds could grow worse and at an accelerated rate. So please, go fix yourself up."

Apollo reluctantly began to follow a not so happy David. He had questions for both David and Damian but he needed to fix his jaw and quick. Apollo didn't have the strength to move and fell back down to the ground.

"Apollo!" A girlish shriek rang out.

"Apollo, you brought along a guardian?" Damian shook his head disappointingly. 

"This ice freak is a guardian?" David scoffed. 

"Excuse me?" Frost said angrily. She kneeled down to check on Apollo. "Which of you idiots used magic on him? Damn it Apollo, I leave you for five minutes and you go and get yourself blasted."

"He'll be fine once the nymphs heal him. David, get going now."

"Right." David nodded and moved to help Apollo up.

"Oh hell no!" Frost jumped in David's way. "There is no way he's going with you after you did this to him!" 

"He needs to be healed, or the damage could get worse. You know that," Damian said.

"No!" Frost crossed her arms. "Apollo's safety is of utmost importance. I don't need any of you guys to step in the way of that!"

"I didn't want to have to do this, but you guardians interfere too much." Damian blinked and fangs sprouted from his mouth. Without even a slight movement, Frost fell to her knees and shrieked in agony."David, do not stop anywhere else. Get him directly to the nymphs."

"Frost..." Apollo mumbled as he reached out to grab her. He didn't know who was right, or who to trust, but he couldn't just leave her there wriggling in pain. 

"She'll be fine, it's just a temporary spell. You need to get your jaw checked and fast. We don't have time to convince Ms. Guardian over here. Just go."

Apollo felt his body go limp in David's arms as the green man ran through the forest. Maybe trusting David would be his downfall, but right now, all he cared about was the comfort of sleep as his gaze drifted into darkness. 

Christmas Special [Part 2]

"What the hell?" Mason rolled over. He shielded his eyes from the harsh rays of light entering the room. "Is it morning already?" He groaned. 

"Not quite!" A voice cheerfully rang out. 

"Please...not again..." Mason rolled back over and shut his eyes, hoping the figure would go away. 

"Geez, my sister was right. You're a grump!" The voice cried out.

"Leave me alone. I already relived my parent's death. What more do you want from me?" He mumbled, face buried in his pillow.

"I want to show you something. Not necessarily from the past, that's not really my thing. I don't like showing sad things, I'm more of  a happy person! I promise you that what I want to show you will be worth your while."  When Mason didn't turn over, she waltzed over to him and pulled the covers off. 

"Could you at least pick another form?" Mason rubbed his eyes.

"What happened Mason? Are you attracted to this look? Hehe, could you imagine if Athena had worn this on your wedding night? You would have gotten to unwrap the present--"

"Shut up!" Mason threw a pillow at her. "It's dishonorable to talk about the dead. Leave Athena out of this."

"I can't. Not today. Do you know why? Do ya? Well, I'll tell ya! I'm going to take you through an alternate dimension. It's one that depicts what could have happened if everything was different. My sister was telling me about how you were hung up on what could have been. It's been bugging you right? Well, I'm going to show you exactly that. Unfortunately for you, if your parents never died you would have never met Athena and then you'd be married to some boring lady. That's no fun! So, I'm going to show you a time in which Athena chose you over Levi. You still have Caleb and...well you'll see. Let's go!" She snapped her fingers and Mason was once again in a new scene just like the night before except now, it didn't seem familiar."

"In this time, Caleb isn't a rockstar. He was never bullied, in fact he was a pretty popular kid. You were at every school function and boy scout meeting. here, Caleb absolutely adores you. He knows you as his father and not some guy who tried to kill his brother. Levi is still in the guardians but they've abandoned their plan of saving the future through the Grays. Caleb and Star met accidentally, but still fell in love. How cute huh? True love prevails I guess." 'Athena' crossed her arms over her chest.

"So what you're telling me is that...in this time, I have a family?" Mason chose his words carefully.

"Yupp. Theres your son Caleb at the wheel next to his stunning wife Star, who didn't die because the guardians didn't see a threat anymore. Behind them is the pretty pinkette. Cassandra and the darling little girl Elsa. Such a picture perfect family. Look at them, they're all so beautiful!"

"I always hated the guardians for killing her. She was perfect for Caleb, she calmed his crazy emotions. So, this is what it would be like...they're so full of spirit," Mason said.

"Yeah, look at those reindeer ears on your granddaughter, oh and Caleb's ugly Christmas sweater. You can see who took after who. I love watching these guys, they're so cute. Just listen to them!" 'Athena' squealed.

"Cassandra, help your sister buckle up," Caleb said as he clicked in his own belt. 

"I got it!" Elsa swatted her sister's hand away.

"We'd be moving already if you would just let me help you," Cassandra sighed.

"Just a little more," Elsa pushed down on the buckle until she heard a click. "Got it! Told ya!" She stuck her tongue out at her sister. 

"We're all good now?" Caleb looked at them from the rearview mirror. Cassandra nodded and Elsa gave a thumbs up.

"Are all the presents in the car? Even your grandfather's?" Star asked. 

"Yep! I have Grandpa Mason's gift right here. I hope he likes it, we worked so hard on it!" She looked down at the family painting. Caleb painted one section and passed it to Star who added on. When she was done she gave it to Cassandra who worked on it and then let Elsa finish it. What was supposed to be a winter wonderland turned out to be a barnyard Christmas. Goes to show that things don't always turn out how you expect, but it doesn't make it any worse than what you planned. 

"They did that for me?" Mason thought aloud. 

"Wait until you see the whole family together!" 'Athena' exclaimed.  

 "Grandma!" Cassandra squealed and ran over to her. 

"Oh my, how you've grown." Athena took a step back to admire her genes.

"You always say that!" Cassandra laughed. 

"It's true. Every time I see you, you've practically skyrocketed. You look so beautiful, I bet all the boys are drooling over you."

"Yeah, they are but dad always scares them away! The last guy that asked me out had to personally get my dad's permission and he still said no!" Cassandra pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Caleb is just being protective of his daughter. He loves you so much and he doesn't want to give you away to just anyone. You're special and deserve the best." Athena smiled.

"Yeah I know. I just wish he'd back off just a little bit and stop scaring every guy off," Cassandra sighed.

"Tell ya what, Princess. I'll talk to him for you."

"You'd do that, for real? Grandma you're the best!" Cassandra hugged her again. 

"Where's my little Elsa?" Athena asked. 

"Over here, mom." Caleb waved his arms.

"Dad, no!" Elsa shrunk back in fear. She had been trying her hardest to be unseen by her grandmother. 

"Elsa you are so gorgeous. You look like a little Candy Cane!" Athena gushed.

"Thanks grandma..." Elsa mumbled.

Athena leaned in and grabbed Elsa's cheek, "You get cuter every time I see you. You're absolutely precious!"

Elsa groaned as her grandmother pinched her tiny cheeks. She loved her grandmother but she just wished she would refrain from the cheek pinching. It hurt...a lot. 

"Hello Mason, Happy Holidays." Star smiled brightly.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you can call me dad," Older Mason chuckled.

"Haha right, sorry. Merry Christmas Dad." Mason pulled her in for a brief hug.

"The kids are looking great. How are your parents?" Older Mason asked. 

"Everything is good, actually. We're taking the kids to Bridgeport for New Years. They're excited about it."

"Is that really me? I should be that old right now?" Mason asked.

"Mhmm. When a traveler gets married and settles down, especially in a time that is not theirs, they relinquish their youth. The internal clock starts to tick once again and you grow older like any normal human being would," 'Athena' explained. 

Ignore that random party guest to the right lol.

"Hey Uncle Weston," Cassandra grinned. "Did you bring Mayra with you?"

"You like her more than me, don't you?" Weston asked.

"Well..." Cassandra laughed.

"Who the heck is that?" Mason asked.

"Your youngest son, Weston. In this reality you're married to Athena. You're so attracted to her now, why wouldn't you be in this fantasy? What I'm saying is that you didn't stop at Caleb. Weston is your second and last child. He's an engineer who makes a ton of money working alongside the Lunar Lakes government. Somehow Athena had still managed to oust the isolationist policies and Weston is continuing her work. He's got a fiance named Mayra, no kids though. It's a shame. You and Athena produced some pretty gorgeous babies. At least in the real world we still have Caleb."

Mason furrowed his brows. Watching his child age right before his eyes was heartbreaking. He couldn't hold Caleb and tell him that he loved him. He could only watch as he grew older and older, soon surpassing Mason's own age. It was unnatural, but a fate that almost all time travelers had to suffer. This family, was what he wanted. Yes, he was old and would relinquish his (almost) immortality, but wouldn't that be better than just wandering the world for years trying to make something right?

"Girls, why don't you pause your game for a minute and eat some Pizza. I ordered your favorite, Pepperoni." Athena placed plates in front of each girl. 

"Thanks grandma," Cassandra said, taking a large bite out of her pizza.

"Don't think I'm distracted, I'm coming for your Boardwalk!" Elsa exclaimed.

"Who's winning?"Caleb asked, sitting down.

"Isn't it obvious?" Elsa grumbled.

"It's because I'm older. I know more," Cassandra said. 

"Nuh uh! Dad, it's because she keeps rolling doubles. No fair!" Elsa cried.

"It's fair. Dice rolls are random." Cassandra rolled her eyes. 

"Sometimes some people are luckier than others. You can't get everything right away because then theres nothing to work towards." Caleb patted her shoulder affectionately. "Next time it'll be your lucky break."

"I hope so!" Elsa puffed.

"How about I help you out this game?" Caleb asked.

"Yes, please!" Elsa grinned.

Cassandra sent her dad a smirk. "You still can't beat me."

"Don't be so sure Cassie," Caleb smirked back.

"Hey! Don't call me that!" 

After dinner, it was time to open presents.

"Don't look so down Cassandra. You know that your father is the Monopoly champ," Star said. 

"Whatever..." Cassandra mumbled.

"I know what will make you feel better, how about this?" Older Mason passed Cassandra a nicely wrapped box.

"Ahh, omg grandpa! I love it! This is Tim Levesque's new movie! He's so gorgeous!" Cassandra gushed.

"Do you know who that is?" 'Athena' asked.

"You know damn well that I kept tabs on Caleb," Mason said. Tim Levesque was Caleb's best friend and roommate when he was a star.

"So then you must know that because Caleb isn't a star in this reality, that he didn't meet Tim. Tim is still a snotty brat. It's funny how people influence each other, isn't it?" 'Athena' asked. 

"Yeah, yeah. I get it."

"Well, there's just one more thing that I'd like you to see." 'Athena' snapped her fingers and the time fast forwarded a bit. 

"Grandpa, do you want to build a snowman?" Elsa asked. 

"I would love to Sweetheart." Older Mason told her.

"Good. Dad and Cassandra think they can beat us in a snowman building contest!" 

"A contest?" Older Mason laughed. "You guys are so competitive."

"Grandpa, we have to beat them! We have to!" Elsa waved her arms wildly.

Older Mason leaned down to Elsa's level. "They won't know what hit them." 

"Come on grandpa. We can do it!" Elsa cheered.

"Maybe we should just let them have it," Cassandra said as she patted the snow.

Caleb looked at Cassandra and beamed. "I'm so proud of you right now."

"Winning isn't everything. I think it'll be so much better seeing her happy," Cassandra concluded.

Mason looked around. He was back in his own world. he should have been happy for it to all have gone back to normal, but he wasn't. He just felt even emptier inside. He had gotten a taste of what his life could have been like, what it should have been like.

"Do you understand why I made you look at that? Sometimes you need to give things up, even if it means damaging your pride in order to make people happy. You need to stop what you're doing to the Gray family and start living your own life."

Mason shook his head. "It's the exact opposite. Those kids, Apollo and Ambrose, are the spawns of Levi's genes. I can't let them be happy. My family doesn't exist and they do." Mason gave the ghost a look of determination. "Nobody is going to stop me."

The ghost gave him a sad look but began to fade away anyway. "Looks like my job here is done. I wish I could convince you otherwise but it looks like I won't be able to. Here's something that I think you should think about." She handed him a polaroid picture before disappearing completely.

Mason held in his hand one of the most powerful things he could obtain. This picture was fueling his new hatred towards the Gray family. He was going to fight to turn back the time and change everything back to the way it was supposed to be. He was determined to stop his parents from dying, meeting  Athena and having this family that he was sure he was meant to have, no matter who he had to hurt in the process.

_______________________________________________________________________

Happy Holidays everyone! Sorry I'm a day late. I hope you guys enjoyed your holidays and enjoy your vacations. :) 

Christmas Special [Part 1]

"Damnit, those stupid brats," Mason cursed as he turned over in his bed for the eleventh time. The neighbors were having the time of their lives, screaming, laughing and playing. It was understandable, it was Christmas Eve after all. Still, he was trying to sleep and having no one to spend the holiday with could make a person pretty bitter. Mason got up angrily and headed for the window. "Would you just shut the heck up? Some of us are trying to sleep!"


"Scrooge!" One of the teens called back.


"You little fu-" Mason began, but was startled by a hand on his shoulder.


"Now. you shouldn't really be so hard on them. It's Christmas Eve, they're just having some fun!" The person standing in front of him was a face he knew well. It was one he dreamt about for ages. He had missed her beautiful smile, her sparkling eyes, the way her hair waved...he missed everything.

"Athena...." Mason held his arm out to her. He wanted to hold her in his arms, kiss her lips once again,  but he couldn't move. She took a step backwards and laughed a cute little laugh.


"I'm not the girl that you think I am. She is gone. It tends to happen to those with no time on their hands. Athena Gray, what a lovely name...hmm, I apologize, I'm getting off track. I am the ghost of Christmas Past. I have taken the shape of Athena to remind you of one of the good things you had once had in your life. Now, shall we begin?"

"What the hell?" Mason rubbed his eyes. "Christmas past huh? Is that why you're dressed like that?"

"Precisely Mr. Moon. Now, if you don't mind, we must hurry this up. I have other people's holidays to save." She tapped her foot impatiently. "Oh wait a second, why am I even asking you? Let's just go."

With a snap of her finger, Mason felt himself being transported somewhere. It was unlike anything he had ever felt before. "This isn't time traveling...where the hell are we?" 


"I'm not a time traveler. What we're doing right now is hovering. We're in between dimensions. Does this house look familiar?"


Mason looked around. "Is this....the house I grew up in?"  The boring black couch, gray walls, hanging plants everywhere...it was just as he remembered. He spent some of the greatest years of his life in this huge house. His parents were scientists who were paid well. The large spacious house with sophisticated future designs reflected that. It was kind of boring, dull and empty but at least he had synthesized meals on the table unlike some of his friends. Not everyone was fortunate enough to have the newest technology.  "How are we here? This time is locked..."


"Ding ding ding! You're right! Emit locked this time period for ALL travelers, which I guess is just you and him, huh? I wonder why he'd do that?" 'Athena' wore an all-knowing smirk.


"Shut up!" Mason growled. "That's none of your damn business! Now, answer my question!"


"Touchy subject, huh?" She poked his arm, waiting for him to flinch before speaking again. "Nobody is allowed to touch this time period. Not even us ghosts. Like I said before, we're hovering in between dimensions. We're not part of this dimension or the one you live in, so we haven't materialized. Basically, we're just watching the events of the past. We can't interact with anyone or anything here and they can't see or hear us."


"That's real?" Mason's eyes widened.


"Mr. Powerful Time Traveler isn't so powerful and all knowing as he makes himself out to be, huh?" 'Athena' crossed her arms over her chest. She enjoyed watching him squirm. He needed to realize he wasn't the center of the universe.


"You don't know what I'm capable of....don't take me lightly!" Mason said angrily. He shut his eyes and tried to focus. He needed to get out of here before it was too late. He didn't want to see what was about to happen. "Damnit!" He cursed.


"You can't time travel when you're in between dimensions. Don't you get it?" Mason was about to say something else  when he heard a familiar voice.

"Mason is going to love this gift." The woman turned around to make sure that no one had seen her place the present under the tree and turned back around to admire it.

"Mom..." Mason whispered. "I can't stay here. I need to go now. Take me home, please!" Mason clutched 'Athena's' arm and pleaded.

"Mason, I know this is going to be hard for you to watch, but you'll never change if you don't see what destroyed your spirit in the first place. I don't care about what you're doing now, that's none of my concern. My job is only to get you your Christmas spirit back. It's not like you've never had it...you've just lost it and to get it back you need to find the root."

"I know what the root is!" Mason shouted. "I know what happens. Do not make me go through this twice!"

"I'm sorry, but it isn't up to me. It's how things have to be."

"Who says that I need spirit anyway? Who made it a law that I have to be nice and happy and cheerful all the damn time?"

"When you're a grinch, others suffer! Have you stopped to take a look around you once and a while? Athena, Noah and Apollo. Those are three people whose lives you have tried to destroy! Do you really think that everything is okay?" 'Athena' shook her head vigorously. "You have got to stop this. There is no turning back now. You are going to relive this night and there isn't anything that you can do about it! In fact, I don't want to hear your nonsense anymore. I'll be back for you later!"

"What! No, come back!" Mason shouted at her fading figure. "Damnit!" Mason tried to kick the sofa in front of him but his foot went straight through. "This sucks!" There was nothing Mason could do but watch the events unfold.

"Marilyn, honey, I'm home with Levi. We had a blast at the Daddy and Me holiday party. Isn't that right son?" Levi giggled in his dad's arms.

"More daddy! More daddy!" Levi squealed in delight.

"I'm glad that you had fun with your dad, Sweetheart." Marilyn kissed Levi's forehead. She then began to walk off, ignoring her husband.

"Marilyn. please. It wasn't my decision, you can't possibly be mad at me!" He quickened his pace to catch up with the red head.

She stopped short and spun around to face him. "It's Christmas Bryant! It's Mason's favorite time of year! We can't go to work. At least one of us should stay home with the boys. They shouldn't be alone. We had to work on Thanksgiving and..."

"Baby, the science facility needs both of us. We're so close to a breakthrough! Don't you want a better future for our sons? The boys can go over to your sister's house. She won't mind having them over."

"Stop with that! They're our kids. We can't just keep dumping them on my sister. Nandy is having a huge party with all of her wife's friends. We shouldn't bother her with our kids! Bryant, I'm staying home!"

"We need you Mar, there isn't anyone else we can trust. You know that. I love Mason and Levi with all of my heart. If there was a way around this, I'd be the first to suggest it. I promise that we will make it up to them. I promise you." He squeezed her hand tightly. "A better future for our sons is what matters."

Marilyn stared down at his hand in hers. She traced his fingers with index finger. "I know that. I love them so much and I hate that we have to keep leaving them like this. I just wish there was another way, you know?"

"Mason will understand. He's old enough." Bryant leaned in and kissed her forehead. "Everything will be alright."

Time seemed to skip forward after that moment. Mason was now staring at a younger version of himself.

"Why'd you dye your hair? The red is so hot." The ghost reappeared. 

Mason narrowed his eyes. "I've seen enough already. Can't I go back to my own dimension?"

"So, you're not even going to answer my question? Fine. Whatever. I hate repeating myself. You cannot go back until you see all of this. Once it's over you'll go back home. I'm just here to remind you." She snapped her fingers and once again began to fade away. He wished her visits weren't as brief. She sounded, looked and smelled like Athena, but she acted maliciously, unlike his love. Still, he wouldn't mind being around someone he could communicate with and rely on. 

"Mom, are you okay? Synthesized Dim Sums are your favorite. Why aren't you eating?" Young Mason shoved another spoonful of food into his mouth as he watched his mother contemplate her next move.

"I'm sorry honey. My mind is somewhere else entirely. I'm not very hungry." She propped her elbows on the counter and shut her eyes. Mason never realized how stressed his mother really was all that time. Watching her now, he noticed the prominent wrinkles around her eyes.

"Is it about work again?" Mason wondered aloud.

"Kind of." She let out a long sigh. "I guess I'll just come out and say it. Your father and I have to go to work on Christmas." Mason watched the frown form on his younger self. He remembered trying to hold in his anguish, but his mother always saw right through him. "I'm sorry."

"It's Christmas, can't your research wait?" The young Mason tried to make the conversation sound casual but the way his voice cracked gave it away instantly. 

"I wish. We're so close. The higher ups don't want us to waste any time. We're so close to cracking the code. Those mysterious markings on that stone tablet that we found are the key to a Utopian future. Once we finish with that, the development stage will begin and your father and I can take a break for awhile and spend some time with you and Levi."

"I guess I understand," Young Mason said, standing up. 

"Honey, you didn't finish your food."

"I've lost my appetite. I'm going to my room."

"Listen, Mason. I'm sorry! I'll call Nandy and see if you can go over there for the holidays!" Marilyn called after him. 

Once he reached the stairs, he turned around. "Don't worry. Levi and I will be fine over here."

"Are you sure?" 

"I'm fine, mom. Don't you have work to do?" With that, young Mason left an obviously pained mother. Marilyn was just as upset with the situation as Mason was. 

Once again the scene changed in front of Mason. 

"Merry Christmas, Lev." Young Mason leaned down and kissed Levi on the cheek. "I'm sorry, I'm not that great of a cook. I can't synthesize as much as Mom and Dad can. I hope this is good enough for you." Mason placed a small plate of raviolis in front of his brother. 

"Yum yum!" Levi laughed, digging his fist into the bowl and messily shoving some pasta into his tiny mouth. "Good!"

Young Mason couldn't help but laugh. "You just think that today is like every other day huh? Ignorance is bliss." With Levi eating happily, young Mason finally found the chance to talk to his parents before they left.

"Me go wif Mase! Me go too!" Levi tried to get his brother's attention.

"You're done already?" Young Mason laughed at his little brother's antics. He wouldn't eat if he saw Mason walking away. Levi hated being alone. "Alright, you can come with me. Let's go."

"Mom. Dad..." Young Mason began. 

"Daddy!" Levi squealed and reached out his arms.

"Hush, Lev. I'm trying to tell them something," Mason said as he passed Levi over to his father. Levi leaned into Bryant as he watched his older brother form his words. 

"Is something bothering you?" Bryant asked. 

Marilyn grabbed her son's hand and held it, as if willing him to speak. "I just...I want to give you your gift. You won't be back until midnight but by then, Christmas will be over so I want you to open your gift now."

"But, we always open our gifts together," Marilyn said.

"Yeah, but this year is different. Just open it." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. "It's for both of you. I couldn't afford much, sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's the thought that counts. It means a lot to us, thanks kiddo." Bryant leaned over and ruffled his hair. "So what is it, Mar?"

Marilyn began to tear up and she hugged Mason tightly. "Did you write this yourself?"

Young Mason nodded meekly. "Yeah..."

"Bryant, read this." She handed him the handwritten poem. It was scribbled on a crumbled piece of paper. Mason could recite the poem to anyone, still to this day. He had no idea what to get his parents for the holidays. When his mother told him that they weren't going to be with him on Christmas, he was upset and decided to just write his feelings down.

"Just know that the only thing that separates us is time..." Bryant finished reading the poem aloud. "Mason, this is truly incredible. It means the world to me that you put so much thought into this. No matter how far away we are, the only thing that separates us is time, but don't fret. Time is a lovely thing. It heals all wounds."

"Dad, Mom. I love you guys." Young Mason hugged them both tightly. "Have a great day at work."

"We'll be thinking of you the entire time. Don't stay up too late. Aunt Nandy is going to call a little later to check up on you, okay?" Mariyln asked.

"Mhmm." Young Mason nodded. "I'll see you later."

"By Son."

"Bye Dad."

"Bye Mason."

"Bye Mom."

Mason couldn't take it anymore. "Stop it! Don't say goodbye! You can't leave!"

"They can't hear you Mason." The ghost of Christmas past rolled her eyes. She was now standing next to Mason once again.

"You know what's about to happen. How can you let them just leave like that!" Mason shouted. "Do something!"

"There is nothing I can do. We can't physically interfere in this world. It's going to happen no matter what."

"Mom! Dad! Stay home, please! Don't go!" Mason yelled. He didn't care if they couldn't hear him. He wouldn't sit back and allow this to happen. Not if there was a slight chance he could stop it. 

"Come on Mason, there's another scene I need you to see. It's almost over. Just a little more."

"No...please..." Mason whimpered. 

Christmas at the Moon household wasn't very eventful. Young Mason and Levi watched some cartoons until Levi fell asleep. After Mason put Levi in his crib, he decided to watch some corny holiday movies until he eventually fell asleep. It wasn't until his phone began to buzz that young Mason awoke. 

"Nand, what's up?" Young Mason yawned. 

"Is everything ok over there?" Her frantic voice rung through the speakers.

"Yeah, why? What's up? Levi is asleep upstairs and I was taking a nap on the couch." Young Mason stretched his arms over his head. 

"Thank goodness. I thought something happened!" It wasn't until then that young Mason noticed that something was off. 

"Nandy, what's wrong? Did something happen? You sound like you're crying!"

"Mason....I'm so sorry!" It was as if she was waiting for his permission to let her emotions overflow. "They're dead."

"What are you talking about? Who's dead?" Young Mason asked. He held his breath, hoping that Nandy wouldn't say it. 

"Your....your...parents. Both....I'm so sorry!" Nandy sobbed some more before continuing. "There was an explosion. The whole place burned down."

Mason watched himself drop the phone. Both of them held their breaths. Young Mason then fell to the ground and began to sob. His whole world was crashing down around him and Mason had to watch it happen all over again. 

"Christmas Past. Come back! It's over!" But there was no response. Mason could only watch himself fall to the ground in compulsive sobs.

"Mason...I'm coming over right away!" Nandy said through the phone. He rocked back and forth, holding his knees up to his chest. 

"This isn't fair!" The young boy shouted. "It's Christmas! They should be home! No!" Mason wanted to crawl in a hole and hide for the rest of his life rather than see this happen again. He was dreading it. 

"Are you happy now? Huh, Mrs. Hovering Ghost? Now you know why I have no Christmas Spirit. Now you know why I hate Oasis Landing. Now you know. Are you happy!" Mason shouted with his own tears streaming down his face.

A voice began to speak to him. "It isn't over yet Mason."

Before Mason could even wipe his eyes, another scene unfolded before him. It was his parent's funeral. They had decided to hold it at his house, Both Marilyn and Bryant were wealthy and left Mason and Levi quite a bit of money. Mason remembered this conversation as clear as day. It was what fueled his desire to interact with the Gray family in the first place.

"Sandra Castle, one of your parent's coworkers. How come she didn't die, did you ever wonder? I thought everyone died that night." The ghost appeared once again.

"She wasn't called in until late that night. She arrived just when the fire was starting. My mother pushed her out of the way of the flames.They were good friends." Mason looked away.

"Interesting." The ghost placed a hand on her chin as if in thought.

"Mason? You know I loved your mother to death right? She was my best friend." Sandra began to speak. Young Mason nodded. "Your mother gave up her life to save me. She pushed me out of the way of a falling plank. I owe my entire life to her and I am so grateful for that. I want you to know that she was an amazing woman and she left me with some last information to tell you, She said it was really important."

"What is it?"

"Sierra Gray," Sandra said.

"Who is that?" Young Mason asked.

"I don't know. There wasn't enough time for her to explain, she just wanted me to tell you that. I'm sorry son."

Young Mason began to run away. It was a lot to take in. His mother had died to protect someone else. She had left him with a message, she had been thinking of him until her last breath. He wanted to curl up into a ball and die. 

"Where are you going?" Nandy pulled him into a tight hug.

"Nandy...oh my God. They're gone. They're really gone! I keep telling myself that it was all just a dream, but I keep waking up in this empty house!" He clutched her shirt and began to cry harder. "I...I miss them!"

Nandy pulled him closer and began to stroke his back lovingly. "I know it hurts. Marilyn is my older sister...I...I can't believe this is happening. I...I'm here for you no matter what, Mason. Okay? Do you understand me? I don't want you to go off and do anything stupid."

"I love you Aunt Nandy."

"I love you too, Mason. So much."

The scene had faded into a new one yet again. Young Mason was curled up by the Christmas tree, sobbing. 

"Do you remember this?" 'Athena' asked.

"Vividly," Mason choked out.

Young Mason turned his parent's gift to him over and over again in the palm of his hand.

"You never really did open that, did you?" 'Athena' turned to him. Mason stayed silent. "Did you ever stop to think that maybe you aren't doing what you're doing to enact revenge on Oasis Landing like you've been telling everyone? No matter how angry you are at the government of Oasis Landing, you don't want to destroy it. You want to make it better in hopes of bringing them back, don't you? that's why you and Athena got along so well. She was going through the same exact thing. She was the only person who truly understood you."

"She's dead! My parents are dead. My little brother is going to die soon. Who else do I have left!" Mason shouted angrily. They were now back in Mason's room.

"I can't tell you why Emit decided to lock your timeline. I wish you could go back and stop this from happening. I wish you could go back and change everything. If your parents never died, if you were with Athena and if your son had a child, it would all be okay. I wouldn't be here. You would have never lost your spirit. But, then again. Without this incident, you would have never met Athena. There's so much that you need to sort out in order to be happy. I was just the messenger. I thought I could help you."

"You can't!" Mason yelled bitterly. "Just leave me the hell alone!"

"Have a Merry Christmas Mason."

"Bite Me!" he growled as she faded away for what he hoped would be the last time. He couldn't stand to see her anymore. He jumped into his bed and lay awake for hours, contemplating what life really would have been like if none of this ever happened. 

____________________________________________________________________________

This is part one of a two part Christmas Special. The next part is more light hearted, I promise. I'm just trying to shed some light on Mason's character a bit. Thank you for reading. I have this new story out called Sim Star Idol. Just click it and you can read it. It's like a reality show with some sims sent in from other Simmers. It's a lot of fun, check it out! :) Oh, I almost forgot. Happy Holidays!