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Jaime Reyes knows he’s symbiotic with an alien scarab that has an artificial intelligence now. It’s (surprisingly) what his dad wanted and what his whole soul finding journey was for when he was captured. He really should have expected there to be more changes beyond the metal that had grown out of his back.
His younger sister, Milagro, was the first to point it to him. He was on the roof with her, drinks in their hands, as he wanted to retain some semblance of normal in his life. He could sense Khaji Da at the ready in case either of them fell. But he knew it wouldn’t happen; he and Milagro were careful and agile enough even if his parents didn’t always believe it. Or parent. Singular.
Jaime is always hung up on how to feel about his father. He had gotten to say goodbye when he was knocked out and captured but he still missed him and their talks, especially the man’s encouraging words. It’s like Milagro can sense his swirling thoughts so she clinks their bottles together, creating a sound that Jaime would have normally heard but he doesn’t.
So instead, his sister grabs his shoulder in an attempt to pull him out of his thoughts. He doesn’t expect it, resulting in his body to move in a certain way that makes a clicking sound. He also bares his teeth, something he’s never done before, and it’s accompanied by hissing. The action is almost… animalistic.
“Dude!” Milagro yelps, scooting away from him a bit. “I can handle the fangs and eyes thing but the hissing is fucking weird. You need to ask Khaji or see a doctor or a vet or something.” Jaime blinks at her words, momentarily forgetting about scaring her. “You can handle the what?” He asks, not sure if he heard her correctly.
“Y’know, your fangs and the glowing yellow eyes. It was super strange at first but I figured it was the scarab. The hissing is even weirder though. I think I also heard you purr earlier. Maybe Uncle Rudy was right when he called you a cat; I think you’re turning into one.” Milagro snickers, lifting a hand to pet her brother’s hair. Jaime almost instinctively hisses again but he stops himself, instead lifting a hand to press the tip of a finger against where his canines are.
“Shit!” He literally squeaks, pulling his finger out of his mouth. It had hurt so much more than he expected. And yep, he can see a bit of blood on his finger, more visible than he thought with the night sky looming over them. “The fuck?” Jaime mutters and pulls his phone out of his pocket. Using the camera app, he can see that his eyes are, in fact, glowing. And it wasn’t like it was the reflection of the moon or the light from his phone. The entire irises were yellow.
“Khaji, what the fuck?” He says out loud. “ Do you not remember, Jaime Reyes? We are one now. It is only natural you would obtain some certain… characteristics .” Her response triggers a growl to escape him this time. “Why didn’t you tell me? I’ve been walking around like… this for the past few ways?!” It is silent for a few seconds. “ You did not ask, Jaime .”
The aforementioned is so caught up in his conversation that he barely notices Milagro suddenly on the grass in front of the house now. “Wait, wait, wait. Where are you going?” Jaime drops to the ground after hanging from the roof for a few moments. Khaji Da only transforms his barefoot feet, the material of the suit absorbing the fall. He lands in almost a superhero type way. (He doesn’t see Milagro roll her eyes at the action.)
“Out. I seriously don’t know how you didn’t notice the fang and eye thing but I don’t need to be here for your existential crisis about it. Lisa invited me over for the night.” Jaime furrows his eyebrows. “Did you tell Mama you were going out?” He asks, suddenly a bit self conscious but still defaulting to her big brother. “No, you can tell her for me.”
“Milagro!” Jaime actually hisses again and he can tell it startles her a bit; he immediately regrets the instincts he’s gained. But the girl’s personality and attitude had soured not too long after their father died and Jaime is the one who takes the brunt of it. “You can’t just run off. At least tell Mama or Uncle Rudy or someone.” She snorts. “I’m telling you.”
“Come on, you know that’s not what I meant.” Jaime says softly, knowing she can still hear him. He can see the way her face hardens at his words or perhaps, it’s the way he says them. “You don’t get it.” She says, kicking at the dirt. “God, I don’t know why I thought you would understand.” Jaime is about to ask what there is to understand but Milagro continues. “Because I mean hey, let’s be completely honest… you’re not even human anymore, Jaime.” Thanks to what he assumes is his enhanced eyesight, he can see the way her face instantly drops.
“Jaime? Hey, I didn’t actually mean that. I just got upset an-” Jaime shakes his head, willing for his tears to suddenly stop rolling down his cheeks. “Just go.” He interrupts her. “Go to Lisa’s. I’ll let Mama know.” He says, unable to stop himself from sounding upset at her. “Are you sure, bro?” Milagro asks quietly. He nods, knowing he’ll probably be nonverbal the rest of the night after this. “Okay. Goodnight.” Jaime nods again, finding himself sinking to the ground.
Tears are streaming from his eyes and his body reacts to his sudden mood change by rocking back and forth. Jaime bites his hand to muffle his sobs, trying his best to ignore the way his newfound fangs dig into it (he knows Khaji can heal him eventually). “ Jaime, I would advise against that. ” Speak of the devil. He doesn’t speak out loud but he somehow conveys the want to be alone to Khaji Da and it responds accordingly. “ I will be here if you need me. It would be best for you to get some rest soon. ” It’s an AI but Jaime is comforted by those sentences; it’s almost like it cares.