Chapter Text
“Papa?”
“Yes, my boy?”
“Who's that?”
The young child pointed at the corner of the room, across the various cousins, uncles, aunts and other relatives. A young, middle-aged man, looking as inconspicuous as any officer worker someone would pass on their way to work, chatted with the boy's great grandfather, a lively albeit aged man who always had a smile. The two laughed like they were old friends, and the younger man held great grandpa's hand gently, yet the older man's bony hand clutched him with a strength that betrayed his age.
“That's your Godfather.”
“Godfather?”
“Yes, my boy. He's been around our family for God knows how long by now, but he's a nice man. Just know this. He'll take care of you.”
Frowning with a bit of confusion and a lot of curiosity, the boy nodded.
The next time he saw Godfather was at Great Grandpa's funeral.
The uncles and aunts traded stories over great-grandpa at their tables, smiles and tears intermingling between the families. Almost everyone had shown up, at least to the boy's knowledge. Some had already gone up to the casket to give their last goodbyes, others were waiting for their brothers and sisters to arrive to say theirs.
Many tears had been shed and shared, and while the timing of the passing had been rather sudden, it was not unexpected. The old man had passed peacefully, with his last days surrounded by his daughter and grandson, even having his great-granddaughter arriving at his home to show him her days at school.
Godfather was also there, according to his grandson. He was dropping by quite often, holding great-grandpa's hand like how his mother did. And when his time came, Godfather was there too, sitting next to the bed as his breathing stilled and he breathed his last.
Soon, the attendance list had been marked full and the ceremony began in full, with soft prayers and not a small amount of tears, especially from the man’s immediate family and the uncles and aunts who were closest to him. At the end of the first ceremony, when everyone split up for their break, Godfather remained with Great Grandpa the longest, a hand on the casket up until one of the attendants of the funeral told him he had to leave while they moved the casket.
After all the ceremonies were done, Godfather was the one who took his ashes, smiling thanks to the various families that had attended, promising to be around for the next family reunion dinner, as usual.
As time went on, the appearances from Godfather continued, no matter where. If it was a birthday party, a baby shower, a wedding, a funeral, or any sort of family event; no matter if it was just a small gathering Of one or two families or the largest wedding the boy had ever seen, Godfather would be there, smiling on quietly from whichever perch he decided to park himself on, trading conversation with all the members of the family like they were immediate members, not just “extended family”.
And then a day rolled around when they were invited by Godfather instead.
“An invitation by Godfather!?”
“Yeah, Dad. Came through the mail this morning.”
The man scrambled to his feet, hurrying over with a vigour the boy, now a teen, had never seen before. The letter in question had been sealed with a wax stamp, something that the boy had never seen before as his thumb traced over the intricate symbol melted onto its hardened surface.
His father took the letter with a careful hand, gently peeling it open to not rip even an inch of paper. Slipping open the message inside, he read carefully, a smile appearing on his face that only seemed to grow wider and wider with each sentence. Finally, he looked up from his reading, seemingly finished, with the widest grin the boy had ever seen on his face. “Godfather has invited us to his home.”
The grin persisted as he positively whooped with joy, calling out to his wife and hurrying to tell her the news, leaving the teenage boy stunned with such a sudden rush of action.
The invitation was scheduled to occur in a week, so the family had time to speculate and be excited. As the day rolled around, the family piled into their car and drove off to the location listed.
As they arrived, the teenage boy couldn't help but admire the massive house on the horizon as it grew larger and larger, the main building towering over the family as they drove through the gates, turning into the parking lot as they admired the place. There were multiple smaller buildings attached to the main one, each still the size of a suburban home, and each labelled with numbers and convenient signs. The place felt less like a house and more like a compound, or a mansion…
Following the instructions in the letter, the family walked down the halls, “ooo” ing and “ahh" ing everything from the stunning interior to the massive sprawling gardens. Soon enough, they arrived at the main hall, and a series of placed signs led them to the entrance of a massive interior hall. Inside, there were already some members of the family there, as well as Godfather. He greeted everyone with a warm smile at the door, shaking hands and asking questions about “how were they” as well as some more personal jokes that had a few of the teen’s uncles laughing belly laughter.
The family settled down in seats that were allocated to them by Godfather and waited as the rest of their family trickled in. Once the hall was full - which took close to half an hour - Godfather stepped up onto the stage of the hall, clearing his voice and calling attention with a quick clinking of a spoon against his glass of… some form of drink that the teen couldn’t quite see.
“Let me just say, first of all, thank you all for coming. It has been, once again, another 30 years since the last meeting of its kind, and I would like to keep this tradition going for as long as I live.” A few chuckles came from the crowd at that.
“For the newest members of our family, welcome to your first tri-decade Family Meet. This meeting is done every three decades to commemorate our family.” As the man continued to speak, the black wall behind him - which turned out to be a screen - fluttered to life, and several photos flashed through.
An old black and white photo of a smiling young man.
An even older painting of a grinning young woman.
An ancient portrait sketch, looking like something out of a Renaissance fair, of another young, smiling woman.
“Almost, what, ten thousand years ago - or more, I may have lost track - I gained immortality from a favour. Almost ten thousand years ago, I fell in love with one Ellisia Turning. And for almost ten thousand years, I have taken care of her family, through thick and thin, through ups and downs, through their whisking path of life. I have lived many lifetimes, and seen just as many go. And I am glad to be here today, with all of you. Each one of you, a proud member of our family for today, tomorrow, and hopefully, forever.” He raised his glass in a toast, and the adults cheered with him. And with a wave of his hand, a veritable buffet line-up came to the tables, offering all sorts of delicacies from Western to Chinese, Indian curry to Japanese sushi, and even more.
With a collective smile, the families all dug in, trading stories with each other from all around the massive hall. From the teen’s count, there had to be at least a hundred, maybe even two hundred persons gathered here! After each eating their fill, they left their tables to mingle with the other families, some of which were familiar faces, while others were essentially strangers.
And yet, there was a bond of kinship. Of knowledge and knowing that they were all gathered there today to reconnect. Of kindness from strangers just because they were descendants of the same person who had been born, grown old and died several millennia ago. It was a strange experience, but the tension between anyone was swiftly cut down as the cheery atmosphere filled the dining hall air.
The teen watched some of the elder uncles and aunts leave the hall, following a young guide lady to a Crematorium, and at that moment he understood. His Godfather’s reason for continuing to live was to be able to laugh alongside the adults and tease and play with the children, to wear such a smile after what was sure to be a long, lonely experience, if he had not surrounded himself with family. His reason for doing all this, for being here for them when they need it, for connecting everyone every thirty years:
Love.