Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

In each family a story is playing itself out, and each family's story embodies its hope and despair. –Auguste Napier

One Year Later

Xander held his hand over his face to stifle his giggles as Connor sent the picture of the empty cupboards to his brother then waited a moment and BANG! hit Kevin’s office door with his shoe. It was apparently tradition for the Lynch brothers or something.

Xander was learning to love it. He didn’t care that Connor was Deadboy’s spawn or that Kevin sometimes blamed him for blowing normal out of the water. Xander dealt in truth and he liked to think the Lynch brothers had gained almost as much as they’d lost by finding out the way the world really ran. Kevin, at least, had stopped inviting every Tom, Dick, and demon into the house. Jeesh.

Kevin’s door was yanked open and Penelope marched out, swiping at her lipstick and blushing lightly. “Have a nice lunch,” she said hurriedly, going to hide her embarrassment in her office.

Xander wasn’t sure if it was because he was a couple of years older than Kevin or because he was the newest, most unusual element in the Lynch family cabal, but she was always embarrassed to be caught making out with his little brother.

Xander wiggled his eyebrows, which Buffy had informed him just the other day was dashing in a very Stooge way, and said, “Well, well. Little brother. The FBI must be much more laid back than I’ve been told.”

“It’s not,” Kevin said, turning bright red while Connor stifled snickered in his fist. “It’s really not, so if we can not talk about that here? That would be wonderful.”

Connor laughed as he led them through the hive of offices, past Penelope’s then the bullpen where the BAU worked. That was the one good thing that everyone agreed on about the truth finally coming out. Connor was happier, more stable. He wasn’t, however, any more normal.

Connor glanced back at the BAU offices and something flickered over his face before he settle on indifference and asked casually, “So, uh, is Spencer Reid seeing anybody?”

And Kevin totally walked into a wall as Xander stopped, mouth gaping. Because, seriously, that was how Wolfram and Hart took care of the attraction to older women? By making him gay? Seriously?