Hello everybody. This is a new story that I created with a new style that I decided to try out. As I said in the preface, this story is going to be a fusion of a one-shot and a complete story. Each chapter can be read by itself and be a one-shot, or they can be read altogether and form a complete story. It all depends on how you want to view it.
For those of you who have read some of my other works, you might notice that it may not sound as adventurous as I usually write them out. Being that they are one-shots that connect together from different points in time, I can't really do it that way this time around. However, I will try to put in some adventurous flairs every now and then to keep as close to my original style of writing. Then again, I think this chapter is already close to the regular way I write my stories. Just thought that all of you would like to know that. And to all my other readers who are reading this as the first of my many stories, hope you enjoy it just as much as everybody else.
I hope that you all enjoy this new story that I created. Consider this my Christmas present to all of you. Don't forget to leave a review when you're done reading this chapter. Until the next update on any of my stories everybody! And Merry Christmas to you all!
Chapter 1: Every Beginning has an End
"Hey, wake up!" a rough and bossy voice was heard calling out to somebody in a rather dark and dingy room that had only a window sealed with bars providing a brilliant flaming yellowish orange light, a clear sign of the sun setting along the horizon. The beautiful colors were a definite contrast to the attitude currently being portrayed in the sham of a room. "It ain't going to be fun for any of us if we were to go through with this while you're still unconscious. Come on, I know you can hear me loud and clear."
All the man, whom was covered well by the darkness of the room that looked to be made completely out of bricks that have collected smelly and disgusting mold over the years that it had been in use, received as a response from whoever it was he was speaking to was a small groan of pain. Despite the fact that the only source of light was the setting sun coming from a window that was too small and alone to really light up the entirety of the unkempt place, the man knew exactly where the sound came from. It had come from the person who was currently lying down in front of him on some bedding.
The person, who was almost completely shrouded by the darkness, was lying face-up on a hard mattress with a flattened pillow and a thin blanket that looked to be stained beyond the ability to be cleaned. The person lying on the uncomfortable-looking bed was wearing a pair of dark green pants that were caked with dirt and other smudges that had the color of rust on it and a gray jacket over a plain white shirt, both also stained with mud and a rust colored substance. Together, the clothes looked like they were to be worn in anticipation for journeying and adventuring. The one thing that truly stood out against this person was not his clothes and the smudges on it but his lock of untidy wild sky blue hair that could easily be seen in even the dimmest of lighting.
"I said wake up, you dumb kid!" the bossy person all but shouted, his voice bouncing off of the walls and causing an echo to form in the quiet place, as he kicked the side of the bed roughly, causing the other to whine a bit in what sounded to be in pain. The move did managed to make the other on the bed to stir slightly and make a move as if he were about to sit up. He managed to place the back of his head against the cold moldy walls and open his blue eyes to see the dark room and the man staring at him with a gaze that could easily burn a hole in someone were it to be superheated.
"It's about time you decided to wake up," the other said with a heavy frustrated sigh as he quickly turned around and all but rush-mumbled the next few sentences as if he were starting to lose patience at the current situation. "You got a minute to make yourself look good for when you go out to meet everybody, so I suggest you hurry up and get on those useless feet of yours. We'd like to do this today right after the sun sets over the horizon. It makes things real poetic and can act as a symbol of an ending to a terrible time to a beginning of prosperity. I'll be back to pick you up with a few others, so try to rest easy until then," the man finished in a sarcastically easygoing tone as he exited the room through a barred door that was a part of a wall also made of bars and closed it with a loud thud. It was clear now that this place they were in was a cell, if the terrible décor and the moldiness of it was not any clear indication of it.
"Oh, what the hell...?" the other person, who sounded like he was only a teenager getting ready to enter adulthood with his voice lagging behind somewhat, groaned in pain as he sat fully upright on his terrible bed and brought his hand onto his head as he felt a headache quickly pounding away at him. All he could do was groan in pain and tenderly handle the area where the ache seemed most prominent which happened to be somewhere on the back portion. "What the hell happened to me? How in the world did I end up in this dump of a place with the worst headache of the century?"
After waiting a couple of seconds in an attempt to get his raging headache under control, the guy decided to swing his feet, which happened to be covered with a pair of regular brown boots, over the edge of the bed and stand on his feet. He was slightly wobbly for a moment, almost as if he were on a boat and getting seasick. Funnily enough, this weak motion caused a memory to flash through his mind and he felt himself feeling both physically and mentally sick. He managed to keep it back though and walked over to the barred windows so he could see what was outside his cell.
Outside his depressing room was a scenery that was in great contrast to the dark and damp cell. Bright colors of blazing yellow and orange were but a background color on the canvas of nature fitting for the bright green of leaves, grass, and brushes along with neatly kept bricks of a wall off towards the side. A small river was easily seen just past the trees and stretching off behind the stone wall and thus effectively cutting off the rest of his view of the sparkling sapphire water with the freedom to move wherever it is it is going. If only he still had that freedom in his hands now, he could only imagine where else he might go.
Beyond the obvious inanimate objects that scattered the peaceful landscape, there were also a few signs of life flitting around here and there, some casting their shadow upon the grassy knoll as they walked or flew across the steadily setting sun. Squirrels scuttled out of bushes and into the protection of the trees with food in both their hands and cheeks while rabbits hopped over from the horizon and into the small shrubs where they made their homes and hidden away from any potential predators.
Heh, why is it that I always manage to feel somewhat better whenever I start looking at the setting sun? the teen thought with some bitterness behind his reminiscent thought as he leaned against the small ledge and stared far off into the distance, allowing himself to become immersed by the beauty of the blazing horizon as if he were a part of the wondrous landscape it overshadowed. He then added with a heavy depressing sigh escaping his lips, I guess that's it's just my way of remembering something and wanting to take comfort in it. God, this so reminds me of one of the greatest moments of my life.
With a smile that gave off both a depressing and reminiscent aura, he allowed himself to release a small weak chuckle as he permitted his mind to draw his subconscious into his land of memories and remember one of the moments of his life he found to be the most memorable. It was, in fact, the time where he first remembered being the happiest he had ever been, a memory that spanned from the first time he met his friends and what he considered to also be his family in a backdrop scenery much like the one his eyes were right now soaking in. The only difference between the two was that that first meeting took place out in the woods rather than inside some kind of building, be it disgustingly moldy or as clean as a doctor's office.
-Six years ago...-
"...Where am I?" a young boy with stunning blue hair and a light boyish voice wondered as he found himself sitting against a trunk of a tree on a patch of grass in what appeared to be a forest. He had just opened his eyes after being out like a light for a time he did not know and rubbed the sleep out of them in an attempt to make himself more alert. When he opened his blue eyes again, he took a better look of his surroundings, curious as to what was around him and where he even was. All he saw were more trees, a few brown patches of dirt where the grass was eaten away at by the local animals that lived nearby, and a sky adorn in a blazing orange hue from a sunset that could not be seen beyond the see of trees.
Apart from the wonderful sights around him, he also opened up his ears in an attempt to hear the things around him. He could hear the flutter of birds' wings flying above him and the soft subtle sounds of crickets and other small insects and animals hiding from him. He also saw a few mosquitoes flying around in a small ray of sunlight shining through the canopy and a couple bees trying to get more nectar from the few colorful flowers before retiring for the day. Despite all these wonderful sights and sounds around him, none of them looked or even sounded like anything that he clearly recognized or associated with home.
"This place doesn't look like any of the places near home," the boy wondered out loud while biting his bottom lip a bit as he brushed away a few loose strands of hair that fell across his eyes when he moved his head side by side. "This place looks way too green and has too many trees. Where am I? Where did everybody else go?"
Being that he was probably no older than nine or ten, all the boy did as he turned his head around in an attempt to look for anybody he knew was whimper in fear and make small sniffling sounds. Despite his clear attempts to try and keep himself from crying, he could not stop the water collecting against the corners of them. As with any other child around his age, he was scared and was not sure what it was that he should do next.
Despite his attention being greatly compromised because of his current attempt at not breaking down into hysterics, he was still aware enough to notice when things suddenly changed around him, even if it was only at the slightest. One such change was the sudden quietness of whatever small quiet animals were once making from the seclusion of their hiding spots. That was when he quickly stifled his sniffling and perked his ears opened so as to allow himself to become more cautious of what was around him. This was also when he heard a twig snap in the middle of the unnatural silence.
"Hello?" a voice that sounded like a male's suddenly called out from somewhere within the cover of the trees, startling the boy a bit as he whipped his head towards the direction of the sound and voice. "I thought I heard something that sounded a lot like somebody crying around here a little bit. Come on, where are you hiding? I can help you find your way around if you're lost in here or something like that. All you got to do is give me some kind of hint as to where you are in here. I promise that I won't bite."
Instead of answering the call of a stranger from some unknown location, the boy simply stayed sitting against the tree and kept his eyes trained on where he last heard the sound of a twig snapping. Yes, the thought of running away from there did cross his mind, but his initial child's reaction to stay where he was in fright dominated the rest of his other rational sections of thought. It was almost as if some invisible force kept him glued to his spot and prevented him from doing anything else that his brain was screaming at him to do.
In the next second, something came out from a thick covering of bushes a few feet away and was standing tall and proud. The figure, much to the boy's surprise, looked almost like a humungous cat whose very body closely resembled that of a regular human. Apart from those noticeable features, there were also other things that clearly separated him from other people. For instance, he had golden yellow fur covering his entire body with the occasional orangey-light brownish stripes appearing on both his arms. His hands and feet both had long nails that closely resembled claws and looked as if they were ready for attacking. They were clear black and seemed to be well kept, almost as well as a regular person does with their fingernails except for the fact that these were clearly a whole lot sharper. The last thing that made him unusual was his eyes, the two almost the same color as his fur if not just slightly brighter. It was kind of hard to see because of his golden yellow bangs covering them.
Apart from the rather unusual array of sights, the cat-like person was donned in what looked to be regular clothing. He had on a sleeveless brown vest which left his furry arms and chest exposed to the cool air around him and a pair of simple brown shorts that ended just underneath the knees and looked to have seen its fair share of exposure. They were held up with a simple leather belt that had holsters for what looked like knives on either side of his waist. His shoes, if you would want to call them that, covered his feet up to the ankles but were cut out at the tip so as to allow his toes to be exposed because of the sharp nails that were on it. His hands were also covered in what looked to be white bandaging all the way up to his elbows, probably to help keep his wrists straight whenever the need to punch someone or something came up. In both of them were one dagger that was both with a silver blade and a simple comfortable handle. It was clear that he was ready for whatever danger that might have decided to get in his way and try to kill him.
"There you are," the cat-person said after making sure nothing was tailing him from behind and putting his daggers back into his sheaths. "I knew I heard somebody around here while trying to hunt for some food out here. So what is it that's got you...? Oh boy, that's not what I was expecting!" he exclaimed once he finally got a good look at the boy after moving his bangs away from his eyes a bit and turned his head slightly towards the side.
"Wh-what?" the boy simply asked in a sort of dumb fashion, completely confused at both the person's rather sudden exclamation and the way he looked. Put on top that he just happened to appear right out of some bushes and that clearly left him at a loss for words.
"You know, I'd be crying my eyes out myself if I were in your shoes. I mean, not only do you seem like a lost kid, but you're a lost kid without a single shred of clothing on you," the person responded as his furry yellow cheeks seemed to gain ever the slightest of red color, indicating that was lightly blushing. He then added with a small rub of the back of his neck, "Boy, doesn't this just beat all..."
Upon hearing this, the boy finally decided to have a look at himself for the first time since waking up in the forest. It was then he knew why it was the other was suddenly acting real strange so shortly after seeing him. Like the other said, he had no clothes on him. Every part of his slightly tanned body was all out for the entire world to see were it not for the security that the forest provided for his predicament. Unfortunately, there was nothing around to help shield himself from his finder as he felt his cheeks burning at probably a higher temperature than that of the other.
"Hey Rei," another voice, this one sounding to be just as young as the blue haired boy's, called out from somewhere nearby, "did you manage to find what it is that your cat ears managed to pick up? I found nothing on my end. I told you that it was only your ears playing tricks on you. Except for a couple of stray animals that are hardly even worth hunting and eating, there's nothing out here."
"I doubt that you'd be saying the same thing once you get yourself over to where I am Teepo," the cat-person, who seems to go by the name Rei, called back as he kept his still slightly red face trained on the section of the wood where he heard the voice coming from. "Be ready to figure out that I was right this time around. You might want to prepare yourself for a few unexpected things though before you do that."
"And just why would I want to do that?" the other person whose name appeared to be Teepo inquired in a tone that sounded like he did not believe a single word that the other was saying. "I bet you're just trying to pull my leg here again. I'll bet all the money in the world to say that you're just trying to make yourself sound good here."
"Alright, don't say that I didn't give you any warning though. I don't want you crying at me like some kind of sore loser once you figured out that you were wrong. I have a feeling though that that's exactly what you're going to do."
In the next second, there was some more rustling coming from the bushes the cat-person came through before another person, this one a lot smaller, suddenly popped out of them. Unlike Rei, this new person looked more like an actual person and seemed to be at around the same age as the blue haired boy. He wore both a purple shirt and pants with a simple leather belt around his waist. On the left side of his waist was a plain brown leather sheath that looked to be the thing that housed the iron smelted sword that was in his hands which happened to be long and thin. Despite how heavy and complex it looked, the boy held it in his hands adorned with silver gauntlets with great ease as if it were but a light and simple tree branch. His hair, which was long and extended all the way down to his mid back, was a slightly lighter shade of purple than his entire clothing. His eyes, which were a piercing shade of red, looked around with disbelief reflecting off of them as he stomped the ground a bit to get some dirt and stuff off of the bottoms of his gray boots.
"So where is this thing that you managed to locate in this dense sea of trees with only your super hearing that I don't have?" the boy asked as he seemingly failed to see the boy laying back on the tree trunk upon his arrival. With a small roll of his eyes at his buddy's apparent ignorance of his surroundings, the cat-person tilted his head slightly towards the boy and the other immediately looked over. He then exclaimed after finally noticing the boy, "Whoa, who was it that decided to dump you in the middle of nowhere with literally nothing on you? Honestly, you'd think that they'd have the decency to at least abandon you with some small amount of dignity attached to you."
"Teepo," Rei groaned as he did a face palm before finally turning his face around to look at the naked boy again, this time without having to flinch or blush at the sudden sight. "I thought I told you to keep that mouth of yours shut in moments like this. Honestly, it's almost as if you just have to say something whenever you see something like this. You're going to get yourself into trouble one of these days because of that."
"Hey, it's not every day that you come across something like this," the boy named Teepo argued as if he were trying to defend his outburst that could easily be seen as an insult. "You can't expect me to just take the whole thing with a grain of salt like you do and not say anything about it. Any other normal person would have opened their mouths and said something about this once they saw it."
"Oh, you do not know how hard it is to be your older brother in times like this," the furry guy responded with a sigh as he quickly walked past his buddy and over to the boy while taking off his brown vest. "You're lucky that I'm even trying to look out for you before you get yourself in trouble." He then knelt beside the other and asked, "Are you alright kid? Sorry if my little brother here said anything to offend you."
"H-he's your little brother?" the naked boy asked, clearly perplexed at how the two were even anywhere near related enough to be considered brothers. "I don't mean to be mean here, but you two don't look like you're brothers."
"Well, I can see why you would say that," he replied as he wrapped the vest around the boy's bare shoulders in an attempt to at least put something on him. "To be honest with you, we're really not anywhere near being literal brothers. If you want to get real technical about it, Teepo and I are both orphans. We just consider ourselves brothers because we trust each other and don't really have anybody else to turn to for help."
"I know it don't look like it, but Rei here's my older 'brother' by a little less than a year," the long haired boy added, acting as if his previous comments have never been voiced. "He just happens to be big boned."
"Just ignore him, little guy. He's just kidding around with you when he says that I'm big boned. I'm just a naturally tall guy and have a pretty good set of muscles on me. That and I look totally different from other people, which I'm sure you've already figured out some time ago unless you just happen to be naturally slow. Sorry if you took offense to that. I'm telling you, it all comes with the package when you're born as a member of the Woren Tribe."
"Uh, War-Men Tribe?" the blue haired boy repeated with a hint of inquiry at the edge of his tongue as he tried to cover himself by sinking into the oversized vest that amazingly fit all the way down to his upper thighs and effectively covering him up to a somewhat decent fashion. "What are they? Do they all look like cats with fur all over them like you?"
"That's pretty much the entire thing in a nutshell. And my tribe's name is 'Woren,' not War-Men," Rei added with a small snicker at the boy's childish misunderstanding. "And just for the record, I'm kind of a part of the tiger group. I'll take it that this is your first time hearing of people like me since you're asking what I am."
"If that's the truth, then where is it that you've been living this whole time?" Teepo asked, quickly spewing out another comment turned question that could easily be translated into an insult when said to the wrong person. "The Worens have been around since before both you and me were born. There's no way you couldn't have heard even a single thing about them. Have you at least heard a little bit about the stories concerning the dragons? There's definitely no way you could miss that, especially in this day and age."
"Don't talk about that Teepo!" the furry guy immediately snapped as he supplied a sharp gaze at his younger "brother." "You know how people feel about this topic these days. Now I'm not saying that I agree with them or anything like that. It's pretty much quite the opposite for me. I'm just saying that this is definitely one thing that you should be careful about saying when around others, especially when it's around others you don't even know.
"Anyway," he continued on before letting the purple haired boy a chance to answer as he replaced his gaze onto the blue haired boy, earning him a scowl from his "brother" for doing so, "I'm guessing that you kind of led a sheltered life if you really don't know anything about Worens like me. It is a bit unusual, but it's definitely a possibility."
"I-I'm guessing you could say that," the boy responded, taking note that he has been stuttering for a good chunk of the conversation he had been having with these two strangers. "To be honest, I actually live in the mountains my entire life, but I just suddenly woke up here and I have no idea where I even am. I don't know where my parents are."
"Boy, that's definitely something you don't want to figure out right when you wake up in some place that you've never been to before. I can put in a good guess though as to why you're here by yourself. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that your parents probably abandoned you because they couldn't afford to care for you anymore. I know what I'm saying is kind of harsh, but these things happen sometimes, especially while we're in the middle of a famine around here where there's barely enough food for everybody to eat."
"Hey, that just gave me an idea," Teepo suddenly stated as he finally decided to sheath the sword that was in his hand. Apparently, he did not notice he still held it in his hands all this time ever since making himself known. "Why don't we go ahead and bring this guy with us? He doesn't know where his parents are, and he's definitely lost in here. That and I'm sure that he could use at least a new set of clothes."
"Whoa, that...sounds pretty random there," the boy responded with a small pause as he was taken aback at the long haired boy's sudden change in attitude from being insulting with his comments to giving out some friendly advice.
"Eh, you learn to ignore it once you've lived under the same roof with him," Rei simply stated as he quickly waved it off with a quick wave of his hand. He then asked in a tone that reflected annoyance as he turned to face his "younger brother", "Didn't you just hear what it is that I said? I said that we were right now in the middle of a food famine. Just like everybody else around here, we're having a hard time finding food to feed just the two of us. I highly doubt that we'd be able to at least comfortably survive the coming months if we have another mouth to feed in our house."
"Yeah, I heard exactly what it is you said earlier. So what about that? Things like that never stopped you from doing what you feel is right, has it?" the other countered with a sure look on his face. "It didn't stop you from taking me away from that abandoned merchant's caravan when you first found me there."
"Oh, please don't go pulling that mercy stunt on me again," the furry guy stated with a small groan escaping his lips as he pulled another face palm act. "We weren't in the middle of a food famine then, so I could afford to take you back home with me. I had the things to support both you and me. That and I just couldn't help how helpless you looked all on your own with nobody there to help you out."
"That's because you're one of the few people around here with a heart big enough to even try caring for someone you don't even know. I'm right now figuring that your heart's grown even bigger over the years and is right now reaching out to this little guy here, as well. Am I right on that?"
"Oh, you really have been hanging around with me too much, you know that? You really know me just as well as a book from cover to cover. You know how it is that I act and what it is that I like to do in times like this. Of course, the kid here has the last say in whether or not he wants to come with us, so I can't really force the decision on him."
"Y-you want me to live with you guys?" the blue haired boy asked, completely taken aback at the suggestion since after hearing that these two were right now trying to get by in a middle of a famine. "Are you sure that that's a good idea? I mean, I'm more than surprised by this and more than happy to go with you, but what about the food problem you're trying to get through? Didn't you just say that you two were already having a hard time locating enough food to survive this? I don't want to become a burden on you two and cause you more trouble than what it is that you already have."
"And what kind of trouble are you talking about buddy?" Rei asked with a smirk growing on his face as he stood up onto his clawed feet and stretched his hand out towards the blue haired boy in a motion to help him up. "Trust me when I say this; both me and Teepo and you can't be in any more trouble than what we are in right now. You're here lost in the McNeil Forest with literally no clothes on you except for my vest and without any parents while the two of us are busy hunting in here trying to hunt down some good food to last us for at least a couple of days. I don't think that either of us can be in any worse shape than what we are right now when you consider all of the circumstances.
"And besides, we're already starting to run low on food for this week," the Woren added with a heavy sigh leaving his mouth as he said this. "We're practically on our last legs here. I doubt having one more mouth to feed would really make us that much worse for the wear. That and I just can't turn my back on someone who's like me and needs somebody to help them out."
"So what do you say?" Teepo asked as he also had a smirk on his face and rubbed his nose in a cocky way. "Do you want to join us, a couple of kids turned orphans over the mellow years who have nobody to really turn to except to each other, and try your hand at trying to survive with us? I'm sure that you'll see that we'll have so much fun that you'll eventually forget all of your troubles. That's what always happens with me and Rei. That and I'm sure that we can use an extra hand around our house and with the hunting anyway."
For a moment, the blue haired boy hesitated in his answer as he stood rooted to the spot where he was helped onto his feet while staring blankly at both of the strangers in front of him as if they were crazy. He could not believe that they were actually asking for him, a complete stranger to them, to come and live with them, a couple of orphans who they themselves have no parents. Sure, he was more than happy to say yes to their offer, but he was hesitant in the fact that they said earlier they were running low on food. That was when he remembered hearing some sounds from before meeting them and figured that there might be some edible animals in there. If he was right and they could catch it, then he would feel less guilty in accepting their offer and feel good in helping them out.
"I-I guess I could go ahead and live with you," he finally answered after debating in his head whether or not to accept their more than gracious offer. "If you really feel that I won't be too much of a burden for you all, then I guess I could be with you guys. After all, I really don't think I'd be able to find my parents by myself without any help."
"Well, if they live anywhere around or near McNeil Village, then there shouldn't be any problem locating them," Rei stated as he unconsciously looked over to his left where the peaks of mountains could be seen just over the top of the forest. "Then again, the only mountains that are nearby here is Mt. Glaus. Nobody has ever lived there since monsters have started to go nuts up there a few years ago. I'm sorry, but the chances of finding them are close to zero. I'll keep my eyes and ears open for them though."
"Thanks...Rei," the boy thanked him as he finally flashed his first smile at him since they first met a few minutes ago. "That means a lot to me. And I'm not sure if this would be helpful or anything like that, but I heard the sound of some small animal somewhere in the bushes a couple of minutes before you two found me."
"Oh really? Where'd you hear it?" Teepo asked, taking quick and sudden interest at what the blue haired boy just said. "Tell me where it was so I can check it out and see if it could be our dinner for tonight!"
"Um, I-I think I heard it coming from somewhere over there in the bushes," the boy stuttered out, startled at the long purple haired boy's sudden change in attitude and eagerness. "I don't know what kind of animal it was, but it might help you guys out a bit with your food problem for at least today."
"Wow, those are a good set of ears you have on you to be able to hear that while you're busy with a preoccupied mind," the Woren complimented, amazed at how the boy was able to hear something while wondering where his parents were while he himself could only concern himself with finding the one responsible for making the crying noises. "I didn't even catch that while I've been here this whole time. You sure that it's still hiding in there?"
"Well, I haven't really heard it make any noise since you two came here," he admitted as he kept his attention at the other boy's movements towards the bushes as he quietly pulled the leaves away in an attempt to get the drop on whatever animal that might have been in there. He also had in his hand what looked to be a hunting knife. "Where did he get that knife? I don't remember seeing him with one on him."
"He just took it out from the back of my belt. I usually keep one on hand for him in case he needs to use it. He's pretty quick when it comes to getting a hand on it, and that's something that you'll learn to get used to along with his unusual tact with words. Believe me; he's real good when it comes to getting the drop on animals and capturing them for our meal."
"Hey, I found three rabbits in here!" the boy exclaimed as he dug his free hand into the bush and pulled out three slightly plump-looking white furred rabbits by their long pink ears. "Our new buddy here was right; there were some animals hiding from us in here. I can't believe these guys were so stupid to stay around here while we were still here talking. Oh well, that just means a lot more food for us. I'm sure this'll leave us with enough to last the three of us for a little more than a week."
"Hey, you're right!" Rei exclaimed as he walked over to his "brother" and closely examined their catch. "This could easily last us a couple of weeks if we cook them the right way. We really have to thank our new 'brother' here for that."
"B-brother?" the blue haired boy asked, surprised at how the two people he just met were more than willing to invite him under their roof and consider him to be his brother.
"Well, that's only if you really want to consider us your brothers," the Woren quickly restated. "It is your choice whether or not you want that. If not, then we can just consider each other roommates and leave it at that."
"N-no, it's not that. It's just that I've always been an only child and never really had anybody to call my brother or sister. I never thought that both you and Teepo would so quickly consider me to be a part of your family."
"Well, consider yourself lucky that we found you here in the woods today," Teepo replied with a huge smile on his face as he eyed the rabbits that he handed off to his older "brother" a few moments ago with a hungry look. "That and your good hearing and memory will really help us find more food in here. Welcome to the family... Uh..."
"You know, you never really told us your name," the tiger replied as he finally figured out that he did not know what the blue haired boy's name was. "What is it?"
Even while he was still feeling a bit sad at the fact that he could not figure out where his parents went without him, the boy was happy that the two strangers he just met were more than eager to take him in and even help him look for his parents. Sure, he hardly knew anything about them except for the things he just observed for the past few minutes, but he felt like he had already knew them for a couple years already simply because they were so fun and easy to be around. Clearly, he already knew what it was that he wanted to do next.
"My name's... It's Ryu," he answered with a small stutter appearing in his voice, this time completely unintentional as he was trying to keep his happiness in check. He then repeated with a wide smile on his face, "It's Ryu...my brothers."