Niisan
Most of my life, I must've been the unluckiest child to walk the streets of Arcadia, however, at the end of the war between Arcadia and Nortis my life changed drastically for the better. It was a cloudy day and the troops were returning home from the front line. One knight strayed from his companions with slow, dragging steps. I watched the man with the pale lime hair limp over to the alleyway and sit down on the crate in front of the one I was hiding in. He looked lonely and depressed, but at the time I didn't care. I was a starving street rat-just another war orphan.
The man had been away from the cities for months. He didn't know very much about pickpockets like me. I was wiser than him in some ways I would learn later, but he was the better man-he had a bigger heart.
I reached out of the crate I was scrunched up in and untied the pouch hanging from his belt with one hand. I carefully lifted the pouch into the box and peeked inside- it was barely enough money to last even me a day, but beneath the coins was a golden locket. At first I contemplated how much I could sell it for at a pawnshop, but then I decided to open it. Inside was a tiny portrait of a beautiful woman. I was enraptured. I wanted so badly to know who she was, to see her, to talk to her. Something about this woman made me feel she would understand me.
Then I heard the man move and watched tensely as he felt for his pouch. He looked around anxiously for it on the ground and I took in his every move. I was pleased with myself for the trouble I was causing the knight.
At that moment I felt my nose twitch- I was going to sneeze! If I sneezed he would catch me, and after that experience I doubted he would show me much mercy. I put my hands over my mouth in a weak attempt to muffle the sound and I sneezed. The top of the crate was lifted off.
The stern looking man looked down at me with distress in his yellow eyes, "Why did you have to do that?" He asked me softly.
I didn't reply, I just clenched my fist around the locket. He grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me out of the crate. I looked sullenly down at my feet.
"Please give that back to me," he commanded, still without a hint of anger in his voice. I closed my eyes and turned my head away. He could no longer hold back his annoyance and he picked me up by the front of my shirt demanding, "Give me back that locket!" Then, seeming a bit ashamed of himself for yelling, he put me down and gazed pleadingly into my eyes. That hurt a lot more than the anger.
I opened my hand slightly and looked at the locket. "Who is she?" I asked. "Someone I failed to protect," he responded. Now I felt really guilty. "Um...uh, here you go." I put the locket back in the pouch and handed it to him. He smiled sadly as he took it back. He picked up his shield and staff, which he had left leaning against the wooden crate and started to walk away. I sat down on the ground and tried to rub some dirt off my face, but since my hands were not very clean I wasn't getting very far.
Suddenly, on an impulse that I have yet to understand, the knight turned around and gazed at me long and hard for a few minutes. "Hey!" he called.
I looked up.
"Come here." Against my instincts which told me to stay away from him my curiosity rose victorious and I walked over to him. He put one of his large, warrior's hands on my shoulder and smiled. "Why don't you come with me?" He asked.
My eyes widened and I started to draw back, but his gentle warmth won me over, "O-okay."
We strode purposefully along the street and he began to ask me about myself. "How old are you?"
"I'm fifteen, almost sixteen."
He nodded, "What's your name?"
I wasn't quite so sure about telling him my name, but he sensed my reluctance and told me, "My name's Jaid, does that help at all?"
I answered all his questions easily after that, that my name was Titto and I didn't have any family, that I didn't remember a time when the country hadn't been at war and that I did steal and pick pockets. I don't think I would've told anyone else all these things so easily, but something about Jaid made me feel he wouldn't get mad, or scold me, or treat me like I was a child. In return for my willingness to respond to his queries Jaid told me a bit about himself; he was twenty-two and from the southern part of the country, he didn't have very close ties with most of his family, and especially that he was hoping to take part in a mission soon to neutralize the Elemental Disorders.
The last part surprised me. The Elemental Disorders were the scourges of the land, how could they be neutralized? That seemed as impossible as trying to stop the tides. He explained that in Nortis (he mentioned the country's name with scorn) discoveries about the Disorders had been made and that a plan was being formulated for the three countries of Hazman, Arcadia, and Nortis to work together to put an end to the threat.
Apparently the woman whose picture was in the locket had died when her ship ran into the storms of the Ocean Disorder. She had been going to the front lines to say goodbye to Jaid and wish him luck. After he finished speaking, I was truly suprised at all that he had told me. I really liked Jaid's manner. I was honestly impressed with someone for the first time in my life.
He led me to the army's headquarters in the city and introduced me to one of the officers. The building was very neat and clean which was a refreshing change from all the time I spent outside in the dirt. Jaid took me back to the quarters he was currently inhabiting and left his stuff on the bed. He raised an eyebrow mischievously and I regarded him warily. "When was the last time you took a bath?" he inquired, his canary yellow eyes twinkling.
"Too long ago," I replied, shaking my head.
"I see," he laughed.
Within a few minutes I was being scrubbed like a child. "Jaid! I can wash myself!"
"This is too big a job for you alone! I've never met anyone this dirty!"
I splashed him and he poured cold water over my head. "Jaid!!" I squeaked. Despite what my companion had said I cleaned up rather easily and stood happily wrapped in a warm towel as my wet hair dripped water on the floor while Jaid tried to find me some new clothes. None of his clothes fit me so he bought some garments off of some other soldiers and I soon looked extravagantly bright in all sorts of colors from navy blue to pumpkin orange to fern green. I myself felt rather dashing and wondered if I looked like a knight too. Jaid told me I looked to small to be a knight. I spent the evening there and all of Jaid's fellow knights were quite impressed with my appetite. None of them had ever starved before.
I feel asleep on Jaid's bunk and awoke feeling relaxed and refreshed. Jaid was writing something on a map. He stuck his tongue out at me when he saw I was awake, "Good morning, prince of lazy ones!"
I hurried out of bed and knocked him out of his chair onto the floor. Soon I was being wrestled into submission by the tall man, "Don't mess with me, Titto! I know you're not the type who likes to lose!" He let go of me and laughed.
I took the opportunity to jump onto him and start tickling him. Jaid's eyes began to water as he laughed hysterically. "Stop it! I can't take it! Titto! Titto! Please!"
I grinned at him, "Say I win."
"O-okay, y-y-you win!"
I stopped tickling him and he ruffled my hair with his strong hand. "I was right, you don't like to lose."
He showed me the map he was working on, marking the sites of cities destroyed by the Elemental Disorder. I was pretty sure by now that this was his obssession. At breakfast the other knights agreed with me on this point. They told me they hoped that Jaid would be able to be part of the mission. It was a matter of chivalry, and honor. While Jaid was busy collecting some armor from some warriors returning to their homes I went to the commander I had been introduced to the previous day.
I asked him if Jaid would get to be part of the mission. He paused for a moment, and thumbed through some paperwork. He told me that Jaid would be going, but two citizens of Arcadia were supposed to go and he didn't know who else to send.
"Would you go with Jaid and look out for him? You look pretty dangerous with that knife by your side. I'm sure you could do it. It's just a matter of if you want to go."
I was rather taken aback. It had never occured to me that I was a possible candidate for something so important. Jaid was a knight, but I, I was a nothing. I looked at the commander quizzically.
"I'm not teasing," he assured me. I didn't even have to think about it- I had nowhere to go and no one to go to- except Jaid.
"I'd like to go." The commander nodded and jotted something down on his clipboard.
Jaid was back and his was watching me now. "Titto..." he said quietly.
"Thank you Jaid!" I called and ran to him.
"No, don't thank me. It should be the other way around." He bowed low and spoke gently, "Thank you, little brother."
My eyes widened and I threw my arms around him, "Jaid! 'Nii-san!"