Hi! First off, I love this game and all of Bio-Ware's creations. Second, I don't own anything except Manny's and Ellie's personalities.
Third, this story contains swearing (copious amounts), guy on guy love and mature themes. If you don't like that get lost. Seriously, if you came to complain about any of that just save yourself about a minute or so of typing and go back. Complaining about the actual story or grammar and syntax? Yeah, that's on me.
Read/Relax/Review!

The rain beat down on the head of the young boy with more gentleness than the rocks thrown at his prone form. He grit his teeth and tensed as a particularly sharp edged rock cut through his scalp. The taunts and jeers, drowned out by the blood pounding in his ears as he tried not to let out a cry.

"Girly!"

"What kind of boy has eyes like those?"

"You'll never be a hunter!"

He coughed and blood spurted past his lips. Creators! Where were the elders? Did no one care? Did the creators not care? Another rock struck his head and he raised his hands and curled more into himself in a vain attempt to protect himself.

"Die, girly-boy!"

"You shouldn't have been born!"

"ENOUGH!" A blast of cold air struck across his face through the gaps where he couldn't fold himself. It was followed by shrieks of his tormentors and the boy chanced a glance up. The other children of the clan had had their hands frozen around their rocks. Their eyes were wide with fear and their faces twisted in anguish.

A girl with hair and eyes as bright as his own stepped out from the brush. Angrily she wiped loose strands from her scowling face as she stepped more into the clearing. She looked around at the others before finally casting her gaze on him. Her violet eyes softend and he let a tiny smile tug his lips briefly.

"Manny!" She cried rushing forward. "You're hurt!" She took him into her arms and held him, her hands gentle, searching for all his wounds. He felt the warmth of her magic pass over each new cut she found and he sighed in relief as the pain slipped away.

"I'm telling the Keeper, Ellana!" The leader of the troublemakers shouted as they all scrambled back toward the campsite. "The demons will curse our village if you do magic without permission!"

Mahannon felt Ellana's arms around him tighten for a fraction of a second and he didn't have to look up to hear the edge in her voice. "If you don't stop talking, I'll freeze your tongue Arlun! Then we'll see who the demons get! Yeah, keep running!"

Mahannon looked up into Ellana's eyes and gave her a smile. "Thanks, sister." He sighed as he pushed away from her. She gave him a hard glare and pulled him back into her arms. He struggled weakly, his energy still sapped from enduring the beatings, before stilling and leting his sister hold him.

Brother and sister were silent as the rain continued to fall on and around them. Manny could feel his sister's tense posture and he sighed again. "Ellie, they'll keep at it forever. You shouldn't always have to save me. Besides, they're right. I am a girly-boy. I'm weak and- OW!"

His sister's hard pinch to his cheek startled him and he rubbed it and glared into violet eyes that mirrored his own. "If you believe that, that's what you are." Her eyes softened again and she pulled him into another hug and sighed. "I love you my dearest, darling, and dulcet brother. But you are dumb. You are strong." He gave a snort of disbelief and she squeezed him. "You are."

"The whole Clan thinks I'm weak! Even Mother and Father." He muttered and let his head drop to her shoulder. A tear slid down his still bloody cheek. Ellie squeezed him tighter.

"Then let me protect you from the whole Clan. At least until you feel strong."

"Ellie..."

"Please." It was a whispered plea and he caved.

"Okay."

Lips pressed against his own, this was wrong. So very wrong. An affront to the Creators. But it felt good. It felt right. The other boy pulled back, green-grey eyes filled with apprehension and fear and excitement.

"I'm sorry." The teen whispered and Manny felt his heart flutter. "I had to do that before the Clans Meet ended. You have such pretty eyes."

Manny felt heat rise in his cheeks. "I do? The others..."

"Are wrong." The other whispered and caressed the side of his face. "You are wonderful. And your grace with the bow is," pink lips quirked, "drawing."

Manny gave a soft breath of laughter and allowed himself to be folded into a pair of nimble arms. "That joke was bad, but..." His face burned. "Thank you."

The other boy smiled and pressed their lips together in a slow sweet kiss. Fire blossomed and anticipation flowed through Manny's seventeen year old body. This boy liked him, desired him, made him feel wanted and appreciated. Like his desires weren't strange or unnatural. Like he wasn't a freak. A jolt went through him as the other teen angled his head to deepen the kiss.

Of course, the rock struck the back of his head. That startled him from, whatever it was that was forming between him and his new friend. They looked up in fear. A figure stood on the ledge above them, another rock clutched in its fist.

"Deviants!" The deep voice of Arlun called out. "Freaks!"

"Arlun!" Manny whispered and looked over at the boy he had been kissing, only to find, with crushing despair, the boy was already running away. Arlun didn't miss a moment and the rock was hurled again, at the back of Mahannon's head, before leaping down beside him. He shoved a finger in the other boys face.

"You are a freak Mahannon! You disgrace our Clan with your deviance!" The finger curled back and Manny had a moment to blink before a fist met the side of his head. He brought his hands to his face to protect from the next blow, but that found purchase in his side instead. He tried backing away but met the stone ledge behind him. Another fist conected with his side. A steady stream of blows rained upon him and he tried to curl in, finding himself silently pleading for someone to make the other stop or for death.

"ARLUN, YOU ABSOLUTE SHITE!" A voice called out and the blows stopped as a cry from said boy. Manny lowered his hands and found himself looking at an electrified foe. Ellana had come, again. She stalked forward, a blur of furious mage-fire, and siezed Arlun around his neck. "I warned you to stay away from my brother, on pain of being exposed to Keeper Dashanna did I not?" Arlun gave a weak nod, wrapping his hands around his sister's wrist. She released him and stepped back. "Go. I'm feeling generous. And speak not of what happened."

Arlun scrambled away, turning only when he was a safe distnace away. Automatically Ellana turned to him, hard and angry violet eyes melting when she saw him. She moved to him to take stock of his injuries and Manny felt like crying at his sister's gentle touch. She always protected and took care of him. He hugged her when she was close enough and burried his face into her hair. "I'm sorry."

Her arms wrapped around him, even as her fingers brought forth healing magic. "What for?" She asked, amusement coloring her tone.

"For being a deviant." He pulled back to look at her, apprehension wracking him. Would his sister hate him? His Clan he could take, they'd never liked him much to begin with, but if Ellie were to to abandon him... he didn't think he could stay.

"A deviant?"

"I kissed another boy. I enjoyed it. I... I like other men." He admitted and pressed his forehead against his sister's and reached for her arm. "Please don't hate me."

"Is that so?" She took a deep breath and tucked a hand into one of his. "If it makes you happy, then who cares? You're my brother. I love you." Her smile made him smile and he held her tightly. She laughed, a silvery sound, like her magic. He picked her up and twirled her around until they both fell over into the grass laughing.

He bite into an apple, letting the juice run down his throat and some down his face. He strolled to the edge of the camp where he found Ellana, sitting next to a statue of the Dread Wolf. Her back was faced to him and her hand was on the statues back, as if idly stroking a dog while thinking. He grinned and sneaked up on her, stealthily keeping to the shadows to flank her and produce a scare from his serious sister.

He got maybe a foot away before, "Don't even think about it, Manny."

He shrugged and flopped down next to her, farther away from the Dread Wolf idol, and took another bite of his apple. "How'd you know it was me?"

A playful smile lit her face as she turned her head, vallaslin shining slightly in the moonlight. "I'm your sister and First, I know everything." She said smugly. "Now, what are you doing?"

He swallowed a bit of his apple. "I thought you knew everything." He teased leaning back on his arms and looking into the sky. She chuckled and they were silent for awhile, content to trace constellations in the skies. "How do you feel about our-"

"Banishment?"

He gave her a wicked grin. "Adventure." A scoff. "How do you feel about our adventure starting tomorrow?"

She sighed. "I don't like it if I'm honest. It feels like the Keeper is punishing us, and I don't know why. Something just doesn't feel right Manny."

Manny looked over at his sister. Five and twenty and a full woman. Read hair spilled over her shoulders and back to her round hips. Her eyes (and his own, he supposed) were a startling shade of violet, rimmed just slightly in violet eye-shadow to add to the allure. Full red lips that were quirked into a thoughtful frown. Her skin was as pale as moonlight even though she spent all day in the sun. She was beautiful and graceful and made magic look easy. Even with her looks she had never married, choosing to devote herself to the study of ancient Elven history and magic.

She made the Clan proud. She made him proud. Which is why he hated to see her unhappy. He wrapped an arm around her. "Hey, now. Come on. Everything is going to be alright." He assured her and she blinked at him, a disbelieving look on her face. He smiled. 'For all that you had saved me from, let me protect you.' He thought as he moved a strand of hair from her face. "Seriously, what is the worst that could happen at the human Conclave?"

"The sky could turn to fire." She deadpanned. And he snorted.

"Yeah, but how likely is that?"