As suggested by someone on Tumblr.
Part one of possibly eleven. Depends if there is interested.
- Mira
Chapter One: The Old Mist Grill
Night had fallen over the forest filled with shadows, covering up any and every color that shone brilliantly in the Autumn sunlight, colors of gold and orange and brown buried underneath a thick layer of inky blackness. Animals called out through the night, watching from their homes for any and every possible victim they could swoop down upon. Fog rolled in, pushing through the crowded trees and over the beaten and rocky dirt path winding through the discombobulating forest known as The Unknown.
Up in the trees, a bird took off from its perch on a branch, another step in the regular nighttime activities so prevalent in the woods.
"So, I was thinking that maybe I could call him Destroyer! But then I realized that name wasn't really that great, so maybe Megabot? Oh, or Ultraman, like that old cartoon you used to watch. Hmm...maybe even Deceptron? Given how the bot works and all, I think it sort of fits," a young voice broke through the song of the forest, originating from a lanky and fairly short teen boy.
This child wore fairly regular clothes, a slightly baggy and beaten-up dark blue hoodie over a red shirt with a fighter robot on it. These clothes were accompanied by a pair of khakis, and below them, a pair of grey-brown roughed up converse with bright yellow laces, as if reflecting off the hidden shades of autumn. Upon his head sat a head of messy black hair, two bright brown eyes looking up at the other boy walking alongside him.
Next to this child walked a boy a few years older and quite a few heads taller. This young man also had black hair and brown eyes, though this boy wore a dark-colored hat with an orange symbol resting in the middle of it. On his person, the kindly looking man wore a blue-gray blazer, a tan sweater with a long v-neck going down the middle until his midsection where it was closed up with four light brown buttons that lay underneath the blazer, and a white shirt with a gray design layered underneath even that. Brown pants covered his legs, rolled up slightly as to not fall over his light blue and white converse.
The two were obviously related, given how close they appeared to be. The elder of the two remained fairly quiet, nodding his head every now and then as the other boy rambled on a bit, looking around as he half-listened to the younger child.
"Sorry to cut you off, Hiro, but…" the male paused, looking around once more, "...Where exactly are we…?"
"Well, I would have to say we're probably in the woods," the other, Hiro, teased a bit. Really now, what kind of question was that! They had been walking for what must have been hours now and his brother hadn't realized where they were? Okay, well, sure he didn't know exactly where they were, but obviously they were making their way somewhere since they had been on this path for a while. Speaking of, were there really any forests like this near San Fransokoyo…?
The older boy was feeling unnerved despite the teasing remark. He couldn't remember how they had gotten here, and that was more than enough to worry him. It didn't help that the trees appeared as if they had faces on them, ready to jump upon the boys and take them as their victims, neither did the owls hooting in the dark, nor the red eyes drilling down into them from the trees.
Now, the boy knew these were merely regular parts of the forest that would look normal in the light, but that didn't stop him from being a bit worried. At least he had his brother here, which meant the child was safe. Shifting his gaze back to his sibling, the man let loose a small smile, "Nice try, Hiro, but I meant more like what we're doing here in the first place. I don't know about you, but I don't remember how we even got here," a small frown replaced the smile, worry seeping into the older's voice.
"Well, I don't really remember either, but we're probably just walking home, right, Tadashi?" Hiro shrugged, seeming largely unbothered by the situation as a whole. There had to be a logical explanation for all of this, after all.
"Hiro...I think we're lost," the other responded, giving the area around them another look over. Yes, there was certainly nothing around them that appeared even vaguely familiar to their home city. Tadashi couldn't even remember the last time he had been in a forest, now that he thought about it. What reason would there be for he and Hiro to be walking through the woods at night? It was obvious to him that they were very far from home, especially given how chilly it was. San Fransokyo tended to stay fairly warm all year round, after all.
"Maybe we should have left some sort of mark so we could figure out what way we had gone? That way we could retrace our steps. What do you have on you?" the taller male asked, turning to face his younger brother again.
"Hmm," the other thought for a moment, digging around in his pockets, "Uh...I have some candy and a few of the deactivated microbots?" he offered, pulling out the items from his jacket.
"I guess we can use those as a trail, hopefully no animals will try and eat them," Tadashi reasoned, looking thoughtfully at the ground.
Meanwhile, Hiro watched as a little turtle came up to him, bending down to face the little creature. With a small smile, the child placed a piece of candy on the animal's shell, "There you go, little guy, knock yourself out."
The two were stopped in their separate ramblings by a resounding thud. Both boys looked up in shock, then turned their gazes towards each other, "You heard that too, right?"
Giving a nod, Hiro followed after his brother as the other led the way through the trees. The sound seemed to come from further into the heart of the woods, the light of the half-moon growing darker as they moved closer and closer towards the repeating sound. "I wonder what that sound is...someone pounding mochi?" the younger joked, stopping behind a tree as his elder sibling paused in his trek.
"I doubt anyone would be out pounding mochi right now," Tadashi gave a little smile at the comment, "Though it could just be an animal...maybe some sort of wooden structure, like one of those drinking bird toys," he offered. keeping one hand on the tree as he turned to look at his brother.
"Hmm, I'll go check it out, you stay here," the other boy spoke up suddenly, rushing forward into the darkness.
"Wait, Hiro! Don't just run off like that," the elder called out, shaking his head in resignation. His little brother was really such a handful the majority of the time with how pig-headed and impulsive he could be.
"You have to be more careful, Hiro, you don't know what's in these woods," the male chastised the younger, having caught up with the boy behind a tree even closer towards the source of the pounding.
"Hmm," a new voice spoke out, cleaving through the familiar conversation between the two males. Both boys turned their attention beyond the tree, watching as an older male sung to himself as he hacked at a tree stump. The man appeared to be a woodsman, wearing a pack of branches and twigs on his back as he added more and more of the little things from the large plant he had felled just behind him. In the stump of the tree, a large axe sat, bathed in the light of the old lantern the fellow had placed on the ground next to him.
"See, it was just an old man working in the woods! We can ask him for directions," Hiro replied smugly, proud to have proven his worry-wart of a brother wrong.
Without another word, the child made a move to walk forward, stopped by a large hand on his arm, "No, Hiro, wait, there's something weird about this old man. I don't think we should let him know we're here," Tadashi frowned, looking into the other's large chocolate eyes.
"Wait? Why not? There's nothing weird about him, you're just worrying too much again," the smaller brushed him off, going to step up to the woodsman again.
"Shh, Hiro, I'm telling you, that guy-" the elder tried to reason, not loosening his grip on the other's arm.
"I really think you're overreacting here, there's absolutely nothing-" Hiro cut him off, only to be cut-off himself as the woodsman began to sing to himself again.
Going quiet, the pair watched as the old man walked away, his lantern light growing dimmer and dimmer as the clearing was once again engulfed by the darkness of the night. Looking at his brother with slight annoyance, Hiro frowned, "Hey! We could have asked that guy for help!"
"I was trying to tell you before, but don't you think it's strange that that man was-" Tadashi began again, only to be stopped once more by a new voice.
"Hey, I can help you. I mean, you guys are lost, right?" a distinctly female voice spoke up, stopping the bickering brothers in a moment.
The two paused, looking up at the source of the voice in awe. On one of the branches above their heads sat a small bluebird, looking down at them with a sympathetic expression.
"Huh…? Hey, Tadashi, did that bird just-"
"-Talk? I think so," the elder finished his brother's sentence, just as floored as Hiro was by the revelation. By all intents and purposes, animals shouldn't be able to speak, unless of course this bird was an android of some sort. Still, given what he had seen so far...Tadashi really doubted it.
"What? But that doesn't make any sense! I mean, birds don't really have a brain big enough to be able to speak, not to mention their vocal chords don't really allow for it," the younger reasoned, looking up with puzzlement.
"What was that?" the animal chirped back, looking beside herself at the unintended comment about her brain capability.
"Oh, no, no, Hiro didn't mean to insult you, Miss. We're just sort of confused, given that birds don't really speak where we're from," Tadashi cut-in before his brother could do any more damage, though he was just a confused as his sibling. It really should be impossible for birds to speak, so why could this one?
"Are you a robot? Some kind of new android or something?" the younger brother questioned, looking excited at the prospect. He did always love new inventions, and a talking birdbot would definitely be something new.
"'Robot'? Listen, kid, I have no idea what you're talking about," the bird replied, still irked by the child's insult to her intelligence.
"What are you doing here?" a familiar voice broke in, the warm glow of an old lantern falling over the three speakers, "Explain yourselves!"
"And I'll see you guys later, bye," the bluebird bid farewell, turning tail and flying away as soon as possible.
"We were just passing through on our way home is all," Tadashi tried to explain calmly, even more confused now that the old man was closeup and could be studied more easily.
"Yeah, we're sort of lost," Hiro threw in, shrugging a bit, as if it were no big deal.
"These woods are no place for children," the man replied, narrowing his eyes at the children before him, "Don't you know The Beast is afoot here?"
"'The Beast'?" Hiro repeated, looking confused. What was this old guy rambling on about? What sort of 'beast' could possibly be out there?
"What...What do you mean?" the taller of the boys asked, looking thoughtful as his eyes darted along the floor while he thought.
"Well, welcome to The Unknown, boys. You're more lost than you realize," the old man explained, ignoring the question with a scowl.
"'The Unknown'...?" Tadashi mumbled, glancing around them again. He had never heard of a place like that, and there was certainly nowhere nearby San Franskoyo that even looked like this forest.
Just where on earth were they?
"I found this homestead abandoned and re-purposed its mill for my...needs," the woodsman explained himself as he bent over a fireplace, knocking together a stone and a flint to light a spark. Earlier, after he had told the children where they now found themselves, the old man had offered to take them to his shelter in lieu of the chilling wind blowing through the woods. While the boys were wearing some form of jacket, they didn't have the correct clothing to be wandering around outside in the dead of night during the late Autumn season.
"You and your brother should be safe here while I work," he continued, turning to face Tadashi as a fire grew before him in the fireplace, shedding a warm glow throughout the room.
While the two older males spoke, Hiro entertained himself by placing candy around the trail, thinking he might as well get started on their markers. He wasn't really interested in what the other was saying, so he only half-listened while busying himself with his handiwork. Now if only he had something to use so he could build a robot or something! What the child wouldn't give to have Megabot on him right now.
"So, what sort of work do you do?" Tadashi questioned the other male, filing away everything the old man was saying in case it was important later.
"Everyone has a torch to burn, and this here's mine," the other explained after a moment to collect himself, gesturing to the metal lantern at his feet, "I grind the horrid Edelwood trees into oil to keep this lantern lit," he continued, taking one of the branches from the pack on his back and breaking it into two, throwing the pieces carelessly where they landed under a nearby couch. Facing back towards the fire, the old man went on, "This is my lot in life, this is my burden."
"Hey, Tadashi," Hiro whispered, coming back over to stand by his brother.
"Hm?" the other questioned, bending down so that he could hear his sibling better given their height difference.
"Maybe you're right, this guy sounds kind of loony," the child put his hand up to his head and moved his finger in a spiral motion, the hand signal for his description of the man who had taken them in, "maybe we should try and get away, though I guess he would know the woods really well, given he's a woodsman, so I guess we should knock him out or distract him somehow," Hiro gave a nod, pleased with his plan.
"No, no, I don't think that's a good idea," Tadashi gave a huff of a laugh, shaking his head. There really wasn't any need to knock out the woodsman, he wasn't dangerous or anything. It was something else that bothered the half-Japanese male.
"What? But you were the one saying we shouldn't go near the guy," Hiro reasoned, throwing his arms up in exasperation while giving his brother an annoyed look.
"What are you boys whispering about?" the woodsman spoke up suddenly, turning to scrutinize the pair with one eye, half-turned towards the children.
"Oh, uh, nothing, nothing! Certainly not about running away," the younger of the two stuttered out, always bad when it came to situations like this.
"My little brother here was just worried for nothing, I'm sorry," Tadashi cut-in, giving his brother a slightly amused look.
"Hey! You were the one worried, not me," the other shook his head, not happy to be saddled with the blame.
"Yeah, but I wasn't the one talking about sneaking away," the elder replied, crossing his arms and emphasizing the "I" in his statement.
"Leave if you wish, but remember, The Beast haunts these woods," the old man repeated his warning, his lantern casting an eerie glow around him, "Forever singing his mortal melody," he dramatized, moving forward as he clutched at the air, "In search of lost souls such as yourselves!" now the lantern was held up, casting that eerie glow on himself now rather than just around him.
"What, like in a fairy tale?" Hiro questioned, looking amused at the prospect of a monster stalking the woods. There were no monsters, and this old man's whole spiel sounded like something someone from the nineteenth century and before would say.
"No, not like a fairy tale," the woodsman dismissed, turning away from the boys and making his way towards the door, "The Beast is real!" he growled out. Opening the door, the old man continued, "I have work to do in the mill, when I am finished I will do what I can to guide you," he turned towards them, half out of the door, throwing back an, "if you are still here when I return."
With that closing statement, the woodsman left from the room, closing the door behind him with a loud creak, leaving the two boys alone in the firelit sitting room.
"A beast, huh…?" Tadashi mumbled, studying the floor as he frowned to himself. That didn't sound good at all.
"Hey, Hiro?" the boy called out, turning towards his brother. While the other had been thinking, the black-haired fourteen-year old had begun exploring the room, moving around this and that as he walked around the perimeter.
"What?" the young teen questioned, placing the block of wood he had been inspecting on the floor again.
"You need to be careful with that Beast out there, don't go wandering on your own," the older commanded, looking towards his distracted brother.
"Uh-huh, right, sure," the other replied nonchalantly, picking up one of the statues placed on top of a table in the back. It was one of a plank of wood, a number of bluebirds carved to appear as if they were resting on the piece. Fairly nice, really, though not any help.
"We should probably stay with the woodsman, though, if we want to stay safe. Come to think of it, he never did tell us what his name was," Tadashi pondered, taking a seat upon the long red couch next to the fireplace.
"Yeah, yeah, we'll be fine, don't worry!" Hiro shrugged off the other's worries, putting the statue down where he stood, walking back over towards the fire.
"And about The Beast...well...there was a talking bird, so maybe there really is something out there…" the older boy frowned, bringing his hand up in thought.
"Still doesn't make sense. She had to be some sort of advanced android," his brother mumbled in response, shaking his head. There definitely weren't any talking animals, much less a "Beast" to be afraid of!
Lounging on the couch, Tadashi looked at the ceiling, "Still, I'm worried. Something doesn't seem right here," the man's frown only deepened.
"Yeah, well, while you think about that, I'm gonna go take a look outside," Hiro called back, opening the front door.
"Ah, no, Hiro, wait! I just told you to-" the other began, stopping only when the door slammed shut and his brother as gone. Letting out a sigh, the older man shook his head, "Just like always," he gave a little laugh.
"Hmm...now what is there to do around here?" Hiro asked himself, looking around the outside of the mill. A river ran next to the building, a large wheel spinning from the force of the water. Letting out a whistle, the boy studied the contraption, "Wow, this is really old technology. Why someone would use this sort of technology in today's world is beyond me. I guess some people like to keep things simple," he shrugged.
Heavy breathing filled the air, distracting the boy. Turning towards the source, the fourteen year old inched closer towards the forest curiously, "What is that…?"
Humming soon could be heard once more, and the child abandoned his curiosity with the heavy breathing to pursue this new sound. Was someone humming in the mill? It sort of sounded like the woodsman, actually.
Getting close to the window, the teen peeked his head up, watching what was going on inside with mild interest.
Inside the mill, the old woodsman stood by some sort of machinery, grinding up the Edelwood branches one by one into oil and filling a number of glass bottles with the liquid that came out, all the while humming to himself. The sight was primitive, to put it lightly. Why was this old man using this mill in the first place when he could just buy oil at a gas station? None of it made sense, and Hiro didn't like that.
"Yeesh, knew that guy was a weirdo," the half-Japanese boy mumbled to himself, turning away from the sight.
The heavy breathing took over again, this time sounding a bit closer than it had been before. Looking around a bit worriedly, HIro called out, "...Tadashi? Come on, you can't scare me. I know there's no beast!," but the breathing continued.
Backing up a bit, the boy's eyes grew wide as a dark shape bounded out towards him, the creature's large eyes glowing brightly in the dark of the night.
"...Oh no."
"And then this mill...and the clothing…" Tadashi thought to himself, sitting up once more on the couch, one hand on his chin. None of it made sense, none of it at all. Just how had he and Hiro ended up here?
A low growling sound filled the air, and the male's head immediately shot up, eyes wide, "...Hiro?" he called out worriedly, "Hiro!"
"What's happening?" the woodsman suddenly burst through the side door, "Where's your brother?"
"I-I don't know," the other stuttered out, worried beyond belief for his sibling. He knew he shouldn't have let the younger boy go out on his own! They had already lost their parents, there was no way that Tadashi would ever let Hiro die on him.
In the next moment, the front door was thrown open, the missing boy slipping in, looking worse for the wear, "Oh man...that...was one big dog…"
Before either could question the child, a large dark creature burst through the door, growling in a frenzied rage. Hiro was thrown back, landing on the stairway with a thump, though thankfully unharmed by the toss.
"Is that…?!" Tadashi exclaimed, staring in horror at the terrifying creature now taking up space in the once warm sitting room.
"Stay back, boys!" the old man commanded, raising his axe above him as if ready to strike, "This creature which is known as," he suddenly stopped, suddenly flailing and falling over as he stepped on the statue Hiro had dropped before. To make matters worse, the wooden log the boy had been investigating before lay in the woodsman's way, providing a hard surface for the man's head to hit against, effectively knocking him out.
"Uh...oops," Hiro offered up after a moment of stunned silence, having the decency to look abashed by what he had unintentionally caused.
"Ah, Hiro, now's not the time for that!" the elder brother called out, trying his best to fend off the creature with the fan that had been in front of the fireplace. The situation seemed grim, but Tadashi would be damned if he let his brother die here. Still holding the gate up to block the beast's bite, the man turned towards his brother, "Hiro, get out of here! I'll hold him off for as long as I can!"
"What! No! Not without you, I'm not leaving you," the boy shook his head, refusing to even think about leaving his sibling behind. While Tadashi wanted to protect Hiro, the teen wouldn't be able to handle it if he were to lose his brother. He had already lost his parents before he had even truly known them, there was no way he would ever be willing to lose Tadashi too, even if it meant he would be putting himself in danger.
"Hiro, no, what are you-" the other started, watching with wide eyes as his brother picked up one of the leftover logs of wood.
"Stay away from my brother!" the teen shouted, whacking the creature with the log, punctuating each word with another hit. Even if it wasn't much, he would do what he could to help out.
This caused the creature to shift its attention, leaving Tadashi alone as it now advanced on Hiro.
Throwing aside the fire fan, Tadashi rushed forward, dashing past the beast and grabbing Hiro's arm, "Come on, we've got to run! I'm not leaving you," he repeated the other's previous statement with a small reassuring smile.
The boy stared wide-eyed for a moment, then gave a nod, "Right," and followed after his brother.
The two brothers ran through the door and to the adjacent mill, hoping to somehow make it outside and as far away from the monster chasing them as possible. Unfortunately for them, the creature was not so willing to give up chase. With a growl, the beast cornered Tadashi on the far side of the bottom floor to the mill, the man just barely dodging the attack and running over the other side where his younger sibling stood watching, "Hiro!" he called out.
"Okay, I admit, maybe there really is a beast," the teen spoke up, staring wide-eyed at the creature struggling to get to them. As luck would have it, the monster had crashed into a large wooden table, throwing it backwards and effectively dazing itself for a few moments.
Tadashi glanced around the dirtied room, searching for some sort of escape in the little time they had. All he found was a bag of potatoes, something he could at least try and use as a weapon. Following his sibling's example, Hiro took a few of the potatoes, throwing them at the creature in an attempt to dissuade it from eating them. Often times a predator would give up on chasing prey if they proved too troublesome to catch, and they were definitely the prey in this situation!
The crops did little, though, and the two boys watched from behind a large concrete ring as the beast let out a roar and clambered up towards them. They had been standing on a raised platform, and the monster had managed to tip it over with its strength, throwing the two boys to the ground and lodging itself behind the newly fallen wooden barrier.
"We've got to get out here!" Tadashi exclaimed, searching around the room for some sort of escape. Meanwhile, the animal clawed desperately at the wooden blockade, growling in a threatening manner all the while. It would be very bad if they were to be caught by the beast.
A pull on his sleeve distracted the man, his attention shifting to his younger brother, "Over there!" Hiro shouted, pointing over towards a large wooden ladder leaned against the wall.
"Right," the other nodded, following the younger's finger.
Without another word, the two boys scrambled up the ladder and inched their way along the ledge, making it up to the second-level platform. Moving quickly, the boys opened up a hatch and scrambled onto the roof, hoping to escape from their pursuer.
It was only half a moment later that the beast came bursting through the ceiling, cornering the two of them on the edge of the roof.
Tadashi moved to stand in front of Hiro, staring down the beast in a threatening manner, "Hiro, I'll try and distract it, you escape!"
"No way! I said it before, but I'm not leaving you," the child shook his head, adamant in his refusal.
There had to be something he could do! Digging around in his pockets, the boy paused at the pieces of candy he found. Well, it probably wouldn't work, but it was worth a shot!
"Take this!" the teen shouted, throwing some of the candy over the edge of the roof and towards the water wheel that churned below them.
In a flash, the creature moved, jumping off the roof in pursuit of the falling good. As fate would have it, the beast fell into the water wheel, getting caught as it turned, the wheel creaking with the force needed to try and move the monster. In a matter of moments, the animal spit out a black blob and fell into the water.
The force from the wheel proved to be too much, though, and the house crumbled to pieces, Hiro and Tadashi falling into the stream with yells.
Tadashi rose up first, shaking himself of the water and stepping out of the fairly shallow stream. Moving over to the leftover blob, the young adult watched confusedly as a small black turtle with a piece of candy on its back walked away. Had the turtle somehow caused the monster to appear?
"Hey, Tadashi, look!" the younger brother's voice suddenly cut-in, causing the other to turn his attention back to the stream.
"Hiro? Are you okay?" Tadashi questioned, watching as the other boy emerged from the water, a fairly large white and rust-colored dog following after him.
"Yeah! The beast turned into this dog after it spit out that black blob. Weird, huh?" the teen questioned, patting the animal on the back.
The dog let out a bark, shaking itself from the water and soaking Hiro once again, "Oh, come on," the boy slumped over in defeat, water dripping off of him as the dog walked away. Shaking himself again, the teen called out, "Hey! Where do you think you're going?"
"Haha," Tadashi chuckled a bit at the sight, turning back to look at the mill. Wait, now that he thought about it, where was the-
"The mill is destroyed, the oil...all gone!" the woodsman cried out suddenly, staring at the destroyed millhouse with a forlorn expression. Getting down on his knees, the man cradled the empty remains of one of the glass bottles, a stain as dark as the night sky sticking to the ground beneath it.
"I-I'm sorry," Tadashi apologized, looking ashamed. Pointing towards the nearby sleeping canine, the college student continued, "But, well, at least we got the beast problem solved, right...?"
"The dog?! That is not The Beast!" the woodsman exclaimed, the lost axe safely in his grasp once more, "The Beast cannot be mollified like some farmer's pet!" he continued, stalking forward towards the water while Tadashi looked on, shocked at the revelation. Just what was The Beast then, if this horrifying monster had not been it?
"He stalks into the night," the man went on, continuing towards the river as he swung down with the axe he had picked up inside and chopped a piece of a nearby rock off, "He sings like the four winds, He is the death of hope! He steals the children, and then he…he'll...ruin...the...the..." the old man broke off into mumbling, sitting down besides the bank with a devastated expression.
"I-I'm so sorry...we...we were just trying to help," the man offered, unsure of what to do. He wanted to comfort the other, really he did, but he felt it would be unappreciated.
"Boy, you have it wrong! You did not try and help, you tried to sacrifice yourself! You are the elder child, you should be there for your brother, not offering yourself up again and again as a sacrifice," the woodsman stood up, turning around the point at Tadashi in an accusatory manner.
"I-I'm sorry, I never really thought of it that way," the college-aged boy apologized, looking shocked, "Maybe I can fix it…? I mean, with some time and with the right materials I could probably..." Tadashi ended with a mumble, looking at the ground. It had never really occurred to him that he was offering to abandon Hiro like that.
Shaking his head, the old man spoke, "You must go….Take your brother north, look for a town," he commanded, pointing towards a path past the flowing water.
"T-Thanks," the man gave a bow of his head, still embarrassed by how badly they had managed to mess up. Looking towards his equally shocked brother, the boy gave a nod, "Come on, Hiro."
As the boys jumped over the stones and waded through the river, the woodsman called out to them once more, "One last thing, beware The Unknown! Fear The Beast! And leave these woods, if you can," he narrowed his eyes, "It is your burden to bear!"
"Uhm, yeah, right," Hiro gave a nod, pulling at his brother's hand in an attempt to escape faster, "got it."
"And, boy, you are the younger child, give your brother some leeway sometimes, and don't throw yourself into dangerous situations as well," the man advised, looking at the teen.
"I won't," the boy gave a nod, wanting to get out of there as soon as possible. Still, the old man did have a point, especially about Tadashi's martyr tendencies.
Hours later found the boys walking along the path, neither speaking much since they had broken away from the old man. Hiro was the first to break it, two large eyes turning towards his brother's form, "...So, uh, any idea where we are, exactly? I'm starting to think we walked into a fairy tale at this point."
The older had been thinking hard about the man's words, and was snapped from his thoughts by his younger sibling's comment. Giving him a smile, the man replied, "I don't know, but I guess we'll have to find out at this next village."
"As long as there are no more rabid wolf-beast-dogs, I think I'm good," Hiro stretched, flashing his brother a playful grin.
"Heh, better hope you don't find a mirror then," the other countered, keeping up the attempt at banter, "One look and you'd mistake yourself for a beast with this messy hair of yours," Tadashi laughed, messing with the other's hair as he spoke.
"Hey! You made it worse!" the teen replied, moving up to pat down his hair as his brother simply laughed.
Above them, a bluebird watched the two boys walk away, careful not to be spotted.