Waiting till the group passed them just a little they followed at the back, people eyeing Kai oddly at the sight of him holding hands with another boy. But it took no more than a glare from Kai to make their heads snap back forwards.
"K-Kai?"
"Russian" he hissed back, both voices barely audible.
"W-why're they looking at us?"
"Probably because you look like a gay holding my hand." He answered simply, though his didn't relinquish his hold.
"I'm not gay" he whispered, receiving a shout from the guard up front.
"Whatever rat is talking shut up!" He barely turned round to yell but his shout was more than enough. Tala clamped onto Kai's hand harsher, his fingernails digging into the soft flesh. Not even wincing he snatched his hand from the redhead's giving him a warning glare.
"Don't" he whispered "you'll just get the lads onto you if you keep this up."
"What do you mean?" He whispered so quietly it was more like lip reading for Kai.
"You keep acting gay you're gonna get yourself beat up. And I ain't gonna stop them, I'm doing good in the abbey. The guards aren't on me every second, I'm not jeopardising that for you."
Nodding Tala latched onto his shirt, staring at the back of Kai's head as he followed after.
He was too young to fully grasp the severity of what Kai was saying so he stayed quiet, taking his advice. He seemed to know far more about how this world worked.
The group stopped a few minutes later, the guard up front turning to regard everyone.
"If I hear one sound once we enter the training room I swear you'll be begging for your death." He threatened, pushing open the heavy oak door, entering the eerily quiet room. Children lined up like soldiers.
All the boys ahead of him seemed to change like a switch had been flicked. Their steps became marches as they strode into the room, heads high. Just the redhead looking out of place among the masses. He was hunched down, intimidated by the guards glaring down at him. Fiddling with his cold fingers he fought the urge to grab onto Kai for safety. He wasn't sure he could trust the bluenette but he felt a damn lot safer around him than these other children. They reminded him of mind controlled people he'd seen on TV before.
"Kai"
"Shut it" he hissed back, his voice barely detectable in the silent room.
Following instructions he quietened, shrinking in on himself, trying to mimic the boys around him. Though the best he could do was fold his arms over his chest, trembling in fear and anticipation. Who knew what would happen to them?
The large double doors at the head of the room swung open, a lanky but powerful man stalking through. Blood red lenses shielded his face, his mildly wrinkled face showing years of stress. His purple hair was greased back, his overly large trench coat shrouding his body.
"Who's that?" He whispered in Kai's ear, though he was completely silent. Ignoring him. "Kai"
"Shut it."
"Who is it?"
"Boris, now quiet."
"I would welcome you, but this isn't day care. Your parents don't pay me." Boris' voice boomed out, silencing both Kai and Tala. "I'm here to reform you. And the way to do that is harsh discipline" he paused momentarily to regard each child separately. "Those of you who have lived here for some time know my expectations. Simply because you're children means nothing to me. You're still the spawn of Satan himself."
Tala winced, cringing in on himself at the harsh words. The devil? They were devil children? He was rooming with a child of Lucifer.
"Your cellmate will be your lifeline, they will be your medic, your protector and your guide. Though I promise you this. Cross the line, speak to either me or my guards, I'll kill you. And I won't hesitate." Boris raised his hand, a silent cue for the guards to hand out their uniforms.
"Move" Kai commanded, earning a squeak of shock from Tala.
"W-what?"
"Move, go to the guard who's stood before us. He has your uniform. Don't question him on it." His last sentence was insisted upon. Nodding his head he inched out of the line, creeping forwards with the much less scared children. Walking next to the children he recognised some from the day before, though they all ignored him as though he carried plague.
Stopping before the tower of a man Tala stared up at him with wide cyan eyes. Giving the small child a look of distain he dropped the too large jumpsuit into his thin arms. Taking Kai's advice he kept his mouth sealed walking hesitantly towards the back of the line, hoping he didn't look completely terrified.
"It's too big" he whispered to Kai, seeing it was exactly the same as the bluenette's.
"It's supposed to be. You have this till you move to the next section. There's infant, children and adolescent then you move up to a different prison." The bluenette supplied, yanking Tala back into line, thankful that the sound of clothes rustling covering their conversation. "You have this for three years then you move up"
"T-three years?"
"Be thankful I've had this five" Tala eyed the article, his eyes focusing on the straining seams. The cotton forced to bear the strain of the growing child. "Get changed, you aren't permitted to leave before you hand in your 'peasant' clothing." Eyeing his own clothing he shrank even more in on himself. He had to change around people?! Rolling his eyes Kai skimmed the room looking for a solution.
His crimson eyes caught sight of a blond head, sticking more than a foot above the rest of the children. Running his foot over the broken up flooring he managed to pull out a small fragment of chipped concrete. Bending down he grasped it, aiming for the blond hair. Throwing the rock it bounced from the boy's head. The blond turning to glare at whomever it was.
His eyes landed on the bluenette, his head tilting in a questioning look.
"Get over here" Kai mouthed, the blond nodding and pushing through the group, a small flash of lilac following after.
"What're you doing?"
"Getting rid of your excuse."
"I-I never made an excuse"
"No, but you would have" taking a tight hold of his upper arm he squeezed around the non-existent muscle. "And I can see why, you're scrawny"
"I am not!" He protested, his voice gaining a squeak at the end, blood rushing to his face in result.
"You are, you need to gain some serious muscle." Still blushing at the insult he pulled his arm free, wrapping his arm around his arm to sooth the tender flesh.
"I do not" he was more whiny, hoping he didn't have shiny eyes. His mother did always say he was hyper-sensitive.
"Kai, what is it?" An abnormally deep voice asked
"Surround the redhead, he's shy" his voice was mocking yet commanding at the same time and the boys who'd come to them followed.
Tala looked around, seeing three boys, one with blond hair, one lilac and the other purple crowd around him, effectively sheltering him. Holding his new clothing he tried not to look quite as scared as he was.
"Strip and change" he ordered, making Tala shrink back hitting Spencer from shying away so much.
"Kai, what's wrong with him?" The blond asked, staring down at the boy with dead eyes.
"He's a freak" he stated, not caring about the hurt look in the orange haired boy's eyes. Nodding the blond raised a brow at the small boy.
"Change" he repeated Kai's words, watching the boy fumble scared. The smallest of the boys stared up at the redhead.
"Ha, Kai, y'know you're stuck with this idiot, right?"
"Don't remind me." Tala chewed on the inside of his mouth, far too scared not to follow their commands.
As he began to change they had the decency not to stare at him, stopping the boy from turning pure scarlet. Instead they spoke to the other briefly, exchanging small bits of information. Some tangible to Tala others far too complex in Russian for him to be able to grasp.
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