Here's Chapter 7: Brothers


My earliest memory is from before I met Yogi. I think I was around seven, maybe eight. I remember being locked in a small cage and feeling scared and upset because I didn't really know what was going on. Later I found out that I was in there because I had just been sold to slave trading group. I don't remember its name or what any of the members looked like though. I think I also remember originally being sold by my parents, but I'm not entirely sure.

Most of what happened next is a bit hazier. They kept me in that cage for a couple months (according to them I hadn't been tamed enough for a real master just yet) and only let me out when they needed to make sure that I was still in proper working order or simply to beat some sense into me, as they seemed to be fond of saying, whenever I happened to misbehave.

After they had decided that I was good enough to be put on the market I was let out of my cage and put on board a ship headed to a town they called Rinoll. There were about thirty other children headed to the same place. Three of them I ended up becoming friends with. They were a group of siblings who had been sold by their parents. I think their names were Tsubaki, who was the oldest, and Tsubame and Yotaka, who were twins. They were all really nice and I enjoyed their company.

I wasn't able to be with them for very long though. By the time the ship first stopped to restock, all three of them were dead. Tsubaki and Yotaka were the first to go. There was a sailor, named Meiga, who took a liking to Tsubaki, but when she refused his advances he beat her to death. Yotaka died trying to save her from him. Tsubame didn't last for long after Yotaka died. No one actually killed her; she just stopped eating and died of starvation and a broken heart.

When the ship did make it to port for supplies another group of slaves was taken on as well. These kids were a lot older and meaner. And since I was the youngest I ended up being picked on the worst. Their favorite torture technique was to tie me up, blindfold me and push me around until I either fell or ran into something hard enough to knock me out. If I did end up falling they would have the pleasure of kicking me unconscious. Either way I ended up with bruises and/or cuts scattered across my body. I still have some of the scars from that.

By the time we got to our next stop, which happened to be Karasuna, I was convinced that I needed to escape before those stupid bullies killed me in my sleep. The ship anchored at night and all of the guards and sailors had gone ashore to have a bit of 'fun' before they had to go back to work. It was then that I made my 'daring' escape. It wasn't too difficult though. The upper deck was practically abandoned and the kids with me in the lower deck were either sound asleep or too depressed to care about someone other than themselves.

I quickly crossed over from my position against the wall to the hatch leading out onto the deck. Unfortunately, one of the guards had thought ahead and settled something heavy on top of it so no one could get out. I wasn't too happy about that but just when I was about to give up, I remembered a small open porthole, which had always been our only source of light during the whole trip, stationed on the starboard side that was only about five feet off the ground. I tiptoed over to it and reached my hands up. If I jumped a little and stretched as tall as I could, I was able to grab onto the ledge and pull myself up high enough to shove my elbows through. By the time I got my head and shoulders through I was very, very glad that we weren't given much to eat. If I had been much bigger than I already was, I wouldn't have fit all the way through.

When I did make it through the porthole, I fell down into the frigid water and swam to the nearest beach. Once I felt sand, I took off running as fast as I possibly could. I ran until I went past the beach and through the forest that followed it.

After I got out of the forest, I nearly killed myself when I tripped over the gravel road that seemed to just appear out of nowhere. That was when I met Yogi. He had happened to be walking home from his job and I ran right into him. Thankfully, he caught me and kept himself upright as well. I think I passed out after that because the next thing I remember is waking up at the place I would later call my home.

"Oh, good! You're awake!" Yogi said when he noticed I had opened my eyes, "I was kind of worried when you came bustin' out of the trees, at full tilt no less! Are you running away from someone?" At first I didn't really know what to make of him. He was a total stranger, only a few years older than myself actually, and he had the guts to ask if I was running away from someone? I was utterly astounded. So I just kept quiet, thinking that maybe if I ignored him he would either leave me alone or tell me to go. As it turned out, he did neither. Instead, he sighed and said, "Ah well, it's all right kiddo. You don't have to talk if you don't wanna. I won't push you. I would like to know your name though!" He gave me one of the biggest, brightest most genuine smiles I had ever seen and leaned forward in anticipation, as if I was about to reveal some incredible secret.

He doesn't seem to be such a bad guy, I thought as he waited. After a little bit I slowly sat up and whispered, "I don't have one."

That was the first time I had ever seen anyone cry for me. Tears welled up in his eyes, which I later noticed to be a rather odd shade of reddish-violet, and he began to wail, "WAAAAH! You poor thing!" He grabbed my shoulders after he said this and pulled me into a slightly too tight hug, "Don't worry! I'll give you a name! Hmm," he leaned back, allowing me a little room to breathe, and thought for a bit before leaning forward again and happily saying, "I know! Gareki! The ga means 'flower' and the reki means 'gravel' or 'pebble.' Kind of like the saying, 'diamond in the rough,' right?" He giggled happily and hugged me again, "My name is Yogi! Nice ta meet cha'!" Again, I was utterly stunned and didn't really know how to respond.

"U-um…Gareki?" I said the unfamiliar word carefully, "I-I guess it's all right," I pushed him back a little and looked up at his face, "So, you're Yogi? I-it's nice to meet you too. Uh…where are we?"

"Ah!" He stood to his feet and stooped to help me up, "You're in a town called Karasu-"

"I know what town is called," I crossed my arms and huffed childishly, "I meant, where are we right now? How far away is this place from the beach?" I was still concerned that I could possibly be found and taken back to the slave ship.

Yogi noticed my anxiety and kneeled down so he could talk to me face to face, even though he couldn't have been that much older than me, he was definitely taller. He whispered softly, "Why the beach? Is that the place you're running away from?" He spoke in a soft tone of voice that had never before been directed at me. I had heard Tsubame and Yotaka talk to one another like that other than that it was new to me. Yet at the same time, it made tears prick at the corners of my eyes. I tried to blink them back but I couldn't hold them in any longer.

Tears poured down my face and my slight, hunger-stricken frame shook with barely contained sobs. Yogi wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his strong, but very gentle, embrace. I'm sure he must have been beyond confused at why I was crying but he took it all in stride and simply sat there, rocking me back and forth as he whispered, "It's all right," over and over until I finally calmed down. Even after I had stopped crying, he still held me. All I could do was take shuddering breaths and cling to him in desperation. Eventually, he gave a light chuckle and asked, "Feel better now, Gareki-kun?" I sniffled and nodded into his chest. "Good," he said happily, "Are you hungry?" Again I nodded, this time pulling back and allowing him to rub the wetness off my face. "I'll go get you something to eat, okay?" I nodded but then frowned realizing that he would have to get up and leave me to 'get me something,' as he had said. I quickly shook my head and hugged him tighter. He was the first person I had ever met that had made me feel safe. And protected. And cared for. I didn't want him to ever leave.

Yogi was a little surprised at first but then he smiled at me and patted my back lightly, "It's okay, Gareki-kun. I'm not going too far away. I promise," he was quiet for a moment but, after seeing that I wasn't going to let go anytime soon, he began to speak again, "How about this? You come with me to the kitchen and I'll get you something to eat. Is that okay with you?"

I grumbled for a bit before mumbling, "Yes…" He laughed and helped me to my feet. I clutched at his sleeve and followed him into the small kitchenette. He opened the mini-fridge wedged in a corner and searched around in it for a bit. After a while he emerged with some sliced meat, bread and cheese. He then gently pried my fingers from his arm and began to make two large sandwiches. When he was finished I stared wide-eyed at the stacks of food. Never in my entire life had I ever even seen that much food. He placed the sandwiches on plates and carried them over to the makeshift table he had apparently set up in place of a real one. Once he set them down, he scrambled around looking for a second seat. Finally, he 'aha'ed and raised a small wooden crate in triumph. He flipped it on its head and set it down for me to sit on.

We sat down opposite each other and he said, "Dig in, Gareki-kun! I hope you like it!" I did. It was probably the best sandwich I would ever eat. When I had finished devouring every last crumb, I wiped my mouth and looked at Yogi through my scruffy fringe of hair. He was watching me with amusement, as he had the entire time I was acting like a starved animal, and I couldn't help but notice his oddly colored hair and the beautiful hue of his eyes. He must have notice my observations because he pushed his plate to the side and leaned on the table, his head resting in one of his hands, "Will you tell me what happened now?" I nodded and proceeded to explain where I came from, what had happened to me and why I had run away from the ship.

Yogi frowned in anger when he heard that I had been on a slave ship. He didn't interrupt me but I could feel the air around him grow icy cold as I continued to tell my story. When I finished he slammed his fist onto the table, breaking it in two, and swore furiously. I had jumped when the table snapped and the first thing that went through my head was that he was mad at me; that I had done something wrong by telling him everything. Fear must have shown on my face because when he happened to glance back at me his angry expression immediately softened and he murmured, "I'm sorry," as he stretched out a hand to brush my cheek, "Don't worry, I'm not upset with you. I'm mad at the people who did this to you." He took on a pained look as he gently caressed my face, "You're just a little boy. How could they do this to you?" I leaned into his warm hand as my eyelids drooped wearily. I didn't know why but this stranger seemed to have some kind of lulling effect on my hyperactive adrenaline system. Before, I had relied on the fear of what the bullies could do to me while I was out to keep me awake. Now that I had nothing to be afraid of I was beginning to come off of my forced adrenaline high and sleep was finally calling. I think he might have said something else but I was already dead to the world and wouldn't hear another thing until the next day.

Ӂ-Ӂ-Ӂ

When I finally did wake up, I saw that it was still early in the morning and that while I was asleep Yogi had moved me to a different spot. At first I panicked because I couldn't see the odd boy but when I noticed that he was simply sleeping on the floor next to the bed I was on I calmed down. Then I realized that I was on the only type of cushioned furniture in the whole room. I felt bad about making the person who saved me sleep on the cold floor so I tried to lift him up and onto the bed where I had been laying; tried being the key word in this case. I failed miserably.

Yogi awoke with an 'Oof' when he slipped from my hands and fell back to the floor.

"A-are you o-okay?" I stuttered helplessly, "I'm sorry, I was just trying to move you to the bed instead of the ground…" I trailed off a bit feeling like an idiot.

Yogi just chuckled happily and said, "Don't worry! I appreciate the effort, but I kind of like sleeping on the floor!" He got to his knees and, with sparkling eyes, continued, "It makes me feel like I'm on a secret mission and that if I get up I'll be captured by the bad guys!" The sheer stupidity of what he had just said made me laugh.

"That's the first time you've smiled," he reached out and gently brushed a lock of my hair away from my eyes so he could see them clearer, "I'm glad you're feeling better."

My face turned beet red but I didn't move away, "Th-thank you f-for helping me…" I fiddled with a stray thread on my tattered shirt and looked at my feet, "I don't know what would have happened if someone else had found me."

Yogi smiled and said, "Your welcome, Gareki-kun. I have a feeling anyone else in this rotten town," he spat with a slight frown before looking back at me with sympathy, "Would have sent you back to the ship in exchange for a lucrative reward." He leaned back against the wall behind him and sighed, "The people here aren't nice, Gareki-kun," his gaze hardened a bit and I could tell that he had seen just how depraved these people could be. "Do you have anywhere to go, Gareki-kun?" When I shook my head 'no' he grinned again and said, "Well then, why don't you stay with me? I can be your Nii-chan and you'll be my little brother!"

I blinked at him in surprise, "Nii-chan? What does that mean?" I had never heard those words before.

Yogi also blinked in surprise, before shaking it off and answering my question, "Nii-chan means 'big brother.' The longer, more proper, way of saying it is, 'Onii-san.' But that sounds stiff and unfriendly, so just calling me 'Nii-chan' is much better!"

I tilted my head to the side and tested out the new word, "Nii-chan…so if I call you that you'll become my big brother?" He laughed and nodded happily. My face must have lit up like a Christmas tree, I was so happy. I leapt forward and threw my arms around his neck. He laughed again as he stood before swinging me around in the air.

That was the start of our life as brothers. We went through some hard times but Yogi was, and is, always there for me. He taught me everything I know. He's my best friend, my mentor, my teacher, my…everything.


Hope ya'll liked these two chapters! I couldn't decide if I wanted to write one long chapter or two slightly shorter ones. I figured it would be a bit easier on anyone who doesn't particularly long chapters and would be adequate for those who like longer ones because this one was right after it...ugh, I'm sorry, I talk/type waaaaaay too much! XP

Anyway, thanks for stopping by and I hope you'll leave me a review! I really love hearing your opinions and/or comments!

Oh, and if anyone has any questions feel free to ask. I would really like to know if anything I wrote either doesn't make sense or is confusing.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Love ya'll! :)