Kinsmen treatment:

Fayt rolled his head lethargically, the sound of crickets strong even in the hallways of Castle Aquaria. The graceful walls didn't do very well at keeping sound in one room. The less privacy, the less chance of sin against Apris. Cliff's steady strong breaths could be heard through the door.

This was probably the only reason Fayt heard them talking that night.

The words were undefined as they came in through the tall roof, echoing down the height of the walls. It was part of Fayt's job to find out what was going on.

Peeking through the door first, then opening it while holding his flashlight across the room, he was stricken by a sort of horror.

Someone would have to take his post while he went on the room to investigate. And with Cliff's deep sleep, that someone would have to be Albel.

But Albel was missing.

-

It was the first watch of the night, mainly because Albel could stay up the latest. The crimson-eyed warrior paced impatiently along the length of the hallway, like a tiger, trapped to his cruel fate.

'Heh, Fayt, very funny.' He slumped down with his back against the wall until his butt hit the floor. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a lone Palmira's flower. 'Hilarious.'

The beeping of Cliff's communicator alerted him of the time for shift change and he opened the bedroom door, throwing the flower over his shoulder with a sigh.

Time to wake Fayt up...

Albel held his breath as he looked over the boy, sleeping soundly for once. While they were on the road, Fayt hardly ever slept soundly on the hard ground of their camp. Until Ryoko had called for them to come to Earth, Fayt had never rested well in camp.

'Maybe I can just let him sleep for now and wake up Cliff for his shift in a few hours...' Albel reasoned, not wanting to steal this peaceful chance of rest from Fayt. 'But what would he think of that? I can't have Fayt calling me weak anymore. It's his turn anyway.'

With that decided, he nudged Fayt with his knee. "Hey."

"Nnnn?" He rolled over, rubbing his eyes childishly. "My turn already? Alright... just give me a second to run to the washroom." He yawned, climbing out of bed.

"Hmph." Albel followed the boy out of the room and waited by the bedroom door for him to return as he continued down the hall. "Stupid fool..." The man breathed to someone undecided, be it the one walking down the hall in his socks or the one standing in Albel's very shoes.

Sudden footsteps from another hall caught his attention and he stood swiftly, drawing The Crimson Scourge from his side. He slipped through the darkness, pouncing on the shadowy figure of a man, pinning him to the ground with sword-at-throat.

Albel's eyes glared menacingly into their surprised twins. "You..." He growled, recognizing the man. "What do you want."

"Ah, little cousin, sorry to disturb you, now please." He pushed the lean warrior to the side, where the younger sat scornfully, feeling like a scolded child. "I was just trying to escape some-" both heads turned down the hall as giggling and muttering was heard and soon several pairs of feminine eyes were locked on handsome crimson ones.

"Oh! Sir Albel's here too!" They started squealing over each other in hushed voices, running towards the men.

"Come on, little cousin!" Mackwell was on his feet, practically dragging Albel down the hall by the wrist. "I know a place where we can go!"

-

Frantic, Fayt looked around the hall, Divine Avenger drawn and ready for anything. All he found was a crumpled flower that looked as if it had been stomped on like the remains of a lit cigarette. For some reason the little thing gave him sorrow.

More sound from the roof caught his attention back to the situation. Albel or no Albel, Fayt had to get up there.

He charted the route in his mind as he ran, sword drawn. Out onto the White Dew Gardens and up a pillar... and he should be there just fine.

The queen's guards stopped him in the throne room and he explained that he had heard something on the roof and how he planned to get up there, asking them to split up and cover the king for him. They agreed and he continue to hurry out onto the gardens.

Now alone in the darkness of the night, the sparkling of the stars and their reflection in the sparkling of the city's candles seemed all the more magnificent. He found his body rebelling to be pulled away from the sight.

"Shh!" Albel hissed to his cousin as he peered over the edge of the roof, having heard the footsteps and the harshly breathed 'whoa.' Below him he could spot Fayt's back to him, blue hair reflecting the flickering of the lights and stars.

"What is it." Mackwell sighed, dreading the thought of his hiding place discovered by raving fangirls.

"Sh!" His cousin turned and threatened before slipping down off the roof, landing softly as possible on the balcony.

He walked a few steps until he was standing a little behind Fayt, overlooking the city through the wisps of sapphire that the wind blew. The boy shivered as it did, the cold air hitting his bare neck.

"Fayt, get inside."

This caused him to jump, whirling around, face a mix of glee, surprise, and relief. "Albel! You're alright!"

"Of course I'm alright, fool, what did you think could have possibly happened to me otherwise?"

"Well- hey, who's up there?" The boy pointed up to Mackwell who was peeking over the edge of the roof.

"Just a good for nothing fool." He responded in that 'never mind, dear, come along' manner he used.

"Hmph, Fayt, I didn't think you'd forget me so soon."

"Oh! Mackwell!" Fayt laughed slightly, extending a hand in greeting. "I couldn't see your face from down here. How have you been?"

"As well as I ever have been. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to my research."

"Right." He nodded, then the thought hit him. "Wait, are you working an anything urgent at the moment?"

"I cannot stray from the schedule, I'm already behind."

"Could you work on something else for a while, though? I have another project for you... I-I'll pay you extra, even."

The elder set of red eyes fell, annoyed and expectant, on the green.

"I have a friend who needs some help in research and alchemy. You see, she's trying to get her daughter back and-"

"You want me to help her? Why should I, don't the dead deserve to rest?"

"But she's all alone... who knows how many years she's been trying. And once you find it, I'm sure nobles would pay a very pretty penny for it. She already has the soul stone, she just needs to figure out how to use it."

"A mask."

"What?"

"I'll do it as long as I can wear a mask, something to hide my identity from her."

"She isn't that kind of girl, though."

"Allow me a mask along with 50,000 fol and I'll do it."

"Alright, I'll get you a mask and some money."

"The mask of Folstar."

"You're insane!" Albel butt into the conversation. ((Haha, "Albel" and "butt" in the same sentance!))

"What?" Mackwell smirked. "The job too heavy for your little friend? And since when do you care."

"I'm going WITH him, fool." The younger Nox corrected. "And you know as well as I do that the mask of Folstar has murderous powers."

"Too murderous for 'The Wicked One?'"

"Too murderous to be trusted to you."

"Well, then, I guess this friend of yours will just have to live without her daught-"

"We'll do it!"

"Fayt, you fool!"

"Mackwell, we'll do it. We'll leave to find it as soon as we can leave the king's side. Where can we get it."

"I don't know."

"What!" Albel cursed.

Mackwell laughed. "Something with that sort of power switched hands so much, it could be almost anywhere. I'd suggest checking some treasure holds such as the king's, Aquaria's, Corisel..." He made circles with his finger, nodding and walking off. "Good luck!"

"That baster-"

"Albel, come on, let's get some sleep." Walking through the door, he ignored the pretests until Albel finally fell into a stubborn silence, like a child with a temper.

They dismissed the guards and told them the story, sans the part about the mask. Not a word was spoken about the artifact of the death god Folstar until the company returned home.

-

"I wish we could return to Aquaria to use the library." Fayt piped up quite randomly one evening, a few days afterward, while laying on his back, Albel's bed at Wolter's mansion beneith him. "But I don't want to face Mackwell yet."

"Fayt, you're not seriously considering going after that thing, are you?" Albel glared over from the sofa.

"I need to help Misty. We defeated one of Folstar's appointed already, when we returned to Elicoor, and we've become stronger since...

"Whoever holds the mask right now holds the power to kill anyone via pure will. Do you really wish to meet them, much less have Mackwell get that sort of power?"

"I can trust Mackwell more than I probably could trust whomever holds it now. And then he'll help us find out how to reverse death itself. "

"You're a fool."

"You say that, but you'll follow me anywhere anyway, won't you."

"Hmph."

"Tomorrow we'll set out for the mountains of Barr. I highly doubt the king or queen has such a thing, especially after the war that it was never used in. Say, it doesn't have any... side effects... does it?"

"For every soul you take, you take a year off of your life." ((Author's note: For the sake of everything sane: 1 Elicoorian year 1 Earth year))

"Nobody could wipe out an army with that sort of power, they'd die too quickly."

"Right."

"Fine, I guess that scratches out my theory that it couldn't be here or in Aquaria." Fayt sighed, frustrated. "But I don't think that the king would just give it to us if he had it, would he?"

His companion laughed. "Could our adventures ever be that easy?"

Trying to hide the sudden surprise and blush that came with hearing Albel speak and laugh in such a way, Fayt chuckled as well. "You're right."

"That would make for a boring life anyway. That's why you're here. Without you, I think I'd die of boredom on this planet." The warrior smirked until he listened to himself talk and fell silent along with the room.

"Then we'll go to the mountains. If the mask winds up being here anyway, we can kick ourselves later."

"Feh, sure, whatever." The man had stood and walked over, pushed Fayt to move him over and crawling in next to him, trying to hide his awkward ambitious cravings for human warmth.

-

"Albel, go over there with your cousin for now. The adults need to talk." That's what mom would always say as she pat my back to go over near the fire where he stood.

Mackwell. Standing there with his proud red eyes scouring into mine from over the top of the book. We've always been a very successful family, with roots deep in all parts of the government. My father was the commander of the dragon brigade. My uncle was the head of intelligence. Due to our fathers, my cousin and I were held with high expectations.

He'd sit there and read, never speaking. I'd sit on the cold brick that not even the nearby fire could warm. Sometimes even the fires seemed to be freezing along with everything else since Airyglyph started to suffer such winters. But our fathers– no– we were destined to fix that.

That's why we're named such.

Albel after Albel the Great, 'the first king', who brought a golden age to Airyglyph.

And Mackwell, meaning 'suffering ends.'

Mackwell soon went off and applied in an Aquarian school before the war began. He quickly became the favorite among the scholars there. He had originally gone to find some way to shape Airyglyph into a better place, to bring the Nox name into even greater power. Our weapons, our agriculture, he was supposed to find out how to gain runeology and use it to even make the clouds disappear. That's why he studied alchemy. But he never came home, ever.

He became a traitor, scum, in my eyes at least.

As the second part of the power family scheme, I did my best to get ahead in the military. Though I failed in the Dragon brigade, I didn't give up. Wolter took me in and trained me, but I would never ride on the back of a beast again. That's why I started the black brigade, the only brigade on foot. I was going to lead Airyglyph to victory, become favorite of the king, and take his title as he died childless.

This wedding was completely out of our plans. As were you. Both things complicate all things. I will never overtake Aquaria, I will never take the country.

But, you know, it's better like this. I would sooner die than live such a boring life. My parents were fools, trying to use their only child as a pawn trying to overtake a king.

But nothing got in Mackwell's way, did it. He's right where he wants to be. A brain bank just sitting around and being favored by nobles. His father would be proud.

His father would be proud.

His

And mine would remain dead, his failed son being forever scarred as the last thing to flash before his eyes.

---------------------

Sorry it took forever! I had writer's block combined with a new job and school... I used the usual cure for block. Highlight. Backspace. Start over. So there's a block of Albel x Fayt goop that got left out because Fayt was being so OOC... sorry?

I'm going to try to fit MY Sophia in here. Because the way I view her is cool. She makes an awesome best-sister-friend-not-potential-girlfriend for Fayt. So be kind to her, she's the cool version.

Reviews get printed out and pastes on my Chem folder for emotional support during hard time! I love you all! Mmmmwa!