If it is in normal style, then it is speech.
If it is in italics, then it is thought.
If it is in bold, then it is the individual's natural tongue.
If it is underlined, then it is Devil.

Author's Note: This is turning so much into a damn... "original" fic that it's not funny -.- Trust me, there will be A LOT more fighting later on. Sigh.

Chapter Ten: Finding

"How do we wake him up?"

"Perhaps we should jump on him?"

"Are you kidding, Shin?!" Changmin yelled in a hushed voice, "He'll fricken kick us in the balls!"

The younger of the two cousins blinked and grinned, speaking sarcastically, "You have balls? Since when?"

Slapping his head, Changmin turned and looked to Razer, who was standing nearby at the door with a wrapped up gift in her hands. She was observing it idly. Behind her was Baek, who was just sticking his head in briefly to observe the situation, leaving thereafter. Looking back to his companion, he spoke, jabbing his thumb towards the girl, "You know English, right? Ask her what she thinks is best for this situation."

Shin had turned to ask, but he found that she had left and was simply waiting in the lounge room. He growled, "I'm not going all the way over there! Let's just both jump on him at the same time, okay? That way we'll both be punished if he's in a crabby mood. It's only fair."

"Fine, on the count of three," he began, getting into position with his friend. He would jump on their buddy from the side, and Shin would jump from the bottom of the bed, essentially caging the whole of his sleeping form. Changmin's dark eyes flickered up briefly, seeing the determined smirk on Shin's face. He got ready, "One, two, three!"

Enthusiastically, Shin leapt onto his friend, however Changmin did not. He didn't want to be injured somehow, and by jumping on Hwoarang, that was practically asking for it. He did, however, shout 'Happy Birthday' with his friend, and the joint effort had scared the birthday boy beyond all belief, aggressive swears in two languages being thrown this way and that; to the point where he violently threw Shin-Min to the floor, knocking over the other male in the process.

Once the newly-turned 14-year-old calmed down, he glowered at the two of them with tired eyes and a happy smile, watching as they both moved to stand, "You're both pricks, you know that? I was having the most awesome dream, or series of dreams rather; and you guys had to screw it up! Why?!"

"Um, it's your birthday?" Changmin smirked as the realisation visually appeared on his face, "Today's the 9th of March, man! You're finally fourteen!"

Shin slung an arm around Hwoarang friendlily, "And to celebrate, we're dragging you outta here and we're gonna go do all sorts of shit! It's our present – whatever you want, we'll pay for it. We'll pay for the train in and your food as well. Just don't bust up our wallets too much, we need money you know!"

Baek burst in, bearing a similar, sly smile as the other two Koreans. He was fishing through his wallet. It had appeared that he had overheard everything that had just been said, and pulled out a nice load of cash, "Take this money as well just in case you guys blow the lot. Happy birthday kiddo, I've got your breakfast ready on the table. Razer's inside with our present to you."

He looked down to his stomach, which growled in protest at the lack of contents, and hopped out of bed, again shoving Shin aside. Changmin moved out of the way, having learnt his lesson last time, "Fooooooooooooood…"

His two friends followed him out, the oldest of the three speaking, "Hwo, you sound like it's the first time you've ever heard of, or have seen food before. Have you been eating? I mean look at you, you're damn thin! I can barely see any muscle definition on you! With all your Tae Kwon Do training, I should be able to see a hell of a steely six pack on your stomach, not to mention fucking firm thighs!"

Haunted by the fact that Shin was possibly checking him out, Hwoarang seeped into defence mode and attacked, "Shin, stop checking me out, and please don't make such descriptions? You're really scaring me here!"

"I love you too honey," he made a kissy noise then started to laugh, alongside Changmin.

Reigning in the urge to assault him physically, he refocussed his attention on the Greek girl, whose eyes were darting back and forth between the three, clearly wondering what the conversation was about, not to mention the laughter and the sound effects. He grinned slightly, her naïve expression amusing him in silence.

Eventually, she looked back to him, noticing him just stand there in his Homer Simpson boxers. She waved good morning to him and spoke softly, clearly cautious in doing anything else due to their new company, "Happy birthday."

He waved back and bowed his head slightly in appreciation. She knew that he wanted to hold up his mask, "Thank you."

It took a fair whack of time for the birthday boy to gobble up his bacon and eggs, due to the constant harassment from Shin-Min and Seo Changmin. They were cackling amongst themselves, making comments here and there, and even boycotted his breakfast at one point, much to his frustration. He kneed Changmin for that, and didn't apologise when he was on the floor, nursing his family jewels. They eventually left him alone after that incident.

When the pair had skittered off elsewhere to test out Baek's new equipment (with permission, of course, reasoning that they most definitely wouldn't want to get on the bad side of a professional Tae Kwon Do practitioner, let alone a teacher), it was then that Athane skittered up towards him with his gift firmly in her hands. He eyed it firmly, refusing to pry it from her hands, even when she pressed it out to him, "You didn't have to."

"I wanted to," she countered, "We wanted to, Baek and I."

"Your friendships are more than enough," he simply replied.

She smiled and placed it on the countertop, "Please take it."

Giving up, he moved the now empty plate aside and opened the hand made card, which had clearly been done by Baek. He was always a creative one. This year's card had a nice pattern on the front. He was unable to hide the grin when he scanned over both of their birthday wishes, even noticing the dog that Baek had spontaneously drawn on the bottom. Razer simply had done fancy writing for the 'Happy birthday' part.

His sienna eyes briefly flickered to the girl, and the teacher who had come to stand beside her, and quickly, he set to work in unwrapping the bulky present. Sliding his fingers along the crevasses, as to remove the sticky tape, he moved the paper aside, seeing the two gifts idly sitting there. One was a game he had been wanting for a while, curtesy of Doo San, and the other was a photo album, from his fellow student.

To this, he was confused, however before he had the chance to thank them both and ask why, the 12-year-old had answered him, "I didn't know what you wanted, so I went for a little wander again, albeit I got lost. Silly me. But um… I thought that if I got you this, you would be able to keep your memories close to you. That is the intent."

He smiled and stood up from his seat, leaning across to hug her, "Thanks, you thoughtful girl."

Baek grinned at the scene and turned to leave, taking the plate with him, "I'd better start washing the dishes."

The thundering sound of feet was soon heard, and the two quickly let go of each other before Shin and Changmin lumbered inside and caught them. Hwoarang set up the mask once more before they entered, feigning indifference to the foreigner, leaning to the side with crossed arms. His sienna eyes narrowed a little, watching as the pair tumbled in, yelling all sorts of things.

"Hwoarang Hwoarang Hwoarang!" Changmin remarked, "Hurry up, get dressed and let's goooo already!"

Rolling his eyes, he muttered something inaudible under his breath and moved into his room, hurriedly whacking on a pair of black baggy jeans, sandals, and a long, crimson shirt, the front of it partially open. It had a lighter red dragon pattern, which snaked around the torso of the clothing, the head finishing on his right shoulder. The wallet chain rattled against his thigh, making him jump slightly, reminding him of the two items in his pocket – his wallet and his phone. Quickly fixing his hair, he slipped his goggles on, and looked at himself in the mirror. He might run into a girl in the city, he needed to look damn good.

Camera. He needed a camera as well. He wanted to put that photo album to good use, starting today. Fishing through his drawer, moving aside socks and shorts, he came across the small thing, and slid it in his pocket. It didn't bulge out so much, so for all he cared, they could assume that it was his phone (even though it was with his wallet in the other pocket).

Still, something was missing, and it took him a moment to realise what it was.

Fishing a hand down his shirt, he pulled out the rocket pendant and gently let it drop. The piece fell against him with a dull thud, and satisfied, he turned to leave, flicking off the light. He closed his bedroom door behind him, and with a slight smile, ran down the main corridor and out of the training area of the dojang, seeing his fellow Koreans waiting for him at the door.

"Have a good time," Razer said.

He stopped, turning, and thought for a moment. Despite himself, he spoke, dropping the mask unknowingly, "Come with me."

"What?"

He hesitated, realising his current vulnerability, before speaking again, "I said, 'come with me'."

"But this is a day out with your friends," she spluttered, "Go with them. Have fun with them."

"You seem to frequently forget that you're my friend too, Raze," he remarked, heading back inside, much to the curiosity of Changmin (though Shin knew what was being said). Quickly assessing her clothing, he judged that she didn't need to go and change into something more comfortable. Grabbing her small wrist lightly, he pulled her along with him, "And I want to spend the day with all of my friends. The Birthday Boy wants Miss Mediterranean with him."

She was still trying to get out of it. As much as she wanted to go with him, Devil simply uttered in her mind over and over again facts that simply weren't true, "But Miss Mediterranean does not wish to be a bother to the Birthday Boy."

"Miss Mediterranean never was a bother to the Birthday Boy."

With that said and done, he pulled her along and out the door, announcing to his two friends that she'd be coming along.

The door closed and locked quietly, leaving Baek in the silent dojang by himself. Placing the clean dish into the rack next to him (so it could drain), he looked up at the window before him, still smirking as his hands now vigorously scrubbed a cup clean, removing the coffee stains at the bottom. As he did, his mind was elsewhere, thinking.

How many more walls and doors must she go through before Hwoarang wholly accepts her?

That smile on his face…

…Or have I turned a blind eye to them for so long that she is already in his heart with me and his parents?

He supposed it would be best to call Jun later and discuss it with her, if she was still in her Tokyo hotel.

"Yeah well I'm so cool because I can do multiple back flips," Changmin stated.

"Yeah? Well I'm so cool because I'm just overall awesomer than you!" Shin sneered.

Razer muttered, "What are they going on about?"

"'I'm so cool that' blah blah. It's normal, we're just picking on each other," Hwoarang stated, turning to his friends, "Sorry but I'm cooler. I was named after a martial art, and an elite group of male youths in the Silla Kingdom."

"All of which mean 'flower knight...'" Baek remarked from the door, turning away with a smirk.

"Shut up!"

"Oh man, I'm so full of ice cream that I think I'm gonna burst…" to illustrate his point, Shin burped, and then immediately made an unpleasant face.

Changmin inquired, furrowing his eyebrows together, "What's wrong?"

"Dude, I think I just threw up a bit in my mouth!" he remarked loudly.

He laughed, though was still disturbed by the thought, "Gross!"

Shoving the boy, he turned to Hwoarang and waved good bye, "We'll see you at school. Happy birthday!"

Hwoarang waved at his two leaving friends, thereafter closing the front door and turning to the last remaining friend. He clapped his hands together, ignoring the plastic bags that were swinging off his forearms, and spoke, "Right, what do you say to some video games? We can test out that game that Baek bought earlier. It's called 'Primal'."

"You only wanted it because of the attractive girl on the cover, am I correct?"

"Maaaaaaaaaaaybe!" he grabbed her wrist for the umpteenth time that day and pulled her to the living room, "But it's not just about the women, ya know. It's gotta have good graphics, a great story, decent game-play, and actioooooooon baby! Action is where the money is in these things. Action makes the video game industry thrive."

A deep voice cut in, making the pair freeze in their tracks, "And at five thirty in the afternoon, what do you think these people who made the games were doing at your age? Why, they were doing their homework, of course! Hop to it Hwoarang, you need to get your history assignment done. It's due tomorrow."

The youth looked to his Master, "But Baek, it's my birthday!"

"I know. You can stay up late tonight and play the game, but please finish your assignment first."

"Can't you do it for me?"

"Um, no."

"Fuck, I need to start…"

"Hwoarang?!"

"…Fuck, I shouldn't have said that!"

"Damn right you shouldn't have, and don't fucking swear!" he lightly smacked his student upside the head, "Get to work!"

Grumbling something under his breath, he let go of his friend's wrist and tottered off to his room to change into more comfortable clothes (mainly, lose the shoes) and dump his new found gifts (consisting of a guitar tab book, some guitar picks, a couple of vouchers, two shirts, and an SD card for his MP3 player) on the floor. He eventually came back out with his homework in hand, and his exercise book, and sat in the middle of the isolated dojang, writing out the essay by hand. If push came to shove, he could jump on the computer later.

Razer looked to Baek, "Why does he always work in there?"

"It's spacious and quiet, and we can't really bug him," he rubbed his temples, "I can't believe he didn't start the assignment."

"Maybe we can help him. What is it on?"

"It's on the First World War. I don't really know enough about it to help him out."

She tied her hair up into a ponytail, fiddling with the elastic in the process, "When I was in Greece, I would stay in the library during recess and lunch to study. I read a lot, and one of the things I liked to read about was the First World War. I was a history junkie… May I go and help him? It is his birthday after all."

Baek grinned and moved to the lounge, going to turn on the television, "Sure. Dinner will be ready in an hour and a half."

Nodding slightly, she tottered off towards her friend, her bare feet treading over the floorboards. She eventually stood behind him, unnoticed, and peered at his work, wondering what it said, knowing that she had no hope of understanding what it meant. She had learnt a few characters here and there, though it was still difficult for her to register them immediately.

"Is there a reason you're peeking over my shoulder?" he asked, looking up at her through wide eyes.

"World War One, huh?"

"Yeah. I need to pass this too, I'm failing the class badly. Way to go Hwoarang, another spectacular fail!"

"Now now, you haven't even finished the assignment yet…"

"I should be on failblog dot org."

She chuckled slightly at his statement. That website was highly amusing, "Did you want help?"

"Oh God yes, please."

"Wait wait, turn left here!"

"With what, the control pad or one of the joysticks? Why does one need so many directional outlets?!"

"The fucking –" he took the control out of her hands and did it himself.

"Fine," Razer said, "You play. I do not know why you offered it to me."

"Wanted you to be a part of it."

"This game is stupid."

"No it's not! You're just not following it right."

"Not my fault that I never played video games at home."

He stopped for a moment, bewildered, unaware that his character was getting hacked to bits by demonic monsters, "Really?"

"Yes."

"Spent too much time reading, hm?"

"I… was not allowed."

"…Really?" he watched as she nodded slightly, "God, I can't imagine that."

You cannot fathom the things that went on in her home at all, Hwoarang, let alone the very being that is tearing her down piece by piece from the inside, Devil chuckled, The torture that was deliberately enforced day in, day out, for twelve solid years. You think you know loneliness by name, Korean filth? You know nothing.

Shut up.

But it is true, isn't it? I mean, come on, you were not allowed to do things that normal children do, let alone play video games. I can give you a list, though I'm sure you remember. You couldn't play video games, you couldn't hang out with children your own age, you had to be home immediately after school just so you could be locked up in your room, you had to be the best child and student – better than everyone –

Shut up, dammit.

Hmmm, what else –

"Shut up!"

The Korean silenced from his jabbering about the game and paused it, looking at her through narrowed sienna eyes. His hands were tightly gripping the controller as he spoke slowly and tried to keep calm, "What did you say?"

"I didn't mean that for you…" she murmured.

"Then who did you mean it for? A voice in your head?"

"…Yes…"

"Yeah they get the best of ya, don't they?"

Bewildered, she looked up, "Huh?"

He turned back to the screen, unpaused the game and manoeuvred the character towards the centre of the base, "Like you've got one side of your thoughts and then another, and they're pretty much fighting one another continuously. Like 'oh I like this shirt' against 'blah I can't afford it'…" he noticed her stunned expression from the corner of her eyes and chuckled, "It's not like everyone's got a demon inside or something."

Oh, believe me, I'm here and I can hear every word.

Razer ignored the devil within and chuckled at Hwoarang's remark, "Yeah."

Soon enough, soft footsteps were heard pattering in. The light in the lounge room was flicked on, and a tired Baek was standing there in his white pyjamas. His hair was left out, and it already looked ruffled, "Guys, I think its time to go to sleep. It's almost midnight. It's not advisable to stay up so late, and you've got school tomorrow, Birthday Boy."

Athane stood and stretched her legs, "You are right. We are still young and need our sleep. Goodnight Master, goodnight Hwo."

She moved to go to her room, but was stopped by her friend, "The hell are you going?"

"To bed?"

"Doesn't the Birthday Boy get a hug?"

Rolling her eyes, she turned around, watching the 14-year-old turn off the PS2 and stand on his feet. Lazily tossing the beat-up controller next to the console and turned to face her, opening both his arms, waving her over. She tiredly moved into his hold and loosely wrapped her own arms around his form, squeezing him tightly for a moment (and being squeezed in return), before letting go with a small smile, retreating once again to her room.

The two males stood there for a moment in silence, casting occasional glances at one another, and at the door. Doo San looked at his student for a long moment before speaking in the privacy of their native language, "She has changed you, and it's only been eight months since she arrived."

"Everyone changes when they have a real friend," Hwoarang countered, sleepily smiling.

"You're happy. I mean you're genuinely happy. I'm thrilled to see that, because for so long you were down in the dumps, and I mean downnn in the dumps. I wonder, for however long she stays, how much more will you change? And how much will you change her?"

Sienna eyes darted towards his Master, who was turning and leaving. He flicked the light off.

"June 6th."

The teacher stopped and looked over his shoulder, finding it difficult to see his student in the darkness, "Wha…?"

"That's her birthday."

"And?"

"I want to make something for her, and I want you to help me."

He tilted his head slightly, wondering where this act of consideration was coming from. He was finding the change difficult to comprehend.

"Teach me how to sew."