Bolin sat in the wet ground, digging his hands through the mud. He liked the ground when it was soft and squished between his fingers. Loved the way he could smear it across his face, across Mako's face. Mama would sigh and scold her filthy children but she always smiled. Bolin's breath hitched at the thought of his mother, making the absence of his brother unbearable. He didn't understand why they kept taking Mako away to talk. It's not like Mako ever talked back, he didn't talk at all anymore.

Bolin sniffed, wiping his face when he suddenly lurched forward. He cried when his face collided with the muddy ground. Bolin's eyes welled up with more tears at the sudden ache in his nose. Turning around, he saw two of the older boys that stayed here. There were a lot of kids here and while Mako usually kept him away from them all, some of them were nice. These boys were not.

"Ow!" Bolin cried up at them, rubbing his aching nose. One of the boys just laughed while the other sneered.

"Told you he was a baby."

"'M not!" Bolin desperately wished Mako was back already. The kids left them alone when Mako was there. "'M six!" He stood and tried to be as brave as he could. His parents told him he was a big kid now. He most certainly wasn't a baby.

"There are already too many kids here. Last thing we needed was another baby and his freak brother." Bolin felt his face heat up.

"Mako isn't a freak!" Bolin's eyes began to well up again, upset by the boy's new target.

"Oh yeah? What else would you call this?" The laughing boy's face suddenly went slack and began to groan, letting spit slide out of his mouth. The other boy began to laugh until they both were curled over themselves. Bolin didn't find it funny, nor accurate. Mako was just quiet, he didn't groan and he didn't drool, he was just quiet is all.

With tears clouding his vision, Bolin lunged forward. The boy mocking his brother fell to the ground when Bolin pushed him as hard as he could. "Bitch" Bolin didn't get the chance to enjoy his victory before the other boy knocked him flat on his back. As the boy turned to help up his friend, Bolin couldn't stop the small sound building up in his throat. His whole body shook as fat tears ran down his muddy cheeks. When the boys looked back at him, they didn't look so amused anymore.

And a second later both boys toppled into each other and hit the ground, hard. Bolin only got a brief second to register that his brother was back before Mako fell upon one of the boys. The chilling vacant stare that his brother had worn for weeks was replaced by a look that Bolin didn't recognize. Mako looked so mad, in a way that he has never seen before. He's seen Mako fight, they've even fought each other sometimes. Though they were not supposed to. But Mako never hit anyone the way he was hitting the boy.

Mako's fists came down over and over on the boy's head. When the laughing boy got up and grabbed Mako's hair, instead of trying to pull away, he pushed back until they both fell to the ground. His brother was quick to turn and start flailing his fists on his new target. The first boy only curled in on himself as Mako and the laughing boy hit, scratched and bit at each other. Bolin was full blown crying now as he watched on.

It wasn't long before the adults were there. Bolin hadn't even noticed them approaching. One moment Bolin was helplessly watching his brother fight, the next, two men were pulling the boys apart. He hardly noticed the woman kneeling beside him when the man holding Mako began to drag him away. His brother making a series of angry and distressed grunts and whines.

Panic seized Bolin, he couldn't even hear the woman beside him. His entire focus on Mako. He felt his heart beat in his throat and his breathing getting faster and faster. Mako had fought and he was being taken away. Taken away just like his mama and papa fought before they were taken away, forever. Bolin choked and then screamed, racing after his brother.

Both the man and Mako froze as Bolin ran and tackled into Mako. His arms tightly wrapping around his brother as he wailed into Mako's chest. His pleas not to take his brother were indecipherable. Mako's free arm wrapped tightly around Bolin as he sobbed. Nothing else mattered right now but staying with his brother, making sure he doesn't disappear just like their parents.

"Bolin, honey." Mako's grip tightened on his shirt as Bolin peeked from his brother's shoulder. The woman who kneeled beside him a moment ago was standing beside them now. "I know you're upset but-"

"No! You can't take him away! Please, please, I'm sor-sorry!" Bolin's voice cracked as he struggled to get out the words through his sobbing.

"Oh, we're not taking him away forever." She cooed with a small smile. A smile that Bolin was really growing to dislike. "But we can't let him get away with fighting. Honey, he really hurt-"

"It's not his fault! I - they - they were being mean and Mako - papa told me he gotta protect 'cause he's older and - and-" Bolin dissolved into more sobbing as he curled as much as he could into Mako. The woman sighed and muttered something to the man holding Mako.

"Okay hon, you can go with Mako but that will mean you'll be in the time out room. You want that?" Bolin nodded, not bothering to look back at the woman. He didn't care where he went, so long as he was with Mako. A moment passed before Bolin's arms were pulled from Mako's waist. He was about to scream, panic building up when his arms were moved higher.

Mako moved Bolin's arms to wrap around his neck and lifted his little brother off his feet. Bolin didn't hesitate to wrap his legs around Mako and bury his head in his shoulder. As Mako carried him, Bolin felt his breathing get easier but the tears still ran. Even as they made it to the "time out room" and the door was shut behind them. Even as Mako sat on the small cushion, adjusting Bolin in his lap, he couldn't stop crying.

He missed his mama, the way she would have pulled him and Mako into her lap. His missed how she sang when they were sad or scared. Bolin missed papa's cooking and the way he'd lift them on his shoulders. Making them so tall they could touch the ceiling of their home and just out of reach of the clouds outside. Bolin missed when Mako would talk to him.

"Mako?" Bolin pulled his face away from his brother's shoulder. Mako looked down at him but said nothing, as expected. "'M sorry, I - I" his breathing hitched and Bolin began sobbing again but he didn't look away from his brother. Mako looked down at him sad and confused and began to pet Bolin's head comfortingly.

"I donno what I did to make mama and papa leave but I'm sor - I'm sorry!" Mako looked down with mounting horror as Bolin choked over his words. "Please talk again! I'm sorry, I'm sor-sor-" Bolin plea dissolved into more sobs, his breathing becoming harsh and erratic once again. Mako ran his hands through Bolin's hair and over his red, dirty cheeks. He adjusted Bolin in his lap and squashed his nose into Bolin's cheek.

"No, Bo" at the sudden noise, Bolin froze. "Not your fault-" Mako whispered into Bolin's face "-'m sorry." His breathing hitched and in an instant Bolin began to cry in earnest with his brother. "Sorry, sorry, sorry, not your fault, sorry." Mako repeated, oh so quietly, like a mantra as they both cried in the quiet, lonely room.

Grieving and aching and yet Bolin felt a sense of relief that his big brother could still talk, that he's not broken like other, meaner, kids had said. Relief that it wasn't his fault. Bolin still didn't understand why they were gone or why Mako didn't talk before but Mako said it wasn't his fault. So Bolin grieved, and he ached and felt like he couldn't breathe through his sobbing but at least it wasn't his fault.