A/N: I began writing this on Christmas Eve, and then got thoroughly distracted so I stopped. It wasn't until last night..err..this morning at 1 o'clock did I randomly decide to finish. Then I passed out on my bed. Thought I'd share. Anyway, I finished and it is finally up, so sorry for the delay. After you are done reading please, please review. I need suggestions for future chapters. It is very upsetting when an author does not receive feedback on their work. So....

Disclaimer: I don't own Trigun

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The End

P.S. Happy New Year

Silent Scream

Chapter Four



Allegro skipped happily beside her brother, who was walking silently beside her. Suddenly, she jumped in front of Legato, and not paying attention, he nearly ran her over. He stumbled briefly before regaining his balance, sending his sister a minor glare that caused her to giggle.

"Legato has to watch where he is going." She commented innocently.

"Allegro has to refrain from running in front of him, unless she wants to be trampled." Legato scolded lightly, receiving another giggle as his sister's reaction.

She continued to skip, darting in front of and around him, much to Legato's irritation. When he was about to voice his annoyance, Allegro stopped in front of him.

"Can Big Brother take Allegro to see Rei again tomorrow?" She asked

Confusion spread across his normally passive face. "Why?"

"Because...Allegro likes Rei. Rei was nice to Allegro and helped her before Legato came."

"Oh yes, about that...what happened?"

Allegro returned to Legato's side, talking as she kept up with his pace.

"Well, after the bell rang, Allegro went outside by the stairs to wait for Legato like he said to, and Allegro took of her back pack while she sat on the stairs. Then the mean boys came and took Allegro's backpack, and tried to keep it away from her. Allegro tried to catch it, but they were throwing it too high. Then Allegro tripped and was going to give up until Rei came and told the boys to go away. She helped Allegro up and talked with her before Legato came. You know, Legato should be more nice to Rei."

Legato said nothing after Allegro had finished her explanation of the prior events. Instead, he immersed himself in thought again, oblivious to the steady rhythm of Allegro's footsteps beside him. Why had some random girl have the incentive to help his sister? No one had ever done so before, so why all of a sudden did some one decide to? What could she possibly gain from doing such a deed? Legato saw no profit for the blonde haired girl, and he continued to ponder the reasoning behind her actions. Who was she anyway?

'Where have I seen her before...Oh, that's right, she is in a few of my classes. Rei Madison,' he thought to himself, 'Hmph. What are you trying to accomplish?'

Legato was hindered from engaging in other thoughts, for he and his sister had reached the small building that they called "home". Allegro had ceased her skipping, and now clung to the safety of her brother. Hoping that their father remained at work, Legato opened the unlocked door and entered the house quietly. He peered around the corner looking to see if he could make out a heap that could possibly be his father on the couch.

Failing to find any vestige of his father's presence, Legato proceeded to the kitchen, where he scoured the cabinets for an edible snack. He soon found a package of chicken flavored Ramen and began to boil some water, pouring the noodles into the frothing liquid. When the noodles had been cooked, he grabbed a bowl from another cabinet, pouring half of the ramen into the bowl and handing it to Allegro, who waited happily at the nearby table. She devoured it swiftly, shamelessly sticking out her bowl for a second helping. Figuring that he had already had lunch and Allegro probably hadn't eaten anything substantial since this morning, Legato gave her his portion without a second thought.

When she had finished the second bowl, Allegro licked her pink lips and smiled up at her brother.

"Thank you, brother!" she chirped happily.

His reply was cut off by the sound of someone plodding up the steps of their house and slowly opening the front door.

"Allegro! Go into your room, hurry, now!" Legato commanded in an urgent whisper.

She immediately complied and scurried down the hall, fleeing into the sanctuary of her room. Legato meanwhile hastily gathered and tried to put away all the cookware he had used, tossing them into the pile of dirty dishes that lay in the sink. He heard the front door shut and the footsteps increased in volume as they slowly trudged toward him. The route to his room was cut off, for in order to reach it, Legato would have to walk out of the kitchen and through the same hallway his father was now using, resulting in his capture as he fled out of the room. Instead, he made a quick dash to the bathroom just outside the kitchen. He closed the door quickly, and hoped vainly that his father would be devoid of any suspicion.

Legato lingered in the bathroom for a minute, and then flushed the toilet to give the impression that he had actually used it. Confident that his father had not suspected any pilferage of the food, he opened the door...only to be smashed in the face by the same bowl Allegro had used and knocked to the ground by a hard fist.

"Did you think you could get away with it boy?" his father bellowed, placing the sole of his boot on Legato's head, the pressure of his weight causing the shattered fragments of the bowl to lacerate Legato's left cheek. "You could at least have tried to cover it up, but you left the stove on, stupid boy!"

When Legato didn't respond, his father put more weight on his head, causing him to wince and moan softly in pain.

"I will feed you when I feel like it brat, when I think you have deserved it, which you haven't," his father continued, "Now apologize, you greedy bastard!"

Deciding it was in his best interest not to put up a fight, Legato complied.

"Sorry-" he was cut off as the pressure increased, further imbedding the porcelain fragments in his flesh.

"Forgive me...Father…" He corrected reluctantly, his voice dripping with pure hatred.

His father removed his foot and took a step back, allowing Legato to recover briefly.

"Now clean up this mess and go," he commanded, indicating the splotches of crimson that mingled among the white shards on the hardwood floor, "Get your worthless ass out of my sight, I don't want to see your pitiful face for the rest of the day!" With that, he gave Legato a last kick in the side, and then turned to leave in the direction of the living room.

When he had regained his breath, Legato slowly picked himself up, removing a bowl fragment that had imbedded itself deep within his pale skin. Blood trickled down his lean face, and he could taste its liquid tin flavor as it graced his lips. He stopped briefly to wipe his cheek with his sleeve, staining it a deep red, and then began to pick up the bowl fragments. Only after he had removed the scattered pieces of the bowl and wiped down the floor did Legato return to the bathroom to inspect his wounds.

He had bled quite heavily, as the blood had made its way form his high cheekbone to his lower jaw, and some had even ventured down his neck. He used a wet cloth to wipe it away, and then applied pressure to the gashes to cease any continual bleeding. When he reduced the blood flow to a minimum, Legato examined the damage done by that accursed bowl. There was one long, deep gash that lay in the middle of his face, and it was surrounded by lesser lacerations. Thankfully, the cuts where on the left side of his face, so he could cover up most of them with his overgrown bangs, and avoid any questioning from teachers at school.

Finished with his examination, Legato exited the bathroom and walked to his room. As he passed Allegro's door, he could sense that she fretted over him, however he did not feel like dealing with her at that moment. Instead, he mentally sent her a warm feeling that rushed over her, lulling her into a peaceful sleep. He entered his own door, and made a b-line to his cot, collapsing on top of it and promptly passing out.

A/N: Well, that's it. Just delving a bit into what Legato is forced to deal with basically everyday, and its good for plot and character development. With each chapter, I am beginning to dislike using Japanese words...I don't know.. It works in some cases, i.e., oniisan and otousan/sama, but in others it seems forced. We'll see I suppose. Oh and what do you guys think of a name for Legato's parents, namely his father? I was thinking of making it another musical term, like Staccato, but it seems odd. If you have any other suggestions, please share them. Again, sorry for the delay, but it is difficult to come up with my own ideas without minor assistance from others. Moral: review. Its not that taxing nor require a great deal of effort. And it'll get updates for the story. Anyway, I look forward to your comments and I'll see you soon. Ja.