Disclaimer: I don't own Cain or Joshua.

Understanding

'What I thought was the shattering of both our lives at that time later became clear to me that the saying Silence is Golden was true.'

5 years later

The sound of polished leather shoes clacked down the empty corridors of the McDonnell mansion. Slowly knocking on the door, the green-headed teen waited for response – a small tinkling sound.

Tinkling came and the teen walked inside. The walls previously a dark navy had been painted white and slightly lined with gold with curtains and covers on the four-poster bed. There was no further furniture except for an antique dresser and a small bookshelf to occupy the rest of the room.

Former awards and such were no longer on display as a coveted golden collection but quietly place away in the attic. Such spaces were now filled with pictures of Cain and himself in the period of the three years that had passed.

Lord Cavalry, Cain's last b-daman was not put away with the awards but left on the ornate dresser as a reminder of his past.

The said blonde sat on the bed with his legs swinging down and a book spread open on the bed. His hair had remained much the same just slightly longer and wilder and his face had become more sculpted and less like a child's. He wore black leather pants with his trademark belts, which had lessened in number and a white trenchcoat with blue trim around the edges. His style was almost the same, just slightly more matured.

Joshua himself had grown out his hair as well. It now rested slightly above his shoulders and he had also grown. His style of dress had become less formal, and while the ever-familiar blue coat was still there along with the black dress pants and leather shoes, he seemed more comfortable and the white shirt had been unbuttoned to reveal toned muscle. And best of all he thought, the irritating red bowtie and the vest were gone.

"Here, I brought breakfast." The ex-butler handed the tray over to Cain who smiled gratefully and moved the book across. Then Cain grasped the tray and pulled it over to his lap. Thanks, the blonde mouthed wanting to see the smile across his friend's face.

Joshua smiled back and felt very satisfied for all those long hours learning how to lip-read and remembering the long hours of good-humoured torture they'd both gone through to gain this new ability.

You know you didn't have to do this, the boy mouthed again while holding the piece of bread to his mouth.

"But I should, Master Cain." The green-haired boy retorted playfully back, while seeing how much their relationship had grown and strengthened.

The Cain back then would never have thanked or asked, he would've demanded. And the Joshua back then would never had the nerve to actually engage in verbal banter with 'Master Cain.' But then 'Master Cain' had disappeared on the night they'd exchanged their first hug.

Cain laughed soundlessly at the comment and then moved over slightly to let Joshua onto the bed. Handing a piece over to his friend he bit into his own piece. Shuffling over to the silk covers Joshua sat down and for a few minutes there was no sound except for occasional munching and the slurping of coffee.

Cain finished first and placed the mug back on the tray then turned around looking for something. Five minutes passed and Joshua watched with mild amusement, as the blonde still didn't seem to be able to find the notepad Joshua knew he was looking for. Ten minutes passed and still he searched.

At fifteen minutes the blonde gave up and sat back down opening his mouth in a sigh. A hand passed onto his lap revealing a small blue notebook with a gold unicorn on it. Grabbing a nearby pen, he proceeded to write on it. You knew, didn't you?

Handing it to Joshua he waited till he'd finished reading it then shot the boy a small pout. Of course, a butler knows these things oh-great-Master Cain…It was just behind you

He smiled at his friend's utter disbelief at the location of the previously missing notebook and knew that Cain hadn't changed that much. Especially the bit where he could never find anything.

Again the notebook was passed to him. And you didn't say anything?

No, it's actually quite amusing to see you flail around once in a while. Call it entertainment.

Reading the comment Cain shot the ex-butler a dirty look and then proceeded to pretend to be engrossed in what he was reading.

It was a typical Cain reaction, Joshua decided. "Alright Cain, I'm just going to check on the paperwork. It's probably growing right now." He took the tray and left the blonde to sulk lightly on his own.

Dumping the tray on the kitchen bench he headed for his office – which had previously been a b-da training arena.

And yes, the pile indeed had grown. It was now ENORMOUS, no thanks to Cain who'd convinced him to take the day off yesterday to go to the park. But the new arrivals were still waiting to be sorted.

Going through the pile he quickly filed each one away in the appropriate order of importance according to Cain, "Check, fangirl letter, fangirl letter, marriage proposal, fangirl letter, bill, letter from Council, letter from Yamato, letter from Cou-"

Wait, letter from Yamato? He picked up the envelope and opened the slightly rumpled letter.

Hey Joshua and Cain!

This is Yamato here! We're on our B-Da tour and we're visiting near you. Gray, Terry, Wen & Li, me and Enjyu (YEA ENYJU) are all here. And Enyju's not actually that much of a sourpuss; he doesn't eat too much so I get his leftover sardine sandwiches! Terry and Gray say it's disgusting but I call it recycling. I mean it's good for the enviroment!

The idiot above is Yamato. This is Gray and I apologize for the above paragraph for no grammar and filling it up with crap. How are you doing with Cain? I know we haven't been in touch for a while since the NSA Incident.

Greetings, this is Terry. How is Cain doing? My sincere apologies for what I think Yamato and Gray wrote. Wen and Enjyu don't have anything to say that is polite in any sort of way. Wait a second lad, Wen says he's sorry for the comment he made back then – you know the flying leap of the cliff bit. Apologies again for their lack of subtlety.

Signed the Yamato, Gray, Terry, Wen & Li, Enjyu GANG

PS. Guess who came up with the AWESOME name! Me! Yamato!

PSS. CAN WE STAY AT YOUR ULTRA AWESOME GIANT MANSION! PLEASE! I'LL BUY A PROPER KITTY LITTER FOR TOMMY AND I WON'T DROP SARDINE SANDWICHES ON YOUR EXPENSIVE GEAR!

Joshua blinked then reread the letter. They were actually coming to visit. Soon too. Now he was stuck, it would be rude to refuse guests but on the other hand…he wasn't too sure that Cain could handle it.

Since the aforementioned NeoShadow Alliance Cain had become somewhat of a teenage hermit interacting only with Joshua and barely going out. All the previous maids and servants had been dismissed so it was only the two of them in the mansion alone. The blonde had done customary smiles but when he was provoked the fire still burned deeply in the violet orbs and he'd seen the way the hands clenched, trying not to strike out.

And that was with strangers. More so, these people were all bits of Cain's past, a past that Cain had tried so hard not to remember. Maybe, maybe the blonde couldn't handle it.

No, it was this kind of thinking that had created the power-hungry maniac that had previously been the young prodigy. Cain was ready for it. Things had changed and Cain had become more accepting, more forgiving and this would be a final test for both of them. Besides, Yamato and the others wouldn't be there forever. Only for a month at the most, he told himself. Reminding himself to write a formal non-insulting reply back with proper grammar he flicked through the rest of the pile. More contracts, bills and several important letters later he came across a small black envelope.

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

Cain stared out the window at the passing scenery. People watching...

Mrs. Poodle was out in her red jogging suit with her five poodles walking again. The suit was obviously a little too tight for her as several bits of flesh threatened to bulge out again. Aah...the reason for it.

Mr. Single GymTrainer walks by...Mrs Poodle smiles at him and winks. They have a short conversation until Mr. Single GymTrainer decides he needs to get going. He tries to go but is held back because the poodles have attached their teeth to his leg. He kicks out and they sink their canine fangs in, he then proceedes to scream like a teenage schoolgirl.

Mrs. Poodle looks horrified that her attempt to romance Mr. Single GymTrainer has failed and the love of her life is being attacked by her dogs. She screams as well and tugs desperately onto the leashes and yells something along the lines of "BAD DOG FIFI! LET GO!"

The dogs let go and Mr. Single GymTrainer rushes off to the safety of the gym with the 'NO DOGS ALLOWED' sign. Mrs. Poodle scolds the dogs furiously then breaks into hysterics earning many stares.

Little Brat is harrasing other kids again. He is determined to go on the swing and pushes the younger boy off. Kid Pushed Off The Swing begins to cry and Babysitter is giving him another scolding.

Little Brat laughs at his peer and then swears at Babysitter. Babysitter looks shocked and tells him, "What would your mother think if she saw you using such bad words!"

Little Brat smirks and replies, "Mama would think you said those naughty words in front of me..." Babysitter pales and mutters something about brats and paycheck.

Little Brat gets his way and hops on the swing. No one else approaches him for a go. Kid Pushed Off The Swing is hiding dejectedly under a tree sniffling quietly.

Couple walks past. Couple consists of the blonde guy who works at the Music and his green haired girlfriend who volunteers at the SPCA on weekends. They stroll past, hands in each other's pockets, whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears as if they were in their own little world that consisted of only themselves.

Couple always makes him depressed. People like them remind him of the one thing he will never have. Sometimes if he stares hard enough the feminine shape changes into Joshua and blonde hair starts to develop red highlights. And when that happens he drifts off, thinking about all he will never have and when he comes back to reality, Joshua is always there asking if he needs help, if he wants to go outside, if he's too tired or hungry. Only Joshua is never there to say those three special words; I love you.

So please Read & Review ppls!