-Dream-

Tala was busy tending to the wounds. They were almost endless and gruesome enough to scare any other 6-year-old, but he was used to this. His friend had just returned after spending an hour with their master. As always, he hadn't cooperated and the result was right before his eyes. Tala's mind clung to the word 'friend', it felt so insufficient. The small boy lying before him was a lot more than that. He was his only anchor to sanity. They had been through so much together in their short lives, that seeing the other boy hurt was enough to drive him mad. But there was nothing he could do about it. Tonight also he had been nothing better than a pathetic onlooker as the guards punished his friend. "Sorry..." he whispered.

"you shouldn't say that Tals.." came the soft reply. His patient slowly opened his eyes. And Tala felt a fuzzy sense of happiness when he saw the fire in those crimson eyes. "We will make them sorry" This was his Kai. Beaten and bruised, yet never broken. With that, he slowly rested his head on his chest and slept. Tala watched the sleeping figure, he was still. Very still. A sudden needle of panic pricked him, and he jerked Kai awake. But instead of crimson, he was confronted with gold lifeless eyes. His friend spoke but the voice that came was totally different. " Tala… you were late.." Ray's voice venomously whispered.

- Dream over-

Tala woke screaming. He was in a dark room. The first thing he noticed was that he was bound.

"How are you, my precious?" came a deep silky voice. He recognized it. He looked up and saw Hiwatari smiling at him. Tala did the most natural thing: he screamed and tried to get up from the bed, but the sharp pain from his forehead made him regret this. He let out another agonized shriek. He was having trouble breathing, but he managed to say, "S-stay a—a-way from me, you—you monster!"

Kai laughed and replied in a tone dripping with mockery, "after what you witnessed, you still think I'm the only monster? Well, you seem to have enjoyed living with one. Or haven't you got that fact through your thick skull yet?"

There it was. The topic he had been trying to avoid. Just the slightest mention of it felt like someone was trying to rip his heart out. Denial was his only strategy.

"I know you are lying. You set that whole thing up!"

"Oh, so that's what you think I am? A shapeshifter? Or do you think the idea of Balkov having an identical twin is more believable?"

Tala had no response to this. He would have continued to deny all of it if he hadn't seen it on his own. He suddenly remembered something.

"Ray was dying. He – "

"Ray is dead. I made it faster for him. With my gun, but Balkov escaped."

"BUT, WHY WERE YOU THERE, if you had nothing to do with his murder? He had a lead on you, you had a reason to kill him! So stop playing innocent!" Tala accused.

This time Hiwatari burst out laughing. The sound both angered and scared Tala.

"Really Tala? I thought you to be smarter than this. I sent you that message. His phone was lying discarded on the ground. I had been spying on your so-called dad for a while. He was Henry to you, but I saw Boris Balkov right through his mask. I knew you would never believe it if I told this to you, but you would if you saw it. It was the best opportunity to unveil Henry's true identity to you."

A knot of disgust grew in Tala's stomach. "So, you knew that he was going to kill Ray. You were there in the shadows the whole while; you could have saved him! But you let him die, for WHAT?!

"For you. You had to see the truth, and this was the most elegant way I could think of. In case you were late to arrive, you could have reported Ray's body. I owed that man at least that much. As a matter of fact, he had signed his death warrant the day he took up the job as my keeper. I just didn't want him to be left there for maggots, and I had a reputation to maintain."

Tala couldn't believe how sick this was. But, after last night, he didn't think he could believe anything or anyone ever again. He was back to nothing. The foundation on which he had built his second chance in life had crumbled. He felt empty…

He wanted to cry, but he couldn't give Hiwatari that satisfaction. Instead, he gathered all his strength and asked, "Will you kill me?"

Hiwatari grinned like an eagle that was assessing a chick, his prey. "You wouldn't be asking this if I had wanted you dead." Tala noted that he had a point there, but his relief was built on sand. There were a lot of things worse than death and Hiwatari seemed capable of delivering all of them.

As though reading his thoughts, Kai placed a hand on his cheek and lifted his chin. They were eye to eye now and Hiwatari was so close, that Tala could feel the warmth of his breath on his face. He didn't dare move and Kai whispered, "if you cooperate, you will live. I want to know something, understood?" there was a certain gentleness to this question, but it did not deceive Tala.

"NO" was the stern reply. What happened next was a blur, he felt a hand strike his face. Kai slapped him. They stood there in silence; their heavy breaths were the only audible sounds. Kai regarded him for a moment and turned to leave. But he called out, "You can deny it as long as you want, but I know that a part of you wants to know what is happening. No matter how hard you try to escape it, deep down you know that this is not who you are. I'm not telling you anything new, you have known this all along. Tell me when you are ready to hear the whole thing." With that, he exited.

Tala was left sobbing in the darkness. He saw his entire life play like a movie in his mind, but the beginning was still missing. He howled in frustration. He would go to any extent to find himself. To embrace his true identity. And Kai was right, he needed to know. It wasn't something new, this knowledge was his right. The next time they were face to face, something would change. Forever. He had to steel himself for that, because Hiwatari's actions may be intimidating, but his words were chilling.

Kai and Tala finally had a conversation! if you are still reading, Thanks a lot. I would be really glad if you review. Bye!

Ember 2022