Chapter 10
Enjoy~~~
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The Kirkland house hold is quiet 90% of the year. Alana and Arthur live apart from their parents in one place and Alistair looks after Dylan in their apartment on Magic Academy Campus. However when ALL the children are home...
SMASH
"Brandon!" sighed Arthur, pinching the bridge of his nose. He as sat in an armchair with Leon perched on the arm, reading the book over his shoulder. Leon raised his eyebrow at the smashed vase, Brandon had a bat in one hand and the ball- well, it had flown through the vase.
"Ooops" said Brandon, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Ah mum's gonna kill you~" snickered Dylan from the doorway. He narrowed his eyes at Leon for a moment but decided it was innocent and he would let it pass. Actually, he had taken a liking to the boy; he was broken but... He and Arthur just sort of clicked.
"Shut up brat! Where were you last night anyways?" the red head snapped.
"'Lana's going to kill you" said Alistair amusedly. He had coffee in one hand and a newspaper in the other, it was only 8 am after all.
"C'mon guys! Don't tell her!" Brandon pleaded.
"Tell me what?" asked Alana, she was dressed in a green silk nightie with matching slippers and a white dressing gown. In fact, they were all in their pyjama's. Arthur in red pants with a button down shirt, Alistair in blue pants and a plain white t-shirt, Dylan in an orange version of Arthur's and Leon in a black shirt and red sweatpants that hang loose off his too skinny frame.
"...Shit."
"Oh Brandon, you broke the vase again?" she sighed, Leon smirked at how much she and Arthur were alike...But Arthur was definitely cuter- he'd have Leon's head for calling him that.
"Sorry" he mumbled.
"Hmm, just don't do it again" she waved her hand and it fixed itself, then she sat on the sofa beside Dylan and Alistair.
Everyone stared at her.
"Well you're in a good mood" remarked Alistair with a raised eyebrow. Alana shrugged, leaning back in the chair.
"I've just been talking to Erik-
"Your boyfriend" said Brandon, the Kirkland's were rather... Territorial.
" Who is NOT my boyfriend. And he said that Herakles told him that he'd heard from Kiku who was told by Eliza that the familiar's have been issued a notification that they have to find a Master which means the competition is coming up soon!" she announced.
Arthur frowned an Alice meowed in agreement to his discomfort. Finding a familiar isn't a process to be rushed, Alana found Alice at thirteen but Alistair didn't have his until he was twenty and their father when he was thirty four. It just happens, no rushing necessary.
"Oh! Did you guy's hear about that kidnapping, apparently it was the same guys who took Arthur-" Brandon faltered, realising what he had said and Dylan sent him a death glare.
the same guys who took Arthur
the same guys who took Arthur
"I'm going upstairs, I need to think about something" mumbled Arthur rather abruptly, standing up and leaving as fast as he could.
Dylan followed after him, looking concerned and Leon looked unsure whether to follow or not.
"I didn't mean to" said Brandon miserably.
"I know lad, it isn't your fault. Just be a little more sensitive to the poor lad, eh?" Alistair said in an uncharacteristically gentle voice.
Brandon sighed heavily and Alana patted his shoulder reassuringly.
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Leon and Arthur hadn't spent a moment apart for weeks, Leon didn't want to overstep his boundaries. Dylan was his REAL brother by blood, he was only brother in name and he couldn't even count on that just yet. In truth, he was terrified at the very thought of Arthur getting sick of him, it made him nauseous. Arthur was everything to him, he gave Leon a reason to gather his strength and finally speak up. Arthur was worth the beating's his mother put him through, if only he could stay by his side it would be more than enough.
Arthur made him feel like he was walking on air, living in a fantasy land far away where the trees were made of candyfloss, the grass was blue and everything was perfect. That he hadn't been beaten, abused and he hadn't been coerced into having sex with strangers, that the life his step mother put him through was nothing more than an awful nightmare.
Arthur gave Leon the will to live. Losing Arthur would send him over the edge... He definitely didn't want to drive him away. No, Arthur was precious and magical and everything he loved in the world...
Arthur was special. Precious.
"Go, he needs you" smiled Alana encouragingly.
"Ah no, it's not my place" replied Leon, nervous only when it came to Arthur.
"He needs you just as much as you need him. You helped him more than you will ever know. Go" she soothed.
Leon swallowed the lump in his throat, gathering his courage to follow after the others.
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"It's nothing Dylan, just go back to the living room" said Arthur stiffly.
"Arthur... I know there's something wrong, just tell me what it is!" pleaded Dylan through the door.
"Dylan just...Please drop it" said Arthur brokenly.
"Arthur..." said Dylan, heartbroken.
"Dylan you know I adore you more than anyone else in the world but...I don't want you to have to be burdened with me any longer. You don't have to look out for me, doing that has gotten you into nothing but trouble, it was my fault you got attacked and tat you got sent back to the Academy. Don't worry about me, go enjoy your life. Live it to the fullest, go find that dragon of yours and play like you used to."
"Stop it! You've never been a burden, what happened has never been your fault. If anything, it was mine! I provoked them; it's not your fault they love you. I don't know where any of this is coming from!"
"I'm sorry" whispered Arthur.
Was he...Crying?
"Arthur. Oh my God!" said Dylan, he was beginning to panic.
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Alana frowned, sharing unsure looks with Alistair.
"I think I'd better-" said Alana, half rising out of her chair.
"Nay. I'll do it."
"You sure Al?" asked Brandon, his eyebrows knitting together.
"Aye."
Leon slumped dejectedly in his chair. He was a coward after all. That was when he decided; he had to become strong, for Arthur's sake.
Because if he didn't, who would?
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Alistair rapped on the door firmly.
"Go away Alistair, I'm fine!"
"No you're not, you've been crying." said Alistair with a frown.
"I reserve the right to" said Arthur and Alistair grimaced. He had been too disapproving, already off to a bad start.
"Listen lad, I know it's hard but-"
"Hard! Hard? You try waking up soaked in sweat and too terrified to move for fear everything since then was just a dream and they were coming back to try something new and even more painful then before. It may have only been a week here Alistair but it was months for me. They held me in a pocket dimension, remember? Hours and days and weeks of screaming until I couldn't scream any more. Hoping, no praying it would stop even if only for a second. I wanted to die. At that moment, I thought you had all given up on my useless existence and had left me to burn in hell, I even pondered whether I was already dead but no, it was real. All real."
"It's okay Arthur, everything's okay" said Alistair gently, opening the door and gathering his wreck of a brother in his arms.
"Let it all out" he soothed.
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"I dreamt about it last night. I'm sorry for losing my composure, could you apologise to Dylan for me?" Arthur mumbled into Alistair's shirt.
"What for? You've done nothing wrong"
"I worried him, that's wrong enough."
"He would have worried anyway, it's not your fault, don't worry about that...That was the first time you've ever told anyone what really happened. What changed?"
"...I have to take r-responsibility for myself. I'm going to be an adult soon and I've been living in an adult world for a long time. I have to grow up."
"No you don't, just take things at your own pace. The competition will be fine, you have Leon to help you through things and a familiar at your side-"
"I don't have a familiar yet" frowned Arthur.
"Yours may be closer than you think, I can smell it's scent on you already. Soon, you will find it soon."
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