"No…"

Xibalba was sweating, gritting his teeth as his feathers bristled and he dug his claws into the sheets. "Please, father… don't hurt me…" he was sobbing, just like when he was a child. He was having yet another of his nightmares that sometimes wouldn't let him sleep.

Everything ached.

The six-year old godling would have tried to crawl away from his father's threatening shadow, but every single joint and bone hurt as the floor was stained with the blood seeping from the fresh wounds on his back, staining his wings as well.

Tears ran down Xibalba's cheeks as he attempted to stand up, but gasped in agony when Akrinok pinned him to the ground with his large paw.

"Tears?" the dragon hissed. "You would show weakness to an opponent?!"

"I'm sorry, father!"

"I'll teach you to be sorry, boy!"

The godling's eyes widened in terror when Akrinok charged up a fireball…

His eyes snapped open and he jumped in the last moment, his eyes glossy and cold sweat running down his face. His heart was drumming in his chest, his teeth had grown sharp from fright and his feathers were bristled.

"Xibalba?" La Muerte nearly had a heart attack when out of sudden her husband woke up, looking as if he had seen a ghost, but she knew what had happened. "You had another nightmare, my love?"

Xibalba closed his eyes shut and took a hand to his temples, still shivering. He didn't find any words to speak. La Muerte understood, and gently placed her hands on his shoulders to comfort him.

"Everything's going to be okay, Balby. It was just a nightmare." She whispered.

"I know, but…" Xibalba sighed heavily. "Everytime I remember him… I can't help it…"

"Shhh, don't be afraid…" La Muerte gently cupped his cheek with a hand and turned his head to face her. "I'm here for you."

Despite the tension, Xibalba smiled at his wife and grabbed her hand in his own, before embracing her, snuggling his face into her hair. La Muerte returned the hug and ran her hands down his back; his scars were nasty-looking for most, but she touched them as if they were very sensitive. She knew they were for him; they would always act as a reminder of the cruelty he suffered. All she could do was to comfort him and assure him everything would be okay.

For some reason, Xibalba thought about the boy he had met on San Ángel. He still had his tear-stained face in his mind, how scared he was as he ran to hide from his father. He couldn't help it, he felt sorry for the boy, and he knew how it felt like to have an abusive father. He wondered how he was alright now, he hoped he was okay. But he quickly tried to shove those feelings aside, he didn't have to care for a mere human. And yet, he felt drawn to him, just like he had felt drawn to Joaquín Mondragon so many years ago.

A few days later, he found himself back on San Ángel, this time on his godly visage. Unfortunately, La Muerte couldn't join him, for she felt a little ill and had to stay on bed, he stayed with her until she fell asleep. He was thinking on getting a flower bouquet for her, but he didn't want ordinary flowers. He wanted special ones. Turning into a ball of tar, he zoomed through the rooves of the town, watching as people continued with their daily lives, most of them going back into their homes for the night. Nope, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to take a drink or two.

But as he was about to head towards 'El Solitario', suddenly he heard a cry coming from the plaza. Curious, he changed his destination and silently flew towards the plaza. He landed in the roof of the grocery store, and scanned the area for a few seconds. His eyes widened in shock when he found Alejandro scrambling against a wall, under the threatening shadow of the same man from before. His heart skipped a beat and churned inside his chest, waves of memories returning to him.

P-Please, father! Don't hurt me! I'll behave!

Alejandro tried to scramble away form his father, but the wall behind him was making it impossible. "I'm s-sorry, d-dad…!"

"I'll teach you to be sorry, boy!" the man snapped, unbuckling his belt.

"No, please!"

"This will teach you to show some respect to your father!"

Tears streamed down Alejandro's cheeks as he tried to shield himself from his father's beating, closing his eyes shut to wait for it to be over. But before his father has even laid a hand on him, his down never comes down. The man had been about to bring his ire upon the boy when a gloved hand grabbed his wrist in the last moment. Turning around, he saw the same man from a few nights ago glaring at him with a severe expression.

"Put. That. Down." Xibalba hissed through grit teeth, glaring unto the boy's father sternly.

"Or what? What are you going to do?" The man snapped back, releasing his hand from the stranger's grip. "This is not your business!"

"Only a coward takes out his frustrations on an innocent. Why don't you mess with someone your own size for a change?"

"Oh, is that a challenge?" The man dropped his belt and lunged at the disguised god, but Xibalba stood aside calmly and watched as the man fell to the ground, then pressed his right foot against his back.

"Do you want more?" Xibalba spoke coldly. "Or have you had enough for one night?"

Alejandro watched in awe as the Black Rider had come into his defense, and incapacitated his father, but he still didn't want him to get hurt. "Señor! Please don't hurt him!"

Xibalba glanced at Alejandro, then at the man that was his father. Though a part of him wanted to kill this scum for daring to lay a hand on a child, the Ancient Rules forbad gods from taking human lives without any justification or permission, and he didn't want to leave the boy an orphan. Reluctantly, he lifted his foot off the man's back and stood between him and Alejandro. Although furious beyond reason, the man found he couldn't do anything against the Black Rider, and stomped away, making his way through the crowd that had gathered to see how things turned out. When he was certain the man was far enough, Xibalba walked to Alejandro's side and knelt down to check if he was injured. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yes, señor…" Alejandro said.

"What happened?"

"I was just… I got home five minutes late, and my dad got angry. I tried to explain, but he wouldn't let me, then he chased me out here." Alejandro's voice was shaking, and his eyes were swelling up with tears once more.

"Shh. It's going to be okay." Xibalba gently pressed his fingers against the boy's side, and quickly withdrew it when Alejandro whimpered. A few broken ribs, and swollen bruises on his face and body. "You need medical attention."

"But-"

"No buts, child. You have broken ribs, you must be treated immediately." Carefully, he picked Alejandro up in his arms, careful not to move him much, and then headed towards the doctor's place swiftly yet careful not to move the boy too much. Alejandro felt confused as to why this stranger was being so kind to him, but decided not to say anything for the moment. The warmth of his embrace was something he had never experienced before, he wanted to enjoy it as long as it lasted. Xibalba, meanwhile, felt something inside him stir as he carried the human boy in his arms, something he had never experienced before. In some way he felt… happy.

Temporally pushing these feelings aside, Xibalba finally came to the door of the doctor's house, coincidentally being San Ángel's hospital house, his coat flowing behind him with the cool night breeze. Despite being a small town, the house was large enough to accommodate about hundred patients, more if they had enough profit. Unfortunately, there was only one doctor and he couldn't treat many people at the same time, despite the nuns often coming to help the ill people. Once he was in front of the doors, he knocked the door urgently; a few minutes later, one of the women working there as a nurse opened the door with a tired expression, and when she saw Alejandro in the stranger's arms, she was not surprised at all by the fact the boy had been brought, what did surprise her was who had brought him.

"Is the doctor busy? The child needs attention now." Xibalba said, not even waiting to be told he could go in to walk inside.

"I'll go get him. Please take a seat." The woman said, before quickly heading upstairs, probably to fetch the doctor.

Xibalba sighed, grumbling under his breath as he sat down in one of the chairs, holding Alejandro close to his chest, almost like a father holding his son, though he did not realize it. He wished he could use some healing spells to heal the boy's injuries, but Alejandro did not know of his true identity, and he'd rather keep it that way. It didn't take long before the doctor rushed downstairs and asked him to take Alejandro inside one of the rooms where he checked on newly arrived patients. Sadly, he was to leave the room while the doctor did his job, and so he was sent outside to wait.

It there was one thing he hated, it was having to wait. Luckily, the nurse approached him, probably to ask him what had happened. "Thanks for bringing Alejandro, señor…"

"…Sevillo." Xibalba replied, not looking at her, leaning against the wall with crossed arms.

"Thanks for bringing him, usually it takes longer for someone to find him."

"By the way, do you know how he… gets hurt?"

The nurse sighed sadly. "It's… his father has always been very abusive to him, it's been like it ever since Alejandro was born. His mother died giving birth to him, Armando never forgave him for it."

"I see…" Xibalba looked down sadly. So the boy had no mother… "But why hasn't anyone called social services or something?"

"Alejandro is too afraid of his father to speak of his abuses, no matter how many times we've told him that it'll be okay."

"I think it's pretty evident he is being abused!"

Before the nurse could reply, the doctor finally came out. Immediately Xibalba rushed to speak with him. "How is he?"

"He's got a few broken ribs, but they'll heal in a few weeks. Until then he has to take lots of rest."

"I guess he'll have to stay here in the meanwhile, I doubt his father will properly take care of him, or even care at all."

"The thing is that, unfortunately, there's a small fee to occupying a room in here, I can give a free consulting in this occasion but I'm afraid I can just give a bed away for free-"

"I'll take care of it." Xibalba said, not letting him finish and ignoring his surprised look. "In fact, I'll double the payment if you do something for me."

"What would that be, señor?"

"Do not let the boy's father in. The least thing he needs is to be beaten any further."

"But Armando's the only family Alejandro has, I agree that what he does is not right, but-" the doctor was cut off when out of sudden Xibalba's eyes glowed red for a faint moment, shifting something in his brain. "Though I must say you're right, it'll be best that Alejandro keeps some distance from his father while he heals."

Xibalba nodded, satisfied. "May I go see him?"

"You may see him for ten minutes, then he needs to rest."

Alejandro's waist was wrapped in bandages when Xibalba walked in, and there were some cotton gauzes covering his bruises. Alejandro's eyes lit up and he smiled a bit at the black rider. "Hi."

Xibalba returned the gesture. "How are you feeling?"

"It still hurts, but I'm fine."

"Say, Alejandro…" the disguised man pulled a chair closer and sat down next to him. "One of the nurses told me what happened to your mother, and how your father mistreats you."

"I don't know why dad is so mean. He's always saying it was my fault, but I didn't mean to cause my mom to die…"

"It was not your fault, boy."

"Dad says it was…"

"Don't listen to him. Sometimes when people are angry and hurt they say things that they don't mean."

Alejandro was still uncertain, however. "Do you think my dad loves me?"

Xibalba so wanted to tell him that he shouldn't worry about such an abusive father, but at the same time he didn't want to crush the boy's hopes. "Perhaps he does, but he hasn't realized it yet." He rubbed his arms and bit his lip, the conversation was bringing back hurtful memories. He managed to mask his pain before Alejandro could notice. Alejandro's eyelids felt heavy, and he rested on the pillows, relaxing his muscles and hurt joints, but as the Black Rider stood up to leave, he spoke. "Señor?"

Xibalba glanced back at him. "What is it?" he was surprised when the child smiled at him.

"Thank you." With those words, Alejandro fell asleep, snuggling against the pillows and blankets.

Once again, Xibalba smiled at the boy fondly, approaching the side of bed and gingerly pulling up the covers to keep him warm. "You're welcome… Alejandro"