Disclaimer - I do not own DGM

Chapter Six - Passage of Time

"Class dismissed…"

The moment that the teacher gave his permission for the students to leave the classroom thirteen year old Mana Walker grabbed his books and made haste to the front exit. This day had been long and excruciatingly boring, which made the brown haired youth beyond happy that it was finally over. He had been edgy all day but was hoping that his new found freedom would help alleviate these feelings. Stepping out into the courtyard ahead of most of the other students Mana shifted his brown eyed gaze toward the front gate, holding up his hand to shield his eyes from the sun. This was the spot where he and his younger brother Neah always met after school. But, as of yet, there wasn't any sign of the seven year old, so Mana positioned himself beside the gate to wait for the child to make an appearance.

His gaze surveyed the group of children as they jostled past, looking for any sign of Neah's unique head of mahogany hair. Normally his brother was one of the first to leave the school, since he hated to be caught up in a crowd of any kind, but that didn't seem to be the case on this particular day. He was running behind schedule and Mana found himself wondering what exactly could have happened to hold the boy up. "Where on earth is he?" Mana muttered out loud as he scanned the crowd of children intently. The pair of them had made the journey to school together that morning so he had no explanation as to why there was currently no sign of his brother now that it was time for them to go home. Placing the tip of his index finger to his bottom lip in thought Mana mused, "Maybe he's just trying to avoid going home…"

Under normal circumstances Mana would think that was definitely the case, since Neah would rather be absolutely anywhere other than their house. Not that this was all that surprising given the little boy's circumstances. The large house where they lived appeared nice on the outside, to the uninitiated observer, but it was a place of unbridled horror for the seven year old so he would do absolutely anything within his power to prolong his time away from it. But the man who had fathered the two of them had gone on a trip for a couple of days so the child had gotten somewhat of a reprieve.

A reprieve which he desperately needed.

Things had been bad for the boy when he was small but as Neah had grown older his resemblance to their deceased mother hadn't faded, nor had the hatred that their father harbored toward the boy. In fact, if anything, the man had grown more violent toward his younger son the older that Neah grew. Mana was aware of this fact but since he was never around when the man became violent there was no way for him to intercede on the younger boy's behalf. He would have been more than willing to do so, wouldn't have given it so much as a second of thought, but Neah had taken to hiding his injuries and acting as though nothing were happening. Despite the fact that Mana could read him like an open book, owing to the fact that his expressive gray eyes betrayed his emotions. And yet Neah kept up the act. Rather than seek the help of his brother the child opted instead to repress everything that happened to him, pushing those emotions and memories to the deep recesses of his mind and acting as though all was right with the world.

Of course Mana knew better.

Mana had hoped that things would get better for his brother once Neah started school and was able to be out of the house more often but that hadn't been the case either. Quiet and slightly introverted Neah didn't fit in with the other boys his age, which caused them to pick on him. It had started out simple enough, much the same thing that Mana himself had endured when he was younger, but taunts and jeers had eventually given way to more physical bullying. And since he was small for his age and had been abused for years Neah just accepted it as par for the course. A fact that caused Mana's heart to ache for him all the more.

The kid just couldn't seem to catch a break.

By this point the steady flow of students had ebbed to a trickle and still there was no sign of Neah. The teen was trying his best not to allow fear to consume him but he couldn't' help but worry about his brother, since Neah had never failed to show up at their meeting place. "Guess I'll look around here a bit more and if I don't find him then I'll go home and see if he's there," Mana muttered to himself, his brown eyes once again surveying the by now thinning crowd.

Despite his best efforts not to he was beginning to grow concerned.

"I can't believe that I actually did that…"

As he made his way across town seven year old Neah Walker gazed around through wary gray eyes, making it a point to keep himself at arm's distance from everyone that he happened to pass on the street. And trying his best not to allow anyone to get behind him, even going so far as to press his back against a nearby building when they got too close. He was always nervous around people, especially people that he didn't know, and he didn't want to take the chance of someone hurting him. He already dealt with that enough at home and at school so he didn't need it from random people that he happened to pass on the street. An involuntarily shiver went down his spine as Neah thought of the horror that was his life. However his face remained emotionless; something that he had trained himself to do over the years. Mainly because he was determined to hide the true extent of the horror of his existence from Mana. His brother was the only thing keeping him sane in a world determined to see him driven over the edge but he got such a worried expression in his eyes whenever he learned of Neah's suffering. Which was the main reason why the boy had decided to keep it to himself.

His brother had enough stress without Neah adding to the burden.

Of course the mahogany haired young male hadn't thought about this when he'd ran out in the middle of class or else he might have had second thoughts about it. It was just that the boy behind him had been relentlessly whispering taunts that only Neah could hear and the boy had finally had enough. Jumping to his feet, and completely ignoring the warnings from his teacher, Neah had fled from class.

Which was why he was now wandering across town.

Neah had been determined that he wasn't going back to class so he'd left the school grounds entirely. And now he was thinking that his only alternative to being at school was to go home since wandering aimlessly down the street seemed like a decidedly bad idea to the little boy.

"Mana's prob'ly gonna be mad," the child absently thought to himself, a forlorn expression appearing in his stormy gray eyes as his thoughts shifted to his older brother. His plans were to keep Mana from worrying about him but his little departure from school was likely going to cause the very thing that he was always trying so hard to prevent. "Too late now," Neah thought with a sigh and a slight shrug of his thin shoulders.

What was done was done and there was no way to undo it at this point. The wheels of Fate had been set into motion.

"Mana…"

Mana glanced up as he heard the sound of this somewhat stern voice calling out his name. His questioning gaze fell upon Neah's teacher and the teen was immediately concerned. Had something happened to his little brother? Was that the reason why Neah hadn't came out to meet him like every other day? "What is it sir? Is something wrong? Did something happen to Neah?"

A scowl immediately appeared on the man's already stern looking face as he came to a stop in front of the spot where Mana was standing. Gazing down at the teen he placed his hands on his hips. "Your brother decided to run out in the middle of my class, which I don't appreciate by the way." At this point the man reached into the pocket of his suit coat, removing a folded piece of paper which he held out to Mana. "Give this to your father."

Not a request, it was an order.

Mana felt his blood run cold as he heard these words, spoken in such a callous tone by the man. Numbly reaching out he took the piece of paper that the teacher held out, his hand trembling slightly as he clutched the paper tightly in one fist. He didn't read the paper but none the less had a more than vague idea of what it said. And it boded ill for his little brother, of that he was certain. There was absolutely no way that he could give the note to his father; the man would go absolutely ballistic and Neah would pay dearly for his actions. A much higher price than any child should ever have to pay. "Why did you do it Neah boy?" he thought to himself as he watched the teacher stalk away. "What were you thinking?"

Deciding that it was pointless to hang around the school grounds, since it seemed wholly likely that Neah was long gone by this point, Mana turned and walked past the gate.

The brown haired teen knew that he was going to have to come up with a plan for dealing with Neah' unscheduled departure from school without involving their father but honestly there were more important things on his mind at this given point in time. His main focus at the moment was finding his little brother and discovering exactly why he'd felt the need to run off in the first place. Because there had to be a reason behind it.

Neah wasn't one who did anything without good cause.

"What's going on with you Neah boy?" Mana thought to himself as he began walking in the direction of their house. He was hopeful that he would be able to find his little brother without a tremendous amount of effort and then the two of them could discuss what had happened… as well as a way to keep their father from finding out about it. Glancing down he once again eyed the folded piece of paper that he still held clutched in his hand, hoping that Neah' teacher didn't want to meet with their father or anything like that.

Because if that was the case then there would be hell to pay and no way to avoid it.

Neah slowed his pace as he neared the house, a strange sense of foreboding descending upon him as he gazed at the two story structure. It was normal for him to feel dread upon arriving at the house that he had never considered a home but the churning emotions that he was currently experiencing were unlike anything that he had ever felt before. And not really something that he could explain, at least not in a rational manner. It felt like some inner sixth sense was telling him to turn around and walk the other way.

"Weird," the boy muttered to himself as he rummaged around in his messenger bag for the key to the front door. He knew that it was in there somewhere, since Mana had given it to him just a couple of days prior. It took him a couple of minutes but he finally managed to fish it out, walking up and inserting the key into the lock. Only to find that the front door wasn't locked. The seven year old arched a brow at this, fairly certain that Mana had locked the door when they had left that morning. Shaking his head and thinking that he must have been wrong about that fact Neah placed the key back into his bag before reaching out and grasping the door knob. The front door made a very distinctive creaking noise as Neah pulled it open but he paid it no attention as he stepped inside the house.

Only to freeze in his tracks as his gaze fell upon a figure standing in the foyer.

"Neah…"

The boy's blood ran cold as he heard the sound of his name leaving the man's lips. To his knowledge this was the first time that the man who had fathered him had ever used his actual given name and it only increased the sense of foreboding that the child had already been experiencing. There was something decidedly wrong about this situation and every instinct that Neah possessed was telling him to run but for some strange reason he seemed rooted to the spot. His body completely refused to listen to his brain's commands to make a run for it.

The man turned toward his son, a strangely calm expression on his face. His features didn't have the normal look of rage about them and as he took a couple of steps toward the child he actually offered the little boy a smile.

Which only caused Neah to back away in fear.

He had grown accustomed to the look of hatred that always appeared in the man's eyes whenever he looked at the son that he had never wanted and that he could deal with. Neah had even learned how to cope with the seemingly never ending abuse, managing to banish his consciousness to the dark recesses of his mind so that he could detach himself from what was going on. All of this had become routine and he could deal with it but this new serene look that his father had served to throw the boy off guard.

What was going on?

"Come here Neah," the man beckoned, holding out one hand to the boy, the strange smile still on his face. There was no sharp tone to his voice and his words sounded almost like an invitation instead of an order.

Neah hesitated but, after a couple of minutes of thought, slowly made his way over to the spot where his father was standing. It was obvious by his demeanor that he was still wary of the man but the child realized that he didn't have a choice in the matter. Despite his reservations he had been taught from an early age that disobedience and defiance only made things worse so, regardless of the man's intentions, Neah walked over to him.

Resigned to his fate.

"Take off your jacket," the man said, his voice calm and his eyes seeming to contain a strange light. There was no odor of alcohol on his breath, yet another thing that was decidedly odd about this encounter. The man was ALWAYS drunk so what exactly had changed to cause him to actually allow himself to sober up?

Unbuttoning the jacket of his school uniform Neah slowly removed it, wondering as he did so what exactly was going on. The man was being almost nice but instead of putting the child at ease this only served to put him on high alert. Something was about to happen and he could only wait to find out exactly what that something was. Discarding the jacket on the floor Neah gazed up at his father through questioning gray eyes, seeking an answer to a burning question. "Um Father…" the child asked in a timid voice. "Are you alright?"

"I've finally seen the light my son," the man said, his voice calm as he reached out and took his youngest child by the arm. Gently holding the boy by the left wrist the man unbuttoned Neah's shirt sleeve, rolling it up to his bicep… right before he pulled a knife from behind his back. Neah's gray eyes widened in horror as he saw the glint of the light reflecting off the blade of the knife and he tried desperately to pull himself free of his father's grasp.

All to no avail.

No matter how fiercely he tried to pull away his father's grasp proved just to strong for him to overcome. The man's grip tightened on his wrist a second before Neah felt a burning pain in his arm, starting just below his elbow. Still wearing a strange smile on his face the man took the blade of the knife and slit his son's arm from his elbow all the way down to his wrist. Slicing the delicate skin of the child's arm as though he were filleting a fish. Crimson blood flowed from the wound, dripping to the wooden floor with sickening regularity.

Neah whimpered as a burning pain seemed to consume his arm, once again making an attempt to pull himself free. "Shh," the man said, his voice quiet and his grip remaining firm. There was no way that he was going to allow the child to pull free at this point. "It's all going to be over soon." This said the deranged individual unbuttoned the cuff of the child's right sleeve, seemingly intent upon inflicting a similar wound on Neah's other arm as well.

An action that was interrupted by a shout from the front door.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Glancing over the man watched as his elder son strode across the foyer, a look of absolute rage causing his normally kind brown eyes to shine malevolently. This expression caused the teen to look almost demonic and the man released his grasp on his younger son as he turned to face the older boy, allowing Neah to slump to the floor. Weak from blood loss the child was unable to support his own weight at this point and merely fell to the floor, landing in the pool of blood that had already accumulated there.

Slightly glazed over gray eyes gazed at the form of his brother, whom he could recognize despite the fact that his vision was beginning to blur. He wanted to get up and go to Mana but was simply too weak to do so… all he could do was lay in the floor and watch all that went on.

"You unimaginable bastard," Mana snarled as he walked across the room.

Making a detour to the fire place that was positioned along one wall Mana grabbed a rod iron poker that was leaning against the wall, holding it aloft as he strode toward his father. The teen's eyes continued to gleam malevolently as he stared at his father. He didn't even need to ask the man what he had been planning as it was obvious by the grievous wound on Neah's arm, as well as the pool of blood that now stained the wooden floor. It appeared as though the man had finally snapped, seeking to put an end to his own pain by ending the life of the child that he had always loathed. Narrowing his eyes and tightening his grip on the poker Mana came to a stop mere feet from the spot where his father was standing.

Appearing less than concerned by his son's threatening stance the man actually laughed at the teen. "What are you going to do with…"

This almost taunting question was cut short as Mana swung the poker with all of the force that he could muster, listening to the sickening crack that accompanied iron meeting flesh and bone. It was akin to music to his ears. The man immediately crumpled to the floor, coming to rest mere feet from the spot where his child was lying in a pool of his own blood. It was obvious that he wasn't going to be able to put up any kind of fight, owing to the massive head injury that he had received at the hands of his eldest son, but that didn't decrease any of the rage that Mana was feeling. Raising the poker he once again brought it down full force, this time aiming it at the man's side. The sound of ribs breaking echoed in the room but, far from deterring Mana, it only seemed to add fuel to the proverbial fire. Several more blows rained down upon the motionless man, each of which sent droplets of blood into the air. A fine mist of crimson seemed to hover there for a moment before falling to the ground. The teen could feel the blood spattering his face but not even this caused him to cease in his relentless attack. For years he had stood by helpless as this man had terrorized his little brother but this newest attack, one meant to be lethal, was the last straw.

It was all going to end today.

By the time that Mana's rage was finally beginning to dissipate the form of their father had been reduced to a barely recognizable lump of flesh on the floor. Breathing hard due to his exertions Mana dropped the poker to the floor, where it came to rest beside the lifeless body of his father. There wasn't even a trace of remorse in his eyes as he gazed down at the man for a brief moment before shifting his attention to the still form of his little brother.

"Neah…" he whimpered as he dropped to the floor at the little boy's side. He could feel the blood soaking through the knees of his trousers but that didn't matter. His clothes were spattered with the blood of his father and this co-mingled with that of the child as he gently pulled his brother into his arms. "I'm so sorry…" he whispered as he cradled the Neah's upper body in his arms, gently rocking him back and forth mournfully.

The little boy whimpered in response.

Mana gasped, having been certain that the little brother that he cherished was dead. Gazing down at the child that he held in his arms he could now see the slight rise and fall of his chest that affirmed that he was breathing. Hugging him close for the briefest of moments Mana then placed Neah back on the floor, in a prone position so that he could remove his jacket. He quickly wrapped the garment around his brother's arm before once again pulling Neah into his arms. Not even thinking about the fact that he was covered in blood, or that he had just murdered his father, Mana got to his feet and made his way to the front door.

Neah had already lost a great deal of blood and needed help immediately. This didn't leave Mana any time to think of himself or anything that he had done.

Not that he would have felt remorse even if he'd had time to dwell on it.

"Hold on Neah," the teen whispered to the child that he held cradled to his chest. For once he found himself feeling grateful for the fact that Neah was so much smaller than normal children his age because if that hadn't been the case then it would have been much more difficult for him to carry his little brother. "I'm going to find you some help and you're going to be just fine."

Grabbing a cloak from the coat rack as he passed Mana wrapped it around both himself and his brother before leaving their house. His destination was only a couple of doors down and he didn't want anyone to stop him before he had the chance to make it to the doctor's office. The teen was resigned to accepting whatever consequences there were for what he had done but only after he had made completely sure that Neah was alright. He had promised his brother long ago that he would find a way to make things right but honestly this wasn't what he'd had in mind at the time.

And yet he couldn't honestly say that he wouldn't do the exact same thing over again. He felt no remorse for what he had done, a fact that scared him to a small degree. Surely it wasn't normal for someone to be able to kill a man, especially not one's own flesh and blood, without feeling anything. And yet Mana could honestly say that he didn't care about what he had done to the man who had fathered him.

Upon leaving his house Mana quickly made his way down the block to the office of Dr. Baker. The man had treated Neah on several occasions, always being discreet despite the fact that Mana was sure he knew the actual origins of the child's injuries, and it was his help that the teen was seeking now. He needed to know that Neah would be well taken care of before he faced the consequences for what he had done. And he could think of no one else that he would trust with the health and safety of the child that he would die for.

The brother that he had killed for.

Reaching the door the brown haired teen knocked insistently on the door a couple of times before stepping back to wait. There was an anxious expression on his face as he stared at the door, willing the man to hurry. He wasn't sure how much longer Neah would be able to hold out and would be devastated if he lost the child now. "Come on," he muttered, knocking again when the first round didn't illicit the desired effect.

Still no response.

"No," Mana moaned, forced to accept the fact that the doctor wasn't in. "No, no, no, no, no…" Turning around the teen quickly rushed back to his own house, completely ignoring the few people that he passed on the street. This was far from an ideal situation but Mana knew that he had to do something for Neah before the child succumbed to blood loss. Carrying the mahogany haired little boy upstairs, into his own room instead of the child's, Mana placed Neah on his own bed. Completely disregarding the fact that the blood from his brother's still bleeding arm was going to ruin the bedclothes. Rushing from the room Mana quickly tracked down a first aid kit that there mother had prepared years ago. He had used bandages from it a couple of times but had never had cause for the needle and twine that was also in the box.

That is, until now.

Once he had the box of medical supplies stowed under his arm Mana collected a bowl of water and a clean washcloth before returning to his bedroom. The sight of Neah lying on the bed, so pale and lifeless looking, caused his heart to jump up into his throat. He knew that it was a real possibility that his brother wasn't going to make it but the teen was determined to do everything in his power to help Neah. He had promised his mother that he would look out for the boy and he absolutely refused to fail in that duty again.

Sitting the bowl of water on the nightstand Mana sat down on the edge of the bed and gently unwrapped his brother's arm. His jacket was dyed crimson with the boy's blood but Mana tossed it aside without a second glance. Dipping the washcloth in the water he gently dabbed at the wound, cleaning if before he took up the needle and thread. This was something that he had never attempted, though he had mended clothes a time or two. The principle was basically the same although Mana was aware that stitching flesh would be vastly different than mending clothes. However it wasn't as though he had a choice in the matter and, after taking a deep breath, he pulled the ends of the wound together and began stitching it closed.

The work was painstakingly slow but Mana finally managed to close the wound. Tying the end of the thread the brown haired teen then set about wrapping his brother's arm in clean bandages, hoping that his efforts would be enough to save the child.

"Please Neah," he murmured as he worked, gazing down at the child through a haze of tears. Securing the bandage in place Mana wiped his hands on a washcloth before reaching out a hand and tentatively running it through his brother's soft mahogany hair. "You have to be okay… please."

A/N - End of another chapter and their bastard of a father finally got what he deserved. And not at the hands of his favorite victim. Slightly sadistic sounding but I hope that you enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review and tell me what you thought.