Sorry Frankenstein, I had to send you to school. There is a large time jump also.

Chapter Three

"Frankenstein, they will be fine." He gazed at Master uncertainly. Would it really be alright to leave the children alone in the house unsupervised? Yes, their behaviour was unerringly elegant and they had learnt to make their beds to his satisfaction.

Still, there was a difference between trusting their continued good behaviour and leaving them alone for the day. What if they felt abandoned or unloved? He certainly felt horrible leaving them alone in the house without a method to contact him. What if they got hurt? "Frankenstein, they will be fine." Master had repeated himself. He must listen.

He gave each of the children a kiss on the forehead and said his goodbyes. It was only when he left the house that Master's choice of words struck him. They would be fine, and he could check on Victor through the slight bond. Master could do the same for Cadis.

Yes, they would know if there was a real problem. The school was a relatively short distance away given their speed. Also, if the children somehow left the house, they could use the sense of here to find them. Master was right, their children would be fine.

It didn't make Frankenstein feel any better about just leaving them alone.

Raizel sighed, he really should explain more to his bonded, but he had yet to find accurate terms to explain the process of noble infant care.

XOX

When Frankenstein returned home later, not pleased with the implications of Shinwoo's bag turning up at his doorstep, he walked into a barrage of questions.

"Chairman, who are these cute kids?"

"Yeah tell, Rai won't say anything."

"You have a son? Why have we never heard of him before?"

The 'son' was likely a reaction to Victor's appearance. While he would happily claim his children, rumours spread. The only reason he would never have mentioned a six year old son was if he hadn't known of the boy. Everyone knew that Ye Ran's Principal, with his bleeding heart, cared excessively for children, for a given definition of everyone. A son he had never mentioned? That would mean an affair partner who he had recently regained contact with, and a whole host of other implications. So how should he explain the children?

"Cadis is Raizel's little brother, you didn't meet him last time because he was sleeping through jetlag. Victor is my nephew. When my sister heard that I would be looking after a young child anyway... she sent him over." It would be easier to explain why he never felt like mentioning a sister was living abroad than a lover or wife. Better yet, he could just refuse to answer 'personal' questions.

"Hey, Rai, why didn't you tell us you had a brother?" Oh no, he had forgotten that would bring up some very bad memories. I'm so sorry, Master, I deserve to die! What had he done?

"You did not ask." Master replied to the human children. He gave Frankenstein a reassuring look. There was no need to die for bringing the topic up. Frankenstein would need to explain why he lied later, for now there were guests to entertain.

The conversation quickly diverted to the games the human children had brought. Frankenstein took a moment to look at the scene. Someone had discovered and set out the cupcakes he had prepared for Master. Victor was sitting on Master's lap and Cadis was sitting on Yuna's. While Victor clearly wanted to be alone with Rai and Cadis, the latter seemed to like the attention, snuggling against the girl. Both of his children looked a little sleepy. Young as they were, did they need a nap to get through the day?

"Shinwoo," The youth turned to him.

"Yes, Principal Lee?"

"Did Ikhan's parents agree with you staying over?"

"Ah, yes, they understood and agreed." Frankenstein smiled just a little more honestly as the teen turned back to the game. That was one less worry. His smile didn't stay that way, not with the mess piling up on the table. Cadis squirmed out of Yuna's lap, came over, and reached for his hand. Frankenstein lifted the child up and hugged him; it would be a long evening before he could clean up.

To distract himself from the mess, he started planning the children's chores. He would need to set a list of expectations and find a way to confirm whether they had complied while he was at school. The chores would be a suitable responsibility to help the young ones understand duty eventually. Not to mention, he had to explain acceptable 'family relationships' to Master and the children.

XOX

Shinwoo's call was odd, considering the recent visit to the house - there was clearly something wrong. Victor and Cadis had fallen asleep in the play room; they would not wake any time soon. They had forgotten to nap during the day and had been unable to remain awake while tidying up their play room. Frankenstein and Raizel quietly left the house. All the children needed to be safe.

XOX

M-21 turned at the sound of doubled footsteps; they were coming from deeper in the house. There were others with powers here? Two bra-kids walked into the room and M' felt slightly relieved, they couldn't be too strong. The blond kid went to the person addressed as 'master' and was lifted onto his lap without having to ask. Seated there, the blond kid turned to glare at M-21, like he was an enemy. M' felt the hair on the back of his neck rise. Why did this feel like a threat?

The other kid reached up to tug at his sleeve and M' flinched, how had he not noticed it getting so close? The kid dropped its hand without touching M, but stared at him with such longing eyes that M' felt guilty.

M' looked to Frankenstein, what did the kid want from him?

"He wants to be hugged, you should decline. Victor and Cadis forgot to tidy the play room today." Frankenstein sent a resigned glance toward his Master. Play room? ...He had already agreed to stay here and work as 'security' for a school. These powerful people were very strange.

"I'm not hugging you," he said to the kid and those eyes turned away from him. Looking closer, the kids bore an uncanny resemblance to the older two. Were they clones? That could explain why the kids lived here, with powerful nobles.

The black haired kid went up to Frankenstein and turned those eyes on him. "No, Cadis, you didn't do as you should have." The longing eyes saddened "It's your bedtime regardless. Victor, come along, it is time for bed." The blond kid, Victor, stopped glaring at M' as 'master' displaced him from his seat.

Frankenstein led the way up the hall, apparently expecting the kids to follow, instead of ushering them before him protectively. M-21 really didn't rate as a threat in their eyes. M' turned to face the remaining occupant of the room and flinched when he found himself similarly regarded.

"'Rai' is my name in this place," the black haired noble informed M-21. Ugh, what should he do? The noble was still looking at him.

"I've always been called M-21, it's not my name," Rai nodded and sipped his tea.

So M-21 has literally just left the union. While he is not calling anyone brats since M-24 just died protecting 'brats', the children and these kids don't register as people yet, it will be different the next time I write from M's POV. I was tempted to have Frankenstein return and show M' where his bedroom was, such a cute parallel.

I have a brilliant beta now! She has a professional eye, not only does my spelling get corrected but characterization gets pointed out. Thank you, Luna, for your work. - Sim