Maya had been in labor close to 18 hours now.
It was... worrysome.
Ray couldn't do much even if he wanted to help so badly.
He's an Elemental Master for fucks sake, his work is supposed to help people yet here he was, sitting in a waiting room while her wife was battling to have their second child.
Second...
He looked down, in his arms, safely cradled was a newborn baby boy sleeping peacefully.
He had been born almost 12hrs ago, during midday.
Funnily enough, it had been an easy birth, kind of, Maya had gone into labor at around 6am and their boy was born 6 hours later.
It might've seemed long, but the helpers and nurses assured them that such time was normal and their baby was healthy, meaning they could go home the next day if everything was okay.
...Everything was not okay.
They thought he was going to be their only child, but they were wrong.
It turned out Maya had been carrying twins, and none of them knew it.
That had been a surprise, not a bad one, or a good one, just a surprise.
Ray figured they could figure it out later, once they had both of their children in their arms, so they waited for the second to be born.
And waited...
And waited.
Now it had been almost 12hrs since their boy was born and she was still in labor.
Ray didn't know what to do or think. He felt useless.
The boy moved a bit in his sleep and the Elemental Master couldn't help but smile a bit.
He was a parent, he had a son, and he couldn't be happier.
He hadn't named him yet, he wanted to be with his family, and he wanted Maya to name him.
He just needed to be patient...
Thinking about it he should be feeling happy about it, he was finally a parent, yet he couldn't help but... yawn?
Well, maybe he would feel happier once he had his two children in his arms.
Man... He really felt so damn tired.
What time was it? It was dark outside and it had been for a while.
Midnight maybe?
Anxiety started to creep up again, if he was tired then how would Maya be?
This wasn't good, not at all.
He tightened his hold on his son.
This had been going on for too long. Couldn't help but think about his wife again.
She was okay, she had to be okay, right?
He wouldn't know what to do if she died, what would be of his son then?
And his other child, would he never meet them?
He started to feel hot, as if his anxiety had transformed into fire and this grew and grew, searching for an exit.
His fingertips burned and smoke seemed to come out of his nostrils.
This was unbearable, he had to burn something, he had to-
"Mister Jiang-Smith"
Ray jumped out of his seat, the surprise extinguishing his urge to burn something as if someone had dropped a bucket of cold water.
It was just now when he acknowledged another sound, a whimper.
He looked down to see his boy,
So he was the source of the sound, immediately Ray started to rock him, trying to calm him down, before addressing the nurse in front of him.
"Yes?"
His voice was hoarse and it surprised him how tired he sounded.
"The birth has gone well"
Finally, oh finally he was able to relax.
He didn't register the next words, at least not completely, he only knew he was now able to enter and see his wife.
And Baby.
That's exactly what he did.
As soon as he entered there was his wife to greet him, exhausted, but smiling happily at the bundle in her arms.
It was a baby girl.
He had a daughter.
His chest felt lighter.
He couldn't be happier.
Maya had almost fallen asleep, understandable after such a long birth.
Yet she had her daughter securely in her arms, smiling warmly at the whining baby.
He got closer, receiving a tired smile from the other Elemental Master, not a word ushered between the two.
Ray carefully let his baby boy rest along with his new sister, helping May support them both.
As soon as they felt each other the babies seemed to cuddle each other, before eventually falling asleep.
The master of fire combed her daughter's barely existing hair, it seemed to be of a dark colour and it felt just so, so soft.
Finally, he looked up to his wife.
Both babies had remained unnamed, now it was time to finally give them names.
As if reading her husband's mind May hummed, looking down.
"Since we have a boy and a girl I think we can go ahead with our number one picks, don't you think?"
Ray hummed in agreement. He looked down before moving forward to kiss each of their heads.
"Welcome to the world, Kai and Nya"
Kai and Nya had been born on different days, almost exactly 12 hours apart.
Ray couldn't help but chuckle when they were filling out the birth certificates and other papers.
Twins, born on different days, how funny.
And it seemed they weren't identical either. Their skin was the same tone, brown, closer to his than Maya's but still a tone lighter.
He wasn't sure how their face would look once they were older but going by the brownish hue on Kai's little hair tuft he seemed to have inherited one of his grandparent's hair, on the other hand, Ray was almost sure Nya's hair would be just like his mothers, dark, soft and silky.
Kai had been born at midday, when the sun was hotter and Nya had been born around Midnight, right at the peak of the moon, when the sea was the bravest.
He looked at their children, both sleeping together in their crib, Maya was doing some chores which meant it was Ray's turn to watch them.
They hadn't been born for too long but they were already inseparable, Kai always seemed to know how to calm Nya, and Nya seemed to always be near Kai.
Ray was proud.
He was happy
He would raise them right.
Maya was starting to wonder about the Elemental affinities of her children.
It was a normal thing to question, after all, children of elemental masters would usually display certain... types of preferences and behaviour that tended to align with their Elemental affinity.
Is funny, Nya had been called after the supposedly original Water Spirit Nyad, yet she seemed to enjoy being in the forge where it was very warm and cozy, close to the fire, looking at it closely as it danced.
Kai on the other hand was called after well... the Fire Spirit Kami, yet he seemed to enjoy passing time around water, constantly playing in the rain, with the sound of running water lulling him to sleep or wandering off to the nearby river.
Maya had to have a constant eye on both of them, none of the twins knew how to swim yet, and she was sure if left alone they would try to out their hands inside the flames.
But it was fine, they were just two years old, they would have time to learn later.
Honestly, it was quite ridiculous how their names seemed to contradict their affinities, but she supposed that's what they got for assuming.
She looked outside, from the window in the kitchen and her seat on the table where she was writing down some notes.
Kai and Nya were running around in the mud, having stormed the night before.
She smiled, before going back to her notes.
It was almost time, just a few more days until they were three.
When it was a matter of birthdays Maya and Ray had settled on celebrating both on Nya's date, it was easier and in their opinion, it's when the Twins finally felt complete, so it made sense to celebrate it on the second day.
Kai didn't seem to mind much, they had to wonder first if he was even aware of the difference on their birthdays. Probably not, they were just three after all.
Or maybe he was, but as long as Nya was happy he seemed okay with how things rolled.
Sometimes it was a bit unnerving how calm he seemed to be when it came to his sister. She did a lot of thing, like bitting, pulling his hair and both of them tussling around, but he never really seemed to get angry, allowing her to have the upper ground in their games.
Nya on the other hand was a bit more fuzzy and clingy than Kai, she followed the barely older boy around a lot.
Ray had to wonder if it was healthy for the both of them to just have each other to socialize. The houses around the village were considerably separated from one another, and theirs was the farthest so there wasn't really anyone around to play with them.
I mean, sure, they had heard about twins being close and all but sometimes it seemed ridiculous, maybe it was because they were so young?
...Yeah that made sense.
He loved the twins but he couldn't help but pray they would grow out of it.
They didn't need another set of twins going down the wrong path.
It wasn't a big surprise when Kai squirmed out of their hands for the nth time that day, even less of a surprise when Nya seemed eager to follow her twin.
Ray gently held her while Maya ran to get Kai back.
"Kai please, we're almost done"
Kai only laughed, darting outside their bedroom, Nya joining the laughter by just looking at her brother's antics.
Soon enough Maya was back carrying a giggling kid.
"Please Kai, stay still a bit more, we're almost done"
Kai giggled as his father ruffled his spiky hair, mumbling an "Okay", Nya decided instead to just watch what her mother was doing.
Maya went back to work, taking the homemade ink pen Ray had made before dropping it on tint and drawing a design on Kai's back.
It was tedious, so it was understandable Kai would eventually grow restless but it was a necessity and after around 30 more minutes it was finally done.
"Is done"
Finally, Kai moved, relinquishing his freedom as if he had been captive for a very long time.
Nya, who had been very chill in her dad's embrace came closer to the bare back of her brother and traced the tattoo, curiously.
Kai stiffened and the sudden contact but didn't attempt to move away.
"Hey kids"
Both turned to see their parent carrying a big mirror.
"Look"
Both siblings turned until they could see their backs, an intricate design in bright purple with some blue and red ink covering most of their backs, the design reminded me of brushstrokes, painting their backs.
If you were to ask Ray he would answer it seemed like a wildfire, if you were to ask Maya she would answer it reminded her of the movement of a river.
It was pretty.
They loved it.
"See"
It was Maya's turn to speak and she pulled her blouse neck down enough so they could have a peek at the tattoo on her chest, it was in the same style, and it reminded them of waves.
Ray also showed his right arm, where a barely visible tattoo was shown, it was a slightly different style but similar enough to theirs, it seemed as if a fire was consuming his whole arm.
Maya got closer and grabbed Nya gently by the arm, before tracing the newly made tattoo on her back.
"This, this is what connects us, even if we aren't together this will be a symbol of us as a family, of our union, we will always be connected through this."
Kai looked at her before tracing Nya's tattoo, then attempted to trace his too.
They still were too young to understand, but the tattoos worked as a safeguard, it would make access to their powers easier if it ever came down to that.
But for now, it would remain only as a family symbol.
They were four when it first happened.
Nya had been passing time around the house, Kai had been eager to run around, and she had felt quite tired so he went to play alone.
Maya was supposed to be watching them since Ray had been working on the forge and she was, that is until she fell asleep.
Nya didn't mind as she felt sleepy too, she and Maya had felt a bit sick since the night before, it probably didn't help they stayed up until late to see a partial moon eclipse, maybe that's why they were so tired.
She snuggled at the side of her mother while watching Kai run around, a stick in his hand, feigning it was a sword, she would join but right now sleep was calling her, as she saw her brother fight with invisible foes she slowly closed her eyes.
Cozy.
She felt Safe.
She snuggled closer.
It was hot.
Warm.
Something strong pulled inside her, jolting her awake.
It wasn't a nightmare, no, but there had been a lot of water in her dream and it made her heart race like crazy.
It kept of racing like crazy. She frowned.
Why?
She couldn't tell exactly, but she knew something was wrong, she felt it inside, what was it?
Nya yawns, rubbing her sleepy eyes while looking around.
Kai wasn't anywhere to be found.
The small girl pouted, despite it not being that weird, maybe he had gone to the forge to see Ray's work, he had seemed interested in blacksmithing lately.
Looking up she saw Maya still sleeping and the sun was still high, which meant it hadn't been long.
Yet the pull was there, a strange sensation of anxiety blooming inside her chest.
She got up, peeking into the forge, Kai didn't seem to be there and Ray was still working none the wiser.
The toddler walked around, farther and farther, until she arrived at the river.
The stone bridge was still quite far away, some minutes of walking down, it's not like she was planning on crossing, or getting closer for that matter, she had always found the river scary.
Except this time she felt as if the river was calling her.
So she walked towards it.
Slowly she came closer and closer.
She ran.
Kai had the fleeting thought of the water above him looking pretty, the light peeking through the murky water seemed almost magical.
It reminded him of the sky. Of the sun breaching through a cloudy sky.
At first, he didn't really feel panic as he sank to the bottom of the river.
Maybe it was because he hadn't become aware of what was happening, but he welcomed the embrace of the water, it would felt like a warm embrace if oxygen hadn't started to run out.
As water started to get in his lungs he finally snapped, realizing what was happening.
Oh, he was gonna drown, wasn't he?
He felt a pull inside his chest. It burnt,
He tried to swim.
He tried, he really did.
It was useless.
As he inhaled more water, his body thrashed around, and on the verge of passing out, he wished to feel the warmth of his father's forge one last time.
After the drowning incident Kai rarely got closer to the river... Or an abundant source of water for the matter.
Maya was the one that would bath him...or shower, it seemed he preferred the shower. He would panic if his head were to end below water again.
Contrary to Kai his twin had started to become more interested in the river as of late.
He still spent his time running around with Nya and would get closer to the body of water if Nya would, always holding her from behind, almost as a way to ground himself and just make sure he could pull her were she to fall.
She never did.
They were five when Nya got into an incident with fire.
Or rather, smoke.
It was an accident.
The Twins were in the Forge just watching their father when he left for a moment, they had been sleepy, it was winter, and as such they had ended up napping in a corner, far from the fire and the hot metals.
Ray went out, muttering about forgetting something inside the house.
He trusted them, he really did, but he had forgotten to take the coal out.
Being retained a bit by a neighbor the time passed as both adults talked, and the coal kept on burning.
The kids were napping in a corner, lulled by the warm environment.
Kai ended up waking up, wanting to go to the bathroom, and being careful not to wake up his sister he went out, closing the door.
It was pure luck Ray came back when he did, Nya had started to cough a lot, the smoke from the coal trapped inside, the heat rising to very dangerous temperatures.
She had trouble breathing for some time after that. Eventually, she got better.
But would still avoid the forge.
They were five when one moment, after chasing some butterflies one spring morning they had turn around, eager to show their parents the insects that were resting on their hands and heads just to find themselves alone.
They figured they might've gone inside the house or forge.
But they weren't there.
They walked around searching for their missing parents.
Maybe they went to the market? But that was a two hour trip just to get there.
An without telling them?
But it was their best bet.
They decided to wait until they came back.
And so late morning became afternoon and late afternoon became night.
They found themselves alone.
Sitting in the living room the twins had been waiting for most of the day.
Kai had warmed (burnt) some toast as a meal before they went back to wait on the couch.
That had been hours ago.
Now it was the middle of the night, the moon at its peak.
And they still weren't back.
Kai played with her sister's long, silky hair, it felt so soft between his fingers yet that didn't help calm his nerves. Not this time.
Looking at the moon through the window with Nya's head resting on his lap he had the feeling they weren't gonna be back anytime soon.
They're twins but Kai steps up as the oldest.
They're the same age but Kai prioritizes Nya over him.
They're non-identical twins, so he doesn't want her childhood to end like his.
They wait a few days for their parents to come back while Kai makes sure everything is in order.
He cooks, he cleans, he wanders around helplessly; Nya insists on helping yet he tries to burden the most between the two.
He tells hers they're in an impropt trip. He isn't sure if he should be lying to her, probably not, is the best he can do at this moment though.
Wait and hope for them to come back.
But Nya is sharp, and the days keep on passing by.
He can't keep lying to her.
When he is about to tell her he sees in her eyes the knowledge that they indeed are alone, but they're five, hearing it out loud, it breaks her.
She cries and clings to him, he too cries, silently, because, he's the oldest now isn't he? He's the man of the house (as Ray used to say). He has to keep his sister safe.
...
They are never coming back; are they?
Their village is small and is not too long before someone notices the two young children living alone atop the lonely hill.
The village is small, they don't trust outsiders.
The village is small, they decide to raise the children themselves.
They pass by to leave food, clean and make sure the kids are still alive. They close the forget with a lock as the place is deemed "Too dangerous" for the young siblings.
Yet no one takes them in.
Neighbors make sure to teach them basics such as cooking, cleaning, and other easy tasks and chores.
Is not fun, Kai feigns boredom as an excuse to do Nya's chores too.
Is not fun, Kai despises them at first but someone has to do it.
Is not fun, but Kai wants Nya to have fun, so he will do it instead.
More often than not Kai gets on Nyas nerves if it means she will run out and do her own business. He wants her to have some freedom.
The kids become errand children, running around the village, earning their food.
There's this woman called Ms. Grumbmiller who takes care of them for the first months.
She is stern, only feeds them, and makes sure they're still alive every now and then, she comes by only at night (maybe after a job shift?), cooks enough to last a few days, they're easy meals, and puts them to bed.
She probably thinks the kids are none the wiser, and despite not saying it out loud they know she goes to their parent's bedroom after they've gone to bed.
She takes some money from their parent's drawer as payment.
They aren't sure how she even came to the house, or why.
The twins aren't fond of her, but you don't have many options when you're six, Kai becomes the head of the house, both run errands but he maintains the house and takes care of Nya.
Nya insists on helping, he puts it off as long as he can, but slowly gives in.
They're horrible at house chores, but they will get better, they will survive, together.
They have to.
They're seven when Nya starts to get interested in academics.
She has taught herself to read the more complicated books they have in the house. She has finished most of them, they weren't a lot to begin with.
She refuses to enter their parent's bedroom. The books there are left untouched.
He doesn't think about school, they never went to it, and he doesn't have the time to.
They're doing well, they don't have luxury sure but they have food and a roof so why go? He's sure he's gonna be able to live out of his father's shop one day anyway.
But Nya dreams and Kai thinks it would be unfair to destroy those dreams.
He pops up the idea once at dinner, she murmurs, saying it wouldn't be fair if she gets to go and he doesn't, she's fine as it is.
But he sees her longing, he feels guilty.
They're twins, they're there for each other, is not fair for them to separate. They've never been. But siblings don't hold each other back either.
He insists, but she refuses.
Eventually, they come to an agreement, she'll be going for the both of them, and she'll teach him what she learns at dinner time.
He hopes she'll still dream of a brighter future for the both of them because he knows he won't get more of what he already has.
The work becomes a bit heavier, but seeing her run up the hill every afternoon after classes, excitedly chatting about school and seeing her eyes shine every time she tries to teach him something makes everything worth it.
They're eight when Kai starts stealing at the local market.
The excuse is a harsh winter.
The neighbors rarely come by anymore, Ms. Grumbmiller stopped coming long ago.
They're left alone to fend for themselves.
Kai doesn't want to do it, is incorrect, or so he was taught, but is it too bad to try to survive?
He slips into their parent's abandoned room when Nya is at school and takes the money from there.
Eventually, that source runs dry too.
The work is hard, the reward is little, is not worth it, not in these conditions.
Nya has started to do most of the house chores, just so he can spend more time outside working, is not enough, and he doesn't want to burden her more than she is.
They're cold, hungry, and alone.
Kai feels guilty, he knows his parents would be ashamed, but they have abandoned them, as such they don't have any rights to judge them.
He steals during the winter, and it becomes a habit, he gets caught and beaten a few times, but if this means Nya and he will be able to survive so be it.
Good thing the market is a two hours trip, gives him enough time to come up with an excuse each time.
They're nine when Nya has decided she has seen enough of her martyr of a brother and starts working around too.
She's mostly an errand girl, between school and this she has her hands full.
She hasn't done more than house chores and schoolwork in years, so adding work on top of that is tiring.
Sure is not as hard as the jobs Kai does, but if it helps with the money problems they have then that's good enough.
They're nine when Kai has to admit he can't do this alone, they're nine when he finally accepts his twin help.
He will try his best to keep Nya's childhood alive for a bit more, but they're twins, they will raise each other, together.
They feel a flame ignite and thrive inside them.
Kai is ten when he gets a job at the village, a two hour walk-trip to arrive.
He usually works around the village on the local rice farms or helps with some ongoing construction projects and heavy work.
Is a summer job, he works there on weekends. He discovers makeup for the first time.
His boss is a young lady, he thinks she's pretty, she likes to use a lot of makeup and tattoos and piercings, his head vaguely remembers the ink symbol on his back.
She has come from Ninjago-city, a quite far away place, she has come to visit her family.
He knows she's gonna leave after summer, back to the city.
The young boy will make the most of it, by the end of summer he's pretty good at makeup and hair-cutting.
He smiles as he cuts his own hair in the bathroom.
Nya is ten when she finds she likes to repair and create things.
She's working at the market, when someone's truck breaks down, she helps a guy hold the tools and pass them, she learns a bit.
She's fascinated.
She starts to haul broken things and bring them into the house, she spends long nights in her little projects, on her own little world.
She can't do much, but whenever something just works, her smile shines like the sun.
They're ten and for the first time in years they think they've found their happiness, they feel on top of the world.
Is autumn, they have enough money and items to take it a bit easy. He buys a makeup case, he doesn't wanna touch his mom's palettes.
For the first time in years, they run and play together even after the rain starts pouring and they're left soaked.
They warm by the fire inside the house, huddled up in blankets as they have a "girls' night", Kai teaches Nya makeup and paints their nails, Nya isn't compeltely sure if she likes it but she hasn't seen her brother this happy in a long time.
For the first time in years, they feel at ease.
They're eleven when Kai manages to break into the forge, he starts blacksmithing.
Nya accompanies him too, he works on weapons, and she works on her little projects, she finds more stuff to work with inside.
They don't talk a lot during these times but they keep company and that is enough.
Is in his early days in the forge when he burns himself in the face.
He doesn't use a mask, they don't have one, he's trying to make a sword, the metal is liquid.
Kai knows he should've been more careful but he was just too excited he forgot about his own safety. This was his almost first successful project after all.
He slips, hits the working bench, and somehow throws the burning, liquid metal onto his face, it mostly hits his left side, it hurts, it hurts a lot.
He can almost feel his face melting. His back starts to burn too.
He cries, falling onto his back as he tries to rub off the sensation with his hands. Is futile.
Getting up as fast as he can he runs towards the nearest water bucket and submerges his face on it, it stings, it hurts, it burns.
His back is on fire too.
For the first time in years, he feels like crying.
As oxygen starts to run out he takes his face out of the bucket, soaking wet like a dog.
It feels better but he's scared of touching his face, scared of feeling melt muscle and bone.
But when he does he is surprised to find his skin almost intact, is a bit rough, like a scar, but otherwise it doesn't seem to have been as bad as it felt.
His back still stings too, but is a more bearable pain.
He leaves the forge to take a shower.
When Nya asks him later that night after she comes back from her work at the market she questions him about the burn, he shrugs it off as something minor and even after Nya takes a closer look she has to admit it doesn't seem like something serious so they leave it at that.
As he lies on his bed, Nya sleeping soundly besides him, (the bed is now too small to accommodate properly both of them, he thinks maybe he should start sleeping on the floor of the room) he closes his eyes.
He tries to ignore the throbbing, itchy sensation on his back.
They're twelve when Nya learns how to swim.
It starts one afternoon, she won't tell Kai but she has started to get into fights, he doesn't need to know it.
A stupid, older kid tried to kiss her, she punched him, it evolved into a fight, she won, there's not much to do after being kicked in the goring after all.
But she's fuming, confident that she knows the path home she doesn't look were she's going.
So she falls.
Below her the raging river is fierce, especially today after a particularly strong storm with it being twice its normal size, and she briefly thinks she might drown.
She thinks of her brother, and panic starts to settle in.
Just to be pulled out by one of the neighbors.
He scolds her and leaves her there, soaking and gasping, lying down on her back, there's mud below her and now she's all dirt,
She can't help but think it felt familiar, a buried memory resurfaces for a second before being shot down again.
It takes her some time to catch hrqer breath, and when she finally does she sit downs, looking at the river, raging, furious, and beautiful.
Is a scary experience for sure, she doesn't tell Kai, and he doesn't need to more worries right now.
Is a good thing he doesn't come back until way later into the night, all day working at the rice farm.
He, looking miserable and whining about how he got soaked after falling down in the shallow water of the farm, a misstep.
That night they get into the bed, or at least Nya does, is her turn to use it so Kai sleeps in the floor of the bedroom, right at her side.
She dreams of the river, of the underwater, it feels as if it calls her.
She tells Kai, he shrugges it off, murmuring how that sounds more like a nightmare than anything else.
He doesn't tell her he dreams with fire.
She comes back days later, once the river has come significantly down and the current is softer.
Hesitantly she touches the water, let's it flow between her fimgers.
The water on her skin feels nice and soon enough she feels like she needs to get into the water.
So she does.
She's not really thinking and almost drowns again a few more times but with every try, she feels as if the water sticks to her, like a second skin.
It becomes easier, it comes naturally to her or so she wants to believe.
She feels as if the water cooperates with her, guiding her movements and keeping her afloat.
Despite this is still takes her a few weeks to swim properly, but swimming eventually becomes one of her favorite pastimes, she feels free, she feels in her element, water feels like home.
She tries to ignore the heavy, wet feeling clinging to her back every time she comes out.
They're thirteen when Kai starts getting into fights.
Nya is not really vocal about her fights, but Kai is.
Everyone hears about the troublemaker boy.
Those that don't know pity Nya but she has made a reputation of herself, they rarely mess with her now, at least directly.
But as the kids around become older they equally become crueler and bolder.
They mock them for living alone, for having to work, and for their weird quirks and behaviors.
Being told that you're such a weirdo not even your own parents wanted you hurts a lot. Saying how you were abandoned like a dog.
It hurts, Kai wants to believe he has grown a thick skin, so does Nya.
But sometimes is too much.
They might not mess with Nya physically anymore but words stab her hearth all the same.
The tween has come crying come a few times by now, and each time Kai has gone out furious, because he could take the heat, but he wouldn't allow her twin to be hurt.
Most of the time Kai is outnumbered and gets beaten up, he had even been waterboarded a few times.
He keeps getting up each time, he goes and fights.
He wants them gone, he wants them to leave Nya alone.
They don't understand, what would give them the right to criticise them? None, that is.
Nya despises seeing her brother fighting and has come close to throwing hands more times than one could count with the hands.
Kai stops her everytime, this pisses her off more than anything else.
The truth is that she has thrown hands with hhe too, is not anything new, she just had hoped her reputation would stop them from getting bullied.
She was wrong.
Both having a reputation of hot-heads probably made things worse.
Because yeah their words hurt, but it's not something she can't get over, hurting her twin?
Now that's a completely different story.
None of the siblings is happy with how things are going.
It stress them out, on top of everything they've to do they also have to deal with this.
They're tired.
They quarrel, it escalates into a fight and ultimately stop talking to each other for a few days.
Eventually Kai goes out of his way to buy her some considerably expensive clothes.
Is an apology gift, she accepts it, he chooses to ignore her judgmental eyes. There's also a sad smile on her face, Kai can't make any sense of it.
Eventually, both start s to avoid fights, more for the sake of Nya than his.
They avoid going to the village that much anymore, just for the essentials (not that they were doing much else there), they walk silently around them, hoping to not get sppoted.
It works, kinda, the bullies soon grow bored of having to search, the Twins are barely see around anymore anyways.
The fire inside them roars, screams, it tells them to take a stance an fight.
But both snuffle those flames.
If this is for their survival so be it.
They were fourteen when Kai got his scar.
Avoiding fighting had been working out, they'd been living their lives, until one day it didn't.
Kai can't remember exactly why it happened, probably something stupid, there no logical reason for bullying after all.
But his and Nyas work had been paying off, so maybe is jealousy?
There's not reason for anyone but clients to go up all the way to their house (and workshop) but he spots the teen group coming up.
He tries to ignore them in the hopes of them getting bored and leaving, they don't.
He keeps on working around, making some weapons, he prays they're scared enough of the hot metal and the fire it'll keep them at bay.
At first, they walk around their smile house, they mock him, they mock the house.
Is fine.
He ignores them.
Then they trash around, check some of the stuff he tends to leave outside to attract people to the shop, they "check them out" but he knows they're tying to break it and get on his nerves.
He bites his tongue and his grip tightens.
Is... is okay... is okay... yeah
He's sure Nya can fix them. He can fix them.
He tries to calm himself, extinguishing the flames that seem to be about to come out of his gut and burn everything around him.
Until they start to mess with Nya, it starts with mockery, no different from what they said about him.
But as fate would have it it spirals out of control.
Mockery turns onto lewd and gross comments, and they even start to mimick some stuff, all while laughing.
Is so so gross, Kai let's out an animalistic sound.
Enough is enough.
He jumps at them, the bigger teen, with no weapon in hand, and a fight ensues.
The smell of alcohol and other stuff hits his nostril, it stinks, it stinks do bad.
Worse, he's outnumbered, there are like five or six people around him, the bigger above him, wrestling the considerable smaller boy into the grounds.
But he tries, he tries so hard, he wants them to leave his house, their house, their last memory of them and the only save haven his sister and him have.
Is not until the bigger teen wrestles him forcefully to the floor where he grabs a knife (wasn't that one of his projects?) and starts slowly and sadistically to carve a long vertical line starting from above his eyebrow.
He screams.
Is obvious the other teens think he has gone too far, they have stopped acting like idiots, has the scream sober them up?
They aren't mocking him anymore, they just look doubtful, yet none comes forward to help Kai.
They're not gonna help him, are they?
He screams in pain!but the teens just look at him, as if he's an animal at an exhibition, why?
Kai feels a burning sensation in his throat, ready to burst, sharpened nails digging into soft flesh.
His back itches too.
The teen above him finishes his macabre game and gets up.
Kai just wants to curl up.
There's blood, so much blood, oh.
He's gonna lose the eye, isn't he?
A sob comes out from his mouth, tears prickling at the corners of his eyes, blood running down the right part of his face.
He feels powerless but the torture isn't over.
The drunk teens gets the boy onto his feet and barks orders to the others
He isn't sure what happening anymore but he can swear he hears water running.
Before he can even try to collect himself he feel his head being pushed under water.
He panics.
Damnit, damnit!
He instinctively tries to get ahold of something, anything.
He finds an arm and dugs his sharp nails in it.
He can't breath. He can't breath.
Is this how he dies? This stupid way?
But what about the shop? What about Nya.
Part of him knows she's gonna be fine, she's a strong, clever, independent girl. Far more capable than what he is, that's for sure.
But he doesn't want to die. He can't leave her alone, he wants to stay with his sister.
Is it selfish for him to not want to die? To not leave her alone?
He tries to breath again and more water gets imside his lungs.
Stupid.
As his world blackens he can breath again, and he coughs.
Suddenly the other boy is no longer above him. Or any of the others are around.
He can breathe freely, he gasps, the shock of the moment is disorienting.
He's wet and miserable. His head is still partially inside the bucket, but now he's on his side and the water had spilt.
It takes him a moment to recognize the pained grunts of his attacker, there seems to be blood dripping down his arms and face as if he had been clawed and hit.
There's some scorch marks on the ground too, but his mind is too tired to make any sense of it.
Kai looks up (as much as he can) and he's surprised (and relieved) to see Nya, she's growling like an animal, metal rod on her arms.
He takes a look at her eyes, there's a dangerous shine within them. He swear her pupils are just a slit.
None comments on the inhuman scratch marks the older teen is left with as he runs off.
They're left alone after that.
He wonders where the rest went but they probably ran off once they saw their friend start drowning the younger boy.
That's fine, as long as they're left alone that's fine with him.
Nya helps him up, he leans on her, both walk to the house tiredly, adrenaline wearing off.
He cleans himself with her help.
Supporting each other they walk into their parent's abandoned room, clean but untouchable after so many years.
They crawl onto the bed, hurdling together as Kai weeps and Nya rubs soothing motions on his back until both fall asleep.
The sun comes up. They don't talk about it again.
Is their fifteen birthday when Nya gets kidnapped.
Kai is distressed, how could he not?
This was the first time both of them had been separated for so long.
He tries to convince himself everything is gonna be okay, inside he feels as if something wavers, as if something had just gone missing, leaving a hole in his soul.
As Kai follows the strange old man that appeared at the shop earlier that day he swears to the moon and back to get his sister back.
He can feel it in his heart and can only repeat over and over that he's coming.
For the first time in so long he dreams.
He can feel hard rock below him, he dreams of lava and gold.