The Laying of Boundaries

Through the moonlit night, the two boys dressed urgently, suddenly remembering just how exposed they truly were. Not only their flesh was naked, but everything concerning the two boys had been stripped and was ready to show to anyone passing by. With a single glance anyone could have ruined it for the two of them.

They thought they were safe, they thought that they had been careful enough, had been quick and quiet enough.

Both of them had been horribly wrong.

A pair of small feet pattered against the stone flooring of the city as the young girl dashed desperately through the streets. She stumbled several times, due to the bout of blurry vision that was brought on by myriads of tears gathering at soft eyelashes. Nothing but tears and dust where left in her wake as she suddenly crumpled in the middle of the East-side marketplace.

She could barley breathe at this point, trying to catch her breath as she clasped a hand over trembling lips. The young girl with the braided pig-tails couldn’t seem to understand what she’d just seen. She felt horrible. How could Vaan do this to her, and how could Reks do something like that to Vaan. Why? Why?!

Gasping down mouthfuls of air, Penelo finally hung her head, wrapping her arms around her middle as her stomach suddenly lurched and caused the girl to feel sick to her stomach. In a desperate attempt to make the sight of it go away she snapped her eyes shut, however, this only made the noise reverberate in her ears louder and louder. Her fingernails dug into the sides of her lips in horror and pain as a guttural sound fell from her throat, a sound of disgust, betrayal, and her feeble attempt of telling herself that it was all okay.

How could she keep this a secret?

She couldn’t tell. What would people say? But…at the same token, what would they say if they found out themselves?

Surely, the two boys could never hope to trust Penelo once again when they learned of what she did when she finally pushed herself to her feet and dragged herself down the street right into Migelo’s sundries.

However, this was not a detail for the two brothers to be worried by at the current hour.

Well after Reks and Vaan’s euphoria had faded and they had sought shelter in their humble little abode, both had taken to sleep fairly easily. However, Reks was no where near as luckily as Vaan had been. Reks was not able to stay within sleep’s grasp, and was ripped away back into the cruel hand of reality.

Only then did Reks fully seem to comprehend what he had done.

He had taken Vaan.

He’d stolen Vaan’s innocence; he’d tainted him, made him fowl in every sense of the word.

What Reks had done was unforgivable.

But…he’d do it all again.

Just to hear the way that his own name sounded as it flew from the lips of his dear sweet little brother.

It was unfortunate that things would only get worse from here for them.

The very next moment as Reks lifted his head, he heard a sound. No, a voice, rather, it was the sound of someone clearing their throat, but not just any typical ‘Someone’ this was Migelo. Even through the darkness, Reks could see the outline of the Bangaa and he frowned deeply, not even speaking to Migelo as he turned his eyes back to Vaan.

He looked heavenly. The way that he was stretched over the modestly adorned little bed that they shared, the way that locks of hair were still matted to the skin of his forehead, the way that soft lips hung parted and practically begged Reks to stay next to him. However, Reks could not fulfill that silent plea, instead, he stood and faced Migelo once more. Nothing was said between the two as Reks noiselessly made his way to the door.

The silence was steep as the crest of a mountain and as thick as the water that rolled into the Giza Plains. At least, until they were out of the door and after it had closed. Before Reks could react, the fist of a shattered Bangaa collided into the wall mere inches from the corner of his eyelashes. “Migelo,” He croaked out slowly, turning half-hearted eyes up to the reptilian creature before him.

“What did I tell you Reks? How could you have done this!? And there?!”

“I don’t…”

Reks was cut off when the fist was lifted and slammed back into the wall, the boy could feel tiny bits of stone sprinkle over his shoulders.

“Who do you think found you this time Reks?” The Bangaa’s voice hissed in frustration and agony, “Surely it wasn’t me,”

Reks’ eyes widened, “Then…who?” Terror flew through him when the figure of a young girl stepped out from behind Migelo’s shadow, “…Penelo,” He forced out, his breathing going erratic as he watched her tears paint tiny trails along her cheekbones, the amount of her tears growing by the moment as her breath hitched. “Penelo, I can explain…!”

Before he knew it, Migelo’s hand smacked into his chest, “You’ve given her enough pain to last for her entire lifetime and I assure you that she will never be able to look at either of you in the same fashion ever again!” The anger lacing Migelo’s words wasn’t fading, it was growing sharper, more vile. Surely Reks had never witnessed such a thing from Migelo in his life.

“Please, Mi…Migelo…Don’t tell Vaan,”

Reks’ voice was pleading by this time and with only a few more stares into the boy’s eyes, Migelo could feel the pain dripping from Reks like a fresh wound.

“I won’t. None of us will. Not a single one and not a single word,” Migelo spoke carefully, trying to allow his anger to simmer down and to loose momentum, though it was difficult. Sighing out, he slowly pulled his hand away, “I’ve spoken to several of my acquaintances. You’ve heard about the war?”

Reks rose a brow. Of course he knew, but Migelo, he couldn’t mean that… -

“You are to meet at the training camp tomorrow with your new captain,”

No,

Reks lost his breath, his features going pale.

“Migelo, you can’t do this to me! Please Migelo, You can’t…!”

The boy’s legs gave out when the Bangaa drew himself away.

It was Reks’ turn to feel the sting of the tears as he sunk to the ground, his knees digging roughly into the stone beneath him. Inaudible pleas and excuses fell from his lips like strings of pearls as Migelo stared down upon him, and as Penelo shivered in place. The girl cupped her hands over her eyes as she fell victim to her own emotion, but unlike Reks, she was given comfort. With his arm around the girl and his scaled hand dabbing beneath her eyes, Migelo escourted Penelo away from the tiny home; away from Reks and most importantly, away from Vaan.