"That's for me..." Marron realized. Instead of turning briskly on his heel and walking away in cold, hard silence as daily routine would have it, Marron threw his arms around the the blond's middle and hugged him. Gateau was too stunned to react. As suddenly as he'd grabbed the man, Marron let him go and strode up to the cabin.
"Whoa..." Gateau breathed and shakily followed Marron, mentally kicking himself for not taking advantage of those few precious seconds that he would make sure Marron always remembered. Tira smiled to herself as they dissappeared inside the cabin. Once inside, Marron's gaze fell on Chocolate, who was just emerging from her slumber. Yawning, she sat up. Marron approached her and the girl's sapphire eyes went wide when she saw him. She crossed her arms sternly. "Alright, start talking. You've got some explaining to do."
Marron simply smiled at her (a rare gift) and petted her hair playfully.
"Omnichan?"
Marron looked up from Chocolate's quizzical face at Carrot's.
"Niisan....."
Carrot scratched the back of his neck nervously as his brother looked at him with those peircing brass-colored eyes. "Can we talk?"
Marron nodded and followed Carrot out of the cabin to a secluded place area in the surrounding woods.
"I think you have some questions to answer." Carrot said to Marron in direct tone.
"Like what?" Marron said flatly.
"Don't play cute with me!" Carrot said brusquely. "I want to know where in the fourteen hells you were while us four were practically starving to death and expecting you to deliver! What were you doing while our stomachs were growling like my zoanthrophy, waiting for SOMEONE to bring home a few lousy fish?!"
Marron flinched at his brother's tone. "There are so many things you don't know." Marron said quietly.
"No, Marron. There are so many things YOU don't know!" Carrot said angrily. "Do you know how it feels to miss out on a meal you were expecting after eating nothing for two whole days? Have you ever felt like you were so empty that little demons were chewing away at your insides? Have you ever been on the verge of collapsing from hunger?"
"HAVE YOU EVER BEEN RAPED?!??!!"
Carrot went numb with shock as his brother screamed the words that thrust a dagger of guilt into his heart. For few tense seconds, the Glace brothers locked stares, the older one wide-eyed and rigid as the younger one bit his lip. Marron's face contorted and he turned away in shame. Carrot put a hand on his brother's shoulder, but the boys pulled away.
"Marron, please..." Carrot began, fumbling for the words, "I had no idea...I-...I'm really sorry."
"Don't be," Marron said in a breaking voice, "Why should you care when I disgust you?"
That was a low blow. The blade in Carrot's heart twisted painfully, realeasing a fresh wave of guilt. Carrot seized Marron below the shoulders, and forced his brother to face him.
"Marron, you're being to harsh on yourself. Your'e making a mountain out of a molehill."
Marron scowled, "Oh, so I'm over-reacting, is that it?" he snapped, glaring at Carrot with brazen, tear-filled eyes. It was heartbreaking. Carrot's little brother had always been so kind and gentle. But now, the look in those eyes...
"Marron, all that I'm trying to say is that you're my kid-brother and you mean the world to me. Even if we are a little different...hell, we're like opposites, come to think of it, but, either way, I really care about you. A lot. And don't you ever forget it, okay?"
Marron stared at his brother in amazement.
".....Niisan....." he threw himself at Carrot, and cried hard as his brother's arms locked around him. Carrot lifted his hand and petted his brother's beautiful hair. That hair..... Carrot recalled how his mother spent hours trimming Marron's to perfection while his own untamed crop went ignored. Carrot pictured himself as he'd looked back then; A gangling seven-year-old with wide, curious eyes, and a roguish smile. His untidy hair stuck out all over because he'd cut it himself. He wore a brown, long-sleeved shirt, and a pair of frayed khaki shorts, which both looked exessively baggy on him. They'd belonged to his father, whom the family rarely saw or heard from anymore. His mother busied herself with making beautiful new kimonos for her "little china doll" while Carrot bummed around in his father's hand-me-downs. How left out he'd felt. But he'd gotten used to it. Being ignored hardened his heart and made the parental nepotism bearable for him. But, recieving the white glove treatment during those crucial early years had left Marron unprepared for the painful ordeals life had thrown at him later. He needed a big brother now more than ever, and Carrot's only thought had been to make Marron's tender heart tough and calloused like his own. Well, not any more. Carrot was going to be the brother Marron needed... ...and deserved. And as for Marron...
Though the agonizing memories that plagued his mind hurt him inside, they also made him stronger. But this was a shared stregnth, one that was his own, but at the same time, not. He took strength from those who cared about him and loved him. He'd made a real breakthrough. For the first time in his life. Marron felt ready to face the world and walk life's path at a steady pace, standing tall. The bond he shared with kind and gentle rose-eyed one, the fluttery red-head, the blond powerhouse, and the brother who'd taught him so much, gave Marron the courage to do so. On the outside, he was the same shy, vague, and demure person he'd always been, but it was if the boy's self had metamorphosized on the inside. As Marron flanked his brother, walking back to the cabin, he thought to himself, "You're my friends and I love you all, but I can never let you see the real me. Marron Glace is a mystery and that's the way it has to be"
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