Eros

The Blackrose Legacy - 51

Fourteen years ago

The boy sat huddled in the bunk room's corner. The walls pressing against his back and shoulders, promising no one could sneak up on him.

His black hair was matted, bare feet dirty and scratched, and the oversized clothes hung tattered and sullied on his scrawny body. But his dark green eyes were always vigilant, and the stone always held tight behind his back.

The other children of the orphanage were still scampering about the bunk beds as the night took the light from the windows. None dared come near him.

It wasn't his first orphanage. He was removed from the last one when the priest discovered the tattoo on his back. But he learnt from his mistakes there. He'll never show weakness again.

On his first night here, when an older boy came to beat him for his worth, he was ready. Crouched in the same corner, clutching the same stone. He struck first, and he struck hard.

The Headmaster had whipped his back raw, but not even the older kids tried him since. He was certain he would be kicked out again, when the Headmaster stripped off his shirt. But he had simply dismissed him as the filthy spawn of lunatic cultists. This orphanage had no priest or any other men of the Divine Church of Light. Perhaps that is why it was so poor.

Like every night, he waited for all the others to fall asleep first. No matter what precaution you took, in your sleep, you were vulnerable.

He noticed the looks from the older boy who still carried the fat scar his stone bashed into his forehead. Let him look for revenge all he wants - he wasn't going to get it.

A girl approached. Her charcoal black hair was cropped shortly and roughly, but her features were too dainty to be mistaken for a boy's. He jumped upright, fist white-knuckled around the stone.

She blinked at him, her eyes a light, sparkling blue. The girl herself was too frail to be a threat. He feared she was a distraction, but there was no one close behind her, and he had the walls at his back.

She took in a deep breath, as if sucking in courage, and then puffed it out. "Hi."

He looked at her hesitantly, body still tense.

"Don't be scared, I am not going to hurt you." She said, and he narrowed his eyes at her. "I just noticed you are alone all the time. And I am alone too, so I thought, you know... Maybe we can be together?"

He kept quiet, unsure how to answer. She smiled at him.

It was a beautiful thing, her smile. "My name is Siera. What is yours?"

"I don't have a name." His voice sounded odd in his ears. He didn't speak often.

"How come?" She asked.

"Nobody gave me one." He answered. She frowned for a long moment.

"I can give you a name!" She suddenly called, beaming a smile.

He blinked at her, and she leaned closer, eyeing him up. "Would you like that?"

He thought about it, and shrugged. She squealed in delight, then got to work.

"You look like a..." Her small nose bent in thought as she examined him. "Kaido."

"Kaido?" His brow furrowed as he repeated.

She nodded once. "Kaido."

"Kaido." He rolled the name on his tongue.

"Do you like it?" She tilted her head aside, and peered at him in expectation. For some reason, he didn't want to disappoint her. He nodded.