There was a voice calling out to him. A voice pleading with him, desperately. He could barely make out hands touching him, gripping his shoulders, something pressed against his head.
"Az?" the voice called, "Az, come on, please wake up. Try to stay conscious."
Aziz didn't think he'd ever heard Xavier beg before. Not like he was now. He tried to force his eyes open, but his body didn't seem to want to comply with him.
God, everything hurt.
Apparently, that scepter does a little more than just throw magic around.
The night his brother disappeared, he saw something outside the window. A faint light flowing into the room and a shadowy figure slipping in from the window-
"Az, wake up!" The voice called again, this time he could feel his body moving as if he was being shaken, "Don't- ... Fuck, Aziz, do you know how much pain you're going to cause if you die? Do you want your parents to have to bury their only living son?"
He wasn't their only living son. Their eldest was back. The son they actually cared about.
His mother had been so vocal about how much she cared for her eldest. How much she cared for Jay. She always forgot that she had two other children-
"Aziz!" The voice yelled now, loud enough for his eyes so finally startle open.
"Thank god," Xavier said, throwing his arms around him, "Now try to stay with me ok? Can you talk?"
"I think?" Aziz mumbled.
The effort hurt his throat and he shook his head.
"Throat hurts?" Xavier guessed, getting a nod out of him, "Yeah, that checks out. How much do you remember?"
"Everything before he hit my head is a blur."
"That's probably for the best," Xavier said, concern in his eyes, "We'll get you out of here ok? Just try your best to stay awake and with me, ok?"
Aziz nodded, leaning back against the wall, doing his best to brush off the pain that shot out through his body. It was impossible to ignore, he was pretty sure he had a couple of broken bones. He was sure his head was bleeding, but he was too scared to ask the extent of the injury.
Though, judging by the look in Xavier's eyes, he knew he looked awful.
"Do you really think my parents would care that much?" Aziz asked, voice barely able to exceed a whisper without causing more pain to himself.
"Of course they would," Xavier told him, "You're their son."
"They have their eldest son back," Aziz told him, "They won't need me anymore."
"Hey, don't talk like that," His friend told him, putting a hand on his arm, "They still love you, Aziz."
His vision blurred over again, and this time he didn't know if they were from tears or if he was going to pass out again. A gentle hand on his face confirmed that it was the tears as Xavier moved closer to him.
"You're going to be ok, alright? I promise."
Ok, next chapter I'll focus on what Mal and Jay have been doing