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KRIST STARES AT THE horizon in front of him with a tired expression on his face. The master joker was on the rooftop in J.S High, a place that was filled with sweet yet bitter memories. Sometimes he wonders why he chose this place despite everything that happened to him here, but Krist knew deep in his heart that he didn't want to let go of his past either, especially with everything that happened to them.
"Mj!" Someone shouted as the door to the rooftop swung open behind him. Krist didn't turn around or say anything, but when he heard the footsteps running toward him, he already knew who the guests were.
"Master Joker," all of the members of Jokers greeted with a respectable bow.
Brave—the right-hand man—takes a step closer and eases his breathing, obviously showing how he and the rest of his brotherhood ran all the way to the rooftop to greet their leader who has been gone since the incident.
"Mj, why didn't you tell us that you already went back to school?" Brave asks.
Krist looks down at his hand and stares at the cigarette that he was actually holding. He was supposed to light it up, but unfortunately for him, he forgot to bring his lighter, so he placed it back inside his pocket instead.
"I heard about your unfair confrontation with Cj," Krist suddenly opens up, instantly making Brave take a step back. "When I heard of what Cj did, I didn't immediately see him because I knew that my words would only be filled with unintentional hate. You should have done the same."
"But Mj—"
"You did not have the right to do what you did to him. I understand your sentiment...your anger...your disappointment, but all that was for me to swallow, not yours," Krist scolds with a cold tone.
Brave gulps, and then he immediately went down on one knee to bow; the rest of the members did the same. "I apologize, Master Joker. I crossed the line and let my emotions get the best of me," Brave says, his head bowing deeply.
Krist takes a deep breath and continues to look at the horizon before saying, "Head to where the count is and apologize to him. I'll privately talk to Cj about the matter between us soon after, is that understood?"
Brave and the others were surprised, but they bowed their heads eventually and answered in unison, "Yes, Master Joker."
"Looks like you really do fit the leader role," a feminine voice suddenly says, automatically making the barons stand to welcome the intruder. Krist also turned around to see who it was, and when everyone finally saw him, Krist's eyes widened from shock, surprised to see an unexpected guest.
"Siren," Krist says, but he quickly shakes his head and clarifies, "N-No, you're the new leader. That's what the association reported to us."
Siren—whose real identity is actually River Hansen Karlsson, an identity that only the top 3 brotherhoods (Busters, PHD, and BND), as well as Max, knows about—walks towards Jokers while holding his famous cane, making the members move back in terror.
NOTE: In the book, River will still be referred to as Siren (with she/her pronoun) whenever River wears the mask and acts as the leader of Crazy 8. River clarified that Siren will be his new persona or second identity. But when I refer to him as River (this will mostly happen whenever Max is with him), he'll use he/him pronoun. Hope this doesn't confuse you!
"I can't really say I'm new, considering how I've always been the one you were all talking to, but yes, I am the new leader, but I would still like you to address me as Siren," Siren says, smirking behind the mask before finally stopping in front of Krist.
"Master Joker, I apologize for my intrusion, it seems like we have a common goal," Siren says, surprising not only Krist but the rest of the barons as well.
"Goal? What the hell do we have that would even be close to similar?" Krist asks, obviously not happy that Siren came to their base so unexpectedly like this. So when Siren saw Krist's reaction, she could only laugh. "You seem mad. To be fair, I'm not the one who spread that rumor of yours; not personally of course."
"Then where is she? The one who really did it?" Krist angry asks, his voice louder this time.
"Hmm, I can tell you, but you have to give me something in exchange That's always been the ways of the marquis, isn't that right?" Siren teases, making Krist more irritated than he was before Siren got here.
When Krist looks like he was going to grab her collar, Siren quickly steps away and says, "No need to be such a killjoy Master Joker, I was only teasing. In fact, if you want to know who spread that rumor, you can find him at his company. I bet the count will welcome you if you just meet with him."
"I'll deal with Cj myself later, but first, where the fuck is she?!" Krist shouted this time, and Siren's smirk instantly turns into a frown. "Where's your old leader? I heard from Hans that she sought out Cj first. If she didn't confront him, we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place," Krist accuses.
Siren takes a deep breath and lifts her cane up before pulling out the sword. "The old Siren...she had a particularly interesting value that kept us all in line. She had secrets from all of us, that's why we couldn't go against her. She was a manipulator. She knew what to ask, what to say, and what to expose." Siren says while touching the blade of her sword with her bare hands. "The count, sir Charles, was just an unfortunate victim. He took the bait and is now trapped in guilt, only because you and the rest of your brotherhood didn't trust him enough."
The statement lingered in Krist's ear, but instead of feeling bad about it, it only angered him even more.
"Trust? We...I...didn't trust him enough? Is that what you're saying?" Krist asks.
"That's right, you didn't. When everything crumbled and you saw the person to blame, you pinned everything against him, did you not? The poor child was only blackmailed by our old leader yet you damned him for it," Siren says with an almost baby-like voice, obviously being sarcastic.
"So you're saying that he was blackmailed, and the best thing he could think of was to tell her my secret, knowing full well that Siren would spread it?" Krist asks back with a tone of disbelief.
"Well, if you look at it from a different perspective, you wouldn't have been involved if you didn't tell him your secret in the first place. You knew him best. The count is a selfish man and would use people for his advantage, even Sinclaire knows that so let's not act blind and pretend that it's not true. It's all your fault. After all, he was the one who left you on this very rooftop three years ago, which was why you got assaulted by the previous Barons like the weak...pathetic...clown that you are."
Brave and the other jesters were about to attack Siren after what she said to their leader, but then Krist suddenly lifted his hand first and was about to throw a punch at her. Unfortunately, Siren was faster. She quickly dodged him and pointed the tip of her sword at the baron's chest, instantly making Krist stop moving.
"I told him because I trusted him. I trusted him, more than anyone in this god-forsaken school. He broke my trust countless times, not just with this recent incident, not just the time on the rooftop, but on other occasions as well. I do not have unlimited forgiveness, yet I hand it over to him because I love him like he's my brother."
"That was a mistake and you know it."
"No, my one true mistake...was that I have forgiven him countless times, yet I cannot forgive myself for letting someone hurt me over and over again," Krist says as he suddenly grabbed hold of the sword, which even surprised Siren. Krist then grips the sword, causing his palm to bleed. But despite the pain, he pulls the sword away from Siren's hand and kicks her, making her stumble backward until she fell to the ground.
As soon as she fell, Krist goes on top of her and grips on her collar with his bloodstained hand while the rest of the members surrounded her.
"If you were the old Siren who spread that secret, I would have killed you right now," Krist says, his wounded hand trembling.
"It was just a stupid secret Krist. Why are you so rilled up about it? Cj had no choice but to sacrifice you to save himself. You're his best friend. You should just take the fall for his sake. That's what he's always been doing after all, right?" Siren mocks him this time, making Krist grip her collar even harder.
"A stupid secret?! The fact that my father cheated on another man was something I could have endured if that ended there, but you have no idea what I've been through after that," Krist says, his words flowing out of his mouth like a river.
"Do you even know...what my mother had to do...just to make sure I don't become like him? Huh? Do you know how many women I had to please at a very young age to reassure my mother that I won't turn out to be like my dad? Do you you know how many times I wished I wasn't his son?!"
As Krist's emotion reaches its peak, Brave quickly goes to Krist to try and stop him from saying anything further. What happened with Krist in the past was something that only Max, Cj, and Jokers know about. It was a secret that he kept that corrupted him for years. This wasn't the right place and time to bring it up now.
"Mj that's enough," Brave tries to say, trying to grab Krist by the arm so he could pull him off Siren, but Krist wouldn't even budge.
"That secret is more than just a rumor being spread online. It's a past I've desperately tried to run away from; a secret I kept only for those I was willing to open up to. Don't you dare question my trust and what I should or shouldn't be mad about because you know nothing," Krist says as he finally lets go of Siren's collar, leaving bloodstains on it. But just before Krist could stand, Siren suddenly started laughing.
Krist got angrier, but before he could finally throw a punch at her face, someone bolts into the rooftop and shouts, "Krist! Don't you dare say another word!"
"Hans?" Rome confusingly asks as the rest of the members of Jokers look at BND's leader who was running towards them with Arjun running right behind him.
"She's manipulating you, can't you see? You just told her your secret without even trying. Viktor has always said this before but you really are easily gullible," Hans says as soon as he faces Krist, making Krist's eyes widen from shock.
"Fuck..." He curses under his breath as the rest of the jesters finally pulled him away from Siren.
"That's probably the reason why Cj was able to make him his friend too." Arjun then says, instantly making Hans glare at him.
"What? It was a joke..."
When Krist finally calmed down, Siren stood from the floor as well and brushed off the dirt from her uniform. "Well that was exciting now, wasn't it?"
"What the hell are you doing Siren? Why are you here toying with the baron?" Hans angrily asks, and Siren just patted Hans's shoulder before looking back at Krist and bowing to him. "I greatly apologize my baron, but I didn't mean to anger you like this."
"Excuse me?" Krist asks in disbelief.
"That was a trick that the old Siren taught me when I joined Crazy 8; it's how she got a hold of so many secrets. She said I was very good at it, but I never really got to use it often. I just wanted to try if it would still work, so I apologize if I used you as a test subject, Master Joker." Siren says with a deeper bow, leaving Krist and the rest of the Jokers speechless.
"Rest assured, I will keep your secret...a secret. I'm not like the old Siren. The reason why I'm here is different. I'm not here to play games with anyone. But even though I was only testing you, everything I say will lead people to show their true feelings. I hope you sort things out with the count eventually," Siren then says.
Krist was surprised, but he cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject. "Then what was that all about? Why were you testing something so cruel like that in the first place?" Krist then asks.
"Well, I had to make sure. I had to make sure that I'll still be able to do it when I face the person who killed my sister," Siren finally reveals, surprising Krist and the others.
Krist looks at Hans before looking back at Siren with furrowed brows. "Who are you?"
The rooftop was quiet, but after a while, Siren takes off her mask, revealing the scarred face of River Karlsson that surprised the jesters to the point where they couldn't even say anything. "My name is River Karlsson, the younger brother of the previous queen, Serenity Karlsson. As I said to you earlier, we have a common goal. It seems like both of us have something to settle with in regards to the count. Cj knows something about my sister's death, and it's about time I find out the truth, don't you agree?"
...
Max enters the familiar building, the employees bowing to him and greeting him every time he'd walk past them. It would have seemed normal, well...it would if it was his company.
"Sir Sinclaire!" Rose, Cj's secretary, shouts as she ran toward Max to greet him. "You weren't able to call. We should have welcomed you outside."
"Oh please, no need for that," Max says as the two of them walked towards the elevator. "Where's Cj? Is he busy?"
"No, he's actually just in his office resting. He had a meeting with a few investors from China earlier. The meeting probably went well since he's in a good mood," Rose explains, making Max chuckle.
"No wonder everyone here's so lively," Max says, and Rose just smiled and nodded her head to agree with it. As the two entered the elevator, Rose looks at Max and tells him, "I'll just walk you to his office. Would tea be alright with you?"
"That would be unnecessary, but thank you," Max says as the two finally arrived at Cj's floor. Rose walks ahead first and hurriedly goes to Cj's office before knocking on the door. "Master Charles, sir Sinclaire is here and he'd like to speak with you."
"Let him in." A voice answers.
Rose nods her head and steps aside before gesturing at the door. Max thanks her and finally goes inside where Cj was drinking coffee while watching a video on his phone. "You're visiting me way too often now. The vice president might get jealous, and I don't want to be in bad blood with an Alexeev." Cj teases as Max closes the door behind him.
"You haven't taken the points you gave me yet," Max says instead, ignoring what Cj just said.
Cj chuckles and takes a sip of his coffee, not even removing his eyes from the screen of his phone. "Is that the only reason why you're here?" He then asks
"No, it's something far more important than that," Max replies, and Cj finally turns his phone off to look back at his unexpected guest.
"You already gave me my crown brooch back. At least keep the points that I gave you. My pride would hurt if I took it back now," Cj suddenly says as Max took a seat on the chair in front of his desk.
"I told you, it's not about that."
"What is it then?"
"River Hansen...do you know of that name?" Max finally asks. He thought Cj would instantly know who he was, but to his surprise, Cj furrows his brows and answers, "River Hansen? No, I don't think I do. Why, is he someone relevant?"
"Well, River is the new leader of Crazy 8," Max reveals, surprising Cj.
"What? New leader? What the hell happened to Siren?"
"It seemed like the royals and the Elites have been looking for her for a while now. Siren has been using secrets to blackmail even big CEOs and presidents. They had to find her before things get out of hand." Max explains, and Cj could be seen sighing in relief as he slumped himself in his seat.
"Looks like things are looking good. So what now? She got expelled?" He then asks.
"I heard she did," Max says. He also wanted to tell Cj who Siren's real identity is, but Max decided not to. He didn't want Cj to look for her and make a mistake he won't be able to run away from.
"Then this River guy, is he an asshole like Siren too? Is that why you're here?" Cj asks this time, and the thought of River made Max hide a smile.
"You might not believe me, but no. River's surprisingly gentle, kind, and soft-spoken. He fits the role of Crazy 8's leader very well," Max explains with great admiration in his eyes, surprising Cj.
"Wow, the great Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire is actually giving someone such high praise. I'm starting to get jealous. Now I really want to meet this River person and see if he really is what you claim him to be," Cj sarcastically says before taking a sip of his coffee.
Max laughs after hearing what Cj has to say, but then his laughter dies down as he looks back at Cj with a serious expression this time. "Actually, River would also like to see you. As soon as possible."
"What do you mean?" Cj confusingly asks.
Max takes a deep breath and adjusts himself in his seat before saying, "River Hansen. His real name...is River Hansen Karlsson. He went to J.S High to find out what happened to his sister."
Cj's eyes widened his eyes from shock. He quickly stood up from his seat, almost knocking his cup over, and looked at Max like he just heard something ridiculous. "D-did you just say River...Karlsson?" Cj asks, the name instantly making his heart beat faster.
Max clears his throat and stood up to look straight at Cj's eyes. "I know you're still running away, and I know you're still scared, but River deserves to know the truth and only you can do that. Not me, not Hans, not even Viktor, it's you. You're the only one who can tell River everything."
Cj doesn't say anything, but it's clear that he was still hesitant.
"So Serenity had a brother? Do you think he'll ever forgive me for keeping something like that from him?" Cj asks, obviously worried.
Max reaches out to Cj and touches his hand as a sign of comfort. "No Cj, the real question is...are you ready to reveal that secret? That very same secret you were willing to break your friendship for?"
- END -