Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In theory, no one but Jamil and Kalim know Jamil’s secret.

In actuality, everyone can tell that something is wrong with Jamil somehow, that he’s different on some level, but can’t quite put their finger on it. It’s like trying to remember a dream; you know it’s there, but it drips through your fingers before you even realise what’s happening. Sometimes, he wondered what spending time around him felt like to other people. They always looked supremely uncomfortable in the first few minutes, like they wanted to run in the other direction as fast as possible. More so mages than anyone else. Perhaps it was a survival instinct inlaid as far deep as when the first humans were competing for space on the earth with beastmen and fae, but they knew to stay away from him as much as possible. Being in his presence was like staring in a mirror, waiting for your reflection to move and look back at you.

When Kalim asked how it felt, Jamil had thought for a solid minute before hesitantly replying that it was like he was too big for his body. What he didn’t mention was how much it hurt, that feeling like he was breaking in two, like his skin was a balloon that so full of water it was about to pop any second. On bad days, he felt like clawing said skin off entirely, digging his fingers into the wood to stop himself. It wasn’t all bad, of course. Most days, Jamil didn’t really mind, or even think about it all that hard. This was just as much a part of him as his magic was after all, maybe even more so. He couldn’t imagine how it would feel to be so alone in your own head that you would never hear a second voice speaking back to your every stray thought.

Jamil couldn’t help feeling sorry for all those other people, who didn’t have a constant companion to address whenever they wanted. People had friends of course, but that wasn’t really anything like this. Jamil had Kalim and his sister and the kids down at the marketplace, occasionally, and that was nothing like what this was. None of them had been inside his head after all. But then again, maybe that was just him.

Jamil Viper had always been…. more.

It never really had a concrete beginning, nothing Jamil could point to and say “That, that is when I became aware”. Maybe it began in the cool darkness of his mother’s womb, when he was just barely coming into existence, forming all the bits and pieces that would later come to be known as ‘Jamil Viper’. Maybe it was when he first started hearing the second voice in his head, replying to his small baby thoughts. Or perhaps the real start of it all was when he first realised that what he had wasn’t in any way normal, that most people didn’t hear another’s voice in their minds. Whatever the case, Jamil knew he had a second soul, a different set of opinions, memories and even magic, much more than just the one he was supposed to have.

He never told anybody, of course. They would just call him crazy again (lock him up in that awful dark attic and leave him to rot). There was no point.

Instead, he got familiar with his other. They were going to be stuck together for quite a while after all, so it was best to get along. He waited till he was alone in his room to address him at first, afraid to tip anybody off with his reactions.

As you already know, there wasn’t really a big confrontation or revelation or anything like that. They had known each other for as long Jamil had existed after all, awareness or no. Most of the time, they just. Talked. For hours and hours, all the time when he was alone.

Did your world really not have magic?

Not from what I can remember, no. Magic only existed in fiction.

Ah yes, that was another thing. Jamil was one hundred percent certain that his second soul came from another world. One that was reasonably similar to his own, but different enough that he still couldn’t wrap his head around it in the beginning. On nights when he couldn’t get to sleep, when the weight of his responsibilities seemed like the weight of the world on his young shoulders, Jamil would listen to stories of the other world his other soul told him with bated breath.

 A different world huh…

If you could choose which world to live in, which would you pick?

One where your every action was dictated by a predetermined place in the system with no visible way out?

Or one where you were free to choose who you wanted to be, with no expectations or restrictions?

Jamil knew which he would choose, if given the chance.  

Later, much, much later, Jamil would look back at those late-night musings and wonder if the course of his life would have turned out the way it did without the other constantly speaking to him, sharing his pain and frustration equally between the two of them. Had he been alone, he wasn’t sure what kind of person he would have turned out to be. Perhaps he would not have fallen into Overblot the way he did had he not been brimming with the magic of two people, rather than one. Perhaps he would have been alone, and all the happier for it.

But there was no point in drowning himself in the “what-ifs” and “maybes”. What’s done is done. All that was left for him (for them) in the end was to clean up the aftermath.

For now though, Jamil was still just a kid with too much magic for his own good and not enough knowledge to go with it. He was a smart little thing, he knew he was, the other told him so all the time too, but that didn’t stop him from getting into all kinds of trouble all throughout his childhood and pre-teen stages.  

Let’s begin at the very beginning shall we?

Chapter Text

All men are not created equal.

That is a simple truth, an absolute certainty of Jair’s existence. He’d known this all his life, had known it when he had died at his sister’s hands, pushed into the path of an oncoming train. It was hammered into him repeatedly and mercilessly during his time in his first world. And it didn’t look like this life would be any different. Of course, he didn’t know this at first, considering he and Jamil shared one body and Jamil had been much too small to really walk anywhere outside his family’s quarters in the Asim household for quite a while (at least from Jair’s perspective). But it very quickly became apparent, as Jamil grew, just what kind of life he’d (they’d) been born into.

Funnily enough, it all hinged on his last name.

Jamil was a Viper.

Vipers were servants to the Asim family, had been for generations upon generations, since long before Jamil or his parents were born. It was just the way things were. He had no choice in this, it was what he was expected to be and who he would be forced to become. Because nobody cared about what a single, insignificant servant boy wanted from life. It wasn’t his place to want things.

No, all men were not created equal.

Because Jamil was a Viper.

Jamil was a servant.

(Consequently, so was Jair.)

I hate them so much Jair, you have no idea.

I live in your head, Jamil, I think I have a lot more than just an ‘idea’.

You’re so lucky, you know. I’m the one who actually has to talk to those brats.

Technically speaking, Jamil was right. Only, that didn’t lessen Jair’s frustration, not one bit. Sitting around helplessly and mentally grinding his teeth in irritation was hardly any better. In fact, he would’ve much preferred if they could change places occasionally or something, even if it meant having to put up with the utterly insufferable rich brats that were, infuriatingly, considered to be their so-called “superiors”.

Jamil scoffed soundlessly at the stray thought as he moved lightly through the corridors leading to the outside.

If we could change places, you’d have punched someone’s teeth out by now and I would be in big trouble. And I don’t want to be in trouble.

True, true. They’d totally deserve it though.

I’m not saying they don’t, am I? Anyway, stop distracting me. I have an errand to run and mum said I should hurry up with it.

I still don’t understand why they’re making YOU do this instead of, oh I don’t know, GOING THEMSELVES?

The utter lack of concern Jamil’s parents displayed for their son’s wellbeing was downright frightening. (Jair was convinced that the only person who always kept track of where Jamil was going was him. Considering just how young they were right now, that was highly concerning.) Still, running errands for Jamil’s parents was a great excuse to get outside and away from the stifling atmosphere in the house. It was one of the few times they got to be truly alone, since they often had to deal with Kalim’s pestering to play with him. And playing with Kalim was more often than not, exhausting. Even leaving aside how on his guard Jamil had to be, the other boy was just a hurricane of energy and neither Jamil nor Jair knew what to do with it.

Considering how often Jamil was sent to do someone’s bidding during his life, this particular instance likely wouldn’t have been anything special to him in the long run if it weren’t for what happened next.

After Jamil began to make his way back home, clutching a tightly-wrapped, nondescript parcel to his chest, he found himself right in the thick of the midday crowd, the sun bright and blinding overhead. The boy winced as he attempted to squeeze his way through the throngs of people in the market. Jamil was so focused on getting out of the crowd that he didn’t even notice when he found himself in a completely different part of town to the one his family lived in. That is, until he stopped a little while later and really looked at his surroundings. Instead of sprawling, rich mansions or the already-familiar due to countless trips marketplace, he was standing on a street filled with high-rise apartment buildings.

Jamil felt his throat dry up.

He was alone.

He was alone and standing in the middle of a completely unfamiliar area.

Where are we?

I think we turned the wrong corner somewhere after we finally escaped that crowd…

Obviously! I mean WHERE are we?

Do I look like I know this place any better than you? I literally live INSIDE YOUR HEAD, Jamil!

Oh god we’re lost…

Having spent his entire life thus far enclosed within the space of the Asim mansions, outside of the trips to the market and official events he was taken to as a servant to the prestigious family, Jamil was utterly, utterly confused as to how he was supposed to find his way back.

Okay, okay let’s just… not panic. I’m pretty sure we can find our way back to the main street, at least, and we know the way from there, right? Right?

Jamil took a deep breath to steady his racing heart and began to look around.

Which direction did we come from?

I think it was that way….

Right.

If anyone asks, you just lost track of time. We definitely did not get lost, okay?

Yep.

After he figured the general direction he came from, Jamil began the trek back to more familiar territory, so far unaware of the eyes following his movements.

He was after all, only a child.

He had not yet had the chance to cross paths with assassins.

Chapter Text

It began at night, long after everyone else was already asleep. Jamil was sound asleep himself, not worried in the slightest about the impending danger. Nobody in the entire household was, not on this night at least. After all, who could have possibly predicted that a single, insignificant, servant boy getting lost would lead to such potentially disastrous consequences?

The moon was high in the sky, everything was still and silent and hired killers were creeping through the halls of the Asim mansion, in total darkness. All it took was a single wrong turn and they ended up in the servants wing… In the Viper’s quarters.

In the end, what saved him was his second soul.

Jair was not a physical being anymore after all. His mind was halfway alert even in sleep, as the body weighed Jamil’s young mind down. Usually this just meant he woke easier and earlier and had a much harder time nodding off. But right then, it was what made the difference between life and death.

‘-sure that this is the room? Doesn’t really look like it…’

‘Ah, who can even tell in this darkness? Let’s just get this over with already.’

The words, whispered as they were, still woke Jair from his uneasy slumber.

What-?

Who’s-?

Mmm, Jair, why are you up so late? Let’s sleep…

I…

I think…

I think someone’s here.

Jamil’s eyes snapped open in panic. He forced his body to stay still, pretending to still be sleeping peacefully.

Who?

There’s two of them, right outside our door.

Have they-?

No. They think we’re still asleep.

His whole body was frozen, muscles tight with an unspeakable amount of tension and alertness. The most important thing was to remain calm… He had to stay calm, because otherwise… Because…

He was dead.

These people were planning to kill him.

He was going to die and he was utterly helpless to do a damn thing to stop it. At any moment they could decide to come in and kill him, kill one helpless, unimportant child and nobody would care in the slightest. Not the rich and powerful Asims, not the other servants, not his sister. Not even his own parents. Lives had value, lives had power, but not his, no. Never his. (Because Jamil was a Viper. Jamil was a servant. His family, his friends, the Asims… all had more important things to worry about.)

It was then that it happened. The moment that Jamil would remember as long as he lived.

Jamil gasped, suddenly feeling as though some sort of invisible dam had snapped inside him. A flood, a tidal wave of pure power, rushing through him, as that strange something clicked into place.

Just then, the door was slipped soundlessly open.

There ought to have been panic present, he knew. He should have been rooted to his spot under the bedcovers, unable to move. But his mind was strangely calm.

He felt as the covers were ripped away from him.

His eyes met the eyes of his assailants, just for a single moment.

It was enough.

One moment was enough.

The fateful words slipped from his mouth as the magic burst out of him.

“The one you see is your Master.”

Jamil’s entire body shook, even as he drove the knife deeper into the man’s chest. The man, who was silent, unresisting, obediently letting the boy kill him. Blood coated his fingers, hot, thick, freshly spilled blood. It felt absolutely disgusting, there was so much of it, just so much… And that wasn’t even the worst bit. Oh no, that dubious honour went to the wet squelching sounds he heard as he sliced the assassin’s innards open, the smell of it, so overpowering to his senses. Jamil felt his stomach roil and forced himself to ignore the disgust and shame clawing at him.

There were two of them. Just two. A man and a woman.

He had to get rid of them. Kill them and remove the evidence. Even as young as he was, Jamil knew what happened to the people who crossed the Asim Family and he also understood that somebody would figure out what had happened tonight eventually. And then…

Jamil shuddered, biting back the sobs that threatened to escape.

No time for crying now.

No time for crying…

Hey, Jamil…

Jair’s voice was soft, impossibly soft. For a moment, Jamil fancied he could actually feel the other embrace him, impossible as that was.

…yes?

I think I finally figured it out.

Jamil blinked, momentarily distracted from the horror of his situation by the puzzling statement.

Figured what out?

How to switch.

Before he could process the words, Jamil felt himself being carefully herded out of the way. The world slowly faded till it was but a dull thrum around him, distant and off-putting. There weren’t any words to explain just how weird it was, not to someone who had never had two souls. It was impossible to truly explain, you just had to live it. Jamil was pushed to the side of his body, suddenly fluid and metaphysical.

What, what did you just do? Jair!

It’s better if I finish them. And I don’t want you to mess it up too. Just… let me do this Jamil, okay?

Left unspoken was the understanding that if Jamil was the one to deal a killing blow, he would not be able to take it calmly. He was just a child after all, a terrified child with magic burning at his veins and a second soul scorching his skin. It was the dark of night, everyone was asleep and nobody would know anything if they cleaned this up as soon as possible. (It wouldn’t be the first time something like this happened in this mansion anyway.) There would be plenty of opportunity to speak of all that had happened later. But right now…

Alright.

Jair smiled grimly in response, clutching the knife a little tighter.

Try to close yourself off. This isn’t going to be pretty.

Chapter Text

Kalim Al-Asim was the eldest child and heir of the absurdly rich and well-connected Asim family- he wanted for nothing. More riches than he could spend in several lifetimes, more luxuries than he knew what to do with, even the luck of having been born with magic at his fingertips when only a bare handful of people in the entirety of his country possessed it- everything anybody could wish for, he had. He was more happy and more satisfied than most people in the entirety of Twisted Wonderland… wasn’t he?

(Was he?)

For as long as he could remember, Jamil had been at his side.

It was quite the fortunate coincidence, that a child of the Viper family had been born at nearly the same time as Kalim. Since the Vipers were famed for their competence, having one be attached to you specifically was considered the highest honour, even among the Asim. Although Kalim usually tried not to think about that, to push it to the back of his mind. He’d never considered Jamil to be his servant, not really. They were much too close in age for him to be anything but a playmate, weren’t they? (As he grew older, Kalim began to understand a lot more, just why his and Jamil’s situation had made him so uncomfortable. He began to hate this pointless, unfair system even more than Jamil himself, who at that point only wished to finally escape from it. But that would all happen later. Much, much later.)

Throughout their childhood, Kalim had relentlessly chased Jamil’s attention, partially out of desperation for a proper connection to somebody in his life. Others were cold, indifferent or openly hostile, his relationship with his parents remained something he preferred to not think too deeply about and, as much as he would like to pretend otherwise, outsiders just weren’t safe. So Jamil was his only option, if he wanted to be truly close with at least one person. 

And besides, something about him was… just slightly off, in a way that, instead of discouraging him, only ignited Kalim’s curiosity.

There was one day in particular that stuck in Kalim’s memory.

This was before he’d found out about Jamil’s secret, of course, because nothing else in his childhood could really beat that at memorability. All in all, the day had turned out… okay. Not a bad day, no, but when he’d tried to seek out Jamil to play, the other had been reticent and stiff and not in the usual way either. He’d seemed utterly exhausted, as if he had spent the whole night running a ten-mile marathon instead of sleeping. Something in Jamil’s eyes had looked almost… haunted.

‘Jamil?’ Kalim asked, worry apparent in his tone. ‘What’s wrong?’

Jamil jerked and shook himself out of his stupor.

‘Nothing!’

Kalim frowned.

‘You look so tired though,’ he insisted. ‘I can tell!’

Dark eyes darted to the side.

‘I have to go.’

When Jamil abruptly turned away to leave in the other direction, back to the servants wing, Kalim scrambled to catch up.

‘But why? Don’t you-’

Jamil didn’t bother replying; he just shook his head silently and marched determinedly down the corridor.

‘If it’s because of the banquet preparations, I’ll ask them to excuse you!’ Kalim blurted in slight desperation. He didn’t want to be left alone, especially not today.

Jamil stopped.

‘…You will?’

Kalim nodded eagerly, struck by a bout of inspiration.

‘Yep! You don’t have to help with prep if you’re with me, right? So come with me instead!’

This way he could finally start to get closer to Jamil. He’d always known the other boy, sure, but that really wasn’t the same thing as being close to someone. And Kalim didn’t know why, but he wanted to be closer to Jamil. Whenever he was around the dark-haired boy, there was a warm, fluttery feeling in his stomach that he couldn’t quite name. It was… nice.

Something strange passed through Jamil’s eyes. Kalim would have noted it, but in the next second it was gone.

‘Okay. Let’s go… together.’

Kalim beamed at him in delight, mind already full of possibilities.

Maybe this was going to be a great day after all!

Chapter Text

This was not a good idea.

This was, in fact, the absolute opposite of a good idea.

Jamil followed after Kalim, questioning his decision the entire time. His heart was hammering wildly in his chest.

…he’d never defied his parents so openly before.

One of the things they had kept on repeating to him and Najma was that they must remain submissive to the Asim family, keep their heads down and act obedient. Standing out more than a member of the family was practically criminal in their eyes, let alone actually approaching one of them. And yet here he was. Following behind Kalim when he was supposed to be working. Shirking his duties, his job, his responsibility. Every single habit ingrained painstakingly into him by his parents rebelled against this.

What was he doing?

Playing with Kalim whenever he asked was one thing.

This.. this was totally another.

He should have been helping his family. He ought to just suck it up and go back right now-

Jamil, quit it. You’re giving me a headache.

It was only out of sheer practise that Jamil’s face did not show his shock at the sudden interruption.

You’re overthinking this. He said he’s excusing us, didn’t he?

Right… right.

So we pretty much HAVE to go with him now, don’t we? I mean, he is the heir of the family. His word is going to be law someday, isn’t it?

Yes…

So we’re not doing anything wrong by following him.

Jamil let his eyes flutter briefly closed.

…

…

Thank you.

It’s nothing.

Kalim had been talking all this while, but he didn’t seem to mind Jamil’s continued silence, content to simply talk at him, despite never having received a response. (Jamil internally wondered if he was maybe slightly desperate for company.)

‘-even know why- oh hey, look! We’re here!’

When the Asim heir came to a halt outside a massive door, Jamil let him tug him inside of a strangely cosy room. It wasn’t ridiculously massive or ostentatiously furnished, unlike some of the other rooms he’d seen. In fact, it was decorated simply, but very tastefully. Jamil wasn’t walking on tenterhooks, in fear of sullying the expensive furniture; he actually found himself relaxing. This room actually felt like a room and not a museum for public viewing.

As he was looking around, Kalim had made his way over to a table by the wall and was waving him over.

Jamil sank into one of the seats, clenching his fists under the table.

‘I usually sit here when these things are happening!’ Kalim said brightly. ‘So I don’t accidentally get in the way!’

‘By yourself?’ Jamil asked before he could stop himself.

Kalim laughed, sounding a great deal more hesitant this time.

‘Well, yeah. It’s not like there’s anybody else around to talk to. My brothers and sisters are still too young,’ Kalim answered. ‘And, well, um…’

Jamil understood.

…I still don’t get the internal politics of this damn family.

I don’t think I want to get it.

‘What do you usually do here?’ Jamil asked in order to break the sudden tense silence in the room.

Kalim brightened immediately at the topic change.

‘Oh, oh, there’s this game I always wanted to-’

It went easily, after that.

Kalim and Jamil spent a lot more time together after the day of the banquet. Or, well, Kalim spent a lot more time with Jamil. (He couldn’t exactly just go and seek out the heir of the family to hang out. It was up to Kalim to make the first move.) Jamil was hesitant at first. But the more time he spent with Kalim, the more bold he grew. Kalim wasn’t really that bad, he’d decided after receiving some rather lavish praise on his talent from the other, stubbornly ignoring the knowing hum from the back of his mindscape.

Which was something else that changed- Jair had finally managed to create something of a space for himself within the mind, instead of floating around aimlessly in that strange in-between space as before. The mindscape was a way to exist as a tangible, visible entity within the space of Jamil’s mind, if not anywhere else. Actually seeing his other’s face to face for the first time ever had been quite an experience, to say the least. Still more odd was the fact that he’d decided to mimic Jamil’s appearance in all except eye colour- watching his own face staring at him with vibrant green eyes was… strange. He’d gotten used to it fairly quickly though, the novelty of actually getting to touch Jair and look at him far outweighed the oddness of their matching looks.

They had tossed around various theories as to why this was suddenly just now becoming available to them.

Maybe it’s because I’m older?

Do you think it has something to do with that unique magic of yours?

But my magic doesn’t have anything to do with- oh you mean does me expanding my magic capacity have an effect on you?

We should try to test that.

How?

Learn more magic, obviously!

Do you seriously think anybody would agree to teach a “mere servant” something like magic?

If nobody does, everyone in this country is an imbecile for not abolishing this damn system sooner, us included. Because come on, the amount of mages in the Scalding Sands can be counted in under a minute using only your fingers! If all the mages in this entire country gathered together, they would all comfortably fit in one of the Asims’ banquet rooms! Wasting magic because of STATUS is idiotic!

It’s not like I’M the one who created this idea. I think it’s stupid and pointless too, remember?

Yeah, yeah. Just ranting.

But, in all seriousness, do you think this happened because of… that night?

…

…

Jair?

Yeah, probably.

Thought so.

Never mind.

Let’s just… forget this.

Between spending more time with Kalim, fulfilling his duties as a servant of the Asim family and bantering back and forth with Jair, Jamil had completely forgotten to be worried about this strange so-called friendship he had with Kalim. Forgotten… until one day, out of the blue, Kalim had said:

‘My mother wants to meet you.’

Jamil froze, hand stopping just above the game piece on the board that he was going to move.

His mind suddenly screeched to a halt.

I can’t have heard what I heard.

There’s no way I heard that right.

Jair tell me I’m not going insane.

Why would she want to meet us? A servants’ kid?

A Viper’s kid, technically.

Didn’t really seem to make a difference to anybody else before! Nobody ever payed any attention to us, so why would somebody like her suddenly ask for us? Via KALIM of all people?!

That’s exactly what I’m talking about! It’s weird!

Kalim went on speaking, oblivious to his friend’s internal panic.

‘She said to ask you to have dinner with us today. Want to go? Please, please, Jamil! It’ll be so much fun, you’ll see!’

Jamil forced himself to swallow down his apprehension.

‘Did she say why?’ he asked, sounding completely calm, his tone even.

Kalim shook his head.

‘Nope. Just said to invite you.’

It was both more a little intimidating and intriguing, to receive a personal invitation from a woman as formidable as Aaliyah Asim.

Jamil was going to be perfectly honest; he was morbidly curious as to why exactly the Aaliyah Asim would bother extending this invitation to a private mother and son dinner to him, a simple servant boy.

Sooo... we’re going, right?

Do you even have to ask me that? Obviously we’re going.

‘Are you going to come then?!’

‘If it’s really not a bother, then yes.’

Chapter Text

Aaliyah Asim was quite the well-known figure, especially in her homeland of Scalding Sands. And it was little wonder too. Who could possibly forget the most spectacular rags-to-riches story of the century? She had begun her life as a no name orphan girl, merely one of countless working for the affluent Asims. Then a chance adoption propelled her to the glittering world of the rich and famous. Even among her current circle, she was whispered about with awed tones and the utterly bloated with sheer numbers Asim took her word only second to her husband’s.

She was also a woman who devoted very little of her time to her only son.

So when he began to gush about the very first friend he’d ever made during the only time they spent together in the week, she took note. After all, who could he have possibly made friends with, shut up as he was within the mansion?

‘How about you introduce him to me then?’ she’d suggested calmly.

Kalim blinked big garnet eyes at her.

‘You want to meet him, mum?’ he asked curiously.

Aaliyah nodded.

‘Invite him to have dinner with us tomorrow,’ she said. ‘Tell him to say that it’s a personal invitation from me, if his parents have any problem with it.’

Kalim had nodded enthusiastically.

And now here he was. Standing in the doorway, slightly unsure as to whether he was allowed inside the private dining room or not.

The first thing that caught her eye about Jamil Viper was that he was an impossibly pretty child. Aaliyah was quite well-versed in noticing the physical qualities of others and she could already see he’d grow up to be quite the looker.

The second was that something about him made her skin crawl.

Although he was the farthest thing from physically off-putting and she should have found him adorable rather than creepy, her eyes automatically darted away and a cold sweat beaded on her forehead. It was impossible to pinpoint exactly why. Had she not been a mage, she probably wouldn’t have even noticed the effect his presence had on her. As it was though, Aaliyah Asim found herself immediately on her guard around Jamil. Somewhat ridiculous, given that he was a child, but there was just something.. more… to him.

(In another time, in another life, this meeting had gone very differently.)

(In another world, Jamil Viper was alone.)

(In another universe, he was much, much better at hiding.)

Dark eyes stared up at her.

Trying to ignore the odd sort of fear she felt, Aaliyah smiled at him.

It couldn’t possibly be anything too serious after all…

…could it?

What do you think we should do?

Depends on what she wants from us.

I’m… I don’t know. Confused?

Not afraid?

Not really.

Do you think she knows?

She can’t. If she did, wouldn’t we already be gone by now?

You’re right. But still, we’ve got to-

-be careful. I know.

It wasn’t particularly hard to figure out what was happening. Kalim may not be the brightest of people, this he’ll admit freely, but he knew what that look in his mother’s eyes meant.

And now his suspicions were proving themselves to be true.

‘I’ve heard you helped Kalim out with his lessons the other day.’

‘…yes.’

His mother smiled, knowing.

‘You don’t have to be shy, you know. That’s a good thing.’

Jamil looked up, eyes narrowed warily.

‘It is?’

She lounged back on the chair of the sofa, long, dark hair flowing in a glossy rope down her back.

‘Of course it is. He’s been doing better than ever at them, haven’t you dear?’ she suddenly addressed Kalim.

‘Yep, and it’s all thanks to Jamil!’ he said, not missing a beat.

Two pairs of garnet eyes were focused on the servant boy in the room with them.

(Kalim was a lot more like his mother than people thought. And he wanted the best for his only friend. If that meant not-so-subtly recommending him to his mother, was that really a bad thing?)

(Kalim didn’t think so.)

The next thing Aaliyah noticed about her son’s friend was his rare talent. This wasn’t because of one instance, or one single meeting, no. Rather, it was because after their initial first meeting, she decided to extend another invitation to him. And then another, and another, until it became common knowledge that the young Viper boy accompanied the family heir and his mother on those Friday dinners. The more time she spent with those two, the more it became increasingly obvious that the boy’s potential was being thoughtlessly squandered as a servant.

As she was once a servant herself, she knew how to spot these things. As good as he was, he was still a child and she had once used those same exact methods to mask her presence. Once she looked closer, it was easy to spot. Jamil was so clearly, clearly a unique kind of prodigy. It was honestly astonishing that nobody had noticed it yet.

Once she had mentioned it off hand to her son’s teachers, it was easy enough to get Jamil into the same lessons and Kalim was only too happy to spend even more time with him. While the boy had been incredibly reluctant to accept their offer-

‘I’m a servant, this really isn’t appropriate-’

‘But I want to do lessons with you!’

‘I’ve already arranged things with Kalim’s tutors. They’ve been told to prepare for you as well.’

‘I…’

‘This is your decision to make, Jamil. I’m not going to force you. This is only an offer.’

‘…’

‘…I want to. Thank you for the opportunity.’

‘Yay!’

‘Ooof- Kalim get off! I’m not a teddy bear!’

‘Oops, sorry!’

Aaliyah had made a point to semi-frequently sit in on these lessons and enquire about Kalim’s education. And the things she had spotted matched up with the tutor’s findings.

Unbeknown to the subject of their curiosity, the adults around him came to one single conclusion:

Something about Jamil Viper was dreadfully wrong.

Chapter Text

Travelling to the mindscape was always a strange experience.

He usually only did it when he was sure he was alone, once all his daily duties and lessons were completed. After settling in, looking for all the world as if he had fallen asleep, Jamil dove backwards into his conscious and let it cushion his fall. Before long he found himself sprawled on a sofa in one of the familiar rooms of his mindscape. Jamil sat up and shook his hands off, acclimating himself to the strangeness of the sensation of his body falling off him. Jair wasn’t in this room, but Jamil could still sense his distinct presence several rooms over.

Their mindscape was constantly shifting. The layout kept changing, along with all the décor of each room. It never looked the same twice in a row, but that wasn’t a problem for either of them- they could find their way around by instinct alone. It was their mindscape after all. What never changed, however, was the way it always seemed to be split down the middle, one side black and silver, the other red and green. One side was his, the other Jair’s.

‘Hey. What brings you to my humble little abode this time?’ Jair greeted from his place on a beanbag in the middle of the cinema room.

Whenever Jamil came down to the mindscape, Jair could usually be found here, flicking carelessly through his memories. This was Jair’s room; it was decorated entirely in reds and greens. The library was Jamil’s, filled with his memories. He supposed the distinction made sense, as otherwise they doubtless would have gotten hopelessly confused as to which memory belonged to which one of them.

Jair’s eyes were distant, unfocused. Unlike Jamil, his hair was always kept up, away from his neck, making the jagged scar instantly noticeable.

Jamil frowned.

The scar only appeared on bad days. (Jair only let it show when he was distracted by his past.)

‘What do you need?’ he asked simply, used to this routine by now.

‘Just… just talk to me. Please?’

Jamil nodded.

‘Alright.’

Jair sat up slightly and turned in his direction. Jamil had lowered himself onto a beanbag by then, tucking his legs under himself.

‘She saw me.’ He blurted suddenly. ‘Ms. Aaliyah, I mean. Earlier today, when I was dancing.’

Jair’s eyes sharpened.

‘She did? What did she say?’

Jamil swallowed, his eyes darting toward the bracelet adorning his wrist. It was a gift, from Ms. Aaliyah. A congratulations, she had said, for doing so well.

‘…she said I was good. Really good.’

It was a strange feeling, acknowledgement. Usually, he kept himself small, out of sight and out of mind. Hiding. Doing things as flawlessly as possible, but without giving himself away. It was what his parents had taught him to do, what they were currently drilling into Najma’s head. Nobody had ever thought twice about it. Nobody had even looked all that closely at Jamil Viper… until Ms. Aaliyah had smiled at him and complimented him for helping her son with his work.

‘I don’t know how to feel about it,’ he admitted, still shocked at how easily the words were slipping out of him. ‘She was so encouraging… it felt nice? I guess?’

He sighed, sliding the bracelet up and down his wrist, slightly soothed by the motion.

‘Maybe I should be more grateful. But it’s, just, so weird? Why is she being so… so…’

Nice didn’t feel like the right word. There was far more to Ms. Aaliyah’s sudden generosity towards him than merely her “being nice”.

 Jair had remained silent so far, letting the other spill out all his contradicting thoughts.

‘Did she say anything else?’ he asked suddenly.

Jamil looked up, distracted.

‘Hm? Oh, yes, something about teaching me and Kalim herself on Friday.’

To have Aaliyah Asim herself teach them dance personally wasn’t something many people could say. She was a renowned dancer; she had been ever since her teenage years. Jamil himself had watched many of her performances online whenever he had a spare minute, eyes sparkling with awe and admiration. It was amazing that she had offered to teach him, so he should be happy right? Not that he wasn’t, per se, but there was an odd sort of apprehension mixed in with that quiet happiness. Something kept yanking him back, whispering that this was just the beginning.

‘You’re waiting for the other shoe to drop, huh?’

‘Yeah. This is too good to be true you know? There has to be something she wants from me for all this, right?’

Jair inclined his head to the side.

‘No use worrying about it now. Let’s just try to take it as goes, okay?’

There was a familiar tone in his voice, one that had Jamil alert again.

Jair was thinking back to his old life.

‘Show me something from your world,’ he demanded quickly, abruptly switching topics. They could talk this over all they wanted later, when Jair wasn’t in this mood. ‘You said last time that there was a lot of those superhero movies, right? Show me one more.’

‘I thought you said you didn’t like them?’

‘I said I thought they were bad, that doesn’t mean they’re not entertaining.’

‘You’re just going to keep pointing how stupid they are every few minutes, aren’t you?’

‘You know me so well, Jair.’

‘Okay, just for that, I’m going to pick the most cliché, cheesiest one I find.’

‘Go ahead then.’

‘Oooh, perfect. Have fun with that one, Jamil.’

‘Wait is that- you’ve got to be kidding me. ‘

‘I literally warned you.’

‘ “A fight for justice; may the hearts of humankind be with you”? Seriously?’

‘If you’re this mad about the poster art, I can’t wait till we get to the part where “the Power of Friendship” comes in. You’re going to lose your mind.’

‘Ugh, I hate this one already….’

‘That’s the point!’

‘Just turn it on, Jair.’

‘Here we go…’

Chapter Text

When Maryam was given the duty to teach the Viper boy as well as the Asim heir by Aaliyah, she was confused and slightly curious. After all, it was not often one got such approval from that woman. She couldn’t help wondering what kind of person Jamil was. Since she only came here to teach Kalim, she had no prior expectations to go off of.

Somehow, Jamil Viper managed to surpass all of them anyway.

In truth, while she and Aaliyah had known each other for a very long time indeed, they were not friends. Maryam wouldn’t say they hated each other but there was certainly a history there that prevented them forming any kind of relationship past cool politeness. There was just too many bad memories linked to the other, far too much to ever be overcome. Although they had been close, once upon a very different time, that time was long since gone, leaving only an unspoken agreement to tolerate each other for the sake of the person they both admired so.

Aaliyah was never a particularly generous person. Intimidating, confident, intelligent, yes, but the competitive environment in which they had both grown up in meant kindness or generosity of any kind was considered a weakness. Maryam and Aaliyah both came from the same orphanage, one by now infamous within the Scalding Sands for producing dangerous or powerful individuals. They had both adapted to survive there, over the years. Even though that place was now gone, buried with the sands of time, it still left their marks on them- and Maryam had known Aaliyah for as long as she had known herself. She knew that terms such as “generosity” or “benevolence” could not and should not be applied to that woman.

Which was exactly why she was shocked to hear Aaliyah’s request that day.

‘Maryam, I know this is a bit sudden, but is it possible for you to make space in your lessons for one more?’

Maryam blinked, taken aback.

‘One more?’ she repeated.

Aaliyah nodded, her expression serious.

‘A boy named Jamil Viper should join you starting next week. I’ll pay you for him as well, so don’t worry about that. I hope this isn’t too last minute?’

‘No, it’ll be fine. I just have to assess him first to see what he can do,’ Maryam replied, shaking her head.

It was a curious thing indeed, for Aaliyah to go out of her way to help someone who was not her son, especially at a cost to her. A morbid need for knowledge settled over Maryam. Just what kind of person was this boy, that he got what no one else did? What exactly did it take to get active help from a woman as heartless and self-centred as her old acquaintance?

When Monday morning finally arrived, Maryam was already seated in the classroom she and Kalim most often used for their lessons. She was looking through her lesson plans when she heard two childish voices coming closer and closer.

‘-worry, Miss Ayad is real nice! You’ll like her!’

‘You think everyone is nice, Kalim. Even me.’

‘But you are nice though!’

‘Trust me, I’m really not.’

The door was thrown enthusiastically open by an exuberant Kalim. He was even more excited than usual, most likely due to the presence of his friend.

Then Maryam gazed towards the boy standing next to the Asim heir.

Ignoring the strange chill she felt from meeting those dark eyes, Maryam Ayad smiled at her newest pupil.

‘Welcome, Jamil. I hope we manage to get along.’

Jamil Viper smiled.

Maryam sucked in a sharp breath, suddenly reminded painfully of-

‘Thank you for having me, Miss Ayad.’

‘Thank you Maryam! I had so much fun today, with you and Aaliyah!’

Her hands shook, even as she forced herself to keep smiling and act like nothing was wrong.

‘Of course, it’s no trouble at all. Come on in both of you and let’s get started with class, shall we?’

Ever since Aaliyah Asim had taken notice of him (them, but nobody knew about that part), Jamil’s parents had been on his case, repeatedly urging him to keep his head down. Jair always clocked out as much as he could for those conversations, because the sound of Jamil and his parents not-arguing brought up rather painful memories of his past. Jair preferred to not think back too much on the world he came from, because what was the point? He had nothing worth living for there. He doubted his mother and sister had even told anybody he was dead and his corpse was probably not in the best condition, after that train had run him over. Besides, this world was so much more exciting than his old one. Magic was real here.

That revelation was something so utterly mind-blowing that that it had taken Jair years to come to terms with it. The existence of dragons, fae, mermaids and even jinn was treated so casually here. It was almost too much for him to handle. Luckily, he’d had Jamil there, anchoring him through the worst of his mental breakdown. In the end, the revelation that they had magic too had cemented Jair’s appreciation for his second life, shared body or no.

After all, who else could say that they were one of the most talented young mages the Scalding Sands had ever seen?

Lessons with Miss Ayad were perhaps the best thing that their unintentional friendship with Kalim had brought them. It was there that the actual magnitude of their sharing a body truly sank into them. During their first day, she had asked them to take several tests, including a test for magical aptitude. After the results came in the following day, Miss Ayad asked them to retake the magical aptitude test and this time, Jair was the one in the driver’s seat.

‘You think I’m what.’

Miss Ayad stared calmly at him, oblivious to the continuous error messages in Jamil’s brain.

‘You, young man, are perhaps the most promising mage I’ve ever come across on mere magic levels alone. Your capacity for magic is astonishingly high, especially when we take into account that both you and your parents were born and raised in the Scalding Sands.’

Jamil sat still on his chair opposite her, a shocked expression on his face.

So… you have magic too.

Oh my god I have magic.

I – is that meant to happen? I thought you shared my body? How does that even work?

No idea… I think my mind is sort of breaking down right now.

Mine too.

Wait, so if my magic is different, does that mean I have a Unique Magic too?

Why is that the thing you’re focusing on right now?!

I’m just saying, we’re still different people aren’t we? If I have my own magic then that means I must have a different Unique Magic too!

We are never telling anyone about this. Ever. The fact that my magic is literally controlling people’s minds is bad enough, if someone finds out I could have TWO Unique Magics, we’re going to get kidnapped for sure.

But, besides that little truth bomb, things had been fairly quiet for them during lessons. Jamil learned and Jair listened in, occasionally swapping out for further magical aptitude tests with Ms. Aaliyah. Things continued to be fairly peaceful and quiet for the two of them… until the first history lesson.

‘Now, since this is the first time Jamil will be with us for a history session, we’re going to be doing a recap of all the things we’ve learned thus far. Kalim, since you’ve already done this, feel free to work on your Literature assignment instead.’

Then came the most surreal history lesson Jair ever had to sit through.

As soon as the glaring similarities began to show themselves, Jair blocked himself off within the mindscape as much as he could to avoid distracting Jamil with his growing existential crisis.

‘The Sorcerer of the Sands is no doubt one of the foundational figures in the history of our country. Although the details of his life remain unclear due to conflicting historical accounts, one of his major accomplishments is within the infamous Desert Rose War, when he prevented massive casualties with-’

‘Jamil, can you name the other famous historical figure the Sorcerer of the Sands was rumoured to have met in his lifetime?’

‘The King of the Underworld.’

‘The Desert Rose war was far from the only time the Scalding Sands and the Queendom of Roses clashed on the battlefield- the conflict over Briar Valley being the next notable case of-’

‘Despite living two hundred years apart, the Queen of Hearts and the Beautiful Queen do have a few interesting connections such as-’

Jair tried valiantly to dispel the possibility of his growing suspicion being true, but all that was shattered when Miss Ayad showed Jamil a picture of the Sorcerer of the Sands.

Oh shit, I’m living in a goddamn DISNEY UNIVERSE.

This was like one of those countless “reborn as a villainess” stories he’d used to read out of sheer, overwhelming boredom, only one taking place about a thousand years past the events of the canon original. (Or, heaven forbid, one of those godawful harem isekai.) Jair had noticed some glaring similarities before, of course, but the realisation of just how similar his situation was hadn’t sunk in until the painful revelation at the history lesson. If he was being perfectly honest though, it was more like he hadn’t even allowed the possibility to cross his mind, out of sheer self-preservation and an unconscious desire to maintain his sanity. Then again, he must be the only person alive who could truthfully say they legitimately, literally died before, so perhaps that was an inherently naïve desire.

Jair buried his face in a pillow inside his mindscape bedroom and screamed into it.

‘This is basically if YuGiOh was an isekai, but a thousand times worse…’ Jair mumbled brokenly into the empty air. 

He was sprawled on the sofa like a starfish, hollow eyes looking up at the ceiling, hair fanned out around him.

‘Jair Viper, died via train at fourteen years old, currently living in biggest Disney crossover universe imaginable. What has my life become?’ he muttered.

Maybe it would be considered ungrateful, considering he shouldn’t have been granted a second life at all, but he just found out that in his new reality Disney Villains were actual literal historical figures, he figured he deserved to have a quiet mental breakdown by himself.

It seemed the universe disagreed however, since the door to his mindscape bedroom was promptly thrown open.

‘Alright, spill. What’s wrong with you this time?’ Jamil asked with a raised eyebrow, arms crossed.

Jair turned unseeing eyes to his other soul.

‘We need to talk Jamil. Like, right now.’

Once upon a time, a princess met a thief.

The thief wasn’t a bad sort, really, just unfortunate. His mother had died early on his life and his father had abandoned them to go and seek adventure in the great wide somewhere, so he was left alone for basically most of his childhood. He had wanted to survive and the streets were unforgivable for a young boy like him, so he became a thief- one of the best ones on the streets of Agrabah. The years went on, and he gained a monkey as his companion. They became quite the team, not just in thievery but in everything else too. Sad though it may seem, the monkey became the thief’s closest and only friend.

One day, when out in the market to steal themselves breakfast, the two met the princess of Agrabah. Only they didn’t know she was a princess yet- she had run away from the palace in secret in the dead of night. The princess was determined to avoid an unwanted marriage being forced on her by the somewhat clueless but ultimately well-meaning sultan. The two hit it off right away, but before anything else could happen, the thief was apprehended by the guards. In desperation to save his life, the princess revealed herself-only to be told that this was done on the vizier’s orders. The thief was taken away and thrown into a lonely prison cell and she was told that he had been executed.

In reality, the vizier had been plotting for a while now in order to get his hands on a certain magic lamp- and the thief was a vital part of his plans. He took on a disguise and told the thief of the Cave of Wonders. The thief was allowed in, as he was the diamond in the rough- the only one allowed inside. While he did get the lamp, a single moment of temptation on the monkey’s part was enough to get them both trapped in the Cave of Wonders. In the last few moments before he fell, the vizier revealed his true nature to the thief- but he had celebrated much too soon, as the monkey had swiped the lamp from him.

The lamp turned out to have secretly held a wish-granting genie within it. With his first wish, the thief became a prince in order to impress the princess he’d fallen in love with. While she was initially scornful, the princess soon became convinced he was the same person as the thief she had known so briefly and confronted him on that. Panicking, the thief lied to her about his true identity, much too ashamed of himself to be honest with her.

Soon, the thief’s web of lies began to crack as the vizier put two and two together regarding his true status and he managed to alienate his friends.

The vizier stole away the lamp and revealed the truth of the matter to the sultan and the princess, before taking over the throne and sending the thief, far, far away. However, the thief escaped and arrived back at the palace. The final confrontation ended in his favour- he tricked the vizier into trapping himself in eternal servitude as a genie and he along with his lamp was thrown back into the Cave of Wonders. The thief and the princess, along with all their friends, lived happily ever after.

‘-and that is how the story goes in my world,’ finished Jair.

Jamil stared at him.

‘So,’ he began slowly, ‘In your world, the story of the Sorcerer of the Sands does exist but it’s considered… fictional?’

‘Yep,’ Jair drawled, popping the p. ‘Along with any other historical figure you think of. At least, as far I’m aware of. But basically, yeah. Technically, your history is my Disney canon.’

Jamil sighed, rubbing his temples.

‘I don’t know how I feel about that, to be honest.’

Jair shook his head with a wry laugh.

‘Yeah, me neither.’

‘Listen,’ Jamil sad. ‘You’ve got to show me these Disney movies you told me about later okay?’

‘Later? What about now?’

‘Now’s the dance lesson Ms. Aaliyah promised, remember?’

Jair blinked.

‘Oh right.’

Jamil stood up and prepared to exit the mindscape.

‘We’ll talk about… all of this… after I’m done.’

With a sudden gasp, he blinked himself awake, now back in the physical world. He dragged himself up from his bed and took a deep, steadying breath. It was time for the thing he’d been eagerly anticipating for the entire week now- the personal dance lesson from Ms. Aaliyah herself. He had go and make himself presentable now, he told himself, in order to not disappoint her. He had to be calm and collected and not freaking out with an existential crisis.

Once he had cooled off and gotten ready, Jamil was off.

He caught up with Kalim in the usual room the two of used to meet with Aaliyah weekly and found him excited as ever.

‘Mum’s never done stuff like this with me before!’ Kalim exclaimed. ‘This’ll be so much fun!’

Jamil merely nodded along, somehow unable to reply properly.

(He’d just gotten a massive existential crisis dropped on his head out of nowhere, so of course he was going to be out of sorts. It was only natural.)

‘Do you know where we’re going?’ he asked finally, in an attempt to distract himself from his recent shock.

Kalim shook his head.

‘Nope. Mum didn’t tell me. She said it’s going to be a surprise for us.’

‘You two will love it, trust me.’

They whirled around to face the woman in the doorway.

Aaliyah was smiling in anticipation, seeming just as excited as her son. Jamil felt the tension in him slowly fall away. This would be a good way to relax and distract himself and by the time he came back, he’d more ready to talk to Jair about the whole thing. It wasn’t a bad thing, surely, to let himself get excited about something  and enjoy himself for once in his life?

When the three of them arrived at the dance studio, they were much too distracted by the sights to notice a strange figure in the shadows, following  their movements. When coal-black eyes came to focus on Jamil, he didn’t feel it, or sense anything off in the air either. The trio walked inside, chatting amongst each other, oblivious to the danger lurking in plain sight.

Once they were far enough away, the figure stepped out into the bright sunlight of the Scalding Sands. It was a boy in his mid-teens, deathly pale and dressed in black, despite the scorching heat. One gloved hand slid out a slim rectangular device and he spoke into it, eyes occasionally darting back to the building the three had disappeared into.

‘Is he the one you were talking about, Zero?’

‘Yes! Yes, yes that’s him!’ a childish voice replied eagerly. ‘That’s the one my magic tags reported, Rahim.’

The now-named Rahim narrowed his cold eyes.

‘Are you certain?’

‘I wouldn’t mistake that magic signature anywhere,’ Zero answered, not sounding offended by the doubt. ‘It’s just… so…’ he trailed off with a blissful sigh.

Rahim’s handsome face slowly gained a brilliant smile. He glanced back to the dance studio.

‘So it’s you… Jamil Viper.’

Chapter Text

On the night of the assassination attempt on Kalim Al-Asim that had ended so disastrously for everyone involved, Rahim was not on the scene. In fact, he was nowhere near the Asim mansion, despite being by far the best assassin there was in the entirety of Black Sands. The reason was simple: he had known beforehand what the outcome would be.

You see, Rahim had a loyal cohort in the form of the young and impressionable Zero, who fulfilled for him all sorts of roles, such as underling, stress relief ball and general secretary. While most would be outraged at the use of child labour- for both Rahim and Zero were only young teens- such a thing was not as controversial within the Scalding Sands, from where they both hailed. It was even less so in the West-North orphanage, which was rather infamous for producing only the most talented and dangerous of individuals to grace the country. Zero was made from the same mould as Rahim. After all, you did not survive that place by being nice, or heaven forbid, average.

Zero knew what he was doing- which was why Rahim trusted him when he said to stay away from the Asim mansion.

‘They’re definitely going to die if they go there, and so are you. You gotta be careful Rahim.’ Zero was, for once, completely serious, no traces of a laughing or joking tone to be found.

‘I see. The odds are that high then?’ the young mage asked.

‘Very- practically one hundred percent. My Eyes See All doesn’t lie.’

The dark-haired boy hummed in reply, deep in thought.

Zero’s unique magic was the only reason the two of them had made this far up the ranks of the Black Sands criminal organisation, Rahim could admit this. There was no reason to distrust it now. Especially not with something like this.

‘Better safe than sorry,’ Rahim declared, to Zero’s visible relief. ‘The old man can scream all he likes. I’m not risking my life for his ego- this was a risky mission anyway.’

Rahim did not yet know, but this decision would end up rocking his world.

Zero was hunched over his desk, fiddling with some magic tags, when Rahim came in to their office.

‘Are those done yet?’ he asked, waving a hand at the piles of magic tags on the desk.

‘Just about,’ Zero replied, shrugging his shoulders and leaning back in his chair.

The two of them made a rather fantastic contrast. Rahim was tall and angular, inky black hair and black, black eyes along with deathly white skin, long sleeves and his right arm always gloved. Zero on the other hand was all-around small, had deep brown skin, soft, round, somewhat childish features and messy hair with a distinct blue-grey tint. His eyes were strange too, monster eyes on a human’s face. Blue markings ran down both his arms, simultaneously both natural and peculiar.

‘Why, d’you need them for something?’

Rahim nodded.

‘Yes, we’ll put them on the two sent to the Asim mansion. I want to see what exactly is so deadly that even I would not survive it.’

Zero grinned, sharp and eager.

The magic signature that came through the destroyed tags was exhilarating.

Zero shuddered in delight, feeling as though he had been struck by lightning. A magic like this was rare indeed and a treat to the senses. Even Rahim’s had not felt like this, so, so… more.

Yes, that was the only way to describe it. This magic was just more than what he was used to.

It took a few tries for Rahim’s voice to register.

‘Zero! What on earth was that?’

Zero cringed and brought a hand to his temples.

‘Ugh, that hurt…’ he whined.

‘Zero.’

‘Alright, alright, jeez..’ Zero focused on the data from the magic tags, squinting. ‘It was definitely some kind of brainwashing magic, from what I can tell.’

He whistled as yet more data registered.

‘Hella strong brainwashing too. No wonder it felt like lightning.’

 Rahim inhaled sharply, a greedy glint entering his eyes.

‘Brainwashing, you say?’ he said, voice deceptively calm.

‘Yep, no mistake about it.’

Zero smirked.

 He could already tell what was going through the other’s head.

‘Whoever it was that used this magic… we’re going to track them down. No matter the cost.’

‘Aye, aye, sir.’ Zero drawled in reply.

The moon was high up in the sky, the time was night in the Scalding Sands.

Following the visit to the dance studio, Rahim kept careful track of the various events in the Asims social circle, as well as the people attending. If he were to achieve his ambition, he needed to make certain he met the Viper boy personally at least once. Judging by the rumours he had heard the heir’s mother had taken Jamil Viper under her wing, so he was sure to attend at least some of those events that the Asim were quite frequently invited to. And soon enough his vigilance paid off; everybody began talking about the engraved invitation to the Rose Queendom ball that was addressed to both Kalim Al-Asim and the magic prodigy known as Jamil Viper.

It was a perfect opportunity.

Only, to take it, Rahim would have to do his level best to deflect suspicions off what exactly he would be doing at a ball in the Rose Queendom. He couldn’t have anybody catch on to what his true goals where after all. (Traitors and rebels were harshly dealt with in the Black Sands, out of necessity of course.)

Rahim scowled.

‘Damn it.’

This was going to take a lot of work for one mission.

‘Never mind,’ he sighed to himself in the empty darkness of his bedroom. ‘It’ll all be worth it in the end.’

Chapter Text

The invitation had come as a massive surprise. And not just to Jamil himself, but to everyone else as well.

An invitation to the Queendom of Roses for the Asim?

Unexpected, but not shocking.

An invitation to the most important event in the entire queendom personally addressed to a Viper?

Completely unheard of.

It was a fantastic way to finish up an otherwise already perfect afternoon. Jamil had spent a wonderful time at the dance studio with Ms. Aaliyah and Kalim, so when he came home he was already bursting with a quiet happiness. When he and Kalim had been handed a fancy invitation he almost couldn’t believe his eyes. It shouldn’t have been that surprising, in hindsight, considering how far the rumours of his talent as a mage had spread, only he had not expected to be invited (personally!) to the Rose Queendom’s Centennial Ball.

It was a well-known tradition of the queendom to hold a ball to celebrate every hundred years and everyone from every country from Pyroxene to Scalding Sands had been talking about it. After all, it wasn’t often something like this came around in your lifetime.

…

…

I think our magic might be a bigger deal than we thought before.

Yeah, no kidding.

Kalim was practically bouncing off the walls.

‘Can you believe it? We’re actually going to go to the Rose Queendom!’ he squealed happily.

‘No, I, I didn’t expect this at all. It still feels like a dream,’ Jamil admitted, staring shell-shocked at the envelope in his hands.

The Centennial Ball of the Queendom of Roses was a big deal. Getting invited was a huge deal. An acknowledgement of his true worth he’d never once received before,  not from his parents, not from anybody else. Jamil had never imagined that the slow, almost unconscious, decision to stop following his parents insistent coaching to keep his head down would lead to consequences like this.

It felt… nice.

His parents hadn’t tried to make him stop for a week now. Something between them and him had changed without either party speaking of it. They kept a polite distance from him now. Thankfully not deferential, Jamil didn’t think he would have been able to handle that, but it was much different from before his involvement with Kalim and his mother. It was almost like he wasn’t really a Viper anymore- he’d become to them someone on essentially the same level as the Asim. Even little Najma had distanced herself, perhaps having been told by their parents that Jamil wasn’t to be treated the same anymore. It had hurt, a deep-seated ache in his heart, cutting so deep that he’d ended up sequestering himself within the mindscape with Jair for hours on end.

‘I just… they’re still my parents you know?’ Jamil said quietly to Jair. ‘I thought they’d at least be happy for me. Not- not this.’

He buried his head into the crook of Jair’s shoulder.

The distance between him and his family had put somewhat of a damper on his anticipation of the ball. He’d come to his family’s quarters that night expecting another not-argument about being careful and deferential. Instead he’d gotten a polite acquiescence to his request to accept the invitation and nothing more.

Absolutely nothing.

One of Jair’s hands was in his hair, the other holding him closer to his body. Jamil had somehow slowly wormed himself from his place on the opposite side of the couch to this hug and he didn’t mind in the slightest.

‘I don’t even know why I’m so upset about this… Ugh, sorry, I’m such a mess right now…’

‘It’s fine, Jamil.’ Jair soothed. ‘Seriously. I don’t mind.’

He didn’t say anything else, didn’t try to offer useless platitudes or comfort with words that would not have been accepted. He was instead a steady, solid weight against Jamil’s body. An anchor.

For now that was enough.

The entire mansion was abuzz with anticipation. There was only half a month left before the Centennial Ball and tensions were at an all-time high. It was little wonder too, considering just how rarely it came around- this was quite literally a once in a lifetime opportunity. With each day, the long-awaited date came closer and closer- and with it the first ever time either Jamil or Kalim would be travelling out of the country. Considering just how rarely they really ventured out of even the mansion, one could easily imagine just how eager the two were.

With that in mind, Maryam Ayad’s ability to somehow wrangle a pair of overexcited children became even more impressive.

‘Since you two will soon be visiting the Queendom of Roses, I decided today’s lesson should be concentrated on its history. We’ve already covered a little with the Desert Rose war previously, but for now we’ll focus more on the effect-’

Miss Ayad then went on to explain the various clashes the Scalding Sands had had with the Rose Queendom in the past, including the initial conflict over a lost shipment that had sparked the entire Desert Rose war and caused tons of casualties and meaninglessly spilled blood- as well how a princess managed to smooth over the scars caused by that war over three decades later. It was quite a fascinating story, one involving a parrot, a carpet, a mysterious storm and the most ridiculous accidental chain of events that caused the resolution of an age old rivalry between two countries.

Jamil would have been listening very intently had he not been distracted by Jair’s conspicuous silence. When Miss Ayad set them a writing task, Jamil bent his dark head over the question sheet and internally hissed:

Tell me.

Tell you what?

Don’t play stupid on me, Jair. I know what this kind of silence means. It’s the Disney thing again, right?

Ugh, right…

What it is?

I have a feeling I know who exactly it was that drastically improved relations between the Rose Queendom and Scalding Sands.

Jair sent up a slideshow of images- a girl of about sixteen, a parrot and a beautifully patterned carpet.

This is Princess Jasmine, Iago and the Magic Carpet. All characters from Disney’s classic children’s movie “Aladdin”. There’s no way that wasn’t them described in that textbook, there’s just no way.

Okay that settles it, you’re showing me that movie immediately after we get back from the ball. I need to know why you get so weird about this.

Cinema room?

Cinema room, where else?

Something Jamil had not expected when he was told they would need to prepare significantly for the Centennial Ball was the endless clothes fittings. It seemed like a rather obvious thing to miss when preparing for a ball, but in his defence, it wasn’t like Jamil had expected to receive clothes made specifically for him instead of just fancier machine-made clothes. He was a servant after all, wasn’t he?

Only it now became very, very obvious that the only person who really thought of him as a servant was Jamil himself- everybody else now viewed him exclusively as Aaliyah Asim’s protégé, including his own parents.  

He had been sitting with his little sister when he had been hurriedly waved over and brought up to the fitting room. To his surprise, Kalim was nowhere to be found. Ms. Aaliyah was there, conversing with a person he recognised as the man most often employed by the Asim family to make their clothes. When she spotted his bewildered form standing in doorway, she gestured for him to come in. Suddenly feeling awkward, Jamil crept forward and found himself on the receiving end of an assessing gaze.

‘Yes, I see what you mean now Ms. Asim,’ the man said.

Ms. Aaliyah smiled.

She turned to Jamil.

‘Since you’ll be going to the Centennial Ball, you’ll need to wear something a little more fancy than usual. I took the liberty of inviting Gabriel here,’ she waved a hand at the man beside her. ‘-for a fitting. Kalim’s already had his, so now is your turn. I hope you’re fine with that, Jamil?’

His throat suddenly felt dry. He swallowed.

‘Yes, of course Ms. Aaliyah,’ he answered, feeling a little dizzy. ‘Thank you.’

The woman laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, a strange sort of sadness in her eyes.

‘Tell me, what do you usually like to wear?’

By the time the fitting was over, it was already late afternoon.

While making his way down the stairs, Jamil spotted a familiar figure through  a window.

He frowned.

What was Kalim doing beside the fountain in the back courtyard?

Isn’t he usually inside already by this time in the afternoon?

He should be.

Want to go see what he’s up to?

Obviously.

Jamil leisurely made his way to the courtyard. Kalim was so absorbed in his task that he completely failed to spot the other’s entrance, even when he leaned on a marble pillar in clear view.

‘How did mum say it went again?’ the white-haired boy muttered to himself.

‘What are you doing Kalim?’

Kalim yelped and leapt back.

His garnet eyes widened once he spotted Jamil.

‘Oh, hi Jamil! I’m just practising for the ball.’

Jamil arched an eyebrow.

‘Practising what?’

Kalim looked down at the floor, a blush rising to his cheeks.

‘I’m trying to remember the waltz mum showed us earlier,’ he said sheepishly. ‘I kind of… wasn’t paying attention then.’

Well, that explains a few things.

Like the way he kept staring at us and tripping.

Should we help him?

I don’t see why not. In fact…

What?

Jamil glanced at the fountain, a mischievous glint in his eye.

I have an idea.

What kind of ide- oooooh. I see.

‘Kalim,’ Jamil said solemnly. ‘-as a Viper and also as your friend, it is my duty to help you with this.’

Kalim perked up.

‘Really? You’ll help me?’

In lieu of a reply, Jamil held out his hand.

‘Let’s dance.’

Kalim let himself be pulled into the starting position. He was warm and solid and real, in a way that wasn’t quite possible within the mindscape. It was an odd sensation, one Jamil didn’t let himself dwell too much on.

‘I’ll lead for now, okay? Until you get the hang of it.’

Teaching Kalim to dance was easy, Jamil realised after a little while. Kalim loved to dance as much as Jamil did and he’d always put in just as much work in their shared lessons with Ms. Aaliyah. He also had a weird ability to pick up on the meaning of Jamil’s words after one spoken sentence, so there was no need to keep repeating himself. This didn’t feel at all like those times he’d been forced to deal with other Asim kids, or other rich brats that came around.

It was actually pretty fun.

It wasn’t long before Kalim let himself get swept away in the feeling.

He’d been having so much trouble remembering, but somehow, with Jamil’s steady voice explaining the steps and the confident way he lead the dance, in no time at all it became so clear that he didn’t know why he’d been having so many difficulties with this before.

The tie that Jamil had his hair in suddenly broke and dark locks cascaded down his shoulders. They blew back in the breeze, suddenly lit up by the glow of the last rays of the setting sun. There was a brilliant smile on his face and Kalim felt a strange, fluttery happiness bubbling in his chest.

Jamil was usually so reserved that seeing him this… free… took his breath away.

Then Jamil broke off from Kalim and danced away.

‘Follow me or you’ll get soaked,’ he called in a laughing tone.

The white haired boy watched in awe as Jamil gracefully danced between the now-active fountain streams, deftly avoiding each one. The setting sun set the crystal-pure water aflame and it glowed golden in colour. Jamil looked radiant, effortlessly weaving through, around and between them, face flushed with exertion, hair loose and flowing.

He was beautiful.

(Kalim felt the wet fabric of his clothes clinging to his skin and didn’t mind it in the slightest.)

Chapter Text

The name “Rosehearts” used to be a noble one.

After all, it was the family from which the Queen of Hearts herself had hailed from. There had been a time when only the name “Draconia” was spoken of in the same breath, a time when the members of the lineage could hold their heads up high with pride. Now however? There were only three left in the entire world belonging to that family and only two who bore its blood. For all intents and purposes, the Rosehearts no longer existed- not to the world at large, not to the royalty and nobility of the Queendom of Roses, a name only truly relevant when studied in history books.

The same principle applied to the Vipers as well, albeit in a different manner. They were once great themselves, not stuck in eternal servitude, free and fierce. The Vipers were known to have jinn ancestry, their magic plentiful whereas other denizens of the Scalding Sands held as little of it as the desert they lived in did water. Sometimes, they birthed a child with a particular strength of soul not found anywhere else, one with the capability to withstand that which all others would have been driven mad by. These children were a peculiarity, they were just… more. Every now and then the soul-strength of such a child would lead to consequences nobody could have foreseen. Such was the case with young Jamil Viper, many generations later.

Both these names used to be associated with greatness, once.

(But that was before. Before the Blood-Soaked Month that ruined the Rosehearts, before the Vipers lost a battle for their freedom and were shackled for many generations, before the deeds and facts of these families began to be lost to history.)

(Now there was only the whispers of a history long since lost to time.)

(Now there was only a career woman reaping the benefits of a well-known name and a man disappointed in the one he had used to love.)

(Now there is only the children, eyes bright with magic, holding the keys to long-held, long-forgotten, family secrets in their small bodies.)

(When a young assassin of the Black Sands digs around and comes across some rather interesting secrets, nobody bats an eye- and more’s the pity for them.)

The sky was stormy, lightning lanced through the thick, grey clouds.

Absolute silence reigned on the streets of the Rose Queendom.

The world had fallen still, there was not a single person to be found. All life in the queendom had vanished, except for a sparse handful. Not even the birds sang in the treetops. The sound of cars, of magic transport mirrors, people’s voices and the beat of insect wings, all of it was gone. This place was as good as dead and worse still was the silver-dark, throbbing pulse of an ancient magic threaded through the air, thick and tangible. It was woven of two different, polarising magics and a darkness forcibly binding them together.

The palace was the source of it all. The strange magic bore its roots from there and only there could life be found.

The remnants were three children.

Two were foreign elements, strange and unknown to the ambience of the magic energy of the Rose Queendom, running desperately through the halls of the palace, in search of something. One was in a deep, cursed sleep, unable to die, unable to move, unable to do anything but lie still, chest rising and falling, eyelashes fluttering every so often. His vibrant red hair was spread out across his pillow, face peaceful.

‘Jamil, what if we don’t find it in time? What if he- what if he catches up to us?’ the white-haired boy panted, not stopping for a second.

The other boy was grim, long dark locks whipping out behind him.

‘We’ll find it- trust me.’

We have to.

His thoughts echoed back at him, left without any sign of a reply.

This was how it ended.

In order to understand what lead up to that point, we must first go back, back to how it began…

Jamil’s heart was thudding in his chest, so loud he was sure others could hear it. He stared apprehensively up at the magic mirror. He’d never had the chance to use one before. The idea that he could step through a mirror, of all things, and end up in a completely different place in another part of Twisted Wonderland was… odd. He couldn’t help being a little nervous-this would be his very first time travelling outside the country after all. And to the Centennial Ball too! Even a seasoned traveller would be anxious, let alone a boy who barely even left the house.

Relax, Jamil. This is supposed to be fun, remember? Everyone is going to fawn all over us for being a magic prodigy and we’ll get to show off like crazy, since that’s what they invited us for in the first place! And we’ll probably make connections outside of the Asim too, so this is a good thing.

I know, but this is the Centennial Ball! What if I mess up? That’s a thousand times worse than just messing up in front of Kalim and Miss Ayad, you know! I can’t embarrass myself in front of the entire ballroom!

You won’t- that’s why I’m letting you take the reins the entire evening. So that I can watch out for anything going wrong. You should really appreciate my sacrifice more you know, Jamil! I’m going to miss out on the food.

Ha, well, if that’s what you’re worried about, I’ll share the memory with you later.

This is why I love you.

Pfft, whatever.

Hey Jamil….

Yeah?

I’ll always be there, so even if something does go wrong, we’ll be fine. Nothing too bad can happen, as long as we’re together. So don’t worry about it, okay?

I won’t.

Alright, are you ready to go?

Yes.

Jamil determinedly took a step forward and walked through the mirror.

Chapter Text

Jamil looked around with wide eyes.

It was a strange feeling indeed, to just step through a mirror and find himself in a totally different place to where he was before. And what a place it was!

The Queendom of Roses was nothing like what he was used to. The weather was mild, with an ever-so-slight chill in the air. He was following along behind Ms. Aaliyah with Kalim, who was staring at everything with eyes just as wide as Jamil’s own.

So this is the Queendom of Roses, huh…

Is it anything like the “Wonderland” in that Alice movie?

Not really? I mean, we haven’t seen much of it yet but so far, it’s not nearly as crazy I expected… There’s also the fact that it’s actually supposed to be a dream…

Maybe Wonderland refers to Twisted Wonderland?

See, that’s what I thought too, but the Queen of Hearts ruled over the Rose Queendom, not the entire world, right?

This isn’t even all that confusing compared to what you told me about the “Lion King”.

Don’t even remind me… Ugh, I have no idea how directly those damn movies translate to reality…

Hey, hey, no mental breakdowns today. We promised not to think about that right now didn’t we?

Yeah. Let’s just look around. It’s not every day that you get to visit the Rose Queendom on an anniversary after all.

It was a testament to Rahim’s patience that he had not yet killed anyone.

‘Have you checked over the invitations?’

Zero rolled his eyes.

‘Yes, like a hundred times! They’re fine, nobody will suspect a thing. What do you take me for, an amateur?’

They had done things like this about a thousand times before, except on a much smaller scale. This was all or nothing- if they could pull it off, they’d be staging a takeover of the Black Sands in less than a month, but if, for some reason, they blew it?

Rahim thought of his mentor’s cold voice, of the first time he’d ever felt someone’s blood dry on his hands.

If this went wrong, then he’d just have to find a way to make it right again.

‘We’ve got the invitations covered for tonight, but what about the other part?’

‘Ah yes. That.’

Zero frowned when he heard the utter lack of enthusiasm in the older boy’s voice.

‘Uh, Rahim?’ he tried hesitantly. ‘You have figured that out… right?’

The conspicuous silence was answer enough.

‘But, but, if we don’t-’

Zero quickly shut his mouth when he felt the warning hand at his throat.

‘You try tracking down old magic in this day and age with no notice,’ Rahim hissed. ‘If it wasn’t for those damn incompetent idiots, we wouldn’t have had this problem in the first place.’

Zero sighed and slumped over at the desk, gingerly rubbing at his throat.

‘Pity the Rosehearts have all but died out. They’re probably the only old magic family left in this entire queendom.’

Rahim’s eyes lit up.

‘Now that’s an idea.’

Zero jumped when a black-gloved hand slammed onto the desk, right next to his head.

‘You’ve heard of the Rosehearts boy, yes?’

‘Um, duh? He’s the only one who- oh wait. You mean, him?’

‘Yes, him.’

The sun was only just beginning to set and already, the roads to the old palace where crowded with people.

The Centennial Ball was always held in the old palace, as was traditional. It had been that way even when the infamous Queen of Hearts was herself only a young princess not yet thirteen. Of course, it had not been called the old palace then, but the place was nonetheless the same, even though its name and function had changed, with the turning of the centuries. It was an undeniably beautiful structure, one of the prides of the Queendom of Roses (as well as being quite the tourist attraction).

It was a pity Jair was only able to appreciate it from glimpses Jamil showed him, shut up as he was within the mindscape.

Although it had been his idea to begin with, to avoid the confusion that constant switching would cause, Jair couldn’t help wishing his role in the entire thing wasn’t “sit still and don’t move from the mindscape”. He leaned against the back of the sofa, arms hooked behind his head, idly flicking through his memories in search of something to cure his relentless boredom. Since he had himself suggested this, there shouldn’t have been any reason to complain and he wasn’t about to start to, bored or no. It had taken him long enough to convince Jamil to go along with this as it was, Jair had no desire to hear his smug “I told you so”.

It was at times like this, drawn back as far as he could go within the mindscape, that Jair let himself wonder.

He hadn’t really wondered why exactly he had been reborn in the first place. He felt oddly distanced from his past, viewing it as if through a lens, so perhaps that played a part in his oddly seamless acceptance of his circumstances. Another part had to be the length of time it had taken to regain access to his full set of memories- by the time he’d remembered everything, his new life had already replaced his old one. Since he had died in that other world, why keep on wondering about it? Jair had nothing going for him there except a terrible home life and empty wasteland of a future. And in Twisted Wonderland, he had Jamil.

That was more than enough for him thank you.

There are three things needed to live in stopped time.

One is a strong soul. If your soul doesn’t know how hang on to its own body, then you will not be able to survive long in stopped time, only a bare handful of hours, if you’re lucky.

The other is a connection to the magic of old.

As for the third-

Chapter Text

Hey?

Hey, Jair?       

Are you there?

Can you hear me?

I know you said you didn’t want to disturb me, but I can barely feel you anymore… It’s like I’m empty or something.

I don’t know, I just….

This is weird.

Please reply.

Jamil? Why aren’t you answering me?

I know I said I’d draw back, but not this much!

Alright, this is getting strange.

Did I piss you off or something?

Please tell me what I did wrong. I can’t apologise if I don’t know what I’m apologising FOR.

Jamil please.

I… I don’t want to be without you anymore…

…

I’ll leave you alone if that’s what you really want.

I hope you answer soon.

  Jair? Are you going to reply now?

I like the ball, everyone’s being weirdly nice to me and the food’s strange but still good. I don’t have to be afraid of eating it either, not like I am at home, since everything here is being eaten by everybody, so it’s definitely safe.

You’d really like the food.

I promised I’d share the memory later didn’t I?

If you really want to try it yourself please switch!

Stop this already, Jair, it’s creeping me out!

You made your point, now come back already!

Ugh, whatever.

I’m not going to force you, I guess.

It’s really rude to ignore people you know?

Jamil?

Still not answering?

Listen, I’m sorry.

Whatever it is I did, I’m sorry and I won’t do it again.

Please tell me what’s going on out there.

I’ve tried going back to forefront but it’s not working.

This is getting kind of creepy, please let me out!

Why are you even doing this, Jamil?

Is this because I insisted on the no-switching thing for tonight?

I’m really sorry, okay?

You’ve made your point!

I get it!

You win!

That’s what you wanted to hear, right?

Fine. Whatever.

I don’t need you anyway.

I survived without you before, didn’t I?

I’ll live, even if you ignore me the whole evening.

It’s really rude to just lock someone up in the mindscape, you know?

Jair, I think somebody’s following me.

This one guy kept staring at me earlier.

What does he even want with me?

It’s not like I’m rich, I’m not Kalim, I’m worth absolutely nothing!

At least, I should be.

Why is he glancing back this way?

Jair, come on, answer me!

This is serious!

Jamil?

What’s going on!

I can’t feel anything!

I’m getting really worried here, you jerk!

Let me out!

I’m getting scared, Jair.

Please help me.

You helped last time something like this happened, remember?

You know….

That night.

The night I got my unique magic.

He’s definitely following me.

Jair?

Jamil, what even is this?

Can you even hear me right now?

What’s going on?

This isn’t funny!

Can… can you really not hear a word I’m saying right now?

Oh god.

No wonder you didn’t reply at all!

JAMIL!

I knew he was bad news!

Jair, help me!

Seriously, come on out, I could really use some help against this guy!

If you don’t help me we might BOTH die in here!

JAIR!

I feel like I’m completely isolated inside the mindscape…

Why did this happen?

It’s not like anybody knows we’re sharing a body, so this is definitely not intentional. I can rule that out immediately.

So what else is there?

What kind of magic could do this as a side effect?

You can’t hear me, can you?

You can’t hear me at all.

I’m… I’m on my own right now.

I’m completely alone.

Chapter Text

Kalim Al-Asim had no idea what was happening.

The evening had started off normally. Well, at least as normal as attending the Rose Queendom’s Centennial Ball could get. But it was fun. He’d never seen so many kids near to his age before and he had never been outside of the country before either. Things were strange and exciting and best of all, Jamil seemed to be having fun too! (That was really all he could ask for, when it came down to it.)

But the longer the evening went on, the more Kalim noticed Jamil getting distracted. He kept staring off into the distance or into his drink, frowning. One time, he even brought up a hand to his head, seemingly without thinking about it.

‘Jamil?’ Kalim asked, concerned. ‘What’s wrong? You look upset.’

Jamil started and attempted to smile.

Kalim wasn’t fooled.

‘It’s nothing, really. I just… have a bit of a headache. That’s all.’

‘Do you need to leave?’

Jamil bit his lip and looked down.

‘I… No. I’ll be fine.’

‘Mum’s not going to mind, you know she won’t,’ Kalim continued.

Jamil definitely wasn’t okay, even if Kalim didn’t fully understand what was wrong with him.

Those dark eyes seemed to stare directly into his soul. Kalim didn’t dare move, mesmerised.

There was just something more about his friend. There always had been. Something different, unexplainable. Most found it unsettling and didn’t dare look closer. But Kalim? It only spurred him onwards.

‘Kalim… Do you trust me?’

Kalim nodded frantically.

‘Yes! Yes, of course I trust you!’ he declared passionately, eyes bright.

Jamil took a deep breath.

‘Okay then. Follow me.’

Jamil had led them out of the ballroom and into a quiet side corridor a little ways away, periodically looking back. When he finally came to a stop, they were alone.

‘I think somebody’s been following me,’ Jamil admitted. ‘That’s why I’ve been so… distracted.’

Kalim blinked, apprehension settling like a stone in his chest.

‘Following? Who?’

‘Me.’

They barely resisted the urge to scream as a strange figure crept out of the shadows.

It was a boy, about fourteen years of age. He was deathly pale and dressed from head to toe in black clothing, one arm gloved. He was smiling, a shark’s smile, one that did not reach his eyes.

‘I’ve finally found you, Jamil Viper. You should really appreciate this you know, you have no idea how much effort it took me to get to this point.’

‘What- what do you want with me?’ Jamil asked, voice trembling slightly.

‘Oh you know perfectly well what I want. That beautiful magic you showed me.’

Kalim frowned, confusion chasing away some of the fear.

‘What magic?’ he asked, turning to Jamil.

Jamil was standing, frozen.

All colour had drained out of his face.

‘Jamil? What does he mean? What magic?’

Have you ever wondered what it is exactly that led to Jamil sharing his body with Jair?

The answer lies within plain sight.

It’s been there all along.

Can you remember how all this is supposed to end?

Can you remember what Jamil will eventually up doing?

Can you remember what role he plays on the world’s stage?

And do you know the secret of how to keep on moving when even time itself has stopped?

No?

Well, I shall tell you.

There are three things needed to live in stopped time.

One is a strong soul. If your soul doesn’t know how hang on to its own body, then you will not be able to survive long in stopped time, only a bare handful of hours, if you’re lucky.

The other is a connection to the magic of old.

As for the third, it comes down to this:

What part of yourself are you willing to sacrifice?

Chapter Text

Jair stood in the middle of the mindscape’s memory library and howled in frustration.

Strewn all around him were masses and masses of books; his other soul’s memories- Jamil’s memories.

Panicked green eyes darted towards the next shelf. He flung himself over in that direction, practically stumbling over thin air in his haste. One of the books was flung open with impatient, shaking hands and he scanned it frantically, before scowling and tossing it behind his back. It hit the wall with a loud THUMP and fell, crumpled, onto the floor. The process was repeated several times, Jair growing less and less patient with each failure.

‘DAMN IT!’

The boy stopped in the middle of the library room, dark locks half out of their hair tie and periodically falling forwards, eyes wild.

‘Something bad happened,’ Jair said out loud into the unbearably still and silent mindscape. ‘I’m absolutely, positively, one hundred percent sure it did. Jamil wouldn’t- couldn’t- shut me out so completely, not even if he was mad at me. There’s no way something didn’t happen.’

And that was what was driving him crazy right now.

Jamil was completely cut off from him at the moment, something that had never happened before in his entire life. Since the moment the being known as “Jamil Viper” was first formed, he had been sharing his body and thoughts with another soul. Jair at least remembered leading a life separate to him, but Jamil did not. This was his life. How would he handle suddenly being left entirely on his own in his own head for the first time ever? Jair sincerely doubted that it would be in any way good, for anybody involved.

Jair let out a groan and sank to the floor.

‘How can I find out what happened if I don’t even know how I got here?’

Neither of them had any real clue as to how they wound up like this, or why. That wasn’t something that would be easy to answer. Perhaps there wasn’t any solid answer whatsoever. Both had thought about it briefly, every now and then…but never too deeply, never seriously.

Maybe they should have. Because then Jair would have at least half a clue as to what was even happening right now. Jamil’s memories were giving him nothing and his own were even less useful.

Jair tried to calm down and think rationally.

‘Maybe if I use magic…’

Neither of them had tried to use their magic within the confines of the mindscape itself, choosing to rely instead on its inherently malleable nature to do things that weren’t otherwise possible when outside of it. But Jair had gotten in a decent enough amount of practise while he was in possession of their body and their sources of magic were technically separate, so perhaps, if he really concentrated, something would happen.

He didn’t know what that “something” he was hoping for was, but anything was better than sitting around and chasing dead ends in his and Jamil’s memories.

He sat himself down straight on the floor and closed his eyes in order to better focus.

This might just be the only chance he had at getting out of the mindscape in time.

In his first life, he was nothing special. Just another one of the unwanted burdens his mother had gotten saddled with when she wasn’t careful enough about how and when she fucked. He’d always known he nothing special to her, just like she was nothing special to him- merely a woman who had carried him for nine months once and who just so happened to live in the same house as him. He wouldn’t say she’d been a bad mother, per se. Just not exactly a “mother”, period. As a fairly self-sufficient child, he never gave much trouble and so she ignored him altogether.

His sister though… his sister was a different story.

She had always been desperate to somehow earn her mother’s affection and approval. Somehow, she got it into her head that her little brother was the one stealing their mother’s attention from her and began taking out her anger on him in a myriad of little ways. At first she kept it simple and under-the-radar, afraid that she’d earn a scolding. But when nothing happened, she grew bolder and bolder, until he found himself dreading coming home from school whenever she was around.

She hated him- and it was a completely mutual feeling.

He had loathed her to his core.

One day, his sister had had a bad day at school and habitually stomped over to his room to give her most convenient target a hard time about it. When he didn’t react in the slightest to her taunts and provocations, she grew furious and lost control of herself. He’d been thrown into their attic and locked up there, in the dark. Alone.

It seemed to him like an eternity had passed in that attic. Time stopped existing in that dark, isolated, musty room.

In the end, it was his mother that found him there, almost totally catatonic from sheer fright.

During the months that followed, his sister stayed away from him.

He didn’t know why exactly she started to leave him alone after the attic incident. Perhaps it was guilt, catching up to her at last, making her realise her mistakes. Even back then, he’d scoffed at that explanation and came up with a much more likely one- she’d simply been afraid she would get into trouble if she tried anything again so soon.

At the tail-end of December that same year, just before New Year’s Day, he was proven right.

His sister pushed him into the path of a moving train.

His sister killed him.

(Unknowingly, she also provided him with the greatest gift he would ever receive, though neither ever found out about that.)

(In killing him in such a grisly, brutal fashion, she’d attracted the attention of a nearby god-spirit.)

(The manner of his death stirred sympathy within the god-spirit and they decided to give this child a second life.)

(Though they were new and fairly weak, by deific standards, they had enough power to put his conscious in the same body as the one who had both once opened his heart to such an intrusion with an overblot and had the soul-strength to bear the strain.)

(The act the sister intended to end her brother’s life ended up giving him something so much more.)

(It was the bitterest irony, one that nobody but the sun, the sky and the earth itself would be able to appreciate.)

(But maybe it was always meant to be this way…)

Chapter Text

‘Jamil? What does he mean? What magic?

Jamil barely even heard Kalim’s confused question, his mind a million miles away.

That night.

It all came back to that one awful night that he tried hard not to think about, the unique magic buzzing under his skin that he’d attempted to ignore as best as he could. He and Jair had been high-strung and paranoid for quite a bit after that, never able to completely shake off the feeling that something was after them. And now, facing down his nightmare come to life, Jamil couldn’t help desperately wishing to hear Jair’s thoughts once again.

‘Yes, do tell your little friend what I mean,’ the boy continued, almost casually. Like they were having an entirely ordinary conversation. ‘I’m sure he’s quite confused.’

Jamil swallowed heavily, eyes locked on the other.

‘You… how do you know about my unique magic?’

He heard Kalim’s gasp and tried to push past the steadily growing sick feeling in his stomach.

‘Those assassins you killed that day were my…co-workers, you could say. They unknowingly had a little something extra attached to them when they came to your home. I got rather curious about you after that. A magic that can control one’s mind is a rare and special thing indeed.’

‘You’re an assassin?’ Kalim gaped, the true danger of the position they were in finally truly dawning on him.

The boy smirked.

‘I suppose it was rather rude of me to not introduce myself. I am Rahim, the best assassin the Black Sands has to offer.’

Jamil’s blood turned to ice in his veins.

He didn’t even to turn to look at Kalim’s face to know it would be twisting in pure horror. Same as his own.

They’d been told plenty of things about the Black Sands, their country’s most notorious criminal organisation. Parents used it as a way to frighten their kids into behaving all the time: “be good or the Black Sands will come and swallow you up.” That type of thing. But even beyond that, Jamil and Kalim were especially aware of the true danger it posed. Kalim was the heir to the Asim family after all, he had overheard plenty of things that were said about the damage the Black Sands did and could do. Jamil too had heard all sorts of stories from the other servants during rest breaks or whenever he visited the kitchen to sample the leftovers.

The criminal organisation was perhaps the oldest one and longest lasting in all of Twisted Wonderland history. It had begun in what would later come to be called the city of the dead- an area of the Scalding Sands once ruled over by a ruthless mage who made it completely empty of life in only a few short years. At first, it was only a few runaway criminals that were inspired by the mage’s story, but it soon grew and eventually became an unfortunately inextricable part of the Scalding Sands history.

And Rahim was claiming to be one of the best members it had.

I knew he was bad news!

Jair, help me!

Seriously, come on out, I could really use some help against this guy!

If you don’t help me we might BOTH die in here!

JAIR!

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.                              

Jair was too silent.

Why was he not replying?

What was going on?

‘You want my unique magic?’

Rahim’s eyes had that terribly familiar greedy glint in them.

‘Why would I not? I have it on good authority that your magic is something to be valued.’

Before any of them could say or do anything else, however, somebody else stormed onto the scene.

Rahim stared incredulously at the new arrival.

‘Zero? What the hell are you-’

‘This is bad! Like really, really bad!’ Zero shouted, eyes wild with panic.

Rahim stopped.

Kalim inched closer to Jamil.

‘The Rosehearts brat… he woke up all of a sudden and- oh no. Oh damn it, damn it, damn it! I was too late! It’s starting already!’

‘What’s starting?’ Rahim demanded.

Zero pointed wordlessly at a window near the end of the corridor. Three pairs of eyes followed his movement.

Jamil sucked in a sharp breath.

‘What… what is that?’ Kalim stuttered in stunned shock.

Rahim turned a furious glare at his underling.

‘The hourglass. You left him alone with that damned hourglass?’

‘I thought we’d drugged him, he wasn’t supposed to wake up all of a sudden!’ Zero defended.

Jamil let the conversation slip past his ears, too focused on the scene unfolding before his eyes.

The entire queendom was rapidly falling still and silent as the clouds thickened at an unnatural pace in the sky. People, birds in the sky, sounds of movement, of life… were simply vanishing into thin air.

Soon they would be among the only people left breathing in the whole Rose Queendom.

(If there was ever a time that he needed Jair, it was now.)

(The world around them was quickly becoming dead- and somehow, for some reason, passing them by.)

(They would be left on their own with a power-hungry assassin.)

(Jamil had never been so isolated in his life before.)

(He’d never been left to his own thoughts. Never.)

He barely even noticed as Kalim tugged at his arm and forced him to run, taking advantage of Rahim and Zero’s distraction. His mind was in another place entirely.

Jamil fruitlessly attempted to contact his missing second soul, thoughts running wild-

You can’t hear me, can you? You can’t hear me at all.

I’m… I’m on my own right now.

I’m completely alone.

-but he was the only one that heard.

Chapter Text

For as long as he could remember himself, Jamil had always heard Jair replying to his thoughts. Even when he pulled back to the mindscape to give Jamil some space, he was still there, still present within their shared body. That had been his entire existence and while it may seem a terrible one to most others, to Jamil it was all he knew. And suddenly being ripped away from that was terrible in a way he didn’t have the words to explain even if he wanted to.

(Jamil felt hollow, wrong.)

(Like there was too much space in his body.)

(It was more than that though.)

(He felt empty.)

(Never in his entire life had Jamil been so alone before.)

(Jair wasn’t there.)

(Jair wasn’t there, Jair wasn’t there, Jair wasn’t there…)

A scared, familiar voice brought the panicking boy back to reality with a tremulous:

‘Jamil, what are we going to do now?’

Jamil looked up, startled. His dark eyes met wide garnet ones.

Oh…

That’s right.

I have Kalim with me too.

Ignoring the stab of fear at the lack of response from his other soul, Jamil forced himself to reply.

‘I’m…I’m sorry Kalim. This was all my fault.’

Clearly confused, the young heir stared at him in bewilderment.

‘Your fault? How?’

‘You heard what that assassin said, didn’t you?’ Jamil said guiltily. ‘I’m the one he’s after right now…I’m the reason why he did all this.’

Rahim’s words had been like a blow to the chest. That awful night, when he had almost died and Jair had been forced to end someone else’s life in order to preserve theirs… Jamil and Jair optimistically assumed that they’d gotten away with it, that nobody noticed his display of magic and the murders that took place under the Asim’s roof. They went on with their lives, oblivious, even as an assassin of the Black Sands plotted to gain Jamil’s magic.

(Stupid. Naïve. Careless.)

(Jamil hated himself for this, the mistake that could cost him everything he had.)

(He couldn’t afford to make such careless missteps in the future- if he got out of this alive anyway. Which wasn’t looking too likely so far.)

‘All he wants is my unique magic.’

There was a boy, sleeping.

His hair was a bright, vibrant red. It was a stark contrast to the rest of him, so peaceful and unmoving. If it weren’t for the steady rise and fall of his chest, one would assume he was dead. Beside him was a tipped over hourglass. It pulsed with magic, sending its roots all over the Rose Queendom.

Mother?

Are you there?

I don’t understand…I was being good. I promise I was being good…

Why did you…leave me?

I’m sorry.

This is…

What…is happening to me…?

I feel so weak…

Mother…

Father…

Trey...

Somebody.

Anybody…

Please, I… I don’t want to be alone in here.

I don’t want to be alone anymore.

Chapter Text

Rahim was fuming. He glared viciously in the direction the two boys had ran off to, eyes promising murder. Normally, spotting those eyes meant that whoever was unfortunate enough to be his quarry was in for a bad time. Now, however… Now was a bit of special case.

They’d needed to burn through a significant portion of their resources in order to secure the hourglass- it was a precious thing indeed, filled with old, potent curse magic from Briar Valley. In most cases, Rahim wouldn’t go after such a fragile, risky thing at all, as fixated as he was on powerful and rare magic; his current position in the Black Sands was simply too precarious to allow it. This time, however, they had a possible solution to all their problems spurring them on.

And now, instead of preparing the ritual of extraction, they would be lucky to even get out of this with their minds intact.

‘I can’t believe you even managed to mess up something as simple as guarding the Rosehearts brat…’ Rahim growled, voice filled with barely suppressed frustration. He turned his fierce glare to his younger companion. ‘Zero, I gave you one, very easy, task; don’t let our only source of old magic get free. And what did you do?’

Zero cringed into himself, already anticipating a blow from that pale hand. Rahim was never gentle, least of all when Zero messed up, and he knew quite a lot of ways to make the body hurt without crossing a line into dangerous or outright lethal territory. Zero had felt them on himself plenty of times before and had little desire to provoke his temper again so soon.

(Not that like he hadn’t done that already.)

But, while Rahim and his tendency to use outside outlets for his rage could be a right pain sometimes, this time Zero could see where he was coming from. So much was riding on their ability to pull this off successfully and here they were, fumbling around like newbies on their first mission. They had gone through quite a lot of pains to nab the little Rosehearts boy without rousing anyone’s suspicions and to safeguard the hourglass- and now all of that was made pointless by the fact that their plan had gone to hell.

‘Look, if that hourglass was so fragile, why didn’t you put up more protection around it or something?’ Zero protested weakly.

Rahim’s expression darkened.

‘I did.’ He hissed venomously.

Zero blinked.

The information sank in.

‘…oh.’

(If the Rosehearts had somehow managed to bypass Rahim’s protections… then no wonder the older boy was now so incensed about this.)

‘Wait, is that why you’re being so-’

A gloved hand was shoved into Zero’s face, resting warningly on his mouth.

‘Shut. up.’ Rahim growled.

Zero nodded frantically, nervously eyeing the hand until it was retracted back to Rahim’s side, before leaping away to a slightly safer distance at arm's length from him. It was mostly to make himself feel better; he knew that if Rahim really wanted to kill him, distance would not matter.

The teenage assassin groaned and put his head in his hands.

‘You know what, forget it. Change of plans- we’re going to go and check on Rosehearts and the hourglass right now, see if we can reverse this time stop.’

‘But what about those two?’

Rahim glanced in the direction their target and the Asim heir had disappeared off to.

‘No need to worry about that. They won’t be able to run away from us now. And if they do manage it, well.’ A sardonic smile graced Rahim’s lips. ‘All the worse for them.’

Jamil’s day had not gone the way he expected it to. Instead of dragging Jair out of the mindscape to try the food at the Centennial Ball, he was forcibly separated from him and left by himself in an eerily still and unmoving Rose Queendom.

‘Your fault? How?’

(Almost by himself.)

He stood across from Kalim in the lonely side room they had ended up in after running from Rahim, shifting in place.

‘You heard what that assassin said, didn’t you?’ Jamil said guiltily. ‘I’m the one he’s after right now…I’m the reason why he did all this. All he wants is my unique magic.’

The confusion on Kalim’s face changed into a look of intense stubbornness. He shook his head fiercely.

‘Yeah maybe he does, but that’s not your fault, Jamil!’ he said insistently. ‘It’s not.’

‘The only reason he even knows about it is because I was stupid,’ Jamil muttered bitterly.

(And scared.)

(Jamil hadn’t wanted to examine what happened too deeply, had only wanted to move past it as fast as possible. He and Jair both.)

Kalim didn’t blame him in the slightest though, as strange as that was. And, judging by the stubborn look he wore, wasn’t likely to change his opinion on it.

‘No, you’re not. Jamil is the smartest, most amazing person I know. Whatever happened, it definitely wasn’t your fault.’

Don’t just say things like that so easily!

‘Okay, never mind…’ Jamil said, huffing. ‘I guess that isn’t important right now.’

There would be plenty of time for obsessing over what he’d done wrong later, once he was out of danger.

The greed in Rahim’s eyes flashed through Jamil’s mind and he gritted his teeth.

He wanted to scream in frustration, to curl up into himself and hide away from the now unsettlingly still and dead world. All the excitement and anticipation he’d felt for this night had been completely ruined, an assassin from the Black Sands was after him because of his unique magic and, most importantly, his second soul was gone, ripped away, leaving only an awful feeling of hollowness behind.

It would be more than enough to crack almost anyone.

Making things significantly worse was the fact that the two of them had no idea what was happening, or how to fix it. They were essentially trapped here by themselves until Rahim decided to come after them again.

Jamil glanced back at Kalim.

If I told him about Jair… would he believe me?

(He’d never talked about the existence of his second soul to anyone before – both he and Jair agreed that it would be a terrible idea – but now he was alone in a way he’d never been before in his life.)

(These weren’t exactly normal circumstances and he needed to talk to someone right now more than ever, or he might just burst.)

(Plus, if there was anyone that he could tell about Jair, it would be Kalim.)

He swallowed heavily, wavering.

‘Jamil?’ Kalim asked hesitantly. ‘Is… is something wrong?’

It was the worry and concern in the other boy’s garnet-red eyes that convinced him, in the end. Maybe confiding his biggest secret to anyone would turn out to be a mistake, but somehow Jamil got the feeling that if he didn’t talk about this now he would regret it.

Sorry, Jair.

‘Kalim, before we do anything else, I think there’s something you should know. It’s going to sound crazy, but… look, do you believe in reincarnation?’

Chapter Text

The fact that he had a second soul had always been Jamil’s biggest secret, the one thing he’s held closest to his chest. The voice replying to his every thought, the admittedly sometimes pretty painful feeling of too much straining against his skin, never being truly alone in his own head no matter how much Jair pulled his presence back… It was all as familiar to him as breathing. Maybe to others, this would be an oppressive, stressful way of existence, but to Jamil it was only all he’d ever known. Jair had never complained of the complete lack of privacy either, despite knowing a different life before that, seemingly unbothered by having to share a body with another.

It wasn’t something an outsider would be able to understand, or even believe actually. Reincarnation and second souls and other worlds; it sounded wild no matter how you put it. Jamil thought his other would forever remain a secret never told, a voice in his head and extra magic fizzling in his veins.

‘I… I have a second soul. I guess that sounds pretty weird but I don’t know how to explain it, really. He’s been with me my whole life. To be honest, I’ve never known anything different.’

Instead, stuck in a different country and in quite possibly the most danger he’s ever been in so far, he found the whole unbelievable story spilling out. To the person he’d once never have thought he would end up trusting so much of himself to.

(Ironic that it happened this way.)

(Strange that Jamil didn’t find himself minding all that much.)

‘So his name is Jair?’ Kalim asked when Jamil’s awkward, somewhat stumbling, attempt at explaining his situation ended.

Jamil nodded.

‘Yeah. We’re pretty much stuck together, since we share a body-’ he continued, trying to ignore how hollow he felt. ‘-and I can always feel him there with me, if that makes sense? Well, I could always feel him.’

The look in Kalim’s eyes sharpened  at the correction as he put two and two together.

‘You can’t feel him anymore, right?’ he said.

‘Not a thing,’ Jamil confirmed. ‘Like Jair just disappeared from my head. It’s… really weird.’

(Not just weird.)

(He felt like a part of him had been ripped away, leaving the rest torn and bleeding. Because that was what happened.)

(Oh, Jamil hated this so much.)

(Being without Jair was awful, he had no idea how other people lived like this. Were they all so alone in their own heads? Jamil would never be able to handle it.)

‘It must be awful, suddenly missing someone like that,’ Kalim said sympathetically.

The words took Jamil by surprise, even though considering this was Kalim so they really shouldn’t have. He had expected more disbelief, shock, for the little Asim heir to at least be somewhat weirded out by the revelation that Jamil had secretly always been two people rather than just one. He knew he himself wouldn’t be so calm if it were him being told this instead of Kalim, had expected something of a negative reaction. He’d braced himself for it; if worst came to worst, Jamil could always just try and use his unique magic to minimise the damage. An unlikely possibility – this was Kalim after all – but still one he’d considered, just in case.

Maybe he should’ve expected that the other boy would take the revelation so in stride.

Kalim looked startled, confused, sure, but the concern had only grown, deepened. It made Jamil a little uncomfortable, to be looked at like that. Like he was the centre of someone’s world. Though, strictly technically speaking, this was indeed the truth. Right now, he and Kalim were stuck alone together in this strange, deadened world. The only two people moving except for the assassins that trapped them here begin with and the other’s only ally too.

(Except Kalim’s care came from a deeper place than that. Jamil still found himself surprised by it, even now.)

‘Yeah, it is.’ Jamil confessed. ‘I’m not used to not being able to hear him in my head. I don’t even know what happened!’

A brief silence settled over them. Jamil glanced at Kalim, who was waiting patiently for him to speak again.

‘..you’re taking this reincarnation stuff really well,’ he remarked.

‘I am?’ Kalim tilted his head. ‘I mean, I guess I’m surprised? But this doesn’t really change much, you know. You’re still Jamil, aren’t you?’

The completely honest and straightforward answer took Jamil aback. Kalim looked at him earnestly, not a trace of negativity in sight.

What a simple way to think.

(And yet… was Kalim wrong?)

Suddenly, Kalim smiled at him.

‘After we get out of this, you have to introduce me to him! I want to meet Jair too, you know!’

Snorting despite himself, Jamil raised an eyebrow.

‘After we get out of this? You’re really confident.’

They were definitely losing time with this conversation but Jamil couldn’t bring himself to worry too much over that. After spending what now felt like an eternity worrying over Jair’s silence, confiding in Kalim his biggest secret came as a huge relief. At least now, he could express his worry over Jair and his absence to someone else properly.

‘But you will introduce me, right?’ Kalim pressed, insistent.

Priorities, Kalim. Priorities.

Jamil wanted to sigh, but his lips pulled up into a slight smile anyway. What would Jair and Kalim’s first actual meeting be like? Jair had never before dealt with the having full focus of Kalim’s attention on him before and even just thinking about it, Jamil found himself entertained. If he wanted to see that, which he did, he’d have to find a way to survive Rahim.

Garnet-red eyes bore into him, intent.

‘Okay, okay, I will.’ Jamil promised.

Then, he forced himself to start moving again in the still world, pulling Kalim along with him. Rahim of the Black Sands would waste no time searching for them.

‘But first, we have to survive.’