Chapter Text
It all started with a pair of gold hoops.
They were small, small enough that they barely hugged the bottom of the ear when worn but they made quite the statement given how thick and heavy they were. A thick solid metal hoop of high quality and pure gold made obvious by its vibrant yellow colour.
They had come into Bryan's possession pretty much accidentally.
“Hey look what I found” Bryan whispered into the dark room as he pulled a small black box from his jackets inside pocket. He popped the lid open to reveal a set of gold hooped earrings set into a plush black velvet inside.
“Where did you even get this?” Tala asked, it was a rather odd thing for Bryan to suddenly have in his possession. Normally his “interesting finds” were strangely coloured rocks or odd broken pieces of long old and decaying jewellery, brooches or other metallic things that he had found in or on the ground. Not a set of expensive woman's earrings.
“Woman when we were out” Bryan answered looking down over the lid and into the small box. Even the box they came in was luxurious and expensive looking from what he could see in the dark of the room.
Tala immediately thought Bryan was talking about the woman that had been with the suited man Boris had been talking to that day. They had all been invited into a large expensive house where they had stood while the two men had talked for a few hours. A young petite woman covered in far too much jewellery had hovered around the pair before deciding the conversation to be uninteresting and had decided to hover around the boys who were all standing in a neat line by the wall instead. She had walked up and down the line poking and prodding a few of them. Making strange faces as she went but the more she did the more she seemed annoyed that the boys were all continuing to stand at attention and ignoring her.
That was until she had come over to Bryan and played with the little sidetails of his hair in an attempt to get a reaction out of him. From her expression, she was hoping for a laugh or smile of some kind. The only thing she got instead was a loud sneeze from him as her fur-lined sleeves tickled his nose. She had let out a startled yelp which made the two men pause and inspect what was going on only to see Bryan rubbing his face with the back of his hand trying to get rid of the itch. It made him actually look his age for a moment before he quickly returned to his rigid pose once he saw Boris narrow his eyes warningly. Thankfully the suited man had spoken to her in some other language getting the woman to sit down and leave them alone.
“She came out of a bakery it was in a white paper bag. I thought I was grabbing food but it turned out to be this” Bryan grumbled showing his disappointment at not getting an extra meal. Tala let out a little sigh of relief, thankfully Bryan had not been stupid enough to steal from one of Boris’s associates.
Pickpocketing had grown into a habit of Bryans from their street days where it had been an essential skill and one tala himself had also been good at. However here in the abbey with a roof over their head and three square meals a day he hadn't found it necessary to continue. Bryan however seemed to do it purely for entertainment, even on guards within the abbey. The men masquerading as priests sure did carry around some rather odd things it seemed.
“I was hoping for a pastry or something ugh. But still, these are really shiny” He moved them in the dim light as they sparkled sending refracted light dancing across the dark walls of the room. Tala had found out quickly that Bryan loved things that shined and sparkled in the light.
Some falcon, he was more like a magpie.
The sound of heavy boots in the hallway hushed their conversation and with practised patience, they instinctively stayed still and quiet until they heard the heavy footsteps carry on walking far down the hall. It was night hours, everyone should be in their rooms asleep the only ones who roamed the halls at this hour were the guards and the occasional scientist.
“What are you going to do with them? I doubt anyone wants a pair of earrings” Tala questioned. While the earrings were certainly the most interesting of Bryan's finds the boy had shown him, they were just like the others...Completely useless.
“Maybe I do” Bryan shrugged tucking the box back into his jacket before jumping up from Tala’s bed he had been sitting on the edge of. He quickly said goodnight before slipping out the door to go back to his own room before it was found he had snuck out in the first place.
Days like that were not that uncommon. A rare occurrence in the early days that became more frequent as Boris asked for more funding for the abbey from sick foreign businessmen who had fallen for Boris's empty promises of power and wealth. It happened more and more often as the final days of Boris's plan had come into action.
It was considered an honour to be picked to be shown off like one of Boris's prized performing dogs. Although those who often got picked saw it more as a hassle than anything set to go perform tricks on command to entertain some of the world's business elite. However, it was one of few times those who had shown enough promise to call the abbey their home were actually allowed outside it. What appeared as such a small outing to outsiders was a big deal on the inside. Going from the underbelly of the abbey full of near torturous training machines, drug testing and human experiments to the average daily life of the streets of Moscow was a welcome change.
They would be allowed to walk on the streets but it was not a reward for doing well in their training, it was purely a display for the public. The Kind Father Abbot walking with and spending time with the poor disadvantaged children he had so kindly taken in. Boris was always one for theatrics, his favourite character to play was the kind and gentle old man in public before quickly turning into a cunning businessman in front of potential investors.
Both were a lie.
~~~~~~~~
Tala idly played with the lobe of his ear thinking about all that had happened since that faithful day Tyson had defeated him in front of the whole world. Life now was so different, it was hard but not unwelcome. Only a few years since his defeat where their lives as they knew them had fallen apart and only a few years had it been since they had to pick up and build a new life for themselves.
Bryan softly snored next to him in their shared room in the rundown two bedroom apartment the team shared. The room barely fit a double bed in it along with the dresser that sat opposite but it was marginally bigger than the other bedroom which Spencer called his. It was more a large closet with a bed than a room, being the biggest of all of them it only made sense he got the room that could only fit one of them.
Bryan and Tala shared the other, despite Tala's own distaste for being touched or having people in his personal space, he and Bryan used to sleep together when they were younger so it only seemed fitting. That and both of them were too tall to comfortably sleep on the pull-out couch in the small living area . Thankfully the much shorter Ian didn’t complain about it, it meant he could watch Tv as he went to sleep anyway. The apartment was rundown, cramped and probably against at least some kind of health violation but for once in his life Tala could say he was content, happy even.
A textbook sat on his lap as he sat up in bed using the small lamp he had put on the windowsill in the absence of a bedside table to read its worn and folded pages.
They all worked, mainly manual labour, it was hard on the body but it kept them fit and there were always people looking for work. Bryan and Spencer worked the most, pulling double or even triple shifts if they could. Tala himself managed the finances and the seemingly neverending mountain of paperwork that followed them. Years after they were still having to apply for official documents for this and that which were just missing due to their mainly undocumented life in the abbey.
Ian, the youngest by far had started school and a good school at that under the insistence of the three older boys. Now too old to attend high school themselves they had wanted to give Ian the chance at a little normalcy in his teens. A good portion of that money they were earning was going to said school, it wasn't cheap and Ian had even fought to not go at first but after seeing how much it had meant to the other boys who now were essentially his parental figures he had folded. Out of all of them, he was the only one to get an official education that could be documented, it set up his whole future. Getting to graduate from a good school made it easier to get a good job something Spencer, Bryan and Tala were having difficulty finding.
Looking over the worn textbook on his lap he knew most of the contents of the pages already, he only used these to fill in the things that Boris or the scientist had not deemed necessary to learn. His education in the abbey while undocumented had not been lacking in the slightest but the absence of an actual high school level diploma made it difficult to find a job that didn't pay pennies.
With the money they had been managing to save living frugally, he would be able to afford night classes soon to remedy that. His goal was to eventually attend university but that was so far in the future he had not even given thought to exactly what he would want to study. Knowing he could not blade competitively forever it wasn’t a solution, the money from competitions was seasonal anyway and not enough to live on especially for four people.
Tala looked down at Bryan laying on his side facing towards him, exhausted from a long day of tiring physical work. His short fluffy hair was still slightly damp from the rickety shower that groaned every time it was turned on. He had scolded Bryan about going to bed with wet hair, it would leave him sick one of these days. Through the longer sidetail of Bryan's pale hair he could see a gold hoop twinkling softly in the orange lamplight that dimly lit up the room.
The redhead squeezed his earlobe again feeling the hollow hole in the soft flesh.
“Tala get up”
He turned over slowly now knowing the person who had stepped into his room was not a guard checking in on him for his earlier behaviour. Looking out from over his blanket he saw Bryan standing in the dark at the end of his bed. He didn’t attempt to sit up but instead just settled on his back the last few sleepless nights mixed with intense training had been murder on him both physically and mentally. He really didn’t want to deal with Bryan's attachment issues right now it was dangerous for both of them.
“Bryan you know you shouldn’t be here” He hissed through painful teeth, only getting a huff and an over-dramatic eye roll from him in return. He didn’t want to look at the boy invading his room so he looked up at the ceiling instead, it was dark but he could still see it. The gash on his friend's face was still fresh enough that the stitches hadn't even come out yet. Boris’s efforts to separate them as Bryan's habit of following Tala around like a little lost puppy had caught his attention. apparently, Bryan's attachment to him was causing problems with the experiment they were using him for. Can't make an emotionless soldier if they have attachments he supposed.
Still, instead of separating them, Boris had instead tried to ruin the relationship and attempting to finally break Bryan in the process. How else to do that than by making the boys fight? Of course it wasn’t fair it was easy to see who would win. Tala himself being a year older, at this age it made a big difference. He was both stronger and taller than Bryan who had still held onto his baby fat even in his preteens. Tala couldn't look at him anymore no. He couldn't help but feel overwhelming guilt looking at what he had done to Bryan's face.
The gash was much deeper than he had intended almost as if Bryan had leant into it. No doubt it would scar and badly at that, he had completely ruined the boy's face and for what, To please boris? It only made it worse that they had both quickly caught on to what Boris was trying to do and both had decided to “put on a good show” it had just been a lot more convincing than tala would have liked. Even then Bryan looked up at him his face literally cut open by Tala's own hand and still those eyes showed him no malice.
“Oh shush I haven't been able to see you since the showers the other day” Bryan sighed shuffling his feet around, his boots making quiet clicks on the cold stone floor.
The communal showers, one of few places that they were not watched, thankfully even Boris and his guards didn't stoop that low. It was often used as a place to trade contraband, information and most importantly for people to talk who were not meant to. It was the only place they could see each other for now, perhaps for a long time. But Bryan apparently had other ideas sneaking into his room again.
“Can’t you sleep in your own bed for once? You almost got caught last time Boris will kill you if he finds out” Tala grumbled, It came out more annoyed than he had meant it but just moving his jaw let out another wave of pain. He was genuinely worried about Boris, if Bryan was found here in his room they would both be in trouble, probably more so than he had been earlier. But still, he was in a situation where he couldn't do anything. The last time he had snapped at Boris after Bryan and his fight had been the worst experience of his life.
~~~~~~~~
“If you keep baring your teeth at me like a dog I’ll make you a dog, boy” Boris grabbed his jaw pulling him up to look into his narrowed eyes. It was unlike boris to get physical especially with the children under his care, he was much more likely to threaten one of the scientists than he was one of the boys. But that's how Tala knew he had really fucked up to get him this angry.
He had underperformed on everything, studies, drills and even labwork his progress had completely tanked. Had Boris not already selected him for the project he very well could have been looking at getting removed from the abbey altogether for this. It wasn’t for lack of trying on Tala's part but he couldn't help it after what he had done he had barely eaten or slept since that day. Bryan's blood still felt wet on his hands.
Boris's gloved hand squeezed harder, the leather groaning under the pressure as he lifted the boy slightly off the ground. Tala hissed through his teeth not able to get out of Boris's grasp and knowing that grabbing the hand to steady himself would just open himself up to more punishment. The only option he was left with was to just take it so he let himself grow lax.
Seeing the act of submission in him Boris chuckled to himself finally letting go and watching as Tala fell back onto his heels and almost to the ground only barely managing to catch himself. The old man seemed pleased with himself getting the redhead to submit and stand down was no easy task. Even after years at the abbey Boris had yet to successfully break his spirit.
Tala had only saw red the moment he heard that ugly dark chuckle again. The last time he had heard it was as he had been forced to fight Bryan. He growled and grit his teeth again in the way Boris hated, making sure to look up at the man before him glaring deep into his eyes.
Boris stopped laughing at this display, a gloved hand quickly darted out to grab at the boy once again for his insolence. But Tala was quicker. Tilting his head back avoiding the grab his small hands clawed at either side of the man's wrist with as much strength as he could muster.
Treat me like a feral dog then I’ll act like one just to spite you
He growled before coming down and biting as hard as he could. His teeth sunk into the soft flesh in between Boris's thumb and forefinger as he pulled his head back. The howl of pain from Boris echoed around his office for no longer than a moment before Tala had three guards trying to pry him off the man. He of course was no match for three adult men but that didn't stop him from spitting Boris's own blood back at him as soon as his mouth was pried free.
He should have been angry but Boris just laughed, almost hysterically as he pulled a neatly folded white handkerchief from his pocket to cover the bleeding bite mark. Tala cursed and screamed as the guards wrestled him to the floor but Boris had just continued to laugh and goad him like it was one of their training sessions. It made the defiant action seem pointless in the end.
He expected to be beaten, starved or worse but that wasn't like Boris. If he was beaten black and blue or starved within an inch of his life he wouldn't be able to train, he would be useless. What had followed was a bizarre punishment, it was always bizarre punishments with Boris but even now days later he didn't understand it. If anything it was counterproductive in his opinion.
That night he had been held down his mouth forced open for over an hour in agony as Boris slowly filed his teeth. Each of his canines sharpened to a point but that wasn't enough or as in Boris's words it didn't look “good enough” he had also filed down his front teeth to be shorter giving the illusion that his canines were larger.
He could only imagine it was some weird way of making word of his earlier threat to turn him into a dog. Surely sharpening his teeth only gave him more reason to bite the man again but at the moment his mouth hurt enough that he could barely eat. His gums were red and swollen, his jaw hurt from it being pried open for so long and so forcefully.
The only consolation he had had was that night of their fight Bryan had snuck into his room without a word and climbed into bed with him. Something he had not done for years since they had first come to the abbey. Bryan wasn’t a baby anymore they didn’t need to huddle together for warmth. He didn’t say anything, he probably wouldn't have been able to if he had tried.
At that moment he had needed the comfort as much as Bryan did.
~~~~~~~~
Bryan walked around the bed not the least bit phased by Tala's complaints even if Boris might actually kill them if he found them now.
“I won't let him separate us, even if we can't see each other as much” Bryan jumped on the bed with a thump causing it to squeak loudly and shaking tala as the mattress wobbled. Reaching into his pocket he fumbled around for a moment before pulling his hand out in a tight fist. He turned to Tala pressing it into his chest a few times before the redhead finally sighed and stopped staring at the ceiling to look at it. Bryan finally opened his fist revealing two small metal studs in his palm, a dark silver almost black-looking colour. Tala sat up slowly pushing his blanket down to his hips to get a better look at what was in his friend's hand.
“Earrings? Where did you even get those?” Tala asked forgetting that he was trying to get Bryan to leave right now. Bryan's face scrunched up as he smiled straining the stitches across his face but he didn’t so much as flinch as if the action caused him no pain.
“Traded” was all he supplied. It didn't explain exactly where they had come from or why they were here in the abbey in the first place, of all the boys here it only seemed Bryan had an interest in such things. He just raised an eyebrow in question only for Bryan to give a little shrug in return but the smile on his face let Tala know he did know he just wasn’t going to tell. Bryan pushed his hand forwards toward him once more.
“Let me do you, so we match” Bryan whispered, It took him a few seconds to understand what exactly Bryan was asking to do. Piercing his ears, it was only two small holes just a little pinprick. Bryan had done his own without much fuss, randomly turning up the morning after he had shown them to Tala with them in his ears as if they had always been there. No one really paid much attention to them despite the expensive looking gold hoops being so out of place.
What would Boris say? He would surely notice them, most likely quickly drawing a comparison back to Bryan. Bryan had been good to act like he no longer had any interest in tala going as far to avoid him around the communal halls and even during one training session where they had been put together. He had all but ignored tala as the scientist who stood close behind him had jotted down notes looking rather pleased with this progress. Such an action would seem like another act of defiance purely on his part then. Another way it would seem he was trying to undermine Boris's control over him.
“Ok”
Bryan smiled it wasn’t as big as before it was small, shy and just between them. He pulled out a lighter from his pocket, a zippo he had taken from some man in a suit on one of their outings. It was bronze in colour, rough and worn the metal no longer held a mirror shine on it but the outside had a shallow 3d pyramid pattern on it. Bryan had said he liked it because it caught the light in an interesting way but it turned out that having a working lighter was actually very useful.
Next was a needle, no doubt from one of the small sewing kits everybody was taught how to use to mend their own clothing. A practical life skill everyone should know, new clothing was a luxury and was treated as such here. He heated the tip with the lighter to sterilize it holding it there for some time as Tala got into a position comfortable for both of them.
The needle hadn't hurt that much but having the earring itself pushed in after had stung more than he had expected. Still, both paled in comparison to the pain in his mouth. The other ear quickly followed, his ears felt hot with the blood rushing to them. Bryan pulled back grabbing Tala’s cheeks turning his head side to side to look at his handiwork.
Heavy boots sounded down the hall, signalling it was almost 3 am Bryan would have to leave now if he was going to make it back to his room without being discovered. The changing of the night guard made it near impossible to get through the halls without being seen. They looked at each other knowing they would not be able to interact for some time but knowing Bryan would have to go now if he wanted to make it back.
He got up from the bed walking over to the door and opened it slowly before turning to look at Tala still sitting in his bed.
“I love you” the smaller boy whispered.
“I know” Tala replied. He did know, although he never knew why.
Bryan smiled again as he turned to leave into the dark stone hallways of the abbey.
He still had those earrings, they probably weren't even made of silver or any other precious metal but he still had them tucked away in a small box to keep them safe. Why had he taken them out in the first place? Tala couldn't remember. He looked over at the corner of the room to a closet, they were in there somewhere with the rest of the team's valuables. Their valuables and Bryan's ever-growing horde of things he kept picking up off the ground.
He squeezed at the hollow hole in his lobe again wondering why he was even thinking about this right now. The whole apartment was quiet as everyone here was asleep and he was trying to study. It was probably because those golden hoops still twinkled in the lowlight casting a dim reflection onto the wall next to the redhead's face close enough that it drew his eye when he was looking down at the book in his lap.
He might not have worn them for a few years but those silver studs were still special to him. A strange childish promise that he and Bryan would never let themselves be separated from one another. Bryan was so different back then, so childish and so dependent on Tala. Bryan had looked up to him so much back then. Now Bryan looked down on him. Physically at least anyway It still annoyed the redhead that Bryan had shot up and now all but towered over him no longer the little boy he had once been. That affection he once had still showed in his eyes even if it was different now. There was no way he would ever be able to reclaim that childish innocence after what had happened.
He had known Bryan since they were both small children and spencer had only known him for a short time before that day. The time they had spent away from each other after Boris had separated them had changed Bryan. He had had to learn to survive on his own in his later years in the abbey now not having Tala be there as his security blanket.
Then after that, there was ‘the incident'.
Bryan's personality had suddenly changed overnight. That sweet rambunctious boy had become a hollow unemotive and aggressive husk of a person. Tala still did not know exactly what had happened between Boris and Bryan that day other than it had involved some kind of ‘final test’ and most worryingly of all a gun. But this was all he overheard from a group of scientists panicked gossiping among themselves. Bryan had been unharmed and Tala knew Boris wouldn’t have tried to shoot Bryan as there would be no reason for it. The man was crazy but he didn’t do things without a reason. What had actually happened had remained a mystery to him.
To this day he wanted to ask, to know what really went on that day but looking down at his friend's sleeping face which was relaxed and peaceful…he couldn't do that. He couldn't bring up something that had affected Bryan that much now. Not when they had finally got their feet on the ground again. Tala knew he could be uncaring and had little empathy for most people and most situations but he never wanted to see that hollow look again.
Bryan shifted in his sleep, his body tensing as he stretched out before relaxing heavily and nuzzling into the well-worn but soft sheets. He slept so easily now, they all did even Tala had found sleep alluded him much less these days even if he had to share a bed with Bryan who quite honestly was horrible to sleep with. Bryan Snored, loudly. He also moved way too much and sprawled out over the whole double bed when it was warm. Worst of all he also had a bad habit of tugging on the blanket and then wrapping himself in it completely hogging it on cold nights, A thief even in sleep. Whenever he brought this up with Bryan he always commented that Sleeping with Tala was like sleeping with a dead body, he didn't move and he was always cold.
Thinking back to that night the only inkling that something had happened was that Bryan had snuck into his bedroom sometime before midnight, a risky trip at that time. He opened the door and stepped in and stood at the end of Tala’s bed It had taken him a moment to realise who it even was.
The hollow eyes he saw look up at him from the end of his bed still disturbed Tala whenever he thought about it. Even now his skin prickled uncomfortably at the image he couldn't help but run a hand down his arms to get rid of the goosebumps that had come up. It was such a different picture from the one he was looking down at now.
That night he had got out of bed to stand with him, Bryan himself looked as if he didn't even know why or how he had come here like his legs had carried him there on autopilot. They were both hardened emotionally at this point, learning that it was just easier to not fight Boris the world championships were just around the corner and the plan was in its late stages. Any subordination would not be tolerated.
He had hugged Bryan, the boy now only a little shorter than himself. Tala hated to be touched but Bryan was somewhat of an exception. He didn't hug ,Tala doesn't hug. but it was the only thing that seemed appropriate back then.
Bryan had just stood there not reacting at all other than pressing his forehead into the redhead's shoulder. His arms stayed lax by his sides as they both stood there in silence. He had pulled Bryan into bed with him who in that state had just laid there like a corpse, no sound, no talking and no expression he just stared blankly.
Broken.
Eventually, the telltale stomping of boots could be heard from the corridor, almost 3am. The changing of the guard would happen soon. Bryan had stood up and walked out of his room without a single word and without looking back.
Tala did not sleep that night.
He tried to suppress the shudder that ran down his back and took in a deep breath. It seemed like so long ago now. This trip down memory lane had as it always did when he dwelled on their past turned sour. He shook his head trying to rid himself of his thoughts before taking a hand back to his ear and feeling the hole once again. He should find those earrings and put them back in, hopefully, the hole itself had not closed up enough that they would no longer fit.
Even if they had the hollow hole would remain those two pinprick scars would stay there forever. For Bryan, it was the earrings that had been symbolic but for Tala it was the holes themselves, a scar forever on his body that was the reminder. All he had to do was tug his ear to be reminded of Bryan and their promise to each other.
He wondered what it meant to everyone else? Tala was not the only one Bryan had scarred this way, the other two boys who shared the tiny apartment had the same scars. Spencer had been after him in a turn of events that had shocked Tala.
“Your ears-” Tala exclaimed a little too loud causing the taller boy to jump almost dropping the large box of equipment he was picking up.
They were getting ready for morning training set up for the new modified drills. Spencer of course was early and helping with the preparations as Tala was looking over at the new routine of drills he was expected to lead. Spencer was naturally large and could carry heavy equipment easily, he got drafted in to help the scientists move things around so much that he just came earlier out of habit. The larger boy had been bent over picking up a heavy box as a glint of metal had caught Tala's attention.
“Bryan did..” The blond mumbled quietly shifting the heavy box in his grip and looking away from Tala. Tala had openly gaped brows furrowed and mouth wide open frozen in a ridiculous stance somewhere between standing and a squat which had got him a scolding for ‘messing around’ and not being useful.
He had found it hard to focus the rest of that training session he kept saying those two words over and over in his head. ‘Bryan did’ Tala felt this strange burst of energy come over him that he just didn’t know how to channel. All he wanted to do was kick, shake things, scream and go absolutely feral. A pure rush of adrenalin without any danger to have triggered such a reaction, it left him panting. Of course, he couldn't do any of these things instead he had to try his best to seem calm collected and in control in front of everyone, misbehaviour of any kind wasn't tolerated.
He had nowhere to expend this excess energy in these relatively relaxed morning drills. Simple baseline training, something he could do practically in his sleep even on his worst days but right now he was having difficulty controlling his blade even through the simple assault course. Veering wildly off course and putting far too much power into everything it was an absolute disaster All he wanted to do was get up and fight someone, to unleash wolborgs ice powers to cool down this white hot burning beacon that had washed over his chest.
Of course, He eventually got pulled aside after everyone else noticed this strange behaviour, the other trainees quickly moving away from him and this dangerous energy he was projecting. He had been honest in telling the guard he felt strange when asked to explain his behaviour. He knew why he felt this way but he couldn't actually explain how he was feeling. He was still trying to decode that himself as a gaggle of scientists had quickly grouped around him to check his vitals.
'Bryan did'
Sat on the bench in the training room watching the others continue to run their drills he hunched over bouncing his legs impatiently. He had essentially been left to sit and calm down, the scientist not immediately finding something wrong with him had placed the sticky pads of a monitor on the sides of his head and one clipped to the end of his finger. Useless really but they had been fussy with him ever since the brain surgery, making sure it wasn't a side effect or that he wasn't rejecting the implant.
Tala knew he had just been overwhelmed, the dull days had dragged on, training had gotten longer and harder but every day was the same. Same training, same food, same tests it had made his brain numb but this had ripped him out of that and he almost couldn’t believe it.
Bryan had initiated spencer into their promise. Bryan didn’t talk to Tala at all outside of them seeing each other in team training sessions even then it was a few words at most. No greetings or goodbyes no small talk only business. They had continued to avoid each other as much as possible, even their secret meetings had stopped after that final night Bryan had snuck into his room.
Bryan was now just someone on the team and in return, he was just the team captain to Bryan. They only trained together when it was necessary which wasn’t often, Bryan now spent the majority of his time with Spencer whom he had been paired with, Spencer had been one of few who had been able to stand up and defend against Falbogs wind and even returning that power now with the aid of his new Seaborg. Spencer was an absolute mountain of a person being able to take a beating from such an attack-focused opponent it had made him perfect to train against.
But those little light silver studs hidden under Spencer’s headbands green earflaps let tala know something loud and clear. Firstly, the old Bryan was still in there, and secondly and most important their promise still was being upheld. Tala thought he would feel jealous at someone else butting into his and Bryan's strange relationship but the realisation that Bryan even after what had happened was still Bryan. That Boris had not actually managed to fully break him that day was much more important to Tala. He had Honestly at this point pretty much accepted that he had fully lost the boy he had once known but this...
'BRYAN DID'
Relief? Happiness? Pure unfiltered exhilaration? He couldn’t name the exact emotion that had shot through him other than it was the first positive emotion he had had in a long time and one that burned so white-hot he couldn’t sit still.
He stared over at spencer the blond boy going through the drills he himself should be leading as one scientist started fiddling with the monitor before snapping at him telling him to stop moving. He had to dig his fingers into the wood of the bench hand enough that he could feel his nails bend against the wood grain. He would have to sit there for another five minutes to get a good reading according to the man standing over him.
He swallowed and let out a shaky breath doing his best to stay still and calm. he ran his tongue across his upper front teeth, one pointed canine to the other. feeling the sharp points glide across the end of his tongue before repeating the action in reverse, something of a tic he had developed these last years. He tried to focus on what the others were doing, he would have to get an all-clear from the scientists or he would be confined to the medical wing as they poked and prodded him for the rest of the day. It was a good thing Bryan wasn’t here, he was instead with the other group helping choose who would be the fourth member of the team. If he had been here he may have actually tackled the boy to the ground and started screaming in that moment. He let out another deep breath, Just thinking of Bryan made his heart rate spike, not what he wanted right now.
A new member would be joining soon, the original fourth member had had some kind of accident. He had never actually met the boy it would have no doubt been one in the other high-ranking groups but boys came and went so often he barely paid attention to them. An accident could have meant anything, but if it was bad enough that Boris was replacing him no doubt the boy had either been crippled or killed. It was rare but it happened, everyone knew to just keep quiet about it.
It was no surprise that Boris was stressed about finding a last-minute replacement tasking Bryan to find the most suitable person for the team and not himself. Boris was still angry over his last attempt at insubordination it seemed. Who would have known refusing to sit when being berated would have wound up the man so much, he would have done it much earlier if he had known. Being forced to stand for hours facing a corner had been worth it even if all the blood had accumulated in his legs and he had almost fainted.
The boys were stopped and told to rest by one of the guards. Everyone walked across the room clearing the area so it could be set up for the next course. They all of course avoided Tala despite him sitting on the edge of the only bench in the room. They chose to instead sit on the floor against the wall or simply remain standing.
Spencer avoided him as well, much more obviously than the others purposefully not even facing the direction Tala was in. Now he thought about it the blond probably thought Tala was angry by his undignified squawk at him earlier, his unfocused and violent display could have been taken as a threat in that case.
They hadn't said much to each other before then but Tala knew he would treat Spencer differently now intentionally or not. The quiet blond knew to keep his head down and not cause a fuss but Tala had seen him interact with the other boys a few times, not in the higher groups but the much younger initiates. When the guards were not looking he helped the others get settled in by teaching them the unspoken rules of the abbey's halls and even going as far to help cover for their mistakes. Spencer towered over the other boys he was also almost as tall as a good portion of the guards and scientists too even though he was only fifteen. No doubt he would grow into a monster of a man, it made it almost funny that he seemed so terrified of Tala who was over a full head shorter.
He had never actually laid a hand on Spencer only ever getting aggressive during training where it was to be expected but Tala knew he had a reputation. News of the bite he had given boris spread quickly and he had become infamous for it, the bite itself was inconsequential the others were simply scared of the fact he even dared to so such a thing. He still got an odd sense of satisfaction anytime he saw the man without his gloves on seeing the now permanent imprint of his teeth scarred into the man's hand.
A new course was set up the drills had begun again. He was still sat on the bench his fingers beginning to ache from how hard he was still squeezing it. Spencer had given him a sideways glance out of the corner of his eye before quickly trying to cover it up and turning around when he found that Tala was all but staring him down.
If Bryan had gotten close enough to Spencer that he had included him in their promise then he wanted to get to know Spencer too, it only felt right. He couldn't be around Bryan anymore He hadn’t been able to for a while but he could keep whatever remained of their relationship alive through this middleman.
Spencer had been more awkward than he normally was the rest of that day not really wanting to be in or around Tala's personal bubble. Something Tala normally appreciated but right now it was just frustrating. Tala kept going over to him, not quite sure how to go about getting to know the blond his only friend had been Bryan and well Bryan was always the one to reach out between them. He could tell that he was just making Spencer more and more uncomfortable hovering around him the blond all-out avoided looking in the redhead's direction even if it meant looking right at the floor.
Still, He was determined to form a bond here he would figure it out, for Bryan's sake.
Spencer didn’t wear them anymore. Just like Tala he had one day taken them out most likely to make sure they didn't get lost during training and had just never put them back in.
The redhead sighed and closed his book, he wasn't reading at this point anyway. He stretched his back and neck realising he had been slouched over his book this whole time. After a few satisfying pops and cracks he relaxed slipping his book onto the windowsill. Tucking it under the small lamp before he turned it off leaving the room in darkness the only light coming from the streetlamps outside the window.
Finally laying down and resting his head on the thin pillow, Bryan had stolen the marginally more comfortable one for himself which he currently had half his face buried into. He couldn't help but give Bryan another look in the different light he rolled onto his side to face him. Being face to face and almost nose to nose his eyes were instinctively drawn to the large slash across Bryan's face. The wound he himself had caused. It had been fully healed for years now but it didn’t stop it from being any less ghastly.
Reaching out he felt across it from the start of it on his cheek where the cut had been thin and shallow. starting just below the small beauty mark below Bryan's right eye to the deepest part of the scar across the nose where it got jagged. It skipped over the left side of his nose before returning with the thin almost unnoticeable line of where the blade had nicked his other cheek. He felt guilt bubble up inside him same as it did every time he really looked at it but to this day he had never apologised for it. At this point, it seemed pointless it wouldn't fix this and it was far too late anyway.
Rubbing over the bridge of Bryan’s nose he felt the noticeable divot he had left there where the bone and cartilage had caught the tip of the knife. Bryan stirred pulling the covers up and over a good portion of his face, rubbing the back of his hand over his nose before letting out a sigh.
“Stop thinking, go to sleep” He mumbled sleepily before going right back to sleep himself.
Tala was a little flustered at being caught fussing but he doubt Bryan would remember tomorrow, that or he would at least pretend to forget for Tala’s sake. He turned over facing the window his back to Bryan, wrestling a bit more of the blanket off him before settling down. He would normally only sleep with his back to the wall he just felt more secure that way but with Bryan there he knew his back was protected. When he was younger he had compared himself to a security blanket for Bryan but as it would turn out Bryan had become his in moments like these.
Looking out the at the night sky only a few stars could be seen in the light-polluted city sky but the sight still soothed him enough to finally drift off.