Work Text:
"You're always gonna be my little brother, bro."
Mane sees Flame visibly bristle at that, crossing his arms as if self-conscious and mumbling something about not being little.
Mane melts at the sight, a reminder of Flame when he was younger; a reminder of a little boy with a sword far too big for him, proclaiming to his amused older brother that one day he would be the strongest, that he wasn't little in the slightest and would be bigger and stronger than Mane ever would be. That was true, Flame is taller and more muscular than Mane and could absolutely win in a fight. But that doesn't matter to him, no matter how strong Flame is he will always be Mane's little brother.
For the longest time, Mane has felt lost without him. The memory of an angry Flame telling him to leave haunting his memory. The questions behind his hand in the destruction of the empire, if that would bring back his Flame or if it had truly ruined everything between them. Mane could only sink further into his self-doubt and isolation, only seeing others to fight and kill them. Mane had been completely lost.
Mane closes the distance between himself and Flame, wrapping his arms around Flame's back and resting his head on Flame's shoulder. Flame tensed, after all he has been constantly hunted for the past few months. It hurts Mane, that anyone could want his little brother dead, could hate or fear him so much to go to the lengths the Law has: to exile him, to send legions after him, to send some of the best assassins like Swight after him. His grip on Flame tightens, and Flame finally relaxes into the hold.
Mane can remember clearly the last time he hugged Flame. Zam Empire had done, what Mane believed, to be irreparable damage to his little brother. They had been fighting another enemy of the week. Wars had become extremely common in the empire, mostly thanks to Zam's own paranoia and ego. Mane doesn't even remember who they were fighting, just that this enemy was smarter than most.
They had targeted Flame. Flame, the best fighter Zam Empire had and so the main offensive for every war. It was so common for Flame to be leading the charge, to be front and centre that this enemy had predicted where he'd be and how to weaken him. Mane remembers his own horror of seeing this army coordinate and attack specifically with the goal of weakening Flame. The image of his renowned brother, known for being untouchable, being reduced to his boots and his leggings terrified him. The army had managed to break Flame's helmet and chestplate, draining him of potions and totems and breaking his shield whilst fending off the rest of the empire guard's attempts to defend him.
The worst part of this attack was the enemy's intentions were clear, every swing and every arrow shot was intended to kill. Axes were swung at Flame's head, swords jabbed towards his torso only to be just barely blocked with a shield. Flame was the strongest person Mane knew, but this particular predicament was a first for him. Flame had gotten into many fights over his time with Mane, had experienced both loss and triumph, had been on the receiving end of attempted kill shots before. However Flame always had some trump card: either he outskilled who he was fighting or he had backup to bail him out of an unfair fight, but Flame was almost entirely alone against an entire army willing to play dirty to kill him. No guards could defend him well enough or long enough to restock, he couldn't get one of the opposing force into a fair fight without 10 more jumping him. He was well and truly screwed.
Flame was panicking too, that much was clear to any onlooker of this war, the way his eyes darted across the battlefield and the overly tight grip on his sword. Flame, in this panicked and unsure state, did something Mane hadn't seen him do in years. Flame's eyes locked onto Mane's figure, distractingly fending of and attacker as he focused mainly on Flame's struggle. He ran to Mane for help. He yelled Mane's name as he pearled towards him, escaping the multiple soldiers he had surrounding him, and ran directly behind Mane.
When Flame was just Mane's cub, learning how to fight and realising his own natural skill with it, he had a habit of getting into squabbles with kids older, bigger or more skilled than him. Upon realising that he likely would not be winning against whatever opponent he had been facing, Flame would always run to Mane for help. The sight of Flame, running towards Mane with a hint of worry in his eyes but a mischievous smirk still plastered across his face had become one Mane was familiar with. He would run behind Mane's legs, gripping tightly onto his shirt and shoving his face against Mane's back as whoever had been chasing him caught up. Mane was well known for being a competent fighter, so whoever Flame had been fighting would almost always back off at the sight of Mane, and if they didn't then Mane was not against beating the ever loving daylights out of whoever had been trying to hurt his brother.
As Flame's training progressed, he came running to Mane less and less, until eventually stopping altogether. Mane had to tell himself that was a good thing, that Flame could handle himself now, yet part of him was heartbroken he wouldn't get to save his younger brother anymore. That he wouldn't see Flame, out of breath from retreating from a fight, sprinting towards him and calling his name. Upset that he wouldn't get to lecture him about punching above his weight when he could barely punch within his own weight. Upset that he wouldn't get to crouch down and rest his hand against Flame's cheek, running his fingers along the yellow and red bandana he'd gifted him for Flame's birthday when he kept complaining about hair in his eyes (hair Mane had been promising Flame he'd help start twisting into locs but that he'd been putting off due to not wanting to say goodbye to Flame's curls) as Mane would make Flame promise to stop starting these un-winable fights. Flame would grin at Mane and promise never to fight someone he couldn't win against again, only to come running back to Mane the next day with an entirely different person behind him.
He'd never get to see his little brother rely on him like that again.
Mane blocked a swing from the enemy he had been distractedly fighting and pushed him away. He ripped his own chestplate off and shoved it onto Flame, rushing through tightening the straps onto him. Flame raised his sword, blocking an attack from another random player as Mane took off his helmet and hurriedly put it on Flame's head. Mane brought his shield up to block a jab from his previous opponent, meanwhile Flame switched to his axe to break the random player's shield. Mane grabbed a strength potion from his inventory and smashed it against Flame's new chestplate, watching as the effects enhanced his movements and gave him enough momentum to land a killing blow on the player he'd been fighting.
Mane felt Flame push his shoulders down, and so ducked with full faith in his brother. Lo and behold, Flame swung his sword around, over where Manepear had just been stood, effectively slicing across Mane's opponent's torso deep enough to not be survivable. Mane, meanwhile, splashed speed and fire resistance at Flame's feet. He shoved the last totem he had into Flame's hands as he shot up quick enough to block yet another attack with his shield against Flame, before he shoved that too into Flame's hands.
With Flame now fully geared, and the empire's guards finally gaining some semblance of an upper hand against the enemy, the tide of the battle quickly switched. Mane himself had been too worried for Flame's safety, refusing to leave his side despite having given up his own gear and desperately needing to restock. He wasn't about to let these people back Flame into another corner even if he had to actively put himself in danger by fighting without a helmet, chestplate or shield to ensure it.
Their victory was quickly achieved, the Zam Empire once again proved themselves as the most powerful and the guards quickly made their way home from the battlefield. Mane once more refused to leave Flame's side as they travelled back.
Zam was ecstatic to hear of the victory, waxing on about this being proof that no one even stood a chance against their glorious empire. The rest of the empire guards gave her their undivided and attentive focus. Mane, meanwhile, paid no attention to her ego fueled rant as he focused entirely on Flame. Flame, despite his previous dire situation, was essentially untouched. He still had Mane's armour haphazardly secured onto him, still held Mane's shield and kept his proud and superior demeanour about him. Mane stood shoulder to shoulder with him, looking far more disheveled, his hand gripping Flame's elbow whilst the one opposite gripped Flames wrist; a way of reassuring himself that his little brother was fine, that he was safe and sound next to Mane. Mane revelled in the movement of Flame's body as he breathed, the slight feel of his pulse in his wrist. Flame was alive, he was fine and stood right next to him and Mane couldn't be more glad.
Zam, having seemingly finished their ego boost pep talk, started reallocating guards to the various different tasks needing to be attended to. Mane, however, was assigned to guard the entrance to the palace. When she assigned Flame to resume his role as her personal guard however, Mane protested. Mane insisted that he wanted to stay with Flame, and that Zam can't separate them after the train wreck that just happened. Zam levelled Mane with a withering look, as if Mane was being silly for suggesting to do anything other than what Zam was ordering.
"Flame is competent, Mane, almost definitely more than you are. Stop fussing over him and do your job." She waved at him dismissively. Mane glanced at Flame for any rebuttals he may have, expecting at least a look of disappointment at the separation, only for him to be staring straight through Zam completely. Flame didn't even acknowledge Mane's concern for him or reluctance to part, simply ignoring his older brother's objections and the emperors distaste at those complaints.
Mane nodded his head hesitantly, not being stupid enough to argue a losing battle as Zam dismissed them all, but still unwilling to part from Flame. At Zam's dismissal, every guard stirred into action. They dissipated quickly from the room, Flame himself immediately resuming his position to Zam's right. The only guard remaining was Manepear, who looked longingly at Flame before begrudgingly walking out of the throne room.
Flame's dismissal, however, did not stop Mane from sneaking into his room later that night, tip-toeing past the night watch and gently opening and closing Flame's door. Flame glanced up at Manepear's arrival, he was sat at the edge of the bed, clearly upset at the interruption. Rather than acknowledge Mane though, Flame glanced back down to the sword he was cleaning, continuing on as if Mane wasn't even in the room with him.
Mane sighed at Flames blatant dismissal of him, before smirking and putting his whole weight into flopping beside Flame. The bed shook beneath Mane's weight, jostling Flame's handiwork and causing the blood to smudge across a previously clean part of the blade. Flame let out a frustrated grunt, turning his head slightly to glare at a giggling Mane before turning back to his cleaning. Mane sat up, wrapped his arms around Flame's shoulders and pulled him into a side hug, resting the side of his head against Flame. Mane wanted to take in the feeling of Flame alive in his arms, his little brother safe. Flame tensed his shoulders in clear annoyance, grabbing one of Mane's arms and forcibly pulling it away from him.
"What are you doing?" Flame snapped. Mane lifted his head up to be met with Flame's frustrated glare.
"Am I not allowed to be worried about you bro? You nearly died y'know." Mane pouted, amused by Flames clear aggravation at his presence. Flame sprung up from where he was sat, turning to tower over Mane, "Yeah? Well I'm fine now so you can leave me alone." Flame snarled, walking to the other side of the room to all but throw his sword down onto a desk.
"Hmmm, I'll leave you alone, but only if you give your big brother a hug bro! I was worried for you!" Mane said, jumping up from where he was sat and opening his arms wide. Flame groaned in genuine anger, turned around and slammed into Mane's arms before borderline shoving Mane away and returning to inspect his sword. Mane stumbled a bit under the 'hug' he'd just recieved, his chest dully aching at the impact. Flame could control his own strength expertly, if Mane hurt then he knew that Flame did it intentionally.
"There, you had your stupid hug. Leave now, I don't want you here." Flame said, the inflection of anger was all Mane could focus on. Flame had never talked to him like that before.
He was taken aback by Flame's open hostility towards him, sure Mane knew he was getting on Flame's nerves but he wasn't expecting Flame to be genuinely angry with him, "Okay, sorry for being concerned bro? You're my little brother, I just wanted to make sure you were okay, but like if you want me to leave..." Mane slowly turned around, hoping for Flame to tell him to stay or at least say something in a less actively aggressive tone.
"Zam was right Mane, I'm better than you. Stop fussing over me like I'm some clueless kid." Flame steeled out, still not facing Mane as he said it. Mane felt his heart break. Flame was his little brother, someone he would literally kill and die for if he needed to. To be disregarded like this, by the one person he considered family, stung. It stung more than Mane would ever admit.
Mane slowly started walking away from Flame, whose gaze was still fixed on his partially clean sword, and trudged out of the room. Mane didn't bother to be quiet as he left, no longer caring if he was interrupted. After all, being discovered entering meant getting dragged away from Flame, being discovered leaving however only resulted in a lecture from Zam. Not that that really mattered to Mane right now though, he couldn't stop thinking about Flame's frustrated gaze or his refusal to look Mane in the eyes as he sent him away. The fact that his own little brother had purposefully slammed into him, hadn't even humoured his request for a hug, was something so foreign to Mane.
Mane could only think of Zam's cold stare as he asked to stay with Flame, Zam treating Flame like her personal guard, Zam dismissing Mane as if Flame's job mattered more than Mane's concern for him. The audacity to send him away when Flame was still wearing Mane's slightly broken and basically slipping off armour, as if Flame hadn't come straight from a battle he nearly died in.
But, Flame hadn't said anything either. He'd stood next to Zam, ignoring his brother's worried look, as if he belonged there or as if his life mattered no more than guarding Zam. Mane thinks it's Zam's fault. Flame wasn't distant like this until they joined Zam's Empire, Flame wasn't nearly dying like this until they joined Zam's Empire, Flame would never have talked to him with that level of hatred if they never joined Zam's Empire.
Mane is suddenly filled with the intense urge to destroy the empire, to remove the problem causing the distance between him and Flame. Surely if Zam Empire is what's made Flame so cold and uncaring, then destroying it would fix the problem? Mane thinks to Wemmbu, who's own empire had just been blown up and who was now a sworn enemy of Zam. He thinks to Zam, sending guards out to try and spy on Wemmbu even if they never really got anywhere with it, always seeming to miss key moments. Mane thinks Wemmbu is probably his best bet for betraying, even if Wemmbu isn't very strong. Mane will do anything to get his brother back.
----
Flame hesitantly pulls away from the hug, not wanting to separate just yet. Flame isn't stupid though, the Law probably knows he's here and so he needs to leave to find Itz quickly. Still though, he lets Mane's hands rest on his shoulders, lets Mane run his hand across the side of his face like he always used to do.
Mane takes in the sight of Flame, stronger than he used to be yet still recognisable as Mane's little brother. Mane is so unbelievably proud of him, how could anyone not be? He runs his hand across the side of his face, grips tightly onto his shoulder, and feels the phantom pressure of tears behind his eyes as he admires his brother. He can't help but drag Flame into another hug, one he readily melts into this time, as he recounts the cold Flame from the empire. That Flame is nowhere to be seen, he thinks, and Mane couldn't be more happy.
The brothers separate once more. This time, though, Mane steps back to place an enderchest and rifle through it. He quickly produces a gold cuff, one he hadn't worn since they joined the Zam Empire. It was a simple cuff, only a few inches long, but it had Mane's iconic claw mark etched into it. He stepped back and handed it to Flame, "a reminder, that if you ever need anything from me, I'll always be here bro.".
Flame carefully took the cuff out of Mane's hands, and turned it around to see the claw mark etching on the front. Mane gently hit his shoulder, "and never say you have no friends again, cause a brother is always a friend." Flame sighed slightly at Mane's words, the relief of his relationship with Mane being restored settling into his head. The knowledge that, if he ever needed him, Mane was there comforted Flame far more than he'd ever admit.
"Okay bro," Flame stepped slightly back from Mane, quietly slipping on the gifted cuff. He already missed the proximity and the ease it gave him, "Well, thank you for saving my life. I nearly got executed today..." Flame drawled off. Mane softly laughed at the reminder, "you're welcome bro".
"Well, I guess I'll be going to learn more then." Flame said, finally turning to the door and slowly trudging out. He didn't think he wanted to leave yet, not truly, but something about Mane's reassurance told Flame he'd be seeing Mane again. That reassurance meant the world to Flame, and gave him the strength to go on with his training journey, after all it wouldn't be safe to see Mane again until Law was dealt with.
"Flame." Mane suddenly said. Flame turned back around and stood in the doorway, looking at Mane as he took a deep breath in and steeled himself, "Thank you for finding me.".
Flame smiled at the appreciation, lingering slightly longer in the doorway to let the weight of Mane's words fall on him, before turning once more and walking out of the building.
Mane would see Flame again, he had full faith in that. Until then, however, he hoped his brother would do well. Even if he wasn't doing well though, Mane hoped he'd always remember his big brother somewhere out in the server and remember that Mane was always there if Flame needed him. After all, when Mane thought of Flame now, all he could see was his brave little brother holding up a sword and promising to be the strongest.