As God Intended

Chapter 15/ A Hero's Gamble

The evening approached steadily as two brothers sat underneath the tent, keeping a low tone as they talked amongst one another.
"Can't believe you let him do all that to ya"

Vincent responds softly with a chuckle, finding amusement in Denzel's concern
"Oh? You weren't too worried I hope"

"Pfah-you must've liked it or something"
Denzel teased like the ill minded brat was but his elder just laughs it off a bit as he takes a seat by Denzel and gazed upon the group and their incoherent chatter
"So what's going on between you and Mikah?"

Clearing his throat a bit from the sudden question, glaring at his brother but his gaze became softer as he realized Vincent was actually curious and not just teasing like he was
"Not quite following how you mean..."

"You two are rather close...now I can't judge but ya better not get too attached and lose sight of yourself"
Vincent gazed towards Denzel's tent where Mikah waited, talking to Givvy and Alex. Today gave Vincent some insight on the the type of kid the cat was and he seemed genuinely good with handling Denzel's antics-sure as hell does a fine job at keeping him safe but at the end of their trails theirs only enough room for the two of them, least how Vincent saw it.

Denzel felt a bit of a sheepish feeling loom over him as he spoke, blurting out his words with a scoff
"Mikah's more than what he lets on-plus he's rather skilled in his own right...keeping him around is just as smart as it is pleasant...how'd he'd do with you today?"

The elder brother watched carefully as Denzel was actually taking pride in someone else for a change
"He did good, he tells me the same about you really...just-don't get me wrong it's nice that you two make a good team but I need you to stay focused on our situation- you'll make me look foolish if you run off reckless like you're prone to"

"Our situation?"
Denzel sits up straight to stretch his back for the moment then went back to being hunched over and letting his knee support his elbow so he he could hold his head up to look at his brother

Vincent scratched his chin then tapped his foot a few times
"Doesn't matter now anyway, we're safe and I have a plan...I'm gonna run it by Calico and Sunny before I make any calls....or else I'll be seeing more of those claws"

"He did bruise up your face a bit-you couldn't just...dodge a lil better?"
Denzel questioned, still not pleased with the battered state his brother's in

"Cats are very unpredictable..."
Vincent simply states as he puts a damped rag over the left side of his face before continuing, running his free hand through his own hair as he clicks his tongue
"How's your arm?"

Denzel takes a moment to carefully stretch his injury, followed by a sharp tug of pain being sent down his back from lifting his arm
"Hng-well ain't too serious...give or take a few more days"

The elder brother watched his little sibling struggle to properly gain the mobility back in his arm
"Or a few weeks maybe...you thinking that injury has made you vulnerable?"

Denzel fixed his posture as he stood up, grinning confidently
"No-no I don't"

Vincent looked at that smile on Denzel's face, remembering what Sunny told him before.
"Right boy...now listen"
The tone grew assertive, which made the little rodent turn to face his brother, losing the smile as Vincent continues
"We ain't living like we used to..therefore we gotta make certain changes in how we operate if we're to survive like this"