Wings of Silence: Dark Knight Returns

1: Tongue Twisted

"Hyaaaa!" A little boy lying on the grass stretched his arms, wiggled his legs, and let out a cacophonous yawn. He rolled across the grass over to where his toy lay. Picking up the wooden butterfly, he leapt up onto his feet and started running around the garden, waving the butterfly in the air.

A sudden masculine shout rang in the air, "A-Ling!"

"..."

"A-Ling! Where are you?!"

"...Whee!" The boy danced on the grass with his pretty little butterfly.

BANG—

The door behind him flew open and a couple walked onto the doorstep.

"A-Ling! Here you are."

"Xiao Rulan, come inside. NOW."

Jin Ling, the merry little boy, heaved a sigh. The smile of joy wavered as he turned around to face them. "Niang, Baba... Thorry."

"No need to apolo—" Jiang Yanli's hand flew to her mouth. "Xiao Rulan! Your face!"

Jin Ling smiled feebly. "It nothing, Niang!"

"Sunshine... come here," she walked over, picked him up and carried him into the house. "A-Xuan, get the paste."

A frowning Jin Zixuan sat beside them at the table with a jar of herbal ointment. "A-Ling... Your teacher told me you left the class an hour early today. You weren't anywhere to be found so we were worried, not angry. Were you in the back garden all this time?"

Nod, nod.

"And how did I not see you earlier?"

"Hiding behind the buth."

"Bush. I see... Now that that's cleared—"

"Honey, could you let him rest a bit?" Jiang Yanli waved her hand over Jin Ling's bluish-black face.

"It okay Niang," Jin Ling tugged on her sleeve, showing he was willing to answer. "Teacher aked a quethon. They laaped. And did thi in the break," Rulan pointed to his swollen eye and sore left cheek.

Zixuan and Yanli exchanged glances.

It was always like that. Should Jin Ling ever open his mouth, he would eventually get into a brawl. The boy knew to stand up for himself so he always tended to start a fight — since he couldn't retaliate verbally, he'd rather attack physically. Sometimes he won the fights, sometimes the others won: it never mattered. Whoever got the blue face, Jin Ling would still go through it the next day.

An endless cycle of pain...

But... this was the first time Jin Ling actually quit the class. Perhaps the answer he had to give was distressingly long. Whatever be the reason, this wasn't a good sign.

Jin Ling was... slowly giving up...

And yet he won't ever tell exactly who's doing this. Sure Zixuan knew everyone was doing it but the fights?

"Jin Chan. A-Li, you stay here with him, and make him sleep. I'll go find that brat."

"Baba!"

"Is it him or is it someone else?"

"..."

Jin Zixuan took a deep breath to not shout out of impatience. "If it's him, you can stay silent. If it's not him you better tell, or I'd still go find him."

"..."

Yanli rubbed his back slowly to soothe him.

"Ith him..."