Under my Shell { a bowserxluigi fanfic }

Chapter 22: A Breath of a tragic beginning

"I'm sorry you had to see that..." he mutters as I get closer. The gate behind us closes, I turn around to see the guard staring death into the back of Breath's head.

"I understand, you were just doing what you needed to do. That guard clearly started it." Before all of this happened, if I were to bare witness to someone getting tossed around by magic, I would have freaked out. I guess through recent events my mind has become sort of desensitized to that sort of thing. However, it was pretty interesting to finally see a little bit of his abilities. I am still curious to see what ' Forbidden Magic' he is an apparent master of.  I notice where we are, a little ways Infront of Breath is a clearing. Through a couple of branches, I spot a body of water, what seems to be a lake. I watch as he pulls on some branches creating an opening for me to pass. 

"After you Lilly." he says with a smile, I could see right through it though. Something was bothering him deeply; I just hope he is bringing me all this way to confide in me so I can understand him just a little bit better. "See that rock right there...? That should be a good enough spot for us to talk." I follow his finger leading my eyes to the exact spot he mentioned a couple of seconds ago. I wonder how many others he's brought to this exact spot. I nod before walking past him until I reach the rock. I look out across the lake watching the lake, the wind is blowing just enough to cast small ripples into the water. I stare for a few moments imaging, for just a moment, that I was the water. To be free of all worry and just flow with the wind. I begin to hear his footsteps; it seems he feels comfortable around me. His body has adapted again, letting his relax a bit. He must be very on edge in the castle with everyone having an apparent hatred for him.  He sits next to me causing the sounds from the wind to change.

"I'm sorry you have to be in the castle again, I can see you aren't having the best of times." He also studies the water, instead of a look of curiosity it is one of sadness and sorrow. I don't think he envisions himself as one with the water, I am almost certain he seems something much more despairing in the water's reflection that I do. He turns his body before looking into my eyes, he hides it well but for someone who also suffers from an overactive mind I can see right through those false eyes. 

"You asked if I wanted real peace between the kingdoms... of course I do. I grew up on the very edge of the Kingdom. Close enough to the Mushroom kingdom where occasionally you can see Mushroom Kingdom residents walk by on paths. I told you briefly about my parents, how they would tell me stories. I loved those moments growing up." He takes a deep breath than looks back over to the lake. 

"Bandits... bandits from the Mushroom Kingdom came to our farm one day, in broad daylight. They took joy in burning our crops, after they stole for themselves. My dad." He pauses for a moment, still looking out staring at the water. "We played hide and seek a lot when I was younger. It was one of my favorite things to do when I was a child, but my father would always find me. The hiding spot I chose the one time I won, that is where he hid me the day they came." It's as if his emotions are completely off, there is not a hint of anything in his tone of voice, nor can I see anything on his face. Hes been hiding his eyes from me the entire times he has been speaking but I'm willing to bet even if I could see them, he'd be trying his hardest to hide it still. "I watched as he pleaded with the bandits, offering them his loyalty. Saying he would give them 80% of their harvest every year, it didn't work. The one problem with that hiding spot, is that I had a clear view of where my father was standing when his throat was slit while these bandits just laughed. They laughed as my father fell to his knees struggling to mutter a word. They laughed as he attempted to take a breath but instead his lungs filled with blood. THEY LAUGHED!"

 Finally, his nonchalant attitude fizzled for a moment. I listened to the silence in the air while he collected himself, I couldn't help but flinch as it echoed across the lake. I take a deep breath; I must have not noticed it but while he was talking, I seemed to be holding my breath. "They laughed, while my mother screamed and cried in agony. I stayed there in the bush silently weeping as they did the same with my mother. Even after these bandits cleared off, I was too afraid to move. I could only sit their hoping my parents would get up and come bring me inside. I suppose someone must have sent word to the castle, or maybe a group of guards just wanted to get some fresh air, it was then and only then when I felt safe enough to come out of my hiding spot. I cried as a ran into a guard's arms, they took me ... and my dead parents back to the castle. Kamek had them buried in the royal graveyard and took me in. I swore." He pauses again before looking to me. I was expecting to see tears in his eyes but all I saw was rage. "I swore I would become the strongest, I wanted to protect everyone. I wanted to be the one who saved the day. Not the one who hid and cried because I could do nothing. The answer is yes Lilly, I want peace. I don't want any other orphans being made by hatred."

"Breath, I'm so sorry..." This was all I could muster. The sun was beginning to set, the air grew a chill. He turned to face the water, we just sat in silence for a few seconds before he stood up. 

"We will go... I believe it's what my parents would want me to do." He looks into my eyes, this time with emotion behind them. I could see pridefulness, sorrow, and a sense of duty in them. He extends his arm out to me. "Let's go find Kamek." He says before pulling me off the rock and onto my feet. 

"Breath...?" I mutter out as I follow behind him as we walk back to the castle. 

"Yes?"

"I never got to meet them, and I have no idea what they were like, but I know they are proud of you... I can feel it in the air." His eyes warm up a bit as a small smile grows on his face. For only a couple of seconds he was gone. Probably in his mind spending a nice warm moment with his parents before coming back to reality.

"Thank you, Lilly, I hope I can continue to make them proud of me." he turns his back to me and continues up to the castle. You will Breath, I know you will.