Generis

16. Protection

Bär was seated at a desk, contemplating life.

That's all he seemed to do nowadays.

He was waiting for Nali to return with Wyea, one of the older children that were hidden away here. Well... not really hidden, but separated from society just to ensure their safety from the genocide their kind was facing currently. He had taken the responsibility into his hands, and though he had no choice but to be in this position, it was draining.

Sucking the life out of him.

Not literally.

Mentally, he could be in a better place. He was tired as ever, though at first glance it looked like he did nothing worthy of being tired. After all, his desk wasn't even messy; void of any paperwork at all. Because honestly, what paperwork would he do? There needn't be anything noted down, apart from the map he had carelessly stuck to the wall. He stared at it blankly, realising the amount of red circles and lines he had marked on it over the past year. Most of them didn't need to be there no longer, so he swished his finger and the markings disappeared. He groaned and put his head back on the table, sighing.

All of this was stupid.

When was Nali going to be back? What's taking her so long?

He didn't even know where she went.

Of course, he had full trust in Nali as a demigod, and, he assumed, she had the exact same trust in him, especially for the fact both of them were at the same status. So why was it that he so nervous? And tired? And—

"Sir?"

He jumped a little. He was very jumpy today, goodness knows why. Nerves, most likely. Definitely. Taking his face out of his hands, he stared at the kid. There were loads of children here, and, after a month or so he took the time to learn all of their names. It was much more considerate than calling them by their hair colour or by beckoning them over with finger pointing. Osis, he remembered, the only boy in this entire sanctuary.

"What do you want, Osis?" He asked, leaning his head against his hand, "Did something happen?"

"I left the girls talking about secret codes and stuff."

Osis usually came to spend time with him because they were the only boys in the entire building. And when he came, Bär was most likely doing something that looked important enough that he could entertain him with. But not really today. He had nothing to do at all. He wasn't usually this all over the place when Nali wasn't here, so what happened today?

Something's not right.

"You're here to help me again, hm?"

Osis nodded.

"Alright, uh... sorry I'm all in a bit of a mess today. I don't have something to entertain you... or myself for that matter."

He mumbled the last few words almost to himself, before groaning and standing up. Time to be on the move. He rubbed the back of his large, soft ears, before beginning to walk.

"Come on."

"Where are we going?" Osis asked, head tilted in confusion.

Bär opened the large door and motioned for Osis to walk through, not answering his question.

When he was faced by a massive flurry of kids, he reconsidered his will to be a father, or a parent to anyone. Knowing his personality, he had already labelled himself as the worst child-watcher in history, let alone to be in charge of hundreds of them. He didn't even have the time to be meddling in such matters. But when Osis was brought in, a few months ago, Bär's attention suddenly shifted. To this day, he remembered when Osis was here for the first time, head down, never spoke, and would always mutter to himself in a corner. Of course, with the other girls that came in, most of them acted in a similar fashion, but after a week they would be screaming up and down the halls or whispering and giggling in little huddles, depending on age. Not Osis though. One time when he was alone, Bär came and crouched before him.