Anomalous (Yanderes x reader)

[23] Hurt and Comfort

Grey skies and barely any colour tinged the academy buildings, but nonetheless the day brought a nice and cool afternoon. Perfect for students to have a peaceful lunch in the company of their friends or, in this case, a quick spar session during lunch between two brothers. More specifically, James and Caleb.

"Did you go and improve without me?" James asked. "Your stamina is a lot better now."

Caleb leaned over, his hands on his knees as he took a moment to catch his breath. "Say that again when you're also tired during our sparring sessions."

Of course, not all schools would just let their students attack each other out in the open (it would be concerning if they did). This specific academy catered to exorcism, so it goes without saying that there were proper precautions and facilities outside the classroom buildings. Only a few select academies were like this. James and Caleb happened to attend one of them because, if it wasn't obvious enough, they had profound talent for exorcism.

James chuckled. "I'm the older brother. There's no way I can get bested by my younger sibling! How am I supposed to protect you if I do?"

Caleb stood up straight and exhaled slowly, having already recovered. "Yeah, yeah. You just don't want to get teased by the others."

"Hey––well, okay that plays some part. But only a very small, miniscule, insignificant part," James said the last part quickly. "Anyways! Time for some advice from your beloved older brother. It's only recently since you've developed your special ability, right?"

"A year later than most. Usually by fourteen people would've figured out whether they had a special ability or not in addition to their exorcism," Caleb said with a shrug. "Guess I just suck."

"Ehh. It's fine, it's fine. You've already surpassed everyone in your grade anyways. Chin up! You should be proud of yourself."

"I know I'm good~ I don't need the encouragement."

James gasped. "My younger brother is growing more rebellious by the day. You used to be so cute back then."

"You say that every year." Caleb playfully rolled his eyes. "Anyways, where's the amazing advice from my beloved older brother?"

"Right!" James dramatically cleared his throat "So! Your ability has some resemblance to mine, which is the emphasis on power. Meaning, you shouldn't perform consecutive shots recklessly. Think of it as... a canon! You need time to prepare a powerful shot. Of course, with more training the time will decrease. There's also the fact that you don't always have to exert an immense amount of power, but you should be mindful that's where your strong suit lies. So, take advantage of it as much as possible! Like me. With practice, it all becomes natural."

Caleb groaned. "There's so much to think about."

"I'll treat you to sweets if you keep working hard."

"Deal."

From a distance, the brothers heard a sudden boom! Followed with flames igniting out of nowhere, painting the grey skies with orange for a brief moment. They exchanged knowing glances at each other.

"Definitely Finn and Elias sparring," James said.

"Let's head over there, I wanna see!"

Caleb ran ahead and James followed close behind. Somewhere along the lines, it turned into a race. The brothers laughed as they jumped over walls, skilfully avoided bumping into people, and ran away from the teachers telling them off. Students knew of their antics; some ignored them, others laughed and cheered them on (a few random high fives were exchanged), and a few groups of girls (and some guys, too) gushed about how attractive the brothers were. Yes, James and Caleb had fanboys and girls. They were somewhat of a chaotic duo, but that only made them more admirable to many. Their presence gave life to the academy and that made them quite popular.