Fire Dragon's Curse

Don't Mess With Fire

The early birds chirped cheerfully outside his high window on the second floor, gentle breeze slightly brushing the light green leaves on the thin tree growing outside towards the house.
A deer loped into view, cocking it's head to regard it's surroundings.
Nodding as if considering it safe, two little young does stumbled out of the hedges on wobbly thin legs. Stopping to drink at a stream that flowed freely between the forestry.
Then, wariness flashed in their eyes as they sprinted away into the foliage.

A car pulled up onto the muddy driveway in front of the old garage with a groan as if when it stopped, it will never start again.

"Haruki! Takuya! I'm back!" He shouted upwards toward the open window, lily curtains fluttering by the teasing wind.

"Dad!"
Screamed an excited young boy as he poked his head out the window, joy painted across his features.
"Haruki lets go greet dad," the boy ordered as he retreated back inside.
"Why? He has only been gone for like a month-"
Another voice was abruptly cut off as a sound that sounded like a person dragging someone down the stairway sounded inside followed with grunts and curses.

The door flew open as the two boys rolled out onto the lawn that was carefully trimmed to perfection, one happy, one filled with annoyance.

"Takuya, get off of me," the black haired boy grunted from underneath the golden haired one.

"Dad!"
The first boy flung himself off of Haruki and latched onto his father's legs.
Mr. Akiyama was a jolly man in his fifties, with twinkling blue eyes, a huge grin plastered onto his face wherever he goes and blond hair graying at the roots. An older version of Takuya.

Meanwhile, dark and mysterious Haruki stood up, brushing stray leaves and wiping moist grass off his jeans, "Hey Dad," he mumbled, not meeting his eyes.

"What's wrong Haru?" His father pried a still excited Takuya off his legs.

"Nothing's wrong, c'mon Taku, dinner's ready," the dark eyed boy mumbled before turning his back on them both and striding back to the front door.

Sighing, their father looked at Takuya pleadingly, "Takuya, please tell me what happened with Haru," he ran his big hand through his hair, "Haru, that kid used to be so happy, wonder what changed him this drastically."

Now it was Takuya who couldn't meet his father's gaze, "lets go, Haru said breakfast is ready," he told him half heartedly and left him too, leaving a confused father behind who soon followed.

When they both stepped in, closing the door behind them, the delicious aroma of chicken, beef soup and wine filled the air.

"Wine's for Dad," Haruki explained to a wide eyed Takuya, "not for you, now set the table!"

Pouting slightly, Takuya shuffled his feet towards the dinner table with a dejected looking table cloth fluttering behind him.

Sitting down with a groan, their father eased himself into the creaky wooden chair, "you boys sure are hard working," he wink directed at Haruki was not received.

"I'm going to get the chicken in a second," Haruki explained to his father while pouring him a full glass of wine.

"Thanks, Haru," his father attempted to smile in his direction but he merely walked off without a sound

Takuya fiddled with the end of the snow white table cloth, folding and unfolding them at the edges, twiddling with his hands.
"Dad, You should go-"
He suddenly shouted, bunching the cloth in a foster hand, feet planted apart and breathing heavily.

"Woah, kid, slow down-" his father began, holding his hand up.

"Slow down what?"
Haru stood in the hallway with a tray, chicken that was cutter neatly into square blocks rested in the middle.
Black hair swishing in front of his pale face, he lifted his head up enough to glare at the father and son.

"Nothing!"
Their father laughed nervously while rubbing the back of his neck, "just that Taku here was talking to me about how responsible you are!"

Obviously not buying it but deciding to let it go, Haru tensely dropped the platter onto the wooden table harshly.

"Eat your soup, father, Takuya, we're going to mount Aso later in the day," with that, he left the dining room as a door shutting could be heard upstairs.

"Does he ever eat?" Their father asked Takuya nervously.

"No," Takuya curtly replies while stuffing more chicken into his mouth to not respond to any questions, "good cook though."

Nodding to himself, their father stood up, "I'm going to check on that kid," he told Takuya which was not needed since Takuya has tuned out on their conversation.

With his father gone, Takuya hurriedly knelt underneath the table and pulled a lever, thanks, Haru for distracting him.

With a slight whirring sound, the chains clicked into place and Takuya was flipped upside down.

Feeling the damp walls slanting upward, Takuya squinted into the darkness, willing his eyes to adjust to the lack of light down here.
Blinking owlishly, he reached a bright chamber, his library.

That was the brothers' little secret.

Although Takuya enjoyed fantasy and myths, Haruki tended to side with history and war novels, they spent equally amount of time here.
They were both so different and yet their love for literature were the same.

Running his fingers over the leather covers, Takuya traces the faint outlines of his favorite mythical creature on one of the old, dusty covers.
Dragons.
While Haru never really trusted legends and even explained to Takuya how they were stories that corrupt a human mind, Takuya always believed in them, insisting that they could be true, just forgotten over time.

Yanking his hand from the blood red colored book, Takuya continued his route down the shelves, stopping at the end of a row, where a ruby locket was stored away at the bottom of a delicate glass case surrounded by a fluffed up miniature royal purple cushion.

Still marveling over its beauty, Takuya delicately removed the gem from the case, grasped it in his left hand and hurried back towards the mechanical technologies, he was flipped back to their normal looking house on the outside and smirked, he was ready for the volcano.

"Father, you shall rest before we travel to the mountain," Haruki was trying to talk their father into Going into his room.

"Nonsense, why should I rest when my two handsome dedicated sons are here with me after two months of separation?" He chuckled deeply as he patted Haru's Head, amused.

Meanwhile, on the other hand, Haru looked like he was ready to commit murder, fierce black eyes glaring at his father and grinding his teeth, he connected his eyes with Taku, "it is only one," Haru informed his father with clenched fists while Taku tilted his head enough to be viewed upon as a nod.

Upon receiving the nod, Haruki relaxed a bit and smiled tightly at their father, "and we insist, you had a long drive, we shall not bother you any longer," he gripped his father's wrists and lifted it off his head.

Grinning affectionately at the both, he walked towards his room and closed the white door.

The two boys turned around slowly, their face stone cold, malicious grins spread over their faces, "shall we, Haru?"
Questioned Takuya, his stone gaze still burning into the white door.

"Oh we shall, Taku, we shall, after all, we've all been warned don't mess with fire."