The Human Experiment (bxbxb)

A Small Talk With A Stuffed Bear

"Hey, go take a walk and get something to eat. I'm going to go see if I can talk to him a bit."

Dart grumbled, but Bryce just rolled his eyes and walked over, yanking his twin out of bed.

"Go, I'm not going to do anything pervy. I know you like him, too, so when we finally get him to come around, we'll be sharing."

Dartanian took a calming breath, then nodded.

"Yeah."

"You are so scatterbrained right now. What happened to my scary, blood-sucking twin?"

Dartanian fought a smile, shaking his head as he sauntered toward the door.

"He found a pathetic little human that seems to have gotten stuck in his head."

Bryce nudged his brother's shoulder and stepped into the hall with him, shutting their door after he led the dog out with its leash.

"Alright, you go fill up. I know you're hungry. Probably why you lost control back there."

Dart nodded and disappeared in a blur not a second later.

****

"Rolland."

Riley's shoulders hunched as he sat in the corner on his bed, back leaning against the wall with his knees pulled up to his chest. He was leaning his chin atop them, staring down at the bear in his hands. It was missing an eye and looked like it'd been through hell, yet he remembered seeing him in Dartanian's memories several times.

"I know you're not Rolland now, but I can't remember your name," he whispered to the bear quietly. A sniffle interrupted his thoughts. He wasn't sure why he bothered, though, because he knew he was crying. He had been since he'd run away from the brothers a few minutes ago. He hadn't bothered locking his door since it was useless. They could come in whenever they wanted, and he would never know. They could also do whatever they wanted.

But then why did Bryce stop Dart?

Bryce had backed off several seconds before his brother, and Riley had seen him talking to him through his blurry eyes as Dart still tried to get him to respond. Just remembering the feelings that had raced through his body left him shivering. He knew what it was, of course. He had gone to high school after all. Gone out a few times. It was just, he didn't know. He never really felt a need to try to go further.

Grinning, Riley looked down at the nameless bear in his hands.

"You know why, I'm sure. I wish I could remember everything you do. I now know I was an orphan before I got my new family, and that I probably didn't live at the best orphanage judging from what images Dart passed to me. But the rest of my memories are of the brothers and my new parents, leaving a big blank portion."

Spreading his legs to either side of the bear, Riley gently set him down on his comforter and sighed.

"I don't know if I want these memories... they hurt, a lot."

The little bear looked up at him with his one, dull black eye, keeping the secrets he desperately needed to finish the puzzle of his life.

"I wish you could talk... and I wish I could hear the words you'd say."

His stomach sank a little, but before he could really get depressed, he noticed a fuzzy head looking up at him and smiled.

"Hey there, Dyce."

The dog's mouth opened to woof before it tried to climb onto the bed.

"Of course. You can never get up here by yourself if I'm here. Lazy dog."