Atop the Mountain

Chapter 2: Protector

Rain always echoes loudly on the roof of Raihan's home. He can never sleep when it's storming out. Through the window, the only light he can see is coming from Rose's manor. Thunder cracks overhead, and Raihan tries to act like it doesn't bother him.

"I hear Rose left on another trip. He didn't take Leon," Raihan's dad stares out the window, towards Rose's manor, his arms folded across his chest as he taps his foot on the cracked wood floor. "Maybe we should have him over for dinner."

Raihan resists saying what he wants to say, which is that he doesn't want anything to do with that boy, or any of those three. He has a hard enough time getting along with the other kids in the village already. He bites his tongue. He doesn't like bothering his dads with things he can probably fix himself.

Raihan's papa looks up over his spectacles with a frown, "Aspen," he murmurs.

"Basil."

His papa sighs and places the book he's reading on the arm of his chair and leans forward, folding his fingers together. "Let's work through this logically. Rose hates when people meddle with his things-" Aspen opens his mouth to reply, but Basil waves his hand, "give me a moment- I know Leon is not a thing, but from Rose's perspective... and he especially hates when you, Aspen, meddle. You've done it too often, and I'm not saying you're in the wrong, but," he leans back in his chair, which creaks loudly under his weight as he massages his forehead.

"My meddling got us the library-"

"I know, love. I know, but-"

"You should go to bed, Han," Aspen says.

"I don't want to- it's not even sunset yet!" Raihan shoots back. He knows he sounds immature when he does it, but he wants to know what they're gonna say.

"Wait," Basil is sitting up in his chair again, "maybe tomorrow, you can go knock on his door," he mimes knocking, "and ask him to play."

Aspen's expression softens. He pauses before nodding slowly, "Yeah, that sounds good."

It does not sound good. Raihan furrows his brows, "I'm almost eleven. I don't play , and I definitely don't play with him."

"Hang out, then," Aspen says, his voice level, though Raihan doesn't miss the tension in his body, "he's only been here a month. He probably doesn't have any friends."

Raihan picks this moment to stand. He turns, making his way to his room. "Well, he can find someone else," he says, ignoring Aspen's calls as he opens his door and slams it behind him. He doesn't trust that Leon kid. One day, he'll figure out why. For now, it's best to just avoid him.

For two years, Raihan watches Leon from a distance. It isn't like he has much else to do. He doesn't have a ton of friends, so whenever Gordie's busy, he sneaks around, following the boy with the big purple hair and wide golden eyes.

His dads didn't need to worry about him making friends. Him and his friends are like some sort of novelty to the local kids, but especially Leon and his Charmander. He's almost constantly surrounded by groups.

Sometimes, though, he sneaks off alone, just him in his Charmander. Those are the moments that interest Raihan.

He's sitting against a fence, peering through a crack to watch him vanish into the forest again. His long purple hair is tied behind him, like his papa sometimes does, and he has that Charmander with him still. It's gotten bigger, too. He swears it.