This boy... chestnut brown hair with hazelnut coloured eyes... There's no mistaking it, he's my guard. Well I say mine but he isn't... as of now.
The only thing was... this novel was a fantasy novel with people of multiple races. Beast folk, fairies, angels... you name it. It's just odd thinking that God and my great grandma came up with it together... Is that alright?! I mean... even demons exist! And they co-exist with the angels and demigods! Is that really alright???
Well, putting that aside, I thought my guard was a wolf from the beast folk clan... A clan which were looked down upon by humans and other clans. He just looked... Like a normal boy... A boy living in poverty with barely enough to support himself, leading him to stealing just to survive.
"-lo? Helloooo???" a voice said as I noticed a hand waving in front of my face. I looked up to see the boy smiling mischievously as he then grabbed my face in his hands. "Yo! You there?" he asked again as he brought his face closer to mine.
"Ye-yeah! I am! Now let go!" I replied, struggling to pull his hands off my face. How strong... for a child... It was hard trying to pry him off me, unless I were to hurt myself by accident. He complied however and fell back onto the ground with a grin as he let go of my face.
I unconsciously rubbed my cheeks as I stared at his lax expression. My brother suddenly jumped in front of me with his arms outstretched as he glared at Xavier.
"You! Hwurt my bwother! You're bad! Bad!" Cain yelled as I stared at his small back. Xavier didn't say anything for a short while until he suddenly cracked up and burst into laughter. I just glanced at my little brother instead, his arms trembled and I knew he was going to cry.
"Cain... thank you for defending me. You're so reliable." I said as I hugged him, stroking his head softly. As expected, he was already sniffling from the embarrassment, trying his hardest to not cry.
"A-ah. You siblings are so hilarious. The little brother is protecting his older brother. And the older brother is so weak." Xavier said through laughter as he wiped a tear off his cheek from laughing hysterically.
"You~ How can you tease him for protecting me?! A little boy needs encouragement to grow! Plus, what you're doing is a bad example of someone who's supposed to be older! I bet you don't even know how to protect someone! You're no less than a kid!" I yelled as I pointed at him accusingly. "... A kid..." he muttered.
Oh no. Did I go overboard? "Ah... I'm sorr-" I tried to apologise, only to be cut off by Xavier. "I know I am a kid! So what! It doesn't matter as long as I can protect my mother! You humans all keep saying 'You're still a kid. What could you possibly do?', do you think I don't know that? Even I have someone I want to protect!" Xavier yelled as I noticed his fingernails growing longer and his hair starting to rise.
His ears perked up and his tail fluffed up as I finally understood he was probably going to hurt us. His eyes glowed a mystical gold as he glowered at me, sending shivers down my spine.
He readied his hands in a menacing manner as if to strike me but hesitated at the last second. I took the moment to breathe before noticing him running off into the distance.
"Ah! Wa-wait!" I stammered as I jumped up. I grabbed the loaves of bread and handed them to my brother as I then proceeded to carry him, chasing after Xavier.
I felt bad for hurting his feelings. It was obvious that he knew what it was like protecting someone. People of their clan had always been mistreated, especially by the humans. It was presumptuous of me to think that. He obviously was trying to protect his mother, she was his only solace who in the end died protecting him from humans that were going to catch them to sell them off as slaves.
I chased him till I couldn't see him, relying on the information I recalled from the novel. As I placed Cain down, I panted, catching my breath, only to hear the sound of yelling coming from the inside of the door. Instinctively, I got Cain to hide, handing him the emergency beacon bracelet I wore, telling him to use it if things were to go south. I then stepped in front of the door, sucking in a deep breath before opening said door.