Chapter 7
Huguel stood in front of Yuri, a sad expression on his face. Yuri could understand the sadness of being abandoned by his father after everything he did, but Huguel seemed extremely upset that he was now leaving as well. It had never occurred to Yuri before, but he realized, now that he was seeing it for the first time in his life, that the reason that Huguel acted that way was because he knew that he was now alone and probably afraid.
Even though the little boy was smiling at him now, he still looked sad. Yuri couldn't help but pity him. He reached out his hand and gently patted him on his shoulder, causing him to giggle in delight. At that moment, Yuri couldn't help but wonder whether it was right or wrong for him to adopt Huguel. Perhaps he ought to have told Victor about Huguel before now so that Victor could take care of him instead of letting him die. But in the end, he had decided to keep quiet about it, and Victor had remained oblivious to the fact that Huguel existed.
Still, Huguel seemed quite happy with the idea that Yuri wanted to adopt him. Even if Yuri knew that he had to give up on him. He continued walking forward, and before long, he reached the gate, where all the other kids were watching as he approached them. Yuri smiled as he greeted them. However, none of the kids returned the gesture and instead glared at him, their eyes filled with hostility and hatred. They didn't even dare to greet Yuri back.
Suddenly, the gate swung open before Yuri could say anything, and the blonde looked up to see who it was. His heart sank when he saw who it was. There was no way he'd be able to convince them to forgive him in a few days' time – they would never accept him. It was hopeless to try.
And yet, to Yuri's surprise, once he saw who the person was that had opened the gate, he immediately felt relieved, almost relieved. He couldn't believe it, but his suspicions proved true. His eyes widened slightly when he noticed how the person that had just came out of the house wore the exact same clothing as the people who attacked him earlier.
It's you…
The figure stopped at the bottom of the steps leading up to the gate and simply stared back at Yuri as well. The blonde boy couldn't help but widen his eyes upon noticing the dark blue eyes that gazed right at him as a faint smirk graced his lips. For the first time since Yuri had seen him last, the ravenet was actually smiling at him. That was when a bright spark of hope ignited within Yuri. A light began to shine brightly inside of him. He could tell, somehow, that the ravenet wasn't going to hurt him anymore.
That was the only good thing that came from this whole encounter.
The blonde boy was certain that there must be a very serious reason why this person had chosen him instead of someone else. Why not anyone else?
He glanced around as he thought about it, trying to find out exactly why such a mysterious person would choose Yuri. Yuri wasn't even sure why they had chosen him in particular, either. Had they known him before he was attacked? Had they met him somewhere before? Maybe they had already been acquainted with him in a previous life before he was born?
He didn't know, and he couldn't really remember either. But he guessed that that didn't really matter anymore. All that mattered was that he was alive.
All he could do was ask. He needed an explanation. He needed to know why the ravenet had picked him rather than someone who had already done great work for him or who might be a better fit.
He slowly turned to look at Yakov, and the coach gave him a nod as he walked up next to him. He had a curious expression on his face, but he kept his mouth shut. Yuri glanced back at the ravenet again. What was their name? Yuri didn't really remember it, but he was absolutely positive that it had been important. Something very, very important. As far as he recalled, he knew that the ravenet's last name was Lebeau, but he was pretty sure that wasn't what he had been thinking of just then.
What were their names?
Was it Lebeau?
No. Not Lebeau.
Then what was it? Oh, yes! It had been something that he hadn't noticed before. It must have been because of the intense pain that had suddenly gone through his body when he had fallen. He wondered what it could possibly have been. Something that was related to the attack in his mind? Or perhaps his dream that he had experienced before. Could that have been what had awoken those memories? It might be possible, although it sounded like he wouldn't remember anything from his dreams anymore. But still...it might be worth exploring.
"Who were you looking for?", Yuri blurted out without realizing that he had spoken aloud until after he had done so.
Everyone around him gasped and Yuri frowned slightly at them before turning to stare angrily back at the ravenet. The ravenet raised an eyebrow at Yuri and smirked faintly as he answered his question.
"You," he said flatly.
Yuri' eye twitched slightly, but he quickly recovered, and instead of glaring back at the ravenet, he just sighed in resignation. So much for being friends, he thought to himself.
"Why me?".
"Well...we've met", the ravenet explained simply as he placed one hand casually behind his head, the other dangling loosely at his side, "In fact...we were already together when I found you lying on the floor."
There was an awkward silence that followed the ravenet's response. He wasn't lying, and it was obvious that the others weren't lying either. Yuri sighed again and nodded his head in acceptance before speaking up again.
"So...who were you looking for?", he asked.
The ravenet paused for a brief moment before replying.
"Hmmm, you know," he answered thoughtfully. "It doesn't matter who I was looking for, anyway. I'll always come back for you."
This was followed by another silence. Yuri waited for the ravenet to continue talking, but when he didn't, he spoke again.
"Did you have a reason for wanting me to join you?" He asked hesitantly.
"Yes," the ravenet replied as he stared directly into Yuri's eyes, "I want you to become my pupil and train under me."
Yuri froze for a brief moment as he tried to process what the ravenet had just told him. After a few seconds, however, he shook his head and shrugged his shoulders in defeat. "I'm sorry, but I don't think that's possible," he said firmly, "I haven't trained in years."
Once again, the ravenet raised an eyebrow and smirked slightly. "Well, then...let me explain this a little differently. Come with me", he commanded as he stepped backwards into the large building he had just emerged from, beckoning for Yuri to follow him in.
Yuri hesitated for a second, but he eventually got tired of standing outside in the cool morning air for too long. He followed the ravenet inside the building and down several flights of stairs, until he reached the second floor where the room the ravenet had disappeared through previously was located. It was empty now, except for a single chair sitting on the floor near the door. Once Yuri entered the room, the ravenet sat down in the chair and motioned for Yuri to sit down across from him.
"Okay, so here's the deal...", the ravenet began calmly as he folded his hands neatly in his lap and leaned back in the wooden chair. "I don't have any intention of harming you, which means that you can leave if you wish.