Flashback (4)

*Flashback*

Sevir watched the person on the other side smile big. He tried to mimic the action but the glint in his doppelgänger’s eyes wasn’t something he could mimic. He tried to think of something positive, something that could make him look like that.

“Why are you making weird faces?”

Sevir’s shoulders sagged and head hung down, “Grandfather is throwing a birthday party for me. Introduce me to other grandchildren of his associates and all.”

RuIng raised his brows, “what’s a party?”

Sevir rolled his eyes. “Celebration.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

Sevir rolled his eyes. “Damn the party. I don’t want to. Do you know I had never even met the man until the child services led me into the house? Where was he all those years when mom and dad were moving and moving and moving all the time?”

RuIng frowned. It didn’t even form lines on his smooth face, only small dents between the brows. For RuIng rarely frowned, Sevir asked, “what is it?”

“Why did your family kept moving?”

Sevir turned silent. When he did speak, he asked, “what would you say if I told you my mother told me stories about your world?”

RuIng paled, “what… what’s your mother’s name?”

Sevir’s eyes widened. “Her maiden name was Alyona. Do you know anyone by that name?”

RuIng’s entire frame sagged, He answered firmly, “no.”

It crushed quickly the slight rise of hope and Sevir continued in a low dejected tone, “father told me stories about your world- the beasts, the extraordinary world and its wonders. I ran from comic store to comic store, trying to hunt for the story he was telling me. Now I realise…”

RuIng’s eyes flashed with a strange light, like a flickering blub.

“Your eyes,” Sevir spoke slowly. Ruing blinked a couple of times, “apologies. It’s been happening ever since I started training.”

Sevir nodded solemnly. “is it an ability?”

RuIng shrugged and the pulled the crystal close to his eyes, “Do not know. Abilities take years to develop fully.”

Sevir nodded and RuIng took the chance to shift subjects, “you were telling me about why your parents kept moving often.”

Sevir looked at RuIng for a moment longer than necessary, smiled at his obvious subject change, but went with it. “Yes. They said that some people were after them. My mother was a firefighter. Someone she had rescued once knew about her ability. Turns out, this person was some sort of loose nut who came after my family.”

RuIng’s eyes widened, “how can you sit here talking about this? Have you ever thought that they caused the fire?”

Sevir smiled, a smile that did not belong to a child, an adolescence, an empty, malicious smile.

“If I can’t even bring myself to talk about it, how am I going to find those people and take revenge?”

RuIng shuddered but did not rebuke those words. “What do you plan to do?”

“I am in no place to do anything now, but someday, I am going to find them and burn them to hell.” The bitter smile relented as Sevir closed his eyes and hung his head once again, “and that is why I will attend the party tomorrow.”

A knock on the door alerted the doppelgangers.

“Master Hongli. Come down. People are here to do your fittings.”

Sevir rolled his eyes while RuIng whispered, “Hongli?”

“Yeah. He claims that’s what my mother wanted to call me in the first place,” Sevir scoffed.

RuIng blinked. “Do you mind if I use that name?”

Sevir raised a brow. RuIng shook his head. “Can I?”

“Sure. It’s not like I use it. I never will.”

RuIng smiled bitterly, the strange light flashing again. Sevir narrowed his eyes but said nothing.

The knock rang again, “Master Hongli.”

Sevir looked at the door, annoyed. When he looked back, RuIng was gone.