"Hmmm, how about some happy thoughts?" Kemal suggested after a while. He wasn't gonna confess it, but his body started feeling really sluggish yet he kept himself composed.
"I'm not feeling happy.." Mike sobbed much more calmly, his face buried into his friend's shoulder.
The smaller man rolled his eyes but immediately shook his head when he noticed.
"And you can't tell me why?"
"Because you're gonna be mad." Mike repeated.
Same old same old!
"Why is that a problem? I'm always mad."
"You'd be extra mad."
They fell silent once more.
"This is your orb, you can create whatever you want. How about a ball? We could kick it." He suggested.
"I don't like sports.." Mike responded weakly.
"How about a pen and paper, we can draw or write till you calm down."
"I don't like art." He weakly confessed hugging Kemal more tightly.
"What do you like then?" The other really couldn't offer much in this bland space.
"Mikel and you.."
"Well, Mikel isn't here. But I mean something you like doing." Kemal gestured towards the empty space.
"I don't like doing anything." Mike let out a shaky breath. "I only like you."
"You like cooking don't you?"
"Cooking for you guys."
Kemal's breath hitched.
"You like writing."
"Writing with you guys."
"You like.. Exercising.."
"Exercising for you guys.."
"..."
Kemal's grip loosened causing the taller man to grab even more tightly.
"Mike."
His voice was firm.
"I hate who I am." Mike suddenly sobbed out. "I hate how I can't be as unique and different as you guys, I hate how much I love tagging along because of the fact that I have nothing to add to the group, I hate how I can only find happiness if it's with you guys."
"I hate.."
His voice began to crack.
"How I feel like you two could keep going without me but I couldn't survive without you."
Realisation dawned on him.
"Mike.."
"NO!" The other screamed with a squeak.
"I don't wanna hear it, I'm scared of what I'd hear."
Kemal took a deep breath before covering his friend's ears. "Just because we can keep going without you doesn't mean we would."
It was obvious that his hands didn't drown out a single word.
"I don't know where we are, when I got here I didn't even remember who I was. I still feel like I'm missing my pieces but despite my loss I still went looking for you, not just Mikel, but you. I didn't remember you but I knew you were there."
Kemal suddenly took a deep breath.
"You are here for a reason. You came with us, and most importantly you'll stay with us. There's more to you than mindlessly following us because there's only so much you can pretend to be."
"You do like things! You just don't wanna do them alone! THAT IS WHO YOU ARE!" Kemal suddenly pushed him down onto the golden floor, water rippling around them.
Their eyes locked.
"It's okay if you don't like things if you do it alone. I don't like things when with people but I don't mind it with YOU!"
With that emphasis Kemal pressed his shoulders down harder into the ground.
"You piss me off. You think you can just barge into our lives, change our dynamic and settle down with us!? I would break your nose to feel better but then I'd feel guilty for hurting you!" His voice was filled with an aggressive tone yet his touch seemed almost tender.
"Do you really mean that?" Mike asked weakly, his tears threatening to pour out into another flood.
"You sometimes make me wish I didn't." These words would've been upsetting to others, yet they felt like the reassurance he never knew he needed.
Without hesitation Mike burst out into another set of tears, this time his cry echoing through the entire area.
His ears rung yet he got as close as he could, embracing his crying friend tightly. Shadows were appearing and shattering.
"PLEASE DON'T STOP HURTING ME!" The prince cried out one last time before his cries turned into screams shaking the entire area up.
Each layer of barrier began exploding into its own magical particles all into different colours.
"EVERYBODY SHIELDS!" The guards yelled, stationing themselves before royals and servants alike, making sure everyone is protected from the incoming explosions.
The two dragons and a fire shifter on the other hand flew towards the exploding barrier.
"YOUR MAJESTY!!"
"AZUL!!!!"
The explosions finally reached the furthest outer layer but instead of exploding like the insides it instead began cracking and glowing in a bright gold until its rays started leaking out of the cracks.
With a shattering explosion all three men bravely flew to the very center all looking for the same person.
When the lights finally dimmed down the masked man wearing a golden crown was embracing Price Kioshi tightly, eyes slightly red while a pair of wings were furled around him threatening to swallow him whole.
"PALLL!!" Azul screamed crash landing into the ground, his voice purely Azul.
The dragons didn't say anything, instead they grabbed Azul to give their man some breathing room.
Royals began approaching the stairs, everyone looking down at the scene unfurling.
Azul's father was the first to jump down which made the man jump and free himself from Kier's grasp to hide behind Kemal.
"Azul-"
The man was about to step closer but Tair flew down just as fast. "BROTHER!"
"AZUL WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!"
"LET GO OF KIOSHI!"
"DON'T TOUCH MY SON!"
"Who's that?"
Whispers and screams began filling the area as a few people attempted to come closer.
"SHUT!!! UP!!!!!!!" Kemal's voice reached such a high pitch that it managed to make everyone take a step back.
His ears hurt, his head hurt, he has a fire boy hiding behind him, and he had spent all this time being touched by different men all over.
THIS IS JUST TOO MUCH!
As if sensing their beloved's distress both of the dragons stepped closer to cover everyone's view of the three men.
"Such language.."
"Azul space." Kemal commanded, ignoring the off handed comment.
Azul immediately obeyed turning into a little squirrel and hid behind the alicorn prince instead.
His poor friend was unconscious, revealing a large horn and wings glowing faintly as if still forming on him. He wished he could pry the man off and just take a moment to breathe but he wasn't done taking care of him.
"I can't.." He weakly let out without realising, Mike's honesty can be so contagious.
But something else filled him, rage.
His head turned towards the direction of the wall, there may have been nothing to the blind eye but he knew who was hiding back there.
"Azul."
"Yes Pal?"
Kemal grit his teeth together. "Remember that thief?" He smiled and turned his head to face him.
"Yes!" Azul quickly transformed into something bigger. "GET ME THAT THIEF,"his voice was suddenly loud and commanding. "AND DON'T YOU COME BACK UNTIL YOU GET HIM ALIVE!."
Kemal pointed at Mikel's direction with a determined expression. "Not catching him means to fail, and I do not tolerate failure."
Because I know you did something, and I won't rest until I personally beat it out of you..
Azul stiffened, he's never seen his pal use such a tone let alone call him something like that.
No.
He didn't wanna be seen like that, not by him.
His head suddenly snapped towards the direction Kemal pointed.
"DON'T TALK TO MY SON LIKE-!" The fire warrior was about to snap but a large wave of white flames burst out of his little boy's body before morphing into something bigger.
He let out a mighty roar before he threw himself against the wall breaking it down with one hard crash.
Just like that the fire shifter vanished into the distance.
"AZUL!!" His parents called out. His mother wasted no time immediately running after him while his father shot one last glare at Kemal before grabbing his wife and using his flames to jump after his son.
The witnesses were left shocked. The missing boy was not just here but immediately burst off with an unknown colour of flames.
Commanded by…
Him.
He was still clutching onto the alicorn prince beside him.
"Kier.." Kemal called out softly.
"Yes?" His dragon answered without turning back.
"I'm sorry."
That apology could mean anything.
"Do you wanna go home?" Kier wagged his tail.
"I can't, not without him." Kemal whispered back.
Katil's head lowered before he spread his wings apart and flew up.
"Brother?" Kier called out yet the man didn't respond. Once he was high enough he suddenly shifted.
His body formed into a large black dragon flying high into the air.
Nothing could have prepared the onlookers for what happened next.
He suddenly breathed out a large chunk of flame attempting to burn down everything he could.
Royals didn't panic, they instead created barriers in a weak attempt to shield themselves from the flames.
"KATIL WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!" His mother screeched hysterically watching him attempt to burn the people surrounding them.
"Let's go." Kier said without emotion grabbing onto both the alicorn prince and his man with one swoop and took off in a matter of seconds.
Both men were thrown over Kier's shoulder, one was held by the waist while the other was barely held by the back.
Once he was far enough his body morphed as well into a large beautiful white dragon. His eyes regaining their pupils.
Kemal grabbed onto Mike while clutching onto the man's spikes for balance. Their little bodies could not compare to the large platform beneath them, Kier's head blocked out most of the wind flow leaving them without much problems.
"I know so little." The dragon's voice echoed through the air, almost hurt.
"Me too.." That's all Kemal could let out, filled with remorse.
Kier may have been able to hear it but it also seemed to fall to deaf ears.
I wonder what he did that Mike would be this scared of me..
Kemal tugged his friend's hair behind his ear.
You shouldn't be scared of me, you're the one person I'm trying not to scare away..
He traced the man's new wings and horn. He wanted to look down to search for any trace of Azul but a wave of dizziness took over.
"Are you okay? Did the barrier consume too much of your magic?" Kier's voice roared but the weight of Kemal's body finally took over.
Magic huh… I didn't know I had any of that…
With that final thought his eyes fluttered shut and he was left embracing Mike in their unconscious state.
His little head accessory flew off, only to be caught by Kier's tail.