Days of the Past

Marcus reached forward to grab the wooden doorknob but immediately missed the handle as he was greeted by the tall dark silhouette of two individuals carrying a small girl in one of their arms.

*GULP*

Marcus immediately felt a cold sweat drip down his back as he felt the gaze of two predators lock onto him. He knew running wasn't an option because he'd tried it before and this only worsened the situation. He'd even tried standing completely still in hopes they'd ignore him, but alas this plan also failed miserably as it made him an easy target for what came next. Deciding that neither option was feasible, he decided to take the only course of action he could.

"She's lying! I didn't do it."

Marcus lied through his teeth as easy as breathing. He knew why his sister had tattled on him and decided to take the initiative in hopes of calming the two predators who were locked onto his every movement.

Unfortunately, in taking this course of action he had already dug his grave.

"Ohhh. Honey, did you accuse Marcus of anything?"

Right on queue, as if the whole scene had played out a million times already the silhouette to the left replied almost instantly.

"No sweetie. In fact, I didn't say a thing. Makes me wonder who he could possibly be referring to?"

It took Marcus a few moments to notice the mistake he had made. One would think to either humble themselves and admit to their wrongs, which would lead to a less drastic response, or simply keeping one's mouth shut to avoid making a fool of themselves. But of course, Marcus chose neither of those options and instead continued down his path of lies.

"Mom... Dad.. obviously Alicia is lying. The little grem-"

"EHEM!"

Both parents immediately cut Marcus off before he could finish what he was about to say.

*Sigh*

The two parents looked exasperated from constantly having to deal with Marcus and Alicia's antics. So, both parents decided to step out of the house and address the situation before the siblings escalated it any further.

As the silhouette on the right exited the house, a tall man with a full goatee was revealed. The man shared Marcus's black hair color as he sported an undercut with hair only growing long enough at the top with some medium sized stands of hair drooping down at the edges of his forehead. As for his face, it was almost an exact replica of his son's with a slightly more older and mature appearance.

His features were sharper than that of Marcus's and he seemed to radiate an aura of power just by standing there. The man also had a slim-fit body as could be seen with his chosen attire of only a pair of blue pants and nothing to cover his torso or feet. His muscles weren't overly large and showy but you could tell just from looking at his chiseled sick-pack abs and rock hard chest that the man wasn't one to be taken lightly.

The next to step out of the home and reveal herself was a woman of average height but far from average appearance. Beautiful felt like an understatement when describing a women of her stature. She didn't wear any makeup or have any fancy details or piercings along her face or body. She had long silver hair just like her daughters and a picturesque face like her as well that would make any model spit blood after hearing this was how she naturally looked.

Her facial features were the exact opposite of her husbands in that they were delicate and soft, like that of a freshly blooming white rose. Her body proportions were also just as picturesque due to her petite hour glass figure that wasn't overly skinny or exaggerated.

She wore a simple and modest white dress that reached down to her ankles where you could catch a tiny glimpse of her dainty snow white feet. The woman's aura was warm and inviting even as she stepped out of the home carrying her daughter, Alicia in her arms.

"What are we gonna do with you two. Your mother and I were in the middle of-"

"Liam!"

Liam, the father of Marcus and Alicia, stopped talking immediately when he noticed his wife's slightly blushing face and flared nostrils. The sight reminded one of another cute and angry little girl currently being carried in her mother's arms.

Deciding against angering his wife, he took a metaphorical step pack and changed gears.

"What I meant to say was that your mother and I were in the middle of... training and you two interrupted that. So, as a punishment, Marcus you'll be coming with me to train tomorrow and Alicia, you'll be staying home with your mother tomorrow.

The little girl being carried in her mother's arms immediately switched gears from the 'innocent crying little girl act' to that of a child being wronged.

"THATS NOT FAIR DADDY! It was Marcus who was being mean to me and told me to shutup!"

A smirk began to form around Marcus's face. It wasn't often he won these little 'battles' between he and his sister and so whenever he did, he made sure the latter knew it. Marcus could be very petty at times.

Noticing her brother's triumphant smirk, Alicia got even more angrier than what she currently was and looked to her daddy for support. Liam noticed his daughter's 'signals' and so he looked in his son's direction and saw what had gotten his little princess so upset.

After realizing this, Liam wore a smirk of his own that his son noticed and this washed away his son's own smirk almost instantaneously.

"Don't get too happy Marcus. After all, you'll be sparring against me this time and this time you won't just be swinging around your wooden scythe at empty air or some old tree.

Marcus unconsciously gulped. He knew all about this so called 'training' his father did with him on a daily basis for the last 3 years. During these sessions Marcus practiced basic survival skills, endurance training, and some weapons training that only went as far as swinging around a wooden scythe like his father mentioned.

His survival training consisted of the basics like finding water and shelter, fishing, fire making, hunting, and cooking. His endurance training was usually just long runs around various locations in the forest and a few calisthenics exercises. He had never actually fought against his father so he was excited by the fact he'd get to see his father's skills but less enthused that he'd be the one on the receiving end of said skills.

Belladonna, the mother of Marcus and Alicia, decided to step in when she noticed her son's concerns. She decided to comfort her son by embracing him in a hug. She put down Alicia who grumpily stood up on her own as her mother walked in the direction of her brother.

"It'll be fine Mars. Your father's only trying to scare you. He won't needlessly harm you."

Mars was the nickname his Mother had given him since an early age. She was the only one who referred to him as such and he never corrected her about it because he liked the nickname more than he was willing to let on.

Marcus pulled back from the hug and stared at his mother's beautiful silver eyes. It seemed like one would get lost in them if they stared to long due to the oddly comforting and warm aura being emitted from them. They brought him the reassurance and comfort he needed after being intimidated by his father.

Plus, now that he thought about it, his father was always strict and intimidating during training but hadn't he always been the one to pick Marcus up whenever he fell from either exhaustion or fatigue due to the training. He never went too far and always pushed Marcus to push past his limits to achieve better results and almost every time he did so, he reached new heights in his training.

Liam stood to the side grumpily, allowing his wife to sooth his son's worries. Deep down though, he was engraving the image of the two embracing each other in his very soul as to never forget his reason for choosing the path his family and he himself now walked.