Chapter 6 - There's more than one way to skin a cat

Once again, he was awakened by the smell of breakfast wafting through his room and orange sunlight breaking through the crack in the curtains. He rolled over to find he was alone in his room. It had been like this for the last two weeks or so.

*'What's going on with Kisara? Every day she's been waking up so early. Normally I'm dragging her out of bed to go to school. Maybe she has finally gotten sick of me throwing water on her.'*

He left his room to find Ranni hard at work cooking up some delicious boiled eggs and toasted bread for breakfast. Elric had already vanished off to work, and Erza was warming up near the stoked fire. Jayce had already gone for his morning workout and was presumably in the forest, either hunting or finding some wood to stock up on for carving and firewood.

"Breakfast is on the table, help yourself."

"Thanks, big sis."

Her face lit up a little bit at the words. The truth is, Kayn knew she had a soft spot for being called big sis; something about it always gave her a buzz. Ranni was the quintessential big sister, always looking after Kisara and Kayn. She was like a second mother whenever Erza wasn't around, always teaching them both new things she had learned or attempting to mediate the arguments between the twins.

"Any idea what's wrong with Kisara? She is normally a slug in the morning. Now she's even waking up before Dad for work," asked Kayn.

"I'm not sure. She spends most of the morning outside in the cold with a book. I asked her why she doesn't just sit by the fire, and she said she enjoys the snowy weather."

After Kayn had finished eating, it was time to leave for school. The entire commute to school, Kisara seemed spaced out and kept staring off into the distance. She barely even replied as Kayn tried to drum up some conversation.

This set off some warning alarms for him. Kisara was normally so chatty and excited about school. Unlike him, she didn't cause an argument wherever she went. But he didn't bring anything up in case it ended up being something stupid and she could make fun of him for being so caring.

Walking into the classroom, he noticed a well-dressed red-haired girl sitting in his previously assigned seat. It was quite obvious that she was one of the rich families' children. He had to restrain himself from saying something rude. Not only would it just cause more problems with his school life, but she didn't deserve to get disrespected just because of his experience with another rich kid.

"Excuse me, I think you're in the wrong seat. Do you mind moving?"

The red-haired girl turned her head to face him. She had crystal blue eyes and soft skin, clearly taken care of with cosmetic products.

"Mrs. Eldridge told me to let you know that our seats have been swapped since you don't get along with Alfred."

She pointed to an empty seat at the front of the class next to a bunch of scruffy-looking farmers' children. He sighed and walked down the aisle, ruffling his sister's styled hair to make it a little less perfect.

Her lack of reaction only cemented in his mind that something was wrong with her. Throughout most of the lesson, his back was to the teacher as he tried to monitor the interactions his sister had with the others around her, but Kisara just kept her head down and did the work.

Of course, this only caused more arguments between Kayn and Mrs. Eldridge, but he didn't care. If someone other than him was making his sister's life miserable, then they were going to pay.

Kayn got removed from class after all the times Mrs. Eldridge asked him to turn around and face her, but he did not get sent home this time. He had to go to another classroom and continue his work there, which he did quietly.

Afterward, during the lunch break, he searched for his sister, ignoring some of the invitations to eat with some of the other students.

She was nowhere to be found, which was quite strange. The school wasn't exceptionally big, and the layout was a simple two stories with a single corridor that led off into various classrooms and a small building outside which acted as a canteen where students were served various meals by the school.

Taking his search outside after scanning both buildings, he found the red-haired girl who had replaced him, sitting under a tree with one of the working-class girls.

"Hey, excuse me, sorry to keep bothering you, have you seen my sister around anywhere? I can't find her anywhere."

The girls looked away and tried to hide their faces under their long hair. As Kayn got closer, it was obvious that they knew something. The redhead was chatty during class with Alfred, but now she was mute.

"You clearly know something. I'm not going to ask again. Where is my sister?" His voice took on a much more stern tone and was louder in volume.

"Okay, relax, I'll tell you, but don't drag me into it. I don't want Alfred ruining my life as well." The red-haired girl turned her head to face Kayn, who was staring a hole in her.

"They are behind the canteen with a bunch of Alfred's friends."

Kayn couldn't contain the anger he felt. He stormed over to the back of the canteen, where he found Kisara pinned between three older students and Alfred, who was throwing the seeds from the fruit he was eating at her.

Kayn tried approaching his sister, but an older, taller boy barred his path. The boy reached out to grab Kayn, who dodged to the side, swiftly grabbing the wrist of his attacker and pulling him past, forcing him to take a tumble.

Kayn knelt down and cleared some of the saliva that had stained his sister's face from the residue on the seeds. He grabbed her hand and led Kisara out from behind the canteen. She kept her head down, but he could see her sunken eyes.

Alfred and his crew laughed maliciously as they were leaving. Kayn stopped just before he turned the corner back to safety and gestured for Kisara to leave. He ruffled her hair to reassure her that everything would be fine.

Seeing Kisara's dead eyes reminded him of himself before he came to this world. Devoid of life, hope, and even a shred of happiness. Again, the people he loved felt the oppression of the rich and wealthy. Kisara had no other choice but to endure this torment because she didn't want to cause problems for her family.

Kayn returned to the alley, filled to the brim with hate for the people before him. If anyone was going to suffer the punishment, it should be him, not his sister.

*'No, if I harm Alfred and he goes running to daddy, then it'll be my family that suffers in the end, and he'll get exactly what he wants. I have to go about this differently. If my previous life taught me anything, it's that violence isn't the only answer, and sometimes other methods can hurt them far more.'*

He called upon all the fighting experience he had accumulated in his previous life as he approached the two taller boys who were standing, defending the path to Alfred, one being the weakling Kayn had already floored.

They both simultaneously rushed him and attempted to strike Kayn, who felt a strange sensation that jolted his body to dodge underneath the blows at the perfect time.

Kayn responded with a swift uppercut to the jaw of the first boy. Before the second boy had retracted his arm, Kayn followed up by grabbing his arm and flipping him over his body, head first into the floor, making him unresponsive.

The first boy had recovered in this time and attempted another swing at Kayn's head. Another sensation sent Kayn into a masterful dodge, followed by a straight-legged kick into the side of the boy's knee with enough force to buckle his leg.

Repositioning himself, Kayn primed a perfectly executed kick to the side of the boy's head, sending it into the wall next to him, knocking him unconscious.

The last was one of the rich girls in his class. He recognized her styled curly blue hair that could only be done by a professional and her freckled face.

He approached the girl with a blackened gaze, causing her to leap from the seat she was on next to Alfred.

"Whoa, whoa, wait! I'm a girl; you can't hit me!"

"You were man enough to torment my helpless sister. Then you're man enough to deal with the consequences."

She turned around to run, but Kayn grabbed her by the throat and dragged her backward onto the ground. He pinned her to the floor with his foot on her throat, making it difficult for her to breathe as he swapped his focus to Alfred.

"I can't hurt you. If your dad sees any bruises on his fat son's body, then it'll cause problems for my family."

Alfred's face became more loose, and he started to smile again.

"But there's more than one way to skin a cat."

Kayn's and Alfred's expressions swapped between each other as he pressed further down on the throat of the girl he pinned.

"For example, I wonder if your friends here are going to keep being loyal after this beating. Haha, who am I kidding? If I ever see them with you again, I'll break their legs. Sure, their parents won't be happy, but they can't do anything to affect my family."

The choking girl pleaded with her eyes for him to release her as she could barely breathe. Kayn complied. He knelt down and stared into her tear-filled face as she gasped for air, expecting a response from her.

"I promise, I'll never speak to him again. I didn't even like him; I just wanted to take advantage of his dad," the girl responded between her gasps.

"You hear that, Alfred, no one even cares about you, just your dad. How pathetic. Your just a worthless pig who people abuse to get in good favor with your parents."

A clang rung throughout the school to signal the end of the break. Alfred was fighting back the tears and swallowing the lump in his throat. Once he heard the bell ring he darted out from the back of the canteen and into the safety of the school. Thankful he had been saved by the bell.