Hello, Brother...

[TAMIKO]

"Oh Toshiro, you came!" Tamiko beamed with excitement as he looked at the lycan king who was dressed worse than earlier.

"Of course. I figured you'd need a familiar face. We're eating with the dark king, after all," Toshiro said and Tamiko's eyes lit up with excitement and yet at the same time, there was fear in them.

"Y—" Igor began but the king stopped him. 

It was like he didn't want to let Tamiko know that he who was parading as the bubbly man was the devil the realm ran from. The king's unpredictability was making Chief Konstantin worried, not just for himself but for the unknowing son who was there with them. 

A part of Igor was even more worried about Tamiko's reaction because he understood just how much Tamiko hated being put in the dark. But then they would eventually find their way there, right?

"Don't worry. He never talks anyway. He'll be here soon, I hope you don't make me laugh tonight. I love my neck sitting pretty on my head," the king said and Igor looked at him like he was crazy. 

Of all the things that the king could have done, transforming into whatever this was, had to be the scariest.

Sighing, Igor reminded himself for the hundredth time not to cross this king, because this man was a hundred levels of unhinged. The fact that it was safer for the lycans to be sound to the king, when he was the monster they all ran away from, was even wilder.

But then they couldn't be blamed for whatever the fuck was going on right now anyway.

"That's okay. I just want to be like him. Every single version," Tamiko said, his voice growing distant and cold, as though he was thinking about someone, or some people. Oh, but Igor knew it was definitely Grealor. But damn, hearing Tamiko talk like that was scary.

He sounded more or less like his father, a man who never knew what forgiveness was, and a man who had sworn to burn the werewolves to the ground if he ever found the wolves that had taken his heir and his queen from him.

Oh but the day would come when that would happen, but until then, there was a dinner to survive, at the moment.

"What?" the king asked, the shock on his face making itself known, and Sadako smirked. Tamiko had managed to do the one thing that no one had managed in years, and that was to surprise his brother. Perhaps this was progress.

The lycan king had heard so much about himself that wasn't even surprised when they prayed to the goddess that he didn't come out of his hell hole. However, none of the lycans, other than his brother, had ever seemed to pray for his return or even their desire to be like him. 

It was a reality that king Zaffuto had never heard of and sharing it from a lycan so young, and one who seemed untainted by life, got the king wondering what the hell had to have happened to the boy before him. 

Life sure wasn't always going to be rosy, but then how cruel could life have been for the kid to have him wish to be like the one person everyone wanted to be rid of in secret?

"He's my role model,'' Tamiko spelled out proudly, and this time, Sadako let out a sneeze, as his common sense had just caught up with him. If Tamiko became his brother, then there was never going to be an ounce of humanity in the world.

"But he's a cruel person?" the king said, making sure to lower his voice like he was scared of himself. Well, Toshiro was supposed to be scared of the king anyways, right? 

"Pain does that to people sometimes. I don't blame him. I believe once upon a time, he was a good person who wanted the best for the world. When you are betrayed and hurt enough times, you just have no option but to protect yourself and the people you love. 

"Many will never understand and will think you're the monster. They never get to really understand that once upon a time, we were just normal people with normal lives. They make monsters out of us and blame us when we fight back. 

"I don't think the king is as bad. Sure he has a terrible reputation, but I know he's just protecting himself and his heart from pain and betrayal. I'm sure if you ask the people closest to him, you'll know he was once a good person. 

"He definitely trusts and confides in someone in the kingdom, even if it's just one person. That is more than enough; having a person in your corner, someone who won't leave when they see the cracks on you. 

"Those are the people who make fighting for love daily worth it. No matter who he is, and what reputation he has, I will be on his side regardless," Tamiko said thoughtfully. But what he hadn't realized was the fact that he had surprised everyone at the table. 

Granted, it was just the four of them for now, but his words were something else. He spoke from the perspective of someone who had gone through that much pain. But what mattered was that he understood, and Sadako was glad that the son was understanding of the father. 

It was more than he had expected and that was something he would forever be happy about.

"Oh sorry, I didn't mean to cause tension at the table. Is the king coming?" Tamiko asked when the maids were done setting the table.

"I—" Sadako began but once again, Zaffuto interrupted.

"Yes, he is. Oops, he's coming, let's be seated," Zaffuto said as he looked in the direction of a figure that was headed toward them. 

Instinctively, Tamiko, Igor, and Sadako turned to see whoever Tosho was talking about and boy were they in shock. Sadako for one had his jaw on the ground, because he could smell his brother on the figure headed their way. 

He could sense Zaffuto's brooding personality and he could also smell the aura of death that always lingered around his brother every single time. Looking at the man headed their way, Sadako wondered what the hell had just happened. 

The lycan king was in royal regalia as usual and the golden crown was sitting pretty, keeping his extremely long uncombed hair in place. 

The Zaffuto headed their way, looked like he had better places to be, than to sit at the damn table with the young lycan and the chief, not to mention his brother who was still grasping at whatever was left of his reality. 

This was bullshit and Lord Sadako wasn't sure if there was magic at play or if this was just his brother playing games with him. 

And so in the moment, Sadako looked between Toshiro and Zaffuto and frankly he couldn't see a difference. 

They looked alike, way too similar that it was unsettling to him. 

He could only make one conclusion, and it wasn't a good one, not if the lycans were supposed to live through their days like this.

"Wh… you… The fuck?" Lord Sadko whispered as the supposed king took his seat at the table, not even bothering with the greetings. Either Sadako was hallucinating, or his brother had finally gone insane.

Oh, but Sadako was willing to bet on the latter a thousand times over.

"Hello, brother."