The Past and The Present

Xino had barely noticed the weather grow colder, the leaves were already changing colors and the wind seemed to blow harsher in this town. He didn't mind it though, the feeling was wonderful. And now he was seeing his mother, and the home he grew up in had suddenly transformed. Why couldn't he have lived like this before?

"Sweetie! Come here, quick!" Mrs. Ryu held onto Xino's arm so tightly, as if he might disappear.

"Yes, Evelyn?" Mr. Ryu, Licon, exited his office and glanced at his wife before setting his gaze on Xino. His smile stretched from ear to ear as he rushed over to give his son a hug.

"And this is Dormir, you know, the one we hear about on the news!"

"Nice to meet you.." Dormir seemed more awake now as he shook hands with Licon.

Evelyn walked them all over to the table and started boiling some water, asking a million questions. Xino laughed as he turned to look at his father. His hair was thin, a bald spot being more noticeable than the last time he saw the man. His eyes were as dark as always and his smile was small yet meaningful. The tiredness was always the one thing Xino could remember from his father.

Xino told his parents about the school, little details that Dormir allowed him to speak of. He talked about Leaf and Alon, careful not to mention their abilities and only the friendship they had grown. Xino told them all about his power and what he learned. Dormir would stop him every time he got too close to spilling a secret, but besides that, he stayed silent and admired their home. Xino was so glad to see the place finally brighten up. His mother no longer looked like a character from the black and white shows Alon had shown him.

"Oh, Xino, this is wonderful. You are so happy, I missed that smile so much!" His mother seemed even more ecstatic to see him.

The woman would fuss over his clothes and his messy hair, she checked him for any injuries or to make sure his skin hadn't burnt off. He was still pale and thin, but he had begun to look just a little less sickly. His mother had once told him that being pale and being fair were different. Xino was pale, and that wasn't a good thing all the time. It meant he was sick or something close to it, but Xino wasn't sure if she meant mentally or physically.

"Mom, dad. I have to ask you something now." Xino mustered up his voice. He was hoping the slight stutter wouldn't ruin the seriousness in his tone.

"Of course, kid. Shoot." His dad encouraged, his parents both looking at him with curiosity.

"What did I do?"

That question seemed to startle his parents, both of them giving him confused looks. Xino wasn't sure why, but he knew something happened when he was young to make his parents lock him up for so long. It couldn't have been anything big. What could a six year old little boy do with a pencil and paper? His parents looked at him, a sadness now settling into the air.

"Well, Xino…sweetie…" His mother started, stumbling over her words. With every new minute spent in this house, he saw how alike he and the woman were. "We found out that your power was…rare. The hero academy had come in contact with us the day you were born, the power was so special that you needed to be supervised."

"We didn't take this seriously, you were a baby at the time. I love art, you know? How could I keep that from you? Knowing that your powers were linked with the creativity in the world, well, I had to let you be free with it!" His mother sniffled, Mrs. Ryu hadn't spoken to anyone besides her husband about this.

Mr. Dormir then spoke up. "I heard this story…the little boy with great power, us heroes weren't the first to find out though."

"Yes, yes..the villain academy, they wanted to take you and raise you. I couldn't let that happen so I agreed to work with the heroes." Xino's head began to spin. The villains? With Xino's power, he could take or break the world. "But then…you turned six.."

Evelyn watched as her son drew on a piece of paper. The only child she could ever have, and he was born too different for the rest of the world. She would never have agreed to keep him away from their neighbors, but some things couldn't work out. Xino Ryu was special in her mind. Licon was still on edge about this news, he wanted to keep the kid away from the art supplies in their house.

Xino had been kept away from the rest of the world though. This was his sixth year in solitude. They had to fake Xino being a stillborn, nobody knew about him except the government and the heroes. As well as the villains, thus the reason why he was isolated. Now, Xino was sitting alone in the living room drawing in his "my monster's" sketchbook. She thought it was perfect for her little boy. But, she never thought about the consequences.

Evelyn spent the next five minutes panicking. Her son sat calmly playing with crayons while her husband was out at work. A knock on the door startled the woman, she wasn't expecting guests. Moving around quickly, she ushered Xino to his room and asked him to sit in his hiding tent. It was a little tent his mother had set up for her son when things got too difficult in the house. Then, she made her way to the front door and smiled sweetly at the stranger behind it.

"Mrs. Ryu…I need to speak with your son." The man had dark blue eyes, his suit neat and almost blending into his skin.

"M-my son? Sir, you must be mistaken…no children live here, I am by myself." Bad move. You never should tell a strange man who asks for your children that you are home alone.

"By yourself, you say? Why is there a coloring book out?"

"I teach art, sir. My students love to draw in these books and give them to me."

"That child must be a prodigy, the shading almost makes it look real.." Evelyn turned around to eye the book. It was blurry in the background, too far to see from the door. How did he know?

"A true prodigy, yes. My best student…I should go start making dinner for my husband." She gave him a small smile and slowly shut the door. The man made no attempt to stop her.

Evelyn quickly ran to Xino's room. She hated leaving him alone with his thoughts, he always ended up giving himself nightmares without being asleep. But he was completely silent in his room. Bad sign. She shoved the door open and ran to his tent, but her son wasn't alone.

"Wil..willie. Wyle." Xino smiled as he patted a little boy's head. His skin was dark, hair black. He looked about Xino's age.

Evelyn didn't say a word as the boys both looked at her. The strange one who had appeared in her house smiled before disappearing. Her heart had sunk fifty feet below. Xino looked unfazed, but he was holding a little monster in his hands. It was crawling around, the same one from his coloring book. She feared having to explain this to Licon. He would take everything away.

But maybe…maybe that was for the best?

Xino stared at his mother as she held back her tears. His father held a comforting hand around her shoulders as he watched. It wasn't his fault after all. They were keeping him safe, not just from himself, but from others. Xino wasn't dangerous, he was a child. But now, his thoughts and powers were all his own. He could control if he was good or bad. The villains and heroes never got to him as a kid. Not until now. Xino didn't want to be a hero, he didn't want to be a villain either. He wanted to use his power for good, but he didn't want to save the world. Sometimes being bad was okay, but being a hero meant he had to be good.

Xino's dad talked a little bit more. He asked if Xino would visit them again, and of course, Xino smiled happier than he ever had. His parents still loved him. The adults all spoke while the artist wandered around the house for the next few minutes. He was really excited to be back in his old home. It looked so much more different than it did a week ago. He would never have believed he lived here before. He could tell the paintings were his mom's, her art was so unique and messy.

Soon enough Dormir called him to go. With a few hugs and goodbyes, the two were walking through the streets once more. Dormir seemed more awake now, and for some reason, Xino wanted to ask about the tiredness. He wanted to know if it was true, the rumors.

"Why am I tired? Well, Mr. Ryu, you must have heard the rumors. I spend the nights fighting my rival, the villain of sleep. It gets hard fighting someone just like you though. Your powers bounce off each other and it does not affect you as much." Dormir's voice could have put Xino to sleep on the ride back to the academy, but his mind was still spinning.

"So, is he really the reason?"

"Course not. My brother and I were cursed as children. Forever tired, as well as others around us. He chose the wrong path.."

"The wrong path?"

"The path to villainy!"

"Why is it wrong, Mr. Dormir?"

"Villains are bad, heroes are good."

"That seems kind of black and white." Xino mumbled, he wasn't sure why that irritated him. Villains are bad and heroes are good. It was true, right?

The rest of the ride was spent silently, and soon they were back. Dormir walked Xino back to his dorm, the day fading away. He thanked the hero before entering, not noticing Leaf and Misty in the living room. Xino was tired. Rain made herself noticeable as she traveled straight upstairs, probably just as tired as her creator.

"Hey Xi!" Leaf waved, munching on some baby carrots. Xino just smiled and trudged his way to the restroom.

His ever growing hatred for villains was now rising more and more, but for some reason, the word hate just didn't seem to fit. Villains are bad, heroes are good. Those words just didn't feel right. He thought back to what Inia said as he searched for his night clothes. She mentioned that her best friend became a villain because of her childhood, not because she was bad. Xino, being the artist he is, couldn't see things like others did. The world wasn't black and white. Neither were people. Villains are villains, but not all villains start out bad.

When a baby is born, they aren't born to think of themselves as villains. Just as a hero isn't born to think of themselves as a hero. Babies are blank slates that are shaped by the people around them. So why was he a hero? He had never done anything extraordinary. Xino hadn't even spoken to anyone until last week. He was just another person with powers.

"Hey, Xi, you have an invite..?" Alon knocked on the door as Xino just finished getting changed. He skipped over and opened it, meeting Alon. He had a black eye, his arm was in bandages, and he looked like a lion had mauled him.

"What..what happened?" Xino quickly dragged him inside, forgetting about the invite.

He scrambled around until he found the medkit, grabbing a rag and running it under cold water. He then curled it into a ball and held it to Alon's black eye who was failing to make him stop. Xino continued to silently apply new banages and disinfectants to the wounds on the waterboy. When he finally finished, he gave Alon a very determined glare. Just like the one his mother used to do when his father got into a fight.

"What?"

"Why do you look like a dinosaur jumped you!"

"No reason…thanks. Here is the invite, bye!" Xino couldn't protest as his roommate ran out and slammed the door of his bedroom.

Xino sighed, he would just ask later. He held the invite in his hand and climbed the stairs to his bedroom, Rain greeting him as he entered. She was always so sweet towards the artist. Xino flopped onto his bed and opened the note carefully. It was covered in stickers, all music notes. The name beside his name read Luka Sound. That name seemed familiar. He continued opening up the note, reading it slowly.

Dear, Xino Ryu,

I am sending you this to ask for a favor. I will be having a concert in the city of music, you will be my plus one. Meet me on the roof, or my hostages will jump off. The concert is next week! 9pm, the tallest building. I hope you enjoy my music. C:

Sincerely, Luka

Xino stared at the piece of paper in hands for five minutes. He read over it again and again, trying to make it make sense. Hostages? A concert? His mind brought him back to the dreambook, a guitar. The note from Lori, the names. What were the villain names? Lux…Reality…Luka. Luka Sound. The villain. He was threatening Xino. The city of music? Xino didn't even know what city he was in, how would he find the city of music? Nor did he know any building. What was the tallest building there? It was currently Friday. The concert was next week. Seven days to figure all this out.

His first thought was to ask Lori and Rior, but that might not go well. He figured he shouldn't bring anyone in case they thought it was a fight. But…if it was a fight, Xino had no clue how he would win. He could always draw some soldiers, or maybe bring Rain to call for help. Other than that, he wasn't the strongest hero in the school.

Xino then looked outside. It was a concert, right? He would need to know how to dance.