maybe i am or maybe i'm not

the seasons passed in togaria as vols grew bigger. winter came twice and went leaving a bad impression on him, spring was like a gentle old friend; it surprised vols with it's warmth but left him again twice as quickly as it came. and finally summer came and vols hated it more the second time

"mom, can i go the library?" vols asked innocently

she nodded "zephyr go with your brother"

zephyr was practicing his magic when yuna called for him

he was trying to learn a long range spell called water bullets, but it always looked the size of a volleyball instead of a bullet and it bearly flew for 2m before it lost its form and splashed on the floor.

he sighed and nodded.

the brothers went out walking to the library. zephyr turned 8 a few weeks ago and was already 140m tall.

'that kid is a giant' vols thought spitefully

vols noticed that humans from earth and togaria had the same constitution except for the eyes

they walked in and vols went towards the native language aisle, he was learning the old draconic language, there were just 2 or 3 books about it and all of them are as old as kingdom.

' no one knows what happened to the dragons nor if they are still alive, learning their language might be useless but a drowning man will clutch at a straw'

"why do you like to read so much, baby bro?" zephyr asked

vols hated it when zephyr called him that but ignored it this time.

he still played the dumb baby, his mother thought that he liked the library so much because of the lack of entertainment in kairkar (the town where they live in). the professor stopped letting him in his office a long time ago so his secret was never found out. well not entirely..

zephyr, on the other hand, knew his brother could speak like an adult, read and write. vols tried many times to sound like a baby in front of him but zephyr never believed his act.

vols didn't know why or how zephyr was so convinced but he stopped trying to change his mind a year ago.

they grew closer, vols now really looked at zephyr as more than a stranger who shared the same room

he respected him even more after he found out that he didn't tell anyone. vols thought he had to play the genius card but thankfully zephyr turned out to be smarter and more mature than vols thought.

so vols started to give zephyr the benefit of the doubt

" i'm harbouring knowledge as much as i can" vols answered vaguely

'of course giving him the benefit of the doubt and trusting him are completely different things. he's just 8 after all'

" why?"

vols looked up at his brother in annoyance

" you're tall for your age, you know. my neck hurts whenever i have to look at you''

vols tisked

zephyr blinked at him then grabbed vols by the waist like a doll and held him up at eye level

he then smirked " is this better, baby bro?"

vols was blushing furiously

"put me down!" he yelled enraged

zephyr laughed " you still have mean eyes, vols. sometimes i wonder if you were born with them"

vols stopped swinging his legs and stared at his brother in surprise.

' i really can't hide anything from him..'

" knowledge is a weapon, that is why i read" vols answered truthfully

zephyr thought about his brother's words and then nodded

" i knew it, you're a genius" he smiled broadly

vlos grew to like his brother's big grin

"maybe i am, maybe i'm not. now put me down, you're crushing my ribs you giant"

zephyr put him down and waved his baby bro goodbye. vols waved back and went back to studying

..

professor zorax left his office and went downstairs to have a smoke. he started smoking last year, the constant nagging of both the academy and the army turned his once golden locks to ashy blonde, not to mention he didn't find any new clues for the past 2 years regarding his research about an acient drug that went missing ages ago.

his eye bags became a permanent accessory on his face, and the only time he could unwind was when he smoked.

he was looking for a book on the old empire's language when he heard a conversation between two brothers

" knowledge is a weapon, that's why i read"

zorax was confused ' isn't that kid just 3 years old?'

zorax had long noticed the little boy's odd behavior. he knew no kid could stare at an open book for hours, he just didn't care enough to ask his mother if he was a genius or just retarded.

he walked towards him and saw him holding an acient book about the draconic language

" kids shouldn't touch priceless books, you'll get your sticky fingers all over it"

zorax snatched the book from the boy's small arms and put it back up

vols' eye twitched, a habbit he grew ever since he met the mad professor

'dammit! it's too high and zephyr already left'

" why are you here professor?" vols tried to smile sweetly but it looked forced and more sour than sweet

" i'm looking for a book, it's a library isn't it? see, kids are dumb amd shouldn't walk around annoying adults"

vols was really pissed at the professor now

" just like adults shouldn't take out their anger on innocent kids just cause they keep failing at their work"

'and can't get laid' vols added inwardly

zorax was surprised by the kid's response and even more by the kid's vicious glare.

" now give me back the book, i liked the pictures on it" vols continued

zorax snorted " kid stop the act. i know you can read, i don't know though why you're hiding it. you mother would be proud to have a genius as a son"

vols didn't like the mocking tone of zorax nor did he know how he found out about the first part

' well maybe i gave him too little credit, i did read in his presence for months'

" if i tell mom, she'll shoe me off to the neighbors which will bring too much unwanted attention. i like to keep my cards close to my chest" he responded

'i'll drop the dumb kid act, this professor is smart and more than that he's an alchemist. maybe i can learn from him.. maybe become his apprentice or something'

zorax's eyes widened and laughed for the first time since vols met him

his unkept hair, his crooked pince-nez and almost maniacal laugh really made him look like the evil scientist from frankenstein

" maybe you're not so dumb, kid! that way of thinking is the only reason why i'm still standing alive" he kept laughing loudly making some people glare at them from upstairs

" will you bring it to me now?" vols was a patient man, or he liked to think of himself as one

but right now, the professor was pushing all the wrong buttons

"yeah yeah, relax" he waved his arm annoyingly and handed it to vols

" so you're learning the draconic language?" the professor asked

" no, i'm 3 remember? i just like the pictures of the dragons" vols waved goodbye and turned around

the professor snorted and went outside to finish his smoke

..

vols finished studying at around 2pm when his brother came to pick him up

" hey zephyr, when did you start training?" vols asked as they walked past a busy fruit market

zephyr scratched his cheek " i started working out at 3, dad would always stop me though. he would tell me it's too early but i never listened " he smiled proudly

" 3 is young, he was right. what kind of workout though?" zephyr looked around them then hunched his back to murmur

" well i used to go run laps in the forest, mom and dad never found out tho, they used to think i was playing with the neighbors' kids"

vols was flabbergasted, he never knew his brother had it in him to do something so reckless

" aren't there wild animals and magical beasts there?" he asked

'' well yeah, but i was small and fast" he shrugged

"plus i would not go very deep anyway"

he continued

vols patted his back " lady luck must really like you huh, it's a miracle you're still alive bro"

he chuckled and nodded

"want me to train you? " zephyr asked

" yeah, we'll do it in the forest" vols didn't want the neighbors looking at him as he slaved away, he wouldn't feel comfortable talking like he is around zephyr

" great! we'll start tomorrow morning, you can do your reading after lunch" zephyr said.

vols nodded and smiled in excitement

..

the next morning, the two brothers woke up and told their mother they were going to play outside.

zephyr took his father's spear and they went towards the forest. they had to walk to the town's square and go right from there.

they arrived at the edge of the forest, vols looked up and still couldn't see the end of some trees, some were at least 10m tall

the air inside has humid and

they rarely saw small animals hopping around

instead insects and weird looking plants were the only signs of life

" is the forest supposed to be this quiet?" vols asked

" yeah, it always was like that at the edges. animals and magical beasts tend to avoid coming near towns. the hunters would always kill them all, with their cubs to sell their fur"

' i might be many things but killing kids, whether human or not would leave a bad taste in my mouth' vols thought

they finally arrived at a plain where the trees weren't so thick

" i used to work out here" vols looked around, the place was pretty spacious, enough for two to comfortably exercise

a thick branch that looked to be 5m high off the ground looked perfect for pull ups

and that's when the boys started working out. vols used to go to the gym everyday in his past life during his teenage years, then became a construction worker which meant he always had a good physique, so he knew exactly what to do to improve what.

3 hours later, the boys went for a run inside the forest before going back home

vols could recognize a lot of flowers and plants from the botany books he read. some he recognized as edible and others as poisonous, and he was tempted to grab the few that were precious but knew that he had no means to use them before they rot and money wasn't a problem so he didn't have to sell them

' i think i'll ask zorax if he can take me as his apprentice'

vols cringed at the idea of spending more time with the old far but beggars can't be choosers

they finally arrived at the edges and

he sighed in relief when they exited the forest

' my gut is telling me that there's something wrong with this forest but i couldn't find anything weird in the records of the town'

vols obviously read about the forest's records before entering with his brother, he couldn't just leave his fate to lady luck.

'it's the only place where i can work out in this busy town, plus being in the wild will sharpen my senses more. it might be a blessing in disguise for the future' or so he hoped

..