Lapilius

Note: I decided to redo chapter 3 and take a total new approach :D My dear muse suggested I reveal more information, cause the story was more confusing than enjoyable. And I so love her...

'When are you going to explain?' He froze, but quickly resumed opening the door.
'Later.' I watched him as he graciously slipped off his black coat and draped it over the railing.
'When is later?' I followed him as he made his usual routine through the house, ending with sitting down on the soft leather couch in the living room. I kept standing to the right of him and held my ground fiercely. I would not give up on this matter. I was determined to draw straight answers out of him the questions I had asked on the way back from the Registrar. I repeated my question, but before I could finish it, he lashed out aggressively.
'Since when have you become this deviant?' The way he breathed, the manner in which he sat on the couch with his arms stretched out, legs crossed, intimidated me. He was issuing an open challenge to me and accepting the challenge seemed a perfect choice to my rage muddled mind. Challenges were often issued between Deceivers, as friendly games, fun pastimes or even hierarchy affecting fights. As if he could follow my trail of thought, he added:
'This is not a game.' I looked up and met his stare with my now startled expression as those words ripped through my understanding. He rose from the couch and wrapped his slender arms around my waist. I turned my head away, but his hand caught my chin and forced me to stare into his dark red eyes. My mind flew. I wanted to melt into his hold, forever be close to him. Forget everything and simply be an extension of him.
'You think about what you want, truly want. Consider the consequences that might come with holding the truth you seek.' The next moment I was alone on the couch, his scent still wrapped around me where once his touch warmed me. The sound of the door clicking shut echoed through the room before silence once again settled in the apartment.

He did not return that night. I had gotten used to him leaving every evening and returning at the break of dawn. I woke up in the cold bed as the first rays of sun slipped through the vertical blinds. Confusion flashed before a wave of despair came over me and left me lost in the situation. I had despised sharing a bed with him, but his absence proved me wrong. Annoyance had turned into tolerance and even slightly into liking. His presence in the morning had been so much embedded into my life, his absence disturbed me. What is my fault? Had I been too much of a bother for him he had started hating me and could not even bring himself to be in the same space as me? I closed my eyes and tried to sleep again, hoping this was just a bad dream and when I woke up again his warmth would once again have settled next to me, his hand would be on my waist, our faces just millimetres apart. I sharpened my senses, desperately trying to hear him walking in the apartment or on the outside corridor. But there was no one else but me on this floor and I could do nothing but leave for school with emptiness where once happiness resided every morning.

'Rubin, please stay for a moment.' I turned away from the classroom door and walked to teacher's table up front. He was making notes for tomorrow's lesson and I patiently waited for him to finish. I studied him as he took his time writing whatever he needed to be noted for tomorrow. He had the typical look of a middle-aged male: skin slightly creased hair not as attended to as the younger teachers. All teachers at this school were once Deceivers who either chose to enter the teaching profession, or simply could not compete with the higher ranked and more skilled competition. Most of them held citrine to jade; higher ranks who could get a better life would most certainly do so without thinking twice. My eyes trailed to his hands to find a simple silver band around his left ring finger. Did he truly honour the bond? Or was it a simple spell of deception?
'I heard you went to the Registrar.' He looked up from the desk. His lime coloured eyes were weary from the long years and I felt a surge of pity for the man. He had probably tried hard in competing, but failed miserably and ended up wasting his days away as a teacher.
'Yes sir, I went yesterday.'
'The school has received message of that, the Board requires that there is a personal confirmation.'
'Okay, can I be excused now? My Master expects me.' A lie. He never expects me home, as he once explained: "We are not slaves; we do not need to be punctual.'
'One more thing.' He hesitated and bit his already cracked under lip, trying hard to form words he needed.
'You registered under Rubin Clarinus, is that correct?' I jolt of interest woke my mind at the mention of that name. I nodded carefully, holding his eyes in my stare.
'It is not the school's duty or interest to check the authenticity, but as your teacher I feel obliged to inform you of the weight that comes with wearing the name. Or has your Master informed you already?' My heart sank.
'No, he has not spoken a word.'

I roamed the area surrounding the apartment for hours. I walked in circles every time taking a slightly different path, but always ending at the glass doors that led into the building I did not want to enter. Fear choked me every time I decided to reach out to those doors. Would he be home yet? How would he act? Will I be able to to keep my own temper? I feared he would throw me out. I would have nowhere to go, no one to stay with...
'Those doors do not open by them selves and suck you in.' I clenched my hands and opened the doors just enough for me to slip through. 'And never forget to be polite.' I could hear my own teeth grinding as the elevator started its long climb up to the top floor. Rage flared when he stepped away from the control panel to reveal he had practically pressed all the buttons available.
'What do you think you are doing?! This stupid elevator goes slow enough without pausing at every floor!'
'Is it not great? I like slow elevators.' He turned around and smiled his trademark smile. I could feel my blood boil, my hands shook from the strain I used to not lash out at him. My sight blurred. The elevator faded away. The world spun out of sight and a dense white left me absolutely numb. Only his lips still chained me to the real world. He swept me up in his arms when we arrived and carried me all the way to the couch where he sat me down carefully before getting his usual drink.
'I know it.' He sat down two glasses on the transparent table and settled down next to me. 'My teacher told me.' I monitored his face for any signs of emotion, but nothing changed. He drained his glass and sat it down gently.
'There are things outside the official history you should know. The registered reason for the war is a rebellion caused by years of suppression by the ruling clan. A distortion within the three governing clans.' I nodded in confirmation.
'A distortion did appear, but it was by no means caused by suppression. The three clans each had their own part in governing the land. One ruled, protected by the other and both supported by the third.' He paused. He leaned back on the couch and closed his eye for a moment.
'My teacher told me that.'
'The three clans thrived on the interlinking traditions and set rules. One accident broke down the century long trust between two of them, resulting in an enormous tumult in the country. The ruling clan's successor always has a partner who is always a member of the ruling clan. Marriages between cousins kept the bloodline clean.' He paused again. The fact he just explained seemed to cause him pain and I dared not urge him to go on in his unstable state.
'The last successor eloped with her protector. Internal fights weakened the system sufficiently for rebelling groups to slip in and with a little manipulation they convinced the protectors to overthrow the rulers. The rulers, being Deceivers, could easily have hid themselves, but the protectors had picked up enough knowledge in centuries time to hunt down almost all of them.'
'What has this to do with me?'
'You are her son.' Everything clicked into place. Like an enormous jigsaw the total picture finally cleared up and showed it's most hideous form. All things that had happened in my life suddenly had an explanation. The distance my parents kept, their distrust of their surroundings. The way they cleanly evaded talking about the past. The cunning and intricate designs that had deceived my sister and I in believing we were a simple farming family, with just a few peculiarities. He pressed a glass in my hands and urged me to drink. I obeyed blindly and did not even notice the bitterness of the liquid till I had swallowed the last drop and only the aftertaste could faintly hint what it had tasted like.
'The hunt started twenty years ago and lasted for seven dark years before the new government put a stop to it.' I leaned back on the couch and shut my eyes. The world was turning and moving upside down.
'How do you know all this?' My words sounded slurred, even to my own ears. He slid his arm around my waist and pulled me close to him. My head was still spinning, but his hold kept me sane enough to not give in to the deliriousness.
'My mother was killed in the hunt. She had been scrapped from the bloodline after she married a commoner. They killed her nonetheless. My father disowned me. He saved me by cutting all ties; no one could trace an orphan like me to any of the Clarinus lines.' I felt myself being lifted and carried away, where I went, I did not care. The world had stopped spinning, but I did not want to wake up. The truth had taken away all sense from me. I wished none of this had really happened. I hoped that when I woke up the next morning, all of this information would have disappeared like morning's dawn and I was just a nobody in the arms that held me so close now.