“Long time no see, Roderick. How have you been?”

 

He then peeked to the sides over to my direction, I kept my head tall as his face turned slightly disgusted.

 

“I thought everyone was gone. So you kept him as your pet, I see. Was he more obedient than me that you decided to keep him?” The man chuckled as Roderick’s face became slightly red as veins started to trace on his skin.

 

“Cut the bullshit, where is my SON?” Roderick stepped forward, meeting the man we once knew face to face.

 

I could only watch from the sides as heads of our allied families stood beside me. Hundreds of men filled in the large warehouse, with the main attraction being shone by the ceiling light towards the two Godfathers. The intense atmosphere was holding us at knifepoint, I could see the others faltering by the sight, whether from our Family or the opposing ones. 

 

I took a good look around the warehouse, empty with only a few packages in some rusty carriages. My eyes turned to the massive group of men behind him, looking like they had assembled their allied families as well. This might not end well, more importantly, we have to get Alphonse out of here. As annoying and careless he is, I admit I even find him unamusing when he’s around me….. But….

“Thanks for helpin’ me back there, Kalem. If dad founds out, I bet he would whoop our asses together”

 

“I’m just doing my job, now go get the documents ready in two minutes or else I’m going to have to spill the beans.”

 

“DAMN IT, YOU HAVE NO SYMPATHY, DO YA?!”

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“Can you teach me how to negotiate? I wanna be the best at it.”

 

“What’s this, the one and only great Alphonse Esmond, asking me for help? Are you really that desperate that you won’t ask Roderick about it?”

 

“D-don’t get me wrong! I only asked you cause you’re my mentor…. And my brother…. F-FORGET ABOUT IT, JUST FREAKING TEACH ME ALREADY!!”

 

"For a young adult, you're quite the loud-mouth. Alright then, let's get to the basics"

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“Don’t be such a party-pooper, Kally. I’m just playing around with some boys who want to snatch Lenna outta my hands”

 

“Mind telling me who these ‘boys’ are?”

 

“Thought you never asked, whatcha gonna do to them, Kal?”

 

“Give them a piece of our mind… or rather...”

 

*gun clicks*

 

“A warning message”

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“Hey, let’s play some games together, Kally. One round isn’t going to do anything to your work. Please, please, pleaseeeee!!!! Lenna’s going to play too!!”

 

“I suppose I can make time for it”

 

“Really!?!? HELL YEAH!! Let’s go, let’s go!! We can’t keep our cute lil’ sister waiting!!”

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“What did I tell you about starting a fight with other kids? You made me, Phoebe, and Roderick worried sick. Care to explain?”

 

“Hmph!”

 

I let out a sigh while cupping his cheeks and caressed the pinkish bruise with my left thumb.

 

“You can tell me, I’m your brother” 

 

He kept pouting as he crossed his arms with tears starting to pool on his eyes.

 

“I-I never ask you to be my brother...” Hearing him say that did break a piece of my heart, but it changed when he hugged me while sobbing on my chest.

 

“B-but some big meanies *sniff* were telling me your face is as ugly as a donkey’s *sniff* b-butt with that hair colour… When they said that *sniff* I-I quickly threw a punch on their faces” He gripped tight to my shirt and sobbed more.

 

“So you did it because they insulted me?” I patted his back, he nodded as he kept his face buried in my chest.

 

I let out a chuckle and picked him up with ease, “Well, for this one, I’m glad you did that. You have a heart of gold, Alphonse. Standing to do what’s right is difficult to come by even for me or your father. Especially when you're defending those whom you cherished, you can never let it slip so easily”

 

“Y-you’re not mad? Like what you usually do?” Hid voice went raspy all because of that crying

 

“Nonono, it’s fine. But next time, let me handle them, capiche?”

 

“O-okay”

 

“Now, let’s go to the kitchen. I’ll make you some milk tea and White Chocolate cookies for you to gobble down, sound good?”

 

He nodded while his arms were still wrapped around my neck, his legs dangling beside my waist as I held on to him as I walked.

 

“Thank you….. Big bro...”

 

“Don’t mention it, you’re my little brother after all. Nothing will make me change my mind not to be by your side”

 

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“Still straight to the point, tsk.. tsk.. tsk… Oh how much I miss the old days. When both you and ‘your brother in arms’ used to run the whole place together.” The man that Roderick despised let out a snicker as he finished those words.

 

“If only we were alone, I would have killed you with both of my hands.”

 

“I thought you were all mercy and righteous, what happened to that side? Did you also change your ways because he was gone?”

 

“Don’t change the subject here, where is he?” Roderick’s voice went deeper, it could have shuddered the earth with it’s pitch.

 

“Oh, your little boy? He’s here alright, breathing his last few breaths deep within these walls.” Corleone let out a huff.

 

“But I guarantee you, he’s still pretty much alive…. As long as you heed my request” He tapped his cane to the ground with force.

 

“For what reason do I have to fulfill it? You hunted him down without any particular reason and kept him hostage? He has nothing to do with your Familia, or I could say that you’re taking a coward approach to handle me” 

 

After those words, Corleone went silent as the wind. But as the space became denser and denser, he let out a low chuckle. Transcending into a fit of laughter while he taps his cane to the floor continuous times. 

 

“Did you really think I captured him because he was innocent? No, no, no, Roderick. We Flammias certainly don’t hunt down someone with empty heads.” His eyes changed shape, into one more sinister than before.

 

“If you want to hear the full story, I suggest you have all members of your family join this meeting. Or else, I might reconsider having to come to terms affably.”

 

Murmurs began to erupt from our sides, me along with the head of allied families looked at each other with disturbed looks. The head of the Melchior family, Fransiscus Melchior, who was standing beside me got closer to my side.

 

“Is this another trick of his? We both know that he’s likely two steps ahead” He whispered, eyeing at the two Godfathers facing each other.

 

“There could be a chance that he’s also bluffing” 

 

"That man has no remorse, so does his men. The Flammia family is known for their dreadful and cold-blooded ways after all. We should observe more, try to look out for his change in expressions" Fransiscus added.

 

Why looking for those changes might be difficult for me, since I found it hard to guess people's real feelings. But if it was Lenna who was tasked with it, I bet she could guess it in under a few seconds.

 

"Inform the others as well, we might get something out of it," He nodded and sided away from me. He began to pass the message all-around our side while I kept my eyes on both Roderick and Corleone.

 

“All of us are already here, what are you even waiting for?” Roderick spoke up

 

“Nu-uh, I said, all members of your family, that includes your little girl”

 

I could hear a slight gasp and hiss coming from Roderick’s direction. Although I can’t see his face at the moment, his sorrowful aura is oozing out from his body. Spilling endlessly, enough to taunt the whole room, even to our own crew. The last time I saw him this desperate was almost 2 decades ago. But even with all of that disturbance, he kept silent… His fists trembled, the tense posture he’s making….

 

“So, what is it going to be? Let your daughter’s life be untouched while your son slash heir be ridden of his life? Or will you let her join us to discuss terms, so that her brother may be spared?”

 

Hearing him say that Lenna was going to be involved in this made me want to end that man’s life in an instant. Cornering Roderick with his only weakness, such a sly bastard he is. What Fransiscus said might be true, although I’m not sure where this is heading. I’m sure Roderick won't make a rash decision, especially if it’s involving Lenna.

 

“Clock’s ticking, Roderick”

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It all ended up with Roderick making an order for me to pick Lenna up. Even I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard his decision. To make sure I don’t bail out, that man even assigned one of his Caporeigmes to “guard” me. Most annoyingly, a midget with all barks and no bites, if Alphonse was here, both of us would have crippled him down to the size of a paper ball. 

 

“Kalem?” A voice called out to me, snapping me out of my mind.

 

I looked up and saw Lenna’s face diminishing and reappearing as the street lights passed by.

 

“Yes, what is it, Lenna?”

 

“You always tapped your foot frantically when you’re scared, is it about Al?” Her question made me realize as I glanced down at my right leg.

 

It’s as if the muscles moved on its own, without even me noticing it’s movements. I immediately placed my right palm over my right lap and chuckled. 

 

“Observant as usual, I always wondered where you get that trait from. But, yes, I’m rather shaken by what’s happening, same as you, Lenna.” I replied with a nod.

 

She stayed quiet for a while staring down at her lap, her usual energetic aura was no longer within the air. All that I could feel in this small space is intimidation, pressuring down each of us like gravity.

 

“Do you think it’s going to work out fine?” She suddenly whispered, still looking down at her hands fidgeting on top of her lap.

 

Hearing her let out those words made me feel disheartened. Her expression right now is the one that I wouldn’t want her to make. I want to give her hope, although there are possibilities made in my head that I couldn’t just ignore.

 

“I’m not so sure, after what happened tonight, the winning side is either going to be us or them. And the losing side will likely be doing the opposing side’s dirty work.” I commented, to which Adrian nodded.

 

“Because of that, we’ve to be cautious about what they are offering. Loopholes, scams, anything could happen, and most importantly...”

 

Adrian leaned his body forward as he faced his left palm upwards.

 

“Will there be any life that’s going to be cut off? If the deal doesn’t go well, a turf war, no… a full-on battlefield will likely be the end of it, and we absolutely don’t want that to happen. Think about it, the Flammia family owns businesses like loan sharks, casinos, bars, clubs, they have a wide range of communication”

 

I was pulled in Adrian’s argument, hearing him talk logically helps me to devise a back-up plan in my head as he continues. At this moment, Lenna was also paying attention to the details, even though this is the first time she has ever joined in any of these activities. It’s not like I wanted her to be involved, but we had no other choice. If Alphonse knows about this, surely he’s going to cause a rampage more than I would have.

 

“Even if we retreat our forces, we’re still in the Northern territory. That Don could easily call reinforcements before we could do anything else, blocking our path from returning to the South region safely.”

 

“So that means, this is all planned?” Lenna asked

 

“This is only my assumption. I’m saying this as the worst scenario case, although there’s always a slight chance this is going to happen.” Adrian finished his talk as he slouched his back into the cushion with his right leg over his left.

 

He crossed his arms and turned his eyes to me, seeming like he wanted a response. Both of us have worked together numerous times, especially when we’re both the consiglieres of our own families. It’s normal that we often engage in discussions and negotiations. Since Alphonse was improving a lot in negotiating, I let him take the lead. Sometimes, both boys would try to preach the other’s mind with words, causing one of them to gain victory. Mostly, it’s Alphonse’s win, but once in a while, it would be Adrian’s. 

 

“Your argument is plausible, Adrian. Then we really need to prepare for what’s coming, and lure where this is going to our advantage. Don’t do anything careless, alright? I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you both, especially Lenna”

 

“Okay”

 

“Definitely”

 

Adrian then turned over to Lenna with a warm smile on his face.

 

“And I will be by your side no matter what, Lenny. You can count on that” The face that Lenna made after Adrian said that was one of the ones which would show her real feelings. She hummed and nodded at him with a wide smile on her face.

 

Seeing these two like this is bliss for me, I only wish that Adrian would take initiation and pop the question to Lenna already. Me and Alphonse had already taken to an agreement that Adrian’s the only one who is allowed to be with her. If it’s any other boys, I would gladly rip their heads off along with shoving their limbs down their throat and up their arse.

 

Just then, without even noticing where we were, the car’s movement came to a halt. The engine that was purring ravingly had been silenced. I quickly glanced outside and saw the scenery before me. Dim old lights, numerous black cars of our family, guards standing around in front of a humongous warehouse by the docks. Metal cargos surrounded the area, making it as if we weren’t seen by anyone. I then exhaled and turned to both Adrian and Lenna whose faces are filled with nervousness.

 

“We’re here”