Rythian woke up in a cold sweat, on the hard, frozen ground.

A boy, about his age, flew through his peripheral vision as he blinked in the sudden light. At first his instincts told him to run, a dangerous person was no reason to stick around after all, but when he looked up at him, tears drenched the boy's face and sobs were falling from his lips. He trembled as he ran past, but he was alone.

Lifting himself from the foliage he had been hiding under, Rythian made his way over to the boy. He touched his shoulder hesitantly, and his head snapped round. His cheeks were flooded with silvery tears, highlighted in the moonlight, and his surprised expression passed to one of distraught before he fell forward and clutched the taller child for dear life.

And so they held each other. Neither knew one another, and Rythian had no idea why the other boy was crying, or where he had come from, all he knew was that this boy needed some form of comfort and Rythian could supply it. It was quite weird, really, as the two stood under the night sky, two young boys simply holding each other.

Before long, the boy had cried himself out and fell asleep in the other's arms. Being the same age as him, he was difficult to lift, and Rythian had to fight to carry him over to the bushes He had been hiding in. It gave at least some protection against the elements, and he had been sleeping there for the past few nights.

He curiously watched the blond boy as he breathed, in and out, in and out. He let him sleep. Whatever the reason for this boy's break-down, it could wait for morning.

- ~ - • - ~ -

Duncan woke up, hardly knowing what had happened the night before. He wasn't in his bed, there were no warm cushions surrounding him. Instead all he could feel was an icy wind on his neck. He was outside, and yet he lay on something soft, and it took a second for him to realise that he was actually lying in the lap of another boy. He didn't recognise the host of the lap he sat in, but the calm the other omitted and the body heat he provided stopped him from jumping away immediately in fright. Rather, he slowly sat up, careful not to wake him.

At that point, all the memories from last night came back in one great wave of emotions - depression, fear, horror, relief, sheer exasperation.

It made him weary just thinking about everything; He nearly fell into another unconsciousness. It was.. overwhelming.

- ~ - • - ~ -

He struggled to crack open his eyes, only to be greeted with a flash of blond hair. He sat up and took in his surroundings. Rythian had the same dream every night, and every time it was unsettling.

However, the boy he had met last night was awake, and he seemed okay.

"Are you alright?" Rythian asked,

"Yes, thanks," His voice was rough from the tears last night.

"My name's Rythian."

A soft hmmmmn escaped his lips.

"So uh-What's yours?"

The boy hesitated,

"Duncan."

Finally, Rythian's curiosity took over and he asked why he had been crying last night. His bright blue eyes overflowed with dismay. Not a small childish fall out then. And Duncan repeated his small hmmn from earlier.

After a few moments he spoke up, and he spoke fast,

"My mum and dad had a fight, they said they wouldn't get me involved- So much for that- They always do this, blame me. They say that I ruined their marriage. They - They say they were happier before they had me. M-Maybe they're right, but - b - but..."

He trailed off, his knees were at his chest and his head was down.

"They hit me."

Rythian wasn't expecting that. He knew being hit wasn't exactly the worst thing that could happen to someone, on the contrary, he had faced much worse, but then again, he wasn't exactly the average person. Duncan interrupted his thoughts,

"They hit me together. Like it was a sport. I kept running through the house, trying to get into rooms and lock the doors, but they were too fast. They just kept shouting at me, saying they didn't need me. That they would be happy again if I just left."

Was this it? Had he run away? He wasnt sure he really cared if that was the case, his parents had probably just been drunk anyway, and-

"I didn't leave, you know."

He noticed green eyes looking at him. His eyes seemed to look straight through him, it was like he was seeing right into his mind.

"I tried to stay. It was them who left. I woke up in the middle of the night to find a note saying that they had left to start a new life together. In Spain."

It was then that he recognised. The other boy wasn't him. He had his problems, and those problems were bad. Even if they weren't the worst, they were still horrible. Rythian wasn't regular. Comparing his life to another person's wasn't fair. So he didn't, and never would again.

"That was when I ran, I just- I couldn't s-stay in that house, you know?"

"Yeah.. Yeah, I understand."