Eventually, they made it out of the crowd and rushed toward a quieter sheltered area behind building walls, away from prying eyes.

“Shh,” Aurelius motioned, raising one hand to his lips as he kept his other clenched on Lucian’s shoulder. Aurelius wasn’t too pleased at the attention that Lucian had brought. Having all those eyes staring made him uncomfortable, as if they were staring into his very soul, demanding answers from him.

Lucian shrugged off Aurelius, annoyed that he had been dragged away so roughly. Lucian straightened up and kept silent.

Aurelius let him go with a sigh. “Look. I just didn’t want to tell anyone yet. I’m not an Angelous, Daemon, or a Djinn.” He said it so softly that Lucian was having a hard time hearing his voice. Lucian just shook his head, as if not understanding, so Aurelius spoke one more time. “I’m not an Angelous, Daemon, or a Djinn.”

“How is that possible? You have been profiled as an Angelous,” Lucian said with a weary tone of voice. He searched Aurelius’ gaze, as if trying to figure out why his best friend was saying this. Lucian didn’t seem to believe it.

Aurelius wondered about his parents, who had passed away. Aurelius felt a chill from trying to explain everything.

“I was adopted into an Angelous family, but even then, I didn’t feel like I completely belonged with them.” Aurelius had never felt a true connection with his adoptive parents. He knew they weren’t the same, but he still loved them. “I’m now even more sure I am an Outsider from the bulletin board.”

“Family is family.” Lucian cut him off. “Even if you are an Outsider, I don’t think your past family would have seen you any other way.”

“They said the same thing before they died.” A soft smile of love spread on Aurelius’ lips. He loved his parents and their acceptance.

“Just because these days support for Outsiders isn’t too high…” Lucian sighed. “That doesn’t mean much when going to school. Plus, do you think I care what you are? You’re Aurelius, my best friend.” Lucian elbowed him; the usual smug smile appearing on his lips.

Aurelius nodded, understanding what Lucian had meant. He was grateful for his friend and his support. As if on cue, a group of voices was heard from the corner of the building, disrupting their conversation. They glanced over, wondering what was going on. Aurelius walked over, peeking over the side.

“Scum.” A small group of Djinns shoved a humanoid creature with bunny ears to the ground. Its fluffy tail and ears were pulled harshly by the Djinn.

With a yelp of pain, the humanoid bunny, an Outsider, curled up tightly into a ball. The humanoid bunny held up his hands to cover from the attack, while he was being pounded into the ground. The bunny was cowering on the ground, trying to hold off the beating from both the Djinn students.

Aurelius was appalled at what he had seen. He had heard about this distasteful act called “bullying” in the books but had never seen it until now. His stomach twisted into knots at this disgusting act; he felt a small fire burn in his heart.

Bullying was something that rarely happened and was quickly put out with strict discipline. The only reason such an act was even seen was that the new world residents brought this act from the outside world; taking their old habits along with them.

Aurelius stepped forward. His fist was curled up, ready to attack. He wasn’t going to stand for this heinous act. But before he could run ahead, Lucian stopped him from moving any closer. He gave Aurelius a warning glare and shook his head, telling him not to stop it. With a forceful yank, Aurelius pulled away.

“What are you doing?”

Aurelius was angry at Lucian’s actions. Lucian rarely ever stopped him from doing certain things, although this was one of those rare few cases. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to listen—but he couldn’t stand what he was seeing before him.

“Don’t,” Lucian replied. “You know that they are a part of the factions that don’t like the Outsiders. Making an enemy with them will just make your life difficult, especially when that group is Djinns. You know they have the worst tempers and the biggest supporter for banning the Outsiders from this world entirely.”

Lucian tried to steer his friend away from trouble.

“You are a student council member; I thought you were against this kind of thing,” Aurelius hissed.

“I am,” Lucian replied, trying to calm his friend down, but Aurelius wasn’t listening.

“This is unjust. We are all equal in this kingdom,” Aurelius angrily replied. “The King has deemed it so!”

Lucian sighed, shaking his head. “No, the King had not stated that yet. You should know from history that the Angelous and Daemons were the first beings to be created side by side. One made from purely light and the other from the darkness. Then, it was the Djinns made from fire, and following that, there were many more. Recently some laws allowed Outsiders to reside in the city walls. There have been cases where the sinners fell out of favor because of crimes that were committed. Nowhere has there been a law, at the moment, that states that we are all equals.”

Aurelius was shocked at the news that he had just learned, for he had thought that wasn’t the case. He was usually oblivious to the political workings of the world for he didn’t keep too close of an eye on it. He would hear bits and pieces through rumors or sometimes from Lucian’s rants—if Aurelius wasn’t tuning him out. But Aurelius knew that Lucian would have gotten the updated information first.

“But I heard that the King would eventually put such a law in effect this year,” Aurelius countered. “These types of meaningless quarrels would stop then.”

“You should know better than that. Even an event such as this won’t change the minds of the people in one day. It took Angelous and Daemons almost a thousand years to finally resolve their differences. Who knows how long it will take for peace between all the races? This is history we are talking about. When such things happen, it takes time.”

Aurelius pulled his hands back sharply. “Even still, we need to start somewhere. One change could make a difference.”

Lucian went silent for a moment, breathing in deeply as he closed his eyes.

Aurelius watched Lucian; he could tell that Lucian was contemplating what Aurelius had just said. He knew that he had pushed Lucian’s button, and he could feel he just needed one more push to show that staying hidden behind cover wasn’t going to solve anything.

“Even when your adopted family passed away, their orders still stand to keep you safe from harm,” Lucian said sternly. His counterargument threw Aurelius off. “Not to see you get hurt.”

“Well, throw that obligation away. They’re dead.” Aurelius grumbled. He knew how difficult it was to sway Lucian’s mind. He could see Lucian’s distaste at the bullying that was happening before them, but he didn’t act as quickly as Aurelius wanted him too. He clenched his fists tightly, getting frustrated.

Lucian became silent, frowning with sadness at what Aurelius had said. There was a hint of nostalgia and pain, gripping through out his body. He tightened up, scowling his lips into a thin line.

“Your mother and father adopted you and took care of you. They even saved your life by exchanging it with theirs when you were kidnapped at a young age.” Lucian voice was low and threatening.

Aurelius cringed. He felt his heart twist and knot. He could never forget that night as it was like no other night. Blind folded, stuffed into a tiny wooden box, and carted away to who knows where. The stale air and animal piss lined against the inside were nauseating, while the crate walls felt as if they were closing in on all sides, getting smaller and smaller every time he was jostled around. At one point, he thought he would become a cube. Even the kidnappers’ voices were low and rough, spewing out gibberish of some foreign language he could not understand. To him, their whispers were close to grunts and growls.

Eventually, the crate was thrown against the ground, and he tumbled inside, banging his head. Spots of colored lights decorated his eyes, making everything a blur. A loud crash, screams, shouts and anger, and even metal against metal was heard all around him, until finally he had heard his parents’ voices. The crate had been pried open as the sweet smell of flowers drifted in the air, telling him that his parents were here.

Lucian gaze had locked onto Aurelius’ bringing a wind of relief and excitement as Lucian helped him out. But as if a bolt of lightning strike down from the very sky, everything happened to fast. His parents had shrieked, and magic was cast in such cacophony that he couldn’t tell from right to left as his eyes was still a blur from exiting out of darkness inside the crate.

Eventually, he heard his mother screaming to Lucian, telling him to protect him with his life. They ran. They ran until they could no more.

Why he was kidnapped, he didn’t know. This question had always nagged at the back of his mind, but the only answer that he had gotten from.

“Do not disrespect their lives with such petty thoughts.” Lucian hissed. “I was there when they said to protect you with my life. It is an honor and a privilege to be given such a task by someone of their caliber. We Daemons never go back on our words.”

A distraught cry brought both of them back.

Lucian grabbed Aurelius’ wrist and shook his head.

“Let go.”

“No, this is not your problem.”

“Just because you’ve been my bodyguard and friend doesn’t mean I can’t go stop bullying that’s happening right in front of me. You don’t like to see such things too!” He said, raising his voice.

Aurelius knew that Lucian would deal with this problem in his way, but he wanted it to stop now. The yell of the rabbit Outsider riled his very soul, ushering him forward. Aurelius started to rock back and forth, looking at Lucian and back toward the scream, which told him that the Djinns weren’t going to stop anytime soon.

“You don’t know that, and you are my priority. Not the Outsiders, but you.” Lucian repeated, poking Aurelius in the chest.

“I can take care of myself. Plus, I am an Outsider.” Aurelius stressed the last word, pushing Lucian’s hand aside.

“That is still to be confirmed,” Lucian snapped back; he was getting angry at Aurelius’ words. He folded his arms across his chest with a sound of displeasure in his voice. “Your fighting ability is below average, and you expect to win against one of the elites? Didn’t you see their emblems on their shoulders?”

Aurelius wasn’t sure what he was talking about. He turned toward the group, squinting toward where Lucian was pointing. He glanced at the group, realizing what Lucian had meant. “You don’t mean the black flower patch?”

“Yes. The House of Black. The highest apprentices to the Order of Knights that serve directly under the council member Black. Pick a fight with them, and you’re picking a fight with the council himself.”

Aurelius’ eyes turned wide. He wasn’t sure if he should be afraid or angry at hearing that the apprentices were using the Knights’ name to condone such atrocious behavior. Instead, this fueled his rage even more as he clenched up his fist harder into a ball.

Without a second thought, Aurelius yanked his hand out of Lucian’s grip. He bolted around and sprinted toward the bullies. Lucian’s hands missed grabbing onto Aurelius’ shirt, and in a flash, Aurelius was onto them. A flying fist soared toward a male Djinn and hit him squarely in the face. In that moment of surprise, Aurelius used the opportunity to do a spinning kick to the other male—his foot connecting on their chin and body as both crumpled onto the ground in pain.

The third Djinn quickly stepped back and was on guard in a matter of seconds. Flames burst from his hands, causing Aurelius to momentarily hesitate. The Djinn anticipated his next punch and he was ready to counter. Another Djinn came from the right, a fist flying toward Aurelius’ face. He saw the incoming hit, but his body wouldn’t listen. He couldn’t dodge the imminent attack and braced for impact, knowing full well that it was going to hurt.

Lucian’s hand appeared out of nowhere, catching Djinn’s fist. He disabled the other two in two strikes. They crumpled onto the ground, unconscious. He stared down at the remaining Djinn with a glare on his face.

“You idiot! You knew I would jump in!” Lucian roared. He pulled Aurelius away from the scene, leaving the bodies behind in a hurry. “You need to get out of here. Now!” Aurelius could hear a pitter-patter of feet, heading toward their direction. He knew that the others were coming.

They ran fast and hard, mingling back into the crowd of students. Slowing down, so as not to be caught, they walked at a steady pace past many buildings. Aurelius tried to act natural, and he attempted to control his heavy breathing as much as possible. He placed his hands on a nearby wall to brace himself.

Even Lucian was bent over, trying to catch his breath. They hid against the wall as they heard the pitter-patter of footsteps pass by them in a hurry.

Aurelius held his breath, pinning himself firmly against the back of the trash bin. He could feel his lungs quiver, trying to get a breath. Silence followed, keeping them both on edge, until finally the footsteps disappeared. A heavy sigh escaped his lips, allowing him to breathe. Slipping down onto the ground, he looked up at Lucian.

Lucian started to loosen up. He chuckled despite himself, eventually bursting out laughing, startling Aurelius. Curiously, glimpsing over at Lucian, Aurelius wondered why his friend was laughing so hard.