Viewpoints- Dar

I remember when I was only 10. When I was supposed to be asleep. That night was cold, I remember…. And my brother wasn’t in bed.
So, I walked out of my room to see my twin sitting curled up against our father-- the man who never paid attention to me. His head was rested against our father’s chest, hand resting easily near his head. I have always been jealous of Rei-Rei, who’s always been able to show affection to our father so….. Well, so easily.
Our father had leaned down to kiss Rei-Rei’s head, gently stroking my twin’s hair. I can recall all that was said…..
“It’s not fair.” Rei-Rei, his voice soft and slightly muffled. “Why must we run, father?” He had twisted to look up at the man, his face, MY face, looking up in loving earnesty. Our father had bowed his head. Hayvyn was his name, and he was, and is, the king of Sake’Te’Riah.
“It’s not anyone’s fault. People just wanted my rule to end.” He pushed his glasses up his nose as he said this. “I was chased out of the country, and because you’re the crown prince, you have to suffer for it.”
“What about Dar?” I took note that our father was silent on this. Silent, and his jaw tightened. “Father?”
“Dar is…. A special case.” His voice was pitched low, as if he was trying to say as little as possible.
“What do you mean? Father, I don’t understand.” Rei-Rei shook his head, brow furrowing slightly. I could see that his eyes shone with honesty, and an innocent curiosity.
“He’s….. Not what you think he is.” Our father took a deep breath, the bristles of his now shaggy beard stirring as he let it out in a prolonged sigh.
“He’s….. A Key.” His eyes slid closed after this statement. To me, this wasn’t much of a statement. It was of no importance, to be honest. Or so my little 10-year-old brain told me. I mean, so I was a “Key”. Big whoop. That must mean that I could open doors more easily than others. But Rei-Rei seemed to understand what he was getting at.
“A…. Key??” His eyes widened with shock. “Father, you can’t be serious!” He jerked away from our father, face pale and lips parted. From my vantage point, it looked like he could begin to scream at any point.
“A Key.” The tone was grim, making me recoil slightly. I remember starting to shake at our father’s tone, my brother’s reaction. All that I could see was the way they stared at each other, the way my brother looked so small and frightened.
“Then…. Why does nothing happen when we’re together?” Tiny, tiny voice of my twin. Even back then, my twin had always spoken confidently.
“Nothing happens because you, yourself, are not a Key.” Our father’s hand smoothed consoling over my brother’s considerably shorter hair. “You are the Crown Prince of Sake’Te’Riah, and nothing more. Perhaps on your mother’s side you have the potential to become a powerful mage, but you are no Key.”
At these words all I could hear was a roaring in my ears, the sound of their voices being blocked out. I could still see them talking, but could no longer hear them. I watched, feeling like I was drowning on the inside as SOMETHING inside of me rose up, a boiling, powerful sensation that had me gagging within seconds. It felt like I had to either open my mouth to let it all spew out or have me burst.
Vaguely, as I put a hand to my head, I saw our father look up in alarm. It had gotten a lot darker out, and there seemed to be some sort of heavy wind stirring the trees. It made our father’s hair blow heavily out to one side, and it caught and played with my twin’s nearly shoulder-length hair.
I remember standing up and trying to stumble away. I know all I saw was our father jump up, and his mouth opened, moving in a way that suggested that he was shouting something, even as he shielded his face from flying debris. I didn’t wait to see what it was he wanted. I turned and fled.
A Key. It was something bad, judging from what they had been saying. Judging just by their tones. It wasn’t even what our father had said that freaked me out. It was the way that my brother had reacted.
Even though I had always been ignored, being the lesser of two people, my brother and I had always gotten along. He’d never expressed fear towards me. Never shown it when looking at me. But, the way he’d looked up at our father… Pure, unadulterated fear. Simple as that.
It seemed that I was alone. No more could I depend upon my own brother. He was terrified of me. The knowledge had burned in my mind, and the knowledge that it was true…. It hurt.
I remember making my mind up about something as I ran, as branches and assorted bits of foliage hit me. I would run far and fast from them, away from the fear and their knowledge of what I was. I would hide away so they couldn’t find me.
I would live by myself, and I would survive.