#child!zelos

Don’t talk to strangers when walking alone. The warning has been repeated over and over, but it slips right out of his mind as he spots the outlandish hairstyle the older man is wearing. He’s seen all those colors in hair before of course, but never all on one person.

Casually plays dead for tiny Zelos. Oh no, you defeated him~. “Looks like you’re the victory kid, I’m a goner~.”

He’s old enough to know he’s being humored, but it still brings a smile to his face. 

Zelos wasn’t a particularly clumsy child, but sometimes when he was over excited he didn’t look where he was going. He’d been running along a broad decorative stone ledge, but it was uneven. The edge of his shoe caught on a protruding stone and he pitched forward, eyes widening as he flailed for his balance. Fortunately Yuri had quick reflexes and caught him before his face met the street. Yuri didn’t escape unscathed though, his arm took the brunt of the damage Zelos would have taken in the fall.

“I’m sorry!” he immediately apologized, scrambling back to his feet. His gaze fixated on the red scrapes on Yuri’s arm and he winced. A half buried memory of a mother kissing the scraped hands of another child who had fallen. He’d envied that child, envied the whispered soothing words and the gentle kisses to soothe away the pain. He didn’t know if a kiss actually did anything, but it was worth a shot. Leaning down he pressed a brief, clumsy kiss to the scrapes.

He bit his lip uncertainly as he looked around himself for a landmark, anything he might have seen before on one of the trips with his father or Sebastian, but there was nothing to give him any clue about where he’d ended up. Clenching his small fists in determination, he continued down the street, a quiet inner battle waged with the part of him that wanted to cry. Only babies cried, and he was already six years old, and the heir to the Mana lineage at that.

Ahead of him, he saw a shock of familiar red, and his heart leapt with joy. His father might scold him for being out alone, but at least he wouldn’t be lost anymore. Without even pausing to think, he broke into a run, hands grasping at the taller redhead’s sleeves even as he called out “Father!” The man looked down, and Zelos released his sleeve in surprise, taking an involuntary step back. This wasn’t his father after all, though there were undeniable similarities in their faces. “I…I’m sorry” he managed, still staring up at the stranger with the same vibrant locks he himself wore. “I thought you were…someone else.”

He was still lost, and the knowledge came crashing down on him heavily. A suppressed sob escaped his lips before he could control it, and he hastily wiped away the tears that had threatened to spill onto his cheeks. He drew a deep breath to get himself back under control and met the man’s gaze, eyes the same shade as his own. “Excuse me…can you tell me where I am?” he asked.