Divine Intervention [for CleverFox]

[animefangirl]

Liam was just a child still so when the punishment was over and Kai pulled him into a hug he didn't immediately push away, but when he did realize that the man who'd 'hurt' him was hugging him he got annoyed by the contact and pulled away. Some day he would no doubt accept the hug for what it was but right now he wasn't able to do that. When Kai called Crevan down he of course wrapped his arms around his friend as soon as Crevan came over to him, sort of clinging to his friend since he could get that comfort from Crevan even though he hadn't taken it from Kai. He was just sniffling at this point so he just wiped at his eyes to get rid of the signs of his crying since that just embarrassed him. He got his crying under control after a few moments and pulled back a little to give Crevan a bit of a smile, "I'm okay, wasn't even that bad" He said with that boyish bravado that most boys had and Liam had in excess since he had the tough guy image going on. He glanced over at Kai then, the look actually not being quite as malicious as he usually was since Kai was slowly getting him to trust the man and think that he wasn't quite as bad as some other adults that Liam knew. "That soap was gross though, could've warned me he'd actually do it" He said, sort of joking to try and lighten the mood since he still thought that Kai couldn't understand what they were saying, he didn't blame his friend for not warning him though and hoped that Crevan would realize that.

[CleverFox]

Crevan had been sitting on the bed in the room that he and Liam had shared the night before knowing what was happening downstairs and pretty miserable because of it so when he heard Malakai calling to him the child was quick to make his way downstairs. And as soon as he saw just how miserable that Liam looked he quickly crossed the room and pulled his friend into a hug, trying to offer him the comfort that he was pretty sure that Liam hadn't accepted from Malakai. He held onto his friend while Liam got himself under control and he returned the smile when Liam said that it hadn't even been that bad, Crevan pretty sure that this wasn't the case but he wasn't going to argue with his friend because he knew exactly why his friend was trying to act tough. Of course the bit about the soap got him to make a face and the angel child said, "In my defense, I didn't actually know that he'd do it, he's never done that to me." Crevan had been a bit hard to deal with in the beginning but he hadn't been prone to swearing so the soap threat was one that he hadn't gotten. Malakai watched the two of them, rather amused by the conversation but now showing it, and after giving the pair a few moments he said, "Come on, I made breakfast though now it's cold so I'll have to warm it back up." With that he moved to make his way to the kitchen, leaving the two boys to follow him. Crevan turned to look at his friend and asked, "Hungry?" He was hoping that Liam would go and eat since he knew what it was like to not have food and he didn't want that for his friend, especially not when it was being offered with no strings attached.

[animefangirl]

Liam was quick to accept the hug that Crevan was offering him, and he calmed down fairly quickly once his friend was hugging him like that since it really did make him feel better even though he couldn't explain why that was the case. After he managed to calm himself down he told Crevan that it wasn't that bad and was sort of relieved when Crevan' didn't call him on that one since the other boy probably knew that it had been a firm spanking even if it wasn't really overly so for Liam's offense. After that he grumbled about the soap and nodded when Crevan said he had never experienced that particular 'joy', actually not surprised by that one since Crevan was the good one out of the two of them so it was easy to believe. He looked over at Kai when the man told them to come and he sort of scowled at the angels back as he walked out of the room before looking at Crevan when the other boy asked if he was hungry and nodding, since he was pretty much always hungry with his body going into starvation mode frequently to preserve what fat he did have so when he got food it tended to instantly store it as fat and that made Liam hungry faster. He walked into the kitchen with Crevan at that point and gingerly took a seat on a chair, relieved that there were cusions or else this would be a bit unbearable for him right now, and even with the cushions it was still uncomfortable. "He kept saying he was doing it cause he cared, he say that to you too?" he asked then, his voice sounding confused but he saw no reason not to talk about Kai literally right in front of his face since he thought this was a private conversation and likely would have been very upset if Kai indicated that he understood what was being said.

[CleverFox]

Crevan was happy to give his friend some comfort, the little angel boy having come to realize over the last year that it really did make you feel better after a punishment to be held and reassured and since Liam wouldn't accept that from Malakai right now the child felt that he should be the one to give it. He didn't protest when his friend pulled away and instead sort of tried to justify why he hadn't warned the other boy about the soap, Crevan saying that he hadn't ever experienced it. It wasn't really because he was better than his friend but more because Keegan had been violent toward him whenever he used that sort of language so he'd learned very quickly not to. Of course his father had been violent for any number of reasons and even for no reason alone so that wasn't really all that surprising. The man had been cruel by any standard and that was evident by the scars that his son had bore as well as by the size of the child since he'd never grown to even close to the size he should have been for his age. Which made him a cute little angel but was still sad. When Malakai told them to come with into the kitchen for breakfast Crevan asked Liam if he was coming and was pleased when the other boy nodded, the child smiling and leading the way into the kitchen. He took a seat beside his friend and looked over at Liam when he asked about whether Malakai said that he punished him because he cared. "Yea he says that every time and always has. Told me that if he didn't care then there wouldn't be any reason for him to bother doing it because he doesn't enjoy it. I believe him when he says that, he doesn't get that same gleam in his eyes that Keegan and Ian always had when the..." Crevan's words trailed off there but he figured that Liam would be able to finish that sentence without him having to. Malakai came over to the table then and placed a plate of sausage, eggs and gravy in front of Liam, along with a couple of biscuits. "There you go, eat up," he said before placing a similar plate in front of Crevan. "Made one for you too," he told his young charge, having done it because he'd noticed the day before that Liam seemed to be more comfortable eating when Crevan was eating with him.

[animefangirl]

Keegan wasn't the only one that was violent when his son used foul language, Ian was similarly violent when Liam slipped up and did it around him too. He just didn't fear anyone else the same way he feared his dad, and to a lesser extent his godfather, so he had a sailors mouth when he wans't around them. He was going to add Kai to the list of adults not to talk like that around, though the reason was different of course since he didn't fear violence from Kai but that soap was not something he ever wanted to experience again. After hugging Crevan he headed into the kitchen and carefully sat at the table where he was lost in thought for a few moments before asking Crevan his question and he frowned when Crevan answered him, getting a slightly haunted look in his eyes when Crevan mentioned the gleam their dads got when they were 'punishing' them for something but he decided not to dwell on that part and just addressed the first part of what Crevan said. "That's just weird" He said back, finding the whole concept hard to grasp but he wasn't going to say anything more about it right now he just needed time to think about it and decide for himself if he was going to believe it or not. He looked over at Kai as the man brought the food over and he was sort of surprised by what was put in front of him since it took a while to make this sort of breakfast and he hadn't expected Kai to put that much effort into something like that. "Thanks" he said, looking over at Kai with a slightly less angry look in his eyes since it was hard to be angry at the man when he went to this much trouble doing something for Liam that was just for Liam since the other two didn't need to eat. He was also sort of happy when Kai put a plat in front of Crevan since he really did feel weird eating on his own even if Crevan didnt' need to eat. He picked up his fork and dug in at that point, eating more than he had the night before but still not as much as a child hsi age and size should since he couldnt' without getting sick even if he wanted to. After that he glanced at the clock and got a sort of worried look in his eyes, "I need to go back, he's gonna start wondering where I am soon." He said, getting up and giving Crevan a hard hug as if afraid he wouldnt' see him again or something. "See you later" he said, technically saying it to Crevan but it could be taken as being said to both. After that he headed towards home, not sure if he was being followed or not and sort of on edge because of that but he wasn't actually intending on doing anything that he thought Kai would disapprove of so he wasn't really worried.

[CleverFox]

Crevan knew that the concept of someone punishing them because he cared rather than because he was drunk and angry or, in Crevan's case, hated their very existence was a bit difficult to grasp and it had taken him a long time to do it as well so he wasn't going to push Liam toward acceptance. The angel child knew that it was just something that he was going to have to discover for himself though Crevan would be there to help him along the way since that was just what friends were for and he'd always tried to be a good friend to Liam. "It is weird but once you get used to it it's kind of nice to have someone that cares," Crevan said softly, the child never having known that before his death since his mother had died on the day that he and his twin were born so he'd never known anything other than his father's cruel treatment. Or at least not since he was three and his aunt had taken care of him but she hadn't exactly been loving even if she hadn't been abusive though the child hadn't known that at the time, he'd thought she loved him at least so he'd been devastated when she went away. Her promise to return to him was actually the reason why he was so adamant that promises should always be kept but very few people knew that. When Malakai brought the food over to them Crevan looked at the guardian angel for a moment but when Kai gestured to the food he just shrugged his shoulders and started to eat. He didn't eat as much as Liam since he didn't need it and he'd always ate like a bird anyway, so he was finished first and just patiently waited for his friend to finish. Though he was sad when Liam said that he had to go but he knew the reason why so he just returned the hug that Liam gave him and said, "I'll be around." He wanted Liam to have that reassurance so he told his friend that he would be around before he watched his friend leave. Malakai walked over to his young charge and placed a hand on Crevan's shoulder as he said, "We're going to watch over him, don't worry." Crevan looked up at his mentor and sort of smiled at that, Crevan worried about his friend but hoping that it would all be okay.

[animefangirl]

Liam nodded when Crevan told him it was weird but nice once he got used to it, the child not really sure if he believed that or not but he wasn't really going to doubt Crevan so he was hopeful that it might be less 'mean' later and he might actually get some comfort from Kai when all was said and done. after that he just ate his breakfast and chatted quietly with Crevan until he was done and he had to leave. He smiled a little when Crevan told him that he'd be around, that thought comforting the boy even though he had already known it he was still happy to hear it "Okay, I'm holding you to that" he said softly, squeezing Crevan one last time before he left the house and slowly started to make his way back 'home'. He was as always afraid to go back inside since he had no idea what sort of mood his dad was in and he had no idea if Keegan was still there or not but Ian was always worse when Keegan was around. So he had to give himself a little bit of a pep talk as the house came into view to force himself to walk at a normal pace and head inside, since his dad got pissed if he saw him acting weird outside since he of course didnt' want to draw attention to Liam's frequent bruises, though the man was usually careful to keep those where they did not show. He walked inside and closed the door as quietly as he could before trying to make his way to his bedroom without being noticed, walking a bit on the slow side so he could walk quietly and he had his shoulders hunched and his eyes on the floor, though that was more a defensive gesture that he'd picked up over the years than anything else and he only acted that way around Ian and Keegan.

[CleverFox]

Crevan offered up a sort of sad smile when Liam said that he was going to hold him to what he'd said about being around, the little angel boy saying quietly, "I'll always be there for you Liam." He felt that he had failed his friend in a way by committing suicide but there wasn't anything that he could do about that now so all that was left was for him to just help Liam as much as he could now. Malakai stood by and watched the two of them hug before Liam left to go back home. He felt bad for Crevan when he saw how sad the child looked and he felt just as bad for Liam but for the moment there was nothing he could do for either of them.

Ian had woken a short time ago, mainly because Keegan had woken him when he'd gotten up to head off to work. His hangover wasn't as bad right now as it usually was, which was a good thing since he had a couple of clients that he needed to meet with and that would be a real pain if he had to do it with a pounding headache. He was in the kitchen, drinking his third cup of coffee, when he heard the sound of the door and he knew immediately who that had to be. "Liam!" he snapped out, turning his gaze toward the door that led out of the kichen. "Get your butt in here right now boy!" The tone of his voice left no room to argue, Ian leaning against the kitchen counter and sipping his black coffee as he waited for his son to join him. He had something that he wanted to discuss with the boy so he needed him there now so that he could tell the kid and then leave since he was due to meet his first client in about an hour.

[animefangirl]

Liam smiled and nodded when Crevan said he would be there for him, not saying anything in response he was just comforted by the words and they did make him feel a little bit better about things and about leaving. After that he headed out, not aware that he'd left Crevan feeling sad behind him or else he likely would have felt bad about that but he hadnt' seen the expression on Crevns face as he was leaving. He headed home and when he got there he let himself in and tried to be quiet about it but apparently his luck wasn't in today, even less so because Ian was leaving soon so if he'd waited an hour he would have missed him. He jumped when he heard his dad snapping his name out, having to bite back the groan he wanted to make at that but when the man ordered him to get into the room 'right now' he felt a flash of terror as he wondered if the man had discovered the missing money or something. He knew better than to ignore an order like that though so he walked fairly quickly over to the kitchen, just shy of jogging, and came fully into the room but stayed hovering near the door just because he felt safer with that distance between then. "Sir?" he asked quietly when he walked in, his eyes on the floor unless the man ordered him to look at him and he just stood there and waited to see what his dad wanted, hoping that he hadn't managed to piss the man off since he just didn't want to deal with his back throbbing as well as his butt right now.

[CleverFox]

Ian had already taken Ibuprofen for his headache and was trying to help that along with the black coffee so he wasn't quite as pissy as he might have been had Liam returned earlier so the boy had at least a small amount of luck going for him on this particular morning. Even so the man wasn't really in a good mood when he heard the sound of the front door opening so he snapped out for his kid to get his butt into the kitchen and then he just leaned against the counter and waited for the boy to obey his summons. He was sipping his coffee when Liam came into the kitchen and he of course noticed the way that the boy came to a stop just inside the door and that sort of annoyed him, the man looking over at the child and saying, "Over. Here." He put emphasis on each word so that Liam would know that he meant business and once the boy came over to him Ian looked down at him for a moment before he said, "I've decided that I'm not going to homeschool you anymore, I don't have the time for that. So you're going to be starting public school tomorrow. I'm going to register you today after meeting with my clients. And you'd best not do anything that will reflect badly on this family or else." Ian didn't finish the threat, leaving it at 'or else' but then again he didn't need to finish the threat because his kid knew exactly what would happen if he did anything that Ian considered detrimental to his reputation.