The twisted lullaby of the abandoned child.

      Or, don't play with fire unless you want to get burned.

      Or, the traitor befriends the betrayed.

"Niki?" 

Niki heard one rap, and then two on the polished oak door. She smiled. 

"Come in, Eret!" 

Eret stepped into Tommy's house hesitantly. Sunlight filtered through the windows, Henry the cow mooing softly in the corner. Niki stood in the center, hands on her hips, wearing an oversized white T-Shirt. A large cauldron filled with water was in front of her, bottles of a black substance dotting along a white tarp laid on the floor. 

"Whatcha doing?" 

Niki turned back to him, a devilish smile on her face. "How do you feel about hair dye?" 

------------------------

"So why do you want to do this again?" 

"Because," Eret struggled to brush another strand of hair with the sticky plastic gloves as Niki leaned over the makeshift sink. "I want to sort of rethink things, you know? Become a stronger person." 

"You're already strong, Niki." 

"You really think so?" Niki looked up at Eret, his sunglasses pushed up into his curly brown hair. He smiled down at her. It was a genuine smile. 

It was a friendly smile. 

"Hell yeah, dude." The foil crinkled beneath his finger's as he clenched it over the saturated strands of hair. "You're probably the strongest out of all of us. You stood up to Schlatt like it was nothing." 

"But things haven't been fixed." Niki sighed, pushing away from the sink and standing up. "So I'm obviously not strong enough." 

"I-I just can't stay the same anymore." Henry nuzzled into her hand as she scratched his head. "I can't just be Niki who bakes sweets and plays with foxes." 

"What's wrong with being you?" Eret took off the plastic gloves, stuffing them into a bag. "I think you're awesome." 

"Being me is going to take down Schlatt." Niki looked at herself in the reflection of the glass, eyes hardening. "I will not stand, and I will not fall for a selfish leader." 

"Not everything is lost, right?"

-------------------------------------

Eyes burned into the back of Fundy's head. 

Everybody but nobody is watching. 

Red, white, blue, and black flashed through the night sky, the flag waving in the wind. Below it, the flame in Fundy's hand did the same. The smell of gasoline filled his nose.

I've got something to prove. 

He tried to keep his paws from shaking. He could feel the eyes. They were always watching, watching, watching. 

I've got everything to lose.

The fire flickered across his face as he looked up, clenching the splintered wooden stick tighter. His breath swirled in front of him. He wondered what would happen if he blew out the torch. 

You want this, don't you? 

His fingers hurt as they dug into the rough wood of the flagpole. He felt apprehension climb up into his throat but he kept scaling the steep beam. 

I want this. 

His stomach dropped as he looked down at the ground far below again. He squeezed his eyes shut, foot slipping as he kept on climbing. The fire kept steady in his right hand. 

I want this. 

Breath got caught in his throat, coming out shakily as he stopped beneath the beautiful tapestry. He gazed up at it, black eyes becoming glassy. 

It was breathtakingly beautiful. 

You want this, don't you?

His arm felt like lead as he rose it up, flame flickering at the end. The wind almost knocked him off the pole as he clung to it for dear life. Another shaky breath escaped as he closed his eyes, the wind chilling him to the bone. 

You want this.

He thrust his aching arm up. 

And the flames exploded, licking his coat with heat. 

He looked down, trying to focus on not falling as he made his way down the pole. Orange casted a glow over everything. 

He looked up. 

It's done. 

His legs shook underneath him as he tried to not collapse on his knees. The torch hung loosely at his side. 

Up above him, orange ate away at the beautiful flag. The light radiated over L'Manburg, filling up the night sky with fire. And yet, the flag still waved in the wind. It still waved as orange and yellow flickered through it. 

I wanted this. 

His arm rose again, the torch shaking above him. A raspy, ragged voice erupted from his mouth. It didn't sound like his voice. 

"DOWN WITH THE FLAG!" 

Sobs built up in his throat, but he didn't let them out. His body shook with the effort. 

"A NEW ERA IS UPON US!" 

"NO!" 

Fundy's eyes widened. Chills ran down his spine. He spun around, his stomach dropping. 

No. 

"NO!" Eret supported Niki as her leg's seemed to give out, her light brown eyes fracturing. "No, Eret no-" 

"Water!" Eret left Niki, running desperately to the flag, bucket in hand. "We need water!" 

"SOMEBODY WE NEED WATER!" 

Eret's cries for help seemed muffled in the back of Fundy's head as he stared at Niki, rooted to the spot. Her hands were clasped over her mouth as the fire cast a yellowish glow over her unmoving face, still with shock. "No...." 

He watched as her eyes drifted over to him, her eyes filling with anger and rage that he had never seen before. 

"YOU!" 

It was like pain and pure emotion was ripping out of her as she clenched her fists, black billowing behind her. She rose a shaking hand towards him. "I TRUSTED YOU!" 

Tears erupted in her eyes. "I TRUSTED YOU! I-I STOOD BESIDE YOU! I BELIEVED IN YOU!" 

Fundy couldn't seem to speak. Anger made Niki's voice rasp, her calm, sweet demeanor gone. 

The girl that had baked sweets with him, had taken care of a fox with him, his best friend. 

She was gone. 

And it was his fault. 

"THIS IS WHAT YOU WANTED THE WHOLE TIME, DIDN'T YOU? YOU JUST WANTED POWER!" 

Fundy felt a rough hand push him in the chest, and he stumbled back. 

"I HATE YOU!" Her voice cracked with overexertion, everything coming out of her. "I HATE YOU, ITSFUNDY! I HATE YOU!" 

"EVERYTHING WAS A LIE!" Tears streamed down her face openly. "NOTHING WAS TRUE, WAS IT?" 

Fundy wished he could open his mouth. He wished he could speak and hug his best friend, and tell her that no, it was all true. He would never lie to her. 

But he couldn't. 

"WAS IT?" 

He bit his lip, refusing to look her in the eye. 

"WELL, YOU CAN HAVE YOUR POWER! BUT YOU KNOW WHAT?" Niki clutched her arms to her chest protectively, body shaking with conviction. "YOU'LL NEVER HAVE ME! NEVER!" 

"I HOPE THAT YOU BURN IN HELL!" 

Fundy heard her storm away as he stared at the ground. The flame on his torch had burned out, and now it lay uselessly at his side. It fell to the ground, snubbing the grass with black ash. 

"Fundy, get a hold of yourself man! What are you doing!" Eret's words stung like a slap to the face. "Why would you do that to her? Why would you-" 

Fundy looked up, his eyes filled with pain and regret and tears. Eret stopped in his tracks. 

He knew that look. 

He saw it everytime he looked in the mirror. 

"Do you want to talk?" 

-----------------------------

Fundy watched the warm tea as it swirled in the cup clutched in his hands. His legs dangled off the edge of Eret's tower. 

"Niki's with H. He's calming her down." Fundy felt Eret sit next to him, tucking his cape under him. 

They sat in silence for a moment, the wind whistling up the tall building. 

"So.... tea, huh?" 

Eret chuckled. "Can't help my British roots." 

Fundy looked down at the tea cup again for a moment. He suddenly screamed, expelling something as he threw the tea cup as hard as he could. He watched it as it drifted into the distance, breathing heavily. 

"Fuck." He felt tears come to his eyes as he cradled his head in his hands. "FUCK!" 

Eret reached out slowly to pat him gently on the back. "Why are things so fucking confusing? What part of me thought this would be a GOOD IDEA!" 

Fundy hiccuped. "I just didn't want to be treated like a kid anymore. IS THAT TOO FUCKING MUCH TO ASK FOR!" 

His vision was hazy as he ranted into the wind. "Joining Schlatt was the wrong choice, I'll admit that! BUT MAYBE I WOULDN'T HAVE JOINED HIM IF YOU'D BEEN A BETTER DAD!"

"And I know you're not even my Dad!" The wind bit at his face. "But if you were going to act like one you could've at least PICKED ME OVER TOMMY!" 

Fundy crumbled, exhausted as he slumped over, staring at his hands. "I guess you wanted someone that would never grow up." 

Fundy suddenly became aware of Eret's hand still on his shoulder. He looked away in shame. "I'm sorry." 

"You don't have to be." Eret's voice was soft, calm and forgiving. 

I don't deserve his forgiveness. 

"But I do." Fundy clenched his fists. "I fucking hate Schlatt. I just was so- so angry about my life before, and I thought that I could change that." 

"You wanted control again." 

Fundy nodded. "But nothing changed. I'm still fucking trapped. And it's even harder when every single person that you love hates you." His voice became wobbly. 

"And the worst thing is that they have every right to hate me." 

He turned to Eret, his voice small. Still a little kid. "Why don't you hate me?" 

"I don't hate you, Fundy." Eret's voice cracked a little as he met Fundy's eyes. He could see himself in them. 

He could see the pain, and the guilt. How it was piling up inside Fundy like bile. 

"Remember through everything, I don't hate you. That was the one thing-" He tried to smile as memories flooded back. "That was the one thing I wished someone would say to me. I don't hate you." 

Fundy suddenly chuckled sadly. "How ironic. The one person I'm supposed to hate is the only person that doesn't hate me." 

"Ironic it is." Eret stared out across the sparse Manburg. It looked so small without the walls. "We're a strange duo, aren't we?" 

The two traitors. 

"Schlatt's weak. He tries to pretend he's strong. I-I need to do something. I need to fix my mistakes. I'm in a perfect position. Even it means-" Fundy almost choked on his words. "Even it means making everyone hate me. I need to do what's right."  

The sun peeked over the horizon, and the duo watched it fill the sky with orange. 

"You can't tell anyone, ok? I-If anyone else knows, everything will come crashing down. From this moment on, we're enemies." 

"Don't you think it would be better to be friends?" 

------------------------------------

HEHEHEHEH guysss we have yet another date coming up. November 16th. The day where they storm Manburg. And the traitor is revealed. Hehhehe oh I'm nervoussss. So sorry that my pacing is so slow :( it'll definitely speed up once this is all over and they have finished the arc. So sorry for not posting a lot. See ya guys in the next chapter! 

(Also Eret and Fundy friendship is POGGGG! I loved watching their karoake night. Also, Train Wreck by James Arthur is a really good song. I looped it while writing this chapter lmao.)