Pet Shop Of Horrors Fan Fiction ❯ How Long Love? ❯ A Dream of Long Ago ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Author's note: I am not nearly so familiar with the star trek universe as I am with Petshop of Horrors, so all you die-hard star trek fans will just have to excuse any mistakes I might make. I'm doing my best to make a great story.

WARNING: Reginald Barkley has a potty mouth.


Enjoy!



HOW LONG LOVE?
Chapter 3: Dream of long ago


A couple of hundred years later-
Leon- age 10



DREAM-


Leon was dreaming again and he dreamed he was a grown-up. He always knew when he was dreaming, because it always felt more real than real life. In the dream he had his hands stuffed in his pockets and he was looking at a man who was walking in front of him. The man was dressed very fancy in some kind of long robe that irritated Leon, for some reason.

'This is all to much.' Leon thought to himself. 'That tea, that incense.' Leon hung his head and closed his tired eyes as memories of what he'd thought had happened drifted through his mind. He remembered a jungle full of extinct animals and climbing up a tree, just to impress D. Then, in the end, he'd done something wrong, but couldn't remember what, exactly. D had been so angry with him. 'I'm gonna hear it from the chief, tomorrow. Discharging your weapon in a public place while half asleep isn't exactly smiled upon.' Leon wasn't sure what kind of weapon he had, or why he'd discharged it, but he knew he had one. It was because of his job. Just then, Leon looked up and saw that the man he was following was getting ahead of him, threatening to vanish into the night. "Huh? Hey, D! Wait up." He hurried his pace to keep up with the man and some found himself walking just behind the man, D.

Leon always dreamed of D.

"Yes, what is it?" D turned slightly, but kept walking. Even though he turned, Leon couldn't quite make out D's face. He could see a soft smile, but that was all.

Leon stuffed his hands back in his pockets and growled, "Ah...well...ya know...just wanted to say sorry for hitting you before." Even though D had been nearly hysterical with yelling and demanding to know if Leon would eat another person.

D's smile didn't change. "Oh, that. Well, we were dreaming. Don't worry."

"Okay. All right." A dream? 'I guess it was a dream after all.' Just a dream. Not real. None of it was real. Leon watched the back of D's head and the shining black hair. It seemed real. Leon could even feel the moisture of the night's fog on his face. It seemed very real.


END DREAM-


Leon woke up in the bed he'd been given and remembered where he was. The children's home, one of the many homes he'd had in his life. As an orphan, Leon had been shifted around from home to home in the vain hopes that he'd find someplace where he'd fit in. It had never happened and Leon felt sure he would be drifting around like this for the rest of his life.

It was unthinkable that in this modern day and age the Federation would forget any child, even though Leon wished that he would be forgotten about. Maybe if people would stop bothering him, he'd be able to finish dreaming. Maybe he'd finally see the face of the man in his dream.

Leon Barns was ten years old and had lived all his life in children's homes just like this one. For one reason or another, they always ended up moving him to another home; usually it was Leon's fault. He got into fights to often and everyone thought he was just to violent to handle. They were good places and Leon appreciated having a roof over his head and plenty of food to eat and Leon felt sure he should be more grateful for what he had in life. Long ago, Leon had learned in history lessons, he'd have been just tossed aside. The modern world didn't work like that. The Federation saw to the well-being of everyone, even orphans.

Once Leon was dressed in the standard clothes all the children were given, a one piece jumpsuit of brown and green, Leon left the dormitory room and went down to sit on the front steps of the Children's Home. He didn't bother with breakfast or finding out what classes he had, it didn't really seem important. Instead, Leon sat with his chin in his hands and his elbows on his knees, watching the world go by.

All of his life, Leon had felt alone. No matter how many other people were in the crowd around him, Leon couldn't help but feel lonely. It had always seemed as if someone was missing and it wasn't unusual for Leon to spend hours watching the people walk by, looking for that missing someone.

Of course it these few moments of peace never lasted long and soon Leon noticed someone standing next to him. She was middle aged, about fifty or so, with long hair and that was all that Leon could really notice. She was just another person, one of many who passed through his life, trying very hard to do the right thing for him.

"I don't suppose you remember me, Leon. I'm Ms. Landburg. I'm here to take you to the new home." She smiled brightly. "It's time to go in just a few minutes."

Leon did remember her and the interview when she'd arrived and asked many questions, like all the social workers did. How did he feel and what did he want to do with his life? Why had he gone into the woods?

"Whatever." Leon answered, turning back to the few people who passed by. Thanks to the transporter technology, very few people actually spent time walking anymore. Why should they bother when it was more efficient to just beam directly there. Of course, that way, few people saw the beauty of Earth. It seemed like such a sad waste.

"Oh, come on, Leon." Ms. Landburg said brightly, sitting beside him on the step. "Have a little more enthusiasm. Think of this as a grand adventure. It's nothing to be scared of."

"I'm not scared." Leon replied, feeling more than a little insulted. Only people who had something to lose got scared. Leon had nothing. He just wanted to be left alone.



A short while later, Leon was led away from the children's home and he didn't care at all. There was not a thing he would miss at there, except the animals. Thinking of that, made Leon look up. Sure enough, there was a large black shape flying high overhead, just above them. Leon smiled.

The crow wasn't the only animal that seemed to be coming to see Leon off. While he walked with Ms. Landburg, Leon watched what was going on around him and knew that he was the only one who saw it all. He was the only one who saw them. There were more people around than normal humans could see. Small, creeping people with sharp eyes and tall, willowy people who seemed to float as they walked around.

"Good bye, Leon."

"We'll miss you."

"Come back to see us soon."

"Keep out of trouble, little one."

Leon had once made the mistake of telling someone about what he saw. That had started most of Leon's problems. Of course no one had believed him and, after that day, they'd thought him deranged or a liar. From that first mistake and on, Leon had resolved to keep what he saw to himself. Instead of answering the people who spoke only to him, Leon just smiled at them and hoped they'd understand he couldn't answer because Ms. Landburg would hear. She couldn't see them and wouldn't understand if Leon started talking to butterflies and chipmunks.




They took a small shuttle half-way around to world to the new place where Leon would be living. It was a nice ride and Leon spent most of his time looking out the window, trying to ignore Ms. Landburg. It wasn't that he disliked her, but it was so distracting to concentrate on two things at once. There were people flying by, stealing glances into the shuttle. They were very beautiful and smiled fondly at him. There was on, in particular, that never left the window of the shuttle, a beautiful lady with very long black hair and skin the color of chocolate. Her eyes were very warm and her smile was bright.

"We're landing, Leon." The voice of the woman made Leon look away from what was happening outside the shuttle and he tried to concentrate on what he was supposed to do. It was hard and at one point, Leon froze, settling into a short dream.


DREAM-


"The human habit of trying to understand the world with a limited knowledge of it is beyond foolish." Delicate white hands were holding a black lacquer box with silver hinges and a silver lock. The voice was soft and sounded like how Leon thought silk should sound, as strange as that might be. It was a good voice, but not kind. The fingernails of the white hands were painted dark purple and Leon stared at those hands, though he wanted to look up at the face of the person.

There was a dragon egg in the box and it was going to be very bad if it hatched in the city. They were trying to get it out of the city, but the man holding the black box was angry about something.

When Leon tried to look at the person's face, Leon's vision blurred and the person was replaced by a glorious bird made out of fire. The bird looked at Leon with terrifying eyes. "Not yet." The fire bird told Leon, its voice was as terrible as its eyes and Leon tried desperately to look away. "Do not be afraid. I am here to watch you. When it is time, you will see him."


END DREAM-


"Leon? Are you even listening?"

"Yeah." Leon focused on the woman and wondered why he was never allowed to see D's face. He knew the man was called D, the one holding the black and silver box with such white hands. "I'm listening."

The woman sighed and shook her head with resignation. "You have to do better, Leon. How are you ever going to live with your head in the clouds?" She reached out and moved to pat his shoulder, but Leon jerked away with a scowl.

"Don't touch me!" He snapped. Leon didn't really like other people touching him. What was so wrong with living in dreams? Leon liked his dreams and it was in his dreams of long ago that Leon felt most...well...whole. In those dreams, it felt as if he weren't missing apart of himself. Those dreams with D, whose face he couldn't quite see...

The woman rolled her eyes, but kept her practiced smile on. "Very well. We really have to get going now." She looked out the window next to Leon. "We're here. Do you have everything?"

What a stupid question, Leon thought. He had nothing. Nothing of importance, anyway. A few pieces of clothes that he could live without. He would be getting new ones at whatever new home he was being taken to, anyway. "Yes." Leon answered shortly. He obediently stood and followed the nameless woman.

Leon dreamed very often and not always when he was asleep. He was haunted by dreams, but he didn't mind. The dreams that came to him in sudden, unexpected bursts were, more often than not, quite nice. He dreamed of a home where he was always welcomed and he dreamed of a family. Though he could never quite make out their faces, Leon knew them and he loved them. It was good, because Leon didn't have a real family to love him. All he had were dreams.

This time the dream had gone as quickly as it had come, but this time Leon was lucky that no one noticed anything. It happened that way, sometimes. He would just black out for a few minutes and then wake up again. Long ago, Leon had tried to tell someone about his dreaming, but everyone thought he was just making up stories. The few people that didn't think he was lying, thought he had some kind of mental problem. After that, Leon kept his dreams private.






~HOME FOR EMOTIONALLY DISTURBED CHILDREN~

Leon read the sign as he and the woman holding his hand walked passed it and towards the large building. Leon wasn't really paying attention to where they were going. This place would be no different than any of the other Children's Homes.

"Come along, Leon." The woman tugged at his hand to hurry him up.

"What's the hurry?" Leon asked, trying not to be distracted by the things he saw around him. He paused briefly when a butterfly fluttered by and she winked at Leon with her long eyelashes.

"We have an appointment and it would be very rude to be late. The head of this institute is a very busy man and...' But Leon had already tuned her voice out and watched the butterfly fly gracefully into the sky. He wondered why he could see such things when no one else ever could.

Leon let his mind wander while they walked and didn't see anything very interesting in the near future. This place would be the same as the last one. He'd stay in this children's home for a while and then be moved on. Leon had gotten used to it over the years. This was like a set pattern and Leon was very sure that nothing would change.

The children's home was just the same as all the others, from what Leon saw. It was several stories tall and gleaming white in the sunlight, like most other buildings, with a beautifully landscaped garden outside and a playground where about twenty children were playing under the supervision of three adults. Everyone looked happy and well adjusted in the carefully created environment.

Leon just knew he would hate it there.

Stepping on the first step that led up into the building, Leon happened to look down and he had a flashback, a dream, of another set of stairs.


DREAM-


Cracked concrete with weeds and dandelions. A high iron fence surrounding the building that was made of old, crumbling bricks. A quick look at the playground said that it was nothing more than a tarred over square with a jungle gym in the middle of it. He happened to see his shoe and noticed how old it was; falling apart at the seams with fraying laces. It was a grim place and Leon desperately missed his beautiful mom.


END DREAM-


Reality reasserted itself as well-maintained, modern step and Leon saw his own shoe turn into some old fashioned sneaker with untied laces. It was like seeing an image superimposed over reality for a moment, before the dream completely faded and Leon was left with the clean, crisp reality. The only problem was that Leon sometimes couldn't tell which one was real. Leon wondered what would happen if the dream didn't fade away.

"Leon? What's wrong?" The woman was looking at him with a puzzled expression that Leon was used to seeing when people saw him daydreaming. "What are you looking at?"

"Nothin'. There's nothin' to see, right?" Leon lied. He'd learned well enough not to tell anyone about the things he kept seeing.

"Well, don't lag behind." She gave him a smile. "I'm sure you'll like it here. There are so many nice children your own age."

Before they went into the building, Leon took another look at the playground over his shoulder and the children. He was sure he wouldn't like this place. The playground was very well kept, mowed with precision and immaculately clean. The grass was lush and several perfect trees surrounded the playground. 'It just doesn't look...real.' Leon thought. A playground shouldn't be so neat.



Being the modern, child-friendly place that it was, Mr. Goti, the man who sat behind a big black desk, told Leon that he could sit in with the meeting between himself and Ms. Landburg. Apparently, Ms. Landburg was the woman who'd brought him here. After all, this was a meeting about Leon's life so it was for the best if Leon had some input into the choices made. Even if Leon was only ten, it was considered politically correct to let him at least know what was going on.

"Whatever." Leon answered, disinterestedly as he sat in the chair Mr. Goti indicated. The office was meant to look homey and comfortable, painted in warm green colors and soft chairs.


DREAM-


Leon remembered an office with cold tile floors and a woman with her hair tied into a tight bun. He didn't like her at all. The woman had been in another office in another children's home and she smiled just as much as Ms. Landburg did. "Thank you for coming, Mr. Orcot." The woman said. Leon remembered just then that her name was Mrs. Hannis. "Please, take a seat. I'm sorry to call you in on such sort notice, but I need to tell you we haven't got room at our home for your brother."

Leon frowned. "What are you talking about? My brother lives with our aunt and uncle. They live up in Washington. What's he doing down here?" Leon couldn't think of any reason why his little brother would be in San Francisco.

Mrs. Hannis flushed, embarrassed. "Oh. You don't know? I'm so sorry. I was sure that your aunt and uncle said they'd contacted you already. I'm sure their letter just got lost in the mail."

It only made Leon angrier to think that his aunt and uncle would send him a letter instead of calling him when there was something big involving his younger brother, Chris. "Get on with it." Leon grumbled.

"Yes, well." She looked down at the papers on her desk and shuffled them around as if it calmed her. "Your aunt and uncle thought it would be best to put your brother here for a short time while he waited for a place to open at the institute. It would have only been a few days, but, as I said, there just isn't any room here. I understand the boy's already on his way here and there isn't even a spare bed for him. As his brother, I had thought that you would be able to take custody for him. It's only for a few days, as I said, and..."


END DREAM-


"So, Leon, from what I've been told, you've been in quite a few homes most of your life." His name was Mr. Brannon Goti. Leon knew it because the man had his name engraved on a plaque on his desk. He was short and round with thick, curly hair and bright, shining eyes. Leon didn't like those eyes, so he looked away when Mr. Goti spoke to him.

Leon looked out the window. The sun was starting to set and Leon heard some adult call to the kids that it was time to go inside. Up in the sky, Leon watched small ships take off from the nearby Federation station, no doubt heading up to one of the space stations which orbited Earth. Maybe even to one of the big star ships. It seemed very unnatural.

"We all hope that you'll like living here for as long as you need." Mr. Goti stood up and walked around his desk, circling the room and, with it, both Leon and Ms. Landburg. "There are few rules here and every one we have is for your safety and comfort. You'll find most of the children are very agreeable and the staff will do anything in their power to make your stay happier."

That meant, Leon knew, that they hoped he wouldn't cause trouble while he had to stay there. As the man droned on and asked Ms. Landburg about Leon's history and past, Leon tried not to listen. It wasn't possible and Leon found himself listening even as a large crow landed on the windowsill and locked eyes with Leon. Leon knew it was the same crow that had been following him from the last children's home. She was beautiful and smiled kindly at Leon.

"He's got a good heart." Ms. Landburg said. "Leon's a bright boy, but he's got a few problems. Ever since he was brought to Base 65 children's home he's had problems with the other children. Leon gets into fights, swears, skips class, and ignores the supervisors." She sighed. "I'm afraid all the counselors and therapists they'd had working with him haven't gotten anywhere. I've heard interesting things about the work you're doing here. The treatment of troubled children and their reaction to your treatments has been remarkable. I was hoping that you could work with Leon."

"I see, I see." Mr. Goti said thoughtfully. He looked at Leon, though Leon kept his attention on the crow outside the window. She sat delicately on the windowsill with her legs cross at the knees. "Leon, what do you think about coming to live here?"

Leon shrugged. Where else could he go?



A few minutes later, the meeting was over and Ms. Landburg was leaving. She gave Leon a cheery smile and told him that she wished him luck before leaving him with Mr. Goti. Mr. Goti led Leon down several sparkling white corridors until he came to a door that was shut tight. Opening it without knocking, Mr. Goti called out, "Reginald, are you decent? Ah, there you are. I want to introduce you to your new roommate, Reggie."

"Oh!" The startled exclamation was the first thing Leon heard when he followed Mr. Goti into the room he was going to be sharing while he stayed here. "H-h-hello." Sitting on one of the two beds in the room was Leon's new room mate. The first impression of his roommate wasn't a very good one. This boy looked far older than Leon by a few years. He was tall and lanky, reminding Leon of a daddy-long-legs spider. His arms and legs seemed almost painfully long and he looked at Leon with a popped-eye expression while holding a book of some kind that he had obviously just been reading. His eyes were very large and almost frightened looking.

"Hi." Leon said shortly, sitting down on the empty bed. He knew the routine by now. Roommate get introduced and told to show Leon the 'ropes'. Roommate then either gets all protective and big brotherly or turns into a jerk. Looking at the anxious teenager, Leon hoped that this time, the mold would break. He didn't really any anything to do with this boy.

"Reginald Barclay, this is your new roommate, Leon Barns. Be a good lad and show the boy the ropes, won't you?" Mr. Goti said in what was probably his best fatherly voice before he left.

Reginald nodded obediently to Mr. Goti, his long fingers twitching and fidgeting nervously on the cover of his book, before the two boys were left alone. "Hi." Reginald managed a watery grin in his attempt to be friendly, but Leon ignored it and went to the single window of the room. Sure enough, sitting just outside the window was the crow he'd seen earlier. It seemed that the crow had been followed Leon his whole life. He really should give her a name.

"There's a replicator in the corner, but its set to only makes clothes. I g-guess they're afraid we'd make something to hurt ourselves w-with." Reginald said, still fiddling with his book. He watched Leon expectantly, perhaps thinking that Leon would say something, but in the end, he turned back to his book and immersed himself in it even as he continued to speak. "They left a rule book on your bed. They're real strict with the rules, so you have to learn them all. Don't break the rules. It's bad if you do."

This was going to be just like the last children's home and the one before that and the one before that one. It was always the same and Leon knew he'd be passed off onto another children's home or institute or something when they figured out he wasn't 'normal' and that there was nothing they could do for him here.

"So," Reginald went on, his voice becoming a dull mumble behind his book. "Do you know what you're h-here for?"

"I'm an orphan." Leon said. He wondered if Reginald always spoke this much and if he'd be able to sneak away into the forest beyond the playground.

"Yeah, most everyone here is." Reginald replied. "But why are you here? What's your problem?"

Leon turned away from the window and scowled at Reginald, or rather, the book Reginald's face was hidden behind. "What are you talking about?"

"HOME FOR EMOTIONALLY DISTURBED CHILDREN" Reginald said, lowering the book just enough for Leon to see his large eyes. "Didn't you read the s-sign outside? What's your 'emotional disturbance'?"

It had something to do with those wild children, not that Leon was going to tell that to Reginald. "There's nothing wrong with me."

"Yeah." Reginald's eyes softened for a minute and there was a terrible look of dark grief in them. "That's w-what they all s-say." His whole body seemed to tense and his fingers tightened around on the book until his knuckles turned white. "It'll be dinner time soon. You have to s-show up for all meal times or you'll get punished. It's a rule." With that bit of advice, Reginald turned his full attention back to the book he was reading, DOCTOR JECKLE AND MR. HYDE.

Outside, the playground was empty of children, at least for a short time. While the children dressed in the uniform of the children's home had all gone inside, Leon watched other children quietly and slowly begin to filter in from the neighboring forest. They were like the ones Leon had always seen before. The wild ones. Children who would run and jump and scream insanely while they played, laughing for no reason and singing songs with words Leon couldn't understand.

The wild ones weren't dressed in normal clothes, but in what looked like rags. Some of them were hardly dressed at all and others wore little more than what looked like fur or leather strapped around their waists. Others were dressed like something out of a faery tale book, in fine silks and jewelry. Their hair was a rainbow of colors, some having black or blonde hair, while others had orange, blue, or green.

Their carefree play called out to Leon. That's what play should be, not something regulated, but wild abandonment. Sometimes, the wild children would look up at Leon and wave at him, beckoning him to join them. They called out to him, but Leon was to far away to hear what they were saying, even if he knew what they wanted.

"I can't." Leon said softly. "I'll get in trouble."

"D-did you s-say something?" Reginald asked in his timid voice, reminding Leon that he wasn't alone. Reginald spoke as softly as he could, half-mumbling and half-stuttering when he did speak.

"No." Leon went back to quietly watching the wild children play. There wasn't any reason to get Reginald involved in what was going on outside. Leon knew no one else would be able to see the wild children. He debated for several moments before he turned and left the room, heading towards the playground. It didn't take much effort to sneak passed the adults who watched the children, but Leon had made a habit of sneaking around where he wasn't supposed to be. He was good at it.

The wild children were all still on the playground when Leon got there, but mostly they ignored him while Leon walked through the playground. It made him feel better just to be around them. They were all so pretty, even the boys.

"Hello." The speaker was the crow, the beautiful black haired woman Leon had seen on the windowsill and following them from the other children's home. "I've been looking for you."

"You have?" Leon asked, wondering if he'd seen her before. "Do I know you?" This was the first time they'd spoken, but Leon had been seeing her for as long as he could remember.

"No, not really. But you will. Are you well?"

"I guess so." Leon answered. They sat together in the grass and the woman looked Leon up and down. "What are you looking at?" Leon asked her. She had funny eyes; bigger than a normal human's and so black that Leon could have fallen into them.

"I just wanted to make sure you were healthy and unhurt. Are you happy?"

"No."

"Why?"

"There's something missing." But Leon couldn't tell her what. It wasn't parents he was missing, not really. He neither wanted nor need friends so that couldn't be it. A family, perhaps. Didn't all orphans want to find a family? "I feel like something's wrong."

"Don't worry. It won't last much longer. Maybe just a few more years." She smiled, showing off teeth that were brilliantly white against her brown skin. "You've been very patient."

They sat quietly for a long time, watching the sunset over the trees and the children playing. "Who are you?" Leon asked.

"I'm your friend. I'll keep you company until your missing one comes for you. He'll be here soon; I'll lead him to you. He misses you very much. I just wanted to wait until you grew up, first." She winked, playfully. "It'll be much more fun once you're grown up. Trust me."

"I don't understand."

"You will."

Their peaceful moment was broken when the wild children started to make their way back into the forest and Leon asked, "Where are they going?"

"Home. A human is coming." She looked over to where Leon now saw Mr. Goti heading towards them. "Humans are dangerous so the others keep away from them." She looked at Leon after turning her attention away from Mr. Goti. "You haven't asked me yet, and I was sure that you would. Aren't you going to ask what the others are?"

"I see them all the time." Leon remembered back to previous times when he'd seen the wild children appear in the strangest places. "They don't hurt anyone. I thought they were just kids. Everyone else calls them animals and I found pictures that show what they look like to everyone else. How come I see people and everyone else sees animals?" Leon had seen photographs and illustrations of animals and it was the only reason he knew that what he saw was different from what everyone else saw.

"Because you're special." She reached out and stroked Leon's cheek and, for the first time, Leon didn't mind the touch. "I thought this might make things easier when he finds you. Now I'm not sure and I'm sorry for any problems it's caused you." Mr. Goti was almost upon them and the crow took her hand away from Leon's cheek. "I have to go now, but I'll stay close." She stood up and took a few hopping steps before she took off, flying into the air. "Whatever you do, Leon. Keep me near. I'll make sure nothing hurts you."

"Leon? What are you doing out here, it's dinner time." Mr. Goti was nearly out of breath with the long run he'd had to get to Leon. "Reginald should have told you the rules about staying inside so late in the afternoon. Why don't you go have some dinner and then come to my office when you've finished. I'd like to have a talk with you about your future."


Later that night-


The lights in Mr. Goti's office had been dimmed down very low and Leon sat uncomfortably in a large, plush chair in front of Mr. Goti's desk. He was afraid that he'd fall into a dream and wondered what would happen if he did. Perhaps Mr. Goti wouldn't even notice, few people did. In fact, Leon hadn't fallen into a dream for a few hours, which meant he would probably have one any moment. It would be best to get this meeting over with as soon as possible and get away from Mr. Goti.

"Now then, Leon, I hear you've been seeing things." Mr. Goti steepled his fingers in front of his face and looked intently at Leon.

"No." Leon didn't hesitate with his answer. He didn't care if he was lying or not, telling the truth had only got him in trouble. He'd made the mistake of telling someone about the wild children before and he was sure he wouldn't make that mistake again.

Mr. Goti was not only the president of this children's house, but he was also a child psychiatrist and had heard about what Leon had done at the other children's home. While Leon sat in the chair in Mr. Goti's office, the man looked through Leon's file on the computer screen. "Your last home said you ran away. Did you do that?"

'Stupid!' Leon thought. 'He's looking right at the information. Why's he asking?' "Yes."

"May I ask why?"

Leon turned away and saw a face outside the window. It was one of the wild children, someone younger than Leon with long pink hair that hung in his face. This wild child wore lots of gold chains around his neck and was staring boldly into the room. "Come out and play." The pink haired boy called to Leon. "Come out! Come out!"

"What are you staring at, Leon?" Mr. Goti asked. He stood up and walked over to the window, looking out curiously. "Ah! That hummingbird? It's very pretty, isn't it?" Mr. Goti pointed to the pink haired boy and Leon frowned. "Do you like animals, Leon?"

Leon looked at his lap. He was young, but even he could see where this was leading.

"Did you follow the animals into the forest?"

'He can't even see the boy. He'd never understand.' Looking back to the pink haired boy still looking at him, Leon wondered why no one could see the wild children except him. The crow knew why, but wasn't telling.

A hand landed on Leon's shoulder. "Leon, please talk to me."

So Leon sighed and answered. "I just didn't want to be there anymore. I was going to go fishing in the river. I didn't follow anyone."

"You told your last counselor that the animals asked you to go with them. You told her the animals looked like children and they wanted to play with them in the forest." He waited, but Leon didn't answer. "I want to help you, Leon."

"I don't need help." Leon told him firmly. "I'm strong enough to take care of myself. I was lying to her." Leon hated saying that, but he had to. No one believed him when he told the truth, so he would lie to them. "I lied when I said the animals were talking to me. That's just stupid. Everyone knows animals don't talk."

"Sometimes things can seem very real to us when we feel very sad or angry, Leon. If you think the animals were talking to you, that's okay. Do you want to tell me what you were feeling the day you ran away?"

Leon thought about it. If nothing else, maybe telling Mr. Goti what he wanted to know meant that he'd let Leon out of this stupid meeting early. He really wanted to go to bed so he could sleep and dream. "I felt like something was missing."

"What kind of something?" Mr. Goti was making notes while he listened to Leon. "Did someone hurt you?"

"No." Lean waved that aside. Why did people always think someone had hurt him? "It's just that something was missing. I wanted to get away, into the forest. I thought maybe I could find what was missing. That's all."

"Did you think everything would be all right if you could get into the forest."

Leon shrugged.

"Would you mind if I tried something with you, Leon? I want to try to hypnotize you." Mr. Goti was already getting up and coming to sit next to Leon. "Don't be afraid. It won't hurt." Mr. Goti took a small silver cylinder off his desk and pointed it at Leon's face. There was a flash of light and then...



The next thing Leon knew, Mr. Goti had gone back to his desk and was making more notes on his little computer pad. "It's all over now, Leon. I learned everything I needed to."

"What happened?" Leon asked, rubbing his eyes. He felt very tired all of a sudden. What had he said while being hypnotized? "What did I say?"

"You did very well and we discovered some things that were bothering you. There are some pills I want you to take, Leon."

"Bothering me? What's wrong with me?" In general, Leon thought he was relatively happy. "What did I say?"

Mr. Goti opened his mouth as if he was going to answer, but then changed his mind. "It's nothing I want you to think about right now. You'll be taking some pills twice a day from now on, one of my assistants will help you."

"What will they do? What's wrong with me?" Leon repeated his question.

"They'll make you happier, Leon. You won't see things that aren't there anymore and you'll be able to concentrate on real life better."

"But I already see real life!" By this time, Leon was becoming very worried. He started to sweat. What if there was something really wrong with him and he just never knew it? Mr. Goti was a grown up and a doctor, so he must know what he was talking about, right?

Mr. Goti gave him a pitying smile. "Of course you do, Leon. Trust me on this, though. The pills will make you feel less like something is missing. You'll be very happy here."



A nurse in a blue uniform escorted Leon back to the room he shared with Reginald and Leon bit his lip when he saw how dark it was outside. He must have been in Mr. Goti's office for hours instead of minutes. What had happened?

The door closed firmly behind him, Leon saw that Reginald was already asleep, facing away from Leon. It was good, Leon didn't want anyone to see him change his clothes, after all. So he used to replicator to make some pajamas and crawled into bed without turning the lights on. He didn't want Reginald to wake up when he was half-dressed, after all. Unfortunately, Leon's efforts were in vain. As soon as Leon had covered himself up with the blankets, Reginald spoke.

"How'd it go with Mr. Goti?"

Leon started and was glad it was dark so Reginald couldn't see his blush. He was pretty sure that Reginald had kept his face to the wall the whole time Leon was getting dressed, but it was hard to tell. "Don't know." Leon admitted. "I don't really remember."

"Oh." Reginald was quiet a moment. "Did he use that silver thing and flash a light in your eyes?"

"Yeah. He said it was hypnosis and that I told him things. I don't remember any of it, but he said I have to take pills to make me better."

"I could have guessed that." Reginald said. "Don't take t-them. If y-you get a chance, d-don't take them. You probably won't get a chance, but I think you'd be better off without them."

"Huh?"

Reginald, always shy and self-effacing, went quiet again. He seemed to be gathering his courage. He kept going bravely. "The pills. Mr. G-g-goti said you have to take those pills, but you're not the o-only one who does. H-he usually gives everyone pills of some kind. I take them for my s-shyness and feelings of ina-adeq-quacy. They change you."

"But he's a grown up." Leon protested. "He wouldn't do anything to hurt us." Leon had never once met an adult who had tried to hurt him. Every adult he'd ever met had always had the best of intentions and it seemed strange to think an adult would deliberately do something to hurt a child. That just didn't happen.

Reginald, older and wiser, rolled over so that he was looking at Leon in the darkness. Leon could tell because the moon shone right on Reginald's eyes, almost making them glow in the darkness. "Just wait until t-tomorrow and you'll s-see."

"Okay, Reggie."

"Reggie?" He didn't sound like he liked his new nickname.


DREAM-


"Where are we?"

"A better question is when are we. As I said, this is a dream." Hot, steaming jungles and the cries of strange animals assaulted Leon's senses. It was all very real, right down to the squishing of the mud under Leon's feet. The moon was high overhead and there were bizarre smells in the air.

D was looking at him with those unreadable eyes of his, looking deep into Leon's soul. Leon wondered if D liked what he saw.


END DREAM-


The next morning-

Leon got his pills the same day Reggie got his. They weren't even ready for breakfast in the communal dining hall when a woman came into their room after knocking. She had three pills. One orange pill for Reggie and two blue ones for Leon.

"Two?" Reggie exclaimed when he saw what the woman handed Leon. His brow furrowed when he saw what the woman had handed Leon along with a glass of water.

"Leon has different needs than you do, Reg." She told him.

Reggie winced. "Please, don't c-call me Reg, Miss Forth. Y-you don't I don't like it."

Miss Forth just smiled and patted Reggie's thin cheek. "But Reg is such a cute name! Now be a good boy and take your medicine."

Reggie did as he was told and swallowed his pill. It wasn't two seconds before the mysterious pill began to take effect. His eyes closed and his whole body went slack. The glass fell from Reggie's hand to be caught deftly by Miss Forth who promptly set it on Reggie's bed before turning back to him with watchful eyes. Reggie was so affected that Miss Forth had to catch him and help him sit on his bed. Reggie started shaking terribly while he sat there.

"What's wrong with him?" Leon asked, worried about his new friend and about the orange pills in his hand. Reggie was right; Leon didn't want to take anything that was going to do that to him. "Is he sick? Did the pills do that to him?"

"No, there's not a thing wrong with him." Miss Forth answered brightly. "He'll feel much more confident in just a moment. You wait and see. It's not good for him to be so shy, it'll stunt poor Reggie socially. Now it's your turn, dear." Her bright eyes and cheery smile couldn't hide the fact that this was not a suggestion or a request.

Leon put both pills in his mouth at once and swallowed. Almost immediately, Leon felt like a part of his mind had fallen asleep. The world around him looked colorless and drab, the colors had been muted.

"How do you feel?" Miss Forth asked, watching him closely.

"Fine." Leon saw her as if he hadn't seen her before, but he didn't like what he saw. She looked dull and lifeless, like there was something wrong with his eyes. Leon felt kind of fuzzy. "I guess."

"It's normal to feel a little odd. If you start to feel sick, just tell an adult."

"Get the fuck away from him!"

Leon turned to Reggie and saw his friend was now standing up with one hand on his hip and looking hatefully at Miss Forth. "Ah, Reg, how are you feeling?" Miss Forth asked, a bit wearily, as if she wasn't sure how he'd react.

"I'm just ducky, sweetheart, but I don't want you near my friend." Reggie laughed in a way that seemed very unlike him. Of course, to Leon, Reggie looked odd, too. Like Miss Forth, Reggie looked lifeless and washed out. Reggie came to Leon and put an arm around his shoulder, pulling Leon away from Miss Forth at to his side. "Don't you worry, darling." Reggie winked at Miss Forth. "I'll take care of the kid." With that, he sauntered out of the room with Leon under his arm.

"Reggie?" Leon asked once they were away from Miss Forth and on their way to the dining hall. "What's wrong?"

"Wrong? Wrong?" Reggie laughed loudly. "There's nothing wrong, kiddo! I'm high as a kite, but you look a little down in the dumps. Didn't the drugs work their wonders for you? Sweet miss bitch in there will shove them down your fucking throat if you don't take 'em when she asks nice." Reggie's voice turned into a snarl when he spoke about Miss Forth. "She's got a thing for our glorious leader, Mr. Goti, the king bastard of them all. She's probably sleeping with him or something, but she does anything he tells her to do."

All the while Reggie kept up a brisk pace down the halls of the institute, pulling Leon along with him. He seemed to have a lot of energy. Too much energy, maybe. If they had a destination, Leon had no idea where it was. They walked for a long time, going in circles. Reggie walked with a purpose, his strides were long and he seemed to know where they were headed, but Leon didn't ask. It wasn't until the forth time around the institute that Leon thought that maybe Reggie didn't know where they were going, either.

"Reggie, I feel...I feel kind of faded. I think I'm forgetting something." Wasn't there something important he was supposed to remember? Something about a dream? A bird? A child with yellow hair? It was all fading away from Leon.

Reggie shook his head. "Don't worry about it, the drugs all have side effects. If it's important, you'll remember. Everything will be fine. Oh," Reggie's eyes lit up when he saw some girls standing in the hallways just ahead of them. He released Leon for the first time since they'd left their room. "Just give me a minute," Reggie said with a wolfish grin before he ran away from Leon and to a group of girls who were standing around in a circle giggling. Suddenly, one of them squealed and turned to slap Reggie sharply across the face. Reggie took the slap, but only laughed and rubbed the quickly reddening cheek. "Diedre, you've got the prettiest ass on planet and then some! I couldn't help but want to pinch it."

"Reg, you're an ass hole when you're drugged!" The girl screamed back at him. Her own cheeks were bright red, more from embarrassment, probably. "Why don't you pick on someone else, just once!?"

"Awww, you'll make me cry! Don't you know I love you to pieces?" Reggie sniffled and wiped an imaginary tear off his cheek. "Come on, give us a kiss and I'll forgive you." He moved in for a kiss, but promptly got trounced by the entire group of girls.

Leon, never one to let a friend get hurt without trying to help, dove into the fray and tried to save Reggie.

Ten minutes later, the girls had mercifully moved on, leaving the two conquered boys to lick their wounds in peace. Reggie was still laughing, even though the girls had proved stronger and more vicious than Leon would have imagined. They hadn't been too hard to Leon, he was young and hadn't done the crime, but Reggie was bruised all over his face and had blood dripping from his nose where Diedre had punched him.

"You're a good scrapper, kid." Reggie complimented while Leon was nursing a busted lip. "Thanks for trying to help, but I could have taken them." He sounded tired, but still smiled as he leaned his head back against the wall of the hallway and closed his eyes. "It was a good fight."

"Diedre gave you a black eye, Reggie." Leon reminded him. "And she busted your nose."

Reggie smirked. "I do love a girl with spirit."

In the hall, sitting on the floor, both drugged out of their normal personalities, Reggie put his arm around Leon and the two boys leaned against each other. Everyone must have gone off to lessons, because the two were alone. Reggie told Leon, "This isn't me. It's all the drug. I don't like me like this, Leon. It's like I can't control myself. When I'm not on the drug, I might not be the best speaker in the world, but I can control what I do. I can't control anything like this." His laughter died away. "I don't like me much at all, but don't tell Goti I said that. He'll have me on another pill. His motto is 'better living by chemistry' and I don't like being his guinea pig. We aren't the only ones, though. Most every kid here is on something to 'improve' them."

"Reggie," Leon put his hands to his suddenly churning stomach. "I don't feel so good." His stomach had started to churn. Not painfully, really, but very uncomfortably. Leon felt like he was going to throw up.

"Just the pills, kid." Reggie, leaned his head back and rested it against a wall and closed his eyes. His hand moved to Leon's head and he pulled Leon closer until they were leaning against each other. Leon felt very warm and comfortable like that. "Don't move to much. Close your eyes and try to fall asleep. These little episodes never last to long. It's been a couple of hours, so it should start wearing off any time. I think they're trying to figure out a way to make the effects last longer than what they do now. It helps if you just try to sleep. Don't worry, I'll take care of you. No one's ever tried to help me out like that. Silly kid."

Reggie fell silent and Leon, despite what Reggie had told him to do, opened his eyes and looked up at his older friend. Leon was only ten, but Reggie had to be at least fourteen. It seemed strange that they'd strike up a friendship so fast. "Are we friends, Reggie? Or is that the drugs, too?"

"Who knows?" Reggie managed a one shouldered shrug, but didn't open his eyes. "Does it matter? It doesn't matter. You might not even remember any of this, that happens with some of the kids. It's scary not to remember half your life. I might not remember what I did to Diedre, but she's nice so she'll forgive me. She always does."

Leon felt a stirring of pity for Reggie. He didn't really understand why they made Reggie take that pill that made him act so strange, but he did like Reggie. To think wasn't even in control of himself most of the time.

Reggie was panting now, like he couldn't breathe right. "Are you all right, Reggie?" Leon asked, his own stomach troubles forgotten.

"Sure, sure. I'm just fine." Reggie was starting to slump. His legs relaxed straight out in front of him and his head lolled down until it was actually resting on top of Leon's head. "Just a lil' tired. Just...just..." His voice slid away and his entire body went limp.

"Reggie!" Leon screamed, frightened that there was something horribly wrong. He wasn't strong enough to hold Reggie up when Reggie slumped into his lamp. "Reggie! Wake up!" Leon stopped when his own head started to spin.

Suddenly, Miss Forth was there and was picking Reggie up with strength Leon didn't know she had. "Everything's all right, Leon. Go to the dining hall. I'll take care of Reggie." Without another word, she virtually ran down the hall carrying Reggie.


To be continued...