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 Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 11:47 am
 Philo sat crying, eyes red and glossed over as he hid in the bathroom stall in the boy's room. The bullying was getting worse. First it was Wednesday, then it was that mean demon who kept stealing his lunch money and forcing him to go without a lunch. His sister would ask him why he wasn't eating, and Philo would just sit quietly and try to pretend he just wasn't hungry. He was just too weak ... there wasn't anything he could do, or anything he could do or so to make him think otherwise ... there was just no point in fighting back. Philo wished he was as strong as his mom, Talfia. She was such a formidable chimera, and always someone Philo had looked up to ... but now, sitting in this quiet stall with the light flickering over his head, Philo couldn't possibly feel anymore different from his mother. What would she say? What would she think? Philo didn't really want to find out ...
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 11:55 am
 Raa pushed his way in to the bathroom, the door swinging behind him as he padded in, tail swishing behind him, stretching out his wings. He'd been holding his bladder all day and he was about to burst. But, as Raa walked past a couple of stalls, he heard something that made him pause in his steps. Was somebody crying? Raa brought his ear close to the bathroom door, listening closely to see if the sobs were coming from the stall next to him. Sure enough, they were. Raa knocked gently on the door. "Hello?" He piped up, keeping his tone soft. "Are you alright?"
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:04 pm
Philo's head jerked up as he heard the soft knock at his stall. His stomach sank, though he felt his heart sore in to this throat at the same time. The hybrid's cheeks were still soaked with tears, and his whole body was quacking. Maybe if he just stayed quiet they'd go away. But, then, someone was actually asking him if he was alright ... what should he do? "Y-yes ... !" Philo croaked out, snuffling as he wiped his nose with his baggy sleeve. "I just ... I just have a stomach ache!" Philo lied poorly, his hands reaching down to roll up the bottom of his shirt between his hands ... it helped soothe him.
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:10 pm
Raa leaned away from the bathroom stall, trying to push it open. Whenever someone at his house got sick, he would go in to the bathroom and stroke their back until they felt better. His instinct to do this for the child on the either side was immense ... even if it was potentially an invasion of privacy. But the door was bolted. The hybrid's lips pursed gently, unsure of what to do. Maybe it was best he just got an adult ... if the kid was sick, then he probably shouldn't be at school. "Should I go get a nurse?" Raa asked, not sure if that's what the child on the other side wanted. "That way they can call your parents and send you home? You don't sound good ... "
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:15 pm
No, no no!! Nooo, this was bad! Philo should have just told the truth! The last thing he needed was a nurse to find out he wasn't actually sick! And to look at the bruises ... no, Philo shouldn't have lied! "I'm not sick!" Philo half-yelled, a rising panic in his voice. "I'm just ... I'm just hiding. I ... this was the only place where I could be ... safe." There, Philo said it. Maybe now the other child would leave him alone. There was nothing worse than being caught crying. It was bad enough when Cerys saw that he was in shambles, he didn't need a stranger to know he was struggling to. "So, c-can you please leave ... !" Philo pleaded, letting out a shuddering breath.
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:18 pm
Raa's brows furrowed gently. What was wrong ... ? If they weren't sick, then what else was going on with this mysterious child hiding in the stall. "Safe?" he wondered quietly. Was he playing hide and seek with someone? No, that wouldn't explain the crying. " ... is ... someone hurting you?" That made a lot more sense. Raa fell quiet as he tried once more to push the bathroom stall open. Now he really needed in. If they were hurt, he needed to help. What if they were bleeding in there? One time, Rhys had gotten a little too carried away juggling knives and almost sliced one of his fingers off when he missed the catch ... "Please, let me in ... "
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:27 pm
4 Violent, loud sobs erupted from Philo as the child on the otherside of the door guessed his problem half-right. Someone had been hurting him ... but it wasn't just one person, and rarely ever was it physical. It was more emotional. He felt so alone. In his home life. At school. Even in the few after-school activities his mom had signed him up for ... Philo didn't really belong anywhere. Yet ... someone was finally talking to him. Showing him an ounce of kindness ... it made the sobbing soften ... Philo blinked the tears away, slowly shifting off the toilet seat and getting to his feet. He walked the two steps to the bathroom door, lifting his hands to twist the lock open, shaking and scared and worried ... who would be on the other side of the door?
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:33 pm
4 Raa waited as he heard shifting beyond the door, taking a step back as he heard bare feet slap against the tiled floor. That seemed ... unsanitary, but it seemed better not to mention that. He heard the sound of the lock open, and Raa took another step back, wrapping his tail around his legs, his lower body disappearing among his fluff. When the door opened, Raa's expression softened. A boy appeared with, eyes full of sorrow and hands clutched to their sweater like their life depended on it. It was the epitome of pitiful. Raa couldn't help but feel absolutely awful for the child. Raa wasn't really sure what it was that made him do it, but Raa extended his arms towards the boy, offering him a hug ... he didn't know if they'd accept, but by the Nine, it looked like they needed it.
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:39 pm
5 Philo dissolved right then and there. The face that had met him was gentle and kind, and when their arms stretched out in a warm offering of comfort, Philo couldn't resist. He felt pulled in, nearly jumping in to the hug as he tears once more fell from his eyes. He was such a mess ... before he had been so fearful of this stranger seeing his weak nature, and now all he cared about was behind held. The bathroom stall had made him feel temporarily safe,but this warm, soft body against his made him feel safer than Philo had in years. This school had been such a miserable place to him, and yet, finally, it felt as though he had found a place where he could be! If ... this person ... this nameless, kind force wanted him here.
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Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2016 12:43 pm
"Umph!" Raa nearly fell backwards, fumbling a little as the boy fell in to his arms. It would have seemed like a silly drama program on the tele if it weren't for the fact it was actually happening. Normally, Raa didn't really care about other people's emotions. Yes, he was programmed by his family to at least pretend ... but this boy, weeping in his arms ... it felt more real somehow than his family being upset or angry with one another. There was something very genuine about the boy's tears that twinged at Raa's heart strings a little. Raa pet the boy's hair, resting his chubby cheek against the top of their head. "I'm Raa." he said uselessly, stroking the boy's back. The hybrid responded with a meek 'Philo', and Raa assumed it was his name. "Come on ... let's get out of here and get some fresh air ... it'll all be OK now ... "
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