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Isikoro laughed loudly, an honest laugh that Aphi hadn't heard in a long time. He hadn't laughed like this since before they got the first notification of Chloe's sudden disappearance. And, now that weeks had passed since Isi had been strangled, his throat had healed and his voice had lost the extra rasp. His voice was still raspy of coarse, but now it was more of just a husky sound like Peter Gabriel's voice or something of that nature. For sure, when he was older, he would have to jokingly copyright his voice (it would be so admired!).

"Alright, alright!" he exclaimed, hunching his shoulders near his neck as if he were trying to dodge Aphi's puppy eyes, "You win! I give up! I'll sing the song for you!" A blush grew on Isi's freckled cheeks and he cupped the steaming mug of golden apple cider in his lap. The young teen took a moment to settle himself and take a couple breaths, constantly flicking his grey eyes in Aphi's direction to see what he was doing. Although he was nervous, Aphi noticed that Isi was never this comfortable with other people, even those he knew. His muscles were relaxed and he was easy to show his emotions.

Isi was quick to speak his mind in public, but when he was at home in the presence of his adopted brother, Isi spoke his heart.

And right now, on the porch in the chill morning and under a powder blue sky, Isi started to sing from his heart too.

"It doesn't hurt me
Do you want to feel how it feels?
Do you want to know, know that it doesn't hurt me?
Do you want to hear about the deal I'm making?
You...
It's you and me"

Although he was young and never had singing lessons, Isi had his husky voice pretty much under control. He had also discovered his vibrato, which he used sparingly and at the end of held notes. Usually, people discovered their vibrato coming into their late teens or early twenties, but not Isikoro. He found it early. And his voice wasn't that bad either! He made a great tenor and he didn't falter on the octave jumps in the melody. When he sang though, he made sure to avert his eyes.

"And if I only could
I'd make a deal with God
And I'd get him to swap our places
Be running up that road
Be running up that hill
Be running up that building

Say if I only could oh...

You don't want to hurt me
But see how deep the bullet lies
Unaware I'm tearing you asunder
Oh there is thunder in our hearts
Is there so much hate for the ones we love
Tell me we both matter don't we
You
It's you and me
It's you and me, you won't be unhappy

And if I only could
I'd make a deal with god
And I'd get him to swap our places
Be running up that road
Be running up that hill
Be running up that building

If I only could..."

"Why not, brother?" Eiry asked furrowing his brows in honest concern, "There is trouble in your mind?" He floated away easily from Rivener, since he was small and, well, not the strongest and his brother was quite strong for his size. He was used to the gesture, but it still made him feel a little hurt and a little tempted to trick Riv in revenge. But he didn't, Eiry was too young for such thoughts.

By the time he reached the ending of his phrase, Isi had almost lost himself to the song, but Aphi had taken advantage of the pause to express his honest emotions. Isi turned his grey eyes towards Aphismet and to see in him awe, to see him truly touched made Isi's chest swell with pride. This was something else that would make up for his weak and lame legs, something else that would balance out his necessity for crutches. Besides, the song held a special place in his heart. It was one of his favorite songs, not only because of the melody, but because of the words.

How else could he communicate his feelings of frustration?

Isi smiled despite himself and he pinched his shoulders to his neck in a stretch and a shrug. The gesture made the bench swing a little bit and Isi tightened his grip on the ceramic mug so that he didn't spill the cider.

"That was only half of the song," Isi admitted with a small chuckle. He felt happy to receive praise. This was one of the only times that he could really receive it for something about himself, not something he made, or something he had done. This was something that no one else could ever recreate.

So Isi lifted his voice again in song, finishing the last of his melody, as the sun rose into the height of the afternoon.

"'C'mon, baby, c'mon, c'mon, darling,
Let me steal this moment from you now.
C'mon, angel, c'mon, c'mon, darling,
Let's exchange the experience, oh...'"

Eiry watched his brother float off towards the swamps with a defeated slump of his shoulders. He had wanted to help Rivener, talk to him, make him smile but all his attempts were futile. There was something wrong with that frei, something heavy on his heart. The minty frei felt bad that he couldn't help. Eiry turned around with the help of his wings and he glanced in the direction Rivener had stared before he drifted off in a huff. He had looked over at Isikoro and Aphismet. The two were swinging slightly on the bench and it seemed that they were finally happy, spending some brotherly time together. It was nice to see them laughing and hear Isi singing. But what could that have to do with Rivener's bad attitude?

Letting his red gaze drift up to the hazy sky in thought, Eiry watched the clouds drift lazily across the expansive blue as he listened to the remainder of Isi's song.

" And if I only could
I'd make a deal with God
And I'd get him to swap our places
Be running up that road
Be running up that hill
With no problems...

And if I only could
I'd make a deal with God
And I'd get him to swap our places
Be running up that road
Be running up that hill
With no problems...

And if I only could
Be running up that hill
With no problems.

If only I could be running up that hill..."