บท 36: Of Course His Name’s Chris

If the warm atmosphere had been diluted slightly with the introduction of the twins then, comparatively, the room had now been dipped in a bucket of ice water at this point.

An awkward tension hung in the air as the man stood just an arm's length away from Chance while staring into his eyes unwaveringly. With Chance's words, the smile on his face similar changed with the room.

"You're right, it's been over three years since you've asked for my opinion yet here we are, better than ever." He spread his arms while gesturing to those around him for their affirmative. "We've been through so much and held down the fort and now you come back and throw extra baggage onto us?"

"Robin, I don't seem to remember you complaining back when you were the 'extra baggage' that I threw into the family?" Chance finally called Robin by name before gesturing around the space in a similar way to him.

After a short pause, Chance began to walk around the room as though inspecting everything. As he went, he would extend his hand to brush the surface of a few of the furnishings while speaking as though he was thinking aloud.

"Sure, you've managed to hold down the fort, but as far as I can see, this place hasn't changed over the last three years. You're still sleeping on my beds. Sitting on my chairs. Eating at my tables. Walking on my carpet… Yet you're able to tell me who I can and can't bring into my own home?" By the time he finished, Chance was standing just in front of the twins while casting a look of ridicule towards Robin and the rest of his entourage.

"Your home? We've all worked to turn this place into what it is today. You think you get to fuck up and then come on back whenever you're ready? We've all grown and made a place for ourselves over this time. We would love to have you back as a part of the family, but we don't run off your orders." Robin begun sounding more confident the longer the conversation dragged on.

The other five behind him were initially conflicted, eyes facing the ground as they couldn't decide whether to speak up for Chance or Robin but as his speech came to an end, their eyes slowly became resolute as they looked around before steadying their sights on the pair.

"Hahaha so it's not just the facial hair after all! It sounds like you've become half decent at pushing words down other people's throats while I've been on holiday." Chance laughed while slapping his thigh. "So, is it just me and Robin here or do the rest of you have anything to say?" he scanned the crowd, crumbling some of the bravery they had just began to accumulate.

Before anyone on the other side made their decision clear, Loki and Rykar had already walked over to Chance's right side as they looked over the rest calmly as their faces were recorded in their memory.

At their appearance, the youth who's fingers had been crushed by Rykar walked forward with a similar resolution before stand next to Robin, all the while staring venomously at both twins.

Now that his mask was down and face revealed, it was easily seen that his sallow looking face should be around sixteen or seventeen years old, while his green eyes and blonde hair made him look more freckled snake given his sharp jaw line.

The same appearance on anyone else would even seem handsome and charming if not for the rotten expression he was wearing.

"That lizard literally tried to stab me in the neck and he's still mad about two fingers?! Talk about ungrateful." Instead of shrinking away from the intense stare, Rykar nudged Chance in the leg before complaining out loud about his unfair treatment. Instead of calming the situation in any way, the words only made the teen shake in anger despite still holding back any words.

"Don't mind Chris, he's always been one for temper tantrums." Chance jested before gesturing towards Chris. "Come on man, the kid's like six years old, let it go."

After a moment of silence, both Loki and Rykar chimed in unison, "Of course his name is Chris." Once again all eyes looked towards the twins in contemplation of their odd words.

The moment was then broken as another figure walked over to stand beside Robin, which was then followed closely by another. The first was the person which Chance had locked hands with during the initial stages of the confrontation whereas the second was a tall and lean looking youth around the same age as Chris which they had only seen after entering the room.

Seeing the odds completely out of his favor by this point, Chance sighed as the last two walked up from the other side of the room to join up with the rear end of Robins group.

Robins warm smile once again returned as he found himself supported by all those that had accompanied him over the last three years, solidifying his control over the group over that of Chance. As he took a deep breath, preparing to deliver another charismatic speech towards the newcomers, he buckled forwards as he felt pressure on his shoulder.

As he recovered, he saw a tall figure walking past and stopping only when side by side with Chance, along with Loki and Rykar.

"Rob, you?" Chris seemed the most surprised of everyone as he choked back his words. After the situation outside, Rob who had faced it with them was one of the last people he had expected to take Chance's side.

With his face revealed, Rob's seemed calm and gentle when compared with any of the previously mentioned despite having a clearly more robust body. He looked to be slightly younger than Chris and even Robin yet didn't display any immaturity. Standing confidently while shoulder to shoulder with Chance, he looked calmly over the rest without judgement or resentment in his eyes.

"You're right, we got by just fine after he was taken away. Would we have gotten by if he hadn't picked us up in the first place?" He asked but didn't wait on an answer before continuing. "Three years later but he's still Chance."

"But in the tunnels-!" Chris started but was cut short by Rob.

"Realistically… That was all your fault." Hearing his short reply, Rykar, Loki and Chance all nodded simultaneously which looked rather comical in front of the serious faces before them.

"I can't blame you for your decision, Chance has helped us all accomplish so much. But it's still five against two… I guess you could even say four if you count those two… things. We can give you some clothing and food but this isn't a place for you to stay." Before Chris had another chance to play the blame game, Robin stepped forward once again while offering a set of 'generous' conditions towards the opposition.

"Of course you'll be giving us these things, if you're feeling even more generous then I would mind you gift wrapping everything before you fuck off out of here." Chance replied before walking up to robin with steady steps.

Bracing himself for a confrontation, Robin took a step back while raising his fists, only to once again be shoved out of the way by Chances shoulder as he strode further into the hall.

By the time he had walked past the group on the bed, everyone standing next to Robin had erupted into a clamour. Half of the chatter was based expressing how good the conditions Robin presented already was and the other half were openly criticising Rykar and Loki as Demons who had ruined everything before asking Chris what had taken place in the tunnels.

It wasn't long before Chance strolled over to the largest bed in the room before sinking into the mattress with a dramatic sigh. As soon as he saw this, Robin's jaw clenched as he took a breath.

The chatter still continued as Rob followed in Chance's steps before taking a seat on his bed, back against the wall with his feet propped up calmly while watching the others. Just these simple actions alone expressed their stance on whether they would be departing peacefully or not.

Unlike Chance and Rob, Rykar and Loki stood closer to the entrance unsure of what it was they were supposed to do. Not only did they not know whose bed or chair was whose, they didn't have the confidence to walk past Robins group which already showed tremendous hostility towards them. This was even more so even when compared to Chance and Rob.

The standstill couldn't possibly last much longer. Being totally ignored in their own homes and asked to leave? Even with the bond that tied them, this bond was deteriorating at a visible speed as the tempers of the group seemed to seep into the hall.

Loki and Rykar were in a nerve wracking position. Now placed on the opposite side of the mob, they were isolated from Chance and Rob, only able to fend for themselves in this situation. The were able to hear their hearts in their ears as the tension climbed. Clenching their sweaty palms doing nothing to calm them.

"Ah! I know its rude of me to ask for more after you've already given is to much." Chance sat up from his laying position while slapping himself on the head as if condemning his forgetfulness.

He stood up from the bed as the serious expression from the tunnel returned to his face.

Without allowing a chance for him to finish, Robin already stepped forward, marching up to Chance as he drew a blade from his waist with a smooth motion. "Ask for more? You think you have a right to anything at this point?" The anger in his voice turned his words into more of a growl than his previous generous tone.

"Where's… My… Money?"

As each word left Chance's mouth, he took a step forward. With the rapidly marching Robin coming towards him, by the second word, they were already a metre away from each other.

As the third word fell on their ears, everyone was silent as they watched Robin's blade be snatched from his hand as though an adult mishandling a child.

Along with the shock from seeing Robin's powerlessness, a weird expression remained on their faces as even Rob looked towards the floor with sweat breaking out on his forehead.