Clancy and Yoi raced outside as Sky approached with Cassia in his arms, but they wore opposing expressions. Yoi looked ecstatic that Cassia was back, but Clancy seemed almost fearful.

     "I-Is Cassia o-okay?" asked Yoi, looking up at Sky with pleading eyes. He nodded, and gave her a tired smile. "She'll be fine after a little rest, but for now we just need to give her some space."

     Sky exchanged glances with Clancy, and she nodded after a moment. "Hey, Yoi. Let's go upstairs, Sky needs some peace and quiet to take care of Cassia. I promise I'll come get you when she's awake, okay?"

     Yoi looked between Clancy and Sky, a small frown creasing her brow. "She's g-gonna be o-okay though, r-right?" Her tone was rather worried, she didn't know if she quite believed the two of them.

     "Of course she is, Yoi." Sky said gently, giving the small neko a reassuring smile. "I promise I'll give her the best of care possible." He glanced down at Cassia as he spoke, his expression softening as he looked at her limp form. "I promise."

     This time Yoi didn't protest as Clancy gentle took the younger girl's hand and led her away. They both walked away toward the stairs, and soon vanished up them. A few minutes passed, and all that could be heard in the house was the faint sound of the two girls moving around upstairs.

     Sky kept his gaze on the girl in his arms, regret flooding his expression. "I'm so sorry, little one..." he muttered, his luminescent eyes filling with tears that spilled down his cheeks. "I'm going to do everything I can to help you through this, he had no right to do this to you..." He bowed his head over Cassia's limp form as he carried her to the master bedroom, remembering how hard it had been for him when he'd been turned into a brine.

The young boy had his head bowed over the golden sword in his lap as he sat on the edge of his bed. It was the last thing his father had given him before going to fight the war against Herobrine, and today had been the day he'd received the life changing news.

His father was dead.

Struck down by Herobrine himself, the great warrior had fallen on the morning of Sky's birthday. The news had reached the castle a few days later. Sky had been hiding in his room ever since; it had been nearly two weeks since he'd locked himself in there. He didn't even emerge for meals, his mother would bring them and leave them outside the door.

But just then, the door suddenly swung open. A tall man stepped though, his blazing white eyes immediately capturing Sky in his gaze. "Ah, there you are." His voice was low and deep, and Sky glanced up at the man through a gaze blurred with tears. All the boy could see was a blue top and pants, he didn't bother looking at the face.

'Who... who are you?" he muttered, swiping furiously at the tears that still trickled down his cheeks. "I asked to be left alone... Everyone in the castle knows that." The man grinned; so his sources had been telling the truth.

"I am Herobrine." he said with a smirk that could be heard even in the way he talked. "And I've come to claim what is rightfully my own." Sky's head snapped up at the mention of the man's name, pure rage flooding through him. This man, no- This monster had killed his father, and now he would kill him in return.

"How dare you!" Sky snarled, jumping up and brandishing the sword he had been cradling moments ago. "You murdered my dad, you won't be leaving here alive!" He sprung at Herobrine, but the man just batted him away, as a mother cat would do to her kittens. The boy flew halfway across the room, his sword landing beside him as he hit the far wall and slid down it.

"Uhhh..." Sky groaned as he tried to get back up, using his sword to lift himself off the ground. After a long moment, he stood back up on shaky legs, and glared at the white-eyed man across the room. He hadn't moved yet. Then Sky launched himself again, using the wall to push off of. He flew through the air, his sword poised to strike Herobrine in the heart and then-

Was blasted back by a wave of white magic that exploded from Herobrine's outstretched hand. Once more the 14 year old boy flew through the air, but this time struck the bedpost before collapsing on the carpeted floor. "You... you won't get away with this." Sky muttered as he tried to get up again. He couldn't do it, something had broken this time. From the sharp pain in his left leg, he assumed it had been his leg.

"You're a monster." Sky spat, glaring at Herobrine with an anger equal to that of a sun. "My mother won't stop until you're dead if you hurt me." Herobrine raised an eyebrow. "Hurt  you? On the contrary, I need you alive and unhurt. I didn't mean to break your leg, but alas, sometimes accidents happen."

Alarm flared in Sky's eyes, but it was quickly dulled, replaced by a glazed look as his adrenaline ran out and the full force of the pain hit him at once. The world was rapidly fading in his eyes as he lost his grip on consciousness.

Herobrine grinned as the boy's eyes slid shut, and then bent over and hoisted him on his shoulder. Then the two of them vanished, and the only thing left to show Sky had ever been there was the golden sword lying forlornly on the floor beside the bed.

~

Two days later, Sky finally opened his eyes, and came face to face with a mirror.

His eyes glowed a deep, rich gold, with no pupil. He stared with disbelief for a moment and then-

His scream split the air as he realized what he had become.  

     Sky set Cassia down on his bed and gently removed her shoes so she'd be more comfortable. He gently pulled the covers up to her chin and sat down in the chair beside the bed, keeping his gaze focused on the unconscious girl. "Oh Cassia..."

     Now that he had her back, he had a difficult decision to make. He could go ahead with the original plan, and use the serum, or he could let the brine in her run its course and possible have Yoi or Clancy get hurt in the process. He glanced at the slightly glowing bottle of serum on his side table, and sighed again. "What to do..."

     After a few minutes, he placed his hand on Cassia's forehead, gently brushing her hair out of her face. "I'll figure out what's best for you, Cassia... I swear on my life."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HEY GUYS!!!!

Hope y'all love this chapter, I worked really hard on it.

So, any questions just pop down in the comments.

{Hope y'all like that little sneak peak into Sky's past, let me know if you'd like some more in the future.}

Until next time,
~©@$$

ShadeFinder
Rae_Sword
kawaiiKiya29

Enjoy!