HP: 27/68
SP: 52/52

[hr]
The great white beast strained against its bindings, but the chains held, to Gruffydd's great relief.  But that didn't make this any easier.  It was surprising that he hadn't recognised his own voice in the tavern above, but that was the only thing that made any sense.  He had been in the light and warmth above, but only to hide from what lurked in the dark.  It wasn't exactly looking in a mirror, but he knew he was looking at the core of his very self.  And it [i]hurt[/i].

[color=f6989d]“Of course, Kazuo cares! And he cares about you! Why else would he be helping us like this?”[/color]  Gruffydd's head jerked around as he heard the voice.  Dai, that was his name.  [color=f6989d]“Dude, get out of that mindset. I don't appreciate you calling us monsters. We all may be fighting each other, but there’s a huge difference between us and the boogie man. As you can hear so far, this group – our friends - are not monsters by choice and they’re working to change that! We’re all just confused teens trying to understand!”

“You made a biiiig mistake of accusing us. If you want to be a monster, fine. But say it without hiding behind that stupid mask!”[/color]

Kazuo was about to be hit with a shovel again, when Dai's challenge arrived out of the blue.  [color=red]"I was content to keep it between myself and the pyromaniac here, but if you insist."[/color]  That which had been Gruffydd's body, under the control of his shadow, barreled toward Dai and struck him under the arm with the shovel.

[Roll: 17!  22 Damage dealt to Dai!]

[color=red]"And for the record, you don't get to chose to be a monster.  Do you think[/color] [color=forestgreen]I[/color] [color=red]chose it?  Do you[/color] [color=forestgreen]think I ever wanted it!?  You arrogant worm!  Do you think I enjoy a single second of it!?  Not belonging anywhere!  The boiling anger!  The mountains of guilt and regret!"[/color]  Gruffydd's voice grew shakey, [color=forestgreen]"[i]Self-defense[/i] my ass, who cares what they [i]might[/i] have done to me?  I should be in jail!"[/color]  There was a long pause.  [color=red]"The boogieman?  Don't make me laugh.  We may not be adults yet, but if you know as well as I do that's just a story.  The only kind of monster that really exists isn't so obvious.  It looks like you, and it talks like you.  It lurks in your streets and sits in your classrooms.  Hell, sometimes it even[/color] [color=forestgreen]tricks itself.  And you'll only see it for what it is when it strikes.[/color]  [color=red]And you want to talk about the fucking Boogie man!?  Maybe you are a beast too, because no human out there is that stupid.[/color]

[hr]
Gruffydd was shaking.  He wasn't sure how he had heard Dai, or if Dai had heard him, but for simplicity's sake he would assume he had.  [color=forestgreen]"They care?  Well, fine.  They care.  Good for them.  Me too, I guess."[/color]  He turned to the White Beast.  [color=forestgreen]"But it doesn't matter, does it?  Of course it doesn't.  It doesn't change what I am, what I've [i]done[/i].  I could have hurt them.  That would have been fine.  They were assholes, deserved to be smacked around a bit.  Maybe even a good stay in the hospital.  But i was twice their size!  They're dead.  Dead!  I was under pressure, and in the heat of the moment I lost sight of what I thought, what I believed.  Only instinctual aggression, and three [i]people[/i] are dead because of it.  I don't even deserve prison.  I don't deserve chains.  I deserve..."[/color]  In the blink of an eye, the dark room and the White Beast had vanished.  Gruffydd was in city streets.  He recognized this place.  He recognized it very well—he couldn't forget it if he tried.

Seven figures emerged from the alleys in front of him.  Two of them were holding baseball bats.  He was grabbed from behind, one person a shoulder, and shoved to the ground.  It was going to happen again.  They would cry out their jeers.  The would swing their bats.  They would kick.  He would shout and howl in pain.  And then he would snap.  The blood a head dashed on the pavement.  Bones cracked by the force of a stolen bat, including one skull.  The beeping of hospital equipment for less than a week before the heart monitor flatlined.  It was all going to happen again, whether he wanted it to or not.