With a snarl and given a dirty look I've never seen before, my brother ran out the house and onto on the street, slamming the door shut. My paw reached out to thin air before retracting, balling up to a fist as I let my arm drop. I speed walk to my room, grab my pillow of my bed, and scream into it, letting out my frustration and sorrow. He was right. I had no business to control who he can and can't see. Yet I was doing the complete opposite.  I screamed a good 5 minutes before I was out of breath and my pillow was wet with tears and saliva. I slumped onto my bed and stare into my black ceiling, little light barely illuminated the room. I get up slowly and examine the room. Random clothes skewered on the floor, small desktop computer to the corner and a dark blue dresser with an oddly shaped lamp on top with my cell phone next to it. The lamp I adore since I love weird things, it was a gift from my mother.

 I sigh.

I do miss my folks; they would have known what to do. My brother doesn't know it but they both know that I fancy guys and they were fully accepting me. If they knew he was too, my mom would have been the one to comfort him while I would hold back my over protective dad from ripping that guy who did the deed to shreds. My thoughts stop and focus on one particular tiger. 

Bastion. 

If that bastard didn't do what he did and over reacted, none of this would have happened. He wouldn't have gotten his heart broken at such an early age and wouldn't have lost his best friend.  I get off my bed and grab my cell. I go into my contacts and move my digit over Kris' number. I want to call him and get him to come back, but I know better. History has a way of repeating itself. I put the cell phone away and leave to the kitchen. I pour myself some milk in a glass, grab a banana from the fruit basket, and eat away. 

"There isn't much I can do. Ah well...at least he isn't going through depression." I say to myself as I finish my small snack. I start thinking of ways to help my brother. I get up and pace back and forth throughout the house but nothing come to mind. Anything I think of involves money and I already spent a ton on him, I personally don't mind but I rather not spoil the little guy. Any other ideas were just plain bad and were immediately thrown out. I end up in the living room and plop down on the couch. 

"What do I do...this is more complicated than Pre-cal. And then there's college." I flail slightly and lay down. Then, it hits me. What if all of this was because of a misunderstanding. Maybe bastion isn't the bad guy here. I should try to talk to him and get his side of the story. Maybe I can fix this! With this in mind, I set out to find him. I quickly change clothes and make sure I don't look intimidating. Sure, I am on the track team but I work out to keep my stamina up. I also adjust my glasses; see if I have my keys and cell on my person, and I put on my jacket. Once I'm all ready, I take a deep breath and leave out the door.

The air is cold; the sun is still setting and no sign of my brother at all. I sigh and walk down the stairs, closing the gate behind myself. I stare off straight ahead to bastion's house. 'Maybe he's not home.' I thought to myself, yet I know that's just the anxiety talking. I breathe deeply again and start my walk across the street. The soft crunch of the snow that was left on the ground was all I heard as I got closer to the house. I must have been real nervous or I wouldn't have arrived to the porch and the door so quickly, it almost felt like I ran more than anything. I stared at the door for what seemed like forever; knowing me I would have ran away. I have to do this though, for my brother; I knock on the door.

There was no response for the first knock but I waited a short while before doing it again. This time I heard a shout coming from inside.

"Coming! Just give me a moment."

I hear the hard thumps of someone walking down the stairs. The door opens and my sights see the tiger that made my brother the way he is now. Somehow we're the same height. He's wearing shoes with thick sole, making him seem taller, so I know I'm taller than him. The moment he sees me he tries to close the door quickly but I block the door from closing.

"Wait stop! I just want to talk." I grunt while he tries to push the door.

"No! If this is about your brother then I have nothing to say!" Bastion grunts back.

"And why not? Do you even know that today is his birthday? The day of all days to avoid him, that and Christmas?"  I shove the door hard making him stumble back. "Seriously! What is the matter with you?"

Bastion gets up and stares at me with a cold glare.  "Your brother is crazy. He needs help. What he said was totally out of line and he's not himself, don't you see that?"

I don't bother to enter but I keep talking; trying my best to suppress a loud growl.

"You've been avoiding my brother all throughout winter vacation. All because he confessed something to someone who he thought he could trust. Obviously that isn't the case, with the way you're acting its extremely childish. Maybe he fell in love with you for all the wrong reasons. I mean, you left him in the god dang cold that night. He didn't get back till later, much later." I feel my eyes start to water but I continue.

"He told me what you've done and quite frankly it makes me furious, I thought that talking to you will help at least see what you're doing is wrong. Maybe that was a mistake. My brother is perfectly fine, normal and healthy. He doesn't need help, what he's feeling is natural and I don't give a damn what anyone thinks!"

Bastion finally interjects. "No! He's sick! It's unnatural and wrong! What he is feeling is a lie. Until he's better we are not friends anymore."

I growl loudly. People like him make me sick to the bone. My paws ball up into fists. I start to bark out my words.

"NO! You're the one that is sick! Judging someone by their sexuality is beyond horrible. You don't deserve to be his friend if you are going to be that way. He's still the same pup we know! That won't change. But know this!" I point at him and make a motion that looks like someone cutting something with my other paw. "Get close to him at all when school comes back, whether you see how wrong you are and try to talk to him or even start anything with him, I'll make sure you leave school with something broken! So FUCK OFF you ungrateful piece of trash!"

Apparently my words angered him. Next thing I knew I was being tackled from their small porch to the walkway ground. I hit the floor with a hard thump. I grunt as the heavy tiger looms over me and raises his fist at me. The moment he throws the punch towards my face I grab his fist. His face switches to one of bewilderment before surprise as I quickly twist his arm and throw him off into the snow. I get up quickly to face him and get in my boxing pose.

"You are really going to fight me? The athletic one in the family? You really must be dense." My eyes narrow as the tiger gets up, turns around and huffs.

"Shut up!" Bastion says as growls. His eyes dilating from the anger. 

"Well suit yourself." I scoff. Normally I'm not this cocky or willing to fight, but this guy was an exception. He needs a wakeup call about life! He then charges right at me with his fist raised again. I dodge it with one fluid motion. He comes at me again and somehow manages to grab my paws. I pull away but not before he then extends his claws, pulling against my fur and skin and cutting them up. I scream in pain as cuts formed around my paws. The blood quickly trickling out from the wounds and falling into the clean white snow. I back away and grunt. The tiger has a smirk on his face.

"Want some more? Next one is for your neck!" Bastion said.  He claws at my face and I don't react fast enough as he cuts me slightly but not enough to draw blood.

 He then lunges towards me but this time I jump to dodge to keep my distance and quickly extend my foot slightly to trip him into the snow. He lands into it face first, just barely missing the concrete. I let out a small snicker as he struggles to get up and gives me a death stare.

"Stop that and fight me for real ya pansy faggot!" the tiger barks. My breath quickens for an instant as my eyes go wide with rage. He just lost all respect and dignity he had left. I snarl at him.

"You just crossed the line asswipe!" I run up to him and grab his shoulders. Before he could react I pull him close and jab my knee into his stomach. He gasps and gags from the pain. I knee him 3 more time before lifting him from his shoulders and fling him-that's right I fling him. Ignoring the pain from my paws I throw the tiger a fair distance away to the side of his house where it was just snow and nothing else. He lands with a thud. I knew he will be struggling to move so I walk up to him.

 I somehow end up talking despite my throat feeling oddly tight for some reason.

"People like you make me want to vomit. You should be accepting of everyone regardless of who or what they are; using extremely offensive terms gets you nowhere." I get close to him and kick him before he gets up. "Not only that but you, of all people, had to do my brother in and now I can't even get him to smile as much anymore. I tried to make his birthday today special but no, all he wants" I kick him harder and on his chest. He coughs and wheezes. I continue. "Is for things to go back to before he even did what he did on that night. To be friends with you, but I know that will never be." My vision becomes blurry. I kick the tiger square in the face, he yells out in utter pain. "You can't accept him for who he is, avoid and hate him for no reason at all. You've made my brother into something I never wanted him to feel. Pain and suffering, you've changed him, and you've changed as well!"

I pick up the sorry excuse of a friend and look at him straight in the eyes. 

"You. Are. Dead. To. Me." I say. I then start to punch him in the face for who knows how long before I throw him again into his house, he hits the wall and lays there not moving for a second.  I'm panting hard, tears roll from my eyes.  Bastion slowly lift his head only for him to gasp as a stray icicle from his roof gutter falls and lands very close to his head. It missed him by a couple of inches. I smirk.

"c-consider this your warning, lucky for you I didn't break anything too serious." I turn around. "Send me the bill for your hospital visit, ill pay for it." I begin to walk away. I hear bastion sobbing loudly as he curses my name under his breath. My ears twitch and hear every word; a small smile grows on my face. 

I enter my home and close the door shut. I shiver. As if, I felt my sins crawling on my back. I lie on my front door and slowly slip to the floor. I then start laughing and crying. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I just beat up some kid just to prove a point. This wasn't like me at all. Where's dad when you need him. He could have helped with my anger issues. He could have also resolved this better than me. Then again, he and bastion's dad would have argued as well. It's so ironic, that both of our families are friends. Wait till his dad comes over here, he will have my hide for sure. I cease the laughter and just stare at my wounds. 'All he did was scratch me. 'Pity, I expected better...then again he didn't get to do much.' I think to myself. I struggle to stand as if felt like an hour passed. No sign of my brother home yet and I can't have him seeing my paws like this. I enter the bathroom, making sure not to stain anything along the way and turn the faucet on. The water stings the cuts slightly, the blood draining away along with some cut fur that managed to stay on but couldn't hold on to the torrent of water. Slowly rubbing the wounds I grab some peroxide from the mirror medicine cabinet and poor it on both paws.

I shouldn't have done that. I yelled out at how painful that way. Hurt way more than receiving the cuts itself. Eventually I got both paws fully disinfected before grabbing the first aid kit and wrap gauze around my paws. I suddenly hear the door open from the back and hear my brother. 

"Hey Tobias...you home?"

I suddenly start to panic as there was still some blood on the sink and I wasn't done wrapping the gauze on my other paw. I hear his footsteps get closer as I finish the other paw and use the left over to clean the blood. Using the water I was able to clean almost all of it. There's a knock on the door and I yelp in surprise, almost knocking down the first aid kit.

"Crap...sorry about that, is everything ok?" Kris says.

I pack the stuff away and throw the gauze into the trash bin and throw in some toilet paper to cover it. I turn off the water. I take a small breath and prepare myself for what my brother would say when he sees my paws.

I open the door and step outside; he instantly noticed my paws and face. Before he could say anything I speak up first.

"I've...got something to explain to you." I said coldly.

"w-what do you mean? What happened to you?" Kris asked, concerned and confused.

I sigh. I know I can't lie to him, he would eventually find out. I start to explain what I attempted to do first off which was talking to the tiger. He slowly nods.

"I understand, you tried to help but I know things won't change..." Kris looks down. "I know we can't be friends anymore because what...whatever I am."

"Stop that!" I grasp his shoulders and look him in the eye. "You are perfectly fine, you are as normal as he and I. Who cares if you are straight, gay, pansexual or asexual; whatever! You are you! That won't change one bit. You are my brother and I love you no matter what! i will always be there ok? Mom and dad will always be there for us as well. Hell I bet if your other friends knew they wouldn't care either and also be by your side. You are not alone with this." I don't notice it but then Kris puts his paw on my cheek.

"Y-you're crying bro." He sniffles as his eyes water up. I wipe away my tears.

"Hey I can cry if I want to ok?" I force out a chuckle.

Kris also chuckles, he then smiles. "Thanks Tobias. Ill....I'll try my best not to let you down. Ill embrace this."

"Atta boy! That's my lil bro." I sniffle more but then frown. "Kris, there's a reason why I'm hurt. While i was trying to talk to him he stepped the line and....I had to put him in his place"

The husky gasps and his smile fades. I was about to defend myself as to why i fought him but a loud sound made us focus our attention to the living room. The loud banging continued and then we both hear a booming voice despite being somewhat far from the area.

"Kris! Tobias! Its bastion's father! i need to speak with you both right now!"