This story is a part of my OC series (the Devil's Advocate series)! This is one of those one-shots that I was talking about that delves into the background of some of my OCs and explains a bit more about how they got where they are in the main story! I post my works both here and on AO3, and on AO3, they have an option to add stories in a series, which is what I am doing with these. Unfortunately, on here, there is no option for that, so I will make sure to mark stories in my Devil's Advocate (DA) series in both the description and the beginning of each story. If you would like me to message you when I post a new one that is part of the DA series, then just message me and I'd be more than happy to do that so that everyone is on the same page!

I thought this would be a good bridge into the next major story (of which the first chapter should be posted this weekend) because...well...you'll see why!

Hope you enjoy, and please, please let me know your thoughts!

A blood brother is defined as "something usually associated with or thought to exist inseparably from another thing," and "a man who has sworn loyalty to another despite not being biologically related."

Rafael jerked awake, the nightmare he'd been having ending so abruptly that he was all but forced back into reality. For several minutes, Rafael forced himself to lie still, listening for the sound of either of his fathers, hoping beyond belief that he hadn't woken either of them up. Rafael had had nightmares for as long as he could remember, and he absolutely hated it when he woke one of his parents up. He knew that they loved him; he certainly knew that when they came to be with him after a nightmare that they were trying to help him. But every time they tried to comfort him, it just seemed to make him feel guilty for causing them so much trouble.

After so many years of nightmares, Rafael had grown used to them. He'd had them even before his dad had found him in Buenos Aires, but back then his nightmares had been about his biological parents' deaths and the rich kids who would taunt him in the streets. After he'd been taken in by his dads, his nightmares had slowly morphed into dreams of losing his dads and Max. On the worst nights Rafael's nightmares wouldn't just be about losing his new family, they would turn into being abandoned by them on purpose.

Tonight happened to be one of those nights, and Rafael had to force himself to stay in bed and to keep from getting up to make sure that his family was still there with him. Over and over again, Rafael had to tell himself that they loved him and would never leave him, but at the moment, Rafael knew that there was nothing he could tell himself to shake the feelings of the nightmare he'd just had. It was worse than usual, and Rafael knew he wouldn't be going to sleep any time soon. The only problem was that he also knew that the longer he stayed awake, the worse his thoughts would become.

Rafael got out of bed and turned on the lamp on his nightstand, knowing that turning on the overhead light would wake up at least one of his dads. Rafael did the only thing he knew how to do, grabbing the book that he always left on his nightstand specifically for nights like these. It hadn't taken Rafael very long to learn that reading was often his only escape. At first, he'd read as often as he possibly could because he needed the English practice. But he'd quickly realized that it was the perfect way for him to escape his own mind if only for a while. So Rafael had become accustomed to reading on the nights that his nightmares didn't wake up either of his dads.

The only problem was that tonight, reading simply wasn't working. Within a few pages, Rafael knew that it was going to be absolutely hopeless. This nightmare had been particularly bad, and Rafael knew that he wasn't going to be able to shake the terrifying feelings that he was having. So Rafael tossed the book to the end of his bed, running his hands through his hair, squeezing his eyes shut and all but praying that his mind would clear up. The last thing he needed was another sleepless night because his dads had already become suspicious of just how tired he had been lately.

The biggest problem with what was currently racing through his mind was that Rafael was able to acknowledge that everything he was thinking was flawed in one way or another. From the moment he'd found himself with his new family, Rafael had been horribly afraid that he would wake up one day and they would be gone. He was certainly scared of losing them the way he'd lost his biological parents, their deaths ripping his family apart before he so much as had the time to register what was happening. But the most crippling fear that Rafael had been battling was the fear that his new family would willingly abandon him, that they would suddenly decide that that he wasn't worth all the trouble and that they would leave him all alone once more.

No matter how many times he told himself that he was loved far more than he even knew, those thoughts wouldn't leave his mind. Every time he had those sort of thoughts, they would run out of control much faster than he could get ahold of them, and suddenly he wanted nothing more than to escape from them somehow. For weeks, Rafael had been battling the idea of running away, an idea that had been planted in his mind by a book he'd read. The one thing that had been stopping him was the thought of how much he would hurt his dads by doing so. Yet the more he thought about it, the more the idea tugged at his mind and he couldn't seem to stay away from it. It just seemed like it would be so much easier to leave his family behind before he was left behind by them.

Rafael got up and tried to busy himself with cleaning his room. He knew just how very dangerous his current thoughts were, but that didn't stop them in any way. Before he knew what was really happening, Rafael found himself wiping tears from his face, the frustration over his conflicting feelings pouring out of him all at once. The absolute last thing Rafael wanted to do was to give in to what he was thinking, but before he could stop himself, he realized he was packing a bag with everything he would need to get away on his own. The last thing he truly wanted to do was to leave, and Rafael knew just how lucky he truly was to be with his family. But he couldn't seem to figure out any other way to make the thoughts he was having stop, to clear his mind and make himself feel safe and secure again.

He knew that everyone in his family would tell him to talk to his dads, but Rafael simply couldn't do that. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt them, and telling them how he was feeling would do just that. They'd been kind enough to take him in and love him when no one else would, and the last thing he could allow himself to do was to repay them by making them think that he wasn't thankful or that he didn't feel safe and loved with them. That was why he knew he had to get out before he did just that. Rafael knew that they would begin asking him questions soon, and when that happened, he knew he wouldn't be able to keep himself from giving in and breaking down on them.

So Rafael continued packing his bag, wondering how easily he could get out without waking anyone up. They were staying at the Institute all week instead of the loft, so Rafael knew all too well that he would have to be much more careful than he'd ever been before. Yet when the door to his room slowly began opening, Rafael knew that he'd already immensely screwed up. In the few seconds it took for the door to open, Rafael already had a plan in place, coming up with the lie that he'd gotten his days mixed up and had been packing for their weekend at the loft because he couldn't sleep. But then Rafael turned around and saw George instead of either of his dads, and all of his preparedness simply fell away. Naturally he had to be caught by the one person in the world he couldn't possibly lie to.

"I was getting a drink of water," George began, walking through the door while rubbing his eyes, obviously still half asleep at the moment. "And I saw your light on and I just wanted to make sure that you were okay." George stopped after he closed the door, becoming visibly confused when he saw the bag that was on Rafael's bed. "Where are you going?" George asked, his voice suddenly much softer than it had been before. Rafael's heart tugged at that thought, his heart becoming heavy when he realized that George's voice was tinged with fear. He'd spent most of his life trying to protect George in the same way that he protected Max at all costs, and now he was going to be the cause of George's pain.

Rafael sat down on the bed beside of the bag, knowing that there was no way he could possibly lie to his cousin no matter how hard he tried. Even if he wanted to lie to George, he knew that the other boy would see through it before he ever had the chance to commit to it. "I'm going away," Rafael said, trying to leave out the parts of it that George really didn't need to know. At first, George's expression didn't change, but when he registered what Rafael was saying, his eyes began widening, his face hardening in a way Rafael had rarely seen it. Without responding, George came to sit beside of him, his steps slow in a way that told Rafael he was trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

The silence was so heavy that Rafael thought of trying to comfort George by pretending to unpack, but he knew that would be a lie of its own. "Going like running away?" George finally asked, innocence flooding his voice in a terribly heartbreaking way. To Rafael, George seemed to be trying to hold his emotions back as he often did, trying to make it seem as though he was much older than he really was. "Why?" he finished, his voice barely above a whisper this time. It was very obvious to Rafael that George was trying to stay calm despite what everything inside him was saying.

"I'm sorry, George," Rafael said, trying to keep his own emotions under control for his cousin's sake. "It's something I have to do," he finished, trying desperately to get George to understand without having to explain. Yet in the end, he knew that he owed George that much, knew that he couldn't leave without explaining himself to at least one person. Maybe then George would be able to explain everything to his dads for him. So despite all of his better judgement, Rafael found himself telling George absolutely everything he'd been bottling up for weeks, explaining just why he had to leave and why he couldn't hurt his dads by talking to them, why he couldn't do anything other than get out of the situation before he made it any worse.

After he was done explaining himself, George remained silent, and Rafael let his cousin think, knowing that it would take him a while to figure out what he wanted to say. "You think that this family is going to leave you?" George finally asked, his voice wavering ever so slightly. "That we're going to leave you because everyone you loved before us left you?" Rafael nodded as best he could, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. "You want to leave so that we can't hurt you?" George asked, his voice suddenly becoming much stronger, signaling to Rafael that George had much more that he wanted to say.

"What if I could promise you that I'll never leave you? That no matter what happens or who else might leave that I'll always be here with you?" Rafael remained silent, knowing that George would eventually continue without any prompting whatsoever. "Would you stay if I could prove to you that I'll always be here?" George sounded desperate, his voice hinting on pleading already. Rafael slowly nodded, not wanting to give too much hope to the other boy in case he decided otherwise. "I want to be your parabatai," George suddenly blurted out, his emotions seemingly getting the better of him.

"I know that you just turned thirteen and I'm only ten so that means we'll have to wait for three more years, but Rafe, I already know I want to be your parabatai." Rafael stayed silent once more, but this time it was mostly out of shock. "You're the brother I don't have, Rafe." The way George's voice lingered on those words told Rafael that there was a lot more that he wanted to say, a lot more that he was going to leave unsaid. Rafael was willing to bet that those were things that George simply couldn't put into words at the moment, his emotions and thoughts racing in much the same way that Rafael's were. From the moment George had been born, they'd been all but attached at the hip, and yet Rafael hadn't realized just how hard it would actually be to leave him.

"I know we have to wait until I turn thirteen, but what if I promised you tonight that in three years we'll become parabatai?" George asked, his voice finally giving way once more "What if I promised you that I'll never leave you no matter what happens? 'Whither thou goest, I will go,' right? That's what being parabatai means- always being there for each other no matter what else might happen. At least that's what your dad and Uncle Alec have taught me." At that, Rafael reached over to place a hand on top of George's, sensing that the other boy was close to tears. "Please," George said, his voice wavering with every letter. "What do I have to do to make you stay, Rafe?" George finally asked after several long moments of silence, the tears beginning to slowly stream down his face.

Rafael did the only thing he knew to do, reaching up to wipe the tears from George's face. "You know what you can do, George?" he asked, putting everything he had into keeping his voice even. "Exactly what you just did," Rafael finished, smiling his first genuine smile in a long time when he saw the relief flood into George's expression. Rafael reached to throw the half-packed bag in his closet, vowing to unpack it in the morning. He finally relaxed back into bed once more, motioning for George to follow him, wrapping his arm around his cousin. "How excited do you think our parents are going to be when we tell them we're going to be parabatai?" he asked, finding extreme joy in George's smile.

"You mean it?" George asked, almost as though he was afraid to believe what was happening. "We're going to be parabatai?" he said, his question ending in a much happier tone this time. Rafael nodded as enthusiastically as possible, wishing that it was already three years into the future. "Can I stay with you tonight?" George asked, this time his question ending in a yawn. Rafael reached to turn off the lamp, his smile still unbelievably plastered to his face. When he'd begun packing, the last thing Rafael had expected was that he would go to sleep happy. And yet now he knew without a doubt that he was going to be able to sleep without having any nightmares this time around, the promise of a future parabatai warding off these dreams for the first time in years.