"If I tell you, will you tell me your story?"

Chapter four - Two Tales

D hesitantly met the young mans eyes again, green falling into the endless black. He was watching her again, probably wondering why she had locked them in. D herself was unsure as to why she decided to lock the door. It won't be for another few months until she would realise that there had been some strange instinct that had caused her to lock him in; looking back she would likely fall upon the reason that it was the natural survival instinct, to develop a bond, or in her case a friendship, in order to survive in a new environment.

"Well?"

Her question hung in the air as thoughts flew back and forth in the strangers mind. Should he agree to this? Reveal his closely guarded past to some newcomer? And what for? He had no evidence of who the young woman actually was, why should he trust her? More importantly, what would he get out of this?

A friendship, perhaps? It had been a long time since he had someone he could call a friend. He had many acquaintances, yes. But, no actual friends.

"I will agree to your terms, but you have to go first. After all, it is a gentlemanly, however rather sexist, thing to do, allowing the female to speak first."

D felt the threat of a shudder begin on the top vertebrae of her spine, as the young man dropped to the floor and began to creep in a spider-like fashion across the carpet and onto her bed. Seeing him pull himself onto the bed was reminiscent of something from a horror film that D had once watched with her brothers; first his arms rose up and bent at spiderish, inhuman angles before his long fingers grasped the bed covers, then oh-so-slowly he began to pull himself up.

Managing to overcome the shuddering sensation, D turned her attention to watching the raven haired male sprawl across her new bed covers, effectively wrinkling them forever in his attempt to get comfortable. Eventually, he drew himself up into a crouch with the covers entangled around his bare feet; he then gave D a nod, indicating he was ready for her to begin.

"You shouldn't have bothered settling yourself, there isn't really much to tell the tru-"

"Never mind that, tell me anyway." The intruder cut in. "and sit down while you're at it, you should at least be comfy on your first night here."

Feeling rather put out about having been interrupted, (even if she hadn't known what she was about say afterwards) D realised she was still standing against the locked door. Not wanting to offend her uninvited guest she made movements toward the desk chair, but he shuffled backwards by using his bare feet to push himself in one not-so-fluid motion, giving her permission to sit on her own bed.

D shyly accepted the implicated offer and sat opposite him, crossing her legs before her on the creased covers.

"Okay…Well then. Where to begin.."

Pushing his thumb lightly against his bottom lip, the visitor interrupted again. "I usually find that the beginning is the best place to start from."

"Well, yeah…I guess…Basically I grew up in a working class environment, not that my parents did much actual work. Erm…I have, or rather had, two brothers. Both of them younger, one by two years the other by four. They both had lovely blond hair, but Dad kept it cut short. Dad preferred them over me, so we didn't really spend a lot of time together. My mother wasn't so bad, but we were never really that close."

D paused momentarily, is this the kind of story that her guest wanted to know? He was no longer interrupting her, so she must be playing a few right chords. She licked her lips nervously before beginning again.

"I guess I got here by accident rather than appointment really, I was at school one day when I got a message from a classmate saying the Head Teacher wanted to speak with me. Well I thought I was in trouble. Turns out he thought I had been cheating on my homework and exams, he thought my parents had done it for me or I had just copied from a book. When I protested my innocence he gave me a few assessments, intelligence tests that sort of thing. A few weeks later my parents received a letter from Wammy's House saying they had room to take me on here, I think the teachers must have made some sort of fuss about my living arrangements, that's why my mother and father left me in here…and well, here I am."

D finished, fingers twisting in her covers without looking up at her visitor.

So, negligent parents, but not violent, not alcoholics but possibly enjoyed regular alcohol intake. I bet they were smokers. Probably couldn't handle that their daughter was smarter than the pair of them…working class, nothing strange about that…Two younger brothers, clearly feels more affection for them than the parents, the light in her eyes told me that. The father must have wanted a son rather than a daughter for his first child, he must have been overjoyed at two little skin-haired clones then. Had difficulty making friends, no. Moved about too much to be bothered to keep making new friends, thus 'classmate' and no name…how must she have felt living with that then?

"Brief and to the point. Concise. Just what I need around here." The male spoke aloud.

D wasn't sure if she was meant to reply to his odd statement, did he even know he had said it aloud?

"What's concise exactly?" she asked.

"You are." he answered.

"I am?"

"You are." he repeated, cocking his head upwards.

"I see, -"

"Indeed?" He was leaning so far back now that D could make out his Adams apple straining against his pale throat.

"Is that a good thing then?"

"Yes, everybody else talks to much and will waffle on for hours, given half the chance, without really saying anything. You're different, different's good. I rather like different." he trailed off, his spine must have been near breaking point as he was arched so badly he resembled a horse shoe, resting his head on the bed spread behind him.

He suddenly snapped back to his curved over posture of earlier.

"What time is it?" he questioned, his blank expression had never changed. D had a hunch that even as he twisted himself backwards that expression hadn't flickered in the slightest.

"It'll be around half-oneish in the morning now…We've been talking for a while now."

"I must go then." The intruder announced. "I want to try to get an hours sleep in before it gets too late." with that he straightened himself up, still retaining the stooping shoulders, and made for the door with surprising speed. In fact, it wasn't till his spidery hand was on the lock that D spoke up.

"Hey, wait a minute! What about your end of the bargain? What about your story?"

The young man turned to see her kneeling up on her bed. Her green eyes wide, he could almost read her mind through them. Another liar. Another one who can't keep a promise. Another betrayal of trust. Just one after another after another… They said to him.

"Yes, you're right. Quite right! What sort of person goes back on a deal?" In one swift move the young man twisted round on the balls of his bare feet. "I will keep my tale concise as it is getting late and I do not wish for either of us to miss out on our sleeping patterns more than we already have."

D sat back down, resting onto her heels as she prepared for his account.

"My father was murdered by a mugger then my mother was hit by a train, I was brought here and I've been here ever since."

Before D could even begin to get her head around the shocking statement the male spoke again.

"Well, with that said, I'll leave you to get some sleep. I'll meet you outside your bedroom door tomorrow at half eight to go down to breakfast."

It may have been a suggestion but D guessed she didn't really have any choice in the matter. As her guest turned the lock and was about to steal back to his own room D called out to him.

"Does this mean we're friends then?"

For the second time that night the young man paused at her bedroom door. "Friends?…I suppose we are. Yes, lets be friends." A strange look came into his dark eyes as he smiled crookedly at her, it seemed that a dim light had been turned on in the depths of the dark iris'.

"One last thing," D piped up as her new friend slipped through the doorway. "Names. We don't know each others names."

"I know that you are now to be known as the new D, I suppose our new friendship would be rather odd if you couldn't refer to me in a suitable way…So then, as you are D, you may call me… actually there isn't really a may about it, you will call me B."

Without another word from either of the two, B closed D's door soundlessly behind him and crossed the hallway to his own bedroom.

Pulling his door shut behind him he turned to look back over his shoulder. A gothic font "D" was the only decoration on the door that he had just come from. In the space of an hour and a half he had managed to accomplish something he hadn't been able to do properly since he had first arrived at Wammys, B had managed to gain his first real friend.