The Troublesome Siblings

**Users Involved:** User:Sakura0Xavier, User:KontonMan.
**Date Started:** January 17, X943
**Setting:** Fiore
**Characters Involved**:
Sakura Xavier, Jax Duman.

With one last step forward Sakura reached the edge of the cliff and could overlook the town that was only a few more hours away. She seemed to jump with excitement and turned back to her adoptive brother who lagged slightly behind. She smiled, her feet barely staying on the ground, and pointed towards the village. It wasn't much, a small farm village that had nothing to offer but some trade. Even still, Sakura eyes lit up.

"What's the plan for this one around," she asked Jax, finally settling down enough to sit on a nearby rock. She stretched a little, her feet a little numb from walking for a great length of time. "We gonna blend in or just go for it as we are?"

Jax sighed, adjusted the tent gear that was slung over his right shoulder. “Well,” he began, messing up Sakura’s hair as he did so. “That depends if we wanna stay in an inn or camp tonight. Either way, we could pull off that Noble scam we did a few towns ago.”

The boy looked down at the town from the cliff, the wind gently brushing through his black hair. He pulled out a cigarette, lighting it and taking in a puff. He exhaled, releasing smoke into the air. “It’s your choice, sis.” Jax said, leaving the choice to Sakura as he usually did.

Sakura weighed their options and shrugged. "Staying at an inn is nice and all but it's a waste of money, our tent can survive anything," Sakura was quite proud of the handicraft she had added to her supplies and as always boosted a little, though it didn't last long as she pouted at the cigarette. Opening her mouth to say something she stopped herself, sighing and kicking his leg playfully instead.

"I guess I'll get the costumes ready and you can stay here and not burn everything down," with one last look at his cigarette, clearly annoyed by it as always, she took out her needle and started to create clothes out of seemingly nothing.

Jax exhaled once more, playfully willing the smoke to brush by her face before fading elsewhere. As the smoke did so, it turned itself into a deep lapis colour. “Oh yeah, because I’m the one that gets us into trouble every time.” he responded sarcastically, teasing Sakura. “Need I remind you of what you did in the last town?”

Sakura waved the smoke away, not amused, before turning to him with a slight blush on her face. "Why dear brother, I have no idea what you could be talking about. I am just a kind girl who does as she is told. Next time, maybe my dear brother should think harder on what he says and remind that his poor, poor, poor sister was a servant only a year ago, troubling to know the difference between sarcasm and literal commands," she stuck out her tongue, her attitude turning back to normal. Sakura pouted again, sewing much more aggressively than before.

Jax squinted, cupping his ear, pretending as if he couldn’t hear her. “What was that? Huh?” he teased. “I can’t hear you from down there, shorty.” he continued.

Her sewing became quicker, her lip bit. Sakura shoved the costume she had created in Jax's face, saying no more as she placed herself onto the rock again, starting a second costume in which she would wear. Her face told a picture though, he had won, this time around.

Jax laughed, patting Sakura’s head. “There there, nimrod.” he joked. “At least you’re good at making these costumes.” he said. “Before you, it was a lot more difficult convincing these morons that I was really who I said I was."

Sakura accepted the apology and compliment, a small smile reaching on her face. "I am pretty sure the costume had nothing to do with it, your acting skills can be debatable at times, even I wonder if you really did go to an Acting Academy."

"You say that, but why is it that I manage to convince everyone that we're health ministers or something equally as outlandish?" Jax retorted. "Plus, I've even managed to convince you that my name *is* Jax."

Sakura stopped for a second, her dress nearly complete. She turned slowly to her brother, a smile on her face. "Your name *is* Jax, and if it isn't then we will be having words *Jax Duman*," her eyes seemed to twitch a little. What if she had been deceived this entire time? No, that was impossible. Jax wouldn't do that to her, she was sure of it. With a clear of her throat she went back to sewing again, adding the finishing touches to her dress.

"Alright then," Jax began. "Guess we have to talk then." he murmured, plopping himself next to Sakura. "My name isn't Jax Duman. It's an alias I used so I'd be harder to find. My real name is Jaron Wayne." he continued.

Sakura shook her head, her sewing placed to the side as she looked at Jax. "Do I look like a dumb idiot from some town made for nobodies?" she said, her voice reaching new peaks of high tones as she looked at her brother. How much did she really know about him? Was it all a ruse? Maybe she was being used for something. Sakura laughed through the chaos entering her mind as she started to question the entire year she had spent with this man being an illusion.

Jax sighed, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Look, I'm sorry I lied to you all this time." he began. "I had just met you, and I wasn't going to give my real name away to a stranger. But now...now we're family. And it's probably for the best that I tell you the truth now."

Silence filled the camp for a while. Sakura looked down as the newly crafted dress and then back at Jax with confusion on her face, she was slowly starting to buy his story. "If that is the case," she stated before quickly added, "and I am not saying I believe you Jax!" Sakura paused taking in a deep breath. "Does this mean you have lied to me all this time?"

Jax sighed. “Y-Yeah." he responded, a tinge of genuine sadness in his eyes. “I had to, I’m not someone that trusts easily. But I trust you now! So...now you know.” he murmured. “Please don’t hate me.”

She shook her head, gripping tightly onto the last remaining pieces of thread. Tying it off onto the dress and adding the last details to it, she stared at it with a sad look in her eyes. "No that makes total sense," Sakura spoke softly and started to get up, rubbing off the dirt that had gathered below her dress. "Well... we have a village to fool," and with that she walked off to get changed into her new costume.

The boy stood, running up to Sakura. Jax grasped her shoulder, his voice cracking with emotion now. “Sakura, there’s one more thing i need to tell you.”

Sakura turned round, hiding back tears. "What is it, we gotta hurry before it gets dark."

Suddenly, Jax’s look of sadness and melancholy became one of joy. A teasing grin appeared on his face. “Seems like my acting skills are pretty good, huh?” he asked, teasing his sister.

Pure rage filled Sakura as she realised she had been deceived, not for the first time that was for sure. She bit her lip, rolled up her nose before placing her head high and storming off into the forest to change. "Stupid idiot of a brother making me care," she muttered through gritted teeth before she pulled her clothing off herself. Her angry forced her to tug on parts too tight and soon a new hole had appeared on her top. She cursed in her own way which seemed to be a mix of the words "chips" and "brooms".

She lacked the ability to speak and so she slowly put on her dress and tears started to flood her face. Light teases were something but for a moment she thought she really had been betrayed, that the brother she loved so much was just some sort of ruse. Sakura shook her head. This negativity was everything she was against. She frantically whipped away any traces of her tears before zipping her dress up. She packed her clothes away and took our her proper shoes over the mangled hiking shoes and with a final nod to a tree, she walked out the forest like nothing happened.

By the time Sakura came out of the forest, Jax had changed himself, placing his old clothes with the camping gear. Gone was the chest plate with the red bat in the centre with the rust coloured jacket. It was replaced with a blue trench coat, with a spiked collar. The shirt he wore underneath was an obsidian black. The only thing that remained of his old outfit was the pack of cigarettes and the lighter in one of the coat pockets.

Jax noticed how upset she was by the way she walked, he was good with people like that. He walked up behind her and placed his head on top of hers, his hands on her shoulders. “Aw, come on sis.” he said in a hushed tone, his voice sounding protective. “Don’t get too sad over the whole thing. I was just playin’.”

*Playing with my poor emotions,* Sakura thought but she didn't say anything aloud. Instead she looked him up and down and shook her head. "Are we ready to go then **Jaron** we have a very tight schedule after all," she sighed shaking her head at Jax. Why was it that she cared about this idiot in front of her. With one last glare, Sakura picked up her backpack, throwing it onto her back, and forced a smile. "We will be having words after this, just so you know!"

"Sure we will." Jax replied, walking ahead of her. The boy placed his cigarette in his mouth, taking in the smoke. He loved how it felt, despite the negative health risks. "Let's get a move on, nimrod. And let me do the speaking."

Saying nothing more Sakura shook Jax off. Walking in front of him.