{ Chapter Twelve }
There was a room Caius hadn’t yet had the opportunity to explore. It stood to be the only one with a set of doors aside from those on the main entrance. The only room he would hesitate upon entering, because in a building where there were nothing but open archways inviting people in to explore, a pair of closed doors instinctively told him that not just anyone was welcome.
As someone who kept her touches to herself, Yulia breezed through the doors. Caius was right behind her, and when he caught sight of what was hidden away, a huge sense of disappointment rested on his shoulders.
Following on with the architectural theme of intermingling circles, the room managed to create a completely different air compared to the building it was contained within. He could see the appeal, where it felt somewhat isolated from everywhere else, inviting those who didn’t wish to be seen to take a seat. But Caius couldn’t overlook the major flaw of the room— it was a library.
Every individual book looked to have been meticulously placed on the floor to ceiling shelves. Shelves which hugged the curvature of the walls and took up no more space than what was required. They were in the same state as his papa’s own, which was stored away for their own preservation. But Caius could only judge them for how they looked… old.
Libraries were all but non-existent in their current times. When people heard the word, their thoughts would drift to the Communicator on their wrists and the virtual library contained within. Everything was easily accessible. And certainly not a feature Caius had ever taken advantage of.
The books were a wonderful feature on a planet dedicating all their thoughts and prayers towards the ancient ones, who treasured the finely sliced pieces of wood with writing all over it. But Caius couldn’t appreciate them the same way he did the sculptures, not when he had spent a large portion of his life staring at projected texts that he couldn’t bring himself to focus on and nor remember, no matter how hard he or his impatient teachers tried to force him.
Already knowing that Yulia would be disappointed if she intended for him to read from one of the many string-bound books; Caius’ head dipped. Even the floor was more interesting, with the way ridges were almost certainly kept exposed to show the method of their crafting.
It was a beautiful room, with a comfortable silence that reminded him of when he stood in front of his easel, the only sound being the bristles of his paintbrush against the rough texture of his canvas. The library was a false sense of security, since Caius knew his lack of proficiency with reading.
“This is one of my favourite places,” Finian whispered with the slightest of nudges against his son’s side, who was looking meek.
Caius smiled to himself, “I think all your favourite places involve books,” he accused, slowly lifting his glossy blue eyes that were framed by soft strands of white hair that maintained their slight curl towards the ends.
Given the importance of such a location in the eyes of his papa, Caius found it strangely upsetting to see it absent of a single soul.
His papa, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind. He reached over and looped a strand of Caius’ hair around one of his fingers and gave a gentle tug, a cheeky grin exposed.
“How right you are.”
Yulia had left them at the entrance of the room, moving into the centre where the chairs had been positioned directly under the only portion of roof that was made of glass. Instead of taking a seat, as Caius thought she would, she breezed past them and over to one of the bookcases that stood identical to the rest.
The worry he faced about potentially having to read resurfaced, and Caius felt the initial excitement he experienced when faced with the architectural splendour of the library, diminish as quickly as it appeared.
“As much as I adore these books as profoundly as your father does, in this instance, they’re merely for show.” Yulia announced with a gesture for them to follow her.
What Caius neglected to notice was his papa closing the doors to the library as soon as they entered.
He wasn’t given time to wonder what was going on, as Yulia reached the side of the bookcase that was flush against the wall. After a bit of manipulation, a wooden clunking sound filled the room and had Caius stepping closer before he could even register he was moving.
His suspicions were confirmed to his complete delight, as the side of the bookcase came away from the wall and opened outwards like a door. There was an extent to how much it was going to open, but once there was enough space for them to step through, Yulia regarded Caius with a mischievous look.
She really did know how to work with children, but even with Caius’ complex situation, he was still just as curious as any other person.
“When people think of a secret door,” Yulia began explaining as Caius past her, “they conjure up in their minds the highest level of security and technology in order to make it effective. When most have forgotten the ability to see what is directly in front of them.”
A spiral staircase leading downwards greeted the excited Omega. He recognised the material as yellow stone; a hardy and more importantly quieter material to use instead of the alternative that was metal.
Pinned into the walls that safeguarded the secret entrance, and leading downwards, was a railing that Caius felt thankful for given his clumsiness. Neither did he complain when Yulia continued to lead the way, meaning that he was kept in between her and his papa, who was closely following behind.
There was a noticeable difference in temperature as they started venturing down, the confines of the secret space warming the three individuals in comparison to the brisk air that dominated the surface. Even while protected within the thermal, the weather proved unabashed and sometimes managed to breach the geographical anomaly that allowed pretty blossoms to bloom.
Surrounding Yulia’s voice was an ever-growing noise of static.
“People have forgotten how to use their very own hands, instead of relying on the endless potential of what wraps around their wrists.” She then paused and tapped her chin, looking over her shoulder with a smile that Caius could only just make out because of the dimmed lighting following their movements.
“Why ever am I preaching to you? When you are braver than most in your abandon of holographic technology in favour of using artistic methods that are deemed archaic. I’m sure you might have guessed that such methods are highly regarded here. It’s one of the many reasons I was incredibly excited to meet you.”
Caius wasn’t expecting the praise, he could barely keep up with that on top of the revelation of the new surroundings.
The static succeeded in drowning out his worries. The volume increasing the further down they got, so when the walls surrounding them opened up and was replaced by some form of glass, the pressure that built because of the static completely evaporated and allowed Caius room to think.
With the intensity gone, the sound remained. But it was much more obvious to identify, as Caius looked on with wide eyes at the absolute wonder that was a waterfall. And with a vague notion of where they stood beneath the building on top, Caius guessed that they were directly beneath the water feature in the main hall.
Once they reached the bottom, Yulia gave him plenty of time to take in the waterfall.
It was contained so it flowed straight down from the grand heights of the ceiling to the floor they stood on, and beyond. Perfect circles were carved into the very bedrock that made up #OWS3. The sheer power of the water was visible, a faint breeze brushing the only strands of Caius’ hair that weren’t tied back.
“My expression was the same the first time I saw this place.” His papa confessed, taking in the magnitude of the feature in front of them.
Yulia chuckled, “This wonderful element is what powers our entire planet, and one we do not take for granted. What looks calm on the surface, like our minimalist water feature that only draws the appreciation of a select few, is actually disguising the torrents of power, the inner-workings of what lies beneath.”
Out of everything Yulia said, the next statement was her most serious: “Maintaining stability is key. A power such as what is provided to us by the waterfall is one thing, but stability in ones self is just as important. Once that becomes your closest ally, there will be no situation that can tip the balance.”
Her words took Caius’ mind straight back to Ace, who often told him to look at his own mindset as a glass of water. When he was presented with unavoidable stress, the glass would inevitably fill up but there were opportunities that came in the form of tips and tricks, where Caius could control the water from spilling over.
Which he had momentarily lost sight of during the ceremony, where he had left the man in blue who had given him the white flower, looking just as confused as Caius had been overwhelmed. But while Caius understood what Yulia was saying, all he took from the conversation was then how much he missed his teacher’s presence.
Whom he hadn’t seen since the day of the ceremony, where Ace had helped him get his papa into bed.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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The waterfall stood in the centre of the room, the dominant feature that everything else was built around.
Open areas were decorated with a minimalist mindset, and yet managed to have features that brought the room to life and eliminated any sense of coldness. There were tables and seats dotted around, and booths tucked away near more bookcases that held even more aged books of all varying sizes.
Huge columns that joined together at the top to form a colonnade, quite like the one upstairs, wrapped around the entirety of the outer-perimeter of the rounded space. It brought with it a clash of styles and yet somehow worked beautifully.
Caius suspected there were rooms down the different hallways that branched off from the main space, but that wasn’t where Yulia was leading them. Instead she brought them over to one side of the hall, to where a handful of people stood. Most of which hadn’t been able to contain their curiosity and looked over.
While some sat, others were stood around a table and quietly talking about a matter they obviously wished to keep to themselves. Caius only noticed, that when their gazes lifted and found them they always had the same expression. Which was reserved solely for his papa, who didn’t even spare them a glance in return.
Instead of engaging with them, Yulia took them to another table where with a quick tap on the surface, activated a screen. Caius tried to follow what she was doing, but he lost interest fairly quickly. Only perking up when a map was displayed before him.
“Do you know what the most important thing is in this world, other than the amount one is worth?”
Caius shook his head, knowing that the immediate thoughts that came to mind were courtesy of his sheltered life.
“Knowledge.” Yulia whispered, making it sound dramatic. She gestured around them, “This amazing place is filled with knowledge, but there are only certain types of people who are willing to obtain it.”
It took a moment before Caius responded, “Types of people?” He echoed.
“That’s correct. Just like we spoke of before, those with no where else to turn to and who feel the most vulnerable, are actually in a rare position where they can bounce back and grow so much stronger than those who exposed them to such dire situations. All it takes is a single moment for the glare of the golden stars to falter.”
Caius gaze found the brightest of planets on the map, he lingered on it before lifting his head to his new teacher. “You’re going to give me that knowledge?” It wasn’t a question, as Caius was certain that what he had agreed to learning earlier had something to do with this.
“Indeed..” Her tone was soft, coaxing, aware that there was more to come.
His gaze found his papa’s, who stood not too far away with his hands clasped in front of him. Due to the style of his clothing, a uniqueness that was made more obvious when around lots of other people, the older omega’s hands were not visible. If they were, it would have been obvious about his discontent with their surroundings.
Their eyes met, and instantly Caius felt encouraged.
“All I do is paint.” To anyone else, this sounded quite pitiful, but that wasn’t what he meant. He wasn’t much of a forward thinker, so the goals he gave himself in his second life were in keeping with his desire to live a simple life. All he had been doing is painting after he managed to miraculously get rid of Kalel.
The speed with which he was dealt with was only down to Caius’ underestimation of Kalel’s greed.
But unlike his past, Caius hadn’t suffered, and that was what he was trying to explain in his own way.
It wasn’t immediate, but Yulia gradually came to understand. “We can control our own actions, such as your love of painting. However we cannot extend that control to the actions of others. Our world is so large, but as you will soon learn, it oftentimes feels much smaller than we would like it to be. Sometimes a life lived a certain way is in fact due to the orchestration of another.”
She seemed to realise her words towards the end, “There is no harm in being prepared, and since I promised your father I would look after him to the best of my ability when we first met, of course that would extend to you.”
The response didn’t completely fulfil him, but Caius nodded anyway.
He found it hard to concentrate as she went on to talk about other areas they would be covering, which to Caius’ displeasure, sounded exactly like the subjects he was most happy to say goodbye to when he left Thebaria First. Neglecting to remember that his papa had his own stock of books related to all things children, and how to properly raise them. Including step by step guides on the best topics to teach.
Caius was older than he looked, but even then after so many years, his knowledge about a broad variety of subjects had inevitably shrunken.
“I’m pleased you like it here so much, since you may be spending quite a lot of your time here. I would love to see your interpretation of our home via your paintbrush. Though for particular reasons, I must ask that you don’t paint any of the scenery from down here.”
“What about Ace?” It shot out of his mouth before he could register his own surprise.
“Your art teacher? Unfortunately he won’t be able to come here.”
“I need him..” Only then did it became apparent to Caius, as well as his papa, just how quickly he had formed a strong attachment to the other Omega. Whether it was for his art lessons, or the tone he used when helping Caius to organise his scrambled thoughts, Ace had wedged himself into their life and the young Omega could no longer see his own without the strangely comforting man.
Yulia didn’t say a word.
Finian, on the other hand, placed a hand on Caius’ shoulder and drew him into his arms. “I haven’t forgotten how important those lessons are to you.” He whispered reassuringly.
The moment between the two didn’t last long, as Yulia decidedly found her voice: “Finian, as for the information we talked about, it’s available for you to see.”
There was no movement for a short minute, until Finian gave Caius a lingering squeeze and straightened himself out. “Shall I go to the usual place?”
Obviously Yulia had agreed, but Caius didn’t see it as he turned his head and watched his papa. Who in return, showcased a smile that would be hard-pressed not to make even the toughest of men’s hearts tremble.
His papa leant forward and plastered a kiss on Caius’ temple, a few strands of his straight hair falling over his shoulder and brushing against his skin. It was the affection Caius would never grow tired of, as he still remembered the agony of so many years without it. He felt his ears warm, knowing that his papa couldn’t care less about those around them when it came to demonstrating his absolute adoration for him.
“I haven’t forgotten what I wanted to show you, my soul. I’ll be back shortly, so enjoy the rest of the tour with Yulia.” He spoke slowly, quietly and most importantly, for Caius’ ears only.
Caius knew there was something special about his papa, and it wasn’t just him being biased. Every room they stepped foot inside, his papa maintained an enthralling presence that naturally drew gazes. That much Caius knew for certain, but the pull seemed to extend to everyone, not just Alphas. As Caius could see as he watched his papa’s back, seeing heads of those he walked past unable to stop themselves from turning.
“Did my papa learn the same things?” Caius wondered, his lingering look only snapping back to Yulia once the only source of his focus had disappeared down the hallway.
“As in what I intend to teach you?” Yulia asked and when Caius subtly nodded, she continued, “When your father came here, he was wise in most aspects other than child-rearing. Of course, in the end, he proved to be a natural when given a helping hand. But yes, building upon foundations that were already set, I taught your father similar lessons.”
“What was he like?”
Seeing the way the conversation was veering, Yulia flicked her hand and the maps and other pieces of information displayed on the table disappeared. She then gestured for Caius to follow her over to one of the booths nearby. It allowed them at least a small amount of privacy.
“Your father hasn’t changed all that much, if I’m being honest. Not from my perspective at least. He was someone who needed help, but truly wished he didn’t have to ask for it. I imagine it took a lot for him to come here. Then there’s the fact that he is probably the most strong-willed person I have ever met.”
Caius knew there was more to the story, more than his papa just needing help with him as a newborn. Why was he on his own in the first place? Why did he leave Nova, where had been in the same circle as men from the top branch of Nova’s military.
Perhaps in the past, those sort of questions were present and yet so quiet Caius didn’t take note of them. They certainly didn’t take such a strong place in his mind as they currently did. Now that he was older, he knew that the trust between him and his papa was treasured, and yet why did he continuously refuse to open up? Caius could only gently nudge for answers.
Biting the inside of his cheek, Caius dug his heels in. “Did you know my other father?”
Yulia had been reminiscing about her first time meeting his papa, and visibly went much stiller upon the quick change of topic. Her brown eyes slid over to meet Caius’, which were focused intently on her body language.
“Your other father? Unfortunately not.” Yulia as a figure anyone could trust, and she would act upon her promise to keep her precious people safe. She would extend a hand to anyone in need, and endeavour to try her hardest to do anything in her power to turn their fates around and set them on a good path.
She was a Beta, but more crucially a woman who had the utmost faith in her own ability. She wouldn’t be intimidated by any figure, no matter what title they elected to carry and boast in front of her. She was always prepared, and managed to effortlessly communicate with anyone.
But in this instance, she had made a mistake.
She had underestimated the sheer heat of Caius’ burning questions. Chastising herself for solely basing her actions off the report Finian had given her on his son’s temperament. One which stated that he was usually comfortable with silence, and wouldn’t do much to ask unexpected questions. Which is why the tour, where Yulia did most of the talking, was perfect for their first meeting.
“He must have been one special individual to catch the attention of your papa though, wouldn’t you agree?”
Caius pondered it for some time and ultimately ended up drawing a blank. “I don’t know… I don’t know anything.” He murmured.
Yulia leant towards him, “Caius, I don’t know much of the circumstances related to your other father because that’s what your papa prefers. He likes his distance. It’s likely something he has taken solace from since a young age. There is nothing wrong with that, because that demonstrates his grief. He is grieving. That in itself tells me all I need to know about how your father’s meant to one another.”
“That means he keeps a distance from me…”
“I’m positive it’s unintentional, little one.” Yulia insisted. “Finian is incredibly strong and he has filled these years taking care of his most precious person, trying to keep you out of harms way. Harm which is always close-by, and why our lessons are so important.” It was easy for her to go off on a passionately-spoken tangent. She visibly took a moment and clawed back her calm approach.
“I will speak to you frankly, but as you know a big pest managed to get too close a few years ago. You were quite young and it’s understandable if memories tend to blur, just as emotions can do. But I believe your father hasn’t yet gotten over it, it rattled him more than he is willing to admit. In a way, I think he is punishing himself for it.”
Caius listened to every word, but could only say, “I wasn’t harmed.”
Yulia smiled. “No, you were not. But as time passes we cannot help asking ourselves the ‘what-if’ questions. The ones that truly plague the mind. You are the reason why your father can still smile, and if there is any possibility of you being harmed then he will naturally take it very seriously. On this occasion, that man was one who worked for your father and connected that way. In your father’s mind, I suspect he thinks that he is the one who opened the door for such a creature.”
“But Kalel is gone, dealt with.” Was exactly what Caius told himself repeatedly at times, though usually joyfully.
She ignored the strange wording, “That may be true, but some of him remains in the form of your father’s guilt.” Instead of leaving Caius to struggle with his own thoughts, she continued.
“It is only you who can get close to your father, only you who can ask the questions that you do deserve to hear the answers for when the time is right. You are the reason he smiles, little one. But you mustn’t let the fear of that smile dropping keep you from asking these sorts of questions.”
If only it were that easy, Caius sighed to himself. The fear of losing his papa wasn’t healthy, not when his own brain told him that he mustn’t be any more inadequate than he already felt he was.
As if he had caught them talking about him, when Finian entered the room Caius shot to his feet and turned to greet him. Looking slightly more tense than when he had left. But Finian was in no state to question it, when he himself was wound tight.
“Did you finish the tour?” He asked when he got closer, reaching out and brushing the back of his hand against Caius’ cheek.
“Yes!”
“That’s good. Now that we’re both finished, how about we head back upstairs?”
While Caius agreed, Yulia stood up.
“I’ll let you two explore a little bit on your own, even though I’m sure Finian could walk around this place with his eyes closed. It was truly a delight meeting you Caius, I’m excited for our future lessons together. But saying that, I would love to have the opportunity to meet your other teacher.”
“Ace?” The young omega blinked.
“That’s the one. Seeing how crucial his lessons are to you, and how much you have come to trust him, he sounds like quite a spectacular figure. Finian, do you think that would be possible?”
Finian’s expression was blank, but his eyes said enough. “He liked it the last time he came here with us, so it shouldn’t be difficult to persuade him.”
Caius stood between them, and couldn’t figure out why something felt off.
But by the time they returned up the spiral staircase made out of yellow stone, stepping out into a library and then the rest of the building where it persisted to be only the two of them, Finian’s mood seemed to have shifted.
“I told you of my parents who passed away when I was your age, haven’t I?” Finian broached the subject as they walked out of the building and out into the fresh air.
“You said you were young…”
“I see. Well, I was in fact your age.” His papa said it with a cordial smile that didn’t necessarily fit in with the conversation. “They were just as in love with this place as I am, and my grandparents were and onwards down our line. I have told you the tale of the founder of this place— Yulia’s ancestor— many times. But our family were right there beside him, supporting him as one of the first families to say that they actually believed him.”
They strode leisurely down the stone path and in a direction that looked similar to all the rest and yet one Caius had not ventured down. Now that he knew what they were, he took note of more headstones that looked just as well-kept as the one they had visited earlier.
His papa came to a stop when they approached one of the little paths that splintered off from the main one. He offered Caius a reassuring smile and started moving again, following the little track which until it brought them to a clearing.
In amongst the trees, and hugged all around by an abundance of vibrant flowers, were a series of white marble headstones that were positioned in a circle facing inwards. Each and every one of them had something in common, and that was that they shared a last name.
‘Creed’
A name which stirred something in the back of Caius’ mind, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. That was until he saw the way his papa approached a pair of headstones in particular and ever so gently ran his fingers over the smooth top.
“I should have brought you sooner,” his papa acknowledged and turned his head to the only other living person, who hadn’t moved an inch. “But these are your grandparents, your great-parents, your great-great grandparents… and so on.”
“Finian… Creed.” Caius suddenly felt compelled to try out.
His papa laughed. “Perhaps fits me a little better than Xue, right?”
Caius didn’t respond, instead he walked over to the flowers growing and gently plucked the best ones. Only taking those which had peaked in maturity. He took a moment in front of each one, each couple who had chosen to be buried side-by-side. Placing the flower so tentatively as he whispered their names to himself.
An ache inevitably grew, a strong desire to meet them.
His papa stood back and watched, and by the time Caius reached his grandparents, he was out of flowers.
“My Alpha father’s favourite colour,” his papa said from behind, handing him a white flower that looked identical to their hair.
“You thought correctly, my soul. All Omegas in our family develop our colour hair, it’s how I knew with you as soon as I saw you. Tufts of it sticking up everywhere on your little head.”
“What about if they are Alpha or Beta?”
“Then,” Caius was presented with a second flower which was a deep blue. “My omega father’s favourite colour.”
“Blue hair?”
His papa laughed. “No, my sweet. Their hair colour was dependant on their Alpha or Beta parent. Commonly blond in our family. Deep blue was just my father’s favourite, is all.”
“Oh.” Caius gently lay the final flowers down, greeting his grandparents as he spruced up their already flawless headstones.
When he stood back, he turned and saw the spaces next to his grandparents headstones. Perfectly sized for more couples when that time eventually came. It made Caius look at his papa, who in his past life had never been laid to rest in such a beautiful location.
“This is my answer to your earlier question…” his papa spoke softly, wrapping an arm around him comfortingly.
“You will be a Xue while everyone is a Creed.” Was all Caius could think of.
“You are not wrong. Every family member of the Creed family kept that name, because it ties back to the founder in the tale. Everyone who married into the family also changed their name to Creed.”
“But…”
His papa smiled, “I know what you want to ask. But for a number of reasons I chose to take the name Xue. Mainly because I’m probably the most stubborn of the Creeds and it was the only tradition, out of many that were asked of me, that I was willing to comply with.”
Caius listened closely and found himself thinking back to Yulia’s words of encouragement.
“Do we have family on the Xue side?”
“No.” It was an immediate rebuttal.
“Oh… are they buried as well?”
“Caius, let’s stop there.” His papa shook his head, dropped his light embrace and turned away.
“Did they come from Nova, too? That blond man said he knew father and you from—”
Finian spun round to face him, frowning. “Don’t mention that man here.”
“But he said you were friends..”
“I said that’s enough!”
The most Caius had expected was for his papa to turn him down, but he hadn’t actually factored in the chance that he would shout. Something Caius hadn’t experienced before, only knowing a sterner tone when he was in trouble.
Caius stood rooted to the spot, his head drooping instantly.
He didn’t see his papa, who quickly realised what he had done, move to close the distance until arms wrapped tightly around him and he was smothered in an embrace. Caius didn’t budge and that only made the hug grow tighter.
“I’m sorry, I just…”
They both ended up saying it at the same time, but Caius wasn’t heard because his voice was stifled by his papa’s body flush against his own.
Neither moved for a long time, his papa obviously shell-shocked by his own aggressive response which had never been directed towards his son.
Yulia had said that only Caius could be the one to ask about topics Finian felt the most sensitive about, but what she hadn’t been forthcoming about was the information Finian would receive, and how he would react to it.
Worries which had rapidly been exacerbated to the point of him going deaf with his own thoughts, Finian hadn’t expected Caius to unintentionally choose that exact moment when he was at his weakest, to ask questions about the man Finian wholeheartedly wished was by his side right then.
Twisting the knife, Finian had panicked and had turned away from Caius in hopes of calming down and keeping his calm composure.
Only he hadn’t predicted his beloved child, who was far too innocent for their world, to talk about Auryn Tryst. The blonde man who was apparently his old friend, the same one who played one of the biggest roles, which resulted in Finian having no body of his lover that he could peacefully bury with the rest of his family. No where he could visit, grieve and lay a flower of his favourite colour.
Which, like his own Alpha father, was always going to be white.
{ To be continued }
Thank you for the chapter, he’s not going to have a simple life is he ;-;
Poor Finian ;-;
Thanks for the chapter~
Thanks for the chapter UwU ❤️
Thanks for your hard work!
I know he got yelled at, but I still consider it big progress that Caius asked about his Alpha father and his side. I hope Finian can answer Caius someday soon.
Poor Finian his suffering for the lost of his lover and at the same need to be strong to protect little Caius If it not because of that Auryn bastard Tryst this would not happen And I even consider him as one of the possible ML! I’m a big fool!
Thanks for the chapter<3
My heart breaks for these two. Thanks for the chapter !
thanks for the chapter! <3
I am not sure why I seem to suffer from the sensory overload in the whole novel.
Also, serious question : according to all timeline Caius is now 10 years in body, but at least 28 years in mind.
How come I only see a 10 year old in his mind? Even if he did nothing but paint in the years he was in trouble, he did have some years of survival after his “papa” died.
The only knowing danger he ever knew was Kalel, who is gone & those he was surrounded by at school (which he has left).
Hopefully that answers some of your questions :)But I do understand the juvenile sense of Caius, but there are factors for that. He’s quiet, so people assume he’s uneducated. He has his social restrictions, which doesn’t help his quietness.