ignis | b. barnes

000 | prologue

1932
BRENDON turned in his bed. He knew he had to get up, after all, his mother was yelling for him to get ready. He started to make a list of things that would motivate him to get out of bed. The one that made his decision was that there was only one week left of school before summer break.

As he changed his clothes he thought about what he did the day prior. It wasn't a smart move, no definitely not. But he knew it was right. Brendon quit the track team. Despite being the fastest one on the team, he couldn't deal with the other runners. He barley knew their names. He knew one because he shared a name with a boy his age who has been damned by God himself, according to his parents at least.

Howard Bloomington was the school bully and seemed much more of the devils spawn than Howard Stark, the child prodigy and inventor. Apart of Brendon believed his parents were jealous that a poor boy was receiving fame for a simple invention.

Brendon finished lacing his boots up before running down the stairs. His mother, Helen Marshall, glared at him as she placed the plate of food in front of him. Brendon thanked her quietly, taking a bit of his food.

Brendon felt lucky to have this much at his disposal considering what was happening around them. He was able to have two stable meals a day and go to school. Some kids barley had enough money to afford a bagel.

"Do you have track today?" Brendon's mother asked making him look up rather quickly with wide eyes.

"I thought I told you?" He lied.

"Told me what?" Helen asked sternly placing her hand on her hip.

"I quit." He said. "I still plan on running, of course, but running with a team isn't my thing."

His mother let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. "You didn't tell me."

"I-I thought I did." He told his mother. "Well, I need to get to school. I want to study before my math test." He lied again.

With that Brendon jumped up from the table and took his backpack, walking out the door.

Quitting the track team probably wasn't his best option. It was his parent's choice and once his parents make a decision for him he'd be damned if he change it. He wasn't given many options in life. His parents made decisions for him. They asked Brendon what he wanted to do for a living and when he said he wanted to be a singer on broadway his father slapped him and  demanded his son be a doctor.

The choice Brendon ever made for himself was what language he wanted to learn. His parents wanted him to speak multiple languages so they gave him the choice. He chose Latin and at age five he started taking lessons from a private tutor. He's held that language close to him as it was the only thing, so far, his parents let him choose.

Brendon loved walking in the morning, if he didn't have his bag he would be running to school. He doesn't know why he loves walking in the morning he just does. It may be the color of the sky or the feeling in the air, the morning air in Brooklyn wasn't all that bad. When Brendon doesn't have school he's out running at the crack of dawn. Sometimes his father comes with but typically it's just him.