The Essence Of The Darkness
EOTL eps 3: Self-Feeding

“Kakak?”

Akram peeked timidly from the door of the room where Xavier had spent his days since his return to the Night family home.

Since waking up from his coma, Xavier has taken so long in the hospital to recover his physical condition. Her external injuries and internal injuries were severe, including several bruised internal organs and a broken rib, and the healing process until Xavier can walk again must be taken by various stages that are physically and mentally exhausting.

However, Xavier has a strong determination, not to mention, his intelligence, intelligence and way of thinking have adjusted to the way of an adult man, so as to support himself so as not to fall and not give up.

Eventually, the doctor allowed Xavier to go home from the hospital, and undergo treatment at home.

There are still things that make doctors worry about Xavier's condition. Even though his physique was completely healed and left only a few marks that would not trace on his skin after a few years had passed, but Xavier's mental state was completely illegible.

Xavier shut himself down, refused to speak and refused to share with anyone. Even the best psychiatrists brought in by Baron Night to deal with Xavier's mental state and trauma, still have not succeeded in making Xavier open up to just communicate briefly to them.

In a recovering physical condition and an undescribed mental state, Marlene finally decides to take Xavier home. He hopes that Xavier can remember the good times in their home and forget the trauma that plagued him.

Even though Marlene herself wasn't sure it could happen. He and his team of doctors knew that Xavier had the photographic ability to remember everything to the smallest possible detail. That means that Xavier can't forget. In these circumstances, after all the cruelty, torture and horrific abuse that had befallen him, Xavier's ability to not forget what seemed like a gift seemed to him, now was even terrible.

But there was nothing Marlene could do for now. All he could do was pour out his affection completely, making Xavier number one while hoping to make Xavier smile again like the events before the kidnapping.

After returning home, Xavier spends his days in the room and finds a new interest to explore. Going through the treatment for so long, with a team of doctors who always help him, made Xavier interested in the method of treatment and also things related to chemical ingredients for treatment.

Baron, who knew Xavier's new hobby, immediately bought the best medical books he could get with his connections to become reading material. He knew that Xavier's brain was like a wet sponge that couldn't dry out. All the lessons Xavier learned from the book, will stick to his brain permanently, making his adopted son have high-class knowledge at the age of just nine years.

But what the Baron did not know was that the more the day grew and the longer Xavier immersed himself in very interesting medical books, he said, the more Xavier realized that he had no interest in healing people or concocting medicine. He turned out to be more interested in things related to viruses, bacteria, diseases, also things related to toxins.

Yes, the cruel torture experienced by Xavier left a wound in his heart, make him look for more negative things to vent his pent-up hatred against his captors who may still be wandering out there without getting the right punishment.

Tonight, Xavier was spending the night reading a thick book about the extremely complicated classification of poisons.

Since returning home from the hospital, Xavier has always found it difficult to sleep if he does not take the sedatives prescribed by his doctor. However, Xavier certainly knew that the sedative was not for long-term use in a row so he avoided using it, unless he was really tired and needed rest.

Many of Xavier's nights were spent reading until the morning, because, Xavier was afraid if he fell asleep without medication. Because, a terrible dream based on real accurate memory, always come to him and sneak into his dream.

When Akram's voice rang out and caught Xavier's attention from the book he was reading, Xavier turned to Akram who was still standing hesitantly at the door, then glanced at the wall clock before him.

It was almost eleven in the evening and his sister had not yet gone to sleep. Both of his parents had gone to bed at this hour. While Akram seems to have managed to sneak out of his room to sneak into Xavier's room.

“Can I log in?” When Xavier did not say anything and just stared at Akram, Akram finally made a sound again and asked doubtfully.

Xavier's gaze softened and he nodded his head despite choosing not to make a sound.

The sparkle in Akram's eyes instantly glowed when it gained Xavier's approval. His hand moved to push the door, and his tiny feet immediately took his steps closer towards Xavier's bed, then suddenly stopped and hesitated at the side of the bed.

Xavier tilted his head, staring curiously at Akram who seemed to have difficulty stringing words.

Shortly after, Akram raised his head, then looked back at Xavier expectantly.

“Can.... can I sleep with you?” slowly tanyanya.

Xavier was stunned for a moment, not expecting that Akram would make the request.

In the past, when the nights were off, Akram did like to sleep with Xavier. However, after that event, even Xavier almost never interacted with Akram again.

It was as if there was an invisible hand that kept Akram away from Xavier and prevented Akram from approaching Xavier.

Xavier still chose to be silent. But he shifted his body and opened his blanket, giving a sign of approval with a body stance that Akram immediately understood.

The boy climbed up to the bed where Xavier slept, slammed his body on the edge of the bed where Xavier was lying, lying on the same pillow, and then tilted his body toward Xavier, looking at her brother with an innocent expression.

“Mother said sister is sick and I should not disturb or approach sister because it will make sister more sick,” Akram started the conversation, his eyes met Xavier's eyes and curiosity seemed to fill him. “What pain boy?” tanyanya.

Xavier just shook his head, making Akram frown.

“Why don't you talk?” he asked again, confused by Xavier's behavior.

The question left Xavier stunned. Yes, that was also what the surrounding adults asked when they found Xavier just speechless and refused to talk. They don't know, that for Xavier, keeping his mouth shut is one way of protecting him.

Not because Xavier was unable to speak, but because he was deliberately unwilling to speak.

Xavier knew that the police, doctors, psychiatrists, even his own parents, were waiting for the immediate testimony to come out of his lips. They will use various methods in the name of the investigation, in the name of healing, to get Xavier to tell the story of what happened to him during the abduction. Of course they knew that Xavier could remember things clearly, so it would extract the most detailed information possible from him.

But right now Xavier won't open his mouth for them. Not in the moment did he even have trouble releasing those terrifying shadows from his soul.

“Kakak?”Akram's voice makes Xavier's attention diverted back. He looked down, looked into the wide and clear hazel eyes of his sister, then his heart softened.

Marlene may prevent Akram from approaching her to protect her and also protect Akram. Perhaps also in the mind of Marlene, stung fear that he would blame Akram for the kidnapping.

But Marlene was wrong. There was never the slightest bit of grudge or blame from Xavier for Akram. Xavier is determined to protect Akram in the name of affection and also return the favor to his adoptive family and that feeling has not changed until now.

“I'm fine,” after so long, then Xavier want to say something from his lips. His voice was somewhat raucous and unsteady because for so long he held back.

Akram's eyes widened when he heard Xavier's voice. Her smile also unraveled on her cute innocent face.

“Then is your sister healed? We can play together again?” tanyanya.

Xavier smiled, his first smile after a long time. Then his head nodded.

“We can play together again. Now go to sleep, it's night,” he said briefly a little firmly.

Akram directly according, he always considered his brother as a role model and never denied anything ordered by his brother to him. In fact, Akram is more in accordance with Xavier than to Baron and Marlene.

Xavier let Akram roll close by his side. Soon enough, Akram's regular breathing was blending with a smooth snoring. Apparently, his sister was already so sleepy that she could fall asleep easily. It was inconceivable that the soul of that time Akram was kidnapped, his little sister who would experience untold torment as experienced by him.

Xavier looked at Akram intently and inexplicably his determination flared up all over his small body.

He'll protect Akram. He will make sure that Akram will not experience anything as terrible as what he went through.

Xavier's eyes were fixed again on the thick book on his lap. A book that reviews the classification of various toxic substances in the world and their impact on the human body.

The kidnappers are still wandering around freely. It is not impossible that they are still looking for the peace of their families. Xavier won't let that happen. Right now her small body might not be able to fight those stronger adult captors. But, if he could make an effective poison with a terrifying effect, he might be able to fight those criminals easily.

He has to protect Akram. It was that strong determination that gave him the strength to persevere alive until this very moment.

"Xavier still spends his time in his mini lab?”

The baron who had just returned home from the company where he worked removed the tie and stared curiously at Marlene.

His wife was sitting on the large sofa in the living room, while her eyes were directed directly at the large glass door located in front of her.

Being filled with guilt, the Baron became willing to fulfill all of Xavier's requests. The boy had already begun to speak one by one to them.

As long as they did not mention the kidnapping, Xavier would open up to them. But when one point of the abduction is brought to the surface, Xavier will retreat, withdraw and take refuge in his shell.

That's why the Baron decided to silence anyone who wanted to mention the kidnapping in front of Xavier. With his power, he evicted the police who wanted to ask for information, he also removed all the doctors and psychiatrists who offered Xavier help.

And it seems that Baron's decision is right, from day to day the development of Xavier's recovery seems to be getting better. It was all inseparable from the affection poured out by Marlene completely during these months that made Xavier as number one above all his interests.

That's why, when Xavier asked a small lab to satisfy his new hobby and curiosity about a wide variety of chemical ingredients, Baron immediately renovated a large room in their house, then equip it with all the best equipment to complete the lab room. In fact, you could say, the real scientist researchers might be envious to see the completeness of the lab space owned by Xavier.

Baron also gives Xavier access to one of his credit cards and lets Xavier spend whatever he wants to buy a wide variety of chemicals at fantastic prices for his research needs. He also paved the way for Xavier to obtain a wide variety of strange chemicals with rare names, the most forbidden and the most dangerous.

The silence that stretched between the couple was solved when Marlene nodded her head at Baron's question.

“Xavier is always more cheerful after spending time in his mini lab,” Marlene's smile turns sincere when her head is looked up when staring at Baron. “Thank you, Baron. Because give the lab to him.”

Baron cleared his throat, his heart was flowering. For so long Marlene has focused only on Xavier and forgotten everything around him. It was only this time after such a long time that Marlene actually smiled sincerely at him.

“I want you to understand that I also love Xavier very much,” Baron took a seat on the sofa near Marlene and put the woman in his arms. “I want you to forgive me,” sighs Baron then.

Marlene slid her head against Baron's chest, sighing deeply to relieve herself.

“I've forgiven you, Baron,” Marlene replied in a sincere voice.

The silence again stretched between them for some time, filled with relief that released its aroma into the air. Then, the Baron suddenly distanced Marlene's body slightly from his embrace and looked down at his wife doubtfully.

“About this banquet party... do you feel confident?”

Back Marlene glanced towards the mini lab room where Xavier was, then she nodded her head.

“This annual banquet party for your company is always done to coincide with the celebration of Akram's birthday. This party is also a good thing to train Xavier to interact for the first time with an outsider after so long shutting down,” Marlene replied in a confident tone. “Again, Xavier has agreed to attend it with us.”

Baron let out a long breath. “I'm glad Xavier agrees. But attending a party is so big, with so many people coming. Would that not be too difficult for Xavier?” tanyanya still hesitated.

Marlene put on her smile again. Her hands patted her husband's chest to calm down.

“We must trust Xavier. Have you forgotten that his mind is much more mature than his nine years old? If Xavier says he's ready, then he'll be ready.”

The party takes place in the giant ballroom of a five-star hotel that the Night family owns. There are so many people invited and mixed from various circles. The upper class, noble people, wealthy businessmen even until government officials and agencies are invited to come to this party. So did all the Night Corporation employees in the city and representatives from Night Corporation branches scattered around the world. They were all allowed to come with their families.

This big party is an annual party that takes place grand and lively every year. Food is spilled and served with delicacy, mini orchestral music is played to decorate the air with a pleasant dance rhythm, and all women are competing to wear their best dresses to this place.

Everyone was eager to attend this party, and the invitation to the annual Night family party was very much expected by everyone and most would not miss the opportunity to attend it.

Moreover, this was the first time the Night family had reappeared to the public after the horrendous abduction.

Baron Night may have succeeded in silencing various mass media to maintain the privacy of his family, but still rumors are growing out there, he said, it made many people feel curious about the circumstances of the Night family's eldest son who had survived a terrible kidnapping attempt.

In contrast to the frenzied atmosphere of the party that had begun, in the special hotel room on the top floor of the quiet where the Night family was, in the, Marlene who was wearing a beautiful golden dress seemed to sit while both her hands touched the shoulder of Xavier who was standing in front of her.

“Are you sure you're going out to attend a party? I will understand if you decide to stay in this room and just rest,” asked Marlene in an anxious and unsure tone.

Xavier, who was then wearing a white tuxedo that was the same color as Akram smiled soothingly.

“Take it easy, mom. I'm fine.”

Xavier's voice seemed firmly reassuring, making Marlene sigh long later.

“Alright then. We wait for your father, after that we come out together to welcome invited guests,” he said as he stood up, tidied up his dress, then took Xavier and Akram to the left and right of his hands.

Unexpectedly, everything went smoothly and perfectly. Xavier manages to display the child's healthy self-image both mentally and physically, showing all the curious eyes that look at him that he, Xavier Night, is in fine shape.

Xavier is currently standing quietly in the area near the second-floor balcony. The position of his body was hidden behind a huge pillar of marble whose circumference alone was probably twice his body. Meanwhile, his eyes seemed to be watching over the guests below who were dancing, enjoying dishes and drinks and spending some fun time at this magnificent dance.

As Xavier expected, after the curious humans satisfied his eyes, they did not care about Xavier anymore. That makes Xavier more free to conduct supervision to run the plannaya.

Yeah, he has other plans for this party. That's why he agreed to attend this magnificent and crowded dance, even though actually facing the crowd still felt terrible for him.

The kidnappers thought he was dead on the street. The fact that Xavier survived, certainly made them all scared. Xavier already recognized their faces clearly, it made their position always threatened if Xavier was still alive.

When Xavier takes refuge inside the Night family's grand house, the overcrowded kidnappers won't be able to reach him, but that's certainly not what Xavier wants. He purposely came out of his safe room to make himself a decoy. He knew that the kidnappers wouldn't miss this opportunity.

“Kakak?”

Akram's voice behind him made Xavier jump in surprise. He quickly turned his head, staring at Akram in a panicked manner.

“What are you doing here? Didn't the nanny take you to the hotel room above to sleep?” ask her with a slightly raised voice.

The day was not too late right, it was still nine o'clock and the top of the party with a frenetic event taking place in the ballroom down there. But, for a child as small as Akram, his bedtime has arrived. He shouldn't be wandering around under this kind of unsupervised.

“I. I'm looking for you,” Akram bowed his head, looking filled with guilt.

Both of their parents are still busy hosting the party down there, and Akram's small body does allow him to sneak out of the caretaker's caretaker's care.

Xavier gritted his teeth. The presence of Akram will ruin his plans, and it could even endanger Akram's life. He had to get rid of Akram to be protected to a safe place first. As for Akram's nanny and supervisor, Xavier made sure that he would report to his father so that they would be cruelly fired, since they were all not very good at doing their jobs.

“Close with me, I'll take you to bed,” Xavier grabbed Akram's hand and held him, take her through a small red carpeted hallway that connects the balcony area with stairs and elevators to the top floor where the Night family gets a special room to stay tonight.

Unfortunately, when the two of them went through that passageway, what Xavier had planned was shattered instantly.

The figure of his nightmare, the kidnapper leader, was standing there waiting, facing the opposite direction to Xavier who was holding Akram.

Xavier had expected that his captor would be here to clear him, but he had no idea that Akram would be involved here.

“Wah... wah..” the leader of the kidnappers who managed to infiltrate the party with the grooming of the perlente and the fancy suit straightened his back, he said, then it stepped closer slowly like a starving evil wolf that was pouring disgusting saliva about to pounce on its prey. “I came here to kill the trash boy who was an eyewitness. I can't believe I'm getting a real crown prince here. What luck I didn't think. It turns out, Night family is stupid and never learn from the past,” said the kidnapper leader while licking his lips while his eyes bulged like crazy who was excited to get a new toy.

N.O.T.E.D

Eps 1 - 4 will author use to review Xavier's past first. Who waits for Xavier's romance, patience yakk later must appear.

Essence Of The Light (EOTL) is Season Two of Essence Of The Darkness which is specifically about Xavier Light.

May you all be happy to accompany the author and Xavier to live his life story to the end of the road.

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Regards, AY