Become What You Know

They meet in a group home. William was small and underfed. The other kids picked on him, stole his food, and his clothing. The adults at the home never cared enough to do anything. Building character and all that. Gabe was older than William, already ten when he came to the home. He was this skinny, gangly kid with too much leg and not enough of anything else. It never stopped Gabe from protecting himself.

So when Gabe sees the kids circling William, whose seven at the time, his righteous anger shines through. He pushes through the group, finds the biggest kid of them all and punches him hard enough to break his nose. The crowd disperses and Gabe pulls William to his feet.

After that Gabe is always with William, which is weird, because sometimes William hears rumors that Gabe broke something or got in a fight with some one while he was with William. William never let it bother him too badly, though, because he knew where Gabe was and what he was really doing.

They first realize there's something different about William when he gets in a fight on one of the days that Gabe's been called away to a counseling session. The kid, who outweighs the boy by atleast fifty pounds, pushes him and William falls and breaks his arm. It's healed the next day. The doctors don't know what to make of it. After it happens Gabe watches William alot more closely.

The second time something weird happens to William he's fourteen and at school. He's in the bathroom washing his hands when his bones shift. He falls to the floor, screaming. The pain is sharp and intense. It feels like his skull is sliding around under his scalp. He screams again, lifting his hand to his face. The bones shift and crunch and he screams again while his hand grows.

He's panting in pain when he feels a cool palm slide across the his forehead. Gabe pulls him to his feet, helps him out of the school building and to the bus stop. They stop at a bridge, and Gabe pulls them both under it. William is breathing heavy, the shifting having stopped by then. He's still in pain, but it's bearable.

He thinks he's seeing things when Gabe props him against a wall and another one steps forward and hands him two backpacks.

"Thanks," Gabe says, and other Gabe punches himself in the shoulder, "Sure."

"Holy shit," William says, and faints.

When he wakes up there's one Gabe again. Gabe is playing in the dirt with a stick, twirling around and around, "I've been waiting for you to show signs of something."

"There are two of you," William says distractedly.

"I mean, I knew. I knew when you healed that broken arm," Gabe continues, ignoring William, "But I didn't know how long it would take to manifest-"

"Two Gabe!" William says again, and Gabe groans, "Yes, there were two. The other one went back to the home to keep suspicions down."

"What are we doing now?" William asks, and Gabe grins, "We're getting the hell out of here. What do you think will happen if people find out about us?"

"I-I don't know. Gabe, where are we going to go?" William asks, and Gabe's smile grows wider.

"We're going where all good runaways go. New York."

"That sounds more stupid than that time you wanted me to jump out of the third floor window," William says in awe.

"Pfft," Gabe says, "You would have healed it." William shakes his head at his friend's logic.

***********
They meet Gerard and Mikey a few years later. Gabe and William are at an underground punk show. Gabe has joined a band, and they like to check the scene out. William, now seventeen, is alone in the crowd when a riot starts. A fucking riot, over someone throwing a beer bottle. Gabe is at the bar, and William just starts punching fuckers in the face. He turns and catches a fist to the back of his head.

William falls and there's two Gabes holding whoever it is that hit him while the real Gabe smashes his fist into the guy's nose. William climbs to his feet, clutching his head. He'd gotten kicked when he fell and he can feel blood ozing from his nose. He can tell it's broken, and he spits blood at the guy, pissed. Fucking pussy; at least he had been punching people in the face.

The cops bust up the riot, and the crowd splits, shoving to get out and away. Gabes are grabbing William and pushing through people. They run into two boys they later find out are Gerard and Mikey. Gerard tugs at one of the Gabes and points away from the crowd, who're being shoved into police buses. They all run together, William with a Gabe on both sides, and one leading the way.

When they finally stop running Gerard turns and smiles at Gabe, the real one, and says, "I knew I'd find you there."

The rest is history.

Gerard helps them find a more permanent home that the abandoned warehouse they're squatting in. After that they find jobs, first at the cafe, and then around town. Gabe still sings with his band, and William finally turns legal. They help Gerard and Mikey find others like themselves; in need of help. People come and go through the cafe, faces interchangeable. No one has ever stayed for long. Not until Celeste.

They don't have time to worry about this new development because what later becomes know as the Mikey-Way-Indebts-Us-all-to-the-US-Government situation happens and no one has time to stop and breathe before they're off trying to save the world.