[ No child should need to ask someone else to kill for them. Let alone one so young. (But that's how it goes, isn't it? There's no other solution.) The thought sends a bitter pang through his chest -- one that Amos must surely feel as well -- even if Gen doesn't respond with much more than a grit of teeth at first, his fingers silently tangling into the fabric of his pants once more.

And while he does flinch when he notices the hand reaching for his knee, he doesn't dare look up at Amos, at either version of him. Somehow, the prospect of meeting either of those blue, blue eyes and connecting it to what he's hearing right now scares him. Gen is uncharacteristically quiet for a moment before finally responding. ]

... okay. [ So he keeps his eyes averted, gaze fixed on some indistinct point on the ground when he answers quietly. ] If that's what you want -- ... if that's what you need, then I'll do it for you.

[ He can do it, he thinks. He can do it if it's for Amos.

(But you've never killed anyone for another person's sake,' a voice chides at the back of his mind. 'You're just a selfish brute to the core.') ]

-- but you know. [ It's a little brusque when he speaks again, an attempt to drown out his own thoughts. His ears cant back as Gen shoots that younger version of Amos a sideways glance. ] Most people wouldn't ask for something like that from a stranger. You just met me. [ Because even if Amos has identified himself as 'another version' of this child, Gen knows that doesn't count for himself. He has no connection to this child, and he's hardly the type that most would look to for protection. So -- ] Did you not have anyone else you can ask for that? Back where you're from.

[ Even before he finishes that sentences, he knows what the answer probably is. ]