He was beginning to forget things...things he had no right to be forgetting. His mother's face for instance, or his siblings' voices, or even what the sun looked like...all of it was starting to get hazy. He hadn't noticed it at first, he'd been so set on being a hero; of rescuing his brother and returning to the rest of his family, but the days had wore on and he quickly found himself losing focus. Varys' den had been a source of entertainment, even while the older kage was away. Scraps of painted canvas were strewn everywhere and he'd gathered as many as he could find and stuck them all together. Sometimes he'd make a puzzle out of it, or he'd rifle through them before he went to bed like a makeshift picture book. The jewels too were a task all of their own and he sought to finding every single one, because each had been more splendid than the last. He told Varys this, and the pink kage had only smiled that clever little smile of his.

It wasn't till he went to bed did Alexi realize he'd completely forgotten to ask about the shadow, or more importantly his brother.

It had been a wake up call of sorts. He had no idea of the time that had passed outside, there was no time pieces or even windows. It could've been days...weeks...even months. Whatever Varys had planned was taking too long.

He continued to ask his questions whenever Varys was present, which had becoming less and less almost to point where Alexi thought the only reason the other kage was coming back was to bring him food. He couldn't leave to find food himself. If the other people who lived here knew he was here, it would be bad. At least that's what Varys had told him, and who was he to question?

So he waited...and waited...and waited. Until finally he could wait no more.
The outer tunnel that he'd traversed as a child had seemed so much bigger then, now he was crouched and hunkered over to avoid knocking his head. He'd tried to leave once, a curious whim of a child who was going stir-crazy, but the rocks had been much to heavy. Now with one solid push they parted before him.

The air...the fresh air that swept in from outside smelled sweet, unlike the mossy earthy scent he was used to. He liked it. It wasn't much brighter outside either, whether from the canopy of trees, or the strange magic that hung taught in the air, he couldn't say. What little light there was bothered his eyes and made him squint. But he needed to bare it and be quick, he needed to leave before anyone saw him.

No....he needed to find his brother!

Even though his nose seemed to recall things better than his head, the task was too daunting. Varys hadn't brought him food in days and he was weak on his feet as is. Not to mention all this skulking about in the shadows, trying to avoid any danger, and not get lost. It was all too overwhelming. The forest was right there...he could always come back later.

Alexi took off into the trees as fast as his trembling legs would carry him. He could only hope his brother would forgive him for being such a horrible failure. He doubted it.

Daario had never been the forgiving type.

*****

He spent that first night curled up in a bunch of shrubs. The weather was fair, but he hardly slept. Varys' den had been comfortable at least and near silent when he wasn't up and about, but the noises of the night had him jerking awake every few minutes or so. He watched the sun rise for what seemed like the first time and for a brief moment the hunger and exhaustion of the past few days didn't seem to matter. It was such a beautiful sight, and he could only wonder if maybe his mother, or sister, or brother were watching as well.

That thought stirred up a bunch of emotions, both good and bad, none of which he really wanted to deal with at the moment. He stood abruptly, his legs trembling a bit in support of his frame, and shook the leaves from his body before slinking off deeper into the woods. He needed to find food.

The fawn he'd chanced upon had the misfortune of being the first living creature he'd stumble upon for hours. It had been a merry chance, something he could actually see himself enjoying in the future in better circumstances. He hadn't exactly hunted before, but after he'd pounced and wrestled the poor creature to the ground, instinct had taken over. He didn't feel particularly better after his meal, but the tremble in his limbs and the weakness he'd felt before had faded into the background.

High noon brought another problem all together, the bright light all but blinding to his eyes. He skulked about in the shadows of the trees, keeping to the shade as best as he could. Eventually he was wandering around with eyes close, essentially blind, when a familiar scent hit his nose. With no better lead he followed the faint trail to a small burrow and that was when realization hit him. He couldn't stop the sudden heave in his chest or the following sob that tore it's way from his throat and he clamored and crawled his way into the small but familiar den.

He could smell them all, to anyone else the scent would be faint, but they were clear as day to Alexi. His childhood home was small, but warm and dark and familiar. Faced with everything he'd once had, he could only mourn his loss now, mourn and realize how much he truly had failed.

It was these thoughts that the dark kage cried himself to sleep with.

*****

'I should've stayed with mum...then the three of us could've looked for Daa together.'

'Why did I have to trust that other kage? So much time I've wasted.'

'I could've looked for him, back then, or when I fled.'

'But I just ran...why am I so weak?'

He stayed in the den for days, unwilling to leave the small comfort and faint traces of what used to be his family. It was hunger once again that forced him into action, and he finally ventured out into the woods again for the first time in days.

It was past high noon, the sun slowly descending from it's highest point. The clouds helped, hiding it from view every now and then, but his eyes had gotten better. He'd spent time looking out into the light from the burrow, his eyes gradually getting used to the natural light once again.

Even with hunger gnawing at him he seemed distracted. Not so much a hunter as a lost soul wandering the woods.

'I had so many chances, so much time....'

'And I did the wrong thing at every turn....'

'The shadow should've taken me instead.'

'Daario would've found me if the roles were reversed.'

'That's why the shadow didn't want you, you're a failure remember?'

His aimless wandering mirrored his twisted thoughts but it was finally brought to an end when a particular scent hit his nose. It stunned him for a brief moment, like someone had thrown a bucket of cold water on him.

It was different, something he couldn't identify but he knew...he couldn't forget that scent if he tried. It was strong as well, nothing like the faint trail that had led him to his old burrow. He spun around, a spark of life in his dark eyes for the first time in awhile, and took off after the trail. It couldn't be, it was impossible....and yet at the same time...he'd stake his soul on it.

'.....Daa?!'