Fourth Pattern ; voice, drawing

[hikaruorkaoru]

This place is so stupid.

[As he talks to the journal, he's sketching.



This place is great for his creativity, he's realized... but that's because there's nothing else to do. He hasn't left his apartment in a few days except to steal food from the communal kitchen.

Being forcably dragged back into the mindset of having Kaoru and only Kaoru to rely on... didn't go away easily. He'd missed his brother before, but it's only gotten worse since then.]

The people in charge are idiots. Why would you only kidnap one? It still doesn't make any sense.

[He might not realize that he can be heard right now. He hasn't been exactly careful about where his hand's brushed in the journal.]

We're not supposed to be apart.


(Original picture for the dress designs found here.)

Comments

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

One of... [he actually has to stop and think about it, but... yeah, it's true]

One of my friends has two older brothers.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

So do I. Sort of.

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

Kyouya-senpai wouldn't want his brothers here, definitely.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

- You're Japanese also?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

Sure am.

Hikaru Hitachiin, first year student at Ouran High School, class A.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

You're not secretly a ninja, are you?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

[There is a very, very long pause.

When Hikaru speaks again, he sounds just outright confused.]

...No...

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

[... But how does he know if you're telling the truth.]

Sorry. What happened between Kyouya-san and his brothers?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

[Hikaru, meanwhile, can't help but wonder how this guy got the idea he was a ninja. It'd be pretty cool, but... no.]

Well, that's the problem with having lots of boys, isn't it? After the first one, each next son gets a bit less inheritance and division of company and all that.

I mean. Me and Kaoru are twins, so we're splitting everything fifty-fifty.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

[This problem had never really occurred to him.]

Why don't you just share it?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

We're going to. That's our version of splitting it. We're partners.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

But Kyouya-san and his brothers won't...?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

No way. Oldest brother gets most of it, second gets some, but Kyouya-senpai... He'll probably end up, like, a manager at one of the companies or something, but other than that? Nope.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

That's terrible. Is that really how humans do it...?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

That's how the Otori family does it. [And a lot more, but. Hey.]

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

Why are you friends with them?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

I'm not. Just Kyouya-senpai.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

[???]

[Explain this.]

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

...You there?

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

How can you only be friends with one of them?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

Kyouya-senpai's only a year older than us. His brothers are, like, four and six years older than him, I think. Plus they're jerks. [Even though he has no right to call anyone that.]

They all sort of do their own thing. Not like me and Kaoru. But that's because we're twins. Ageha -- our little sister -- has her own friends who aren't friends with us.

[The guy sounded old enough... so why was he explaining that you didn't have to like siblings just because you liked one person? That was, like, grade-school stuff.]

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

[He didn't go to grade school okay.]

[But more important, you have both a twin and a non-twin. That's interesting.]

[He lowers his voice, almost conspiratorially.]

Normal siblings are... different, aren't they?

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

Yeah. They definitely are.

[He assumes that, well. This guy mentioned having four brothers. An older and a younger. So one of the others must be a twin.]

Kaoru and I have always been together. From the day we were born and ever since. "Normal" siblings aren't like that. Don't know what that's like.

They don't get it. No one else does.

[Voice]

[i_speak_softly]

[Don turns this over in his mind for a few moments.]

Listen, Hikaru... when Kaoru comes, he - might not be the same age as you anymore.

[Voice]

[hikaruorkaoru]

...What?

[Nope. Not possible. Wings? Sure. Magic journals? Fine. Random age changes? Fine. But Kaoru and him not being the same age? Not possible.]