"Hanabusa, you've been awake all day, and your mother said that I should make sure you sleep. Please, just go to bed and get a few hours of sleep before your parents find you. Besides, you're keeping me up." The young, fiery haired vampire implored of his stubborn relative. Akatsuki Kain had all but given up on his cousin, but he was persistent because he knew that the last thing he wanted to do was let Hanabusa's mother find him awake at dusk.
The boy being addressed glanced over his shoulder from his desk where he had a particularly difficult book that he had buried his nose in at his desk purely to go against his cousin's wishes, and perhaps also to show off.
"Akatsuki, cut it out. I know the only reason you're here is so my mother and father could have you keep an eye on me, but you needn't rub it in." The shorter boy pushed his chair away from his desk, so he could look at his cousin a dramatic pout on his face. "To think I had been under the impression that my dear cousin and I were friends," he leaned back in his chair dramatically, pressing his hand against his forehead as if he felt faint. "What a fool I was."
"Hanabusa I never said—" But before Akatsuki could argue with the blonde, in a crash Hanabusa's chair fell backwards and his head smacked against the floor, eyes wide with terror.
Akatsuki stood up to look at the other child with disapproval, crossing his arms. "Hanabusa if you had been paying more attention—"
"Shut up," Hanabusa muttered, crawling off of the chair and turning away from Akatsuki. "Go to sleep if you're gonna be mean."
Akatsuki had never been snapped at like that by the other, so he cautiously made his way over, shocked to see tears of embarrassment and pain in Hanabusa's eyes. "I was trying to say that we are friends, Hana," he sighed, sitting down next to him and slinging an arm around his shoulders. "So you can cry in front of me and I'll keep it a secret from everyone. Whenever you need to cry, okay?" he said firmly.
The blond child quickly wiped his eyes, sniffing. "I was just surprised, you know? It doesn't really count as crying," he tried to explain. He was surprised at the affectionate gesture; he wasn't terribly familiar with things like this. His parents were 'love from a distance' people and his sisters certainly didn't hug him. They were girls after all, and he heard that they had strange girl-germs that he wanted no part in.
He had to admit though that this was nice, and he tentatively snaked an arm around Akatsuki as well, secretly relieved. He constantly challenged his friendship, always wanting to renew their old promises of best friendship. That and he particularly hated going to sleep when he was told to.
The red head shrugged. "Well even if you aren't now, I'm still promising it. Okay? Now you should go to sleep," he sighed, using his free hand to get the chair back on its feet. "If you don't get any rest tonight I'll worry and it'll be your fault."
Hanabusa gave Akatsuki a quick, affectionate squeeze, one that his friend wasn't terribly sure he had actually been given it was so fleeting. With all of the emotions the young child was trying to convey in the hug, it had probably been too short, but he was too proud to fully expose himself like that, so when he had finished his meaningful little squeeze he jumped to his feet and climbed into bed, slipping under the covers. "Fine, however in the future I'll insist that you pay me back for assisting you with such troublesome worries," he said curtly.
Akatsuki covered his mouth to stifle amused chuckles before going over to his own bed and settling in, closing his eyes and allowing his mind to drift off.
Maybe he wouldn't have to get married to some aristocrat girl and run off to get married, have children or whatever else he was expected to do. Perhaps when he and Hanabusa grew up they could just have a house to be best friends in. After all, he didn't know anybody else that he trusted enough to leave them the job of keeping his dear friend out of trouble.
Opening his eyes once more to cast one last fond glance at his best friend, he once again closed his eyes and allowed the gentle waves of slumber so desperately calling to the young vampire to wash over him and engulf him completely.