Disclaimer: DGM is property of Katsura Hoshino-sensei, not me. =) Without any further ado, I present to you:
A Shattered Family
DragonSabre
After this night, their lives would never be same again.
"Brother! Brother! Where are you?" Little four-year-old Lenalee Lee chirped as she toddled down the hall, poking her head through doorways in search of her elusive brother. "Oh! I found you!" Komui Lee, sixteen years of age, was fast asleep at his desk, sprawled over his notes. "Brother, Father's calling you!" She tugged at his sleeve, but it was a futile effort. Lenalee pouted, and climbed onto his chair from the side, carefully placing her foot on the edge beneath the armrest, but overbalanced.
"Oof!" She slipped, toppling over on Komui's back.
"Wah! I'm awake, I'm awake!" Komui sat up with a start. "Ehh… Lenalee? Where'd you go?" He felt a tug on his ponytail. He turned his head and looked down to find his adorable little sister wearing a disgruntled expression, squashed between his back and the chair's backrest.
"Brother, you squished my nose when you got up," Lenalee complained, pointing to her nose.
"Ah, sorry, sorry," Komui chuckled. He stood up and planted a light kiss on her nose. "All better?" Lenalee hmphed and tried to look annoyed with him but failed. She relented upon seeing her brother try to copy furrowed brows and scrunched up nose comically and laughed, and held out her arms to him. Komui smiled back. "Ok, up we go!" He picked her up and swung her around once, earning another peal of laughter before she wrapped her arms securely around his neck.
"So did you need me for anything, my cute little Lenalee?"
"Oh yeah! But umm…" Lenalee bit her lip and tilted her head. "I forgot."
"Oh well, I suppose I'll just have to wait until you remember, ne?" Komui chuckled again and set her back on the ground. He went back to his desk and shuffled a few of his papers around. "Ahh, I can't concentrate, I need more coffee." He reached for his special mug, the one Lenalee had 'decorated' for him one day.
Mother had found Lenalee on the ground with ink all over her face, with a calligraphy brush in her hand. She was surrounded with papers that had inky smears on them. In her other hand, she had her brother's expensive pristine coffee mug… that no longer looked so pristine.
"Lenalee! What are you doing to your brother's cup?" Mother had exclaimed, dismayed.
"I wrote his name on it, see?" Lenalee smiled widely, pointing out her carefully scrawled brush strokes.
"Oh, my dear, I'm sure you meant well, but this was your brother's favourite mug…"
Lenalee's face fell and her smile dropped. "You mean… he won't like it?"
"What won't I like?" Komui slid the door open and entered the room.
"Brother! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Lenalee dropped the brush and ran into his arms crying. "I didn't mean to ruin your favourite mug, I didn't know!"
"Ruin? What are you talking about? It's an improvement to me! Covering up those engravings, I never liked those. Oh! And you've written my name too! Lenalee, you're going to grow up to be a genius, just like your big brother!" Komui gushed, taking the cup from his mother, winking over Lenalee's shoulder to assure her that it was alright.
Sniffling, Lenalee looked up at her brother's earnest expression. "Really?"
Nodding firmly, Komui responded, "Absolutely. Although… there's just one thing that's holding this mug back from being perfect."
"What is it, Brother?"
Heaving a melodramatic sigh, Komui tipped the mug upside down. "There's no coffee in it."
Smiling at the recollection, Komui couldn't help but notice he had the same problem now. His mug was empty save for a few drops. "Guess I'll go fill it." He picked it up and abruptly turned around, only to almost trip over his little sister, who was concentrating intently on a diagram that had fallen from his desk. "Is little Lenalee going to help her big brother calculate the torque generated from the modified C2 hydraulic pump?" Lenalee stared up at him blankly, clearly at a loss. "Guess we're not ready for advanced physics yet, are we?" Komui chuckled.
Lenalee pouted again, "Yes I am! They're, umm… for your robots, right?"
"Lenalee! You make your brother so proud! Yep, those are basic schematics for the arm movement, and these—"
KNOCK KNOCK.
"Komui! Are you blathering on about your science-fiction dreams again?" his mother stood at the door, arms crossed disapprovingly.
"Mom, don't mock my dreams! I will be a great inventor and create amazing robots that can clean things, fix things, heal injuries, protect Lenalee—"
"And terrorize people and destroy cities," his mother acerbically finished for him.
"Aww, Mother, don't be like that," Komui whined. "People are going to adore my wondrous creations, right Lenalee?"
"Right, Brother!" Lenalee chirped.
His mother shook her head and sighed. "Teleport half a century into the future if you want to work on your futuristic mechanics, son. For now, can you at least make an attempt to learn to cook so you can carry on the family restaurant?"
"But, but, but I don't want to waste my potential on cooking at this time! I still have years to learn all that boring stuff from you two."
His mother sighed. "We're not through with this discussion yet, young man. But at the moment, the restaurant is doing well, so we can afford to leave you to your studies. Besides, it's not like you're going anywhere anytime soon."
"Oh! Brother! I remember now! Daddy asked me to come get you!" Lenalee piped up.
"Father did? Oh noooo, he'll kill me for being this late! Where is he?"
"Out by the koi pond! Come on, I'll show you!" Lenalee stood up and shot out the door.
"Ah, wait for meeee!" Komui picked up his dropped papers and ran after his sister, knocking down loose papers from his bookshelf as we went.
"That boy is hopeless," his mother groaned. "And we're going to have a hard time keeping up with our little girl when she grows up." But a smile was on her face as she bent down to pick up Komui's papers for him. She stepped into the hallway and her tough-mom façade slipped as she watched Lenalee dash around the corner and Komui scramble after her. "That bundle of energy sure is going to be a fast one. And that boy may have his head in the clouds, but at least he's dependable when it comes down to it."
"Father look! I found him!" Lenalee dashed forward, Komui's hand tight in her grip.
"Thank you, Lenalee. Off you go, it's nearly your bedtime, isn't it?"
"Aww, okay fine."
"Your mother will tuck you in. Your brother and I need to have a pleasant conversation."
Judging by the glint in his father's eye, Komui concluded that his father had used the word 'pleasant' in its loosest sense.
"Good night Father! Goodnight Brother!"
"Good night Lenalee! Sweet dreams!" Komui returned her smile with a wave and watched her disappear back into the house. He sat down on the bench beside his father. "So Father, what did you want to speak to me about?"
His father ignored the question, instead opting to settle back on the bench and casted his gaze skywards. The last sliver of sun had slipped behind the horizon hours ago. Night blanketed the sky in a dark midnight blue, the same shade as Komui's hair. A breeze drifted by, bringing with it the vestiges of a bird song and thin wisps of ash. Komui stared at a little nightingale that splashed down into the birdbath. It twittered around for a while, preening its feathers with a carefree air, impervious to the tense atmosphere surrounding the two people observing it.
"I'm going to cut to the chase, Komui. You have no intention of inheriting the family restaurant, do you?"
Komui's eyes widened at his father's direct question. "Well, the truth is, I, uhh…"
His father snorted. "Yes, doesn't bother giving your father a straight answer. But that's okay; I already know what you mean to say."
"Father, I—"
"Go on. Follow your dream."
"I—Wait, what?"
"You heard me, boy. Go join that research group situated in Japan you're always talking about."
"You're serious? You'd support me?"
"Son, if there is anything you learn from your father in your lifetime, it is that you must follow your dreams no matter what, and you must always put family first."
"I promise, Father, I will!"
"And besides… your cooking generally results in a burnt mess accompanied by foul odours. It takes talent to spoil the culinary art so badly."
"Father, don't exaggerate!" Komui looked affronted, waving his arms in denial.
His father gave a hearty laugh and tried to ruffle his son's hair. "Your hair doesn't ruffle as easily now that it's much longer."
"Of course, why do you think I grew it out?" Komui gave a mutinous look, taking on the appearance of an overgrown boy, albeit a tall and lanky one.
"You're going to be a good man, son. A good brother, and eventually, a good father too."
"Father! Don't get all sentimental on me, you know I hate that!"
Ignoring his son's remarks, he forged on, "Make sure to look after Lenalee. Don't let her date until after she's married, okay?"
"Father, please, Lenalee's four, now's not the time to be thinking of her future boyfriend." Komui grimaced.
"Ah, but kids grow up so fast. Blink and you'll miss it. Next thing you know, she'll be all grown up and as beautiful as ever."
"Yes, yes, I'm sure— Ahh! Did you hear gunshots just now?" Komui leaped up.
"What are you talking about, boy— Wait! They're coming from the direction of the village center!"
"Regular gunshots aren't this loud! What's going on?"
"Get your mother and sister, I'll find out what happening!"
"But Father!"
"GO!"
Father and son charged into the house. The gunshots were getting louder, and a flash of lightning briefly illuminated the ominous night sky. His father grabbed the shotgun he kept by the door. "Go Komui! Keep your mother and sister safe!" With these words, he charged out of the house and into the street.
"Be careful Father!" Komui tried to keep the foreboding tone out of his voice. He tore down the hallway and threw open Lenalee's door.
"Brother?" Lenalee rubbed her eyes with the back of her tiny hand.
"Shh, sorry for waking you so late Lenalee, but we've got to stay together now and find Mom, ok?" Komui walked over to her bed and scooped her up in his arms. He straightened up, nearly falling down as the ground shook.
"Brother, what's happening?" Lenalee clutched the front of his shirt tighter.
Komui gritted his teeth and stumbled forward. "A minor earthquake, it seems. Don't worry about it!" He kept up a falsely cheery tone as they reached the door to their parents' room. Just as he reached for the handle, a massive explosion shook the whole house, knocking Komui to the floor. Lenalee screamed and tightened her grip around Komui. "Shhh, it's okay, it's okay…" Komui tried to keep his own hand from shaking as he patted her quivering back. He shifted Lenalee to his left arm and shakily reached for the door handle to their parents' room. At his lightest touch, the door fell open.
A bloody scene of destruction lay before him. A cold, dry wind swept across the room and dislodged debris from the crumbled walls. A ceiling beam creaked and swayed dangerously before crashing into the ground, mere meters away from where Komui stood. A jumble of wreckage was collapsed on the center of the room, where their parents' bed should have been. Slowly spreading from the devastation was a pool of red. Komui could only stand frozen from shock at the pool that was inching towards his feet. He staggered a step back, pressing his hand over Lenalee's head, burying it into his shoulder. A few more steps stumbled backwards. The pool spread impossible larger, rivulets of blood still streaming from the center of the wreckage.
Komui's eyes widened, recognizing that the amount of blood lost was at a fatal level. "M-Mom…" he croaked. "Mom?" He reached a trembling hand towards the rubble and fell to his knees, Lenalee still clinging to his neck. Oblivious of the blood now stained his knees, Komui took a few ragged breaths and squeezed his eyes shut. He was faintly aware of Lenalee's tears flowing down his neck and soaking into his shoulder.
"Brother, what's happening?" Lenalee repeated, fists clenched in his shirt. "Why is there so much blood on the floor?"
Komui froze and looked down, finally registering that the floor he was kneeling on was covered in red. A stronger wind blew by, accompanied with a jaw-chattering rumbling. Komui whipped his head up and saw the walls of the rest of the house quaking violently.
Get a grip! You've got to get Lenalee and yourself out of there before the house collapses entirely!
That single thought managed to make its way to the front of Komui's mind over the haze of terror. Komui scrambled to his feet. "Stay close to me! We've got to run!" After sparing a single glance back, Komui hefted Lenalee onto his back and ran out of the house. Once they joined up with a group of fleeing villagers on the street, Komui witnessed a nightmare-scape that would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Massive atrocities with countless built-in guns were hovering over the village causing devastation by shooting glowing purple bullets everywhere. Several even more grotesque creatures weaved among the ball-shaped ones, barking out eerie, bone-chilling cackles as they ripped through the village. "Wh-what are those… those monsters?" Komui shouted disbelievingly at no one in particular.
Suddenly, a woman dressed in a long black coat with gold lining and a cloak flapping behind her leapt down in front of him, accompanied by a giant ape-like beast. Without turning around to look at Komui, she answered, "They're Akuma. Demons created to destroy the world as we know it. Lau Jimin! Go!" She pointed at the swarm of Akuma that were nearing their location and her beastly companion took off with a snarl.
"Who are you?" Komui was completely bewildered. The only tangible thought he could hold on to for more than a second was that he had to get Lenalee out of here, away from these monsters— Akuma, the woman had called them?
The woman spared a second to look back at him, sweeping her blond hair to one side of her face. She scrutinized his dishevelled appearance before responding, "An Exorcist. Apostles chosen by God to defeat the Akuma." Her gaze softened when she saw that he was piggybacking Lenalee. "You should get that child away from here. The battle ground is no place for young ones."
"But, but where can we go? We're surrounded!"
"Try heading further north. My partner should be just about done fighting the Akuma there so it should be relatively safer."
"Yeah, got that right, Klaud." A man with an outrageous mane of red hair with a mask covering half of his face dropped down from a nearby roof, tapping his gun on his shoulder. "Man, that fat-ass really made a mess of things this time. Klaud, you'd better treat me to some Romanee Conti after this."
"I'll have to decline, Cross. I have better things to do," came the brisk reply.
"Ouch, that's harsh, my darling."
Klaud sighed and rubbed her temples. "Why did Yeegar, even Socalo have to be busy? Why in God's name did I have to be stuck with you?"
Cross gave a booming laugh and drew a cigarette from his pack. "Because no one can resist my manly charm?"
Opting to ignore him, Klaud whistled, calling Lau Jimin back. "Come on, let's tackle the western front." Turning to Komui, she pointed north. "Just head that way. Take care of the girl!"
Komui, who had been watching the interaction utterly mystified, snapped back to reality. A barrage of Akuma bullets hailed towards them, only to be met with blazing blue bullets from the male Exorcist. "Get moving kid, I can't stand to be near ugly people." Cross waved him away with his left hand, his gun still firing with deadly accuracy.
"Wait! Um, Exorcist, sir, did you happen to see a middle-age man with hair like mine but with gray streaks wielding a shotgun?"
"Eh, what's that? You expect me to keep tabs on every ugly person that crosses my path?"
"…"
"Tch, fine. Some guy who looked kinda like what you described was leading a group of villagers to the west. Firin' away at the Akuma. Useless, I tell you. Sorry kid, they're probably all dead. Normal people don't stand a chance against those demons." Cross glanced down at Komui between shots. "What, did you expect me to sugar-coat? Nah, it's a tough world out there, brat. Now, you wanna die grieving for your dead father or save your living sister?"
Komui clenched his teeth and squeezed his eyes closed. Lenalee shifted a little on his back, sobbing into his neck. "Brother? That bad man is lying, right? Where's Daddy?"
Komui opened his eyes with new resolve. He gently slid Lenalee down his back and turned to face her. He knelt down and so they could see each other eye to eye. Lenalee was wiping away her streams of tears with the back of her hand, but it was a futile effort. Each sob tore through Komui's heart painfully, but he knew he couldn't just fall apart and cry with her.
"Father is… not going to be coming with us, Lenalee. We're going to hide out at the clinic up north until everything settles down." He heard a grunt that hinted at something like approval, but when he looked up at the red haired man, he was whistling through his teeth, cigarette still hanging out of his mouth.
Too shell-shocked by tonight's events to even consider how that was possible, Komui patted Lenalee reassuringly. "We're heading for safety now, so don't cry. Nii-san's here for you, okay?"
A sniffle, followed by a muffled, "You promise?"
"Yes, dearest Lenalee, Brother will always be here for you whenever you need him!" Komui turned his head and offered a wide grin. Lenalee managed to smile back through her tears. "Okay. Let's go then, Brother." She snuggled more comfortably on his back and yawned hugely.
"Love you, Lenalee," Komui whispered, hearing her breathing steady as she slowly drifted off.
"Love you too… Brother," Lenalee murmured, half-asleep.
Komui trudged on. Lenalee was all he had now. Casting his mind back to earlier that night to his (last, he suddenly realized) conversation with his father, he remembered his promise.
"Make sure to look after Lenalee. Don't let her date until after she's married, okay?"
That would be his job now, wouldn't it? He felt the steady rise and fall of Lenalee's breathing on his back as she turned a little in her sleep. Yes, it now fell to him to preserve her cuteness, her purity, and her innocence from this moment on.
"Brother will make sure you never have to suffer through anything like tonight again."
How wrong he was.
...
...
...
Author's Note:
Hey there, readers! This is my first published fanfic. I've got half-finished fanfics floating here and there on my computer, but this is the first one I've gone through the whole process with. I'd really appreciate a review to know how I'm doing =D
I wrote this because there's just something about Komui and Lenalee's sibling relationship that's really endearing. =) Although their canon interaction is generally light hearted and silly (Lenalee making coffee for Komui, Komui being comically overprotective, Lenalee destroying Komurins XP), their relationship runs so deep that it's really touching. Especially at the end of the Invasion of HQ arc when Lenalee's Dark Boots become Crystal Type. Such a beautiful scene.
Thanks for reading!
~D.S.