Mornings in the Anya household generally started with Camilla making breakfast. Marx would wake at the same time as her, but having to wake his four year old son, Siegbert, up usually caused him to enter the kitchen just as his sisters were finishing breakfast. Elise, ever the early bird, generally helped her sister with breakfast after waking up from the ruckus. By that time, Leon's two year old son, Forrest, was usually awake from all the noise in his and Siegbert's shared room. His quiet mumbling would be enough to call his cousin's attention, and Siegbert would insist his father wake his uncle from slumber. Marx would oblige, letting his son make his way to the breakfast table as he himself made his way to his younger brother's room.
Leon tended to keep his ceiling fan on at all times, regardless of the temperature. His room was always cold, and he always slept under several layers of blankets, which raised the question of why he kept it so cold in the first place. Unlike every other member of his family, Leon was not a morning person. It often took Marx several attempts to get him out of bed, and when he did wake up, he was more than a little sluggish. At the very least Marx knew that when he was up, Leon wouldn't go back to bed without eating some form of food, so it was quite easy to catch him before he retreated to his room after that. Leon would grouchily tell his brother to get Forrest ready for the day, and that he would be downstairs in a moment.
They both knew a moment meant at least an hour. Leon definitely fussed the most with his appearance out of the entire family thus far. Nobody knew how the next generation would turn out (Forrest seemed just as, if not more, concerned with his appearance as his father), but out of the matured members of their family, Leon was definitely the most self-conscious. Marx went off to get Forrest ready (by handing him to Elise and telling her to do it instead) before finally sitting down for breakfast and realizing he had minutes to eat until he had to leave for work. The man would mess up his son's already terrible hair before leaving for work, barely on time. Camilla was in charge of actually taking Siegbert to his preschool, and she did this in a rather frightening manner, as she only knew how to drive a motorcycle.
Not that he was scared or anything. Of course not. Everyone thought he looked cool showing up to school on a motorcycle. Siegbert liked to think that, at least. In all honesty, he just liked that his other dad was sometimes there, and he had the chance to see him, along with his brother, Shiro. He didn't get the opportunity to see Ryoma as much as he did Shiro, but he supposed he didn't mind. His father told him it was because their schedules at work made it hard for them to see each other too often, and despite being a four year old, he understood. Besides, it made the times he did see his other father all the more exciting and memorable.
By the time Camilla had dropped Siegbert off at preschool and headed off to work, the only people left in the house were Leon, Elise, and Forrest. Elise would get Forrest ready according to what Marx informed her his day would be like, then proceed to get him fed before bringing him up to Leon's room. More often than not, Leon would be in the shower, and Elise would leave his son to wait for him on his bed before calling out that she was leaving for school. Leon usually didn't respond, but when he did it was usually along the lines of 'have fun' or something similarly detached and generic. It wasn't until after styling his hair and getting dressed that he left the restroom, and he would carry Forrest down the stairs as a precautionary measure to make sure he didn't fall and hurt himself. He would take his time with eating breakfast as he watched his son look through his design book, making sure that he didn't tear any of the pages.
"Father?" Leon gave him the look that told him to keep talking. "Aunt Elise got me dressed up all fancy." He tugged at the collar of his shirt. "What are we doing today?"
"Well, Camilla finally convinced me to do an interview. I can't imagine why anybody would want to know the man behind the brand, though." Forrest blinked.
"That's when people ask you lots of private questions, isn't it?" Leon nodded.
"I'm already regretting it, but I can't go back now." He smiled at his son, pulling a stray piece of hair back into place on his head. "And you need to look extra nice because you're coming with me." Forrest looked downs, fidgeting with his clothes.
"I don't like these pants." Leon stood from his chair, having finished his food.
"Well, unless you want Felicia to look after you while I'm being interviewed, you have to wear them." Forrest let out a sound of alarm.
"She spilled tea on me last time! And I was wearing white!" He carefully got off of his chair, following his father to the kitchen.
"Then you'd best accept what you're wearing right now, because there's no time for you to change."
Forrest pouted at his father's words, but knew there was no point in arguing. He had to admit, he would much rather wear one of Elise's old dresses, but he'd rather not upset his father. Any time he mentioned such wants, the man looked strangely frustrated, and almost hurt. Now, Forrest wasn't old enough to understand why that was, but he was mature enough to keep such desires out of the public eye for the time being. He doubted anything could stop him from dressing the way he wanted in the future, but he would at least hold off until he understood what made his father upset about it.
The two males made their way to Leon's car, Leon strapping Forrest into his car seat before starting the engine. Forrest himself took a small nap, the motion of the car lulling him to sleep. He was awoken by his father upon reaching their destination, and he recognized it as the big glass building he was told they filmed the news at. Forrest didn't care much for that. He much preferred the big glass building his father worked at, because it was filled with all sorts of clothes. Felicia was also there, though he usually avoided her for fear of his outfit being ruined. If he was lucky, one of his aunts or uncle would be doing some sort of photo shoot where they tried on different outfits and posed. Forrest often wanted to do the same, but people told him it was a grown up thing.
"Here we are." His father broke his train of thought.
Leon had led him to two slightly large doors. Beyond them would be the talk show he'd agreed to go on. Forrest was looking around, his face falling with disappointment that the hallway they were still in was nothing special. Leon told his son that their destination was past the doors, and they would wait until they were told to enter. The two year old blushed, feeling slightly embarrassed. A rather boring looking man Leon knew he wouldn't remember the face of nodded at him, a silent signal that they would be walking in soon. When the man opened the doors, Leon did just that, with Forest following close behind.
"- the owner of the famous Anya clothing company!"
It felt rather bright, with the audience sitting in the dark. The stage was lit properly, and there was a rather comfortable looking couch waiting for him to sit on. Morgan, the talk show host, was sitting in a chair near the couch, with a decorative glass table in between. The flowers were a rather nice touch, Leon decided as he sat down. Forrest did so as well, sitting closer than he needed to, though Leon supposed that probably made him feel more comfortable. Leon cleared his throat.
"Hello." He said simply, keeping a blank face in spite of his nerves from being in front of so many people. The woman laughed.
"Doesn't talk much, eh?" She twisted a lock of mint green hair between her fingers.
"Depends on who I'm talking to." Leon very suddenly noticed her long, pointed ears, and frowned. Looking at Forrest, he knew they were different (Forrest's ears were short and pointed), but it still made him wonder.
"Well, I don't even know who I'm talking to! I doubt everyone watching this show even knows your name!"
"Do they really need to know?"
"I guess not, but it'd be nice to know who the hel-" She seemed to suddenly remember that Leon had his two year old son with him. "- heck, I mean heck. Who the heck is this person who's taken the fashion industry by storm? I'd never heard of you until you popped out of nowhere two years ago, selling the best stuff I've ever seen."
"Well, I've pretty much been designing clothes since I was in high school. I never actually made any of them until a few years ago, after my brother got me to stop being such an idiot. From there, I just started online before getting some help and building our headquarters in town."
"And how was that like, being a single mother and starting a company from the ground? I know I wouldn't be able to do it!" She laughed, and Leon had to take a moment to realize what she was saying. He could feel Forrest's odd stare on him.
"Well, I couldn't tell you that, because that's not what I am, but…" He glanced at Forrest, giving him a reassuring quirk of the lips. "I could tell you what it's like being a single, trans, gay father and doing the same." Morgan somehow managed to keep the smile plastered on her face, but Leon could see that she looked apologetic.
"Damn, all the good looking guys just have to be gay, don't they? I remember I liked my friend Gerome, once… He's married to my other friend, Inigo, right? I think they have a daughter now." She paused. "I also think Inigo changed his name to Laslow for some reason." Morgan looked to be deep in thought. "That's not important right now. How about we introduce ourselves properly, hmm?"
"Sounds like a plan."
"Hello, I'm your incredibly attractive host, Morgan Rehal!" She did a dramatic bow without leaving her seat, and the audience cheered more than Leon thought they ought to.
"I'm Leon Anya, and I think you already know what I do for a living." His applause was only slightly less than Morgan's.
"What about the little guy?" Morgan leaned over to get a closer look at the two year old. "Is he shy?" He giggled at the thought of him of all people being shy.
"I'm Forrest Anya, and I'm going to be a way better designer than my father!" The crowd seemed to love him, as the applause he received was the loudest. Leon figured this was because he was a small child.
"Well, you're just about the cutest little boy I've ever seen! I'd almost rather see you as a model than as a designer!"
"Oh, I'm going to be the best of both." He claimed confidently.
"What a blessing, having such a precious little kid." Morgan wiped a fake tear away. "Now, Leon, I'm sure everyone has been wondering this since that first sight of your little boy, but who in the world is the other parent? I've seen pointed ears in my lifetime," Morgan tugged at her own ears in demonstration. "But never have I seen such short ones! And his eyes look just like rubies, it's a wonder nobody's tried to steal them! Not to mention that pale hair. It's not exactly white, but… It's not exactly another colour either." Leon smiled a little awkwardly.
"Well, funny story, I have no idea who the other parent is." He put a hand on Forrest's head. "My memory from ages eighteen to twenty one are more than a little unreliable."
"You told me my other parent was alcohol." The audience (and Morgan) seemed startled, and Leon sighed.
"Like I said. My memory from then isn't the most reliable."
"I'd say." Morgan cleared her throat. "That's not really something I'd tell my kid about until they were way older, though."
"It's not like it'd do him any good having false hope. He doesn't need his other parent, he has his aunts and uncle."
"Hey, don't your siblings model your clothes?" Leon nodded, glad for the subject change.
"At first it was just Camilla, because I couldn't find anyone to model the designs of a nobody, but then Elise thought it looked fun. Marx didn't really want to join in, but Elise forced him to. It's just been a lot of fun for them, and even though I don't really need them as my models anymore, they do it because they want to."
"Wow. You guys must be really close, huh?" Leon laughed.
"We still live together. I can't even remember a morning I was woken by my actual alarm instead of one of my siblings."
The show went on with much of the same, though Morgan started to give Forrest special attention halfway through. She seemed awfully fond of him, and Forrest seemed to like the attention more than Leon did. After what felt like an eternity, they finally got to leave, and Leon breathed a sigh of relief. He was ready to go to his office and fall asleep. Not that he would actually do that. Forrest looked through Leon's design book during the drive to the building. Despite his exhaustion from being on TV, he found himself completely revitalized upon arriving at his workplace. Forrest sat on the couch in his office, drawing his own designs in his sketchbook as Leon dealt with paperwork. When he finished, he decided to sit by him.
"Can I see?" He asked, taking the sketchbook after receiving Forrest's okay. Leon smiled at the crude drawing, finding it endearing. "You know, with a little bit of extra work, we could make this into something real and sell it to people." Forrest shook his head.
"Nuh-uh. That's for your wedding." Leon blushed.
"Excuse me?" Forrest took the sketchbook back, flipping to a different page. All the pages in between seemed to be more designs for Leon and Forrest's dad to wear.
"This one is for dad, when you meet him and you get married." He pointed at the design. "I don't know if he'll look good in blue, but I can change it if he doesn't." Forrest beamed at him, and Leon couldn't help but smile back.
"What makes you think," Leon cut himself off, rethinking the next bit of his sentence. "he wouldn't look good in blue?" Originally, he'd been planning to say 'What makes you think I'm ever going to meet your dad?' but he decided against it. There was no point in crushing his dreams when he was so happy with the thought of them.
"You're right. I bet dad looks best in blue!" Forrest set the book aside and hugged his father. "I hope you meet him soon." Leon stiffened slightly upon being hugged, but he relaxed momentarily, a warm feeling filling him as a soft smile made its way onto his face.
"I hope so too, Forrest." He hugged him back, leaving a kiss on his forehead. Forrest began drifting off to sleep, as he was still only two and it was around his usual nap time. "For your sake."
Word Count: 2,671
I really love the Fashion AU, haha. It's really pleasant to write for, especially with little two year old Forrest! In case you're wondering why the heck he seems to be so skilled at speaking despite his age, it's because he honestly just likes talking, and he talks a lot so he's always working up his vocabulary and speech skills!
I'd like to remind you to possibly vote on my poll that's on my profile? It's to see which of my fanfics you all would like to see more of, and if nobody votes for this AU, there probably won't be too much of it in the future.
So far there's a four-way tie for first place (somehow) and this AU series has received 0 votes. Of course, that's somewhat understandable because there's barely any of it! So sorry about that ^^;
I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!
