Disclaimer: I do NOT own Loveless or anything involved within. That all belongs to Yun Kouga. I make NO money off of writing in this category. It's just for fun.
Dedication: This fic is dedicated to all you readers out there who celebrate Christmas. Merry Christmas! And to those who do not celebrate Christmas, I hope you enjoyed the holiday that you do celebrate and had a pleasant Thursday!
000
Snow was falling gently on the formerly grassy lawn of the Aoyagi household. School was canceled for the day due to the heavy downfall and the number of students who walked to school; with or without parents. Five year old Aoyagi Ritsuka was kneeling on the seating part of the living room's bay window, watching the snow falling. He was still in pajamas, having just awoken a few hours ago that morning. His mother was in the kitchen cooking breakfast-pancakes, it smelled like-and his father had already left for work an hour ahead of schedule due to the weather. His elder brother Seimei, a ten year old fourth grader, was still asleep in his bed upstairs. An hour would go by before, normally, his alarm would go off and both wake him and alert their mother that it was time for him to awaken. Wouldn't Seimei be surprised that school was closing. Hitsein Elementary, his school, rarely closed even if the weather was bad. His father would normally drive him on bad days so he didn't have to walk or take the dangerous school buses there. Now that school was closed, it gave Ritsuka another rare day to spend lazing about with his brother instead of trying to keep himself entertained and running errands with their mother while waiting for Seimei to come home. He wasn't all that excited when his father came home, but Seimei was a different story altogether. He was his best friend, as sad as one might believe that sounded, and Seimei was very devoted to him.
Ritsuka's neko ears perked at the sound of a yawn and turned to see Seimei at the foot of the staircase, also clad in pajamas. Ritsuka's were blue and had puppies on the pants, but Seimei's were a plain dark green. The elder brother was clearly still groggy from sleep as he rubbed one eye with a small hand.
"Seimei!" Ritsuka greeted. "You're up early!"
Seimei smiled gently at him. "Yeah, I can't sleep." He stated. "I don't really want to go to school today."
"Well guess what, Seimei!" Ritsuka grinned.
"What?"
"You have to guess!"
"It's too early for guessing games, Ritsuka…" Seimei replied with a slight hint of rare irritation in his voice. "Can you just tell me please?"
"Aw, you're no fun, Seimei." Ritsuka pouted. "School's cancelled today!"
Seimei chuckled. "Now, Ritsuka, you shouldn't go around making up stories like that." He walked over and tapped his brother on the nose. "It's not polite to get my hopes up like that."
"But I'm not making it up! Turn on the TV! It says so on the news!"
Seimei cocked an eyebrow. "Really now? Why were you watching the news?"
Their parents didn't let either of the boys watch too much TV, saying it would pollute their intelligence.
Ritsuka giggled. "I wasn't watching, silly! Mommy and daddy were when I woke up!"
"I see…"
"Your brother's right, Seimei." Their mother Misaki replied, entering the room. "School closed for the day, for once. Good. I didn't really want you going out in that storm and getting sick."
She was a rather tall woman with long, straight black hair and gentle chocolate eyes. Both of the brothers got their hair color from her, but their plum colored eyes clearly came from their fair haired father.
"Well, then I'm sorry, Ritsuka, for assuming you were playing with me."
"Its okay, Seimei!" Ritsuka's tail thrashed wildly in excitement. "We can spend the day playing together!"
Seimei smiled. "Mother, would it be okay for Ritsuka and me to go outside and play in the snow later?"
"Of course." She nodded. "Just wait until after breakfast. Can't play on an empty stomach!" She grinned happily before disappearing into the kitchen.
Ritsuka grinned before turning back to the falling snow. "I don't really like the cold, but if it keeps Seimei home, I'm happy!"
Seimei smiled, inwardly bursting with joy and pride. He loved when his brother shared how happy it was to have him. It stroked the ten year old boy's already rather large ego. He knelt on the seating next to Ritsuka. Their tails moved in a similar rhythm as they stood there; though Seimei's was medium length and fluffy while Ritsuka's was long and organized. Their rhythms slowly synched; left then right, left then right. Ritsuka's ears twitched at every sound but Seimei kept his as still as possible. The five year old still had trouble controlling showing his emotions, ears, and tail, but that was expected at his age. Seimei had learned to control it at a very young age, hating it when people could see through his words because his ears and tail refused to get with the program. For now, however, Ritsuka's childish innocence was adorable and welcomed in the rather strict Aoyagi household.
"Boys, breakfast!" Their mother called.
"Coming mother!" Seimei called.
"Coming, mommy!" Ritsuka echoed.
Seimei took his little brother by the hand and led him to the kitchen. The younger neko could hardly contain his excitement. The sooner breakfast was over, the quicker he could play with Seimei.
000
Bundled up with more snow gear then both the ten year old and five year old thought was a bit excessive for either of them, Seimei and Ritsuka were let out into the fenced-in back yard by their mother. She'd permitted them an hour to play, saying that any longer could give them frost bite. Ritsuka bounded through the snow like an eager puppy the moment he back door opened. Seimei watched in amusement as his brother got himself covered in the cold white precipitation but didn't seem to care. Ah, to be five and carefree, no? It took a few minutes for the young neko to realize his big brother wasn't with him and he walked back, careful to step on holes already made by his feet.
"Seimei!" He greeted, coming to a stop at the edge of the patio. "Aren't you going to come play with me?"
"Of course." Seimei grinned. "I just wanted to watch you play for a bit. You're so cute all bundled up and hopping around."
"I'm not cute!" Ritsuka pouted
"Of course you are."
Ritsuka's ears twitched underneath the wool cap his mother made him wear. "Are you going to play or not?"
"Aw, did I upset you?" Seimei pat his brother on the head. "I'm sorry, Ritsuka. What should we do first?"
"I don't know…" Ritsuka replied. "What can we do?"
"Don't tell me you forgot from last year!" Seimei feigned surprise. "Silly Ritsuka, you know exactly what to do in the winter with snow."
"Nuh uh! You gotta tell me, Seimei, like you always do!" Ritsuka stuck out his little pink tongue. "You always explain everything so I can understand it."
Seimei smirked. "Well, maybe this is something I shouldn't have to remind you of how to do, hm? Why don't you show me how smart you are instead?"
Ritsuka grinned at the compliment. "Sure, Seimei! What do you want to do first?"
"How about we build a snowman?"
"Okay!" Ritsuka grabbed a handful of snow. "Well, first you gather snow like this and pack it together like a ball!"
Seimei scooped up snow. "Uh huh, now what?"
"Then you roll it in the snow to make it bigger! I'll make the bottom part! It has to be huge!"
"If you say so, Ritsuka. I'll have to take your expert advice on that."
Ritsuka giggled. "You're so funny, Seimei. I'm not an expert!" He began rolling the snowball into the snow.
Seimei chuckled. "Says the one giving me instructions. Now don't make it too big, Ritsuka. You need to be able to push it, right?"
"Right!" Ritsuka stated.
Seimei watched as his brother continued about the yard, picking up as much snow as he could to expand the base. Once Ritsuka was finished, the small neko turned to his brother.
"Now you do the same with that ball of snow!" He pointed to Seimei's. "But make it a little smaller to be the middle of it, okay?"
"You got it, Ritsuka." Seimei happily did as his brother asked. "Now what?"
"Hm…now we have to get that on top of the bigger one."
"Alright, so do you want to help me lift it?"
"Sure!"
Seimei got on one side of the large snowball and motioned for Ritsuka to grab the other side.
"Are you ready?" Seimei wondered.
"Yeah!" Ritsuka nodded happily. "Slide your hands under it."
"You got it."
"Now we count to three, then lift it!"
"Would you like to count?"
"Sure!" Ritsuka grinned. "One…two…three!"
Together, they picked up the snowball and put it on top of the larger one.
"We did it!" Ritsuka clapped, sending snow flying from his gloves.
"We did." Seimei smiled. "Now what do we do?"
"Make another snowball, and roll it to make the head. But it has to be smaller than that last one!"
"It would look funny with a bigger head."
Ritsuka giggled. "Yeah, it would!" He said. "While you do that, I'll go ask mommy for a carrot nose and some stuff for eyes!"
"Okay, Ritsuka." Seimei scooped up snow as he watched his brother bound back to the door.
Ritsuka stopped at the back door and knocked a few times. His mother opened the door.
"Ready to come in already, Ritsuka?" She wondered.
"No, Seimei and I need help! We're making a snowman, but we don't have things for the face!"
"Oh dear, that's a shame." She smiled. "One moment." Misaki vanished into the house, only to return with a handful of grapes and a carrot. "Here you go."
"Thanks, mommy!"
"Are you sure you can hold it all?"
"Of course!" Ritsuka smiled, taking the objects from her. "If Seimei could carry all of it, then I can, too! Thanks mommy!" He ran back to Seimei.
Misaki stood in the doorway as she watched her sons get to work on putting the things she gave Ritsuka onto the face.
"I think it's missing something, Seimei!" Ritsuka pouted. "Something doesn't look right…"
"What do you think it is?" Seimei wondered.
"I don't know…do you know…?"
"It doesn't have ears." Misaki offered.
Now clad in winter clothing as well, she trotted over to the boys. Seimei's ears flattened further under his hat in irritation. How dare she get in the way of his time alone with Ritsuka? That wasn't fair. She got him all to herself five days a week. Unless it was summer, Seimei only got to spend the day with him for two days, and not long on the second because he had to go to bed early for school.
"Make two little snowballs." Misaki ordered the boys gently, making it sound more like a direction then an order.
Seimei was in no mood for being ordered around by his own mother. He didn't take orders; he gave them. For Ritsuka, however, he'd play nice and be a good little boy that obeyed his mother's every word. Each boy made a snowball like their mother instructed.
"Good work. Now brush off the snow on the sides to make a point like an ear."
"Like this?" Ritsuka wondered.
She smiled. "That's right. Now don't worry if the tip is rounded. After all, our ears aren't pointed like that, are they?" She ruffled Seimei's hat, making him twitch inside.
When he was older, he'd make this woman learn some more respect. Sure, he was technically a child still, but that meant nothing to him. He was as smart as an adult was; possibly smarter. Still, he laughed and kept a smile on for his little Ritsuka.
"Of course not!" Ritsuka giggled. "That would hurt!"
"That it would." She smiled gently.
"All done!" Ritsuka held up his ear.
It was a tiny bit lopsided, but it worked.
"Well done!" Seimei grinned at his brother, who was obviously proud of his work. "Mine's done, too."
"Nice, Seimei!" Ritsuka giggled.
"Now just fix those ears up on its head, alright?" Misaki stood, brushing imaginary snow off. "I have to go check on lunch, but you two stay out here and have fun."
"Okay, mommy!" Ritsuka grinned.
She ruffled each of their heads before leaving to go inside. Seimei glared daggers at her back on her entire way back inside.
"How do we put these on top?" Ritsuka asked.
"Hm…I know. How about I lift you up and you put them on? Use snow from the snowman's head to hold them in place, okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"Brush snow from the snowman onto the bottom of the ear and pack it in really tight. Like we did for the snowballs. Remember?"
"Oh, right." Ritsuka smiled. "Um…but I can't reach…"
"I'll help you." Seimei offered. "Here, hold this ear."
Ritsuka took the false ear in one small hand. "Got it!"
"Alright, now I'm going to count to three and pick you up. Then you go and put on the ear like I told you, okay?"
"Okay!"
Seimei wrapped his arms around his brother's middle "One…two…three!" He pulled Ritsuka up into the air and held him there.
The little neko worked quickly to put the ear in place and secure it in place. Seimei sighed gently, hoping Ritsuka couldn't hear or feel it through his heavy winter jacket. A warm feeling spread through him when he held his brother close like this. A warm feeling that he could only describe as contentedness. Ritsuka made him feel complete, like something that was missing in his life for the first five years was suddenly there after he was born. It wasn't the complete lack of love and barely veiled disgust shared between his parents at one another now, but the love he wasn't able to get from them when they were busy hating one another. With Ritsuka, he never had to worry about being alone again, because Ritsuka would love him no matter what and always be there.
"I'm done, Seimei!" Ritsuka proclaimed.
Reluctantly, Seimei lowered himself to the ground to the point where he could set Ritsuka on his own two feet.
"Well done." Seimei stood back and admired the work his brother had done.
Cat ears stuck on the top of the snowman in odd locations, asymmetrical in location and side since Ritsuka's was a little smaller.
"It looks cool!" Ritsuka smiled. "Hey, Seimei, can we give it a tail too?"
"Sure. How do we make the tail?"
"I thought we'd do it like we did the body. But tails aren't round…only on bunnies!"
Seimei chuckled. "Why don't we just try clumping snow together behind it in a line like a tail, hm?"
"Okay!"
It only took a few minutes for the boys to finish off the tail, then step back to the front and admire their handiwork.
"So cool!" Ritsuka grinned.
"That it is." Seimei nodded. "So what do you want to do now, Ritsuka?"
"Hm…I don't know. What do you want to do? I picked the snowman, so now it's your turn to choose!"
Ah, Ritsuka. Always so generous and considerate of others; just as Seimei had taught him to be despite their parents' selfishness.
"Have we ever made snow angels together, Ritsuka?"
"Snow angels?" Ritsuka wondered. "How do we that? Is it like a snowman?"
Of course, their parents hardly let them play in the snow, so it wasn't too surprising to the elder neko that Ritsuka hadn't done snow angels with him yet. Though, honestly, it was more likely that he had just forgotten.
"Well, first, we gotta lay down in the snow." Seimei stated. "Come on, there are a couple spots over here we haven't touched yet."
He took Ritsuka by the hand and led him over to a fresh patch of snow.
"How do we lay down? Won't we get prints of our butts in it?" Ritsuka giggled.
"We can always fix that later." Seimei smiled. "Now be careful, okay?"
"Okay." Ritsuka nodded.
Seimei waited until his brother was laying down to pick a spot far enough away from him that they wouldn't hit one another in the process. Once he was certain, he lay down as well.
"Now you just move your arms up and down like a bird, and move your legs open and closed at the same time."
"Like this…?" Ritsuka wondered, trying what his brother had instructed.
"Exactly like that." Seimei stated. "You don't have to do it for too long, okay? Don't want to tire yourself out, right?"
"Right." Ritsuka nodded the best he could in that position.
"Alright, ready?"
"Ready!"
"Go!"
They both did as Seimei had instructed, forming little dents in the snow and sending flake flaring up into the air.
"And stop!" Seimei called.
"How do I get up without ruining it?" Ritsuka wondered.
"I'll get up first, then help you up, okay?"
"Okay." Seimei rolled out of the snow angel as best as he could without messing it up.
He looked back at his work and smiled before standing in front of Ritsuka.
"Give me your hands." He ordered.
Ritsuka reached up to him.
Seimei took his brother's hands gently but firmly inside his own.
"Alright, now I'm going to pull you up and out, okay?"
"Okay, Seimei. I trust you."
Seimei felt his heart swell. "I'm glad you do." He confirmed. "Okay, I'm going to pull you up now. Ready?"
"Ready!"
"One…"
"Two…"
"Three!" They both exclaimed.
As well as he could, Seimei pulled Ritsuka up and out of the snow. He hoped he didn't hurt the smaller boy as he did so, but he had to pull harshly as well. He set Ritsuka on the snow next to him.
"Are you okay? I didn't hurt you by pulling, did I?"
"No, I'm not hurt." Ritsuka grinned. "Thanks for worrying about me, Seimei, but I'm okay!"
Seimei grinned. "Good, I'm glad." He pat the top of his brother's head. "Look."
Ritsuka turned and let out what sounded like a cross between an excited squeal and a gasp of amazement. Two angels, one smaller than the other, lay on the ground in front of them. Their wings were only centimeters apart, which Seimei found fitting. As if they were holding wings instead of hands. The idea made him smile.
"That's so cool, Seimei!" Ritsuka giggled, hugging his brother's arm. "Yours has a butt and hand prints, though…"
Seimei chuckled. "So it does." He reluctantly pulled from his brother to lean over and brush the snow to cover the prints. "There." He brushed his hands together to get off the rest of the snow. "Better?"
"Much better!"
Seimei smiled. "Are you getting cold, Ritsuka? Your nose is a little red."
"So is yours." Ritsuka pointed out. "Um…I could stay outside a little longer."
"Why don't we just go inside for now, hm?"
"Okay." Ritsuka grinned, tail swaying about lazily. "It's up to you, Seimei. I'll do whatever you want to do."
Seimei grinned back, offering his brother his left hand. "Let's go, then."
"Okay."
Seimei led Ritsuka to the back door and slid open the sliding glass door. The two of them walked into the kitchen to be greeted by their mother. She turned form the stove to grin at them.
"All done outside, boys?" She wondered, folding her hands neatly in front of her. "You're just in time for hot chocolate. Why don't you two get all those heavy clothes off while I finish up here and we can have lunch with hot chocolate?"
"Yummy!" Ritsuka grinned, beginning to take off his hat.
Seimei followed suit.
"Hey, Seimei?"
"Yes, Ritsuka?"
"Don't be mad okay?"
"About what?"
"I remember how to make snow angels. I was just playing with you."
Seimei chuckled. "How could I ever get mad at that?" He asked, hugging his brother lightly.
"Lunchtime, boys." His mother informed. "Have a seat at the table."
Seimei scowled at the intrusion but let his brother go to the kitchen table and followed him. Damn that woman, always getting in the way.
000
The Aoyagi brothers were in the middle of coloring later that day when their father finally managed to come home. Dinner had been over with for an hour and a half, so the boys had the entirety of the kitchen table to themselves. It was Ritsuka who first noticed their father standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room.
"Daddy's home!" He greeted, waving at his father while clenching a blue crayon.
Misaki turned around from the sink and bowed slightly to him. "Aidien, you're home." She smiled. "Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"
"No." He replied. "Ate at the office. I thought I'd be there longer." He took a seat at the table. "I could go for a cup of coffee, though."
Seimei glared when he was certain the blonde wasn't looking. Out of his two parents, he could mostly tolerate his mother. His father, whoever, was a different story. The jerk had actually suggested to his mother to get rid of Ritsuka after he was born. For adoption or something like that. Obviously, his mother had refused and they kept Ritsuka. How dare he try to get rid of Seimei's brother? It wasn't his fault his mother for pregnant with him. It wasn't his fault that they could barely afford to feed themselves, let alone take complete care of a fourth person. So why did he have to suffer?
When he saw his father begin to turn back, he grabbed a green crayon and got back to coloring.
"Aren't you a little old for that, Seimei?" His father wondered.
"Am I, father?" Seimei wondered. "I thought people of all ages colored. It says so on the box, doesn't it?"
His father rolled his eyes. "I guess you have a point."
Misaki placed a white cup of steaming coffee at her husband's side on the table. "Here you go." She told him. "Anything to snack on?"
"What part of 'not hungry' don't you understand?" He cracked a little smile, attempting to make it seem like a joke for his sons.
Ritsuka laughed, but Seimei knew it wasn't a joke anyway and rolled his eyes. He switched crayons to make it look like he wasn't paying attention to his parents.
"G-Gomen…" She replied, bowing a little. "I just thought maybe a snack was different…like having dessert…"
He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You're impossible." He sighed.
Seimei could feel the tension in the air building and hoped that Ritsuka couldn't. The five year old didn't seem too concerned with what was going around him. Good. The less his view of their parents were tainted at this age, the better. He'd realize how pathetic this so-called family was when he was older, no doubt, but that didn't mean he needed to know now. It could wait until he was old enough to leave this house, not now when he was stuck here under his parents' watch.
"It's a simple mistake, Aidien…" She tried to reason with him.
He sighed. "Boys, would you go upstairs, please? You can leave your stuff here and come back for it later."
"But I'm almost done…" Ritsuka protested with a pout, ears flat.
"Hey, Ritsuka, let's go do a puzzle!" Seimei grinned. "I know just the one to do. I have it in my room. Come on. Let's let mother and father talk."
"Okay." Ritsuka smiled gently.
He followed his brother out of the room. Seimei swore he heard his father muttering something about Ritsuka obeying his brother instead of him and bit back his response about his father being a terrible excuse for a father and that Ritsuka was right to not listen to him. But now was not the time nor the place to be rude to his parents; especially in front of Ritsuka.
000
Upstairs, Seimei and Ritsuka sat at Seimei's bedroom table, working on a 100 piece puzzle Seimei had picked out. He wished he had a source of music or a television to block out the sounds coming from downstairs, but alas, he didn't. Ritsuka's ears twitched every time someone raised their voice. It was mostly their father being the loud, aggressive one and their mother taking it but making it worse with her foolish comments.
"Wasn't today a nice day, Ritsuka?" Seimei wondered, trying to distract the small boy. "What was your favorite part?"
"I liked making snow angels together." Ritsuka grinned. "Though making the snowman was fun too…what was your favorite part?"
"Hm…the part that I got to spend hanging out with you."
Ritsuka giggled. "But that was every part!"
Seimei winked. "Exactly."
Ritsuka giggled more. Silence reigned between the two of them for a few minutes. Ritsuka sat down the piece in his hand and stared down at the table.
"Seimei?" He wondered softly.
Seimei's ears perked. He knew his brother well enough to know that something was wrong.
"What is it, Ritsuka? Are you okay?"
"Just…um…why are they always fighting…?"
"Mother and father?"
Ritsuka nodded.
"I don't know, Ritsuka. Grown-ups are very complicated. It's hard to understand them."
"But…what if it's our fault…?"
Seimei's expression grew stern. His ears trembled, but he pressed them flat to his head as best he could so Ritsuka wouldn't see. He wasn't upset with his brother for his question or assumption. He was mad at them. They put himself and Ritsuka through this. They fought almost day and night, when he bothered to remember to come home. This was their fault. His parents were hurting Ritsuka, didn't they see that? They probably did but just didn't care. The thought made him sick.
"No, Ritsuka, it isn't."
"Are you sure…?" Ritsuka's ears perked. "But…they mention us when they fight sometimes and…"
"It's not about us, Ritsuka, I promise." He offered Ritsuka his pinky. "Okay?"
Ritsuka took it in his own pinky. "Okay." He smiled. "Seimei…?"
"Hai?"
"I know…um…when I was born…dad said mom shouldn't have…um…"
"Shouldn't have what?"
"Daddy said…that…um…" Tears welled in the little plum eyes. "He said that four people in one house was too many and…Seimei…why doesn't daddy want me…?"
Seimei felt his heart shatter. "Oh, Ritsuka." He pulled his brother close. "Of course he wants you. He loves you! He only said that because he knows it upsets mother. Sometimes when adults argue, they say things that upset the other person just because they can."
"Why would they do that?"
"I don't know. Adults don't make sense sometimes."
"Yeah…they don't…" Ritsuka pulled back a little to look up at his brother. "Thanks, Seimei. I feel better."
"You're welcome, Ritsuka."
The brothers went back to their puzzle. After a few minutes, silence filled the downstairs as well; punctuated by the slamming of the front door.
000
Later that night, long after he'd gotten Ritsuka to calm down and go to bed after their shared bath, Seimei made his way downstairs to the living room. His mother was sitting on the couch, alone, facing their fireplace. It was obvious that his father had left, and he wasn't about to bring up that horrid man. Though the only female in the family made his skin crawl and make him hate being an Aoyagi, he felt a little sympathy. He was glad his father had left; off to do whatever fathers did when they were unhappy in their eleven year marriages. In his head, he knew it was wrong for someone so young, or anyone for that matter, to dislike their families so much that they longed for a way out of them. But he did. The only person worth it was his Ritsuka. Even his extended family was more of a headache then he needed them to be.
Seimei climbed onto the couch next to his mother, staring at the unlit fireplace. She didn't even look at him as her lips cracked into a smile. He sensed she had been crying at one point.
"Shouldn't you be in bed, Seimei?" Misaki wondered. "I doubt your school will have another snow day tomorrow, too."
"I don't think they will, mother." Seimei gained a slight edge to his voice.
"Is there something you want to talk to me about…?" She finally looked at him.
Her eyes were almost blank, her expression unreadable. Obviously she'd taken a couple sleeping pills. His father tried to hide that fact from his sons, but Seimei had figured it out on his own after witnessing her take a couple when she thought he and Ritsuka were both asleep. It made him sick.
"We heard you fighting again, mother." Seimei sighed, sinking down a little on the couch. "Ritsuka and I heard you and father yelling."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Seimei…"
The little twinge in her lips told him that she was either frowning or grimacing. Perhaps she was ashamed.
"It's not me that needs the apology. It's Ritsuka…he asked me if it was our fault…he knows what father said about giving him away…"
Misaki's lip twitched again. "I see…I'll have a chat with him…"
"I already did. Don't ruin it. Just make tomorrow special for him, please?" Seimei put on his innocent act. "Give him a nice day to take his mind off of why father left and you guys fighting. Please?"
"Oh, of course, dear. I'll make tomorrow super extra special for our little Ritsuka."
The word 'our' made his ear twitch. That was his Ritsuka. His. No one loved or cared about him or protected him like Seimei did. They didn't need their parents as long as they had each other; that was for sure.
"Thanks, mother." Seimei snuggled up next to her, though he didn't really want to. But if it helped her think of him as her innocent little boy, then so be it.
"Of course, dear."
"Father…isn't a nice person, is he…?"
"Of course he is, honey. Your father just…well he's under a lot of stress and when adults are under a lot of stress, sometimes they behave irrationally because they don't understand how to cope properly. Just give him time to relax. He has a big case coming up, so it's most likely his nerves that has him all jittery."
"One day, when I'm older and Ritsuka's older, I'll take us away from here, okay?" Seimei grinned. "Yeah! I'll make lots of money and use it to get a big house and hire help so you don't have to do all the chores! We'll never have to worry about food or money or father. We'll always be taken care of, because I will be the man of the house!"
"Oh, Seimei…" She grinned, tears sparkling. "That's so sweet, sweetie."
"I'll take you and Ritsuka away from him one day, mother. I promise you."
"Don't make promises like that, Seimei." She ran her fingers through his hair.
"But I will! I'll take you and Ritsuka and we'll run far away from him and live nice, quiet, comfortable lives."
Her smile waned. "Okay, Seimei…now off to bed…"
"I promise." He whispered to her ear one last time before hopping off the couch.
He donned a grin and began to walk to the stairs. "Oh, mother?"
"Hai, Seimei?" She turned to him.
"You'll take me to school in the morning, won't you? If he's not back?"
"Of course."
He smiled. "Good."
Without waiting for her to speak again, he walked to the stairs and began his walk up. Ugh, he felt like he needed a bath again after such close contact with that woman. But doing so would not only take Ritsuka, but alert her as well.
With a sigh and a smile, Seimei whispered a good night to his brother through his closed bedroom door, and then slipped into his own room for the night. He climbed into bed to settle in for the night.
"One day I'll get away from here, alright." He chuckled. "But only one other person will be coming with me…and I bet you anything, mother, that even you know now you won't be joining me at all."
He turned off the bedside light and curled up to go to sleep.
A life with only Ritsuka at his side; no one else. No mother, no father, on classmates, no other family; no one. Just the Aoyagi brothers alone in the world together.
Ah, what a life that would be.