My second Vocaloid story. Still trying to get out of the everything-I-write-is-garbage state. Apologies for any mistakes, I didn't work that hard on the research before starting. This should be a oneshot. Also apologies for typos, I still don't have spellcheck. -grumble grumble-
...
It was a normal day in Sendai, Japan. Rin and Len walk hand-in-hand down the bustling streets, not wanting to be late or lose each other in the crowd. People were going about their daily lives, unaware and unprepared for what lay ahead. It was Friday, March eleventh. Most were just happy the week was done, and were looking forward to a relaxing weekend.
The Kagamine twins, who travelled a fair bit in their careers, just wanted to get their songs recorded so they could go home. They were in Sendai for a concert and had decided to get it over with for a peaceful weekend.
"Rin, slow down!" Len panted as he tried to keep up with his sister. She ran through the mass of people, only loosely holding on to his fingers to drag him along. At his voice she only giggled and tightened her grip on his hand.
"I don't want to be late!" She called back to him.
Others along the streets were pushed as she sprinted past, and Len shouted apologies again and again on behalf of his sister. When he was sure they would never arrive at the recording studio, that she'd gotten them lost, he felt Rin release his hand and looked up, breathing heavily. He half-sighed and half-groaned as she disappeared inside without giving him a chance to rest.
Len forced his tired legs to move again and followed his sister inside. Despite the busy street outside, inside the studio was almost completely empty.
"You made it!" Rin joked, grinning at her twin. He waved her off, still trying to catch his breath. They walked further in together, peering into rooms as they did. Neither was completely certain where they were going.
"You're insane. Did we make it on time?" Len asked curiously when his breathing had finally slowed and they had still not found their room. Before Rin had a chance to answer, Miku passed them by and replied for her.
"Right on time, guys. But you better hurry to the studio, it's already quarter to thr-" She was suddenly cut off as a loud rumble rose from the ground beneath them, followed by a tremble that grew by the second. Before he knew it, Len was knocked off his feet by the force of the shakes.
"Earthquake!" Someone screamed, but in his confusion, Len couldn't tell who'd said it. Miku was nowhere in sight. All at once he was being pulled off the floor and back down the hallway. Shattering glass, falling furniture and human screams could be heard over the noise of the earth itself shaking. He partly regained his composure and just barely managed to keep from going into a full-blown panic.
"Len! Pick up the pace! We have to get out of here!" Rin shouted, keeping a tight, almost painful grip on his hand as they sprinted together through the building.
The siblings raced down the hall towards where they'd first come in, struggling to keep their balance. They arrived at the front door, an automatic sliding door, but it wouldn't open for them. Len pulled his hand away from Rin's and slid his fingers between the doors, tugging on them until he was finally able to pry them open wide enough to slide through. He was faintly aware of sirens going off, both in the building and outside.
"Come on, let's go!" He urged and squirmed through the opening. The moment he was outside, he could only stare at everything around him. Some buildings were cracked in two, some crumbling to dust, and others already nothing more than piles of rubble. In the not so far distance, behind the studio and, if he remembered, towards the ocean, he swore he saw something rising... but before he could determine what it was, Len was snapped out of his thoughts by an alarmed squeal from behind him.
"Len! Th-the door! Help!" Rin begged him, squirming and pulling in the door. He quickly realized what was holding her back; the doors were programmed to shut when the alarm went off. A fair bit of his sister's clothing was caught in it.
"Hang on, I got you..." He attempted to slip his fingers back in between the doors, but couldn't manage for a second time. While one hand pulled on the doors, the other desperately ripped at the fabric caught in between. Rin continued squirming, fighting back tears without much success while the ground seemed to only shake harder. It felt like hours they'd been trying to escape... in reality, it had only been about three minutes.
"L-Len... I don't want to die... Len!" Rin screamed in absolute terror as the ground shook so bad it felt as if the entire earth was splitting in two. Len was thrown off his feet and away from his sister. He was forced to watch helpless as that 'thing' that had been in the distance came closer.
And closer.
Until the large wave crashed not too far from where he sat. In an instant Len was underwater and being pushed back, further and further from his sister. His entire body was scraped and bruised on broken pieces of buildings. A deafening roar rang in his ears and he willed himself to find stability. At last he stopped, only tumbling a bit further before laying still on the ground.
He lifted his head. Nothing there.
Drenched in water and feeling like death itself, Len forced himself upwards. He was aware of the ground still trembling and felt like breaking down in tears.
"Stop it!" He screamed desperately. "Just stop it already! Haven't you done enough?"
The teen stumbled helplessly through the deserted street in search of his twin. When he reached the studio once again, the six minute hell was over.. yet, at the same time, just beginning. The building was almost unrecognizable, but in his heart he knew it was so. It was now just another pile of rubble in the street.
"... Rin..?" He called in the silence, his voice cracking under the emotional strain. And then he saw it. No longer able to hold it, Len fell to his knees and grabbed it; a single hand portruding from the mess. Tears poured helplessly down his cheeks as he pulled broken bits of cement away, desperate to be sure, even though he already was. He uncovered his sister down to her shoulders before breaking into sobs. Cradling Rin's head in his lap, the boy wiped her face of the blood that covered it.
She didn't so much as twitch. As he slowly glanced to her chest, he saw that it was still. There was no more breaths to be taken in her body.
Len slowly stood and tore his gaze from Rin's body.
Standing ankle deep in cold water, he was too afraid to look down, for if he did, he'd see the blood spreading throughout it. Buildings were collapsed, nothing more than skeletal remains. There wasn't another soul in sight. The city, like his sister, was dead.
"Not fair!" He screamed, grabbing the nearest piece of cement and whipping it at the destroyed studio. It made a dull and unsatisfying 'clink', followed by a tiny splash that seemed to mock him. His face was soaked with tears and water from the tsunami. He didn't care enough to dry it. He let out another scream, full of hurt and frustration. There was no one to hug him this time.
Len's attention returned to the lifeless body, for the most part still buried, and knelt next to it again.
"Not fair..." He whispered as fresh tears rolled down his cheeks. He pushed some rubble aside, hooked his arms under Rin's, and dragged her out of the used-to-be-building. He fell back in the water and held his sister tightly.
Being an only child had never been a dream of his. No matter what the two did to each other, Len had loved Rin unconditionally and with all his soul. Now, he realized he was alone. No one would ever fill the void she had left him with. Overcome with depression, Len could only close his eyes and hold his sister, wishing it had been him instead.