A/N: Hello, and welcome to my new story! I find it funny how most of my stories revolve around Lennykins, but well, whatever. Anyways, I hope you'll enjoy this story!
Chapter 1: Kagamine Len
"Mother rabbits are said to eat their young if they discover that one of them is injured, defective or runty.
"The domestic house cat has been known to eat its kittens if they become stuck during childbirth to save its own life.
"Octopi are known to eat other octopi, but as a result of stress, they have a tendency to indulge in self-cannibalism.
"Oh! This is an interesting one! The sand tiger shark practices cannibalism even before birth. In its mother's womb, it will eat its own siblings. Nature truly is a survival of the fittest, isn't it?
"Well? Pretty fascinating, right, class?"
Ms Miriam, the biology teacher of Vocaloid Academy, had a reputation for being fascinated by gruesome things, much to the chagrin of her students. It wasn't uncommon for most girls - and even some boys - to squeal and squirm in horror during her lessons, but there too was the small percentage of people that were numb to the sense of disgust, and actually enjoyed listening to these odd fun facts.
Like Gumi Megpoid. That girl loved anything scientific.
Or Piko Utatane. He was unusual, with his heterochromatic eyes, but that didn't mean he wasn't smart.
Len Kagamine loved observing and absorbing these additional facts about his peers. He would spend minutes on end with his chin resting on his palm, watching their movements and reactions to even the most insignificant of events. Before his sudden death, his father used to tell him to cut it out, as it would disturb other people, but no matter how hard he tried not to, people-watching was a habit that Len couldn't detatch himself from.
"Kagamine!"
The blond jolted up like someone had poured a bucket of ice over his head, and turned to see Ms Miriam smiling pleasantly at him.
"Can you answer this question?" She asked sweetly, but Len knew that this wasn't a question to be answered, "What animal is cute and cuddly and has sharp fangs excellent for tearing its victims apart?"
Len blinked. The range for this answer was far too massive.
{It's 'Tasmanian devil', you idiot.}
Seriously?
{Yes! Now, go answer, doofus.}
"T…Tasmanian…devil…?" Len had never once heard of the animal, but he pretended like he did nonetheless.
Ms Miriam beamed. "Well done! Here, have a badge!"
She held out a tray of her prize badges, which were rewards for answering her questions correctly. Most of the badges were badges of famous animes, some of which Len actually watched and enjoyed (and mind you, Len was extremely picky with the anime he watched). He saw one that caught his eye…. But subtly, he had to refuse.
"S-sorry, Ms Miriam, but I don't think I'll have one,"
"Oh? Why so?"
"Erm…" Len scratched his head, furiously trying to think up an excuse, "I don't really think I have a need for it…?"
From across the room, Piko whistled.
Miriam swayed from side to side. "Alright then! That's a humble man!"
The bell then rang. A few people sighed in sheer relief that the gory lesson was now over. It was lunchbreak now, so Len quickly picked up his schoolbag and left the classroom before the crowd of chatting classmates could jam the doorways. There wasn't anyone to wait for, as Piko had IT extension classes, Yuuma had an emergency Literature Club meeting and Gumi had to visit an upperclassman in the Nurse's Room. It was just one of those common days where Len walked alone.
Well, at least in the physical sense.
{Why didn't you take the badge, Len?}
Because you told me the answer, Rin.
{And that's wrong, because…?}
Because I didn't know the answer, and couldn't have answered it without your help. Which is cheating, because you know almost everything, and besides, you'd have no qualms about looking at the teacher's exam papers to find out the answer if you didn't know it already.
{Oh, give me a break, baby bro. You're such a stick in the mud. What's wrong with a little extra information? I bet you really want to know what the girls say about you during their little trips to the gossip club, don'tcha?}
Len sighed in an exasperated manner, and looked at the worn-out stuffed toy nestled inside his bag. Almost synchronized, it looked back up at him, cocking its oversized cotton-stuffed head to the side. One of its button eyes dangled off slightly.
That toy wasn't much of a toy, but rather a stuffed bunny given to him for his third birthday that served as the carrier for the spirit of his long-since-dead twin sister, Rin Kagamine. As long as that toy was near him, he would be able to hear Rin's voice in his mind.
He asked her once, why she chose to talk to him but not Rinto, Lenka or his mother, but she had simply said that their mental link with her was just not as strong as the one she had with Len. Len didn't really understand how mental links worked, and because of that, he decided to believe her and absorbed every word she said like a sponge.
"Hey, Len!"
Recognizing that voice, Len turned behind to see Yuuma. The black-haired poet was headed towards him, one hand pulling up the flu mask that he wore over his nose and mouth, and the other one waving in the air. His mobile phone was messily tucked inside the pocket of his school pants; Len deduced that Yuuma had just recently checked it, for whatever reason, and had hurriedly kept it to avoid Ms Miriam from noticing. The use of mobile phones was greatly frowned upon during school hours, and any offenders would have their smartphones confiscated after a long lecture.
{Oh, look out, Len, a nerd's approaching.}
Don't say that, Rin. Yuuma's really smart and athletic, too.
"Mind if I join you? I'm free now," Yuuma froze for a short while after saying that sentence, and after quite the wait, he sneezed.
"O-oh, um, sure! But…. aren't you supposed to be having an emergency Literature Club meeting right now?"
"Yohio-senpai called it off last minute. He just texted the group, and told us that he found his missing pen in the end." Yuuma shrugged like it was no big deal, but Len had his own curiosities.
"So… Your club was going to have an emergency meeting…. Over a missing piece of stationery?"
Yuuma laughed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Pretty much. Our club is filled with a bunch of stuffy idiots who enjoy reading too much Shakespeare."
"O-oh, is that why your club gets along well so much with the Drama Club, then…?"
"Spot on, Lenny."
The two made their way to the cafeteria. Yuuma had many thoughts and comments about the school day so far, and voiced his many opinions, which was something he did daily. Len was always a listener, so he stayed quiet and allowed Yuuma all the time and space he needed to run out of chatter. However, their one-sided conversation was shortly interrupted by a frantic-looking Miku Hatsune who had run up to them and was clearly gasping for air as she held her twintails out of her face.
{Oh, if it isn't Little Miss Miku Contrary.}
Don't be rude, Rin.
"B-bad news….Kagamine-kun!" She gasped.
"W-what is it?" Len asked, concerned that she was sweating so much.
"Your sister, Lenka-senpai…. She's been admitted to the Nurse's Ward!"
