Disclaimer: These characters do not belong to me, I'm just borrowing them for a bit.

A/N: This fic and a number of others to come was written as part of the 17fragments challenge on LJ. It's open to all fandoms and I suggest checking it out if you're interested. This is Fragment 4; "I am nothing without you, but I don't know who you are."

Though the challenge is slash-based, this particular fic doesn't merit any warnings, and is based in the twins' childhood.

50/50

by Shimegami-chan

It was time for one of Mother's pop quizzes. Kaoru and Hikaru were used to this now; as soon as they were old enough to be out of anyone's sight for thirty seconds there was a high possibility that they'd already traded clothes in preparation for the Which One Is Hikaru-kun Game. After a while Mother could no longer count on Kaoru being safely in pink or orange and Hikaru was only blue often enough to throw people off the track. Many times before they began to realize how much victory cost them, they lied to win and as a result Mother was often doubly mislead.

By the time they reached this conclusion, though, Hikaru had been Kaoru many times and Kaoru had been Hikaru. They had even fallen into the habit of letting whoever was closer (or more bored, usually Hikaru) answer for whomever she called. And that was when the quizzes started.

On this particular day the twins were in a fair mood, returning home from the last day of the fourth grade and eager to set off for the Fiji resort house the next morning. They were well on their way to the trickster lifestyle they would lead in later years; mischievious but still soft-spoken, and Mother waited eagerly in the doorway as the twins disembarked from the limo, matching white envelopes in hand. They were dressed identically in green elementary school uniforms, and waved to Mother in tandem as they approached, chattering between themselves about their plans for a sand fort on the beach.

Mother's posture was as readable as a book; she stood with hands on hips and a wide smile on her face, and the twins knew immediately what this meant when she held her palm out to take their end-of-year reports without reading the names printed on the envelopes. (For all she knew, they were holding the opposite reports anyway, by mistake or design.) Eagerly Hikaru and Kaoru faced their mother down with a similar pose as she eased the flap of one of the envelopes open and slid out the report, skimming it quickly, and then the other, stance never changing. Top marks, that was to be expected; the boys were incredibly smart and hadn't gravitated towards particular talents in their subjects yet. The comments on each page were also exactly the same. If not for the single character of difference in their names, she might as well have been holding photocopies of the same sheet.

Praise for the boys was about as usual while criticism was carefully masked - the teacher knew better than to insult a powerful family like theirs. No doubt she had had quite enough of at least two Hitachiins, being misfortunate enough to have caught the twins during some of their early rebellious months.

Slowly Mother folded up each report and slid it back into the corresponding envelope with a pleased smile, and the twins mirrored her expression, still young enough to have looked forward to her praise all the way home. "Good job, you two, straight As again. Your father will be proud."

They beamed back at her, but uncertainly had crept into their faces. Was Mother going to play today? She had gotten it right just last week, but that was after a few moments of observation and wearing different clothes. It hurt when Mother played because she lost the game as often as she won it. They wanted to believe that she was learning, but it was more like a lottery, a 50/50 chance.

Her expression never changing, she handed each boy back an envelope with the printed name upturned; searched their faces with her eyes.

Hikaru looked down at Kaoru's name on the white rectangle in his hand and swallowed thickly.

"Did I get it?" Mother's smile wavered slightly at their non-reactions, unable to gauge victory or defeat. Kaoru's hand found Hikaru's behind their backs and gave it a gentle squeeze. Who did it hurt if she believed it? Hikaru wanted to ask his brother what to do. Kaoru was already starting to mature faster, already reading ahead and had so obviously read right into this situation, but it was the elder twin their mother looked at, and Hikaru was at a loss.

What did it matter if she thought he was Kaoru, anyway? They were practically the same. Maybe he had been Kaoru all along and never knew it. Maybe the hospital bassinets had been switched, Hikaru thought wildly, maybe Mother dressed us wrong when we were babies, maybe I never was Hikaru at all.

It was so much easier to believe that than to admit the truth.

Then, if I don't know for sure, I am only half Hikaru now, Hikaru decided to himself, and thought maybe his brother was thinking the same thing. They usually were. And half Kaoru, and that makes Mother right. Isn't that wonderful? Now Mother can win the game!

"You got it," Kaoru was already telling her out loud, reassuring his brother that they had decided this together. Grins blossomed on their identical faces.

"Yes!" Something like relief softened her posture. "I was worried when you didn't say anything! You two can be such pranksters sometimes..." With one hand on each shoulder, Mother swept them into the house and towards the kitchen, still wearing their brown loafers, saying something about celebrating the last day of school with an ice cream treat. Hikaru did not entirely hear her words, he was only conscious of Kaoru's slender fingers gripping his hand hard enough to bruise. He only came to his senses again when she said Kaoru's name and they both jerked their heads up in unison.

Mother paused at this, looked down at Hikaru with hesitance colouring her tone. "You are Kaoru...right?"

"Of course," Hikaru smiled and lied straight to her face.

They were getting good at that.

-end-

A/N: Tried to bring in the rather heartbreaking fact that the twins' mother can't tell them apart (according to ch. 45 of the manga). She still has to confirm when talking to them. u.u Unfortunately I don't read Japanese so well, so the details may not be entirely canon.

I had been faulting the twins thinking they were just screwing with her all the time, but on a second read I think they're legitimately trying to help her. Which kind of makes it worse. Though she does seem to be trying, at least...