Author's Note: Sorry about the failed update, everything from the lack of quiet time to the chapter itself got in the way. Thank God, I got the update in before May ended. To everyone who has followed or favorited this story so far, I thank you. Please let me know in the reviews what you like or don't like so far. Enjoy!


The glares they were all getting were downright murderous.

Hiro felt the girl, Rey, grab a hold of his arm and pull him down one of the alleyways – they were going the wrong way! – with the beach ball bot, BB8, rolling after them. Hiro turned around for a moment to see several of the thugs charging at Dashi. Rey continued tugging Hiro down the alleyway and succeeding, much to Hiro's surprise – did she work out or was he just that weak to begin with – with much determination. A loud BANG! echoed behind them, Rey yelping in fright, but she continued running/dragging Hiro along with her.

"Exit's that way!" Hiro pointed back as Rey all but carried him in the rush.

"They'll be blocking it and the police are on their way." Rey said in-between breaths.

"How do you know that?" Hiro asked, gasping for breath as he talked.

"I should because I called them and WHY AREN'T YOU WORRIED ABOUT YOUR BROTHER?!" Rey turned her head sharply to look at Hiro like he were some kind of criminal.

Hiro smiled, not startled at all by Rey's reaction, she clearly didn't know his brother like he did.. "Dashi's fine. That was one of his inventions. I think."

"WHAT?!"
"Yeah, I think that was his…uh…I don't remember, but I know he did something."

"Or it could have been one of those thugs with a gun on them!"

Hiro opened his mouth in shock for a moment, it didn't occur to him that Dashi wouldn't be able to take care of himself. But he stopped thinking about it when he heard the roar of an engine behind them, his's grin returned and grew wider as Rey's mouth dropped in shock and relief. Dashi drove in front of them, the wheels screeching a little as he came to a stop.

"Get on!" He shouted.

"What did you do to them?!" Rey asked as Hiro climbed up behind Dashi.

Dashi shrugged. "Just a little flash bomb I made with a friend. In case something happened."

"Are they going to be alright?" Rey asked as she climbed onto the seat behind Hiro.

Dashi turned around for a moment to put a helmet on Hiro before revving the engine and starting up again. The speeding moped rang in Hiro's ears so loud, he wanted to cover them up with his hands if they weren't already trying to keep him from falling off the vehicle

"You didn't answer my question." Rey said in a loud voice.

"They'll be fine." Dashi said over the din. "It was just supposed to blind them long enough for the police to come and –"

"OH GOD! I FORGOT BB-8!" Rey cried out.

Hiro couldn't really see Dashi's face that well from right behind him, but he had a feeling that he was going to –

The moped swerved around and sped back from where they came. Hiro could see the punks they were running from getting closer, running into each other and into walls – he didn't want to go near them, he wanted to get away from them! – but Dashi didn't slow down at all. He seemed to be speeding up a bit, the engine revving a little.

"Dashi, those guys are still there!" Hiro shouted.

"I can't leave without BB-8!" Rey protested. "The fat one wanted him specifically."

"We'll get him, don't worry." Dashi said in a reassuring voice.

"They're back there!" Hiro shouted, his heart starting to race a little. "We're gonna die!"

"Someone has to help." Dashi countered.

The moped started tilting to the right a bit, right in front of a plank leaning against a stack of blocks. Hiro wrapped his arms around Dashi's back tighter, Rey's arms winding up around his chest.

"Hang on!" Dashi shouted.

The moped went up the plank and into the air. Hiro gripped tighter and shut his eyes. Wind blew across his face and then gravity brought them all back down behind the thugs, the moped bouncing a few times against the ground as it sped up to BB-8, who had just zapped Sumo when he tried to grab it. Hiro saw Megabot in one of Sumo's fat hands and got an idea. His left arm unwound itself from Dashi's waist and reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the controller, pressing buttons as best as he could with one hand and watched as the fat man yelped as Megabot sprung to life and began whacking at his arm.

That distraction proved to be enough for BB-8 to roll away, shooting out a cable that attached itself to Dashi's moped. Everyone jerked from the sudden weight behind them, Dashi crying out in shock.

"Not what I had mind, but okay!"

"Take a left, we're almost at the exit." Rey said.

"But the police –" Hiro protested.

Sirens wailed in the distance, Rey groaning to herself. Hiro wanted so badly to say I told you so but that wouldn't be helpful. He continued jamming at the buttons to his controller until he felt all three pieces of Megabot slink into his jacket.

"How did you do that?" Rey asked in shock.

"Science!" Hiro replied maniacally.

The sirens sounded closer now.

Dashi sighed. "We're going to have trouble explaining this one."

Hiro dug into his pockets with his free hand again and pulled up his back-up plan. It would have been worth using it on those jerks back there. One look at Dashi's face as he drove closer and closer to the sound of sirens reminded Hiro of the trouble he would be putting himself into. He didn't want anyone to get hurt, but –

"THIS IS OFFICER HOPPS, PURSUING CRIME BOSS YAMA YAMAMOTO! I AM CLOSING IN!"

"Damn it." Dashi cursed quietly.

Whoever that officer was, it must have caused confusion among the other officers, allowing the group to speed out of the alley before any police cars came into view.

Hiro let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding in, thankful that they didn't end up in handcuffs.

Though he wouldn't put it past Dashi to place him under house arrest.


Everyone was quiet as the moped sped up the streets. Tadashi was relieved, it gave him time to think. The only time they stopped was to check up on the robot that Rey had brought along with them. It was an interesting design; the circular bottom made it more versatile in different environments, and it was clearly to take hits. Any fears that BB-8 had suffered damage from the escape were assured to be false.

"Durable little guy, huh?" Tadashi observed. "Even the toughest wheels created for trucks wear down overtime."

Rey shrugged. "Probably true, but I wouldn't make assumptions. You only just met him. Galileo didn't deduce the truth of Earth's gravity in one test, after all."

Him. Rey kept on insisting on that terminology, not that it was a problem. BB-8 did seem to come off being…boyish in personality and how it – he – interacted with everyone. Then again, the robot could very well be female and the protective behaviors around Rey would take a whole level of meaning.

"I can't thank you enough for finding Hiro for me, Rey." Tadashi smiled as he looked at the girl.

Rey gave a small smile. "I call it luck."

"I don't." Tadashi shook his head. "I call it fate."

"Urgh!" Hiro grumbled. "Please don't talk like that, you sound stupid."

Tadashi looked at his little brother sharply. "You don't have much room to talk, mister 'I'm going Bot-fighting at night'."

"You did sound melodramatic, Tadashi." Rey said. "It…just…don't try that again."

As if agreeing, BB-8 chirped a moment later.

"Great." Tadashi sighed. "Even the robot's against me."

"How do you two know each other?" Hiro asked.

"Long story." Tadashi said. "But we are not talking about that right now, are we?"

"I didn't know who she was and thought I was being kidnapped!" Hiro snapped. "I want to know who she is."

Tadashi looked up at the sky, trying to clear his head. "Okay, I admit that she should have handled whatever she did better, but –"

Rey cut him off. "I better head off, now, actually. It's getting late, I have work in the morning, and there is so much to do."

Tadashi raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that? I could give you a ride."

"I'm sure you would." Hiro snickered. Tadashi glared at his little brother, he needed to figure out where Hiro was learning all of those inappropriate phrases from. If Aunt Cass was a fan of using soap bars for mouths, Tadashi didn't want to find out now.

"BB-8 and I can take care of ourselves just fine, don't worry." Rey began walking off, BB-8 rolling right behind her. "Home's close by. It was nice meeting you, Hiro…I think."

They both watched as Rey and BB-8 wandered out of sight. The next moment, Tadashi sighed and looked back at Hiro. He crouched down to eye-level. "Alright, I'm just going to be straight-forward with you. Are you okay?"

Hiro nodded slowly.

"Are you hurt?"

A quick shake of the head. Tadashi sighed in relief, letting the knot in his stomach loosen a little. Both brothers were content in silence for a moment. And then Tadashi rapped Hiro on the head twice.

"Then what were you thinking?! Knucklehead!" Tadashi snapped. Hiro flinched and massaged his head. "I come home from classes two hours ago and I'm up in our bedroom looking for you, 'cause I thought you were bored and I find that you aren't there at all. Then I ask Aunt Cass if she saw you, and big surprise when she tells me she thought you were upstairs."

Hiro's face blanched. Tadashi grimaced a little, he didn't like lecturing his little brother. I don't like him acting like he's on top of the world either with that attitude of his.

He continued. "She was so focused on getting ready for Beat Poetry Night that she didn't notice and then I had to play it off like I was playing hide and seek with you and tell her that we both might be out for a little bit afterwards. I didn't want her to have a panic attack."

He added the last part when Hiro started staring blankly at him.

"I text my friends and ask them to keep a lookout and then I get a text from Rey-"

"WHO IS SHE?" Hiro shouted in frustration. "I don't know that girl and you keep talking about her like she's your girlfriend or something!"

Tadashi pinched the bridge of his nose. "A friend. Just. A friend. She works at the mechanical shop when I need to get repairs done on my moped when I can't fix it myself and that is not the point of this discussion! As I was saying – "

"She texted you telling you were I was, tried getting me out of the bot-fight and almost got beat up for her troubles." Hiro rolled his eyes. "That fat guy, Yama, really wanted that robot she brought with her."

"Unbelievable." Tadashi sighed. "Hiro, I was worried sick and it is dark out. Who knows what could have happened –"

"Kidnapping, getting run over by a car, mugging, being stalked, having someone offer me candy in a van, I know Dashi, but I had a back-up plan." Hiro listed off with his fingers nonchalantly and pulled out a small sphere from his pocket.

Tadashi's eyes widened. "What is that? Is that a bomb?!"

"You used one earlier!"

"A flash bomb and it wasn't supposed to hurt anyone."

"It's not a bomb!" Hiro protested. "It makes a really loud sound when it breaks."

Both were silent.

"Hiro." Tadashi began slowly. "I don't know how you made it – and I don't want to know with what – but that could cause major damage. Burst eardrums, for instance."

Hiro was silent.

"It's February and you're spending your time doing stuff like that?! Bot-fighting's illegal!"

"No, betting is."

"You know what I mean." Tadashi said sharply. "Of all the things you could be doing with your time and this is how you spend it?! Why aren't you using your brain for something else?"

"I did." Hiro shrugged. "I graduated high school and I haven't even reached puberty yet, that's something for the books. Now I have all the time in the world."

"Education doesn't have to end at high school, you know." Tadashi said, tempted to sound more encouraging, but knowing his little brother, there was no chance that he wouldn't see through the act.

"Thomas Edison never finished high school." Hiro countered.

"I don't have a high opinion of that man." Tadashi crossed his arms. It was always a sore spot for him, hearing about him. Hiro looked to Edison with high regard, sometimes quoting him and even performing experiments the same way Edison would too. Both also had quirks; Hiro asked a lot of insensitive questions sometimes, didn't talk to peers his age, and kept some odd habits, one of them was designing robots. "That man was a crook and a liar."

There was no way he would let his little brother turn out like that man.

"Just because he stole one patent –" Hiro began.

"One?!"

"Edison was smart and didn't need school." Hiro threw up his hands in frustration.

"Well, back then, there was no such thing as Bot-fighting." Tadashi glared at him.

"I don't want to go to college, Dashi, I keep telling you that!"

Tadashi took a deep breath and said. "Why not? You could learn so much."

"Yeah." Hiro scoffed. "Stuff I already know. Besides, it's expensive."

"Well, with your brain, you could get a scholarship –"

"No." Hiro crossed his arms in finality.

"But you loved school." Tadashi insisted.

"Yeah." Hiro rolled his eyes. "Loved."

Tadashi bit his lip. There was no way they were going to agree to anything. Same old argument. He would give anything just to see that spark of passion he used to see in his little brother return, even if it was just for a moment. He could do so much more than Tadashi ever could and yet, he was wasting his potential. Tadashi certainly wouldn't be like that if he had Hiro's brains. "Let's get back before Aunt Cass gets worried."

Hiro rolled his eyes and got onto the moped when Tadashi settled himself into the driver's seat.

"We're not done with this conversation, young man." Tadashi looked back at Hiro once before starting up the engine. The moped started moving, slowly gaining speed as Tadashi pressed the gas pedal lightly.

"Of course, we aren't, Mom." Hiro huffed.

Yeesh, that was harsh, even for him. Tadashi thought bitterly. He gripped tightly on the handles and drove off.


The truck rumbled, rattling along bumps and cracks. They waited, sitting in silence. One figure looked at the person to their left, their face hidden behind a mask. Orders were given by their superiors to be prepared and on the alert. Resting in each lap was a large gun, new and untested. Newest shipments had come in the day prior, fresh off the black market.

The figure looked at its structure; sleek and narrow like a rifle, but the length of a crossbow. A small scope was attached to the black and white weapon, useful for long distance.

It felt odd in his grasp, like it would explode in his face. No, something different. It brought a sense of confusion and bewilderment. Something new that would definitely throw off the balance in power at the moment.

The first time was always going to be difficult, awkward, sloppy, unrefined. So, this shouldn't be any different. His big chance and he wouldn't let it slip through his fingers. He wanted to talk, about the task, about anything, something to put him at ease.

No one spoke, another order was to remain silent. Nothing new about this, standard protocol. It almost felt like being in an army.

Radio static filled the air a moment later. Then a voice broke through.

"Hellraiser to Alpha Squad, prepare for deployment."

Everyone became tense now, clenching their guns tightly. They were almost at their destination now.

"Remember the mission: find the target and his droid. You cannot let either of them out of your sight."

"For Starkiller." Everyone chanted quietly.

The truck stopped and the back opened up. Everyone stood up from their spots and marched out in formation. Moments later, the air was filled with the mixture of gun-shots and screams.


Hiro remained quiet for the rest of the drive back, checking more than once on Megabot in his jacket pocket. Dashi refused to say anything else as they drove, preferring to keep his gaze straightforward on the road. Which was a good thing, since he was driving. He didn't want to go to some stupid place where he'll just know everything before the teacher tells them about it. The closest thing he had to a challenge was when he started junior year when he was six. After several months of being bounced through grades and getting strange looks from the other students. It wasn't his fault that they couldn't teach him stuff! Senior year was embarrassing to think about, Aunt Cass wouldn't stop cooing over him dressed in that graduation robe and taking photos. Dashi didn't help that much, he was trying to suppress giggles all the while.

The meal afterwards was nice, though.

Dashi began slowing down the moped and Hiro knew that they were probably home now. He looked up and saw the Lucky Café sign, with a wooden carving of a cat sitting several feet away from it on the rafters, gazing at all with a lazy look of disinterest. The entrance had banners nailed above it, written in kanji, a typical sight in SanFransokyo. Above the café itself was home; two floors all to themselves, with the attic acting as Dashi and Hiro's bedroom. Aunt Cass slept on the "first" floor with their cat, Mochi.

Hiro looked at one of the windows and sighed; Dashi was right, Beat Poetry Night was happening. What would have happened if they didn't get out of the alleyway before the police came? The lights were dimmed and the tables were shifted to one end of the room. It was packed with customers, several of them had sheets of paper in their hands.

The engine finally stopped, Hiro climbed off and started walking in when he felt the hood of his sweatshirt tug. He looked to see who it was pulling at it and looked away, Dashi's face glowered with disapproval.

"Wait here." Dashi ordered. He began pushing the moped, going towards the garage in the back on the building. Hiro sighed and pulled out Megabot, rubbing at the smiley face. The sticker was fine, no signs of wearing down or losing any of its stickiness. He walked over to the bench outside the café and sat down.

He didn't want Dashi to come after him like that, but Hiro could take care of himself. It wasn't like that fat Sumo was going to beat him up…he felt a bit sorry for that girl, Rey, for getting on his bad side. An image of that Yama guy wearing nothing but a diaper and banging his hands on the floor popped into his head, making Hiro break into giggles. That had to be the explanation.

A bell jingled and Hiro looked to see his Aunt Cass standing at the doorway. She had plumb legs but a slimmer upper body, brown hair ending loosely at the back of her neck. Aunt Cass still had her apron on over her black tee, flour coated the bottom half of it. Around her neck was a necklace with a single, black pendant. Dashi said that it used to be their mother's.

"Hiro!" She beamed. "There you are. Tadashi said that you two were hanging out. Just tell me what you're doing the next time you head out."

Hiro nodded. If Dashi was going to talk to her later, then that was going to happen.

"Yeah, for a genius, he can be a big knucklehead." Dashi came into view, the moped out of his possession. He had a small smile on his face. "Sorry we're late, Aunt Cass."

"Don't worry." Aunt Cass said. "You're just in time for this really good poem Mr. Benson wrote up; I swear, he keeps getting better and better."

"Well, practice makes perfect. We gotta go upstairs, clean up a little bit." Hiro noticed flecks of salt on Dashi's forehead, probably from sweating. How long had he been looking for him?

"Alright, but at least come down for one poem. We got a great line-up tonight. I think there're a few pastries left, if either of you are hungry."

"Noted." Dashi nodded before he gently pushed Hiro inside.

"…I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked…" Up front holding a microphone was a large looking man with red hair, red hair covering his head and face. Hiro never got his name, but he knew that he was a common patron at the Lucky Cat Café.

There were never that many donuts when he came.

Mrs. Parker was sitting up front, munching on a tiger claw and sipping tea. Hiro could barely make out the scribbles on the sheets of lined paper she had out, what poem would she be trying to get published this time?

Dashi gently pushed him through the room, chatting quietly with Aunt Cass about who was reading what. When his older brother had his back turned, Hiro slipped two thirds of his winnings from tonight into the tip jar.

He heard someone clear their throat and turned around to look at Dashi's frown returning.

Hiro shrugged helplessly while his brother rolled his eyes and frog-marched him upstairs. Two flights of stairs later, and they were both in their bedroom on the top floor. It was only one room, with a shoji screen acting as a wall for the brothers. Where Hiro's side of the room was messy and unkempt, Dashi's was neat and organized. There was a space in the middle of the room that was referred to as No Man's Land, a space that Hiro and Dashi shared, with two bean bag cushions for them to sit on.

Dashi pointed to Hiro's bed, and the young boy walked over to it slowly, like a man on death row. When Hiro sat down, Dashi began talking again.

"This is the third time this month I caught you Bot-fighting, Hiro. Do you have any idea how much danger you're putting yourself in?"

"I can take care of myself." Hiro grumbled quietly.

"You could have fooled me." Dashi said with an edge in his voice. "What do you get out of this? Money?"

"Yeah." Hiro grinned. "It's kind of like a job."

"An illegal job." Dashi insisted.

"I got at least fifteen-hundred tonight!"

Dashi's eyes bulged out of their sockets. "WHAT?!"

"One thousand-five hundred dollars." Hiro said, not understanding that his brother was shocked and not confused.

Dashi opened his mouth. And closed it. And opened it again. But no words came out. Hiro imagined someone behind his brother like a puppeteer, making Dashi say things he didn't want to say.

"….unbelievable…" Dashi muttered.

"Som thanks to my ingenious, Aunt Cass is one thousand dollars richer." Hiro said proudly.

"TADASHI! HIRO!"

Both brothers looked at the stairs and saw their Aunt running up holding a large wad of cash in her hands. Hiro felt his blood become cold.

"Aunt Cass, shouldn't you be watching the café?" Dashi asked.

"Naru….is….handling it." Aunt Cass wheezed. She panted for a few moments. "I…I found….this…this much….in the tip jar….someone explain it to me now!"

Hiro could feel Dashi looking at him and blushed.

"Hiro?!" Aunt Cass said, like a fish on dry land. "Where….where did you….get this?"

"Maybe someone was being nice?" Hiro suggested hopelessly.

Aunt Cass frowned at him. "No one is ever that generous and I know it wasn't there a few minutes ago, so one of you better start talking, now!"

"Bot-fighting." Hiro mumbled at the same time that Dashi said, "Gambling."

They both looked at each other for a moment in surprise before looking away.

"Bot-fighting?!"

"….it's not illegal…" Hiro said weakly.

"You…were…Bot-fighting?! At this hour?!" Aunt Cass glared at Dashi. "You told me you were both playing hide and seek!"

"I didn't want to scare you." Dashi said.

"I'm scared now!" Aunt Cass's expression didn't soften. "What were you both thinking?! I didn't promise your mother that I would take care of you in case anything happened to her just so you two could get into illegal activities. Not in this household!"

Dashi opened his mouth in protest.

"Don't." Aunt Cas pointed her finger at him. "I don't want to hear any explanation for your actions. I am more than capable of making a living for the three of us and a cat. Let me handle finances in this household-"

"Dashi didn't Bot-fight, I did!" Hiro said loudly.

"Don't interrupt me, young man and-" Aunt Cass stopped talking as the words sunk in. "What?"

The way she said that one word sounded more dreadful than the rant that she was just giving Dashi several moments ago.

"What were you thinking, Hiro?!" Aunt Cass hissed. Hiro looked away. "I…that isn't something eight-year-olds should be doing! You could have gotten hurt or worse-"

"I already gave him the Riot Act, Aunt Cass, I was just finishing up just now." Dashi spoke up.

Aunt Cass took a few deep breaths and held up the money in her hand.

"This is the last time you are going Bot-fighting, do you understand me?"

Hiro nodded.

"I don't care if you put in a million dollars in the tip jar just to make me happy." Aunt Cass continued. "All I want…is for you to…to be safe and happy. You should be spending your time more productively than this."

She looked at Dashi with an apologetic expression on her face before she walked back downstairs slowly. Hiro noticed a plump cat, Mochi, waiting for Aunt Cass on the top step, and followed her down after giving what he thought was a look of disapproval to the brothers.

Dashi sighed. "This is what I wanted to avoid."

"I'm sorry." Hiro said quietly. He bit his lip, trying to keep that feeling from coming out.

"You should be telling that to Aunt Cass. You know how she gets when she stresses out."

Hiro nodded slowly. She makes a special batch of pastries of different varieties each week to deal with stress. Chocolate-covered donuts were commonly-made. No one but her was allowed to touch or eat them.

"Give me the rest of the winnings."

Hiro pulled out the remaining five-hundred dollars from his jacket and gave it to Dashi. He started pulling the covers over himself when Dashi cleared his throat again.

"And Megabot."

"No." Hiro whispered.

Dashi held out his hand patiently before Hiro begrudgingly withdrew the tiny robot from his jacket. Dashi cleared his throat one more time and Hiro handed over the controller as well.

"Night." Hiro whispered and pulled the covers over his body, ignoring the shoes that he left on.

"Hiro…I'm not mad at you. I was scared." Dashi said, but Hiro covered his ears. Dashi was lying, he was mad at Hiro. And so was Aunt Cass.

He felt more weight press down on his bed, but ignored it. A moment later, a hand was slowly rubbing circles into his back.

"I'm not punishing you because I want to." Dashi continued. "Mom and Dad would want you to be safe. It's dangerous to go out there and do those kinds of things."

Hiro ignored him. Then he felt himself being lifted up and opened his eyes. Dashi looked so tired now and pulled Hiro to his chest.

And then, Hiro started sobbing. He didn't want everyone mad at him. He wanted to do other things, too. But there wasn't anyone else like him. No eight-year olds were out of high school, they weren't even in middle school yet. Hiro just wanted…he didn't know…Bot-fighting, it helped. He was doing something, and staying out of Aunt Cass's hair when she worked. He thought that he was the reason she ate out of stress, sometimes.

"Shhhh." Dashi whispered. "It's okay, Hiro. Let it out."

Hiro cried into Dashi's shoulder and clung to him tightly. Dashi started rocking him back and forth, the motion tiring Hiro a little. And then Dashi started singing.

"Mori mo iyagaru, Bon kara saki-nya

Yuki mo chiratsuku-shi, Ko mo naku-shI"

Hiro clenched his eyes shut, he knew the lyrics well. How many times was he sung to sleep with this tune?

"Bon ga kita-tote, Nani ureshi-karo

Katabira wa nashi, Obi wa nashi"

Dashi continued rocking him back and forth, his forehead pressing against Hiro's as he hummed. Slowly, he pulled off the blankets covering Hiro and gently tugged at one shoe, then the other.

"Kono ko you naku, Mori wo ba ijiru

Mori mo ichi-nichi, Yaseru-yara"

Hiro felt his jacket being removed before the blankets covered his body again. He opened his eyes to see Dashi's eyes closed, fully immersed in the song he was singing. Hiro felt his eyes close slowly, muttering an "I'm sorry" under his breath. Dashi planted a kiss on his forehead in reply and sang the last lyrics.

"Hayo-mo yuki-taya, Kono zaisho koete

Mukou ni mieru wa, Oya no uchi

Mukou ni mieru wa, Oya no uchi

How could something so sad be turned into something to help babies go to sleep, Hiro wondered. His grip on Dashi weakened, and he was gently placed back onto his bed. He felt a warm hand comb through his hair, drifting off to sleep after he heard his brother whisper.

"I love you, knucklehead."


Author's Note: This chapter had several different ideas for it, and I wanted it to go past Tadashi and Hiro talking in their room, but I felt that it was appropriate to end the chapter off here, no other way to end it. Like I mentioned before, Hiro will be more bratty, only fair to warn you. I wanted the lullaby from Grave of The Fireflies instead, but I couldn't find the lyrics online. This lullaby, however, seems to be a bit more appropriate considering its content and combination with the scene itself.

Takeda Lullaby is the name of the piece I used, and tells the story of a girl away from her family working as a servant, singing this song to comfort herself. In the 1960s, the song went from being a tune that villagers (or outcasts, according to Japanese class system) within Kyoto and Osaka hamlets sang into a popular song that became a popular lullaby.

Next update will be June 7th, Wednesday. Several hints of the plot have been dropped, but I'm not saying what. I'll let you guys figure it out.