Sorry for the long hiatus between updates. I wonder if people still read this? If you do, please review if you can! I think eventually, I'll actually be moving the story along in a more serious manner. But let me know what you think!

Shinrei wonders, for the millionth time, how he can possibly share any single DNA sequence with the existence known as Keikoku. Or rather, he goes by Hotaru now. There is just no way he can share a drop of blood with that idiot.

Maybe his father was mistaken. Maybe his concubine had another man on the side. Perhaps Hotaru's father was someone else. Like Julian, for instance. That would actually explain a lot. Their weird way of talking…..it would also explain Hotaru's closeness with Yuan's family.

Or perhaps, when his father's concubine gave birth that day, the baby was switched with another that is born on the same day. Hmm, let's see, who else was born around that day? Shinrei wracked his brain, but came up empty. After all, the people of the Mibu are practically immortal. No one keeps track of their age anymore, let alone their birthdays. Furthermore, some people chose to halt their aging process, so they appear way younger than they really are. Take Tokito for instance, Shinrei mused. For all we know, Tokito can be the same age as Hotaru. Shinrei ponders this in grave seriousness. He mentally calculated the likelihood of being related to Tokito, instead of Hotaru. He shuddered, and shakes his head in disgust. Being related to Tokito seemed to be an even worse fate than being related to Hotaru, although not by much. Having an idiot for a brother is one thing, but having a crazy, emotionally unstable can of dynamite for a sibling is quite another thing indeed.

… But at times…..

Shinrei surveys the scene in front of him with apprehension. The Mibu courtyard is as beautiful and pristine as ever, but today, its beauty is marred with a statue that looks strangely out of place.

"What the…" Shinrei couldn't help the exclamation that escaped him, "Keikoku?!"

For in front of him, there was an immobile Keikoku, doing a handstand in the middle of the courtyard, with his legs in a lotus position. His weight is balanced on one hand, while the other hand is outstretched, holding a sake glass, fill with some sort of clear liquid. Keikoku's face appeared to be turning a deep shade of crimson.

Shinrei tamps down his mirth of seeing Keikoku in such a ridiculous position, and asked with a disapproving tone in his voice, "What in the world are you doing now, Keikoku??"

Hotaru remained silent, barely sparing Shinrei a glance.

"Well? Aren't you listening to me, Keikoku? Such a bad habit of yours, never listening to other when they're…"

"Go. Away." A raspy whisper emanated from Hotaru, although his lips remained perfectly still.

Frustrated, Shinrei continued yelling, "I demand an explanation for this ridiculous pose of yours. Why can't you do something useful for a change? You are always like this, doing meaningless…."

Again, Hotaru cuts him off with a growl, "Must. Get. Stronger."

"What?" After being so rudely cut off from his tirade, Shinrei took a couple of deep breaths in order to calm himself down.

Hmm, finally, we are getting down to the point of this exercise, Shinrei thought. He walked around and circled the statue that is Hotaru, with a thoughtful look in his eyes. Hotaru remained silent and still, although his face deepened in colour.

"How are you trying to get stronger by posing like this?? Do you know how ridiculous you look? If you want to get stronger, you must go train, not do something as stupid as like making yourself an eyesore in the middle of the…."

Shinrei raised a leg and attempted to kick Hotaru over, but, to his surprise, Hotaru dodged it by pushing himself off the ground, and moved himself over by a few inches to escape the blow. Surprisingly, not a drop spilled from the sake glass. This shift seemed to be quite taxing, as the colour of his face is now closer to a violent shade of purple.

Shinrei seemed to be taken aback at Hotaru's strange ability to dodge his kick.

"Must. Stay. Like. This. Birds. Sake." Hotaru uttered a very stilted and unintelligible phrase.

Shinrei struggled to understand the meaning behind Hotaru's words. "What are you talking about? What birds? And what do they have to do with sake?"

Hotaru eyed Shinrei. "You. Stupid?"

Enraged, Shinrei burst out with, "Who're you calling stupid?? I'm not the one upside down with a sake glass in my hand, waiting for birds!!"

Shinrei fell silent, thinking it over. "Hmm, so you're waiting for birds to come to you, to drink the sake from the glass in your hand?"

Hotaru grunted, as if in consent.

For a full five minutes, Shinrei could not utter a single word for the life of him. Intense laughter seems to do that to a person.

"……uhhh, my stomach…." The first words Shinrei managed to get out after laughing so hard.

"You're serious? Who told you to do this?" He had to ask, but he had a pretty good idea of the culprit behind this.

"Is it Yuan?"

After a period of silence, Hotaru grunted again in consent.

After another tense moment, Hotaru uncoiled himself from his pose, and righted himself into a cross-legged position.

"I should've known it was a trick. It sounded too easy," mumbled Hotaru, holding his head as if in pain.

Shinrei continued his laughter, but managed to get out a question, "So why do you think you can get stronger from that pose?"

Without lifting his head from his hands, Hotaru continued his low grumbling, "Yuan said he'll fight me seriously if I can get a bird to come and drink from the sake glass while doing an upside-down lotus pose."

This triggered another burst of laughter from Shinrei. Hotaru just stared murderously at the prone figure of Shinrei that was rolling around from laughter, as it is all he can manage at that point. "Give it a rest, will ya? My head is splitting in two…"

After a valiant effort, Shinrei contained his laughter, and was able to speak normally. "Keikoku, barring the very low probability of a bird actually believing you are a statue, and it mistaking the sake for water, I need to ask you one question."

Hotaru just stared at Shinrei.

Shinrei gestured at the 50 acres of paved surface and buildings around the two.

"Have you ever, EVER, seen a bird in this part of Mibu land?" Shinrei asked.

Shinrei watched as the disgruntled expression on Hotaru's face turn into absolute rage, and could control his laughter no more. Shinrei got up, and continued on his way past Hotaru, with laughter trailing behind him.

Some days, it was good to have a clueless idiot for a brother.