(By "2 Unlimited will be da freakin death of me someday" Zarla)
(Note: I am not responsible fer any mental damage caused by readin this fic.)
At an early age, perhaps the earliest, they had to depend on eachother. They had always known that, and it had become something in their lives that they had accepted as fact. They realized, from the various places they had to go, from their own home to school to any other location, that the only real certainty in life was eachother, and that the other would always be there. Because of this, they lost their trust in other people, and that became their weakness.
Zorn and Thorn's parents were anything if supportive. The money that should have gone into raising the twins instead went into their own pockets, to feed their own desires and addictions. Their mother had a nasty drinking problem, and their father had obsessions with small trinkets that had no real meaning, but were expensive enough. Although they weren't living in poverty, they had no money of their own to speak of. They were indeed lucky to have their own room, with the twin beds.
For all their parents cared, Zorn and Thorn did not exist. It had been made perfectly clear to the twins very early on that they weren't wanted. It had also been made clear that their parents weren't going to clean up their own mess, so the two had learned to become almost completely self-reliant. When they wanted something, they worked to earn it. They fed themselves from the kitchen, thus learning how to cook extremely well. When young, they learned to amuse eachother, not having any other figure in their lives to model after.
They purposely gravitated towards red and blue, and everything that they did or associated with was split into those kind of colors. Anything red, or anything blue, automatically went to the boy that it was associated with. There wasn't any question of who was which color, it seemed to be inherently understood by the two. And even despite the fact that Zorn and Thorn were ALWAYS blue and red, their parents could never, ever tell them apart. Sometimes, their parents even forgot their names, or forgot who they were speaking to, often in the middle of conversations. When introduced to their parents friends, they became one being, simply "ZornandThorn", and everyone they knew purposely avoided ever addressing them individually, and they rarely, rarely got it right when they did. Their parents did not even apologize when the wrong boy was called the wrong name. It became something that the twins began to resent immensely, although they never voiced this outloud.
Thorn's speech impediment became painfully obvious when the two learned to speak. It was almost at the same time, and the first words they learned were from the television, their only other influence in life. Due to their parents neglect they were able to form rudimentary sentences before their parents either noticed or cared. Thorn's speech impediment came as naturally as his affinity for red, and neither Zorn nor Thorn thought it peculiar. However, for once their parents did seem to care about this kind of disorder, and they tried to send Thorn to a child psychologist. However, this did not end well as Zorn refused to leave his brother's side, particularly when he was crying and frightened in the waiting room. When the doctor asked to speak to Thorn alone, both of them refused. In the end, no progress was made at all, and the entire experience only deepened the rift between Zorn and Thorn and their indifferent parents.
In the end the speech impediment stayed, and the two of them continued onwards. It was also noticed, when they went into school, the fact that the two of them were remarkably shorter then anyone else they encountered. Again, they were taken in for examination, but the only solution the doctor could come up with was that they hadn't had their growth spurt yet. The two of them seemed to understand inherently that they'd always be the same height, and weren't surprised when they didn't grow as much as others that they ran into. The two of them barely got close to five feet when they stopped growing, but it didn't particularly bother them.
Neither one of them was exactly sure when they first found the hats. They had to be old enough to be able to buy both of them, because there was no way their parents would have bought them for them, but they could not remember being without the hats. The jingling jesters hats were identical, excepting the patterns and colors. Zorn's being blue and striped, and Thorn's being red and checked. Once they found and wore the jesters hats, they absolutely refused to take them off, and their parents had another embarassing thing about their children that they'd never be able to understand. Zorn and Thorn felt something...right about the hats, about the soft jingling noises it made with their motions and the way they moved with them...something about the hats felt like they had always belonged with the pair, so they were rarely seen without them.
Their experiences through school were difficult to say the least. Thorn was mocked openly for his speech problem, although Zorn often tried to cover for him, and the two in themselves were strange looking and thus teased mercilessly. The only comfort they had after such tormented days at school was the knowledge that they'd always have eachother. Their relationship was anything if perfect, but underneath all the bickering and petty arguments they knew that they did care about eachother, and they'd always be connected in some way.
Zorn and Thorn loved to snipe at one another. Despite the fact that they were almost always alone at school, they argued constantly, although rarely seriously. Something about their voices bouncing back at one another, often repeating what the other had said in a different speech pattern appealed to them, and they had a natural gift for rhymes.
One thing they were very good at was their work. They were extremely dedicated in everything they did and always tried to work things through to the end. Zorn was more mathmatical and analytical, while Thorn was more creative and liberal. The two of them could solve almost any problem when put together, so the one thing in school that was not a challenge in any way was the work itself. They passed what was required of them with amazing ease. The social structure never accepted them, and they never struggled to be accepted, so they resigned themselves to their post at the bottom of the social food chain.
Without any kind of support from their parents, Zorn and Thorn worked oddjobs as soon as they were able to, and were able to perform these well. They were often tipped and given small raises, and on this they were able to afford essentials, such as pencils or pens or books, that their parents didn't want to spend money on. They struggled their way through school financially and socially, if nothing else. However, because of the twins unique abilities, they were able to land many different jobs. They switched off shifts and learned how to work at almost superhuman speeds and times. They often took shifts that no one else seemed to want, which got them even more money.
High school was not much different then grade school was. They hadn't gotten any bigger then was expected, which didn't surprise them. It did leave them open for many attacks and jibes, which they had learned to ignore completely. At times they were pushed around, but the presence of both of them seemed to ward off most people at once. They weren't sure exactly why that was, but it was something that they came to accept. In another effort to stop the constant mix up over their names, they began to draw symbols on the back of their hand in permanent marker. Zorn drew large diamonds, while Thorn drew clubs. Although this helped a little, they still remained largely mistaken and misnamed.
Near the end of their high school career, the two agreed on the fact that they wanted to be more then this. They didn't want to have to struggle through life one job at a time. They wanted to go somewhere, to prove to their parents once and for all they didn't need them.
They had been saving their surplus money for years, just in case of some kind of disaster, and now they had finally decided what they wanted to do.
They wanted to go to college.
When they told their parents about this, the only response they got was a distracted "You're going to pay for it, it isn't coming out of my pocket". This only inspired them.
During their final year, they began to work extremely hard on their schoolwork, sacrificing any kind of social life, or pseudo-social life, they had gained. They dropped any extraneous jobs and focused on the important ones, struggling to get the best grades possible. Thorn took writing classes, and wrote two different, but extremely good essays. They completely blazed their way through the SAT's and their normal classes, and graduated as valedictorians. Applying everywhere for financial aid or scholarships, they managed to scrape together enough money, along with the money they had saved, to go to college for at least a year, if not two.
This was a big decision, but one that made them extremely happy. Their work had not been in vain, and they were finally making something of their lives. They were going to be successful, they were going to be somebody.
So that fateful summer, Zorn and Thorn packed up their meager collection of possessions that they had obtained over the years, said goodbye to their parents, and headed off to the college they had chosen, hoping that life would continue to help them through, and that fortune would continue to smile on them.
"Glad I am we got a room together..." Thorn dropped his bags in the center of the room, noting the two beds on seperate sides of the room.
"Yes, a roommate would be awkward..." Zorn dropped his right next to Thorn's, and his eyes also gravitated towards the two seperate beds. The two exchanged glances, and nodded.
It took them a little while, but they managed to rearrange the furniture until they had the beds bunked directly in the center of the room and the desk near the wall. The TV was on the other side, so that they could both watch from their newly joined bed.
"Much better."
"Yes."
They unpacked the few things they had brought with them. Matching snowglobes, matching juggling kits...most of the things that one owned had it's twin with the other, and even their clothes practically matched excepting the color. Their pitiful collection of personal affects were barely enough to cover one desk, but they were used to it. Their money had gone into supporting eachother, not into getting things. It didn't bother them.
Thorn automatically took the bottom bunk, while Zorn climbed onto the top one. It was another thing that they seemed to understand immediately. Once on their respective beds, they stripped them and replaced them with their own personal sheets, Zorn with blue diamonds and Thorn with red. Finally, as the last touch, the two put down the two matching stuffed cats. Zorn's cat was completly white, while Thorns was black. That was one thing their parents had bought them when they were babies, and although the two didn't sleep with the animals, they felt better having them around. The twins seemed to have an unnatural knack for animals, cats in particular, and didn't fear animals in the least.
After their beds had been set up, the two of them looked at their schedules. They matched completely, each of them in the same class at the same time. The exchanged glances.
"Easy this will make it..."
"If we do things correctly..."
The rest of the oncoming weekend was spent applying and looking for odd jobs that they'd be able to do. Assuring whatever employer they were speaking to that they were more then capable, they managed to land a job at almost every building and facility on campus. Fortunately, no two jobs seemed to overlap, although there was almost no time between shifts. Not only were Zorn and Thorn working at the bookshop, they also worked at the post office, the cafeteria, the library, the theater...
They got a map from the main office and studied it very carefully, marking out where they'd have to be at certain times. if they were going to do all the jobs they had applied for, they'd get, at most, four hours of sleep on a weekday, and perhaps six on the weekend.
"We can do it."
"Do it we can, but hard it will be...planning it will take..."
"But we can do it."
And with that, they slept on that Sunday night, preparing themselves for the beginning of one of the most hectic schedules of their lives.
The first thing on their schedule on the first Monday of school was the very early shift at the bookstore, one of the last places to accept their applications. In order to get the amount of jobs they needed to continue to fund their college education, they had to get as many part-time jobs as possible, but the school wasn't about to let kids work themselves to death. So Zorn and Thorn had fibbed slightly about how many jobs they had, but the bookstore had been reluctant. It had taken several promises and an example of how quickly they could sort and find things until they were finally accepted.
Their first class that day was later in the afternoon, so they could complete their shift successfully today. As they planned it, their next shift in the store would be on wednesday, which was basically a mirror of Monday. Tuesday's and Thursday's would be more complicated, but at the moment they were pleased with what they could get.
The first day involved a quick briefing, in case they had forgotten the rules they had learned while applying, and dealing with late stragglers in terms of getting books. Because their shift was so early, not too many people came in.
Zorn took over the cash register, his natural ability for numbers coming into play, while Thorn took stock and made sure books were in the correct place. The two of them struggled to keep their energy up, but in truth they were already tired. They had not got much sleep the previous night, and it was already taking it's toll.
A few people came in to get late books, among them a tall, sturdy man dressed in silver, with what appeared to be a sheath at his side who looked at them strangely, a boy with a tail that gave them even odder looks, and a young man with blue hair and eyes, a bandanna, and a shifty look around him. Zorn and Thorn kept an eye on him, but he ended up not stealing anything, although something about him seemed to radiate "thief" to the two of them.
They caught the names for most of the people who came to pick up books as they gave their id's so that their respective accounts could be charged. Zidane, Steiner, Locke, Kain...various people came and went, but Zorn and Thorn didn't pay too much attention. They didn't really expect to see them again, and they had enough to keep their hands full for a while.
They did notice the odd stares they got from everyone, not counting those from Zidane, as they found the tailed boy's name to be, and Steiner, the man with the sword. Their appearance must have been odd to people who didn't know them, and they knew that. They had lived with such derision their entire lives, and being regarded as strange and/or amusing was not unknown to them. The jester hats particularly gave off this kind of vibe. Either way, Zorn and Thorn had learned not to care, although they still got frustrated when someone mixed up their names.
In yet another effort to distinguish eachother, Zorn and Thorn began wearing shirts their respective colors, with the appropriate initial on the front, a Z or a T. This still didn't help, and Zorn and Thorn resigned themselves to being constantly forgotten.
One person that came to get books caught their attention, however. It was because he seemed to be half cat, with large black feline ears protruding from his short black hair, and a black and white tail coming from beneath his red and black shirt. When he brought his books up to the front, they found his name to be Reeve. For some reason, something registered in the twins as being important about him, or that some connection was formed. They could tell from the look in Reeve's emerald eyes that he felt the same. Shrugging, the two blamed it on his apparent half-cat nature. For some reason, the twins always had a special affinity for cats they could never explain. So they tried to write off the strange experience as such, but it kept bothering them.
As the light slowly began to leak into the building, their shift ended. Feeling extreme pangs of exhaustion, the two slunk out of the store, trying mightily to deny any sign of being tired.
"You look tired."
Thorn glared at his brother. "Tired I am not, never am. Tired YOU are."
Zorn glared back with just as annoyed. "I am not tired...but..."
Zorn looked forward, noting one of the many small cafes that dotted the campus. He pointed towards it. "Let's get something to drink first before continuing..."
Thorn was glad for the break, but he couldn't show it. "Alright, but hurry we must, beginning our next shift is in only a few minutes..."
The two of them walked into the cafe. It was much more crowded now that the day was beginning for most people on a normal schedule, and Zorn and Thorn threaded their way through much larger bodies until they came to a freezer. They stared at with incomprehension for a moment. They hadn't had much experience with junk food or the like, considering that most of their money was spent on being able to afford a few meals a day. They weren't sure what they should get, but they both inherently knew it had to be something that would keep them awake.
"What are you two doing in a place like this...?" A kindly older voice came from above them, and the two exchanged weary glances. They waited for the inevitable. Sure enough, a face soon joined them near the floor, and the two sighed almost imperceptibly at the same time.
"Where's your parents? Are you lost?"
Zorn took the liberty of replying while Thorn pried open the display case, sticking his head in for a closer look. "No, we are not lost. We are looking for something that will help us stay awake."
"Is that so?" The woman knelt down, her long brown hair which was kept back in a ponytail trailing down her back. She pushed up her glasses, her tone condescending, but friendly. "Still, where are your parents?"
Zorn half-closed his eyes and, instead of responding, dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out his ID. He held it in front of her for a moment, waiting for the realization to sink in.
"Oh..." She looked extremely embarrassed, which made Zorn smile slightly. She put a hand to her mouth and looked down. "Um..."
"Common mistake it is." Thorn's voice was muffled from the glass door that was propped open by his body. "Worry about it you shouldn't."
"Um, yes...well..." She seemed extremely taken aback by this revelation, which Zorn found very interesting. He tried to flip his card back into his pocket, but dropped it by accident, prompting Thorn to laugh at him from the confines of the freezer. Zorn frowned as he leaned over to pick up his card, only finding the woman holding it for him. He snatched it out of her hands irritably.
"I'm sorry about that, you two. My name is Lucrecia, I work here as one of the faculty. I know you're Zorn...who's your friend?" She turned her eyes towards Thorn, who seemed to be ignoring her. Zorn rolled his own eyes and crossed his arms after putting his ID back in his pocket.
"My brother. Thorn."
Thorn turned slightly and waved for a moment before returning to what he was doing.
"What are you guys looking for again?"
"Something that will keep us awake..." Zorn didn't want to go into specifics about why, and he was already sure she probably wasn't interested anyway.
"Zorn, your help I need to reach this..." Thorn backed out of the freezer, but kept the door open. He pointed towards something on the top shelf. "What we need that might be."
Zorn nodded and headed towards his brother. Irritatingly, she still remained on the ground with them, looking interested.
"Does he always talk like that?"
Zorn made an annoyed noise and didn't bother to answer her question. He instead let his brother take a hold of his shoulder and let him place his foot on his hands, boosting him up until he rested on his shoulders. Holding onto his ankles tightly, he struggled to keep his brothers weight under control, noting that the woman was standing now. He waited for the typical reaction to this maneuveur of theirs, which was an "Aww." kind of feel. They never understood why that was.
However, she reacted somewhat differently then they expected. "Are you sure you can...do you need help?"
The unanimous answer came quickly. "No!"
Thorn finally took hold of what he was after, and jumped off of Zorn's shoulders back onto the ground with ease. He was holding a large can of soda.
"Would this work?"
She knelt to join them again, causing them both to regard her with the same bored, eyes half-closed look that Zorn had before. "You guys want something that'll keep you REALLY awake?"
They nodded, a small chorus of jingles, to her question they had answered already. She smiled at them knowingly. "I got something that'll DEFINITLY keep you awake."
"Hmm..." Thorn stared at the can in his hands, the bright lightning bolt on the label capturing his attention easily. "Know I don't...right this seems..."
She let them keep the can, but led them over to another counter slightly further away. "Hello, I'd like two small expressos. With the extra."
"Two? Are you sure?" The attendant at the desk gave her a peculiar look. "Why two?"
"They're for these two down here. Go on, wave! Let him know you're there."
Zorn and Thorn refused to do anything at her encouraging and thoroughly irritating command. They simply stared at her.
The attendant shrugged. "Whatever, Prof. Lucrecia."
"Well, while that's being made..." She turned back to the two on the floor, who stared at her with blank expressions. "Want to tell me why you're here?"
"Like I SAID..." Zorn was rapidly losing his patience. "We wanted something to keep us awake."
"Quickly." Thorn interjected, which caused Zorn to nod in agreement.
"No, I mean, what brought you to this school?" She gestured broadly as if they didn't know what she was talking about.
"We want to learn."
"Make something of our lives, we must."
Lucrecia stared at them for a few moments, then shrugged. "You guys sure are mysterious. What do you have to hide?"
"What makes you think we're hiding something, anyway?" Zorn crossed his arms in annoyance. "Do you ask everyone that question?"
"Or just us is it?" Thorn was getting just as annoyed as his brother, which caused Lucrecia to throw up her hands.
"Alright, alright, calm down. I'm sorry about what happened before. Anyway..." She straightened and took the two cups from the counter, handing them to the twins, who took them suspiciously. "These will DEFINITLY keep you awake though."
Zorn looked at it for a moment, then looked up at Lucrecia, then back at the cup. He sighed for a moment, then finally mumbled under his breath. "Thank you."
Thorn just nodded, a slight jingling made from his hat. Lucrecia smiled at them both, but they did not return it. She walked towards the cash register, as if they had forgotten where it was. After all, they'd probably be working here tomorrow anyway. They followed at their own pace.
"Let me see what you got." Zorn held out his hand, and Thorn put the can he had picked up into it. Zorn stared at the lightning emblazoned label. "Jolt...? I guess..."
"Get it we should..." Thorn looked at Lucrecia's receding back. "Just in case..."
Zorn nodded, and the two headed to the cash register. They handed up their ID's, let the woman running the store at the moment cash them, and walked out. Lucrecia seemed to be waiting for them for some reason.
Zorn took a taste of whatever it was in the cup that Lucrecia had ordered. It was sweet, and bitter, and strange all at once, and it woke him up what seemed to be immediately. So she had been correct after all...
Looking over at Thorn, he found that he had experienced the same, and the two looked up at the woman who smiled down at them.
"Well, I hope that works for you two. Best of luck. Maybe we'll see eachother again."
Zorn and Thorn watched her go before heading off for their next job, this time in the cafeteria which wasn't too far away.
"I hope not." Zorn muttered under his breath. Thorn sighed into his straw.
"Think all the professors this way will be?"
Zorn paused for a moment, then repeated in much the same fashion. "I hope not."
Thorn put the can into his backpack, which was getting heavier by the moment, and shrugged. Although they had both tried to clear their bags of anything unneccessary, they still felt very heavy.
They finished their drinks and tossed the cups away, feeling much more awake then before.
"At least correct she was about the drinks..."
Zorn nodded reluctantly. "We should make a note of it..."
And so they headed off to their next location, feeling much more energized and awake then before.
The cafeteria job was pretty simple. They stood and waited mostly, for anyone to come in who wanted something to eat between breakfast and lunch. This didn't mean many people, but a few did show up. They took turns serving and preparing simpler foods, as they weren't known enough to be trusted with cooking yet. It was a simple job that didn't have many complications. And although they both were secretly hoping, they did not see Reeve again. They wanted to at least speak to him, even if it was again behind the desk that seperated consumer and provider.
They got far fewer odd looks and comments this time around, which was a relief. Rarely did anyone say anything more then what they wanted, so conversations were limited. Either way, Zorn and Thorn worked to the best of their abilities, and this time exhaustion did not win. They still had some energy left when their shift ended, which precious few minutes to spare before their first class that afternoon.
They walked along together outside, enjoying the warmth and calm of the lovely day that had befallen the college.
"Not too hard this is...surprised I am. Do this we really can." Thorn smiled, and Zorn even gave a small smile back.
"We really CAN do it, if things continue the way they do now."
"Our next class...what is it?" Thorn glanced in Zorn's direction as he was already pulling out his schedule, which perfectly matched his brothers.
"Human Emotions..."
The two nodded at the same time and headed off towards their next class, feeling ready for anything that was going to come their way.
"My name is Professor Hojo, and I will be teaching this course." The professor's voice was very controlled and calm, and it set Zorn and Thorn somewhat on edge. It reminded them all too much of the traumatizing early visit to the psychiatrist, and they naturally gravitated towards the back of the room, where few people collected, no doubt other loners.
They did see Zidane again, sitting near the front of the class, but they didn't feel comfortable saying hello. In truth the jesters had never really had any friends that they could think of outside of eachother. They were very awkward with dealing with other people, and didn't reach out unless they knew it was safe. So they sat next to eachother near the wall, and kept an empty seat between them and the others. They noted a few others following this pattern of empty seats, like the long black-haired man in the back, but even he had someone sit next to him during the course of the class. It made the twins feel lonely in a strange way they never felt before, and this confused them. After such a long period of being alone, of only having eachother, they found the desire to be accepted rising for some reason. This had never mattered to them before, and this was extremely confusing. They struggled to keep it from their minds and focus on their class, not sure what to make of their emotions.
Zorn took notes during class, while Thorn struggled to stay awake. For him, the caffeine buzz seemed to be wearing off, leaving him in a worse position then he was when he had woken up that day. Zorn nudged him softly during class, whispering.
"Are you alright...?"
"Tired I am..." Thorn mumbled, his head drifting to the desk. Zorn looked around, seeing that no one else noticed or cared that Thorn's head had dropped, and nudged him again.
"I'll take notes...you can copy them later. Take a nap for now."
"Mmhmm..." Thorn's response was barely audible as he had put his arms over his face, a sleeping position both of them seemed to share. Zorn looked back up, trying to look as if nothing was wrong. Prof. Hojo didn't seem to notice, which was good, and the rest of the class passed without incident. At the end of the class, Zorn leaned over to Thorn and stabbed him rather sharply in the shoulder with his pencil, jerking him awake.
"Class's over."
Thorn rubbed his eyes for a few seconds before lapsing into complete awareness, something that both of the twins seemed to share. The effects of sleep wore off quickly for them, but once they began to wear down, they refused to wind back up again. But after being awakened, the two were surprisingly sharp and capable. Thorn looked around in confusion, then looked concerned.
"The class..."
"I took notes." Zorn was busy placing the said notes in his backpack while pretending to look like nothing had happened. "So you can copy them later."
Thorn nodded again, getting his own backpack and standing to join his brother as they headed down the aisle. "Sleep you can during the shift this afternoon...difficult it shouldn't be..."
Zorn nodded, not finding the fact that his brother seemed to know how he was thinking or feeling as odd or peculiar in the least. They had always seemed to share this kind of link, and he had gotten used to it over the years. It had always struck others as kind of strange, however, especially when they would often finish the other's sentences, or break out into what seemed to HAVE to have been prescripted poems. When they were in the mood for rhyming, nothing seemed to be able to stop them, and that was probably what frightened or creeped out people the most. It seemed perfectly natural to them, but they had long ago accepted the fact that the majority of things about them were not natural.
They headed out of the class, not encountering anything, although Zorn felt something prickling along his neck. When he looked back, he found Prof. Hojo glaring at his brother. Worried, he began wondering whether or not the professor had truly been aware of the fact that his brother had used his class to regain some desperatly needed energy, but decided that if he hadn't mentioned it, it couldn't be that important. It did, however, mean that Hojo was more observant then he gave him credit for, but he shrugged off his feelings as best he could and continued walking.