az: Perhaps easy way to know if a particular chapter has been revised, is to see what pen name I used.
Honey Crackers
Who's older?
Written by Izzu
o
o
"I won't let you die..."
"Or maybe... even that guy who could be my little brother..."
He used to tease her that Kira might as well be her older brother, not younger. Cagalli used to be so sensitive about that, he cannot help being amused. Athrun chuckled to himself as he recalled the memory of that short exchange. Somehow remembering that now, felt even more amusing. Cagalli's reaction was cute after all.
Kira turned around as he noticed his friend have been laughing by himself. He walked over his desk as he asked what was it that amused him. Athrun shrugged at him.
"No... I only just recalled something amusing."
Kira frowned at him. For some reason, he felt as if Athrun had been laughing at him instead.
"Hey... tell me! What's so funny?"
Athrun grinned.
"Okay. Kira? Between you and Cagalli, who did you think was the oldest?"
Kira suddenly stopped smiling as Athrun hastily tried to cheer him back. "O-of course! I'm not implying anything—"
"Of course! We never end up knowing about that... right?"
Athrun looked at his friend worriedly. "Kira—?"
Kira suddenly straightened up. "Certainly the older one would be me!" Immediately Athrun started to laugh. Kira frowned. "What so funny?"
Athrun grinned.
"Both of you were so similar. Neither of you wanted to be the younger one! Cagalli also believed she's the older one and you're the younger."
Kira leered at him suspiciously as he snorted.
xxx
Lacus smiled as Cagalli gave another pat over the side of the sandcastle she and the kids have been making. She shrugged to Lacus.
"Ah, it's been a while since I get to do this."
"Isn't it? Pity we can't do this so often..."
Cagalli gasped as one of the kids hopped onto her lap.
"Cagalli-sis, why can't you always come visit?" asked the girl, Mika as Lacus smiled weakly to her.
"Well... Mika, Cagalli has an important job now. After all, ORB needs her more. It'll be quite a while before we could rebuilt ORB into what it used to be in the past," explained Lacus as the little girl nodded slowly. Cagalli smiled weakly at her.
"Even then, I'll always try to visit often. Kira is here after all. Lacus as well... and Aunt Caridad as well. Even if I won't be able to visit often, doesn't mean I won't."
Mika started to smile as she gave Cagalli a big hug. The girl glanced down as she looked at their little castle. "Cagalli-sis is protecting ORB now, isn't it? Just like big brother Kira and Athrun. I wish our sand castle had a protector too..." she said as some of the children giggled.
Lacus suddenly made a serious face as Cagalli resisted the urge to smile. "I agree. Our sandcastle has started to become so big now, it would be a pity to see it washed away by the sea later."
"There will be a protector!" Little Cory suddenly exclaimed as Lacus and Cagalli turned towards the young boy. Out of nowhere, he and another boy took out two small doll made out of pieces of wood tied with some vines. Cagalli and Lacus exclaimed in surprise.
"How on earth did you guys managed to make those things?" Cagalli exclaimed as the boys started to surround the sand castle. Ignoring her questions, the kids started to play around their mock country.
"This guy is Freedom! He will protect everyone in the castle!"
"And this one is Justice! He will also help out Freedom protect everyone!"
Both of the girls started to laugh as they watch the kids made up imaginary gundam battles with imaginary enemies. Even more amusing, when one of the girls took out her own doll to start playing peacemaker. Cagalli looked at them fondly.
"They really did fight well together, didn't they?"
Lacus cocked her head at her. "Kira and... Athrun?"
Cagalli nodded as she glanced up to the sky. "I hope there would no longer be another time where those two would ever ended up fighting against each other again."
"I agree..." said Lacus as she turned around... just as another voice started to call out towards them.
"—lli! Cagalli! Lacus!"
Cagalli turned around just as Lacus caught Kira. The pink-haired girl giggled as she let go of her partner. "Careful, Kira. Else you'd step on our sandcastle! I don't think the kids would forgive you if you destroyed what we made."
Kira blinked as he glanced over towards the kids.
"Oh! Sorry."
"What brings you over here anyway?"
Kira turned towards Cagalli, as Athrun finally caught up with them.
"There's something I wanted to ask you. It's very important."
xxx
"Hah?"
Kira pouted at her. "Athrun said before that you think you're the oldest between us."
Cagalli rolled her eyes at him. "You have a problem with it?"
"Yes.. I do. How did you determine that?"
Athrun and Lacus kept watching both of them as they started arguing. Cagalli started counting her fingers as she started listing all of the things about Kira that made it logical that Kira is the younger one. Kira frowned.
"But you also cried to me at times!"
"Not as much as you! Besides... those few times was because I couldn't stand being apart from you. Even if that time we didn't realized yet we were related, I was already so attached to you. So is it wrong for me to cry back then?" Cagalli countered. Athrun slapped his forehead as Kira suddenly wore a dreamy look when she said that. Lacus just giggled.
"Cagalli..." Kira gasped before perking up. "But I'm taller than you!"
"Rejected. Height does not indicate who's the oldest!"
Kira stared at her, dejected as the kids started backing his sister's argument with some other reasoning. Kira sighed to himself as he recalled every moment he had spent in the past with Cagalli. Back then, even if neither of them knew the truth about this... he always did treated her as an older sister. And Cagalli did acted protective of him like an older sister would. Perhaps that notion was not so bad after all!
"All right! I rest the case!" Kira suddenly exclaimed. "I don't mind Cagalli being the oldest. Perhaps it was true after all."
Cagalli shook her head at him. "Honestly... you. And why do we start arguing about this?"
Kira shrugged.
"Beats me. Athrun started it."
Cagalli turned towards Athrun as he hastily raise his hands. "It was an innocent statement! I didn't think Kira would get so worked up about it!"
Both twins laughed before Cagalli turned to Kira in concern. "That aside, Kira... are you okay? This was the first time you ever talked about... this, since..."
Kira shrugged.
"Don't you wonder as well... about them?" Cagalli looked at him worriedly before Kira suddenly walked towards Athrun. "Regardless, Athrun needs to be punished for this!"
"Huh?" Athrun exclaimed as Cagalli nodded.
"Yes. For that, we will make haste to the other side of this beach!"
Athrun gaped at both of them in shock as Kira and Cagalli suddenly dragged him towards the edge of the beach before throwing him into the sea. Lacus laughed as she and the kids watched the trio doused each other with sea water before joining them.
After all, what does it matter which of them was the oldest? Kira and Cagalli... are already fine being themselves.
