Chapter 6: Summer
It was a warm summer night, and all windows of the cottage had been opened to let the gentle breeze circulate. The night was filled with insect sounds and the occasional owl's hooting, with the soft tinkle of the glass chimes as the wind swayed it now and then. Yuki, now a girl of 13 was standing in the middle of the garden, watching glowing fireflies flit across the darkness. Her long hair was done up in a side ponytail with a large yellow bow and she was wearing a cotton yukata with a sunflower motif that her mother had sewn for her.
Shizuka had also donned a yukata, but it was of a more subtle color and adorned with a morning glory pattern instead. She was leisurely reclined in the chair near the southern corner of the garden, lightly fanning herself and enjoying a glass of wine.
Aoi was inside the cottage at her desk, doing calculations and agonizing over the household finances. She was glad it was summer so they could plant vegetables and fruits and save money on food. On that note, this year's crop of tomatoes and strawberries were looking excellent, thanks in part to Shizuka abusing her power to manipulate plants. If they had surplus, she could sell them at the weekly farmer's market in town. Extra cash was always helpful, and Aoi sincerely disagreed with whoever said that money cannot buy happiness – that person must be rich and never had to deal with serving two purebloods! The income she made helping at Erina's dressmaking shop was barely enough for them to get by, not because Erina did not pay decently, but because Shizuka-sama was an expensive woman to take care of.
Despite Aoi's better judgement, she frequently gave in to her mistress's costly requests, such as the crate of red wine chilling in the basement. She could never say this to her mistress, but in this regard, the penchant for the finer things in life, her mistress and her former master were quite similar. She supposed that was only to be expected, given the fact that all purebloods were born into a life of luxury. Not to toot her own horn, but Aoi thought she was doing the best one can in serving her high maintenance mistress given their difficult circumstances. Nevertheless, she was quite grateful that Yuuki-sama was more down to earth.
Shizuku had sent note via his familiar that he would visit tonight, and Aoi had prepared tea and snacks for his visit. A few minutes after the clock in the living room chimed nine o'clock, he arrived at the gate and was let in by an excited Yuki. He bowed respectfully to Shizuka who raised her wine glass in acknowledgment and resumed her moon-viewing, leaving the youngsters to chat by themselves.
Yuki twirled in front of him, proudly showing off her yukata. "Isn't it pretty? Okaa-sama made it for me."
Shizuku had not worn his cape and hat, given the summer heat, and was sweating in his long-sleeved shirt, even though he was wearing shorts. Sometimes he wished he could dress as casually as the humans and even the lower ranking vampires, but he had appearances to maintain as young master of the Toma clan and had to wear stuffy Victorian-esque fashion even in the middle of summer. Looking at the girl, he wondered if he could get away with a yukata. Surely his butler could not complain if he mentioned the Hiou clan wore yukata in the summer.
"Why are you proud when you're not the one who made it?"
Yuki ignored his comment, long inured to his thorny rudeness. He got a little irritated, seeing his words bounce off her. It had gotten worse ever since she had grown taller than him (she was now almost half a foot taller). Apparently, the extra height had gone to her head, and she acted as though she were his Onee-san now, treating him like a child. Like now, her patting his head, and telling him with a tone of exaggerated patience that he needed to be a nicer boy. He had half a mind to knock her in the head but refrained from doing so given the presence of her mother in the garden corner.
He endured her older sister antics and followed her to the bench where they sat nibbling at snacks. Yuki chatted happily about various things, such as how far she could send her familiars now and how she had finally passed her math exam by the skin of her teeth after being forced to retake it three times. Shizuku often questioned how she could be a pureblood with her shockingly poor academic performance. Then again, Yuki's personality and mannerisms were already unlike a pureblood.
Perhaps Shizuka had eaten or drank something strange when she was pregnant to result in such an odd daughter? Or maybe all that hardcore incest the Kurans partook in finally left its mark in the DNA Rido passed on?
Yuki's oddness was what made her so entertaining though… and although he did not say it, she reminded him of summer, her sunflower themed yukata matching her perfectly.
"Shizuku-kun, I have something for you, to thank you for the chocolate you got me last time," she announced in a sing-song voice.
He immediately held up a hand to decline. "It's alright, I don't need more gifts from you."
He had already amassed enough knickknacks of dubious craftmanship from her. Aside from the sachet with the unidentifiable bunny, he had been given an oddly terrifying doll that she insisted was (no surprise) a bunny, a bouquet of origami flowers, and a teru teru bozu doll whose simply scribbled face somehow gave off sinister vibes. It seemed more appropriate for summoning demons than for repelling bad weather.
"What are you saying? I spent a lot of effort on it!"
He vaguely recalled her saying the exact same thing about the other gifts.
"Here, it's cute and useful!" She grabbed his hand and placed a folded square of white cotton into his palm, smiling proudly.
He glanced at it suspiciously before unfolding it to reveal a handkerchief with an amateur's attempt at floral embroidery. He supposed it was an upgrade from the bunny on the sachet though.
"Those are daisies, since you like them so much."
Seeing his puzzled expression, she clarified that she remembered the handkerchief he had used to wipe her tears a few years ago, the day they had been discovered by her mother.
"I don't particularly love or hate daisies," he remarked, taking another bite of the slice of butter cake.
Seeing her confused and slightly disappointed expression, he sighed. "My mother was the one who loved them. She was the one who made that handkerchief."
Yuki's eyes widened in surprise, she rarely heard him mention his family and anything too personal in general. She did not blame him though; she had not revealed her origins to him either, he still thought she was her mother's biological daughter.
"You must love your mother a lot to keep it with you constantly."
He looked at her a little startled.
"What? Even I'm observant enough to notice you use the same handkerchief every time I see you." She pouted slightly, as though offended at his unvoiced implication.
He ate the last bite of his cake and placed the plate on the nearby table. He did not particularly want to discuss his mother, but Yuki was still looking at him expectantly.
"It doesn't matter how I feel about her, she has been dead a long time anyway."
At his reply, Yuki frowned, their light-hearted conversation had taken a sad turn.
"No matter how much you love someone, they still leave you in the end," he stated neutrally, staring at the starry sky above.
For the first time, Yuki saw his age reflected in his eyes. She drew her legs up and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin on her knees, an unladylike position that her mother would scold her for if she saw, but Yuki felt calmer sitting this way. His words bothered her, both out of concern for him and because she saw her own fears reflected in them.
"Even so…I wouldn't regret loving them. Even if they're gone, the cherished memories of them remain," she said softly.
His green eyes widened a bit as he glanced at her. Despite her general air headedness, sometimes she was unexpectedly perceptive, especially when it came to the emotional things.
He looked down at her roughly embroidered flowers, recalling a distant memory of a day long gone. The memory of his mother carrying him at her hip, standing in a field of wildflowers with the breeze causing the stalks and petals to sway back and forth. She had rested her forehead against his, looking deeply into his childish eyes, her love for him clear as day in her gaze, and smiling so gently the memory made his heart ache sharply.
He turned to look at the night sky again. Cherished memories…fleeting happiness and the inevitable progression of time. Even this summer night would eventually become just a distant memory, everyone long turned to dust.
He hated thinking like this, these thoughts were tiring and unpleasant. This is partly why he maintained his childish façade, literally keeping the appearance of a ten-year-old boy. He knew other vampires talked behind his back and referred to him mockingly as their own little Peter Pan. The malicious gossip of the lesser vampires did not bother him though, after all they were weak and inferior beings who can only whisper their resentments. When he was in his real form, he tended to brood and the dark thoughts wore him down slowly but steadily, like ocean waves eroding the coastlines.
Suddenly he felt her place a warm hand over his, and he glanced at her. She was looking up at the stars now, and suddenly pointed with her other hand at some clusters of stars overhead.
"Ah, that's the big dipper!" Her large eyes twinkled in her excitement.
He looked where she was pointing and scowled. "Of course not you idiot, you're not even close!"
She giggled tolerantly at his response and urged him to point out the constellations since he clearly knew them better. Feeling the need to educate her on the basics of astronomy, he started pointing out the major constellations and telling her the myths associated with specific ones. All the while, he let his hand remain clasped in hers. The crickets continued chirping and the fireflies continued weaving their dance in the darkness, a pleasant breeze causing the glass windchime to tinkle melodically.
That summer, the headmaster decided to take Yoko and the twins on a vacation to one of the southernmost islands with a more tropical climate; the twins' parents busy working as usual. Fortunately, Ichiru was in a healthier phase, and he was able to partake in the trip. During the ship ride though, Yoko had noticed he had seemed glum when Zero was not around, having gone off to buy snacks or drinks for the group. She had inquired if he was alright and he had laughed it off, saying he was simply tired from the traveling.
The setting of palm trees and pristine beaches was a sight to behold and there were many tourists, this being a popular vacation spot. Yoko supposed even Ichiru would cheer up from whatever was tormenting him at such a sunny and relaxed environment. Her father was certainly excited, talking loudly and snapping tons of photos. As if his behavior was not enough to draw attention, he wore shirts of the flashiest colors and patterns and a wide brimmed straw hat. Yoko and the twins dressed plainly in t-shirts and shorts, unwilling to stand out flamboyantly like her father.
The first three days, the headmaster took them to visit local historical sites such as shrines and museums. Although Ichiru complained about the excessively educational experience, being forced to listen to Yoko's (unsolicited) lectures about the history of the ancient Ryuku kingdom and its role in maritime trade between China and Japan, he was placated with delicious dinners and desserts. Ichiru enjoyed the sweet potato tarts and salt ice cream, while his brother preferred the savory rafute braised pork and soba noodles.
They spent the remaining days on the beaches outside their hotel, setting up a large beach umbrella and picnic blanket at one of the nicer spots since they arrived earlier than the crowds. Zero would slather copious amounts of sunscreen on a grumbling Ichiru, reminding the younger twin that skin cancer was no joke and frequently checked his temperature with a thermometer before taking him to play in the cool ocean waves.
Yoko would a few laps at her father's insistence, since he complained she was not making the most of the trip. Having done that, she would retreat to the shade of the umbrella and read some thick tome on some ancient philosopher. The headmaster could only sigh at her bookish nature and be comforted by the fact that she was having fun in her own way. He himself would be swimming, sunbathing, and drinking chilled coconut juice.
Despite the pleasant trip, Ichiru still wore a strangely sullen expression when he thought no one was looking. On the final night, before they were scheduled to depart the following afternoon, an incident happened.
In the middle of the night, Zero pounded on their doors, anxiously informing them Ichiru had disappeared from their hotel room. Yoko and her father followed Zero into their room and noticing the sliding door leading to the beach was open, they decided to split up and search for him on the beach. Each of them prepared to set out with a flashlight, the headmaster giving Yoko a can of pepper spray and confirming that she had her rod with her before allowing her to go off.
The view at night was beautiful, with the moon shining over the sands, giving them an almost luminescent sheen. The sound of the waves was reassuring, and Yoko trudged through the sand calling Ichiru's name. Eventually she came to the rocky section where they had previously observed the marine life left behind by receding tides, and saw a silhouette huddled on the rock, peering at the waves.
"Ichiru?" she asked cautiously, approaching closer. The beam of her flashlight illuminated familiar silver hair and she breathed a small sigh of relief.
"I thought Zero would be the one to find me," he said, without turning to look at her.
She turned off her flashlight and sat down beside him, feeling the hard rock beneath her and the occasional drops of seawater that crashed against the rock and rebounded into the air.
"Why did you run off?" she asked in a kindly tone, "Is it related to what you've been brooding over?"
"Hmm, Yoko is perceptive indeed," he replied, still staring at the waves.
She sat in silence with him for a minute or so. "Ichiru, since you've always said I'm an old man at heart, why don't you tell this old man what's bothering you?"
He snorted. "It's not something you or anyone can help me with. Not even Zero…" He fell silent at the mention of his older twin.
"Whenever Zero or you are troubled, it usually involves your sibling relationship. This is about Zero isn't it?"
"You should be a detective in the future. Or am I that obvious?" Ichiru sighed.
"No, it's simply because I have known you two for so long," she responded in her matter-of-fact manner and continued, "Zero is worried out of his mind about you right now."
"Yeah, but sometimes I want to be away from him for a bit, even if it troubles him. In fact, it might be better for both of us if we were separated occasionally," he said quietly.
She did not speak and looked at the dark ocean while waiting for Ichiru to elaborate at his own pace.
After a while he finally spoke again, "Yoko, what do you think of me?"
"Hmm, Ichiru is the twin that makes fun of me for being serious while flirting shamelessly with his classmates."
He laughed a little then quieted down again, resuming his reflective manner. "All my life I've been compared to Zero, Zero who excels in everything he does. Zero is strong while I'm weak, he's the one who will continue our family's hunting tradition while I'm unable to even defend myself against the weakest vampire."
He stared blankly at the dark ocean. "Sometimes…I wonder why I was even born if I'm merely meant to be his shadow. It would be less painful to be such a disappointment if we were not identical twins."
At those depressing words, Yoko put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
"After this trip, Zero will start going on missions with Yagari-sensei and be leaving me alone. Even though I'm like this, I want to accompany him and help him…" Ichiru chuckled bitterly, "It's pathetic for me to desire that when I can't even keep up chasing the target, isn't it?"
Yoko shook her head, thinking hard. She understood the feeling of being too weak to do anything but watch from the sidelines. It really was frustrating being protected all the time; she didn't want to live that way forever.
"Ichiru, aren't there aspects of hunting that don't require physical strength? I remember Zero once praised you on your hunter spells."
"Spells aren't for battle; they're for tasks such as restraining level Es and creating anti-vampire barriers. They're stationary and require time to set up. No matter how good with spells I am, they wouldn't be of use in a fight."
"I don't know much about these spells, but can't you create ones that will help in a fight? Maybe you can create spells that are portable and does things like weakening the target?" This talk of spells was out of her league, Yoko was more inclined towards the sciences, but she wanted to encourage the younger twin whose comment on his own worth was alarming.
"That's probably impossible. What do you think I am? A genius like you and Zero?" Ichiru huffed, but her words stayed with him. He was both scared and excited to consider the possibilities.
Yoko smiled lightly. "I'm not a genius and I'm not naturally talented like Zero."
She held up her palms, "See these calluses? You once called me a barbarian when I sparred with him. It actually took me weeks of practice to win against him and even now I have to keep training to not fall behind."
Ichiru touched the roughened spots of skin on her palm, marveling at the disclosure that the seemingly gifted Yoko had to work hard for her achievements.
"My point is, if you put your mind to it, you might be able to make that breakthrough with spells. Then you would be able to help Zero, even if it's only from the sidelines," she said gingerly. "Everyone has things they can and can't do, so don't fret about what someone else is better at and focus instead on the things you're good at."
"I don't think there's anything I'm better at than Zero-nii," Ichiru replied despondently.
"Don't be so sure, I can think of one off the top of my head."
He glanced at her curiously.
"You're clearly more talented at talking to girls than Zero. He's too rigid, like me. I once overheard our female classmates comparing you two and it seems you were the more popular one given your crafty and smooth-talking ways."
Ichiru laughed. "That's not exactly a skill I want to advertise."
It was even funnier how she had said that with a straight face, with no indication she was joking. Knowing her, she probably was completely serious.
At that moment they heard the headmaster and Zero's voices, anxiously calling their names. Yoko stood up, extending her hand to the boy.
"Let's go, before Zero has a heart attack over you," she paused, before becoming more serious and adding, "Also, please stop thinking you're unnecessary – both Ichiru and Zero are my precious friends."
Ichiru glanced at her surprised, it was unlike her to say things so cheesy. She and Zero were similar in how awkward they were at expressing their feelings. Regardless, he smiled at her sincere words, accepted her hand and rose up. Hand in hand, he ran with his friend over to where his frantic brother and the headmaster were. The scolding he got from Zero lasted the remainder of the night and the entire duration of their trip home.
A/N: Yoko is that friend that will drone you to sleep with history. And apparently daisies are associated with maternal love, innocence, and childhood.
(*゚∀゚*) Thanks for the reviews, HaileyGirl9876 and Valen Goncalvez, I was starting to feel awkward rambling in the author's notes with no response from anyone lol.
Valen – I also disliked how Hino couldn't choose a pairing and stick with it and I agree with you how the indecisiveness was bad for everyone involved. So don't worry, I'm not gonna do a love triangle (TBH I hate love triangles, they are overdone, and I always feel bad for the one that didn't get chosen). Zero and Yoko only see one another as siblings/best friends since they've known each other for so long and they're too similar in some aspects. As for Kaname, Yoko reminds him too much of someone for him to see her that way. Kaname's romance story will be quite relevant to the second arc, but it will take around 30 more chapters to get there…it's a long story haha. As for Yuki, I liked her better when she was human so her personality in this story is based more on her human self, but also based on Juri's personality, since she is raised as a pureblood and thus will be more willful, lol.
