Author's Note

OK, so by now you're probably wondering what's going on. Well, the answers will come...Just, not right now.

Chapter 3

Really Kid?

"You feel OK in there Lu-Kun and Lemmy-Kun?" Ryuto glanced at the dinosaur spine bag on his back.

"It's really comfy Gacha!" The younger one's chime was a bit muffled.

"Cramped more like…" Ludwig said displeasingly. "Zough I have to admit it could be vorse. At least zere's room between us." He wasn't sure why he agreed to this as he pushed back on the sporty ball between the two of them. Something told him scoping out the nearby area would be most wise. He took a moment in semi-solitude to reflect on things he had not been able to contemplate yet. "Of all zings…Dinosaurs…Vhat luck."

"Cheer up Luwy. At least it's not the kind you really don't like." Lemmy spoke as he messed with his head fan. "What kind of dinosaur are you anyway?"

"How should I know? Some variety of bipedal Stegosaurus I suppose."

"Neat!"

"Vhat I'm trying to figure out is vhat ze Stars are you supposed to be?"

"Um…A fluffy goomba?"

"Eh…I doubt it…You have arms."

"Oh…Fluffy toad?"

"Eh…No zey don't have propellers on their heads Lemmy…"

"Um, sorry to bother you two." A whisper interrupted their brainstorming session. "But maybe you should be a little quieter? People are giving us looks…Also, he's a Yeti."

"A Yeti?" Ludwig dropped his voice dramatically. "Yeti viz a propeller? Still a bit perplexing but...Logical compared to a Goomba viz arms." He admitted quietly.

'What's a Goomba?' Ryuto thought to himself as he followed Matsu through the groceries. He was irked by the question greatly as something deep in his mind was screaming that he should know but the simple fact eluded him. "Sounds like something Oniichan would know…" He concluded since it felt like something relatively new Matsu wouldn't know. He did not like having to wait, but he wouldn't likely see his older 'brother' at least until tomorrow. Then something hit him, something he half wished he didn't realize. "Him…or Kaai-Chan."

He didn't by any means despise the girl. He merely…Was annoyed by her. Not all the time, only when she loved to show off. She liked to 'teach' people things she learned in a bragging tone. He had a cousin that would also spout facts like a fountain with water but Pit was much more amusing, throwing her sometimes fibs in the air like multicolored confetti and then explains her reasoning behind her conclusion. Another problem with Kaai was her tendency to tell him what to do explaining how she was older and that gave her license to act like his mother. Ryuto hated that the most; somehow those four little years were some sort of magical allowance to the girl. He hoped that today would be one of her good days.

"What do you think Mama and Matsuko-Chan brought back?" The boy decided to put his mind on something else. Ryouko left to visit her mother, a yearly event for the older woman's birthday. Usually all four of them would go, but this time there was a small emergency that caused the two boys to stay behind. The mother promised the boy she would make it up to him by bringing a present home.

If Ludwig had looked at those photos he would have noticed the little girl in them with the woman had not met either. Matsuko was Ryuto's twin sister but they were not alike in appearance. Twins seemed to be a reoccurring trend in families since their cousins Klay and Pit were also twins although they were almost exact copies of one another.

"It'll be a surprise." He said with a smile as he picked up a bunch of bananas to examine their condition.

"I doubt it vould be as jarring as yours." An accented voice crawled from the bag.

"Mm, I think they would like you and Lemmy-Kun. What do you think Papa?"

"I…Maybe." He was sure to choose his words properly. He wasn't quite convinced they were perfectly safe around the children alone but he was confident to test the theory if only for few moments. They finished up their shopping and moved onto the next agenda for the day. it took them to the park where they were meant to meet up with one of Ryuto's friends.

"Can I have my soccer ball Lemmy-Kun?" He asked as he zipped open the bag. The ball flew out with a cheery 'sure' and he caught it midair.

"Is zere anyone out zere? Can ve come out for a moment I believe I'm suffocating if a doll can do zat."

"Um. Stuffed animal." He corrected as sternly as his voice can manage before looking around to see the only person in the small bushed off area was Matsu on a bench putting on his headphones. He did hear some conversational noise and barking but it sounded fairly distant. "I don't-."

"Hey Gacha!" The very second the girls voice reached his keen ears his reflexes caused him shove poor Ludwig's face deeper into the bag with one hand as he zipped it to up completely with the other.

"H-Hey Kaai-Chan." He tuned quickly to face her holding his green dino-bag behind his back as whispering German curses floated out of it. "What-cha doin'?"

"Well." She smiled the same sort of grin she had on the time she learned a neat magic trick and wanted to use Klay as an experimental subject.

The ten year old wore a knee length shirt waist dress having the top being white with red rolled up sleeves and a red ribbon tied under the collar. The skirt was in her favorite color, red. The box pleated skirt had white in the folded spaces with a black tiny belt separating the two halves. She had on the usual knee high socks paired with her less used red tennis shoes with the white soles. Her pure black hair that was usually tied into bottom facing pig tails had to peek from under her backward turned red baseball cap. On her wrist was a red banded watch.

"Nnnothing much." She played with the words like a one of those stretch toys one would get in a gumball machine. Her hands were tightly clasping each other as she squirmed and bit her bottom lip, giving the appearance she had to use the bathroom. She saw his favorite ball rolling lightly away from his foot. "You want to play?"

"Ah, Yeah-." He didn't expect to finish his sentence as the other child cut him off.

"I got something you have to see!" Her bright goldenrod yellow eyes glowed with excitement.

"Really?" She noticed how he sounded more bored with her than usual.

"Yes, I do. You think you've got something better?" She narrowed her eyes.

"Uh," He glanced at his pack wondering how the inhabitants would react and if he should push it. "Maybe…Depends."

"Why don't we show each other at the same time then?" She offered. She was fairly confident.

"You really have some messed up priorities kid." A displeased male voice came from her red bag. "You keep your weird dad from finding out but you spill it to your boyfriend the first chance you get? Maybe I should find a new house."

A pudgy Totoro plushie stared at the girl. His usually wide eerie eyes cut a disappointed glance at her from behind a pair of sleek sunglasses that was snatched from under the nose of the man of the house and his toothy wide smile reverted to an unlikely frown. His arms crossed to complete his show of emotion.

"How many times do I have to tell you that's not my dad!?" She frowned and farrowed her black brows.

"So you say." The being was slightly amused she chose that part to correct, but didn't show it well enough in his bored tone.

"Roy?"

"Yay, Roy!" The green bag flipped open. Ludwig popped up from it and climbed out of it with Lemmy following cheerfully. Their appearance made the girl give a sudden 'eap' noise.

"You, you got some too?"

"Lu?" Roy's rabbit like ears stood up at attention without him even realizing. The sight of the tough second oldest having such an appearance was greatly amusing to Ludwig and the same was true for Roy as he looked the oldest up and down. "Is that you and Lemmy?"

"Yes, it seems all of us have been bought here and were put zrough some…Changes."

"…Nah, you look the same pretty much." He quipped. His older brother narrowed his eyes at him making his droopy eyes look…Well, not menacing, just adorably mad. "Course you're a little shorter than normal, I mean, even Lemmy's taller than you."

"I'm just going to forget you said zat for your sake." He spoke in a grumble.

"Is he your brother too?"

"Yes, zis is my oldest little bruder, Roy." He turned to Kaai who had at that point recovered from her shock. He introduced himself like he always did, with a proper bow. "I am Ludwig and zis is my zird youngest bruder, Lemmy."

"Hi." He took the time mid balancing act to wave politely.

"Ryuto-Kun, what did you do?" Kaai became serious all of a sudden which wasn't completely unusual.

"What do you mean what did I do?" He had a hint of a whine in his words. "I didn't know this was going to happen. What do you think I am, a necromancer?"

"Do you even know vhat zat means?"

"Someone who controls the dead, of course." He explained simply, as if it were as commonly known as the sky being blue.

"How many times do I have to tell you ve're not dead?"

"Huh, that kid's smarter than I thought…"

"What's your sister going to think when she finds out you got Mukku possessed?"

"She won't mind. Lemmy-Kun's really nice."

"Are you two ready to head home?" Matsu walked up to them after looking at the watch for the time. He pulled his headphones off that were drowning out noise for the past few minutes.

"Nice glasses."

"Why, thank y-…Kaai, was that Totoro saying that?"

"No."

"Oh, good."

"It was Roy in Totoro's body."

"Mm…Right, thought so…"

"Oh, don't worry Papa, he doesn't have to live with us."

"Rrright...I should probably get used to the thought at this point."

The next chapter should shed some light on this.