It was nearly two in the morning when the soft sound of sobbing woke Hotaru from her sleep.
Moonlight shone through the sheer curtains of her room, bathing her bed in soft pale rays. Curious, and
slightly annoyed, she rolled over in her bed staring at the bright red glow of the digital clock by her
bedside before removing the covers, exposing herself to the coolness of the evening, and stepping out
onto the hardwood floor, bare feet protesting in silence from the chill.
She opened the door to her bedroom, entering the hallway in naught but her nightgown and looked to her right to see Hibari emerging from her room as well. Hotaru whispered for her to follow and to be quiet and the two sisters crept their way towards the source of the crying: their parents' bedroom door.
"Is that Mum?" Hibari asked.
"I thought I told you to be quiet," Hotaru snapped softly at her sister, pressing her ear against the door…until she heard the footsteps.
Both girls gasped as their father opened the door and stepped out into the corridor, forcing them to back against the wall. He stared at them tiredly, bags under his soft violet eyes.
"What do you two think you're doing?" The sisters looked down, both of them feigning guilt under the scrutiny of their scrupulous father.
"Why…why was Mum crying?" asked Hibari, faking grogginess. He turned to look at her and sighed under his breath.
"I'll tell you in the morning, but right now I need you both to go back to your rooms and go to sleep. Don't worry; I'll take care of your mother. She'll be fine. Now get going, both of you." He turned and went back into the bedroom and to his weeping wife, closing the door softly behind him.
Hibari shrugged and obeyed her father right away, bidding her sister goodnight and retreating back to the warmth and comfort of an eagerly awaiting bed. But Hotaru stood outside the door for what seemed like hours before finally returning to her own room. For most of the night she laid awake, eyes staring at the ceiling above her until finally exhaustion and worry caused her to drift into a restless sleep.
The next morning, Hotaru awoke and dressed swiftly, hearing the clatter of her mother making breakfast in the kitchen. She smiled inwardly. If her mother was making breakfast, things must be back to normal. Neatly making her bed and tying on her headband, she stepped outside her room to find that her parents' bedroom door was still closed.
Odd…thought Hotaru as she walked downstairs, each step creaking under her weight. Normally at that time her father had long gone to complete his duties as an elder and her mother was busy with the housework; the door was always open whenever no one was in it. Arriving at the bottom and stepping into the kitchen she saw that it was not her mother preparing breakfast, but her father busy cleaning a sink-full of pans and spatulas. He turned and smiled at her, tired eyes crinkling at the sides.
"Good morning, Hotaru. Your breakfast is on the table. Please go join your sister and I'll be with you in a moment." He turned back to the sink and she heard the water rush down the pipes as he unplugged the drain before she moved to the dining room and sat across from Hibari who was busy scooping up spoonfuls of miso soup into her mouth. Picking up her own spoon, Hotaru was blowing the steam off the liquid when her father entered the room and took his place at the front of the table. Hotaru lowered her arm and placed her spoon back in the bowl. Both girls stopped moving and waited for their father to speak of the events that had happened last night. Taking a deep breath, he began.
"I want you both to know that what I'm about to tell you is something your mother and I never intended to hide from you forever. I know that both of you are not ignorant and have noticed how your mother has been acting…sad lately, and I feel that you are both old enough now to know why that is. You deserve to know." He glanced from one daughter to the next, both of them nodding to show they understood. He sighed and closed his eyes.
"Hotaru, Hibari…you used to have two brothers." Hotaru's eyes widened slightly as she stared at her father. At the other side of the table, Hibari dropped her spoon with a clank into her bowl, droplets of soup spraying onto the table.
"Are you serious? But…but what happ-" Hibari began, but stopped when her father raised his hand.
"Let me explain. Before either of you were born, your mother and I had twins, two boys named after your great uncle and grandfather, Hiashi and Hizashi. But…one night…well they passed away….They were only babies. I won't go into details but I can tell you that they were taken much too soon….It's been fifteen and a half years, but your mother, and I as well, have never really forgotten that loss." He folded his hands on the table top, his eyes staring downwards. Hotaru couldn't be sure but she thought she saw tears forming in the corner of his eyes. He continued, "I want you both to know that we love you very much, and that, while Mother is grieving, we have for the most part moved on with our lives. Both of you have given us much joy and we need you to know that we can't imagine our lives without you." He looked up and smiled at Hotaru weakly, but sincerely. "But your mother has been reminded of their deaths and this time her memory is her enemy. It…it has been like a disease with her. I cannot describe it to you, but what happened all those years ago has been eating at her mind each day since they died, and it seems it has finally burrowed into her heart. I don't know how, but I promise you I will do everything I can to help her." Finished, he sat up, shifted in his seat, and looked at his daughters.
The two girls were sitting in shock, Hibari's mouth hanging open and sightless eyes staring at her soup. Hotaru face betrayed no sentiment even though inside it felt as though as hurricane of emotions sought to wreak havoc on her mind. Her stomach was twisting up in knots as she tried to comprehend the significance of what her father had told her. She had had a brother…two brothers…the thought was alien and incomprehensible to her and so she simply stared off into space past her sister. A small movement in the corner of her eye brought her attention back to Hibari.
"Well who's to say we can't help her then, right Hotaru?" Hibari smiled at her sister, obviously having recovered, her milky eyes looking in Hotaru's direction. "Don't worry Dad, we'll cheer her up. Let's go, Hotaru!" Hibari got up and, using her chakra to locate her sister, walked around to the other side of the table, grabbed her sister's hand and began dragging her out to the front door. As the sisters left the house, Hotaru glanced behind her to catch a glimpse of her father. She frowned as Hibari closed the door behind them and the two of them began the walk into the village.
Back in the house, her father sat at the table, head in his hands, shoulders shaking.
Note: The twins in this story are also the creations of ode2sokka, even though their names are the same as those of the actual twins in the series.