Disclaimer- Nope... still don't own Rin and Len. -cries more-
Author's Note- Thank you everyone for the reviews! They made me incredibly happy -hands out cookies- xD. Taking a moment to reply to some of them below, if anyone's interested. If not, then moving on! Another update for you guys, and so soon too. But I really like this story and where it's going. Enjoy!
ThatFanFicGuy- Yay first review! pleasedon'thurtme D8. I'm too fragile.
Neko Alice-chan- Tadaa! Wish granted xD. Thanks, hope you like this chapter too!
CocoxLadybat- Thanks for the review! Mini Len and Rin are cute, no :3?
Inukage-Ama Terasu- Lovely? You flatter me, hehe. Thanks for reviewing, please enjoy!
OnigiRimi- Your story was actually one of the ones that inspired me to write this! I am honored by your presence ;o; -more cookies-.
Yui-tan- Heheh, thank you! I was kind of apprehensive that it'd be too much like the other ones, or that Rin and Len would be too OOC, but I think this means I'm doing pretty okay xD.
Tsuki-chama- Don't take my baby! ;o; -clings-, but thank you very much for the review!
NejiIsMineXD- Thanks for the review! Glad you caught them 8D. Enjoy!
InkPup- Thank you! But you flatter me -waves modestly- ;o;.
DeadSpirit- o noes! -mops up mess-.
Rin groaned groggily as she reached over to her right out of habit to shut off the alarm clock. Even if she had awoken before it went off, she still shut it off, which pretty much defeated the purpose of having one in the first place. But instead of coming in contact with cold plastic, she instead buried her hand in something soft and silky. Peeking an eye open, she saw that it was actually a mop of golden blonde hair, and a pair of equally vibrant, cerulean eyes were peering over her.
…
"KYAH!" Rin kicked the covers off her bed and backed up against the wall.
"Rin, Rin! What's wrong?" Len cried as he dodged the pillow flying at him.
"W-Who are you? DADDY! Why is there a strange little boy in the house?! And why does he sort of look like me?!"
An emotion akin to sadness befell Len's face, "You don't remember? It's me, Len…"
"…Len?" Oh yeah, Len! The events of yesterday suddenly rushed back to her. Wow, she must have really been tired to forget all that, "Oh, oh, Len! I'm sorry, I just woke up and didn't really recognize you for a second."
Rin stopped her flailing and sat down on the bed, patting the spot next to her, an indication for Len to sit with her on the mattress. He obediently followed her instruction.
"That's ok. Your dad left early for work today," Len said, "He said he won't be home until dinner, maybe even later, so don't wait up for him."
"Daddy always gets up early and comes home late," Rin sighed, "And he's our dad, now, not just mine."
"It's understandable," Len nodded, "Yo… I mean, our father is the C.E.O. of Mirror Corp., which is one of the most successful technological companies in the world. It takes a lot of work to run a business like that-"
A loud grumbling suddenly interrupted his speech. Len raised his eyebrows at Rin, who had a dark crimson blush adorning her face. She threw her hands over her stomach and looked away, scowling.
"Ooh, you must be hungry. You did miss dinner last night after falling asleep while I was carrying you back. Would you like some breakfast? I can make you something nice!"
"Really?" Rin blinked. Usually, she only ate cereal, since she wasn't old enough to go near the stove yet. Plus, Daddy didn't trust her cooking because the few times he did try to make or bake something with Rin, it ended in disaster.
"Yup! You just get ready, and I'll have it done by the time you come down."
She watched as the boy leapt off her bed and ran down the hall in direction of the stairs. Taking a few moments to herself, Rin yawned and plopped back down on the bed. Life certainly was going to be different now that she had a brother. On TV shows she had seen the girls complain about them being too overprotective, or too meddlesome. They always got into their sisters' stuffs, and messed around, ruining everything. Rin certainly hoped Len wouldn't be like that.
But so far he had been really nice. He had listened to everything she told him to do, and even offered to make her breakfast! None of the brothers on TV did that. Well, none of the brothers on TV were Vocaloids, either.
Rin let out a soft moan as she stretched her body like a cat, trying to shake the last remnants of sleep from them. Slowly, she got out of bed, reluctant to leave its warm comfort, and trudged to the bathroom.
An orchestra of scents wafted from the kitchen and dining room, filling the immediate area with tantalizing aromas of freshly cooked eggs, bacon, waffles, and potatoes. Rin blushed as her stomach let out another ferocious growl. Today she chose to wear a summery, yellow tank top with orange flowers and a pair of white shorts, not forgetting the puffy, white ribbon she always had in her hair.
"Len, what are you making?" she said as she poked her head into the kitchen.
The aforementioned boy whirled around and greeted his mistress with a grin, "Good morning Rin! I looked through some of your mom's old cook books and thought you might like these recipes!" he motioned towards three or four books splayed out across the counter. Rin climbed up on one of the stools to get a better look.
"Eggs Benedict," she recited, looking at the picture of perfectly poached eggs atop a slice of English muffin and bacon, drizzled with a yellowish looking sauce. The other books were flipped open to pages of country fried hash browns, chocolate chip waffles, and fresh fruit salad, "It all looks really good, Len! Do you need help with anything?"
"Nope, I'm pretty much just cleaning up here. The food's already on the table, so you can go and help yourself. Oh, and what would you like to drink?"
"Orange juice! Thanks Len!" she beamed and hopped towards the dining room, but the minute she set foot in her jaw dropped. Platters loaded with different assortments of foods were piled upon the table, arranged in such a way that Rin would have thought she was walking into a royal banquet or something, not breakfast for two. She cautiously took a seat near the end of the table, where a plate, napkin, and silverware had been laid out neatly for her. "Where do I even start..." Rin whispered breathlessly. She picked up the serving spoon on one of the platters and scooped some hash browns onto her plate, followed by one of the egg Benedicts, and another plate with a chocolate chip waffle on it.
The food was absolutely delicious! Nothing was overdone or undercooked, and all the flavors complemented each other so well. Rin felt like she was at one of those 5-star restaurants Daddy took her to sometimes, instead of at home having a little boy cook for her.
"Do you like it?" Len appeared with a glass of orange juice. She took the drink gratefully.
"Len, the food is delicious! But why did you make so much? It's only the two of us here, after all. And I don't think it'll still be good by the time daddy comes home."
"I did make enough for the both of us. Enough for you, and enough for me. I have to eat 7.5 times more than regular people, remember?"
"Oh yeah," Rin said and went to take another bite of her waffles. But she froze when she saw Len eat, the piece of waffle on her fork falling back onto the plate forgotten.
Len was wolfing down his food at an insane speed. In the time it took her to take five bites, he had already cleaned his plate, and was reaching for more. By and by her own breakfast grew cold, and she felt her appetite dissipate as she watched him devour those mounds of food without inhibition. And as he ate, he had this curiously amusing expression on his face, kind of like he was constipated. Rin stifled a giggle.
Len then noticed that she had been staring at him, "Why are you looking at me like that, Rin? Dad gave me that same look yesterday night at dinner, too."
The corners of Rin's mouth twitched upward in bemusement, "Your face looks so funny when you eat."
Len blushed, "Oh... I'm just enjoying the taste."
"Why?"
"Well, I've only been alive for a day now, so taste is a new experience for me. And this sense you guys have, it's amazing…" his eyes clouded into that dreamy, far-off look again as he took another bite of the chocolate chip waffles.
Rin's eyes began to glimmer mischievously, like yesterday when she suggested she and Len play pretend. "Hey, Len, how would you like to go and explore more about this new sense?"
He glanced up from his breakfast, "What do you mean?"
"Here, I'll show you!" Rin practically jumped over the table and grabbed him by the arm, dragging him off towards the kitchen.
"Wait! I haven't finished all my food yet! Riiiiiiin!"
"This is 'sweet'."
"Mmm," Len closed his eyes as the sugar granules dissolved on his tongue. Rin had pulled random things from the kitchen and was "educating" him on the wonders of taste.
"You like that huh?" Rin grinned and looked around for other things to try out on Len. A yellow citrus fruit caught her eye. "This," she said as she took a knife and sliced the lemon in half, "is 'sour'." She instructed Len to close his eyes again and open his mouth, which he did so obediently. She squeezed some of the juice onto his tongue.
Len made a choking sound, "AH! M-My face! My mouth! It feels so weird, it's like, contorting! R-Rin, I don't like sour!"
Rin burst out laughing, "Well that's pure sour! It's not bad, when mixed with other things!" She ran to the cabinet and got a glass. She then squeezed the rest of the lemon juice in, added a few spoonfuls of sugar, and filled the rest of the glass with water. "Here, try this!"
Len looked at her unsurely but took the glass nonetheless. His eyes widened at the taste, "Whoa! This is good!"
"See?" Rin smirked smugly, "Everything has its own taste, but there are five main categories, at least in my opinion: salty, sweet, sour, spicy, and bitter. You've already tried salty, sweet, and sour. I don't really know anything bitter, other than coffee, but Daddy's not around to make coffee so I guess we'll try that some other time. Say, Len, do you think you have a favorite food?"
The Vocaloid blinked, "What do you mean?"
"Everyone has a favorite food! Something they like to eat. Well you might be different, since you're part computer and whatnot, but maybe the human part of you likes something! Wanna try and find out what it is?"
"Sure," Len said, unaware of the danger saying 'yes' would pose.
"GREAT!" Rin grinned and began to dig through the fridge, "Hmm… how about mustard?" She brought the bottle over to him and giggled when his face scrunched up from the taste, "Okay, what about jam? Wasabi? Soy sauce? Tofu? Tomatoes? Lettuce? Spam? Relish? Chocolate syrup? Ham?" She took a little of each ingredient and mixed them into an odiferous, brownish-greenish-reddish concoction, then shoved the mixture into Len's mouth.
His brilliant, turquoise eyes threatened to bulge out of his sockets as he sprinted over to the trash can and began retching up the disgusting contents of Rin's creation, "W-WHAT WAS THAT?" He cried, traumatized by the taste.
"Nope, guess you don't like any of those," she looked around, "What about asparagus?"
She broke off a piece from a stalk and put it in his mouth.
His retching was her answer.
"Roquefort cheese?"
More retching.
"Artichoke?"
"Don't you have anything not poisonous?!" Len cried, "And I think you're supposed to cook most of these things before you eat them!"
Rin rolled her eyes, "Oh fine, fine." She scanned the counter, looking for other things to feed the poor boy. A certain yellow fruit caught her eye. "What about banana?"
"Is it edible?"
"Oh, you," Rin smirked and pulled back the skin of the fruit, "Here."
Len stared at it.
"It's not going to hurt you!"
He continued to stare.
"Alright, alright, I'll test it," Rin took a bite of the pale fruit. She liked bananas too, but thought oranges tasted much better. Len studied her expression closely, and seeing no green tinge her face or unsavory emotion stain her visage, he gave in.
"Okay," he grumbled and took a small bite.
His eyes grew wide.
"…Len?"
What was this? This heavenly taste? This feeling?
"Len? Leeeeeeeen? Earth to Len?!"
"IT'S INCREDIBLE!" Rin jumped slightly when he finally spoke, "I've never felt like this before! Well, I've only been alive for a day, but still! Rin, these bananas are amazing! I have to have more!" He ran over to the fruit basket and started gobbling them down, one by one. Rin wasn't even sure he was chewing at the rate that boy was stuffing those fruits in his mouth.
"Slow down, Len, you'll choke yourself!"
"Buh Wrin, it tashtesh sho geewd!" he could barely speak with all that banana.
Well, at least she knew what his favorite food was. What to do now… Rin mentally went over the list of things they did. She found his favorite food, introduced him to sweet, salty, sour, bitter… well not so much, and…
"Spicy!" Rin perked up, "I never showed him what spicy was! But how to…" She suddenly remembered a certain pepper her father kept in the fridge. Habanero, she believed it was called. Mr. Kagamine had never let Rin try it because he said it was much too hot for her little taste buds to handle. But maybe Len could take it, since he was superior to everyone else and whatnot. She went and fetched the pepper.
"Leeen," she called, a hint of mischief in her eyes, "I've got something better than a banana!"
"Really?" Len blinked, "I can't imagine anything tastier than this!"
"Yup. Close your eyes and open wide!"
"…"
"Um, Len, can you swallow what's in your mouth first, though."
"Oh, right, right."
Once that was settled, she placed the pepper in his mouth and instructed him to chew. For the first two seconds he didn't react, but then…
"Ah-AH!" Len yelped and started frantically fanning his tongue, "Rin, Ri-AH! I don'-AH, like this taste! AH, IT HURTS, RIN!"
Rin could barely breathe through all the giggles and desperately clutched at her aching sides.
"R-Rin! This-AH, ISN'T FUNNY! Rin, please!" Len started to tear up, "RIN!" his tone was desperate and begging now.
"O-Okay," Rin tried her best to contain her laughter. His face was so red, and his reaction was the most priceless thing she had ever seen, "Hold on, hold on." She crawled over to the freezer as Len ran around in circles behind her, tongue out, and waving his arms about like a windmill. Rin grabbed a spoon from one of the drawers, "Len! Come here!"
He didn't seem to hear her, and continued to run around the kitchen wailing. "Len!" she ordered, but still he continued to jump around as if he was being chased by something. Rin rolled her eyes and opened the tub of vanilla ice cream she just got from the freezer. Guess she was going to have to do this the hard way. Her dad had told her a long time ago that the best thing to cool down your tongue after eating something spicy was ice cream, because the milk worked a lot better than water for some reason. She took a spoon from one of the drawers and scooped a healthy size lump of the frozen dairy treat before turning towards her target.
"Leeen!" Rin called as she ran after him. Wow, he really was fast. After about a minute of chasing in a circle after the hysterical boy, Rin got an idea. If she couldn't catch him by running after him, then maybe, if she faced the other way, then she'd catch him, right? He was running in a circle, after all.
And right on cue, Len came bolting around the corner, still flailing and yelling.
"GOTCHA!" Rin shouted as she leapt from her ambush spot and tackled him, pinning his arms to the floor with her knees.
"L-Let me go!" Len struggled and tried to push Rin off without hurting her, "I don't trust you!"
Rin rolled her eyes, "This'll help you! Now open up!"
Len's eyes grew wide as she thrust the spoon into his mouth. Suddenly, he felt the pain start to melt away, and his tongue was soothed by the cool, creamy, sweetness of vanilla.
"That's better," Rin smiled and reached over to scoop some more ice cream from the tub. This time, Len didn't resist as she fed him, until the pain had gone away completely. She ruffled his hair playfully. "Good boy! Feel better?"
Len nodded.
"That's good," Rin grinned, and crawled off of him. Suddenly, he ran to the corner of the kitchen and sat down, his back turned towards her. His shoulders were shivering slightly. Was he… was he sniffling?
"Len?" Rin furrowed her brows, "Len? What's wrong?"
"…"
"Are you mad? I'm sorry!"
"…"
"Len, did you hear me? I said I was sorry!
"…"
What was with this boy? "Why won't you look at me?" She reached out a hand and tugged his shoulder so that he would face her, but pulled back in shock. Len gazed at her with betrayal written all over his face. Two wet trails stained his cheeks. Rin immediately began to feel guilty for making him eat that pepper.
"You lied to me," Len's voice was barely above a whisper, "You hurt me, and then laughed at me."
Rin fidgeted nervously with her tank top. The guilt washed over her and stung deep. She hadn't meant to, really! She just wanted to have some fun. She didn't know the pepper would burn that much, but then again she had never tested it herself. "Len…"
"Go away!"
"…" Rin's face fell, but she stayed where she was, "Len, I'm sorry…"
Before he could protest, Rin bent down and wrapped her arms around his neck, "I'msorryI'msorryI'msorry!" Her voice was muffled against his shoulder, "Pleasedon'tbemadatmeLen! I-I was just playing around, I never really meant to hurt you. H-Honestly. I promise I won't ever try to hurt you that way again, at least not on purpose. Okay? Sopleasedon'tbemadanymore!"
Len's scowl softened. He couldn't stay mad at her forever, and by the obviously distressed tone in her voice he was hurting her too. He sighed and hugged her back.
"It's fine."
Rin lifted her head to gaze at Len with bright, turquoise eyes, "R-Really? You're not mad anymore?"
Len chuckled slightly at her appearance. Her white ribbon was puffed up in such a way that they looked like giant rabbit ears, and that pouting expression on her face made it incredibly hard to disagree with her. "No, I'm not mad anymore." He offered her a grin to confirm his remark.
"YAY!" Rin threw her arms up happily, before glomping him again in an even bigger hug than before.
"I-" Len started, but was suddenly interrupted when Rin planted a kiss on his cheek. "What…?" he felt his face heat up and stared quizzically at her.
Rin simply smiled, "Whenever I get in a fight, Daddy always tells me to kiss and make up. Now you need to kiss me back." She pointed to her cheek and closed her eyes.
Len gulped, unsure of how to go about this. According to his databanks, a person just puckered their lips together, and… Len pulled away and felt the blush on his cheeks redden even more. That was such a weird feeling. His computer mind, despite its brilliancy, struggled to comprehend the strange mix of emotional signals it was receiving.
Rin giggled and pulled Len to his feet, "See? That wasn't so hard."
"I-I guess so," Len tried not to make eye contact with her, "We sure made a mess in the kitchen... Let's clean up before Dad gets home." He ended the sentence quickly and made a beeline for the cleaning supply closet.
Rin tilted her head curiously, "What's gotten into him?"
Halloa! Don't forget to review x3.