HELLO EVERYONE!! TODAY'S FANART IS YET AGAIN BROUGHT TO YOU BY.... @BRI SO A HUGE ROUND OF APPLAUSE!! I ADORE HOW [Name] JUST SHYLY LOOKS AWAY, THAT'S MY FAVORITE THING!! ALSO, FUTURE [Name] GASLIGHTING PRESENT [Name] MAKES ME FEEL LIKE I'M ISAYAMA SO THAT'S JUST LIKE FEELING LIKE YOUR THE BEST AUTHOR EVER, which I doubt is true but let me live my dream...
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When you woke up the next day, somehow Yuzuha had entangled her arms around your waist, nuzzling her face into your back. You blinked wearily before letting a smile form on your lips, "Well, as long as she slept peacefully..." You whispered to yourself and slowly raised her arms off of you so you could slip out of her grasps.
When you finally got out of her death grip, you got ready for your day and went downstairs. Good thing it was a weekend, so you wouldn't have to worry about school. But as you almost left your room, your eyes fell upon your inter galactic space themed calendar and you almost stumbled down.
It was November 25th... Emma's birthday!
And you had no idea what gift you should even get her!! You almost fell down the stairs as you ran to the kitchen, ready to make breakfast quickly so you could even ask Yuzuha for an opinion on a gift.
When you finally arrived, you came across your father, who was sitting on the dining table, drinking his coffee while reading the newspaper, "Morning, dad!" You greeted and he looked up from his paper to smile at you, "Hey, sweetie! Had a good night's sleep?" You nodded at his question while taking a look around the kitchen to think of what to make for everyone.
Perhaps some pancakes and waffles would be nice? You knew that Hakkai really liked sweets and judging by how Yuzuha usually meet long with anything Hakkai liked, you hoped that she would also eat it.
"So, how'd your first ever sleepover go?" He started, placing down his newspaper and smiling at you. You turned to him and grinned brightly, "It was pretty good! Emma-chan and Manjirō really made me feel at home!" You explained as you took out the eggs from the freezer.
"Hey, dad?" This time, you were the one who called out, which made him hum in response to let you know that he was listening, "Do you think... that maybe we can go out together? Like all three of us?" You were still a bit shy on the aspect of asking him for a trip so out of the blue, but everytime you saw him, you couldn't help but feel awkward.
Maybe spending some quality time with your family might help?
Meanwhile, your father couldn't be happier, "Of course, my dear! We can go tomorrow, if you want?" He offered and you nodded eagerly, "We'll decide where to go with big brother!" You suggested and he agreed wholeheartedly, "That's a good idea."
"How about the beach?" Suggested [Brother Name] as he walked down the stairs, making you grin while turning to him, "That's a great idea! It's almost winter so it'll be fun to play in the water a bit!" He nodded and sat down at the table, before ultimately walking to the kitchen counters to help you cook.
Yuzuha arrived not too long after, and immediately greeted your father whom she didn't have the courtesy to meet, "H-Hello, sir!" She started and your father gave her a warm smile, "Hello, you must be one of [Name]'s friends?" He mused while continuing, "-I sure hope you were at ease in our house, child..." He gave her another smile and Yuzuha almost felt like she was about to burst open in tears.
A family so warm... Could she ever have something like this?
"Yuzuha-san... Please have a seat!" You offered while giving her a sweet smile, alleviating her from her misery.
"Ah, do you need help with anything?" You shook your head, just smiling and pointing at your brother, "Don't worry! Big brother's here to help me!" You stated and she shyly nodded. Hakkai came only a little while after, shyly greeting your father and your father replied just as softly.
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After breakfast, the siblings decided to take their leave. Yuzuha reassured you that since Taiju hadn't messaged her asking about their whereabouts, he most probably was not even at home.
Although you were still worried, you let them go and asked them to message you after they reached home safely. And with that done, you ended up dragging your brother to go gift shopping for Emma because your dumbass forgot to ask Yuzuha for an opinion.
And so, here you were. You were currently donning a cream coloured high necked blouse with loose sleeves that hung off your arms and then tightened up around your wrist. On top of that, you wore a black thin strapped dress that hugged your waist and then flowed down your waist.
Meanwhile, your brother decided to just put together a black shirt, a black oversized blazer and a pair of loose, high waisted grey pants. He ended up wearing his round rimmed glasses since he felt like it.
"What are you even trying to do, [Name]?" The poor boy drawed out as he watched you frantically scavenge through the mall.
"You got any gift ideas?" You turned to your older brother, making him shake his head, "Nah, don't know..."
"Dude, you literally have a girlfriend, help me out here..." He gave you a tight smile before rolling his eyes and pulling you to small jewelry store.
There were all kinds of stuff. Necklaces, rings, earrings, anklets... maybe you should get Manjirō an anklet while you're at it. He does like wearing them...
"You should get her a nice piece of jewelry... Something that she'd probably like wearing..." He explained while pointing at the various assortments of glittering jewelry displayed on the racks.
"Something that she'll wear? Hmm..." You placed a hand on your chin and looked around. What was something that Emma would prefer wearing?
Then, it dawned upon you.
A bracelet!!
You remembered her giving you a bracelet when you both were younger, but you couldn't wear it when you were living with your mother. But now, you remembered that when you finally reached home, one of things you had first put on was her bracelet! It was a bit smaller on your now grown wrist, but it still somehow managed to fit perfectly.
You grinned while looking at the different bracelets, suddenly recalling that Emma had a great liking for fortune telling. And so, you're pretty sure you saw a bracelet with small, purple, charm-like tarot cards beaded in it's chain.
You picked it up and examined it, liking how it also had some glittery aesthetic added in the small cards. Picking it out, you showed it to your brother who pat your head and nodded. He had no idea why you chose the tarot card one, but maybe your friend liked that kind of stuff?
Who knows, except for you maybe...
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With your gift bought, and thankfully wrapped up too since the shopkeeper was kind enough to wrap up the box it was in, you were headed to the place where Manjirô had texted you.
Your brother made sure to hold your hand when you guys crossed the street because apparently, he still thinks you're 3 years old.
When you guys finally reached the crepe restaurant, you saw Takemichi, Hina and Naoto, all three of them spying on Manjirō and Emma, while hiding behind some bushes. Hina was donning a detective outfit, and also a... is that a tobacoo pipe?!
Good Lord, Takemichi!! Help your poor girlfriend with her smoking addiction, will you?!
[Brother Name] raised an eyebrow at the three people and turned to you, but you wordlessly shrugged while beaming at him a sheepish smile, "I have no idea... Don't ask me..." And he turned back to see them talking like a bunch of weirdos.
Oh, and Hina just got up to interrupt Emma and Manjirō's bonding time. Okay, Takemichi... Please hold her back...
Suddenly, a gruff voice rang all across the area, making you and your brother turn in it's direction to see... Ken?
Wait a minute... Did he actually get a gift for Emma?! Wow, he actually listened to you!! You're so proud of him!! Good job, Ken!
But unfortunately, Takemichi did not seem to appreciate Ken's presence because he began to loudly cry. And when you decided to finally unveil yourself, Naoto hid behind Takemichi while the latter started sobbing, literally.
"What's going on?" You started, while walking over to the two siblings who Hina was interrogating, "Draken-kun... and [Name]-san too?!"
You waved kindly at her, "Hello, Hina-san!" Right at that moment, Ken let out a small laugh, "Wow, Mikey! You decided to take your sister out for her birthday? Aren't you just the sweetest older brother~" The tall boy teased him, making the shorter make bashfully turn his head away, "Shut it..."
"Emma-chan!! Manjirō, hey!!" You also greeted and everyone turned to you. You don't know why but they immediately turned their heads away the moment they looked at you, a heavy blush adorning their faces. Did you look weird in a dress?
You sure hoped to God that wasn't the case. But what you didn't know, was that your older brother was shooting death glares at any one who looked at you for too long. The hell you staring at his baby sister for? Would you like a punch to the head?
"S-So... Mikey-kun and Emma-chan aren't dating?" Hina asked, which only made you and Ken visibly gag, "They're half-siblings..." Ken explained, and Emma turned to the embarrassed Hina, "I told you, didn't I? That me and Mikey share the same father! Weren't you listening?" Hina looked away while whistling softly, "Ah, I guess I forgot..."
"Anyways... I came here to give you this. Happy Birthday, Emma." Ken placed a pink teddy bear on her head and you cooed softly to yourself. Does this mean that your ship will finally sail?!
God, please... Ken, just ask her out already!!
"Now that this is done, I'm out." And with that, he left. The three boys at the side, Naoto, Takemichi and Yamagishi... who you somehow managed to not see, looked at Ken with sparkly eyes as he left, "So cool!!"
Your brother watched in amusement as they treated Ken like a deity or something. When clearly, Ken would like to leave as soon as possible cause he does not want to be with the Sano siblings any longer than he has to.
"Oh, that's the teddy bear you wanted from the arcade!" Mikey pointed out and you squealed to yourself. Good job, Ken! You gave her the perfect gift!! Emma nodded while smiling at her gift, before turning to you.
"[Name]-chan, your dress really suits you!" Your smile visibly got brighter, "Really? Thank you, Emma-chan!! I love your outfit, though!!" You added and she immediately blushed.
Hina was just looking at you all in confusion as to who liked who and your brother wished he had something to eat cause he was getting hungry after seeing that blonde brat stuffing his face with crepes.
"Oh, right!" You muttered to yourself, bringing out the wrapped up box and presenting it to Emma, "Your birthday gift, Emma-chan!!" Her eyes widened before she carefully took it from your hands and gawked at it, "Where's my gift, [Name]-chin?" Mikey whined and you raised an eyebrow at his antics, "Manjirō, is it your birthday?" He shook his head.
"No, right? So zip it. Let Emma-chan have her moment!" You tugged at his ear, making the blonde gasp in pain, "Ow, ow, ow!! Let me go!!"
But then, you recalled that you had somewhere to be, and quickly excused yourself, "Anyways, I won't interrupt your sibling bonding time... So, enjoy your birthday, Emma-chan!" You gave her a soft kiss on her forehead and decided to skedaddle along with your older brother.
"Is that... her boyfriend?" Hina asked after you left, which only made Mikey and Emma to shoot a glare at her, "It's her brother!! As if she'd date anyone but me-" the two siblings stopped and glared at each other.
Hina looked at them both in confusion, "Wait... so Mikey also likes [Name]-san... And so does Emma-chan, but so does Draken-kun... And Mikey-kun and Emma-chan are siblings? But [Name]-san thinks that Emma-chan likes Draken-kun, but Draken-kun doesn't like Emma-chan... but he just gave her a gift she always wanted. So... wait, what?" She muttered to herself, completely confused with what was even going on.
"Never mind it, Hina... Even I don't get what's going on..." Takemichi called from behind and the two just looked at each, more confused with each second.
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Meanwhile, you and your brother stood outside a grey building. It was tall, covering lots of land, and had barbed wires all around it. You took a deep breath and walked forward, pulling your brother along with you.
After some questioning and some identification checks from the guards outside, you both entered inside the building and were brought to a glass room.
Inside the room, behind the glass sat a lone figure, head hung low with their hair curtaining their face. They looked like a mess, but as you didn't pity them. If anything, it made your lips curl into a sickly grin that only surprised your brother as you both finally entered the room.
When the figure heard the door open, their head shot up and looked at you both in surprise. But all you had to say to them, was a simple greeting for their blood to run cold.
"Hello, mother... Long time no see..."
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Quick Note:
I've thought a lot about this and I've finally decided for.... A Q&A FOR ASTROPHILE!!
You all can write the questions that you would like to ask me, as the author or about the story or characters themselves. Like things about Manjirō's views on [Name] or smth like that.
You can write it either by private messages, or you can write it in the comments, so keep in mind that the next update will be Q&As and the chapter will probably come later!