Hikaru had decided to spend the afternoon in town, mostly on a whim. The little seaside village that surrounded his familyâs home was a bit like being transported back in timeâthe storefronts were old, but well-maintained as they had been when they were new, and the people carried a sense of history about them. Many had been doing the same work as their parents for generations. Of course, it was relatively trivial in terms of his lifespan, but that didnât mean he couldnât appreciate it for what it was. Heâd personally known the ancestors of most of the people here, and that they still remained was a strange sense of nostalgic continuity.
He wandered largely aimlessly through town, at least until he caught the scent of his brotherâs betrothed. He still couldnât say he was entirely happy with the womanâs place in Soraâs life, but he was learning to accept it, at least for now. Whatever else was true of her, she seemed to make the idiot happier than Hikaru could remember him being since they were children, before all the bullshit that came with maturity in vampire society. Sora was never happier than when he had someone to dote over, and she accepted it with a bit more grace than most would haveâhe really could be insufferable sometimes.
She was in a small tailorâs shop, looking at baby clothes. He blinked, raising an eyebrow at the sight, and crossed his arms over his chest for lack of sleeves to fold them into. âYouâre having daughters,â he informed her from over her shoulder, inspecting the clothing in her hands with a critical eye. âJust for the record. The pheromones are different, and the temperature runs a bit lower,â he said, to explain just how heâd come to this conclusion. It was perhaps an odd use for his nose, attuned as a vampireâs was to pheremonal language and as a wolfâs was for sheer detection ability. He couldnât even really explain it more specifically than thatâhe was just aware of it, like heâd been aware of the fact that there were two.
âThis tailor does good work. Youâll want to go elsewhere for shoes, though. Just put it on the estate tab if you want anything.â
Nicole had decided to escape from Sora -yet again- this time by heading into town. She hadn't had any sort of particular destination in mind, but a tailor shop had some baby clothing, and with the twins now doing somersaults in her womb, she was more aware of them than ever. She had actually been looking at a set of boys' clothing when a certian voice rang through her ears. She started slightly. She had smelled him, of course, but she was still well aware that he was not overly happy with her. She couldn't blame him. That being said, she wasn't really expecting him to speak to her.
She smiled slightly, turning to look at the man. "I've still got five months before I really have to worry about clothes. I was only browsing. And it's good to know that they're girls. That means most of the names I've been throwing around would fit."
He hummed some syllable or another of understanding and nodded slightly. âIt is well that you areâit will be easier to survive life with my brother. He will dote on girls.â He did not say it, but he was rather pleased with the news as wellâthe idea of having little nieces appealed to him on a level he had not really expected it to. Actually⊠he glanced at another rack of infant clothing, and a thought crossed his mind, manifesting in a contemplative frown before he stowed it away for later consideration.
âIs there anything else you would like to see?â One might wonder why Hikaru was inclined to stay, but in truth the answer was rather simple. Whatever their standing might be without one another, he wasnât going to allow his brotherâs pregnant fiancĂ©e and his unborn daughters to wander around in a place she did not know when it was obvious that her father still wished her harm. He was not going to whine and lament about it like Sora would, but strange as it may be, as much as he may believe truly that women were every bit as capable as their male counterparts, the concept of chivalry (and basic decency) was not, in fact, lost upon him. He just chose to display it only in front of those that mattered in his life, and these were relatively few.
Nicole sighed through her nose. She was fairly certain that she would never understand Hikaru. "Surviving with Sora is never going to be easy, but, we've both chosen it. I'm not going to just back out of it now." She looked contemplative for a second, before answering his final question. "I could definitely go for something chocolate. Which is saying something, because I hate chocolate."
Hikaru snorted and shook his head. His mother had always said that women experienced strange cravings during pregnancy, apparently to supplement their bodies with the extra nutrients that they required. He didnât really see chocolate being a nutrient, but there was good stuff in there, he supposed. Besides, he knew just where to go for that. âFollow me, then,â he said simply, heading out the doorâthough he did at least hold it for long enough for her to pass through. It was only a few twists and turns until they arrived at a small building, the front of which was mostly windows. The signage was in Italian, but it was clearly a gelato shop, and he pulled open this door also, the bell on it jingling faintly with their entrance. âEhi, Carlo. AvrĂČ il solito, e per la signora ...â
He turned to Nicole. âWhat exactly do you want? Thereâs lots of kinds of chocolate here, in case it wasnât obvious. Carlo speaks some English, so donât worry too much about it if Italianâs not your thing.â He shrugged; not everyone had all the language he and Sora did. Reiko had made it a point to teach them one for every country they had a home in.
At Hikaru's comment, Nicole actually cracked half a smile. Not her thing? "Mi hai ferita, signore. Solo perchĂ© sono cresciuto con un'infanzia terribile non vuol dire i miei insegnamenti sono mancate." She wasted no time in ordering, thought her order did entice quite a few odd looks. "AvrĂČ il chocolat buio, per favore. Oh, e se li avete, dei sottaceti e formaggio. Qualcosa di tagliente. Grazie." She shrugged when Hikaru just stared at her. "What? I'm pregnant. Shut up."
He wasnât even sure they had cheese here, but apparently Carlo was well and truly prepared for anything, because sure enough, her gelato contained both pickles and sharp cheddar. âYour wife⊠she is spirited, eh?â Carlo offered, handing over the items theyâd ordered. Hikaruâs was a cinnamon sugar swirled in vanilla. He frowned at it for a moment. His âusualâ was whatever Carlo happened to randomly pick that day, and this was a little weird. Well, heâd take it, anyway. Of course, then it properly registered what the old man had said, and he shook his head.
âCarlo, you old bat, this is not my wife. And they arenât my kids.â The very thought was a little disturbing, mostly because it involved him having a wife and kids. Definitely not his thing.
Nicole was prompted to raise an eyebrow when it took Hikaru so long to answer the man, an odd little smile on her face as she listened. She shook her head slightly. Sometimes she wondered if everyone were as clueless about things as the four of them seemed to be. Ah well, it couldn't be helped, she supposed. They were halfway through eating when she did look up at him again. "Despite what you might think or how you act, you would make a good father, Hikaru." She laid a hand on her stomach, slightly surprised as they once again kicked her. "Either your nieces are agreeing with me, or they really like the pickles."
He wandered largely aimlessly through town, at least until he caught the scent of his brotherâs betrothed. He still couldnât say he was entirely happy with the womanâs place in Soraâs life, but he was learning to accept it, at least for now. Whatever else was true of her, she seemed to make the idiot happier than Hikaru could remember him being since they were children, before all the bullshit that came with maturity in vampire society. Sora was never happier than when he had someone to dote over, and she accepted it with a bit more grace than most would haveâhe really could be insufferable sometimes.
She was in a small tailorâs shop, looking at baby clothes. He blinked, raising an eyebrow at the sight, and crossed his arms over his chest for lack of sleeves to fold them into. âYouâre having daughters,â he informed her from over her shoulder, inspecting the clothing in her hands with a critical eye. âJust for the record. The pheromones are different, and the temperature runs a bit lower,â he said, to explain just how heâd come to this conclusion. It was perhaps an odd use for his nose, attuned as a vampireâs was to pheremonal language and as a wolfâs was for sheer detection ability. He couldnât even really explain it more specifically than thatâhe was just aware of it, like heâd been aware of the fact that there were two.
âThis tailor does good work. Youâll want to go elsewhere for shoes, though. Just put it on the estate tab if you want anything.â
Nicole had decided to escape from Sora -yet again- this time by heading into town. She hadn't had any sort of particular destination in mind, but a tailor shop had some baby clothing, and with the twins now doing somersaults in her womb, she was more aware of them than ever. She had actually been looking at a set of boys' clothing when a certian voice rang through her ears. She started slightly. She had smelled him, of course, but she was still well aware that he was not overly happy with her. She couldn't blame him. That being said, she wasn't really expecting him to speak to her.
She smiled slightly, turning to look at the man. "I've still got five months before I really have to worry about clothes. I was only browsing. And it's good to know that they're girls. That means most of the names I've been throwing around would fit."
He hummed some syllable or another of understanding and nodded slightly. âIt is well that you areâit will be easier to survive life with my brother. He will dote on girls.â He did not say it, but he was rather pleased with the news as wellâthe idea of having little nieces appealed to him on a level he had not really expected it to. Actually⊠he glanced at another rack of infant clothing, and a thought crossed his mind, manifesting in a contemplative frown before he stowed it away for later consideration.
âIs there anything else you would like to see?â One might wonder why Hikaru was inclined to stay, but in truth the answer was rather simple. Whatever their standing might be without one another, he wasnât going to allow his brotherâs pregnant fiancĂ©e and his unborn daughters to wander around in a place she did not know when it was obvious that her father still wished her harm. He was not going to whine and lament about it like Sora would, but strange as it may be, as much as he may believe truly that women were every bit as capable as their male counterparts, the concept of chivalry (and basic decency) was not, in fact, lost upon him. He just chose to display it only in front of those that mattered in his life, and these were relatively few.
Nicole sighed through her nose. She was fairly certain that she would never understand Hikaru. "Surviving with Sora is never going to be easy, but, we've both chosen it. I'm not going to just back out of it now." She looked contemplative for a second, before answering his final question. "I could definitely go for something chocolate. Which is saying something, because I hate chocolate."
Hikaru snorted and shook his head. His mother had always said that women experienced strange cravings during pregnancy, apparently to supplement their bodies with the extra nutrients that they required. He didnât really see chocolate being a nutrient, but there was good stuff in there, he supposed. Besides, he knew just where to go for that. âFollow me, then,â he said simply, heading out the doorâthough he did at least hold it for long enough for her to pass through. It was only a few twists and turns until they arrived at a small building, the front of which was mostly windows. The signage was in Italian, but it was clearly a gelato shop, and he pulled open this door also, the bell on it jingling faintly with their entrance. âEhi, Carlo. AvrĂČ il solito, e per la signora ...â
He turned to Nicole. âWhat exactly do you want? Thereâs lots of kinds of chocolate here, in case it wasnât obvious. Carlo speaks some English, so donât worry too much about it if Italianâs not your thing.â He shrugged; not everyone had all the language he and Sora did. Reiko had made it a point to teach them one for every country they had a home in.
At Hikaru's comment, Nicole actually cracked half a smile. Not her thing? "Mi hai ferita, signore. Solo perchĂ© sono cresciuto con un'infanzia terribile non vuol dire i miei insegnamenti sono mancate." She wasted no time in ordering, thought her order did entice quite a few odd looks. "AvrĂČ il chocolat buio, per favore. Oh, e se li avete, dei sottaceti e formaggio. Qualcosa di tagliente. Grazie." She shrugged when Hikaru just stared at her. "What? I'm pregnant. Shut up."
He wasnât even sure they had cheese here, but apparently Carlo was well and truly prepared for anything, because sure enough, her gelato contained both pickles and sharp cheddar. âYour wife⊠she is spirited, eh?â Carlo offered, handing over the items theyâd ordered. Hikaruâs was a cinnamon sugar swirled in vanilla. He frowned at it for a moment. His âusualâ was whatever Carlo happened to randomly pick that day, and this was a little weird. Well, heâd take it, anyway. Of course, then it properly registered what the old man had said, and he shook his head.
âCarlo, you old bat, this is not my wife. And they arenât my kids.â The very thought was a little disturbing, mostly because it involved him having a wife and kids. Definitely not his thing.
Nicole was prompted to raise an eyebrow when it took Hikaru so long to answer the man, an odd little smile on her face as she listened. She shook her head slightly. Sometimes she wondered if everyone were as clueless about things as the four of them seemed to be. Ah well, it couldn't be helped, she supposed. They were halfway through eating when she did look up at him again. "Despite what you might think or how you act, you would make a good father, Hikaru." She laid a hand on her stomach, slightly surprised as they once again kicked her. "Either your nieces are agreeing with me, or they really like the pickles."