Summary: A stormy night, some sibling bonding, and blanket forts. Need I say more?
Pairings: Nothing romantic, but sibling bonding between Hoshi and Yuki because SIBLING BONDING KILLS ME ‘KAY.
Rating: K+ FLUFF. FLUFFY FLUFF. FLUFFYEST OF THE FLUFF.
Genres: Family/Comfort
Words: 1,967
A/N: This was actually just going to be on AO3 but I liked it enough that I wanted to post it here. I do have some other stories (some for my other blogshamefulcrisisshameful) to post, and, hopefully, I can post all of that while I work on my math homework.... Hopefully...*cringes* Also, this thing completely derailed from what I had originally planned for it, but, eh - like I said, I liked it enough to post it here. x’D Enjoy!
The sudden flash of lightning was what woke her up from her sleep. The girl sat up slowly, eyes blinking as she turned her head, trying to get a good look at her surroundings in her sleep-muddled brain. The clap of thunder startled her into wakefulness and she clutched her blankets tightly in her fists, whipping her head to the window and seeing the patter of the rain hit the glass. She shivered, her body finally reacting to the coldness in her room. Another clap and a small whimper left her lips as she pulled the blanket over her head. Not like it did anything, however. Yuki will admit that she should have gotten over this fear of the storms—she was in middle school for crying out loud, she shouldn't be fearful of the harsh rain, and the bright flashes of lightning, or, or, the very, very loud booms of thunder.
Another thunderclap and another whimper left her....
...Okay, maybe she could fear the thunderclaps, they were loud after all. Peeking out from under her covers, she took a quick glance at her door. M-maybe...maybe Onee-chan might be awake...? No, she thought, shaking her head and burying herself under the sheets once more, deciding to just lie back down and force herself to sleep. It wouldn't do well to bother Onee-chan with this. I-I should be fine. N-nothing to worry about, it is just a storm, after all. It'll pass. Nothing to worry about...
She heard something creak and she bit back a whimper, rolling over onto her stomach and burying her head deep into her pillow, hoping that whatever made that noise would go away, or, at the very least, not exist.
"...Yuki?"
Yuki slowly lifted her head up, peering under the sheets once more at the door. Her sister was standing at her door, clearly awake and giving her a confused glance. She swallowed, the fear from the storm disappearing slowly at seeing her sister. She gave a weak smile, but yelped quietly at the flash of lightning that passed through, lighting up her room; she duck back under her covers and grabbed her pillow, covering her face with it as well as folding the ends to cover her ears. It didn't really do much but stifle the noise of the following thunderclap, but at least it wasn't as loud as the previous ones.
"C'mon, Yuki..."
"I'm fine," she responded, wincing a little at her muffled, meek, and fearful tone of voice. Her sister had sounded exasperated and...she thought she heard sympathy in that tone, too. Sh-she didn't need that... She doesn't think she needed it.
"Yuki, you're not. You never hide under your blankets like this unless it was, y'know, a storm," her sister said and the purple-haired girl didn't respond, continuing to just stay under her blankets, hiding herself where she was safe and warm and didn't have to worry about the big, loud claps of—
BOOM!
Her yelp was muffled by the pillow and she faintly heard a grunt coming from her sister. She was definitely worrying about the big, loud claps of thunder now. Her pillow had forsaken her on muffling the sound. But did provide great protection amongst other things.
"Alright, fine..." She heard her sister grumble and she felt fear grip at her. Sh-she didn't want Onee-chan to leave, but, at the same time, she wanted to prove that she was fine handling all of this-this....whatever this is, on her own. B-but Onee-chan brought safety and security with her wherever she went, and Yuki had always went to her whenever she wasn't having a good night, or when a storm like now was happening. She gripped the pillow tighter and tried to bury her face further into the softness of it. J-just try and fight it, Yuki, she willed, just try and fight it.
"Guess we're doin' this the hard way."
Wait, what?
Yuki was about to take her face out of the pillow, but she only held onto it even tighter when she felt something on her bed, causing it to shift with the extra weight. She was about to force herself up, but strong, comforting, familiar arms wrapped themselves around her waist and brought her up. She was still holding on to her pillow, and her blanket was still wrapped around her, but at least she was able to clutch her pillow to her chest and not her face; her blanket wasn't covering her head, so she could clearly see Onee-chan's face. Green eyes were glowing with determination and a protectiveness she had grown used to seeing, and a frown was on her lips, though she wasn't sure what the frown could mean. She wanted to ask where it was that her sister was taking her, but decided against it; another thunderclap sounded, even through the walls of their house and she was more tuned to try and hide from the claps than ask her sister anything. The walk to wherever it was Onee-chan was taking her wasn't long, in fact, they entered into the blonde's room and Onee-chan gently placed Yuki on her bed.
Yuki blinked, clutching her pillow against her chest even more as she shot her sister a confused look. Onee-chan responded with a comforting grin as she straightened and turned, walking to the door and closing it, but not all the way; she left a small crack to be open and for that, Yuki was slightly relieved. The young girl followed her older sister's movements, watching as the older girl went to her closet and opened it up, digging through it and grumbling under her breath. She wondered what it could be that the blonde was searching for, growing ever curious when Onee-chan's cursing got louder, but not loud enough to wake up their parents. Another flash of lightning and Yuki tensed, raising her pillow and burying her face in it just as another clap of thunder erupted. The wind outside was easier to hear, howling and roaring, and the rain was pattering even harder against the window. This storm seemed fiercer than all the others and the young girl could only pray and hope it went away. And hopefully soon.
"Found 'em!"
She started in surprise, lifting her head up to stare at her sister as she turned, kicked her closet door closed gently, and walked over to the bed, carrying a few, thick blankets and some pillows. Even with those many objects in her arms, Onee-chan's grin and green eyes could still be seen, glowing with a cheerfulness that made the fear Yuki was feeling go away. Slowly, but it was still leaving her body. She watched as Onee-chan placed the blankets and pillows on the bed, then turned to her, green eyes glittering even in the dark of the room.
"Hey, Yuki," the blonde said softly, her grin turning to a gentle smile.
"Yes?" she responded, resting her chin on her pillow and staring up at her sister, puzzled.
"Remember when we were little, and you always had nightmares?"
"Y-yeah...?"
"And remember how you'd always come into my room and begged to sleep by me to get rid of those nightmares?"
Yuki childishly pouted at the older girl, but she nodded nonetheless.
"And how we made blanket forts?"
Now she could see where her sister was going with this. Her pout turned into a happy smile and she straightened up, feeling excitement shimmer through her. It was always a thing between the two of them that they did, that when Yuki had really bad nightmares, Onee-chan would always make blanket forts for her and they would just lay inside them, either talking or Yuki listening to Onee-chan read her a few stories. It always managed to calm her down, whether it was from nightmares or from stormy nights like tonight.
"Are we...?" And the big grin on Onee-chan's face made her grin and she quickly got up. The thought of the storm outside was still at the back of her mind, but the prospect of making a blanket fort took away all the fear she had of the storm. The two siblings immediately began building their fort, making sure to keep quiet as to not to disturb their parents. They had fun making the fort and, by the time they were done, the siblings were trying to keep their laughter stifled and muffled from all of the tickling and horsing around they did. Yuki, being slightly childish and more or less driven by the giddiness of doing something like this with her sister after a long while, was about to dive into the fort when a comforting hand found its way on her shoulder. She looked over and saw Onee-chan giving her an amused look; she blushed and looked down.
Onee-chan chuckled and walked over to the bed, grabbing Yuki's forgotten blanket and pillow and then crawling into the fort. "Can't forget the stuff that's gonna keep us warm," she said over her shoulder and Yuki smiled. She followed after the older girl and the two settled themselves on top of the thick blanket they put on the ground to makes themselves even more comfortable. Before the purple-haired girl could lower her head on one of the pillows, Onee-chan swiftly placed the pillow she brought with her under her head and then immediately threw Yuki's blanket over her.
"Onee-chan!" she whispered-yelled, trying to hold back her giggling as she felt familiar hands among the blanket and begin tickling her sides. She tired to swat the hands away and the chuckling above from her sister told her that her efforts were fruitless. "Mou... Onee-chan...!" She successfully pushed her sister off of her and grabbed her blanket, wrapping it around herself and throwing her sister a short, mocking glare, making sure she was wrapped up in the sheets and away from attacking hands.
Onee-chan was grinning widely, hands raised beside her head and fingers flexing; she was kneeling on top of the blanket and her green eyes were sparking with mischief. She stuck her tongue out childishly at the older girl and Onee-chan finally let up, her hands lowering down and a few chuckles leaving her. Yuki let out small giggles herself and it didn't take long for the two of them to be laughing softly at their childish antics. A thunderclap sounded, loudly (probably the loudest yet), but Yuki paid it no mind. She felt content, safe, right here with her older sister giving her the protection she needed. But now she was feeling rightfully tired and she was thankful that there was no school tomorrow; she doubted that she could make it school with the little sleep she was going to get tonight, what from the fear the first half of the night to the happiness and excitement the second half. It seemed Onee-chan could tell she was tired, since the blonde's grin turned soft and the older girl raised a hand and placed it on her head.
"Someone's tired, eh," she said, green eyes glowing with amusement and the kindness that Yuki associated with all big sisters. Yuki nodded, feeling drowsy and wanting nothing more than to rest her head on her pillow. "Well, we've had a rough night, so let's get some sleep, alright?"
"Mhm," she hummed, already lowering herself down and resting her head on the pillow.
"Hey, maybe tomorrow we can go out and get some ice cream?"
"Yeah," she mumbled, snuggling into the pillow and feeling sleep claps itself around her. "That sounds great."
A chuckle and another pat on her head and she was out like a light, with the sense of comfort and security flowing through her.
No more storms were going to wake her up, not with her big sister around.
I don’t know what do say about this really other than I really like Chou and Hoshi and I think that they would have a really good friendship. I’m sorry if I got any of their personalities wrong, I tried to go off the vibes I got from the pictures on your blog. I hope you like it!
JHSADFJHKJSFK CHOU AND HOSHI, BOTH PRECIOUS AHHH
—–
Hoshi ambles around the cookout aimlessly. There isn’t a lot to do right now other than eat and socialize and she’s already had a burger. As for socializing, well… Hoshi looks to her left, then to her right. Ah, like she thought: she recognizes absolutely no one. She shrugs. This was something she expected. It’s the beginning of the year cookout and, as a college freshman, her friend count was back down to zero. There’s a small, dark part of her that laughs at the words ‘back down,’ reminding her of how lonely she was in high school, but she shakes that part off. College will be different. Mama and Papa told her so.
Still though, it’s hard to stand here by herself while watching what seems like every other freshman socializing. There’s that feeling of loneliness creeping in again, and she tries to shake it off. This isn’t high school, she reminds herself, things are better here. But she doesn’t really believe it, not right now. Right now, she’s missing her moms and Yuki and Hideki and even the twins. She’d give anything to see a familiar face, anything to not feel so alone.
Hoshi sighs, deciding to leave before the hollow feeling in her chest grows anymore. She shoves her hands in her pockets and hits the pavement back toward her dorm. It’s smaller than her room at home and she hasn’t seen her roommate since move-in day, despite the fact that they’ve been there for three days. Hoshi assumes she’s been out partying, and judging by the picture on her nightstand, she’s got a boyfriend too. She’d rolled her eyes when she caught sight of the picture. Of course she got stuck with the party girl who was never there. Of course not even her roommate would hang out with—
“…SHI!” What was that? Hoshi stops. Did somebody just…? No, it was probably part of someone else’s name, nothing more. She started walking again, but—
“HOSHI!” That is definitely her name. Hoshi spins around, heart fluttering with hope. Is someone calling her?
Yes! There, pushing her way through the throngs of people is a sight for sore eyes! “CHOU!” Hoshi calls back, waving. A huge grin splits her face and relief floods her body as she spots Chou Koizumi in the crowd. She starts moving toward her, pushing through the crowd as well, until at last they reach each other and Hoshi sweeps her up into a hug. “Chou! Oh my god it’s good to see you!”
“It’s great to see you too, Hoshi! I didn’t think I’d know anyone at this thing,” Chou is grinning too, both from joy and relief, and though they let each other go, they stick close.
“Me neither!” says Hoshi. “I actually forgot you were on campus with me. Mama said you were here, but it’s been kind of a few crazy days.” She rubs the back of her neck, embarrassed.
Chou nods. “Yeah, Nico-mama told me you’d be here too. She was actually dead-set on finding you before she left to wish you well, but then her agent called and she had to go.” She tilts her head to the side and puts her hands palm side up. “And then Pana-mama had to drive her back to the city, so there you go.” She moves her hands around in a circle to illustrate her point.
Hoshi shrugs. “It’s no big deal, it’s the thought that counts.” And it is. The fact that someone tried to find her who wasn’t her moms or Yuki? Her heart swells a little and a happy little smile lifts the corners of her lips.
“You want to get a drink?” Chou asks.
“Sure,” say Hoshi, and the two of them sidle through the crowd to one of the food tables.
Chou sticks her hands into the ice and roots around. “Looks like they’ve got Coke, Sprite, root beer, and water.” She pops her head up. “Which one do you want?”
Hoshi considers, then decides. “Root beer,” she says. Chou hands one to her and grabs a Coke for herself.
“Let’s head over there,” says Chou, gesturing with the Coke. Her hands are wet from the cooler and drip onto the grass. She frowns, then shakes them one at a time, passing the soda into the still hand each time.
“Hey!” says Hoshi playfully as some of the water lands on her. Chou sticks her tongue out at her, but smiles apologetically afterwards. Hoshi huffs and rolls her eyes playfully in return. They’re still both giddy at having found a familiar face, and a familiar face they’ve grown up with, nonetheless. They make their way away from the table and into an open patch of grass.
They open their sodas and lean back on their heels, enjoying each other’s company. Hoshi glances over and catches Chou doing the same. They smile and look away. Hoshi tries to think of something to say. It occurs to her that neither of them have said anything for a while. What if there isn’t anything else to say? What if Chou gets bored and wants to leave? Hoshi will end up friendless and alone again and– “What’s your roommate like?” Chou asks.
Hoshi breathes a subtle sigh of relief just before she answers. “I actually haven’t seen her since we got here. She’s out partying a lot. I see dirty clothes in her hamper, so I must just keep missing her, like she ends up in the dorm while I’m out for meals or something, but yeah, it’s kind of weird.” The index finger of her free hand rubs circles around the pad of her thumb out of nervousness. Chou nods.
“Yeah, that is kind of weird.” She sits down in the grass casually, looking for all the world like she hasn’t got a care in the world, but Hoshi sees her fiddle with the tab of her soda, sees the toe of her shoe move like she’s curling and uncurling her toes, and Hoshi suddenly realizes that Chou feels exactly the same way she does, worried that Hoshi will up and leave. Hoshi’s heart swells and she plops down next to Chou, who tries to keep her face neutral but can’t hide the hint of gratefulness.
“What’s your roommate like?” Hoshi asks, poking Chou with the toe of her shoe. She tries to sip her drink casually, like this is all natural, but takes a too-large sip of root beer and chokes a little, her eyes widening as she feels it go up her nose. She tries to hide it by wiping her nose on her arm, but she’s a bit clumsy and can’t help but feel grateful that Chou pretends not to notice.
“She’s pretty cool,” Chou says. “She’s a Classical Lit major, she seems nice enough. We’re still kind of getting to know each other, really.” She rubs the back of her neck.
“She sounds cool,” Hoshi says, and Chou nods.
“She is. She has cool art posters on her wall.”
“Hmm,” muses Hoshi, nodding. The two of them lapse into silence, drinking their sodas and looking around. It’s nice having a friend, Hoshi thinks. She’s got someone she can call up if she ever needs to, to hang out with when she’s feeling lonely. She doesn’t have to spend all her time in her dorm or at the Rec Center anymore. She smiles a little to herself and sips her drink.
After a minute or so, Chou sets her soda in the grass and leans back on her hands and poke Hoshi with her toe. “So,” she says, “what’s the verdict so far? Better than high school?”
Hoshi snorts. “Too early to have a verdict. Classes haven’t even started yet.” She also doesn’t know anyone but Chou, and it’s hard to have such a blank slate. She has one person in her immediate support network here, and that thought is daunting.
Chou nods and says “Yeah, that’s true.” She gives Hoshi a look of understanding, though, and her hand lifts, as if to pat Hoshi’s leg. She stops herself, though, and takes a drink of her soda. Hoshi smiles and looks away, into the crowd. People rush past, or else stand still, and for the first time it doesn’t seem so scary. Hoshi feels like a part of them. She sees the frat boys standing in a huddle, a few with girls by their sides. She sees the groups of girls congregating here and there, talking about the latest something or other. She sees the smaller groups, the students laughing and having a good time in the sun. Finally, she turns back to her friend and nudges her with a leg.
“At least the girls are cute,” she says, gesturing to the crowd around them.
Chou smiles and raises an eyebrow, looking around as well. “Absolutely.” She holds out her soda can towards Hoshi. “Cheers,” she says. They clink them together, then drink.
