#thanks for the ask!!! I hope you like it

[lightlycareless]

happy belated halloween!! for another fluffy ask to fill the void- what would naoya, naoaki, and y/n would have dressed up as for halloween as kids?? (pretending as if the zenins wouldn't have been awful spoil-sports and actually LET either of them celebrate,,)

Hello!!!! And happy Halloween to you too!!!

First of all, thank you so much for your patience! This one-shot certainly took more than what I expected to finish it, but in my defense, allot of things happened hahahaha Also, I received it just when I was going through a very hard personal time, so reading your fluff request arrived just in the right time. Thank you 🥺❤

But now that I'm on a small holiday from work, I'll be able to do a lil bit more of writing :> Starting with this request that I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVED writing. Let's say that I filled some very needed fluffy needs that the main fic deprived me of 😳

Now, without further ado, here are the warnings of this chapter:

Overprotective!Eiichi (a.k.a Y/N's dad) Delusional!Naoya, Oblivious!Naoaki, and Protective!Ren and Hinata lol. Minako and Tomoko want a normal day out. Y/N is just living her life, happy as it always should. Also, I took this oneshot as the perfect excuse to develop a bit more of Eiichi (although it's more about him lol), Minako (Y/N's mom) and... well, have what we probably wont have on the angsty shitshow I created on the other story haha.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy!! Super long oneshot under the cut.

When Minako, your mother, told Eiichi, your father, that she intended to celebrate Halloween with Tomoko and her family, he… was hesitant to agree.

No, scratch that. He wasn’t hesitant, he was in absolute defiance. 

And it’s not because of personal animosity towards Tomoko—far from that. He’d actually met the woman on a previous occasion and they got along quite well. She was generous and funny, the kind of person that made you feel welcomed, seen. 

And all of this is without taking into account Minako's undying admiration for her: Because when it came to incorporating new people into their social circle—or, more specifically, his family—his spouse's opinion was highly regarded.

Both knew that if Tomoko came along, their kids would be in good hands.

In other words, he did not hold any negative remarks about her.

It was her husband that he disliked very much.

Eiichi had no idea how a much older man like Naobito could have gotten together with a much younger woman like Tomoko, much less marry her and subsequently have six children together!

«Oh, that poor woman» he muses, reminiscing back on the many times where Eiichi would find himself silently conmenming Naobito’s actions. 

Starting from Minako dropping everything on the spot and rushing to her friend's side as soon as she learned that her pregnancy was one of high risk—the one that introduced Naofumi into the world. Tomoko’s world was slowly turning into one of chaos and concern, and Naobito was seemingly nowhere to be found, limiting himself to subsidizing her with any medical attention she and their son would need, as if emotional support didn’t matter.

Or when he did the exact opposite when their youngest child was born. From the stoic, distant father he was with their previous 5 children, he was now all over her when it came to their 6th. All because he was to be the heir. And although that was an agreement that was struck many years later… Eiichi suspected Naobito already had a hunch.

Nonetheless, your father knew very well that prying in their business would do more harm than good, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t harbor a certain degree of distaste towards Tomoko’s husband, the consistent reason of why he’s always so averse towards Minako and their children visiting the Zen’in estate—why did they even need to maintain amicable relationships with their competitors?! Aren’t the Gojo’s and the Kamo’s sufficient enough??— or subsequently inviting him to these gatherings.

To make matters worse, Naobito wasn’t just careless towards his wife, he was also inconsiderate of his children’s fun. Once he starts feeling bored, he’d hurry them to leave every few seconds until one of them budges, like the aggravating buzz of a mosquito he just couldn’t wait to get rid of.

Well, there’s no use to dwell on things he can’t change, more so when Tomoko insisted that Naobito was a rather good husband and father when no one was around to see, he was just too busy as the head of one of the biggest companies in Japan, and too shy to demonstrate otherwise on the public (he has an image to uphold, after all, one that suits well with old money)

«Shy» Eiichi scoffed at the label Tomoko would use one day. An adjective that he never thought could be used to describe Naobito, an obnoxious, crude man.

But if she’s content with their relationship… they’ll support it.

However, once he was informed that only Tomoko and her children would be the ones assisting, none of these things continued to matter.

An announcement that cleanses him with relief as he could finally focus on what really matters. On the actual significance of this occasion!

And what made it so special, you ask?

Well… it's nothing short of his baby's first Halloween spent trick-or-treating!!

Oh, it was a moment both he and his wife had looked forward to for a long time now! 

… To much of their unexpected surprise.

Halloween is generally regarded as an appropriate activity for children thanks to all the activities that take place: such as dressing up, going out to get candy, and even pumpkin carving! It goes without saying that a fun night was certainly guaranteed if any of these were involved.

So, one could only imagine the shock your parents were received with when you, who had just become old enough to participate in such a celebration, stood heavily against it.

But that didn’t deter them. In fact, they tried to convince you by going into heavy detail of the previously listed activities, sweetening the deal by how fun it would be if you’d participated with your siblings and friends!

… To no avail.

Thus, a different approach was to be taken.

Eiichi, knowing your sweet tooth, attempted to bribe you with candies that were exclusive to the season, flavors that would not appear again, that is, until next year. 

And it seemed to work judging by the way your chubby hands snatched the offering out of his grasp as soon as you locked eyes on it. 

You’d then hum along to his words, giving them the impression you were actually considering their invitation…

Only to go behind their backs and grant them a dose of reality by rejecting them once you ate all of the candies.

Minako, startled by your enigmatic answer, began to search for the reason behind your rejection. Was it because you’ve unwittingly stumbled onto the scary side of Halloween?

If that were the case, then she couldn’t blame you.

There were certain participants that leaned into the dark aspect of this time. Defined from gruesome to frightening, classifications that were solely made with the intention of provoking unsettlement, something hardly appropriate or desirable for children your age.

And that didn’t limit to imagery, of course… There were also people who breathed life into these depictions through costumes, transforming themselves into a walking nightmare.

If somehow these turned out to be the factors that pushed you away from enjoying Halloween, then Minako feared no reasoning could help you see differently. Not when you’ve rejected them so many times already.

That was not the case, however— At least not entirely.

Turns out that the biggest reason behind your lack of participation was because of large crowds.

Up until now, the only instances you've ever seen of Halloween being celebrated was via the unruly, overcrowded parties that took place in the sleepless streets of Ikebukuro through broadcasted segments you’ve stumbled upon when watching T.V. alongside your older brother, Ren. 

And you, prone to growing anxious before large groups of strangers, needed no other justification to stay as far away from it as possible. You’ve seen enough of it, in full color and in high quality (as good as it can be with a television dating from ‘97) to not believe in your parents' contrasting words.

So that’s the whole truth of what you believed Halloween to be in the early years of your life: heavily crowded parties with ugly costumes.

But now that the problem was out in broad daylight, your parents could decisively assess an efficient solution. Thus, they came up with a secure and tranquil version of a halloween festivity: Trick-or-treating in a nearby familiar village, owned by none other than your clan.

For the influential leaders of the L/N clan, creating a safe space with the support of the inhabitants of said village (after providing the enough financing to do so) was an easy task, as well as the bare minimum when it came to their children's comfort and happiness. Nothing was out of their reach if it pertained to Ren, Hinata, and you.

Besides, Minako wanted to indulge in something private for once, especially after she began to feel the mental fatigue of having to roam through large crowds. So she wasn’t very disappointed when this change of plans occurred.

This could also be beneficial for the village’s kids, to motivate a sense of closeness inside the community as well as provide distraction from mundane everyday tasks to remember what life is all about. 

And while at it, this also worked as a good excuse to see Tomoko again. They've been wanting to catch up for the longest time, and now that their schedules finally match… it's the perfect opportunity! 

So, after arranging a meeting with the representative of the village, Minako and Eiichi managed to form an agreement with the inhabitants to organize a small version of a festival with all expenses accounted for, in exchange of borrowing their facilities to create an area where everyone is invited to have fun.

Fast forward to Halloween night, children and parents alike partake in a hurried frenzy to oversee the last details of their perfect trick-or-treating outing before departure.

“I still wish Y/N would’ve dressed up as something scary… like Sadako from the ring!” Eiichi laments, for he’d always been an avid fan of horror and there’s nothing he would’ve liked more than to share this with his family.

He genuinely believes it would’ve been hilarious to see his adorable young daughter dressed up as a popular horror icon, more so if he taught you how to deliver a convincing portrayal of the well-dwelling ghost in hopes of scaring at least an unsuspecting passerby.

“That’s too scary for a kid her age, dear” Minako’s soft voice interrupts his thoughts and grounds him back to reality by reminding him as to why that was a bad idea. “Besides, this is her first time dressing up. It’s only fair that she chooses what she wants to wear"

Maybe once you’re a few years older, she would support his suggestion. 

After all, she held the same opinion when it came to dressing you, the youngest of their kids, as something that frightened many, and continued to do so years after the novel and movie were released. 

It would certainly be amusing to see how an adorable girl like you could pull off something as scary as Sadako. But just as they discussed before, you were too young to be consuming any horror material, and adding that this night was your first time going out for candy (after much insisting, that is) they had to be careful to not do anything that might push you to reject them again. 

So, doing what any good parent would do, they kept off limits any media that was unsuitable for your age whilst supporting your decision when it came to your costume.

However, being married for over a decade, and known each other for far longer, Eiichi had grown to distinguish each of your mother's tones, mannerisms, and even subtle facial expressions to understand that sometimes what she says, doesn’t actually reflect what she intends.

And that’s exactly what’s happening: Minako hid an underlying aim behind her words, and once he was sure of this, a grin parted his lips before proceeding to retaliate with this newfound fulfillment.

“But that's not what you really think, do you?"

Minako shoots him a quick glance, an expression so stern that makes Eiichi feel he might’ve misjudged her circumstances, to which he’s more than ready to apologize for… that is, until his wife sighs dramatically, the facade falling off her face and revealing the true nature of her emotions.

“Oh, of course not!” She cries, placing her hands over Eiichi’s shoulders and rattling him gently to emphasize her frustration “We finally got the 3 of them to go out on Halloween! It was the perfect time to dress them up in matching costumes!!"

To say that your mother had been dreaming of this moment since she started a family with your father, would be an understatement. 

She always loved the idea of forming a family of her own, having kids, raising them, watching them grow and become successful on their own… overall, she yearned for a domestic life.

There was one thing that she looked forward to particularly the most, however, and that was partaking in celebrations together, such as Halloween.

It wouldn’t be the first time she'd seen either of her children in costumes, of course. She’d dressed Ren, Hinata, and you before on each 31’st of October for as long as she can remember.

But this was the first time her 3 kids would be actively going out together, so it was only natural that she wanted to show them off! Thus, she prepared herself accordingly for their costumes, taking inspiration from none other than one of her favorite artists.

For your older brother Ren, she'd gotten a custom made black tuxedo with a white undershirt, black bowtie, black dress shoes, and of course, the iconic baggy crystal socks that would pull the whole look together— although your mother knew that Ren's charming smile would be the one to do the job.

Moving onto Hinata, Minako would go a bit bold and get the head-to-toe leather outfit, decorated with a wide array of belts and buckles that would jingle whenever she moved, all while making sure it remained both stylish and comfortable enough for her courageous daughter to keep on adventuring— but even if the seamstress didn't manage to mix these two factors, Minako knew that this wouldn’t stop Hinata from doing what she wanted.

And finally, you. Your mother had gone for another two piece suit, but contrary to Ren's, yours was to be white. You'd also wear a black shirt for contrast, but matching a black belt. A golden handkerchief tucked in the coat's pocket to accessorize, and lastly, but not least, a plushie tiger that would serve as the figurative cherry on top to complete the reference she intended to portray.

Everything was perfectly set in her mind. With clothes and styling ready to go, all that she needed to do was organize a photography session to immortalize this precious moment, which she was already a few steps ahead due to ongoing talks with a photographer she’d found through a friend’s recommendation.

But even with all this preparation, it was never meant to be, for her children had other plans. And always the supportive parent, she decided to put her wishes to the side and make the three happy. 

"I can always do so another day" she reassures to herself "And we could also do something just for the 5 of us. On a day you don’t have to work"

"Ah, don't even remind me." Eiichi groans, forehead furrowed as he reflects on his unlucky night that’s yet to start. 

He’d already set in stone that he was going to accompany his family for trick-or-treating, more than ready to put everything on the line to be there, but an unexpected emergency at work would put a screeching halt to his plans. 

Your father tried getting out of this predicament by appointing someone else to take care of this problem, but since the corporate world doesn’t really care about western celebrations, as well as him being the main head of the company, he had to set an example and oversee the issue personally.

Sometimes, he just can’t help but feel that life is playing a twisted game with him—but all things considered, that’s only your father being dramatic as usual.

"You don't know how awful it feels to be away from my family on this important night” he deplored, looking down to the ground.

"I can imagine… but don't fret, dear. I’ve already prepared myself with the best available camera to take pictures!” Miano exults, eyes sparkling with unparalleled enthusiasm. “Leave it all to me!...”

She then takes his hand, giving him a coy smile.

“And who knows, maybe I’ll give you a consolation prize”

Eiichi blushes. Even after all these years together, she still manages to fluster him.

“I—I’d like that” he sheepishly admits, and Minako can’t hold herself from pecking his lips, a gesture that she would’ve prolonged had they not started to run late by now. 

“But for now we have to check if the kids are ready! I told Tomoko-san that we would be meeting up at the village and I don’t want to make her wait!” Minako points out.

“Ah, yes, of course” Eiichi nods as he lifts his wrist to look over to his watch, relief washing over him upon realizing they’re still over an hour and a half away before their meeting time. But if he considered ETA to the village, which was around 20 minutes, and if the kids weren’t ready… “Looks like we still have time, but we gotta hurry the kids if we wanna be there before her at least”

“Let’s go then”

Minako and Eiichi rush through the familiar path leading to the living quarters as they greet the many servants that saluted them back, without relenting their speed.

After a few minutes, the couple finds themselves only a few yards away from the area where they know their children are getting ready. They slow down to regain their breath, and Eiichi takes this moment to voice one of his many, many concerns for tonight.

"I'm glad Naobito isn’t coming" Eiichi begins “Can’t imagine the way he’d ruin this night for us”

“I know, I know” Minako attempts to soothe his unjustified anxiety, for he already knew it would only be Tomoko and her boys. 

However, just as he’s capable of uncovering her hidden intentions through her words, she’s competent enough to do the same. And by the way he decided to bring up this topic seemingly out of nowhere while unwittingly tensing his shoulders, she knows he’s been holding back something possibly out of fear, and it’s in her duties to ease him by reminding him that he can trust her, and everything will be fine.

“Just think about the kids and their fun. Besides, you know Tomoko-san would never put our children in harm's way”

“...I know. I'd trust her with my life, but you know Tomoko has never been my concern… I… I just don’t like the fact that a bunch of boys are going to be around my baby girls! And when I'm not there!!”

And there it is. The other reason as to why he'd been so on edge about this whole ordeal once it was revealed the Zen'in kids would attend. 

Sure, he disliked Naobito and worried non-stop when the prospect of his presence was up to debate, but now that that matter was settled, his mind couldn't wait to jump onto another topic to torture himself with—it was just his nature.

Or was it always the main factor behind his initial reluctance…?

Eiichi never held back when it came to voicing just how overprotective he was when it came to his children, a sentiment that he'd carried ever since Minako revealed to be pregnant for the first time.

A feeling that grew when Ren was born.

Worsening when Satoru began to lurk around the estate whenever he apparently didn’t have anything better to do—unwanted attempts from the elders to cultivate better relationships with other influential clans.

Reaching an all time high when you, the youngest of the family and the last one to leave the nest, started going to school.

Growing in a society where men were not expected to contribute in the domestic part of marriage, Minako was glad that Eiichi was very involved and protective of his family, even going as far as to perceive it as cute. 

But having gone through this ordeal many times without anything major happening, she’s starting to believe that perhaps his concerns are leaning more into the irrational side of things.

Eitherway, your mother assumes she can’t be too harsh on him, considering that the Zen’in kids were boys in their totality, a fact that led Eiichi to hyperfocus on you and your sister. 

Had they been girls, Ren would be the recipient of his attention—same story, different protagonists.

“I only agreed to this because you wanted and… well, Ren is also going and I trust him to keep them away from our daughters!” he goes on.

“They’re not going to do anything, Eiichi" Minako reiterates, feeling guilty that her husband was unfairly dumping a non-corresponding responsibility on his oldest son on a night that was supposed to be fun. One that he should take to relax as well! "They’re going to be fine, besides, they’re too young to be thinking about girls or boys! Look at our babies, the only thing they’re looking forward to is getting candy!”

Finding no point to debate, Eiichi concedes with a soft “I guess so…” 

Because if there was one thing that always helped him calm down when stress was eating him alive, was his wife’s candid nature.

Minako was never one to lie… At least of important matters, because he's caught her one too many times engaging in late night snacking when she was supposed to be sleeping, or binging through the tapes of recorded episodes from the shows they were supposed to watch together, but that's a topic for another time.

So, without anything else to bring to the table, the conversation arrives at a swift end. And just as they arrived at the room their children were in, quickly identified as Hinata’s room thanks to the sunflower stickers placed around the frame

Eiichi steps forward and steadily grasps the shoji door open, revealing the following sight:

Just by the vanity table on the far right of the room, a readied Hinata was looming over you with the intention of helping you into your clothes, asking you to place your hands on her shoulders as she extended the bottom part of your attire for you to slide your feet in. 

You tried to fight her off, reminding her that you were more than capable of dressing up yourself, but Hinata heard no reasoning, not when she wanted you to look as perfect as possible. Demonstrating just how excited she was for going out with you on halloween for the first time ever.

Across from the girls, on the other side of the room, sat Ren by the edge of the futon, already in costume, patiently waiting for his sisters to finish.

He actually tried to help you too, but Hinata, being the type of person who liked to do everything herself, ended up pushing him aside.

Not wanting to waste his energy on something he knows he won’t be able to change, Ren decides to let this go and instead focus on distracting himself by playing with the edges of his sleeves until it was time for their parents to pick them up—all while keeping an attentive eye on his sisters if anything rises to the occasion.

Too engrossed in their respective activities, neither of the kids failed to acknowledge the presence of their parents, who were already inside the room. That is, until Minako closes the door a bit too loud which causes them to snap their heads in their direction.

“Mom! Dad!” With a toothy grin adorning her lips, Hinata is the first one to greet “We’re almost done!! I just need to get Y/N-chan ready, get my hat, and we’re ready!”

“And a jacket" Minako says upon noticing her daughter to be wearing a basic light blue colored dress t-shirt underneath a navy blue vest; to make matters more surprising, the shirt is not even the one she got custom made for her, the one with long sleeves and thermal fabric to provide warmth during a cold autumn evening. 

Where did Hinata even get this?

«I'm 100% sure it was Sumire's mom» Minako rightfully assumes. «And I can already see how it happened. Hina-chan probably used her puppy eyes to get her this shirt instead… I really have to tell them to stop pampering my kids!»

"But mom… nobody is going to get what I'm dressed as if I’m wearing the other one" Hinata whines, but Minako is stronger than Sumire's mother when it comes to resisting her adorable pouts and thus, does not relent.

"No. You're going to get sick, besides, the jacket is also in the official uniform so I assure you everyone is going to know what you’re dressed as" 

“Justice will keep me warm!” Hinata retaliates, and Minako just laughs.

“Alright, officer” Eiichi chuckles, going ahead to retrieve the jacket hanging from the nearby closet and handing it over to her  “You still have to wear it”

“...Fine” Hinata sighs, taking the jacket from her dad’s hands and wearing it once and for all. Once ready, your sister immediately springs back to aiding you, but before she’s able to grasp the slider from your zipper, your father steps in.

“I’ll take it from here, Hinata. Go help mom get the rest of the things instead” he gestures over to Minako and Hinata nods.

“...Ok dad!” Ren concludes that the only people capable of swaying Hinata away from her determination are their parents, wondering if that’s a skill that could be harbored one day as he’s being pulled towards their mom by her younger sister.

Once by their side, Minako places her hands behind their backs and gently guides them out of the room, giving one last glance back to her husband before stepping out.

“See you at the entrance, dear” She says, and with that, she closes the door.

No longer hearing their distant footsteps, Eiichi glimpses back at you to immediately notice something… peculiar.

“Why are you making that face?” he asks, proceeding to kneel down to your eye-level. At this height, he’s able to take a better look at your curious face and he can’t stop a chuckle from bubbling past his lips: brows pressed together, eyes shut tight and lips pressed into a thin line, all whilst standing perfectly still, you were the epitome of concentration that undeniably contrived from Hinata’s influence.

“Hina-chan told me to not move or I would ruin my costume” You disclose “Don’t talk to me papa, I don’t want to mess my costume!”

“That’s not really necessary” He corrects, moving a strand of hair away from your forehead and threading it behind your right ear “Breathe, Y/N. You’re turning blue”

And as if by command, you deflate before him with a deep exhale, a reaction that earns you a warm smile and a pat on the head from him.

Now that you’re comfortable, he goes ahead and performs the last adjustment on your costume by pulling your zipper all the way to the top.

“There, it’s done” Eiichi informs, standing up in hopes of getting a better look at you and catch any details he might’ve missed. “How do you feel? Comfortable? Cold? Itchy? Or do you maybe want to wear something else? Mama has another—”

“No!” Your cry, shaking your head and putting an abrupt halt to his redundant barrage of questions. Because just as your parents and siblings were excited to have this night out with you, you too wanted it to be as perfect as possible, under your own terms!  “I want to wear this one!” 

“Alright, alright” he concedes, raising his hands as a sign of surrender “I just want to make sure you’re not cold on your first night trick-or-treating”

“I’m not cold” You confess, in fact, you don’t even think it possible considering you were wearing the two long-sleeved shirts mom had given you to wear underneath your onesie, as if the latter wasn’t made of polar fleece already.

A preemptive strategy Minako was astute to take, for she was all too familiar with your tendency of running cold throughout the night. And she couldn’t call herself a good mother if she let you go out underdressed, could she?

But how about overdressing? 

Eiichi didn’t need to pry further beyond your red cheeks to understand he’d asked the wrong question.

“Are you running hot?”

You press your lips together once more and hum, permission enough for him to ease from you cotton constraints.

“Is that better?”

“Yes” you nod, and now that you’re free of the shackles of warmth, you’re finally able to focus on what’s keeping you filled with emotion “I want candy!! Candy! Candy! Candy!”

“Someone’s excited to go trick-or-treating” He smiled, holding you carefully before lifting you up to his chest “If there’s nothing more I need to do, let’s go meet mama and your siblings”

“Trick-or-teething!” you cheered again, wiggling your arms in the air.

“Treating” He corrected.

“Teething”

“Treating”

“Teething”

You frown out of confusion, failing to understand why your father was correcting you for saying the world correctly—or so you perceived.

He’d continue to insist a few more times, stopping only at the sight of his wife and children by the car. 

It’s only then that he realized this was a fruitless endeavor, for even after all his attempts, you’d continue to pronounce treating as you could.

However, he didn’t let this fact place much weight in his mind, for he knew that this was an issue that would resolve itself with time. Nothing more than a pet peeve of the moment that he wouldn’t allow to distract him from his beloved family any longer.

So once everything is accounted for and the group is safely secured inside the car, Eiichi turns on the engine and drives onto their next destination.

“We’re here!” Minako sang once the bright lights of the village became clear on the horizon. It’s a tune that efficiently snaps the children’s attention to her, prompting the same energy she presented once their eyes fell on the same view.

“Are you excited Y/N-chan?!” Hinata turns over to you, securely seated between your siblings. Any big family would understand the unspoken agreement of the youngest sitting in the middle, and while it never usually lingered in your attention, there were times you’d want to switch sides with your siblings just so you could see what’s outside—like today.

“Yes!!” You say, wiggling your short legs in the air as you stretch your neck to see past Hinata and outside the window, only to be disappointed when all that received you was the astounding darkness of the countryside. “Mama, how much longer until we get there?”

“Just a few minutes” Eiichi answers instead, occasionally glancing into the rearview mirror to awe at the excitement of his children, only to frown upon sensing  a growing commotion behind him thanks to the thumping on the back of his seat, courtesy of a cheeky Ren.  “Hold on to your seats until we park, kids. Or I won’t let you get off the car”

The warning he issues is enough to calm them down into the manageable level of stifled giggles and hushed whispers. He wanted them to be enthusiastic, of course, but not at the expense of his driving.

And just as he forecasted, it wouldn’t take long before the paved road transformed into one of dirt, noticeable by the change in sound coming from the tires, signaling their arrival to the village.

Eiichi drove deeper and deeper into the village, wanting to get them as close as possible to the meeting point, a small grocery store located on the main street, just between a pharmacy and a coffee shop. 

Eventually finding a parking spot, your father parks and turns off the engine.

The noise of the motor quieting down is the only cue the children needed to unfasten their seatbelts, with Hinata helping you to unbuckle yours and subsequently getting out of the car, before sprinting towards the trunk. All this with such an impressionable speed that didn’t even allow their parents to formally announce their arrival.

“Daaaaad, open the trunk!!” Hinata says while perilously pressing the button placed on the trunk’s handle, further denoting her desperation, much to Eiichi’s agony “daaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD!!!”

“Hold on, sunflower. You know papa doesn’t like it when you do that to his car” Minako reminds as she walks towards them, to which Hinata immediately retracts her hand, shame on her face as she pouts a muted “I’m sorry”

“Just be careful” Eiichi echoed as he unlocked the trunk and pulled the hatch open “I know how excited you are to go out with your sister and brother, but just remember to be a bit more… calm, when Tomoko-san is here with her kids, alright?”

He knows it’s a running joke between him and his wife to announce how much he dislikes Naobito and what not… but he’s still competent enough to understand that his children are a separate identity from him. They were also Tomoko's children, and he wouldn’t like it if his children added more to her already full plate by being rude.

That doesn’t mean he’s not going to encourage her to raise hell if any of them decides to do something funny towards them, he’s just asking her to be a bit more… considerate when they’re around.

“Ok…?” Hinata and Ren confusedly look at each other, finding his warning to be a bit unnecessary… for they had no issues with Tomoko, whom they’d grown to admire due to her amazing storytelling, cooking, and kindness, so they wouldn’t even dream of insulting her!!

Her children, however, they’re something else. In fact, there’s one kid in particular your siblings are desperately hoping he wouldn’t be able to attend… but that’s an answer that will only reveal itself once they’re here.

For now, they’ll focus on getting their baskets out of the trunk.

“Thank you, Ren-nii” You smile as you take the basket from his grasp. Being too short to reach into the compartment, less when most of the items were located on the far side of the same, left you in an unwanted predicament of needing help. Thankfully, your older brother being the taller of the 3, was able to jump into your aid, just like he always did when things were out of reach for either.

“You’re welcome, sis” he says, giving you a smile of his own, making your grin grow even wider.

“Where did you tell Tomoko to meet up again?” Eiichi asks as he looks at their surroundings, realizing there’s nobody there yet. A fear of having mistaken her directions begins to creep in the back of his mind.

“Just outside this store” Minako gestures to the convenience store as she takes out her phone. She didn't want to voice it out loud, but seeing her husband’s worried reaction has caused her to feel the same, forcing herself to alleviate this uncertainty by reviewing their past messages, or checking if she’d received any new ones.

Her shoulders relax upon realizing there are no new unread messages on her notification center that might imply they’re in the wrong location, however, the clock did inform that Tomoko was running late, and these two factors often led the sender to imagine the worst possible scenarios.

“I’ll just text her we’re here then” Minako informs, unlocking her cell phone and typing a quick, straightforward we're here, before sending it.  “Done. Let’s wait over here in the meanwhile”

“Alright” Eiichi gathers the children and leads them away from the store’s entrance, so as to avoid blocking the path of oncoming traffic, which really didn’t complain much about, too focused on greeted the people they quickly recognized as the leaders of the L/N clan, as well as complimenting their children’s costumes.

“I wonder what kind of candy we’re getting this year” Hinata ponders, looking back to last year's successful harvest, which she’d naturally shared with you. “I wouldn’t mind getting more lemon gum so I can give them to Satoru and see his ugly face twist” she darkly chuckles.

“That’s weird, Hinata” Ren twists his mouth in disapproval, why did Hinata have to be so weird with Satoru? “Anyways, what about you, sis? What kind of candy do you want to get on your first Halloween out?”

And so, you begin to think: first remembering the pumpkin lollipop your father gave you, before moving onto your mother’s pumpkin and chocolate candy, back when they were trying to bribe you into going out tonight.

But as much as the seasonal flavors were delectable to your tongue and wouldn’t mind getting more… none stood a chance against your all time favorite.

“I want mo—”

“Oh, look who it is!” Minako’s shrills as a familiar black car passes before them, the noise pausing your and your siblings' conversation in favor of seeking their mother “It’s Tomoko-san, she’s finally here!”

“Wait a…” Eiichi whispers upon catching two peculiar observations: first, the size of the car which he considers to be unsuitable for a family of 8. Second, the person sitting on the driver’s seat, a foreign face that would later have him boiling with anger once recognized.  «Seriously? Naobito couldn’t even bother dropping them off himself?»

His worries would eventually switch recipients when the luxurious car comes to a full stop just a few feet away from them, with the door swinging open to reveal the first attendant of the night, the eldest of her children— 14 year old Naoaki.

“Naoaki-kun! Over here!” your mother sang as she waved at the teenager, who grinned in turn before turning back and helping his mom and his youngest brother, a 7 year old Naoya, out of the car. 

The small boy wasn’t too keen on this action though, evident by the way he sulked past his brother’s offering hand and darted straight to his mother’s side.

“Come on, let’s receive them!” Minako urges towards her family.

“Uh, honey… are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Eiichi says, taking the lead and guiding the children right behind her.

“Eiichi, don’t start now”

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry! I hope I didn’t make you wait that long…” Tomoko breathes as she rushes towards your group while pulling the hand of her youngest. “I had to make a few stops, but we’re finally here!”

“It’s nice to see you again, Tomoko-san. But… aren’t you missing half of your entourage?” Eiichi acknowledges the elephant in the room, glancing over to her two out six children, and while it’s nothing more than an innocent, genuine question from his part, it’s his wording that has Minako swiftly elbowing him as a form of reprimanding. “Ow!”

“Oh, that’s fine” Tomoko chuckles, dismissing her friend’s worry by following up Eiichi’s statement “I wasn’t counting on you two to not notice I’m missing 4 boys for tonight”

“You were thinking it too, Minako” Eiichi jests back, and she rolls her eyes while smirking.

“Yeah, but I would’ve said it differently” Minako says  “Anyways, is everything ok?”

“I wish” Tomoko sighs “Naofumi wasn’t feeling that well for the past few days, so it’s only right that I didn’t bring him along. As for the rest… well, you know how siblings are, if one of them says no, it’s more than likely that the others will mirror them”

“Tell me about it” Your mother agrees with a chuckle “But that’s awful, what does he have? Is he ok?”

“Do you need medicine? We can help you with that” Eiichi offers. Your parents could only imagine what poor Naofumi is going through, always the feeble one… it’s terrible that of  nights, he had to get sick on this one.

“Oh, thank you, but it’s fine. Naobito already covered everything. Still, I wish I could’ve stayed behind to take care of him… but I don’t think it would be fair for those that wanted to come” Tomoko responds, nudging towards the small boy beside her, whom she smiles warmly at once he glances up at her “Junko-san insisted on helping me out, to which I rejected profusely since she’s pregnant and I didn’t want her to get any more stress than necessary… but that’s stubborn Junko-san to you…”

“How could I forget that!” Your mother gasps, clasping her hands together “That’s wonderful! And after all that she had to struggle… She deserves this happiness. Tomoko-san, you need to tell me everything!”

“Umm…as much as I would’ve liked the two of you to keep talking… I think there’s some small matters to tend to” He says, referring to the pairs of eyes that were tensely looking at them, as if telling them to hurry up so they can get candy.

He hated playing devil’s advocate and having to rush the two good friends who were only catching up after not seeing each other for a while, but if they wanted to participate in all the activities planned for that evening, they would have to adhere to the schedule.

Besides, he too had to leave in a matter of moments if he was to get to work on time as well.

“I also have to leave in a bit” Eiichi eventually reveals, much to Tomoko’s surprise.

“What? You’re not staying?” She gasps, a noise that pushes the already settled seeds of guilt deeper into his chest.

A statement he was genuinely afraid to communicate, for it meant finally informing his children that he would be absent. Eiichi wanted to keep this fact a secret for as long as he could, in hopes of avoiding a sourful reaction from appearing on his kid’s faces, but that was nothing more than wishful thinking.

However, he didn’t count on the shattering of his heart, that is, until he heard your soft voice speaking up in the representation of your and your sibling's thoughts.

It’s time to face the lights.

“You’re not staying… papa?”

“No, little one, I gotta go to work” he says crouching down to your level “Something came up and I gotta go fix it”

“…Can’t someone else go?” you debate. “I don’t want you to leave”

“No, it’s something that I have to do personally” He apologizes, but his words do nothing to alleviate the overwhelming feeling both are feeling for his departure. And upon noticing this, Minako steps in.

“Papa is very important in his job, so there are things that only he can do” Your mother explained. “That’s why he has to be there”

You give her words a few seconds of thought, doing your best to process what it meant to be the only person who would do a certain job; or your father’s importance at his company. But it still didn’t make sense to you. Couldn’t someone else’s dad go instead of yours?

“…I guess” you eventually relent, feeling the hopelessness of nothing changing even if you tried. You would come to understand this situation with time, but it wouldn’t make it any less upsetting. “But don’t take too long! Or you won’t get candy!” 

“I certainly won’t give you candy” Hinata says as she crosses her arms. She’s acting indifferently, but Eiichi knows that deep inside, it’s only a facade to hide how hurt she truly felt.

“I’ll think about it” Ren shrugs, and just like his daughter, it’s an act to hide the fact that they’re going to miss him.

“Well, how about you save some for me, hmm?” He asks, gently tapping your nose with his index finger, a gesture that has you scrunching your face, but immediately folding to his request.

“Ok, but I’ll only give you the ones I don’t like” You compromise, extending your little finger “Pinky promise!!”

“Fair trade” he agrees, intertwining his finger with yours, an adequate exchange for having to miss out on spending time with his kids, or so he assumes. “But promise me something, that you’ll have fun even if I’m not here—and that you’ll let your mother take pictures!” Eiichi says, now referring to all of his children.

You, Hinata and Ren nod in agreement. Eiichi was about to stand up to get ready for his departure, but your tackle of a hug stops him from doing so. A sight that causes Tomoko and Minako to awe in adoration.

Eiichi melts into your hug as long as he can before having to regretfully pull himself away from your short arms and onto the rest of his kids, who were seemingly hesitant to accept his hugs, but didn’t move away until he did.

He’d then approach his wife to give her a kiss on the lips and a hug as well. A gesture to show his overwhelming love for her, of course… but accompanied by ulterior motives.

“Pleasepleaseplease take lots of pictures, until you run out of film if necessary!—but don’t take any of the boys! I don’t want them in the family album with our babies” He whispers against her ear, low enough to avoid Tomoko’s ears, but clear enough for Minako to roll her eyes in incredulity—Eiichi being dramatic, yet again “Please”

“Eiichi, relax. Just go do your work and let me worry about the photos” she kisses again, placing her hand over his cheek and caress him in reassurement “Good luck, dear”

“Goodbye Tomoko-san. Please be sure to let Minako know if you need anything” Eiichi offers, before looking to her kids “...Naoya, Naoaki”

“Goodbye, L/N-san” Naoaki responds with a nod “And please don’t stress. I’ll be here to help okaa-san and Minako-san with the kids” 

Eiichi blinks.

He knows it’s not right to have opinions of… kids in general. They’re just children after all, they have yet to grow and mature into capable adults… but he just can’t help it! More so when he’s taken aback by Naoaki’s seemingly reassuring words… 

Which unsurprisingly leads him to misinterpret his intentions to be nothing more than a mockery of his unwanted predicament. And could anyone blame him? He went into this situation already holding preconceived notions about their intentions.

Eiichi was secretly glad that only two of them were able to assist, for it meant that his adorable daughters were out of danger from any unwanted prospects (delusions of a worrisome father), one less burden to carry… at least partially.

Oh, but Naoaki was on another level of concern, far from the realm of his daughters, and onto one of the horrors fellow parents have warned him about: his teens!

Naoaki… well, from a distance, he’s a kid that Eiichi has been able to observe as somewhat calm, even helpful when it comes to supporting his mother… but then, he remembers the quarrels he often has with his brothers, and this overruled whatever was previously stated.

More so because his oldest son is already 10 years old! Meaning that he could start looking up to Naoaki for inspiration!! And if that happened… Oh no… he wouldn’t like for Ren to start having issues with his sisters! Not when they got along so well with one another!! It would literally break his heart to see his family breaking apart…

With that in mind, could anyone blame him for not liking Naoaki either? (Does Eiichi like any of the Zen’in kids?)

Oh, but at this moment in time, all that he can do is hope that his dear Ren is strong enough to look away from the enticing defiance that comes with their teens… and stay on the path of righteousness he and his wife have set before him.

And with nothing else to worry about, and no pending farewells to carry out, Eiich gets into the car and leaves.

With his car out of sight, and the chauffeur retiring for the night, the mother’s are able to move on with their itinerary… but not without doing proper introductions between the groups, 3 of which have already started to attack each other with silly faces to kill time and show their disdain for one another, discreetly enough to avoid getting the attention of the adults, but still holding the same damaging intent.

“Good evening everyone!” Tomoko says, completely unaware of the battle going on between one of her kids and your siblings, for her voice served as a warning for them to put on their best demeanor—an act  that still doesn’t stop Naoya from silently cursing them.

Her beautiful golden eyes—the same ones as Naoya’s and Naoaki’s— proceed to scan each and every face before her, admiring their cute chubby cheeks to the point where she wants to go ahead and pinch them, but stops herself as to not make them uncomfortable, besides, she already has an lovable 7 year old to dote on, so she isn’t sacrificing much.

So instead, she moves on to admire similarities to their parents, to which Minako is king.

“Aren’t you all adorable? It’s been a while since I’ve last seen you, you’re all so grown up…” she notes, moving closer to the children.

“Thank you, Tomoko-san! It’s nice to see you again, I’ve actually grown 3 inches since we last saw each other!” Hinata boasts, standing up proudly as to show off her height.

“I think I’ve remained the same, officer” Tomoko chuckles, a playful jab to Hinata’s costume “I definitely feel safer with you around”

“At your service” She bows. Naoaki holds back a stifled chuckle, amused by your sister's commitment to her role.

Fortunately, his gesture remains overtly neglected in preference to Naoya's eye-rolling response, which she managed to catch just at the last second through the corner of her eye. It’s only when Tomoko moves onto Ren that your sister retaliates by sticking her tongue out, much to Naoya’s offense.

“Now, you’re definitely taller than what I remember” She says, placing her hand above his head and shuffling his hair. Ren remains quiet. “And you’re… a skeleton, right? It’s pretty cool… and surprisingly accurate! Your makeup is amazing as well!”

“Thank you, Tomoko-san.” he nods, feeling appreciative of her compliment of his handiwork in the makeup department “And yes, I’m a skeleton that glows in the dark, but you can’t see it right now because of the light” 

“No way!” She gasps, inching closer to admire the fluorescent paint “And you had all this custom made, Minako-chan?!”

“I told you, the seamstress I found is impressive” she grins proudly “Maybe we can get something fitted for ourselves in the future”

“I’ll hold you to that!”

Naoaki can’t help but cringe at his mother’s implication of wanting to participate in Halloween—was she really considering dressing up? Wasn’t that like… a kids thing? Oh, but knowing her… she just might.

Anyways, wanting to maintain his sanity, he doesn’t pry any further.

And finally, it’s Tomoko’s time to move on to you.

“And you, little Y/N. You’re growing too fast!” she exclaims “You were like what… 4 years old when I last saw you? Stop growing already!”

You don’t respond outside of a whine when Tomoko decides to finally indulge in her desire and pinch your cheeks.

“Now, what are you dressed up as?” she asks, raising an eyebrow as she fails to recognize the pair of red eyes and shining white grin printed on the hood of your onesie.

“Gengar!” you exclaim, but Tomoko remains clueless as ever, causing you to frown and press your lips together in disappointment. 

She’d be the nth person that night that doesn’t get what you’re dressing up as… but not to her oldest son, who steps in prompted by familiarity.

“Oh, from Pokemon, right?” Naoaki observes, and the disappointment you were reeling in flies out the window when you realize there’s actually someone out there who finally understands what you’re dressed up as!

“Yes!” you say with the biggest grin your lips permits you to do, a picture worthy smile that makes Minako regret not having her camera out and ready “You like pokemon too??”

“A little” he responds “Cool costume by the way, all of you really”

Hinata and Ren silently thank him for his unforeseen compliment, wanting to limit their interaction with him as much as possible due to his relation to Naoya, contrasting your decision of sticking to his side for the rest of the night to partake in more conversations of your favorite videogame.

“I don’t know who Gengar is, but you sure look scary!” Tomoko says, giving one last pinch to your cheeks before walking back to her children’s side “Good work, everyone. You all have really good costumes, and I’m sure you’ll get lots of candy!”

“I’m sure your boys will get lots of candy too, more so if we tell them that it’s Naoya’s first trick-or-treating as well” Minako recalls and Tomoko gasps.

“Oh, right! It’s Y/N’s first trick-or-treating as well!” Tomoko excitedly responds “And in that note… I don’t think either of you have met yet”

It’s time for Hinata and Ren to object… at least in their minds.

They want to step in and clarify that their introduction won’t be necessary for Y/N is never to meet him again, but knowing they held no power over your mother’s decisions, they resentfully limit themselves to stand on the sidelines as they observed their mother guiding you by the hand towards their mortal enemy, the youngest of the Zen’in brothers.

You, on the other side… well, haven’t really given any attention to either of the boys in front of you, outside of Naoaki of course, who you’ve solely become interested in thanks to his apparent knowledge in Pokemon—since both your siblings had other interests, and Satoru, your other friend, was fan of another franchise. A bit too fond perhaps, to the point he’d criticize your preference whenever he could, pushing you to avoid the subject with him all together.

Either way, Naoya had remained under the radar for you, meaning that you were more than fine with greeting him, even open to establishing a friendship, contrary to your fuming siblings who wanted nothing more than to keep him away from you.

But in Naoya’s eyes… you were far from under the radar.

In fact, you two have yet to meet (formally at least, since the first time they met you were nothing more than a toddler, and him being a year older didn’t mean much) but he already knows that he’s going to dislike you.

He hated the reality of becoming acquainted with another L/N kid who was only going to torment him, an assumption he founded due to his broken relation with the insufferable Hinata and mundane Ren.

It wasn’t always like that, of course, they actually got quite well at the beginning.

But when he started to feel comfortable with them, that’s when things got complicated: out of nowhere, Naoya started to show off by belittling them for having better toys than them, nicer shoes, sharper pencils, or even a cooler face. Whatever that might be…

From there, it was a constant battle between the three of who’s better—a fight that Naoya believed to be winning, had he not forgotten that he was going against 2 children, meaning that Ren and Hinata could simply pluck him out of their social circle and keep having fun.

An unexpected change that had him suddenly feeling ignored, much to his surprise, something that he already endured in a household of 6 children, and wasn’t to accept so easily, so he retaliated even harder.

Well, it’s not his fault that your family is too poor to give them the latest toy on the store shelves, or that they have to earn things instead of just asking for them. In his eyes, it was obvious that your siblings were calling him nasty nicknames because they were jealous of him and his status.

And he expects you to be the same.

Thus, when you approach him in a seemingly shy manner, he can’t help but remain unaffected towards you. 

He believes your reaction to be nothing more than an act to appease the adults around them, to fool them with your innocent demeanor and get them to lower their guards, so that when they turn around you’d begin to insult him, just like how Hinata and Ren did as soon as he got out of the car, they even went as far as to mouth how ugly his costume was as soon as they laid eyes on him! 

So what’s taking you so long to do the same?!

He continues to stare at you, hoping to pry the answer out of your face. 

Even when you finally glance up to see him, with those big round mesmerizing stupid eyes of yours, he doesn’t relent in attempting to be intimidating.

The silence between the two kids urges one of the mothers to step in and rush introductions.

“Say hi, Naoya” Tomoko says, nudging her kid closer to you before hissing “don’t be rude”

Naoya frowns.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Naoya Zen’in” He bows, enunciating his last name in a particular way as if to show off the prestige that his family carries.

He briefly glances over to your sister and brother upon seeing the disgust on their faces, which only serves to irk him even further, leading you to be the victim of his reprieve.

Oblivious of the fight between him and your siblings, you blink, remaining silent as you analyze his costume from head to toe. There’s something familiar about his costume but you can’t put your finger on it quite yet… so you just continue to stare at him, unknowingly rubbing Naoya the wrong way.

With your hood partially covering your face, he’s wide open for you to give him one of those typical nasty scowls from Hinata, or uninterested pouts from Ren. So, why are you taking so long?! Finding a way to insult him differently from your siblings maybe?! 

And he’s not the only one to notice your silence, prompting Minako to give you a gentle nudge to speak up, but just as she’s leaning closer to you, something finally dawns on you to talk, giving Naoya an unexpected answer, doubling down with your wide grin and chirping words.

“Wow!! Cool costume!!”

And the world seemed to stop, or that’s how Naoya felt when this happened.

To say that he fumbled his subsequent actions would be an understatement. 

He was straight up speechless when you finally granted him a response—and not any response, a compliment—one outside of his carefully procured script of nasty remarks, leaving him to drench in the feeling he could only describe as the main villain from an anime revealing to the protagonist that he’s only been using a small percentage of his power!—with you being the villain and he the protagonist, of course.

“That’s not your name, Y/N” Minako giggles and you blush out of embarrassment.

“Oh—yeah. I’m Y/N, nice to meet you!” you add nonchalantly before turning back to your mom “Mama, can we get candy now?!” you jump excitedly, a sight that only adds to your unexpected intentions, which Naoya cannot find himself to accept so easily.

He tries to find any deceit behind your words, behind your actions, a follow up to the deceitful play you were putting before the adults to lower their guards.

But by the way you’re so…. Unaware of him, focused entirely on something else, he fails to do so.

But—but how could this be?! You’re related to that arrogant Hinata and gullible Ren, how could you be so different to them if you have the same blood?!

…

…

…

Oh.

Oh.

Like clouds dispersing after a rainy day, he suddenly understands why.

It’s because they’re so insufferable that you’re so different from them! 

There’s no way someone who genuinely appreciated his attire would actually get along with your ignorant siblings. 

Yes, that had to be it. It was only a matter of time before someone from their own family noted how aggravating they were, which means that you and Naoya are more similar than he initially perceived.

This was your way of seeking help, wasn’t it? That’s why you approached him! You resonated with him, ever before getting to know each other. Different from your siblings, you managed to avoid their brainwashing because you just knew he wasn’t as bad as they might’ve hinted!

It’s like that manga… the one that said that powerful users are naturally drawn to each other…? Or however it went. All that Naoya knew was that this was a fated reunion, meant to happen tonight of all nights!! Now that he thinks about it… there was something that was pushing him to go with his mom, and oh, how glad he was to have come!

It doesn’t take much longer for him to declare that he wants to stick by your side for the rest of the night with the intentions of getting to know more of your mysterious nature, completely ignoring any other possibilities, more so the one that had you reacting that way simply because you eventually recognized his costume from one of the shows you watched alongside Ren on Saturday mornings before breakfast, what was it called… Super Sentai?

Naoya was dressed up as the black one, the one that was often considered cooler amongst viewers, just behind the red one. He even had the helmet! And it wasn’t just any kind of costume that a parent might find at a retail store, the amount of detail dictated that it must’ve been a replica of the original. 

Certainly, his commitment (as well as his parent’s willingness to spend that much money on a one-day attire) to the show was to be appreciated.

And that was it. Nothing more, nothing less. 

A compliment brought from genuine fondness, as well as recognition, for the show and what it represented for your brother and you.

But how would 7 year old Naoya come to understand this? Not even Minako’s compliments of her own were enough to make him realize that it was just… that, a compliment. 

Or when you repeated the same phrase onto Naoaki, who kindly informed you that he wasn’t dressed up, he was simply wearing a civilian attire—an black and white tartan shirt, underneath an oversized varsity jacket, and some denim pants to go alongside his white sneakers—much to Minako’s disappointed, who still remembered that curious boy who dressed up as a mummy many, many years ago…

No, not even that would help. 

He’d remain as oblivious as ever as the world went on without him, leaving him behind to be stuck in his mind the echoing sound of your appreciation, believing it to be something else than what it really was.

Maybe after the kids—who started to replicate your sentiment to pressure them forward—were sated, would Naoya come to this conclusion on his own. One could only hope.

“Oh, before we start, let’s take a picture!” Minako suggests, quickly taking out her camera and gesturing to the group to come together so as to fit into the frame “The youngest on the front, please!”

Naoya is quick to glance over to you, the perfect opportunity to stand by your side is enough to fill him with motivation, but just as he was to scurry to your side, your sister is faster, bumping into him and completely blocking you away from him.

Had she been any harsher, she would’ve sent him stumbling down, labeled an accident from an eager sister who wants to be with her youngest sibling.

But Hinata was too cautious to do anything by accident, as evidenced by the devilish grin appearing on her lips as she looked back at Naoya.

“Better luck next time, chump”

Naoya, offended beyond belief, resentfully accepts defeat as he stands besides Hinata instead. He wanted to go over to your other side, but your brother was there instead.

It seems that your siblings had caught wind of Naoya’s new intentions as soon as they became clear in his eyes, and wanting to keep his grubby hands away from you as long as possible, have also set a new mission for them to perform through the rest of the night.

The youngest of the Zen’in children eventually focuses to the front and onto the camera lens, with the straightest, most serious face Tomoko has ever seen that causes her to gesture at him to smile by doing so herself.

He tries his hardest to obey by pulling the edges of his lips up, but his defeat only allows him to give a side smirk—opting to place all his efforts on plotting his revenge instead.

“1… 2… Cheese!” Minako declared, and within seconds, the camera flash beams onto the party.

She has yet to reveal the picture, but she knows that it’ll be one that she’ll look back with fondness, even though Eiichi will probably be more than not upset with her for going against their agreement, but she really couldn’t care! She’s just happy to see her friend again and to be spending time with her family as well as her’s. A fun, exciting night, just as the parents always intended it to be—he had nothing to worry.

Completely ignorant to the fact that Eiichi’s fear of one of the Zen’in kids catching interest on one of their daughters is slowly becoming a reality.

Up to that point, Halloween had been the greatest night of your life—and that wasn’t an exaggeration.

Let’s start by breaking down why.

First, and perhaps the most obvious reason why, the candy. 

Although a bit apprehensive in the very beginning when realizing you actually needed to go up to different doors and request the candy, which only made your timidity skyrocket to the heavens, soon became an inconsequential obstacle once you saw the sweets deposited on your basket.

From there, it was all smooth sailing, to the point you became comfortable enough to be the one to sing the customary trick-or-treat chant— the magical words that summoned the candy guardians to the front gates of their impressively decorated fortress and granting your party a hefty amount of their treasure— which up to that point, had been Naoya’s responsibility, but solely because he wanted to impress you with his “confidence and maturity”, not because he wanted to do so.

The second reason was your company. Naoaki, to be precise. Sure, you enjoyed being with your siblings, even meeting a new friend! But while this could be considered a separate occurrence from Halloween itself, in your mind it made no difference. 

The teenager unwillingly tagged along thanks to his mother's insistence. He attempted to skip this all together by reminding her that he was too old to indulge in these activities and that he also didn’t even bring a costume, so what was the point? 

But Tomoko, having raised 6 rowdy boys, wasn't one to be swayed so easily, so she firmly put her foot down and demanded him to have fun by shoving an extra basket onto his chest.

So, he’s here, much to your conversational delight, and Naoya’s jealous demise.

To your delight, because it meant you could spend more time talking to him about Pokemon! 

Or more like interrogating, for he was the only other person you knew that liked the same thing as you did, and he was much older, so it meant that he must’ve done much more, right? No one in their right mind would pass an opportunity like this!

It gave you the perfect justification to gravitate more towards him, bombarding him with thousands of questions regarding his favorite pokemon, his favorite moment on the T.V. show, or if he’d managed to get one of those evolutions that can only happen via trade.

“I haven’t” you confess “Because I have no one else to play with”

Naoaki didn’t know whether to feel bad for you, or chuckle for how blunt you were being. Well, guilt ended up overwhelming him at the end, prompting him to engage deeper into conversation with you—as well as forcing Naoya to make a mental note to demand his father to buy him a gameboy as soon as he came back home.

This is where Naoya’s demise would step into the picture. 

While you were overtly happy for being able to go out, get candy and meet someone who liked your favorite videogame, Naoya was suffering a hell of his own.

One that pushed him to see your interaction with his brother as some kind of competition: to steal your attention from his idiot older brother, who was completely oblivious of Naoya’s internal conflict, and get it all for himself!

He’s already on a losing streak against Hinata and Ren, so he’s not about to go and lose to his brother as well, the one who had only played pokemon once in his life and immediately dropped it after he got past Misty because it was “too repetitive”!!

He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and yet, you can’t keep away from him! Can’t you see he’s lying through his teeth?!

… And your siblings don’t make it any better.

Naoya might’ve hinted at having bigger tolerance towards them—perhaps because he sees them way less compared to his family, but in reality, they were just as detestable as Naoaki. 

It all started from Hinata and Ren being unhappy at the adults for placing you as Naoya’s partner for the night, the youngest paired together, they justified when confronted by your sister, only for tonight.

An explanation that went over their heads and propelled them to follow on their insurgent mission.

The first to act was Hinata, by cutting off Naoya each time they were done with a house.

You had the tendency of running to your mom to show off what you’ve gotten. Nothing alarming on it’s on, that is, until your sister caught sight of Naoya trailing you like a shadow.

This is where Hinata would step in, imposing herself between your path and his, with a smug smirk on her face that only served to taunt him, forcing the young Zen’in heir to glance over her side, trembling with desperation as he acknowledged her.

“Move, ugly!” Naoya commands, tightening his knuckles while knitting his brows.

“Make me” she dared, and Naoya groaned. It’s surprising how nasty kids can get when determined.

Ren, on the other hand, would pull you by the hand to his and Hinata’s side whenever it was time to move onto the next house. 

His towering height covered you from the mother’s sight to the point that neither suspected you’d gone out of formation. Actions that lead for this endeavor to be successful for the first couple of houses, that is, until Minako eventually noticed Naoya alongside his solitude.

“Ren, let Y/N walk with Naoya-kun” Ren held back a grunt as he freed you from his grasp.

It’s from that point forward that Naoya decided that your mother was to be a trusted ally he could use for future plans. But as much as she’d proved herself to be a powerful piece in this conflict, her actions only granted him a temporary advantage, he had yet to win the war.

In fact, he’s yet to do so much more, for he also realized that he’s barely managed to get in a word with you—and that’s without counting the insistent actions of your siblings and his own brother.

And he doesn’t know why. He’s never struggled before. In fact, he rarely struggles in anything—his family has said so, he’s some kind of genius! 

Well, maybe with his cousin Toji, who he considered the epitome of coolness, has he stammered with his own words. But even then, he’d only done so once or twice. Toji-kun was out of everyone’s league, so it was natural many would be intimidated in his presence. Even his stupid older brother knows not to mess with him!

«Would he approve of you?» Naoya briefly wonders as he glances back at you.

You weren’t like any other of the girls he’d spoken with, or attempted to, before, that’s for sure. 

There’s something about you that constricts his throat to the point where he can only whisper and stare at you, who in turn, greet him back with a cheerful hello whenever grazes cross, only worsening his already strained condition.

Was it because you liked things different from what other girls did? You don’t strike him as the kind of kid that would bother with girly stuff, not when you recognized his Super Sentai costume and you were dressed up as a videogame character. 

You’re already way above them—his equal. Eeh, well, maybe not that far. He still thinks of himself as above everyone else, but you’re up there, just a step below him, but very close to him.

Either way, none of his previous disadvantages managed to discourage him from stopping from doing what he needed to do. 

So when Tomoko and Minako announced it was time for a short break, he knew this would be his moment to seize!

The mothers guided them through a dimly lit path and onto a nearby park which they’d previously agreed on to use to rest in, take a breather, check everyone was ok, get something to drink and/or eat, before continuing.

It’s at this moment that Tomoko would reveal why she was late in the first place: she had to pick up the bottles of water and snacks she’d promised Minako she would bring (as sign of gratitude for preparing all of this for their children) for them to consume if any got thirsty or hungry—it was tempting to just reach into their respective baskets and eat the candy they collected, but until they were safely searched through and cleared of any unwanted objects, none of the kids were permitted to eat them. 

Besides, sprinkling a bit of fruits and vegetables here and there could do no wrong if they were already going to indulge in sugar.

“Is anyone hungry? Thirsty?” Tomoko asks, unzipping her backpack and taking out various small bottles of water which she placed on the nearby table. “Or does anyone want to go to the restroom instead?” 

“I’ll take one” Naoaki says and his mother hands him the one in her grasp ‘Thanks”

Minako moves closer to her friend, intending to grab one for herself and her children, when suddenly, a current of cold air lands on his back, traveling through every centimeter of her spine, resulting in a shiver that has her freezing on the spot.

“Ugh, that was… awful” Minako complains through gritted teeth while rubbing her hands against her arms. Her desperation to warm up takes her to look back to the nearby coffee shop she’d eyed moments earlier, her face brightening up when a new suggestion crosses her mind “I know, do you guys want to get something warm?” 

“No, thank you” you shake your head, still buried in the warm layers your mother and father buried you underneath. Hinata and Ren mirror your answer with a nod of their own. Naoaki gestures as his bottle before politely rejecting her offer, and Naoya keeps quiet.

“What about you, Tomoko?” Minako now looks at her, who is currently opening a bottle of water and handing it over to Naoya.

“I think I’ll have a coffee” She responds “I’m already getting a bit sleepy and we still have the rest of the night to go through”

“Rough night, hm?” Minako jests and Tomoko blushes.

“Stop it, I’m just worried for Naofumi, that’s all”

“He’ll get back on his feet before you know it, don’t worry. Worry instead about how you want your coffee so I can go get it”

“Oh, there’s no way I’m going to let you pay for it!” Tomoko yelps, hand reaching inside her backpack and taking out her wallet “Tell me what you want and I’ll get it”

“Haha, that’s funny” Minako teased, jolting away from Tomoko’s hand, which she frequently presented to offer her card “But no, stay here with the kids, I’ll pay it”

“Minako” Tomoko warns.

“Tomoko” the other replicates.

“I swear if you don’t—”

“Mom, L/N-san, why don’t you both go? I mean, I have no issue looking after the kids for a while” Naoaki interrupts, hoping that his serene solution will bring peace to the bickering he was never fond of. 

“Are you sure, Naoaki-kun?” Minako asks with hesitation, for she doesn’t want to dump him with 4 children as much as she finds accompanying Tomoko very endearing. “I don’t want to overwhelm you”

“Don’t worry about it, I have 5 siblings, there’s nothing they can do to scare me” 

«We’ll see about that» Naoya thinks as he crumples his now empty bottle of water.

“Besides, mom hasn’t seen you in a while” Naoaki sheepishly adds, scratching the back of his head “and I… like seeing her happy”

Tomoko’s lips part into a heart warming smile at her son’s gentleness. Always the attentive one, she’s proud to have raised a good natured kid like him.

So, after the women and Naoaki go through all the things they’ve brought in case of an emergency—which they doubt will happen, since they’re only going a few yards away, but a mother can never be too sure!—and asking for a second time if any of them want something (to which they reject once more) they depart.

Tomoko was still somewhat hesitant of leaving them behind, worried that someone might attempt to do something against’ them, a natural concern to have in a village she’s yet to become acquainted with, but Minako squashes her burdens by reassuring her there was nothing to worry about, for she’d chosen this neighborhood specifically for how safe and calm it was known to be.

“Maybe we should worry about our kids disobeying Naoaki” the two joked instead as they kept walking towards the store.

And once out of sight, Naoaki makes haste to turn around and start tending the group.

“So… how’s the night treating all of you?” he asks awkwardly, unsure how to start to distract them.  “Do you want something to eat? Drink…?”

Sure, he’s had plenty of experience dealing with children… who coincidentally were his siblings… 

He doesn’t presume he can treat Minako’s children the same as he’d done with his siblings, but … well, it must count for some kind of experience, right? And he did make a promise he intended to keep.

However, it's safe to say that he’s never been this intimidated before. Certainly not by a child whos unimpressed face made him question why he even agreed to this: Hinata being the subject in question

It’s almost as if she’s sensing his fear by the way she’s intently staring at him with a piercing gaze that tells him he’s performing a terrible job and that he should let a professional handle this, like her, unless he wants to make a fool out of himself.

So, after a few seconds of intense critiquing and intimidation, Hinata steps in.

“Alright, baskets on the table” Hinata asserts, acting as the first example before starting to dig through her mountain of sweets “This is our moment to switch candies if there’s something we don’t like before our mother’s come back, so we have to be quick about”

Taking this as an opportunity to finally socialize with you, Naoya makes haste to move onto your side, but just as he’s stepping closer to you, Ren abruptly cuts him off, again, by placing his own basket on the spot next to yours.

The young Zen’in shoots him a dangerous glare, but the oldest of the L/N family pays him no mind as he digs through his own candy, as if this had been nothing more than an innocent coincidence, which makes Naoya scoff as he now moves onto his side.

“Someone gave me a sweet potato” Ren confides, pulling the culprit out of his basket and placing it on the middle of the table, subsequently causing all of the group to quizzically stare at it.

“Hahaha, what the hell??” Naoaki is the first to react to the bizarre sight. It’s so comical, he can’t believe someone actually gave kids a goddamn vegetable instead of candy! “That’s worse than raisins—might as well given you nothing”

Unfortunately none of the kids respond to his comment, and the silence between the group and him only pushes him deeper into the ocean solitude he’d been drowning in since he was left in charge of them.

Well, it’s expected. The only one of the group that seemed to like him was you and that was solely for your shared interest in pokemon, which if he had to be completely honest… he didn’t like that much. But he wasn’t to go and break your heart like that. So he’d just remain quiet and let you enjoy your sweets.

“Anyways” Ren circles back everyone's attention to him “You seem to have gotten a lot of the candies you wanted, Hinata”

“Yesssss” She cheered, grabbing a handful of the lemon candies beginning to envision herself torturing Satoru “But I also got a lot of these” She says, now referring to the different colored bunches of hi-chew’s she placed alongside her weapon “Didn’t you like them, Y/N-chan?”

“Nope” you shake your head, hand still stuck in your basket as you search for a candy wrapper that caught your attention just moments ago “I like chocolate more, and mochi too!” you inform, finally pulling out the candy you were looking for with a grin… only to realize it wasn’t what you believed. “But I didn’t get any mochi at all” 

Maybe mochi isn’t traditionally given during these seasons?

And like clockwork, a Naoya that has been desperate for an opportunity to portray himself a charming prince of sorts and charm you with his generosity, takes this moment to finally, once and for all!! To step in and get the spotlight on him.

“What kind of chocolate do you like, Y/N?” Naoya asks confidently (or so he believes his voice to have sounded), looking straight at you. You blink, diving into deep thought as you pouted, debating which out of all the chocolates you tasted were the best. There’s too many that you like, but if there’s one that you like the most, it would have to be—

“Well! If there’s something you don’t like, you can give them to me” Hinata yelps, pulling out a bag of the colorful candy and placing it in the middle, just beside Ren’s tragic sweet potato. “I trade you these hello kitty strawberry marshmallows for those lemon candies”

Naoya groans at another interrupted attempt, loud enough for Naoaki to glance at him and ask him if there was anything wrong, to which the youngest simply scoffed as a response. 

And you, too focused on the exchange before you, didn’t notice anything at all.

“Deal!” You grin. They might not be chocolate, but they’re still pretty good, so you don’t hesitate to switch them from the middle of the table with help of your older brother, and place them into your basket.

The conversation between your siblings seems to go on for a while, from exchanging sweets to rumors of the streets that are hinted to give bigger and better candies. Undeniably, the people that were often considered to be on the rich side of socioeconomic standards, and subsequently, able to afford the good brands.

All this pushes Naoya further and further away from you whenever he tries to chime in, that at one point, he just stops trying.

“Maybe we can convince mom to go there, get a king sized kit kat bar!” Hinata hypes, gently nudging you by the shoulder. A revelation that Naoya takes note to remember well, for if it wasn’t of any relevance, why bring it up? “It’s like the size of 3 bars! Can you imagine that, Y/N-chan??”

…

…

…

Silence.

“Y/N?” Hinata tries again, and once more, you don’t respond to her enthusiasm, at least not the way she expects. Instead, she’s received by a pout and a frown on your chubby face, portraying distress.

“Are… you ok?” She cautioned. Words that are quick to set off  alarms in everyone’s mind.

You lean into Hinata’s ear to whisper.

“Where is mama?”

“She’s still at the coffee shop” Naoaki, who had kept an attentive ear after this upsetting question, finds it appropriate to step in and responds in her stead. “I don’t think she’ll take longer though, is there something you need?”

“No…” you look away, cheeks burning out of embarrassment for having him respond to the question you intended only to be heard by your sister. A gesture that Naoya takes unkindly, for his mind believes Naoaki did so with the intention to shame you, and after all you gave him…

This might’ve just been his desperation trying to fill the blanks though, for he’s the only one that thinks that. 

Ren and Hinata are on the same page as Naoaki when it comes to worrying for you. They fear that you’re too embarrassed to tell them what you need in the presence of strangers, leaving them stranded in a position of uselessness—something that the teenager was not going to let happen.

“It’s ok, you can tell me” Naoaki reassures you, and it’s only after you see his genuine concern as well as your siblings' comfort, that you finally confess.

“I need to go to the restroom”

“Oh” Naoaki blinks, taken aback by this unexpected revelation. “Uh… I—”

“Why didn’t you tell mom you wanted to go before??” Hinata huffs.

“Don’t talk to her like that, Hinata” Ren disputed.

“Because I didn’t want to go!” your whine back “Where is mama??”

“She’s not going to be here for a while…” Hinata mutters as the frustration to solve this matter plunges her into urgency. Sure, you knew how to handle these types of situations on your own, and when you needed help, mom was always there to step how.

However, she wasn’t there, and to make matters worse, all of them were in a relatively unknown public location, details that only made you feel more uneasy.

But after considering all of this, there’s no way Hinata was going to let you overcome this on your own, or wait for someone else to do so instead… If your older sister allowed it, she would not be living up to the role of the one she’s dressed up as. Or her role in the family!

“I’ll take you” she asserts, glancing over to Ren for approval, which he grants with a nod.

And after getting all the help she needed, retrieving the paper and soap Tomoko had brought along to use just in case, granted by Naoaki, Hinata intertwines her fingers with yours and begins to head over towards the building she guesses to be the nearest public restroom. 

Naoaki offered to take them as close as possible, but your sister, not wanting you to feel any more embarrassed than you already were, asked him to keep a lookout from the table and inform their mom of their location if she was to return first.

The oldest Zen’in never imagined someone so authoritarian could exist in the small body of an 8 year old, but here he was, dumbfounded once more by reality. 

But that observation falls to irrelevancy when it comes to keeping a close eye on the walking girls.

As much as unexpected your little trip to the bathroom had appeared to be, it didn’t really affect much of your enjoyment of Halloween. Sure, it's somewhat inconvenient, more so because you didn’t have your mom by your side in a strange place like this, but you had your courageous sister, and your brave brother looking out for you, instead. 

So you know that once this is dealt with you’ll be on your way to more fun, and more candy too.

Unfortunately, your trip to the restroom was not destined to be as smooth as both would’ve wanted.

Because just as Halloween is a special occasion for children to go out and have fun, there was also another demographic group that intended to do the same. The kind of people that often went above the limits to get a good laugh for themselves through the expense of others.

But that was something that you didn’t register, less when you were having a good time yourself with your family and new friends, which eased you deeper into lowering your guard as you’d continued to walk besides her, hand in hand, towards the nearest public restroom.

In your mind, There was nothing to worry about, nothing to observe, nothing to beware..

Not even the rustling bushes or the reticent whispers coming from the shadows behind it swayed you otherwise. 

A compromise that you were not aware that you needed to take, but would regret ignoring when the concealed figures established their outrageous appearance as soon as you and your sister were within grasp.

“AAAAH!!”

It all happened in a blur, too fast to recount with detail. Where the girls once enjoyed their peaceful yet essential stroll, now stood petrified at the ghastly presence of the different horror figures appearing just from the darkness and out of the bushes:

A pale ambiguous creature with long dark hair and bloodied lips, a red skinned demon with black horns and long fangs ending just beneath it’s chin, and lastly but not least, another pale skinned woman with a gory smile that stretched from ear-to-ear—arms stretched to the sky to enlarge their presence onto their victims whilst releasing a deafening growl that pushed the girls to wail even more.

It’s only then that the teenage perpetrators realized the immeasurable mistake they committed.

“Oh no, nononononono” One of them would lament, quickly retracting their arms back to their side as they frantically look to one another “This wasn’t supposed to happen! We weren’t supposed to scare them!”

But it was too late, for both your sister’s and your cheeks were drenched in tears, evident by the light reflecting against their skin.

“Why didn’t you say something?!” The horned devil snapped back, giving the one in charge of lookouts a sharp smack on the arm “I thought you said it was safe!”

“I—I thought” the wide-smile woman, popularly known as kuchisake-onna, stammered. “I thought I heard footsteps! Like adult footsteps, you know?! How would I know they would be different?!”

“You idiot!!” The first one chastises one last time before glancing back at the sobbing young girls who were now hugging each other as tightly as they could, and softening their voice “H—Hey, kiddo, I’m—I’m sorry we didn’t—”

“Get away from her!” Hinata interrupts with a shrill as she jumps between you and the regretful group, who have now removed their masks to increase the veracity of their apology, show they were just another bunch of stupid teenagers doing a stupid innocent prank, revealing their identities to be of two men and one woman—but it was all for naught for Hinata was never interested in their intentions, she just wanted to protect you, even if she was scared beyond belief herself.

Hoping to appeal to their sorority, the female wrongdoer moves closer to the girls, but the intimidating gaze of a protective older sister squashes their intention before it can even come to full fruition.

Or so that’s what Hinata believes—a wave of confidence engulfing her spirit as she moves you further behind her back and away from their danger, utterly oblivious to the real reason behind their cowering figures, an angered teenager briskly closing the distance between the two.

“You need to leave, now” The infuriated male demanded. Hinata turns to face the voice behind her, and soon realizes who was the one that intimidated them all along: Naoaki, holding the most angered face she’d ever seen a man carry before, accompanied with a  resentful Ren and a slightly startled Naoya. 

The group had seen everything from afar with utter disbelief at the audacity of these unruly teenagers for doing such a prank on young children. Had they really been that insensitive?!

But where the kids remained somewhat uneasy to voice their disapproval, Naoaki did not hesitate to bring out his confrontational nature.

“We didn’t know, we didn’t mean to—”

“I’m not fond of repeating myself twice. Less to people as shameless as you” Naoaki raged “Leave, now!”

The teenagers need no other reminder to understand their presence to be unwanted, hence they expeditiously begin to gather their belongings: objects that ranged from toilet paper, cans of string foam, and even eggs, presenting unbelievably sight to Naoaki which only deepened his exasperation for them before ultimately leaving.

He keeps a hardened gaze on their backs, as if to prevent them from doing another stupidity, and once he considers them no longer a hazard, he flickers his attention back to the sniffing children.

The sight is enough to squeeze his heart with guilt, gaze softening as he kneels down to their level.

Hinata, although she still cried, had actually started to calm down once realizing the monsters that scared them were nothing more than idiots inside costumes, whose possibilities of returning now that Naoaki confronted them were slim to none, giving her a sense of confidence that allowed her beating heart to begin slowing down.

This gives her time to reflect on what happened, and she can’t stop herself from feeling so naive for having fallen for something so silly, something that Satoru had done in previous occasions… but before she could go on resenting her lack of action, she settled for worrying over your unresolved emotions.

You unfortunately continued to be affected by this whole incident. As the youngest of the group, you still have yet to earn enough discernment to understand that this was nothing more than a prank, a seemingly victimless act… but even if it was nothing more than a joke, it felt real to you, enough to keep you wailing, heart painfully beating against your chest as you attempted to wrap your head around this whole incident, but failing to do so.

So, the only thing you could do was rub your tears away with the fabric of your sleeves as you wailed for your mother, a sight that caused your companions to murmur soothing words of encouragement in hope to make up for her absence and calm you down, at least until she’s back.

"It's ok, Y/N-chan. They're gone now" Hinata would attempt to comfort you by taking you into her arms and pushing you close to her before patting your back. Ren joined his sisters by wrapping his arms around them.

“You don’t have to cry anymore” Naoaki joined, but you’re barely able to respond with anything else outside a whimper or a sniff, muffled by your sister’s chest.

There are no words to describe just how frustrated he feels for allowing this to happen, and subsequently, failing to provide you a remedy. 

In fact, he feels regretful for permitting the teenagers to leave, but there really wasn’t much he could’ve done at that point that wasn’t to shout reprimands at them, which half of them would’ve been obscenities. 

Very tempting indeed, but that would just be to alleviate his frustration, no help to you or your sister.

His mind progresses to other realms of solutions, going through countless alternatives until he reaches one one that makes his eyes widen with fulfillment and determination, as well as hope for it to work.

Naoaki jumps back on his feet and rushes back to the table where their things have remained behind, intending to reach for his basket, earnestly digging through the candy whilst isolating a particular confection.

Once done, he makes way back to the group, but not without bringing your basket as well as his carefully selected lineup.

“These are your favorite, right?” he asks, kneeling down to your level once more and extending his hands for you to see what he’s referring to.

You slowly raise your gaze from your sister’s hug and over to Naoaki’s hands, blurry eyes widening in surprise once he begins to pour the countless chocolates onto your basket.

“You can have them all, Y/N. Just don’t cry anymore, ok?” Naoaki smiles softly, proceeding to pet your head  “Your sister and brother are very worried for you, Naoya and me as well”

You first glance over to Hinata and her concerned puffy face with glossy, reddened eyes, the visible aftermath of the panic she was put through alongside you.

You then look at Ren, who although managed to avoid being directly affected by this incident, was just as distressed as Hinata, evident by his creased forehead and the frown on his lips—further proving the truth behind Naoaki’s words.

Naoaki is giving you a warm smile, as if to assure you that everything is truly indeed, even if you felt your heart telling you the opposite. He even went as far to attempt to comfort you by giving you all of his chocolates…

And Naoya… even if he barely speaks to you, to see him so concerned for you, you can’t help but feel thankful. As well as guilty, for you don’t think he wanted to see anyone crying tonight.

Overwhelmed by the much needed presence of your mother, as well as your companions unshakable support, you can't help but break into tears once more.

"Y/N!" Minako’s unexpected voice snaps you out of trance, causing you to swirl your head over to her direction and squint your warm eyes to make out the appearance of the approaching figure. 

Once recognizing your mother, you immediately peel away from your sister’s and brother’s arms and run towards her, arms stretched to allow yourself to be pulled up by her as you break out in tears once more.

“It’s ok, little one, it’s ok. I’m here now” she croones, kissing the top of your head as you push your face deeper into her neck, inevitably wetting her skin, but it doesn’t bother her at all. 

She then moves closer to Hinata, pulling her closer to her figure and hugging her with her free arm. She might’ve stopped crying, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t in need for her mother as well.

It’s only after a while of basking in the comforting presence of your mother that your sniffles begin to quiet down, which Minako takes as a cue to finally ask.

“What happened? I just saw a group of kids running away and Y/N’s cries”

“Somebody scared Y/N-chan” Hinata says through a runny nose and a strained throat, which causes Minako to hold her even closer to her.

“Naoaki scared them away” Ren adds, gluing to his mother’s free side and hugging her leg.

"Oh no, that's terrible" Tomoko frets, worriedly looking over to her own children as if to check they weren’t equally affected as Minako’s children have been.

Naoaki seemed to be rather… unaffected by the incident, outside of being concerned for you and your sister. He was evidently pissed that this had even occurred in the first place, not bothering to ask the culprits the reason behind their actions—he was not interested in justifying them, not when he had bigger things to do like step in and protect the young girls. But she could also find underlying guilt behind his eyes… misplaced guilt, for how could he know there was someone planning something as unfortunate as this?

From there, she glances at Naoya. While he hadn’t been in the actual crossfire, he was still present. Present enough to be affected by this sour turn of events, made evident by the heavy shift on the atmosphere caused by the upsetting sight of the horrifying teenagers and the two crying girls. 

What transpired was also enough to perturb him to the point where he’d actually stuck to Naoaki’s side in efforts to seek comfort, eventually turning into the form of Tomoko’s hand, which he grasped almost immediately after she was within arms reach.

A gesture that has Tomoko looking down to her youngest out of concern, and through a silent understanding, she declares.

“I… think it’s better if we call it a night”

"Yeah. I think that's too much excitement for today" Minako kisses your forehead once more upon feeling you relax against her embrace, finally, calm and quiet after venting all the anguish from your heart. "I’m so sorry Tomoko-san, truly. I assured you that this was a safe place where our kids would have fun, but they did not. I don’t know how I can make it up to you”

Your mother attempts to bow with you in her arms, but Tomoko rushes to stop her.

“No, Minako-san, don’t worry about it. It was just an accident” She says “Besides, you’re not responsible for their actions. You have nothing to be held accountable for, please don’t torment yourself for this”

Minako mouths a small, but earnest, thank you, before moving on with their next trajectory of the night.

Both mother’s ended up calling their respective partners to inform them that they would be returning home much sooner than expected.

Your mother intended the call to be of the informative nature, notify Eiichi that they’d be grabbing a cab back to the estate so he wouldn’t have to drive down to the village, but considering the overprotectiveness nature of her husband, she anticipated him freaking out as soon as he knew of the scary incident that led to this change of plans—and he did.

There was no way Eiichi would sit at his desk, arms crossed, miles away from his family, while they needed his solace. So he miraculously pulled a few strings to temporarily get out of work and go pick them up personally.

Meanwhile, Tomoko’s husband… Well, he didn’t say much. Outside of being glad that the night had ended earlier than anticipated for he wasn’t fond of his family staying out late. She intentionally avoided reaching the subject of the “prank” for she disliked having to entertain a husband who had the habit of questioning the integrity of others whenever something goes differently to the accorded, when it was a simple unrelated accident. Not everyone had a ridiculous amount of money to spend in perfection, more so when this was a “casual” night for the kids.

As expected, Naobito was unavailable to pick them up but still reassured her that a chauffeur would be there in his presence as soon as possible. Neither her or her children were surprised by this decision, but there’s no denying that at least one of them hoped he would have done differently. Isn’t it alarming enough that they had to leave early?

Outside of this, it was safe that all the kids were disappointed that they had to leave early. 

They had yet to go to the rest of the neighborhoods, visit the ones where the rich people lived and get the good candy, as well as partake in the activities the community had set up for them, such as carving pumpkins, trying out masks, or going through a pumpkin patch.

Well, Hinata and Ren weren’t too bothered by that. Not when it comes to placing your safety first. And they were also tired from butting heads with Naoya.

But if there was one kid in particular that didn't like the whole leaving the party too soon thing more than the others, it was Naoya.

And not because he wanted more candy, he could always get that at home just by asking for it.

It's because he didn't want to leave you just yet.

Now that he’d managed to get through the mental turmoil the past succession had placed him in, he realized that he would be able to see you… god knows when. He counted with the rest of the night to make his move, but his plans were cut short because of those stupid teenagers.

But the thing that he hated the most was how they made you cry.

He never knew he could feel so sad from watching someone's teary face, that is, until he saw yours.

Naoya resented the fact that he just stood there, petrified by the horrifying noise of their screams and your frets, unable to do anything to help you because he was too startled himself, which inevitably left the road wide open for his brother to become the hero of the story, yet again.

Naoya was supposed to help you. He was supposed to be close to you and protect you. He feels confused, guilty, sad, for not being able to do anything at all throughout the night, when Naoaki did the exact opposite.

Sure, he was glad that his brother stepped in to put a stop to all this, but… he just… Well, first of all, he wasn’t expecting him to actually go above and beyond by giving you all his chocolates when that should’ve been him! Secondly, the fact that he hasn’t done anything to get to know you better is enough to have him reek with dissatisfaction.

But far from him trying to make himself the hero of the story, which don’t get me wrong, he still wanted to be…

He wanted to see you happy again. He didn’t want this night to end on a sad note for you.

So, determined to make things right, if only for one time during this night, he makes haste to take advantage of the last moment he’d have with you before leaving to make the biggest sacrifice a kid can make during Halloween night.

"Y/N" he calls, and you, now standing to your mother’s side once you begged and pleaded towards her to let you down once you began to feel a bit better, turn around.

"Hi…" you say, a yawn appearing mid way just to reflect how tired you’d ended up after all the emotional and physical exhaustion of your first trick-or-treating session, much to your dissatisfaction. “Sorry… Hi” you try again with an apology and a smile.

Naoya blinks for a moment before falling back in place by pressing his lips together as his gaze falls to the floor. This wasn’t supposed to be as nerve wracking as it was, but even then, that wouldn’t stop him, not when he already committed to the idea.

He takes a deep breath, gathering all the courage he can get to do what he wants next.

With his heart beating on his ears, ruby cheeks and brows pressed together, he stretches his arm and finally looks up to you.

"Here" he says, nudging his basket full of candy closer to you.

Now it’s your time to falter while eyeing his offering with much caution and wonder, unable to interpret the true intention behind his gesture outside of… well, what?

"Take it" Naoya feels obliged to clarify upon seeing your confused pout, carefully dangling the basket before you once more.

"Why?" you eventually ask, tilting your head to the side.

"I don't like it" Naoya lies, but he really doesn’t know what else to say to convince you. "I want you to have it"

You don’t seem to be convinced by his answer, which only makes Naoya feel more and more anxious by the second. First, because he suddenly felt the sharp gazes of your siblings stuck to his back, so he wanted you to make up your mind before they started to close in.

Secondly, because he felt like you were rejecting him—and that meant that his brother had managed to make more of a… lasting impression on you. And he dreaded to think that even when he finally gathered the courage to talk to you, it wasn’t enough.

Had he miscalculated your initial reaction towards him?

However, all of his worries were for naught, for after a few seconds of consideration, your small arms stretched to his and grabbed onto the handle of the basket, carefully taking the object away from him. 

It’s only for the briefest of moments that he’s able to brush against your fingers, but he already knows there’s nothing softer in this world that he’d rather hold.

Naoya’s anxiety has an unwanted return when he sees you silently stare at his offering, his worry lingering back to Naoaki, fearing that you might see his actions as a poor plagiarism of his… 

But his worries were for naught once again, for you’d eventually look up to him to give him another one of your loving smiles, one that cemented his first victory of the night, for it’s a reaction Naoaki hadn’t received in his moment, as well as ensuring your happiness before tonight ended.

“Thank you!” You grin, pulling the candies closer to you, seemingly overjoyed to receive an addition for your harvest.

“You’re welcome” Naoya sheepishly responds, face even redder when he catches you staring at him with that big toothy smile of yours longer than he anticipated, before turning around with the intention to return by your mom’s side.

It’s at this moment that he feels an itch on his throat, one that he has the extreme need to alleviate.

“Y/N?” he calls, and you turn around.

Curious e/c eyes falling on his face as you fathom the redness forming on his cheeks through the dimness of the street light, making you wonder if he was feeling sick.

“...Don’t cry” he murmurs, and you blink for a few moments before a frown settles on your face.

“I’m not crying” you explain and he scoffs.

“I mean” Naoya looks away, feeling more embarrassed by the second as a pout forms on his lips “Don’t cry again. I don’t like it when you’re sad”

It’s his way to say that he wants to make you happy, but you, not having the same perception as he did, limit yourself to take his words as those of comfort.

“I don’t like being sad either!” You respond, giving him another smile “But thank you, Noya-kun! And sorry for worrying you”

Naoya can’t help his heart from soaring upon hearing the adorable butchering of his name, which far from interpreting it as a mispronunciation, he takes it as a nickname. Another privilege he holds over Naoaki and possibly even your siblings.

He did it.

He won. He made you happy. And his older brother has no clue!

And he never would, because Naoaki… well, he was just in another entirely different realm when it comes to the antics of his youngest brother. 

Serves to show what the usual dynamic between the youngest and the eldest was like back in the estate—it’s no wonder the rest of the siblings had no issue sitting this one out once they heard Naoaki and Naoya would be attending, cloaking behind poor Naofumi as an excuse.

Nonetheless, Naoya would enjoy the victory his sacrifice brought him, a step closer to winning your heart. 

He knew that you’d enjoy this candy, and whenever you unwrapped one of them, you’d think of him! Now, isn’t that a bigger accomplishment than what Naoaki ever achieved in his life? (Outside of saving you, but that’s something that he’ll get to do another time)

Oh, how naive of him. If only I knew you were happy for some other reason....

It wouldn’t take long before your father arrived, and when he did, he jumped out of the car as soon as the engine shut down, not bothering to check if he’d closed the door appropriately or if he even parked correctly inside the delimited space. Traffic tickets had no weight in his mind, not when his sole focus was zeroing on his family and embracing his poor daughters followed by endlessly peppering their chubby faces with kisses as he frantically inquired.

“Are you ok Y/N?! Hinata?! Is either hurt?? Where are those damned—”

“They’re fine now, Eiichi” Minako reassures him “But that doesn’t mean you should be all over our babies”

“I’m not a baby” Hinata retorted.

“Minako! How could you say that?!” Eiichi gasps theatrically “Not after they got scared!—by the way, Hinata, you’re still my baby— I won’t stop till they get what they deserve!” 

Your mother can only shrug and sigh as a response. She knows there’s no way to talk sense into him when he’s like this, so instead, she decides to move and bid farewells to Tomoko and her family.

“And that’s our cue to leave” Minako regrets with a nervous smile.

“Outside of what happened, I had a good time” Tomoko smiles back, moving in to hug her best friend.

“Likewise. I’m glad you were able to come”

“I hope to see you at Junko’s baby shower? I’ll be sending the invitations soon!” Naoya’s eyes sparkle with anticipation at the prospect of seeing you again. This time, he’ll be equipped with all the knowledge he can get of pokemon after his father buys him all the games!

“I’ll be there” Your mother promises. She then waves goodbye to Tomoko’s kids, Naoaki being as gracious as ever by expressing how happy he was to see her again, and Naoya… well, as reserved as he always was, except for a curt nod and a wave, dignified for his only ally of the night.

The family of 5 eventually make their way back into the car, each kid waving the Zen’in’s one last time through the window as the engine started up once more, and then, disappeared, giving closure to the celebration.

Once the car was out of sight, Tomoko sighed, slumping her shoulders as she reflected back to her present children.

To say that she was glad that Naoya and Naoaki had remained somewhat… amicable throughout the whole night was an understatement. She was overjoyed as well as she was anxious.

They were known for being rowdy towards one another for the simplest of reasons, and although she guessed that could extend to the rest of her kids, these two had seemed to have a personal vendetta against each other.

Tomoko tried her best to control that aspect of their personality, but she eventually gave up after realizing that no matter what she did, no matter what incentives she gave to promote a healthy relationship, it was never enough.

So she just resigned with the assumption that they’d eventually grow out of this, mainly when Naoya is a bit older, for he was usually the prime instigator of their arguments.

Their good behavior had given her a dose of much needed tranquility, and after all that occurred, she assumes they’ll remain like that during their trip back to the estate, and for the rest of the night.

«A moment of peace and quiet» She says, giving them a small smile.

“I’m proud of how you two stepped up to help Y/N-chan and Hinata-chan. Thank you” She praised “I’ll prepare something for the two of you tomorrow, but for now, let’s just wait for the chauffeur”

Naoya smirks, feeling a shudder urge of righteousness sprouting from deep inside him as he recounts his honoring moment before you, while Naoaki mouths a simple thank you, his mind already set somewhere else. Anywhere else to kill time so he can go back home and retake his plans.

There was a horror movie that he wanted to see scheduled for broadcast at midnight, and he wasn’t about to miss it for anything in the world, mentally preparing a list of snacks he’d want to indulge whilst watching the movie, that is, until the absence of a certain… particularity catches his attention from the corner of his eye, interesting enough to prompt his inquiry.

“Naoya, where is your candy?” he asks, and as if he’d spoken the biggest offense in the world, his youngest brother retaliates.

“Wouldn’t you like to know!” Naoya snaps back, blowing a raspberry at him followed by a punch on his arm “Stupid Naoaki!”

Tomoko sighs.

«And that’s all it was, just a moment»

The first thing that Eiichi did as soon as his shift ended was head straight back home to his awaiting family, who had agreed to wait for him to compensate for their abrupt change of plans, as well as his absence.

The excitement of spending time with his children before the 31st ended, as well as the pictures his wife took for the family album, was enough to encourage him to power through the rest of his tasks, and in record time no less

Back at the L/N estate, Eiichi wasted no time to head over to the living room, where the servants had informed him his wife and children were to be.

The kids were out of their costumes and dressed up comfortably in their pajamas, surrounded by popcorn and candy baskets, as they sat before the T.V., a Halloween movie on the screen.

The first one to notice his presence was you, to which you reacted by jumping up from the pillow you were sitting on and rushing to him, hugging his leg.

“Welcome home!!”

“It’s good to be back, little one!” He says, lifting you up and kissing your right cheek “Did you miss me?”

“...A bit” you admit through giggling “we’re watching a movie!”

“I can see that” Eiichi looks at the screen, but he’s unable to identify which movie they’re watching by the frozen frame on screen—Ren would later inform him it was The nightmare before Christmas “Care to make space for me?”

“Actually, I think there’s something you’d rather do instead” Minako says with a proud grin , taking out the album covertly hidden behind her and offers it to her husband “All pictures from tonight, printed and organized by child”

Eiichi carefully places you back down to the ground and rushes his way towards his wife, adoration filling his eyes as he cheers “You’re the best!” it’s not her time to be covered with kisses “I can’t believe you already had them printed!”

“Well, we did buy the printer so we wouldn’t have to go out and wait for them to be revealed” Minako explains “It’s one of the many pros of having our own computer at—”

“Mom, can we watch the movie?” Hinata says. She’d been patient enough to let their parents talk and catch up once dad was back, but after hearing them gush about their shared interest in pictures, she grew restless. They didn’t need to be present to talk about that, right? Or pause the movie for that matter!

“Alright, alright” Minako chuckles, pulling herself up from the floor with the help of her husband and handing Ren the controller “We’ll be in the other room if you need anything, ok?”

The kids don’t respond, their attention already stuck on the glowing screen before them as soon as Ren hits the play button. 

With all the calm of the world, Eiichi can finally enjoy the recollections of his family's first trick-or-treating together through the glossy imprint of the stills before him.

He opens the album. The first section is dedicated to group photos in general, his family standing alongside Tomoko’s.

Eiichi remembers exactly what he told Minako before he left, but it didn’t mean he’d blow up if she did. After all, Tomoko is someone he considers a dear friend and was glad that his wife went ahead and took pictures for them to have as well, she always had a good eye for photography after all.

He just wouldn’t hang their pictures on the wall, though.

He’d eventually move onto the next parts, his favorite ones. The pictures exclusively  portray his family. The way their enjoyment appeared to be portrayed in each photo was enough to fill him with happiness—even considering making a postcard for his distant relatives. ..Should he do such a thing?

Nah, these are precious memories to be shared with others, he’d rather keep them for themselves. 

Now, the parts he was looking forward to the most. Starting with Ren's section.

He was rather quiet and collected, so it was natural that the camera would catch this as well. Most of his pictures portrayed him rather… serious, with the occasional smile or peace sign appearing every 3 or 4 pictures. «I guess he wanted to play into the obscure aura of the undead with his skeleton costume. Eitherway, they’re good pictures!» Eiichi would move on to the next part, Hinata’s.

The one that always followed her mother’s lead: if there was a pose that Minako wanted her to make, she’d strike immediately after and with such fluidity that had her parents thinking she’d be a good model if given the opportunity. A natural before the camera! And she really played the role of a police officer, going ahead to show off her badge and whatnot, which only made her photos even better.

And finally, you. He didn’t want to admit it out loud, for a parent isn’t supposed to show preference over any of their children, but he was secretly looking forward to your photos the most. And could anyone blame him? It was your first halloween going out trick-or-treating, it was only natural that his attention would gravitate more towards you! 

You were still shy, as expected of your age, but Minako managed to get some good pictures of you showing off your purple onesie of a character he still can’t put his finger on quite well. There were moments where you’d appeared introverted before the camera, hiding underneath the hood of your attire, and others where you seemed to dive into character, baring your teeth before the lens, intending to look intimidating.

Well, whatever the outcome, he was glad that you and your siblings had fun, and adoringly so!

Oh, he wishes he could’ve been there to see his family in person. But he could always look back to these pictures whenever he’s feeling particularly nostalgic.

Certainly, there’s nothing that could possibly ruin—

Wait.

Wait a minute.

There's …

What is that? A blemish?

Is… is he seeing things?

No. That can’t be, it’s right there before him. A detail that… Did Minako not see this?

Did she accidentally skip this picture, perhaps? 

A small detail that he doesn’t like… at all.

Whenever you appear, there's something, or more likely someone lingering close to you.  A black uniformed kid just… standing there, either a few feet away from you, if not beside you.

He analyzes the picture for a few moments before moving onto another one, and the other, and another. It's not long before he comes to the crashing realization that most of your pictures were alongside this boy!  Not even in Ren’s, or Hinata’s. Just yours.

Eiichi is at a blank state of mind when it comes to remembering who is the one behind the mask, that is, until he stumbles into a picture where the face of the uniformed kid is fully revealed. An answer that has him losing all of his breath as swirls his head over to his wife, who jolts as his sudden reaction.

"Why– why is— Is this Naoya?!" He says, taking out one of the many incriminating pictures from the album and handing them over to Minako, who could only frown in confusion.

“Yeah…? What about it?” She asks, still confused.

“What do you… Why is he next to our baby??”

“I didn't see anything wrong with it, it's a good picture, wouldn't you agree?” Minako persuades, and Eiichi groans.

"No! It has Naoya in it! I thought I told you I only wanted pictures of our kids!"

"I know, I know. But I wasn't about to ask Naoya-kun to step away from the picture! What would Tomoko-san think of that after all the ones I’ve taken of Y/N alone, hmm?"

"But is there really not a single picture without him there!

"Pfft, you’re exaggerating, dear! Minako says, glancing over his shoulder and onto the album "See? There's some of Y/N alone, I even asked her to pose so she could show off her costume"

"And I greatly appreciate you for it, but still… Why are there so many of her with him…? Not even Naoaki is here…" he murmurs, eyes glancing back down to the pictures. He scans through them quickly, counting just how many pictures Naoya photobombed.

Only to abruptly stop when a familiar sight catches his attention.

A basket. More precisely, a white colored basket.

Naoya's basket. 

The one in the picture…  there’s something intriguing about it, enough to make him stop passing through the pages. Almost as if he’d seen it before, and rather recently at that, but he doesn’t remember where…

Just where exactly did he see it? Not as his job, none of his employees brought any candy… maybe at the—

He freezes.

Oh.

Oh no.

He knows now, he saw it in his house.

In the living room

Just besides the couch.

A shiver travels through his spine as countless scenarios traverse his mind, all leaning into the worst possible outcomes.

He needs an answer, and he needs it now.

Eiichi wastes no second to barge through the door as he rushes through the living room, an alarmed Minako trailing behind him as she repeatedly asks him what’s wrong.

She eventually catches up to him to the even more confusing sight of her husband standing near you. Poor Minako has yet to understand the excruciating pain Eiichi is going through as he murmurs the following.

"Y/N… my pumpkin, my sugar cookie, my precious honey bear…” he asks, voice trembling as he leaned closer to you, his words although low, are loud enough for Hinata and Ren which reprimanded him with a sharp shh! But even then, that doesn’t stop him from moving forward. “Where did you get those candies…?" His fingers reflect the shivering state of his voice as he now points to the still full (although a bit less than when it was given to you, thanks to your efforts) incriminating bucket in front of you.

And just as if you'd remembered a misplaced secret, you mouthed a quiet "oh!" before jolting out from your cushioned seat and grabbing the container, a chocolatey grin on your lips as you proudly exclaimed.

"Noya-kun gave them to me!" You shove the basket towards him, finally revealing the reason why you were so happy to get them in the first place "They're for you, that way we won't share!"

"Oh… so that's where they came fr–" Minako murmurs from the door frame, but the rest of her words don't go past her lips thanks to the interrupting shrill of an overprotective father who just realized that his worst fear had become a reality.

"NOYA?!" he cries, flickering back to Minako, as if asking if she was aware of this "HE ALREADY HAS A NICKNAME?!!"

"Dear, quiet down, some are already asleep" Minako, now by his side, cautions him as she places her hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down before any of the sleeping staff or family members come check if everything is alright… or complain. 

“Dad! Shut up!!” Hinata groans. Having lived and grown with their father, they're no longer moved by his melodramatic antics, nurturing some kind of resistance that limits them to give him a scowl as well as a warning glance whenever he goes off on his delusions, such as the one Ren is giving him right now.

You, having yet to reach their level of expertise, all you can do is give him a confused pout in return, which still works very well with what’s happening around you.

"But–but she–" Eiichi says as he's pushed out of the room by his irked wife, who wasn’t willing to discuss in front of the children who just wanted to make the best of the only night they could stay up without worrying about school the next day "I won't allow it! It'll be the last time they're ever invited to trick or treat with us!" 

"Huh?!" She exclaimed "Tomoko-san won't like that, you know!"

"I can't allow that boy to be near our precious daughter! She's too good for him! Or anyone for that matter!!"

"You couldn't possibly be serious, Eiichi" Minako rolls her eyes. "Besides, they're just kids! Y/N doesn't really care for anything else other than her cartoons and Naoya just gave her the candy because she was sad. And apparently Naoaki did the same too."

"HE WHAT?!"

"Dear, you need to calm down" Minako suggests "Hear yourself. They were concerned because she was sad, that’s all. Also, you can't be over protective about her for all her life"

"But she… she won't stay small for too long, and before we know it, she'll get married!! Look at Ren, he's already 10!" Eiichi shrieks “And from there, a teenager, he’s going to college, he’s moving out, and then—”

"Worry about that when it happens" She comforts "You’re worrying too much about the future, that you’re missing the present! Our kids couldn’t really care less about those things. Ren just wants to listen to music all day, Hinata wants to be with the horses, and Y/N wants to play videogames. Do you really think they have time to think about girlfriends and boyfriends?”

“... I mean, if you put it that way…”

“It’s the only way, Eiichi”

"... I guess" he sighs, looking away, feeling embarrassed for his over the top reaction. "...I just got worried, I guess."

"There's nothing to fear, just… be there. To love them, to cherish them, to protect them. Y/N is too young to notice it, but if you keep on like this then she won’t trust you to tell you things. Besides, I think the real issue here is Naoya not having candy for Halloween, we can't let Y/N think that's right… I can’t believe I didn’t notice, and she didn’t tell me either!"

"I know… I know…" Eiichi grabs her hand and kisses her knuckles as an apology "I’m sorry. Thank you, Minako. You’ve always been the better half of this marriage”

“Oh, stop it Eiichi” She laughs “We compliment each other, I’ve always believed that”

“I guess I really do have to take it one day at a time. I just can't believe she's already 6"

“She is growing pretty fast…” she giggles, kissing his hand in return "How about you continue looking  through the album and select the better pictures? Or better yet, change into your pajamas and join us to see a movie. Who knows? Maybe Y/N will let you have some of her own candy instead—just promise me you’ll keep quiet, I can already see Hinata losing more and more of her patience by the second"

"Oh, I better behave then" he laughs back "Y/N can be very protective of her sweets and I wouldn’t risk angering Hinata… or Ren, did you see his face? If looks could kill!"

Minako laughs.

Thus, your mother goes back to the living room while Eiichi heads to their bedroom to change into something more comfortable and join his family.

Your mother would like to say that this conversation wasn't really brought up ever again, or that it didn't take much of space in her mind, that would be a lie however, for the mention of Naoya liking you was one that she never considered in the past, more so when Hinata and Ren already avoided him like the plague.

But now that she thinks about it… it all became obvious to her.

Naoya sure seemed comfortable whenever around you, as well as his lingering gazes he placed on you whenever she was lucky enough to catch them at the moment, or how he’d respond attentively to you whenever you referred to him, when he kept his interactions limited with your siblings or even Naoaki…

She thought of it as just socializing, getting to know each other with the hopes of becoming friends, but now that Eiichi pointed it out… she can’t wonder, had Tomoko noticed this as well?

Nonetheless, that’s something she’d keep locked behind her lips, buried deep inside her mind. 

Maybe she’ll bring it up next time she sees Tomoko, probably at Junko’s baby shower…

But if she had to give her opinion about this whole ordeal, a label for a lack of better words, then she has to admit that…

"Y/N and Naoya look cute together" 

[technically-human]

Payneland² 

[noodles-and-tea]

You’ve just got this real magic, capturing the sunshine summer of childhood in the tiny Pines twins. Like I am fully convinced I could show the overcast sky one of your pictures of Stanley and the sky would be like. Pack it up clouds, time to get back to the sun.

Ohh thank you :(((((

[egophiliac]

What do you like about the Diasomnia boys if I may ask?

I always love hearing about the different reasons people enjoy characters.

I mean, c'mon. he has split custody over Sebek okay

also, Lilia in particular has maybe the best timeskip character development of all time

[cherryfennec]

Summer Times

Hi! I'm finally back from my two week abroad trip!

[azarovas]

No Context Deadloch (2023-)

[somnimagus]

My page for @sheikahzine; about Impaz's duty to her village, empty of people and full of memories.

[id in alt text]

[erwinsvow]

Imagine if Rafe let R try a joint

Like, her brains getting all fuzzy and she's even more giggly than usual, and he's just, like enamoured. He thinks she's adorable.

"one hit, that's it-" rafe says, low and quiet in your ear.

you're curled up on his lap at the party, both of you resting on the couch while you observe the scene around you with big eyes. rafe's friends were snorting powder off of mirrors, washing it down with liquor that was definitely harder than the fruity seltzer your boyfriend allowed you to drink. rafe said you couldn't handle anything harder, and you agreed without questioning him, like you always did.

you had pointed to the white lines on the table infront of you and asked him as sweetly as you could if you could try some. kelce overheard you and starts pushing the mirror in your direction, and you look at him with a smile, before rafe stares him down and delivers a tap to your cheek. it's just to get your attention, not really to hurt you, but you feel your face flushing where he touched you when he speaks.

"hey, you don't listen to him, you listen to me, right?" you see kelce in the corner of your eye, taking the tray back and offering it to the girl next to him.

"i know, i just-"

"no, no just anything. y'can barely drink this watered-down crap without trippin' over your feet." he rests back on the sofa, hands gripping your waist and leg tightly. "wants to snort coke. you're funny, kid."

you pout, taking another sip of your drink. you're only half way through the can but your head is starting to feel fuzzy, already. you decide then and there that rafe always knows best for you, but you still want to try the things he tries, show him that you can handle it. the boys next to rafe pass a blunt over you, directly to him. when they blow out the smoke, you start coughing, but watch carefully as your boyfriend takes a long hit. just as he's about to pass it across to kelce, you catch his wrist.

"can i try that instead? please?" you try your best to straighten up, to show him you can take it and that you're not already drunk. "please," you whine, and his friends turn their head to look. you're sure that they think it's silly, the way you have to ask rafe for permission for everything and anything. you don't care, though.

"kid, stop-"

"i can take it, promise. just this time. i won't ever ask again."

that's how you had ended up like this, rafe talking into your ear while he holds the blunt to your lips.

"alright, suck in. long as you can. you're a pro at that, aren't ya?" his words make you lose your concentration, breaking into a coughing fit before you can even try to inhale.

"rafe!" you whine again, pummeling your fists into his chest, still choking on the smoke. your throat feels scratchy but you know that couldn't have been enough.

"what, kid, i gotta do everything for you?" he takes a long hit, and then grips your cheeks with his hand, forcing your mouth open and then blowing the smoke into your throat for you. then he clamps it shut, holds your shoulder while you cough, and passes the blunt along to kelce.

you cough a little, but before long, you're putty in his arms, leaning your head against his shoulder and giggling at nothing. you poke at his chest and then start playing with his chain, then his hair, and then back down to his fingers. he lets you do it, watching you play with his ring and pressing a kiss to your forehead. you're cute like this, he thinks, less shy and not as worried what everyone must think about you. he thinks he likes it, that maybe he should let you smoke with him every once in a while.

"feel good, baby?" he asks in your ear, and you squirm in his touch, pulling away before resting your head again.

"mhm. really good. this is fun. wish it wasn't a crime." he laughs, taking another sip of his beer. you try to copy him, reaching for your seltzer but knocking it over by accident.

"oops," you say with another laugh. "sorry to-wait, whose house is this?"

"c'mon kid, makin' a mess," he groans, picking up the can and watching the fizzy liquid travel.

"sorry, daddy." in your state, you don't realize how loud you said it, but even with everyone's eyes on you, you don't care much, smiling back sweetly at rafe.

"alright, we're leavin'."

[kimtaegis]

JIN HUGS JIN HUGS! for @jinstronaut ♡

cr. namuspromised, dwellingsouls, 0613data

[shushmal]

from @skepsiss: Steddie (obviously), prompt = one of them is trying to convince the other to go to the hospital for a minor thing (needs stitches from a fall, stomach bug).

"Stevie, please."

"Oh my god," Steve sighs, wrapping the gauze tight around his hand. It blooms red with blood. "It's fine, Ed."

"It really isn't." Eddie is a little pale when Steve looks up to glare at him. "Steve, please baby, I saw the bones in your hand."

"You're being dramatic."

"See," Eddie whines, high pitched and panicked. "I do understand why you're saying that. I know this is a case of boy who cried wolf. But I am begging you here. Please, let me drive you to the hospital."

Steve wrinkles his nose. "It wasn't that deep, I promise you."

"Steve."

"Ed—"

And then Eddie does this thing—where he pulls himself up to his full height, crowding up into Steve's space, until they're nose to nose, his eyes wide and intense—and it shuts Steve up every time. It's stupid, and horribly embarrassing, but it works and Eddie uses it to his advantage, pressing Steve into the edge of the counter and boxing him in, his hands tights against Steve's hips.

"Steve," he says, low and serious. "You can bitch at me all you want in the car, but I'm taking you to the hospital. Okay?"

"Okay," Steve says, against his will, face burning as Eddie pulls away. As soon as he has breathing room to think, he scowls at him. "But if I don't need stitches, you're on the hook to do dishes for the next month."

Eddie doesn't even grimace—he hates doing dishes—and gently starts herding Steve out the door. "You got it, honey," he says, distractedly. His face turns green when a line of blood drips down Steve's wrist from beneath the bandage. "Whatever you say."

Steve ends up getting 15 stitches. Eddie's stuck doing the dishes until it heals anyways.

[kandismon]

totally lore-accurate swanqueen screencap redraws 4/∞

they're on their first date :3c

[princecroutons]

I’m just so happy that this weird little guy showed up at your house smelling bad and looking kinda funky and you picked him up and said “you live here now and we love you” and he went “okay :) yay” i hope one day i can help a cat like you helped catrick

this thing broke into my second story bedroom window and screamed at me if I didn't let him in. I had no choice. I love him so much

[themeraldee]

Awkward sex prompt: homelander figuring out how to control his strength with a human reader, who still wants rough sex, but would prefer to be alive at the end of it.

[Masterlist]

18+ Only | 1.2k | Homelander x gn!Reader | Realistic sex. Communicating during sex. Choking. Penetration (but not specified). Fluff at the end.

“I don’t want to hurt you.” 

“But I want you to.” 

It really should have been no surprise to Homelander when you requested he goes a little rougher on you in bed. At first he was taken aback, stopping the pace he was fucking into you with, jerking his head back as if offended, choking on his breath in surprise. You know who he is, bringing up the use of his strength is no small ask. But you’ve shown the signs before. He could hear the spike in your heart rate anytime he’d showcase the incomprehensible strength he possesses. Whether it was him moving heavy objects, accidentally bending steel frames in his penthouse or breaking furniture—like that one time he ripped the headboard off during a particularly fine blowjob—you loved it. Though he never thought that your dirty little thoughts went straight to him using that strength on you. 

“What if I can’t hold back?” He looks down where you’re right below him, all flushed and spread out for him. He’s been giving you a damn good time but it’s like you can never get enough of him. Always wanting more, more, more.

“You can. You’ve been doing it your entire life. Adding a tiny bit more pressure isn’t gonna change anything.”

The one thing Homelander loves about you the most is the pure trust you have in him. After all you’ve seen of him you still believe that there’s no world in which he would purposefully hurt you. So to hear you all but beg for him to use strength that has more than decimated many gets his heart soaring. The feeling of acceptance and unconditional love blooms warm in his chest spreading all the way out to the fingertips currently wrapped around your neck.

“Come on, what’s the point of being the strongest man in the world if you can’t rough me up a bit? I’ll tell you if it’s too painful okay?”

Your hand sat on top, your fingers tracing over his as you squeezed your hand.

“A little more.” You guide him verbally and manually. Your hand is still squeezing around his own until you reach a point where you’re satisfied with his confidence to do this himself and you pull your hand away. “Yeah, that’s it.” You squeak out a little breathlessly as he restricts your airflow.

“That’s good?” He asks, choking on his words halfway at the way you squeeze around him while he’s still lodged firmly inside you. He jerks with his movement, giving you a very short snappy thrust but after your little intermission where you taught him how to choke even this little sensation made you moan.

Homelander’s eyes widen when he realizes the sheer potential of your request. Not only could he hear your heartbeat, your shaky breaths and moans, he could now also feel them. Right against his fingertips. The moan vibrated against his hot skin, your heartbeat constantly thrumming all around him. He felt it in the way you were tight and clenching around him and now he felt it under his grip.

He released his hand a little, settling the palm of it in between your collarbones.

“See? Wasn’t that good? I love feeling your strength, let me have a little more of it.” You say it with such conviction, inviting him in, accepting him exactly—no, especially—because of the way he is.

The last thing Homelander wants is to not be able to fulfill your needs. As much as the thought of hurting you—actually hurting you—kills him, if it’s something you find excitement in he’ll be damned if he doesn’t deliver.

He pulls you down the length of the bed a little bit to give himself more space and with a grin he pins your wrists above your head, holding them down against the mattress with little effort. He knows he’s doing something right when that startles you, you let out a cute yelp that quickly turns into a moan. God, he could eat you up with the way you’re looking at him. But he’s gonna need to leave that for round two. Now he’s here to fulfill a wish.

He slowly picks up the pace. He’s thrusting slow and deep while his other hand freely explores your body underneath him, giving it generous squeezes as he goes. He’s testing the give of you. Learning where he can apply the pressure you so desperately crave. 

He’s fucking into your faster now, grunting at the sheer heat of you surrounding his cock with every slide. His hand glides up your body, settling back on your neck. He gives you a look as if he was warning you of what’s to happen. Yet he still manages to catch you off guard. With the snap of his hips and the iron-clad grip of his hand your eyes widen in what Homelander only translates to fear.

Immediately, he lets go.

“Why did you stop?!” You look at him, your own hand gliding across where his hand was squeezing a second ago, as if to chase the phantom feeling, recreating it yourself.

“Why did I stop? You got scared and I don’t want to fucking kill you!” He sounds angry but it’s mainly to hide the genuine worry that comes with this irresponsible play. It’s already hard for him to hold back anytime you’re having normal sex. Wanting him to rough you up conjures very different imagery in either one of your minds.

“Baby, the scary part is the best bit. I know you’ll stop before it’s too much. You can feel the give of my body. Let yourself feel that, okay?” You say softly, soothing his fears. In your entire relationship he’s not managed to hurt you, you don’t imagine it was about to start now.

“Now come on, I wanna cum with your hand around my neck.” You give him a cheeky smile that breaks him out of any doubts he had about manhandling you the way you’ve requested.

He’s given you exactly what you’ve asked for. Just enough squeeze and pressure that you feel so overwhelmed with the greatness of his presence pinning you down and nearly squeezing the life out of you that you succumb to your release. Homelander follows you there, unable to hold off after seeing the way you look at him with such adoration right after he let your airways open fully and you regained your senses. 

After you’re both beyond blissed out you snuggle up to one another, locking the jigsaw pieces of your bodies together.

Homelander traces a finger across the bruised finger marks wrapping around your neck. Part of him relishes in the way he’s managed to brand you where you won’t be able to hide it easily. Even with a scarf or a turtleneck, any slight move of the garment will expose the impressive size of your lovingly placed bruises. 

The other part of him isn’t that happy about it.

“I hurt you.”

“Duh! I wanted you to!” You scoff as if it was the most obvious thing.

His fingers trace over them some more before he leans in, placing a soft kiss against the marred skin.  

“You’re fucking crazy.” He lets out a little disbelieving laugh as he pulls you closer into his arms.

“Yeah, you’ve been rubbing off on me.”

“Nope, this is all you.” 

“Maybe. Hey, can we try spanking next?”

Taglist (you can add yourself to be tagged anytime I publish a new Homelander story): @infinetlyforgotten  @rafecamsgirlll @nervoussystemss

[rainingcatsandjune]

haha heyy its been a while 😭😭 sorry for the lack of activity here,,, school has been kicking my butt + i've gotten SUPER hyperfixated on disco elysium,,,, BUT THE MOMENT I SAW THE ORIGINAL I KNEW I HAD TO DRAW SAM AS THIS RAHSBBFBDN i seriously need to catch up on the recent audios 😭😭😭 ANYWAY enjoy :)

vvvvv ORIGINAL BELOW vvvvv

shhhhghhshhshhsh youre telling me this ISNT sam??? like????

[arttsuka]

Request: Jed and octavius dancing on/playing the piano like in that scene from the movie Big.

(Your art is amazing)

Like this? 🎹🎵🎶

Maybe they can have an iPad too

[nachobsns]

Hello - I was impressed and extremely relieved by what you wrote in the post about the cult mentality of the Left RE Israel and accusations of genocide. You mentioned that you bought into the mindset until recently. If it's all right for me to ask, what was it that helped you break out of it? (Please feel free to delete/ignore if you'd rather not answer!)

thank you!! and no worries about asking— i think i put something in my pinned post about how people are welcome to send asks about this stuff, although my story isn’t super interesting. i fell down the typical online rabbithole, a couple weeks after october 7; i knew what had happened, at least vaguely, but the posts trickling onto my dash were all about the (undeniably tragic) loss of life in gaza, with little to no acknowledgment of the hamas atrocities that had started the war, so my narrative was pretty one-sided from the beginning. it just continued to snowball as the months went on and people became more radicalized, calling into question the reality of the 10/7 attacks and the humanity of all israelis. i never went all the way down the pipeline to full-on endorsing hamas or justifying their attacks, at least on a personal level, thank god, but i would reblog other people’s posts referring to hamas as a “resistance movement” and calls to boycott starbucks and mcdonald’s and condemnation of the “zionist media” etc etc etc. what pulled me out of it wasn’t any one thing— if someone had directly called me on my flawed logic and antisemitic biases while i was in this mindset, i doubt it would have done much, just reinforced my belief that i was on the “right side of history” and zionists were aggressors who couldn’t be reasoned with. it was mostly just passive observance and a slow exposure to other perspectives. i’m pretty sure the first post that led me to question my thinking was an ask on jewish-vents, which popped up on my dash in like, late july. this led me down another rabbithole, first scouring every single post on jewish-vents, then moving on to more popular jewish blogs that i had seen on “zionist blocklists” (applesauce42069, xclowniex, and spacelazarwolf were probably some of the blogs that influenced me the most, though i told myself i was just hate-scrolling at first, lol). i felt incredibly guilty seeing all the harm the movement i was a part of had caused to random jews and israelis just trying to live their lives and i realized how it went against everything i believed about how minority groups should be treated. from there, the aspect of actually undoing my thinking and changing my behavior for the better still took several weeks. denial of jewish indigenity to the levant in the face of tantamount archeological and cultural evidence was the first to go, as well as any ambiguity in my feelings about hamas. after that, it’s mostly been a slow process of redefining the idf’s actions from a “genocide” to a “war.” i still believe that what’s happening in gaza is unconscionable and horrific, and that too many innocent civilians have died, but i also understand how difficult it is to fight against a terrorist group that systematically embeds itself in civilian populations, and that the ratio of militant to civilian deaths is incredibly low compared to most urban warfare. i quietly deleted my old blog in early august— if i had directly engaged in harassment against jews, i likely would have kept it to make amends to the harmed parties and put a face to my actions, but as was, i had just contributed to the larger atmosphere of antisemitism on this site, and i felt uncomfortable knowing that i had a blog full of sentiments that no longer matched my values and beliefs. i decided i would be better if i took my endorsement out of the equation entirely, because when you’re looking through the notes of a post, it obviously doesn’t matter if someone who’s reblogged it no longer agrees with what was said— their notes still count as tacit approval, and i did not want approval of this “activism” attached to my online presence. i still have unwanted kneejerk reactions that crop up sometimes, particularly around the fundraiser posts from people “in gaza”; even though i know logically that they have all the markers of scams, there is still a part of me that really wants to believe i could help.