Chapter Text
“Mika, if you don’t want people to be scared of you, you should probably stop making that face.”
Mika turns to look at the tiny source of the noise standing beside him. The lavender haired girl is standing on her tip toes, hands clasped behind her back. She wears a smirk on her face that Mika rarely sees her without.
“What face?” Mika asks, moving from where he was leaning against the side of the building to stand in front of the girl.
“This face,” Shinoa clarifies, knitting her eyebrows together and pulling the corners of her mouth down in an exaggerated grimace.
“That’s just my face.”
“Well, it wouldn’t kill you to try and look a little friendlier.”
Mika snorts. “You don’t know that for sure.” Mika allows a small grin to tug at the corner of his lips as Shinoa giggles and playfully slaps him on the shoulder. Mika returns to lean against the concrete wall of the building and Shinoa joins him, standing close in such a way that would have been uncomfortable to him a few months prior. However, things had changed, albeit only slightly.
The pair stare out at the small complex that has been their home for nearly the past three months. People mill about the open area, some of them adults but mostly children, tending gardens and carrying supplies to various crumbled buildings that have been renovated to accommodate different needs. Mika spies Kimizuki near the edge of a clearing, pausing in the middle of chopping lumber in order to wipe his brow of sweat. A girl and boy, looking no more than 10 years old, carry the new firewood in a basket toward a squat concrete building that has been turned into a kitchen/canteen. Narumi is most likely in there helping to prepare supper. Mitsuba and Yoichi seem to have become preoccupied with looking after several of the younger children, although Yoichi seems to be having more fun than his blonde companion. Yoichi sits in the middle of 3 small kids, smiling brightly as they put a flower crown on his head. In his lap is a toddler that he bounces up and down while holding both of the small boy’s hands in his own. Mitsuba, on the other hand, is being chased around by a small horde of children who are hell bent on grabbing her pigtails. Mitsuba looks like she doesn’t want to know what will happen when they finally get them, so she runs in circles around the giggling Yoichi, face contorted in panic as her relentless attackers clamber after her. Mika stares down at the scene fondly. Then he remembers of the words of Shinoa a few minutes prior.
“You really think they’re still scared of me?”
Shinoa looks up at him with sad eyes, for just a moment, before allowing her usual sly smile to adorn her lips.
“Well Mika,” she states, “you are a vampire. And as you know, vampires and humans don’t exactly get along very well. We were very lucky to have found this place and even luckier when they allowed us to stay.”
Mika recalls that day well. “They almost didn’t because of me.”
“But they did,” Shinoa hums. “You proved yourself to them and they allowed you to stay. Of course, they will always be a little wary of you, but can you really blame them?”
Mika contemplates this as he turns to look back at the smiling faces of children and adults, all hard at work making lives for themselves in a world that’s gone to hell. When Mika is in close proximity, they don’t smile. Children scurry away in fear, stories (and perhaps even real life experiences) of the horrors that vampires inflict fresh in their minds. The kids that don’t instinctively avoid him are typically escorted away by the few grown ups that are in charge. Over the past few months, the humans seemed to have warmed up to him a little, but it’s not like they were going to forget years of habit and rightfully fueled hatred toward his race anytime soon. That was just fine. Mika still harbors his mistrust of humans, still believing fully in their ability to destroy and poison the world in order to satisfy their greed and desire. These humans, however, have no connection to the ones using Yuu for their own personal gain, so he tries to prevent his prejudice from extending to them. Still, years of hatred wouldn’t disappear without time.
“No,” Mika finally says, answering Shinoa’s question. “I don’t blame them. I would feel the exact same way if I were them. Hell, I don’t even trust myself fully. Why should they?”
Shinoa lets out a small, humorless laugh. “You ought to give yourself more credit. Besides-”
Shinoa nods her head in the direction of the others and Mika turns to see a small figure running towards them.
“It seems that not everyone here is scared of you.”
The small girl approaching them has a giant smile plastered on her face. Her dark hair bounces wildly around her face as she sprints, waving a hand toward the two of them. She has something gripped in her palm.
“Big Brother!” she calls out as she approaches them. Her eyes are fixed on Mika.
Shinoa and Mika walk forward to meet her as she launches herself into Mika’s arms. He will never get used to this, he thinks. He hoists her up into the air and allows her to sit in the crook of his elbow. Her smile is wide as she stares into Mika’s face and he can’t help but look at her with gentle eyes, allowing his own smile to stretch across his face. Whenever she wears that earnest expression she looks so much like Yuu that it’s uncanny. Shinoa has to stand on tips toes in order to speak to the girl.
“Hello Naomi. What have you got there?”
“They’re bracelets!” the little girl answers proudly. She stares back up at Mika. “Yoichi taught me how to make them out of daisies. Aren’t they really cool?”
She holds her handiwork out in front of her proudly. The flowers are a bit crushed due to her tight grip, but it’s definitely clear what they are intended to be. Mika smiles at her.
“They’re great,” he praises, ruffling her hair and earning a giggle from the girl in his arms.
“I made one for each of us!” She grabs Mika’s hand from the top of her head. “Here put it on!”
She forcefully slides the small daisy chain onto Mika’s wrist, his hand being a bit too big to fit through the opening. However, she finally manages to get it on before slipping her own bracelet onto her arm. She holds out her hand next to Mika’s.
“See? Now we match!”
Her smile is so pure and so wide that Mika feels that his eyes may start watering. “Thank you. I love it,” he beams. God, she reminds him of Yuu.
“Eh? Naomi, you didn’t make me one?” Shinoa playfully pouts as she reaches out to inspect the bracelet on Mika’s wrist. “I’m really hurt.”
Naomi’s smile falters. “Oh no! I didn’t realize that you would be over here and I only made one for Big Brother! I’m sorry!”
Naomi squirms in Mika’s arms and he takes this as his cue to let her down. She marches in front of Shinoa with a determined look on her face.
“Don’t worry!” she cries, small hands clutched in front of her. “I’ll make you one right away! And I’ll even use purple flowers to match your hair!” And with that, Naomi smiles and runs back toward the rest of the children in the flower patch.
After she’s out of earshot, Shinoa speaks. “Say, Mika. How did you get that little girl to fall in love with you so quickly?
“I really wish I knew,” Mika answers truthfully. He smiles as he reminisces on his first meeting with the bubbly child. It was the same day that the group had found their temporary home. The same day Mika had almost ruined everything.