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Standing on what seemed to be a vast open space made up of lush greens and small hills, Rean was enjoying the artificial breeze re-created by the Märchen Garten. It was a lovely piece of technology. Being able to meet up with allies in this virtual space despite being in different locations all over the country, it was both convenient and a pleasant change of pace.
Right now they had just finished swapping information with Rufus' former subordinates. Swin and Nadia looked great, both had matured since he had last seen them. Both looked free of the burdens that had shackled them to the past.
The younger girl was yawning. Exaggerated and over the top lazy, it was hard not to chuckle at her antics.
"Thanks again for meeting up on such short notice, by the way," the raven turned to the teenagers and smiled softly. "Your information was exactly what we needed."
"For sure, you kiddos did a good job getting your hands on it ☆"
"Heh heh, did you hear that, S? We got praised for your hard work! That means I should get to take a little nap, right?" Slyly giggling, Nadia deliberately leaned against her partner's side, who sighed in exasperation -- and promptly took a step back, causing her to stagger. "But S, don't be mean...!"
"Nadia..." Swin shook his head, ignoring her complaints. His neutral gaze rested on the two men. "Glad we could help. Though your information came at just the right time as well."
"Awesome! Keep it up, little ones! ☆" Snickering lightly, Crow grinned at the duo and reached out, shamelessly ruffling their hair. "And don't hesitate to give us a call if ya need a helpin' hand. We're all in the same boat here."
"Oh..."
The pink-haired girl was stunned in rare silence, her blue eyes focusing on the nonchalant trickster. She was staring. She knew that she was staring, but she didn't care at all because a shocking thought had just crossed her mind. It was a ridiculous and stupid thought, but with the way he was affectionately petting the top of her head, she couldn't really shake it off either.
Crow was kind of like Ace, wasn't he?
Immensely kind to the ones he loved and cherished, while ruthless and spiteful to those he opposed.
There was more, though.
Looking at him like this, she noticed the similarities in their physical appearance, too. Tall. Broad shoulders. A slight droop to the shape of the eyes. Even the shape of their chins were oddly the same. The only difference were the color of their hair and eyes.
Huh.
What was she supposed to make of this?
"You... okay?" The man in question asked in confusion, his brows furrowed. "Somethin' on my face?"
"Hmmm... Our boss's predecessor is from Jurai, isn't he?" Nadia suddenly asked, unable to let go of her revelation. "Ever had family elsewhere?"
"Nadia, what kind of a question is that?" Now even Swin was tilting his head, looking more uncomfortable by the minute. "Sorry, please don't mi--"
"Shhhh, don't interrupt me, S!!"
"Then, what's the matter?"
"Don't you think he kinda looks like Ace?"
Welp, now Swin was staring, too.
The boy even took a step forward, evoking Crow to slowly mirror the action in reverse. "Kiddos, wanna share with class? The Instructor's right here to listen, y'know." Nervously chuckling, of course he had to drag Rean into this! If he was going to be awkward, it was only fair for his partner to share his pain! "Your staring's kinda unpleasant."
"Oh--! Sorry! Just... you remind us of someone."
Ah, finally some explanation.
Crow still thought that it was kind of weird so out of the blue, but from the looks those kids had given him -- guess that someone used to be important to them.
"So, let's get back on track! You got any siblings? Aunts, uncles elsewhere? ♡" Having shrugged off most of her stupor, Nadia was right back to shooting questions the older man's way, excitedly clapping her hands together and lightly giggling under her breath. "No, don't tell Nana! I'm gonna find out on my own, that's way more fun!"
"Eh?"
Crow was so stunned, he couldn't even speak. Not that he was given a chance in the first place. The girl cheerfully waved at him and Rean -- and logged out without further ado.
"Oh, Nadia..." her abandoned partner groaned out loud, one hand massaging his temples as he could feel the beginning of a headache rise up. As much as he normally adored her, Nadia could be such a spoiled handful at times... Apologetic, he turned to the older men and smiled wryly. "Sorry. I have no idea what's actually gotten into her. I better log out, too."
"That's alright, don't worry about us."
Offering the boy a reassuring smile, Rean canted his head ever so slightly. "Please keep safe, alright?"
"Of course, same to you!"
With that, the boy's avatar disappeared as well.
Standing next to each other in silence, the remaining duo exchanged puzzled looks with each other -- until Rean broke the silence with a playful chuckle. "So, you got any family outside of Jurai?" he teasingly asked, much to Crow's immediate exasperation.
"You know the answer to that, sheesh."
-- -- - -- --
For some reason Nadia had insisted to meet up with them in the Märchen Garten not even a week later. The girl was unusually chipper and awake, an odd spring in her steps as she excitedly waved in their direction as soon as they logged into the virtual reality created by Marduk.
Crow wasn't sure how to feel, if he was honest. Their last encounter had ended on such a weird note, it had actually stuck around in the back of his mind for the past few days.
Did he have family outside of Jurai?
For all his childhood, it had only ever been his pops and him -- poor old fart doing his utmost to raise him while also dutifully going about his work as the mayor of Jurai. His parents had never been in the picture, the old man always looking too hurt for him to have the heart and ask for more information.
With that in mind, there were plenty of questions popping up the longer he thought about it.
A real headache, if you asked him.
Not that it would change anything, right? Nowadays, he was happy with the family he got. He was happy to have Rean by his side. Noticing that this matter had bothered him more than he was willing to admit, his partner had given him the nudge to keep an open mind. There was nothing to fear, nothing to worry about. Some questions might remain unanswered, however it wasn't about to change anything about who he was as a person.
So, with that in mind, he felt an icky chill running down his spine as soon as he met eyes with the nosy teenager.
Girl was too smug for her own good.
"Tehehe, you actually came~!"
"Duh, didn't you ask for a meet-up? Would be kinda rude to ghost ya if you ask me." Shrugging nonchalantly, he shoved his hands into the pockets of his pants while Swin smiled rather wryly. Someone looked as exasperated as could be. "So, what's up?"
"Sorry if we got in the way of anything important," the boy briefly apologized, though Rean noticed the lack of remorse as well. Kid was sorry for the interruption, but not for the meet-up at all.
Softly shaking his head, the swordsman offered them a reassuring smile. "Not at all, we were just taking a break anyway." Mostly due to Crow, but the kids didn't need to know that their behavior had bothered his partner this intensely. "Is there anything you need help with me? Nadia's text sounded urgent..."
"Because it is! I want to get back to lazying around, but this thing has kept me up for nights!" The former assassin gasped in indignation and put a hand on her hips. "Can you imagine? Nana unable to keep up with her beauty sleep! It's unfathomable!"
"Nadia..." Swin softly reprimanded her, yet shot her a deadpan. "Cut to the chase already, please."
"But where's the fun in that?" She was pouting. Her dear S really had no sense for timing at all! "Ugh, fine. Nana's Researching Squad did some research and found out some juiiiicy tea."
"Tea...?"
Rean furrowed his brows.
"Slang, Rean. The girlie's saying she found out something interesting," the silver-haired trickster snorted in amusement. "Get with the times, Instructor. Otherwise the kids will ya in the dust at some point ☆"
"Right-o! CR gets me, that means it's fate!"
"...CR?"
Oh jeez. That girl and her weird nick-naming habits. What did he do to earn that questionable honor?
Briefly glancing to Swin, he was greeted with an equally exasperated shrug. The boy had no idea where she came up with that nickname either. Shoot. "Get to the point, Nadia. What's the big tea you got?"
"Heh..."
Immediately, an impish grin spread across Nadia's features while her eyes twinkled with nothing but pure mischief. It sent a shiver down Crow's spine. Whatever she was plotting, he didn't want to be part of it! But alas, contrary to her outward appearance, she merely pulled out the virtual recreation of her Xipha and pushed a few buttons.
Seconds later, the man's device hummed in his pocket.
"Huh." Taking it out and flipping it open, he navigated the system for a few minutes before his expression darkened -- at once, Rean was right by his side, glancing onto the glowing screen. Crow didn't even notice himself glaring at the teenager, clicking his tongue in disdain. "Is that some kinda joke, kid? 'Cause I ain't laughing."
"What, no! That would be some lame joke, don't you think?" Insistently shaking her head, Nadia shoved her Xipha back into her pocket before she took a deep breath. "My research isn't wrong! I hacked into a bunch of databases and verified every piece of information in that file I sent you! Aren't I great?" She puffed out her chest once, then regarded Crow with a sly smirk on her features. "Guess assassination runs in the family, eh, CR? Just that S and Nana were more successful at it!"
"Y- you little shit, what the hell?!" Dropping his Xipha into Rean's hands, the trickster approached the girl and scowled down at her. "I ain't some assassin, I was a terrorist! Get your facts right if you wanna pull a stunt like that!"
"W- wait, Crow, that's what you're upset about?!"
Rean could feel the beginning of a headache as he watched the start of an argument between the two, only joined by Swin a few moments later. "Is it true?" he quietly asked the boy. Fortunately, the brunette was calm and composed compared to his agitated younger partner. The girl was pointing a finger at Crow; Rean had no idea why. "The file she sent him?"
"The family tree, you mean? Pretty much." The former assassin rubbed the nape of his neck. "After we logged out last time, she spent all her energy into researching this. It's rare that anything bothers her that badly, to be honest."
"Huh, I see. You know, Crow was really bothered by you guys, too." Not enough to take any active steps, but enough to whine and eventually complain to him about it. "Who could have known your partner's whim would turn out like this, though..."
Swin sighed.
"Say that again. At first I thought there's no weight to her assumption. People sometimes just look... similar, whether in appearance or personality. It's just coincidence, but I can't say she was wrong either. In that moment..." his voice trailed off. He was thinking back to the weight of Crow's hand on top of his head, to the way the older man was shamelessly ruffling his hair and grinning down at him. He sighed wistfully. "A certain resemblance was there."
"I see. Ace was her big brother and your partner, correct?" Rean was patient, he didn't mind waiting for the boy to confirm his question with a brief nod. "I've caught tidbits about everything that went down with the Gardenmaster, it... couldn't have been easy."
"Hm..."
Unable to find the words for an answer, Swin was relieved when Nadia caught wind of their hushed conversation. "Nee, S, stop ignoring us! You have to help me!"
"Geez, Rean, can you believe the nerve of this brat?!" Crow groaned overly exasperated, yet there was no actual bite to his voice.
Heading over to his partner, the boy wasn't surprised when she immediately linked arms with him while childishly pointing at the former terrorist. "Now that we're family, you gotta take care of Nana! You're older, too! C'mon, I want some ice cream!"
"Then, go 'n buy yourself some! Like hell I'm gonna treat ya."
"Ah, is this what this is about...?" Lightly quirking a brow, Rean couldn't help but chuckle under his breath. He was still holding on to Crow's opened Xipha, the image of a reverse-engineered family tree on full display -- very visibly made by Nadia considering it was decorated with images of teddy bears holding up sighs with various names. Of all the names displayed, Rean only recognized a grand total of three or four, half of which were present right now. The other half -- namely Crow's grandfather and Nadia's older brother -- had unfortunately already moved onto the other side. Following the line from the Rayne family name, there was.... an unexpected connection.
Somehow, Crow's mother and Nadia's father had turned out to be siblings.
Making them first degree cousins.
"Nonsense," Crow scoffed and snatched up his orbment, unceremoniously tucking it away. "Family ain't a pass to free food, kiddo."
"Yeah, if anything, he might try to scam you first..." the raven dryly commented, earning himself an exaggerated gasp. "What, you still owe me interest."
"C'mon, you can't always bring that up whenever it's convenient to you!"
"It's only serving as a reminder that you can't escape your responsibilities, dear."
Oh, that sweet smile wasn't fooling anyone!
"Mhhh, looks like AC got some juicy gossip on my sparkling new family member..." Humming just as sweetly, Nadia clapped her hands together and looked up at the swordsman. "I know this really nice place in Edith. It's got delicious food, the owners are amazing, too!"
"Oh, you mean Montmart? Maybe it wouldn't hurt to check on everyone while we're at it, too." Swin nodded approvingly.
Deliberately ignoring his cherished partner, Rean made a noise of interest. "That's the place the spriggan is living at, isn't it? Towa mentioned something along those lines, she also praised the menu of the owners..." Lightly tapping his chin, he glanced in Crow's direction. "Next time we're in the area, I'm sure Crow won't mind treating us all to a nice lunch there. It's the least he can do for being such a troublemaker."
"Hey, who are you callin' a troublemaker? I don't attract issues like a certain someone here!"
"Ignore him."
"Rean!"
"Oh, I'm liking your dynamic ♡" the pink-haired teen playfully cooed before giggling. "Never would have thought I'd end up with AC as my in-law. Isn't that fun, Swin? Yesterday, our family was just us and LP! Now we got CR and AC in the books, too!"
"Ah..."
Welp. Rean was caught off guard by her shameless bluntness, his face lightly heating up as he nervously chuckled under his breath. Did she really have to put it like that? Not saying that she was wrong, but having someone else point it out like that... Even Crow looked slightly flustered, deliberately coughing into a fist to divert the teenagers' attention back onto him.
"Ugh, fine. I don't mind treatin' you to some food next time we run into each other," he snorted, already reaching out to ruffle the girl's hair. "I ain't your big brother and I ain't plannin' on being anyone's replacement, but havin' a lil' cousin to dote on... doesn't sound half bad, I guess."
"Oh..."
Her blue eyes widened, while her face turned a clear shade of pink -- just slightly paler than her hair. Nadia wasn't sure what to say. When she had thrown herself headfirst into researching this odd thought stuck to her mind, she didn't think anything big or major would come out of it. So, when an actual connection clicked into place, her heart had skipped beats. She hadn't been able to sleep, had dreaded sharing her findings with the man in question.
What would he say? Would he take her information at face value or would he call her crazy and not believe her in the slightest?
So many thoughts had swirled around in her head that not even her favorite desserts had been able to effectively distract her.
Turns out... there had been nothing to worry about, huh?
"Heh heh, feel free to dote to your heart's content! More doting means less working for Nana ♡"
"Tch, brat." Lightly flicking her forehead, Crow scoffed. "Swin's spoiling you too much."
"I... I can't argue with that. Sorry." The boy pressed his lips into a line and frowned, which evoked the trickster to snicker gleefully. Seeing that there were no hard feelings, Swin wanted to relax his unknowingly tense posture -- but there was one thing still on his mind. "Then, you believe Nadia?"
"Sure, why shouldn't I?"
Scratching the back of his head, Crow shrugged. "Rean's old man turned out to be fuckin' Osborne. Being cousins with a cute lil' ex-assassin feels like a walk in the park compared to that."
"Thanks for airing my dirty laundry unprompted," deadpanning at his partner, Rean weakly shook his head. "Putting that aside, I don't think the bags under Nadia's eyes would lie about this. Please get some rest, alright? We can talk about this properly next time we meet."
As if on cue, the girl shamelessly yawned. "Gotcha, AC. I think I'm gonna sleep like a baby..." Now with her exhaustion on full display, she lazily waved and grinned at Crow. "Don't forget, you promised to dote on me from now on, CR. If you break your word, I'm gonna make you swallow 1000 needles!"
And with that, she immediately logged out. Just like that abandoning Swin in the virtual space, the girl was gone from sight. In her place were just a few sparkles of data that quickly dissipated as well.
"Sheesh, why do I feel like she'd actually do it?"
"Because she would. She got smaller needles soaked in toxins that she would u--"
"Alright, that's enough, pal! I get it, I get it. I won't break that promise!" He loved having his body intact, thank you very much. Dying once was enough for one lifetime! Folding his arms across his chest, Crow eyed Swin warily. "Girl sure put some effort into this, though."
"Yeah, I wish she would always put this much effort into things..." Laughing in spite of himself, Swin's expression softened more and more before he was faintly smiling at the older men. "You know, she got really excited when she found out. I think she was thrilled to actually have some family alive."
"C'mon, don't put yourself down like that. Ain't you her family?"
"Crow's right. Blood relation isn't everything. It's true that the late Chancellor was my father, but the Schwarzers have loved and cherished me when I couldn't do the same for myself... they're my family. Now Crow is part of it as well," Rean softly added, a fond and gentle smile tugging on the corners of his lips. No matter how embarrassing it was, he couldn't help but reach for his partner's hand and intertwine their fingers. "You did everything you could for Nadia, didn't you? You kept her safe and protected, you supported her through all those years. And she did the same for you in return, didn't she?"
Swin was visibly taken aback, his mouth open while he couldn't speak for a few moments. But then, he merely laughed under his breath. "I... yeah, you got that right. And together we did everything in our power to get our little sister... to get Lapis back as well."
"See? I ain't saying that it isn't surprising or shocking to find out that you got some blood-related family, because damn. My head's still spinning here! But don't disrespect yourself like that, kiddo."
"Thanks, you two." Giving them a brief smile, he scratched his cheek. "I guess that means I can count on you to watch over Nadia in the future, too?"
"Sure. I got no plans on swallowing a shit ton of needles!"
"Kidding aside, you can count on us to watch your backs." Plural. Both. Swin included. Because anything else wouldn't be fair in Rean's opinion. It was an unexpected situation, a surprise they would certainly have to digest first -- but seeing the badly hidden excitement and gee in the girl's entire being, he was sure that Crow was ready for the task. "And now off with you, too. I'm sure she's just waiting for you."
"Rean's right. Don't keep her waiting, it's nap time for the lass."
"Alright, alright. See you later."
There was more Swin wanted to say, but he decided against it and logged out. They could talk properly later after all. He really wanted to check on his partner first.
-- -- - -- --
"Are you alright, Crow?"
Sitting down next to his partner on the edge of their inn bed, Rean gently put a hand on his thigh. Crow's gaze was glued to the Xipha, the screen glowing in the dim light of the room. The sun was slowly going down, another day coming to an end. Together they had logged out of the Märchen Garten shortly after Swin. Since then, Crow had been off -- occasionally glancing at the file Nadia had sent their way.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just kinda tryin' to wrap my head around this, y'know?"
Even though he had played it cool in the virtual space, he was actually shocked by this revelation. Not just by the fact that he had a younger cousin in Nadia -- for the first time since his childhood, he knew his parents' names. Even pops was on this stupid ancestry list!
It felt surreal despite being a rather small family tree.
Suddenly, Rean grabbed the Xipha from his hands and put it on the bedside table. Crow silently followed his motions with the eyes before slowly turning his head to look at his partner. "Don't gimme that look, Rean! I swear, I'm good. It just... feels weird, y'know?"
"Yeah, I know. Trust me, I know."
If anyone knew what it felt like to find out more about your own family, it was him.
"Heh, sorry. I didn't mean to open up any old wounds, love."
With his cheeks dusted a soft pink, the raven shook his head before he gently pushed him into the sheets. Quirking a brow, of course he went along with it. Rean was lovely, confident in his actions like that -- though nothing else happened. His partner laid down next to him and pulled him close, embracing him as they laid on their sides. "It's been years, it's fine. But thanks for your concern, dear."
They fortunately didn't have to linger on that mess anymore. Instead, Crow lifted a hand and gently carded his fingers through Rean's black locks. "Heh, guess I got a bigger family than I thought," he suddenly found himself grinning. Shameless and a little gleeful. "Can you imagine the next family gathering with your folks?"
"Oh, already planning to introduce your cousin to my parents?"
Playing along with Crow's scenario, Rean giggled under his breath. "Mom's gonna love that she got a girl to fuss over. I hope Nadia's prepared to deal with that."
"Eh, should be fine. Otherwise it's gonna be hilarious in my books. Win-win for good ol' Crow ☆"
"Crow, no. You're supposed to support her, not make fun of her!"
"Whatever you say, love. Teach me the ways of big brotherhood."
"Now you're making fun of me!" Not his fault that he cherished Elise very much and wouldn't stand to have any pesky flies surround her! Despite his huff, he didn't resist when Crow tugged him a little closer and cupped the side of his face, gently tilting it up. "...I know you'll do a fine job, though."
"Heh, I sure hope so."
There was always the prospect of swallowing needles if he didn't, after all. He wasn't about to forget that very cheery threat, no.
"Anyway, enough of that. I got my most precious family right here." Closing the distance, Rean could feel the warmth of Crow's breath on his lips. "I only want you on my mind right now, love."
"Then, what's holding you back?" The raven softly whispered, eager to take the first step. Briefly capturing his partner's inviting lips, he smiled at him. "I'm right here."
"Good, that's what I wanna hear."
Now Crow was stealing a kiss, all while shifting on the bed and leaning over his lover. Rean was about to speak, but he selfishly swallowed his sweet voice and buried a hand in strands of soft hair instead.
At the end of the day, he couldn't deny that he was the type of person who occasionally thought too much about this sort of thing -- family. Losing his family once had put him on the path of terrorism and bloodshed. Now here he was, seemingly collecting new family members like others collected VM cards. First Rean and with him, the Schwarzers.
And now it turned out he actually had a cousin.
Fascinating how things had worked out over the years, huh?