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“Wahhh, it’s not fair, Nii-san! It’s not!” Jin cries with red, tear stained cheeks. He is obviously upset, which his older brother thinks is a little irrational given the situation, but he is a kid…
The child’s petite frame is shaking and blocking their bedroom door- where Ragna needs to go to take care of Saya. Jin, being the attention starved child he was, placed himself in front and refused to budge, all the while shouting how Ragna obviously favored their sister more than him.
“I love Nii-san so much more a-and you never play with me!”
Ragna feels guilty, he really does. Jin saying it out loud just hurts him more and he really can’t blame him. It’s not like he wants to be worrying over Saya. He’s a kid that misses his brother, but why can’t he see Saya required a lot of attention at the moment? His worry should be going towards her, not jealousy and envy.
Despite Jin’s lack of reasoning, Ragna loves him regardless and it hurts to know he made him cry.
“Jin…” Ragna frowns, guilt piling up the more he watches the blonde quiver and hiccup.
“I wish there was a way Nii-san could be with me all the time!” he sobs, his small fists trying to rub his tears away, “I want Nii-san to love me, too!”
“I do love you, Jin! I swear I do,” the older of the two replies quickly, trying to come up with an answer that would sooth the boy.
Jin shakes his head and stomps his foot. “Nuh-uh! Y-you don’t! You don’t, you don’t!”
“I do, so stop being stubborn!” he repeats, now kneeling in front of Jin so that he can look up at his hanging head, “I can show you I do.”
At this, Jin lowers his fists and peeks at Ragna, lip still wobbling. “How…?”
Now, Ragna’s brain works to find an answer. Jin was usually simple, but when it came to one of these moods, his answers would need to be spot on or else. What can he say? Offer? In a moment of desperation, Ragna snaps his fingers as if he was hit with an epiphany.
“We can get married!”
The answer has Jin’s head snap up, his already flushed cheeks reddening even more. “M-Marry Nii-san?!”
“Y-yeah!” Ragna grins nervously, nodding, “You know what that means, right?”
Jin pauses to think and ducks his head shyly. “Only a little… Sister talks about it sometimes…”
“It means I love you more than anyone and we can be together forever, understand?”
“More than anyone…?” the blonde whispers, breathless, “What if Nii-san wants to marry another person?!”
Ragna stands up and shakes his head. “It doesn’t work like that. Not for us, anyway. You have to ask one really special person to marry you.”
Young, green eyes sparkle up at him expectantly, now fidgeting in his spot. “R-really? Don’t we have to have a celebration and rings? That’s what Sister said.”
Ragna hums in thought and crosses his arms. “Hmm… We… can have a private celebration?”
Jin shakes his head and pouts. “No way! I want people to know Nii-san is mine!”
The taller blonde bites his lip and runs a hand through his hair. “Jeez… How about when we are older, then? Those kinds of things need a lot of money.”
His brother doesn’t seem to like the idea, but looks to understand that neither of them have the funds for a wedding. “What about rings?”
Ragna looks around and spots the vase of flowers at their window and hurries over. Jin, curious, follows and tries to look over his brother’s shoulder. It takes a moment, but when he turns, he presents a small makeshift ring for Jin.
“You can have this until we get real rings. When that happens, we can get married for real!”
Jin, overwhelmed with emotions, starts crying again. “I-I get t-to be with Nii-san forever!”
Not at all surprised, Ragna huffs and rubs Jin’s small shoulders soothingly. “Yeah, that’s right…”
Gently, he lifts Jin’s hand and slides the flower over a finger, smiling when Jin gasps and fidgets.
“Are you okay now?”
The flustered boy nods and pulls his hand to his chest, his other hand lightly caressing it. “Y-yeah. Nii-san is mine now so I’m r-really happy!”
“Good.” He ruffles Jin’s short locks of hair and gives him a small pat afterword. “I’m going to go see if Saya needs help now... Just remember we are going to be together a lot after she gets better.”
The younger brother nods enthusiastically. “When we get older, we’ll be able to do lots of stuff! Like live together and holds hands and share a bed and bathe together and-”
“R-right, Jin, but let’s get older first…”
And they did. Over time, they grew and things changed.
Saya was moved to a hospital when medicine and technology advanced. Their Sister, whom had married into the Kisaragi family, was able to benefit from their wealth and send her to the best doctors. The unknown disease, while treated, still had effects on her body like changing the color of her hair. Other than that, she was able to live on and carry out a relatively normal life. Jin, while upset he had to leave his brother, was elated to find that he would be attending and advancing through the Military Academy. There, he befriended Tsubaki and made a name for himself.
Ragna disappeared for a while. It wasn’t a secret he didn’t like the new family and was promptly kicked out when his behavior was seen as a stain to their name. When such news hit Jin during his middle school years, the blonde ran up to their guardian and begged for her to bring him back with fat tears rolling down his cheeks. When he could do nothing, he became upset and hid himself away with Tsubaki and her family whenever he could. Happy but not all satisfied, a letter from Ragna, addressing his family (minus the Kisaragi’s because “fuck them”), stated he would visit and keep in touch.
They kept in touch, but his first visit didn’t happen until Jin’s first year of high school. He looked different; white hair, eyes two different colors, his face more defined, and developing muscle… Ragna carried that air of authority around him, but also protection and safety that Jin had always felt around him. And upon seeing him, it was then he realized how much he truly missed his older brother.
It only lasted for a day, sadly, and the blonde could hardly bare to see him go. Jin felt like he still had so much to talk about with his brother, but at least he did get one piece of valuable information.
Ragna was still single. That alone put Jin at ease.
They still wrote to each other up until Jin’s third year when Sister had a plan to visit Ragna. The trip had been on Jin’s mind for days, said days becoming so much longer due to his impatience and excitement. As the rare and short break was coming up, it was all he talked about; so much so that Tsubaki’s friends knew about it. Surprising since Jin Kisaragi, to their knowledge, hardly (maybe never) got visibly excited.
Just a few days before the break, Sister informed him she fell ill and Saya was out traveling for her own studies, so the trip would have to be postponed. She didn’t want Jin traveling alone, despite the smart young man he was, so Jin suggested he take Tsubaki and another in place of her and Saya. That seemed to please her and he was glad he managed to keep the trip going as planned.
Only thing was, Tsubaki decided to buy another ticket. One for a girl known as Noel Vermillion.
She wasn’t bad or anything, she just reminded him of how Saya used to be. But, for the trip, Jin could deal with her since he only found her as a minor annoyance- not even worth a headache.
“You know, for someone who talks about their brother a lot, you always forget to mention his name,” Makoto says as they walk through Ishana, admiring the scene around them.
Ishara was small, but bright and lively. It was detailed with various of plants and statues, the only less appealing sites being bland shacks and small markets. They were able to see it all as they made their way down to where Ragna was housed, which looked like to be in the more finer side of town.
“That’s because I refer to him as my brother, so using his name becomes useless,” Jin states, somehow containing his excitement as the house they journeyed for came into view. He wanted nothing more than to run ahead, but willed himself to remain as he was.
Makoto folds her arms and huffs. “It just feels weird coming to a guy’s house without knowing who he is, much less his name! And we didn’t even stop by any of the tasty looking restaurants!”
“Makoto,” Tsubaki chimes softly in a scolding tone, “This is technically Jin’s trip and he has the right to proceed as he wishes. You could have rejected the invitation.”
“And miss out on Ishana?! Are you kidding?!”
Tsubaki sighs and stops in front of the door behind Jin. “Then do Jin-nii a favor and be polite.”
“T-thank you for the opportunity, Kisaragi-san…!” Noel whispers out, playing with her hands.
He doesn’t hear her, regardless of her false assumption of inviting her here personally. He is too taken with the door in front of him, the only thing preventing him from really seeing his brother. As calmly as he can, he knocks (though it come out more urgent than intended) and can’t help but rock on his heels as he waits. The three girls observe the normally stoic and collected student become increasingly flustered. It was cute to see this side of him, even if he was only showing a sliver of it.
Jin’s breath caught in his throat as the door was unlocked, his heart beating wildly. Before Jin could even get his words out upon seeing Ragna, who was a lot taller and well built this time around, Noel’s voice cut in with a surprised shout. “R-Ragna-san?!”
“Noel?”
He whipped his head towards her, but she was too busy gazing at Ragna disgustingly to notice.
“How do you know him?” he asks with a low, almost threatening tone.
Noel smiled and approached Ragna with a shy smile, which Jin didn’t appreciate at all. “Ragna-san helped on my family’s farm for a while! H-he was always really nice even if he didn’t look like it! I would have never guessed you two were related!”
“What’s that supposed to mean?!”
“Ahh! I’m sorry, did I offend you, Ragna-san?!”
The nerve of this girl. The nerve of this girl! Jin stands in his spot fuming and appalled at the Saya copy making moves on his brother right in front of everyone. They could clearly see it too, right? The way she obviously stole his brother’s attention right from under his nose? Red with fury, Jin lunges at Ragna and holds him tight.
“Nii-san!~”
“Fuck, Jin!” Ragna gasps, not expecting to catch Jin in mid-conversation. “God, did you really need to do that?!”
Jin squeezes him and looks up with puppy-like eyes. His muscled arms felt good around him like this, he notes. “I just missed you a lot…”
Color flashes across Ragna’s cheek, and he suddenly looks bashful. “Right. Yeah, I guess… I missed you too, Jin.”
Emotions swell inside Jin and he hugs Ragna all the tighter, nuzzling his chest. “You should have, Nii-san!”
Makoto “clears” her throat. “Ahem…”
Jin’s gaze turns sharp and dark when he looks over to the girls. Well, at Noel, specifically, now that he has been interrupted from Ragna. “We can formally introduce ourselves inside after you all settle into your rooms.”
“Yeah, about that,” the oldest of the group sighs, scratching the back of his head, “There’s only one guest room. The plan was for Saya to have it while Sister slept with Nine and Jin with me…”
Again, the blonde’s mood changes drastically when he faces the person of his affection. “That’s okay, Nii-san! The girls can share the room and I’ll keep with you!”
Tsubaki and Makoto gave each other a look as if saying “this is going to be a long vacation.”
As Ragna explained: he lived with his master and his wife, Nine. He was gone to do some kind of personal business and Nine decided to go back to work when she realized her sister would not be attending the trip. So, that left only Ragna and his guests the house for the short time.
The trip, despite Jin’s ever growing distaste for Noel, was going pretty well for everyone. Tsubaki, bless her heart, would take Makoto and Noel for a walk around the area at times when she could see Jin getting ready to accept his new fate as a murderer. Jin was glad to have an intelligent friend that knew him enough to know when things wouldn’t end well for anyone. She had to do it three times and it was only the first day. When that happened, he basked in the Ragna’s attention like a cat out in the sun.
Right around dinner, Ragna suggested they go out to eat. Jin blushed and had to hold in an excited squeal because it was the perfect time for a romantic date. Unfortunately, the girls had returned just in time for the offer and gladly invited themselves. Well, Makoto did. After some bickering between them, Ragna did allow Makoto and the others to join since they had apparently not eaten while they were out. While Jin would have really liked to go alone with his brother, it wasn’t all bad until Noel, who was sitting on the other side of Ragna at the restaurant, started chatting him up.
Again, Tsubaki, being the attentive friend she was, asked if Noel could switch seats with her, claiming that her current seat was right next to a heater and she was starting to get hot. Noel had no problem with it since she was wearing less clothing and wanted to make her friend comfortable. After, while Noel still tried to talk to Ragna, it was less obvious with Tsubaki getting her attention half the time. What did Jin do to deserve Tsubaki, he wonders…
On the way out, Jin just about exploded when Ragna offered his jacket to Noel, saying that he didn’t realize she was cold if she wanted to trade seats for the heater. The exchange between the two could have been viewed as cute to anyone that wasn’t Jin- as he was seething and seeing fire at the moment. But, just when Noel went to grab his jacket, Tsubaki thrusted her own in the way and stated she was getting too hot anyway. Jin didn’t know if he was just imagining it, but she might have thrown a disapproving glare at Ragna. With that settled, they continued out with a mildly confused, but not really off-put Ragna. Just when he was about to pull his jacket back on, the blonde took hold of it and tugged lightly.
“I’m cold, Nii-san…”
“Hah? It’s not really that cold and you have sleeves.”
Jin pouts and gives his brother a look. “I’m still cold!”
Ragna clicks his tongue and lets out a huff before throwing his jacket over Jin’s shoulders. “Alright, fine! Just don’t whine anymore.”
“I wasn’t whining.”
“I could see it in your eyes. It’s annoying.”
The student presses against Ragna’s side and gazes up at him. “Do you really look that deep into my eyes?”
“W-what?! Jin, cut it out!”
The student giggles and continues to affectionately tease his brother while pressed up against him. Noel keeps trying to speak to Ragna, but is intercepted by Makoto or Tsubaki most of the time. Other times, Jin’s glare keeps her in place.
Getting to bed wasn’t easy for the either of them. For Jin, he just wanted to be close to Ragna and maybe steal a few touches. Ragna kept rejecting him, shoving him to ‘his side of the bed’ and hissing for him to go to bed. Once the blonde let up, Ragna fell asleep easily- which allowed Jin to snuggle up to him with no hassle. Rather, the older of the two actually threw his arm over top of him and held him.
It made Jin blush. Just a little.
In the morning, it was a little disappointing not wake up to his brother still holding him. Groggy, Jin sits up, tired eyes scanning the room for Ragna until he caught the smell of something cooking. Was that him making breakfast? How cute… If Jin stayed in bed long enough, would he bring it to him?
As if Jin could wait that long.
Still tired, but more excited, he gets out of bed and heads downstairs, not even bothering to comb his bed-messed hair. Just as he neared the kitchen, he halted upon seeing Noel, who was still in her pyjamas, at Ragna’s side, who looked to be enjoying her company.
“I remember that!” she giggles nervously.
It causes Ragna to blush and scratched the back of his neck. “Don’t bring it up again. I already don’t live down my mistakes in this household.”
Again, the blonde harpie giggles and nods. “You’re secret is safe with me!”
Then, Ragna moves to grab something, but Noel being in the way, as she always was, causes him to knock into her smaller frame. He easily knocks her off balance, which makes her squeak, and Ragna is scrambling to save her from falling. He manages to catch her by her waist and hold her upright until she stands on her own.
It was something Jin does not and will not stand for. She did it on purpose, he knows she did! With a scowl and gritted teeth, he stomps in, his abrupt arrival making the two hastily split from each other.
Jin latches onto Ragna’s arm and holds onto it as if he would run away with Noel forever, his glare sending daggers at said girl, who freezes in her spot. “Listen here, Vermillion,” he spits out, tugging Ragna a step back for good measure, “This is my Nii-san! I won’t let you ruin my vacation with your seducing ways!”
“Jin, what the fu-”
“Nii-san is taken, Vermillion. We’re getting married after I finish my schooling.”
There was a moment of silence and confusion before Ragna’s timer went off.
“Jin, what?! What the fuck?!” he yells, trying to shake him off, “Where the fuck did you get that idea?!”
Jin looks at Ragna as if he was dumb; as if he should know what he is talking about. “Nii-san, you are the one who proposed to me.”
“When did I-” The albino stops short, his eyes widening as if hit sudden realization. “We were, like, five, Jin!”
“Doesn’t matter,” the blonde sighs dramatically, “You’re mine and I’m yours. Forever. Just like you said.”
“You are so fucked up, oh my god!”
Noel, now ignored in favor of their bickering, was left to stand in her spot to process what just happened. At the screams and shots, Tsubaki and Makoto trudged their way in and watched with Noel as Jin clung to Ragna’s chest and said man trying to get him off by ramming chest first into the fridge.