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esp_dragonFandom: Noblesse
Summary: M-21 had a habit. Every Thursday, he would leave the house for a couple of hours, and when he came back, there would always be dirt on his hands and knees.
Notes: Thanks to Key and Myriade who helped me with the characterisations.
Yet another fic I thought that wouldn't be longer than 500 words, hah.
Rating: G
Genre: Friendship
Word count: 1,632
Status: Complete
M-21 had a habit. Every Thursday, he would leave the house for a couple of hours, and when he came back, there would always be dirt on his hands and knees.
None of the other occupants of the house questioned where he'd gone, or seemed like they had even noticed (Tao doubted that; Boss seemed to know everything that happened in his house. Same with Raizel-nim, even if he didn't mention it) but Tao was a little curious. Just a little. Not enough to hack into the security cameras and watch where M-21 went.
It was after the third week he and Takeo had been 'adopted' into the house (because that was what it was, right? They'd been taken in, given family names and everything!) that M-21 walked in after midnight, dirt on his knees again. Tao and Takeo had been watching a late show together -both unable to sleep- and Tao had timed it exactly so the hot chocolate would be ready for M-21 when he got back.
M-21 paused at the entrance, looking back and forth between the third cup on the table and Tao and Takeo, who had their own drinks in their hands.
"You're not going to ask?" M-21 said as he walked over, sitting at the seat where the cup was.
"Why should we?" Takeo said, taking a sip of his own drink. "We're not in the Union anymore."
"Well," Tao said, bouncing a leg, "I'm curious, but yeah, we're not scientists checking up on ya or anything." They were modified humans who had been in similar circumstances. They knew what it was like to be watched all the time.
M-21 blinked at them. "Right." A bit of tension in his shoulders eased as he exhaled.
"Yeah, it's a weird feeling, ya know?" Tao said, stretching his arms high above his head and nearly hit Takeo in the face with an elbow. And M-21 and been out longer than they had. It was something Tao wasn't sure he'd get used to, not having to always report where he was going and could just wander where he wanted (though Takeo could do that in the DA-5, but that was Takeo).
"Yeah." M-21 stared at his cup for a few seconds before picking it up and drinking.
The rest of the time was spent watching the TV, talking about the show. It wasn't that interesting and Tao had nearly dozed off on Takeo's shoulder a couple of times before they decided to head to bed.
* * *
"Can you open the window?" Takeo asked, his hands already dismantling his gun and laying the pieces down on the sheets of newspaper he'd laid out on his bedroom floor.
"One open window, coming right up!" Tao said with a grin, vaulting over Takeo's bed to get to the window faster.
The window opened without a squeak or Tao needing too much strength and he blinked when it stayed where it was without needing something to prop it open. Huh. That was different from the safehouses they usually got with the DA-5.
Tao then grabbed one of Takeo's chairs, turned it around and straddled it so he could lean his arms on it while he watched Takeo maintain his rifle. It didn't take him long to dismantle it, most of the movements on automatic, and seeing Takeo take care of his equipment made Tao want to double check his babies too.
Tao looked up when someone knocked on Takeo's door as he scanned through his pocket computer. Huh. It was way past dinner time, and other than getting called for meals, the rest of the household tended to leave them alone. Aside from one other person.
He shared a look with Takeo, who nodded, and with a grin, Tao called out, "You can come in, M!"
There was a small pause and M-21 poked his head in, glancing between both Tao and Takeo. Then his eyes went to Takeo's rifle and Tao's pocket computer.
"Oh," M-21 said, his face blanking. "You're busy. Never-"
"Hey, hey hey!" Tao said as he shot out of his chair, letting his cables tuck his computer away. "We never said that." He grabbed the door before M-21 pulled it shut. "What's up?"
M-21 didn't say anything and Tao heard Takeo slide the last piece of his rifle back into place.
"We're finished," Takeo said. "It'll just take me a minute to tidy up."
"See?" Tao beamed, opening the door wider. "Come in!"
He walked in, and M-21 followed.
"I was just..." M-21 pursed his lips, exhaling through his nose. "Do you want to come with me?"
To where? Except it had been a week since the last time M-21 had left the house without an explanation, and that must be what he was talking about.
"Sure!" Tao said, seeing Takeo nod at the same time.
M-21 eyes widened, like he hadn't expected them to agree.
"So, is this going to be a surprise, or are you gonna tell us where you've been going before you take us there?" Tao asked.
M-21 pursed his lips again. "Do you want me to tell you?"
"Nah," Tao said, waving a hand in the air. "Surprises are cool!"
"It's up to you," Takeo said after throwing everything he'd used into the bin.
"All right..." M-21 looked away from them. "I'll...tell you when we get there."
"Can't wait!"
* * *
It didn't take them long to reach one of the islands just off the coast and Tao looked around as they went further inland. The trees were a little different here, and it wasn't quite the same as the forests he and Takeo had went through. It wasn't as humid for a start, and the insects seemed to take turns making themselves heard rather than making a continuous drone in the background.
M-21 hadn't said anything the entire time they'd been moving, but when his footsteps started getting smaller, M-21 slowing down, Tao looked at him.
His eyes were distant, like he wasn't seeing what was in front of him, but his legs were walking over the roots like he had them memorised and knew where every single one of them was.
"I told you before Frankenstein and his Master took me into their home," M-21 started, "that I had came here with a comrade."
"Yeah," Tao said, nodding.
"M-24," Takeo added.
They'd shared their stories about their life in the Union, the missions they'd gone through, usually after dinner. M-24 had been one of the last survivors of the M-series aside from M-21. He'd died, but... Tao glanced ahead of them, seeing the gap in the trees open up into a clearing. M-21 had never said what had happened to his body afterwards.
M-21's breathing was a little unsteady. "I was... I was able to dig his body out before anyone else came to investigate. I brought him here."
They stepped out into the clearing, and Tao saw the patch of disturbed earth in front of them in the moonlight. It didn't smell like someone had just been buried there, and the grass was already starting to take over again, hiding it. There wasn't a gravestone or marking at the dead of it.
"Didn't want him trapped under a warehouse," M-21 muttered, staring at the grave.
"I think he would be glad you did that," Takeo said, raising a hand to rest it at M-21's shoulder.
Enough of M-21's comrades had died underground, and who knew what the scientists did to their bodies after they died.
They definitely wouldn't do something as kind as bury them.
"Yeah," Tao said, doing the same as Takeo. "And thanks."
M-21 blinked at him.
"For bringing us here, ya know?" Tao glanced back at the grave. "You didn't have to." This was...personal.
"Well..." M-21 said. He stopped, then started again. "You're my comrades now, and so was M-24. So..."
"You wanted us to meet," Takeo finished.
M-21 nodded, not looking at either of them.
"Cool!" Tao sat down, his legs crossed. "Heya, M-24. Guess I can't call you 'M' since I already call M-21 that," he said, tapping his chin with a finger. Hmm, what to call him...
"He didn't mind '24'," M-21 said, kneeling down next to him, Takeo following suit. "He wanted me to call him 'hyung'."
From the look on M-21's face, he hadn't done what M-24 had asked, and regretted it. "Hyung it is then!" Tao said with a nod. "And you are a hyung to us, since you came before." So it made sense either way.
"Just don't call him ajussi," M-21 said with a grimace, and Tao chuckled, nudging him with an elbow.
"We won't," Takeo said.
"Do you think next time," Tao said, leaning back on his hands, "we should bring food?" He looked over at M-21. "So we can show him it?" They didn't know what happened to human souls, only noble souls, so maybe hyung really was watching them here, and if he was, it would be nice to tell him about the stuff they'd found out. "Like Seira-yang or Boss' cooking! Or both!"
They'd make sure to clean everything up afterwards: if they left a hint someone had been buried there and someone found the body of a modified human… Yeah, no. That wasn't something they could let happen.
"That…sounds like a good idea," M-21 said, glancing at hyung's grave again. "I think he'd like that."
Tao beamed and brought out his computer. "That means we have to make a list of all the stuff we need to show him!"
Takeo huffed, but Tao ignored that in favour of the small smile that was growing on M-21's face.
The next time they visited hyung's grave, they were going to show him everything.
________________________________
Written for imagineyourfoundfamily's prompt, 'imagine one member of your found family bringing everyone else with them to the grave of someone who the others never knew but who they considered as their own family'.
Summary: M-21 had a habit. Every Thursday, he would leave the house for a couple of hours, and when he came back, there would always be dirt on his hands and knees.
Notes: Thanks to Key and Myriade who helped me with the characterisations.
Yet another fic I thought that wouldn't be longer than 500 words, hah.
Rating: G
Genre: Friendship
Word count: 1,632
Status: Complete
M-21 had a habit. Every Thursday, he would leave the house for a couple of hours, and when he came back, there would always be dirt on his hands and knees.
None of the other occupants of the house questioned where he'd gone, or seemed like they had even noticed (Tao doubted that; Boss seemed to know everything that happened in his house. Same with Raizel-nim, even if he didn't mention it) but Tao was a little curious. Just a little. Not enough to hack into the security cameras and watch where M-21 went.
It was after the third week he and Takeo had been 'adopted' into the house (because that was what it was, right? They'd been taken in, given family names and everything!) that M-21 walked in after midnight, dirt on his knees again. Tao and Takeo had been watching a late show together -both unable to sleep- and Tao had timed it exactly so the hot chocolate would be ready for M-21 when he got back.
M-21 paused at the entrance, looking back and forth between the third cup on the table and Tao and Takeo, who had their own drinks in their hands.
"You're not going to ask?" M-21 said as he walked over, sitting at the seat where the cup was.
"Why should we?" Takeo said, taking a sip of his own drink. "We're not in the Union anymore."
"Well," Tao said, bouncing a leg, "I'm curious, but yeah, we're not scientists checking up on ya or anything." They were modified humans who had been in similar circumstances. They knew what it was like to be watched all the time.
M-21 blinked at them. "Right." A bit of tension in his shoulders eased as he exhaled.
"Yeah, it's a weird feeling, ya know?" Tao said, stretching his arms high above his head and nearly hit Takeo in the face with an elbow. And M-21 and been out longer than they had. It was something Tao wasn't sure he'd get used to, not having to always report where he was going and could just wander where he wanted (though Takeo could do that in the DA-5, but that was Takeo).
"Yeah." M-21 stared at his cup for a few seconds before picking it up and drinking.
The rest of the time was spent watching the TV, talking about the show. It wasn't that interesting and Tao had nearly dozed off on Takeo's shoulder a couple of times before they decided to head to bed.
"Can you open the window?" Takeo asked, his hands already dismantling his gun and laying the pieces down on the sheets of newspaper he'd laid out on his bedroom floor.
"One open window, coming right up!" Tao said with a grin, vaulting over Takeo's bed to get to the window faster.
The window opened without a squeak or Tao needing too much strength and he blinked when it stayed where it was without needing something to prop it open. Huh. That was different from the safehouses they usually got with the DA-5.
Tao then grabbed one of Takeo's chairs, turned it around and straddled it so he could lean his arms on it while he watched Takeo maintain his rifle. It didn't take him long to dismantle it, most of the movements on automatic, and seeing Takeo take care of his equipment made Tao want to double check his babies too.
Tao looked up when someone knocked on Takeo's door as he scanned through his pocket computer. Huh. It was way past dinner time, and other than getting called for meals, the rest of the household tended to leave them alone. Aside from one other person.
He shared a look with Takeo, who nodded, and with a grin, Tao called out, "You can come in, M!"
There was a small pause and M-21 poked his head in, glancing between both Tao and Takeo. Then his eyes went to Takeo's rifle and Tao's pocket computer.
"Oh," M-21 said, his face blanking. "You're busy. Never-"
"Hey, hey hey!" Tao said as he shot out of his chair, letting his cables tuck his computer away. "We never said that." He grabbed the door before M-21 pulled it shut. "What's up?"
M-21 didn't say anything and Tao heard Takeo slide the last piece of his rifle back into place.
"We're finished," Takeo said. "It'll just take me a minute to tidy up."
"See?" Tao beamed, opening the door wider. "Come in!"
He walked in, and M-21 followed.
"I was just..." M-21 pursed his lips, exhaling through his nose. "Do you want to come with me?"
To where? Except it had been a week since the last time M-21 had left the house without an explanation, and that must be what he was talking about.
"Sure!" Tao said, seeing Takeo nod at the same time.
M-21 eyes widened, like he hadn't expected them to agree.
"So, is this going to be a surprise, or are you gonna tell us where you've been going before you take us there?" Tao asked.
M-21 pursed his lips again. "Do you want me to tell you?"
"Nah," Tao said, waving a hand in the air. "Surprises are cool!"
"It's up to you," Takeo said after throwing everything he'd used into the bin.
"All right..." M-21 looked away from them. "I'll...tell you when we get there."
"Can't wait!"
It didn't take them long to reach one of the islands just off the coast and Tao looked around as they went further inland. The trees were a little different here, and it wasn't quite the same as the forests he and Takeo had went through. It wasn't as humid for a start, and the insects seemed to take turns making themselves heard rather than making a continuous drone in the background.
M-21 hadn't said anything the entire time they'd been moving, but when his footsteps started getting smaller, M-21 slowing down, Tao looked at him.
His eyes were distant, like he wasn't seeing what was in front of him, but his legs were walking over the roots like he had them memorised and knew where every single one of them was.
"I told you before Frankenstein and his Master took me into their home," M-21 started, "that I had came here with a comrade."
"Yeah," Tao said, nodding.
"M-24," Takeo added.
They'd shared their stories about their life in the Union, the missions they'd gone through, usually after dinner. M-24 had been one of the last survivors of the M-series aside from M-21. He'd died, but... Tao glanced ahead of them, seeing the gap in the trees open up into a clearing. M-21 had never said what had happened to his body afterwards.
M-21's breathing was a little unsteady. "I was... I was able to dig his body out before anyone else came to investigate. I brought him here."
They stepped out into the clearing, and Tao saw the patch of disturbed earth in front of them in the moonlight. It didn't smell like someone had just been buried there, and the grass was already starting to take over again, hiding it. There wasn't a gravestone or marking at the dead of it.
"Didn't want him trapped under a warehouse," M-21 muttered, staring at the grave.
"I think he would be glad you did that," Takeo said, raising a hand to rest it at M-21's shoulder.
Enough of M-21's comrades had died underground, and who knew what the scientists did to their bodies after they died.
They definitely wouldn't do something as kind as bury them.
"Yeah," Tao said, doing the same as Takeo. "And thanks."
M-21 blinked at him.
"For bringing us here, ya know?" Tao glanced back at the grave. "You didn't have to." This was...personal.
"Well..." M-21 said. He stopped, then started again. "You're my comrades now, and so was M-24. So..."
"You wanted us to meet," Takeo finished.
M-21 nodded, not looking at either of them.
"Cool!" Tao sat down, his legs crossed. "Heya, M-24. Guess I can't call you 'M' since I already call M-21 that," he said, tapping his chin with a finger. Hmm, what to call him...
"He didn't mind '24'," M-21 said, kneeling down next to him, Takeo following suit. "He wanted me to call him 'hyung'."
From the look on M-21's face, he hadn't done what M-24 had asked, and regretted it. "Hyung it is then!" Tao said with a nod. "And you are a hyung to us, since you came before." So it made sense either way.
"Just don't call him ajussi," M-21 said with a grimace, and Tao chuckled, nudging him with an elbow.
"We won't," Takeo said.
"Do you think next time," Tao said, leaning back on his hands, "we should bring food?" He looked over at M-21. "So we can show him it?" They didn't know what happened to human souls, only noble souls, so maybe hyung really was watching them here, and if he was, it would be nice to tell him about the stuff they'd found out. "Like Seira-yang or Boss' cooking! Or both!"
They'd make sure to clean everything up afterwards: if they left a hint someone had been buried there and someone found the body of a modified human… Yeah, no. That wasn't something they could let happen.
"That…sounds like a good idea," M-21 said, glancing at hyung's grave again. "I think he'd like that."
Tao beamed and brought out his computer. "That means we have to make a list of all the stuff we need to show him!"
Takeo huffed, but Tao ignored that in favour of the small smile that was growing on M-21's face.
The next time they visited hyung's grave, they were going to show him everything.
Written for imagineyourfoundfamily's prompt, 'imagine one member of your found family bringing everyone else with them to the grave of someone who the others never knew but who they considered as their own family'.