From A-Z, and Everything in Between

Two is Company, Four's a Crowd

  Finding another pair of twins was rare and exciting. Becoming best friends with those very same twins was wonderful. Their friendship started when they all met in the fourth grade. A timid albino was dragged along by his twin sister, whose cheerful attitude allowed her to become friends with just about anyone. Across the playground were two dark-haired children, one curiously watching the albino's sister, the other absently building a castle in the sandbox. The albinos came to a stop in front of them, and the sister proudly proclaimed that they should all become friends because they were twins. The dark-haired children exchanged glances and shrugged.

Over the years, the four of them became very close. None of the twins were ever seen without one of the others. It was well known throughout every school they attended that they were inseparable. And now, as they entered their second year of high school, those bonds only strengthened.

"Mafu-chan, wake up! We're going to be late," Mafuyu called.

She jumped onto her brother's bed, nearly smothering him with her weight. Mafumafu tried to squirm away.

"Mafuyu nee-san, I can't breathe," Mafumafu whined.

"Oops. Sorry about that," Mafuyu said with a giggle.

She rolled over to lay on the mattress instead of her poor brother's body. Relieved of the crushing weight, Mafumafu settled further into his blankets.

"No, no, no. Mafu-chan, you can't go back to sleep. You've already slept in too long," Mafuyu said.

The only response she received was a whine of complaint. Mafuyu puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.

"Fine, then I'll just leave without you. I have someone very important waiting for me," Mafuyu said.

With a huff, she left her brother's room. Mafuyu grabbed her school bag, slipped on her shoes, and bounded out the door. She grinned when she saw two familiar heads of dark hair down by the road.

"Soraruko-chan! Soraru-kun!" Mafuyu chirped as she ran over to them.

"Good morning, Mafuyu-chan," Soraruko greeted politely. She looked around and frowned slightly in confusion. "Where's Mafu-san?"

"He's refusing to get out of bed today," Mafuyu said.

"Again? That idiot is going to fail all of his classes at this rate," Soraru said.

"Maybe you should go try to wake him up," Mafuyu suggested.

"Why me?" Soraru asked.

"You're the only person he'll listen to," Mafuyu pointed out.

Soraru averted his gaze and crossed his arms over his chest. "Still, it's not like Mafumafu is my responsibility. He's your brother, you deal with him."

"You're Mafu-san's best friend, aren't you? I thought you'd be more concerned about him," Soraruko said.

Soraru wasn't sure how to respond to this. He opened his mouth, attempted to say something, but couldn't come up with a good excuse. Mafuyu giggled, earning a glare from the dark-haired male.

"Fine, I'll go drag him out of bed. But you two are buying me lunch today," Soraru finally gave in.

"Ehh, that's unfair," Mafuyu whined.

Soraru ignored her and went into the twin albinos' house. He had been here enough times he could make his way to Mafumafu's room with his eyes shut. When he reached that all too familiar door, he pushed it open without even knocking. If Mafumafu was going to be difficult and cause him to be late, then he didn't deserve privacy.