Banana Fish short stories | ✔

(Intro) Family Union

Normal stroll one night turned into something so much more when Ash meets a hooded person that will drastically change his life. Will this be a chance for Ash to have a real family, or will it all fall apart, even though he finally found his mother and his newly-discovered brother.

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"Oh, c'mon now man," Ash shook his head "No means no, and no will stay no." Shorter huffed offended but sat down anyway.

"Oi, Shorter." He snapped his head back to meet Eiji and Ash gaze directed at him "Huh?"

"Don't you 'huh' me. What are you staring off for? Nadia was calling for you." Shorter nodded and with a quick bye, walked to the back of the restaurants, but a loud yell halted his approach before he started running. Ash noticed and got up from his seat as well, Eiji mimicked reluctantly. "Nadia!?" He pushed open the back doors leading to the dark alleyway behind the restaurant and was greeted with the sight of his sister and shorter boy in front of her. Even with dim lighting outside, he could see the scrapes and dirt on his clothes. Nadia grabbed his arm and dragged him through the doors three boys just got through. In the kitchen, Nadia was carefully asking the short boy question he showed no signs of answering, just trying to assure the women he was alright, but his condition was strongly denying it. Now, under brighter light, they could see his clothes was thorned apart in more than one place, some slices were too clean to be just torn apart, like a knife cut through them, Ash's theory was proved further on when he noticed the blood around the cuts of the thin navy blue jacket. The boy wore a black cap with an additional hoodie over it and sunglasses, very like Ash at the moment. He was leaning on the back doors, others surrounding him, but few feet away to give him some space to not freak him out even further.

"I'm thankful for your concern, but I should get going now, so-" he was cut off when he fell to the floor with a loud 'thud'. Sing was standing behind him, his hand still holding the doorknob of the doors he opened, oblivious to a young boy leaning on the other side. Shorter and Eiji went to help him, only to stop dead at tracks when they met his gaze. When the boy fell from a sudden push of the doors, so was his hoodie and glasses. His platinum hair was now falling freely over his jade green eyes with a hint of blue around the pupils. He was handsome, but that wasn't what they noticed first, no, it was the similarity between him and Ash, and I don't mean the same hair color and similar eye color. From their hair to his eyes and jaw, everything was similar, like twins but the new boy was still obviously younger. Shorter reverted his gaze back to Ash, he grabbed the hood he was wearing and pulled it down, his sunglasses had the same faith and the purple-haired boy's own soon followed. He needed to properly examine them both. This boy, he was identical to Ash when he was younger, he wasn't going crazy, right?

Judging by blond's lack of reaction and others looking their way, he wasn't the only one with that thought.

"Aslan...?" The boy tilted his head, thrown off. "You're Aslan Jade Callanrease, right?" Hope was evident on his face and Ash twitched when the boy hurried towards him. "How do you know that name?" He asked taking a step back. "My mom told me. That's the name of my brother." his eyes sparkled as he started circling around the man, "Wow, you're taller then I imagined." He said in awe.

"Mom said you were tiny when she left Cape Cod." He leaned closer to him with a smile. "Wha- WHAT!?" Ash wasn't quite sure how he felt, but Shorter's reaction hit the spot. "You. You're not lying, are you?" Shorter looked him over suspiciously. "Uhh, no?" The boy looked confused and stepped back. "Zane will be so surprised when he hears I found you, and mom too!" he smiled excited, and for a moment he looked happy until his smile started slipping off and he started starring at the floor. "I'm so dead," he mumbled before losing his footing and stumbling back, just before his head connected with the floor he was grasped by his arm and pulled back, his vision only detected blond blur before darkness took him.

Ash grasped the younger boy in his firm hands. Watching cautiously over the unconscious boy, his brows furrowed and he recoiled at the contact of the younger boy's skin against his. "He's burning up." He muttered and got up on his feet, gently shifting small bundle in his arms so his head was pressing on his chest. Nadia moved next to him and started ushering him to the doors leading to their apartment upstairs. "Come on, we need to get him to bed," She led them upstairs, they didn't say a word until the boy was on the bed, a blanket draped around him. "Are we gonna keep ignoring the elephant in the room." Shorter got up from his seat and pointed at the sofa where the boy was laying. "Where the hell did the kid came from. Last time I checked, children don't fall from the sky, " Eiji nodded, his gaze focused at the boy. "We can't do anything except wait for him to awake," Ash answered, "Then what?" Shorter walked next to him, Eiji standing in between them uncertainly "Then? then he's going back." Shorter and Eiji glanced at each other and Ash's annoyance spiked "What?" the two shook their head and muttered "Nothing." but Eiji was gazing intently at him.

Shorter excused himself to bed hours later, while Eiji and Ash flopped themself on futons Nadia got them. The boy was still out when she put some cold cloth on his forehead, he merely groaned a little before shifting and continuing his peaceful sleep, muttering "Zane" under his breath.

Ash was awake long into the night, thinking about what he knew and what he didn't. He knew his mother left him while he was just a baby, leaving him in care for his older brother. What he didn't know was, what happened to her after that. She left, he didn't hear from her ever since, and now he was face to face with the boy who claims to be his brother. He briefly wondered if this was how Griffin felt when he was left with him, a burden he chose to carry with a smile. And Ash snorted. Guess it's his turn to play the role of a good son, at least temporarily.

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If you liked this story I recommend reading 'A Burning Phoenix (A Banana Fish Fanfiction)' by Daydream_Anime in collaboration with Purple_Pirate23 and '𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲 ★⃝    '  by (eijisthetic) on Archive of our Own. They have a similar idea, (not really) but I think you will like them so give it a try.