A bright TV screen shines into a dimly lit room, displaying some kind of advertisement for Hunter equipment. A middle-aged woman and man sit on the couch, a space left empty next to them. A boy with scruffy black hair and blue eyes lays belly-down on the floor, intensely watching the screen.
"Wow... mommy... daddy... can I be a Hunter?" He asks, overjoyed at the mere thought of joining the ranks of the world's protectors.
The boy's mother hesitates for a second, but the father answers straight away, "Of course you can. I'm sure that you'll be the strongest Hunter to ever live!"
The raven-haired woman is about to respond with something else, before her equally dark-haired child interrupts her, "Really?! You really think I can do it?!"
"Absolutely. You'll be the best Hunter in existence!" The cyan-eyed father cheered his son on.
The most adorable, pure grin spread across the young boy's face, as he turned back around to once again focus on the TV screen. In response, tears welled in his mother's auburn eyes. She quickly managed to pull herself together as she prepared to take her beloved son to bed.
"Alright, Keizo. It's bedtime, come on." She told the boy, fearing what's to come after he rests.
Keizo turned around once again, a slight frown tracing his cheeks. "But, I- I have to watch videos to become strong!" He argued, scrambling for an excuse.
A slight chuckle left his mother's mouth before she herself made an excuse to get him to come to bed, "Come on now, Kei. If you don't sleep, then you won't be able to grow big and strong. And if you're gonna be a Hunter, you'll have to be the strongest of the strong!"
His frown transformed into a look of satisfaction as he over-dramatically responded, "Yeah, I'll be the strongest of the strong! And if bedtime will help me, then I'll sleep!"
A more audible giggle left his mother's lips this time, before she took his hand and led him to bed.
- - - - - - - - - - 12 years later - - - - - - - - - -
A wooden door creaked open as a girl with pinkish-red hair rushed into her brother's rather plain and desolate room. She, noticing her sibling's drowsiness, carefully walked over to the curtains. She then performed the worst act in all of mankind. She tore open the curtains, unleashing an unstoppable barrage of light into the previously calm room.
A scream loud enough to wake an entire neighbourhood erupted from her poppy-red headed brother's vocal chords. "Why, sister?! Why have you commit this atrocity?! My corneas will never recover!" He shouted in anger.
The girl sighed as she realised that her brother was, in fact, a total idiot. "Come on, Lance. Have you forgotten already?" She asked, desperately trying to cling to any hope in her brother.
"Uh... Let's say hypothetically that I did. What would you do?" The emerald-eyed boy asked, expertly drifting away from the fact that he did forget.
"Well, I would kill you. But considering today's circumstances, I can't really do that." The hazel-eyed girl sighed. "Well, here's a hint. We need to be at school in 30 minutes."
"Oh crap..." The boy responded.
- - - - - - - - - - 20 minutes later - - - - - - - - - -
Panting poured out of the lime-eyed boy's lips as his sister patiently waited for him to calm down. Soon enough, her patience began to wear thin as she sighed, "I knew you weren't exactly in top physical condition, but I think this is a new low."
"Shut up, Ari! If you had just woken me up earlier, I wouldn't have had to rush through everything!" Her brother responded, still completely drained from having to rush through his morning.
"Yes, and if you had just woken up earlier, I wouldn't have had to wake you up at all. But we don't always get what we want in life, do we dear brother?" She retorted, gazing deep into her brother's eyes and spreading fear through his whole body.
Lance instinctively took a step back before replying, "Y-Yes, of course. I'm sorry sister."
"Good. Now stop being a baby and let's walk to school."
- - - - - - - - - - 5 minutes later - - - - - - - - - -
An uninviting silence permeated the very air around the duo, as everyone who saw them cleared a path. Despite what it may seem, neither of them liked this stifling silence. "Hey, so-" The bronze-eyed girl started, before her brother flinched at the sound of her voice.
...
"Seriously, brother? You're still scared of me from earlier?!" She continued,
The rose-haired boy tried to think of any kind of excuse before landing on one, "Well, it is a part of your ability to scare people. It's impossible for me not to be freaked out!"
This triggered a silence between the two before Ari decided to speak once again, "I know..."
"..."
"You know you're completely abhorrent to look at today, right?" She asked, trying to lift the mood and say something that's been on her mind.
"Wh-" Lance stuttered, trying to think of a come back, before giving up. "I don't even know what to say. But I'll also have you know that, even if I am ghastly today, I don't care." He finished, not realising how sad that sounded.
"Really? We're starting at a new school." His sister giggled.
"Yeah, well, why should I care? They should be the ones worried. Not only are we royalty, which means they probably view us as gods, but we're also gonna be the strongest there. It doesn't matter what I look like, women will be all over me anyways." He cockily explained.
"Heh, really? Even if you were an actual god, I don't think anyone would have the stomach to be near you. And we also don't even know if we're the strongest there. Don't get ahead of yourself, ghoul of a brother." Retorted his entertained twin, trying to bring her brother back down to his level.
"What are you talking about, of course we'll be the strongest. You especially. The only way someone there is stronger than you is if they're a literal god."