//------------------------------// // Arc VIII Episode III: Human Technology Is Weird // Story: Family Begins With You // by Jmaster49 //------------------------------// Back at the Rich Family Manor… Diamond Tiara’s parents had finally finished their…civil disagreement with each other and had retired to different parts of the house for the time being. Keiji had put on the clothes that Tiara had offered him “Yeech…” He sighed to himself once the arguments had concluded at long last. “...Yeesh. For how different the human world is from Equestria, some things don’t change regardless.” He looked down the hall and considered the young woman’s offer. “I don’t know how much I’ll be able to find out, but I need to know if she’s doing okay here.” With a heavy heart, he left the guest room and walked up to Diamond Tiara’s bedroom door--er, doors rather. Double-doors to be precise. And with his balled fist, he knocked… Tap-tap-tap. “Hey, uh--it’s me. Well you know who it is,” he muttered while casually putting his hands behind his head, “I guess I’m willing to take you up on that offer.” Rrrrrrr…. The doors…mechanically separated and opened inwards to allow entry, leaving the vampire boy dumbstruck. “What the actual heck is this world?” And Diamond Tiara was standing there behind the door--though now she was in much more casual clothing than before. A plain purple tee with the name, ‘Crush 20’ written across it in big, bold blue letters and a basic pair of yellow shorts while wearing no shoes or socks. “Sup, dork?” she asked, and stood aside to let him in, “Get in here. I’ve been itching to play a round of King of Iron Fighter 4 with somebody.” “...Mind telling me what that is?” “It’s a video game,” she pointed at the game console she had sitting on the TV stand--as well as the massive flat-screen TV that sat upon it which was located directly in front of her bed. The bed itself had pink wood with massive yellow pillars that stood tall on all four sides. “And then after that, we can watch a movie or two…if you want, that is.” “...Did they have those in Equestria? I can’t remember.” Keiji thought about it for a moment as he looked around the room. He whistled, marveling at the sight of everything. “Wow. You even have your own vanity,” he noted the mirror in the middle of the room (which he could actually see himself in for the record). “Impressive. I always had to get out of my study to use the one we had.” “A who-now?” Tiara asked. “A study--a room that’s used for reading or experimentation.” “Ohh…that explains a bit,” she nodded, “Yeah I think we have one of those too. On that note…” She walked over towards the television and continued, “What was it like back home? I bet your mansion was way bigger than mine.” Keiji diverted his eyes for a moment as he thought up a response. “Erm…it was fine, I suppose. Equestrians aren’t exactly the most…hospitable, though.” “...Whatcha mean?” “Some of them will chew you up and spit you out,” he replied coldly, “It was fine and dandy until they figured I was unfit to live there. Then they kicked me to the dirt.” Tiara stopped, and turned to give him her full attention with a worried look on her face. “’They’ who?” “Gah…” he put his hand to his head, and collapsed to the carpet, sitting on his bottom. “...Nothing. Sorry. Brings back painful memories.” “Dammit, Tiara! Stop asking personal questions!” As soon as he sat on the floor, she pushed a beanbag chair up against him so he could relax. “Here. Sit in this. It doubles as a massage chair with the push of a button.” “...A what?” he tilted his head as he sat back in the blobby mass of softness. Click. With the press of a button from Tiara, the beanbag chair actually started buzzzzzing, and slowly working the stress out of the boy’s body. “Wo-o-oaah…t-t-this…is…amaaaazzzing…” he muttered, his voice shaking along with the chair. While she hesitated at first, she couldn’t help but ask… “Does your magic make you super tired?” “Y-yeah…something like that,” he replied, “It’s…well, I utilize the actual blood in my own body to fight. So if I spend too much time fighting, I could burn myself out before I finish. That’s why I had to kill that spider monster as quickly as possible…” he looked down at himself. “...I have this ineffectively frail, good-for-nothing body. But dammit, I won’t let it stop me.” “So that blood magic stuff is all his own blood? That’s…impressive. But how…” Tiara had pulled up a beanbag chair of her own and sat next to him. “Er…do you mind if I ask how it works?” Surprisingly, Keiji was actually rather amicable in regards to that question. “Not at all. It’s actually a fairly simple process and I’ll explain it to you as quickly as I can. Essentially…I’ve ‘awakened’ the blood in my body so to speak.” “...Awakened?” “Well, as a vampire, you know we feed on blood, right?” “Right.” He flexed his arm, and pointed to his veins. “Well, I’ve found that if I drink too much blood and carry it in my system, it has nowhere else to go. So I spent months, years studying how to make it work…” he folded his arms with a proud smile on his face. “And I did it. I was able to essentially turn my body into a walking bloodmancer pool that I can instantly create things from.” Tiara snapped her fingers. “Like that katana, right?” “Exactly. The katana is an unorthodox weapon but its light weight allows me to deal with threats as quickly as possible.” He scratched the back of his head as he frowned. “...The only downside to being a walking magic reservoir is that you’ll burn out fast if you aren’t careful. So I have to dispatch my enemies quickly. And it’s a good thing I ate before that confrontation, because it constantly drains on my body’s digestive system as well.” “Oh man…” she leaned up, almost ready to get out of her chair. “Are you hungry again? I can have the servants make you something.” “It’s fine,” he shook his head, “I don’t want to start imposing on your castle. I’m sure your parents would get suspicious if they noticed such a thing.” “Hmph…” As soon as that subject was brought up, Tiara leaned forward, bringing her knees up to her chest. “They barely notice anything regarding me at all. They wouldn’t even care.” “...They don’t, huh?” he scoffed as he picked out something from his teeth. “Classy. My folks were kinda similar.” Tiara looked up at him with a surprised set of eyes. “They were?” “Oh yeah, for real,” he went on, rolling his eyes, “Every other day it was a damn screaming match up in there. The winner was usually determined by who could dole out a greater threat to the other.” He gave a sarcastic chuckle, then sighed. “Ah…and they were never really interested in my scientific pursuits either.” “Wow…” Tiara looked down at the floor, “Here I was, thinking that everyone in the school had a more supportive family than I did. I felt…alone because of it.” “Well you’re not alone, friend,” Keiji spoke candidly, “Not everyone can say they had it easy.” She took a moment to reflect on his words. At last, there was someone else--someone her age that understood what it was like to live with parents that didn’t spend enough time with you. All she could do was smile and say, “...Thanks, KK. I appreciate it. We clearly both have a lot of turmoil that we’re dealing with. You managed to get lucky enough to escape yours…” Keiji looked up at the ceiling. “...I wouldn’t call it luck. More like…a happy accident.” “...Oh…right…” Tiara found this the best time to change the subject and get back to what she had planned. “Anyway--let’s put a fork in that for now until we’re prepared to discuss our problems in more detail. I know it must be difficult for you to think about, so I won’t pry any further.” “She’s a real piece of work, this one.” Keiji thought to himself. “Smart young lady with a good head on her shoulders. Just hope she doesn’t grow up to be like her mother. Or mine.” He sat upright, and interlocked his fingers and stretched them out to crack his knuckles. “Alrighty--so what are we doing here?” Tiara handed him a controller, turned on the TV, and started up the console. Soon enough, they’d be met with a loud title screen that shouted: “KING OF IRON FIGHTERS 4 ULTRA MEGA MATCH OF THE MILLENIUM 2055!!” “...Seriously?” Keiji raised a brow, then chuckled, “You humans have weird entertainment styles.” “Trust me, the game is way cooler than the name,” she said as she took him to the character select screen, “ The story is that these different schools that have sent their strongest students with supernatural magical powers to fight each other. My favorite is this chick: She comes from a rich family but has abandoned her father’s constant babying so she can do her own thing. She's got super muscular legs and can make the ground shake with a single stomp.” Keiji looked at the TV screen, and looked at the portrait of what appeared to be a muscular schoolgirl senior dressed in a white uniform with a haughty look on her face. “...Oddly pertinent.” Tiara didn’t quite catch what he meant and instead focused on the game. “Say wha--? No, seriously--ooh! And I think you’ll like the scientist guy who tries to raise the dead--he fights with potions.” And that put a smile on his face as he stared at the cold, serious portrait of the mature-looking bespectacled senior. “Well now, that’s interesting…”