A/N: Written for the Mega Prompts Challenge, word prompts #007 – adorable.

Cute Shiiro

It wasn't because Shiiro was cute, though that was the excuse he gave everyone. It was a silly excuse too, but no-one seemed capable of seeing through it.

Truthfully, Shiiro was the only one who could see through any of his bluffs and lies at all. And that was why he was so fond of her. Because the fact that she could see the real him despite his efforts meant he didn't have to waste them with her. He could be himself: the him that was bored and bitter and far from the perfect son his parents expected him to be.

If it had been Shiiro who was born first, that expectation might never have even existed. Because she never tried to hide herself. Even if that meant she was immediately ostracised. Even if it meant she'd be doomed to go her whole life locked away.

She didn't care, because in her opinion that was better than being the living dead, like him. And once he saw her life, and saw how the light hadn't left her eyes like it had his, he was inclined to agree. Forget what everyone expected. In fact, don't forget – but use it in ways that advantaged him, advantaged them. Don't pretend to fit in and die like a withering rose.

That gave birth to Blank: the brother and sister who split four controls between them and broke every record in the book. The brother and sister that broke away from parents and family and real life. They didn't need any of that. Shiiro had always known that, and Sora had realised it after meeting Shiiro.

Calling her cute – that was just a remnant of the old mindset he'd had to dig up once they left their solitude.