Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/13036395.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Rape/Non-Con, Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      Homestuck
  Relationship:
      Dave_Strider/Dirk_Strider
  Character:
      Dave_Strider, Dirk_Strider, Roxy_Lalonde, Jane_Crocker, Jake_English,
      John_Egbert, Rose_Lalonde, Jade_Harley, Karkat_Vantas, Darkleer_
      (Homestuck), Equius_Zahhak, Horuss_Zahhak
  Additional Tags:
      Sibling_Incest, Adoption, Foster_Care, Alternate_Universe_-_No_Sburb/
      Sgrub_Sessions, Alternate_Universe_-_Twins, Child_Abuse, Underage
      Prostitution, Drugs, Angst_and_Hurt/Comfort, Eventual_Smut, Other
      Additional_Tags_to_Be_Added, Other_Ships_Not_Mentioned_in_Tags, Porn_With
      Plot, Boys_In_Love
  Stats:
      Published: 2017-12-16 Updated: 2018-01-09 Chapters: 3/? Words: 5878
****** Something Never Known ******
by MIDnightdemon1218
Summary
     Dirk had loving friends and adopted family and a fat bank account. He
     was happy and seemed normal. However no matter how much everyone
     welcomed him in, he didn't belong in their families. Plastered
     everywhere, a logo of a family he never knew. Trophies, wealth and
     marks of fame of people he will never meet. He beats himself to reach
     the standards of his deceased brothers because they are all he knows
     himself to be. He was alone
     Until he is informed that he is not the only one with Strider blood
     in his veins. He has a brother. He has a family.
     Dave moved between foster homes, his friends lived on every corner of
     the country. The entire town treated him like being a Strider made
     him the Antichrist. Beaten and disciplined because his "brothers"
     were "anarchists". They were dead for fuck sake! Gone before he was a
     year old leaving a storage unit and savings account in his name. The
     Strider logo everywhere to remind him and his tormentors all they had
     done. Fuck all of them. He made his own money, he fed himself, he
     moved out on his own. He was alone.
     Then he receives a text from his counselor. Something about a
     separated twin brother. Another member of the family.
Notes
     Short introduction chapter. Hope you enjoy!
***** Chapter 1 *****
       Dirk relaxed into the comfort of familiarity. The sound of your friends
talking over video chat, the mechanical motion of his fingers typing code, the
smell of Doritos and citrus. He had long since drowned out the conversation,
occasionally noting the clock as it ticked on - 11:47pm, 12:32pm, 1:18am.
Everything was perfect. Until there was a rather harsh smack across the side of
his head.
       It wasn't strong enough to hurt but it sure was a disorienting way out
of his trance. He blinked and snapped his eyes to the video feed in his
confusion. Jane was stuck in a silent wheeze, Jake was covering his mouth and
shaking and Roxy's webcam was still on but she was nowhere to be seen. He spun
around to see what had attacked him and - yeah, there she was. Roxy giggling
down at him.
       "Roxy. What the fuck?"
       "Dirk," she squealed happily, "you were totally zoned out, ya dork, here
we are trying to make plans with you, yelling for ya, and being completely
ignored."
She dropped herself onto his lap. "I'd like to see you try to ignore me now."
       "So you drove for twenty minutes, at one-thirty in the morning, to break
into my house and assault me?"
       "Yep!" There was giggling in the background.
       He sighed and pulled her close mumbling into her hair "Yeah and you call
me a dork. Anyways, what were these plans?"
       "The mall! Whoop whoop!" A small choir came from your speakers. You spun
your chair around to face the monitor depicting the smiling faces of your
friends.
       "All right, I'm in."
       They all cheered and giggled. Dirk saved and shut down the coding
program he had been working on so he could focus all his attention on his
friends.  They got lost in conversations and jokes and existential questions
deep in their exhaustion fueled high.
===============================================================================
       Dirk arched his back and huffed out a deep breath against the weight on
his chest. His eyelids were heavy but he lifted them regardless. Jane and Jake
could be seen passed out at their computers as well and Roxy was drooling on
his shirt. He scooped her up and left her on his bed before stumbling his way
to the kitchen area. He threw open the fridge door snatched up a can of orange
Crush and chugged it, letting the cold carbonation electrify his senses. He
shook the caffeinated buzz out of his head and threw the can in the counter
before once again focusing his attention on the inventory in the refrigerator.
Selecting eggs, a pound of bacon and some hash browns out of the freezer.
       Dirk made the conscious decision to cook the bacon last. Just as it
began to sizzle and fry a loud thudding could be heard and a long drawled out
cry for food. Roxy's small frame did little to make him budge as she pounced
onto his back, a vicious feline hungry to feast on greasy bacon.
       “Good mornin,” he cleared his throat trying to play off the southern
accent that leeched off the early morning fogginess.
       “Good morning. Now food!” Dirk shook his head but submitted to giving
her one of the plates - minus the bacon. She sat at the island and started
inhaling the food. He dropped the slices as they finished frying. Setting out a
water jug, glasses and his own plate he finally settled to eat.
       “So, the mall today,” Roxy started, barely bothering to swallow the
food, “We pick everyone up on our way there. We can have lunch in the food
court and head to the local pizzeria for dinner. Oh, and there are a few stores
in particular I have to go to.”
       “Make Jake carry your Victoria Secret bags this time. Other than that,
sounds cool, but I have to make a quick pit stop at the house.” Roxy gave a
giggle and a nod.
===============================================================================

       Roxy had changed into the clothes she brought with her and they had
picked up the rest of the quartet. Both girls sitting in the back seat
gossiping while Dirk tried to simultaneously focus on the road and defend the
radio from Jake's shitty playlist. He was aided by Roxy kicking the back of
Jake's seat and messing up his hair. But for how fiercely they sparred, the
mixtape in the player was only background noise anyway to the laughter and
playful cussing that buzzed in the truck. The clock on the interface read 10:
52am California and the sun was blinding even through his shades. They pulled
up the driveway in a wealthy neighbourhood. Music and the sound of machinery
could be heard from the closed garage, Dirk blared the horn before turning off
the car blindly smacking in the general direction of his company, urging them
to get out as he fumbled to find the house key on the ring. He located them and
quickly unlocked the door, letting himself in and his friends stumbled in
after, still deep in conversation.
       The muffled tunes went silent walked into the house through the
connecting door, smiles drawn wide on their faces. Their long raven hair pulled
into high ponytails, they were drenched in sweat and oil, tool belts weighed
heavily on their hips. They pulled Dirk close to them in a familiar embrace
that he reciprocated without hesitation, they were his family. They shared
greetings and Dirk led the way to the living area, the other two branched off
down a hallway.
       "Hey Horuss, what are you guys working so hard on?" Dirk chuckled and
accepted the can of Crush pop the mentioned one offered him. There were a
collection of "thank you"s as everyone accepted their drinks.
       "Why, you already know that we're working on your birthday gift -thank
you, Equius- we're almost done it too." Equius had returned with some towels to
wipe themselves off.
       "Yeah, why the fuck? My birthday isn't until December, it's June." Dirk
inquired.
       "Father wanted to give it to you early because he thought you could
enjoy it most during the summer," Equius elaborated, "Now forgive me for being
so straight forward but did you finish those blueprints?"
===============================================================================

       "When were we downgraded from friends to pack mules?" Jake huffed out
dropping the shopping bags into the bed of the truck like a sack of bricks. He
let out a few quiet curses as he stretched his shoulders and back, stiff and
sore after hours of hauling Jane and Roxy's abundant purchases.
       "It's not a downgrade, dummy!" Roxy jeered in defense but cued Jane to
elaborate with a wiggle of her eyebrows.
       "Those are our delicates. We have a lot of faith and trust in you boys,
putting those in your possession." The other girl offered, pink creeping up her
cheeks.
       "We're being used." Jake deadpanned, nudging Dirk as he pulled the cover
over the bed. There was a scowl on the darker skinned male's face but his
emerald eyes glinted playfully.
       "Will you guys please get your sweet asses moving. I'm starving and the
movie starts in like, two hours!" Roxy urged as she took her seat beside Jane.
       "Woah! What movie?" Dirk questioned unaware of this part of the
schedule.
       "They are having a showing of Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff: The Moive with
twenty minutes of never before seen scenes."
       "It isn't 'never before seen', I've seen it. I inherited all of the
deleted scenes from all twelve of the movies. Not to mention the blooper reels,
interviews, director's commentary, authentic props from the sets, merch and a
collection of clips he recorded on his phone when they weren't filming."
       "But don't you wanna see the fruits of his labour on the big screen. So
Janey-" Everyone was fully aware that Dirk was fighting a losing battle for
stubborn Roxy Lalonde's word was law. Jake drew everyone's attention with a
topic they all enjoyed harassing Dirk with.
       "Yeah, you sure did get a lot of crazy things from your brothers, huh
Strider? Like the giant Snoop Dog bust and creepy puppet collection."
       "If you try shit talking Lil' Cal and my sick smuppets in my own vehicle
I will round house kick you off the nearest skyrise so help me, English," Dirk
elbowed him as he turned onto the highway, "but yeah, my bros were kinda weird
all around. They left behind some really ironic shit and a fortune for me to
inherit. They had a tyrany over the media and were controversial enough to have
people fucking assassinate them. Yet there is no record of their real names, no
clear pictures of their faces, no details about their lives and upbringing.
Lots of stupid conspiracy theories about them knowing too much about some big
corporations, not conforming to the alien's plans to enslave humankind."
Everyone chuckled and cracked jokes, stating their own absurd 'theories' before
Dirk continued. "They didn't really leave a trace on the world aside from the
Strider logo sitting in the corner of every webpage, introduction credit and
disc case. Everything I know about their personalities are stories dad told
me."
       "I still find it interesting how you still refer to Mr. Zahhak as your
dad," Jane piped in, "I know you said it was because of the sentimental
attachment but I still find it kind of cute."
       "Well, I wasn't exactly surprised to hear that I was adopted. Like, holy
shit, I only have a completely different hair colour, eye colour, skin tone,
facial structure, and body type than the extremely loyal widowed man whose wife
died three years before I was born and his two sons. Wasn't exactly rocket
science. But related or not, they took me in, raised me, cared for me and
supported me. If that doesn't make them family than I don't know what fucking
does." Dirk looked back on childhood memories fondly. Helping Mr. Zahhak in the
auto shop, doing school engineering projects with Equius and Horuss. "Do I
still feel like an outcast with them? Hell yeah, but that's not really through
anyone's fault. Except for the aliens. It's completely their fault."
       They moved the conversations along naturally. Everyone sharing their own
childhoods and family turned into something that happened last week to what
they had for dinner last night. They buzzed in conversations throughout the
rest of the evening. Stuffing themselves with pizza and staying for desert,
buying extra large popcorn that they knew they would never finish but hell they
were going to try. Jane took the futile task of trying to keep them all quiet,
a smack on the back of the head every time Dirk recited the punchline from
memory before it happened, every time Roxy squealed when someone in the movie
fell down the stairs, every time Jake got rambling about this actor and that
actress. They made their way to the Crocker household and drifted off happily
on the carpeted living room floor.
***** Chapter 2 *****
Chapter Notes
     People clicked to see some DirkDave and just got some of Dirk and the
     alpha kids, sorry bout that but here's Dave's introduction now. NEXT
     chapter will get them together.
      Dave was feeling hot and smothered in every wrong way. Texas temperature
in the middle of June, in the unconditioned motel room of the sweaty man on top
of him who was digging his fingers into the bruise on his hip. Hot breath
against his neck and ear as dirty things were hushed to him, tongue flicking
out and slithering across his flesh. His skin was on fire and he just wished it
would all melt off. Let all the nerves slide onto the floor in a gory
disgusting mess. The man rubbed his softening cock with feigned care. He
managed to change a rough groan into a sultry wanton moan. He wrapped his arms
around the man's neck, clinging to him pressing him closer. Dave retreated into
his mind.
      Dave was feeling so cold and hollow, he always felt this way and he just
wanted it to be different. Every touch echoed through him making his body
shake, it all faded into the emptiness inside him. The words whispered to him
were meaningless. There was the feeling of floating, no up or down, nothing to
ground him. He felt his mouth move but he couldn't hear his own voice, he
couldn't hear what lies he was spouting. Before he knew it, he was back in
reality. Alone, naked, sore, a collection of bills on the nightstand. He was so
cold, so empty.
      He had rented out a small house only a block away from the motel, jogging
home after every 'appointment' was a good way to save money, keep in shape and
get his mind off the self loathing that came with each customer.
He thought to the piece of plastic he buried deep in his wallet. It was worth
millions! He still remembered the day it was given to him, sealed in an
envelope with the name 'Strider' written across it. He was thirteen. He
remembered the way that clown snarled the name "Strider" before breaking his
arm, giving him a black eye and sending him to a different house. He was seven.
He never had to do this again. He never had to start this in the first place.
It was too late for that kind of thinking now, the feeling of turning yourself
into a product isn't something that can be undone.
      He couldn't bring himself to be alarmed when he saw his front door wide
open. Kicking off his shoes, grabbing a box of no name cereal and two apple
juice boxes he finally relaxed.
      "Y'know for a guy who hates my guts oh so much, you sure do love to be
around me."
     
      "You can get off that high motherfucking horse right now, Strider," The
intruder slurred, rising tall from his place on the couch "I could fucking tear
you apart right where you stand."
      "You're tripping balls, dude. Do you hear that?" the, in fact high, titan
of a man observed him with, what Dave could only guess was, confusion through
the smeared white makeup, "Ah man, I think that's the sound of the carnival
leaving without you. Better move your juggalo ass along, yeah off you run, nice
seeing you Gamzee. Please stop dropping by."
      Gamzee's face twisted into into what was undeniably rage. Teeth barred
and grinding, his breathing became heavy and quick as his temper boiled over.
Dave, however, didn't stand down, never breaking eye contact even as gamzee's
hands enclosed around his neck. His long slender fingers constricted like the
serpentine devil himself, lifting him off the ground. Dave's hands grasped the
vice around his neck and he couldn't stop the flash of panic in his eyes but he
never let it reach his face. Emotions steady, he flipped the other man off and
was dropped to the ground. Gamzee marked his departure, not with a word but
with a slam of the front door.
Dave stumbled to his feet, grabbing the food he dropped, only to let himself
slump back down onto the couch. He shut his eyes, scrubbing his face with the
balls of his palms. He pulled his switchblade out of his pocket, cutting into
the top of the one of the juice boxes and chugging its sweet ambrosia. He
tossed the blade onto the table in front of him. He watched it shine by the
sunlight through the window as it spun in place dripping with apple juice.
Guilt pooled in his stomach as it came to a slow stop. He let out a sigh of
defeat and stood up, grabbing the blade and taking it to the sink to rinse it
off before it got sticky. Returning to his space on the couch he, held the
blade in the sun to examine the blade like he had a million times before.
      'Strider' was carved elegantly into one side of the shiny stainless steel
blade. The handle was a bright red in colour and seemed to fit perfectly in his
hand. He only felt secure, like he found his place in the universe when it was
tight in his grip. Dave wanted nothing to do with everything he inherited from
his famous relatives. The card to his savings account never left his wallet, he
kept the storage unit payed for but had never seen what it contained. The
counselor called it all the Strider family heirlooms but Dave called it stupid.
A solitary seventeen year old orphan was not a family. No one was there to
teach him what the name stood for. The family had died with the older brothers
he never knew. "Strider" was not a family, it was a product, a corporation. The
blade switchblade, however, that was his.
      He slid the knife back into the security of his pocket and pulled out his
phone. The large amount of notifications brought a smile to his ever stoic
face, 78 messages from seven people. Most of them came from Terezi and Jade,
spamming him from ungodly hours in the morning. Kanaya Maryam had jumped on her
girlfriend’s bandwagon of psychoanalyzing him, both asking about his schedule
this past week which will no doubt lead to his life choices being criticized.
John asked if he had read the latest issue of Game Bro. Karkat seemed to have
vented about his entire life. And the latest message was a surprise. Tavros,
one of Gamzee’s childhood friends, saying that the mentioned man had brought
him up in a high rage and if he was okay. Dave got that one out of the way
first, a simple ‘im good’, then not replying to the “oh, good. Stay safe.” then
he moved to tackle the important (to him) people.
      He managed to evade the prying of Rose and Kanaya until they submitted
with an a statement of “It is evident that you are under a lot of stress, we
will discuss this later.” Key word there “WILL”.
      John ranted to him about this and this review and the movie he saw
yesterday and how the prequel was better and how his dad was awful. However,
Dave enjoyed the conversation fully. Jokes were made and Dave got to ramble his
heart out as well. Dave truly appreciated how John tolerated him and was more
than proud to call the dorky boy his best friend.
      Dave latched onto every one of Karkat’s cap locked words, slipping it
into his long term memory. He couldn’t resist messing with him though, replying
with a bare “damn”. Karkat responded instantaneously. Karkat responded
instantaneously. A barrage of insults came at an alarming rate and after
"insensitive fucking dog licking cunt wipe" caught his eye he realized they
weren't going to stop. Dave slipped in a query of "what if stuffed animals were
sentient creature that prayed on the innocence of children". The messages
halted and there was a minute of nothing. He jumped when more text appeared on
the screen..."carcinoGeneticist [CG] has blocked turntechGodhead [TG]." Dave
snorted. Finally onto the way too hyper girls that were no doubt going to take
up the rest of his day.
      Karkat had blocked him for a good part of the day but finally sent him a
message approaching the hour of five
carcinoGeneticist [CG]  began pestering  turntechGodhead [TG]
TG: just couldnt stay away huh
TG; you needed a good fix of this strider ass
CG; I CANT EVEN BRING MYSELF TO CARE RIGHT NOW.
TG: ill try harder
CG: DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE.
CG: I JUST WANTED TO REMIND YOU.
CG: THAT IF YOU, YOU KNOW, NEED TO TALK.
CG: BETWEEN BROS.
CG: I'M ALWAYS MORE THAN HAPPY.
TG: you have been talking to kanaya
CG: SHE'S MY OLDEST FRIEND IS IT A SURPRISE?
TG: no but if i find out yall talking shit i will highjack a plane and crash it
into your house
CG: WE WERE TALKING SO MUCH SHIT.
CG: I'LL BE AWAITING YOUR ARRIVAL.
TG: watch your back
TG: but seriously thanks i guess but this household has rules
TG: emotional bull is only allowed between the hours 3am to 4am and only if im
high as a kite
CG: I DON'T SLEEP ANYWAY SO WHENEVER YOU WANT.
CG: NOW GO EAT DINNER.
TG: how did you know i havent ate dinner yet
CG: WATCH YOUR BACK.
carcinoGeneticist [CG]   ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG]
TG: what the fuck
      He decided he would treat himself tonight. Dinner at one of the cafes,
going to see the Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff with never before seen scenes and
taking the night off seemed like a really good idea.
***** Chapter 3 *****
Chapter Notes
     WELP THIS IS REALLY LATE, MY BAD! Between personal issues I ended up
     not having the motivation to write. Hopefully I'll get better with
     updating.
See the end of the chapter for more notes
"Chocolate pancakes! Get up! I will eat them all, you know I will! Sleepy
heads!"
Jake's voice was chipper as ever, not faltering even under the barrage of
pillows that he didn't bother to dodge.
"Oh Mister Crocker, I will take all those amazing, delicious, fluffy pancakes!"
"I say, we eat all the pancakes and not let Jake have any," An opposing male
mumbled into the floor, "'cause he's being a dick."
The three pushed themselves off the ground, raced past the early bird and into
the kitchen in record breaking time. Jake fought his way into the mosh of
hungry 17 year olds claiming as many pancakes as they possibly could.
Proceeding to the table to drown their prize in syrup and collecting beverages
from the fridge.
"Thanks for the pancakes, dad," Jane chirped hugging the man from behind as he
sat at the table with a newspaper. As she pulled away, Dirk took her place
wrapping his arms around him, earning a deep chuckle, "Yeah, thanks dad, you're
the best."
The group chattered around the table about what they dreamed about and about
Jake's experience helping with breakfast. As they discussed their plans for the
day Dirk's phone buzzed to life in his pocket. He pulled it out instinctively,
swiping the screen and glancing at the received message. There was a single
message from his dad. His birthday present was done and he would like it to be
picked up today. Dirk smiled and he couldn't help but feel like a child as he
felt his fingers tingle in anticipation. Another message slid onto the screen,
a rather blunt but ominous "There something that needed to be discussed." He
couldn't help the smile slowly slipping off his face and the furrowing of his
eyebrows as he regarded the message with confusion. His change in demeanor did
not go unnoticed for more then a second. His friends went silent and looked to
him with curiosity and a hint of concern. Dirk replied to the message with a
simple affirmative, that he would be there within the hour. He shook his head
clear and cracked a smile to his friends to break the tension. He tucked the
phone away.
"Fuck all that, we're going back to my place," he was responded to with a
collection of hums, "I'm getting my present." They all buzzed in excitement in
return.
===============================================================================
They stood in the middle of the driveway, just in front of the garage. The hot
summer sun beat down on the black pavement. They all fidgeted in shared
excitement, Dirk doing his best to feign uncaring despite this. Mr. Lear Zahhak
grabbed his shoulders from behind and shook him.
"You excited? They worked really hard on it."
"You ready, Dirk? Drum roll please!" Horuss' announcement gained the loud
rattling of of tongues. Equius gave a quick tap to his smartphone and the
garage doors began to open. A prime condition vintage car shined with a glossy
orange coat. Dirk basked in its beauty, stunned. He crept up to the driver's
door to peer through the window. A rather high tech, touch screen interface had
been installed into the dashboard. The seats were pristine and black and the
steering wheel looked untouched. Roxy and Jake loudly swooned and the Zahhak
trio grinned and looked at Dirk with hopeful eyes, awaiting approval. Equius
spoke up to elaborate, "Authentic 1969 Camaro, upgraded user interface and
performance to our high standards."
Dirk pulled each of them into a tight embrace. Choosing his words of gratitude
carefully to prevent his voice from cracking, "Okay, holy shit, you guys are so
fucking awesome, I love you guys. Thank you so much. I can't wait to give it a
ride! Hell, fucking, yes."
"We're excited for you to take your friends out for a spin too but first we
should get to that one topic, if you don't mind," Mr. Zahhak inquired.
Dirk nodded and dismissed his friends to occupy themselves until he returned.
He followed the eldest man into the house.
===============================================================================
They had seated themselves onto the living room couch.
"I don't really know how to put this" Mr. Zahhak chuckled nervously, "Well,
we've kinda made some plans for you to go to Houston."
"Whoa, who the fuck is 'we' and why the fuck are you sending me to Houston?
Wait, like Houston, Texas?"
"Yes. Just hear me out," He paused for a moment and took a few deep breaths,
"You have a brother."
"I have two brothers," Dirk rolled his eyes lightheartedly and leaned deeper
into the couch.
"You have three brothers," the man deadpanned.
Dirk ran that information through his head a few times. Only when he opened his
mouth did he speak up once more, cutting Dirk off.
"You have a twin, Dirk. His name is Dave. Your older brothers wanted you
separated from each other and from them after they started getting death
threats. You two were just two in half months old when they decided they had to
give you boys up. I supported your brothers and I was trusted with you. Dave
was born with albinism so he stood out a little more, they sent him out of
state, to Texas. He was placed under the care of a different family, the Makara
Family."
"The Makara family? As in Hugh Makara? The suspected drug lord?" Dirk
interrogated, trying to analyze the new information being shoved at him. The
man nodded and went to continue breaking the news but Dirk inquired once more,
"Wasn't the Makara family very much against the Striders?
"They hated the Strider family but they hate all the big corporations including
all the Striders' rivals. They agreed to take in Dave so that was one less
family that would like to hunt him down plus the Makara's were a good
protection from the other rivals." He elaborated, "Now back to Dave. He has a
counselor by order of his middle school which has carried on through the years.
It was with her I made these plans for you two to finally meet. We think it
will be beneficial for you both." Dirk pondered the information for much longer
than he was comfortable.
"Okay," Dirk said slowly, contemplating every sound he made.
"Dirk." The elders voice turned sharp and authoritarian like, Dirk always knew
the man to be thoughtful and kind but he knew that tone of voice, when he had
gotten in trouble as a kid or when the man was completely wrapped up in an
engineering project. Lear held eye contact, "Your brothers were prideful
tyrants of the media. To them, death was nothing to lose all their hard work
over. They made big plans for you both. They meant best for everyone they
influenced, even if they often went about it in the wrong way. Do you think you
can make them proud?"
"Yes, I can and I will, I'll do even better than them," Dirk let his face fall
to stone, voice turned to steel, "When am I supposed to be leaving?"
"Next Friday."
Dirk nodded with confidence and security though his understanding of the
situation was limited.
He had a brother.
He bit his lip and timed his breathing.
He wasn't alone. He wasn't the odd one out. He wasn't the only one burdened
with the name Strider. He had a family of his own.
===============================================================================
His basement was his favourite place in the small house. It was small and made
even more cramped by the large number of exercise machines. The walls were
concrete and the room was always cool. The sound of an alarm briefly cut
through Dave's maxed out speaker. It was ignored. It sounded out again. Dave
tossed his phone across the room and into the laundry basket. It disrupted his
focus once more and he gave in. He gently allowed the lat pull-down bar to come
to rest and took a moment to breathe even as the phone continued to yell for
his attention. He grabbed a clean towel and his phone, which he quickly set on
mute. He sat in front of a small fan he had set up on his apple juice table. He
wiped off the sweat from his bare chest and neck. With great reluctance he
turned on his phone. His counselor's contact title 'Ms.stfu' had fittingly sent
him 16 messages containing nothing but his name. 
'holy shit what do you want'
'Remember when I told you to clean up your house?'
'yes'
'Did you?'
'yes'
'Is it still clean?'
'what the fuck yes what do you want'
'Your twin brother, Dirk, is visiting you.'
'okay this isn't cool im a busy man if you could kindly fuck off thatd be
awesome'
'Take a trip outside David, get a breath of fresh air.'
Dave didn't bother with replacing his shirt but through on his aviators. He
cursed her manipulating behaviour the entire way up to the living room. He was
feeling pretty proud of the freestyle dis track he had running through his mind
when something out the window wiped it all clean. He did a double take at the
alien vehicle sitting in his driveway. He approached the front door, keeping
the car in view at all times. 'Your twin brother, Dirk, is visiting you.' That
statement hit him a few times before he concluded that this was fucking stupid.
He opened the one barrier protecting him from whatever had come to haunt him
this time. He stepped out into the open air with confidence. The reality of the
situation hit harder than the damning sun. Nervousness and anxiety crept up his
spine and bit at his neck. He leaned against the door frame with relaxed
shoulders but a broadened chest and a face that feigned apathy and control. One
of his tingling hands slipped behind him and grabbed the switchblade from his
back pocket, opening and closing it with a slow, meditative rhythm.
It took a moment of heavy anticipation before Dave's apparent guest stepped out
and approached him. Dave took note of every physical attribute. He was about
Dave's age. His short, spiked back hair was a light straw blond and his fair
complexion was decorated with freckles. He stood a couple inches higher than
Dave and had an over all larger muscle mass, signs of being better fed than
Dave's strict budget. He wore triangular shades that appeared to come straight
out of an anime with no shame. The rest of his outfit consisted of a grey tee
decorated ironically with the graphic of a plain orange hat, a black leather
belt with a large silver belt buckle, black jeans that had begun to fade to
grey around the knees and bottoms and a contradictory pristine pair of orange
high tops. The length of his right arm was decorated with ink, the Sweet Bro
logo, a heart design, intricate patterns of geometry and circuitry. Dave's
observant eyes could recognize movement even through both pairs of sunglasses.
The stranger's eyes scanned across his form with what was probably an equal
amount of caution and curiosity. Had this guy taken note of Dave's features?
The large number of metal pieces through his ears, his brow and his bottom lip?
What about Dave's own tattoos as simple as they may be? A pair of swords
clashing on left arm and the depiction of the skin of his right shoulder torn
away to reveal clockwork. Would he notice the shiny black wings on his exposed
back when Dave turned around? Would he count all of Dave's visible ribs.
Out of nowhere, self consciousness raked over his nerves and he felt over
exposed. He always convinced himself that he had control over every situation.
This time however, he could feel his knees buckle ever so slightly under this
asshole's judgmental gaze. A wave of panic chilled him into his flight or fight
response.
"Yo, the name's Dave. I assume you must be Dirk?" Dave broke the silence,
hoping he didn't get the name wrong, considering he just found out this was
even happening. As soon as the other's eyes flicked up from his body to make
contact with Dave's own, he realized that the hours that he felt pass between
them was actually only mere seconds. Dave could only hope he hadn't already
been dissected. The other replied with a stiff nod and and outstretched hand,
fingers long and nimble. Dave grabbed it, the others skin was warm and he was
no doubt ensuring that his grasp was gentle and friendly. Dave guided the shake
with a flick of his wrist. This slight moment of control eased his nerves even
if just for a moment.
"Yeah, I'm Dirk. It's nice to meet you, Dave. I don't want to intrude on your
home but Ms. Serket said that you had a guest room. Or I can stay in the motel
down the street, no problem." Dave grimaced at the mention of that place.
"No way man, that motel is shittier than my place, You can stay here. Let's
head in. Quicker we take care of that, quicker you can get comfortable." Dave
felt like he spoke up too quickly but figured he'd just play it off by walking
straight into the house without another word. It took a few moments for Dirk to
enter the house with a bag slung over his shoulder. Dave led him to the spare
room to which Dirk haphazardly threw the bag into then made his way back down
the hall.
"Oh shit, you have XBox and Playstation? Where you keep your games, bro?" Dirk
called out from the living room. Dave was stunned for just a moment but then
let out a small chuckle. He had no idea how this guy managed to be so casual
with the situation but with the way it pulled him into carelessness he wasn't
going to complain. He walked down the hall and layed himself across the couch
and grabbed two of each kind of controller from under the couch and placed them
onto the coffee table. He let his eyes shut.
"The drawer under the Tv, plus I have a whole bunch of downloaded games. Take
your pick." The clicking of plastic cases was ceased by sharp sound of the
drawer closing. He kept his eyes close. After a moment of nothingness Dave
peaked open an eye. Dirk loomed over him with a pile of games in his hands
unable to sit due to Dave taking up the entirety of the seating. Dave shut his
eyes again. There was a weight heavy on his thighs. A controller was tossed
onto his chest. He waited until he heard cheery music before engaging.
Fucking Katamari co-op.
Chapter End Notes
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