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Chapter Text

The hero and his shadow were like the sun and the moon, their light was a fun and inviting vision of the world...

Xuan was able to bring smiles and light up the room with just a sentence, using his social nature to make many friends from an early age but in everything he did, he always had his twin,

the two twins looked nearly identical visually, but couldn't be different in every other way

Yun was the more secluded of the two, preferring to get lost in his books rather than speak 

but the two were inseparable. You could never see one without being present, 

they were such happy kids, so carefree and full of adventure

until Espers began to pop up,

people being rushed to hospital as they grew new limbs, 

getting powers beyond comprehension, 

and it was a beautiful sunny day when Xuan fell to the ground

"Xuan?" Yun asked, kneeling beside his brother who looked like he was in pain, Yun went to touch his forehead but quickly held back his hand in surprise  "You're burning!" Yun said frantically 

suddenly, in a burst of gold Yun was flung back slightly, it all happened so quickly

and when he looked up?

his once nearly identical brother had bright orange hair and golden eyes, he seemed much taller along with-

a tail?!

Yun stared at his brother, frozen in fear until Xuan broke the silence

"I feel like I broke every bone in my body" The boy groaned in pain causing Yun to bolt up to the other 

"Brother! Do you need a- some pain meds? are you ok?!" Yun asked frantically, Xuan just lay there for a minute before sitting up, much to his brother's worry

"I- I think I'm okay...what happened..?" Xuan asked his twin who took in his brother's new appearance

his eyes shifted to a bright orange color, it almost looked red- his hair changed color to, the long braid the two boys grew together now was a bright orange color

and the tail swished around slightly

"Is that a tail?!" Xuan yelled out in panic causing the other to jump

Yun looked at the tail, before something popped up in his head, he smiled a bit

"welp, looks like you a furry dear brother"

"AM NOT!" the other yelled and slowly got up showing his new height causing Yun's jaw to drop to the floor, 

Xuan noticed this and smiled

"looks like I'm the superior twin!" Xuan said pridefully causing Yun to roll his eyes, but Xuan wobbled back a bit

"No but seriously can we head to the hospital now?" Xuan said, causing his brother to remember what happened, causing him to grab the car keys and run into the car with Xuan wobbling behind him

the ride to the hospital was pretty stress-inducing, but when they got there they were directed to a room quickly

and after an hour of tests, the doctor sat on his chair, looking at a clipboard

The doctor looked at the test results with a blank expression

"Well, it seems like he's an esper," The doctor said calmly 

"And while the concept is pretty new I assure you that there's no harm in it, just stay at home and take it easy for a couple of days, adjust to your new limbs and you'll be good, you might even get called on for interviews"

While the news was a good relief for the two, the next few days were comical, to say the least

Xuan was trying to adjust to his new limb, tripping and falling as he tried to balance, which caused Yun to laugh at, him before kindly helping his brother up, 

Yun was always so much calmer and more laid back compared to how he is in public, the sight of his brother smiling always warmed him deeply

and a few months later, a high and prestigious organization known as the "Esper Union" reached out and offered Xuan a job offer after he finishes high school, 

Xuan was ecstatic about the deal and took it up almost immediately, 

the next few weeks were weird for Yun, he didn't see Xuan as much, only seeing him early in the morning, and when he's about to go to bed, 

and one night as they were hanging out for the first time in months Yun spoke up, a bit more nervous than usual

"Will you spend less time with me after finishing high school?" he asked, causing Xuan to tilt his head in confusion

"what do you mean Brother?" 

"Well, this is the first time we've just, hung out in so long, and it's got me thinking, what are we going to do after high school, what will I do after? You have that fancy crime-fighting gig, what will I do?" The boy said nervously, causing his brother to think for a moment, before getting up

"Well, I guess we'll just have to stay together then!" Xuan said, causing his brother to look up

"Really?" Yun said smiling

"Hey, I specifically remember us making a pinky swear that we'll never abandon each other, ever! And pinky swears are VERY important!" The gingered boy spoke causing the other to giggle

"So don't worry, I may be super cool and super buff, but I'll never hurt you, so chin up!" Xuan said, sitting next to his brother 

"Still can't believe you remember that promise" Yun smiled, causing Xuan to laugh 

"of course! I always keep my promise" 

"what about that one time when you said you'd promise to save the last pudding?" Yun said 

"Put a sock in it we're having a brotherly moment," Xuan said, thumping his brother in the forehead, causing the other to gasp

"At least I'm not a furry!" Yun said, turning his head away, causing Xuan to gasp

"How dare! and by my own brother! how could you wound me with such words!" Xuan said Yun rolled his eyes before reaching towards the TV remote when he felt a sudden headache, Yun shook away the weird feeling in his gut, and turned on the TV

"Let's just turn on some TV, what do you wanna watch?"

"Lego monkey kid?" Xuan asked

"Isn't that a kid's show?" Yun asked, giving a weird look at Xuan

"And?"

Yun simply shook his head giggling gently, before turning it on

"You are such a child" 

The rest of the night was quiet, and comfortable for the two before Yun quickly got up

"I think I'll go to bed, I got a headache that won't go away," Yun said, Xuan nodded and waved to his brother goodnight

Chapter Text

As Yun slowly came out of the groggy fog of sleep, he only felt one thing

A splinter of pain that pricked his body continuously 

he hunched over in his bed

 it was like he was going to explode from the inside out, 

He slowly looked over toward his brother's bed and saw it was empty

"Must be out training,"  he mumbled,

 but as soon as he spoke  he grabbed onto his ears in pain, Everything felt like it was turned to max volume,

 and his vision went black for a good 4 seconds, almost like he fainted

and when he opened his eyes he felt sore,

So, so sore...

he didn't even realize he fell off his bed, simply crawling up in a ball as he waited for the pain to go away

it didn't.

 But he did feel something.

Something was slowly dripping down his cheeks,

When he slowly hunched his hand on his face he saw red

It was blood…

oh...

oh...

Yun slowly got up, feeling his center of balance flipped on its head, and as he slowly wobbled towards the bathroom, he saw someone in the mirror

he looked closer, and the reflection followed

wait...

he stared at the face, their long hair was a deep purple, and some parts were stained in blood...

from...

the ears?

multiple.

all covered in blood that oozed down his face,

Everything rang as the pieces clicked together

and he screamed in fear running towards the living room, tripping on his tail-

tail?! 

He just laid on the floor in shock, trying to process what had just happened,

but then it clicked

he got turned into...

he tried to think for a moment, trying to remember the name of what the doctor called them

an esper?

He slowly got up and headed towards back to the bathroom, cleaning off the blood from his ears, 

He didn't dare make a sound, any other subtle noise sent shocks through his brain

he could hear everything

the air conditioner

the slight gushes of air 

the birds outside

he even heard the fan going in the other room

he felt like he was going to pass out

but he slowly wobbled his way toward the couch, and just sat down, staring at the ceiling

he stared at it for a good while, to which he soon lost track of time only snapping out of it when he heard the sound of a car engine turning off and a door shutting outside, and then the jingling of the doorknob, the crickets greeting the evening much to Yun's annoyance, realizing he spent the entire day on the couch

"Yun! I'm home!" Xuan said, before noticing the figure in the living room

Xuan smiled before noticing the stains of blood

"Hey, Xuan...looks like you're not the only one who gets powers..." Yun spoke softly 

Xuan stopped for a minute before it clicked

"Yun?!" he yelled causing the purple-headed man to recoil back, holding his ears softly practically

"Yes, now can you be a bit quieter please..?" Yun spoke 

Xuan looked confused before noticing the ears

6 in total

"Oh..oh! Yes! ok," Xuan said, lowering his voice "Do you need anything? pain meds?" The ginger spoke worryingly,

Yun simply shook his head, Xuan nodded, before getting an idea, running towards the room to retrieve black headphones, gently placing them on Yun

the headphones barely covered all his new ears, but they relieved the ear-bleeding noises

"Thank you" he simply said, while Xuan just sat there nervously

"We should go to the hospital, like right now," Xuan said frantically

Yun weakly nodded

Xuan held onto his brother, gently guiding him outside

The car ride was as quiet much to Yun's relief

The hospital wasn’t fun at all

The constant beeping of machines

The chattering of worried people

It all felt like he was ready to go deaf at any moment

The thought of him going deaf sounded so good at that moment

But they were eventually given to a nurse, who led him through test after test

And soon they were in the room, the same doctor greeting them

“We’ve never had a case like yours before, yes there have been slight pains and foreign feelings but never to this degree, but, I’m sure that the union would be thrilled to have you, that is if you're willing to train with your brother, he’s become quite the poster boy” The doctor laughed slightly 

Xuan smiled

“Well it’s always good to meet a fan” Xuan smiled, shaking hands with the doctor 

They were eventually released, giving Yun some earplugs

And the Doctor was right, the union did want Yun

Yun reluctantly agreed, but he only wanted to stay with his brother

The union had different plans

The next weeks were practically hell for Yun

Waking up, training, eating, and then passing out on his bed

He didn’t have any time to hang out with Xuan

His dear brother was always in interviews, spreading his fame around

He rarely spoke to him 

It infuriated Yun

He felt almost betrayed

No, he was betrayed.

but he saw Xuans smile in every interview

how he popped up eagerly at every question

why didn't he act like that around him anymore?

they only needed each other before

but now...

he's abandoned him

Chapter Text

Yun... 

Has been weird lately 

He's been trying to hang out

Trying to get him to cancel on his interviews

Trying to get him to hang out more

he's been more clingy

More than usual

And it's freaking Xuan out

So when the ginger was enjoying his lunch it didn't surprise him when his brother joined him.

"Xuan!" Yun said happily sitting right next to him happily,

it had been 2 months since he joined,

he'd been constantly training, trying to get 'more stronger' according to his coaches

Yet he never seemed to actually bulk up

He looks as skinny as he did the day he came here

"Hey Yun, I can't stay long I have to deal with some stuff in a few" Xuan said happily, 

His brother practically jumped 

"What? No I just got here!" Yun said, which caused Xuan to shift into a more puzzled expression,

Yun rarely spoke above a soft and quiet voice

"I- I mean who would I eat this pudding with?" Yun said, almost too quickly 

"Brother, you had me at pudding" Xuan said happily, opening the pudding quickly 

Yun seemed to breathe a heavy sigh of relief, while Xuan practically ripped it open

Yun however slowly opened it, almost like he wanted to slow down to savor this moment 

Xuan happily ate the pudding, practically inhaling it with delight

Yun simply ate it one spoon at a time, savoring each bite

"You were always a slow eater brother, no wonder why you can never get muscles like these" Xuan said before pridefully flexing his muscles

"Mhm, yeah I suppose so" Yun said, causing the atmosphere to become slightly awkward 

"I had an interview with Li Ling yesterday, they asked him if his arms followed him around constantly, and apparently he hangs them up like coats when he gets home" Xuan laughed at the recent memory

Yun just nodded and ate silently

"It reminded me of the time when me and Ling and I-" 

Yun slammed down the spoon, the noise causing the ginger to jump up

"What is it with you and that Li Ling guy?" Yun interrupted, confusing Xuan

"What do you mean dear brother?" Xuan asked in confusion 

Yun looked at his brother annoyed 

"Cut the crap," Yun said, shifting his gaze to his brother

"why are you always so eager to go with him to interviews and, talk shows and it seems like he only wants to plaster his face on every billboard within a 50 mile radius" Yun snided, which honestly caught Xuan off guard

Yun has met Li Ling on a few occasions and he has always assumed that they were on good terms!

But that doesn't change how he had just been insulting Ling 

"Brother, I'd appreciate it if you don't talk bad about my friend." Xuan said a bit more annoyed than usual

"It's not like he's here, and if he was he'd be rambling on about how 'there's a new mission!' And 'oh Xuan just in time, let's go play in the basketball court'" Yun said, his grip on his pudding tightening 

Xuan stood up angrily

"Yun! What has gotten into you?! I do not talk about your friends in this way-!"

"What friends?" Yun said angrily 

"What-?" 

"What friends are you talking about Xuan? Everyone here only keeps me around because I'm YOUR brother, I'm the lost puppy that follows you around, I'm the charity case that makes you look good."

Xuan couldn't believe what he was hearing

"Yu! What do you mean?"

"Don't 'Yu' me, you've seen the way they look at me, the way they look at my powers!" A small shadow flickers behind him as he yelled "They all hate me! I didn’t even want to come here!"

"Then why did you accept the offer?!" Xuan yelled out, as he reached for his brother,

he was hurt that his brother was keeping these feelings from him

"Because it was the only way I could see you again! But it seems like that didn't work either, you're always doing stupid talk show, out on missions, making friends! It's not fair, you're some big famous celebrity that everyone loves, meanwhile I'm stuck to the shadows. In YOUR shadow!" Yun said before angrily storming off,

leaving Xuan to process what was just said.

4 weeks.

It took Xuan four weeks to muster up the courage to see Yun

Maybe Yun had forgiven him!

I mean, sure he hadn’t seen Yun come out of his room for those four weeks but it's fine! It's OK,

it's not like their relationship is ruined now

Right?

Yun's door was always so inviting, it was his happy hangout place with his favorite brother

Sure it looked ominous and dark, with weird shadows sometimes seeping through the crack under the door

Sure he heard sobs coming from the other end

But it's fine! It's fine!

The knocks seemed to echo through the house eerily 

"Y-Yun? You've been in there for a while...it's been like, four weeks since you locked yourself in there, and couldn't help but notice that that isn't healthy! So I brought some pudding! Maybe we could talk about what happened?"

Silence

Something that Yun loved

Something that Xuan hated

"Yun, I- I'm sorry. I know I've been busy with interviews and my friends and I've been putting you off to the side! And I'm so sorry about that, I- you deserve better, you deserve a better brother, and While I know the Union isn't going to like it, but..." Xuan sighed heavily 

"I'm gonna go on vacation, we can visit all the pudding spots around, I heard that there was a place that serves spicy pudding, I bet it'll taste awful but it might be funny!" Xuan said, smiling slightly as he waited for something 

Silence

"Y-Yun?" 

Xuan went to open the door, only to find that jt was unlocked,

"I- I'm gonna come it ok?" 

The creeking of the door was unsettling,

But what was even more unsettling was what was inside his room.

"Y-Yun?"

The room...

It was completely trashed..

The once prestine sheets were torn to shreds,

the little plant vase a nice girl gave him shattered, 

The photos of him and Yun..

We're smashed, 

They-

No..

There was one that wasn't touched

Xuan bolted towards it

It was them before they transformed

A photo of when they were young

Yun and him were on a picnic blanket, it was their first time trying pudding 

And when they made the promise

"Yun! Try this out" Xuan laughed, his hair not yet touched by any powers that belonged to Sun Wukong

It was him

"It looks weird brother" Yun said, eying the cup of pudding weirdly 

"No it's not! It's the best thing I've ever tasted!"

Yun smiled with curiosity, before opening a small cup of the same pudding, and putting a small spoonful in his mouth

Yun smiled happily as the spoon remained in his mouth as he savored it

"See?" Xuan laughed, nudging him with his elbow

Yun nodded, and continued eating the pudding, Xuan doing the same, although more ferociously 

"So good!" Xuan said happily, before waving over to a friend,

Yun practically deflated as the kid came over,

Xuan had barley ever talked to the kid in school

Why is he showing up now?

"Awe sick! Is this pudding!" The kid said reaching for the last one, causing Yun to slap his hand

"Hey! What was that for!" The kid said angrily 

"Y-Yun! Don't slap my friend" Xuan said, in a hushed tone

"S-sorry" Yun said causing Xuan to chuckle 

"I knew you'd like pudding but I didn't expect you to get overprotective over the last pudding cup" xuan chuckled as the classmate walked away angrily

"I- hey Xuan?"

"Yes dear brother?"

"Promise me...we'll always stay together, no matter what?"

"Oh course!, I pinky swear!" 

"Really? Pinky swear?"

"I always keep them!"

"OK, OK, I'll take your word for it dear brother"

He didn't. 

He didn't keep the promise

And when he looked to the back, what he read shot a hole through his stomach..

♧

It made his head spin,

He rushed to the bathroom as quick as he could, dropping the puddings on the ground as the acid fell into the toilet...

♧

As he walked to reread the letter, he noticed it

The window was unlocked

He left

He left him

Where did he go?

He needed to tell someone...

Chapter Text

The vacation Xuan took wasn’t a vacation anymore.

It was a mission.

To find Yun

Xuan searched everywhere. Relatives houses,

favorite pudding shops,

He even got the union to send out announcements,

hoping that Yun would come back…

Nothing.

Until…

“Xuan you gotta take a break man, this is your first time back to your dorms in 2 days. Have you even slept?” Li Ling asked, Xuan slowly ate the pudding, the bags under his eyes were dark and heavy, and his eyes were puffy from crying.

“I’m worried about him Li… I can’t stop until I can apologize…gosh he must be lost or kidnapped! Oh gods- I need to go…” Xuan said, attempting to get up before Ling pushed him back down on his bed, Xuan swore he saw a shadow in the corner of his eye…

“Nnnope! Not on my watch! You sir gotta sleep, While yes, finding Yun is essential, he wouldn’t like you depriving yourself of sleep like this!” Ling stated, throwing a cover over Xuan

Much to Xuan's attempts at preventing, he was slowly shutting his eyes… letting the gentle hold of sleep slowly take him

Ling slowly moved, quickly and quietly, his long hair in a high ponytail trailing behind him.

Until…

A large explosion came from outside!

Loud blaring red sirens sounded throughout the building.

Xuan bolted up, Ling groaned in annoyance as he rushed out, still in his simple white shirt and black shorts he disregarded any need for his more put-together hero clothes as he bolted towards the door with the other heroes.

Leaving Xuan alone

Or… maybe not?

A shadow moved in the corner of Xuan's vision as he tried to leave

And when he turned around…

“Y-yun?” Xuan mumbled the shadow of his brother jumped out the window, causing Xuan to follow eagerly

“Yun! W-wait!” Xuan said as the shadow moved at high speeds

He dashed towards it, the sidewalk turned to grass, which turned into a forest…

When they stopped he realized where it led to…

“Our… hangout spot…?” Xuan said, only to realize that the shadow had disappeared, leaving him with the withering structure of an old abandoned building.

Xuan’s legs finally gave out as he plummeted to the ground sobbing

"w-wow I'm really going crazy aren't I?"

he stopped for a moment before wailing out

“Why...? Why…Where are you, Yun..” Xuan said, his tears making a small puddle in front of the door of the old abandoned building

he saw his reflection… or rather… Esper Xuan’s reflection

This wasn’t him.

This was just some stupid powers given to him by that stupid Sun Wukong-

He- he hated this! He wanted to be with his brother again, laugh, and hang out here!

But then he heard it

A slow walk

Xuan turned toward it

The purple hair hit him like a ton of bricks

“Y-yun..?”

“Hello dear brother” Yun spoke in a monotone voice, his clothes were clean and pressed neatly as he held a long silver staff, it was much more modest compared to his outfit,

His was more flashy and flamboyant, while Yuns was easy to move in.

“Y-Yun!” Xuan said, rushing towards him, only to have the air knocked out of him, as a shadow cut in front of him, punching the air out of his body as he was flung away.

Xuan was stunned for a few minutes before looking up

Big mistake

Several different clones piled onto him

“Y-Yun..?” he managed to say, as his brother slowly walked towards him, the shadows pinning him down

“Esper Xuan.” He said coldly

“Yun- what are you-”

“What am I doing?” Yun said a flash of anger went through his eyes

“I’m getting out of your shadow.” He said, commanding his shadows to throw Xuan at the already crumbled building

Xuan got up quickly, blocking attack after attack from his brother in confusion

“Yun! Stop this! What are you doing?!” Xuan said

“My letter. I said that I’d be back. But not in the way you hoped.” Yun said, smiling slightly

“I thought you were kidnapped! I put up posters, I searched everywhere! Where were you?!”

Yun didn’t answer, simply looking at him expressionless

“Yun we need backup, the union is gathering their forces” the voice rang throughout the building

“Can’t right now, finishing some business” Yun simply said, throwing the intercom on the ground, smashing it to pieces

“Now that we’re alone,” Yun said, snapping his finger, making more shadow clones lunge at Xuan who quickly dodged

“Yun?! You’re with the shadow decree?!” Xuan said shocked, dodging punches from his brother's shadows

Yun remained silent before smiling

“Yeah. so? Not the union cared about me” Yun said entering the battle, Yun’s staff clashes against Xuans as they fought

“Xuan stop this madness! We don’t have to fight-”

“Oh you’d love that wouldn’t you, you’d love to see me listen to you, and act like the weak boy you think I am, well I’m not” He yelled, sending projectiles straight at Xuan

The blasts destroyed the wall behind him

“Yun! I’m serious! I don’t wanna fight!” Xuan said, his body felt heavy as lead, was it the exhaustion, or was it just the battle itself?

“I don’t care. Once I take care of you I won’t have to deal with the burden of being in your shadow, but as your power grew. So did mine.” Yun said angrily

The fighting felt surreal… everything happened so fast,

He was relying entirely on adrenaline at this point.

But then…

“I wish you weren’t my brother. I hate you”

Those words rang through his ear

“What,” Xuan said, gripping his staff

Yun, deciding to take this moment of shock, summoned his clones to pile onto the ginger

“What? Are you mad? Why don’t you do a talk show about it.” Yun said, slowly walking towards the pile when he was suddenly flung back

In a familiar blinding light, he looked up

He saw something…getting closer

Wait.

“Wha-”

The hero and his shadow

No matter their relationship one will always grow stronger…

and it will always lead into despair

“Xuan!” Yun said happily running up to his twin, his warm smile and eyes, filled with excitement radiated off of the boy

It was a rare sight

“Yes, dear brother?”

“I found something!” Yun said, practically dragging his brother

“W-well dear brother I have friends I need to-”

“More important than me?” Yun asked, his excitement overriding any sense of reason as he dragged his brother through the forest

“I- well no brother but-”

“No buts! This is very important!” Yun said,

And soon, they were met by a large building,

“Whoa…” Xuan said in amazement

“I found us a hangout spot! I’m tired of going to the boring park so I found this!” Yun said,

Xuan smiled, some wildflowers bloomed all around them

Yun smiled as he looked at the beauty of nature, overtaking the building

“Yun!” an echo spoke into his ears

“Xuan?” Yun asked, only to find his brother looking at some black delilahs

“Yes Yun?” the boy asked, Yun shook off the feeling

“Nevermind, wanna go explore?” Yun asked, Xuan nodded and followed eagerly

“Wake up… please.” Yun shifted his head over again

Xuan shrugged

He felt a slight sting in his eye

“Brother, are you ok?” Xuan asked, Yun nodded

But it only got worse

it hurt so bad...

And when he looked back at his brother

His ginger hair shined in the sun

He hated it

“Yun?”

“YUN”

“YUN”

“YUN”

“YUN”

“YUN”

“YUN”

“Wake up yun.”