Sunny looked out the car window, watching the city blur past as the vehicle sped through familiar streets.
A soft sigh escaped his lips. This would be the last time he saw this view for a while, well he guessed he would, after all he was going to the dream realm tomorrow.
Sunny still didn't understand why Mother hadn't just let him skip the whole "surviving in the Dream World" ordeal altogether, but he supposed she had her reasons.
Soon, the car slowed to a stop.
Sunny stared at the towering house before him. The moment the door opened, he stepped out and walked inside as if he owned the place, which, in a way, he did.
The familiar space wrapped around him the moment he crossed the threshold. He glanced around, then brushed a stray strand of hair out of his face.
"Damnation... it hasn't even been that long, and it already feels like I haven't seen this place in years."
Footsteps approached. Sunny turned just in time to see a small head peek out from around the corner.
"Hi, Hel."
A smile immediately bloomed across the beautiful girl's face. "Sunny, you're back."
Sunny stretched his arms over his head as she walked closer. "Yeah. I am. Though I've gotta say, the academy feels pretty cramped."
Hel let out a small laugh. "Tell me about it! Especially when they put me in that tiny room. Like, what am I even supposed to do in there besides sleep and shower?" she complained, stomping her foot lightly as memories of her short stay at the academy resurfaced.
Sunny looked away, muttering under his breath, "Maybe if you didn't bring so much with you, you wouldn't have had that problem."
Hel's head snapped toward him so fast that Sunny briefly wondered if she'd hurt her neck.
"What did you say?"
It was phrased like a question, but her tone made it very clear that it wasn't one.
Sunny immediately regretted opening his mouth. Unfortunately, his Flaw didn't care about regret.
He avoided her gaze, suddenly finding the wall far more interesting.
"U-um..." Sunny hesitated, feeling the pressure building. He genuinely didn't understand why she was getting so angry, it wasn't even an insult.
It was just... true. And yet, judging by her reaction, you'd think he'd insulted her entire existence.
"Th-that maybe if you didn't bring so much stuff with you, you would've found the dorm much bigger," he finally said.
Hel's expression darkened.
Before she could launch herself at him, a blur rushed down the hallway.
A body slammed into Sunny from the side, arms wrapping around his neck in a tight chokehold.
"Damnation."
Sunny didn't even need to look to know who it was.
"Welcome back, little brother! It was so lonely not seeing your ugly face all day!" Howl hummed cheerfully, tightening her grip.
Sunny wanted to retort with something like "Yeah, I missed your ugly face too, you mutt," but there'd be a lie in that sentence. No matter how irritating they were, all his sisters were undeniably beautiful.
He would never admit that to any of them.
Still, that hadn't stopped him from giving far too many death glares to men who'd shown interest in them. And maybe one or two of those men had gone missing—but that was a problem for another day.
"Howl—get—off me, you stick!" Sunny grunted, trying and failing to pry her off.
"It's because I've been training all morning!" she snickered, tightening her hold just to spite him.
"Howl, let him go. He just got back."
Sunny turned toward his saviour, and froze.
An enchanting face met his gaze.
Bin.
Howl clicked her tongue in annoyance but released him. Sunny sucked in several deep breaths, finally able to breathe properly.
A faint smile played on Bin's lips as she watched him. The moment Sunny saw it, an involuntary shiver ran down his spine.
"Was it fun being away from us?" she asked casually.
Sunny looked away. "Sort of..."
"Was it?" she replied, sounding surprised, but Sunny knew better.
"Yeah. Kind of..." he hesitated, then shifted the conversation. "But you've changed since the last time I saw you. What happened?"
It wasn't just an attempt to escape the question, he was genuinely curious. The Bin he remembered had been reckless, impulsive. Now, she felt... sharper. More calculating.
That smile of hers usually meant she wanted something... or was planning something.
It made Sunny uneasy.
"Oh? You noticed?" Bin tapped a finger against her lips, thinking for a moment. "It's nothing much."
With that, she turned and walked away without looking back.
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"She's been like that ever since she got back from her meeting with Mother," Hel said from behind him. "None of us knows what happened."
Sunny turned to her, his awareness sharpening. Ever since Howl's ambush, he'd been paying closer attention to his surroundings, making sure his shadow lingered behind him.
I guess I got too relaxed after getting home... I should've known better. They're all so unpredictable.
An exhausted sigh escaped his lips.
"Well then," Hel continued, heading toward the dining room, "let's go see the others. Silent's out right now, but she should be back by this afternoon."
Howl had already disappeared, likely following Bin.
Sunny followed Hel, his gaze drifting around the house as they walked.
When they entered the spacious dining room, Sunny immediately spotted Bin, Rain, Howl, Revel, Moonveil, and, of course, Hel, who was still just ahead of him.
Before he could react, two figures rushed forward and wrapped him in a tight hug.
One was Rain. Unsurprisingly, she'd always been clingy, no matter how tough she tried to act. Beneath it all, there was nothing but unwavering affection for him.
The second hug, however, caught him off guard.
Moonveil.
She usually kept her distance, from everyone, even her own siblings. Sunny had never understood why. He'd tried asking once and had been shut down immediately. She talked during conversations, but she always felt... distant.
So feeling her arms around him now made Sunny smile.
She did care.
Sunny hugged them both back.
After a few seconds, the two stepped away, shuffling back as if he were carrying some kind of deadly disease.
Sunny stared at the two of them with a blank expression.
The silence in the large room stretched, until a sudden cough broke it.
"How about we start eating a late breakfast?" Howl said, glancing away with a hint of embarrassment.
Sunny shifted his gaze to her, a questioning look settling on his face.
'Why are they acting so weird?'
Before he could dwell on it, all of his sisters nodded in agreement.
Soon, food was brought out, and Sunny sighed as he took a seat at the table.
The meal didn't last long. There was barely any conversation, which was unusual. Normally, his sisters would take their time, eating slowly, chatting loudly, arguing over nothing. This time, they focused solely on the food.
They might not have realized it themselves, but to Sunny, it was obvious.
They were planning something.
Sunny's eyes narrowed into thin slits. Quietly, he sent his shadow out, watching them closely to see if they whispered or exchanged glances.
It didn't take long.
In a hushed voice, Rain leaned toward Bin. "Do we do it now…?"
Bin shook her head almost imperceptibly. If Sunny hadn't been watching so closely, he would've missed it.
"No, not now. It's too early," Bin whispered back. "Not at the table. Let's take him there first. And the way he was staring earlier…" She glanced at Sunny. "I think he's onto us."
Sunny had already turned away, pretending to listen to whatever Hel was talking about, just in time to avoid Bin noticing his attention.
Rain nodded.
Soon, everyone stood up, and before Sunny could protest, they had dragged him toward the indoor training grounds.
Then, something unexpected happened.
A blindfold was placed over his eyes.
A fleeting thought crossed his mind.
'So this is how Cassie feels all the time…'
Sunny quickly shook the thought away and shifted his focus to his shadow.
Looking through its eyes, he watched as his sisters guided him through the halls. The one leading him, hands firmly on his shoulders, was Silent.
'So they lied to me…'
Sunny felt a flicker of confusion at the sudden revelation, but when he noticed the wide grins plastered across all their faces, it clicked.
A surprise.
That explained their strange behavior earlier.
Deciding to trust them, Sunny dismissed his shadow's senses and allowed himself to be led blindly.
Silent's hands stayed steady on his shoulders as they walked. No one spoke. The silence only made his anticipation grow.
Eventually, Sunny felt her stop.
Carefully, Silent untied the knot and lifted the blindfold away.
Sunny opened his eyes, and nearly squinted them shut as bright light flooded his vision.
When his eyes adjusted, he froze.
The training room had been completely transformed. Massive balloons covered the walls and ceiling so densely that the stone beneath was barely visible.
At the center stood a long table, and on it, a towering cake that looked almost like a wedding cake. Except this one had "Sunless" written boldly across the front, with a large 17 displayed at the top.
Sunny looked up.
Hanging above everything was a massive banner:
HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY
Before he could even form words, eight voices spoke at once.
"Happy Early Birthday, Brother!"
Sunny turned to his sisters, a bright smile spreading across his face.
"Thanks… guys." He was momentarily at a loss for words. All he could do was pull each of them into a hug.
"We figured since your birthday is on the winter solstice, and you'll be stressing about the Dream World, we'd celebrate a day early!" Howl said proudly, hands on her hips.
Bin gently pushed Sunny toward the cake. "Now come on. Blow out the candles."
They gathered around as they sang. Sunny watched the flames flicker, warmth pooling in his chest. When the song ended, he blew them out in a single breath.
Revel immediately rushed to remove the candles.
Sunny tilted his head, confused.
'Why is she in such a hurry? It's not like she's hun—'
His thoughts were abruptly cut off when something slammed into his back.
Sunny had completely withdrawn his shadow sense, trusting his surroundings. The impact caught him off guard, but it wasn't nearly strong enough to knock him over unless he let it.
As he stumbled forward, he caught a glimpse of Rain behind him.
A small smile tugged at his lips.
'I'll let you have your fun, little sister.'
Sunny fell forward, straight into the cake.
Laughter erupted behind him.
Sunny lifted his head, chocolate smeared across his face, to see all of them laughing. Some clearly knew he'd done it on purpose, but that didn't stop them from laughing at him.
Rain grinned triumphantly at his chocolate-covered face.
It was a chocolate mud cake.
His favorite.
"Happy birthday, brother!" Rain shouted, wrapping him in a tight hug.
"Thanks, Rain," Sunny replied warmly.
Then, without warning, he leaned down and wiped his face against her clothes.
Rain froze.
She looked down at her now chocolate-smeared shirt in horror. "Ew—Sunny!"
The laughter behind them became uncontrollable. Howl was rolling on the floor, while even Revel and Bin laughed openly.
Sunny smiled.
This was the best birthday he'd ever had.