"Wow, Sai, this place is…"
"Shitty?"
"No, Saya, don't be rude."
"Bro, look at this place."
The sun had set by the time the twins were taken to Sai's house. It was certainly not what they expected. The house was the worst kept house on the block; the paint was peeling, the shingles were missing. The yard was so overgrown that it looked like a forest had sprung up around the house. To make matters worse, it was a western-style house with an overly steep Nipponese roof, the only one of its kind for kilometers around. Saya's eyebrow twitched at the eyesore.
"Hey, it's home. Never said it was perfect." Sai grunted as he and Mai lifted Kira's over laden trunk from the back of her car.
"Is it okay for us to be here?" Kira asked.
"I don't mind. And Amaru sounded excited over the phone, so I think we're okay."
"Not that, I meant-"
"The regional executives still need some persuading about you two living outside of official government protection." Mai didn't sound at all strained as they tipped their load sideways onto the sidewalk. "It will likely take me a few days or so, and you two will be safe here until I get back."
Sai leaned against the trunk carrying Saya's clothes, wondering what the hell was inside. "How do you plan on doing that, Ms. Asakura? Shout them down like you did at the hospital or break out the wand and go fairy godmother on them?"
"Depends on how difficult they'll be." Mai said without an ounce of humor.
"No, that's not it either." Kira said, grimacing as he wracked his brain for a way to express himself politely. "I just wasn't expecting your house to be so…unique."
"It looks terrible." Saya said bluntly.
"Yeah, it's ugly, but it's home." Sai actually smiled as he escorted the twins and their belonging up to the door. He seemed not to notice the disparaging looks the three Asakuras gave him.
"Call me if you need anything." Mai said. "I'll let you know if I hear anything about your father. And whatever you do, do not go anywhere without Sai."
"Yes, auntie." They said together.
"Stay safe and stay strong." Mai whispered to them, hugging them both before heading back to her car.
They waited until Mai's car had turned the corner, and Sai began to dig through his pockets while the twins gathered the first load of their belongings.
"What'd you guys need to bring so much stuff for?" Sai asked, apprehensively eying the pile of luggage next to him.
"Because we don't want to have to go back to our apartment again before this is over." Saya replied in a low, warning voice.
Sai grumbled about something under his breath and fiddled with the key a bit before unlocking the door and opening it.
The twins only had a few seconds to act as they sensed an approaching aura on the other side of the door and instinctively jumped apart as Sai opened the door.
"Sneak attack!"
A tall, slender form burst from the doorway and dropped kicked Sai in the chest, sending the boy flying out onto the hard pavement.
"Ha! That's how you do a sneak attack, you cheeky bastard!"
The stranger stood to his full height with his hands on his hips. He was a boy no older than Sai. The first notable feature of his was his hair. It was silver, cut short and styled into streamlined spikes. Frosty blue eyes shimmered from beneath a curtain of bangs that hung from a high forehead. His aura was a watery gray that was similar to storm clouds.
Kira and Saya didn't know what to do. This guy didn't seem hostile, and certainly didn't have the murderous auras of Henry and Anya. He looked normal, dressed in shorts and a white T-Shirt. In fact, this boy actually looked like he could have been a love interest in a shojo anime. It didn't take long for them to realize this might be Sai's housemate, Amaru Koizumi.
"Um," Kira drawled. "Are you Amaru Koizumi? Sai's friend?"
"Hmm?" Amaru looked at the twins standing next to him and his eyes lit up like a Wassalia tree. "Oh my gods!"
The twins gave identical shrieks of surprise as they were engulfed in a tight hug by the exuberant boy."
"I knew you two were the twins. I knew it the minute you popped up at the door." Amaru babbled excitedly. "The way that idiot was always going on about you, I couldn't help but know who you were. Of course, he did call to say you were coming here, so duh." He made a face and lightly nocked himself on the head. "I hope I didn't startle you two, it's just a game we play. It keeps him on his toes. Can I get you two anything? Tea? Soda?"
"N-No, that's alright." Saya stammered.
"Retaliation!"
Amaru gave a high-pitched squeal as she was thrown back into the house by a water jet that caught her in the chest. Kira and Saya looked back to see Sai posing victoriously atop one of their suitcases.
"Ha! You're a thousand years too late to fight me, sucker!���
"Hey, get off my suitcase, moron!" Saya yelled.
XXXXXX
The twins later learned that this was the house Sai lived in with his parents before moving to Xing. He was born in Nippon, but spent the majority of his childhood in Xing's capital, Wei-ling. Obviously, the house had fallen into decline following his father's death and it was clear Sai and Amaru were slow in cleaning the place up.
As soon as the twins entered the house, they realized that the place was worse off than they realized. Amaru and Sai lived on the fringes-they didn't even cook, as evidenced by the shoddy state of the kitchen. Takeout was the only food they ate.
When Kira saw the kitchen, he was mortified. The place looked like a landfill that was once used as battlefield. Grime encrusted dishes were stacked high in the sink, dust and cobwebs were all about. Two overfilled bags of trash were piled around an overflowing trashcan. A dozen pizza boxes were stacked on the table, not all of them empty. The twins were not amused at the sight.
"This isn't healthy." Saya said.
Amaru shrugged, his casual attitude somehow even more disturbing than the state of the kitchen. "Eh, a little dirt never hurt anyone. All it takes is one odor-repelling spell, a very hungry Akaname and some ignoring, and you hardly even notice it."
"I'm noticing it." Kira wadded through the mess. "I wish I couldn't, but I can. How often do you clean?" He demanded.
Then he reached the refrigerator. If the sight of the kitchen itself had almost made him faint, the fridge's contents almost killed him outright.
"Once or twice a month." Kira and Saya stared at Amaru with identical levels of horror. "There should be some fresh fish in there-"
"Nope." Kira said with a deep frown. "I'm taking over. I've had a long week and I am not finishing it off by getting food poisoning. Saya?"
"Aye, sir!" Saya saluted and pushed Amaru out of the kitchen.
"W-What is he going to do?" Amaru asked.
"Clean up that biohazard of a kitchen you have to make us a decent meal." Saya said. "Sai, get your ass down here and help us clean up!" She called upstairs.
XXXXXX
"It's so good!" Amaru gushed, eyes watering through the spoonful of curry shoved into his mouth. "I've never had anything like this since I left Otori. This is amazing!"
"He is pretty good." Sai agreed through a bite of his rice.
"Pretty good? Idiot, this is incredible. Did you just put a spell on this with your avatar powers, Kira?"
Sai cleared his throat loudly, but Kira just beamed. He was surprised that the mention of his powers didn't bother him. Maybe he was getting used to the idea. Or maybe it was because there were worse things to worry about.
Under Kira's direction, they all cleaned up the kitchen to the point he felt safe working in it, but it would take much more work before he would eat in it. So they ate in the living, which proved to be only marginally better than the kitchen. Amaru was splayed on the battered, squishy couch, Saya took residence on a surprisingly clean Arridian-patterned carpet and Kira and Sai say in a pair of faded armchairs. The living room too was a complete mess, with clothes, manga, takeout boxes, various discs and all manner of other odds and ends scattered about. How anyone could live in this place was beyond belief.
"My dad taught me how to cook." Kira said. "Well, he taught Saya as well, but she was a complete failure in the kitchen."
Saya flipped him off.
"Well your dad was a wonderful teacher if you can make something this good." Amaru praised. "Not even a day here and you're already saving lives."
Kira beamed in his direction.
"Now that we're all together, we can finally talk about our plan of attack." Sai said, sitting cross-legged in the chair. "Our first order of business is your training. I know Ms. Asakura probably already has something planned, but there's a good chance that Anya and Henry will attack while she's done."
"I thought that STAF was keen on protecting us or something. Shouldn't we be having some bodyguards around or something if we're going to be wandering around?" Saya asked. "What if more than just those two come after us?"
"That's not very likely." Amaru said with a sneer at the thought of those terrorists. "Unlike what you hear on the news, the Phantom Society is actually pretty divided. From what I hear, all of the branch offices do pretty much whatever they want without much cohesion and like to keep secrets from one another. Besides those two, the only thing we'll have to worry about for a while are the yokai popping up in Makura."
"What about Margareta?" Kira asked nervously. "She seems to have it out for us."
"Margareta isn't even in the country. From what I've heard from your aunt, she was spotted somewhere in London, halfway around the world." Sai said, not looking at anybody. "She won't be bothering you anytime soon."
"Now that we have that settled, what sort of training would we do?" Amaru asked. "We don't even know what elements they have."
"I know, but we've got to make do with what we got." Sai was sucking on his spoon as he answered, the tip bouncing up and down as he spoke. "We'll start with the basics, then work our way up from there. You two also need to train in your demigod powers as well."
Sweetness! We're going to be mages!" Saya cheered, and then gave a large yawn. "Sorry, just a little worn out."
"I bet you two are exhausted." Amaru said as he stood up. "Do you need anything?"
"A bath would be nice." Saya said. She just realized that it's been almost an entire day since she had a bath and though she wasn't one to excessively care about hygiene like other girls, soaking in a hot bath would be relaxing. "Kira, you up for a nice soak?"
"You first." He waved at her, leaving back in his armchair and closing his eyes.
"Right, leave it to me." Amaru said, his little fang flashing as he smiled and gave a thumbs up. "Sai, show them to their rooms, and get some of my nigh clothes for Saya to wear."
"I know how to run things in my own house, thank you very much." Sai growled as Amaru vanished upstairs. "Ugh, what a pain."
"Well, he's certainly very…accommodating." Kira said. "Kind of hard to read, though."
Sai coughed into his hand.
"Yeah, one minute he's all serious and confident and macho, and the next he's all smiles and hugs." Saya crossed her arms. "He's not gay, is he? Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's just…"
By now, Saya realized that Sai was barely listening to her. He was doubled-over in his seat, shoulders shaking as he appeared to be coughing…or laughing. It wasn't entirely clear.
"Are you okay, Sai?" Saya asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm fine." He gasped, tears in his eyes as he gulped down some water. "Just ate too fast."
"Mm-hmm." She said, unsure if she should believe him. "Well…I'm off."
"Take your time." Kira said as she left the room. Once she was gone, he cracked one eye open to look at Sai. "All right, what's going on?"
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, it's nothing serious." Sai said calmly. "But, now that Saya is upstairs, I can tell you a little secret…"
XXXXXX
"Nice." Saya smiled at the large bathroom, and the enormous steaming bath.
Saya wasted no time in stripping off her clothes and tossing them aside before stepping into the tub. She beamed as she lowered herself into the water, wincing as the hot water made contact with the scrapes on her hands and knees. With only her head and hands above the water, she allowed herself to drift away in a sea of steam and heat.
The scrape of the sliding door barely registered to the girl's ears. It was well-known that a hot bath in a massive tub was her personal nirvana, but even the bliss of a hot soak could not completely wash away the memories of the blood and the guilt.
"I hope dad's alright." Saya murmured.
"I'm sure he'll be fine. The Makura Hospital is supposed to have some pretty good healers on staff."
"I hope so." Saya agreed, too lost in her worries to fully comprehend that she wasn't by herself.
"How's the water?"
"It's perfect." She purred. Her brain was on auto-pilot at this point.
"Mind if I join you?" The familiar voice asked, accompanied by the soft splash of a tentative limb beginning to slip into the water.
"Sure, go right a-eh?"
Emerald eyes snapped open, looking up to find Amaru's face dominating her vision.
"What? Something the matter?"
Saya screamed.
"What do you think you're doing?" She demanded, covering herself even as she rose from the tub to plant a leg on the silver-haired mage's chest and punted him across the bathroom. "Get the hell out of here, you fucking pervert!"
Though in a blind rage, she paused just long enough to wrap a towel about herself before leaping free of the tub to straddle Amaru's stomach and grab a fistful of hair.
"And I thought you were a decent person! What kind of shit are you trying to pull, huh?"
"What are you doing?" Amaru shrieked in a girlish voice frost eyes fixed on the angry girl above him.
"What am I doing?" Her eyes flashed as her aura built up around her. "What do you think you're doing, you peeping little worm! Trying to take advantage of a defenseless girl in the bath? I'm gonna pummel you!"
"But I thought you knew!" Amaru whined.
"Knew what?"
"That I'm not a guy!"
"Not a…" Saya froze in total shove, her face a study of total bafflement. "You're not a guy?"
Reluctantly, her eyes began to travel down Amaru's body, spotting two small but very noticeable bips just above Saya's thighs. It was difficult to determine which of them was redder.
"Holy shit, I'm so sorry!" Screamed Saya as she jumped off Amaru and bowed low. "I'm so, so sorry, I honestly didn't know. I would never had done that if I had!"
"Yeah, yeah," Amaru was holding herself where she had been hit as she sat up. "Happens all the time."
Saya got to her feet but was still bowing at the waist. Her cheeks were still red with embarrassment.
"I'm really sorry."
"No, really, it's fine." There was an edge in Amaru's voice as she stared Saya down, making the middle schooler feel even smaller than before.
"No, it's not. That was inexcusable. I'm really sorry. If it makes you feel any better, you have a really cute che-"
"Will you quit apologizing to me!" Amaru snapped, cheeks red as she raised a hand and wrenched Saya's cheek.
"Ow!"
"There, now we're even." Amaru smiled as she grabbed a towel for herself. "Really, it's fine. I have seven older sisters back home and a crabby grandmother. There's not a single thing you can say or do that I haven't already heard before."
"You have seven sisters?" Saya could not imagine what that would be like. She had a hard enough time having a twin brother.
"Yeah, it's a huge pain in the ass." Amaru said. "Seven beautiful, proper ladies and one runt." The devil-may-care grin was less than convincing to Saya's eyes, though the silver-haired mage shrugged. "But hey, no one expects much from the runt. I can do pretty much whatever."
"That's…so sad."
"You think so?" Amaru asked. She looked surprised as she sat herself on the edge of the tub.
"I mean, I get some shit from the girls at my school for not liking girly stuff like boys and fashion, but at least I have my dad and Kira." Saya sat down next to Amaru. "But it sounds like you've had a rough childhood."
"It's not that bad. I actually prefer it that way. No one looking over your shoulder or judging you. Still can't get away from being made fun of for looking like a boy, but at least Sai says it straight out, and he usually doesn't mean it."
"That asshole." Saya growled. "Whenever he mentioned you, he made no indication that you were a girl. He didn't even hint it when we got here!"
Amaru nodded, folding her arms over her small chest. "I should have known. He always does this do me. Did you know he actually got me banned from an onsen because he told the management that I was a silver-haired boy sneaking into the girl's side?"
"Seriously?" Saya gaped.
"Yeah, and even after her explained everything to them, they still stuck to their decision."
"Now that's bullshit!" Saya's justified rage was supplemented by the cracking of knuckles. "Those people are a bunch of assholes, and Sai's an even bigger asshole. Wanna go give him a taste of girl power Amaru?"
Amaru blinked up at Saya. "Girl power?"
"Yeah, doesn't matter if you're a girly girl or a tomboy, female fury is inherent in us all." Saya grinned and held out a hand. "So, you in?"
Amaru smiled and took her hand. "I'm in."
XXXXXX
"You're such a dick, Sai."
Sai's only reply to Kira's harsh insult was to grin.
"Seriously?" Amaru's a girl?" Kira exclaimed. "And you just let us walk in thinking she was a boy?"
"Wouldn't be the first time." Sai said, reading a fresh copy of some shonen manga while reclining on his bed. His room was a mess of stacks of manga and dvds crammed into the walls between every piece of furniture. Not to mention the heaps of clothes. "I'm sure Saya won't cause too much damage to Amaru."
Suddenly the door was nearly kicked off its hinges by Amaru, who was followed by Saya. Kira quickly jumped off the bed and stood to the side, out of the line of fire.
"That was a fast bath." Sai said smirking. But as he looked up from his manga, the grin disappeared at the sight of two angry girls staring down at him.
"Was it funny, Sai?" Amaru asked with a feral grin. "Did you think it hilarious that I'd get confused for a pervert with my flat chest? You know how sensitive I am."
"When were you going to mention that Amaru was a girl, Sai?" Saya demanded. "Did you intend to tell us beforehand and just forgot, or were you waiting for me to find out on my own? For shame, Sai. I never pegged you as a bully."
"Wait, wait, let me explain." He said, waving his hands about as he backed away into the window. "Everyone likes gender-confusion gags, I just thought you would appreciate the joke."
Kira slapped his forehead.
The panicked expression revealed Sai's realization, but his mouth ran without restraint. "You know, just an interesting way to kick off your relationship. It's always great to see in an anime…I mean…crap."
"This. Isn't. An. Anime!" A pair of synchronized front kicks sent him out the window and plummeting into the bushes below.
"Wow." Saya stared at her leg for several moments, surprised by the power of her kick. The fading rush of mana in her veins left her feeling heady.
Kira stared at the broken window. "Is he going to be okay?"
"He's tough, he'll walk it out in no time." Amaru said. She tore a baggy t-shirt with a character print out from one of the clothes piles. "And that's my shirt." To Saya, she said, "Now let's finish that bath, the water's getting cold."
"R-Right." Said Saya as she followed her new friend back downstairs. At least things wouldn't be dull around here.
Kira walked over to the window and looked outside, seeing a pitiful and twisted shape down below.
"A little help?" Sai groaned.
"Sorry dude, can't interfere with the judge's execution." Kira said and went back inside.
Sai wouldn't come back in until half an hour later.