Reina stared back at Lily who's face was growing colder and colder by the second. In the dark she could make up a head of white hair like hers, but styled in a hime cut. Her eyes seemed to be pitch black, her face was flawless, despite having sharp features her cheeks looked rather plump. Despite her instincts screaming out about the danger, her hand still raised towards Lily's cheek.
Slap!
"Ouch!" Reina held her red hand with teary eyes, people always pinched her cheeks, she just wanted to try it herself...
"Name" Lily grunted, her eyes boring into Reina's.
"Oh! My name is Reina Marigold" she said, tilting her head in confusion when she saw the others eyes flash with disappointment.
"Why are you here?"
"Huh? Obviously because I saved you"
"No, why are you in this forest?"
"Because I was saving other people" Reina scratched her head awkwardly as Lily seemed to regard her more and more as some strange creature.
"Do you just wander into this forest to save any person you find?"
"Huh? Ah! no uh, I came here as part of a caravan traveling towards Acacia, but these weird wolf-fungus creatures attacked and dragged several of us into the forest, so I chased after to save them" Reina decided to omit the detail that she only cared about saving Saki, she didn't know they would all end up in the same place after all. Besides, first impressions are important!
"Oh? What are you going there for?" Lily asked, Reina blushed when she thought of what everyone else in there party was going to the city for. "I wanna join the academy, so I can become strong and explore this world!" ending her sentence with a radiant smile, Lily was momentarily lost as she looked at Reina when she noticed something.
"And? what about the companions you traveled with?" Reina blushed even harder at this question, she had managed to brainwash herself into thinking they were just travel companions, but this question reminded her of what Saki and the rest would actually be doing when they reached their destination. "Um....they....uh....I... kinda... snuck into their caravan under the guise of working....at a br....a br... br..." Lily watched as Reina's face became as red as a tomato as she tried to force the words out. Sighing, she waved her hand in dismissal "If it's that much to say the words then forget it".
Reina nodded in response, calming herself down, she asked "So what are you doing here?". A ghost of a smile appeared on Lily's face, "Obviously because you saved me".
Reina puffed her cheeks out in response, " You know what I meant! Did you get separated from your friends?"
"I didn't come here with anyone, but it looks like we have the same destination"
"You're going to the academy too?!" Reina shouted excitedly, bouncing on her feet as she looked at Lily with stars in her eyes. "Let's go together! We can ride there in my groups carriage!.....ah" Reina crouched down with her head in her hands, "How do I explain this to them, they probably already know that I was wearing a wig, I'm too suspicious....". Lily crouched down with the girl, who had begun to mutter to herself while tugging at her white hair, "Sorry? A wig? You snuck into that caravan?".
"Ahhh, yeah. It's something like 'Reina Marigold' must disappear completely so that I can live but....haha, Reina disappeared and the identity I took has been blown...". Reina shifted her position to a sitting one, blankly staring up at the ceiling "I guess I'll just live here now".
Lily looked at the girl covered in twigs and dirt, her robes already torn in several places and deeply sighed, "I owe you a debt for saving me back there, so I'll pay it back now. You'll come with me to the academy and register as my sister, there's enough to be convincing if we say we were born from different mothers". The former lifeless body transformed into one bursting with it as she looked up to Lily with endless joy and gratitude, "Thank you so much sister!"
"Well you seem to be settling into the role pretty well", Lily remarked as her eye twitched, she could feel the regret already building.
"You haven't mentioned your age yet sister"
"S-seventeen"
"Wow! that makes you my big sister!" Reina remarked, her joy doubling as she approached Lily with her arms spread wide. Lilly hurriedly backed away, her mask of indifference crumbling slightly as signs of panic appeared on her face. "I want to hug you, people love to hug me you know~?" Reina continued to walk towards Lily, embracing her new big sister had subconsciously taken over as her number one priority in life.
"Get away from me!"
"Eh? You don't want it....?" Lily could feel a headache coming when she saw the others face crumple as she complained in her heart, 'Why?! Why are you acting like I'm abusing you after years of doting?! Why have you slipped into your new identity so flawlessly?!'. Starring at the others face that had begun to well up with tears, it brought up memories of her own family, of her own siblings who demanded attention and cried when she refused them. Swallowing down the bitter feelings that were rushing up, she stiffly raised her arms up to invite Reina into her embrace, whom happily threw herself into while giggling to herself. Enduring the headache pounding in her skull, Lily surprisingly didn't hate her touch. She had hated touching others for several years now, but she only had one thought while the other girl tightly hugged her...
'Why is she so soft?!'