"What exactly made you think that it would be a good idea to stay out until 3 A.M. in the morning? Kami asked in a furious tone, her hands on her hips as she stared down at me. I squirmed uncomfortably in my seat, taking a sip of the cold coffee, that still wasn't as cold as the glare that Kami shot at me. When I had left the mysterious room after reading Eves note, I was shocked to find out that I had been inside of a privately rented suite, in a love hotel. There were lots of questions flowing through my mind, however they all were dispelled when I noticed the time, 3:21.
I rushed out of the room, followed by jeering remarks from the man at the reception desk.
"Must have been his first time, eh? No reason to be so terrified otherwise."
When I arrived home, any hope I had of sneaking back in had been shot down immediately, because Kami was sitting on the porch, in her pajamas. Pink with designs of bears on them. Her legs were crossed, and she was glaring at the sidewalk below. I could feel the chill from where I stood. I don't remember what exactly I said then, but all I did know was that it only served to make her madder.
When I entered the house, I was struck by a pang of sadness and regret as I saw the two cups of coffee on the table. She had obviously been waiting on me, in hopes that I would share what had happened.
"This may look bad, but I promise I have a good answer-"
"Good enough to justify how scared I was? How worried I was? I thought something happened to you! I stayed up for how long, agonizing over what could have occurred? Remember the terrorist attacks-" She stopped their, presumably because the mention of the terrorist attacks had brought back memories, she did not want to remember. I could tell that she was on the verge of tears.
I clenched my fists even tighter, realizing the depths of pain that my own stupidity had caused my sister. Even if I was drugged, I had woken up multiple times? Was I really that lost in the feeling, that I forgot what truly mattered?
I could feel my heart clench as I recalled the events that had occurred at the love hotel. Or more accurate, the events that I couldn't remember.
Only one thing gets done at love hotels, Raiden. The voice inside my head jeered.
Shut up. I commanded. I didn't have time to worry about what did or didn't happen. It didn't change anything, and it wouldn't be any help to Kami.
"Not to mention," Kami pulled an object from her pocket, it had a black case. My phone. "Like a dumbass, you didn't bring your phone, so I couldn't even call you!" Her anger was evident. And she was completely in the right. "So, what exactly was your, good answer?"
I recognized the trick question. There was no good answer. I was in the wrong, and I'd be putting myself more in the wrong if I tried to justify what happened or make excuses. Even if I told her the truth, which-I didn't couldn't even piece together myself-telling her I didn't know what happened would be a spit directly in her face. I was trapped. I had no way to defend myself, nor anyway to quell Kami's troubled heart. Once again, I was us-
"Smiles are the cure to any negative emotion, if your sad, nervous, or tired, you should always try to find a way to smile, because it will kick those emotions right out!"
And the, the fog of myself doubt and self-loathing was pervaded by a light. A light that pierced through the mist and reached me, who was in the center of it all. A light that broke through the darkness, hinting at a way out, a path through the choking black abyss of my mind. The light belonged to Hikaru's words. I remembered what she had told me, directly after she had helped that little girl and her mother. The words that were given to her by her late father, that she lived by.
Those words that she had given me served as a beacon, that light a path I swore was closed. Closed by Takeru's own hands.
Just as quickly as the light came, it faded.
However, I had received the message.
I set down the cup of cold coffee in my hands. Kami was still waiting for my response.
I stood up.
Kami looked at me, confusion creeping unto her facial features. I took a deep breath, taking a quick 360 of the entire room, the table, TV, paintings, my wand. And then I turned back to Kami.
In a split second, with lightning quick speeds, I dashed.
Before she even had a second to react, I had grabbed her by the stomach.
"EHHH!?" Immediately, her body reacted. She tensed up, letting out a high-pitched squeal, and her arms immediately shot out to push me off of her.
"Dude what the-hahahahaha, stop- ahhahaahaha!" Her cries of protest were cut of by laughter.
I was tickling her. She was flailing around, trying to get away from my fingers which were tickling her lower abdomen. In all of the movement, we crashed towards the ground.
"HAHAH-get-ahahah-off!" With a swift activation, Kami used a wind spell to blow me off of her just enough for her to break free. Immediately after, she rolled backwards, adjusting her posture so that it looked like she had just done a superhero landing.
"Oh, so this is the game were playing?"
I didn't respond, adjusting my own posture into a low crouch, akin to what a track runner would do.
An evil smile appeared on Kami's face. "Game on, brother." She dashed forward at the same time I did. We both made grabs for each other, and went down like wrestlers, grappling each other. Kami had wrapped her legs around my back, before flipping over so that she was unto of me. She then used an ice spell to freeze my legs to the ground before she began to tickle me.
And I laughed, a lot more than I'm willing to admit. I was nearly brought to tears by the laughter that was induced.
"Awww? Does someone want me to stop?" She taunted.
"Do-ahah, don't worry about it-hahahaa" I could barely speak.
"Trust me, I'm not."
This battle went on for a few more minutes, as we both fought for control, using magic spells and grabs and throws, until we were too tired to keep going, laying on the floor of the kitchen, gasping for breath, stupid grins on our face.
"You know, this doesn't change anything, I'm still mad at you." Kami said, trying to sound angry and intimidating, but she was still smiling, curled up in a ball, and her words came out between gasps.
"Maybe say that, when it's a bit more convincing." I replied, also trying to catch my own breath.
And then we just laid on the floor for a bit, giggling and tossing back and forth jokes.
Thanks to the help of Hikaru's words, I had managed to make my sister smile, to provide a cure for the bad emotions that I was at fault for. And for a moment, I had also found not only a cure, but path, a beacon that suggested there was a way for me to escape from my own uselessness.
I would have to thank her again.
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In the morning, Kami was in significantly higher spirits. As we shared breakfast together, she sparked conversation. It was more than just a bit refreshing. We had been having breakfast in silence for a while now. She asked me about what happened after I went to the mall, and I explained everything, which I now seriously regret, because she simply would not drop the idea that Hikaru was my girlfriend.
"Even the lady in the booth said it!" She seemed much more excited for this than I was, and I was the person who had actually experienced it.
After breakfast, we headed to school. There, I noticed that I myself had also been put in particularly higher spirits. The first thing that I did when I had arrived was thank Hikaru, who was standing in front of the large meadow near the magic academy. In the sunlight, with the wind blowing, she looked undeniably beautiful-
I stopped my train of thought when I noticed Kami's gaze on mine. She elbowed me and rolled her eyes in the direction of Hikaru, as if to say, "Thats all you", before running off like a schoolgirl.
I approached Hikaru slowly, deciding to do something that I would never normally do, ever. Once I was within range, I jumped in front of her and said,
"Boo!"
She looked at me with a blank expression. "Was I supposed to be scared by that?" She said in as emotionless of a tone as possible. She was mirroring the exact things that I had said to her, yesterday.
"Ouch, at least try and act a bit spooked." I said, chuckling. I stopped to look at the flowers for a few seconds before turning back to her. "Thank you."
She seemed a bit shocked, but she smiled. "Again."
"Yes again. You've helped me more than you know."
She let out an exaggerated sigh. "Where would you be without me, dear Raiden."
"I truly wonder."
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My good mood remained for the rest of the day. I participated in what had become out daily routine, which is a conversation of justice. It was always between the three of us, Masayoshi, Hikaru, and me. Sometimes Ms. Elmer. I was actually trading banter with Mr. Elmer, who still refused to let me go from the VIP seat. I seriously wondered when I'd be freed from the embarrassing shackles that was my sit in the front of my classroom.
"When I feel like it." She said, even though I hadn't asked a question.
I'm seriously starting to get tired of people reading my mind.
After which, training went well. I had a basis for my new ability. I knew that it would activate off of an if then sequence, and its requirement for activation would be something that was impossible to notice within a glance.
Thoughts of the prince and his insane ability consumed my mind as I worked on my ability. That, and Hikaru's words. She would just talk about anything she felt like, usually cooking and sweets.
Student council meetings went well, construction was already under way. The models of the beanstalk, and the other designs were being stored inside of a warehouse owned by the school. It was sanction by the headmaster.
And defense force planning was also going well, although the meetings were still tense.
It was great.
T-minus 1 week until the Culture Festival.