The Winners Take It All | Chishiya [English]

Mind game

A/N: The following game that is described does not appear in the series!

--------------------------------

I should have known.

There had been so many clues, but I just hadn't thought of them.

Maybe the venue had even been the signal - now that I thought back, it had been a clear indication.

The botanical garden, which was full of rare and beautiful flowers.

It was a paradise for those who loved nature.

There had been the poetic books at the entrance when I passed through the laser barrier.

They were books that I knew and had read - they were all about the logic of feelings.

And then there had been the cookies - those European vanilla cookies.

My favorite ones.

And now... now there was no going back.

Now I stood in front of her and looked into her eyes. The little smile lines were still where they had always been when she smiled.

"Ayuna," her voice broke the peaceful silence and I swallowed.

"Nana," I replied timidly.

There she truly stood - and she smiled at me.

It couldn't be.

My brain had to play tricks on me again. My grandmother passed away six years ago...

"How is that possible?" I asked her and she just kept smiling.

"The question is more like how it wouldn't have been possible," her voice still sounded the same as it had before.

Wise and lovely.

How much I missed that sound.

She spread her arms and I couldn't hold myself anymore. Suddenly I was the little girl again - little Ayuna, wandering helplessly through the wide world and looking for a safe haven.

I ran and fell into her arms. The warmth I had missed so much came back suddenly.

Only this time it was a little different. I thought I had already felt the warmth somewhere else.

Chishiya.

His warmth had been exactly the same.

"You've grown up, sunshine," Nana said to me, "Let me look at you!" And so she took a step back and examined my inconspicuous form. Then she smiled again. "You found what you were looking for, am I right?" she suddenly asked me and I froze a little.

I knew the answer, but I didn't know how to phrase it.

And so I didn't answer her question - but something else came to mind that I finally wanted to know.

"What are you doing here, Nana? Why did you leave me alone?" I asked quietly, "I-I almost made a huge mistake when you left. I went through hell, not once, but several times! I needed you so bad!"

She smiled. "Ayu, listen to me, child. Imagine if I had continued to be with you. Do you think that you would have stood in front of me like this today? That you would have achieved exactly what you have now achieved?" she asked me and I felt the realization rolling towards me.

She was right...

Would I really have been able to stand on my own two feet if she hadn't... Probably not...

"Yeah, but-" I was interrupted by a noise and turned my head towards the entrance.

There she stood, my sister. She glared at us. The mood immediately threatened to change.

The joy of seeing each other again took on a sour aftertaste, the harmony was gone.

Nana clapped her hands. "Welcome, Ayumi-chan. How nice that you have arrived too, so Mira followed my request," our grandmother looked at us alternately, her smile was still as genuine as it had been when I arrived.

Somehow it hurt a little that my only caregiver was so loving towards the person who had bullied me for years.

"Then the game can now begin!"

The words resonated strangely, causing an uncomfortable tingling sensation in the pit of my stomach.

Suddenly it dawned on me.

I suddenly knew what was going on - and the view froze all my blood in my veins.

It wasn't good at all...

"You are the Game Master of this game," I heard myself saying, "The Queen of Diamonds." I hoped I was wrong. I prayed it wasn't like that.

"You're right, my love. I am the Queen of Diamonds. And you are here to defeat me," she replied calmly as she sat down at a table surrounded by this beautiful sea of flowers.

My heart sank.

It couldn't be true, I didn't want to believe it! She could... no, it couldn't be like this! That meant that she-

"Now don't worry, Ayu. It was my wish," she brought me back from my thoughts and pointed to the two seats in front of her, "Sit down, then we can begin."

My hands were ice cold. I felt sweat running down my forehead. And yet I hesitantly moved, just to sit down on one of the chairs. Ayumi finally did the same. She hadn't said anything yet, which made me a little suspicious.

"Are you ready?" asked our grandmother.

No.

I wasn't.

But we both nodded anyway. Nana smiled. Then we heard the familiar female voice.

Game: Mind game

Time limit: -

Rules:

The Queen of Diamonds is the leader of the game.

She names words that are related to feelings.

Players take turns saying everything they can think of about that word.

The Queen of Hearts decides whether the answer fits into the scheme.

Logic must be taken into account.

The answer must come spontaneously - the five seconds consideration time must not be exceeded.

Players have three lives. If these lives are used up, it is game over.

Game Clear is when players can describe the words of the Queen of Diamonds.

There are five words per player.

Important: If a player lies, one life is also deducted.

The game will begin in a few moments.

What was that? That was the Queen of Diamonds game? To me it sounded more like a game of hearts!

But... my grandmother had always been like that. She loved to look for logic and truth in feelings. For her, there was always meaning in human emotions - and she would test us with it.

But why did her eyes say otherwise? Why didn't she show that will to survive?

Why couldn't I shake the feeling that there was another ulterior motive?

And why did I feel that this game would push me very close to my emotional limits?

What are you up to, Nana?

And why were only Ayumi and I here? Was that why I felt like I had to come here?

I suddenly felt like I was walking on eggshells again. Everything seemed so fragile, just like when I was young.

Damn, I hated this game already...