like the wind that flows through your hair

𝚇𝚇. 𝙰 𝙱𝙴𝙰𝚄𝚃𝙸𝙵𝚄𝙻 𝙳𝙸𝚂𝙰𝚂𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝚆𝙸𝚃𝙷 𝙰 𝙷𝙴𝙰𝚁𝚃 𝙾𝙵 𝙸𝙲𝙴

Ayaka hesitated as she lifted her hand to knock on her brother's door. It's been a week since his shocking revelation after the Watatsumi battle, and she could still feel his indelible kiss mark on her wrist. She felt extremely awkward now, often sending Thoma to check on Ayato's condition and injuries in her stead. However, she decided it was time to stop hiding sooner rather than later. He was her brother after all.

Rapping gently on the door, she called out, "Ayato? Are you there?"

Upon hearing his sibling's voice, Ayato looked up from the fresh bandages that had just been changed and tied his Kimono sash swiftly on top before replying: "Imouto, what a pleasant surprise. Come in."

Ayaka slid open the bamboo wooden door cautiously which revealed Ayato's tall silhouette by the window. "My apologies. I didn't know you were getting dressed." She was holding an acacia wood tray with a small dish of traditional manju desserts.

Ayato turned around and plastered a nonchalant smile on his face. He combed his slender fingers through his unkempt blue hair and gestured invitingly. "I wasn't expecting you today, Imoto-chan, but I will forgive you because you brought your delicious cooking."

"I came to check on your recovery. You look terribly worn out, Onii-san." Placing the Japanese treats on his desk carefully. Ayaka peered anxiously at her brother's unusually disheveled appearance and pale complexion.

"I look like a rockstar coming out of rehab after many sinful trysts," he joked to lighten the mood. "Those desserts look delicious. You are right, I am a wreck. Do you know what that means? You will have to nurse me back to health. Maybe you can start by feeding me, Imouto." He clutched his side feigning pain with a devilish smile.

"What?! Did you break your arm too or something?" Ayaka would've smacked him on a normal day, but he certainly knew how to take advantage of the opportunity. Sighing in acquiescence, she lifted a maple-shaped pastry toward him. "Fine. Here you are, you spoiled Commissioner."

Ayato clutched his side as he craned his neck stiffly toward his sister's outstretched hand with difficulty. "I can't reach it and if I stretch too much, my stitches might rip. Wouldn't it be better if you came around here?" He gestured with his head towards his personal space with a sly, wolfish smile.

Chewing on her cheek, Ayaka recalled the last time he was so close to her — he certainly enjoyed putting her on edge. Her defenses wavered at the thought of her beloved brother's pain. She stepped around the table to his side slowly. "You are just torturing me now." 

Suddenly, Ayato's hand darted out and snatched her wrist, yanking her into his arms. Eyes the color of a winter storm bore into her with displeasure. "Why are you nervous, Imouto?" There were shadows dwelling beneath his eyes and cheeks from the stress of battle. He seemed to be holding himself still, to contain the stitches perhaps. A deep rumbling began low in his broad chest, and she realized he was...laughing. However, the twisted grin that accompanied it was more gruesome than joyful. His dark eyes sparkled the way they always did when he was about to offer her advice. "Relax, I am not going to do anything to you, little sis. I might have told you some awkward shit the other day, but I wouldn't ever act upon it."

Ayaka gasped as her cheeks reddened with annoyance at his candor. She stuffed the rest of the pastry in his mouth to shut him up, squirming against his strong arm for an opening to escape. "I'm glad you are not that crazy, but let me go!"

Ayato chewed the food slowly like a llama with a deadpan expression. His arm around her waist didn't even budge. "You're so gullible, lil sis. Madness, as you know, is like gravity. All it takes is a little push. Maybe it is time to introduce a little anarchy, upset the established order, and let everything become chaos..." He studied her in that unnerving, expressionless way.