Mama told us that Satsuki is sick and had been for a while so I went out to go find the Nonon girl, while her sisters stayed with her, 'cause Satsuki really liked the Nonon girl. Ryuuko and Nui couldn't leave the yard and Satsuki would get worse if they did. She went so ballistic that she just holed up in a room.
It didn't take me long to find her because she's real hard to miss and I told her that "Sissie" wanted to see her. She was what Sissie would call "skeptical" but she came to see her anyways. I told her that Sissie really missed her but I didn't pay attention to what I said and I wound up almost saying "Satsuki" I'd catch myself and go back to saying "Sissie" but Nonon gave me a funny look. I couldn't say what that look was, just that she was confused as but "shocked".
"What did you say her name was?"
"Sissie. They call her 'Sissie', so that's her name."
"I could have sworn you said—"
I opened the door to the room Satsuki was in and she was in bed, holding Ryuuko and Nui. She was crying, telling 'em that she was so sorry. When she noticed me and Nonon, she sent three of us out the room and Mom took us out into the yard to play. Nui started to talk a little more, telling us, "Our old mom was scary and we didn't use to get to play in a yard." and Ryuuko tried to shut her up, telling her, "Nui, Sis doesn't want us talking about that, 'specially when she got people over."
"But Nonon's a nice girl."
"Yeah, but Sis doesn't want us talking about the old life."
"Why?"
"She's tryin' to 'protect us' or whateva that means. She never did say from what, just that she is."
I guess we didn't notice Sats looking at us through the window and her eyes were big.
