Shimai no Yogen

Chapter One

Thirteen years later~

    “Hey RanRan, are you excited for move in day?” I asked as I made the bed.

“Eh… I’m a little nervous, what if I wind up with a disrespectful one, or one who doesn’t like me, or-” I cut her off mid-sentence.

“You will be fine RanRan. Remember how we were on move in day?” I asked. She laughed at the thirteen year old memory.

    Move in day was the day when all the new riders come to the Academy to be trained. This year both Rani and I get to start teaching the new generation.

    There was a knock at our door, Rani looked at me in confusion and I went to open the door. It was Headmaster Rodarin, We both bowed our heads to him out of respect.

    “Headmaster? What brings you here?” I asked meekly. He always scared me, at least a little bit.

    “Katsumi, I’m afraid I have just received terrible news…” Headmaster paused, it was very rare for him to stop mid-sentence. Rani came over to me also worried about the news.

“...You’re estate was attacked by the Taira clan, the motive is unknown but… You’re parents did not survive the attack. I’m sorry.” He spoke.

I felt the hot ears welling in my vision. “What happened to my sister? What happened to Kiyomi?” My voice cracked as the tears ran down my cheeks.

Headmaster sighed, “She’s missing. The most we can do is pray that she is safe,” He spoke solemnly.

    Rani put her hand on the small of my back, “Thank you headmaster, now I think Katsumi would like some time alone.” She spoke. Her Hindi accent was somewhat calming to me. Headmaster nodded, understanding what I was going through and left the room.

    I allowed the tears to fall as sobs racked through my body. Rani took me to my bedroom area and laid me down on my bed and covered me with my blanket. It was nothing more than a white woven wool cover but it was comforting to have around. Almost like a safety blanket.

    Rani then laid down next to me and hummed a lullabye. My sobs had quieted but the tears still dribbled down my cheeks and I had to do the occasional sniffle because of my runny nose. The lump in my throat grew and pain pricked at my chest. Rani pulled me in for a hug and didn’t let go. She didn’t let go until I had cried myself to sleep several minutes later.