The Story of the Seven

CHAPTER 14 - Spending Time With Beloved Little Sister

It happened more or less right after coming back from my meeting with The Queen. For those of you that don't remember, Mafuyu called me "oni-chan" right before I was gagged due to "safety protocol". Due to this, I have a profound burning desire to get down to the bottom of this mystery.

So I arranged to meet Mafuyu by the riverbank. Just the two of us, in case you're wondering.

"Hey, Mafuyu."

"Hey, Haruto."

I could already feel that something was amiss. Mafuyu seemed unusually fidgety, her usual haughty attitude gone. I haven't seem Mafuyu like this since when we first met, near the train station.

I should lighten the attitude a bit.

With that in mind, I slightly tease her.

"A few hours ago, you called me oni-chan, but you really like to bully me, eh? Didn't know you hated me that much."

In retrospect, I probably said too much. Why? Cause my words triggered the biggest emotional explosion I've seen since the days my mom broke down due to our home burning down.

"NO! I don't hate you please don't say that I really don't hate you you might not understand but what I'm saying is true I don't have proof but could you please let that go and my usual attitude is just my natural personality so I didn't mean to bully you and I'm really happy I got to know you and I know that sometimes I sound like an adult so you may not like that but could you wash that aside cause that's also my personality and oh my god I should not be talking this much but how do I stop and uh oh yeah, please don't hate me and was that repetitive and"

A torrent of emotion pored before me like a dam broke. And I sure as hell don't have the mental capacity to immediately analyze and respond to that much raw emotion.

"Wo, stop stop stop. Let's take it easy, alright."

At those words, Mafuyu abruptly stopped like someone turned her switch off. Then, after a moment, she burst crying and wrapped herself around me like glue.

"Wo, wo, are you alright?"

"Hick, hick, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

Those words triggered what Toukichi told me a few months earlier: Instead of apologizing, show some gratitude.

"Hey, Mafuyu, instead of apologizing, maybe you could turn that emotion into gratitude?"

"Gratitude?"

"Like, "Thank you for always being with me, oni-chan. I love you so much."?"

I imitated the over exaggeration method Toukichi used when he coaxed me to "show gratitude instead of apologizing".

"Thank you for always being with me, oni-chan. I love you so much."

Shiz. She actually repeated exactly what I said. And I think my brain's overheating from her bodily warmth.

Trying to peal Mafuyu off me, I muster my kindest tone of voice.

"Mafuyu, why do you sometimes break down like this? You act so much like an adult, which I admire, so this big gap is kind of a shock to me."

"Because mom hates me...."

Mom hates me? Isn't her mom one of the most powerful people in The Organization? Could someone that highly-regarded actually neglect her child?

"Surely no mom hates the child she gave birth to."

"I heard that a bazillion times...."

That reminds me of some of the things I heard of:

1. Due to both her parents and her aunt achieving high positions in The Organization, she's constantly held with high expectations from surroundings, resulting in unusually low self-esteem (because she's expected to be excellent, not normal or good.)

2. Has one female friend in her grade, and talks a lot with her father, but completely acts as if her mother is an outsider.

Summarizing these two points, it appears as if she has low self-esteem and avoids having many close relations.

So could these points have something to due with her sudden shift in mood?

And is she afraid of me rejecting her?

But in the first place, why did she open her heart to me in the first place?

Not knowing what action to take, I calmly rub her head and pat her back. That's always the best solution when someone's obviously distraught.

"Why does your mom hate you?"

"Mmm......"

"Could you tell me the reason?"

"........................... Sorry, I'm probably just stressed because she piles all these expectations on me."

"So you're under immense pressure all the time?"

"Pretty much, yeah. And it just gets so tiring. Sometimes I want to give up."

"Although I really don't have anything to say, since I've never been expected anything, just know that I'll be here if you need my help."

".......... Really?"

"Yeah. Although I can't necessarily guarantee that I'll be any use."

"You know the saying "If you're dying of thirst, you'll never forget the person who gave you a cup of water"?"

"There's a saying like that?"

"The point is, if I'm in a desperate situation, someone being with me is invaluable. You follow."

"Ah."

I gently place my hand onto her shoulders.

"Please take care of me, Mafuyu."

"Please take care of me, oni-chan."

And that's how I became Mafuyu (non-blood related) brother. Sorry for the mushy emotional scene for the sensitive readers out there. Now that's enough flashbacks for now; let's return to the present, shall we?