CHAPTER 38

Kagami Hiiragi stared at herself in the full mirror in her bedroom graciously provided to her by Mama-Sanae. She held her shirt up, exposing her flat stomach. Seven weeks pregnant, and her stomach was still flat. It would be a few more weeks until she would start to show and she knew that, but still, she couldn't help but sigh with disappointment. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she also couldn't help but lament the tiny pockets of fat congregating on her hips. She remembered being nothing but skin and bones when she was a prostitute and now she looked exactly as she did when she graduated high school with her sister and friends. Kagami didn't make a fuss over it though, knowing that if it weren't for Junichi, she would still be homeless or worse.

A gentle knock came on the closed door and Mama-Sanae's voice followed: "Kagami, sweetie?"

Kagami put her shirt back down and looked at the door. "Yes?"

"Breakfast is ready." She replied.

"Tha-thank you." Kagami said and heard the woman leave.

She turned back to the mirror and couldn't help but reminisce her situation. Today marked exactly three weeks since she first arrived at Junichi's neighborhood and her stay there was marked with quite a few interesting reactions. For the most part, everyone welcomed Kagami into their neighborhood, assuming she had a similar backstory to theirs, though it was one that she only truly revealed to Junichi and Mama-Sanae. Kagami never intended to stay in the neighborhood and planned to leave after a day, but every time she approached Junichi to say that she was leaving, she lost the nerve. Not even she knew why she didn't want to leave. Maybe it was the fear of trying to rekindle with her family. Maybe it had something to do with Yuka Miyakawa still being at large. Maybe it was the fact that even Kagami herself could honestly admit that she was so embarrassed and sickened by her acts that she just didn't have the strength to face them alone.

Junichi's face popped into her head and she tilted her head a bit as she sat back down on her undeniably comfortable bed. He was quite an interesting piece in the case of Yuka Miyakawa's game, as was his methods of combating her. Kagami thought back to her first day in the neighborhood and her big meal Mama-Sanae cooked for her. Junichi sat with her and she was intrigued to hear his story as she ate. She was surprised to learn that before the Aku District was the crime haven that it was today, it was once a vibrant place. However, like everywhere else, some kids just had it rough. Junichi was one of those kids. With both his parents in and out of his life throughout his childhood, he had to raise himself and became streetwise at an early age. From an early age, he started to notice certain parts of the Aku District were off limits, especially after dark.

When Junichi turned eighteen, he enlisted in the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Forces to get out from under and was stationed in Hokkaido for his four years of service. He was a good soldier and distinguished marksman, but the service left him feeling void and regretful within himself. Before he enlisted, he knew the Aku District was starting to crumble economically. Jobs were disappearing, people were moving to more prosperous areas, and the off limits areas started to widen like liquid being soaked into a paper towel. During Junichi's time in service, he made one special training mission to the United States to a place called the Joint Readiness Training Center in Louisiana. There, he was introduced to tactics and drills by the American military, as well as the concept of a movement that existed within the US military. Brotherhood. These soldiers, these men (kids) dedicated their lives to not only their country, but more so to themselves and their own. It was hard for Kagami to understand, but the soldiers Junichi met taught him that sometimes, not even the Americans trusted or fought for their government. They pledged to fight and die for their people and their fellow soldiers, but taught Junichi that the government that employs them is not to be trusted, like all governments.

When Junichi left the service and returned home to the Aku District and found it to be a modern Sodom and Gomorrah, he never felt so enraged. It seemed his whole country's government turned their backs on that part of Japan to let it wither and die like some flower trapped in a vase. It was all he could take when he saw it was Yuka Miyakawa sitting alone at the top of her throne built at the city's expense. Junichi rallied some men that he served with in the military, as well as a few disgruntled former law enforcement officers who were tired of watching all their hard work get pissed on by a lackluster government more concerned with campaigning than practical solutions. They got together and formed their own security force to hunt down and bring Yuka to justice but along their journey, they had to help others trapped in the district. Homeless shelters were so underfunded that people were still starving in the buildings, so Junichi and his men found an abandoned area outside Saitama in the countryside where they built the neighborhood and brought those forsaken people there to live.

Junichi initially wanted a peaceful resolution to Yuka Miyakawa. Because of Junichi's military connections and friends he made in America, getting weapons for him and his men that surpassed those possessed by Yuka and Ryuji wasn't difficult. He hoped that their existence alone would serve as a deterrent to Yuka's psychotic tendencies. However, the more Junichi tried to prevent a war from breaking out, the more he realized that he was dealing with an adversary that was all psychotic. Yuka had nothing to lose and she was always ready and willing to kill and die, and that was what made her a deadly enemy. It caused Junichi to turn the neighborhood into a secured location and he knew the Aku District would never be able to recover as long as Yuka was there.

Kagami sighed again, still struggling to take everything in. She stood and exited her bedroom and entered the kitchen, where Mama-Sanae was waiting. Kagami sat down.

"You didn't have to wait for me, Mama-Sanae." Kagami said with a smile.

Mama-Sanae's smile was brighter and absolutely sincere. "Oh but you're my guest, child, and what kind of host would I be if I didn't wait for my company?"

Kagami giggled again as she began to eat her eggs. "Thanks again. I've really enjoyed staying here."

"Oh of course, sugar. I love having you stay with me. It's like having my own daughter staying with me again." Mama-Sanae said cheerily. "So what were you going to do today?"

Kagami swallowed some more eggs and dabbed her lips with a napkin. "Well, I promised Mina-chan that we would make bracelets and paper sailor hats today together. And I also promised her I would read her a story later under her favorite tree."

Mama-Sanae chuckled. "Oh that child absolutely adores you, dearie. Ahh, god bless that child. You know, one of the things she always wanted was a big sister. Junichi found that child wandering around one of the homeless shelters in the Aku District only a few months ago. She had no food and the only clothes she had were the rags she had on and she lost her parents a few months before that."

Kagami shook her head. "That's so horrible. But every time I play with her, you would think that she had a happier childhood than I did."

Mama-Sanae nodded. "Well, that's Junichi and his men for you. Every time someone new from the Aku District comes to stay, they dedicate every resource they have to helping them. Especially if they're children. Despite Junichi's appearance, you'll never find a bigger teddy bear than him."

Kagami felt her chest clench for the slightest moment until she breathed when she pictured Junichi playing with the kids of the neighborhood when he wasn't working on people's houses or doing other chores for them. She smiled slightly as she sipped her coffee and continued to think about him, though she herself could barely register the fact that she spent a noticeable amount of her time thinking about him.

"You okay, dearie? You look a little red in the face." Mama-Sanae observed.

It suddenly struck Kagami of who she was thinking of and was turning red over. She nearly spilled her coffee and quickly placed it back on the table. "I uh, I'm, yes. Yes, I'm fine. It…it's just…coffee. It was…kinda hot for me today. Um…Mina-chan is waiting for me. Excuse me."

Kagami quickly exited the house, leaving Mama-Sanae alone but entertained nonetheless. She smiled and laughed to herself. "Ahh, yes. Junichi is also quite the charmer too."

It was another bright sunny day as August was approaching. Though summer was winding down on a calendar, one would think it was just starting as birds sang and children were playing in the streets. Three weeks since Kagami first arrived at the neighborhood made abnormal things about this place, like the men carrying guns all the time, seem like it was the norm. Every day though, she wanted to call her family too, but always once again lost the nerve as she just didn't know what could be said.

Kagami sat on the front step of the house and continued to watch the rest of the people of the neighborhood live normal lives. Some tended their yards, some worked on their houses, the children played in the streets, and others simply sat outside and enjoyed the day. She remembered that "glass wall" concept Junichi was talking about before where it seemed he was separated from the rest of society by that invisible barrier and couldn't be one with the Aku District anymore. Kagami almost felt a parallel when she watched normal people live their lives as she sat on the stoop and tried to shoo the demons of the past from her thoughts.

"Onee-chan?" That bell voice asked.

Kagami looked up and saw Mina-chan standing before her, her smile just as bright as ever. The twin-tailed girl couldn't help but let the contagious power of the child's smile mimic her mouth, especially when Kagami saw the cutely crafted paper sailor hat on her head. She was also carrying her decorated plastic novelty suitcase full of her arts and crafts supplies.

"Hi there, Mina-chan! Are you ready to make some goodies?" Kagami asked in a sweetly voice, a tone she normally reserved for her old pet goldfish back home.

"I sure am, onee-chan!" Mina-chan replied and held up her pink suitcase. "Let's go to my favorite spot!"

Kagami giggled again at the child's blissful innocence and took her hand. She listened to the child's ramblings as they walked down the sidewalk towards a small park where a tree stood on a small hill that overlooked a natural pond. Mina-chan rambled about all the clouds in the sky and how one looked like an elephant yesterday. She also told Kagami about a dream she had about her having a puppy and a kitten and somehow, it progressed to Mina-chan's desire to go for a ride in a hot air balloon.

As the two walked and connected by their hands, Kagami's ears perked when she heard vehicles approach in the distance. Kagami looked down the road and saw more of the blue vehicles driving towards the neighborhood with a single blue Kawasaki Ninja Z1000 leading them. Once again, Junichi finished another raid in the Aku District with his men to find Yuka Miyakawa. The group of vehicles passed them, but not before Junichi looked to his right and met eyes with Kagami.

Their eyes met as time seemed to freeze in that single frame. Everything else suddenly disappeared and it was only them stealing glances from each other, though they both subconsciously were offering their stares on a silver platter. Kagami's dark violet eyes stared deep into his iris's as brown as earth. Junichi slowly smiled at her and Kagami gulped as she suddenly felt flushed again.

Time suddenly found Earth again and the vehicles drove down the street and stopped at Junichi's house. The men who followed him in the vans and SUVs parked the vehicles and followed Junichi into his house. It was bound to be another debriefing of what they came from and from the looks of the gangsters, they once again failed at finding Yuka. Kagami felt disappointment. Both for her own sense of desired justice, and for Junichi.

Kagami and Mina-chan arrived at the tree and started making their bracelets. Mina-chan had everything they needed in her case and her supplies ranged from countless beads of every color, rubber bands, yarn, twine, and novelty pieces with various happy images on them. Mina-chan was able to impress Kagami with her artsy skills and quickly manufactured a bracelet for Kagami. It was a plastic ring around her wrist with a rainbow pattern of beads circling it and between every eight beads, a novelty bead with different pictures on them sat. One bead was a heart, a star, a candy cane, and a sun.

"Wow, Mina-chan. You're really good at this." Kagami said with a smile as she admired her friendship bracelet with the child and nearly finished hers.

"Thank you, onee-chan!" She squealed. "I love making arts and crafts."

Kagami giggled again and finished the last knot on her bracelet. It had a similar fashion and design and Kagami tied it around Mina-chan's thin wrist. "There you go."

"It's beautiful, onee-chan!" Mina-chan said and hugged Kagami.

After they finished their bracelets, they moved on to some more advanced projects. Mina-chan taught Kagami the fine art of macramé with yarn and popsicle sticks, and Kagami remembered enough from her childhood to teach Mina-chan how to make dream catchers with the yarn, beads, and drinking straws and novelty feathers. Kagami reveled in seeing how much Mina-chan hung on her every word as she taught the child the history behind them and what they were supposed to do.

As the two continued to work, Mina-chan suddenly sprouted: "Um…onee-chan?"

"Yes?"

"Do you like Junichi-kun?" She asked innocently as she finished feeding a string of yarn through another straw.

Kagami looked at the child inquisitively. She stuttered and hesitated, not exactly sure how to interpret the question. Did she mean "like" or did she mean "like like" him? "What makes you ask that, Mina-chan?"

Mina-chan put a finger under her chin and looked upwards as she thought. "Well, it's just that he's a really nice guy and he plays with me and my friends all the time and I always see him helping others—"

Kagami breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"—and I also see you looking at him all the time. And every time you look at him, your cheeks turn pink. I only see that when I see two people who are in love with each other. Are you in love with Junichi, onee-chan?"

Kagami's gratitude was short-lived and she cursed the child's sharp observational skills. It was a topic she was trying to avoid for the longest time, mainly because she knew she got red in the face every time she either saw, thought of, or even talked to Junichi. She maintained a political stance on it and called her reactions "summer tingles" instead of calling it for what it was. She blushed every time the very concept of Junichi entered her mind.

Kagami's attempt to answer Mina-chan was pathetic yet comical as she stuttered and hesitated with every syllable. It was as if someone threw her voice box in a blender and poured the mixed remains down her throat. Mina-chan, being the innocent child that she was, didn't understand Kagami's flustered response until she was able to take a deep breath and talk to her.

"I…I don't really know how to answer that, Mina-chan. I do like him as a person and you're right. He is very nice and very helpful, but love…it…it's not that easy to understand, Mina-chan." Kagami tried to hide from the child and herself.

Mina-chan tilted her head. "I don't understand, onee-chan. Love is love, isn't it? I mean, I love my mommy and daddy who adopted me. I love my friends, I love Mama-Sanae, I love Junichi-kun…and I love you too, onee-chan."

Kagami couldn't help but smile and hug the little girl. The twin-tailed girl longed to be her age again, when everything was perfect and the world was a beautiful place to live and places like the Aku District didn't exist, as well as people like Yuka Miyakawa didn't exist. She also longed for the days where human emotions were simply black and white and love only had one definition. Kagami couldn't honestly answer the question for Mina-chan. All she could do was kiss her head, tell her she would understand when she was older, and try and bribe her attention with that storybook Mina-chan had in her arts and crafts case.

Time once again took a break from its job as a fundamental function on Earth and it disappeared. Kagami didn't notice and of course a child as innocent as Mina-chan wouldn't notice either. The former only realized that time was lost when the sun shined its arrogant beams straight down on them, making it noon. Mina-chan had fallen asleep with her head on Kagami's lap roughly half an hour earlier before Kagami could finish reading to her and she couldn't take her eyes off the child.

Kagami held her smile as she watched Mina-chan sleep. She couldn't fight the urge to run her fingers across the short auburn hair of the child and Kagami felt her heart skip at the uncanny resemblance to Matsuri. Kagami felt like crying over the girl, but not because she was sad. Ever since she came to the neighborhood three weeks ago, everything started to feel like it was normal again. Like she was never on drugs, like she never stripped and took her clothes off for money, or let others have their way with her body. It was like it was all a bad dream and this child was a reincarnated version of Matsuri to help her cope with the guilt. Kagami couldn't deny the fact that she loved this child and it made her all the more excited to become a mother herself. If she had a girl, she knew exactly what she would name it.

Footsteps approached Kagami from behind and she gently turned her head, careful not to disturb Mina-chan with her movements. She saw Junichi approaching them quietly with a smile on his face, seeing the picturesque vision between the two girls. She smiled back at him and looked back down at Mina-chan. He took a seat next to Kagami under the tree and the two sat under its sheltering leaves on the warm summer day overlooking the pond.

"She's quite the character, isn't she?" Junichi whispered, making Kagami giggle. "Sorry if she's too clingy."

Kagami shook her head. "I don't mind. She…she reminds me a lot of…my sister who passed away."

Junichi's face crafted to a more somber expression. He slowly looked back down at Mina-chan and placed his hand on her snoring head and gently patted her, making the girl curl tighter into Kagami's lap. He himself regarded Mina-chan with a rather sentimental view as did Kagami and couldn't help but smile again.

The two sat in silence for a while and watched the pond. A few ducks and geese swam in the water and a few song birds sang in the tree above them. It was a very peaceful day.

"Kagami?" Junichi asked.

She glanced at him. "Yes…Junichi?"

He stared outwards towards the pond and his eyes shifted a few times. When Kagami saw his throat bounce in a nervous gulp, her eyes widened a bit and she felt her cheeks heat up again.

Junichi cleared his throat and asked, "Are…are you happy here?"

A small grin tugged on her lips. "I am. You've…you've been very nice and hospitable to me and I'm forever in your debt for that."

He nodded. "Think nothing of it."

Silence fell between them again. Kagami glanced at him, wondering if that was all he wanted to say.

"I was—"

"Am I—"

The two stopped as their two sentences collided when they spoke. For a few seconds, they stared. They sat under the tree on the top of the grassy hill dotted with colorful flowers where the swimming ducks and geese drifted in the blue pond at the bottom and simply stared into each other's eyes. Time took another break then as the two didn't say anything for a while. They knew they were in the midst of a peaceful moment and they enjoyed sharing it with each other. Kagami felt her heart begin to pound when she realized Junichi was slowly lowering his face towards hers.

She didn't pull away though. Almost acting instinctively but not by choice, Kagami found herself leaning her face towards his as well. She didn't fight it though, especially as she began to feel something new. The feeling of a warm, joyous bubble was slowly inflating itself inside her and as it grew, Kagami felt an overwhelming sense of rejuvenation. Only three weeks had passed, but she was sure of the thought growing inside her head that would soon become notarized with a simple gesture as her eyes began to close and her lips slowly pulled together.

As Junichi's eyes closed, he quickly snapped them open and quickly pulled back and cleared his throat loudly. Kagami halted her approach as well and quickly pulled back, suddenly feeling just as embarrassed as he did. She ran a few fingers through her hair over her ear and looked away.

"I…I was going to say that…I was hoping to talk to you later. At my house. I wanted to show you some things that I think will interest you." Junichi said, his voice still tense.

Kagami looked back at him. "What are they?"

He chuckled slightly and stood. "Can't describe them, but I think they belong to you."

The twin-tailed Hiiragi watched him descend the hill and walk back to the neighborhood. She still felt her heart racing and even a few beads of sweat formed on her forehead. It took a few deep breaths to calm herself but when she returned to Earth, the reality of the situation she was in forced her to admit what she was running from.

"I…I like him a lot. You're right, Mina-chan." Kagami whispered to her.

Kagami let Mina-chan sleep on her lap for another half hour until the child woke from her nap. She was still groggy from the brief slumber and Kagami carried her home, where her foster parents took her. Kagami then returned to Junichi's house.

She stood before his door and felt her chest tighten again as she clenched her fist and knocked on his door. A few seconds later, Junichi opened the door and he stood in front of her with another smile. He invited her in and Kagami closed the door.

"So…what did you want to show me?" She asked.

"Over here." He walked to the table in his living room, where a sheet was covering several items concealed by the cover. "Do these look familiar?"

He lifted the sheet and when Kagami saw them, her eyes instantly flooded. The tears quickly fell down her cheeks and her emotions struck her like a shovel. Before her rested a few of her mother's family heirlooms that she stole to sell for drug money when her downfall began. It took a second for her to fully comprehend that they were there and not another hallucination, but when she bent down and picked up the gold Buddha statue, she knew it was real. The gold Buddha statue, ceramic plate that belonged to Emperor Hirohito, and two of the silver candleholders were there but that was more than enough for Kagami.

"Ja-Junichi…where did you…?"

"I led a few men on a raid earlier in the Aku District looking for Yuka. We kicked in a few doors of local crack dens and found we recovered a few of those things you mentioned to me when you first came here." Junichi replied. "I know you told me there were other things like more plates and a jewel-encrusted peacock but we're still looking. Tomorrow I was planning on—"

Junichi was cutoff when Kagami leaped into his chest and hugged him tightly. His shirt collar was immediately dabbed with her tears as she pulled herself tighter around him. Her thanks were barely audible as she kept squealing "thank you" over and over again. Those articles belonged to her mother and she stole them and sold them for money to continue to degrade herself. Now that Kagami was thinking with a clear mind, it seemed like this was a sign. The inspiration and strength she needed to return to her family, hat (and artifacts) in hand and plea for forgiveness.

Kagami eventually let go of him and she turned back to the artifacts. "I…I need to get these home right away. I…I need to go home right now."

Junichi's eyes raised and Kagami met his gaze again. Her initial euphoria was put on hold when she saw for the quickest moment that Junichi had worry in his eyes. She tilted her head as she cradled the plate.

"Are…are you okay?" She asked.

Junichi glanced away and nodded. "Yes. Yes, I'm fine."

"Oh…kay…" Kagami whispered.

Silence again.

"I uh…I guess I should…arrange a ride for you." Junichi said slowly, as if he was procrastinating something.

Silence again.

"Ye-yeah. That…that would be…nice." Kagami said slowly, as if she was procrastinating something.

Silence again until Kagami slowly turned and walked towards the door. Junichi reluctantly followed her until he stopped just as she put her hand on the doorknob.

"Kagami…"

Kagami froze and quickly turned. "Ye-yes?"

Junichi had to force himself to look at Kagami in the eyes, something that was hard but very satisfying at the same time. He took a deep breath and said: "If…if you don't mind staying just another day, would you…would you want to have…dinner with me?"

Kagami's eyelids bounced and when she realized she was blushing a fiery red, an old remnant of her old self flared as she became irritated and reared her tsundere side. "Wha-what's the big idea getting me flustered like that?! Don't you know it's rude to just surprise a girl like that?!"

Junichi found her outburst amusing and now that he was down the rabbit hole, the pressure didn't seem as heavy anymore. He nodded and replied, "You're right. I apologize, but the offer still stands. Would you go on a date with me?"

Kagami couldn't help but smile and she stood before him. She curled a lock of her long hair in her finger and replied, "Well…I guess that would be fun. As long as you know how to treat a woman that is."

He smiled again at her. "It's a date."

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Yutaka Kobayakawa was never one for coffee. She never liked the flavor, even with all the cream and sugar she would normally have to add to make it even close to bearable, rendering it to more of novelty beverage at that point. Her sensitive constitution also objected to the harsh levels of caffeine that came with coffee, but Yutaka needed the extra strength as she sat at the breakfast table of the Izumi household.

The clock on the oven stuck five in the morning the day after Kagami was asked out on her first date with Junichi Watanabe, also the same day a harsh truth would come home for Yutaka's cousin. In fact, that was why she sat up so early in the morning. A pressing matter had been plaguing her for the past three weeks that she wanted to address. After a phone conversation with Hiyori Tamura the previous night after Yutaka discovered her cousin was missing for the night yet again, the otaku counterpart of Konata Izumi finally spilled the beans regarding the blue-haired girl's recent behavior.

When Yutaka got off the phone, she was ready to run to Sojiro and tell him everything, as well as Yui. However, a nagging thought in the back of her mind persuaded her to handle this at a cousin-to-cousin level. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see why Konata was taking such drastic measures. Dressing up as a prostitute to blend in with the Aku District all in an effort to bring Kagami home. A normal friend usually wouldn't go to such lengths. However, Yutaka knew her cousin well enough to know that Konata wasn't a normal girl to start with. She wasn't normal in more ways than just redefining the existence of the otaku.

As Yutaka stared at her steaming mug, still grimacing from the nasty taste, she recalled all the times she remembered her cousin acting abnormal in the way that she was thinking. All video games, manga, and anime aside, there were certain aspects to Konata's behavior that even Yutaka realized at an early age. The blue-haired girl was never into girly things. She never once asked for a doll for her birthday or Christmas or spent lots of money on cosmetics to get a guy's attention. She always had a risqué sense of humor, but as far as an actual visible desire to find a boyfriend, that realm had a lot to be desired. Yutaka knew what her cousin was. The question was did Konata?

The front door slowly opened and Yutaka looked up. Someone entered the Izumi house and was taking extra measures to keep quiet about it. Yutaka heard the door close and the ever slightest thuds of tiptoes echoed in the barren hallway and approached the kitchen. When the short silhouette entered, Yutaka reached over and turned the light switch on.

Konata jumped and nearly shrieked when the light shined down on her and she jolted her head around until she saw her cousin staring her down incredulously. The blue-haired girl was panicked at first by the sudden shock but when she saw it was her cousin, she smiled and put a hand on her chest and breathed.

"Jeez, Yu-chan. You scared the crap out of me." Konata chuckled.

"Good. No you know how I felt." Yutaka snapped.

Konata was taken aback by her cousin's harsh tone. "Yu-chan, what's wrong?"

"Well where should I begin?" Yutaka scorned again and took notice of Konata's wardrobe. "Let's start with whatever that is you're wearing."

Konata looked down and she suddenly remembered where she was last night as she was still donning the prostitute outfit made by Hiyori. The blue-haired girl was suddenly embarrassed by her seductive outfit in front of her cousin and she quickly tried to hide herself with her hands, though the amount of exposed skin couldn't be covered, especially with her puny hands.

"Um, Yu-chan, look, I uh…" Konata struggled to find an excuse.

"Out in the Aku District…again?" Yutaka asked.

Konata froze and looked up at her cousin, who still wore her disappointed scowl. Dark silence drifted in the house along with a noticeable gelid breeze. Yutaka could see her cousin was speechless and at a complete loss at what to do or say next.

"Konata…Kagami isn't your problem nor is she your burden to bear." Yutaka said coldly, driving an icy spike into Konata's chest.

Konata had never heard her cute and innocent little cousin speak to her in such a manner. She could literally feel the strike of Yutaka's whipping words as they slapped through the air and smacked Konata across the face as if she was being punished. As her only defense mechanism, Konata could only comprehend this dramatic shift in Yutaka's persona through an anime concept.

"Wh-what are you talking about, Yu-chan? Why are you so OOC now?" Konata asked.

Yutaka narrowed her eyes at her cousin. "Because…you're my cousin. My family. And of course I would become angry if I ever found out that a family member was doing what you're doing to find a friend who treats you like garbage."

Konata once again winced under Yutaka's harsh reality. "Yu-chan…I…I…"

"I know, Konata. I know." Yutaka said and stood. She walked to Konata and took her hands. "I've known about you and how you really feel about Kagami for a while now. You think of her as more than just a friend and that's why you're doing this. Right?"

Konata still stood stunned, her hands resting in Yutaka's delicate fingers. She suddenly felt the weight of her own identity become a boulder resting upon her shoulders that was starting to push her down. Konata never paid much attention to this part of her identity, mainly because Kagami was always by her side. But when Kagami went rogue and was banished from the Hiiragi household, Konata completely collapsed. Konata didn't want to have to face the fact that she not only lost her best friend, but also her first crush as well.

That harsh truth Yutaka was contemplating before Konata walked through the door had finally come home when Konata curled her fingers and held Yutaka's hands as her knees buckled. Konata's eyes filled with water and she slumped to the floor. Yutaka was there to catch her and hug her tightly as Konata finally let it all out. She hugged her cousin and cried on her shoulder. Her journeys in the Aku District to find Kagami had finally come to an end.

"I'm so sorry, Yu-chan. I'm sorry." Konata whispered. "But…but you're right. I…I'm a…I'm gay. And I love Kagami…"

Yutaka pulled Konata closer and gently stroked her head. She shushed her cousin tenderly and whispered that everything was going to be okay. No matter who Konata was, she would always be Yutaka's big cousin.