Chapter 17: After Despair

Two days after returning...

Mew, Riku and Joe Dark find themselves at the Aurora household, sitting on their couches. Gabriel stands by, leaning against a wall in a deep state of meditation. Joe Dark alternates which leg is crossed on top at a frequent pace, and rapidly fiddles his fingers over his crossed arms.

This has been a constant throughout the past couple of days and Mew's finally starting to tire of it. He looks at Joe Dark with half a smile and remarks, "Would you settle down a bit?"

Joe Dark half glanced at Mew from the corner of his eyes to say, "How long can those two girls possibly be out for?"

"They had a hard battle," Mew then scoffed nonchalantly, "Heck we all kinda did. They'll get up when they're ready."

He gestured his hand at Joe Dark and told him, "You don't HAVE to stick around y'know."

"Buzz off you," Joe Dark said in a grumpy, biting tone, "I can be wherever I damn well please."

He closed his eyes, and pushed deeper against the couch with his arms further crossed, "You owe me that much after nearly getting me killed! Again!"

Mew shrugged and quietly pointed out, "Says the guy who didn't even want to come with us at first."

"B-Because I know you wouldn't have let me hear the end of it if I didn't." Joe Dark grit his teeth at the end as if that somehow made his statement any truer.

Mew leaned back in the couch with his hands behind his back and a wistful look about him, "And some could say...That Joe Dark's heart grew three sizes that day."

Joe Dark's squinted his eyes narrowly and some darkness formed around his body, "That's it, this is the part where I kill you."

"Haaaa..." Gabriel's deep, thick sigh broke the tension somewhat and he pulled off the wall to comment, "If you must scuffle do it outside of the city, please."

"Tall, dark and soft over there doesn't have the guts." Mew said with a big ol' confident smirk. Joe Dark growled very loud and scrunched his face up, then slumped into the couch and settled down by his standards.

"Hee hee!" Mew crossed his legs atop the table and changed subjects on the fly, "Everything worked out all hunky-dorey!"

His smile got wide as he listed their accomplishments off, "Kairi's got her sister back, Pluto's in jail, and none of us got turned into bugs!"

"I wonder if we can rest easy now." Riku commented as he sat on Mew's left. He looked over at Gabriel, and Mew leaned his head forward to do the same.

Gabriel's hyper aware senses caught their gaze and he then looked at his skin, which was still green. He closed his eyes and comfortably leaned against the wall.

"The Grand Cosmic Aurian Sage is gone forever now. That, I am sure about."

"But...your skin." Mew remarked.

"I never expected his demise would undo what had been done to us." Gabriel didn't appear too bothered by that though.

"...Speaking of," Riku chimed in with a question they were all thinking, "What happens to the Cosmos Drive now?"

"Its power rested entirely within the stone. The Sage merely had the ability to override Shina's control of it while his spirit inhabited it."

"Then that makes Shina..." Riku began to comment, but Mew finished for him, "Actually a Goddess?"

He waved his hand out and let out a dry chuckle, "Cause that Cosmos Drive seemed overpowered as hell to me."

"Ahem!" Gabriel coughed forcibly, and glared at Mew in particular.

Mew hung his head slightly and rolled his hand around, "Don't worry don't worry, I'm not going to make her our big problem solver. Heck I wouldn't blame her if she never wanted to use that again!"

"And also," Gabriel looked between Mew and Riku, "I would advise against seeing her in general...For now, anyways."

"Huh? Why?!" Mew exclaimed.

"Because of our appearances," Riku deduced right away and looked over his shoulder at Mew, "We remind her too much of Alex."

"...And she's not moved past him." Mew quieted down and bobbed his head slowly. And Joe Dark, unbeknownst to them, hummed deeply to himself.

Mew kicked back against the couch and remarked, "No big deal. I'm just sticking around to make sure everything's ok, then we'll head back home."

"I wish Lady Auris would give us an update," Gabriel tilted his head back towards the second floor and murmured, "She's been up there for an hour now..."

Meanwhile, up in Shina's room, Auris sat down on a soft rounded stool at the edge of the bed. Shina had been tucked under the sheets and her pillows properly fluffed. She hadn't moved an inch since they got back.

Auris had a serene smile and glazed over look in her eyes. She retained a docile air about so her daughter would stay relaxed and comfortable.

This scene almost made it feel like the last two years hadn't even happened. She wished it were the case. Her motherly instincts tempted her to glide her fingers through Shina's flowing hair and gently brush her cheek. Her cold, smooth skin tended to be enough to wake her.

One small shiver and Auris found herself getting misty-eyed. She took her sleeve to wipe her eyes dry and then whispered to herself, "You're finally home..."

"Mmm..."

Shina's hands popped out from under cover and gripped the edge of the sheet. Her eyelids slowly opened and she raised her head up. Her fingers pinched the sheet on their own and it seemed to take her brain a few minutes to register it.

She then looked down and her eyes bulged open like her heart had skipped a beat. She glanced around like a cat caught out at night and wound up locking eyes with Auris, a few hairs dangling in her face.

"Good morning dear." Auris greeted her with a smile and slight bow of the head.

"M-Mom?" Shina sputtered and took another look at the opposite side of the room. She was checking her drawers lined with figures, the closet, and even the window outside letting sunlight through.

She then lifted her sheets up slightly and finally noticed that she was wearing her marine blue and sky blue striped buttoned Pjs, just as baggy as she remembered them. Auris had just finished washing them in the laundry yesterday, so they still had a faint minty scent and feeling of dryer warmth to them.

Shina let the sheet float down then plopped her hands atop it. Auris gave her a tender smile and reassured her of reality, "Welcome home."

"Wow," Shina gasped and hung her head, letting it all set in, and creasing out a smile. Her hands quivered on the edge of the sheet, even while she gripped it gently, "I...I'm home."

The trembling extended to the rest of her body and yet her smile never wavered. She looked to the window and tilted her head. If one closed their eyes and focused on nothing else, they'd hear the hustle and bustle going on outside.

Shina must have heard some kids playing around, as even from this angle Auris could see her cheeks widen for a smile. She was left to linger like that for a full minute before Auris felt it was appropriate to ask, "Are you feeling hungry?"

Shina shook her head.

"How is your body feeling?"

"Sore..." Shina faced forward and slumped back into the bed, "I-I don't think I'm up to getting up yet."

Auris closed her eyes and nodded, "Take your time dear. Just let me know if you need anything."

Auris started to rise when Shina suddenly spun her head towards her and shouted, "W-Wait!"

Auris paused upright and laid her hands down before her waist. Shina stared down between her legs and pressed them close and apart a few times.

"Um..." Shina couldn't bear to look her mother in the eyes for very long. Auris wasn't too surprised at the reason given, "I-I said something terrible things to you mom. And-"

"Shina." Auris knelt down beside the bed and gently stroked her hand down the right side of Shina's face, then wrapped a couple fingers onto the chin to turn her head and help them see eye-to-eye.

Auris shook her head slowly and said, "I never want you to think of me as being so fragile that words would hurt me."

She patted Shina's cheek and pulled her hand away, "You had every right to speak out. Don't regret that. Embrace it. Standing up for what you believe is a major part of growing up."

Shina gave a short, seemingly understanding nod and said, "But it still feels...wrong."

"I know it does." Auris remarked.

Shina looked to her eyes and asked, "Does it ever...not?"

Auris shook her head. Shina plopped her head down on the pillow and stared up at the ceiling with a pout.

"Growing up sucks!" She muttered in a childish tone.

"Hee hee!" Auris held a sleeve before her mouth to dampen her laugh then responded with a more appropriate nod, "Nobody has ever claimed to be a master at being an adult. Everyone learns at their own pace."

Auris patted Shina on the lap and smiled, "Shina...There's a lot I want to say to you right now. About you...about myself. Things that should've never gone unsaid for this long."

She pulled away and as Shina's doting eyes followed her standing up, Auris looked at her as if they were on the same level and remarked, "Whenever you're ready, we'll talk about them, ok?"

Shina gently nodded and Auris turned towards the door, "I'll let the others know you're up."

"O-Others?" Shina quickly pieced together what that meant, "You mean...the other people I fought?"

Auris looked over her shoulder with a smile and remarked, "Yes. They're making sure you're alright."

A few other details were starting to click back in Shina's head. After a bit of gaze wandering she remarked cautiously, "A-And what about sis?"

"Sound asleep in her room."

"Oh thank god." Shina gasped and laid a hand on her chest, then smiled softly to herself.

"...She's now as old as I was when I left..."

Auris hung her head only to be caught unawares by Shina slapping the sides of her face and then pumping her fists by her chest to proclaim, "I know what I gotta do first! I gotta prepare two birthday parties, make two cakes, and buy two dozen presents, one for every month I wasn't here!"

"I'm sure she'd love that." Auris remarked, then quietly tried to leave the room. But Shina still had one thing to say.

"Uh, while you're down there mom, there's something I'd like ya to do for me..."

A few moments later Auris headed down the stairs and Mew immediately sprung up in attention, "So what's the update?"

"Shina's woken up," Auris rested a hand on the rail and took a moment to give a serene smile, "And she's doing just fine."

"Whew!" Mew pretended to wipe sweat off his brow, "That's a relief!"

"But..." Auris finished descending the stairs and looked straight at Mew, her puzzled mannerisms confusing him more than anything, "She...wants to speak with you."

Mew pointed at himself and Riku widened his eyes and wondered, "Really?"

Mew gave him a stink-eye for that before looking to Auris and wondering the same thing, "You sure she wasn't feverish?"

"I can't imagine she'd want to talk for long Mew. Just go say hi real quick." Auris egged him on politely and Mew rolled his shoulders and stood up.

"Fine by me." He headed for the stairs.

Joe Dark glanced aside and forced himself into the conversation, "If she's taking visitors then I'm going up after you."

Auris shook her head and bluntly replied to that with, "Maybe when you learn some manners."

"Bite me, grandma," Joe Dark snipped at her then stood right up and hastily made his way to the door, "Screw this...I'm going for a walk. Don't take too long."

Auris took a deep sigh and restrained herself from chuckling, "Oh what a difficult age..."

Meanwhile Mew snickered and finished heading up the stairs, where he boldly waltzed into Shina's room and mimed knocking on the door afterwards.

"Knock knock!" He said in a chipper tone, "Somebody order a serving of me?"

Shina leaned forward and pressed her fist against her mouth to stop a fit of laughter from going wild, "Pffftt hahaha!"

Mew recoiled and stammered out, "W-Whoa what?"

Shina tapped her chest with her fist and calmed herself down while Mew walked on up to the stool and remarked, "You sure you and Kairi are sisters? She's never laughed at any of my jokes."

He sat right down and Shina had to wipe a tear from her eye. She then looked at him with a quiet, unmoving stare.

Mew was hunched over somewhat and occasionally changed which way his head was tilted. He curiously raised a brow and noticed Shina's smile sink a little bit.

Then it became more of a frown, and she looked down at the ground while whispering to herself, "Its uncanny..."

Mew tried not to change expressions, but that proved difficult when she shed another tear, this time letting it go down her cheek. She quickly pulled her head back and quietly sniffled.

"...I see now." She couldn't help but whisper loud enough for Mew to hear.

"See what?" He asked.

"Oh..." Shina sealed her lips tight with a smile and shook her head, "Its nothing."

"..." Mew closed his eyes and hung his head to sigh, "Weeeeeell...I should probably get going then."

"Not yet," Shina remarked right away and then tried sitting up through the cricks and cracks of her bones, "I think I need to thank you..."

"What for?" Mew genuinely didn't know.

"For helping my sister." Her answer caught him entirely by surprise and he sprung up in his seat.

"D-Did the Cosmos Drive tell you that or...?"

Shina shook her head and chuckled, "Naw, I kind of pieced it together when we fought."

"You were strong, and kind, and stubborn...All that plus the way sis' eyes lit up when you came to her rescue. She both trusts and looks up to you a great deal. That tells me you're the one who saved her from Gravitus."

Mew got this big old grin and felt the urge to brag. But maybe, just this once, he could dial it back a little. He gestured his hand out and said softly, "Eh...I helped, but your sister's the one who contributed the most."

Shina gave her fist a few short pumps by her chest and whispered "Knew it!", leaving Mew in a slight eye fluttering daze.

She then flattened her hand and put the fingertips before her wide smile, "Hehehe! I'm glad she made a few friends."

Her eyes then literally lit up with sparkles as she slapped her hands down at the edge of the bed and leaned forward, "And with some of the Planetary Aurians no less! How cool is that?!"

She hands started to slip and she panicked, "W-Whoa!"

Mew gently grabbed her by the wrists and pushed her arms back to safety. Her eyes darted up to his face and he smiled and remarked, "Careful there, wouldn't want you falling off."

Shina's cheeks turned pink and she quickly pulled herself back to where she laid while forcing a chuckle or two out. Her eyes then darted to the left and she remarked, "H-Ha ha...Alex shoulda warned me that you're a lady killer!"

Mew froze holding his arms out then dropped them atop his knees. A part of him wanted to press her more about Alex, but the better part of him knew it'd hurt both of them to talk.

After a long enough time that Shina's cheeks returned to normal she stared up at the ceiling for a moment, then leaned on her arm to face Mew with a cheeky smile.

"If it had to be anyone sis chose, then I'm glad its you."

Mew fluttered his eyelashes and murmured, "O-Okay?"

"However..." As Shina spoke, the air started to feel a little colder, and she began to smile with closed eyes, "If ya try anything funny...I'll be on yer ass harder than a herd of a million angry bulls!"

A cold drop of sweat formed on Mew's forehead and he squeezed his eyes shut, "Yep. Definitely Auris' daughter."

When the tension quieted down Mew wagged his hand out and asked, "Anything else you want to talk about?"

Shina bobbed her head slightly to the left and remarked, "Eeeeeh...not right now."

As Mew stood up her heard a very, very loud gurgle coming from Shina and her face turned beet red. She rubbed her belly and said, "Guess my stomach clock's caught up with the present!"

Mew tucked a hand behind his back and propped his other pointer finger up, "Gimme juuuust a moment."

He wiggled his fingers behind his back and in a snap produced a red apple in his grasp that he flicked out coolly. Shina clapped it between her hands and stared at it with amazement.

"One fresh gala apple ought to hold you off until Auris whips something up." Mew winked at her and grinned. Shina couldn't even wait five seconds before chomping down on that bad boy, taking out a whole third of it.

Her eyes lit up again and she shook her head around full of bliss, "Shhooo ghooood..."

Given proper time to chew Mew then asked for her opinion while nudging his elbow at her, "Better than Alex's eh?"

She swallowed and then shook her head quite aggressively. Mew's eyes lit up and he exclaimed in a baffled tone, "B-But we practically make them the same..."

He shut his mouth, briefly sucking his lips in to make a "Pop!". He then breathed a quiet whistle and crossed his arms, tapping one foot on the ground while looking out the corner of his eyes at the ceiling.

"Alright fine, he can have this one," He said with little care in the world and then grinned at Shina and said, "You enjoy your rest Shina."

"And you should go enjoy some yourself, Mew." She then took another large bite from the apple. Mew smirked and turned to head out the door.

"Um," Shina's puzzled sound turned his attention back and he found her looking towards the ground, "You're losing your shadow."

She pointed at a patch of darkness on the ground and Mew stared at it with very squinted eyes. He then swung his hand down, raised his head and chuckled.

"Eh he's a bit unruly and abrasive, but if he gives you any trouble you got my permission to slap him around." He rolled his shoulders and shook his head on his way out the door, where he ran into Auris coming up the stairs.

Mew passed her by and casually remarked, "Sorry Auris, looks like an uninvited guest couldn't stop themselves from saying hello."

Auris closed her eyes and grumbled to herself. Then she looked at Mew and said, "You've got a hard job ahead of you with that one."

"Boy, don't I know it?" Mew laughed his way down the stairs.

Meanwhile, Shina started chewing away at the apple at a somewhat slower pace, with traces of pulp and juice on her lips. When she got down to the core she said to herself, "Ya should've asked for an apple yourself!"

She tossed the core at the shadow beside her bed and a pale hand pulled out and grabbed it. Then the rest of Joe Dark emerged, his feet swallowing the shadow back into his body. He gave a grumpy frown and tossed the core over his shoulder.

Shina placed her hands on the sides of her face and raised her voice a little, "Help! Help! There's a killer in my room!"

Joe Dark slanted his eyes and growled. Shina giggled and laid her hands atop her lap, "Well golly, you don't just come into a girl's room unannounced! What would the press think? It'd be a scandal!"

"Tsk...!" Joe Dark scoffed and a vein over his right eye started throbbing, "If this is how you plan to act then I'm leaving."

Shina waved the back of her right hand out and said in a carefree tone, "Go right ahead! Don't let the door bruise your ego on the way out."

She got a huge grin when Joe Dark tightened his fists in his pockets and hastily went in the complete opposite direction to slam his butt down on the stool.

"To hell with that! I'm not letting you and your crazy family keep bossing me around! I came here for answers, you!"

"Shina." She replied with her head raised high and confidently.

Joe Dark turned his head and grumbled, "Excuse me?"

"Its not 'you', its Shina. Shina Aurora," She waggled her pointer finger at Joe Dark in admonishment, "I spent two years with Alex, I know how to deal with grumps like you."

Joe Dark clammed up faster than she was expecting. He closed his eyes, spat out another scoff, then mumbled, "Whatever, Shina."

She giggled some more. It was fun messing around with this person a little, "So...What does the big, bad Dark King want from little ol' me?"

"I want to talk to you about Whiter." Joe Dark set out to get down to business, but his request stunned Shina silent.

Her skin lost a little of its color and she had to turn away from Joe Dark for a moment to collect her thoughts.

"...Why do you care? You were his enemy." She said coldly.

"That...is none of your business." Joe Dark growled in a deep voice.

Shina firmly squeezed her arms under her chest, and flopped back against her pillows with a firm pout, "If you ain't tellin' then neither will I!"

That Joe Dark's head didn't explode is something no medical science could explain. He grit her teeth extra tight and grumbled, "You immature little...!"

Reaching a boiling point that be the envy of any volcano, Joe Dark swung his arms down and exclaimed, "He was my brother!"

Shina swung her head up and her eyes bulged out of their sockets while Joe Dark heavily panted to calm down. Her stare froze as she turned to look at her lap and mutter, "Oh my god..."

She then hastily looked at Joe Dark and bowed her head all the way down in one hard swing, "I-I'm so, SO sorry! I had no idea, honest!"

Joe Dark crossed his arms and leaned back without saying a word. Shina meanwhile raised her head back up and stared at his face. She stared for a short while, then fluttered her eyelashes. Joe Dark was doing everything in his power to not look at her, and failing miserably.

"Pfffft...!" A puff of air shot out of her lips, and suddenly she smiled and laughed, "Hehehe!"

Joe Dark flinched and stared directly at her with annoyance. Her laughter grew to the point of her having to brace her gut as she hunched over.

"HAHAHAHAHA! I-I can totally see it! Hehehe!"

Joe Dark squinted and rose to his feet, throwing his hands up flat by his face and turning away, "Ok. That's it. I'm getting out of this insane asylum."

Before he got to the door Shina gasped for air and swung her hand out, "W-Wait. Come back..."

He paused with one hand hovering the doorknob. She leaned out to pat the stool and with a tender pair of doe-eyes whispered daintily, "Please?"

Joe Dark put his hand on the knob and it began to turn. One sigh later and he was shaking his head and making his way back with slumped shoulders and both hands in his pockets.

He plopped down onto the stool and Shina carefully worked her way back into the bed. She shook her head and whispered, "I just can't believe it. You're his brother...like, his actual flesh-and-blood brother."

She sat up and laid a hand on the side of her tilted head, "I...guess you didn't know about that until after you tried killing him?"

Joe Dark turned his head and scoffed from the corner of his mouth. Shina steadied herself and looked at him with a smile, "Well...sorry...But I hope you understand why I don't want to talk about him much."

"I don't give a damn about the whole novel," Joe Dark firmly turned his head at her and forced through gritted teeth, "Just...!"

He closed his eyes and his body trembled out of his sheer resistance against himself, "Just...tell me what you saw in him."

"..." Shina rested her hands on her lap and closed her eyes, "Alex...was crude, and violent. He had a quick temper and always talked back to everyone he met."

Joe Dark crunched his hands tightly around his arms and growled internally. Shina leaned her head back and had this soft, longing gaze looking towards the ceiling.

"He was always walking with a chip on his shoulder. The universe wanted to tear him down and make him a monster, but he refused to let that happen. He'd always try and do the right thing and defy the expectations of his peers. He was brave, yet scared...He was distant, but also close...He was hateful, but also caring..."

Shina closed her eyes as she took a deep breath and let it go, "...He let his worse traits show on the outside, but his better traits tended to win out in the end. And that's the part of him I was attracted to."

She then turned to Joe Dark and asked, "Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Joe Dark crooned and hung his head. He growled softly. Then, he went dead silent, and laid his fingers together in a bridge before his waist. He shook his head as he lifted it back up, briefly revealing a lost look in his eyes.

Shina pouted and stared at him for a while longer before smiling. She then bravely remarked, "Guess that makes you my step-brother now!"

Joe Dark's eyes sparked to life full of mass confusion, "D-Do you mind repeating that?"

Shina gave a wily smirk and giggled. Joe Dark scowled in sheer, utter disbelief, "Don't tell me you two actually got MARRIED?!"

"N-Not at all!" Shina threw her hands around in the air, "But we did uhhh...Ummm..."

She froze up, and her face turned red. She then sharply turned away from him and murmured hastily, "Ya know what never mind."

"Tsk...!" Joe Dark scoffed and wiggled his lips around for a bit, "What did Whiter ever see in a loonie-bin like you..."

"I get the feeling we're gonna be spending a lot of time with each other," Shina's words sounded like a threat, "So you'll have plenty of chances to find out!"

"I'd rather not."

"Well if things go as planned you might not have a choice!" Shina chuckled, resting a hand a little below the waist and moved it in circles.

Joe Dark's eyes trembled, locked onto the sight of that as Shina's smile turned tender. He shook his head and quickly stood up, "I-I'm going now."

He placed a hand against the side of his throbbing face and a chill vibrated out of his mouth.

"Ok! See you later!" Shina slanted her eyes mischievously and smirked, "Brrrrooooooother..."

Joe Dark swung his free hand back and exclaimed, "Do NOT! I don't need a second one of you in my life!"

He forced his hand tightly around the door knob and began to turn. But before the door unlocked he froze there, and pulled his head back slightly.

"...Whiter didn't deserve to die."

Shina curled her fingers on the edge of the sheet. Joe Dark looked over his shoulder and muttered, "Especially not to that bastard Justek."

"...H-Huh?" Shina's face turned pale as she watched Joe Dark head out the door. Her eyes darted around, and she plopped her head back upon the pillow to stare blankly up at the ceiling.

"...Alex was a-alive?" She whispered, a faint hope rising in her tone.

A knock on the door later and Auris entered the room. Shina started staring longingly out the window, barely registering her mother's presence.

"Shina?"

She flinched and turned her head around with wide eyes, "Y-Yeah?"

"I'm going to make dinner. Do you want anything?"

Shina went a while before nodding. Auris stood still, watching Shina face the window once again. There was a melancholic change in the atmosphere. Auris chose to make her presence scarce.

"...Mom?" Shina faintly whispered.

Auris looked across her shoulder and saw Shina sitting upright.

"...Alex will come back someday, won't he."

"..." Auris closed her eyes and placed her hand on the knob, slowly pulling the door open, "Don't go chasing ghosts dear."

She left the room and Shina slowly laid back down, pulling the sheets up to her neck. She closed her eyes, and heard something similar to a breeze brushing her ears. Though she shivered, a smile crossed her face...

"Don't worry Alex," She whispered, "I'll do my very best until you return. So you do the same, wherever you are..."

"I love you."

Next Time: Sister's Day Out