Sho hadn't been dreaming.
He knew that he had been asleep, the dreamless sort of sleep that happened when Fukuda put him under, but he wished that he had been dreaming. He wished that he had still been asleep, he wished that he had been in the middle of a dream, even if he wasn't entirely sure what kind of dream this was. Not his normal dream where he lived in a hamster maze but he wasn't a hamster and Shimazaki lived with him and they cuddled in a big pile of hamsters, it would have been weird if big sis had been in one of those dreams anyway. This was more like a nightmare. It was like…like big sis was there…which was usually a good thing, but now…now she was upset and….
And this felt like a bad dream. But it wasn't.
She was sitting there on the edge of his bed. He sat up and pulled his blanket off with his powers. She was staring at him. Her aura…she was pissed off. He could feel it. Her face was kind of red…and her eyes had this kind of…edge…to them. When they had been kids people had always been asking him why his sister looked so bored all the time. She only looked bored if you didn't know her…and you couldn't see auras. He knew his big sister and he knew her looks…all of her looks…even the ones he never saw.
Like this one.
He crossed his legs and faced her. She was still staring at him. He had no idea what she was going to say…or do. She never got mad, not really, but he had never done anything as bad as this to her. He had been lying for years…and he had been keeping baby sis from her…and that…that was unforgivable. He had betrayed her. She loved baby sis just as much as he did and…and he had been doing the right thing. People couldn't know that big sis had been a part of his family Fukuda had said, because she was little and people would try and mess with her to get to dad. That made sense, people shot at dad all the time, and he was…dad. Baby sis couldn't do anything at all if someone tried to hurt her…and her mom was only a Scar. They were called Scars, Shimazaki had said once, because they were damaged goods. They had gone up against dad and lost so badly that they got scars on their faces. Dad put them there to remind them of their failures. Baby sis's mom couldn't protect her if something happened….and that was why she had to be a secret from everyone…even big sis.
She told dad everything.
That was another very good reason why big sis couldn't ever know about baby sis. Big sis told dad everything and dad…well he didn't want them to love baby sis. He didn't want baby sis to be a part of their family. Dad had given baby sis to big sis but that was just because she had to stay somewhere while Fukuda found her a mom. It had been ok that she stayed with them because dad had been on that very long away mission. Dad came back and when he did baby sis had to go…and since dad was the biggest dick hole in the world nobody could ever see baby sis again.
Not even big sis.
That was another reason why he had to keep baby sis a secret. Because of dad. It all came down to dad, didn't it? Dad was the reason for everything bad that had happened in his life. Dad was the reason that big sis was mad at him, dad was the reason that baby sis had to go away, and dad was the reason that mom had left too. Dad was the reason for everything bad that had ever happened to not only him but big sis and if big sis had to be pissed off at someone then she should have been pissed off at dad….but she wasn't going to be pissed off at dad. Sho felt around with his aura. Dad wasn't there. Dad was usually as bright as the sun. Dad wasn't there….but big sis was. Her and…if he spread his aura out really far he could feel Minegishi….only big sis and Minegishi….and he had no idea what that meant. Why dad and the others hadn't come…why Shimazaki wasn't there….this was not the time to think about Shimazaki…even though when they were together Sho always felt…good. Safe….not that he had any reason to ever feel unsafe…
Big sis had never done anything to hurt him…and she never would.
Even though it would have been better if she had. Even though he kind of wished that she would just…start screaming at him or…hitting him…or something. Something other than staring at him. She was staring at him and he was staring at her…and she must have had something to say. She must have had something to say to her own little brother, who had been a lying dick hole to her, even if it was just…he didn't know. 'Fuck off' or something…no. She didn't curse. It wouldn't have been natural if she had started cursing him out right there….but it would have been better than the silence…the silence that made him want to start cursing….
He knew that cursing would have been a bad idea…but he knew that he had to say something.
"Hi…big sis. What's up?" asked Sho. There. Words had been said. Now she had to say them back. It was like when they played hit the birdie together. He had hit the birdie and now it was on her side…and like when they played hit the birdie together it missed her completely. Nothing went to the other side and it seemed that he would have to wait for her to find the birdie, to find some words, before they could keep going.
He waited for a while.
Her aura touched his, and she opened her mouth like she wanted to say something, but then she closed it and went back to staring at him. He had no idea what she was trying to do…and he was so close to asking her. She had feelings, people had always said that it looked like she didn't but she totally did, and those feelings must have been bad. She must have been feeling something….anything….and even if it was the kind of thing that would make her yell at him and tell her that she was done being his big sister…no….she loved him and she would never do anything like that….
Mom had loved him too.
"Happy birthday…I drew you something…" said Sho. Maybe she would be happier if he talked about her birthday. Birthdays were important. They were the most important days of your life. They were a celebration of when you had been born and also you got presents. People liked being born…well the babies on TV were never happy when they were born but….but being bon meant that you were alive and people liked being alive….well actually sometimes you woke up and you wished that you had died in your sleep…but everyone like presents! Yeah, he had done a drawing for her of Anna and Kristoff getting married and also Elsa was there…and she would have liked that….maybe she would have been happier if he showed it to her…but that would have meant him getting up….
But he had to do something to make her happy.
"Did…you and the others do something fun? For your birthday, I mean." Said Sho. She hadn't said anything….she was just staring at him. She was staring at him because….because she was pissed off…and he had no idea what to do to make it better. He could have said sorry…but if he said sorry then that meant that he and big sis were talking about it…and if they talked about it then she might have gotten even more pissed off and…and left. Mom…she had been pissed off maybe….it had been hard to tell since she had been so sick for so long and he had been so little….but she had left and…and people who loved you…they could leave….
They could walk out the door and never come back…and there was nothing that you could do about it. Nothing at all.
"Did you do anything? Did you and Minegishi-" said Sho. He had been looking for something to say one minute and the next thing he knew he was being hugged. He pushed her away, for a second, because part of him thought that she was trying to hurt him. The stupid part of him. The part of him that made his whole body tense up and his powers shove her…but she didn't move. She didn't even act like she had felt it…but she must have felt it…he had pushed her…
He was the worst little brother in the history of the world and he deserved whatever was coming to him.
"I-I'm sorry-" said Sho
"You're right you're sorry!" said Mob. She had been trying to say something to Sho since she had gotten here. Since he had woken up. Since…since she had heard about…what had happened…from Minegishi! Not even her own little brother. Her best friend had been keeping a secret that they hadn't known was a secret…and Minegishi…well she wasn't mad at them because they hadn't known that they had been doing something wrong…but Sho knew…he knew that it was wrong to tell lies…
She had taught him that!
She had taught him not to tell lies and not to sneak around and…and…and he knew how much baby Mukai meant to her! He had kept her a secret since dad took her away! He…he had done so many things and…and that was why she hadn't said anything. She hadn't had any idea of what she could have said without it coming out mean. She could have said something just as bad, or even worse, than the period thing that she had said to Fukuda….and now she could never face him again since not only had she been mean to him but she had said the word period and she just…saw no other way to carry on with her life after all of that without hiding from Fukuda for the rest of her life…and also….also he was the one who should have been hiding from her! He had made her brother lie and-
-and he expected her to do horrible things to him.
She had never done anything horrible to anyone in her entire life. She loved her brother and her dad and her friends and…and she didn't do bad things to people. Dad did bad things to people but that was just because he didn't know how to be good. Like how he didn't know how to be best friends with Fukuda and Hatori so he was mean to them and he didn't know how to be a husband to mom so she left him and he didn't know how to be a son so his parents died…that last one might not have been his fault….but she didn't see him as being a good son either since he was bad at being everything else….and…and he didn't know any better but to be himself…and she didn't know any better but to be herself…and she had no idea who Fukuda thought that she was being but she didn't know how to be anyone other than herself, Suzuki Shigeko….Mob, and she just….
She didn't do horrible things to people!
Especially not Sho…even though she wanted…she didn't want to do anything horrible to him but she wanted to say horrible things to him. She wanted to tell him that he had been a bad little brother and that she was very unhappy with him. She wanted to tell him that from now on he was only getting one after bath soda and poptart. She wanted to tell him that because of what he had done, and had been doing for over a year, he had to go back to doing his homeschool work and that included math. She also wanted to tell him that because of what he had done she didn't fully trust him anymore…and that would have been mean…
And she loved Sho too much to be mean to him.
"I know! That's why I said it! I'm sorry that I pushed you with my powers. It was an accident!" said Sho
"What? When did you do that?" asked Mob
"Just now when you started hugging me. It was an accident. I thought that you were going to…my body though that you were going to hurt me…..but my brain knows that you never would." Said Sho
"…you should tell your body to listen to your brain…because I would never hurt you. You or anyone else." Said Mob. She felt like someone had cut her open and filled her with ice. Sho…was afraid of her? How did that even work? She…she had never done anything to hurt her and…and it was his body that was afraid, not his brain, and that…didn't make sense but…none of this made sense! Why he had just….lied to her! And kept secrets from her! And….and just….he had been….not good!
She needed to calm down before she said something to Sho that she couldn't take back.
"I know that you won't….but I deserve it. I know that I deserve it…and I'm sorry." said Sho. Maybe if he just got on with it, like ripping off a Band-Aid, then he and big sis could be friends again. She was still pissed off but she always forgave people when they were sorry. She wasn't going to just…go. She wasn't going to get mad and go like…like mom did. He didn't know why he was afraid of that. Big sis loved him…and mom had loved him too…and when you loved someone you didn't always have to stay and…
And he kind of wanted one of those cigarettes that big sis was smoking…or really anything to make him feel better.
"Sho, don't say that. It make me upset when you say that and I'm already super upset so…so please don't make it worse." Said Mob as she started another cigarette. She let the end of the last one fall onto the rub and she dug it in with her foot. She knew that she needed to find something to use as an ashtray….but she just…wasn't in the mood to make herself an ashtray. She was in the mood to smoke so she got into a better mood. She had her flask, too, but if she drank then she would just end up saying something mean…not that she would ever say something as mean or as embarrassing to her little brother as….what she had said to Fukuda….but she might have come up with something else that was mean and embarrassing….
So she decided that it was best to just keep a cigarette in her mouth so she didn't end up saying anything else worse.
"Can I have one too? I'm…upset." Said Sho. Big sis opened her bag with her powers and pulled out a cigarette. She usually smoked other stuff, stuff that made him spacy and happy and hungry, and right now he needed to feel spacy and happy…hungry was ok too….but mostly just spacey and happy. She pressed the cigarette to his lips. He held it between his teeth like he'd Shimazaki do a bunch of times before. Big sis leaned in and pressed the end of her cigarette to his.
"You have to inhale while I do this or it won't work." Said Mob
"Like this?" asked Sho before he closed his lips and inhaled. That worked….right? It tasted…really bad…and it smelled really bad….but he'd feel better. The spacey feeling would come back soon. The spacey feeling that he got when he smoked with big sis….and Shimazaki. He just…had to keep on smoking this…terrible thing that big sis seemed to like.
"I'm only going to give you one, ok? So don't smoke that too fast. Moderation is important with these. Once you start it's very hard to stop." Said Mob
"I don't think that I want another one of these anyway." Said Sho
"Why not?" asked Mob
"Because they taste bad. When do you start to feel all…good….and stuff? Spacey and happy." Said Sho
"You mean high? These don't make you high, they just help you calm down….and they taste good. I think that they taste good anyway." Said Mob
"I don't." said Sho
"You'll get used to it….but not now because I have to teach you about moderation….even though I don't want to right now. I don't even know if it'll help…or if you'll listen. You didn't listen to me about not lying." Said Mob
"….I didn't lie." Said Sho. He had lied, he had done so much lying that he had lost count of the number of lies that he'd told, but…but those didn't count as lies. Those were just pragmatic choices that he'd had to make. That was all. Sometimes in life you had to make pragmatic choices, Fukuda had said, and when you lied in a pragmatic choice then it was ok. That was why it was ok for him to tell Emmy that he loved her…and that was why it was ok to tell big sis that he was in London being all in love with his girlfriend when he in fact was in Seasoning City with his baby sister…pretend baby sister.
"Sho…you did. You just lied to me. You told me that you and Fukuda were staying in London so you could be with Emmy….but instead you came here to be with baby Mukai….and also you just lied to my face just now when you said that you hadn't lied. I don't like to be lied to." Said Mob as she took a very long drag off of her cigarette. She needed to go easy on these…she didn't have a lot of these left and she got the feeling that Minegishi wasn't going to share with her…but she had to smoke….she had to. Otherwise she would get upset again…and it was one thing to get upset at Fukuda, he didn't like her much anyways, but it was quite another to get upset at her own little brother.
"No it's just…I had to make a pragmatic choice, ok?! And those don't count as lies!" said Sho
"Pragmatic….choice?" asked Mob. She was glad that he had been keeping up with his homeschool work…but she wished that he had chosen a better time to use words that he knew that she didn't know. She didn't want to have to worry about how little work she had done in her vocabulary book on top of all of this!
"They're like…choices that you make where there's no good answer. Like…like if behind one door there's a tiger and behind the other door is like…a girl who you have to marry otherwise you have to go through the tiger door…then you go through the girl door so you don't have to go through the tiger door." Said Sho
"That…doesn't make any sense. Why are there doors? And who's making you go through them? And what's on the other side of these doors? And where did you get a tiger?" asked Mob
"None of that is important! The important thing is…is that I didn't lie! Well I did lie but lying was the best option so it's ok that I lied! Alright!?" said Sho
"Best…option?" asked Mob. She did not follow…which wasn't anything new for her. She had always been kind of clueless. Like now. She had no idea when the best option was to lie to someone. Telling lies was always wrong….which was why she never did that. She changed the subject, she ran away, she avoided the question, but she never told lies…and she had thought that she had taught Sho the same. Obviously she had thought wrong.
"Yeah like…like when you either hurt someone's feelings or you just…don't tell them the truth so they can be happy. Then they can be happy and you can be happy….everyone can be happy. It's alright to tell lies so long as you make people happy." Said Sho
"No….that's not alright. Nothing about that is alright. You always tell the truth. You can't just tell people lies to….to make your life easier." Said Mob. That was what he was talking about. That was…not right. The truth hurt sometimes but…but you couldn't just lie to people. You could keep secrets…which wasn't the same as lying but still pretty bad in this case…and you could avoid the subject….but you couldn't just…tell lies so you wouldn't have to deal with your problems. That wasn't right at all.
"What the hell are you talking about?!" asked Sho. Easier? Easier!? What the fuck did she mean by that!? Ever since he had started having to make these pragmatic choices nothing about his life had gotten any easier! In fact everything had gotten at least ten times harder than it had to be! How could she just look him in the eye and SAY things like that!?
"What it sounds like to me is that you're talking about telling lies so you don't have to deal with stuff that's too hard to deal with." Said Mob
"That's….that's not it at all! You don't understand…you never understand!" said Sho
"Then explain it to me so that I can understand, little brother, and do it now because I…am not in a very good mood at all…and I want to understand so I can be in a better mood…or at least not as upset as I am right now right this minute." Said Mob. She finished her cigarette and then started another one. She felt her flask as she dug around in her bag. That was…it was there…later. When Sho wasn't looking.
"I….I did what I had to do…ok? I wanted to tell you but Fukuda said-" said Sho. He really wanted to smoke something else right now. Maybe if he was high then this would be easier. Dulling the pain of living was important, big sis had said so, and he just….he hurt. This hurt, all of it. Talking about this hurt…being here hurt…there was just a lot of hurt there…
And he just wanted it to stop…but it didn't stop.
Her aura felt like standing in the sun on a hot beach in nothing but a bathing suit. No sunscreen, no nothing. Just him and the sun and the sand. He looked down at his hands, he almost expected to be sunburned, but he wasn't. He was fine…his body was, anyway. His aura was a whole other story. His aura was trying to get away from hers…and he wanted to get away from her too. She was staring at him again…her cigarette was about to fall on his bed…and then it did. It fell on his bed and burnt a hole right through Judy's ear. Sho wanted to pick it up…but he couldn't. It hurt. He hurt. He hurt and he wanted it to stop….
But it didn't stop.
"Alright then." Said Mob. She was not going to get mad. She was not going to yell. She was not going to scream. She was not going to break things. She was going to calmly get up, go back to Fukuda, and tell him that he unless he took back whatever nonsense he had taught Sho…her little brother….then he was…demoted. She didn't have the power to fire people but she could demote them….
And if he didn't take back what he taught Sho then he was going to be knocked right down to level four Awakened so fast he wouldn't know what hit him.
Which was better than actually hitting him…which was something else that Mob wanted to do. She wanted to hit him with both of her hands and also she wanted to kick him with both of her feet….but that was wrong…and she had never wanted to hurt anyone before…but she wanted to hurt him now…and she was so…so gross….for wanting to hurt someone but…but he was the one who had taught Sho that it was ok to lie. He was the one who had told her little brother that he needed to lie to her, sneak around, and keep big secrets. He was the one…he was the cause of all of this….him and no one else….because he thought that…he thought that…
Who, exactly, did Fukuda Tadashi think he was?
"Who do you think you are?" asked Mob. This time Fukuda was sitting and she was standing. This time she was the one who was taller than him. Good. She wanted to be taller than him. Maybe now he would listen to her. Dad had told her that the only way to rule was through fear…and she didn't want him to be afraid of her….but she also kind of did. Maybe if he was afraid of her then he wouldn't go around teaching Sho such horrible things!
"Excuse me?" asked Fukuda as he looked up. She was back…and she smelled like a cigarette factory. Sho was there too, peeping his head around the corner. He was awake now…Fukuda didn't have the strength to put him back under…he barely had the strength to look Shigeko in the eye…and he only did that for the sheer insanity of the situation.
"Who do I think I am? Who do you think you are, that's the question now isn't it? For years now you've been-" said Fukuda
"Stop talking." Said Mob. She knew that the more he said the more this…terrible feeling….would grow. This terrible feeling that she had inside of herself. She felt like she was a soda bottle that had been put inside of one of those paint shaking machines. She felt like at any moment she could just….explode…everywhere. The paint on the walls around her began to peel off…the lamp behind her exploded…and her braids were flying up around her head. She needed him to shut up before she did something worse…much worse….than she had ever done before.
"You just asked me a question. Why would you ask me a question if-" said Fukuda. She was playing mind games with him…or something. He didn't know. He didn't have the energy to figure this out. To figure her out.
"Stop talking. If you keep on talking then I could do something…or say something…something worse than I've ever said before." Said Mob
"You're going to say something worse than the period remark?" asked Fukuda with a laugh. She turned red…good. She shouldn't have said things like that, terrible things, if she wasn't prepared to deal with the effects of them.
"Hey! Don't make fun of big sis about stuff like that!" said Sho. He pushed Fukuda with his powers so hard that his head bounced off the wall…that had been kind of a dick hole move…but so was making fun of big sis for all of that stuff that happened to her! Stuff that you weren't supposed to talk about anyway because it was super private and also it made girls embarrassed when they knew that you knew that stuff like that even existed. Shimazaki had told him that and he trusted Shimazaki more than anyone else in the world next to big sis.
"Sho…don't be violent…and put that fucking cigarette out this instant! Just because she smokes does not mean that you get to!" said Fukuda. Nope, none of that. He was not letting Sho make his life any worse than it was now. Shigeko…she could do whatever she wanted. There was nothing that he could do about her. Sho on the other hand was his responsibility…and even if he wasn't Sho was an eleven year old kid and eleven year olds kids should not have been smoking!
"Hey! You don't get to tell Sho what to do! Not anymore! Sho, you can have that one but that's going to be the last one for the rest of the day." Said Mob. No, Fukuda did not get to tell Sho what to do anymore. Not after what he had taught him. From now on someone else could watch Sho…like…well Shimazaki taught Sho bad things too…and Minegishi didn't want to…and Shibata made Sho bowls of frosting to eat before bed so he had sweet dreams….and Hatori got scared too easily….and Serizawa, well, Sho would have been watching him and not the other way around….and dad couldn't be trusted not to hurt Sho….and tying him to a tree wouldn't work since he'd just chew through the leash….
She'd figure the specifics out later. Right now Fukuda was just…off the Sho sitting list…forever.
"That's really nice, Shigeko, the things that you teach your brother are just wonderful…aren't they?" asked Fukuda
"Yes. I'm teaching him about moderation. You only taught him how to lie. You taught him how to lie and…and that's not right at all. It's unforgivable…and I want you to teach Sho that it's wrong to tell lies and also that pragmatic choices aren't real….I want you to tell him that right now." Said Mob
"I can't do that." Said Fukuda. No. He was not going to sit there and tell Sho that he had been in the wrong. He hadn't been. He put too much on himself already. He had just been trying to make his life a little easier, a little more bearable, and there was nothing wrong with that at all. Shigeko wasn't capable of understanding that. What did she know about pragmatic choices? Her life was a goddamned fairytale.
"Yes you can. You just have to tell Sho that you were wrong to teach him about-" said Mob
"I wasn't wrong. Nothing about what I said or did was wrong. Your brother deserves whatever happiness he can get in his life and…and this isn't something that you're capable of understanding. Your life and his life are like night and day…so get off your goddamned soapbox already!" said Fukuda jumping to his feet. Sho put a barrier between him and Shigeko….Fukuda had no idea who Sho was trying to protect with that barrier. Him…Shigeko….the both of them from each other? Not that he could have done anything to hurt her. This was Suzuki Shigeko…she was second only to her father.
"But….I'm not on a soapbox. I'm standing on the same rug you are. My side is a little lumpy but…I'm not on a soapbox." Said Mob as she felt the carpet under her toes. Lumpy…she hated a lumpy rug…but not…whatever Fukuda had just said.
"He means that you're being all…bossy and stuff…and you kind of are." Said Sho. He understood why she was being like this…and he wasn't going to stop her. Better she be like this to Fukuda than him.
"I know that I am….and right now I don't care. Fukuda, you taught Sho something wrong and you need to make this right or…or I'll demote you….or something. You're already not allowed to watch Sho anymore….and I'll kick you out of the travel group if I have to. I don't care what my dad says. Either tell Sho that you were wrong or…or you're out." Said Mob. She wished that it hadn't come to this. She wished…she wished that she had been little again. She wished that she had been little and Fukuda had messed up going to the grocery store again and he came by with extra food and then he and mom cooked and she and Sho either helped or went outside to play and…and then they ate dinner and played together and…and she wished that…that she was that little again….but those times were over now.
Those times were over, wishes did not come true, and sometimes the people who you once loved hurt you in ways that you couldn't even imagine.
"You…you have no idea what you're saying. What are you going to do without a healer? What are you going to do if-" said Fukuda. She…was not serious…she could not have been serious. Touichirou would never have let her….Touichirou was out of his mind….who knew what he would do. He'd lost it after Masami escaped…and whatever Shigeko wanted Shigeko got…but he was not leaving Sho alone with her and the rest of them. He didn't need to gaze into a crystal ball to see what Sho would become if Fukuda just left him alone with…with all of them…
He could just take a look at Shigeko if he wanted to know…what Sho would become.
"Fukuda, she wants you to stop talking…so shut your fucking mouth before you make this even worse on yourself." Said Sho. He didn't want Fukuda gone! Sure he was an asshole but…but Fukuda was still…he was Fukuda! Sho wanted him around and shit just…not with him right now….but not gone forever!
"Sho…be nice…and I don't want Fukuda to stop talking. I want him to tell you that he…he was wrong to teach you about those pragmatic choice things. He was wrong to teach you about those things and he was wrong to…to even think that teaching you that…was ok. I have no idea why he would ever even begin to think that any of those things were ok….I just…I can't even begin to understand…" said Mob
"You…how can you not understand?" asked Fukuda. Was she really that clueless? Did she not see what her little brother went through each and every day? How…how could she be so…so absorbed in her own little world like that? Well…she had been raised by Touichirou…so there was that.
"Because nobody explained anything….and I don't even see what your explanation can possibly be. You taught my brother to lie. How do you explain that?" asked Mob
"I did what I had to do." Said Fukuda
"That….is not an answer." Said Mob. She did reach for her flask that time. She drank some of the coconut stuff then put it back in her bag. She knew that she was being watched, she knew that Sho wanted some too, but that was too bad. She was a good big sister, better for Sho than Fukuda was, and she was going to teach him about moderation…when she was done teaching him that lying was wrong.
"Fine, you want your answer? You want your answer, Shigeko, then here it is. I was trying to make your brother's life easier. It was hard on him when the baby got adopted-" said Fukuda
"You mean when dad made you take her away from us." Said Mob. Dad had miscalculated, he said, and he had apologized….and it was for the best because baby Mukai had a mom that loved her now…even though Mob had loved her almost as much as a mom could. She loved Mukai like a sister….and the love between sisters was enough to thaw a frozen heart…so that must have been at least three quarters as good as the love you got from a mom.
"I mean when I found a home for her away from you and the rest of…of….them!" said Fukuda as he threw his arms up in the air.
"You mean…when dad told you to take baby sis away…because she would be safer here in the Seventh Division." Said Sho slowly. Fukuda…he knew what Fukuda had told him. Dad had been the one to make him do that….and this was what was best for baby sis. Sometimes you had to make pragmatic choices...and that had been one of them.
"Safer here? That makes…zero sense. Dad is the most powerful esper in the world, I'm the second most powerful, Sho's pretty powerful, we live next door to Shimazaki who can teleport anywhere…and Minegishi who's good at fighting….and Shibata is…well he's huge! Nobody would mess with us just…just with him there alone! How the h-word could baby sis have been safer here than with us!?" said Mob
"Because she'd be away from you and that group and her father-" said Fukuda. He bit his tongue to make sure that it didn't slip again. He tasted copper. Good.
"You mean our father. Dad is our father." Said Mob
"Yeah, and dad's an asshole. He's an asshole to me and he'd be an asshole to her, too. He only likes you." Said Sho. That made sense. It was better for baby sis to live here than for her to have to live with someone as terrible as dad. It hurt but…it made sense.
"That's still…that still doesn't make sense. Dad can be mean sometimes but if I could stop him from hitting you then I could have protected baby Mukai too. Fukuda…did you take her away on your own because you thought that dad would hurt her? Because…if you were trying to keep her safe then…then I understand that. I mean…if someone's in danger…if you think that someone is in danger…then it's ok to tell lies. I guess." Said Mob. Well then. That had been….a really big misunderstanding….but it was over now. Now that was all settled and they could be friends again. They would all go and see baby Mukai and explain the big misunderstanding to her…if she understood things yet….and then they could all play the 'stick your arm in a paper towel roll' game…or whatever her new favorite thing was.
"I took your sister away because…because it was best for her. Your father didn't want her and, frankly, she's better off without him in her life. I did what I thought was best for your little sister. Alright? So shoot me. I did what I thought was best." Said Fukuda
"She's our pretend sister…and big sis was right. Taking her away wasn't for the best…but…I mean if you thought that dad would treat her like he treated me…and that nobody could protect her from him…then I guess…I guess that you were right…he was right. Right, big sis? He was right and you can stop being pissed off now?" asked Sho. He totally would have protected baby sis! Fukuda thought that he was some weak little baby but he wasn't! He wasn't going to start up with Fukuda about that, though, since big sis was calmer now. Her aura was less pissed off and her hair had stopped floating. She was ok…this was ok…everything was ok…
Now they could stop it, finally, and then…well big sis would want to play with baby sis after this….and everyone was still running around getting this place ready for her and dad, once he came, so it would be the perfect cover to let Ritsu and his friend escape…..
"Fukuda….was wrong…but he thought that he was doing what was right…so he's not demoted…and we can all put this behind us now." Said Mob. She felt….better. Lighter. Happier. Just…this was better. All of this was better. She could see Mukai again and they could pick up where they left off and…and maybe she and her mom could travel with them now…and they could all be one big happy family again. Mob smiled. That would be wonderful.
"Yeah, we can. Here, I'll tell you where she lives and then you guys can play girl games together or something." said Sho
"You can come too." Said Mob
"No, I have….stuff to do. You go on ahead. She misses you a lot, probably, if she can remember you…and you have to hear her talk! She knows a lot of words and she can walk now too." Said Sho
"That's…amazing…and I wish that I had been there to see it…but that's good. Maybe if she's less like a baby then dad will let her and her new mom join the group." Said Mob
"Big sis….you're a genius and I love you." Said Sho. This was…this was great! It had hurt, earlier, but now….now everything was going to work out! Baby sis could be with them forever and if dad didn't like it then he could go suck dicks in a public bathroom during golden week for ten yen, no, for five yen coins.
"Little brother…I love you too." Said Mob. Sure he had been sneaking around and lying…but he'd had a good reason….and she knew that he was sorry. What had happened, happened, and now everything could be better. Sure she was still a little bit hurt but…it would pass. Everything would pass eventually including this.
"No….no….no! A million times no! Are you out of your mind?!" asked Fukuda. He didn't know who he was screaming that at, Shigeko or Sho. Both of them, maybe, because that was a terrible idea. He may not have been that baby's biggest fan but he stood by what he did. She was better off in this insane place than in the traveling insane asylum that was Shigeko, her friends, and Touichirou! Not to mention the fact that Touichirou wanted nothing to do with that child!
"No….but you might be. Can't you see that this is a good idea? Baby sis is going to be so happy with us and-" said Sho
"Sho, no. Your sister does not need this. Your sister is better off with her mother who loves her…and she's better off in this place…and she's better off being as far away from your father as possible. Your father does not want her, why do you think he ran away when I brought her to him?!" said Fukuda
"Dad was on an away mission." Said Mob. Fukuda should not have been talking like that to Sho or to anyone….and she just…she wanted this to be over already. Would it have been rude to walk right out the door? Probably….so she stayed there. She had been rude enough, and mean enough, as it was….and she didn't want to give him another reason to dislike her.
"Your dad ran away because he couldn't face up to what he had done…and he's hanging on by a thread as it is. I know him and I know that if you just show up with his daughter-" said Fukuda
"What are you talking about? Mukai is an orphan that Claw found. Like Hatori." Said Mob
"Are you blind or just high again? That is your flesh and blood sister! Your father does not want her around and, frankly, she's better off here and-" said Fukuda. He…may have gotten a little carried away. He may have let his anger and exhaustion get the best of him. He may have gone the one step too far…but he was done now. He had no choice but to be done.
Because Sho had tackled him to the ground.
"Sho! Stop it!" said Mob as she used her powers to pry Sho off of Fukuda. That had been…a bunch of weird lies to tell…and she had no idea why he had told them but she knew that Sho should not have been fighting with people like that. Maybe Fukuda had brain worms like Sho was always talking about…or maybe he was just making things up to upset people….like Shimazaki did sometimes…or…something like that….
"Sho….I'm sorry. I'm sorry….I shouldn't have told you like this." said Fukuda
"Told him…lies? Yes. You should not have told him lies. You're right." Said Mob as she held Sho in the air with her powers. At least Fukuda was learning right from wrong…so…yay? This was…so tiring…and she wanted to see Mukai and go to bed and…and a whole lot of other things….things that didn't involve Fukuda.
"You're a liar!" said Sho. Fukuda….was just saying things. If he was telling the truth then…then that meant that he'd been lying to Sho…for years….and that there had been no reason to take baby sis away…and that there had been no reason to lie to big sis….or…or….anything!
"I…am so sorry. Your dad…he made a mistake and…and I meant to tell you when you were older and…and I was angry. I'm sorry. I truly am." Said Fukuda. He needed to lay down. He just…could not take this anymore. The way Shigeko just…was. The way she made these unilateral decisions without thinking…and…and she was so much like Touichirou…and he was just…he had been cleaning up Touichirou's messes for so long now….he didn't need Shigeko coming in and undoing his work.
"Mistake….what the fuck…people are not mistakes!" said Sho. Big sis was holding him back and…and now her aura was touching his and…and it hurt again. This time he did get sunburnt on his hands…and Fukuda got it worse…and now big sis…she was kind of scary there…she was holding onto her sides and…and it was getting hard to look at her…so he closed his eyes….but he could still see her. She was that bright.
"Fukuda…go away. Go away and never come back." Said Mob. Getting the words out hurt. It was like there was something inside of her…like she had mixed soda and pop rocks up and her stomach was going to explode….her stomach and the rest of her, too….and she just…she had to keep it together….for everyone's sake….
She had to keep everyone safe…safe from her.
"Sho…come away from her." said Fukuda. He reached out to pull Sho away. That was…he knew that look. He had seen it before…on Touichirou. This was the line. When he exploded it wasn't always sudden. There had been times when he'd toed the line just enough to bring himself back….but not always….it was always a coin flip….
And Fukuda was not a gambling man.
"Big sis…where are you going? And…and what's wrong?" asked Sho. All the hairs on his arms and the back of his neck were standing up. He wanted to run away…but he knew his sister. She was pissed off…and so was he….but he knew that she would never hurt him. Not on purpose. Her powers were doing their own thing but….but she would never hurt him…or anything….
"Go!" shouted Mob. She didn't know if she was yelling that at Fukuda or Sho….or herself. She took a step away…and then another…and another. She put a barrier around herself and kept walking. She kept her eyes closed…and kept on walking. She walked until she found a door…she knew that she was being called out to but….but she just had to keep walking. She walked until she found a door…and then she opened it…and then she kept on walking…she just…this was….she didn't want to think about this. How mean she had been….how terrible she had been in her mind…and her words…and the terrible thing that Fukuda had taught Sho…and the terrible thing that he had just confessed to….and the terrible thing that dad had done to mom….dad…her own dad…
She just kept on walking….until she couldn't walk anymore….
She found some stairs…sat down…and screamed.