Fubuki raised her eyebrow in surprise as she stared at the message alert from her Hero Association chat client. She rarely used it, as she relied on a separate system for communication with her "Blizzard Group", and when she did she almost never received a message from someone else - other than via the dispatch - unless she'd sent a message first. Admittedly, she could thank her sister for that, with her reputation making socializing somewhat difficult. However, even then she would normally be looking at the alert for 'Business Message' or, rarely, 'Personal Message'. But there was the unexpected alert, plain as day.

"You have '1' new Family Message".

She apparently had a new electronic message from Tatsumaki...or at least, from Tatsumaki's account. She wouldn't be surprised if someone had hacked into her sister's account to send this message, either to send an electronic attack or try and lead her into some sort of trap. It wouldn't be the first time someone had made the attempt, although no past attempts had been successful. Still, she hadn't been in contact with Tatsumaki for a lot longer than was normal. It had been several months since their last meet up, and Tatsumaki always managed to pop in once a month, generally unannounced and usually at the worst possible moment...not that Fubuki had ever given her sister a way of knowing what the good moments were, but still...

She carefully weighed her options. If this was an electronic attack, she should definitely delete it without opening it. If it were an invitation to a trap, she should look in to know what to report. But if it were genuinely from Tatsumaki - as unlikely as that seemed - then it could very well be important, possibly life threateningly so. What possible reason could she have to make contact this way when it would be less effort just to fly in?

Sighing, she did the only thing she could think to be safe and certain. Setting up a mirror of her hard drive on an isolated system, she transferred the unopened email into it before opening it, ready to wipe the mirror and all it contained at the first sign of anything even slightly off-

Oy, Okiimouto-chan!

Fubuki stared at that first line for a few moments...then likely startled several of her men nearby as she burst into boisterous, very unladylike laughter. Well, it was definitely from Tatsumaki, that much was certain. She hadn't called her that in decades, not since...

Her laughter faded as the 'since' started to rear its head in her mind, but she quickly banished it, struggling to maintain the happy feelings the once-hated nickname brought back to her. Instead, she looked at the next paragraph...and nearly burst into laughter again. This was definitely her sister writing - though apparently possibly with help, wasn't that interesting? - and she really should reply in kind. Without hesitating, she kept the message open while she started her reply.

Not so up, Chiisanee-chan!

She couldn't help but chuckle, remembering how she'd used that to poke Tatsumaki playfully whenever she forgot to not float back when they still lived together, before things started going wrong. However, she was able to push those thoughts away, as this suggested things might just be going right again...something she would seize with both hands and all her power. Some opportunities didn't come a second time after all. Rereading the second paragraph, she began typing.

Well look at you, sis, accepting advice from people! That's wonderful to hear...and admittedly it sounds like good advice. And yeah, it's me with the temper huh, Miss Tornado of Terror? :P Still, great to see you finally have a friend-

She paused as one particular word caught her attention, and a wicked grin crossed her face.

'He', you say? :3 Is it more than just a friend you've found, sis? Somehow I doubt it's anyone I know...no one I know in our class is someone you'd say gave "good advice"...so any chance I can meet him sometime? :P

Deciding that was enough playful teasing for right now - and if this worked out and communication became more open and frequent even if it was electronic, future opportunities would be rife for the taking - she moved onto the body of the letter. Seeing the next line, she decided to read through more of the rest of the message before continuing her reply...only to be completely unsurprised by its contents. Rolling her eyes with a rueful smile, she continued typing.

You're not the only one who's both proud and worried. You're one of the most powerful beings on the planet, sure, but you still have your limits...and far more than me, you could reach them without even knowing it. I know my limits, Maki, which is why I hone my skills and gather allies. If I ever falter, my friends have my back because they know what we're working towards together is worth more than anything we could possibly achieve alone, and far more than any momentary gain a betrayal might grant...not to mention they know exactly what you'd do to them if they did betray me that way, so I'm not all that worried.

And hey, if someone in my group really thinks I'm "worth dying for" in that way, maybe I'll finally get a second date, huh? :P

She paused as she wrote. While she knew what she'd typed was what she wanted to say, she worried it was a little too flippant about her sister's worries. Thinking it over, she returned to typing.

Don't think I'm not taking the danger seriously either, sis. I know what hurt could be worse than death...but I think my goals are worth risking that, and if we could settle down somewhere face to face and talk about them without exploding at each other, I'd want to share them with you...because I'm pretty sure you'd agree with them, if not the risks I'm willing to take for them.

And what I said about your limits...I'm really glad you've finally found a friend, someone you're willing to trust like that. Someone who can be there for you when - all unwitting - you do hit your limits, or simply can't exert yourself to your fullest. It means I no longer need to fear you being beaten down through sheer attrition...because someone will be there to take the load so you can take a breather when needed. I know you always said you were tough enough to handle everything on your own...but to me that just meant if you ever were beaten down to that point, I would never know what happened to you because no one who knew would report it.

Because just like you said, sis, you matter to me too. You're my only family, and nothing will ever change that.

...send me a chat request sometime, okay? This...really does work for us, doesn't it? I miss talking to you...and maybe this way we can keep the collateral damage down low enough to actually finish a conversation for once?

Fubuki sat back as she looked over the letter. Maybe she was a little heavy with the text emoticons...but the nicknames brought her back to memories of when they were much younger, back when they could still be playful with each other...and she really missed that. It might be a little overboard...but it was her, and in a way only her sister would really know was her. With the Association, she was always all business. With her Group, she was always refined and ladylike, with a dash of sultry when someone needed a pick-me-up. ...only with her sister was she ever childish, and not in far too long.

As she clicked 'Send', she silently thanked whoever had given her sister that advice...and hoped she'd be able to meet him soon. She might not be as threatening as her sister was on raw power, but if he was that close to her he still needed to be evaluated...and she had a few tricks in that regard her Chiisanee would never have thought of.

Luigi shivered slightly as a cold chill ran down his spine. For some reason, the saying "No good deed goes unpunished" passed through his mind, and he found himself wondering what else this world could possibly have in store for him...