Chapter 6
What is Love? Little Sis, Don't Hurt Me
'The fact that everybody around me has fallen in love makes me happy. Moka-san and I are a couple. Mizore-chan and Kurumu-chan just became a couple as well. But…I'm starting to wonder about Yukari-chan. She IS a child, yes, but…is she smart enough to know about love as well? And what about Ruby-san…? Surely she has someone she has a crush on, whether it'd be a boy or girl.'
Ruby is by the school gates, sweeping. She is glad everyone accepted her to work at Yokai Academy, being part of the staff and applying for different jobs. She can properly be responsible and work hard like any other normal human being. And get paid as well to feed her little sister. Her life has never been much better than how she previously lived. However, there is just one problem that's been bothering her for a while.
"Morning, Ruby-san!" Kasumi greets as she and Moka approach her.
"Morning, Ruby!" Moka greets as well.
The older witch puts on a smile. "Hello, Kasumi, Moka. A good morning to you." She looks down to see the two girls hold hands. She knows that they are a couple and is honestly a little jealous.
She looks over to see another pair coming toward her. Kurumu and Mizore also holding hands as they are walking.
"Yo! Morning!" Kurumu waves with her free hand.
"Hello there," Mizore says softly.
"Hey! Don't forget me!" Yukari dashes to catch up to the group and stops to catch her breath. "Ruby-onee-chan, you're here a little early."
"I have my duties, remember~?" The older witch says.
"Oh, right," The little witch rubs the back of her head and turns to greet the other girls a good morning.
Ruby finds herself smiling at Yukari interacting with the other girls. She has done so much better here now that she has real friends. She is proud of her little sister. However, when she looks at the two yuri couples, she cannot help but feel a bit left out. Even she can fall in love with someone, so why is it so difficult? No, it's not that it's difficult. It's just the fact that she has hidden the most deepest secret, including Yukari herself: she is in love with her little sister.
Now, her late parents used to ship them, but Ruby thought they were joking. She refused to believe that they were actually serious about having her and Yukari be together like lovers. But she is still in love with Yukari no matter how old she is. It's the love that counts. For her at least.
In fact, as Yukari and the others are conversing, Ruby is in her own world, fantasizing about her and her little sister together as a couple.
Ruby's Fantasy*
"Yukari-chan, this may be sudden but I am in love with you!" Ruby said, putting both fists on her chest.
"Ruby-onee-chan…!" Yukari gasped. "I…I didn't know you felt that way about me…!"
"It's true! Please, accept my feelings," Ruby gestured toward herself. "I don't care what anybody says! My love for you is the most important!"
"Yes, Ruby-onee-chan…!" Yukari jumped into her older sister's arms.
"Yukari-chan…!"
"Ruby-onee-chan….!"
The two leaned in and share a passionate kiss.
End of Fantasy*
"Ehe…ehehehehe~" Ruby sways back and forth, her long black skirt fluttering from the movement and she hugs herself while she is still having her head in the clouds. "Ohhh, Yukari-chan, you're so naughty, ehehehehe~"
"Ummm…Ruby-san?" Kasumi asks, snapping the older witch out of her thoughts.
"Ah! S-sorry! Did I miss something?" Ruby jumps and quickly regains her composure.
"Uhhh…were you…fantasizing about something…?" Kurumu asks.
"She's in love…" Mizore says.
"N-n-n-no!" Ruby shakes her head roughly. "What in the world makes you say that!? No way! I'm not in love with anyone! No way, no way, no way!"
"You shouting like that gives it away…" Mizore says.
"Hey! Don't act like you know me!" Ruby shouts, pointing at the snow woman.
Kurumu shrugs. "My Little Snow Bunny might be right, you know~"
"Not you too!" Ruby squeaks.
Moka chuckles nervously. "If she's in love, she shouldn't be too embarrassed about it. She can tell all of us since we are her friends."
"You're right," Kasumi nods in agreement.
"Y-you're imagining things. Oh, would you look at the time!" Ruby quickly checks her watch. "It's time to head to your classes! Better get going!" She gently pushes the group "Go, go, go!"
The girls cannot argue with her and do as they are told. Yukari looks back and Ruby just smiles and waves. The little witch just nods and waves back before rejoining the group.
Ruby puts a fist on her chest as she watches her little sister leave. It still hurts her heart to be in love with her like this. She cannot keep it a secret forever, but she also knows that Yukari's reaction might cost them their relationship. They have been inseparable since they were kids. She doesn't want it to end.
Later*
As Nekonome is doing lectures, the main girls cannot focus as they are a little worried about the older witch. She has been acting a bit strangely since this morning. She has been fantasizing about something like she has fallen in love with someone. But nobody can figure out who it is.
As for Ruby, she continues to keep everyone in the dark about her being in love with Yukari. But the more she does, the more her heart hurts. Yukari is so precious and cute that Ruby cannot see herself being a couple with her. Not when she thinks about how she would react.
"This was a joke…" Ruby says to herself as she walks alone down the halls. "It has to be a joke. Yukari-chan, Mom or Dad didn't mean any of it, did they?"
To this day, she still wonders if they were right about shipping her with Yukari.
After School*
Gin is walking around, camera in hand as he looks for hot ladies to take pictures of, even some yuri ladies since he is an ultimate yuri fan now. He notices Ruby alone, standing by the door at the end of the hallway. He decides to approach her.
"Yo, Ruby!" He says, getting the older witch's attention.
"Oh, Gin," Ruby smiles as she turns to face him. "What brings you here? Aren't you supposed to watch over your club members?"
"Aoi and Akashiya are handling it," Gin replies.
"What's with the camera?" Ruby asks.
"Ack!" He jumps as he almost drops his item. "N-nothing important!" He clears his throat. "Anyways, what's up with you? You look like something is troubling you."
Ruby hesitates for a moment before sighing softly. She gently puts a hand on her cheek. "Can I trust you….?"
"What do you mean?" Gin asks.
"What I'm about to tell you…it will be a bit of a shock to you," Ruby says. "I'm….I'm…ummm…"
"Yeah?" Gin raises an eyebrow.
"I'm in love…" Ruby says softly.
"With?" Gin asks.
"Yukari-chan…" Ruby replies, barely a whisper.
Lucky for Gin, he can hear her due to his wolf capabilities.
"Heh, so you're in love with Sendo, Tojo?" He asks. "Hey, it's not that bad."
"You don't understand…" Ruby says as she holds her forearm. "What will Yukari-chan think if she finds out I'm in love with a minor? What will my friends think? Will our relationships fall apart?"
Gin just smiles and wraps an arm around her shoulder to comfort her. "Listen, I'm not sure if I'm the right person for you to ask. If you really want to know, tell the girls yourself. But if you want my opinion: I would gladly support you and Sendo's relationship. It doesn't matter if you two are different ages. All that matters is that you love her very much. And I'm sure Sendo will feel the same way." He pats Ruby's head before turning to leave.
Ruby turns to him and just watches him walk off. She knows he is right, however, will it actually work if she outright tells everyone her greatest secret?
Later*
That late afternoon, Ruby is at the gates again, sweeping. All day she has been thinking about when and how she will come out to her friends and her little sister. Her head aches, but her heart aches even more. She really wants to come out to her little sister. But the negative thought just keeps getting in her way.
"If only…" she says to herself with a sigh.
"Hey, Ruby-onee-chan," Yukari's voice is heard from the front, getting the older witch's attention.
"Oh. Hello, Yukari-chan," Ruby says. "Where's your friends?"
"They should be joining me soon," The little witch replies. "But I decided to leave early to see you. Because…I was kind of worried about you."
Ruby smiles and pets her little sister. "Thanks for your concern. But I'm fine. I'll meet you at our shared dorm room soon."
But Yukari doesn't budge. Instead, she takes a few steps closer.
"Ruby-onee-chan, I am REALLY worried about you," The little witch says. "You've been acting strange since this morning. Please, I want to know so I can help you."
Ruby clutches the broom. "You won't understand…"
"Understand what?" Yukari asks. "I'm your sister. I deserve to know. We were together for a very long time."
"That's the thing," Ruby frowns and turns her head away. "There may come a time where we could grow apart…because of my actions."
"What do you mean?" Yukari says. "You're scaring me!"
Ruby shuts her eyes tightly, shaking her head roughly. "It's complicated, Yukari-chan! If I tell you everything, I will also ruin everything! Everything we shared…everything we held dear…"
"Please just TELL me!" Yukari says. She then sees tears streaming down the older witch's eyes.
"I'm afraid…our relationship will fall apart because of me…" Ruby says as she shakes, clutching her broom more. "Because of my desire…for you…"
"Wait…what did you say…?" Yukari raises an eyebrow.
"I'm in love…with you, Yukari-chan," Ruby says as she starts to cry softly. "I've been keeping it from you, from everyone else because I was afraid of what you will think of me now. Being in love with a minor. I shouldn't be doing this. I should love someone my age, maybe a little older than me."
"So that was it," Kasumi's soft voice is heard from the gate. "You were hiding your true feelings. I cannot blame you though."
"Kasumi…?" Ruby sniffles.
The shy brunette gently puts a hand on her shoulder. Moka steps by her side and links arms with her beloved.
"Love is love," Kasumi says softly. "You cannot let fear get the best of you. Sure it may be a good thing, but if you truly desire that person…you should just come out to that specific person. It's alright to love your little step sister. You two aren't related by blood anyways. But even if you are, you should still love your sister. I was told by my mom one time: it's not about blood relations. It's about love."
"But….but…" Ruby says and Yukari hugs the older witch from behind.
"Just like Mom and Dad said," she says softly. "We were bound to be together, sooner or later."
"Wait…they were serious about it…?" Ruby asks. "I thought that…"
Yukari looks up at her sister. "I know they were serious about it because I heard them constantly talking about us being together. We got along so well that they were willing to support us being together as a couple if that ever happened in the future. And here we are…finally making their dreams come true."
Ruby tears up again. She did not realize that their parents really did ship them.
Kurumu and Mizore arrive as well. They have been hearing the conversation, too.
"Looks like Ruby finally came out of the closet~" Kurumu says.
"Love between siblings is so sweet," Mizore says as she chews on her lollipop.
"So you see~?" Kasumi says softly. "You don't have to hold back your feelings anymore. Go on…kiss your little sister in front of us."
"I want to see the action~" Moka says excitedly.
"Same here…" Mizore nods in agreement.
"Yeah, go girl!" Kurumu cheers.
Ruby turns to her little sister and kneels down at her level. Yukari walks up to her and wraps her arms around her. "D-do you really…accept my feelings?"
"Of course!" Yukari replies happily. "Mom and Dad in heaven will be so proud! We are finally together as a couple~"
"Oh, Yukari-chan…" Ruby cries happy tears.
"Ruby-onee-chan~" Yukari says.
Both lean in, intertwine hands and share a passionate kiss. The other girls cheer for their first ever kiss. Kasumi and Moka smile tenderly as they share loving expressions. They are very happy that Ruby and Yukari can finally be together without any worry.
A/N: I really had fun with this one. In canon, Ruby is really nice to Yukari, which is why I shipped them in the first place. So yeah, a lotta fun!
Also, guest reviewers…please stop spamming "Please Update". I'm gonna have to delete those unfortunately. I know you love this story so much, but please be patient. One of these days, I may get stuck and it may take days or maybe a couple weeks to finally come up with something.
Anyways, the next chapter will definitely be the girls going to the human world and meeting Nagisa and Tamao.
Have a nice day!
