CHAPTER 13

THE BANISHMENT

It was early Sunday morning when Kagami slowly stirred from her slumber the next day. She woke up hoping that everything she had experienced yesterday was nothing more than a bad dream, but it proved to be a falsehood when her phone vibrated on her nightstand. Feeling her morning bones creak and crack with her movements, she grasped the phone and slowly opened the screen, revealing she had fifty-seven new text messages, all containing copies of Tsukasa's pictures and hurtful messages.

Kagami frowned at the phone and glanced at her alarm clock and upon seeing the time, she groaned, "It's only 6:30 in the morning and I already feel like dying. I need to change my number."

She wanted to stay in bed not only for the rest of the day, but for the rest of her life. Her autopilot routine however said differently and took control of her body, forcing her to get out of bed and shuffle out of her room. Inadvertently, Kagami slipped her cell phone into her pocket while she walked. As Kagami planned to walk downstairs, she stopped and slowly looked down the hall at Tsukasa's bedroom door. I wonder, she thought to herself as she shuffled over to the door and slowly slid it open.

The oldest Hiiragi twin only met silence and darkness in the empty bedroom. Tsukasa was still missing from their home as Kagami sighed and closed the door again, resuming her initial mission to arrive in the kitchen. The house was quiet. She was the first one awake this morning, which wasn't out of the ordinary but Kagami suddenly felt uneasy and paranoid, even though she was in the safety of her own house.

Wondering what else was going on in Japan and the world, she walked to the front door and opened it to retrieve her morning newspaper. Blasted by the freezing winter air, Kagami felt a chill run down her spine as she bent down and scooped up the paper and unintentionally looked towards the shrine. If only she kept her face away from it, then she would've had a few more minutes or even an hour of peace before her world was furthermore trampled upon.

Something was painted on the Torii structure gate and Kagami felt the need to investigate. She shuffled through the morning cold, some fog still present but was clearing as the sun rose into the sky. It didn't take long until the kanji was clear enough to read and Kagami suddenly froze like the ground beneath her feet and her heart pounded.

"Whorehouse."

The crudely drawn kanji sliced Kagami to pieces on the inside and tears formed in her eyes. She wanted to run and call the police but knew what this was. This wasn't a random act of bigotry. This was a vicious attack on the Hiiragi family but Kagami had to see it for herself as she felt her knees crack and quake as she moved forward and under the Torii. In the back of her mind, she knew that somehow, Tsukasa was involved in this and feared the pictures ruling all of cyberspace right now were the cause of it.

When she walked up the stone steps and saw the shrine's entire layout, the newspaper slipped from her grasp and landed at her feet. Through the clearing fog, Kagami saw painted messages of hate all across the other shrines that had words and phrases such as "whore," "cunt," "die, bitch, die," "burn," and "home of the slut." Kagami stepped forward and saw the Toro lanterns destroyed and scattered all across the yard and some also had messages of hate on them. When Kagami approached the other shrines, she finally understood the depth of how much trouble her family was in and it was serious.

The posters Patty-chan and her friends put up last night were of the images of Tsukasa either on the pole or forcing her tongue down the throat of another girl. The foreign student was able to print the cell phone images onto large posters and they were cemented onto the shrines. Some of the posters had captions printed in the image of Tsukasa hanging from the pole that said "Tsukasa's other Miko service." The ones that showed Tsukasa's deep kiss with Yuka Miyakawa held captions that said "The Slut of Saitama."

It didn't stop there when the ema caught Kagami's attention and how full it was with plaques. She slowly walked over to it and soon realized that it too was the victim of vandalism. Plaques read "I want to plow Tsukasa," "Dance for me, Tsukasa," "I want a threesome with the Hiiragi twins," "Suck it dry, Tsukasa." Some didn't even have fake and hurtful wishes; others just contained taunts. "Are you still tight, Tsukasa?" "Do spoiled Mikos go to Hell?" "Not as hot as your mother, but you're still doable." "Your father must be proud." Another had a crudely drawn picture of Tsukasa's face and it said "skank bank" with arrows pointing to her.

With every word, Kagami felt more and more defeated and humiliated as she was on the verge of collapsing to her knees. She suddenly heard something to her right, prompting her to turn her head and stare down at the cobblestone walkway that led to the Honden. Someone was inside the shrine and Kagami felt her blood boil, thinking she had cornered one of the vandals. She quickly approached the Honden and saw the lock had been broken off and the door was open.

Carefully walking up the wooden steps, Kagami entered the largest shrine on the Hiiragi's property and was faced with more destruction. It sickened the twin-tailed girl to see such a grotesque disregard for religious sanctity as more of the vile posters were hanging inside. Some were attached over religious artifacts and kanji also polluted the sacred walls. "Slut of Saitama" was spray painted everywhere, even on statues of Buddha and other religious beings that were once honored in the shrine.

Kagami turned her head and saw a man with his back facing her and he stared at the kami of the goddess Amaterasu. Amaterasu wasn't fortunate enough to escape the destruction as her fragile tapestry of her image was torn to shreds by human hands and in her place, a poster of Tsukasa's kiss replaced it, still with the caption "The Slut of Saitama."

Tadao Hiiragi held the remaining tapestry in his hands, his back still facing his daughter. He held the religious artifact and his head bowed before it, as if he was holding a dead body and weeping over it. Motionless he stood until he lifted his head back up and gazed at the picture of his nearly naked daughter indulging herself in such promiscuous and sinful behavior.

"Dad…?" She wheezed in a fragile voice.

He still stood there and remained motionless as he eyed the revolting image of his daughter. When he spoke, it made Kagami jump in her fragile state as his low voice echoed in the tarnished structure. "Don't speak, Kagami. I know what you're going to say…and you can forget about it. What happened to this property…is unforgivable. The people who did this will face wrath in the next life, but your sister is to blame for this too."

Kagami gulped. "Dad…Tsukasa—"

"Silence!" His thunderous voice ripped throughout the shrine and made Kagami fall to her knees. "I don't want to hear that name in this shrine, or on this property, or in our household ever again! No daughter of mine would defile themselves in such a disgusting way! This…person…is banished from our family! She is never welcomed here again!"

The order coming from her own father made Kagami's eyes water and she let her tears fall. She was officially commanded to forget about her little twin sister, the one she was born with, grew up, became incredibly close with, laughed with, cried with, and lived with. Kagami was powerless to do anything, too. Tsukasa was still missing and she had no idea where she was so she couldn't warn her or even say she'd still be there for her. Her younger sister was still out somewhere in the streets of Japan and for all Kagami knew, she could be dead.

"Dad…please don't." She whispered.

"I have no choice, Kagami. We need this wedding to happen. It's literally sink or swim for us and if we lose the Prime Minister of Japan, our family will collapse. We'll lose our shrine, we'll lose our home, we'll lose everything because since your sister's rape, no one has been visiting the shrine or making donations." Tadao ranted. "Our contributors in Tokyo withdrew their financial links with us when your sister tried to kill herself and we still have to keep donating to our charity."

Kagami thought it through in her head. She knew that on the first of every month, the Hiiragi family made generous financial donations to a charity. The charity they donated to was for homeless children and their families in Tokyo and the Hiiragi family never missed a public appearance to give the money with New Years being the only exception because it was a holiday. The Hiiragi family did have money saved in another bank account specifically for the charity and in addition to the Prime Minister's granddaughter's wedding next week, Tadao was expected to give the charity the money that week too. It was going to be the first of February next week, a month since Tsukasa was raped.

"You…you think Tsukasa will ruin this opportunity for us…?" Kagami sniffled as she wiped her tears.

Tadao slowly nodded. "Apparently she already has. When did she do this?"

"It couldn't have been Tsukasa that did this to the shrine," Kagami protested. "If you mean when these pictures were taken, I don't know. It could've been the first time she disappeared on us."

Tadao squinted and shook his head. "I don't think so, Kagami. Look."

Kagami looked to where her father was pointing at the image of Tsukasa kissing Yuka Miyakawa and at her left shoulder, which was barely visible but Tadao saw something. "You see that dark area on your sister's back? That's a tattoo."

Kagami gulped again and her heart skipped a beat. "A tattoo? Are you sure?"

"Yes, and I know that's a new thing. When I pulled your sister out of the bathtub, when she nearly died, she didn't have one." Tadao remembered that event. "Your sister is still out roaming the streets and doing God knows what."

The oldest Hiiragi twin choked again and looked up at her father. "How can we be sure?"

Tadao turned and Kagami winched in horror at the face her father had on. A glare and a frown had come together and collided on his face to create the angriest and dirtiest look Kagami had ever seen on anyone. Tadao dropped the shredded tapestry of the Japanese goddess and began to walk past Kagami.

"I think your mother has some explaining to do." Tadao sneered and callously walked past his crying daughter.

Kagami was left alone in the Honden shrine as she covered her eyes and continued to sob. For the first time in her life she was completely out of ideas and didn't know what to do. The family drama was getting worse and it wasn't slowing down. Tsukasa was now banned from the Hiiragi household forever, making Kagami feel sick. In their school group during the innocent days, Kagami was seen as the unofficial leader of them and kept things moving smoothly and made sure everyone around her was focused. Now she sat in her family's desecrated shrine, a broken young woman and unable to even stand anymore let alone keep the sinking ship that was her family from going under.

Her cell phone suddenly rang and thought it was another pervert or monster looking to further demean Kagami with hurtful words about Tsukasa. Either way, she looked at the screen and she suddenly felt warmth when she saw it was Konata that was calling her.

Thank you she thought to herself and answered, "Hello, Konata."

Expecting to hear great relief from her otaku friend, Konata unfortunately delivered a slow and depressing response. "Hey, Kagami. We have another problem here."

Feeling her heart speed up again, Kagami stuttered, "Wh…wha…what…what…what now?"

Konata Izumi stood downtown near Gamers and had her eyes locked on a disturbing billboard that was put up by unknown assailants the previous night. She sighed and said, "Let me just say I don't think it's a good idea for you to go out in public anytime soon."

Kagami sniffled again and knew that somehow, her day was about to get just a little bit worse and she hadn't even eaten breakfast yet. "Why?"

"Just trust me on this…and disconnect your landline and change your cell number." Konata finished and as Kagami continued to demand more information, Konata closed her phone and hung up on her. It pained Konata to do it, but what she saw couldn't be put into any words, especially in Kagami's fragile state.

The short blue-haired girl looked up at the top of an anime store and shuddered at the billboard. Tsukasa's picture of her hanging from the pole was all over the large board and could be seen by the thousands of people walking below it. It held a new caption within its image that said, "Looking for a release? Call this number and ask for 'The Slut of Saitama.'" The Hiiragi's home phone number was also printed in the image.

Konata shook her head with deep remorse and continued walking. Even the blue-haired otaku, who was no psychologist or family therapist and lacked any real serious academic abilities, knew what she saw when she looked at the Hiiragi family now. It was over for them. On this day, life as they knew it had ended. People were already pointing and laughing at the billboard as they continued to take pictures of it and spread it around. Konata knew it, but the tragic part was the only people who didn't know the Hiiragi family was finished were the Hiiragi's themselves. The day was still young, however, and Kagami's pain hadn't even started yet.

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Tsukasa sat in Kagami's room with her sister and the two ten-year-old girls worked on their homework together. Humming happily, Tsukasa rested on her stomach while rocking her feet back and forth in the air. She was having trouble comprehending her math homework and she glanced at Kagami, who seemed to be blowing through it as if it wasn't there.

"Hey sis, can you help me with this?" Tsukasa asked innocently, her droopy eyes trembling with admiration for her sister.

Kagami looked at her and smiled. "What's the problem, Tsukasa?"

"What do I do with this division problem again?" Tsukasa asked as she slid her math book in front of Kagami.

Her bigger sister examined the problem and it didn't take her long to figure it out. "Oh, with that one you bring the decimals straight down and don't forget that you'll have a remainder at the end. If you don't you didn't multiply it right."

Tsukasa followed along until something broke the peaceful harmony. The front door tore open and a crying girl dashed into the house and up the stairs. The Hiiragi twins looked and saw fifteen-year-old Inori run past their open door in tears and when she disappeared in her room, she slammed the door. Exchanging quick looks of confusion with each other, the Hiiragi twins quickly stood but Miki also suddenly appeared at Kagami's door.

"Girls, what happened?" She asked with concern.

"We don't know, mom. Inori just ran up and into her room crying." Kagami said.

"Oh dear…I'll go talk to her." Miki said and walked to her oldest daughter's door and knocked lightly on it. "Inori…sweetheart? Are you okay?"

Miki heard her oldest daughter sniffling in her room and she was able to squeeze out, "Come in, mom."

Smiling to herself, Miki slid the door opened and walked into her daughter's room and saw Inori stretched on her bed and drying her tears. "What happened today, sweetheart?"

"Kohei dumped me." Inori forced out, drawing more tears from her eyes.

Miki sighed. "I see. I'm so sorry, Inori. I know you really liked that boy. What happened?"

Inori pulled herself up and composed herself enough to tell her mother the story of her bad breakup. "Kohei and I were walking home from school and we kissed and he said he wanted more. He said he wanted to…fondle me and that he wanted to do more."

Miki's eyelids twitched in anger over the boy's desires but kept calm for Inori's sake and resumed talking to her. "And what did you do?"

Inori sniffled again. "I told him no. I told him I wasn't ready and that I wanted to wait until I was married before I…did those things."

Miki breathed both a sigh of relief and pride for her daughter. Tadao's principles had rooted themselves deep within Inori and she was sticking to them. "I see. Well Inori, I knew this day was going to come, but I wish it wouldn't. I just want to say I'm very proud of you and that you should be proud with yourself. You made a very mature and grownup decision and I'm sure your father would agree with me. I know it hurts, but trust me sweetheart, there are other boys out there."

"I know, mom, but that's not what's bothering me." Inori whimpered. "I'm upset the most because I thought Kohei was different. I thought he understood my family's religious principles and that he respected them. Are all men like this?"

Miki couldn't help but smile. "Your father isn't. From the moment I met your father, I knew he was a kind, gentle, and understanding man that was different from the rest. You'll find the right man someday, Inori, and when you do, it'll be the happiest day of your life. At least until your wedding day and when you become a mother."

Inori wiped her tears, smiled, and felt much better. "Thank you mom."

As the two continued to talk, Tsukasa and Kagami held their ears to the wall that connected to Inori's room and listened to every word. Tsukasa pulled her ear away first and said, "Hey sis, what does fondle mean?"

A bright red blush covered Kagami's face and she quickly shook her head. "Nothing, Tsukasa, forget about it. Boys are just…weird and gross."

The Hiiragi twins resumed their homework as Kagami continued to mutter about how stupid she thought boys were. It wasn't until Tsukasa's innocence broke through again that renewed the conversation when she said, "Wouldn't it be wonderful to have someone special with you? I think that would be so romantic."

Kagami rolled her eyes. "Whatever, I think love is overrated. It only leads to fighting and breakups like for Inori."

Tsukasa refused to let her childish charm fade. "I don't know, sis. I've always wanted to be a bride. I wish that could be my job."

"Why's that?" Kagami moaned.

"Well, you know mom and dad's wedding picture hanging in the living room?"

Kagami nodded.

"Well, I always thought that mom looked so beautiful in her kimono and dad was so handsome. They look like celebrities in that picture and I always thought that love was like that picture." Tsukasa said. "Love is as beautiful as mom is and I really like that. I want to be as pretty and wonderful as mom is and to find a boy that is handsome and we would be the prettiest couple in Japan."

Kagami sighed with a smile. She couldn't help but feel moved by her sister's innocent words and thought to herself I hope you stay this pure forever, Tsukasa. The world needs more girls like you.

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The violent burst of thrash metal ripped Tsukasa from her dream and her consciousness returned. She stirred and slowly opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. It only took a second for her to see that she wasn't in her own room. She was laying on a small, squeaky bed with a single blanket draped over her body and she slowly sat up. Her head was throbbing in pain as the pulsating music continued to make it worse. Looking around the room, she was in a space no bigger than a janitor's closet with more posters of punk bands on the walls and other gothic paraphernalia, including candleholders shaped like skulls and dead bodies.

Finding the strength in her legs again, Tsukasa stood and limped to the only door in the closet space and opened it. She recognized where she was instantly when she saw the hair salon setup and tattoo parlor. She was in the back area of The Black Window and assumed Yuka Miyakawa was around somewhere.

Tsukasa eventually navigated her trembling and weak body through the back of the shop and reemerged in the front and saw Yuka behind the counter. When Yuka looked up and saw Tsukasa, she couldn't help but smile and even laugh as she picked up a remote control and turned down the music so they could talk.

"Good morning, Tsukasa." Yuka said. "I hope you slept well. After nearly being asleep for two days straight I should say you are well rested."

Tsukasa's eyelids twitched. "Two…two days?"

"That's right. I never saw anyone do that much coke and still have enough energy to put on a show for the entire rave." Yuka said with a grin.

The youngest Hiiragi twin felt funny and she lifted her hands and began to feel her face. "Is that why I can't feel my nose or lips?"

Yuka nodded. "Don't worry, that'll go away soon. Just keep breathing through your nose and you'll feel normal again soon."

Tsukasa waddled towards her friend and pulled a chair over to her and continued to massage her lips and nose while breathing. "What the hell happened at that rave? I remember this dream; I was dancing from this pole and I kissed you."

Yuka deepened her smile and started laughing, grabbing Tsukasa's attention as she looked at her in confusion. "That wasn't a dream. You're quite a good dancer."

Tsukasa shook her head violently to wake herself up. "That explains my dream…and why there are these friction burns on my legs."

"Yeah those poles weren't meant for dancing, trust me, I know." Yuka said, still with a creepy smile. "But you handled it like a pro. Anyway, some of the boys from the rave are coming over tonight with some of your favorite powder, if you know what I mean. You in?"

Tsukasa nodded passively with little emotion as she was still working on getting the feeling back into her face. "What's that back room for, anyway?"

"Oh you mean the one you were sleeping in? I sometimes sleep here at the shop if I'm too high to find my way back home or if I'm entertaining a customer." She said seductively. "Next time I have a customer who wants a little extra, you should join us. Sales for me would skyrocket."

Tsukasa squinted at the idea. "I don't do men…at least not anymore."

As the two friends continued to converse, Hiyori Tamura was trying to keep her mind focused on the human activity around her as she walked down the street. Trying to forget about the horrendous event that happened to Kagami the previous day, she continued to walk in the otaku districts in the area while trying to clear her mind. It proved futile though when she too witnessed the evil billboard that Konata also found which furthered the Hiiragi's predicament. She and Konata were exchanging text messages with each other about what to do. Kagami was Konata's best friend and the blue-haired otaku vowed that she wasn't going to let her friend sink. Hiyori on the other hand still felt guilty about her perverse manga about Tsukasa's rape and felt she still owed Kagami a debt. Together, they were going to do whatever it took to see Kagami and her family through this trying time.

Hiyori continued to walk down the sidewalk and she approached a new store that she never had been in before. To make up for the upcoming Comiket, she wanted to create a new manga centering on a medieval gothic fantasy with two girls being the protagonists. In her mind, one of the girls was tall and slim with minty green hair and eyes, while the second was much shorter also with green eyes and reddish hair. She approached a shop called The Black Window in hopes of getting creative ideas for wardrobes to draw and she entered the store.

She was immediately blasted by the new culture and readied her sketchbook as Yuka looked up from her desk again. "Can I help you?"

"I'm just looking…for now." Hiyori said and began to look around the store at all the different ensembles of clothing hanging from the walls. Feverishly, she began to sketch pairs of boots, tops, and trinkets for her manga. She was so busy sketching that she didn't notice the second girl sitting next to Yuka with black dyed hair and a single blue, tattered stripe running down it. The second girl also held a magazine on dark clothing to her face but slowly lowered it when she heard Hiyori's voice.

She squinted to form a glare at Hiyori and raised her magazine again to cover her face and said, "How's your dirty manga coming along, Tamura-san?"

Hiyori froze like a statue and nearly broke her mechanical pencil in the process as she stiffened. Slowly turning her head, she looked at Yuka, who had a confused look on her face and then pointed to the girl sitting next to her with the magazine covering her face. Hiyori slowly turned and replied, "You…you sound familiar. Have we met before?"

With the magazine still covering her face, Tsukasa replied, "You could say that. Last time I saw you, you were on the ass-end of an ass-kicking."

Hiyori gulped and suddenly felt paranoid. Was she being setup for something? Trying to lubricate her cotton-dry mouth again, she said, "I…I don't…I…don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, I think you do." Tsukasa hissed with her face still covered. "Was my rape really that much of a turn on for you? Do you get your kicks drawing little dicks, you filthy chick?"

Hiyori nearly collapsed. "Tsukasa Hiiragi?!"

Tsukasa quickly lowered her magazine, revealing her sinister glare and gritting teeth. "Surprise, Tamura-san."

The female otaku didn't know what to do next. This wasn't the Tsukasa Hiiragi that once graced the hallways of their high school and brightened everyone's day with her happy and cheerful personality. This monstrosity was something else. Hiyori Tamura was a girl that paid very close attention to details; a trait she acquired through all her years of practice as an amateur doujin artist and when she looked at Tsukasa, it was as if someone's worst nightmare had taken physical form. Her skin was losing color, her eyes were like two burned out embers, and the look across her face was so dirty and so evil, it couldn't even be considered human anymore.

"Wha…what are you doing here, Tsukasa-san?! Your family is worried sick about you!" Hiyori exclaimed. "Do you have any idea what Kagami is going through right now?! She's devastated by your antics and had a breakdown yesterday in school."

"Cry me a river!" Tsukasa snapped and her glare tightened. "You better get the hell out of here, Tamura-san, before I shove my boot so far up your ass you'll be using my laces as dental floss!"

Hiyori couldn't believe what she was hearing from the once docile Hiiragi twin. "Tsu…Tsukasa-san…I—"

"Listen, bitch, I don't know who you are or why you're here, but I'd listen to my baby if I were you." Yuka stood and joined Tsukasa in her glare at Hiyori. "This wild child ripped her own sister a new one so I'd leave before I'm forced to clean up your dead carcass in my store."

Feeling outnumbered and exposed, Hiyori knew she wasn't going to win this engagement. She had to retreat and without one more word, she quickly fled the store as Yuka and Tsukasa sat back down and resumed their inner circle of anger as Hiyori continued to run down the street.

Once out of breath, Hiyori stopped and breathed hard and tried to quell her pounding heart as she tried to take in what had just happened. Did that really happened, or was it just a bad dream? Hiyori even pinched herself and when she felt pain, she knew it wasn't a dream. Without a second thought, Hiyori pulled her cell phone out and found Konata's number and typed a text message.

"Found Tsukasa at a place called The Black Window. Tell Kagami. We should be here for her when she sees Tsukasa."

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Hiyori waited around The Black Window for Kagami and Konata. She had exchanged text messages with Konata over the next hour trying to setup a confrontation for Kagami with Tsukasa. Konata and Hiyori were determined to end this quarrel that was tearing the Hiiragi family apart today. It became more complicated however when Hiyori witnessed three shifty-looking men walk into the store and she could see them talking and laughing with Yuka and Tsukasa through the store's window. Nearly two hours had passed until Kagami and Konata arrived at The Black Window and met with Hiyori outside.

Kagami quickly approached Hiyori and stood firm with her. "Please tell me, Tamura-san, how bad is it?"

Hiyori gulped. "I won't lie to you, Kagami-san, its bad. I think Tsukasa is…well, not going to cooperate with us but I couldn't walk away without trying first."

Kagami was already on the verge of tears and, to everyone's surprise, hugged Hiyori again. "Thank you…for being there for me, Tamura-san. Thank you."

Hiyori patted her on the back. "I owed you big time, Kagami-san."

Konata and Hiyori each took Kagami's hands and rubbed them, giving Kagami support and the courage to walk towards the dark store to confront Tsukasa and hopefully stop the fighting. Konata and Hiyori looked at each other one final time as Kagami grasped the door handle but suddenly froze and looked back at her friends. "Aren't you two coming with?" She asked groggily.

Konata and Hiyori looked at each other and back at Kagami. Konata took the initiative and said, "We thought it was best if you went in there alone. Tsukasa needs to know that it's just you speaking for your family and that we didn't force you to do it."

Nodding slowly, Kagami opened the door and disappeared inside the store. It was out of their hands now. Only the Gods could save the Hiiragi's now as the two female otakus waited and listened outside for the first signs of trouble.

Kagami's sudden entrance sounded the bell and grabbed the attention of everyone inside. She saw Yuka and recognized her as the girl who was locking lips with her sister in the infamous pictures. There were three other boys in the store, also dressed the same way as Tsukasa and Kagami thought that she was given a preview of what the demons of the underworld looked like.

"Tsukasa? Where are you?!" Kagami called with newfound strength.

With looks of confusion, the crowd of demons stepped aside and revealed Tsukasa standing only a mere fifteen feet away, but Kagami thought they might as well be worlds apart when she saw her sister again. Since the last time Kagami saw her younger fraternal twin in a hospital bed, she could see that somehow her situation was still rotting. Tsukasa stood before her sister with her arms folded across her chest and her usual glare fixed on her face.

"What are you doing here, Kagami?" She spat with such venom in her words.

Kagami gulped and stood tall again. "I'm here to talk to you. I want you to come home with me. Our shrine was vandalized by some horrible people because of what you did at that party. Your pictures are all over school and town."

Tsukasa tightened her glare. "And you want me to come home? What would dad say?"

"Dad is furious. He won't even reference you by your name anymore. He even told me that you're banished from the household forever but I still haven't given up on you, Tsukasa. You're my sister and I love you so much…so much that I don't even think any human can comprehend it." Kagami continued, feeling that at any second, the dam holding her emotions together was about to break. "When I left home to come here, mom and dad were yelling and fighting with each other. Mom lied to us when she said she had taken care of you. She released you from the hospital with no consequences. It seems that no one knows how to help you but damn it, I'm not going to stop trying."

Tsukasa stood like a tree and continued to listen.

"I know what you're going through, Tsukasa. Miyuki explained it to me. You blame yourself for what happened to you on New Years, and you want a more aggressive personality because you saw yourself as weak and unable to stop what happened. You think that this new bad girl attitude is helping you cope and rebuild your life, but it's not, Tsukasa, it's not." Kagami continued. "You're hurting all of us, Tsukasa, the ones who truly love you. Please, take my hand. I'll take you home and stand up to dad for you. I won't let him throw you out and we'll fix this. Please, Tsukasa, or you may never have another chance."

Kagami outstretched her hand and her heart pounded as she waited for her emotionless sister's response. All eyes were on Tsukasa as she narrowed her eyes, glanced at Kagami's hand, and fixed her frown back on her older sister. She opened her mouth and replied, "Get lost, Kagami, before I kick your ass right off this fucked up planet."

"Tsukasa, please!" Kagami yelled at the top of her lungs and the dam holding her emotions together shattered and her eyes quickly drained tears. "We're falling apart without you! I need you, Tsukasa! You're my sister and I don't know how to go on without you! I'm begging you…let me help you!"

Kagami shuffled forward, her body trembling and her face showing nothing but defeat as she outstretched her hands and grasped Tsukasa's dark wardrobe and Kagami pulled her sister tight. Tsukasa remained unresponsive as Kagami continued to spill her heart.

"You know I've always put on a tough and hard personality, but that was all for you, Tsukasa! I was always brave and I was always together because I always knew I had you behind me! You prop me up! You give me the strength to get out of bed every morning and live! Without you, I cannot keep living! I wouldn't know how! I can't go back to school anymore because of those pictures and I felt so defenseless yesterday!" Kagami wailed and began to lose the feelings in her legs and began to slowly melt to the floor, Tsukasa's clothes slipping through her fingers as she fell. "I don't want to lose you, Tsukasa! You nearly died in that hospital and even in that bathtub but I was there for you! It was my blood that saved your life! I'd be willing to cut off my own arms and legs if it would help you, Tsukasa! And mom and dad are growing further apart because of this! They won't stop fighting and Matsuri thinks they're going to get a divorce!"

Tsukasa still remained passive when Kagami landed on her knees and held her sister's legs and cried on them.

"You were so pure and so innocent! Please, come back to us and be our innocent sister again! I don't want to leave this place without you, Tsukasa!" Kagami began to finish her plea. "If I'm forced to leave you here, I don't know what I'll do! I could kill myself if I lose you…I beg you! I beg you! I beg you!"

Kagami finished her heartbreaking and desperate attempt to reach her sister. The twin-tailed sister continued crying on the floor while hugging Tsukasa's fishnet-covered legs. It was truly a horrible sight to see the once proud and mighty Kagami Hiiragi who stood tall now curled into a ball at her sister's feet in a crying, watery mess. Silence entrenched The Black Window as Kagami continued to cry and everyone awaited Tsukasa's next move.

As Kagami cried, she suddenly heard something. She heard her sister and it sounded like she was crying, too. Ceasing her wailing, Kagami opened her flooded eyes and looked up and saw her sister covering her face with her hands and appeared to be truly crying. A weak smile tugged at Kagami's mouth and it seemed that she had broken through to her baby sister as she pulled herself up and stood eye-to-eye with her. Tsukasa kept her face covered with her hands as she continued to cry.

"Hey, hey, it's okay." Kagami said with a growing smile through her emotionally-driven hiccups and was about to hug her sister.

Tsukasa suddenly stopped crying while holding her hands over her face and the sudden move stopped Kagami. Slowly, Tsukasa removed her hands from her face, revealing an evil and sinister smile with eyes of an animal that weren't spilling a single tear. When Tsukasa locked eyes with Kagami, the youngest Hiiragi twin deepened her smile and began laughing at Kagami. The sound of her sinister laugh tore Kagami to shreds on the inside as the oldest Hiiragi twin's meltdown neared another round.

"You're pathetic, Kagami Hiiragi." Tsukasa laughed and with one sudden movement, pushed Kagami away, knocking the twin-tailed girl off balance and she tripped on her heel, making her fall to the floor. The move sent The Black Window into a laughing frenzy as they pointed and taunted Kagami as she rubbed her buttocks on the tile floor.

It suddenly happened. Kagami Hiiragi's face scrunched together again and her tears poured from her eyes as she looked up at Tsukasa, who crossed her arms across her chest again and continued to laugh at Kagami. Kagami screamed. She screamed her sister's name so loud that it prompted Konata and Hiyori to quickly swoop into the store as they thought it had turned violent.

The two otakus bent down to Kagami as she continued to cry and Tsukasa stepped forward. The three girls fighting for Tsukasa gave her a look of shock and terror at what she had done. She had completely broken her sister and Kagami couldn't even speak anymore as she continued to cry on the floor.

"You're nothing, Kagami Hiiragi. You're an emotionally-crippled fuck, your soul is nothing but piss and every single thing about you is pathetic," Tsukasa spat with a smile gritting her teeth. "I could squat right here and shit out a better sister than you. Everything about me was used by you to only make yourself look better, and look at you now. Crying all over yourself like a goddamn baby. Now who's the baby of the family now that dad threw me out? You want more proof I'm not a baby?! Yuka, get over here!"

Yuka Miyakawa, who was holding her sides together from her endless laughter, heard her name and quickly sprinted to Tsukasa's side, thinking she knew where this was going. She was right when Tsukasa grabbed Yuka's face and reenacted the infamous pictures all around town. Tsukasa inhaled the girl's lips and forced herself into Yuka's mouth for Kagami to see.

Seeing it in person was more horrifying than in the pictures. Konata and Hiyori turned away while Kagami was stuck in a trance watching the whole thing. Breathing hard, her surroundings became surreal as she watched her sister kiss another girl while the boys around them continued to laugh and point at Kagami.

"No…no…no…no!" Kagami cried and grabbed her head and rolled onto her side, crying and screaming with all her might.

Konata and Hiyori had seen enough. Each girl took one of Kagami's hands and began to drag her out of The Black Window as Tsukasa ended her kiss and watched with satisfied eyes. Still laughing, Tsukasa watched Hiyori take the lead by dragging the thrashing Kagami out of the store. Before Konata could leave, Tsukasa furthered the angst.

"Hey Kona-chan." She hissed, grabbing the blue-haired girl's attention as Hiyori and Kagami disappeared outside. "Let me know if sis dies. It'll be good news for your mother; she'll finally have some company as they both feed the worms."

Konata's eyes twitched but she suddenly formed a glare, surprising even Tsukasa. The short girl stood and approached Tsukasa, stopping short of her and looked as if she was ready to smack the troubled Hiiragi twin. Instead, Konata remained calm.

"One of these days, Tsukasa, you'll be more haunted by those words than I'll be." Konata calmly said.

Tsukasa glared at Konata and abruptly spat on her face, making Konata flinch. Now Konata looked as if she wanted to cry as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a handkerchief and wiped it from her eyes. When her face was clear, she stood tall in front of Tsukasa again.

"No matter what you do, I'll always love you, Tsukasa. I'll always be here." Konata finished and quickly left the store as Tsukasa smiled and returned to her existence.

Outside, Hiyori struggled to keep Kagami under control as her thrashing became more erratic. She kept screaming for Tsukasa as Konata came over and hugged Kagami but the outbursts continued.

"I have to go back in there!" Kagami yelled, attracting onlookers.

Konata shook her head. "No, Kagami, it's over!"

"My sister's in there!" Kagami screamed the loudest yet and people began to call the police.

"Your sister's gone, Kagami!" Konata screamed back and held her distraught friend tighter. "She's gone! We've lost her!"

"She's in there with those crazy people!" Kagami wailed again as Hiyori too was at a loss of what to do. "It was my duty to protect her and look at what she's become because of me! If you have a gun, Konata, use it on me now, I'm dead either way!"

Konata couldn't hold her tears either and released them as she held Kagami's head close to her petite body and kept trying to shush her as Hiyori also slumped to the ground and hugged the disastrous mess. Hiyori looked at her watch and saw the time read 10:30 am. The day was still young for horror.

What next? That was all Hiyori Tamura and Konata Izumi could ask themselves.