Wow, I think I'm on a roll with writing these longer chapters.

This one took a lot of rewrites to complete, but I think it turned out alright in the end.

Please enjoy reading and reviewing too! :)


Two Years Later

Momo: 12

Shintaro: 14


"Alright then! You know the drill; we open our eyes on one... two... three..."

"Just get on with it Shintaro."

"Haha, okay okay... now!"

The word still ringing in the air, both students opened their eyes to the bright white sheets of paper nestled in their hands. Their teacher had handed their marks back to them as the school day had ended. While most of their class had flown out running once the bell had rung, the two of them had stayed behind to see how each of their math grades had improved (or declined) together.

Shintaro's test, much to his delight, although not to his surprise, had been imprinted with yet another bright red 100%, the perfect shiny numbers gleaming at him from the top of the page.

"So?" He heard the soft, blunt voice from the girl sitting at his desk as well. "What did you get?"

With a humble, bashful sort of tone, Shintaro answered, "The same," without looking away from his paper. Why do they make these tests so easy? he kept thinking with a laugh.

"Of course," the girl next to him mumbled. "You're you, after all."

"Ahh, yeah..." Shintaro squashed down the urge to apologize and put down his test. He glanced over to his deskmate, hoping that maybe one of the rare, glowing smiles he loved so much would be peeking through her usual stoic mask.

"So what did you get-"

His spirits dropped when he saw that Ayano was far from smiling, and instead was positively glowering at the crunching paper in her hands. Oh dear, what was it this time...

"Aha, can I see...?" He tried to step carefully with his words, tentatively reaching for her test. Wordlessly, Ayano flung it right out of her hands in his direction, seeming to want to get it out of her sight as soon as possible.

Being his clumsy self, Shintaro almost didn't catch it. "Oh come on, don't be like that Ayano," he tried to persuade as he smoothed the paper over to its front. "It couldn't have been that bad, right-"

Shintaro paled once he saw it: a big black 51% glaring at him from on top of the paper, the ugly color clashing on white terribly. Oh wow. Wow wow wow, it was that bad; almost a full ten marks below her last math grade. Shintaro grasped at straws as he tried to think of some, any positive words.

"...um, at least it's not a 50?"

"Ugh," Ayano grumbled and slammed her face into her desk. "Just say it like it is; I'm the stupidest person alive."

Shintaro was quick to reach out and pat her head comfortingly, evading the hands she sent to swipe him away. "You aren't."

"I am," she insisted stubbornly, the sulky words coming out muffled as she pushed her face further into the wood.

"Not. There are dozens of people who struggle even more than you do."

More muted out cynical comments. "Like who?"

"Well, there's my sister, for example. You know she isn't the best at academics either."

Ayano flipped her head to the side to face him sideways, frown morphing into a semi-smirk, sending a warm shudder up Shintaro's spine. "No kidding. I know she's still in elementary school, but it's shocking that a direct relative of the great Kisaragi Shintaro could get even worse grades than me."

His reaction was immediate and indignant. Maybe I shouldn't have told her all those stories. "Hey. Momo does her best and I've been tutoring her - she's been improving a lot lately. So I'll tell you what I tell her: you just need to study more and do your homework." He flicked her on the forehead lightly.

Ayano's straightened up and threw a beam of irritation from deep within her spirit. "I do study and do my homework!"

"Really?"

An eraser was clumsily flung in his direction. It missed him completely. "Don't sound so surprised! Contrary to what you may think, I do try my best as well."

"Okay, okay!" Shintaro tried to calm her, holding out a hand of surrender as his other one picked up the eraser off of the floor. "I believe you. I guess I'm partial to blame as well, I should have helped you study for this one more. I'm sorry. I'll try to find some extra time."

"Don't bother." Ayano's sour expression molded into a forlorn one. "And don't blame yourself for things that aren't your fault. It wouldn't have done any good. Not even a genius like you can help a dummy like me."

Shintaro deflated. "Stop saying that Ayano, you're not dumb. You just need different ways to learn is all. Have you asked for any more extra help from the teacher?"

"Yeah, for the last science test, but again it didn't do anything. You remember; I barely managed a 65%."

"It wasn't that bad. If you had asked for help on this one, it could have turned out better."

"You don't know that."

"I-I know, but-"

"Face it Shintaro," she cut in, "I just can't remember any of the information when it comes down to write these things. Not everyone has a perfect memory and an IQ of 168 like you."

Any words he had left fell off of Shintaro's tongue, and his eyes slipped to the floor. He wondered if Ayano had meant the biting infliction on her last sentence, or if her words had just lashed out of her without consent, like many of her other more insensitive comments. Either way, Shintaro had no more answers to try and help the situation and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

As Shintaro's silence flowed on for a few more seconds, Ayano sighed. "It just can't be helped I guess."

She plucked her test back to her side of his desk, keeping the sullen expression on her features as she started to fold the paper. He watched as she struggled with making the wings of what was supposed to be an origami crane, looking more and more frustrated as the paper became more and more crumpled under her tense fingers.

"You're folding it the wrong way again," Shintaro couldn't help but exhale in amusement. "Give it to me for a second?"

After a moment of continuing to stare daggers at the raggedy little paper bird, Ayano simply slumped back and nodded. Blessed with permission, Shintaro picked up the crooked tiny thing with the utmost care. Within only a few seconds he had smoothed out all of its creases, twisting and refolding until it was proudly sitting upright on the desk, it's neck showcasing the dark grade like a necklace.

"Ta-da," Shintaro chuckled a little, his heart fluttering when he saw Ayano's face pout cutely as she poked at the newly formed creation. Lifting it up into the sunlight pouring from the window next to them (although it was fading fast as rain clouds began to form in the distance), Ayano gave it a little twirl, almost as if she was making it flap its wings and fly.

She let out a peeved murmur. "See? As always you're even better at making cranes than me. Show-off."

Her comment didn't sting Shintaro this time; he peered through her mask and saw the tiny smile underneath. His insides felt like they were glowing as he watched her reach for his own test, surely to remake it as another awkward, but adorable crane, in which he would then remake it to perfection.

This routine was nothing new, it had been going on ever since Ayano had received her first truly terrible grade back in their first middle school year.

He still remembered that day - the one where he had first seen her angry expression as she stared down the 49% mapping that first history test. Wanting to make her feel better the only way he knew how, Shintaro had taken his own test (100%, what a surprise) and had ripped it up. It was what he usually did with Momo and to his defense, he honestly thought that it was a good enough idea to do it with other people as well. Or at least right until Ayano took one look at the torn up test pieces and then called him an 'idiotic paper-waster.'

Just give it to me if you're going to destroy it, moron, she had spat before turning her own test into a broken crane. He had been so embarrassed (and was feeling embarrassed right now just remembering it) that it had taken a lot of apologetic pleading to get her to let him fix it. From that moment on, he swore that he would do her crane-making-technique with Momo every time she had a bad grade. Honestly, it was a much better technique than just 'ripping it to shreds, idiot.'

Cringing the memory away, Shintaro asked, "Tell me again, why do you make these cranes?" while leaning his head on one hand, unable to help his gaze from turning a bit more affectionate than usual. Good thing Ayano was too engrossed with making her origami to notice it; she would have called him a creep for sure.

"Hmm? Is the all remembering Kisaragi-kun actually forgetting something? I'm shocked," Ayano snarked back, without lifting her eyes or hands from the paper. "As I told you before, it's because there's nothing better to do with these worthless things." Despite her words, her mood seemed to be put back at ease, Shintaro was glad to see.

"And as I've told you, don't say that," he chastised her lightly, blowing a puff of air into her face to mess up her bangs a little. Flustered, Ayano flicked the new, equally crookedly shaped crane at him as she fixed her hair, while he himself laughed.

Soon enough, there was a second flawless paper crane sitting next to the first one, only this time, it's necklace was inked in the color of madder red, same as the scarf around Shintaro's neck and the crisscrossed clips in Ayano's hair (they had been blue for up until a year ago. She had switched the color to red one day without notice. Shintaro had vague plans to ask about it in the near future.)

The origami birds made a cute pair, he mused, and as per tradition he would take the one made from Ayano's test home and she would take his. He didn't know what Ayano did with the ones she took, but the highest shelf in his room was almost completely full of cranes and at this rate, he would have to clear out the shelf underneath soon.

Glancing outside the window next to him, Shintaro's eyes dotted the faraway storm clouds. He did a few quick calculations in his mind-space on how long it would take for them to roll over and start pouring. Hmm, ten minutes? Maybe five?

Whichever it was, he should probably be heading over to Momo's school to pick her up. Grabbing the red umbrella propped on his desk, he decided to ask Ayano if she wanted to walk out of the school together (it was the closest to actually walking home with her that he had - Ayano lived in the complete opposite direction of his house.)

However, before he could even get two words of the question out, his pocket began to buzz frantically, sounding quite desperate to be heard.

-rrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnngggggggggg-

Both he and Ayano yelped in surprise, Shintaro nearly dropping his phone as he fumbled it out of his pocket. He didn't recognize the caller ID and it took a few seconds to break out of his surprised daze. Ayano, Momo and kaa-san are the only ones who call me usually, who could this be?

"Who is it?" Ayano asked candidly as per usual.

"I don't know. Just give me a second." Pressing the screen to his cheek, Shintaro answered with as much confidence that he could muster. "Um, hello?"

"Hello?" an unfamiliar voice answered him. A man's voice, tainted with an official and foreboding tone that made Shintaro feel uncomfortable. "Is this Kisaragi Shintaro?"

"Y-yes." Confusion only added to his unease as he tried to figure out the reason this strange man could be calling him, beginning to wonder if he had made a mistake of even responding.

The man on the other end gave out a small sigh and paused as if he was rubbing his temples. "I'm sorry to be the bringer of bad news son, but I have something quite urgent to tell you."

Shintaro squeezed the phone to his ear tighter, a sense of dread beginning to waft itself into his body from the outside. "Alright, please continue."

"Well then, you see..."


The thunderclouds above him crashed and banged and screamed with noise, only pushing more frenzy and willpower into his clumsy sprint through the rain. Just a little more, I have to get there fast, don't waste any time, this can't wait at all...!

...I really am trash for skipping out on Ayano like that, Shintaro lamented miserably as rain pelted down on his umbrella. His exit had been quite the show.

"I have to go!" he had all but yelled as soon as the man had no more words for him and hung up. Gracelessly grabbing everything that he owned except for his half of the crane pair (I'll get it from Ayano tomorrow, he promised himself in regret. Well, assuming I even come to school tomorrow), he had dashed and more or less tripped out of the classroom without even sparing a glance back at her, guiltily ignoring her call after him.

"S-Shintaro!"

I'm sorry, he had thought all the way out of the school and into the rain. It was blasting down on him full force, soaking him to the point where there wasn't any real point of opening his umbrella. Shintaro found himself caring less and less about his own freezing skin and aching chest, the singular goal of get to the elementary school blazing out everything else in his brain.

Momo doesn't have a phone yet, but that doesn't mean they couldn't have just contacted the school and told her through them, Shintaro thought grimly. Puddles splashed up high as he pounded through them, her school right in view and coming closer by the second. It was doubtful that many other students were there; most of them had probably left before the storm hit.

Reaching and scanning the schoolyard viciously, Shintaro only skidded his burning legs to a stop once he spotted a familiar head of orange hair, who in turn got up from her seat on the bench she usually waited on upon seeing him crash through the gates out of breath.

Taut hands gripping the grey umbrella above her, he couldn't see his sister's eyes as she scurried over to him. "Nii-chan..."

The corners of an unsteady, fake smile were already forming as he met her in the middle. "S-sorry I'm late Momo, it rained harsher than I expected, haha. So uh, how was your day-"

"Nii-chan, is it true? What the man from the hospital said on the phone?"

Shintaro's smile fell instantly and so did his stomach. So they did already contact her...

"He said that kaa-san collapsed at work today, so they took her to the hospital and now she has to stay there." Tremors were erupting through Momo's voice and the umbrella above her shook. "He said that an illness they thought was cured came back, and if she keeps working like she does, she could die..."

Momo's eyes were no longer hidden, red not from her power but from the tears that were falling straight down from them and mixing in with the rainwater below.

The very few students who were leaving the school walked past them, although they stared in concern. Momo's power was unneeded; her voice was loud enough to draw attention."Is kaa-san going to die? Is she going to leave us like he did? Is this our fault? Is this my fault? Because I'm too hard to take care of? Nii-chan!"

It was Shintaro's turn to hide behind his hair, his body frozen limp and stiff, his mouth frozen into a miserable frown. He hadn't wanted Momo to have to hear the news alone, but now it was too late. Voice pathetically locked in his throat, he stood rigidly in place and shrunk into himself as Momo eyes bled rivers down her cheeks. Emotions evaporated off of their skin until the despair wallowing inside their hearts completely surrounded them.

"F-first obaa-san, then tou-san, and now..."

Suddenly, Momo's umbrella was thrown to the ground quite roughly. "I'm so sick of this! Haven't we suffered enough?!" She shouted as her hair and clothes grew soggy from the violently pelting droplets. "I thought we finally had a chance to be happy after tou-san died."

Lightning flashed across the clouds as if to imitate her anger and desolation at the world. Shintaro felt like he would be blown away from her voice, the only thing keeping him grounded being his complete understanding of her sadness.

"So why... why is this happening?" Momo's voice lost its sharp edge and her hands flew up to clutch her face as more whimpers tumbled out of her. "Why is kaa-san dying too? Why is everyone leaving?"

She brought her hands down and the way she looked so small and helpless in the rain only broke Shintaro's heart further.

"Are... are you going to leave next as well...?"

Blinking in shock and surprise, Shintaro felt his lungs unlock and his body unfreeze from its paralysis. Disregarding his umbrella in a similar manner as she had, the soaking scarf around him whipped in the wind as he bolted forward, entrapping his trembling younger sister in a hug. He held on as unmoveable and unbreakable as he could, desperate to keep them both in one piece before they fell apart completely.

"No! I won't leave you, I promise. Don't ever think that." He felt thin, quivering arms return his hug and a cheek fall onto the wet black uniform on his shoulder. "I'm going to stay with you forever."

Sniffling his words back up, he watched as his own tears began dripping onto the pavement below.

"It's okay. Everything's going to be okay. I'm the big brother, s-so I'll take care of us both. It's going to be okay."

Did he really believe this? Not really, but there was nothing else he could do but stand there and just be there as he listened to Momo's weeping turn to wailing.

The rain kept flooding from up above and didn't stop, almost as if it had turned into a falling ocean: fully prepared and ready to drown out their souls.


The rest of the day had been a very stressful blur. The two of them had rushed to the hospital after Momo had calmed down enough. It wasn't too long after they got there before their mother awoke from her faint.

She had embraced them as hard as she could, yet it terrified both of them by how weak and shaky her grip was. They hugged back gently, their sorrow flowing back out and onto her white hospital clothes and ill skin.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have ever let this happen, I'm so sorry," was all their once strong kaa-san could utter. For every apology she begged of them, they forgave her a thousand times over.

Once kaa-san had fallen back asleep (more peacefully this time at least), they were told to leave for home. It had probably taken a lot of maturity and restraint for Momo to not immediately demand to stay. Shintaro himself would be lying if he said that he wasn't tempted to do so himself.

They were lucky that he looked close enough to high school age that no one asked questions of who would be taking care of them. The truth was that they didn't have anyone, and the long, bleak and quiet walk home was one to an empty house.

The brutal storm had finally stopped by then and so had Momo's crying. Her stride beside him was rather agitated, the type of walking that Shintaro knew to mean that she was concentrating very hard on something. He was as well, his own feet thudding on the ground just as harshly.

Shintaro's mind was so full and racing with thoughts and questions (how are we going to pay for kaa-san's medicine and treatment? For the house and everything else? I could get a part-time job, maybe even a full-time one. Maybe I could start tutoring for money? Augh, this is tough), that he didn't hear what Momo had said the moment they stepped inside and closed the door.

"Eh? Come again Momo?"

"I said, I'm going to become an idol!"

"Ah, alright then." He took a step forward.

"..."

Then a step backward. "Wait, what?"

Momo was already running to her room before she could see his dumbfounded face. Running back, she was holding a business card. "Do you remember way back when I won my first art competition? My picture got put in the paper and then this talent scout came over and asked if I wanted to become an idol?"

"Of course." How could he forget? He had been the one to open the door when the scout had come knocking and had been the one to stand in front of Momo protectively as their mom chewed the man out for wanting to make an idol out of her seven-year-old. "What are you saying?"

"What I'm saying is that I'm going to call him and ask if his offer still stands," Momo declared with a determined look as her eyes flickered off of the card.

"W-what? Hold on for one minute." His mouth gaped, stunned, nearly unbelieving. "What gave you this idea?"

Momo's feet shuffled on the carpet below them. "It's been in my head for a while now. Just a dream really. But after what just happened, it's no longer a dream but something I have to do."

Is she serious? Her, an idol. "You hear what you're saying, right? You're only twelve! And while I'm definitely not an expert in this field, being an idol probably isn't easy."

"What do you mean?"

"What do you mean, 'what do you mean?' Your privacy will be greatly reduced, people will know you everywhere you go, and you'll have to start seriously working, and those are just the reasons I can think of right now. I'm sure there's plenty more."

"Nii-chan, you think I don't know all about that? I've done lots of research already!"

"You have? Since when?"

"In my free time. Anyway, it's just singing and dancing, right? How hard can it be?"

Shintaro looked at her incredulously. "Um, really hard? Being an idol is a job, you know! It's not all fun and games. Work is work, Momo, no matter how glamorous they make it seem. Agh, you haven't done that much research at all have you?"

Momo flushed. "W-well, I've done some. I know enough already and I'm still gonna do it!"

Her brother raked a strained hand through his hair. "Please, Momo. Doesn't this sound even just a bit too short-sighted to you? Silly almost..."

She pouted in frustration and glared knives at his words. "I don't care! Even if it is hard, that just means that it'll pay really well. Where else will we get the money for kaa-san?"

Her brother paused. "I- I don't know, but I do know that you shouldn't be the one worrying about it. Let me handle this; I could get a job instead. You're too young to start such a hard career." Wow, wasn't this exactly what kaa-san had said to the talent scout all those years ago? He really was beginning to sound like a parent, wasn't he? Maybe it was a good thing, though; thanks to a certain tragic development, he would have to play not only a big brother and a father, but now a mother as well.

Momo crossed her arms. "So are you nii-chan. If anyone needs time to themselves, it's you. You need to keep your perfect grades up so you can go to a good university. Isn't that what kaa-san would want?"

Shintaro crossed his arms as well. Two could play at that game. "Ahem. Are you implying that you don't need to focus on school as well? Your grades have been steadily improving; you can't just throw that away for something like this."

"I won't! I can do both; I'll just work extra, extra hard in class to make up for everything!" She was turning desperate now. "Please, nii-chan. We really need money now and fast, and I don't think even a smartie-pants like you could get such a high-paying job so soon."

With two fingers raised, she pointed them up to her eyes. "But I have these. I'm in full control now from all the training we've been doing. If I use them as an idol we'll get enough money in no time for sure!"

Shintaro rubbed his thumbs over the rest of his fingers, trying to find another reason to rebuke her idea. It was harder than he'd like to admit, her reasoning was unusually spot on (how come she's never used this attitude with her studies?)

"What about your art shows? You said you wanted to start doing them once you get to middle school, you won't have time for them if you do this."

"This is way more important. Besides, I'll probably end up winning all the shows anyway with my power so it wouldn't really be fair. It doesn't matter anymore, only this."

"..."

A silence stretched on as the Kisaragi siblings battled against each other in an epic staredown. Shintaro lost intentionally after the first minute, pulling out a kitchen chair to sit on and sigh in exasperation.

"...you don't have to do this, you know. No matter how guilty you feel, none of this was your fault. I want you to believe that."

Momo's intense gaze faded away and she pulled out a chair to sit on beside him. "I do believe that. It's just that ever since tou-san died, you and kaa-san have done everything you could to help out and support us. I've hardly done a thing in comparison, I just stood there and did nothing while you two bent over backward every day for us all."

Shintaro stared at the form of his sister, her back to him, his heart twisting. "...I've never felt that way."

"Well, I do," Momo said firmly and stepped off of the chair to face him once again. "So that's why I have to do this: so I can make up for all those times kaa-san slaved over us and overworked herself up until, well, up until now."

Astonished, Shintaro looked straight into his little sister's face for any hint of hesitation or doubt. He didn't find a single speck of each, and the face he stared down was more confident and absolute than he had ever seen on her. When had she become so grown up?

"Momo, are you completely sure? One hundred percent?"

"One hundred and one percent even. It's about time I put these eyes of mine to good use and start acting like a proper hero from the Mekakushi Duo."

Now she gets the name right, her brother couldn't help but chuckle in his mind despite the circumstances.

The assertive stance in her shoulders sagged a little. "But as much as I want to do this... I can't do it alone."

"Huh?" Shintaro cocked his damp head to the side.

"I'm going to need your help; I'm not smart like you, if I try to do this all by myself it could become a disaster."

It could very well become a disaster even with my help, Shintaro dryly thought but didn't say.

"I'll be hopeless with all the business and numbers, and you know a lot about music right? Those Vocaloid songs you make are pretty good already!"

"E-e-eh?! You know about those?!" Shintaro exclaimed in total surprise, almost staggering off of his chair, his face already feeling warmer and burning away any leftover rainwater.

"Nii-chan, your password on everything is 4510471." A fond sort of smirk graced Momo's lips. "They weren't that hard to find."

"Ahhh," Shintaro pressed a hand over his blushing face. Those songs are way too embarrassing, not to mention incredibly pretentious. "Do you really want my help after hearing them?"

"Yes." With a steady feeling aura, Momo clasped her hands together and bowed in a final form of pleading. "I know I might already be asking for too much, but all I need is a little help. Please, Shintaro onii-san."

Bright, wet orange hair dangling right in front of his face, Shintaro's vision lifted over as he mulled over his decision. This could easily not work out and leave them worse off than before, or it could work too well and change his sister negatively. There were a thousand different possibilities for this so-called dream to fail. However, seeing her break out of her sadness at the situation so fast, thinking up a solution, and acting so determined to see it through... it all lit a warm candle inside him. In the end, it was this new-found pride that made the decision for him.

"Go get dried up, we'll talk with kaa-san about this tomorrow, then call the talent scout guy if she says yes. We still have enough money to get by for a while, so my only condition is that you don't try starting any big things like concerts or stuff like that until later on; you'll be starting middle school soon anyway. Just so I'll have some time to make a few new songs. Of course, this is all considering that you get the job at all."

He stepped off the chair. "Listen, if you truly want to try this, to do this... I'll support you every step of the way." With his piece said and done, a hand reached out to stroke over her hair. However, he pulled it out of the way as Momo's head shot up. Her face was positively shining and her eyes beamed a joyful red, and this time it truly was from her power.

"You, y-you mean it?!"

A simple nod was enough of an answer in his mind, and her resulting smile was enough of a reward. "Thank you, thank you, thank you..!"

After a brief (lung-crushing) squeeze, Momo was already sailing excitedly across the house and spewing out ideas of songs she would sing and outfits she wanted to wear (Shintaro was a little alarmed when he heard her say 'chains' in her dress description).

As his younger sister's eager voice faded and she disappeared into her room, Shintaro started thinking up his own plans as well. I already have two song ideas in mind that might be good enough, but there's no guarantee just yet. I better get to work.

Heading up to his own room and computer to start right away, Shintaro paused for one second as he passed a mirror hanging on the wall.

This is going to be hard, isn't it? We're going to have to really start thinking about the future... and I guess any extra time with Ayano will need to be put on hold. But in the end, it'll all be worth it, I'm sure.

Looking into the eyes of his reflection, a finger snaked its way along the edges of his muffler. After all of this time, it no longer felt wrong to wear it.

So you can rest in peace, tou-san. I'm sure we will pull through.