Chapter 2

Family. It was something which drove Ryuko whether she wanted to admit it or not. In the beginning, back when life had some semblance of normality, things were simple. Back she was younger, all she had to do was deal with the loneliness and isolation. When he left her, the feelings of yearning left Ryuko quickly as weeks passed without even a word from her father; verbal or written. The frustration, the spite and the anger directed at her father was something that she didn't let go of and had begun to take its toll. The resulting alienation and ostracism only served to make Ryuko headstrong, stubborn and guarded; although it did nothing to quell her pent up feelings.

When Isshin wished to meet with her, it was as if the feelings of resentment were washed away, cleansed by a naive, juvenile light of hope of another chance to start over; a light of hope which was snuffed as she saw her father dying before her. She remembered her father's final words as she decided to fight in his place. Embracing the cruel fate her father spoke of, Ryuko never expected to know what it would be like to be part of a family until Mako entered her life, let alone even dream that her most reviled rival was actually her older sister. Having felt and fought for the warmth of a family for the first time in her life courtesy of the Mankanshoku, Ryuko was not ready to fully comprehend nor accept the severity of her father's dying words.

As the final life fiber thread drove its way through Satsuki's chest, the mixture of anger, fear, regret and desperation created the perfect storm within the smaller girl heart, spurring her into action. Satsuki was all Ryuko could think about as she moved, cutting tendril after tendril. She had hated Satsuki when they first met, from her high and might attitude down to her thick eyebrows. The revelation of the fact that they were sisters was laughable to Ryuko. Her sister was her complete opposite right down to the core as if it were part of a bad joke. Even if the life fibers were defeated, it wasn't like they could pick up where things left off and act like normal siblings. It would take a miracle before the two could even start to grow closer.

Now though, it had seemed that even the slim chance of a miracle had been stolen from her by the life fibers, just like her chance of living a normal life with a normal family. It wasn't fair. Ryuko did not expect fate to be this cruel even though she knew what to expect. As the familiar, pent up feeling rose up to her throat, the red-streaked girl did what she did when she was younger. She let out an angry cry, declaring her desire for revenge.

Lost in the raging torrent of emotions, Ryuko didn't notice the light engulfing her body until it was too late. She turned around, expecting to see the next red adorned enemy only to be blinded. All she could see was Satsuki's silhouette and the contrasting red from her wounds before she was blown back from the sheer pressure of the three quick blasts of light that ensued. Half blind and still reeling from the recent turn of events, the black garbed fighter could not help but brace herself as she sailed through the air, crashing and breaking through wall after wall across the Kiryuin estate. For every wall, pillar and door that she crashed through, whatever remaining structure that she could see in front of her would immediately break apart, crumble from the shock front trailing her.

It wasn't long until Ryuko felt her body drop, having gone through six walls. As she planted her feet as best as she could onto the floor, inertia sent her reeling back further, only coming to a stop after ungracefully skittering against the floor for another fifteen metres.

"Are you alright Ryuko?" Senketsu asked with urgency in his voice as his partner stood up raggedly, clutching her scissor blade for support.

"What the hell was that…" came the girl's growl, deflecting her Kamui's question. Consolidating her strength with her anger, Ryuko began to make her way over the newfound rubble and debris, towards her next enemy.

With nearly half of the Kiryuin manor obliterated, the lone girl could clearly see where she needed to go, eying the now dimmer beacon of light. As angry and cold as her presence exuded, Ryuko couldn't help but feel slightly nervous. The attack she had endured was not typical of that of life fibers in strength and certainly in appearance, having witness what had happened to Ragyo's corpse. At the sudden realisation at that thought, Ryuko's broke into a sprint with only one thought in her mind, 'Satsuki deserves a proper burial.'

As Ryuko approached the dimming beacon of light, she readied her scissor blade for her next attack. It wasn't long until she could see the remnants of the room she had previously been hiding in. With a few more steps, she could see a silhouette of a person standing slightly bent over, a sight which perplexed her. When she had severed all the threads that attacked them, she was sure that she had cut the ones which pierced and held Satsuki upright. Now that Ryuko had thought about it, she couldn't see any trace of life fibers nearby.

The semi-red haired girl slowed down to a walk, exercising more caution at her now unfamiliar surroundings. Closing the gap between her and her sister, the intensity of the light began to wane more and more. As the light became less blinding, an expression of shock made its way on Ryuko and Senketsu's face at the sight of the last Kiryuin. Satsuki's arms were crossed, clutching her Kamui's eyed pauldrons on opposite shoulders. Shock turned into hopeful determination as Ryuko began to hear her sister's laboured breaths. While it was a precursor to death, pain was also a sign of life.

"Satsuki," Ryuko yelled across the distance. "Satsuki!"

"Keep your distance Ryuko. Something's not right," Senketsu warned her companion.

"Are you kidding?" Ryuko replied, ready to ignore her Kamui's warning. Throwing caution out the window, the girl took several more steps forward, inching closer to the girl in front of her. Looking closer, she could see Junketsu writhing uncontrollably, tightening itself against her sister's skin. The sight of the white Kamui beginning to contort and enter her chest wound told her everything she needed to know. "She'll be taken over! We have to get her free. It'll be like last time, remember?"

Senketsu remembered what had happened on the Naked Soul all too well. It was something which he did not want anyone to go through ever again. Nevertheless, he couldn't shake the feeling that not everything was as it seemed. "I remember all too well Ryuko but now is not the time to put your life in unnecessary danger! You are the last hope for man-"

"I'm not the last!" Ryuko barked back defiantly as she looked down to her partner. Hearing Satsuki's continued cries and gasps of pain, she continued more solemnly, "As long as she breathes, she'll come back… I'll bring her back…"

The conversation between the girl and her Kamui was cut short as they noticed the light had fully dissipated. Looking up, they heard Satsuki's laboured breaths ceased as her grip around her pauldrons loosened. As she began to stand upright, the protruding shoulders of housing the eyes of Junketsu, as well as the framing chest brace, began to lose rigidity before melting into a thin film against her skin giving her a near naked appearance. Thick blue lines began to trace and mark the Kiryuin's body in a pattern not unlike the ones found when Junketsu was worn by her. As the blue outlines finished forming along Satsuki's body, fabric and straps began to take form wrapping tightly to clothe her limbs and nether region. The chest brace and pauldrons that had melted away reformed, seemingly growing from out of her skin, in a more rounded shape. The remainder of the long haired girl's body was covered in a thin transparent fabric which glistened with an arrowed texture in the right light. Satsuki's new slimline armour followed her contours more closely with Junketsu's eyes now positioned in the centre of her shoulders. It looked less imposing than before, lacking sharper edges however, it's alien-like features had made it all the more unsettling.

"W-what the hell just happened?" Ryuko asked aloud, suddenly overcome with nervousness. Senketsu remained speechless with neither of them knowing what had just occurred. The partial redhead felt a deep sense of unease as she saw Satsuki suddenly turn look at her, finally understanding the reasoning behind her partner's earlier warning.

"Ryuko! Watch out!" Senketsu's called out just too late. Before his wearer could even comprehend the meeting of his outburst, the revived Satsuki had closed the distance between them with her fist cocked back. Ryuko and Senketsu were utterly helpless as they took her feral blow to the stomach, sending them flying away, scissor blade in hand, for the second time. Pain continued to radiate from her core even as she sailed through the air. The blunt force had spread up her body up to her diaphragm, leaving her half winded as she collided with the ground again.

"Sa…ski…" Ryuko choked out in between her heavy gasps for air. Using her red scissor blade to hoist herself up, she only just noticed a single white foot on the ground in front of her. Using her other hand she braced her blade along its flat side in anticipation for what was to come. "What th-" were the only words which left the winded girl's mouth in disbelief as Satsuki's kick connected with her guard. Another painful grunt left Ryuko's mouth as the kick wrenched the red scissor blade from her grip, sending it skittering into the distance. Without pause, she suddenly felt a foreign fist collide with her cheek before feeling another to her ribs. Blow after blow had slipped through her guard, landing unusually hard and clean.

"Keh. Hard, fast and ultra precise…that's just like her," thought Ryuko as she continued to be pummelled. Despite the beating she had been taking, she couldn't help but smile inwardly. "Whatever happened to her, she's a freakin' beast."

As strong as Satsuki had become, nothing had stopped Ryuko from adapting to the fight. With greater focus on her footwork, fewer blows began to slip through her defence and when they did, the hits weren't as solid. It wasn't long until Ryuko was confident to retaliate with a strike of her own. As Satsuki threw a right that the black garbed girl had anticipated, she found her right arm caught by her opponent's right hand. With a quick yank, she was pulled towards her sister with her face speeding towards the opposing left punch.

"Wake up...Kiryuin Satsuki!" Ryuko screamed as her blow connected cleanly with all her strength and weight put behind it. The two sister stood facing away from each other, bodies half twisted from the cross-counter. As several moments passed uneventfully, Ryuko gathered enough courage to turn her head to face her older sister, finally able to look at her without repercussion. Pulling her left arm back slightly, shock and a hint of terror made its way to Ryuko face as she saw a thin, pulsing red band around Satsuki's iris.

"It can't be…" Senketsu trailed off in disbelief.

"How is it possible…a life fiber," the short haired girl echoed in tone. "What the hell did they do to her..."

Ryuko didn't have time to think, much less react as the untamed Kiryuin took advantage of her momentary daze. The hand which she caught had pulled back too quick for her to think of letting go. Ryuko's footing destabilised as Satsuki forced her off balance and into her flow. The only thing the shorter girl could see was the world spin as she was forced into a counter-clockwise pirouette which wrapped her own arm around her throat. Instinctively, Ryuko tucked her chin inwards in time as Satsuki changed slipped her hand over her right wrist and began to pull.

As her own arm began to tighten around her neck, Ryuko could feel her strength and resolve being sapped. Although she had managed to get stop herself from being strangled, she was still trapped; being held steadfast against her sister's body. Thirty seconds into the hold, Ryuko stopped resisting, opting to calm herself to conserve her strength. With several more seconds passing, the trapped girl flailed in an attempt to escape the deadly hold only for her captor to shift her weight to tighten her grip; a moment she had been waiting for. As Satsuki shifted her weight back to reinforce her choke hold, Ryuko put her gambit into motion and kicked her feet off the ground, propelling the back of her head to slam against her older sister's throat. Her ambitious manoeuvre was executed in vain as she soon found felt vice grip around her temples.

With her left hand gripped firmly around her opponent's face, Satsuki began to twist her body before doubling back and breaking into a high speed spin with Ryuko in tow. With her augmented strength, she increased her momentum before relinquishing her grip, throwing her younger sibling to the ground as if she were a human discus. Ryuko bounced off the ruined floor with a sickening crunch, leaving a crater of smashed stone from the sheer force of the attack. Only after three more bounces did her body come to a halt, bringing the girl some relief with the agitation of her cracked bones ceasing.

"Stand up, she's coming!" Senketsu warned. "Ryuko! Are you okay?"

"What...do you think?" the Kamui's partner managed to utter in between winces of pain. "First my sister dies and then she comes back to life as some brainwashed monstrosity."

The black clad girl soon raised her arms and tucked her head behind them in preparation for the ongoing onslaught. The oncoming blows from Satsuki changed in style, no longer quick and precise but wound back with overwhelming in power as a response to Ryuko's hardline focus on defence.

"Ryuko, you have to fight..." said the living clothing.

"What the hell do you think I've been trying doing all this time?" replied Ryuko incredulously in between hits.

"You're holding back your attacks."

"Are you kidding me? I'm more than half dying over here! Do you really think I can afford the luxury of holding back?" replied the now hot tempered girl as she scrambled to dodge the overpowering attacks.

"We're losing sync Ryuko," Senketsu called out in near panicked urgency as his vents began to expel a disproportionate amount of heated air from her partner's recent outburst. "You are guarding yourself. You have to lay your feelings bare. The more barriers you begin to put up, the further apart our we become!"

"And why don't you enlighten me on how I've been holding back?" Ryuko bit back venomously, finally breaking into a full retreat.

"Senjin..."

Ryuko's balked from her partner's one word retort; an intellectual checkmate in Senketsu's favour. The thought of using Senketsu's Senjin mode to turn the tide of the fist fight into her favour, let alone escape Satsuki's grapple had never entered her mind until now.

"I see your point," admitted the black clad girl in bitter defeat.

"I know it's hard for you but you have to use me at full power. You have to survive."

"What would you know about how hard it is for me?" Ryuko fired back, half choking on her words. "I know that Satsuki is absurdly strong and I know what might be expected of me. I've hated her ever since I laid eyes on her and even though the way she walks and talks still rubs me the wrong way, there's no way I can kill her!"

At the sound of her declaration, Satsuki had managed to catch up with her target and began another high powered assault. As the one sided exchange continued, Ryuko continued to vent in between blows. "Satsuki's saved my life plenty of times despite the bad blood between us, despite knowing that I hated her, despite that even after all this was over, we couldn't just move in and continue living like a family like she would have wanted. When I saw her alive again, I felt like I had a second chance to make it up to her! Even though she's like this, how could I possibly think of killing her? How could I, when I want her to live so much!"

As Ryuko ended conveying her feelings to Senketsu, another strong kick from her sister broke through her guard once more sending her reeling to the floor. Her arms were heavily bruised to the point that even her life fiber enhanced constitution could not regenerate the damage done fast enough. With her strength drained, Ryuko stood as quickly as she could to run, only to slip and fall ungraciously to the floor beneath her. Exhausted with a defeated will and a disparity between their desires, the Life Fiber Synchronisation ended. Rolling herself onto her back, Ryuko saw Satsuki bearing down on her with her fist at the ready.

Tears began to well up in the younger girls eyes as she mentally cursed her lack of resolve and her fate given how the day's events had played out. As Ryuko's vision blurred, she cursed her luck for not allowing her to see her sister's face one last time before she died. Clenching her eyes shut, the pinned girl awaited her fate, hearing the fist fall and make contact. Several moments had passed without an inkling of the sensation of pain. Ryuko opened her eyes, blinking away what tears remained in her eyes as best as she could. She turned her neck to look to her left, finally seeing Satsuki's fist embedded in the floor next to her. Turning her neck to face forward, she witnessed Satsuki slowly looking up to meet her gaze. Her expression was no longer cold, menacing and stoic but the opposite. Her expression was soft, weak even. Looking onward at Ryuko with upturned eyebrows and pleading eyes, Satsuki spoke tenderly.

"Ryuko... End it... Kill me..."

Author's Note

Finally Chapter 2 is done. I've also touched up the ending of Chapter 1 and fixed a glaring issue with one line of dialogue, courtesy to Aloxamax. Sorry if the action scenes are bland. I'm terrible at writing action and I hate doing it with a passion, which is unfortunate because I planned to have the drama (which is what I prefer) happen in the later chapters.

As expected, last week's episode was a fanfic wrecker with Junketsu being torn to bits and with the Original Life Fiber just up and moving. Also, I only just remembered about Shinra Kouketsu which would probably force me to do another action packed chapter. FML.

Anyways, please feel free leave a review and/or some critique. It will be very much appreciated. Since I'm at work for the next 7 more days, I probably won't be able to get Chapter 3 out until mid next week.