Here's something else I planned all along. The real idea was to have at least one chapter of Yuri just being Yuri.
Yor regained awareness when she felt a cool breeze on her cheek. She became aware of scents that gave her a further sense of association. The aroma of apples was strongest, both fresh and in the odor of baking pies. Beneath it were the more subtle scents of hay, leaves, and just a hint of earthy horse manure. Then she became aware of a sniffing sound. She opened her eyes, to find herself looking at the face of a grinning demon. She stifled a scream, long enough to recognize a ceremonial mask of a far-off land. Behind the mask, a voice said, "Sister?"
"Yuri?" she said, at first in disbelief.
"Oh, sorry…" The Prince of the Ill Wind raised his mask. Yor scowled at the face beneath. "Yeah, and there's that…" He peeled away the face of Twilight. Beneath, his head was shaved and his skin was pale as a ghost. "Yes! It's me! Oh, it's been so long! Yor! My sister! Sister, sister, sister, sweet sister!" She shrieked as he hoisted her up, then gasped as he drew her into a crushing bear hug. Then he tossed her so high she had a brief glimpse through a skylight overhead.
"Oh, Yuri, of course, I'm glad to see you," she said. She held him at arm's length, as she had when he had his big growth spurt. It gave her time to take in their surroundings. The mezzanine was set up as a rural festival. At the center, the elevator core opened up into a planter for a tree with ivory bark and gold leaves. Around it, six long skylights radiated outward like spokes of a wheel to illuminate the fairway. The floor was packed dirt with a thin layer of hay and leaves. The perimeter was lined with stalls. One sold both apples and pies. Others offered corn, squash, spun taffy and a pumpkin as big as young Loidy. At one end, a cluster of booths offered a ring-toss game, a mechanical shooting gallery and an enclosure for a pony. Yuri paused to offer the pony an apple.
"I'm so glad you're here," Yuri said. He led her to a bench under the tree. She let him put a brotherly arm around her as they sat down. "I've been meaning to call you… Oh. Right. She said no. But you're here now, right?"
"Yes, of course," Yor said. "Yuri… There's a reason we haven't seen each other. You remember that, don't you? You and Fiona and Sally were all on a plane that disappeared. Everyone said you were gone, Yuri."
"I know; I felt bad," Yuri said. "But you knew I was okay, didn't you?"
Yor pondered for only a moment. "I was sure you were out there," she said. "I knew if you were, Fiona and Sally were probably with you. But that's not the same as all right. Can you really tell me you're okay? I came here to stop you, Yuri. Don't pretend you don't know that. I saw people you hurt, when you were wearing my husband's face and talking in his voice. Is that what she did to you, Yuri?"
"I don't know," her brother said. "It started as something we did when we were, you know, alone. When we went into hiding, we had a lot more alone time. We both had new ideas. It kinda got out of hand."
"Did you think about how I would feel about it?" Yor said. "We didn't just lose you and Fiona, we lost Sally. Don't you remember how much she and Anya liked playing together? And… were you really wearing my husband's face when you and Fiona were in bed?"
Yuri scratched his head. "Well, it's not exactly like that," he said. "Like, if our scenario is Interrogation …"
"Okay, Yuri, you can stop," Yor said. She took his hand. They sat in silence for a time, until a screen came to life. The Queen was once again before the camera. The frame centered on her bloodshot right eye.
"Our plan has now entered its final phase," she said. "In secret, and against multiple laws and treaties, Blackbell Industries installed an experimental fusion reactor in the foundations of the Dodecagon to power the building and the wider complex. If our ultimatums are not met, my operatives have set up a positive feedback loop that will overload the reactor core…"
"Oh dear," Yuri said. "I remember her telling me about that. I knew I should have called time out, but she gets wound up, and I was, well, out…"
"It's not too late," Yor said. "Help me, and we can stop her. We can get her help. If you're with me, we might not even need to fight her."
"I know," Yuri said. "She's hurting. Nobody but me knows how much she hurts. I think she's the way you would have been, if you hadn't had me. I do everything I can to help her. For a while, I thought she was better. But sometimes, she just… slips."
"Maybe you tried too hard to help her," Yor said. "I did that with you, too. I hid what I did for Garden, because I thought it would make you think less of me. It made you think you needed to hide it from me when you joined the SSS. It was when I had Loid, and you had Fiona, that we could finally be honest with each other again. Maybe what will help her is to tell her the truth. Tell her no. I can be with you."
Yuri took her hand. "Aw, thanks, big sis," he said. "The thing is… I don't really mind helping her. We get to spend time together, and when she gets into it, we have so much fun. Just let me take you to her, and I'll bet she lets you help too!"
Yor jumped back as her brother rose. She picked up the bench, delayed only a moment by its robust moorings. "Aw, sis, we don't have to fight!" Yuri said. She hurled the bench. It smashed the ring toss booth. Her brother was nowhere to be seen. His arms were around her before she could turn. "C'mon, I just want a hug!"
"No, Yuri! No!" Yor threw him over her shoulder. He hit the side of an elevator shaft and dropped to the floor, leaving an imprint in the glass the size of his body. She shrieked as she ran onto the fairway, Yuri right behind her.
"Sister sister sister!" Yuri babbled. Yor threw three squashes, a pie, a barrel of apples, and a chair to no avail. A taffy-pulling machine the size of a small ice box finally slowed him down. She grabbed a pellet gun from the shooting gallery and emptied it in his face. "Ow, my eye!" he protested.
Yuri dived for Yor. She summersaulted over him and ran back the other way. "Sis, don't be mad!" he said. "C'mon, what are you even gonna do with that?" Yor had hefted the pumpkin over her shoulders. She threw it.
Half the pumpkin caved in on impact. What remained still buried Yuri's upper body. It was a moment before he moved. The pumpkin was tossed to one side. Then he sat up, covered in pulp, seeds and chunks of rind. "Oh, sis, I'm so sorry," he said. Then he flopped back down.
A stair took Yor up to the three elevators that served the Mace. She carried Yuri over one shoulder as she ascended to the top.