Notes:

Merry Christmas 🎄

Well, here Vera comes to bring you one more chapter of this fic as a Christmas present from me and also to let you know that this will be the last chapter I will publish this year, since as some of you know, I will be leaving my country this Wednesday for family vacations and I will be back until the end of January.

Seriously, I want to thank you for all your support and for giving this fic and all the others I have written a chance, your votes and comments are very valuable to me ❤.

So without further ado, I leave you with the next chapter which I hope you will like as it will be narrated by Mai (The italicized parts are her words) because this is the continuation of the letter that Okkotsu started to read in the previous chapter. It would be like her POV.

There will also be some flashbacks so that you can understand a bit of the context of the story.
Any error in the translation, I will correct it next year.

✨Vera loves you ❤

Chapter 12. Secrets

Got a secret
Can you keep it?
Swear, this one you'll save
Better lock it in your pocket
Takin' this one to the grave
If I show you, then I know you
Won't tell what I said
'Cause two can keep a secret
If one of them is dead 🎶🎵

Okkotsu, can you keep a secret? Because I'll need you to keep several for me.

Well, everything I will tell you below is what I consider the most important thing you should know about what happened after your departure. Maybe some parts will be read in a hurry, because if I were to tell you everything that happened in these seven years, I would never finish. So in the following pages I will only tell you what happened after your departure and the months that followed where Maki was pregnant and about the event that caused your children to be born prematurely.

If you have any doubts about what you will read below, it will be your mission to find the answers.

Also, it will be up to you whether you believe me or not. But I experienced all this firsthand because I was there. I am a faithful witness of what your departure provoked.

And the first thing I must confess is that I hate you for abandoning my sister. I had never felt such anguish and empathy for Maki, but that day of your departure and, by the way, receiving the news that Maki was pregnant, moved me feelings that I didn't think I had and, by the way, it was what ended up uniting us in the least thought way.

Okkotsu, Have you ever heard that twins have an intuition or a sixth sense that warns them that their twin is in trouble or that something bad is happening to them?

Well, for us as twins, there was always a connection like that. That's when I knew something was wrong with Maki...

Seven years ago.

Flashback

Mai wrinkled her nose as she finished drinking that bottle of water. She had been feeling strange for a while. It was a feeling that told her she had to go out to a certain area urgently.

For a moment, she felt her cell phone vibrate.

"Who is it this time?" she said to himself quietly as she looked at her cell phone. But to her surprise, there was no message in her inbox.

Still, Mai noticed the time, it was already past noon.

"I'm sure that idiot Maki has already gone back to Tokyo with that imbécil of Okkotsu"

She told herself trying to concentrate on filling out her reports, but really, she couldn't get that weird feeling and foreboding out of her chest.

She even began to have a strange thought with Maki. It was as if her older sister was calling her from afar.

Mai felt that something was wrong with her twin and maybe she should go and find out what was going on. Although she also associated that feeling to the stress of the missions she had had in those days.

A part of Mai also felt annoyed as she had learned that her older sister had been in Kyoto on her honeymoon with Okkotsu and Maki had not taken the initiative to "stop by to say hello" or at least let her know that she was in Kyoto that weekend.

"Idiot…" She whispered as she looked once again at her cell phone. She opened her sister's chat and noticed her last connection.

Truly, Mai couldn't stop thinking about her older sister. Worry was consuming her.

"Something's not right... Maybe I should go for a walk. Yeah, maybe I just need to clear my head. I'll go buy some things"

The younger twin decided to heed that instinct.

She grabbed her purse and told Momo that she was going out to buy some things in case someone was looking for her at the institution.

01:17 p.m.

Mai went straight to the shopping mall near Kyoto's main train station. It had been a long time since she had gone shopping in that area. She especially liked the sweets they sold there.

Mai first began to look at the shelves of the stores of various brands that had in that place. She looked at bags and accessories that could match her look, as well as some souvenirs as she knew that that train station connected to Haneda International Airport station, so that station made it a very busy one.

You could see both tourists and residents coming and going with their suitcases.

Mai was walking around those stores for about half an hour, until she decided to go in and shop at one she knew quite well.

After buying some chocolates that both she and Momo liked. Mai decided to go out to the main street that connected to the train station.

At that moment, again a bad feeling started to feel very latent in her chest, she had even detected a strange presence of cursed energy coming from inside that station.

Something told her she had to go in that direction.

And so she did, the Zenin began to walk to where her hunch told her to go.

It wasn't more than five minutes that the younger twin was walking towards that station, when one person in particular began to catch her attention in that sea of people.

The closer she got to her, the more she felt she knew her.

The wheels of a suitcase began to sound louder and louder as Mai kept walking straight towards that person she managed to recognize in the distance. It was her sister.

Mai stopped suddenly in front of her twin.
"Maki?" she named her with surprise, noticing that Maki was pulling her suitcase. She even looked confused.

Maki stopped suddenly when she noticed that someone had blocked her way, she was so distracted that she had not realized who she had run into until that voice called her name.

The older twin slowly began to raise her head and saw her younger sister in front of her.

"Maki, what are you doing here?" asked Mai with confusion and even more so when he saw her in this state of bewilderment.

But the following would surprise her too much.

At that moment, Maki dropped her suitcase and went straight to hug Mai.

"Maki, what's wrong?" asked Mai, very confused when she saw her older sister's behavior, as Maki clung to her and began to cry bitterly.

"He abandoned me..."

"What did you say?" Mai asked with too much surprise as she felt her sister trying to stifle her tears.

"I SAID YUTA ABANDONED ME! HE JUST LEFT THE COUNTRY WITHOUT ME! HE LEFT ME!" Maki screamed with a broken heart. She was breaking to such a degree that her knees buckled and she was falling on them until she touched the floor without letting go of her sister.

"I'm going to kill that bastard..." whispered Mai as she hugged Maki and tried to lift her up.

That was the first time I saw Maki so vulnerable. In my life, had never seen her break down emotionally.

I had never seen her cry like that. Not even when we were beaten in the clan did I see her cry or complain like that afternoon where for the first time, I saw her shed tears and the worst part was that she was shedding them for a man.

But that day I saw that my sister had a heart. A heart that you destroyed.

Really Okkotsu, I wanted to find you, I wanted to kill you for breaking my sister's heart.

After a minutes. Maki was finally able to talk to me. We had both left that station and walked away from there. So I decided to ask her what had happened.

Flashback

At that moment, they were both sitting on a bench. Mai, to help calm her sister down a bit, bought her some water and some snacks that she knew she liked.

Maki really looked devastated, with a puffy eyes. It was the first time she was heartbroken so that feeling was one of the worst she could be experiencing for the first time.

Mai sighed regretfully.
"Maki, what happened?" she finally dared to question, "Did you and he argue?"

Maki shook her head as she lifted her glasses and wiped away her tears.

"We didn't argue or anything like that. I was just waiting for him on the platform because I asked him to go buy me a bottle of water before getting on the train" she blinked several times to clear the tears from her eyes and kept wiping her cheeks with her hands.

"And there I was waiting for him for more than an hour, some things are confusing at the moment. I just remember that some idiot crashed into me and I talked to someone else on that platform" Maki rubbed the bridge of her nose, looking confused, "But in the blink of an eye, I remember seeing him leaving on top of the train. Yuta was sitting at the window and he was leaving without me on that train to Haneda airport," she said very upset, "He left me... he just abandoned me here without giving me any explanation"

"You know?, I never liked that idiot and now with this, I have even more reason to hate him even more!" Mai sighed.

From what Maki had told her, Mai felt that something did not add up, she doubted that her sister was drugged or under the effects of any substance. Mai found that behavior a bit confusing.

"And why didn't that imbecil call you on your cell phone to tell you that he was already on the train? Why didn't you call him?" said Mai.

"Because my cell phone was just stolen... I had no way of communicating with him. Actually, at this moment I have no way of communicating with anyone else!" said Maki rubbing her temples. Her head was hurting a lot.

Mai raised her voice in annoyance "What do you mean, they stole your cell phone? When did that happen?"

"It all happened so fast that even I'm surprised," Maki still looked confused. – "As I said, a few minutes ago a guy crashed into me and apparently that's there when he stole my cell phone. To be honest, everything that happened at the station was so... strange... even at this moment I don't have the head to understand what happened in there. The only thing I know, is that Yuta left me... He just abandoned me..."

That still seemed too strange to the younger twin. She thought that perhaps her older sister might have been under the effects of a curse or some cursed technique and more that she being a woman with a very minimal amount of cursed energy, she knew that Maki was not immune to something like that, in case she had been attacked by a curse or by someone. That alone would explain her state of confusion and delirium.

"I guess we're going to have to go file a report about this robbery" Mai sighed.

"By the way, Mai, what were you doing here? How did you find me?" asked Maki looking at her sister.

Mai shrugged her shoulders.

"I just had a strange feeling that made me come here. And I guess it was a good idea because if not, I can't imagine what madness you would have done in this deplorable state you're in. Besides! You were not good to tell me that you were here in Kyoto, I found out that you were in the city thanks to Utahime sensei who was the one who told me that you two were here" commented the youngest of the twins crossing her arms.

"I'm sorry. This weekend was simply chaos... what was supposed to be a nice weekend with a couple... ended in the worst way... or rather, in the least expected way" Maki commented in a sigh before taking a sip of her drink.

"Yes, I guess your relationship with that idiot Okkotsu had to end sooner or later. Anyway, life goes on, I guess that even if it hurts you will have to go back to Tokyo by yourself" commented Mai while she opened a package of a sweet bean cake.

"The truth is, I don't even feel like going back to that city..."

Mai took out that dessert and took a bite. The smell of that sweet made Maki have a disgusted expression on her face.

"Seriously, that sucks... I'm going to vomit..." her face tightened into a grimace of utter disgust.

"What the hell are you talking about?, this doesn't even have a strong smell!" Mai raised an eyebrow at her twin's expression, "What's more, eat some of this, it'll do you Good!"

"Get that thing away from my face!" Maki endured the nauses"I really want to vomit..." she brought her hand to her mouth with too much discomfort.

Mai watched Maki carefully, she thought that at first her refusal to eat was due to depression because of the separation. But she could tell that her older sister had something else going on, she seemed to be hiding something as she took a messy swig from her water bottle.

"Maki, seriously, what's wrong with you? You don't look well at all. Did that idiot Okkotsu do something to you? What else happened? What's wrong with you? You look really pale and even tired, What are you hiding from me?"

Maki's voice began to crack as she sensed that Mai had detected that something was wrong with her.

"Mai is that I..."

"Maki, what's wrong with you?" She demanded to know while she kept looking at her sister's eyes.

"Mai... I'm Pregnant..."

The younger twin was completely petrified to hear those words.

"Pregnant?"

Maki sighed as she carved her eyes "I found out a few days ago that I am pregnant..."

"So Okkotsu abandoned you for this?" asked Mai very annoyed while pointing at her sister's belly, "That son of a bitch abandoned you because he found out you were pregnant?"

Maki shook her head.
"I didn't even have the brave to tell him... so Yuta abandoned me without knowing that I'm expecting a child from him..."

Mai sighed and threw back her head.

"Maki, what the hell have you done?! What the hell are you going to do with that baby now?!" Mai questioned angrily, "A child is a big responsibility!"

"I don't know what I'm going to do right now! I feel so confused that I don't know what I'm going to do! I don't have the head to make a decision right now!" Maki shouted in annoyance.

Mai was too upset at that moment because of her sister's recklessness and it showed in her voice and in her hands, which she was shaking furiously "You know you're going to get into trouble when the clan finds out about this pregnancy! Our father is going to kill you when you find out you're carrying that idiot's child!"

Maki sighed.
"I know. That's why Mai I ask you to keep this secret from me for the time being!" she took her sister's hand. "Please, do it as a promise between twins, don't tell anyone that I am pregnant while I decide what I will do with this baby... please... I know you hate me, but if you were in my place, I know that maybe you would do the same as me... maybe you would ask for my help as I am asking you for it right now..."

Mai sighed when she saw her older sister's expression. She really looked desperate for no one else to know that she was carrying Okkotsu's child in her womb.

The younger twin let go of her sister's hands and rubbed her temples in annoyance. She hated having to keep secrets that could get her into trouble. But if she didn't, what could happen? She didn't want to be a traitor either.

"I'll keep it a secret while you decide what to do with that bastard. I suppose I'll have to support you in whatever you decide and I guess I'll have to take the secret to my grave because if you decide to abort it anyway I won't be able to say anything"

Maki hugged her while trying to control her crying.

"Thank you...Mai" She whispered with a broken voice.

Mai sighed and put her arms around her sister to try to comfort her.

"I'll never forgive that idiot Okkotsu for leaving you like this anyway. And I'm not so happy with you right now either"

"As I said... I had neither the time nor the brave to tell him... and now he has abandoned me..."

"You are an idiot, Maki."

"I know. I am..."

Mai sighed as her older sister slowly let go of her. She couldn't leave her in that place.

"Come, let's go to the academy" said Mai standing up.

"To the academy? With you?" asked Maki with confusion.

"I can't leave you here alone, and I don't think it would be wise for you to return to Tokyo after such a humiliation!" She took her by the hand, helping her to stand up, "and in your state, I don't know what madness you could commit!"

Maki wiped her tears at what her sister said "Seriously, thank you very much Mai…" she let out a heavy sigh while holding her hand like when they were little girls.

But on this occasion, Mai was the one guiding her.

"Let's go!" replied Mai with annoyance as they walked away.

I really couldn't leave Maki in that state. So I took her to the academy.

I didn't tell Momo the situation, I simply lied to her and told her that Maki was passing through and would be sleeping over that night with me.

Seeing her so discouraged made me feel strange. She was not her usual Maki and that hurt me.

We sisters were supposed to be there to support each other, right? We were supposed to have each other to keep secrets from each other and even to kill on behalf of our sister if needed, Right? Well I guess from that day on I was willing to do anything for Maki.

Still, Maki had an important decision to make with that pregnancy.

Flashback

Night had already fallen in Kyoto.

The academy in that ancient city used to be very quiet at night. So it was very rare that among the students would bother each other or try to meddle in each other's business.

So no one would bother those two.

Mai returned to her room along with a bag of food that Momo had bought for the sisters.

This was at Mai's request since her twin did not want to get out of bed and did not want to eat anything. And taking her to the dining room in that state was not an option.

"I asked Momo to bring us some hamburgers" said Mai sitting on the edge of her bed, which was mostly occupied by her twin.

Maki was lying down with the blankets covering her up to the top. The poor thing had been crying in that room ever since she arrived.

Mai had helped her put on her pajamas, because she really looked too discouraged and even a little out of it to do anything on her own.

It was the first time that Maki's heart had been broken, so getting used to that pain was going to be difficult, especially when she was carrying the fruit of that love.

The older twin slightly slid the blanket over her head to look at Mai.

"You must eat something, otherwise you'll get sick and I don't want to be the one who has to take care of you" Mai said, moving the bag in her hand.

"But I'm not hungry..." explained Maki, sitting up slowly and leaning her back against the wooden wall.

Mai pulled out those burgers.

"I don't care if you're not hungry!" She handed her the food roughly, "Besides, you and that baby should eat!" her voice sounded a mixture of annoyance and concern.

Maki sighed and took that hamburger and began to take a bite while shedding some tears.

"Thank you..." Maki said with some discouragement as she ate.

Mai sighed and sat down next to her, resting her shoulder next to her twin.

"Can I ask you something?"

Maki sighed, "Go ahead..." she took another bite of her hamburger.

"When did you realize you were pregnant?" asked Mai curiously.

Maki pursed her lips for a moment. She took one more bite and then swallowed to answer.

"I realized it on Friday, when I took a pregnancy test before Yuta and I arrived here in Kyoto to spend our anniversary, but..." Maki sigh, "Nothing was going our way. Our hotel was a piece of shit and by the way our room was a mess. I wasn't having a good time at all with the nausea and Yuta was glued to his phone all the time because he was desperately wanted from the sede. On top of that, that idiot of Satoru showed up out of nowhere and convinced him to leave the country at the last minute.

"That idiot convinced him to leave the country? Why? What did Gojo sensei tell them?" asked Mai, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know. He just appeared in front of us while we were in the old neighborhood of Kioto and began to explain to Yuta that he had a very special mission for him outside of Japan and that for that reason, he should leave the country as soon as possible. I wasn't convinced of that and more than..." she put her hand on her belly –"I found out about this..."

"Did you really not want to leave Japan?" asked Mai looking at her sister, "With that proposal you would have had the chance to even get away from our damned clan"

Maki shook her head no.
"I was afraid and…" she pursed her lips.

"And what else?" asked Mai.

"Let's just say that someone managed to convince me that it wouldn't be a good idea to go after a man" commented Maki taking another bite of her hamburger. –"Maybe I have too much pride to do something like that" she said with her mouth full"

"Anyone?" Mai raised an eyebrow, "Maki, did anyone else talk to you at that station? Who was it?"

Maki swallowed and put a hand to her head, which still hurt a little when she tried to remember.
"I don't want to talk about it..."

"Okay. And tell me, do you remember to have seen or detected any curse in the station? or did you detect any other person besides Yuta, who had cursed energy hanging around there?" asked Mai, confused by what her sister was saying and even more by the way she was holding her hand to her head.

"At this moment I'm not really sure... but I did feel some cursed energy, and maybe I did see a familiar face or two, but as I said, everything happened so fast and now that I'm trying to remember it's all so... confusing"

Mai sighed, she had come to the conclusion that maybe something had been done to Maki. She thought that maybe someone had used some cursed technique on her.

I always had a hunch about that... and months later it was confirmed by the least expected person.

"Something's wrong? Mai" asked Maki, watching as her sister looked very pensive.

Mai shook her head.
"No, it's just that I kept thinking about what you said. It seems very strange what happened to you inside the station. Unless someone used a cursed technique or a domain, what you're saying about time, it's very strange"

Maki sighed.
"I know, but I really don't want to think about it anymore. I just know that Yuta has left me. I guess our relationship is over"

Both twins were silent for a moment. Mai watched as Maki ate her second hamburger while her right hand was on her belly.

"Well? I know it's too early to ask you this but have you thought about what you're going to do with that bastard?" asked Mai as she took a bite of her hamburger.

Maki sister shook her head.
"I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Since Friday when I found out I'm pregnant, I've been analyzing and thinking about it. Besides, I thought if I told Yuta, we could make a decision together. But it looks like I'm alone in this"

Mai let out the air in annoyance. "You're not entirely alone in this matter, because unfortunately I'm with you in whatever you decide. Although that said, only you will have the final decision on what you will do with that bastard"

"Can you stop calling my baby that?" commented Maki with annoyance.

"But that's what that child you carry in your womb is!. A bastard! A child who will have no father and whose very existence will be threatened by his mother's clan. Besides, who assures us that this spawn will not be a threat? I mean, his father is a special grade sorcerer who cursed his elementary school girlfriend and turned her into a curse. So who's to say that baby won't also be a curse?"

"It's not like that..." grumbled Maki in a low voice while caressing her belly.

"Also!, do you really want to see his stupid face on your child's face and have that illegitimate child remind you every day of your life that their father abandoned them?"

"I told you I don't know!" Maki said with annoyance, "Part of me wants to have this baby. But another part of me doesn't want it to be born. Especially not in this situation where I'll be alone as a single mother in this shitty society"

"You wouldn't be completely alone in raising him, since you have me..." commented Mai before twisting her mouth.

"And since when did you become the considerate aunt?" Maki questioned with annoyance.

"From the moment you opened your fucking mouth and confessed to me that you were pregnant"

Both twins again took a moment of silence.

Maki sighed.
"Mai...me"

"Maki, I know you are confused, I understand, but also think very well that whatever you decide will have its consequences, because this decision will not only affect your life, but mine. I am your twin sister, you are me and I am you, so this involves both of us since theoretically, that baby is also blood of my blood"

"I know... Monozygotic twins like us share the same genetic material. Since we are supposed to be the same person... so in theory, this baby would be very similar to you as well"

Mai began to settle on the side of her bed. Tucking herself in between her covers and turned her back to her sister. As she used to do when they slept together as children.

"So whatever you decide, just let me know, OK? Take as much time as you need, but if you're going to make the decision not to have it, don't let that pregnancy progress any further" Mai said over her shoulder.

"Thank you Mai..." Maki sighed because she knew her sister was right "I only ask you please... to keep this secret for a few more days while I decide whether to abort this baby or to have it..." she also commented getting into those blankets and leaning her forehead on her sister's back.

Mai only sighed.
"All right, I won't say anything because this is not my business" she said coldly.

I really think I was very cruel with my words that night, but it was the truth. Maki had to make a decision.

I remember that time, she slept but she was still crying about it all.
I just hugged her like I used to do as a child when we couldn 't sleep.

Seeing her face so sad like that broke my heart.

Maki spent two days with me at the Kyoto school. We even went out to buy a new cell phone and file the theft report her cellphone.

That afternoon I tried to distract her a little, including both of us going out with Miwa and Momo, to whom we didn't say anything, and in the face of my sister's symptoms such as her nausea, we lied to them saying that it was indigestion from dinner.

It seems that Maki was very serious about thinking about what she would do with the pregnancy. It wasn't until a week later that she had an answer to what she would do with the baby.

She even finally returned to Tokyo and told the others that the two of them had broken up, but she didn't reveal anything about her pregnancy, and like I said, a week later Maki returned to Kyoto and asked me to accompany her to an ultrasound.

I told her that it was a bad idea, since seeing your child in that machine could make her change her mind if she wanted to have an abortion.

But she insisted that she did not want to go alone and that she needed that ultrasound so she could check if she had made the right decision.

Okkotsu, my sister momentarily thought about not having that baby, but, I can assure you that I saw it in her eyes. That desire to keep something of yours, to be able to give birth to that little token of love between the two of you.

I remember clearly seeing that illusion in her eyes when she saw that ultrasound. At that time she was about ten weeks pregnant. But we were shocked when the doctor told us that it was not one baby... they were two babies.

Flashback

"You will feel some cold from the gel and you may feel a slight pressure from the transducer passing over your abdomen, so I will try to check you as quickly as I can so as not to cause you discomfort, okay?" commented the doctor who was attending Maki kindly.

"Okay" said the older twin in a whisper. She was lying with her abdomen uncovered while the doctor put the gel on her. She could even notice that her belly was only slightly bulging.

Instead, Mai was sitting next to her. She sighed as she saw that they were about to start the procedure.
"I'll ask one more time, Maki, Are you really sure you want to do this? Is this really your final decision? You still have time to repent and not continue with this pregnancy!" she crossed her arms.

Her twin looked at her with a grimace.
"I told you I already made my decision. Only at this moment I want to see that everything is okay with my baby. Besides, you said you'd support me in this, right? And I feel like having this baby will be a good decision."

Mai clicked her tongue.
"I admit I said it just to make you feel better that night"

Maki rolled her eyes at such a response.

"I will begin. Are you ready, Zenin san" asked the doctor.

"I am ready"

"Well, let's get started" said the doctor, placing the device on Maki's belly and beginning to analyze the first image displayed on the screen.

Mai just grimaced and her eyebrows drew together a little, at first she could not find any form to the image that the monitor was throwing. But when she saw her sister's face, she could notice that glow of longing and happiness for that baby that was growing and forming inside her.

The doctor made a few initial clicks to measure the tiny fetus on the monitor.

"From your measurements, it looks like your baby is about ten weeks old" she said, starting to move the device to better show the image.

"Ten weeks?"- Mai raised an eyebrow, quickly counted on her fingers "Wow!, you and Okkotsu didn't waste any time after Valentine's Day" she blurted out with annoyance and a touch of sarcasm.

"Shut up!" said Maki with a blush and decided to ignore her sister and she decided to talk to the doctor. "Is everything all right with my baby?" she asked curiously looking at that image.

"That is what I am checking. From its shape it seems that everything looks fine, now let's see if we can hear the heartbeat" commented the doctor beginning to listen carefully to the sound coming out of the monitor while she continued watching the screen and moving the device over her patient's belly.

From that machine began to come out the sounds of a tiny heartbeat, but something else caught the doctor's attention, since that sound seemed double, so she decided to make more movements with that device on the left side of her patient's belly to find out what caused that.

"I think I'm seeing something else around here" said the doctor, a bit puzzled as she continued to move the machine over Maki's belly.

The doctor's eyebrows rose slightly in surprise as she looked at what the monitor was revealing.

"What is that?" asked Mai with surprise when she saw the same thing that the doctor and her sister saw on the screen.

"Doctor, is something wrong? Why the surprised look on your face? Is there something wrong with my baby? Did you see anything else?" asked Maki with fear.

The doctor arranged the image in such a way that two small fetuses could be seen on the monitor.

"There is nothing wrong with your baby, or rather, your babies are in perfect condition" said the doctor, clicking a few times and showing Maki the monitor more closely.

"Congratulations Zenin san, you are having twins," said the doctor showing those two little beings on that screen while listening to the soft heartbeats coming from both of them.

Maki's eyes widened in a way that showed she was in total shock. She had even become mute with her mouth half open but no sound came out of her throat.

"Twins?" Mai said aloud, putting her hands to her mouth, "It can't be..."

We were both shocked. Maki was having twins.

At first that was a bit hard news to swallow. Since we are also twins and grew up in a clan where having twins meant a bad omen.

But still, Maki decided to put all those superstitions aside and decided to move forward with her pregnancy.

The doctor initially told us that Maki should have more care due to her twin pregnancy, especially because sometimes twins can be born prematurely and often both the mother and the twins need certain care as the pregnancy progresses.

Still, we both had to prepare for the arrival of those babies.

Okkotsu, while You were abroad, enjoying the trip and perhaps meeting interesting people and places. My sister was breaking down from uncertainty and fear. Especially since we had nothing ready for Yurika and Yuudai's arrival.

After that surprise where we learned that there would be two babies instead of one, Maki made the decision to reveal that she was pregnant.

It was not easy at all for my stubborn sister, I know because she wanted to do everything by herself, but we were definitely going to need as much help as possible.

At first we kept this secret until she was twelve weeks old, that is, until she was three months old, this because a twin pregnancy belly shows much faster than a single baby.

We were not going to be able to keep that secret for too long.

So the first person we revealed that secret to was Utahime sensei.

I still remember the look on my dear teacher's face when we told her the news. It was a combination of amazement and sadness to see my sister with that little bulging belly.

Above all Utahime sensei felt sorry for Maki because she knew it was unfair what you, you idiot, had done in abandoning her. But she thought that maybe there was something else behind your departure and believed that Satoru had something to do with it.

And she was right... Satoru is involved in your separation with Maki... but that's for you to ask him.

By that third month, we needed someone from the academy to intervene on our behalf to request that Maki be suspended from doing missions for a while without penalty and to help us to keep this secret away from the zenin clan.

And the only one who could help us at that moment was Utahime sensei. Since she took Maki under her charge, turning her from a sorceress to her personal assistant at the academy. Since my teacher was second in command of the Kyoto headquarters only to the bitter Gakuganji.

I remember that those two weeks where we lived together with Utahime sensei were very friendly and it gives me too much nostalgia to remember them, because in those two weeks, my sister and I felt the love of a mother reflected in Utahime sensei, who understood us. She even went so far as to buy the first gifts for those two babies whose sex we still didn't know and that surely nowadays, due to amnesia, she must not remember that Maki was pregnant.

We really felt supported by her. Too bad that happiness didn't last long...

Okkotsu, at this point, I have a feeling that Satoru did know about Maki's pregnancy, since my sister was avoiding him too much after talking to him, just as Maki was running away from her Tokyo classmates for those two weeks where she still wouldn't tell them about her pregnancy.

Even Utahime sensei had ordered a trade saying that Maki had been transferred to Kyoto at the last minute and apparently that upset Satoru.

Also, the relationship between those two always seemed a bit complicated to me. Since apparently, they were lovers, but it seemed that Utahime's decision to take Maki away made them drift apart.

Even Maki got too upset when they named that white-haired idiot.

Even so, between the three of us, we started to plan everything for the arrival of those two babies. Utahime sensei helped us with the initial formalities at the academy and also helped us, together with Ieiri Shoko, to find a hospital where they would accept to take care of my sister with her medical visits.

By this time, only two people already knew that secret. And those were Utahime and Shoko.

But as I said, all this happiness was fleeting.

Our peace and tranquility were shattered on May 29th. I still cannot forget that fateful day.

On that occasion, Utahime sensei had been sent on a mission to the south of Kyoto and on that same mission, she was brutally attacked by "something", we never knew if it was a curse or some person who attacked her, but that really left her almost on the verge of death.

We don't really know what happened because even she was never the same woman after that.

Utahime sensei had lost her memory and unfortunately also her power as a leader and teacher.

And from that day on, the problems only began to move faster.

Okkotsu, the only thing I am sure of, is that maybe someone sent someone to attack Utahime because she knew many things about the clans ... my teacher is not a bad woman, she was just a woman with too much knowledge and power ... and that could be a threat to many men.

I remember that even Gojo sensei changed his personality once he discovered the crime that had been committed against the woman he claimed to love since he was young. He became more possessive and I can even say that he lost his mind. Love or obsession? I really think it was a bit of both that made Satoru take Utahime as his wife soon after she regained consciousness.

As I said, I feel that someone attacked my dear teacher... Maybe it could have been a revenge towards all of us...

Even after Utahime sensei woke up from her coma, which lasted about a month, Gojo sensei began to push aside his own students... all of us of this generation were in a limbo where uncertainty consumed us to know what would become of us, as well as the other sorcerers with the new measures that the bigwigs of that time were implementing since all sorcerers distrusted those who claimed to be their allies and were afraid of ending up like Utahime sensei or worse, ending up dead.

It is because of these same changes that teachers like Kusakabe and sorcerers like Nanami resigned without hesitation.

Even Mei Mei disappeared overnight before all hell broke loose.

But unfortunately there were others like Ieiri san who could not get out of there.

The sorcerers world was hanging by a thread and with it we and those two babies, both of whom could have posed a threat to everyone in the sorcerer society, especially the two clans that got along the worst.

Both Maki and I were running out of options. We didn't know where to turn.

We had even heard that both the Zenin clan and the Gojo clan were involved in shady things, especially since the clans were apparently taking everyone out of the game who was in their way on their way to the top.

But what would happen if a Zenin and a Gojo were to unite? Would ruin the plans of both clans? Because it was more than obvious that the arrival of those two babies would mean a threat to them and incidentally to the higher-ups.

Besides, our main fear was that we would be forced to return to this hellish residence. And with two babies on the way... it was more than obvious that the four of us would die...

Maki and I were against the clock, especially when my silly sister had already entered her fourth month of gestation and her symptoms and physical changes were becoming more and more noticeable.

We needed someone's protection and it seems that "help" came unexpectedly from the person we least expected and before I tell you who even helped us find a home and a job, I must tell you something else.

Okkotsu, Have you heard of Tsukumo Yuki?

Well, She in addition to being a special grade sorceress just like you, is also a research fanatic.

So by "bad luck or good luck" we also fell into her hands.

Maki and I had known Tsukumo since we were children, as she investigated and examined my sister's celestial restriction very closely.

That woman always found that state fascinating, I even understand that for a time, she examined another Zenin with those characteristics before he died many years ago.

To her, we were two fascinating specimens of how cursed energy could be and not inherited.

Now imagine how elated that research-crazed blonde got when she learned that Maki, a woman with a celestial restraint was pregnant with twins and that the father of those babies was a special grade sorcerer like you. That was definitely a lucky break for her research.

I still feel repulsion when I remember her face... to see her so excited while she was analyzing my sister and caressing her belly, gave me a deep rejection. But we had no choice but to accept her help and "a part of her protection".

Tsukumo made it very clear from the first moment, she would only intervene for us when we needed it, she would only return to the city in certain seasons to see the progress of the pregnancy and even said that she would fight with us against the academy and the clan only if necessary. Since what mattered most to her were those two babies.

She had even suggested that once your children were born, she could have adopted them as her children to "protect" them. She was even willing to give her surname to Yurika and Yuudai, but thanks to Megumi, that wasn't necessary. But about that I will tell you what I know in a few lines later, although I consider more prudent that on this subject, it is Maki and Megumi who tell you what happened and how they decided to get married.

But let's take it step by step, shall we? I still have another more important secret to reveal to you in the following pages.

But back to the topic about Tsukumo, she was the one who helped us to leave the academy, this happened once we told the truth to all our friends and acquaintances about Maki being pregnant and asked them about whether they were willing to leave the headquarters.

First we told Megumi, he was the first to find out together with Tsumiki that Maki was pregnant, and we revealed this news to him one day when we summoned him outside the academy.

I must say that Tsumiki, although not a blood relative of ours, she always had the tact and empathy that this stupid family lacked.

Even so, I must admit that I was a little jealous of Maki when I saw how Megumi and Tsumiki gave her all the attention in the world once she revealed that news to them.

A few days later, we revealed them to Maki's other friends, who took it with great joy and surprise to know that my sister would have your children.

Although Kugisaki, like me, wanted to kill you for abandoning Maki. And I guess she, like me, still hates you.

Once we told her friends, I revealed the truth to Momo and Miwa. Especially Momo seemed to be the only one who understood my feelings about the whole situation and she never left me alone, even when all of us, both Tokyo and Kyoto students gave up being sorcerers and decided to live a normal life outside the academy. Momo stayed by my side for the next three years.

Actually, it was Tsukumo who "negotiated" with Satoru about letting all the students go. Something that he accepted but under conditions that I still don't know.

Once out of the academy, the one who helped us financially until these days was Mei Mei...

I remember the end of June and the beginning of July were the busiest days for Maki and me.

Once we left the academy, life was not easy at all, especially for a pregnant woman. I really hated to see Maki cry in silence while caressing her belly, which was growing bigger and bigger as the months went by.

I know that she was still hurt by your departure and maybe it's something she didn't get over until years later or maybe she would have never forgotten if it wasn't for your return.

I know she still loved you and that's what hurt me the most, to see her so broken because of you. And the thought that those children might inherit your face made me upset every time I thought about it.

As I said, nothing was simple once we left the world of sorcery.

Although Ieiri san, as the last favor we were able to have from her, was that she got a part-time job for both Maki and me at a cosmetics store owned by an acquaintance of that doctor's. The money was barely enough to eat and to rent a small place for both of us.

That's when Mei Mei entered the game and made a deal with Maki, acquiring a debt that, I assume, she is still paying off.

That woman and her weird brother always gave me a bad feeling because they were people who loved to meddle in other people's business and then wanted to take advantage of the situation.

But even so, if it hadn't been for them, we would not have survived.

Mei business with Maki, I don't know the full details, but the only thing I found out is that Mei always had an eye on my sister because of her strength and ability since that twin school tournament we had in the year you weren't here in Japan.

So Mei was the one who got us our first home and helped us furnish it. She also helped us to buy the things we needed for the babies, as well as she was the one who helped us with the missing expenses for the hospital. So in theory we owe a lot of money to this sorceress.

Mei as well as Tsukumo, were doing it more for those two babies... it seemed like everyone was interested in those two... and I guess the main reason was because they were YOUR CHILDREN Okkotsu...

Having the children of two great clans was as much a threat as it was a treasure.

Obviously, receiving monetary favors from Mei and her brother meant having to pay them back with something in return, that's where Maki and I helped him with "certain" jobs.

Okkotsu Did you ever hear that this world of sorcery worked in the beginning as something informal and clandestine before it was monopolized as an academy? Well, that's what almost all of us did once we left the headquarters. To practice sorcery under the table. To do exorcism missions like in the old school through requests from clients desperate to get rid of curses from their bodies or from their premises.

The next two months were quiet and could even be considered somewhat joyful. It was like the calm before the storm, it was that moment of joy that we needed in our hectic lives.

I even remember that September was a very positive month even for Maki, because in that month, besides that our lives were taking a better direction. It was in that month that we found out that those Twins would actually be fraternal twins, in other words, twins of different sexes.

Since as I said, twins are a bad omen, and knowing that those babies would not be of the same sex, gave some relief to our bad luck.

I still remember when we found out that it would be a boy and a girl... with that news, I can say that Maki was relieved, but at the same time nostalgic and more that she would choose the names you wanted your children to have.

Flashback.

"I still say those two babies will be boys. My grandmother always said that pointed bellies are a sign that the baby on the way is a boy, and Maki's belly has that shape" said Nobara confidently while she held in her hands that blue balloon that said "it's a boy".

"What the hell are you talking about? My sisterly instinct tells me that I will have nieces, those two babies will be girls!" commented Mai with a grimace while carrying in her hands a pink balloon that said "it's a girl".

They were both very excited because that day they would finally know the sex of those little ones. And more than those two women, who could not stand each other, had an important bet.

"Both of you could shut up!" Maki complained, who was lying on the bed while the doctor performed the ultrasound.

The doctor smiled a little at the comments of those two women who were accompanying Maki in that consultation.

"It seems that not only the aunts are very excited today. Our baby A is also very active, although this baby has always been this restless, while baby B is very quiet as usual" said the doctor as she checked these babies through the monitor. As always, you could see that one baby moved more than the other.

Maki sighed.
"I'm not just tired of listening to these two. I'm also kind of tired of hearing my children referred to as Baby A and Baby B..."

"Well, from now on you can start calling your babies by the names you choose for them" said the doctor with a smile as she wiped the gel from Maki's belly, "And more so because Baby A is a very energetic girl and Baby B is a very quiet boy"

Those words shocked Maki, Nobara and Mai alike.

"What?" came out of Nobara's mouth.

"A boy and a girl?" asked Mai in amazement.

"Congratulations Zenin san" said the doctor, showing the monitor to the three women, "Your babies are fraternal twins. So you are carrying a boy and a girl, who may have been conceived only days apart.

Maki had a soft smile on her face as she looked down and caressed her huge belly. A part of her was happy that they were a boy and a girl, but still sadness showed in her gaze.

"It seems that every aunt will have a favorite nephew and niece" smiled the doctor, looking at how Mai and Nobara were still surprised by that revelation.

"I guess it's a tie" said Nobara with a grimace.

Mai sighed.
"Since it's a tie, I guess we both have to pay equally"

"I just hope you don't want me to buy you the most expensive beauty treatment"

"The same applies to you"

Those two had to pay equally for their bet, where whoever won would be bought a beauty treatment and branded creams. But since it was a tie, both had to buy those products equally.

"By the way, Zenin san, have you already thought about the names you will give your babies?" the doctor asked curiously.

Maki's face reflected sadness at such a question, the corners of her lips dropped a little and before answering that, she let out a sigh.

"I'm bad at choosing names…"

"You are definitely terrible at choosing names!" replied Mai, rolling her eyes, "My sister has a weird habit of naming my cacti with very strange names like "Mr. Sausage" or "Mrs. M."

"Still, I have thought of two names for my babies and now that I know they will be a boy and a girl... I think I will take the ones someone once suggested for them..." explained Maki as she carefully sat on the edge of the bed "I have thought of naming them Yurika and Yuudai"

"They are nice names" said the doctor with a smile as she wrote down some things in the medical file.

When I heard those names, I couldn't keep quiet...

"Are you serious that you want your children to have the initials Y U in their names? You're not choosing those names because of that idiot?" asked Mai a bit annoyed.

That question left the atmosphere in the doctor's office very tense.

"You said it Mai, I'm bad at choosing names, even so, I feel that those two names will go with the personalities of my children, Yurika being a girl full of energy and Yuudai being a quiet boy" Maki looked at her sister seriously, "Or would you like me to name your niece and nephew after your cactus?"

I could see it in her eyes, she was naming them that way because of you.

Although Maki was right, it seemed that those names would go very much according to the personalities of those little ones and more than from the womb we could tell what each one would be like.

Yurika was always a very energetic and restless little girl who moved around a lot even before she before birth. Even after she was born, her physical energy never seemed to run out, it was amazing to see her walking before she was a year old.

Yuudai, on the other hand, was a quiet child and to some degree, a bit sleepier and slower than his sister. Being smaller and somewhat weaker, he took his first steps almost until he was 14 months old.

Perhaps the fact that he was born so fearful and sickly is due to what happened one night in particular. The night that changed everything

Okkotsu, what I'm going to tell you next is one of the most closely guarded secrets between Maki and me... a secret that not even Megumi and our friends know.

So I need you to keep what you will read below in your pocket and also take it to your grave, because no one else should know and even so, I know I am taking too much of a risk telling you this. But you need to know because I know that maybe in the academy reports they have lied to you about my sister's death.

Okkotsu, Maki and I committed a crime... we killed a woman... and her remains are in that grave where the lie about my sister's death lies.

I still remember that night as if it were yesterday... everything I will tell you below happened on the night of October 6, 2020... the night before Yurika and Yuudai were born.

So I guess all these events were what caused the children to be born early... your children were born premature and maybe it was our fault that happened.

You see, before that night, our life was going normally.

Maki and I were still working at the cosmetics store, and by that time, Maki was about to enter her eighth month of pregnancy, so all the work was getting heavier and more tiring because of her big belly.

At first, I thought my sister was just tired from the pregnancy and upset from the hormones, since at times she seemed all paranoid and I even thought Maki was having delusions of persecution, since she had a hard time sleeping at night and she constantly said she felt watched all the time.

It seemed that Maki had developed a sixth sense that warned him that something around us was wrong.

We should have been more cautious, perhaps if I had seen what she saw, we would have run away or hidden better... I regret not having listened to her in those first moments when she told me that she thought she saw someone watching us from a distance, hidden among the streets we always passed by.

Apparently, the Zenin clan did not sit idly by once they found out that you left the country. That clan loves to have control over everything that could be a disadvantage to them.

So they usually play dirty since ancient times.

And by playing dirty, I mean that also my damn clan was involved in your separation with Maki, they sent several grade one and two sorcerers to that station to distort time and space to make you and Maki think that you had abandoned each other. And sending that woman to spy on us months later was just a sign to find out if their initial plan had worked.

And by playing dirty, I mean sending in spies and eliminating the "problem".

That night Maki was more nervous than usual, I remember it was around one in the morning and on a trip to the kitchen for a late night craving, that's when we saw that someone had entered our house.

Maki's hunch turned out to be true. Someone was spying on us very closely every day.

Someone had sent someone to spy on my sister, but that spy didn't count on the fact that the two of us wouldn't sit still, much less sit with our arms crossed. Between the two of us, we would chase that woman through those cold streets until we reached that alley.

That's when we found out the truth. Okkotsu, someone intervened that day so that you and Maki were separated.

Flashback.

A woman's cry of despair was heard echoing down the Street.

Several gunshots could be heard in that place. As well as the footsteps of several people running could be heard, even the footsteps became heavy over the puddles of water.

The rain had stopped a while ago, which made running somewhat dangerous due to the slipperiness of the ground.

And even the cold was piercing and painful to the lungs.

Running at full speed was somewhat difficult at that time and even more so when pregnant. But still, it was amazing to see Maki move with agility.

"I got you, you fucking bitch!" growled Maki, who managed to stab the woman with her sword. Making her bleed and scream in pain.

But the woman they were chasing did not let herself be caught so easily, she gave Maki a shove, causing her to fall roughly to the ground on her left side. It didn't matter that one of her pursuers was pregnant, she just wanted to get away from there.

"Maki!" shouted Mai while pointing her gun at the woman who was still running and was about to escape.

"I'm fine! Mai! Shoot! Stop that bitch!" the older twin shouted as she slowly stood up, using her sword as if it were a staff. Perhaps both her heavenly restraint and the adrenaline flowing through her body were helping her at that moment to hold on and stand up, facing everything. what was happening at that time.

That had been totally reckless for a pregnant woman, but Maki needed to stop the woman who could ruin her existence even more.

Several more shots were heard at that moment. Mai had managed to hit the woman's right leg, as well as her left shoulder, causing her to fall writhing in pain in the alley through which she was going to escape.

Mai ran to quickly help Maki to her feet.

"The babies! How do you feel the babies? We need to get out of here!" Mai said all worried as she saw her sister rubbing her belly.

The older twin leaned on her sister's arm as they stood up and walked together
"I'm fine... I just want to know who this woman is and why she has been spying on us for days and why she entered our house!" she held her sword tightly as they approached the woman who lay on the floor, writhing in pain.

"Please! Mercy! I can explain!" that dark green-haired woman looked at the twins, the poor was suffering too much pain from the wounds she had suffered. Besides being a person without cursed energy, there was no way to defend herself from those two.

The sisters cornered her against the wall of that alley. Causing her back and head to crash roughly against the wall.

"Who the hell are you?"

"And who sent you?"

The twins asked, each pointing their guns at the woman.

"Let me tell you what I know!" she said painfully.

"Speaks! Who the hell are you? Who sent you to spy on us?" shouted Maki, who kicked the woman's stomach hard. "Why have you been breaking into our house?!" She kicked her again but this time in the chest

"Maki calm down, you'll hurt the babies!" Mai shouted to her sister with concern for all the effort her twin was making.

"Mai! I won't calm down until this bitch tells us what she was doing in our house! And why has she been spying on us!" Maki shouted in annoyance as she pointed her sword at the spy.

The woman's eyes were full of tears, her leg was bleeding, as was her shoulder, and the poor woman was trying to catch her breath from those kicks, which made her vomit.

Mai only looked at her sister with concern as she could see it in her gestures, her belly ached and her breathing gave her away, but Mai also wanted to know the same thing Maki did. To Know who sent that woman.

"Well, who are you?" grunted Maki.

"I-I-I-I'm an en- envoy of the Zenin clan... I'm a yes-servant just like you!" the woman commented with difficulty as she again had a bow.

"You're lying for sure because I don't remember seeing you at the residence before" said Maki very annoyed.

"Wait Maki... her face does look familiar" said Mai looking closely at the woman, grabbing her by the hair with her hand, pulling her tightly until she got close to her and releasing her abruptly when she recognized her, "Yes, I think I've seen you in the clan more than once, you're a concubine of Naoya!" she pointed her gun, "You're one of those maids who slept with that idiot!"

"Was it that asshole who sent you to watch us?" Maki kept pointing her sword at her.

The woman didn't want to talk, so Maki thrust her sword into woman left leg, "I asked you a question!"

That woman began to scream in pain, she was writhing and only then began to speak
"Yes, he sent me to make sure that his plan kept going as it had been going from the beginning. Mercy please! Don't kill me! I can explain!"

Maki pulled the sword out of her leg, the blood gushed with intensity.
"What did you say?"

"What plan?" asked Mai, pointing her gun at her head.

"I know many things that could benefit them both!"

"What plan are you talking about?" Mai gave a twist to the revolver of her pistol.

That girl caught her breath as best she could and began to speak.
"He sent me to observe that Maki Zenin remained separated from Okkotsu Yuta…. Mr. Naoya along with other very high ranking people made a plan to separate them, I swear! I'm innocent, they're just using me!"

"What did you say?" asked Maki incredulously.

"Do you remember the day when Yuta Okkotsu left the country?" asked the girl, her voice half-breaking as she looked at Maki.

"I can't forget that fucking day..."

"Well that day the plan of Naoya Zenin as well as Mr. Gojo and more people who are behind all this started!" she began to explain, "They didn't want you to have a relationship with Okkotsu! That bothered them and incidentally affected them to assume power! They did it!"The girl cried.

"They sent several people that day to separate you of he! They used their cursed techniques on you, that's why you felt like the time lasted hours when in reality it was only a few minutes! If you had a romantic relationship with Okkotsu automatically both clans would be relatives in-laws and that would affect who would take over each clan since Okkotsu could inherit both positions because he was of special rank! A leader that could unify two clans is something unheard of! As well as begetting children who have the blood of both is something unusual!"

"Besides, seeing you two happy and in love bothered both clan lords! A Zenin and a Sugawara descendant together? To many that's something unholy! That's why Mr. Naoya sent me to keep an eye on you from the beginning at that train station with threats! And months ago he sent me back to find out what was going on with you two once he found out that all the students quit the academy after what happened with Iori Utahime! Please have mercy! Let me go! They still don't know that you're expecting Okkotsu's child! I haven't told them yet! But if you let me go I can serve you as a double spy and bring you more news of the clan! But please! Don't do anything to me!" the woman begged.

"Maki?" Mai named her sister with concern and even more so because of what she had just heard.

Maki could not believe what she had just heard. Her hands thus trembled into fists. She gripped the hilt of her sword with fury. She felt the blood running furiously through her veins. She wanted revenge.

"I swear! I can help you identify all those who separated you from the love of your life! I can keep the secret of your pregnancy! They..." The woman couldn't speak because Maki cut her throat at that instant.

"Maki No!" shouted Mai when she saw what her older sister did. So she quickly tried to restrain her as Maki also began to stab the woman's body with hatred.

"I curse you all!" cried the older twin, "You took away my happiness! I curse you all!" she cried and began to cry as her sister held her back.

"Maki, what have you done?!" shouted Mai as she moved Maki a few steps away from the woman.

"If I let her live she was going to reveal to them that I am pregnant! She was not to be trusted!" Maki stopped and began to cry, "She will be the first to suffer for this damage done to me, Yuta and our children!" she cried as they watched this woman take her last breath and the life fade from her eyes.

I knew Maki was right. That woman could give us away, but now we had a bigger problem.

"She's already dead!" Mai hugged her from the side to stop her.

"They took away our happiness..." Maki was still in shock as she saw her hands stained with blood. She wanted to continue stabbing that woman who was also an accomplice in taking away their happiness, but her sister stopped her. Maki was overexerting herself physically and that was dangerous –"They took Yuta away from me!"

"Calm down now or you will hurt your children!" Mai grabbed her side to calm her down while her sister started crying in her arms and was bending down and putting herself on her knees because of the pain of having heard all that.

"Mai... They took away my happiness with the man I loved..."Maki cry bitterly.

"I know, and now we have taken the life of one of her accomplices..." Mai whispered while her older sister stifled a scream in her twin's chest and then looked at the woman's corpse.

We had to come up with a plan to get rid of that body.

Rage, when it blinds, leaves serious consequences in its wake and my sister began to pay for them. It seemed that Maki had come out of her state of euphoria and was now seeing the consequences of her anger.

"What did I do, what did I do?" Maki began to feel sick at the sight of the blood on her hands, on her clothes and on her sword. The smell of iron made her vomit on the side of where she was crouching. –"Mai! What did we do?" she shouted in shock. Her breathing was agitated and she was all trembling watching that scene.

"You must calm down, Maki! All this can really affect the babies!" Mai grabbed her shoulders so she would look at her and try to calm down.

"But what are we going to do with her now?" asked Maki nervously once she came back to her senses and discovered what she had done.

"We must hide the body or, if necessary, get rid of it," said the younger twin, feeling how the light raindrops began to soak them. "The ideal would be to hide the corpse while we think of something"

"But where will we hide her? We are too far from home to bury it in the courtyard" asked Maki with bated breath as her back rested against the cold wall.

We were both very stressed at that moment. But I was especially worried about Maki.

I saw how she caressed her belly a lot, especially her left side... that side where she had fallen. That side where Yuudai grew inside Maki

Carrying that corpse between the two of us was a risk, especially if someone discovered us. Or in her case, I did not want to put more pressure on Maki's body, I was worried about the babies and about her. For all the effort she had made in that chase.

She may have killed that woman with her own hands, but I was her accomplice, so we were both involved in this crime. I couldn't leave her alone in this.

I remember looking around, luckily no security cameras were visible in that area.

"How about we just leave her here and that's it?" asked Maki nervously as she rubbed her belly and felt the soft raindrops fall on her.

Mai began to search through the woman's things, finding her purse, which she opened and noticed that it contained her ID.

"Even if we leave it here and someone discovers it, it is more than obvious that they will make an investigation and may notify the clan and that would mean much more trouble" commented Mai looking seriously at her sister while showing that wallet.

Maki put her hands to her head.
"Wouldn't it be easier just to leave the body here without IDs and without her belongings and pass her off as the victim of some mugging?!"

"It is also an option. But this country has a good database of its inhabitants and with the fingerprints and dental records they can find his identity and it would be a problem anyway if the clan is notified" explained Mai.

"What are we going to do? Swallow me earth!" said Maki in frustration, "If I let her live she might have given us away! How I'd like to disappear right now!"

Hearing those words from Maki, my mind began to hatch a plan.

I looked at the body of our victim and noticed that this woman was physically similar to my sister. Same height, had the same shade of hair but she only had it a little longer than Maki, she also had fair skin, a thin nose but with brown eyes.

At that moment a macabre idea had occurred to me. Risky but perhaps it would free Maki and my nephews from the clan. Then they could finally be free.

"She looks a bit like you..." said Mai coldly.

"Everyone in the damn clan looks alike, Mai!"

"Yes, but what if we pass you off as her so that the clan thinks you died and you can gain freedom with your children" said Mai as she looked at her sister.

But Maki looked very distressed and confused by those words. She was also shivering from the cold and looked paler than usual.
"I really don't understand what you're trying to say..." her head ached.

"Leave it to me, okay? I'll sort all this out" Mai slipped the woman's wallet into her clothes to take her IDs.

"Okay, I trust you" said Maki with a sigh.

Later I would put my plan into action, but for the moment, we needed to hide our crime.

-"At the very least, let's hide the corpse in the boxes" said Mai seriously.

"Ok"

And so we did, Maki and I hid that corpse among some boxes in that alley while the rain soaked us.

And from there, we went home. I was really worried about Maki as she looked pale and was rubbing her belly too much.

"Promise me you won't tell anyone about this! And that we'll take this secret to our graves!" commented Maki worriedly once they were home.

Mai passed a towel to her sister to dry herself.

"I've been keeping all your damn secrets from you for almost eight months now. You know I'll keep this one in my pocket too and carry it to my grave since we are both accomplices" said Mai looking at her sister.

Maki took her hand.
"Thank you... for everything..."

Mai took her sister's hand in her own "We are sisters after all..." could see the complicity in their eyes.

Maki let go of her sister's hands and began to dry her hair "Even so, those damned clans will pay me for having stolen our happiness... one by one they will fall and I will cross them off my list that I have written with their blood, including that idiot Okkotsu for playing along …" she said very upset "If he had really loved me, he would have discovered the truth and come back for me... damned traitor... I will never forgive him"

At that moment I could see in Maki the hatred I had inside her.

I am not justifying her, I know she had every right to be upset about what was done to her and by the way, about what you did to her.

This is where I ask myself, what would you be doing at this time when Maki and your children's lives were going downhill?

After Maki finally managed to fall asleep, I couldn't sleep, I was so anxious about everything that had happened.

So I did something I knew would be risky, but it was the only solution I could find to save my sister and nephews.

Around 5 a.m. I returned to the scene of the crime, taking care not to be discovered, planted a small clue in the woman's wallet, and after that I returned home.

Okkotsu, for my sister I would be capable of anything, so I was risking even my life in this move.

I remember that night Maki again had some nightmares, as I saw her moving too much and even crying and screaming in her sleep. Ending someone's life will never be easy and I know that first hand.

But the problem came the next day.

Perhaps all the stress experienced the night before, as well as the fall that Maki had, had their consequences.

All this caused the birth of your children to be brought forward almost two months.

I remember it vividly and I still have a hard time putting it into these pages because of the shock of seeing my sister bleed like that.

It was in the afternoon, when Maki started complaining that she felt one of her babies was moving unusually and a few minutes later, she started feeling very sick.

My sister looked distressed and even a little pale. Until she began to complain of a sharp pain that suddenly appeared in her belly.

I remember it quite well because I was there the moment her water broke and the instant her water started to bleed.

It seems that the fall only caused the contractions to start early in the morning, but it was not until the afternoon that her water broke. When she was already more than seven centimeters dilated.

Okkotsu, I was present at the birth of Yurika and Yuudai. And I can tell you for sure that it was a very difficult birth.

Maki suffered too much, the whole procedure was by vaginal delivery because practically when we arrived at the emergency room, your children were already ready to be born since Maki had dilated too fast and there was no time to do an emergency cesarean.

But what worried us the most was that both babies were going to be premature and that meant that they were going to be tiny and not fully developed as they should have been.

Twins can get super small and your kids were no exception. Both were barely 30 centimeters long and weighed a mere 2 kilos.

The first to be born was Yurika and seven minutes later Yuudai was born.

The other details of this event should be Maki who should tell you everything that happened at the birth of your children, especially she should tell you what happened with her and Yuudai and why this child could be considered a very special child.

The only thing I can tell you on these sheets is that all three are alive by pure miracle, especially Yuudai who was given no hope of surviving more than a few days. But he survived and is as far as I remember, a "stable" child but in need of some care.

I wonder how they are now... I haven't seen them for three years...

That same night, after the children were born and both of them and Maki were in intensive care and the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), we were facing another big problem.

And that was to find a solution so that the children would not inherit either the Zenin or Okkotsu surname so that no clan would claim them as their own. We even wanted to prevent Tsukumo Yuki from adopting them and separating them from my sister.

That's where Tsumiki intervened with Megumi. I don't know the details because I only saw from a distance how those two seemed to discuss for "something", my intuition tells me that SHE was the one who ended up convincing Megumi to marry Maki.

So practically within days of birth your children began to bear the surname Fushiguro and even Megumi began to act as a father to those two.

Even all the rest of us took turns caring for them and attending to them both in and out of the hospital.

Now, Okkotsu you may be wondering what happened to the body of that woman in the alley? Well, what I will tell you next I know could be used against me, but you deserve to know the truth about who is in that grave.

Well, I as a sister and newly turned aunt, I had to kill two birds with one stone, so that night where my nephews were born, I also had to go to identify the body of "my sister" at the morgue.

That day seemed to last forever. On the night of October 7, I received a call from the police, saying that I had to go immediately to recognize a body that had been found in an alley and that the identification on the woman's wallet said that her name was Maki Zenin.

Remember I told you leaves that I went back to the alley and planted a "clue" on our victim? Well before I left the house I took my dumb sister's academy ID and went and dropped it in that woman's purse to pass it off as Maki.

Let's just say that most members of the Zenin clan, we have very similar traits, so that girl was somewhat similar to Maki.

I remember when I arrived there. I was nervous, but I had to do it for the sake of my newborn nephews.

Flashback

The forensic slid that white sheet from the body of that woman who had one day of cadaveric evolution.

Mai froze when she saw the body of the woman who had been killed the night before. She could see the holes from the bullets she had fired at her, as well as the cuts and stab wounds Maki had given her.

Above all, the large mark on her neck stood out.

Mai swallowed saliva. Her body wanted to betray her, but she had to control herself. She had to lie. Her fist formed over her clothes as she listened to the forensic.

"Miss Zenin, do you recognize this woman?"

Mai remained silent as the forensic continued to speak.

"I have called you Miss Zenin because in the credential we found in this woman's belongings there was your number as an emergency contact" he began to explain "This woman was found by a civilian who went to throw some garbage in the dumpster in that alley and by the wounds she presents, we can deduce that it was a very violent crime, we have already ruled out that it was a robbery because her belongings were with her and she does not present sexual wounds, even so perhaps an investigation folder should be raised to find the culprit. So I ask you again, do you recognize this woman?"

Mai was still in shock, seeing that body with the crime they had committed between them had left her shocked.

"Miss, are you all right?" asked the forensic again.

Mai looked at that man "Maki..." she said with her voice half breaking because she was reaching her limit "She is my sister..." her tears began to flow from her eyes with mastery in lying.

"I understand..." the doctor covered the corpse again "Well, Miss, I think it is time for you to inform your family about this unfortunate loss. Do you have a place where we can send your sister's body to be laid to rest?"

Mai wiped away the tears of stress that fell down her cheeks.
"I'll get one right away... I need to let my family know about this".

And so I did. I got a service to send that body directly to the crematorium and, by the way, as a "Relative" I decided not to open an investigation file.

I notified the Zenin clan, who received the news at the same time they received it at the sorcery headquarters, in both places I delivered the death certificate issued by the coroner that Maki Zenin had died in that alley.

On the other hand, I learned that the servant was considered "lost", the Zenin clan had thought that she had escaped, so they decided not to look for her anymore since she was just a servant without cursed energy. A waste of a person.

Just like that, the clan discards people who are of no use to them. And all servants fall into that category, so if they ran away or there was no news of them for weeks, they were not wanted and were presumed dead.

That day my sister had died twice. So from now on Maki was a "ghost" to both my clan and the school.

Apparently the news of Maki's "death" did not affect anyone in my clan. I learned that neither my mother nor my father cried over the death of their eldest daughter. Instead, my drunk uncle, Naobito, only contacted me to let me know that he would pay for a place in the cemetery to bury those ashes.

So if you have already found Maki Zenin's grave, you have every right to know that the woman who is buried there is the one who died in that alley. This may be confusing to you Okkotsu, but Maki is not dead, nor are your children.

They are simply growing up with a different last name and living a "normal" life.

Two days after giving birth, Maki came out of intensive care, surprisingly, her body recovered too quickly. She didn't seem to be the same as before, she even looked physically stronger and it was noticeable in her body, even her character changed a little. She seemed calmer, but at the same time, more calculating than before. However, with her children she was more serene, attentive and even affectionate.

It was as if her restriction had been strengthened and I think that also affected my technique, since now I can use my cursed energy to one hundred percent, but with its consequences... this is something difficult to explain so who could give you an answer about what happened with us two would be Tsukumo, she investigated all this.

And within days of her discharge from the hospital, Maki married Megumi at the city registry to both have a new identity and to officially give my nephews a last name.

The reports about Maki Zenin and about the birth of Yurika and Yuudai were supposed to have been removed from everywhere and with them, a new identity had been given to the three of them.

Weeks went by and those little ones started to get better.

Yurika was the first to be discharged at one month old. This was because she had no complications at birth. She was a totally healthy and very energetic child.

Even in those months when she was already at home and her twin was still in the hospital, I took care of that precious little girl. Of which, I admit Okkotsu, I became so attached to your daughter that I began to love her as if she were my own daughter.

I even introduced her as my daughter when we went shopping, just the two of us. I even went so far as to buy her a lot of clothes that matched mine and accessories. Let's just say that I spoiled her too much.

This was because I saw in her a version of me and Maki that I wanted to protect and, by the way, I wanted to pamper her as I would have liked to be pampered.

So, Yurika, she is my favorite niece. And I just hope she is well and remains a cheerful child.

Yuudai, on the other hand, took almost three months to get out of the hospital. This was due to his delicate health.

Even so, with his health complications, your son managed to get ahead, maybe it is because that little one carries your blood. We can say that his recovery was gradually improving, even our fear that he would not be able to speak or that he would have some limitation of movement or mental retardation, was discarded with the passing of the months and with the visits to medical therapies.

And I admit it, at the beginning I had a hard time getting attached to your son because he is an exact copy of you. He is not to blame for my hatred of you. Still, I tried to take care of him properly, even when Maki had to go out to work. And little by little I began to love him.

Please Okkotsu, if you have already met these two little ones, I ask you to take good care of them. I watched them grow up to be three years old and you don't know how much it hurts me not to be able to be with them right now.

I watched them grow from preemies babies to healthier babies full of energy and life.

I was there when they started to crawl, and I helped them to start walking, holding their little hands and guiding them.

I was also there when they started talking.

Okkotsu, for Yurika and Yuudai I gave my freedom and I would even give my life for them to continue living a normal life.

And I know others are doing the same. Even Maki. Who I know she still loves you. And because of that love she has for you, she gave birth to your children.

Okkotsu, I'm sorry that I have been too long in these pages, even so, I lacked a lot of truth to tell you. But I will leave that task to Maki, so that she can tell you the whole truth or what you have doubts about.

I don't have enough time, but to summarize and as I said, three years ago I stopped having contact with them because I gave my freedom in exchange for the Zenin clan not finding those children and, by the way, for them to continue believing that Maki is dead. That is a matter for my sister and Megumi to tell you what happened and how it is that I am now trapped again in this hellish residence, being the wife of Naoya's bastard...

Please Yuta, I beg you, take care of my nephews and Maki. They will need you so much.

You have my permission to give this letter to my idiot sister in case she doesn't want to tell you anything you ask her.

Please Maki, put your pride aside... he deserves to know the truth too.

Okkotsu, please keep the secret I told you in your pocket and take it to your grave. If you tell anyone outside of Maki, I swear to the gods, I will kill you.

Now it's up to you to repair all this... I trust you will do so...

-Mai Zenin.

03:50 p.m.

Okkotsu finished reading that long letter once he was alone in his room in the apartment where he was staying in the city.

He couldn't believe everything he had read on those sheets. Which he had kept very well once they had arrived at the scene of the crime.

After answering that work call, Yuta asked Katsumoto to go straight to that apartment, where he locked himself in his room to read that letter in silence.

"Thank you Mai for telling me a part of the truth... I know I must return the favor" he said quietly as he continued to take those cards in his hands.

Yuta then looked at the large window in his room, it was getting late. He could see that the sky would soon turn red from the sunset.

Reading that letter stirred up his feelings and confirmed a few things. Above all, that letter would motivate him to confront Satoru.

But, first He would talk to Maki. There also had to be a way to protect her, the others and especially his children.

At that moment, the vivid image of his children came to his mind. And with them, a very important question that he had not thought of until that moment.

"How will Yurika and Yuudai take the news that I am their real father?" - he wondered, looking at the letter "Will they accept me? Or will it be better if they don't know who I am?"

Yuta sighed.
"I missed a lot of things about my children, so I doubt they will accept me so easily. Still, there's a lot to sort out before I tell them the truth" he plopped down on the bed.

"I wonder what Maki and my children are doing right now..." he sighed, looking at the ceiling.

"Maki..." Yuta whispered that name with longing, the love he felt for her was still very strong and now, he had two more reasons to go ahead and fight for that woman. And those reasons were his children.

But it is well said that where there was fire, ashes remain.

03:55 p.m.

"Yu...ta..." Maki whispered in her sleep.

She had slept a good part of the afternoon.

Between dreams she was remembering a little of what had happened with her and Yuta the night before. Just as she was also remembering in her sleep their last kiss. Which felt so real even though it was just a memory.

Even the giggles she heard in her sleep reminded her of the first time she held her babies without them being on ventilators. When she was finally able to put their little heads on her chest and kiss their foreheads.

Maki was still dreaming, that is until she felt that her children had crawled into her bed and hugged her.

"shuu you will wake her up..."

"You are the one who is talking..."

"It seems that mommy is dreaming again about that man she sees in her dreams" whispered Yurika.

"I wonder who that man is that mom dreams about so much..." Yuudai said quietly.

"Do you think he dreams about our real dad?"

"I don't know..."

"She's waking up already!" Yurika whispered in surprise.

"Quickly, we must pretend to be asleep too!" Yuudai whispered, closing his eyes.

Those small voices close to her, made Maki open her eyes little by little and notice that her children were lying on her sides.

Yurika was to the right of her and Yuudai to the left.

Maki felt tenderness at the sight of her children pretending to be asleep, eyes closed, while their little heads were resting on her chest.

"I know they're not asleep" she smiled and whispered as she kissed each of them on their foreheads and brought her hands to their hair to stroke them, "Yurika, Yuudai"

Both children opened their beautiful honey-colored eyes as they let out a few small laughs.

"Did you sleep well, Mommy?" asked Yuudai with a smile.

Their mother kissed their foreheads again.

"I slept well and by the way, I was dreaming about the time I first held you two after you were born" said Maki with a smile, "just as you are right now, resting your heads on my chest"

That made both children smile.

"Mommy, did you dream something else?" Yurika asked curiously.

"Why such a question?" Maki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Why did you seem to say a man's name under your breath" commented Yurika as she sat on the side of the bed.

"Were you dreaming about that man you see in your dreams?" Yuudai also asked, sitting down on the side to look at his mother.

"Were you dreaming about our real father?" asked Yurika.

Maki sighed and stretched out her arms as she pulled the sheets off her.

"I don't remember anymore" Maki lied as she shrugged her shoulders. "And by the way, what are you doing here in my room? And Megumi and the others, where are they?" she decided to change the subject.

"We came in to see if you were awake yet" Yuudai explained.

"Yes, mostly so we can go to the supermarket to buy the ingredients for tomorrow to make the food we will offer to Yuta kun!" explained Yurika excitedly.

"And Papa Gumi is in the living room with my aunt and uncle" Yuudai replied.

"Yes, Dad agreed that we should come in and wake you up" said Yurika with a big smile.

"I see, well, at least I slept enough to feel better" replied Maki with a slight smile.

"Mommy! Do you think Yuta kun could sleep over here tomorrow? We want to play with him!"Yurika said.

"It seems that Yuta kun got along well with the others, as yesterday they all seemed to be old friends" Yuudai explained.

Both kids looked super excited about tomorrow and Maki noticed that.

"Do they really love Okkotsu even though they have only known him for a few days?" asked their mother when she saw their excitement.

"Yep!"

"He saved us, we owe him our lives!"

"Besides, we feel a strange connection with him!"

"We want him to be with us longer before he returns to Tokyo"

These two explained.

Maki sighed and pursed her lips in a pout. She did not like the idea.

"Mommy, what's wrong?" questioned Yurika, looking at her mother's seriousness.

"Don't you like him?" Yuudai asked.

"It's not that. It's just that he..." Maki didn't know whether or not to tell the truth.

"What does he have?" asked Yurika.

"Yuta kun is it?" Yuudai asked.

Maki felt that this was not the time for her children to know the truth.

"Yuta can sleep here alone if he has time, we can also prepare a futon and make a space for him in the living room if he wants to sleep with us" replied Maki with a smile as she sat down on her bed –"Now, go put on your shoes. We will go shopping"

"Yeih!" shouted those two excitedly as they climbed down from their mother's bed and ran to their respective rooms.

Instead, Maki flopped on her back on her mattress. She couldn't stop thinking about Yuta.

"I guess it's not yet time for them to know the truth..." she whispered to herself.

Her heart was pounding just thinking about Yuta staying overnight in that house tomorrow.

To be continue…

Notes:

Here begins my vacation hiatus ❤

I hope you liked this long and revealing chapter, or rather, Christmas present.

How are you liking this story?

I admit that this was a very long letter but very revealing, and that this story still lacks other mysteries to be mentioned, as well as other truths that will gradually come to light, but that will be revealed until next year.

So here I only wanted to put what Mai considered most important to tell Yuta.

About the mystery of what happened to Utahime sensei seven years ago and her current life with Satoru, for that part I am thinking of writing a chapter that will revolve around that mystery. But that will be for next year.

About twins being unlucky, I guess that superstition can be broken when the babies are born with opposite sexes as in the case of Yurika and Yuudai who were a girl and a boy. Although I'm still defining what cursed techniques each child will have inherited, what techniques do you guys suggest, any Gojo clan techniques or Zenin clan techniques?

And speaking of the parents of those two, what do you think will happen in the next chapter where Yuta will go to Maki's house? What do you think Yuta and Maki will talk about? Do you think Yurika and Yuudai are already suspecting that Yuta is his real father? How do you think they will react when they find out? Will they take it well or badly? Although for this revelation, there are still several more chapters to go.

I can only advance that soon there will be some jealousy from Yuta towards Megumi because those kids love and call this man "dad", because Yurika and Yuudai really love Megumi as if he was their real father 👀.

So also before long, it will be Yuta's turn to talk to both Maki and Megumi.

Just as soon, Yuta will have to confront Satoru for answers about what happened years ago. *Thriller music*
Anyway, this story still has a long way to go.

As I said, this is the last chapter I'm writing this year, I hope in the next one, I'll be able to bring you more chapters ❤
For the moment, this December 26th I will continue reading your comments while I'm still here in my country.

From the 27th onwards, I will try to read your theories and comments once I have internet abroad. And if I don't manage to connect in these almost four weeks, I will try to catch up with your comments and messages once I get back to Mexico.
Vera says goodbye, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year ❤