A Sister's Logic
Team Harmonize
"Jeff. Stick your foot out." I extended my leg at Amy's command. She grabbed the plaster cast with both hands and pulled, splitting it right down the middle. Watching it crack open so cleanly brought a wave of sheer relief.
"Whoa!" The cheer came from right beside me. Rain, her mouth hanging open in delight, scooped up a piece of the cast that had fallen from my foot and stuffed it into her pocket. Shine, who had been watching from the side, also picked up a small fragment and slipped it into her own pocket.
"Why are you keeping those?"
"Just because."
"Because I wanted it!"
Their shameless, matter-of-fact responses to my question left me utterly bewildered. What on earth were they going to do with useless pieces of trash? I couldn't comprehend their behavior at all.
"You don't have any trouble moving it, right?"
"No, ma'am."
Since it had only been a few days since my leg was casted, its functionality was perfectly fine. Grimacing slightly at the stiffness in my joint, I carefully moved my leg. My pale, exposed calf met the cool breeze.
"Want to try standing up?" Amy asked, offering me her hand. I nodded, took her hand, and slid down from the chair. The sensation of my soles pressing against the floor felt strangely unfamiliar.
"Hmm."
"It doesn't hurt, does it?"
"No." I nodded at Amy's question and tapped my foot against the floor. I felt no pain whatsoever, and my leg moved smoothly. "It's completely healed."
So much had happened. It had been a short time, yet it felt incredibly long. I glanced at Shine with a complicated look. I no longer felt embarrassed about peeing in front of her. "Getting used to it" was probably the right way to put it. Before I knew it, I had grown completely accustomed to going to the bathroom with Shine's help.
She had targeted me relentlessly. She would bring me Cola and make sure I drank my fill only when it looked like Amy was about to step out. Unable to resist the temptation of the soda, I always ended up having to go to the bathroom with Shine. If I tried to hold it while unable to walk, I would have ended up wetting myself on the floor. And at my age, peeing on the floor was infinitely more embarrassing than peeing in front of Shine.
"I guess you can go to the bathroom by yourself now," Shine muttered, sounding genuinely disappointed. At her words, I placed my hands on my hips and proudly puffed out my chest. I didn't need help anymore. This meant I could go to the bathroom all on my own. I was triumphant. It meant I could finally pee in peace and satisfaction.
"Hmph." Shine let out a mysterious chuckle as she watched me. She clearly had no idea what it felt like to be forced to show someone else your most embarrassing moments. Next time, it would be my turn. I was planning to find something that would embarrass Shine and artificially engineer that exact situation—though I had no idea if there was actually anything capable of embarrassing her.
"Now you can finally join us for training!"
"Yeah!" I replied, nodding at Rain's words. At long last, I could participate in the training I had been waiting for. The training Shine underwent was close-quarters combat training, preparing for interpersonal combat. If Shine could do it, there was no reason I couldn't. Though I had rarely fought people directly, my abilities would surely be more than enough.
"Do you really have to do this?"
"Yes!" Amy stroked my hair with a worried expression. She still didn't seem to want me to train. But I couldn't give up. To be of help by Amy's side, by Shine's side, by Rain's side, and Victor's too—if I could help everyone, I would gladly do whatever it took. I might take a break if it got too hard, but regardless, nothing could shake my resolve.
"Alright, Jeff. Morning training is already over, so let's have you join the afternoon session."
"Yes, ma'am!" Since the morning training was finished, I had some free time until the afternoon. I approached Shine and began to ask her in detail about the training.
"Shine!"
"Yeah?"
"What exactly do you do in close-quarters combat training?"
"It's training to prepare for any situation that might occur when you can't use your abilities."
"Any situation?"
"Yeah. It's hard to explain in words." Shine smiled apologetically, as if sorry she couldn't explain further. I nodded and thought to myself. I had seen Shine train a few times before. It wouldn't be hard to guess the details of the training based on those memories. I bounced on my heels in anticipation.
"I want to start soon too."
"You'll do great, Jeff." Shine's smile made my heart flutter. As I continued chatting with her, a sudden urge to pee made my legs twitch. Shine, who had been smiling at me, brightened up.
"Bathroom?"
"Yeah. I'll be right back."
"Want me to help?" Shine stood up as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I almost instinctively accepted her offer out of habit. But not anymore. I stopped myself from reaching out to her, shook my head, and replied, "I can do it by myself now."
"You can pee on your own?"
"Y-Yeah."
"Really?"
"Yes." Shine's choice of words always flustered me. She never acted like this when everyone else was around, but the moment we were left alone, she would casually throw around these bizarre phrases. She had undoubtedly been corrupted by the manga Rain kept bringing over. Manga easily influences young minds. It was entirely Rain's fault that Shine, who should have only been looking at wholesome things and learning wholesome lessons, had turned out like this.
"I'll be back." I was going to have to give Rain a serious piece of my mind. I waved to Shine and headed to the bathroom. However, Shine followed right on my heels, trailing me all the way to the door.
"Um... Shine?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm going into the bathroom."
"Yeah, I know." I carefully opened the door and stepped inside. Fortunately, Shine didn't follow me in. Letting out a sigh of relief, I sat on the toilet and did my business in peace. After finishing up, I tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge. Panicking slightly, I called out.
"Uh... Shine?"
"Oh, sorry. I'll move." The heavy weight pressing against the door shifted away. I turned the doorknob and pulled the door open.
"What were you doing right in front of the door?" Shine was standing there, completely unbothered. She didn't look like she had just been waiting for me.
"I was listening to the sound."
"The sound?"
"Yeah. The sound of you, Jeff."
How should I even describe this? I thought I had grown immune to the embarrassment, but Shine's completely shameless attitude made me feel even more mortified.
"My... sound?"
"Yeah. *Trickle, trickle—*"
I hurriedly clamped my hand over Shine's small mouth before she could finish. "S-Stop it! You don't need to say it out loud!" At my flustered outburst, Shine let out a soft chuckle and nodded.
At that moment, I felt a soft, squishy sensation pressing between my fingers. Startled by the ticklish, slightly warm sensation, I pulled my hand away. Shine's bright red tongue darted back inside her small lips with a wet glint.
"Shine, do you have any idea how weird you've been lately?"
"Me?"
"Yes..."
"I haven't gotten weird. I just learned."
"You learned something weird, you mean."
"No, it's not weird."
"It is weird! I'm telling Amy."
"You can't do that, Jeff."
"See? If it wasn't weird, there wouldn't be any problem telling Amy. But you're saying I can't, which means you know deep down that this is weird."
Shine fell silent for a moment. Her head tilted slightly. Soon, her voice echoed softly in my ears.
"Jeff, it's not weird at all. That's just what families do."
A blue spark flashed before my eyes. My neatly settled hair began to stand on end. I felt a wave of confusion. Really? Is that really what families do? Having never had a proper family before, I couldn't tell if Shine was telling the truth or lying.
"Really?"
No, wait, I did have a family. My twin sister, Shine. But she and I had been dragged off to the laboratory when we were far too young. It was only natural that we had never learned the normal things families did. If so, how did Shine, who had been in the exact same situation as me, know what was normal for a family to do?
"Yes, really. Jeff, I'm right."
My confusion only deepened. Her ringing voice seemed to grow louder in my head. The blue sparks flashing before my eyes gradually lost their strength.
"Shine, I don't believe you. If I don't know, how do you know?"
"I learned. From the manga Rain brought."
Manga. The moment I heard that word, another spark flashed before my eyes. *Zap!* At the blue current dispersing into the air, Shine flinched and took a step back.
"I still don't believe you. Those are just comic books."
"Jeff, the main characters in those manga were family."
"Shine, it's just a comic book."
"It's not. Think about it, Jeff. Hugging your family is normal, right?"
"Well, that's..."
"Even Lucy in The Adventures of the Little Witch hugs her family."
"But still..."
"Families can kiss each other on the cheek, too."
I nodded blankly. Hearing her explain it, it actually made some sense. Scenes of families from various media flashed through my mind. The things Shine described were indeed perfectly natural behaviors for a family.
"So, going to the bathroom together is also a given."
"Is it...?"
"Yes. Jeff, you have to trust me. We're family."
The current crackling in the air began to subside. It felt like she was right. I reluctantly nodded.
"Yeah... I guess so."
"Which means you don't have to tell Amy."
"Yeah. I won't tell her. Since it's only natural."
"Whew..." Shine let out a deep sigh of relief at my answer. Noticing the beads of sweat on her forehead, I pulled a handkerchief from my pocket. It was a pretty white handkerchief featuring Lucy, which I had gotten back when we all went to the theme park together. I wiped the sweat from her forehead and reached out my hand.
"Let's go, Shine."
"Okay."
It was finally time to go train.