~Three Hours Later~
Ketsueki’s House
The locked doorknob turned a couple of times as a streak of white phased through the door handle as it headed toward the living room. The door opened revealing Reiki as he made his way into the house, he thought. Cherry can unlock doors?... Ender, is there a chance she can do that with vaults? He closed the door behind him as he made his way to the shoe compartment and slid it open. Reiki took out a pair of white indoor slippers while Ender’s voice rang in his head.
Ender said. [If she’s willing to learn its mechanism, probably.] Reiki lazily tossed the slippers onto the floor as he took off his sports shoes and placed them in the shoe cabinet, he thought. What would she want in exchange… Reiki put the indoor slippers on as he heard the sound of a television playing from the living room which made his brows furrow. He said. “What the?...” Reiki made his way to the living room and saw Cherry on the coffee table standing beside the remote watching a movie from the US. He thought. So she can understand multiple languages… Noted.
Reiki made his way to the sofa while taking out a tattered pouch from his pocket along with a pair of blue nitrile gloves from the inside of the pouch. He put the gloves on, sat down on the couch, took out a pair of identical flip phones, and two batteries still in the packaging. He placed the phones on the couch beside him and quickly took out the batteries from the plastic packaging while watching the movie on TV. Airing on the channel was a car chase while they were shooting each other with guns, Reiki thought. Didn’t this series have eleven whole installments…
He placed both the batteries on his lap and placed the packaging on the couch while watching the movie on TV that showed cars drifting in tight corners. Reiki removed the flip phones' backs, placed a battery in both of them, and put the cover of the backs on as the sound of tire screeching and intense music coming from the TV filled the room. He thought. I can’t believe I had to waste one thousand five hundred yen on a wire so that I could connect this to Onee-chan’s computer…
Reiki used his thumbs to turn both the flip phones on as they slightly vibrated as the screen lit up after a few seconds of delay. He placed the two phones in his pocket and put the two plastic packages into the tattered pouch as he stood up from the couch, Reiki said. “Cherry, I’ll be on the second floor for an hour or two.” Cherry didn’t even respond as her blood-red eyes were glued onto the movie on TV. Reiki made his way to the staircase and thought. I hope technology has developed to the point where I don’t have to wait an entire afternoon to transfer a few megabytes of data.
He made his way up the stairs, reached the second floor, and made his way to Ketsueki’s room. Reiki stood by the door, placed his hand on the doorknob, and turned it revealing his older sister’s room. He thought. Onee-chan didn’t lock her room again… Reiki made his way toward the PC in the corner as he sat on the chair, turned the computer on, and watched it boot up. While the computer was in the middle of turning on, Reiki took out both flip phones from his pocket and placed them on the work table.
The PC finished turning on as the screen was asking for the password while Reiki took out a tattered pouch and placed it on his lap. He thought. MySiblings. Reiki typed the password as the PC accepted it while he took out a phone wire from the pouch and plugged it into the computer’s chassis below the desk. He pocketed the pouch, connected one of the flip phones to the computer with the wire as he placed it near the keyboard, and grabbed the mouse with his right hand, Reiki said. “Local disk, somewhere in program files.” After a few clicks, he browsed through folders looking for an image.
Reiki found the image he had saved as he opened another folder and opened another folder, he thought. While transferring, I need to register both numbers with line. He moved his gaze to the flip phones and continued his train of thought. … Which phone has which number again?... Reiki sighed as he took out a tattered pouch from his pocket and placed his hand inside.
~One Hour Later~
Ketsueki was by the front door as she was in the middle of taking off her sports shoes while hearing the sound of english coming from the living room, she thought. Did Reiki leave the TV on? She took off her sports shoes, placed them in the shoe compartment, and put on a pair of white indoor slippers while closing the door of the shoe compartment. Ketsueki made her way to the living room and saw Cherry standing on the coffee table while watching a show on the television. Ketsueki had an odd look on her face and thought. Is… Is Cherry watching TV?...
The sound of hurried footsteps came from the staircase as Reiki hastily greeted his older sister, he said. “Onee-chan, welcome back.” Ketsueki managed to move her gaze away from Cherry and onto her little brother, she said. “I’m back, Reiki.” She pointed at the albino crow on the coffee table and continued. “Did you leave Cherry with the TV on?” Reiki glanced at the show airing on the television, he thought. That’s a different channel. He said. “I think she’s watching, half an hour ago I went up the stairs and an action movie was on.” Ketsueki’s eyes narrowed slightly, she said. “What did you do on the second floor?”
Reiki placed his hands in the pocket of his shorts, he said. “Some light cleaning, needed to dust off the walls near the ceiling.” Ketsueki stared at him as she glanced at the remote on the coffee table beside the crow, she said. “... Can you ask for the remote for me? I have a show that’s going to start soon.” Reiki gave his older sister a nod and said. “Sure, want me to prepare some green tea?” Ketsueki made her way around the couch as she sat down, she said. “Aren’t you busy with cleaning?” Reiki took the same path as his older sister and made his way to the coffee table.
He said. “You arrived at a perfect time, I’m letting the dust in the air settle onto the ground so I was going to grab some milk.” Ketsueki glanced at the show on TV, she said. “In that case, can you also fill me a small bowl with a few scoops of strawberry ice cream?” She placed her hand inside her pocket while Reiki gently poked Cherry’s wing a couple of times, he said. “Hey girl, mind letting my older sister use the TV?” Cherry turned her head to face him as she let out a caw and flapped her wings.
Ketsueki took out a pint of strawberry ice cream from her pocket while Reiki thought. She’s either going to be fine with me taking the remote or I’ll have to start running after I give it to my older sister. He casually took the remote as Cherry was preening some feathers on her left wing, Reiki passed the remote to his older sister and said. “Here you go, Onee-chan.” Ketsueki took the remote off her little brother’s hands and passed the pint of strawberry ice cream to him.
Reiki felt the pint of ice cream was a bit lighter and gently shook it, he said. “You already ate half of it.” Ketsueki started flipping through channels, she said. “Yeah, did you want some?” Reiki shook his head sideways and said. “No, I was just surprised it had less than I thought it would.” He made his way to the kitchen while Ketsueki stopped through channels as she found the show, she thought. Now those two can finally stop hounding me to watch this drama show from korea… From the corner of her eye, she saw Cherry on the coffee table watching.
Ketsueki had a hint of hesitation on her face, she said. “Uh… Cherry, can you move away from the coffee table? I can see you in the corner of my eye…” Cherry turned into a streak of white as she appeared on top of the backrest of the sofa near Ketsueki who had a hint of surprise on her expression. Ketsueki continued. “Thanks, Cherry.” The albino bird flapped her wings while Ketsueki moved her gaze back to the TV, she said. “Reiki, how close are you to cleaning the rooms on the second floor?”
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She heard some noises from the kitchen followed by the sound of her little brother’s voice, Reiki said. “After I’m done making your green tea and ice cream, the dust should have settled by then. I’d be done in three to eight minutes, give or take.” Ketsueki took off the indoor slippers she was wearing as she placed both her feet on the coffee table while still wearing black socks, she thought. How long has it been since he started cleaning? Reiki was carrying a cylinder-shaped tea cup as he made his way to the coffee table in the living room, he said. “Green tea is ready.”
Reiki placed the cup on the coffee table while making sure he wasn’t blocking his older sister’s show, he continued. “Give me a couple minutes on your ice cream.” Ketsueki gave him a smile and said. “Thank you.” Cherry flapped her wings which got his attention as he smiled at her, Reiki said. “And some cherries for Cherry.” He made his way back to the kitchen while Ketsueki picked up her cup of tea as she gently blew on it and took a sip. Ketsueki thought. This drama is pretty good, I need to ask Sachi to send me the episodes.
Reiki made his way to the living room as he was holding onto a small bowl in each hand, one had strawberry ice cream while the other one had cherries with the stems removed. He made his way to the coffee table and said. “Onee-chan, your ice cream is ready.” Reiki placed the bowl of cherries near the edge of the coffee table while Cherry turned into a streak of white and appeared near the bowl. Ketsueki’s gaze was still on the k-drama on TV as she waved her hand in dismissal at him and said. “Thank you, Reiki. Just place it on the coffee table.”
From the corner of her eye, she saw the whipped cream, crushed peanuts, and a couple of cherries on top that had the stems removed. Ketsueki pried her gaze from the show and moved her eyes onto the ice cream, she said. “... Reiki, I only asked for ice cream.” Reiki gestured at the bowl of ice cream he was holding, he said. “There were some leftovers from yesterday. If you don’t want it, can I-.” Before he could say another word Ketsueki’s left arm blurred as she took the bowl of ice cream from her little brother’s hands.
She held out her right hand at him, Ketsueki said. “Where’s my spoon?” Reiki took out a spoon that had the bowl wrapped in a layer of tissue and passed it to his older sister, he said. “If you need me, I’ll be on the floor cleaning the rooms. Make sure to give Shiro a heads up.” Ketsueki gave him a nod while she removed the tissue wrapped around the spoon and used it to scoop some of the whipped cream, she said. “I will, don’t worry.” Cherry took a bite of one of the cherries in her bowl while Reiki made his way to the staircase.
Ketsueki ate the whipped cream on the spoon as she covered her mouth with her hand and said. “Reiki!” Her little brother stopped by the staircase as Reiki turned around to face her, Ketsueki swallowed as she continued. “While you’re at it, can you check to see if I forgot to unplug my charger from the outlet near my bed?” Reiki gave her older sister a nod and said. “Sure, Onee-chan.” He made his way up the stairs while Ketsueki went back to watching the k-drama on TV.
Cherry finished one of the cherries in her bowl as she had some syrup running down her beak. Ketsueki was about to put the tissue on the coffee table but saw the albino bird’s beak had some syrup running down her beak, she said. “Cherry, hold still for a moment.” The crow stared at Ketsueki’s hand that was holding onto a tissue slowly moving closer to her face. Ketsueki gently wiped the syrup off the bird's beak, she said. “There, all clean.” She thought. Having a pet bird isn’t as hard as I thought it would be…
Ketsueki neatly folded the tissue with one hand as she placed it on the coffee table, ate more of her ice cream, and continued her train of thought. Then again, I’ve never heard Cherry caw unless Reiki spoke to her and she hasn’t pooped in the house. She watched Cherry take another bite of a cherry in the bowl while eating another spoonful of ice cream that had some toppings on it. Ketsueki moved her gaze back onto the k-drama on TV, she thought. … She’s not a ‘normal’ crow, I’ll give her that much. She glanced at the albino crow eating the last bit of a cherry.
Shiro made her way to the living room as she was wearing her school uniform, she said. “Onee-chan, I’m back.” Ketsueki turned her head to the side and saw her little sister making her way to the couch, she said. “Welcome back, Shiro.” Shiro saw Cherry on the coffee table eating some cherries while pretending she didn’t see the ice cream her older sister was holding. Shiro said. “Hi Cherry, it’s been a while.” Shiro gently caressed Cherry’s back with her hand while Ketsueki gulped down a mouthful of ice cream.
Ketsueki said. “I’ll ask Reiki if he used everything in the pint I brought home today.” Shiro gently ran her hand on Cherry’s back one last time, she said. “Thank you, Onee-chan. I’ll head to my room to start on my homework.” She did a half-turn while Ketsueki almost ate a spoonful of ice cream, she placed the spoon back onto the small bowl she was carrying and said. “Shiro, wait.” Shiro took a couple of steps before stopping, she turned her upper body to look at her older sister and said. “Onee-chan, what is it?”
Ketsueki let out a small sigh of relief and said. “Reiki’s almost done cleaning our rooms. I hope you don’t mind putting up with that uniform for a bit longer.” Shiro looked down at her clothes as she made her way back to the couch and sat down next to her older sister while sneaking glances at the ice cream Ketsueki was holding. Shiro fidgeted with her thumbs as she glanced at her older sister eating a spoonful of ice cream while watching TV, she said. “Onee-chan, what are you watching?” Ketsueki swallowed while she used her thumb to wipe some whipped cream on the corner of her mouth.
She said. “It’s a korean drama Sachi recommended to me.” Ketsueki licked the whipped cream off her thumb while Shiro kept stealing glances at the ice cream her older sister was eating. Shiro said. “Is it good?” Ketsueki’s lips curled into a teasing smile as she gave her little sister a side-eye glance and said. “The show or the ice cream?” Shiro’s face turned slightly red as she stopped fiddling with her thumbs, she said. “B-Both?” Ketsueki let out a chuckle as she scooped some ice cream with some whipped cream on top and moved the spoon closer to her little sister.
She said. “Say, ahh.” Ketsueki fed her little sister while watching the smile on Shiro’s face slowly grow bigger. Ketsueki scooped some ice with the spoon, she said. “What do you think?” She ate the ice cream on her spoon while Shiro gulped and said. “It’s good, but I like Onii-chan’s handmade ice cream more.” Ketsueki had some ice cream in her mouth, she thought. I don’t know what recipe Reiki uses but it’s delicious. Shiro looked up to her older sister, she said. “How long has Onii-chan been cleaning?”
Ketsueki used her spoon to split one of the cherries in her bowl into two, she swallowed and said. “He went up the stairs a few minutes ago.” Shiro looked down to stare at the uniform she was wearing which made her older sister smile, Ketsueki continued. “How about this, when Reiki is finished with cleaning. You can have ice cream before starting on your homework.” Shiro’s eyes sparkled like stars as she looked up to her older sister and said. “I’ll hold you to it, Onee-chan!” The sound of footsteps came from the stairs as the two girls turned their heads and saw Reiki.
He made his way to the couch and saw his little sister next to Ketsueki. Reiki said. “Welcome back, Shiro.” Shiro’s eyes quickly turned back to normal as she gave her older brother a smile and said. “I’m back, Onii-chan.” She subtly used her left hand to tug on her older sister’s shirt which made her smile. Ketsueki placed the spoon in her bowl of ice cream, she said. “Reiki, is there any strawberry ice cream left?” He thought. The toppings were a good call, it gave me plenty of time to finish transferring the picture.
Reiki said. “I’ve set aside some for Shiro, give me a few minutes to make it.” He made his way to the fridge while Ketsueki placed her bowl of ice cream on the coffee table and picked up her cup of green tea. Ketsueki said. “Good for you, Shiro.” She took a small sip of her tea while her little sister quickly made her way to the staircase. Ketsueki thought. She really wanted to get out of her uniform. I don’t blame her, the only thing I wore in my short time in college was hoodies and baggy pants.
Cherry watched Ketsueki place the cup back on the coffee table while she was watching the drama on TV. Ketsueki picked up the bowl of ice cream and noticed the crow staring at her, she said. “Are you interested in green tea?” Cherry shook her head sideways as she went back to eating the cherries in her bowl while Ketsueki used a spoon to eat some ice cream. Ketsueki thought. Maybe I should ask Reiki for a small bowl of room-temperature tea for her. Shiro quickly made her way down the stairs as she dashed toward the couch and sat down beside her older sister.
Ketsueki used her spoon to prevent the whipped cream from falling off her ice cream as the sofa slightly bounced from Shiro sitting down. Ketsueki said. “Shiro, we’ve talked about jumping on the couch.” Shiro put on a carefree smile on her face and said. “Sorry, Onee-chan. I’m just excited for ice cream.” Ketsueki’s gaze wandered onto what her little sister was wearing, she thought. A t-shirt and shorts… Ketsueki said. “Shiro, how about we go shopping for clothes?” Shiro had a hint of unwillingness in her expression, she said. “Can’t you have Onii-chan carry the shopping bags?.”
Ketsueki used the spoon to scoop some of the ice cream from her bowl, she said. “I was planning on buying you some new clothes.” She ate some ice cream while Shiro looked down to stare at her simple attire. Shiro said. “But my clothes still fit.” Cherry ate the last bit of cherry in her bowl while Ketsueki’s gaze was on the show on the TV, she said. “There’s nothing wrong with owning more clothes.” Shiro made herself comfortable on the sofa and leaned on the backrest. She said. “Can we do it next week? Last time we went shopping I got tired from all the walking and Onii-chan had to carry me.”
Ketsueki nodded, she said. “Fine, this weekend the three of us are going to the nearest mall.” She ate a spoonful of ice cream and thought. I can finally buy something for these two… Shiro’s brows furrowed as she tried her best to read the subtitles on the screen which made her older sister smile. Ketsueki gulped and said. “Having a hard time with the kanji?” Shiro tilted her head to the side, she said. “... I can understand half of it…” Ketsueki let out a chuckle while Cherry turned into a streak of white and said. “Is that so?”
The two of them turned their heads at the sound of Reiki’s voice, he said. “Sorry for the wait, I’m here.” Cherry was on his right shoulder as he made his way to the couch while carrying a bowl of ice cream and a glass of milk in each hand. Reiki placed the bowl and glass on the coffee table in front of his little sister, he continued. “One bowl of ice cream and a warmed glass of milk.” Shiro had stars in her eyes as she looked up at her older brother and said. “Thank you, Onii-chan.”
Reiki took out a spoon from his pocket that had the bowl wrapped in some tissue as he moved his gaze onto Ketsueki. He said. “Onee-chan, I’ll be in my room practicing some magic.” Shiro quickly took the spoon from his older brother while Ketsueki kept her gaze on the TV. Ketsueki said. “Sure, but be careful. I still remember when I heard something explode in your room.” Reiki let out a wry laugh as he made his way to the stairs, he said. “I just put a bit too much mana in a spell.”