[December 10, 2042]

All three of them were sitting around the table in the entry hall, leaning against the tall, red leather chairs, drinking tea from the top cupboard in the kitchen where Aina kept a container of “royal-worthy” tea leaves she had brought from the world she had come from.

The first was Ram: barely able to keep her cool under the exertions of this busy day, sipping the delicious tea but not tasting it at all, not because she had turned off the taste receptors that her father had installed in her tongue, but because she was so preoccupied with glancing at the stranger who had arrived in Otter House, claiming to be Cal’s sister.

The second was Mel. She was keeping it together even less convincingly. She was shaking slightly, thin knees pressed together under the sundress, staring up at the ceiling as if something was interesting up there. Now and again, she would dart a quick look at the woman sitting across from her.

The third, this very woman, was of course Adelaide Clermont, glancing between the other two with a look of ambiguous amusement, like there was a joke she was keeping entirely to herself. She crossed her long legs and readjusted herself in the chair. She had taken off her blue coat to reveal a white dress shirt, like the kind a waiter would wear, which revealed the nature of her build. Cal’s older sister was thin and tall like a bean sprout: no curves at all at the waist or chest. Her face was somewhat plain, in truth, almost androgynous — yet both Ram and Mel couldn’t deny there was something attractive and feminine about it. It was the confidence and playfulness behind Adelaide’s dark eyes, which studied them with a discerning look.

“So,” Adelaide said brightly, breaking the awkward silence that had held since the introductions. “Which one of you two lovely ladies is dating my little brother?”

The effect of these words was immediate. Ram let out a noise like a whistling tea kettle, turned bright red, and covered her mouth with her hands, as if not trusting herself to say a word. Mel, who had been pretending to take a sip of tea, coughed and spilled some tea on the carpet.

“Wha-? What? That’s um-” Ram said, her voice shrill, unable to keep pace with the extraordinary events of the day she had been having.

“Pfft, I mean, you know, that’s- you know, ridiculous- that is, because Cal... and me?! I mean-” Mel stuttered, so taken aback that she would have fallen into the very floor if all her willpower hadn’t been exerted on keeping her body corporeal at that moment.

Adelaide raised an eyebrow, grinning. “Oh, that was a joke. It seems I underestimated my little brother’s popularity.”

“M-Ms. Clermont,” Ram began, running her hands through her large blond curls, “um… that’s really not it, I swear… really-”

“Yes! That’s right! He and Ram get along, sure- but I’m his roommate so-” Mel slapped her forehead, realizing she wasn’t helping her case with the direction her words were taking her. “I mean, you know, we’re friends, and he’s helped me out with one or two things, so I do feel indebted to him in a number of ways, oh, but it’s not just an obligation — I didn’t mean for it to come across that way! I really do enjoy his company! Sure, he’s a little grumpy sometimes, as you know, but I think people who are straightforward with their thoughts and emotions are very admirable, so I do like that about him — the way he doesn’t talk down to me. I mean, he calls me mocking nicknames sometimes — but he always takes me seriously at the most important moments, he doesn’t make me feel small. That’s what I really like, so that is to say, me and your brother, we’re…”

Mel trailed off, horrified at the words that had come out her mouth and at Adelaide’s widening grin. “I mean…. Um…” For some reason, Mel bowed her head of messy short hair, like she was addressing royalty. “Your brother… is a very good caretaker of this establishment… is what I wanted to say.”

Adelaide shook her head, marveling at the unfolding situation. “Wow.” She nodded to herself, took a sip of tea, nodded again, this time in approval, and then set the cup down atop a wooden coaster. “You two are just the most adorable things, aren’t you?”

There was another awkward pause until Ram finally let out a tiny “thank you.”

“You don’t have to look so stiff,” Adelaide said, uncrossing her legs. “It really was a lighthearted joke, what I said before. I know my brother isn’t at all interested in that sort of stuff, but I’m glad to see you two seem to like him well enough to get flustered about such an idea. Is he well-liked around this darling old-school mansion? Does he get along with all the tenants?”

“Y-yeah,” Mel was rubbing her shoulders now, apparently not knowing what to do with her body as her bright blue eyes fell shyly. “I mean, I can’t speak for everyone exactly, but yes, I think we all like Cal quite a lot. He’s very courteous and takes his job seriously. He makes us all very delicious food in the morning and at night. He… tries to make everyone comfortable I guess.”

Adelaide smiled upon hearing this, though there was a complicated emotion besides happiness present in it. “He’s doing good, is he? That’s wonderful…. Food? That’s the only thing we really shared in common.” She sighed. “I heard that by chance it’s a pretty double-X household, yes? That isn’t causing too much discomfort, is it?”

“N-no!” protested Ram, who had finally refound the strength in her voice. “It’s not like that at all! Cal is very polite and gives us a lot of space when we need to use the shower or bathroom… or stuff like that.” She interlocked her fingers, trying not to let her embarrassment affect her ability to speak. “I… think he’s really self-conscious about it. Not in the fact that he ignores it, but that he’s always making little accommodations so it doesn’t become an issue. Gives us space when we need it, you know? I kind of… consider him a dependable older brother-”

Ram froze realizing she had just said.

“Aw,” Adelaide said, leaning forward close to Ram, which made Ram flinch. “You are the sweetest thing. That’s so nice of you to say about my asocial little bro.” She whacked her fist against the opposite palm. “It’s decided! As far as I’m concerned, you’re welcome into the family any time you want, Ram! I’ve always wanted an adoptive little sis to complete the collection. Tell Cal. I’m serious. If he protests — and he will, because he’s no fun — tell him that as the older sibling my jurisdiction overrides his.”

“O-oh,” said Ram softly, her head swimming. “Okay, then.”

“Wait!” protested Mel, turning her whole body with the exclamation. “Ram, you can’t just do that! There’s, um… processes to go through.”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Adelaide stood, her long black hair swinging behind her. “Sore loser, huh? Sorry Mel, you snooze you lose — the position is filled ad infinitum. Three siblings is the perfect number, isn’t it? Only way you’re getting in now is by marriage.”

Adelaide winked, which made Mel blush. Then she clapped her hands together and declared plainly: “I need to piss. Where’s the bathroom, little sis?”

Ram took a moment before realizing it was her being addressed. “Down t-there.”

She pointed, and Adelaide nodded, setting off with a jovial gait.

After a long moment where the two processed everything, the ghost rounded on the robot. “This is a nightmare!” Mel complained, pressing her fingers so hard against her forehead they actually faded into her skull. “She knows my name and appearance! I’m not supposed to reveal myself to outsiders in case things get complicated.”

“Um…” said Ram slowly, trying to sound non-judgmental. “I m-mean, you did just sort of come up and introduce yourself. You could have just hid or something and let me handle it.”

“I knoooow,” moaned Mel in a whining voice. Her hands had now disappeared into her eyes and she looked like a macabre art installation. “But it’s Cal’s sister! What was I supposed to do, not get the lay of the land?! This is a rare opportunity!”

“You wanted her to like you. Wasn’t that it?”

“Mmmmmm, yeah, so what…” said Mel, slowly pulling her hands out of her face in case Adelaide re-entered the room. “Come on Ram, you’re supposed to be the nice one in this house… get off my case, huh? Leave the little comments to Cal. He’s rubbing off on you too much. You're acquiring his wit. You shouldn’t emulate him, he’s a bad influence.”

“S-sorry.”

The conversation died for another minute before Mel slouched in her chair, looking up at the ceiling again. “That being said… she’s different than expected, huh?”

Ram, who had been thinking the exact same thing, nodded. She tucked a blond curl behind her ear. “Yes. When you look at Cal, you imagine his older sibling to be a very impressive or strict sort of person.”

“Like a final boss, or something, that's how I imagined her whenever Cal brought her up.”

Ram nodded again. “I know what you mean. An answer to the enigma. Yet… talking with her as we have been… she’s…”

“Just sort of normal.” Mel let out an exasperated sigh. “Just a nice, normal person. I’m going to be honest… she’s normal to such a degree that it doesn’t really make sense to me.”

The ghost glanced at Ram with a conspiratorial look. “I mean, I’m not crazy, right? Cal doesn’t really talk about the past, but just the way he off-handily mentions his childhood… it doesn’t really make sense, to be honest, if Adelaide is what she appears to be-”

“Not interrupting your theorizing, am I?” Adelaide said casually, walking back into the room.

Mel and Ram jumped, beginning a series of excuses before Adelaide raised a hand commandingly. “I’m not here to discuss the past,” Adelaide said, with a little coldness in her voice that was similar to Cal. “I'm here to meet the people my brother is currently spending his life with and see if they are up to my standards.”

Then she smiled, back to normal. “Both of you are. You seem like really lovely girls. Cal told you both he was adopted into my family, yes? — strictly speaking, we’re more distant relatives than brother and sister.”

“Not in so many words,” said Mel, “but yeah, I think we both guessed as much.”

“Good, but it’s irrelevant,” continued Adelaide. “He is my dear little brother. I will protect him. I hope you will do the same. There is nothing more important to me than his security and happiness.”

Her voice shook for a second, a little emotional. “I know it probably isn’t easy, but thank you for being his friend.” She bowed her head slightly. “Please continue to do so.”

Then Adelaide checked a fashionable watch on her wrist. “Almost 5 o’clock. My shift at the restaurant will be starting pretty soon. I should go.”

Ram rose to her feet. “Y-don’t want to stay a little longer? Cal will be back soon, I think.”

“You’re very considerate,” Adelaide patted Ram’s head affectionately, her hand bouncing on the thick blonde curls, like the way someone would reassure a skittish animal. Ram, not knowing how to react to this sudden, comforting gesture, simply let it happen with a burning red face. “But I do need to go. It’s… probably best that Cal doesn’t know I was here. If he did… it would throw him off his pace, I think. Remind him of things. I should stay away a little longer and give him all the time he needs.”

Adelaide withdrew her hand and made a half-motion towards the door. “Honestly, it kind of kills me to go no-contact for so long, but it’s for the best, I think.” She smiled half-heartedly, as if guilty for some reason. “Ultimately, I’m just a big sister who worries too much and doesn’t do enough. But maybe with you two girls, and the rest, everything will work out.”

“Thank you for coming,” said Ram, a little awkwardly, touching her hair where Adelaide had been patting it.

“No problem. Getting a cute new little sister was well worth the price of admission.” Adelaide winked again playfully, then she shrugged herself back into her blue cotton coat, which had been hanging beside the oak doors. “Oh… one more thing.”

Her dark eyes turned, looking past Ram, at the figure still sitting down in the chair. “Mel, could I talk with you for a moment?”

Mel almost passed on right at that very moment from fear. “Me… um… alone?”

“You, alone,” said Adelaide, raising an eyebrow. “I don’t bite. Right outside, here. Just a moment.”

The ghost shivered. Not due to the cold, of course. Her and Adelaide were standing on the crown of the lawn, just where the hill began its descent. The wind was catching Adelaide’s dark hair and the hem of her coat, distorting her figure, making it somehow more strange and unknowable.

It’s just your imagination, thought Mel. She’s just Cal’s big sister. His cool big sister. What’s she going to do, exorcise you? There’s nothing to be apprehensive of. Maybe she wants to ask something innocent, like if I’m his girlfriend! Oh, but what do I say to that? I mean, I’m not… yet. Maybe she wants to cheer me on! Maybe I made a good impression! Maybe she’ll call me “little sis”, too! That would be awesome-

“You shouldn’t get too close to my brother.”

Adelaide’s curt words cut through the cold air and wind. She wasn’t facing Mel. Instead she looked out to the gray-blue sea churning with winter waves.

“What?” said Mel. She assumed she had misheard.

Adelaide still didn’t turn her head as she spoke. “Sorry, that’s a little harsh. But you like him, right? I could tell. I mean, you barely tried to hide it. He’s a handsome guy, I’ve been told by my friends, at least. And mature in his own specific way. It’s not all that surprising. But I’m saying this for your own good.”

“Why?” Mel said, not even denying the assertion of romantic attachment. As she did, a memory she did not possess floated in her mind — of another person telling her that she shouldn’t be with Cal, for her own good.

She felt sick all of a sudden. Did ghosts get sick? She didn’t know.

Adelaide’s shoulders heaved with a large sigh. “I… expect I know my brother better than pretty much anybody else in the world. I know his character and his emotions. You won’t… dammit…” She broke off for a moment, then continued. “You won’t be able to be his girlfriend. He’s not going to let you in like that. I suspect it’s not possible for him.”

Mel swallowed. “I think you underestimate him, a little. I mean, I’m not his girlfriend or anything, but… we talk… he… he likes me… he called me precious to him…”

Adelaide clicked her tongue. “I'm not saying he’s not your friend, or that your connection isn’t worth anything. I was being genuine when I said I’m happy that he gets along with people here. But he won’t be your boyfriend, no matter what you try.”

A lump had appeared in Mel’s throat. She didn’t want to hear this. “Why would you say that?” she said quietly. “You don’t… know that.”

“Hey,” Adelaide said softly. She had finally turned at the quiver in Mel’s voice, her eyes sincerely sympathetic. “It has nothing to do with you. You seem like a great girl. Really sincere. I think you would be a cute couple, all things being equal. But it won’t happen.”

“What do you mean?”

“Cal… Cal is…” Adelaide shook her head in self-irritation at being unable to express herself clearly. “His heart has been given to another. I’m sorry. But it’s better you know now.”

Everything turned on the axis. Everything went silent. Mel remembered everything. The woman. The shadow. Ezekiel the sheep coaxing her to sleep.

I won’t give up on love.

“Goodness, aren’t you cold in just that dress?” said Adelaide, blinking. “I thought you had a coat.”