After a few moments, the hug finally loosened, but Misaki didn’t let go of my hand.
Her fingers stayed intertwined with mine, firm yet warm.
“Shall we go down, Miss Sienna?” she asked softly. “Your father must be waiting with breakfast.”
I nodded, wiping the last tears with the back of my free hand.
“Six days…” I murmured against her shoulder. “Just six days.”
We walked down the main staircase holding hands. The marble steps reflected our silhouettes like foggy mirrors. The stained-glass windows in the entrance hall tinted the vestibule in amber and ruby tones, as if the mansion itself were burning in silence.
When we reached the kitchen doorway, the warm light spilled into the hallway.
And there she was again.
Hanako, sitting in the exact same chair as before, with the same steaming cup of tea in her hands and the same icy smile on her lips. She must have come straight back down after leaving my room. Of course she would. The woman probably couldn’t resist one last cup of coffee before starting her day of psychological warfare.
“Well, look who finally decided to show up,” she said without looking up.
Her voice was sweet. Too sweet. Like caramel coating a blade.
(Damn it. I swear I’ll…)
Misaki squeezed my hand. Not violently. Reassuringly. A soft but firm pressure that said: “Don’t fall. I’m here.”
“Don’t worry,” she whispered so quietly only I could hear. “I’m with you.”
(Why is my body…?)
My cheeks burned. An absurd heat ran down the back of my neck. (Why am I blushing? This is not the time, you damn hormonal body!)
But I smiled back. Shaky, yes. But real.
“It’s okay, Misaki.”
My father stopped, dried his hands, and turned toward us. His face held that mix of exhaustion and pride only parents can have.
“Girls, Osvaldo is already waiting in the car.”
He glanced at the wall clock. 6:30.
“See you when you get back,” he added with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
Before we could move, he handed us two wooden bento boxes tied with purple cloth.
“Lunches for us?” I asked, taking them.
They were warm.
The heat passed through the wood and reached my palms. And then… a memory. Not Sienna’s. Mine. Dani’s.
My mother. Years ago. Before she left. She used to give me the lunchbox every morning. Always warm. Always with a note and a smiling sun drawing inside.
A tear rolled down my cheek.
“Sienna?” My father stepped closer, worried, and brushed the hair from my forehead. “What’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
“It must be because she missed her lunches,” Misaki cut in naturally, taking the other box. “Come on, Sienna. We only have thirty minutes left.”
“Yeah…” I nodded, wiping my cheek.
We left the kitchen. I felt Hanako’s gaze piercing the back of my neck like a needle.
I didn’t turn around.
Kitchen scene (after the girls leave)
Hiroshi set the cloth down and slowly turned toward Hanako. His expression was no longer that of a dutiful son.
“Mom… something happened while you were gone, didn’t it?”
Hanako lifted the teacup, blew on it, and took a calm sip.
“Me?” She smiled without showing her teeth. “How can you doubt your own mother, Hiroshi?”
“Even though I love you, Mother…” Hiroshi crossed his arms. “My daughter and my wife are the most important things to me now.”
The silence turned electric.
Hanako grew angry. It wasn’t a tantrum. It was something deeper and colder. Her eyes narrowed.
“You really dare say that to your mother?”
“And what if he does?”
The voice came from the doorway.
Camila. Pearl-gray suit, hair in a low bun, thick ledger in her hands. She was no longer the fragile woman from the night before. She was the owner of the mansion.
“Well… you really think highly of yourself, don’t you, Leviathan?”
Hanako slammed the book shut. The sound echoed like a gunshot.
Camila took a step forward.
“This is my house. My territory. Would you be crazy enough to attack your son’s family?”
Hanako stood up. Her black kimono spread like crow wings.
“Hiroshi,” she said without turning, “are you going to let your wife speak to me like that?”
Hiroshi walked over and stood beside Camila.
“It’s a husband’s duty to support his wife,” he answered firmly.
Hanako snorted.
“Your father would never allow this.”
“Dad is already dead, Mom,” Hiroshi said, his voice cracking for just a second. “I shouldn’t have let you come.”
“Enough!” Hanako raised her hand. “I’m leaving. But you’ll hear from me on Saturday.”
She walked out. The front door slammed so hard the pictures on the walls rattled.
Camila sighed and dropped into a chair.
“What an unbearable woman.”
Hiroshi hugged her from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder.
“We still have a little time, darling…” she murmured, softer now.
Hiroshi smiled against her neck.
“I would never turn you down… but you have that meeting to attend.”
Camila rolled her eyes.
“You know I can skip it…”
“Darling, you’ve skipped almost the entire month.” He gently turned her to face him. “You need to go for at least one week.”
Camila nestled against his chest.
“I wish I could go with you. I don’t feel safe leaving you with those harpies…”
Hiroshi chuckled and lifted her chin with one finger.
“Why watch bronze when the finest pure gold is right in front of me?”
Camila blushed.
“You’re such an idiot,” she muttered, but she didn’t pull away.
On the way to school
The black Mercedes looked more like a spaceship than a car. Osvaldo drove perfectly.
Misaki and I sat in the back, bento boxes on our laps.
“Misaki…” I said, staring out the window. “Do you think I’m weak?”
She took a moment to answer.
“Eh… well… not exactly. Maybe just a little.”
(I knew it.)
I clenched my fists.
(I need to fix that.)
“Could we run together sometime?”
Misaki smiled, but then looked away.
“I’d love that… but I promised Sasha I’d stop by the swimming club.”
(Sasha. That name again.)
I lowered my head.
“I’m sorry, Sienna. I can’t break my word. If you want, after club activities we can walk around the clubs together.”
“Okay,” I nodded. “I’ll wait for you.”
The car stopped in front of the school.
Whoa. It was enormous. Corinthian columns, towers, stained glass… it looked like a secular cathedral.
Osvaldo apologized: protocol didn’t allow vehicles inside the grounds.
We got out. Misaki walked beside me, her skirt fluttering in the breeze.
“Was it just me, or did Osvaldo seem surprised by my goodbye?” I asked.
Misaki laughed.
“It’s because the old Sienna hardly ever said goodbye to anyone.”
(Right. I’ll have to fix that too.)
The moment we stepped inside, the luxury hit me like a slap.
Polished marble that reflected my face, digital bulletin boards, an indoor garden with a giant bonsai. Every student wore the same navy-blue uniform.
(It’s impossible not to feel humiliated. It’s like my soul is screaming: “I’M POOR!”)
Misaki took my arm.
“Don’t worry. You’ll fit right in.”
I thumped my chest with my fist.
“Don’t worry. As long as you’re with me, I’m fine.”
Misaki’s face darkened.
“But… we’re in different departments.”
“Huh? Departments?” I blinked. “You don’t mean classrooms?”
Misaki looked at me like I’d just said the sky was green.
“Maids and butlers study in the adjacent wing.”
(It’s over. There goes my grand debut.)
I dropped to my knees on the marble. A few students turned to stare.
“No, no, don’t worry, Miss Sienna!” Misaki knelt beside me. “Your friends are there! You’ll be fine!”
I sprang back up like a jack-in-the-box.
“You’re right!” I grabbed her shoulders. “This is no time to doubt.”
I gave her my best abandoned-puppy eyes.
“Please… will you walk with me?”
Misaki blushed.
“Of course I will!”
Misaki left me at the door of 2-B and headed to her own wing.
I took a deep breath and opened it.
The classroom was huge. Desks arranged in a semicircle, digital blackboard… and twenty pairs of eyes staring at me.
But I only saw one person.
A cheerful anime girl in a magical girl cosplay, with long vibrant orange hair, big sparkling orange-brown eyes, and a bright smile. She had a large pink bunny-ear bow on her head.
“Hey, Sienna!”
Daisy ran over and tackled me in a hug.
“I missed you so much!” she cried, burying her face in my shoulder. She smelled like strawberries.
“I missed you too, Daisy,” I stammered, awkwardly hugging her back.
“We have so much to catch up on…!”
“Well, well.”
The cold voice came from the doorway.
Three girls were blocking the exit.
The one in the middle was Madeline: emerald-green bob haircut, yellowish eyes, and an expensive-looking family brooch pinned to her chest. She smiled cruelly.
To her right, Hilda: dark-skinned, athletic, with a thin scar on her jaw and muscles visible under the uniform. She cracked her knuckles.
To her left, Ellie: brown hair in two low pigtails, round glasses, and a shy smile that didn’t reach her eyes. She looked like the most dangerous of the three.
“So you’re back, Sienna,” Madeline said, stepping closer. “Couldn’t stay in your little hideout any longer?”
“Look who’s talking,” I answered, crossing my arms. “Someone with snot-colored hair insulting me.”
Hilda stepped forward. Her shadow swallowed me.
“Wow… you think you’re untouchable?”
Ellie let out a shrill little laugh.
“Madeline, she can’t even wear the uniform right and she already thinks she’s better than us.”
Madeline scanned me up and down.
“Look at that pathetic attempt to copy Misaki.”
“Shut up, Ellie!” Daisy planted herself in front of me, arms spread like a shield. “My friend isn’t alone.”
Hilda moved toward Daisy, knuckles cracking.
And then my body moved on its own.
I stepped forward. Fist clenched. Hip twisted. Direct punch to Hilda’s stomach.
The girl flew backward and slammed onto the marble floor. Her head bounced.
Absolute silence.
“Yes!” I raised my arms. (Hell yeah! I still got it!)
“Damn you…” Hilda staggered to her feet. “That hurt!”
(Shit. She’s tougher than she looks.)
“Sienna…” Daisy stared at me wide-eyed. “I think you went too far…”
“Doesn’t matter,” I raised my fists. “Guard up, Daisy!”
Hilda roared and charged at me.
Her fist whistled past my ear. I ducked. (This body is way more fragile than I thought… and Excalibur is shifting weirdly with all this jumping.)
I countered with a low blow to the ribs. It landed. She grunted.
“How dare you, you filth?!” Madeline screamed from behind.
Ellie wasn’t smiling anymore.
“Help Hilda!”
Hilda grabbed my wrist and lifted me like I weighed nothing.
“Let go, you gorilla!” I kicked.
Daisy lunged, but Madeline caught her by the hair and yanked her back.
“Daisy!” I yelled.
Rage shot through me. I used Hilda’s grip to launch myself, spun in the air, and planted my foot straight into her face.
Hilda howled and dropped me. I landed badly. My ankle protested.
I got back up.
“Is that all you’ve got, you fucking bitches?!” I spat.
Madeline released Daisy. Her face was pure hatred.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a switchblade. The blade glinted under the digital board’s light.
“YOUNG LADIES!”
The teacher’s voice boomed like thunder. The man, red-faced with fury, marched between the desks.
“What the hell is going on here?”