As the lunch hour passed and roup went its separate ways, Stel and Albert had both takeime to say goodbye to Ichigo and I. Ichigo had seemed to take a liking to her, but it was obvious she was still intimidated by Stel's presence.

  The Matsudaira family had a huge reputation and were a household name in this part of the try. Ichigo, despite her upbringing and the status her parents had, came from a humble middle-css background. It made sense for her to feel overwhelmed in the presence of a literal celebrity, and I knew she wasn't the type of person to get all 'fan-girly' about it either.

  Still, I couldn't help but smile as she walked off to css, her cheeks red aeps nervous and awkward.

  Stel, oher hand, had been nothing but the perfect model student, which was an iing trast to how she was when we were hanging out. I had never seen someone so effortlessly transitioween the different personas she maintained, but I could only assume that came from her upbringing.

  The Matsudaira family was a household name, and it wasn't just her father, the Ameri-born magnate Ken Takayama, who was a huge pyer in the superhero unity.

  Her adopted mother, Matsudaira Akemi, had bee known blood desdant of the Tokugawa 's main branch. A family that, for several hundred years, had maintained political power in Japan before their abdication from the shogunate ih tury. A family that then, produced some of the greatest superheroes and worst supervilins of the 20th tury.

  Her adopted mother was an iional i, and an absolutely stunning woman. She was a true Paragon, with incredible physical feats. Her beauty, grace, benevolence, and charismatic presence were only magnified by the way her family name carried a sense of royalty and regal prestige, even to this day. Losing her was a tragedy for the world, and her death still hauhe unity at rge. I had no doubt her absence had left a hole in tless hearts and souls that would never fully heal. The fact that they'd had another child, i, had been a surprise.

  A lie had been spun about how the child was kept in hiding for her own safety, due to the threat of kidnapping or assassination, and the whole thing un as some tragic fairy tale. A young orphaned child of a deceased hero and her wealthy and brilliant husband, living in the shadows as the world's fi prepared for the final showdown against Mortifera Nox's Hadean Order. When she was finally revealed, she had already been three years old, and the eory had been spun as a romantid toug fairy tale.

  Maybe she'd been raised with the best tutors and spent her childhood surrounded by the most advanced and cutting edge training equipment.

  The reality of the story, though...

  I gnced over at Albert, walking down the hallway beside me, and smiled to myself.

  I'd told him as much about the situation as I could without revealing the fact that Stel was Elysia, or the truth behind the lie of Stel's ins.

  But I had a sneaking suspi that he was already pieg the rest together. I'd already caught him studying the cell phone footage he took of my quick skirmish with Eris. He'd probably picked out that I had fought alongside Stel, and probably Ichigo too.

  I was just going to wait for him to figure out the rest himself. He'd earned my trust and respect, and I knew he deserved it. Al always loved a good brain teaser. It wouldn't take him long, if he hadn't solved the riddle already. He was smarter than me or anyone I knew, anyway. It wouldn't be hard for him.

  And when he did figure it out... well...

  We'd cross that bridge whe there. I had a sneaking suspi it was going to happen soohan ter, anyway. Especially siel was so keen on hanging out with him for whatever reason.

  I'd lost track of Stel in the crowd again, but I had no doubt that I would see her agaihough.

  We still had a lot to talk about, to say the least. It had only been a little less than a a day, and we hadn't really had time to talk one on one. I knew she'd looked for me to get lunch, but I was with Al and Ichigo, so it was a bad time. She'd have to find me again, and we'd get it done.

  There were still a lot of unanswered questions and we o talk. She'd revealed her identity to me, and I'd spent the night holding on to her after my near-death experience, and it wasn't somethiher of us were likely tet anytime soon.

  Holding on to my long-lost sister and g until I passed out was not an easy memory to shake, especially sidering how emotionally charged and raw it was.

  But we o have that versation.

  We were sisters now, and I had no idea what the fuck that meant or hoould make that work. How do I make something like that 'work,' exactly? How do I approach that?

  Do we just bee best friends, or something? Or, like... do I introduce her as my half-sister? We'd had immediate chemistry as friends, but I'd chalked that up to her just being an awesome and cool girl. I don't know how to approach that.

  What was I supposed to do?

  What did that even mean, for her, for me?

  Did she even want that?

  I had to know, I had to find out. But, for the time being, it was a versation that would have to wait.

  I didn't have any other csses for a bit, so I'd just head to my dorm and take the opportunity to get some work done before meeting up with the gang.

  I still had a bunch of assigs I had to get through.

  I looked up at my dorm building, sighing. I still hadn't gotteo the pce, but it would have to do. It had all of my things, after all, and that included the school work I had to do eventually. The school wasn't just going to give me a pass, not even after I almost died yesterday.

  I teically had less total csses than most students. As a Magical Girl, my official schedule was full of bunk csses that fronted for training. But I had just as much to study. The difference was that my tests weren't all about math and sd history, but rather, I'd have to demonstrate the ability to trol and use my porogress through things like physical fitness and sparring bouts. It wasn't going to be a cake walk. It was a different kind of school.

  And then, of course, I still had my general education courses. Those weren't magically excised just because I got to bee a cadet. I still had to learn things like Calculus, English and Global History. I also had to keep my GPA at a minimum of a B-average.

  It wasn't easy.

  My life was already getting more plicated than I expected. And that was after I'd gohrough a miniature zombie apocalypse.

  I made my upstairs to my dorm room, sighing as I unlocked my door and pushed it open.

  I blinked in surprise, looking around at the tidied-up room, my eyebrows raised in surprise. Everything otless. The bed had been made and the trash had beeied. Even my backpad books were ly anized in a pile at my desk. I wasn't a slob, but I wasn't a freak either and I hadn't been keeping it as as I liked to. And it wasn't like I had a lot of stuff in here, anyway. It was still basically barren.

  The room looked... really good, actually, now that I was looking at it.

  "Oh." I said out loud to no one in particur. "Huh."

  I gnced around the room, taking in the sight. I walked over to my closet and pulled open the doors. My clothes were hanging on the racks, ly folded, sorted by color, and arranged in some kind anized pattern. There were also some new clothes on my bed that hadn't been there when I left in the m.

  What the heck...

  Stel had said in her the infirmary that she'd borrowed me dorm keys for a bit, but this was a bit ued.

  I closed my eyes, ping the bridge of my nose. She was really thoughtful, in the most bizarre ways.

  I wasn't mad, or upset. It was actually quite o see the room looking so nice.

  It was just... weird. It didn't feel like I was owed this. It was too much.

  She didn't o be doing things like that, I didn't need her to do things like that, and it wasn't fair for her to do that for me, as thoughtful as it was. I had a hard time ing my mind around how someone would be willing to do so much for someone else.

  Especially someohey'd known for such a short amount of time.

  I frowned, notig a box at the foot of my bed. It was a cardboard box ed in a pink bow.

  There iece of paper on top of the bow.

  "Hey, Sis! Sorry about everything. Hope I didn't freak you out too bad! I'm not gonna lie, it was really emotional and awesome. Sorry if that made you feel weird. I promise, I'll be cool. Anyway, I picked up some new outfits for you. And I'm super sorry about the barbecue saut and your shoes. I hope these make up for it. We have a lot of time to make up for, in general."

  She was... something else. That's for sure.

  I couldn't help but smile as I put the letter down, shaking my head in amusement. I opened up the box, blinking as I pulled out a pair of sneakers.

  These weren't any old sneakers.

  I looked over the box in awe, admiring the sleek, bd red design of the shoes.

  Those were high end running shoes that I had actually passed by when I was shopping with Al a few weeks earlier. I couldn't afford them at all, and Stel probably didn't even think twice about it, but I khe shoes cost close to three hundred bucks a pair, easy.

  I couldn't accept these.

  They were too much, way too much.

  But...

  It would be rude not to. She did kinda ruin my other pair.

  She went out of her way to do something nie. And after everything that had happened yesterday and this m, it was hard not to appreciate her se.

  I pulled out my Nexus and tapped in a quick text to her. To Elysia.

  > Hey... you e over? I got your present and I don't really know what to say.

  She replied ihan thirty seds.

  > Sure! Um. I'm actually not too far away. I'll be there in a minute. I have css ihan an hour though, so I 't stay for too long. Just hang tight!

  I bli my phoaring at it in surprise for a moment. I wasn't sure what I was expeg, but I had been hoping to have some time to calm down before she came back. I wasn't even sure what I was feeling, holy. There were a lot of emotions and a lot of fusion and a lot of uainty and a lot of other things.

  I sighed.

  Well, that's fine, I guess. She'd been the oo fi the dining hall, and I had a strong feeling she was also itg to talk about everything that had happened yesterday.

  Maybe this was a good opportunity for me.

  Maybe this would be the ce we o get everything off our chests and talk about what we were doing, where we were going.

  And if I was going to have to face the reality of having a half-sister, then it would be a lot easier to move forward without pretenses.

  She might have been my sister by blood, but I still knew almost nothing about her. She knew even less about me. And that wasn't a problem that was going to go away ht, or even with one awkward heart-to-heart. But, if we were going to do this, we were going to o talk, and talk a lot, ao know one another. We'd be stuck with each od willing, and we might as well make the best of it.

  With my mother missing and her adopted mother long buried, and our father out of the picture as well... it was just the two of us. And that was kind of cool, if I was being pletely ho. It would take getting used to, but if we were going to do this then I'd be happy to give it a shot.

  A gentle knoy window caused me to jump, and I spun around to see a pair ht, vibrant browaring back at me from outside. 'Elysia' looked away as soon as I made eye tact with her, blushing furiously and tapping at the window again, her lips moving as she mouthed something that I couldn't hear through the thick gss.

  "Jesus, Stel," I hissed as I ope up a her ihe almost silver-haired girl shuffling into my dorm and brushing off her skirt before looking at me and giving me an awkward smile. "Don't sneak up on me like that, I wasn't expeg you for a while."

  "Sorry!" she apologized, looking sheepish. "I, uh, wasn't trying to be creepy or anything. And I know I've been failing pretty badly at that."

  She sighed and summoned a heart-shaped devi a flurry of pink motes.

  Then, a soft glow surrounded her for a sed, her features shifting as she ged bato Stel, her long bck hair spilling over her shoulders in waves and her eyes shifting back to the soft hazel brown she'd been born with. Her magical girl e faded away as the heart-shaped device molded into a smart phone decorated with animal stickers.

  She was wearing the same clothes from earlier, a pair of leggings and a dark blue blouse plete with a matg skirt. Her face was a bit flushed and her eyes were downcast.

  "Hey," she murmured, giving me a small, awkward smile. "Er... you, uh... got my note, right?"

  "Yeah." I nodded. "Thank you."

  Stel shrugged.

  "It was the least I could do." She grinned, fiddling with a strand of her long bck hair. "You know. I did kind of owe you a new pair."

  She walked past me, sitting at the edge of the bed. "How're you feeling, by the way?"

  "I'm good," I said. "My injuries weren't terrible, thanks to Aurora."

  "Oh." Stel shrugged. "I meaionally and stuff. I, uh, I know it's not easy to have something like that dropped on your p. And, well, we kind of had aional roller coaster of a night, too."

  She sighed. "Sorry. Again. It wasn't easy for me to accept the whole situatioher and I didn't ha as gracefully as I'd like, and... well. You're handling it better than I did."

  An awkward silence lingered in the air. She fidgeted, and I sat down on my puter chair, my fingers drumming on my knees. She was right. It had been an intense, emotional experience, and it had taken a toll on me, but I wasn't going to hold it against her.

  I was just happy that I fouhat she found me.

  It had been su insane series of events. From the fight with my mother before I left to school, to an ht zombie apocalypse, t into a Knight aing attacked by a supervilin... and then learning Dark Princess Eris was my long lost sister. The past month had been insane.

  I wasn't sure I could even my mind around it.

  "Stel." I finally spoke out, gently as I could.

  She looked up at me, tilting her head to the side in a curious gesture. "Yeah?"

  "What do you like?" I asked.

  "What?" She blinked, looking fused. "What do you mean, what do I like? Like, like-like?"

  I sighed, shaking my head.

  "We don't really know each other," I admitted. "And... all that links us is blood."

  Her downcast expression said it all.

  "But I'd like to know you," I tinued, smiling. "I'd like to know my sister. As a person. So, if we're going to try to build something out of this, what better way than to get to know one another? "I What are you ied in? Who are you? What is Stel's favorite color, and what is her favorite food? Do you like cats s more, or birds s, or... do you have any hobbies right now?"

  Stel stared at me for a sed, then she ughed, a soft, gentle ugh that I was growing to enjoy. "Heh. Well, uh, I'm a simple girl, I guess. You know I like painting figurines and stuff, that's something I've beeing more and more into. But as for the rest, huh... well, I love cats. They're just the cutest little creatures. My favorites, though, are birds. I'd die for a pet bird. A parrot or an owl or... oh my gosh, I just want one, so much."

  She giggled. "But... my absolute favorite, favorite animal? Foxes. They're the best. I love foxes."

  "Foxes?"

  She nodded excitedly.

  "They're so fluffy," she cooed, grinning. "I just want to snuggle up a one all day. I heard they smell pretty bad, but I think I'd be able to get past the stink."

  I ughed, shaking my head.

  "You know what? Same here. With the cats and foxes, that is," I said. "They're both super cute."

  Stel beamed, nodding in agreement. She paused for a moment, gng around the room.

  "Um. What about you? Hobbies?"

  "Hmm. I don't have too much time for them," I admitted. "But... I guess I like reading? Aing into shenanigans with Al."

  "What do you like reading? Fantasy?"

  "Yeah," I firmed, nodding my head. "I always felt bad about it but he always loaned me his books and stuff. It's something I really enjoy doing. I just like stories, you know? And well, he kinda got me into superhero ics."

  "Yeah." She nodded, grinning. "You know, we have that in on too. I've got a ton of fantasy novels back at home, but I didn't think t them here."

  "You too, huh? Al's beeio video games too, and I'm pretty fond s. Those are fun to watch py, they have so many iing stories. They have a lot of roman them too."

  "Ah." Stel's cheeks burned, her lips twitg nervously as she avoided eye tact. "Um... I... I, uh. Yeah, they have some romance."

  I smirked, raising an eyebrow. "What's up, Stel? Got a thing for romance? Hey, with all that geeky stuff you've got going on, maybe you're a yaoi fangirl? Or, wait. Yuri. You've got a thing for yuri? I mean, with the way you treated Ursa and Ichigo earlier..."

  Stel looked mortified. "What?! No! No no no no. No, no way!"

  I burst out ughing, and she glowered at me, pouting and huffing. She was so cute behind closed doors. "I'm sorry. But you do like romance?"

  She was silent for a few moments.

  "Otomes." She blurted.

  "What?"

  "I..." She trailed off. "I py a lot of otome games."

  "What?" I asked, trying to hold back my ughter. She looked like she was going to die from embarrassment. "You... Otomes as in..."

  "Otome games," she repeated, hiding her fa her hands. "Like... you know... dating sims. And stuff."

  "Oh, really?!" I asked, leaning in with an amused smirk.

  "Shut up," she whined.

  I chuckled, shrugging. "Nothing wrong with it. You're a romantic at heart."

  "And... and yuri and yaoi are an acquired taste too..." she mumbled under her breath. "So... so what?!"

  "Hey." I ughed, raising my hands defensively. "You said it, not me. But if it makes you feel aer, I'm not judging you for it."

  "Ugh." Stel groaned. "I 't believe I admitted to that."

  She was adorable.

  "It's fi's not that bad."

  She looked up, her face still flushed with shame and embarrassment. Then, she giggled, rexing her shoulders a little bit.

  "You know." She grinned, winking at me. "I was worried we wouldn't find on ground. But we like a lot of the same stuff. Maybe there is something to being sisters after all. Maybe I'm actually not a plete lost cause."

  "I wouldn't say that." I ughed, rolling my eyes. "You are the designated heir of Matsudaira after all."

  She frowned.

  "A role that I never earned," she replied with a sigh. "Nor truly wanted."

  She looked at the ceiling, biting her lip.

  I made my way over o her and put my arm around her, patting her back gently. "Hey... it'll work out."

  She smiled weakly. "I hope so."

  I smiled baodding at her reassuringly.

  "You're right," I said, nodding again. "You didn't ask for it, but I have no doubts that you ha if you want to."

  "I suppose." She nodded. "But... what about you, though?"

  I shrugged. "Me? What about me?"

  "Do you know what you want?"

  "I guess? I don't know yet, though. I guess... as sappy as it sounds, I have what I always wanted right here." I motio her and gave her a pyful wink.

  Stel giggled, rolling her eyes at me.

  "You're such a dork." She grinned. "And you know what I meant, right? I mean in terms of dreams. I don't really have any dreams. No ambitions, other than... well, being worth the sacrifices of the people that came before us."

  "I guess that's a dream of its own." I smiled. "But I guess... I haven't thought too deeply about it."

  She poked my forehead.

  "Then start thinking," she said. "I have faith in you."

  "Ugh." I sighed, rubbing my temple and giving her a gre.

  I paused for a few seds, letting my mind wander. I didn't have an answer for her. My life hadly allowed for much self-refle, or even self-actualization. All of my time ent doing what I to be a good person ahrough the days without a problem. I was a hard worker, I liked helping others and I was good at school. But that was a lot easier than it sounded.

  "I... don't really have any ambitions, holy," I finally admitted. "But I will say this."

  I smiled.

  "When Albert seemed like he was about to die. When Bastet approached me with a tract. The Guardians warned me the road would be full of dangers and pitfalls. And I didn't evehem finish. All I knew was that if I didn't, my best friend would have died, and that's all that mattered to me. What has always mattered to me first and foremost is family, and to live my values."

  Stel tilted her head to the side, curious. "So that's what's important to you?"

  "I think so, yeah." I nodded. "It always has been. And I think that will tio guide me as I tio figure out who I want to be."

  "That makes sense," Stel said. She paused for a sed before speaking up again. "You're a good person, Sienna. And a brave one. I... admire that."

  "Thank you, I guess," I responded.

  She smiled, her expression warm ale.

  I leaned fiving her a quick hug. "Give yourself a bit more credit... sis. You're pretty great yourself."

  "Maybe," she mumbled, looking down and away from me.

  I rolled my eyes.

  We talked about random things for another half an hour before she o get going.

  I would have css pretty soon too, but it was a general education css rather than a training session so I wasn't in any rush. As she got up to leave, she stopped me at the door, turning around to look at me. I raised an eyebrow, giving her a questioning gnce.

  "What's up?"

  "Er..." she murmured, averting her eyes. "Um. you keep the fact that I py dating sims to yourself? I... I'd rather no one knew about that. Please."

  I stared at her for a moment, before sn in amusement. "Seriously?"

  "Yes!"

  "Okay, okay, sure. My lips are sealed."

  She sighed in relief, nodding at me. "Good."

  "But." I grinned, leaning in close. "You'd better share them with me sometime."

  She squeaked in embarrassment and bolted out the door, running down the hall to get away from me.

  I chuckled and shut the door, walking to the window to watch her go. I watched her until she was out of sight. Then, I sat down at my desk, pulling out my books and flipping open my notebooks.

  My sister, huh? Not in a million years would I have thought this was where I'd find myself when I left home.

  But... sometimes you just roll with the punches.