Ink Stained

108: midori*

緑

Pai's palm stung from the force she used to slap Midori across the face. The sound of skin meeting skin in a hard, unyielding blow shocked her for a moment, and a twisting worm of regret curled low in her gut, but she didn't apologize.

Midori took the blow without a sound, her head snapping to the side from the strength of it. Green eyes that once sparkled with happiness, then twisted to disgust and hate, were empty now as she stood still for a moment, face turned away from Pai, a pink mark spreading across her pale cheek. She shut her eyes for a moment before opening them and looking at her little sister, who stood just two inches shorter.

Midori had changed. The pageboy's cut she always kept her hair in was gone, jet-black locks now past her shoulder, half of it braided close to her scalp over her ear. Her features had become sharper, more fine-boned. Beauty was the first thing you thought when looking at Midori – until you saw her eyes. Clear green, devoid of life. Empty and vacant and hard and unforgiving all at the same time.

Midori looked just as she had in Kyoto, when she ran away before Pai had known the true extent of what Midori had done to her. She looked just as she had on the news report, standing beside Chiasa.

"Pai-chan?"

She looked back, blearily registering surprise at how close Shiori stood. She hadn't noticed anyone move. Kaede no longer stood at Kouta's side – he was next to Shiori, glancing at Shin as the two shared a look. Shin was the only one who remained where he was, watching everything that was happening. He was close, not too close, but enough that he could pull Pai away if it all got too much. Kouta had moved, too, standing a few paces behind Shiori.

Daichi stayed back with the other Daitengu, Obaasan and Ryu close to Mizutani and Yukiji. They were rooted where they stood, gawking in disbelief, scarcely able to comprehend the sudden appearance of not one of Pai's siblings, but two – one of them being a twin no one knew existed, the other the sister who was suspected of being the reason Pai ended up in So Fu.

Kagetora stood beside Shin, arms crossed over his chest, mask of humour winkling out. The two were silent together, both with eyes of Kamigami, one a deity, the other a King, but not quite Hengen or Kamigami, either. Rikuto was behind her; she could feel his presence like a reassuring weight at her back, though he kept his tongue and remained quiet.

Pai focused her attention forward again. Midori was staring at Shiori with eyes that still held no hint of emotion. She could have been looking at a total stranger, instead of the girl her little sister had been best friends with since they were young children. Shiori shot the older Momozono a wary look, obviously at a complete loss as to what to say to her.

"Hey," Shiori said, looking away to Pai as she reached forward to touch her shoulder. "Maybe it'd better if we – "

"Stay out of this," Pai snarled, so consumed by the malevolent hatred eddying inside her that she was barely aware of the words coming out of her.