"Nani?" Mi-chan didn't think she was supposed to drive Kimahou anywhere today. Generally if the twins or their parents weren't around, Kimahou took a bus or walked anyway.
"Neko-chan is freaking out up there," Kimahou said. "Chibi and I tried to get her to do stuff, but she won't even talk to us. You're her twin! Why aren't you already up there doing something about this?"
"Gomen, I came home as fast as I could-"
"Iie, she was upset all weekend, it's just now something really bad happened between her and Tenshi-san."
Mi-chan balled her hands into fists and narrowed her eyes. "This is Tenshi-kun's doing?!"
"Iya! Neko-chan first!" Kimahou ordered her. She grabbed her older sister's arm and started pushing her toward the stairs. "If you're going to go off half-cocked and beat up Tenshi-san, at least find out why. Neko-chan should be your priority," she scolded her.
"I know! I'm going up right now!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Neko was making out with Tenshi.
"I'm so glad we made up," she whispered.
"Yeah, I didn't really see the need to break up anyway," Tenshi replied, following it up with another passionate kiss.
At first Neko didn't process the fact that Tenshi had begun to unzip the back of her dress. She pushed herself away, feeling a literal tug at her heart. "Tenshi! You can't do that," she said blushing furiously.
Tenshi moved her hand to Neko's shoulder and gently stroked it. "We've already gone through the worst of it, Koneko. I don't see that they can punish us anymore. Nor will we ever have another chance."
Neko closed her eyes and cocked her head to the side as Tenshi's finger moved up her neck. Yet she was confused by what Tenshi had said. "Nani?"
"The only thing is� do you think Mi-chan would leave. It'll be hard for us to continue while she's still here."
"Huh?!" Neko opened her eyes and saw Mi-chan standing beyond Tenshi, her left hand holding the sword that not only pierced through Tenshi's heart, but also through to Neko's.
"Mi-chan?" Neko whispered in confusion to her twin who was standing there, looking quite innocent.
"Neko-chan," Mi-chan told her seriously, "you should probably wake up now."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mi-chan had run up to her room to find Neko lying on her bed in the fetal position, not only with her head at the foot of her bed, but facing the opposite direction. To Mi-chan it seemed like Neko had been turned as topsy-turvy as it felt like her world had recently become. "Neko-chan?" she whispered, unsure of whether Neko was awake or not. It shouldn't have mattered. Usually, Neko would respond after having heard Mi-chan call her the first time, even asleep. But today Neko didn't acknowledge her sister at all. The last time Neko hadn't responded to Mi-chan while asleep, she had been sleep walking in the direction of some melody that was being carried on a frequency that only she could hear. It had turned out that an evil general wanted to use Neko to make up for the loss of her best servant, who happened to be Jian-wa, and so she was trying to get Neko to come to her. Needless to say, this time Mi-chan was a little apprehensive when Neko didn't immediately respond.
She ran to the bed and shook Neko. "Neko, wake up," she demanded.
Neko didn't take her entrance into the real world well. "Why won't you leave me alone?" she cried. At first Mi-chan thought she was talking to her, but then Neko seemed to notice her for the first time.
"Mi-chan?" she asked as she realized that the Mi-chan there was not a lingering part of her dream. She actually turned over for Mi-chan, unlike for Chibi and Kimahou, who she had ignored all day.
Mi-chan looked at her tear-streaked face and red eyes and almost cried herself. "Oh, Neko-chan! What happened?!"
"Ano, I-" Neko debated whether to try and explain to Mi-chan, or if the effort would be futile considering how coherent she'd probably be through her tears.
Mi-chan sensed her hesitation. "Neko! What did Tenshi-kun do to you?! Kami! If I ever get my hands on her-"
"Dame!" Mi-chan was hit with a wave of genuine horror from her twin as Neko sat up and grabbed her arm. "Mi-chan, don't hurt Tenshi-kun! She didn't do anything to me, I promise!" Mi-chan couldn't ignore her twin's eyes, insisting that she leave Tenshi alone.
"Neko�"
"Onegai, promise me you won't do anything!"
"If she hurt you-"
Neko shook her head. "She didn't! I swear to you, it's my own fault! I wronged her, not the other way around!"
Mi-chan knelt down so that they were level. "What are you talking about?" She knew that there was no way that Neko would ever cheat on Tenshi, and she couldn't think of anything else that Neko could have done that was this serious. But she also knew that Neko believed every word she was saying.
Neko looked away. "I broke up with her. I broke her heart, even knowing that I would suffer just as much."
Mi-chan still didn't understand. "Demo, why? You love her, why would you break up with her?!"
Neko shut her eyes to her twin's question, which, in her guilt-ridden mind, seemed almost accusatory. "Because� because no matter how much it hurts," she whispered, "there's some small satisfaction knowing that even though I can't have her, Tenoh Tenshi still exists. She is still out there in the world, and that makes the world a better place!" She looked at Mi-chan and tried to smile through her tears, failing miserably. She saw Mi-chan was still confused, so she continued, "You see, if Tenshi-kun loves me, she'll come to save me in some dangerous situation that will get her killed�" Neko's lip quivered, as she said inaudibly, "�possibly by you�."
