Ha... ha... ha...

Fresh through the space gate, Alicia collapsed onto the floor, gulping air like a fish on shore.

Her heart hammered in her chest, a war drum out of rhythm.

Nausea and vertigo surged through her, a black tide crawling over skin.

A brief talk with Gill, and she felt stripped bare, a scalpel-lantern searching every inch.

Secrets she’d buried under stone were unearthed by his easy chatter; the dodged things counted like coins; the unthinkable lifted like a feather.

Before him, no cave to crawl into, no shadow to hide in.

He comes like a laughing child, browses your soul like a library, then crushes you with simple words, a millstone on wet clay.

That was Alicia’s sense of Gill: fatally underestimated, a foe you can’t beat, a mountain too steep.

Urk—

The dry heaves won; her thoughts turned to paste, a pot of overcooked porridge.

Can’t think… nothing… hurts… need… Ling… Ling… Ling…

The mush filled with one name: Ling. Her mind became a single bell, ringing only Ling.

Lucky, Ling never vanishes when she’s needed; she’d come back early and waited here, a lantern in the window.

She sat on the sofa awhile, no Alicia; then a thought bloomed like a paper flower—meet her at the gate, let her see me first.

Just as she reached the gate, Alicia dropped into her sightline like a felled willow.

She didn’t know what happened; she rushed and scooped Alicia up, arms a warm quilt.

“Sis? Sis!”

A few shakes worked; Alicia’s eyes opened, irises tinted with strange colors, reflecting Ling like a lake.

“Ling?”

“I’m here, Sis.”

The elegant girl’s thin hand looped around Ling’s neck; the touch at her nape sent a shiver like silk.

“Hey, Ling, do you think your sis’s a villain?”

“Huh? Why say that? Sis is good—good as spring rain on new grass.”

Alicia shifted, from sprawled to sitting; she lifted Ling and set her on her lap, face to face like two moons.

“Sis got scolded, not outright, but the meaning hung in the air like smoke.”

You don’t need to guess; in that span she saw only Gill, a single footprint in fresh snow.

“That Gill badmouthed you? Why didn’t you punch him? If you won’t, I’ll do it—I’ll be your fist, a little comet!”

She rolled up her sleeves, sparks in her eyes, ready to scrap.

The sight pulled a laugh from Alicia, a bell struck in the dusk.

“Ling, they called me someone who spurns kin, even a Daemon who treats life like grass underfoot.”

Her defeated tone hurt Ling; two small hands cupped Alicia’s cheeks and tugged her close, gazes crossing like two threads.

“Sis isn’t! You’re so good to me—how could you be that kind! Don’t let that jerk’s thorn-words stick.”

She nuzzled her head against Alicia’s chest, back and forth like a kitten; push her away, she drifted back like a tide.

“Alright, alright, big girl still acting cute; Sis will listen, calm the storm to a fan. I won’t believe that guy’s words.”

“That’s more like it,” sunlight peeking through cloud.

The nuzzle shifted into a hug, a vine twining around a warm post.

Not much changed—don’t catch her, and she’ll keep hugging like a climbing vine.

Alicia didn’t refuse; she held Ling’s small body, warmth flooding her chest, a bouquet of soft scents at her nose.

Then, for no clear reason, tears slipped out like dew.

They slid down her cheek and fell onto Ling’s arm, tiny pearls on skin.

Ling had watched Alicia’s mood with care, focus tight as a drum; the touch of that tear reached her like a spark.

She quickly loosened her arms and stared, anxious, at Alicia’s face streaked with rain-like tears.

“Don’t cry, Sis… Did you remember that bastard’s words again? I’ll go beat Gill and shut that bad mouth!”

Alicia cupped Ling’s face, tilted her head, eyes reflecting colors she’d never shown before, an aurora shifting inside.

“It wasn’t Gill who spoke ill of Sis.”

“Eh? You’re defending Gill now?”

You can’t blame Ling; in that span Alicia met only Gill—the clever one, fox-light in his eyes.

So him brainwashing Alicia felt possible, a fog creeping into the house.

But Ling didn’t need to overthink; Alicia would give the answer like a clear bell.

“Sis was slandered by someone named… Alicia.”

“Huh? Sis, are you— mm!”

She wanted to ask if Alicia was sick; next moment, Alicia’s face rushed close, and something soft sealed her lips like a petal.

“Mm!!!”

Words couldn’t leave; only her lips were pressed, mouth held shut. Nothing blocked her throat or lungs, yet breath came tight, like swimming under moonlight.

Breathing was hard; it should hurt, yet comfort outweighed pain. Her body turned light, a kite let loose on a soft wind.