But then again...
Right now, Kiana really did seem like just a...
How to put it...
She probably isn't the Sustainer, is she...?
Watching Kiana in front of her, Miko found herself thinking exactly that, almost involuntarily.
In her imagination, the Sustainer would never behave like this.
"Are you here for something? Why do you keep looking at me like that?" Kiana had noticed Miko's intermittent glances and chose not to pretend otherwise.
She couldn't exactly ignore it — it was far too obvious for that.
More importantly, she wanted to proactively suggest, through her behavior, that she was not the Sustainer.
Not that she was in any rush to come out and say it directly — something like I'm not the Sustainer could wait. She'd take it slowly.
"You startled me just now, that's all," Miko answered, barely pausing to think.
Part of her had wanted to use Kiana's earlier remark as an opening to say what was on her mind, but she hadn't quite worked up the nerve — so she'd reached for a deflection on instinct.
That said, it wasn't entirely a deflection. Kiana's offhand comment really had caught her off guard.
If anything, what she wanted to know now was just how many girlfriends Kaito actually had at this point.
Right...
Mei or Kiana would probably know, wouldn't they?
With that thought turning over in her head, Miko already knew what she was going to ask next.
"My words startled you?" Kiana blinked, momentarily at a loss for which thing she'd said could have done that.
"The part where you said you were used to it," Miko clarified, seeing the confusion.
"Ah — that." Kiana gave a small nod, understanding.
I just said it offhand...
Don't read too much into it...
She kept that thought to herself as she looked at Miko.
Well — the words were already out there. No point explaining herself now.
"So — can I ask you something?" Miko decided to ride the opening and go for the question she actually wanted answered.
"Go ahead. Though I can't promise I'll know," Kiana said.
She could already sense that whatever Miko was about to ask had something to do with Kaito's romantic life, so she'd hedged accordingly.
She was curious, though. What kind of question was Miko actually going to ask?
"It's just... does Kaito have other girlfriends besides you all? Ones I haven't met yet?"
Under both Kiana's and Acheron's gazes, Miko let the question out slowly, deliberately.
"Probably," Kiana replied after barely a moment's hesitation — her tone carrying a faint note of uncertainty.
Miko: "..."
She was, frankly, speechless.
She'd already suspected Kaito had girlfriends she hadn't met — that part wasn't the surprise. It was the way Kiana had answered that she hadn't seen coming.
She was realizing that Kiana didn't just not care whether Kaito was involved with other women. She'd apparently reached the point of not even keeping track.
Or rather — not that she didn't know. It seemed more like she simply couldn't be bothered to know.
Hah...
How do all of you end up with the exact same attitude about this?
Thinking about how Acheron was more or less the same way, Miko found herself genuinely baffled.
Wendy, Acheron, Kiana — they all seemed to land in the same place about it.
Why?
Was this just what happened when you'd been Kaito's girlfriend long enough?
After turning it over from every angle, that was the only explanation she could come up with.
Otherwise, she truly could not understand it.
I have a feeling I'd never end up like that...
She knew herself better than anyone, so she let herself think exactly that.
"Don't look so shocked, Miko," Kiana said mildly, catching the expression on Miko's face.
She knew Miko's reaction was the normal one, really — but she obviously had to say it that way.
As for Acheron, she could say just about anything.
"You get used to it," Acheron added after a brief pause — simple and to the point.
"Honestly, you two..." Miko started, then trailed off mid-sentence, suddenly unsure what she'd even meant to say.
"Miko should be calling me 'big sister' by now, don't you think?" Kiana said it out of nowhere, cutting right through Miko's train of thought.
She needed to change the subject — let it drag on any further and it would only get awkward.
Hm?
"Why?" Miko asked, the question coming out on reflex.
It had come a bit out of left field, and she needed a second to catch up.
Though she figured it out quickly enough.
"I don't mind calling you that — but there's no way I'm calling that little brat 'big sister.' Any ideas on how to deal with that?"
Understanding exactly what Kiana meant, Miko went straight to the practical problem.
As far as Kiana herself went, calling her 'big sister' wasn't a difficult ask — she'd come before Miko, and she was stronger and far more mysterious to boot.
The problem was Wendy. The moment this arrangement was in place, that little troublemaker would absolutely spend every waking moment lording the title over her. That, Miko simply could not allow.
"Don't worry — you've got two big sisters to back you up," Kiana said at once, moving to reassure her.
They were all the same person anyway. Whatever Miko wanted, naturally she could have it.
"That little brat will say one thing to our faces and do the complete opposite behind our backs," Miko replied, unconvinced.
Even with Kiana's reassurance, she could already picture it — Wendy parading around with the 'big sister' title all day long. And then 'little fox' would be out the window, replaced with 'little sister' or something equally insufferable.
That was not happening.
"She'll listen to us when we say something," Acheron spoke up. "And if it really comes to that, there's always Kaito. Just go tell on her — he'll sort it out."
She had the sense Miko might take her word for it a little more easily than Kiana's.
"Well, if you put it that way, I feel a lot better." After hearing Acheron out, Miko finally gave a nod and let her shoulders settle.
"Then go ahead — call me 'big sister.'" No sooner had Miko relaxed than Kiana was already asking for it.
For just a fleeting instant, Miko had the strangest feeling that it was Wendy speaking to her.
But it was clearly Kiana.
As for Wendy — who even knew where she'd wandered off to.
Hah...
Am I actually starting to hallucinate now?
That little brat could be anywhere right now...
Dismissing the odd moment, Miko smiled and said: "Kiana-sis really does love being called big sister, huh? Acheron doesn't do this at all."
"Then you should call me big sister too," Acheron said immediately, the moment those words left Miko's mouth.
Miko: "..."
"Acheron-sis~~ How's that? Am I cute?"
Since Acheron wanted to be called big sister too, Miko complied without a moment's hesitation — without a single drop of reluctance.
____
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