Every part of me felt awful as I came to. I was sore in places I didn’t even know could be sore. Note to self: No more blood magic.

I sat up with a groan, rubbing my eyes. A wet rag plopped into my lap, presumably one that had been on my forehead while I was out. Someone must have taken my hair ties out, because my vision was obscured by pink strands of my hair in my face. And in my mouth, blech. I tried brushing it away, but it just wouldn’t stay back, so I settled for adjusting it every few seconds.

With my vision mostly clear, I took a moment to orient myself. The whole room was rocking gently to and fro. The sound of waves hit my ears from outside the room’s wooden walls. There was a porthole over the bed’s headrest that was letting in the first rays of daylight. One look out of it told me I was indeed on a ship. When did I get here?

Feeling a little panicked, my eyes darted around the room. I relaxed when I saw Kei asleep, leaning on the wall furthest from me. Alec was passed out in a chair he was straddling, and Nina was asleep at the foot of the bed I woke up in. Have they been watching over me like this since I fought Jasper?

Ugh, Jasper. Why’d he have to go and say all those nasty things? They plagued my thoughts, being just as disruptive as they were two days ago. Amaterasu’s lecture wasn’t helping much either. Did I really deserve to call these people family?

As I continued scanning the room, I made eye contact with Nina’s familiar. The blue fairy was fluttering above me, wide-eyed.

“Um, good morning,” I said.

Crystal flew towards Nina as fast as she could and began hovering around her. I watched the fairy with amusement as she tried everything she could to wake her master, tapping my sister’s head and pulling at her ears. Nina sleepily tried to swat her away, causing Crystal to recoil and back away. She seemed… offended?

I winced as a sudden jolt of pain came from my behind. I turned my head, looking for the source. Second note to self: Don’t sleep on your tail. It lay partially crushed on the bed. It’s pastel-pink fur looked frazzled, and dried clots of blood and other debris matted and tangled the whole thing. I let out a quiet whimper as I brought it off the mattress. It was terribly sore like the rest of my body, which felt like somebody had kicked my tailbone several times while I was out.

My ears twitched as I heard a splash of water and a yelp. I turned my attention back to the foot of my bed, where Nina had fallen off the chair she was sitting on. Her face was wet, and Crystal was floating above her, looking annoyed. She turned her back on Nina, and I swear I heard a tiny “hmmph!” before she dissipated back into the air.

“Hey! What was that for?” Nina called after her summon. Crystal didn’t respond. With a sigh, Nina picked herself up, wiping dust off her skirt. “Ugh, I really need to stop doing that,” she mumbled.

“That happened the last time you were watching over me too,” I giggled. I saw Nina’s tail shoot up in surprise. She turned to look at me, her face full of shock and relief. She froze, eyes locked on me.

“Uh, sis?” I said. “Are you- mmmph!” My sister’s tight bearhug took the air right out of my lungs.

“Idiot!” She yelled. “Don’t worry me like that! Oh, thank the goddess you’re ok! I don’t know what I would have done if you’d died.” She loosened her grip on me just enough to give me a chance to breathe.

“I- mmph!”

“Do you even know how dangerous that was?” Nina continued, ignoring my protests. “Never do that again!”

I heard Kei sigh, and gently lift herself off the wall. “You’re gonna suffocate the poor girl, Nina,” she said.

“Whoops!” Nina’s grip loosened. “Are you alright, Syl?”

“I’ll live,” I replied, rubbing my shoulders. I felt awkward all of a sudden. How exactly was I supposed to ask them about being a family? I fumbled over my words. “Uh… thanks,” I managed. “I didn’t mean to burden you for two days.”

Nina smiled. “Oh, you weren’t a burden at all! Taking care of you is part of my job as your big sister, y’know.”

“You have an oddly accurate sense of time for someone who’s been unconscious,” Kei noted with a suspicious glance.

“Ah, yeah. The goddess appeared in my dreams. She said she saved me from going to the afterlife, and helped me recover? Oh, and she told me to-” I bit my tongue. Gah, what an embarrassing question! How do I even put it?

“Told you to what?” Kei pressed.

I quickly scrambled for an answer. “Told me to… get there as quickly as possible! She’s worried about what’s going to happen once Nina’s spell ends.” Good going, Syl. Real convincing.

Kei seemed to notice my fumble, but she let the topic drop. “That was the plan,” she said dismissively. “I’m going to go let Robin know you’re up. Be sure to thank Alec too. Nina’s taking all the credit, but he hasn’t left your side since you nearly killed yourself.”

“Kei!” Nina exclaimed.

“Somebody has to keep your ego in check,” Kei replied playfully. With that, Kei disappeared out of the room, closing the door behind her.

“I do not have an ego!” Nina shouted after her.

Alec shifted in his chair. His eyes stayed closed, but I could practically see the mischievous thoughts he had forming in his head.“Yeah, you do…” he muttered sleepily. He even made a show of adjusting his position like he was still asleep.

“Oh, can it, Alec.” Nina huffed. “Your girlfriend is awake, so you can pick on her again.”

“Huh? We’re not-” I began, but Nina put her finger to my lips. Strange thoughts were starting to flow into my mind again. Surely there wasn’t anything there, right? We were just good friends, put into the same situation by fate. I mean sure, he was kinda cute, and I kinda liked the teasing, and sleeping on his shoulder made me feel safe, and… 

Nope. I quickly crammed those thoughts back into my growing collection of uncomfortable thoughts. Alec was just a friend. A…a really good friend. Yup, nothing else there. Besides, it’s not like he was flirting with me or anything.

Alec stood up and stretched. “She doesn’t look that awake to me,” he said. “Maybe sleeping beauty still needs a wake-up kiss?”

Okay, that doesn’t count.

“Ahh, I’m fine,” I squeaked.

Alec stifled a laugh. “As you wish, princess,” he replied, adding a mock bow for good measure. My cheeks were heating again, which only further confused me. Was it because I liked being called a princess, or because I felt dirty for being referred to as one?

“Ow! Hey, cut it out, Sylvia!” Nina laughed. My mangled tail was smacking rhythmically into her side.

“Sorry!” I cleared my thoughts and let my tail settle in my lap.

“Oh, your poor tail!” Nina opened her console, rummaging through her inventory until she found a small towel and a hairbrush. She closed everything, then gave the space of bed next to her a pat. “Come here,” she beckoned. “I’ll clean it up for you.”

Nina turned to glare at Alec, “And you! Get out of here! I need her to sit still, but that’s never going to happen with you around.”

“Seesh, overprotective much?” Alec muttered.

“What was that?”

“Nothing!” Alec backpedaled towards the door. He gave me one last look. “Seriously though, I’m glad you’re ok,” he said to me. “I don’t know what I- er, we would have done if we lost you.”

“When’d you get so sentimental?” I teased.

Alec didn’t take the bait. “Seriously! We were just starting to get close, then you nearly got yourself killed! We’re supposed to have each other’s backs, like family.”

He’d hit the nail on the head. My heart felt like it was doing flips. He wasn’t lying, right? Was he saying I belonged?

There was a tug on my backside. Nina had grabbed my tail before it started whacking her again.

“Uh, yeah. Thanks for looking after me,” I mumbled.

“Out!” Nina ordered. She was doing her best to sound mad, but there was a smile forming in the corners of her mouth. Alec put his hands up in surrender and left the room quickly.

“Do you still have that bag of elemental stones?” Nina asked as the door shut. “I need some water, but I think I made Crystal mad.”

“Yeah, here.” I reached into my pocket, pulling out a single water stone. I handed it to Nina, who had a confused look on her face.

“How did you…”

I shrugged, then mimicked the hand motions that Nina did to open her console. Sure enough, the battered screens appeared in front of me, much to my sister’s surprise. “I thought I had lost the bag at the inn, but I found it in my inventory when I was talking to Alec about it.”

“It looks like you pulled that console out of the trash can,” Nina commented.

“Perfect for trash like me then,” I blurted out. 

Nina opened her mouth to say something, but she seemed to be at a loss for words. She seemed to decide against whatever she was about to tell me and wrapped her cloth around the water stone instead.

“I’ll ignore that for now,” she said. “But you’re giving me more details later.”

“Uh, right.”

“Anyways,” she continued. “Let me give you a little lesson on these stones. Among their many practical uses, they’re also used by young magic users to practice magic control. Try thinking of the stone’s magic as a liquid, and the little strings as valves.” She held the stone in front of me.  “If you’re gentle, you can control how much leaks out.” Nina teased the strings of magic away from the stone, and the cloth began to dampen from the inside.

“Now, if you’re rough about it…” Nina yanked on the strings, and water exploded from the cloth, saturating the remainder of it instantly. The excess water flowed out in a large glob that landed on the mess of fur that was my tail. The water was cold, and I yelped as it landed, earning a laugh from Nina.

“Relax, it won’t kill you. Pull harder than that, and the stones use your life force to push their magic beyond the normal limits. The stones become useless after they’re used like that, though.”

I smiled bitterly. “Like me?”

Nina sighed and began picking at the debris in my tail with the cloth. “Ok, what’s going through your head, Syl? You’re starting to sound like the depressed male you again.”

“It’s nothing.”

“Try again, sis. We’re linked, remember?”

“I’m fine, really,” I protested.

“Lemme guess. Jasper said some really mean things to you and now you’re a confused mess.”

“How did-”

“Lucky guess,” she answered with a mischievous smile. “Nothing to do with my ability to read your thoughts, promise.”
“Hey!”

Nina laughed. “You can’t fool me, sis. Now, will you tell me what he said, or do I have to read your mind again?”

My sister began picking at the gunk in my tail as I spoke my mind. “He said I’d never be a real girl, and that I didn’t look or act like a girl at all. He called me a fake, a pretender and I-” my voice caught in my throat. I knew he was just trying to get to me, but why did it hurt so much?

My depressing thoughts were interrupted by a sudden burst of euphoria when Nina began brushing my tail. It felt just as good as Alec’s headpats, if not better. My upper body strength sapped, I melted into Nina’s lap unceremoniously.

“I see someone is weak to pampering,” Nina giggled. “So then, if I do this…”

Her free hand moved to my head, calmly moving up and down my messy hair. It was pure bliss. A happy sigh escaped my lips.

“Good girl,” Nina cooed. Her movements were gentle, yet protective. All the stress and tension I didn’t even know I had was gone in an instant. 

“Now listen up, sis. You’re a girl, and nobody can take that from you. You’re not a fake or a pretender. You’re my adorable little sister, and anyone who says otherwise will have to go through me.” Nina spoke softly as she continued to brush me.

“That includes you too, sis. I’m sure Alec and Kei feel the same way, even though they’d never admit it. No more dodging questions and self-deprecating, ok?”

I wanted to believe her, I really did. But I still felt so unsure. “But what if Jasper was right?” I asked.

Nina looked at me disapprovingly. “What did I just say? Syl, there’s no right or wrong way to be a girl. How can you be bad at being yourself?”

“Because this isn’t me, not in my world!” I cried. “I’m just some guy with a weird fetish, aren’t I?”

The pampering stopped when I said that. Instead, a rather angry flick on the forehead jolted me out of paradise. I sat up, clutching my forehead in pain. Nina was staring at me angrily, hands on her hips, and her tail swishing around in annoyance.

“Is that really what you think?” She asked. “Then, what about Alec? Is he ‘just a fake’ too?”

“No!” I protested. “He’s a much better guy than I am. He’s so confident and everything, he has it all figured out.”

“And Karyl? Can you honestly imagine her as a guy?”

“That’s not what I-”

“Then tell me, little sis. What did you mean? You are who you are, right now. I’m always going to think of you as my little sister, and nothing will change that fact. You’re the same as your friends in your world. What’s different between you and them?”

“I’m… I’m not as confident as them,” I admitted. Karyl had known about herself for basically her entire life, how could I compete with that? And Alec had a way with words that made it seem like he could do anything.

Nina rolled her eyes. “Right. Because the first thing every trans girl does after coming out is strut around in public wearing a sundress for two days straight.” 

“I didn’t have much of a choice,” I muttered.

“You didn’t ask,” my sister countered. “You aren’t going to win this, sis. Do I need to remind you that you fought a creepy old dude with magic you’ve never practiced and won? There’s confidence in there somewhere.”

“I guess…”

“You’re my amazing little sister, Syl. Never forget I’m here for you, especially when you feel dysphoric.”

“Dys- what?”

“Dysphoria. It’s that feeling you get when someone calls you a guy, or when some asshole tells you you’ll never be a girl. Sorry, I forgot you’re pretty new to all the trans terminology.”

Is that what it was? Dysphoria? I mean, I was in pretty rough shape after the sailor’s verbal assault. “Was that why I lost control when I was fighting Jasper?” I asked.

“Most likely. It might go away when somebody comforts you…” she held her arms out, inviting me into the safety of her grasp. I lunged towards my sister at her invitation. She laughed and gave me a squeeze. “See? Doesn’t it feel good?”

“Mmhmm.” I stayed wrapped in her embrace for as long as she would let me, relishing in the feeling of being protected. In this little moment in time, it felt like I belonged. I’d do anything for the others, and I knew they’d do the same. We were close, like-

The pieces clicked into place. It’d been there the whole time, I’d just been afraid to look for it. There wasn’t really anything that defined it, but all the little things coming together. Like how Kei was always dealing with logistics for us without being asked, or Alec’s teasing comments keeping the morale up. The way we could share a meal together, joking around and sharing stories. There wasn’t a set of requirements to be a family, it was just about being together and enjoying their company.

Nina pulled away as I had my revelation. “Feeling better?” she asked.

“Yeah.Thanks for talking some sense into me, sis.”

“Anytime, cutie. Now lie back down so I can finish brushing you.” Nina pulled her dark blue tail onto her lap, giving it a pat as an open invitation. I laid my head on it, sinking into its silky soft comforts. The brushing sensation and the headpats came back, and it didn’t take long for me to feel nothing but pure bliss again.

“So, what did the goddess actually tell you to do?” Nina asked as she continued pampering me.

“I was supposed to ask everyone a question,” I sighed happily. “But it’s alright, I think I just figured it out.”

Ninichu

Got a little carried away with this one, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. It took a while to get going, but when I did I doubled my word count of the average chapter. Now if only I could get all my chapters to be this long...

Thanks for reading and dealing with my sporadic update schedule! More to come soon!