The Red Hand

Akagi continued to laugh for a bit more until Kana walked over and bonked her on the head with a rolled-up paper fan.

*BAM*

"Can you please not laugh manically like that in other people's bodies!" Kana had a vein bulging on her head.

"Owchi!" Akagi winced in fake pain. "How could you hit me like that, Kana? Why are you being so mean to me...." Akagi started to fake cry. "What happened to the nice and cute little girl you once were?"

{It never existed...} (Mika x Naomi)

"Because you're acting like that while looking like Hishya!" Kana sighed. "If you want to act like some crazy person, at least have the decency to do it in your own body."

"Hmpf." Akagi turned away and puffed out her cheeks. "Kana's been learning domestic violence, poor Hishya." Seeing as Kana was still next to her, Akagi got a funny idea.

"Kana." Akagi said.

"What now?" Kana responded.

"Can you please come here?" Akagi asked meekly.

Wary of her sister's sudden attitude change, Kana inched closer. "Ok, what do you-" She was interrupted and Akagi grabbed her and pulled her down onto her.

"Gotcha!" Akagi smiled.

"Onee-chan, what are you doing?" Kana sighed. As she did her face got close to Akagi's who was still transformed into Hishya, causing the girl to blush slightly.

"Aww, that's cute." Akagi smiled.

"Alright, you had your fun, so let me go!" Kana tried to wriggle free to no avail.

"Alright, just one last thing," Akagi said.

"Fine what do you-" Kana was once again caught off guard as Akagi kissed her on the cheek. Ordinarily, this wasn't something to care about, but Akagi still looked like Hishya which caused Kana's head to start spinning.

Kana quickly backed up, after Akagi let go, and her entire face turned bright red from embarrassment.

"What's the matter, Kana." Akagi looked at her. "Is it so strange that I'd give you a kiss on the cheek?" Akagi's smile morphed into a grin. "I thought you'd be happy?"

"You-I-just-ARGH!" Kana exploded. "WHY DID YOU DO THAT!" She knew exactly why her sister had just done that.

Akagi decided she wasn't done just yet and curled her legs up cutely. "What's wrong with a little peck? Haven't we done so much more together?" Akagi looked at her with an absolutely awful glint in her eye. “Don't tell me our snuggling meant nothing to you...”

Naomi and Mika looked at each other and burst out laughing. They'd never seen Akagi act like this and never expected her to have this level of playfulness in her, and they liked it.

"STOP LAUGHING. IT'S NOT FUNNY," Kana yelled. Her face was now completely red, and she dove at Akagi intending to make her pay for her statements. Not one to be caught so easily, Akagi hopped over the back of the couch, and the two began running around the room, with Kana unable to lay a hand on her.

"Oh? So now you want to touch me?" Akagi said as she dodged one of Kana's attacks. "Is that all I am to you? Just some convenient woman to unleash your desires upon whenever you feel like it?"

This caused Naomi, Yumi and Mika to double over in laughter. They knew Kana and Hishya's relationship was still in that weird stage, so seeing Akagi say such things in Hishya's body was too much for them. Akagi knew this and kept up the harassment, much to Kana's displeasure.

"Stop dodging me and take your lumps!" Kana exclaimed. The two continued like this for some time until Kana eventually ran out of stamina and collapsed on the couch.

"Onee-chan...... you...... you.... why..... do..... you...... do...... this.... to..... me?" Kana was exhausted.

"Because it's my job as your older sister." Akagi shrugged. "Also it's fun." Akagi winked.

"Well.... maybe.... just.... don't!" Kana said.

"I never knew Akagi could act like that," Mika said through chuckles. "That took me by surprise."

"Yeah, since when were you the type to do things like that?" Naomi asked. Her face flushed from laughing. "I knew you could pick on Kana a bit, but that was great!"

"Since always?" Akagi tilted her head. "Aren't I always like this, Yumi?" she looked to the priestess who was also red from laughing.

"Um... yes, though I think normally, you keep things a little bit more restrained than that," Yumi said. "Though recently, you've kind of let lose a bit more. I don't think you've ever picked on Kana like that in front of others." At least she couldn't recall an event like this before.

"Huh?" Akagi thought. "I guess I have felt a bit more whimsical and relaxed since then. And I guess my eccentricities have gone up a bit."

"A BIT!" Kana exclaimed. "Oh no, it's far more than just a bit!"

"What?" Akagi asked. "Is it wrong to have a little fun?"

Kana's eyes glazed over. "Fun, is that what she calls it? Ha. Ha Ha."

"Oops," Akagi said. "It looks like I broke her. Come back to us, Kana." She shook her shoulders to no avail. Seeing no other option, she decided to try shock therapy. "If you don't come back to us, then I'll just have to get in the bath with you like this." Akagi's threat seemed to work and Kana was instantly brought out of her delirious state.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Kana exclaimed. "I"LL SKIN YOU ALIVE IF YOU TRY!"

"Hey, there were go! Welcome back to us." Akagi smiled. 

"Do you two see what I have to deal with?!?" Kana threw her arms into the air. "She's always like this!"

"Oh, I see it, and it's amazing." Naomi grinned. "Keep up the good work Akagi."

"Yeah, it's kinda nice to see you get so flustered from time to time." Mika smiled. "Usually you're always messing with us, so its nice to see that shoe on the other foot!"

"Traitors!" Kana yelled. "What have I done to deserve this treatment." She went limp, and she fell back onto a pillow.

"If it's bothering you that much." Akagi snapped her fingers. "How about this." Akagi changed into Rishia, with the only difference being her left eye which was orange. "You know I hate this body, but if me being Hishya is going to be an issue, then fine."

"Can't you just go back to normal?" Kana looked at her.

"Hmpf." Akagi turned away and sat in Yumi's lap. "I'm having fun right now." She stuck out her tongue as she hugged the priestess.

"Akagi acting like a spoiled child." Mika chuckled. "I never thought I'd see the day."

"Yeah." Naomi smiled. "It's kinda cute though."

Akagi was quite a playful person on the inside, but ordinarily, she'd kept that to a minimum in public, mostly. Sometimes it would leak out and she'd mess with people. But it seemed that she'd become more prone to such actions since she'd released more of her power. This was in large part because the real Akagi was quite whimsical, eccentric, and quite honestly insane. As a result, since the events of the mall, Akagi had been much more prone to messing with others, even more than usual. Something that had caused Kana an increased level of grief and irritation, though there was little she could do to stop her.

"You really are cute though, Akagi." Naomi said. "Why don't you stay like that more often?"

"Yeah, you could even come to school or something with us." Mika agreed. "That would be kinda funny, Kana would probably throw a fit."

"Please don't take my only sanctuary away..." Kana groaned

"I do not use it, because I hate this form," Akagi answered with a harsh tone. "It serves as a constant reminder that I'm trapped. One could even call it the thing that's keeping me restrained, and because of that, I absolutely detest it. I also have quiet a lot of bad memories tied to this body so it's only natural that I've come to hate it."

Suddenly, the air in the room got heavier and dark energy formed an outline around Akagi. "Naomi," Akagi said, her voice slightly deeper. "You said that I retained this humanity of mine because I actually wanted to stay human despite my earlier words, correct?"

Naomi could only nod. Her entire body was frozen.

"Well, that couldn't be further from the truth." Akagi looked over at the girl, her left eye glowing orange. "Make no mistake, the reason I cling to this last bit of humanity within me is not that I want to stay human." Akagi's smile curved into an evil grin. "It's because if I let it go right now, everyone in this room except for Yumi would die." Akagi's voice distorted as she said that.

“E-everyone?” Naomi asked tentatively. “Even Kana?”

“Especially Kana.” Akagi's eyes flashed briefly as she looked at her sister, turning into that of a predator and her mouth curved into a twisted smile before she returned to normal. After the events inside her shadow, Akagi decided to be completely honest with Kana about a dark feeling she'd been harboring. She told Kana that in the back of her mind, she relished the idea of her younger sister being afraid of her. That the thought of Kana cowering in fear because her Onee-chan was going to eat her was absolutely exhilarating. Now, Akagi wasn't exactly inclined to act on these desires, but she wanted Kana to know nonetheless.

Kana wasn't entirely surprised to find out about this. She figured that somewhere inside her sister's heart some darker emotions relating to her existed. Though wanting to torture and mutilate her was a bit beyond normal resentment. Kana was grateful that Akagi opened up to her about this issue, and told her that it was ok. She was glad her sister was honest with her about her feelings. Though she did ask her to keep things to her usual tormenting if possible.

"Kana has seen the truth." Akagi smiled. "Isn't that right?"

"Y-yeah." Kana was still not used to her sister's sudden changes, and her swapping between her normal self and this intimidating aura was going to take some getting used to. "Onee-chan is currently locked away in her own soul, and she's been trying to get out ever since we were kids. She's the kind of being that would destroy this entire world if she got loose, and she's been trying to find a way to release herself without going completely feral." Kana then explained a bit more about what she and her sister had discussed while in Akagi's shadow.

"I-I see," Naomi said. "I'm sorry if I upset you. I didn't realize just how bad it was. I'm sorry."

"But, why would someone place you here?" Mika asked. "Why would someone want to destroy the entire world like that?" It was a reasonable question since it made little sense to assume that coincidence was what placed Akagi here.

"I have no idea." Akagi shook her head and withdrew her aura. "And I really don't care. Right now, I want nothing more than to be whole and fill this emptiness inside my heart."

"What will you do after that?" Naomi asked with a bit of sweat appearing on her forehead.

"I'll do whatever I want." Akagi laughed. "And right now, I want nothing more than to live a quiet life here with my family." She rubbed her face against Yumi's chest, giving off a warm smile causing the priestess to giggle.

"I was honestly expecting you to say you would take over the world." Mika chuckled. "Kinda goes with your whole Demon motif."

"Alice said the same thing earlier today." Akagi laughed. "She told me I'd make a great Empress of the world. Imp thought so too."

"Who exactly is Alice?" Kana finally righted herself. "Is that the person who calls you Mom?" They'd gotten sidetracked but that question was how this conversation started.

"Yes," Akagi snapped her fingers and returned to her usual appearance. "Alice is my daughter, and quite a cute one, I might add." She smiled.

"When did this happen!" Kana exclaimed. "And why didn't you tell me!"

"Because I was waiting for the right moment to introduce her." Akagi shook her head. "Besides, Alice is delicate, and I don't want to do anything that would cause her issues. Plus she's a member of Libra, so she's quite busy."

"She's a member of Libra!" (Kana, Mika and Naomi!)

"Yes," Akagi nodded. "And she has quite a good reason to hate the world, especially after Hishya and the other members of the Assault Team betrayed her."

"Wait, what?" Kana was taken aback hearing Hishya's name. "What do you mean Hishya betrayed her?"

Akagi shrugged. "You should ask her for the whole story, but basically Hishya and the Assault Team really screwed the pooch on that one. Alice was caught in the middle of Hishya and me. And our little dragon girl made her take a nappy during the fight."

"She attacked her?!?" Kana was aghast. "Why did she do that? And stop being so cryptic tell us now!" She'd go give Hishya an earful later.

"Hishya was not always as nice as she is now, Kana." Akagi looked at her. She'd told her about Hishya's personality. Had she forgotten? "She used to be quite the nasty individual and was not always the most pleasant person to be around." Akagi continued. "Remember, Hishya is/was a very vain person and was more than happy to knock others down to make herself look good." Akagi could remember a few members who got a bit too good who ended up kicked off the Team due to scandals.

"I understand that. But I feel like you're leaving out important context." Kana pressed for answers. "Why was this Alice girl involved with you, and why was she in the middle of the fight?"

Akagi sighed. "Kana, Alice was only ten years old when FWO started."

Kana took a second to process that information before realizing something important.

"Wait, she would have been way too young to use VR gear then!" Kana knew that most VR stuff was off-limits to those of such a young age due to health and safety risks.

Seeing that her sister figured that out, Akagi began to recount the tale of the little girl Alice. Her time as a test subject, her work with the Assault Team, and then Hishya's actions on the night before Hassan. With each passing moment, the girls' faces grew paler and paler as Akagi explained what happened to Alice and the events that led to Akagi taking her in.