Emily had just finished volunteering at the homeless shelter, as was her habit by now, and was walking back to her dormitory. On the way, she had stopped at the park, where she sat on a bench to rest for a bit.

Tucking her blonde hair behind her ear, she smiled as she watched the setting sun, one of the things she always delighted in doing. Unfortunately, something soon interrupted her pause, and she noticed something out of the corner of her eye.

She turned her head to see what it was and was stunned to see a tiny girl, who couldn't have been more than two inches tall, desperately running for her life. The tiny girl was so small that it was hard for Emily to even see her. As she looked at the tiny girl, she noticed that there was a cat chasing her. Without hesitation, Emily leapt off the bench and ran towards the tiny girl, catching her on the fly with her hands.

Holding the tiny girl in her raised right hand, Emily waved her left hand to chase the cat away. "Leave this poor girl alone. She's not a toy!"

Once it saw that the prey was no longer within reach, the cat turned and walked away.

Once the threat was dealt with, Emily decided to take a look at the tiny person she had saved to see if she was hurt or something.

Bringing the hand holding the tiny girl close to her face, her blue eyes carefully scanned every detail of her tiny body, which was covered only by a couple of small pieces of torn cloth on her chest and between her legs, leaving the rest of her body exposed, making it easier for her to inspect.

The tiny black-haired girl fixed her brown eyes upon her, trembling and sobbing in fear of her narrow escape and the uncertainty of what the giantess holding her in her hand might do to her.

"Hey, don't worry..." Emily said soothingly. "It's okay, I'm here to help you. What happened? Are you okay? Do you feel pain somewhere?" Emily asked, as she continued to watch her body for signs of injury or damage.

The poor thing was too scared to answer though, and she curled up in her hand, still crying and shaking.

Emily felt sadness for her, so she pulled her close to her chest, trying to give her the closest thing to a hug despite their huge size difference. "Shh. Shhh. It's okay, I'm here now. Everything's going to be alright."

It took a few minutes of reassuring whispers and gentle caresses, but she finally seemed to begin to relax. Once she calmed down, Emily returned to the bench and placed the tiny girl on her lap.

"What's your name, dear?" Emily asked gently.

"...J-Jane. My name is Jane." The tiny girl whimpered.

"Oh, Jane, what a lovely name." Emily replied, flashing a warm smile.

"Thank you." Jane said quietly.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Emily asked, curious.

"There was... there was a big monster that wanted to eat me!" Jane said, her eyes wide with fear.

"A big monster? You mean the cat?" Emily tilted her head in confusion.

Jane shook her head and hugged herself tightly, starting to shake again. "No! It was a monster! It killed and ate two of my friends! I was only able to escape thanks to you!" Jane cried out in panic.

Emily gasped, "That's... that's terrible! I'm so sorry!"

Jane nodded weakly "It is...I...I can still hear their screams...they begged me to help them, but I could only run away! And then-"

"Hey, hey, hey, it's going to be okay." Emily said gently, pulling her back into her chest. "I'll protect you. You're safe with me."

Jane clung onto Emily tightly, still trembling in fear.

"Oh, Jane, don't be afraid anymore," Emily said. "I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."

Emily then began to gently carry Jane, cradling her in her hand as she walked towards her dorm.

Once she arrived in front of her dorm, Emily breathed a sigh of relief. It was dark outside by now, and it had been a long, hard day at the homeless shelter. While she enjoyed helping others, volunteering was still not an easy job, and she was already feeling tired from just that. But coupled with the story of Jane's horrific experience, she wanted to do nothing more than go to her room and sleep the night away.

Emily glanced at Jane, who was sitting in the palm of her hand, wrapped around her middle finger like a koala, though Emily had made sure to hold her in a way that she couldn't fall, and gave her a reassuring smile.

Opening the door, Emily was about to enter the dormitory common room when she heard two voices that were familiar to her... but not in a good way.

Peering from behind the open door, Emily saw that across the room, sitting on the couch watching television, were two people who unfortunately lived in the same dorm as her.

Shana and Suki.

Shana was a tomboyish African-American girl with short curly hair who liked to play every type of sport possible… except those involving water. This means that she was almost always sweaty and... quite smelly. Emily wouldn't care that much, except that she was also crude and antagonistic to pretty much everyone, and with a tendency to use her body odor to harass or bully other people.

Then there was Suki, a Japanese girl who came from a wealthy family, who thought that sharing a dormitory with other people would make her more sociable and independent.

Sadly they were wrong, and after getting into an argument with Shana, which ended in Suki being slammed to the ground with Shana sitting on top of her stuffing her sweaty socks into her mouth, Suki had somehow become Shana's henchwoman. And though she was now only a subordinate, for some reason her ego and arrogance hadn't gone down, they'd skyrocketed. It was like she was proud to be Shana's lackey.

Emily wasn't someone capable of hating other people, but even she found their presence… unpleasant.

Wanting to avoid trouble, Emily took advantage of the fact that they had their backs to her and were immersed in watching television to quietly close the door and tiptoe towards her room, all the while keeping her eyes on them to make sure they didn't notice her.

Unfortunately, Emily hadn't realized the presence of Maya, Shana's thirteen year old little sister, who was playing alone with a doll on the floor near the entrance to the bedrooms, waiting for Emily to come back, as she was the only one who treated her well, while Shana and Suki just teased and nagged her continuously.

Seeing Emily, Maya, who unlike her older sister was a polite and kind child, was about to greet her with a smile but stopped, perplexed to see her walking backwards, and what's more, she had something strange in her hand.

Out of curiosity, Maya asked “What's in your hand, Emily?”

Not expecting anyone behind her, and with her attention focused entirely elsewhere, Emily was taken totally aback, and couldn't help but let out a cry of surprise, ending up doing exactly what she was trying to avoid. Draw Shana and Suki's attention to her.

Turning their heads, Shana and Suki looked at her. Suki glared at her for interrupting the movie, while Shana just looked bored. “What are you shouting about, Barbie?”

Emily cringed at that nickname, but she just smiled, albeit with an effort. "Oh... nothing. I thought I saw a cockroach, but I was mistaken..." she lied quickly.

Shana snickered at her “Don't worry, princess. It's just Maya who loves to crawl on the floor.”

Emily felt bad for Maya, who looked down in shame, her long black hair reaching down to cover her face, hugging her doll tightly, but she was glad she had distracted Shana, who had lost interest and was returning to watching television.

Or at least until Suki, who was still glaring at her with hostility, asked “Why are you holding your arms behind your back? What are you hiding?”

Emily immediately replied “Nothing!” but evidently her tone was rather suspicious, and Shana turned back to her.

“Good question... what do you have back there?” Shana said, intrigued by her behavior.

Emily was quite nervous, but she tried to smile again. “Oh, it's nothing interesting, don't worry about-”

“Maybe you misunderstood me...” Shana explained in a calm but commanding tone “I'm not asking, but telling you to show me.”

Emily started shaking when she saw Shana and Suki stand up and walk towards her. ‘What do I do now?!’

Emily's heart was pounding with fear. Facing her, as if ready to judge her, were Shana and Suki.

Suki was shorter than Emily's height of 5’2”, being only 5’, but the angry look that came from under her glasses plus her crossed-arms posture, coupled with the fact that she was wearing a formal pair of pants with a semi-formal shirt, gave her the appearance of a stern teacher.

Shana, on the other hand, was another story entirely.

Though she didn't look angry, just plain bored as she casually stood there with one hand on her hip, her six-foot height, and the fact that she was wearing only a sports bra and running shorts, all of which showed off her muscular physique, made her look extremely intimidating.

Emily swallowed hard and felt her body begin to shake under their gazes.

This standoff continued silently for almost a minute before Suki lost her temper and said "So? How long are you going to make us wait to see what you're holding back there?"

"I don't have to show you anything..." Emily murmured, but Suki heard it and clearly wasn't happy about it.

"How dare you! Hurry up or-" Suki started to rant, but Shana's hand on her head silenced her abruptly.

Both Suki and Emily looked over at Shana, and saw a frown on her face.

"I'm starting to get annoyed…" she began, looking down her nose at Emily "So stop wasting my time. Show me. Now."

Emily kept opening and closing her mouth without saying anything, searching for something to say to defuse this situation before it got even worse, but finding nothing. Her mind was totally overwhelmed by the anxiety she was feeling at the moment.

Seeing Emily in distress, Maya, who felt guilty since she'd been the one to draw attention to Emily in the first place, tried to interpose herself between the parties "It was just a... ring! Nothing else! I only asked because I was curious!"

Shana's gaze moved to Maya, who flinched instinctively "Oh? Is it just that then? Are you sure about that, Maya? You aren't lying to me, are you?"

"I'm not lying..." Maya said, but she didn't have the courage to look her older sister in the eyes " I was just curious and asked a question… that's all."

Before anyone could react, Shauna grabbed Maya by her hair and lifted her off the floor, making her scream in pain.

Bringing her face to face, which was a full foot off the floor due to their height difference, Shana told her, angrily "How many times do I have to remind you not to lie to me, you little brat?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I won't lie anymore! Please, don't hurt me!" Maya cried out in pain as Emily watched in shock at the scene.

Shana continued to stare into her eyes for a few more seconds before dropping her to the floor like a sack of potatoes with a huff "Get out of my way before I get really mad, you little squirt."

Being paralyzed with fear, once her feet hit the ground her legs collapsed, causing her to fall on the floor.

Shana rolled her eyes and snorted in disappointment, while Suki started laughing at her, causing Maya to crawl across the floor in shame until she got behind Emily and hugged her leg, seeking protection.

Emily really wanted to hug and comfort her like she did every time Shana and/or Suki tormented her, but unfortunately, she didn't have the luxury of being able to think about others at the moment, now that their attention had returned to her.

“This farce has been going on for too long. Show me what you have in hand of your own choosing before I decide to do it myself.” Shana snapped, her patience running out.

Emily wanted to run away and lock herself in the safety of her room, but she knew from experience that, the moment she moved, Shana would pin her down.

Shana was taller, stronger, and faster than she was, and she also had no qualms about getting physical.

And while that was already bad enough under normal circumstances, now that she had Jane in her hand she couldn't risk it, or she could get hurt… or worse.

Shaking her head from the horrible thought of Jane becoming nothing but a red splatter on her sundress after being crushed by her and Shana's bodies falling on top of her, Emily looked back to Shana and Suki, who seemed ready to take matters into their own hands at any moment.

With no other options, Emily closed her eyes and sighed heavily, before reopening them and bringing her hand forward to show what was on it.

Immediately all of their gazes focused on her hand, where Jane was shaking in panic, still hugging Emily's middle finger for support.

"This is Jane… I found her in the park, while she was being chased by a cat, so I decided to help her. After that, I didn't want to leave her alone, so I decided to bring her here..." Emily said as a quick summary of what had happened, before looking at their faces to gauge their reactions.

Maya had come out from behind her legs, and was looking at Jane with a mixture of wonder and pity, her hand reaching up slightly as if to caress her but when Jane shivered again, she dropped it immediately.

Suki was trying hard to hide her curiosity, pretending not to be interested, but her eyes didn't leave Jane's form for more than a second.

Shana on the other hand... she looked disappointed, as if she expected something better.

“That's it? All this fuss just for a tiny?” Shana finally said after a few seconds of prolonged silence.

“You are the one who started all this…” Emily responded, feeling bitter about her casual disregard for Jane “And at any rate, as I said before, her name is Jane, and she's a Little Folk, not a tiny!”

“Tomayto, tomahto.” Shana replied, shrugging with a smirk "Don't try to be a know-it-all about petty things, you just look dumber, Barbie."

Emily pursed her lips, irritated “There's no reason to be mean. I was just telling you what name they prefer to be called.”

“Why should I care what these things want to be called?” Shana asked, frowning.

Maya was tugging at Emily's dress, whispering for her to just let it go, but Emily was too shocked to notice "Excuse me? What do you mean by things? They are people, like us! You know that?"

Shana let out a chuckle "Please, these things aren't people. Thousands are trampled or killed every day and nobody cares.”

Emily looked down in sadness “They are people. This only happens because many people don't pay attention to where they walk! If only they'll watch where they walk this-”

“Actual people don't have time to waste on being careful not to squash critters. If they care so much about survival, why don't they just hole up in their burrows?” Shana interrupted, shaking her head.

“Because they are people, not animals! And like all people, they have needs that nature can't satisfy!” Emily retorted, feeling annoyed.

Shauna rubbed her forehead and sighed, feeling tired of arguing about something she thought was even more boring than talking about the weather “So riddle me this, Barbie. If they are people, then why hasn't anyone ever been jailed or even just tried for killing them?”

Emily opened her mouth to answer, but then closed it again.

Unfortunately, Shana was right.

Some Little Folk’s rights advocates had tried to get them treated like normal sized people, but nothing concrete ever happened.

Although, technically, they were regarded as human beings, the laws concerning them had countless loopholes.

The most popular was that they were too small to see or notice, allowing pretty much anyone to do whatever they wanted with them and get away with it.

Emily felt discouraged, and Shana noticed this immediately, and leapt to the attack “Aww, poor Barbie finally figured something out? Oh my, this is a time to celebrate!”

“Cut it out... this isn't fair. Jane and the other Little Folks are people just like us…” Emily murmured, feeling dejected.

“Aaand... in the end you're back to square one...” Shana said with disappointment “Oh well, at least this Jane thing will be sorted out soon.”

Emily gave her a confused look “What do you mean by-" but she stopped when she noticed that Jane was no longer gripping her middle finger, and looking down at her hand, she saw that it was empty.

Emily immediately looked down to see if Jane had fallen, but there was nothing on the floor.

Looking up, she was just in time to see Suki walking past Shana, holding Jane in her closed hand, with just her legs sticking out.

"Hey! What are you doing! Let her go!" Emily yelled angrily, trying to get to Suki, but Shana grabbed her arm "Where do you think you're going?"

Emily tried to free herself, but Shana's grip was too strong for her to break.

Realizing there was no point in continuing, she looked at Suki, who was grinning at her, and said “Why did you take her, Suki? Release her!”

“I don't think so!” she answered with a soft giggle “Especially now that I finally have a tiny at my fingertips... or rather, right in my hand! This is an opportunity I can't waste!”

“They are called Little Folk, not tiny.” Emily automatically said before tilting her head in confusion “And what do you mean? An opportunity for what?”

“Oh that's very simple.” Suki replied, opening her hand and revealing a frightened Jane in it “I've wanted to eat a tiny... for a long time.”

Emily blanched, her blood frozen in horror “…what? You're only kidding... right?”

In response, Suki stuck out her tongue and gave Jane, who was screaming in panic, a long, deep lick, coating her little body with saliva “Nope!”

Emily was horrified by her statement and behavior.

"No... you can't do that... she's human!?" she whispered, looking confused as to how anyone could even imagine such a terrible act, let alone do it.

"She's not human," Suki said in exasperation, before looking at Jane's trembling, saliva-dripping form. "But she looks close enough. I can eat her and imagine I'm doing it to a real person!"

"This is murder, Suki... surely you can understand that... right?" Emily pleaded, refusing to even imagine that anyone could actually be that inhuman.

"And how?" Suki replied with a sneer, tossing her hair over her shoulder "Don't be so pedantic, Emi-chan. Learn to relax a little every now and then, for goodness' sake!"

Emily blinked slowly, not being able to understand what Suki meant, before turning to her captor "Shana... at least you understand that there's something wrong with what she's doing, don't you?!"

Shana looked thoughtful at what Emily said “Um, you're not entirely wrong...”

Emily looked up at her with watery, grateful eyes, but her relief only lasted until Shana turned and addressed Suki “Hey Suki, don't you think you should at least give that thing a wash before eating it? You don't even know where it has been.”

Emily collapsed to the ground in desperation, but was ignored by the two who began talking to each other.

"I already licked it. If there was something wrong I would have noticed by now." Suki said, annoyed that Shana was also trying to ruin her moment.

"I know you Chinese are used to eating everything you find, but at least cook it first." Shana advised, placing the hand that wasn't gripping Emily on her hip.

Suki gritted her teeth in anger, but remained silent.

This reminded her all too much of the conversation they had when they first met.

Suki was sitting at the table, eating sushi for dinner, when Shana arrived and made this exact same comment to her back then.

Suki tried to be polite, as her parents had requested her, and explained to her that she was Japanese and not Chinese, and that sushi was a popular type of Japanese food that was eaten by people all over the world, to which Shana shrugged and replied that they were the same since they all had slanted eyes, and that raw fish is still raw fish even if you call it in a strange way.

Scandalized, she replied piquedly that she certainly didn't expect someone who looked like a baboon whose face and butt had been switched to understand such subtle things... and this costed her a beating and a evening as a sock sucker.

She had no intention of repeating the experience, especially when she finally had a tiny in her hands.

It would be truly depressing if now she, who was one step away from doing something that she has long wanted to do, found herself not only beaten, but with an empty stomach and her chlothes ruined by blood splatters as well.

Emily, who was watching their argument as if it were a tennis match, felt disoriented by the casualness with which they talked about eating Jane, as if she were just a simple snack.

She was starting to wonder if she was actually the one who was exaggerating, seeing this as something that wasn't normal when in fact it was...

"You two are... so mean! How can you do something so...so...evil, to poor Jane! She didn't even do anything to you!" a voice rang out from beside them.

Surprised, Emily as well as Shana and Suki looked at Maya, who was swelling with anger and disgust at their attitude.

Although initially taken aback by Maya's outburst, Shana soon recovered and said "Why don't you go play with your dolls and stop interrupting when adults are talking?"

"What adults? I just see two stupid heads saying stupid things!" Maya shot back.

Shana narrowed her eyes, annoyed by Maya's defiance “I'll give you a chance to take back what you just said, pipsqueak, or else…” 

Maya placed her hands on her hips and looked Shana straight in the eyes "Or else… what? Are you going to hit me? Or bully me? You already do that all the time, so it doesn't really work as a threat!"

Shana, who had never seen Maya act like this before, became furious, and tightened her grip on Emily, making her whimper in pain.

"I'm your older sister! You owe me respect!" Shana demanded, but Maya was not intimidated.

"Stepsister." Maya hissed, clenching her fists as she trembled "Now I understand why mommy doesn't want me to spend time with you... you are a bad person."

“And you're as sanctimonious as that whore of your mother. And this is why I can't stand you. Both of you are always so quick to judge others as if you were perfect. But, news flash, you aren't!” Shana said coldly, her anger simmering beneath her skin.

Maya released a shaky sigh, knowing there was no point in trying to reason with Shana.

She was a person who didn't care about anyone but herself. And although it was something she had known for a long time, she had hoped that it was just a way of protecting herself against her mother, who had always treated her badly, and that one day they would become like real sisters...

But that was just a silly dream.

Not wanting to think about it anymore, she turned to Suki, who had stopped paying attention to their bickering and had started toying with Jane, who was desperately trying to escape, and extended her hand “Give her to me!”

“Hmm? What are you talking about?” Suki replied, tilting her head in a feigned expression of innocence, which was ruined by the smirk on her lips.

“Give me Jane right now, or I'll take her myself!” Maya ordered, uninterested in her games.

Suki's smirk turned into a frown “I'm an adult and you're just a little girl. Do you seriously think that you can command me?”

“You may be a lot older than me, but you're shorter and weaker than me, so I can easily beat you.” Maya said matter-of-factly.

Suki gritted her teeth in anger at Maya, but then calmed down with a snort and sneered, "You want her, huh? Well, then you're out of luck!"

In front of Emily and Maya's shocked eyes, Suki stuffed Jane completely into her mouth.

With a gasp, Maya tried to get closer to Suki, but she moved Jane into the space between her teeth and cheek with her tongue and said “Don't come any closer, or I'll swallow!”

Maya stopped, looking in fury and helplessness at Suki, who sneered at her in triumph.

Emily's heart was pounding incessantly in her chest with anxiety, knowing that Jane's life was just one step away from ending in one of the most atrocious and senseless ways possible.

“Suki...” Emily began, using her tongue to moisturize her dry lips “This is inhumane... please... just let her go.”

In response, Suki turned her head and stuck her tongue out at her, along with Jane's upper body.

It was as if time had slowed to a snail's pace for Emily as she took in the scene.

Her eyes were fixated on Jane's tiny form, covered in a thick layer of Suki's saliva, dripping down her body onto the floor beneath.

In a infuriatingly slow manner, Jane's head turned towards her, pure terror and desperation in her expression.

Emily felt helpless, only able to watch… but when Jane's lips moved, begging her with a silent plea for help… Emily exploded with rage.

Releasing an inhuman scream, which took Shana by surprise, forcing her to let go and cover her ears, Emily lunged at Suki like an enraged bull.

Suki could only gape in shock before being headbutted in her sternum, causing her to gasp and fall backwards, and for Jane to fling out of her mouth and begin falling to the ground.

Having had her eyes fixed on Jane the entire time, the moment she saw her being thrown out of Suki's mouth and about to fall to the ground, Maya leaped and caught her in her hands on the fly, continuing to run without looking back.

A little dazed by the scream and surprised by Emily's reaction, Shana noticed Maya's movement too late, and awkwardly tried to follow her, but by then Maya had already locked herself inside Emily's room.

Enraged, Shana began kicking and punching the door

"Get out of there, you little shit! So I can kick your ass into the next century!"

"This doesn't really make me want to do it..." came Maya's sarcastic reply from behind the door.

"Open the fucking door or I'll break it!" Shana added, not really happy with everyone's sudden rebellion.

"Oh, please, do it! Then you'll finally find yourself living under a bridge like you deserve, since mommy doesn't want you in her house!" Maya replied in a jubilant voice.

Shana was almost on the verge of having a nervous breakdown, and she would have liked nothing better than to smash the door and beat the shit out of the little bitch, but sadly the dorm warden would kick her out without a second thought if she damaged the place.

And as much as she hated to admit it, Maya was right about her mother.

The bitch has always hated her since the day her idiot father married her... or rather, she hated her even before, but she waited for her father to marry her and have a baby with her before making it blatant.

As soon as she came of age, the slut convinced her father that she needed to... find out her place in the world, or some shit like that, to throw her out of the house with his blessing.

Since then, she's had to support herself, competing in every single sport she could, working her ass off and training every single fucking day so she could earn scholarships.

With one last huff of annoyance, she strode towards her room.

"I'm going to bed. Don't disturb me if you know what's good for you." were the last things she said before slamming the door.

Emily and Suki were suddenly alone together, and looked at each other.

Suki, still sore from the headbutt and aware that while Emily wasn't as strong as Shana, she was still way stronger than her, swallowed nervously "Uh... you know that-"

"If anything happens to Jane, the city's homeless will find themselves with a new type of meat on the menu." Emily interrupted calmly, dusting off her sundress before heading to her room, where Maya opened the door for her before closing it as soon as she entered.

Once Emily was gone as well, Suki slowly stood up, bruised and hissing in pain.

Limping towards her room, she murmured “Kuso... I hate that bitch and that kusogaki... I was just one step away from making my deepest wish come true... and now, even if I were to find that stupid snack all alone I can't even eat it, or they'll kick my ass... and I don't think I can rely on that monkey either... she would immediately dump me the moment she gets bored…”

Then, all of a sudden, something Emily herself had said earlier that day came to her mind, and she smiled darkly "Well, I think I should take a trip to the park tomorrow... who knows, I could have a snack outside..."

"If anything happens to Jane, the city's homeless will find themselves with a new type of meat on the menu." Emily said in cold anger, not interested in listening to any of the nonsense that could come out of Suki's mouth.

Dusting off her sun dress as a way to both relax and release tension, Emily then headed towards her room, leaving the young Japanese heiress on the floor behind her.

Arriving in front of the door of her room, Emily knocked on it, and after a few seconds a little ball of light popped up on her face from the peephole on the door, indicating that Maya was observing who was the one knocking.

After making sure it was Emily, and that she was alone with no one else around, Maya opened the door, pulled Emily in, and quickly closed it again.

Once the door was locked up again, Emily leaned against it, while Maya went back to sit on Emily's bed.

The two of them looked at each other in silence for several seconds before the sound of a door closing in the distance made them both calm down with a sigh, since it meant that, at least for now, the crisis was over.

Letting herself slide down the door to the floor, Emily curled up and hugged her legs close to her.

"Where is Jane? Is she… fine…" she started to say, before stopping and looking down in shame.

"Of course not, what a stupid question..." she scolded herself, hugging herself even tighter.

Not understanding why Emily felt so dejected, Maya got up from the bed and opened the third drawer of the dresser, the one where Emily put her underwear.

There, peeking out from under the cup of one of her bras, was Jane, still covered in Suki's saliva.

Finally seeing Jane, who was fortunately safe and sound, although looking very distressed by the events that had just passed, broke Emily's last barrier, and she began to cry desperately "I'm... so, so sorry, Jane... it's all my fault, I'm so sorry..."

"Okay... may I know what you're apologizing for? Maybe I missed something, but it's all Suki and my sis- that other fault. Absolutely not yours!" Maya asked perplexed, correcting herself from calling Shana her sister, since she no longer thought of her that way, but Emily was too caught up in her sadness to notice.

"It's my fault, if only I hadn't brought Jane here she would-"

“I would be well on my way to being digested by that horrible monster like my friends instead of being here, alive!” Jane screamed in annoyance, stepping out from under Emily bra and looking at her gravely.

Both Maya and Emily looked at her in surprise at her outburst, but Emily quickly dropped her gaze "I promised to protect you, but I almost let...you get eaten..."

"Funny. From my perspective it seemed to me that you fought like a maniac to rescue me, managing to knock the one who wanted to eat me to the ground and save my life." Jane replied, her hands on her hips as she looked up at Emily earnestly. "On the contrary, you have gone above and beyond what I could have ever expected to fulfill your promise. I owe you my life twice tonight."

Emily blushed at her words "It was the least I could do..."

"The least you could do is do nothing. You could have ignored me at the park or decided that you had already done enough for me just a little while ago, but you did neither. You instead decided to save me even when you yourself were in danger! So stop feeling sorry for yourself! You are my hero!" Jane passionately proclaimed.

"Jane..." Emily whispered in disbelief, locking eyes with Jane, who was looking at her in admiration.

The two continued to stare at each other for quite a while before a cough reminded them of the third person in the room.

They simultaneously looked towards Maya, who was blushing in embarrassment "I... I guess I'm unnecessary here, right...? Maybe it's better if I leave you two alone..."

Emily and Jane looked at each other for a second before blushing heavily and looking at her again.

"It's... it's not what it looks like!" Jane stammered in embarrassment, but Maya continued undeterred.

"You don't need to explain anything to me! I understand! It's just like in the stories, when Prince Charming saves the Princess from the evil dragon! It's only natural, really!" Maya nodded with a smile, happy to have 'understood' the situation perfectly.

Emily rubbed her forehead in annoyance, while Jane, not knowing what Maya was talking about, tried to explain herself "It's just gratitude! Yeah! And of course I feel the same for you too! Thanks for bringing me to safety, Maya!"

Maya blushed fiercely and looked away "Y-You're welcome... but… I'm still too young for these things... and t-together with Emily too..." she added, looking briefly at Emily and somehow managing to blush even more "...maybe in a few years..."

'I think I made a big mistake in giving her my old storybooks as gifts...' Emily contemplated briefly before sighing and looking back at Jane's slimy body.

"Anyway, it'll be better to get all that saliva off you." Emily changed the subject, before looking down at the spit-soaked rags that passed off as Jane's clothes. "We should also give you some new clothes, but for now... take these off."

Jane slowly brought her arms up to cover herself while Maya looked away in embarrassment "Are you really sure you don't prefer me to go...?"

Emily closed her eyes and counted to ten in silence before opening them again "Can you lend me some of your dolls' clothes for her to wear? I'll buy you some more later."

Surprised by the sudden change of topic, Maya tilted her head and nodded "Um, sure... I'll go right away."

Locking the door behind Maya as she left, Emily turned back to Jane and gasped when she saw her lying on her stomach, completely naked, over a pair of her panties "These are pretty big! I could probably live in them comfortably!"

"W-What?" Emily said in shock, at which Jane began to laugh.

“Oh dear, your face was too funny!” Jane said intermittently amidst her laughter.

"I thought you were more shy... you were covering yourself just now..." Emily murmured in embarrassment after turning so she couldn't see Jane's naked body.

"Well, I certainly couldn't undress in front of a little girl!" Jane replied before smirking at Emily "And in the end, you're the one who told me to undress! I only did what you told me!"

"I reap what I sow..." Emily sighed before looking back at Jane, trying to avoid looking anywhere other than her face, but given her smallness, it was an arduous task.

"Like what you see?" Jane teased Emily, who snorted in amusement.

“You're pretty, I'll give you that.” Emily responded with a giggle, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall while still looking at Jane.

After a few seconds of silence, Emily asked, a little hesitantly, "How are you feeling, Jane?"

Jane sighed at the fact that the moment she had been dreading had arrived, the one where she had to come to terms with what had happened.

"I was certain I was going to die." she said bluntly.

"Don't get me wrong, it's not that I didn't trust you, it's just that..." she hesitated for a moment, feeling bad  for her brusqueness, before continuing "I just… didn't expect the black titan to be here..."

"The Black Titan?" Emily asked curiously, even though deep down she already knew she was talking about Shana.

"Yes... the giant among giants, the one who brings the eternal darkness of death, the black titan." Jane listed off the series of nicknames with a shudder "Among my people, it is common knowledge of how, at the beginning of each day, as the darkness of the night begins to lift, the black titan rises from it as a final warning to never feel safe, crushing beneath it anyone unfortunate enough to find themselves in its path."

"So she was speaking from personal experience when she said that no one cares when your people get trampled or killed." Emily noted, gritting her teeth in disgust and anger.

"Apparently so..." Jane replied, rubbing her cheek on the pair of panties she was lying on "But from what I've heard, it seems more like she just doesn't care what's at her feet rather than active malice..."

"Does it matter? If anything, I find it worse! Her callousness regarding the lives of others is simply unforgivable!" Emily replied angrily.

Jane released a long sigh "Emily... I owe you everything, and I'm not at all ashamed to say that I idolize you, but... don't you realize that you're the weird one?"

Emily slowly blinked her eyes, not knowing how to respond to that.

"What do you mean?" she asked, unable to understand what Jane was saying.

"Most people don't care about us. That's a fact." Jane began, looking at her hand as she rubbed the fabric of the panties she lay on, unable to bring herself to look at Emily at the moment.

"Although there aren't many who actively want to harm us, it's only because most people couldn't care less about us. They see us as something whose importance is beneath their attention, which it is neither worth their time to help nor to hate..." she continued, her voice cold, emotionless.

Emily hated seeing her like this, but she remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

Jane spends a few moments listlessly playing with the panties under her before speaking again "Sometimes there are people who become aware of our existence, and not for bad reasons. But they are rare, and... I don't want to seem ungrateful, since they have helped us and continue to help us often, but..."

Jane paused, as if she were uncomfortable with continuing, but then shook her head "...but they also don't see us as equals. Sure, maybe they could talk about our rights and how we deserve to be treated better, but in the end they throw their scraps at us like they do with those animals floating in the lake. This is our reality. We are just pets, at best, to humans."

"You are no pet to me, Jane." Emily said softly, "You're a person. Like me."

"And that's why you're weird." Jane replied with a warm smile, tears falling from her eyes "But I'm happy that you are... and that we met..."

Without saying anything else, Emily walked over to Jane and gently picked her up, bringing her onto her chest in a semi-hug, which Jane reciprocated by spreading her arms wide to embrace as much of Emily as possible.

The two stayed like that for a while, enjoying each other's presence... at least until a voice interrupted them "This is so sweet! You two are so cute together!"

Looking in surprise towards where the voice was coming from, the two saw Maya, with her face pressed against the window, crying with a smile as she looked at them, with tears and snot spread all over the glass.

Jane burst into laughter at the scene, while Emily rolled her eyes, "What are you doing out there, you silly goose?"

"I knocked on the door but you ignored me! I knew that you were just looking for an excuse to be alone together!" Maya said, pouting at Emily.

"What? We weren't-" Emily tried to explain, but Maya waved her hands and cut her off.

"I don't want to know! This is adult stuff I don't want to know! Just let me in! I brought the doll clothes for her so she can stop being naked!" she exclaimed, tapping her hand against the window.

After Emily placed her, quickly but gently, back in the drawer, Jane watched with a smile as Emily went to open the window only for Maya to act spoiled and hold up her arms, demanding that Emily pick her up like a baby.

After dragging her in like a fish, seeing as Maya had no intention of cooperating, Emily placed her on the bed “You happy now?”

"Quite." Maya replied, kicking off her shoes and getting under the covers.

"What are you doing now?" Emily asked in exasperation, to which Maya smirked at her.

"We have to look after Jane together, don't we? So I decided to sleep here with you tonight!" she said happily, before adding, "Now go and prepare something for her to wash. She can't possibly get dressed while she's in this state!"

Not wanting to waste time arguing, knowing that Maya was as sweet as she was stubborn, Emily sighed and nodded "Okay okay, I'm going now."

Seconds after Emily walked out the door, Jane asked Maya "So...how long have you had a crush on Emily?"

Maya gasped and began to stutter "H-How do you know?"

"It's quite obvious." shrugged Jane "I mean, you certainly don't hide it."

Maya covered her blushing face with the covers "NOOO! This is so awkward! I hope Emily never finds out!"

'Then don't shout it!' Emily thought in exasperation from behind the door, her head in her hands.

Sighing heavily, she looked at the door and smiled 'Well, at least they're having fun... they deserve it after what they've been through tonight...'

Then she went to prepare a bowl of hot water for Jane to wash herself, but after a few steps she stopped and looked again at the door, from which screams and squeals could clearly be heard 'But I really need to tell them to calm down a bit and lock the door, before Shana gets really angry...'

The sound of an alarm clock began to reverberate through the room.

Although it was ignored at first, it soon became too much to bear, and an arm came out from under the covers of the nearby bed, feeling around in an attempt to remove the noise.

After several unsuccessful attempts, an annoyed grumble came from the same place from which the arm originated, and a raven-haired female head popped up.

Looking at the device as if it had offended her, the girl shut it off with a slap of her palm.

Enjoying the glorious silence for a moment, the girl then looked at the time and was confused "What the... it's only 6 o'clock... why did the alarm go off?"

Massaging her head as if to stimulate her brain, the girl remembered the events of the previous evening, and her eyes widened.

"Oh! That's right!" she said, slapping her closed hand on the palm of her other hand “Today is the day I will make my wish come true!”

Removing the covers and moving into a sitting position, the girl, Suki, then grinned "And the best part is that I'll be able to enjoy it in peace and solitude... with no petulant little sluts to stop me!"

Giggling cheerfully, she stood up and automatically began selecting the best outfits among her clean clothes before walking with them towards the bathroom to take a shower before stopping with her hand on the door handle.

Standing still for a few seconds, she then went back and opened her wardrobe again, rehanging the clothes she was holding 'I'm going outside to go to the park, it's probably best to wear something I don't care if it gets ruined...'

Rubbing her chin in thought, she examined all the clothing she had brought with her when she came to live in this dorm, and after a few minutes her eyes fell on one set of clothing in particular.

After taking them out, she placed them on her bed and took a look at them.

It was a simple outfit, consisting of a black jacket, a cream sweater, a gray plaid skirt, a pair of black loafers with a pair of short white socks, all topped off with a black painter's cap.

Smiling slightly, she caressed the clothes, remembering when she had bought them, which weren't even name-brand, on sale for less than $300.

Her initial intent was to have a few rags to wear while she painted, so as not to ruin actually good clothes, but, somehow, they became one of her favorite outfits.

Perhaps it was due to the fact that they reminded her of the times she spent painting, one of the few carefree moments of her life in which her parents did not-

She shook her head, interrupting her trip down memory lane.

This was neither the time nor the place, nor did she want to think about them.

But, as she removed her night dress, she couldn't help but remember how her desire to eat a tiny was born just as she was wearing these same garments, and found it almost poetic to wear it again on the day she would realize it.

Once dressed, she went to her desk and opened the top drawer, revealing a collection of dozens of glasses, where after a brief indecision she picked up a pair with a light black frame, to pair with her jacket, and photochromic lenses.

Although she didn't like wearing glasses, preferring to go without when she didn't have to read or look at something, these tinies were so small that she feared that they wouldn't even be visible to her if she wasn't wearing them.

Finally ready, she brushed her hair back with one hand and slung her purse over her shoulder with the other before opening the door and leaving her room.

Entering the common room, she saw Maya sitting at the kitchenette counter having breakfast with a cup of milk and some cookies while watching morning cartoons on TV.

Clicking her tongue at her presence, Suki tried to slip out unnoticed, but the sound alerted Maya, who immediately turned towards her, her eyes already narrowing.

"Where are you going?" Maya asked, hopping off her stool and standing in front of her to block her path, crossing her arms to make herself look more intimidating.

"I don't see how it's any of your business or why you should care." Suki replied in annoyance, but she immediately backtracked on what she said when Maya started to move closer to her "I'm just going out! What's the matter with you?"

"What's the matter with me? Have you forgotten what you did last night? Trying to eat my friend alive? Does that ring any bells?" Maya said sarcastically, anger evident on her face.

'Geez. Leave them alone for a few hours and they are already friends...' Suki thought exasperatedly, but she had already prepared a response for this eventuality.

Looking away from Maya and rubbing her arm, Suki said softly "Regarding last night, I apologize. It was the first time I saw a tiny and I was quite excited about it, and that's why I reacted the way I did. As I thought about it during the night I realized that what I did was wrong and… will not be repeated."

Taken aback by the apology, Maya dropped her arms and scratched her head while looking away "Um, okay? That's good... I'm glad you realized."

Striking while the iron was hot, Suki continued, "Sorry for my rudeness earlier, but I slept badly because of my thoughts and... I feel a little uncomfortable around others at the moment and would prefer to be alone. Do you mind letting me pass?"

Maya's eyes widened and she moved out of Suki's way.

"Oh! Don't mind me! Go ahead!" she said, feeling guilty for treating her like that.

"Thank you, I'll see you later." Suki said before moving past Maya, biting her cheeks to keep herself from laughing.

Once she was out of the dormitory and at such a distance that no one in it could hear her, Suki slumped against a wall and laughed out loud "What a naive idiot! She totally fell for it!"

Wiping away a tear as she thought back to the brat's happy smile on her way out, Suki felt tempted to reveal the truth to her once she had one or more tinies in her stomach, just to see her happiness turn to despair as she discovers what she allowed to happen, but she discarded the idea.

'It would only be inviting trouble for momentary pleasure. It's much better to make her believe I'm no longer interested.' Suki mulled.

After all, the thought of interacting with the two little sluts and the forbidden snack while they were unaware that her stomach was full of tiny ones being digested away was far more appealing.

Suki imagined the little insect smiling at her, as if they were friends, without knowing that dozens of her acquaintances, friends and even family were being digested alive in her stomach...

A moan left her mouth, and Suki found herself shocked that one of her hands had snuck between her legs, inside her panties, while she was daydreaming.

Retracting her hand, she saw that it... and her panties, too, were completely soaked.

“Oh my, I had no idea my desire was so… visceral.” Suki murmured before using her other hand to pull a packet of wipes from her shoulder bag to clean her hand with.

Once done, she threw the dirty towel in the middle of the street and continued her journey to the park, although annoyed by the wet feeling between her legs as she walked.

'Finally... here I am!' Suki smiled with delight as she took in the view of the town park once she arrived, blatantly ignoring the state of neglect it had been left in, with patches of dry grass, flowerbeds full of withered flowers, and benches and other amenities left in a state of disrepair.

But none of this mattered to her, seeing as these were just trifles, and her real interest lay elsewhere.

With a smirk, she began scouring the park, searching for her coveted prize.

But, after an hour of futile searching, she felt down in the dumps.

Sighing in defeat as she futilely rummaged through yet another bush, she remained silent in her crouched position, staring into space.

She already expected that it wouldn't be easy to find a tiny, she wasn't so naive as to think that it was like a shop, with dozens of them ready to be taken and consumed, but neither did she expect not to see a single one.

Overcome with dejection, Suki didn't notice the person jogging towards her until they stumbled upon her form.

Getting up painfully from the ground, she turned angrily towards this individual "Are you blind or just too stupid to notice a person in front of you, you idi-ooh!"

Her anger vanished like snow in the sun the moment her eyes met Shana's pained and furious gaze "...hey... how's it going?"

"What the fuck do you think? I fell flat on my face because of some idiotic midget who's hobby is being a goddamn obstacle! How the fuck do you think I'm doing?" Shana screamed furiously, while Suki instinctively looked down in fear.

"I-I'm sorry, I don't-" Suki stammered in fear, but Shana spoke over her.

"Fuck yes you are, you stupid mongoloid." Shana spat as she stood up, glaring at her.

The two remained silent for a while, with Suki kneeling on the ground trembling and Shana dusting her clothes clean.

Once she was more or less satisfied with the result, Shana snorted and crossed her arms, looking down at Suki "So… want to tell me what you're doing here in the park, princess? This is definitely not the kinda place you like to hang out in."

Suki opened her mouth to respond, but Shana cut her off again "And don't you dare bullshit me, or I'll kick your ass until you change tune... or die, whichever comes first."

Suki shuddered, deeming Shana capable of actually doing so.

Not wanting to upset her further, Suki spilled the beans "I came here looking for a tiny to eat! Yesterday, the stupid blonde said that she found hers here in the park, so I came to see if there were any others!"

Shana raised an eyebrow, curious "And the one that was in the dormitory? Have you already eaten it?"

Suki wobbled in embarrassment, but then she shook her head "I...no. I felt that... it wasn't a good idea."

Then she looked away, moving her hair behind her ear "I mean, why mess with that crazy girl like yesterday when I can just find and eat one without her knowing?" she tried to justify herself, so as not to look weak, but Shana snorted in amusement.

"Yes, of course, of course." she chuckled briefly, rubbing Suki's head as if she were her pet... which Suki believed was not too far from the truth.

Having already lost interest in the matter, Shana walked to a nearby bench and placed her leg on top of it, starting to do post-workout exercises.

"I'm going to get a burger later, want to tag along?" Shana said casually, before pausing in thought for a moment and chuckling "No, wait. Your people eat everything that moves, but draw a line at what is already dead and cooked, don't you?"

"Very funny." Suki muttered under her breath, annoyed with Shana's constant taunting.

"Well, I'll leave you then. See you later-oh?" she said turning to Shana, before stopping when she saw something peculiar.

"What's that?" Suki asked, pointing to the sole of Shana's sneakers.

"What's what?" Shana asked in confusion before grabbing her ankle and turning her foot towards herself to see what Suki was talking about.

A disgusted "Eww!" came out of her lips when she realized that it was the crushed remains of some tiny.

Letting go of her foot, she began to drag it back and forth across the gravel path to scrape it from beneath her sole "Every time I run along the pond I always find myself with some of those damned things under my feet! You'd think that after crushing dozens of them they'd know not to stand in my way, but obviously their dick brains are too small to understand something so fucking simple!"

Seeing Shana who, after having accidentally, but without remorse, crushed an unsuspecting tiny to death while going for a regular jog, was trying to remove its remains from under her shoe like any other person would do with poop, aroused in Suki a feeling of... excitement.

The mere thought that a thinking, person-like being had not only met such a miserable end, but that the person who, without realizing, caused it only cared about the fact that her shoes were now dirty, was something that made her shiver, both in horror and pleasure.

"You're sick in the head, you know that?" came Shana's criticism, although from her tone of voice it sounded more like a simple observation than an insult.

Not initially understanding the reason for this comment, Suki then felt an oddly familiar sensation and, looking down, she saw that her hand had, once again, slipped inside her panties.

Hastily removing it, Suki grabbed her wrist, as if to prevent the hand from acting without her knowledge, and attempted to justify herself “T-This was-”

"Don't care." Shana interrupted, waving her hand "I already know you Chinese people are all weirdos. Hell, you even have an entire country, Nipponia or something, filled with sick perverts. Just keep it to yourself. I don't want to see this crap."

Suki was furious, having never heard such a jumble of bullshit and racism all at once, but she just smiled at Shana "I'll make sure it doesn't happen again."

"It'll be better." Shana replied distractedly as she checked her watch "It's already half past eight... I'd better go get something to eat right away. Practice starts at 9 and I can't go on an empty stomach, or I'll collapse. Later."

Suki watched Shana rush away, but her thoughts were already elsewhere 'By the pond she said, huh?'

Turning towards the aforementioned lake, she saw in the center of the park a sort of small round island surrounded by water, connected to the resto f the park by two small wooden bridges.

In the beginning it was probably a beautiful scenic area, with a small road bordered by two meadows of flowers, but nowadays what remained was a pile of tall weeds where there could be anything from snakes to... tinies.

"Ready or not, here I come..." she whispered, a triumphant smirk on her face at the idea of finally fulfilling her wish.

'Bingo!' Suki thought joyfully as she saw what was right in front of her.

After discovering the possible presence of tinies near the lake, her spirits had risen again, but even she didn't think she would literally find them on the first try!

Looking up at her in silent shock there were not one, not two, but three tinies!

There were two who looked quite young, one a male and the other a female, and another male of larger build who looked older than both of them.

All three of them stood still looking up at her.

The two youngsters were shocked while the man just had a resigned look, probably already knowing from the smirk on Suki's lips that it wasn't someone with friendly intentions.

Suki didn't understand why none of them were even trying to escape since, in this thicket of weeds, they could probably escape from her clutches.

Their tiny brains probably needed a lot of time to activate even the most basic survival instincts, if they were even present in the first place, she surmised.

But in the end, it was better for her this way, since she didn't want to lose her prize now that it was so close.

Using a trick she had seen on a magic show on television, she kept moving her gaze between them and moving the fingers of her left hand, which was holding the weeds out of the way, to keep their attention on what was in front of them.

Meanwhile, her right hand was secretly sneaking around undetected to catch them off guard.

Once her hand was in position, she said "Gotcha!" and grabbed the two youths, who screamed in fear.

Alerted by their cries, the burly man turned to see what happened to them, but only ended up opening himself up to being captured by the other hand.

With her hands full of tinies, Suki giggled in delight "Oh my, I didn't imagine it would be so easy! I expected that at least one of you would try to run away, but instead you let yourselves get caught so quickly! Don't you even feel a little embarrassed?"

The only response she received was the terrified cries of the two youths and the silence of the man, but she paid no attention to it, too happy with the success of her little hunt.

Rising from her squatting position, Suki looked around her to see if there was anyone nearby.

Once she was sure she was alone, Suki smiled and walked towards a nearby picnic table 'Usually I wouldn't let myself be caught dead eating on something so filthy, but for today I can make a small concession.'

Once she arrived, she placed her three preys on the table to leave her hands free to adjust her skirt while she sat on one the benches that were part of it, probably the only reason why they hadn't tipped over or weren’t stolen.

Finally finally realizing their situation, the two youths immediately ran to the opposite side of the table from her, from which they looked down as if judging whether it was worth jumping.

However, Suki wasn't worried about them running away.

The table was quite high off the ground, which should discourage them from jumping off.

And even if their apparent lack of survival instincts drives them to do so anyway, the weeds on the ground should cushion the fall enough to ensure that they would only break their legs without dying on impact.

More than anything, what bothered her was the burly man, who was still standing exactly where she placed it and was looking at her with its arms folded.

"What are you looking at?" she said, irritated at its impassivity.

“Probably a monster, given the situation." he answered in a deep voice.

She instinctively recoiled, surprised by the fact that it responded to her.

Although she knew that the tinies could speak, and that they understood human speech, she did not expect one of them to talk to her.

Shaking off the shock, she resumed glaring at it, offended by its remark “How dare you address me that way, tiny?”

"Yeah... as I suspected." It said, rubbing its graying beard thoughtfully without bothering to give her an answer.

Gritting her teeth in fury at being snubbed like this, she stood up slightly and grabbed the two wanderers, who were walking helplessly along the opposite edge of the table, taking one in each hand.

Sitting back down, she dropped them on top of the man, but it sidestepped, letting them fall to the table in a tangle of limbs with a thud while never taking its eyes off her.

"Do any of you bird brains understand what situation you're in? Show me respect and stop ignoring me!" she said angrily, not understanding how these bugs could be so rude.

"Calm down gal, there's no need to get angry over such trivialities." the man said calmly, as if it were talking to a little girl.

"Maybe it's a little too complicated for your little heads..." Suki began, lacing her fingers together to support her chin as she looked down at them from under her glasses "But you are beneath me in every way, so you better address me as is appropriate, otherwise..."

"Otherwise you're going to kill us? You're going to do it anyway, I don't see the point in humiliating ourselves for your entertainment." the man said matter-of-factly, shocking everyone else.

The two youths looked in confusion between the man and Suki, as if to ascertain whether they were telling the truth or not, and when neither of them came out saying they were joking, they started screaming at the top of their lungs while begging for mercy.

With her patience at its limits, Suki decided it was time to take matters into her own hands "You're not afraid of death, huh? So how about I..."

With a sudden motion, she grabbed the boy in her left hand, letting only its head emerge from her closed hand, her thumb pressed against it “…get rid of this other bug? What do you think about that?"

The girl, somehow, managed to scream even louder than before, but the man remained unmoved "What about that? What are you trying to accomplish with this?"

“Just giving you a little hint regarding the difference in status between us, that's all.” Suki said lightly, trying to impress upon them her superiority.

“If you have to resort to threats and violence to gain someone's respect, doesn't that mean you might not deserve it?” the man retorted with complete nonchalance.

"Listen here, you little bug, you can't speak to me like-" Suki snapped angrily at its constant mocking of her, but she stopped her tantrum when she felt a wet sensation on her hand... and this time it wasn't because it had slipped into her panties.

Looking at her hand, she saw that the boy she was holding in it was now unrecognizable as such.

Evidently, in her act of anger, she forgot about its existence, ending up not only crushing its body in her hand, but also effectively decapitating it with her thumb.

With a sound of disgust, she released the lump of shapeless flesh onto the table, next to the other two, before rummaging through her bag again for the wipes.

The two survivors looked at the remains of their companion, both remaining silent, albeit for different reasons.

For the man, it wasn't the first time he had witnessed horrors like this, and he was almost desensitized to it, but for the girl...

It was not only the first time she had ever witnessed the death of someone so closely, but this person... was someone of the utmost importance to her... and now... was no more.

Releasing a heavy sigh, born from his feeling of failure, the man looked at Suki, who was cleaning her hand from the remains of her victim's body.

"Happy now?" he asked, disgusted by her cruelty and callousness.

"Hardly." Suki replied absentmindedly as she looked to see if her hand was clean before nodding and throwing the wipe into the pond.

"It's such a waste. I could have even gotten over the fact that it was dead, but reduced to this?" Suki continued, gesturing to the body with a grimace of disgust "There's no way I'm putting that in my mouth."

“Don't you have even an ounce of compassion?” the man shouted furiously, losing in one fell swoop any semblance of the calm it had shown so far "What you call it was a young boy! Little more than a child! Don't you feel anything about it?"

"Oh my, look how angry you got! Looks like you weren't so cool after all, were you?" Suki replied smugly, smirking at the fact that she had managed to get a reaction out of it… or at least, until she remembered that she was gloating at a bug, and her smirk changed to a frown.

"I can't believe how much time I'm wasting arguing with something as insignificant as you when I could already have you in my stomach!" Suki said with a huff, reaching out to take the man.

But before she could do so, the girl woke up from her stupor and started screaming "Shaun!" at the top of its lungs as it ran towards the battered body in front of them.

Surprised by the noise, Suki aborted her motion and looked towards the girl, who was shaking the corpse as she continued to cry and scream what was probably the boy's name.

"What's the matter with you now...?" Suki said exasperatedly, annoyed by all the noise it was making.

"You killed her brother, the only family she had left after losing their parents in a-" the man began to say, but Suki cut it off.

"Did I by any chance gave you the impression that I might be interested? Because I can assure you that I don't." she said, frowning.

The man sighed softly, rubbing his beard thoughtfully for a moment before attempting an alternative approach "You're going to eat me, aren't you? Then could you grant me one last wish? It's something you might be interested in as well."

Suki raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

The tiny man wasn't asking to be set free, which she had absolutely no intention of doing, but about something else...

She hummed in thought for a few seconds before answering.

"You're not asking me about letting the other bug free, are you? Because it’ll follow shortly after I swallow you..." Suki informed it as she reached for another wipe "Now take off those rags. I want to give you a quick clean before I put you in my mouth."

The man complied obediently, not wanting to risk annoying her again if he wanted to succeed in this final gamble "Oh, I have no intention of asking you to let her go, that would be stupid and pointless. No, my request is different." he replied as she lifted him with her hand and rubbed him with the wipe.

Suki hummed again without responding as she continued her work.

Once she was done, she examined his naked body like any other person would with silverware to see if it was clean.

Satisfied with her work, she nodded and placed him on the table again, on top of the towel "Okay... since I'm feeling generous and you're going to be my first tiny... I'll give you a minute to give me your sales pitch before sending you down into my stomach."

Rubbing his hands together, the man took a few precious seconds to mentally replay his speech, knowing that this was literally do-or-die... or rather, do-and-die.

His own death was inevitable, but if he failed here, then even the last of his pupils would follow him into death, and he could not allow it... not a second time. Even if that meant potentially consigning her to a worse fate than just dying.

Taking one last look at her hugging her dead brother as she cried, he steeled himself and placed himself in front of the cruel monster that was the cause of such suffering.

“She is completely worthless as food. She is too small and skinny to even be a snack, and would range from tasteless to unsatisfying depending on whether you eat her before or after me, who am significantly larger and fuller-bodied. This makes her definitely more useful as a slave than a one-time snack. Just imagine having one of us at your command, a tiny creature forced to follow your commands, constantly looking at you in terror and awe... isn't that better? You can treat it however you want with no repercussions because no one will know it exists. Only you. It will be your inside joke that no one knows about and that you will be able to laugh at in their face!” he said in one breath, ending up gasping for breath once he finished.

He looked up at her face, trying to detect some hint of her thoughts, and saw her face change from smirking to thoughtful, her eyes looking over to the right while her left hand rubbed her chin and her right hand was drumming on the table.

He was playing on her arrogance and self-centeredness, hoping to convince her to leave the girl alive, even if only as a toy.

But, now that he had used his last arrow... all he could do was hope that he had hit the mark.

Suki, for her part, felt intrigued.

She had no real intention of listening to her snack chatter, and her only intent was to wait for it to finish just so she could say no to its face and eat it together with the other while they despaired.

But... this idea wasn't half bad, and she already had some fun ideas in mind for her new toy...

Blinking in surprise, she realized she'd let herself, once again, be had by a tiny, but she just giggled at it.

After all, in the end, she would be the one to have the last laugh, while it… wouldn’t have much to laugh about very soon.

Smiling, she rested her head on her folded hands on the table.

"My... I must admit, I didn't expect you tinies to be so crafty... Twice you managed to make me dance to your tune... I have to congratulate you. But... now you're almost at the end of the line, and there's only one stop left. My stomach.” she said with a grin as she massaged her tummy, making a mental note to go bare-bellied the next time she went hunting for tinies, so she could better tease them about their fate.

“But, at least, I will grant you this little favor, and spare the other little bug. Although, to be honest, I don't really think this is in its favor... after all, even if there is life, it doesn't mean there is hope, I must admit..." she finished solemnly, appearing to be immersed in her memories, before chuckling and clapping her hands.

"Oh well, the moment I've been waiting for has finally arrived! How about we seal our agreement by you voluntarily walking towards your destiny?" Suki teased in amusement, winking at it before opening her mouth in front of the man and sticking her tongue out like a red carpet to show them the way.

Although already knowing that this would be his final destination, he couldn't help feeling intimidated by the dank, dark cave he faced.

Images of several times in which he saw his colleagues, friends and even family members disappear forever into the jaws of predators, both animals and, in some cases, even humans, crowded his mind.

Recoiling instinctively at the terror of what awaited him, he was just about to give up on his plan and try to escape when a delicate hand grabbed his wrist.

Turning in surprise, he was shocked to see the girl, covered in her brother's blood, looking at him in desperation "Don't do it, Master Sean... please...! Let's just run away! All… together…"

"Nadia..." Sean said emotionally, looking at her trembling figure and remembering what was at stake "I'm sorry."

With a backhanded blow, he threw Nadia to the ground before walking towards Suki's mouth "Be obedient to your mistress from now on, and do everything she says."

Standing up with a hand on her cheek, Nadia was just in time to see Suki's mouth closing on her master's figure, imprisoning him inside it "No... nonono! Let him go!"

Rushing towards the mouth, Nadia tried with all her strength to yank it open, but it was useless.

Watching the tiny bug grope her lips in panic, Suki rolled her eyes and grabbed it with her thumb and forefinger, removing it from her lips but keeping it close to her mouth.

Squirming to try to free herself from the grip, Nadia stopped when she saw movements in the mouth that indicated that something was being tasted inside it... her master.

Her efforts increased tenfold, struggling with every ounce of energy she had while begging the human to let her master go, but she only looked at Nadia impassively, as if she wasn't doing it with the intent to make her suffer, but as though she were just an uninvited guest... as if Nadia had been the one who had accidentally found herself a spectator at her banquet and the human in front of her was looking at her just to make sure that Nadia didn't make any unexpected move and disturb her.

This continued for a long time, with Suki gradually paying less attention to the girl and more to her prey.

The sensation of its body in her mouth, in constant movement and fear, any pretense of calm vanished in the face of the fact that, even before the terrible fate of being digested alive, it must also suffer the ignominy of being toyed with in her mouth, was a feast for the senses.

Throwing the girl unceremoniously onto the table, Suki proceeded to touch herself in the throes of ectasy.

One of her hands went to massage her breast, while the other dived into her panties with glee, eager to finally complete the task that had already been postponed over and over again today.

Meanwhile, she was moving her snack all around her mouth with her tongue, rubbing it on her palate, cheeks, teeth and even dipping it in the 'private pool' under her tongue, painting it with several coats of her saliva.

Nadia watched, transfixed, as the human proceeded to pleasure herself while tasting her master, increasing the intensity of her movements constantly while moaning in pleasure with her mouth closed.

Her movements became faster and more aggressive, groping her breasts with wild abandon while her other hand was in a flurry of activity in her nether regions, until... with a guttural scream aimed towards the sky, she threw herself backwards, only her trembling legs stretched out under the table preventing her from tipping to the ground.

Suki's mind was totally blank, devoid of thought.

She was panting heavily, feeling exhausted, every single muscle in her body refusing to move.

Resting for a few minutes, she gradually began to gain mobility again, managing to remove herself from the strange position in which she was. Pulling herself up with difficulty, she then dropped forward onto the table, grunting with the effort.

Breathing heavily with her mouth open, she tried to remember what had happened when she heard a whimper and, looking down, she saw a strangely familiar tiny.

Suddenly remembering what had happened, Suki thought aloud "Oh my… I must have… swallowed it while… I was… orgasming... but it was… phenomenal! I literally… didn't even… remember my name! And now… it's in my stomach… digesting! Awesome, isn't it?"

Nadia's response was to faint on the spot like a sack of potatoes.

"Yeah… exactly." Suki answered herself with a smile, ecstatic to have finally made her wish come true.

"It's already half past eight... I'd better go get something to eat right away. Practice starts at 9 and I can't go on an empty stomach, or I'll collapse. Later." Shana said before running off to grab some food.

As she ran, she glanced in Suki's direction and saw that she was already ignoring her, most likely because her thoughts were already focused on those tinies...

She let out an exasperated sigh and continued jogging.

Soon she arrived at McDonald's, where she always went for breakfast, and ordered her usual: a McGriddles with sausage and eggs, no cheese because she was lactose intolerant, and a large Coke.

As a longtime customer, the employees knew her routine and prepared her food a few minutes early, allowing her to get it and eat it while going to practice.

After she had taken her meal, she swiped her card at the cash register and walked out of the fast food joint, eating as she went.

When she arrived at the gym, she took a last sip of her Coke before tossing the trash away, then took a deep breath as she placed her hand on the doorknob ‘Let's hope the idiots aren't going to be as annoying as they usually are...’ Shana hoped before she turned the knob to open the door.

Her hopes were dashed as soon as she entered the room.

All 5 of her other teammates were already there...and they were already going through their usual routines.

Liliana, the team leader, was lying on a bench wearing only her underwear and using Amanda's lap as a pillow while she combed her hair.

Her two other followers were busy with other tasks: Nicole knelt on the floor and focused on trimming her nails, and Sarah, sitting across the bench from Amanda, gleefully rubbed her feet.

Satsuki, their self-proclaimed bodyguard, was positioned behind them, watching the scene intently... or vacantly, she could never tell.

Meanwhile, Hannah sat in the corner, trying not to be noticed.

"I think I walked in during the Queen's daily grooming... may I come in or am I interrupting, Your Majesty?" Shana said sarcastically before slamming the door behind her.

Most of them, having gotten used to her outbursts, ignored her and went on with what they were doing.

However, Hannah, lost in thought, was caught off guard and let out a startled yelp before jumping to her feet, only to trip over herself and fall.

Liliana sighed softly, while Shana snorted at her lack of motor skills.

"Sat-tan, would you be a doll and go help her? And please look after her in case she is injured." Liliana asked Satsuki, not wanting to move at all.

Hannah, who was embarrassed by her own reaction, immediately sat up from the floor and shook her head "No! I'm okay! I'm not in need of any kind of help! ..really..."

But Satsuki, who didn't give a damn about anything other than what Liliana told her to do, remained silent and pointed to another bench where she wanted her to sit.

Terrified, Hannah nodded and followed the unspoken request, shaking and sitting down.

While Setsuna nursed Hannah, Shana, having no such sympathy, began scolding her "How can it be that you can't even stand up like a normal person? You already have the presence and social skills of a rock. Could you at least try to learn how to walk without hitting the ground with your teeth?"

Hannah kept quiet, her long black hair covering her downcast face.

"Oh my, that's quite a bit of negativity even for you, my dear. Is there something on your mind that you'd like to share?" asked Liliana, clapping her hands to get Shana's attention.

"Hell no! Mind your own fucking business, dyke!" Shana screamed in frustration, but soon regretted it as she was thrown to the ground and pinned down by Satsuki, who had a firm grip on her arm and a knee on her back.

“Damn it! It fuckin’ hurts! Tell your damn dog to let go of me, you bitch!” Shana cried out in pain as she tried in vain to free herself from Satsuki's iron grip.

"Wolf..." Satsuki said with a grunt and planted her knee even harder into Shana's back, before she paused for a second to think about it and said instead, "No... Tiger!"

Looking at the scene, Liliana couldn't help but sigh.

"Sorry dears, I have to take care of this," she said to her friends, who immediately stopped what they were doing, though with different reactions. Especially Amanda, who looked almost heartbroken as she put a pair of sandals on Liliana's feet.

Still in her underwear, Liliana rose and went over to Setsuna, putting her hand gently on her head and stroking her short, spiky black hair "Sat-tan, honey, can you please not break her? We need her to be able to play the game."

"Kicking doesn't need arms." Satsuki replied, but still released Shana from her grasp.

Giggling at what Setsuna said, Liliana looked down at Shana and smiled softly "Honestly, Shana, when are you going to learn not to antagonize my Sat-tan? You should have learned by now that it's not a good idea to upset a black belt... unless, of course, you enjoy being knocked to the ground? Or having her on top of you? Or maybe a little of both?”

As she sat up, Shana rubbed her aching shoulder "I am not a masochist or a lesbian, damn it..."

"Your loss, my dear. The latter, in particular, can be quite enjoyable." Liliana said with amusement, hugging her breasts for emphasis, before she became serious again "But, please, do stop trying to avoid the subject, my dear. What is it that troubles you today?"

Shana tried to keep quiet and continued to massage her aching shoulder, but when Setsuna growled, she started to roll her eyes "Okay, fine, hell! It's Suki... and Barbie... and that little shit... they all lost their fucking minds yesterday..."

Liliana leaned on her elbow with one hand, tapping her cheek thoughtfully with the other, trying to decipher what Shana had said "So not just Suki, but... Miss Emily and… your little sister as well, I take it?"

"She isn't my sister..." Shana muttered, making Liliana sigh.

"Okay... you didn't say no, so I guess that's a confirmation of my guess as to who you had in mind. Now, what nefarious deeds have these three been up to that can disturb your psyche so much?" Liliana went on with her question.

With a face that was a very close imitation of a pout, Shana replied "It happened last night... Suki and I were watching some stupid movie when Barbie came back, and as usual the brat got excited and started jumping around her like a dog in heat, but being noisier than usual."

Just remembering what happened made Shana grit her teeth.

"Well, long story short, Barbie brought a tiny one into the dorm, Suki got cravings and tried to eat it, but  ended up getting her ass handed to her from Barbie herself... and amidst the chaos, the little pest ran off with it, telling me to fuck off before locking herself in Barbie's room! It was nuts!"

Liliana clapped her hands together with a smile on her face "Oh! Has little Maya finally dared to stand up and rebel? You must be so proud of her!"

Shana narrowed her eyes at her "Have you gone crazy? Why the fuck would I be proud of that little piece of shit? If nothing else, I hate her!"

"Oh? Is that so?" Liliana said with an amused grin on her face "If that's the case... why do you always take her with you? Wouldn't it be easier for you to just leave her in her room all by herself when your stepmother is away on a business trip?"

"I'm just doin' it to get that bitch off my back! And besides, I always hand her over to Barbie right away, it's not like I have to put up with her!" Shana was quick to respond, immediately trying to justify her actions.

Liliana giggled, covering her mouth with a hand "Sure, that's why you're doing this."

When she returned to her seat, Liliana crossed her legs and looked at Shana with a serious look "Let's continue, though, and tell what happened last night. I simply can't imagine that dear Emily would resort to violence... that's beyond her..."

Pleased with the change of subject, Shana folded her arms and looked away "Yeah... last night felt like a spine growing fair. When Suki tried to swallow the little one, Barbie just head-butted her in the chest without thinking twice... I have to say, she had guts..." she begrudgingly admitted.

"Really? Is it actually possible that one day you two could become friends with each other?" Liliana inquired with a smile.

"The hell it is. Just because I no longer think she's some damn goody two-shoes doesn't mean we'll become BFFs!" Shana retorted angrily.

"Still a step forward from yesterday though..." Liliana replied absently, while her mind was on the rest of the situation "And what about the Little Folk? How are they?"

"The what, now?" Shana said in a confused tone before she remembered what Emily had called the tiny.

"Oh yeah, that... I guess it's OK? Not that I give a damn about it, but I ran into Suki in the park a little while ago. She told me that she was afraid of Barbie and that she was going to leave it alone..."

After a few moments of silence, Shana shuddered and groaned in disgust.

"But I am quite sure that she has lost her mind... I found her on her knees on the ground, digging through the bushes for tinies to feed on... she even masturbated in front of me just at the thought of it! She's sick in the head, I'm tellin' ya..."

"That's really... quite disconcerting..." Liliana nodded with a frown on her face "It's a sad thing that these poor little darlings have to suffer such a fate just because of a whim."

"You do know that I step on at least one of them pretty much every day, don't you?" Shana said, scowling.

Liliana waved a hand "Even though it's also unfortunate, you are not doing it with ill will, or even on purpose, to be honest. It's simply an unfortunate and frequent occurrence..."

After pondering for a moment, she added "But it's quite strange indeed. For years now, you've been practicing at the same place and time every day. They should know about it and avoid the route, so why is it still the case?"

"They're stupid?" Shana suggested, shrugging her shoulders "They're tiny, so I don't think they have that much of a brain."

"It's not that..." Liliana said as she went into her teacher mode "The size of the brain has to be considered in relation to the size of the creature in which it is housed. For example, rats can be considered to be almost as intelligent as human beings, in spite of their small size!"

"So it's not about size, but how you use it? Like a dick?" Shana said with a smirk.

"While the comparison is oddly apt, especially when you consider the way some men use them interchangeably, could you please refrain from mentioning that disgusting thing? Thanks in advance..." Liliana replied with a disgusted look on her face.

"Ok, let's change the subject to something else, such as how we should have been ready and in the gym ten minutes ago." Shana said, pointing to the clock on the top of the door.

Gasping in shock, Liliana, the only one still undressed, turned to her three friends "Ladies! Engage Iron-Woman protocol, quickly!"

Immediately, as Liliana lifted her limbs to better accommodate them, the three girls went into a flurry of movement.

Amanda pulled her long blonde hair into a ponytail before slipping a gym shirt down her arms, Nicole pulled her gym shorts up her legs and Sarah pulled a sock over her foot before pulling on and tying her shoe.

"What are your thoughts? Kind of cool, huh?" Liliana said to Shana with a satisfied grin on her face as soon as they were done with it "The girls and I have done a lot of training for just such an eventuality!"

Shana frowned and said "There's so much wrong with this that I don't know where to start... so I'm just going to point out the fact that your left foot is bare."

Immediately, five pairs of eyes fell on her left foot, and saw that it was, indeed, bare.

Turning her attention to Hannah, who was still trying to blend in with the background, Liliana lifted her leg and stretched out her foot in her direction, saying plaintively "Hannah! Why haven't you been doing your part?"

Hannah, in shock at being called out, stammered "M-Me? What have I to do with this?"

"We are a team! And as in any team, everyone has a role to play! If even one doesn't contribute, the whole thing falls apart!" Liliana explained, moving her foot up and down to emphasize her point.

"Ehh?!" Hannah cried confusedly before she pointed at Setsuna who was extremely alert... or sleeping on her feet with her eyes open. Hard to tell. "Why didn't you ask her? She isn't doing anything!"

Still with her foot in the air and pointing at Hannah, Liliana explained. "My dear, Sat-tan has an important and delicate role to play from which she must not be distracted."

"To be a peeping Tom?" Shana spoke up in a sarcastic tone, tilting her head. "Truly a key role in every team..."

"Absolutely, but in this case her role is to be the last line of defense to protect me and my retinue." Liliana explained, still waving her foot at Hannah, who was still hesitating.

Still trying to figure out how to get out of this, Hannah looked at Shana. But before she could even open her mouth to speak, Shana, noticing her look and knowing where she was going, said "No." emphasizing her refusal with a clenched fist.

With a sigh of defeat, Hannah gave in to the inevitable and walked over to Liliana, kneeling down in front of her foot, much to Liliana's delight.

With a shake of her head Shana said "You know what? Shit like this is why you had to pay me to have a full team. If you keep it up like this, we can only dream of ever having a backup player..."

As she watched Hannah work on her foot, Liliana replied to her question "And to have to deal with dozens of characters of questionable quality or usefulness? Thanks, but no thanks. I prefer to personally choose who belongs to my team, even if I have to pay for it out of my own pocket. At the end of the day, I only want people I can get along with and enjoy being around.”

Shana's eyes widened and her mouth fell open in shock "Wha? But that... why did you... why me...?"

She spun around and stormed out of the changing room, screaming "Get fucked by a running bull, you dumb dyke!" and slammed the door behind her.

Seeing how she reacted, Liliana started to giggle ‘She may not be cute in the traditional sense of the word, but Shana can still be adorable in her own way.’

The alarm clock began to ring, and Emily started to wake up to the sound of it.

As she tried to roll over to the side of the bed with the alarm clock, she found that she was unable to move, and she felt a weight on her.

When she opened her eyes to see what it was, she saw that Maya was clinging to her like a koala to a tree, with her mouth open and drooling on her chest.

Sighing in exasperation, as this was something that always happened when Maya was sleeping with her, which was often, Emily began the arduous task of trying to free herself from Maya's clutches without waking her up.

It took a lot of time to do this, so when Maya was with her, Emily changed the alarm to a softer tone, not to disturb Maya's sleep, and set it half an hour early, for 5:30.

After succeeding in just 19 minutes, a new record for her, Emily went to her dresser for clean clothes to change into after showering. However, she noticed that her underwear drawer had already been opened.

Curious, she peeked in to try to understand why, when she saw... a little person sleeping, wrapped up in her underwear?

Her head tilted in confusion, Emily was stunned for a few seconds before her memory returned to Jane, the Little Folk she had saved the night before.

As Emily struggled to remember, Jane, though sleeping, instinctively sensed that something large and potentially dangerous was watching her, and she jerked awake and flung herself into the still closed and dark part of the drawer.

Letting out a small gasp at Jane's abrupt move, Emily remained silent for a few seconds. Then she whispered "Jane, are you all right?"

Nothing happened at first. But after a while, Jane crawled out into the open, a sheepish look on her face "Sorry, Emily... force of habit."

Emily's lips were in a twist. She cared about Jane, but she didn't want to say anything that would stir up bad memories for her, so she decided not to dwell on it and move on, at least for now.

"No worries, Jane, but how did you sleep last night? Did you get a good night's sleep?" Emily said with a smile, still keeping her voice low so as not to disturb Maya's sleep.

Jane could easily tell by the look on Emily's face that she was trying very hard not to say or do anything that would make her feel uncomfortable. And while one part of her was a little upset at being treated like a delicate doll, the other, and most important, part of her was thrilled that someone cared so much about her. Especially a human, something she never thought could happen.

"Well, it's not exactly like sleeping out in the cold with nothing but a leaf to cover yourself with, but I have to say, it has been nice." she teased Emily before she giggled.

"Just kidding, I had a wonderful night's sleep. Definitely the best sleep I've ever had," she admitted, rubbing the fabric she slept on with her hand.

"Anyhow, can you tell me what it is? The way it feels on my skin is just the most amazing thing! I'm in love with it!" she announced, before she flopped back down and rubbed herself on it with a smile on her face.

At first, Emily smiled at Jane's happiness. But at her question, her smile began to fade.

"These are... um..." Emily stammered awkwardly in her attempt to explain what they were without actually saying it. "These are... clothes for... you know... down there."

"Down there? What do you mean- oh..." Jane said as the realization dawned.

Looking down at the fabric that she was lying on, Jane stood still for a few moments... before she pressed her face to it and took a deep sniff "Emily's scent!"

"What are you talking about! My smell isn't there! It's a clean pair of panties! If there's a smell in there, it's yours!" cried Emily embarrassedly, forgetting to keep her voice down for Maya.

Jane was going to say that she was just fooling around, but she was amused to see Emily's embarrassed reaction, and she didn't want to end it just yet.

"Oh, is that so? So you're gonna wear them now?" Jane asked, pretending to have no idea what she was talking about as she rubbed the panties she was sitting on.

"No! I mean, you were sleeping on them, so I can't use them..." Emily replied awkwardly with averted eyes.

"What of it? I'm clean, because I washed yesterday." Jane said, tilting her head in an act of confusion, before pretending to have a revelation. "Oh! I get it now! You're feeling guilty about taking away my blanket, aren't you? No worries! You can use it now and return it tonight, I'll be fine!"

Emily gasped like a fish, trying to find a way to explain herself without being obscene... and failing.

Jane bit her lip trying to hold back laughing, but finally gave in and giggled maniacally.

Emily looked at her in surprise for a few seconds before she crossed her arms and sulked "You're kidding me, aren't you?"

Jane kept giggling for a while before she slowed down and, after a few seconds of deep breathing, finally got herself under control.

"Yeah... sorry, but your expression was just too much. Haven't had this much fun since... maybe ever!" Jane said with a sheepish but happy smile.

Emily huffed and rolled her eyes, but inside she was happy to see that Jane was enjoying herself. "Okay, if you're done with the teasing, I'm going to have a shower."

"What's a shower? Is it some kind of washing thing? Can I join you?" Jane asked. Half curious, half wanting to see how far she could push Emily.

"No! That's... I can't..." Emily tried to deflect the question again, embarrassed.

"Hey! While I'm glad you guys are getting along, could you please flirt in private? Someone is trying to sleep here! And that someone is me!" Maya said in a half-asleep voice, her eyes having a hard time focusing on Emily at all.

Emily covered her mouth with her hands and looked at Maya shamefaced "I am so sorry, Maya! It wasn't my intention to wake you up..."

Maya scratched at her head as she let out a yawn. "Ah, it happens... at least I saw..." she yawned again, "something funny..."

Reaching critical levels of embarrassment now, Emily sighed heavily before asking, "How much have you seen...?"

"Not much," Maya shrugged “Well, I'll go back to sleep, if you don't mind..."

As Maya lay back down, she moved to the other side of the bed, the one where Emily was sleeping, and laid her head on the pillow, from which she took a long sniff "Hmm... Emily's scent..." were the last words she uttered before she fell back asleep.

Emily watched her sleep in silence, not knowing how to react, when Jane said, "You're quite popular with the little ones, Emily!"

"Please, don't say that in public, or I'll get arrested…" Emily whimpered at the comment.

Ignoring Jane's curious look, Emily went to grab a change of clothes, but she picked up a different pair of panties than the ones on which Jane was currently lying.

As soon as she was done, she put her hand in the drawer next to Jane, "Come on, jump in. I don't think I can embarrass myself any more today, so we might as well wash together..."

Without needing to be told twice, Jane immediately ran to Emily's hand, climbing onto it and looking up at her face, "I'm ready! Let's do it!"

With a smile and a roll of her eyes, Emily grabbed another set of doll clothes from the pile that Maya had brought with her and placed them on top of her own clothes "Alright..."

As she entered the bathroom, Emily set the clothes down on a shelf near the shower and then walked over to the cabinet by the sink. "Come down here, Jane. I'll make you a little basin to wash in."

Doing as she was told, Jane watched in amazement as Emily effortlessly created a huge pool of water, large enough for her to completely submerge herself in. All it took was for Emily to twirl two things back and forth. "Incredible..."

Emily was oblivious to Jane's astonishment at such an ordinary device, busy preparing the water for Jane's bath, dipping her little finger in to check the temperature and turning the knobs if it was too hot or too cold.

Emily hummed her way through the task and smiled with delight at the end of it.

"Now, Jane, please take off your-" Emily started to say, but then sighed, seeing Jane sitting spread-eagled on the counter... already naked.

"I can see you're ready..." Emily went on, without getting into the matter, before she broke off a piece of soap and handed it to Jane

"Soak yourself completely in the water, including your head. Then rub this all over your body. Rinse off when you're done. Okay?"

"I get it!" Jane said smiling broadly before embracing the bar of soap, which was almost as tall as she was.

Walking unsteadily, her eyes barely above the bar of soap, Jane failed to notice the sink's downward curve and fell forward with a cry, the bar of soap becoming an improvised sled.

Emily watched, astonished, as Jane slid into the sink with the bar of soap and hit the water with a soft ‘plop’.

"Jane?”

As she still did not appear after a few seconds, Emily repeated, more anxiously "Jane?!"

Thankfully, Jane popped out of the water right at that moment. She clung to the bar of soap like it was a raft, taking gulps of air as Emily breathed in relief knowing that she was safe.

After catching her breath, Jane turned to Emily and, looking up at her with a shocked face, said "That... was... incredible!"

Then, with a broad grin on her face, she added, "I want to do it again! Emmy! Put me back on the top again!"

"Like hell!" Emily screamed before she covered her mouth and looked down at Jane, shocked.

Jane felt guilty for Emily's reaction, she had probably gone a bit overboard and made her worry too much. "I'm sorry..." she said, looking down with a sad expression on her face.

Emily sighed at her sad puppy face and said "Please be careful. You scared me, you know? I feared something had happened to you..."

"Okay, I promise. I'll be more careful." Jane said as she smiled up at Emily, who smiled back at her.

Once they made up, Jane began rubbing the soap on herself, following Emily's instructions, while Emily herself turned on the shower and did the necessary preparations while the water was heating up.

As soon as the water was at an ideal temperature, Emily began to undress, but when her shirt was halfway up and her belly was showing, she had a moment of doubt.

When she turned around, she did indeed see Jane, who had stopped washing and was looking at her shamelessly.

"Um... can you turn around?" Emily asked, flushing.

"Yes, I think I can." Jane replied. But she didn't move or avert her attentive gaze.

'Why are they both like this...' Emily thought with a sigh. She stepped into the shower and closed the door, deciding to undress inside and throw her clothes out through the top.

Jane groaned in displeasure at having her vision blocked by the glass of the shower. It was transparent, but made in such a way that she could only see the outline of Emily's body, not the details.

Fortunately for her, Emily had not thought about what was going to happen after that, and when she finished her shower, she realized that her robe was still on the shelf that was close to the shower but out of reach.

In an attempt to sneak out and put it on before Jane noticed, she carefully opened the shower door and stepped out.

Unfortunately, Jane's senses, sharpened by years of living in a dangerous and hostile environment, were instantly aware of the faint noise, and she turned instantly in its direction.

What she was faced with was the full, unobstructed sight of Emily's body in all its naked splendour.

"I've never been so glad to be alive..." Jane murmured in amazement.

Emily let out a squeak of embarrassment before running over to the robe and putting it on.

Once she was tied up, Emily began to realize that there were other problems she hadn't considered. In addition to getting dressed, there were many other things that required the removal of her robe and her nakedness.

‘I really want to go back to bed...’ she thought, already exhausted although she just woke up.

But then she closed her eyes in despair, remembering that Maya was still there, sleeping on her bed ‘I have no way out. I'm doomed.’

About ten minutes later, they were both fully dressed and eating breakfast in the kitchen.

Oatmeal with milk for Emily, while Jane was sitting on the table, munching on a musley bar with a cap full of orange juice next to her.

If anyone saw them, they would notice that Emily's face was strained by this morning's ups and downs, while Jane was clearly happy, almost radiant with happiness.

They ate in silence. Some time passed before Emily finished and put her spoon into the empty bowl, leaning back in her chair to relax.

A glance at where Jane was had Emily rolling her eyes in exasperation.

She was attacking the bar with a piranha-like fury. Her cheeks were puffed out and her belly was starting to swell like one of those Japanese cartoons, anime or whatever they're called, that Maya loved.

"Eat slowly. You don't have to eat the whole thing. It's bigger than you, anyway." Emily counseled, wiping her face with the corner of a napkin.

Emily sighed again as Jane's response was a jumble of guttural sounds from her full mouth "Chew thoroughly. Then swallow. Only then we can have a conversation."

Listening to her, Jane put the bar down and did as she said, before sucking the juice out of the cap to make sure it went down properly.

"Oh yeah, I never had so much food in my life! I think it will keep me going for at least a week," she said proudly as she massaged her full stomach.

"Okay?" Emily replied, preferring not to tell her about the existence of lunch and dinner or the various snack breaks. She didn't want to overwhelm her.

‘Maybe when I start cooking in the cafeteria at the homeless shelter later, she'll get hungry...’

Immediately, her eyes widened in concern "Oh! I nearly forgot! I should be on my way!"

"Huh? Where are you going?" Jane asked with a curious expression.

"Ah... the homeless shelter. I volunteer there." Emily said, but Jane cocked her head, confused.

"I'm sorry, but I have no idea what most of that words means..." she admitted sheepishly.

Emily gave a smile and a wave of her hand, "No need to be sorry. If there's anything that you want to know, just ask me."

She then begins to elaborate, "See, a homeless shelter is a place where people who are not so fortunate can go to find shelter from the weather, a place to sleep, or even just a hot meal. During the summer, I work there as a volunteer, which is someone who work without expectation of pay. They do it because they want to help others, gain work experience, or things like that." Emily finished her explanation.

"You spend your time helping people then, right?" Jane tilted her head thoughtfully before nodding, "Um, I see. We do things like that all the time, too..."

"Really? May I ask you how your people provide for the injured, the sick, and the elderly? Are there nursing homes or hospitals? How are they organized? And what..." Emily began to babble excitedly, but stopped herself when she a perplexed look on Jane's face.

"I don't know what those are, but I don't think we've got any. I was mainly talking about helping each other stay alive. Few live to see old age, and the injured, unable to recover and unable to do anything else, tend to vanish....” Jane elaborated, but then realized she might have said a little too much when she saw Emily's face, horrified at what she had said.

There was an awkward silence before Jane cleared her throat "Uh, how about we go to this, uh, sad person's storeroom? I'm dying to see it!" Jane concluded sheepishly, with a big smile on her face in the direction of Emily, who had the palm of her hand on her face.

"Yeah... that's probably better..." Emily replied, vowing to herself that she would do everything in her power to make Jane's life as good as it could possibly be.

Suki looked at the unconscious bug in front of her curiously as she caught her breath.

Looking at her tiny body, many thoughts came to her mind.

One of them was to just screw the deal and eat her anyway.

The thought that the other insect had given himself up to her stomach's tender care to save her, only to find her together with him shortly after, was something she found very hilarious.

Not to mention her own reaction to waking up in the dark recesses of her stomach... with no escape from being slowly digested... the desperation of both of them in knowing that their entire existence had been reduced to just being a snack for her, nothing more than a passing moment of enjoyment for her-!

Letting out another moan of pleasure, Suki came again, this time just from thinking about what she could do with her new toy.

Feeling exhausted like never before, Suki had to use all her remaining strength to finally remove her hand from inside her panties… Although she didn't mind leaving it there, she couldn't continue like this either.

A giggle escaped her at the thought of pleasuring herself to death after fulfilling her most hidden desire...

But she couldn't. Not now that she had finally discovered the joys of it, which went far beyond her wildest imagination!

Looking at her hand, covered in her fluids, Suki found herself unconsciously rubbing it, enjoying what this slimy, sticky sensation aroused in her.

After a few minutes of this, her attention returned to her toy, who was still passed out…

"Well, if you have no intention of escaping or even waking up, then you have no one to blame but yourself…" Suki murmured, using her smeared hand to pick her up.

Once it was firmly in her hand, doused in her juices, Suki had a brief thought of tucking it into her panties and going home like that, but shook her head and discarded the idea.

While this was something she wanted to do, and definitely will, she didn't want to break her toy right away.

For now, she'll stick to things that are a little more… tamed. But in the future, when she will have a larger quantity of them at her disposal, then nothing will stop her anymore!

Tucking her into the breast pocket of her jacket before closing it, Suki began the arduous task of getting up... or at least she tried to.

'...maybe not yet...' Suki told herself, sitting back for a while longer, keeping herself busy cleaning up her hands, her lower parts an unsalvageable mess without taking a bath, while she waited for her legs to solidify enough for her to stand.

After a few minutes, when she had finished cleaning her hands but was still waiting for the go-ahead from her legs, Suki saw someone approaching her position.

Looking briefly, she saw a young brunette, probably the same age as the kusogaki, but less than half her height, meaning that, for once, she wasn't the shortest.

Proceeding to ignore her, she still managed to see her out of the corner of her eye.

The little girl, who had a lunchbox clutched in her hands, began to wander around, as if lost, while continuing to throw glances at her that she probably considered furtive, while in truth Suki found them extremely blatant and annoying.

Probably realizing that Suki couldn't care less about her, the girl became calmer before walking with a more confident step towards... the place where Suki had found the tinies!

Suddenly becoming interested, Suki continued to feign disinterest as she watched.

Looking completely away from the bush, the little girl dramatically threw a toy to the ground before looking at it and saying "Oops, I dropped it! I'll pick it up now!"

Suki cringed at the painful acting as she watched the little girl kneel on the ground rummaging through the bush... completely neglecting the doll beside her.

After spending some time like this, the little girl stopped and started looking around with a worried expression, searching the nearby bushes and grassy areas.

Suki began to think that perhaps this little girl knew something about the tinies…

After some more time, the little girl seemed shocked by what she had found, or rather, what she had not found.

"Where are they...?" she murmured worriedly, abandoning all pretense of stealth and uprooting leaves and shrubs in her search.

Once again left empty-handed, she looked around anxiously before her eyes fell back on Suki.

Before Suki could even stop her, the little girl quickly made a beeline for her, and said "Um... sorry to bother you. But have you by any chance seen... um... something... peculiar here?"

"That you even know such a word is the only 'peculiar' thing here. Now leave me alone." Suki responded in a manner that was, all things considered, very kind of her, being too tired to be more antagonistic for now.

"S-Sorry! I'll leave you alone now-" the little girl replied, looking away embarrassed, when her gaze fell on something on the table... something horrible.

"W-What is that...?!" the little girl asked, trembling, pointing to something on the table.

"What now..." Suki replied in annoyance before turning and seeing what she was talking about.

"Well, would you look at that..." she said in thought when she saw the crushed body of the tiny one from before "The remains of the insect from before... I have to throw it away."

“Is that… is that… a Little Folk?!” the little girl said faintly, looking like she was about to faint.

"Probably. Hard to say given how it looks now." Suki replied as she used the wipe she had cleaned herself with to pick up the body.

Scrunching it up, she said to the little girl, "Do something useful for once and throw it away, okay?" before tossing it to her.

With a squeal, the little girl dodged the ball and ran away in tears, her lunchbox falling from her hands and splitting open upon contact with the ground.

"Useless brat. No respect for adults or the environment..." Suki criticized, annoyed, without however having any intention of picking up her waste from the ground.

Looking down by chance, Suki noticed the open lunch box on the ground, and raised an eyebrow at the contents.

It was filled with various foods chopped up into tiny pieces.

"Um... either she wanted to feed this to the bugs, or she wanted to eat them using this as a side dish..." Suki commented with some curiosity before shrugging her shoulders "Not that it matters anymore. None of them will have anything to do with that junk anyway."

Huffing, Suki stood up, her legs now more or less okay, and started making her way back to the dorm.

About halfway there, Suki felt something move near her breast.

Surprised, she felt around there with her hand to figure out what it was, and heard a small, startled scream, which reminded her of the existence of her new toy.

"Honestly forgot about this thing. Glad I didn't accidentally mush it like the other one." Suki muttered to herself, starting to think about what to do with it.

Pulling out her cell phone, Suki searched through the bookmarks of her favorite websites and began to sift through them for some good ideas on how to play with her new toy.

Soon she was checking out new drawings and stories as well as her old favorites for interesting ideas, lost in the depths of her perversion.

Playing with it with her feet, drenching it with her saliva, showering it with her urine... there were many interesting ideas.

At the thought of trying all these things, Suki begins to pant with excitement.

The very thought of inflicting such degradation and dehumanization on the insect was almost enough to make her come without having to touch herself at all.

She was about to move her trembling hand into her panties for a third round when her cell phone chimed, indicating a message had come in, pulling her from her fantasy.

She looked at what had come to her, making a sound of annoyance at being interrupted "I hope it's not junkmail again, or I swear..."

Her thought was cut short when she saw, with a shocked look, who it had been sent from.

"This is from my mother! ...or her secretary, actually. Doubt she has time for me..." Suki thought to herself bitterly before she opened the message and read it.

In the beginning, she looked angry, but by the time she had read it, she had lost all emotion.

When she closed the message, she was half tempted to throw the phone away, but even though there was no great loss, she couldn't.

It only had three phone numbers on it, her parents' and Shana's.

She'd only used the phone once, to call Shana, to tell her to open the door when she went out and left her keys in the dormitory, but she didn't even answer...

The only thing on it that might have been of interest to her were her favorite Internet bookmarks, but they were already in sync with her laptop, so they wouldn't be lost.

No... the real reason she couldn't just dump her phone was that it was the way her family was keeping tabs on her.

It was only because they had a way to track her down if they needed to that she was free to do whatever she wanted… for now.

If she were to throw it away in an attempt to run away...

"Back in the Gilded Cage" Suki thought in despair before she shook her head and put her hands in her pockets, thinking back to the message that she had just read.

"But whether I like it or not, it seems like those days are coming back..."

She returned dejectedly to her dormitory, all her happiness gone.

When she got there, she saw it was empty. Everyone else was out doing their own thing.

The dumb blonde was living her own interpretation of the Aryan ideal, the violent monkey was probably off to beat up some poor fool who had the misfortune to meet her, and the kusogaki... Well, she didn't really care.

As she walked into her room, she took off her jacket. As she was about to toss it into the laundry basket, a squeak reminded her of the little memento of the day, and a smile returned to her face.

"Oh... I totally forgot about you, little bug!" she taunted as she opened her jacket's breast pocket, "Good thing you called out to me, or I would have forgotten you even existed!"

"But now you're awake, which means we can play together," she said, smiling excitedly as she thought of all the things she could do with her toy, "Are you ready?"

The bug did not say anything, it just looked up at her in silence, with a frightened look on its face, its body expanding and contracting like a croaking frog.

Suki tilted her head and looked at its frightened face, a smile coming to her face as the thought of what she was going to do with this new toy of hers came to her mind. She took the bug out of her jacket pocket and placed it on the bed. "What can we do to entertain ourselves?" she asked, taking off her shoes and placing them by the door before sitting on the bed facing it, "Any ideas you want to suggest, hm?"

Unfortunately, the bug did not come up with a creative answer to her question. It was just whimpering and begging her to let it go.

Suki made a show of considering the matter. For several seconds, she tapped her cheek thoughtfully. Then she shook her head.

"Letmego? Uh... No, sorry, never heard of that game. How about something else, like 'How long can you hold your breath against my armpit'? I heard that it's a classic!" Suki replied with a grin, happy to be able to ignore her worries for the moment and let off some steam.

"W-What will you do to me? Are you going to... k-kill me? P-Please... just tell me..." the bug said with a pitiful little face that would have endeared it to her... if she were as weak as that stupid blonde.

"Aww! Why would I want to kill you?" Suki said sweetly, before sneering "It would be a waste, since you are my only toy right now! But as soon as I have more of them, you will join the other bug in my stomach!"

Then she chuckled, "Well, that probably won't be the case, as I'm already in the process of digesting it. I'll have expelled it long before it's your turn..."

With a loud shriek... well, a little squeak, actually, the bug fell on the bed and cried its eyes out.

"What a bore... do something, keep me entertained!" Suki said, her grin turning to a pout as she watched the bug fall to its knees, crying.

When it just kept on crying, Suki rolled her eyes and pulled off one of her socks, "If you don't want to be interesting, I'll make you."

With two fingers, Suki took the bug by the waist and lifted it up, wiggling the sock in front of it to make sure it understood what was going to happen next.

"This will be your companion for the next little while. Would you like to get acquainted?" Suki said playfully, her lips curling into a smirk as she waited for the bug's reaction... which came in the form of screams and cries again, this time even more intense!

Frustrated, she pushed the bug into the sock, then pulled it up, letting the bug fall into the bottom of the sock.

Rather than take the chance of crushing it or suffocating it, she decided to keep her foot out of it for the time being.

Holding the sock in front of her, Suki watched as it began to wriggle noticeably, accompanied by the screeching and squawking of the bug inside, which gave her a great deal of pleasure.

"At last, some fun! Go for it, little bug!" Suki urged it on, giggling with delight as she did so.

When she awoke, Nadia opened her eyes and saw... nothing. The only thing that surrounded her was darkness.

"W-where am I? Why is everything so dark?"

Her mind immediately turned to the thought that she had eaten while unconscious, and a scream came from her throat at the thought of such a thing.

Moments later, the sky parted, revealing the light outside.

She was about to rejoice, but her happiness faded when she saw the monster's face staring down at her.

"Oh... I totally forgot about you, little bug! Good thing you called out to me, or I would have forgotten you even existed!" she said, with a sickening grin, "But now you're awake, which means we can play together. Are you ready?"

Nadia began to hyperventilate with fear, thinking about her previous happiness and whether it wouldn't have been better for her to be eaten in her sleep…

The monster was silent for a moment, probably contemplating what to do with her, before reaching out to grab her. She tried to escape her grasp, but the place she was in was too small for any kind of hiding or escape.

Nadia was carried out of the place where she had been, and then laid down on a large, flat, but soft surface.

She briefly considered running away as she watched the monster walk away. But a quick glance at the distance she had to cover and the memory of the height at which she found herself stifled any thoughts of escape.

Soon the monster returned and sat before her, smiling as if to mock her, "Any ideas you want to suggest, hm?"

Nadia had no idea what she was talking about, nor did she care. All she could think was, "Let me go..."

Nadia could feel her heart pounding with excitement as the monster gave her a curious look before she looked to the side in a thoughtful manner, ‘Is she really considering this?!’

Unfortunately, her hope was dashed once again by the monster, who looked at her with one of her cursed grins, "Letmego? Uh... No, sorry, never heard of that game. How about-”

She didn't care what she said anymore, she was tired of playing this game, "W-What will you do to me? Are you going to... k-kill me? P-Please... just tell me..."

"Aww! Why would I want to kill you?" the monster said in an obviously fake cute voice before looking at her with disgusted eyes, "It would be a waste, since you are my only toy right now! But as soon as I have more of them, you will join the other bug in my stomach!"

Nadia gasped at the reminder that her master was inside the monster's stomach, being digested alive, but that only made the monster chuckle, "Well, that probably won't be the case, as I'm already in the process of digesting it. I'll have expelled it long before it's your turn..."

Nadia felt horrified and sickened by her behavior. Not only had she brutally killed her beloved big brother and devoured her master alive, but she didn't feel any remorse! Actually, she seemed proud of it!

Master Sean had told her stories about humans who, instead of helping them or simply ignoring them, were utterly cruel and enjoyed doing the worst things to them... but she didn't really believe it back then.

She believed that they were just stories made up to scare the children... but she had been proven wrong... and in the worst possible way.

And now, though her mind could understand why he'd sacrificed himself, her heart couldn't help but hate him for the life he'd condemned her to.

A life of uncertainty and horror, all alone, at the mercy of a monster born out of her worst nightmares... she would rather die!

With these thoughts swirling around in her head, Nadia fell to her knees and cried her eyes out.

Sobbing over the situation that had brought her here, Nadia paid no attention to what was happening around her and was surprised when the monster grabbed her and lifted her up.

"This will be your companion for the next while. Would you like to get acquainted?" the monster said, holding a wiggling something in front of her.

Nadia, terrified and with her eyes clouded with tears, screamed at the sight of the wobbly creature, her mind instantly conjuring up the memory of one of the many creeping creatures that often hunted Little Folk like her.

As the monster threw her into its mouth, the horror in her mind grew exponentially.

Shrieking in fear upon landing in the creature's mouth, Nadia immediately rose to her feet and tried to escape, but the creature sealed its jaws shut, leaving her in the dark.

Desperately, she pounded her small fists against its lips, trying to force it to open its mouth, or at least get a small opening to get out... 

But the only answer she got was that the beast had lifted up its head and swallowed her whole, sending her down its gullet.

With a bloodcurdling scream, Nadia was on her way down the creature's throat to her final destination.

The belly of the creature.

When she reached the bottom of the belly, she felt the dampness beneath her, and she knew immediately that it must be the digestive fluids of the creature preparing to consume its meal... her.

Moreover, no doubt due to the digested remains of the creature's former prey, the air was thick, musty, and foul-smelling.

Nadia was dazed for a moment by the fast pace of events, but soon her fear set in and she screamed and writhed in terror, trying to escape.

But when she heard the monster's slightly nasal voice from outside the creature's stomach, her behavior changed completely.

Just the sound of the monster's happy voice was enough to make Nadia angry, even though she couldn't understand the words.

But after being used as live food to feed her pet, it turned into pure hatred!

The monster must have been enjoying the fact that she was holding up her end of the bargain, while still leaving her to die a horrible death!

No longer crying, Nadia began moving, furious at the unfairness she was experiencing and determined to fight for her life rather than let herself die.

With all the strength she could muster, she began the arduous task of climbing up the wall of the beast's belly. She was going to escape, or die trying.

"I am no longer going to be a bystander in the face of things! I don't want to die, but if I have to, I'm going to go out with my head held high!" she shouted, angry and full of determination.

Meanwhile, Suki couldn't help but smile at the bug's pep talk, holding the sock to her ear to listen to it ‘What a feisty little bug! This toy is going to be so much fun to play with!’

Suki was really beginning to enjoy her toy's little antics.

She now understood why some kids liked to mess around with ants... or at least she thought she did.

She had never seen anyone actually do it. In fact, she had never set foot outside of her house until she was 14 years old, as she was home-schooled by private tutors.

Her experience of the outside world was through movies and cartoons... which she had to watch in secret, because her relatives thought those things would mislead her and put a veto on them...

Still, if someone did think of it, it's safe to say that someone out there did, isn't it?

Shaking off such thoughts, she focused on her bug and heard it climbing her sock.

Waiting for her toy to pop out, she moved the sock in front of her face.

As she climbed up the beast's throat, Nadia finally saw a glimmer of light coming from its mouth. It was a sign that she was close to her goal and, luckily for her, the creature had left its mouth open, giving her a way to get out of there.

Encouraged by this, she redoubled her efforts, her desire to live to see another day leading her in the direction of the light on the outside.

Grasping the beast's lips with her hands, she used them as leverage to pull herself out of its jaws and towards freedom... or at least survival.

With one last leap, she threw herself out of the beast and into the void. It did not matter if she fell to her death, it was better than being digested as food anyway.

Seeing the little bug live up to its name with a cricket-worthy leap, Suki let go of the sock and grabbed it from the air.

"Hey, watch it! You're all I got to play with for now! I can't even eat you if you get squashed!" Suki warned it with a stern look.

Nadia's attempts to free herself were desperate, but it was obvious that it was a fool's errand in the first place. The monster was infinitely more powerful than she could ever hope to be.

Even now, what the monster must have thought was a light grip was more than enough to give Nadia the feeling of being crushed to death.

Giving up on the idea of freeing herself, Nadia looked the monster straight in the eye "Can't you just kill me?! Why do you need to make me suffer like this?"

"Because now you are mine to play with, you silly little bug. You really should be thanking the big bug for giving me the idea to do this. If it hadn't been for it, you'd be in my belly as well, like the little snack that you are." the monster replied with a smile on her face. It was as if she did not see anything strange or horrible in what she was doing.

Then, with a giggle, she rubbed her hand over her stomach "Not that it matters anymore, though. It's probably long since digested by now. Not that I have a problem with it, it was an amazing experience!"

"But I have to admit that I am starting to get a little fond of the idea. I still prefer the thought of eating you, knowing that my stomach will digest you alive. But it's undoubtedly a good way to pass the time when I'm stuffed, or when I don't have a huge supply of little snacks like you, like now." she said thoughtfully, rubbing her chin.

Not knowing how to react, Nadia remained motionless and silent.

Was she sickened by her lack of respect for the lives of those like her? Was she horrified by the casual way in which she would take them? Was she happy to know that the one who had condemned her to this hell had suffered a horrible death? Was she appalled at her thinking this of the man who had practically adopted her and her brother after their parents were killed?

Thousands of thoughts crowded into her mind, and the spark that had once been there faded away, leaving her sad and despondent.

When she saw that her toy had no energy left, Suki sulked and shook it a little.

"Hey, why did you shut down? Did your batteries run out?" she said playfully before turning it over and removing a bit of cloth from between its legs, as if she was looking for the battery compartment, but found something else instead "Oh, what do we got here?"

Before her eyes was a scaled-down version of something she saw every day. A vagina.

As the insect rocked back and forth, trying unsuccessfully to push itself up, Suki found herself studying it intently for some strange reason.

There was a thick bush of curly hair between its legs, and Suki found herself strangely attracted to it.

Unconsciously, she lifted a finger and ran it curiously over it, as if she wanted to test its texture, ignoring the startled squeals of the insect.

When she felt a wet sensation, Suki lifted her finger to her nose and gave it a quick sniff before pulling her head back with a sound of disgust "Did you just pee yourself?"

Despite all the pride she felt at escaping the beast's stomach, Nadia couldn't help but feel humiliated and ashamed at how she had reacted to being held by the monster, biting her lips to keep from crying, not wanting to give the monster that satisfaction.

Suki rolled her eyes and sighed when she saw that there was no reaction from the insect "What a nasty little thing you are... But since I don't like my toys to be dirty, I'm going to give you a bath. Be grateful for that."

Holding the toy in her hand, but keeping it at a certain distance from her body so that no dirt would stain her body or clothes. Suki approached the door. She opened it slightly to have a look if there was anyone else there.

As she expected, the rest of the dorm was empty, but she didn't want to risk getting caught by the others while holding a tiny... especially the stupid blonde and the Kusogaki...

With her path clear, she made her way to the bathroom.

Once inside, she walked over to the sink and turned on the faucet for some lukewarm water.

Placing the bug at the bottom of the sink, Suki soaped her hands before washing, splashing soapy water onto the bug's form below.

She shook her hands to get rid of the excess water, then grabbed her personal towel and dried them off thoroughly.

Looking at what the bug was doing, Suki saw that it was trying to climb up the slope of the sink to escape, but without success as it kept sliding down.

"I see you can keep yourself amused..." Suki said with a laugh, closing the drain plug and then gazing thoughtfully at the bug as the water continued to rise.

After a few seconds of thought, Suki nodded before leaving the bathroom, having come to some sort of agreement with herself "Stay where you are, OK? I'd be heartbroken if I had to eat you before we actually got to enjoy ourselves."

When she heard the monster walk away and leave her alone, Nadia redoubled her efforts to escape her slippery, flooded prison. But all she managed to do was slide down twice as many times.

In resignation, she let herself fall into the water and tried to forget, at least for a few seconds, the horrors she had experienced, and to enjoy the pleasure of swimming in water that was not frozen or full of beasts that were waiting to eat her.

"After all, I do not have any beasts, but only a monster that wants to eat me..." she reminded herself bitterly, before she submerged herself completely and swam around.

After a few minutes, Suki returned holding a bottle of her preferred body wash.

The label said, ‘Moisturizing Anti-Aging Body and Face Shower Gel for ultra-sensitive skin with Papaya and Mango Fragrance.’

She was not really sure about what that meant, but it was expensive and she enjoyed the fragrance, so she went and purchased it anyway.

As she looked for her little bug, she saw it swimming carelessly around the sink, taking a quick dip before it popped back up and continued on its way.

Suki briefly found it cute, but quickly got back to work.

"Hey, little bug, look what I brought you!" she sang happily, showing what she was holding "This is coming straight out of my own private stash of stuff. Nobody has ever been allowed to use it except me, you know? Only you!"

The look of horror, despair and dismay was not exactly what she had imagined it would react to. But then again, she should not have expected an insect to understand how lucky they were.

Suki plucked her little bug out of the water and placed it in the palm of her right hand. Then she covered it with a generous amount of body wash and rubbed it all over.

Finished, Suki looked at the white mess in her hand with satisfaction before grabbing her little bug by the legs and dipping it into the water to rinse.

Looking at her little bug again, Suki saw that it was gasping for breath, its chest swelling and deflating quickly.

"You look like a drowned rat..." Suki commented, tilting her head to get a better look at it before she set it down on her towel and began to dry it off.

"And there you go! All clean-up!" Suki said with satisfaction, bringing it to her nose and taking a deep sniff, "Uhmm... it smells good too..."

She looked proud of her work. However, her smile soon turned into a frown.

"Hey, hold on a second! Now that you're clean, I can't play with you!" she realized a little too late, "Damn it... I even used the good stuff to wash you. I can't just ignore that and use you anyway..."

Suki crossed her arms and looked away, muttering "Damn you, you little bugs... you keep screwing me over and over again..."

Sighing, she put one hand on her hip while her other arm dangled over her side before turning back to her bug "What am I supposed to do with you now...?"

The answer came in the form of a stomach growling... coming from her bug.

"...are you kidding me?! You are the snack food here! You're supposed to satisfy my stomach, not the other way around!" Suki said in annoyance to the bug, who at least had the decency to act mortified.

Suki rubbed her forehead and tried to compose herself "Okay...let's look at it positively. You'll make a better snack if I fatten you up a bit. Right now, you're too small and scrawny to be as filling as the other one..."

Sighing, Suki picked up her little bug and said, "Come on. Let's go feed you." and then began to walk towards the kitchen.

"And that's all for today. Once again, my thanks to all of you for being part of today's practice for our small, but mighty, team. I'm sure that when the time comes, we'll be able to defeat any opponent that comes our way! But for the time being, please go and enjoy your showers. You have earned it!" Liliana finished her speech to a round of applause from the rest of the team, except for Shana who looked away in annoyance, before they went to wash up.

"Must we hear this lecture weekly? We've got no leagues, no tournaments, and no actual opponents. Heck, we're not even a real team. More like your own gang!" Shana said to Liliana as she looked at Satsuki, who was walking backwards while looking at Shana, gesturing with her fingers between her eyes and at Shana, until she walked into the shower room and closed the door behind her.

"Making sure all your teammates feel motivated and appreciated for their efforts is a team leader's job, my dear." Liliana replied as she sat down elegantly on the bench with her legs crossed in front of her, "The existence of an adversary and a goal to pursue is secondary to our unity and preparedness in anticipation of their arrival."

"I didn't understand a damn thing. But I guess that's what you wanted, huh? Whatever... I was stupid for even asking..." Shana said annoyedly, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall, "So, why are you still here? Aren't you joining the other members of your harem today?"

Liliana gave a giggle before she looked at Shana with a smile, "While I do love to spend my time looking at the beautiful bodies of my girls, it's something that I can easily do at home tonight as well..." then her smile became more playful, "... while a conversation between us is particularly rare, as it is only possible once a week..."

Shana clicked her tongue before looking away, "What the hell should I tell you? There's nothing in my life that you could care about."

"Quite the opposite, my dear! I'm very curious about you, as well as about everyone else on my team, you know?" Liliana informed her.

But Shana's response was to shield her body from her gaze, "I won't join your harem! You've got enough women lusting after you already! ...and I'm not a fucking lesbian, damn it!"

"It's such a shame about that..." Liliana joked before getting serious, "What I wanted to ask you was: How have you been feeling lately? After the last time we met, I was a little worried about the discomfort you were feeling. Are you feeling any better now, or is the situation still a problem for you?"

Shana snorted and looked away silently, and Liliana, respecting her, did the same.

After about a minute, the door to the showering room opened with a bang, and a naked, wet and angry Satsuki emerged, "You! Talk now!"

Shana was taken aback by the noise, but soon regained her composure.

"Make me!" she said cheekily.

When Satsuki started to move towards her to do just that, Liliana snapped her fingers to make her stop, "Sat-tan, don't. I was the one who was being inappropriate by asking her for things that she didn't want to reveal to me. Please don't be angry with her, because I was the one in the wrong."

Satsuki stopped. She clenched and unclenched her fists before she nodded, "Fine..." after which she walked back into the shower room and slammed the door behind her.

Liliana sighed before looking at Shana with a sheepish smile, "My apologies for that. Sat-tan is always a bit overprotective of me, but she did not mean any harm."

"Lies! I'm vicious!" Satsuki, who had been eavesdropping from behind the slightly opened door, said before she slammed the door shut again.

"Ok..." Shana replied, feeling relieved on the inside that she hadn't been thrown to the ground again, but she didn't want to show it.

Then, feeling just a little bit curious, she asked, although she tried not to sound interested, "How the hell did you manage to tame her in the first place? Did you throw cookies at her and make her smell your hand? Or something else?"

"Please show a little more respect for my beloved Sat-tan. She is a very dear person to me..." Liliana said in reply.

She tried to sound authoritative, but failed when a smile, accompanied by a faint blush, crept across her features, "But I have to admit that the image your words evoke in my mind is certainly cute... It is something that I might want to try out..."

She shook her head and looked at Shana with a giggle, briefly lost in the thought of petting a puppy Sat-tan.

"Forgive me for taking a brief trip into the realm of fantasy, my dear. But to answer what you asked... I must confess, it's a little embarrassing..." Liliana said, touching her fingers together.

"Something that is embarrassing to you? The one who has no problem walking around half-naked and shamelessly flirting with her harem in front of everyone?" Shana asked in disbelief.

"Come on, I don't act so shameless when I'm on the outside, you know? It's something that I only reserve for when I'm in private... or with people that I feel comfortable with..." Liliana replied with a smile aimed at Shana, who turned around in irritation and gave her the middle finger, much to Liliana's amusement.

Liliana then stopped smiling and sighed, using her hands to smooth out her shorts as she began to talk.

"You see, I've always had a fascination with Japanese culture, although I think it would be more appropriate to say anime culture... since I was a child." Liliana started, then looked away, embarrassed, "When I was a young girl, I used to believe that martial artists were really able to do superhuman stunts or amazing things like shooting waves of energy out of their hands..."

She re-positioned herself on the bench before going on, "With the desire to see such feats with my own eyes, I had my driver take me to a dojo... but, alas, I found out that reality is different from that which I used to imagine..."

Liliana looked down, unconsciously fiddling with the friendship bracelets her companions gave her, "I have to admit that my behavior was completely out of line back then. Although I was only twelve at the time, it was inappropriate for me to throw a tantrum and to call all of the people present... wimps and fakers... just because they didn't fit in with how I wanted them to look..."

Shana began to laugh out loud, clutching her stomach and nearly collapsing from laughing herself silly.

"Fuck, for real? I never thought you would get mad! Especially over stupid shit like that!" Shana replied as she tried to catch her breath, "And the name-calling!" she said, wiping away tears as she laughed again, "That’s cute!"

Shauna's comment made Liliana blush.

"I was very spoiled and selfish in my childhood... an absolute brat." Liliana said before giving a sigh, "Everyone in the dojo was obviously upset by the way I acted, and rightly so, I have to admit. Nevertheless..."

She grew a little sad.

"They were taking a young girl's uninformed remarks too seriously. They started yelling at me. They used a lot of curses and insults. One of them even tried to attack me. He got his hand ready to slap my face!" she said in a disappointed tone before she started to smile again.

"That was when I was saved by my beloved Sat-tan! Even though she was the smallest and youngest of the attendees, she did not allow herself to be stopped! Just like in the manga I love so much, she used her enormous talent to fight enemies who were bigger and more powerful than her!" Liliana gushed about Satsuki as she covered her own red cheeks with her hands.

"Did she beat all of them?" Shana asked in astonishment, feeling intimidated by Satsuki's skills.

However, Liliana gave a shy giggle and waved her hand, "Not exactly... she was subdued within a few seconds..."

But then she hastened to clarify the situation, "But they were of crucial importance! She distracted my would-be assailant long enough for my driver to get me out safely! That cannot be understated!"

At the sight of Shana's unimpressed face, Liliana coughed to break the mood and continued in a more subdued tone, "In any case, there was no denying the fact that she was definitely talented in martial arts. When she told me that her dream was to become a great martial artist, but that her family was too poor to afford the training, I immediately hired her to be my bodyguard."

Then she ran her hands through her hair and let out a little chuckle, "Originally, this was just an excuse for me to spend money on her without offending her family's honor, but she took the task with the utmost seriousness. She even used to guard me when I went to the bathroom without giving it a second thought... I had to put my foot down to convince her that this wasn't necessary and to let me have at least a little privacy..." Liliana said, a little flushed but satisfied.

"That's quite a story..." Shana said with a thoughtful tone in her voice.

"Well, that's how Sat-tan and I met." Liliana replied, looking at Shana with a smile on her face.

Shana grunted and nodded her head, but said nothing more.

After a dozen or so seconds, when she could still feel Liliana's gaze on her, Shana said in an annoyed voice, "What the hell are you staring at me for? What's your problem?"

Then her eyes widened as she realized, "W-Wait a minute! Don't even think that just because you've told me your story that I have to do the same! It's none of your business, damn it! I don't have to spill my guts out to you!"

Liliana, who, to be honest, was completely absorbed in trying to figure out how to make her wish to see the puppy Sat-tan come true without humiliating her dear friend, was taken aback by Shauna's accusation, "Huh? I beg your pardon? May I ask what it is that you are referring to, my dear?"

"Don't take me for a fool! I know what you're playing at, you know? You can't fuck me that easy!" Shana said, pointing her finger accusingly at Liliana.

"I'm sorry dear, but I really don't know what you're talking about..." Liliana said in confusion, but Shana scoffed at her.

"Don't try to act like a goody-goody! I know what you're thinking!" Shana said in a triumphant manner, tapping her finger on the side of her head.

"But what the hell... If you really wanna hear it, I'll tell you..." she said with a shrug, as if to make a huge concession to Liliana.

It was at that moment that Liliana finally understood what was going on.

Actually, Shana wanted to tell her what was bothering her, but her pride prevented her from doing that because she felt it would make her look weak. So what she had to do was turn the situation around in such a way that she could do so without any loss of face.

To paraphrase the ancient wisdom of Sat-tan's birthplace, she was being a... tsundere.

Not wanting to risk Shana shutting down again, since this was actually something she wanted to hear, Liliana smiled and nodded her head.

"Aww... you caught me, my dear. Please forgive me for trying to deceive you, and please satisfy my curiosity!"

Shana looked shocked for a second, probably because she had not expected Liliana to back up what she had said, but she quickly went on.

"First of all, things are worse than they used to be. Everything's gone FUBAR." Shana began, frowning as she spoke.

"It feels like we're in the eye of the storm! Or should I say it feels like we are in a minefield?" she said, before she thought about it for a second and gave a shrug of her shoulders.

"Hell, both! It's like being in a minefield at the eye of the storm! One wrong step and you'll be blown up, but if you wait, you'll be torn apart! That's where we're at!" Shana finished with a sigh and a sense of helplessness.

Liliana blinked her eyes in shock, as she had not been expecting something like that to happen.

"Is the situation really as serious as it seems? Please," her voice was full of concern for Shana, "try to clarify the situation for me, dear."

"Where to start..." Shana said in a surprisingly soft voice as she tapped her leg.

"Ok, Barbie... or Emily, whatever... She's been really creepy recently! She's still acting like a sweet little lamb, but you can see it in her eyes. She's keeping us in check! Just waiting for the right time to get rid of us! Every night I check the door several times to make sure it's locked. But I still find myself waking up in the middle of the night as soon as I hear any noise! The thought of that psychopath slitting my throat while I sleep makes me shit myself! Meanwhile, the little squirt has suddenly gotten cheeky! That wouldn't be so bad in itself, as it would mean I wouldn't have to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't kill herself out of stupidity, but it also means I wouldn't be able to keep her in check! Even the threat of a beating has no effect on her... she knows that I would never do such a thing... because I don't want any trouble with my whore of a stepmother, that's all!" she clarified quickly.

Then she scratched her hair nervously, "But the worst is probably Suki, that fucking idiot... Somehow she managed to make friends with Maya, I don't know how, and make her think she's a friend of the tinies. Can you believe that?! That stupid little girl is way too gullible! What happened to all the lessons I taught her about keeping her guard up?! If she keeps it up, they will eat her alive when she hits her teens! Thank God she's into Barbie right now. Otherwise she'd have been knocked up by the first pervert she met! ...not that I care, of course! It's just that I'm already stuck with her. I don't want to deal with another brat!" she went off on another tangent for a short while.

"And now she has Maya and Emily arguing all the time! Maya wants to give Suki another chance, whereas Emily just wants Suki to be shot and thrown off a building!” Shana, who had been talking non-stop without taking a breath, finished her speech panting.

Meanwhile, Liliana was in a state of shock. She had no idea Shana was in such a frightened state.

"When we last spoke, you told me that you found her in the park, where she confessed to you that she wanted to... eat one of the poor little darlings, didn't you say? Has Suki had a change of heart about that this week?" Liliana inquired and was met with a snort from Shana.

"Oh, she has indeed changed... for the worse, that is! She’s at the park every fucking morning, wandering around with a pair of binoculars and an empty lunchbox... at least that is how it is when she arrives. I have my doubts that it will be the same on her way home. And I can assure you that there will be no food in it... at least not the kind of food that normal people have in mind..."

Liliana crossed her arms and began thinking, trying to find a way to help Shana.

"Please correct me if I'm wrong, but is the reason why Emily is so... intimidating, shall we say, related to her new little friend?" Liliana asked Shana, trying to get her facts straight before she started to dwell on the subject.

"Yeah, she and the flea are pretty much inseparable. Wherever you find one, you find the other... or you find one clinging to the other somewhere..." Shana confirmed.

"I understand..." Liliana nodded her head thoughtfully, "And would it be correct to say that you are, in her opinion, a threat to her safety?"

Shana at least had the decency to wince at that, "I... yeah, it's like that. I held her back when Suki was trying to eat the tiny... I was just trying to keep them from getting into a fight with each other, but... I just screwed it up..."

Liliana did not comment on her actions, for they were not immoral or wrong, but rather the sensible thing to do.

After all, the law didn't care much about the Little Folk.

Emily's attack on Suki could have ended very badly... for Emily, as no one would have cared that she did so in defense of a Little Folk, and she could have been convicted of assault instead.

Sighing sadly at how flawed the law could sometimes be, she continued her task, "One final question, my dear. What is the situation that you are afraid might come to pass?"

"Barbie finding out what Slanted Eyes is up to and going nuts!" Shana replied emphatically, "And I have a feeling it won't be long, because that dickhead is having a lot of fun messing with her and getting more and more cheeky! Every day I fear that she will simply begin to eat one of those at the table and Emily will go crazy and cut us all up like fish! That's what!"

Liliana nodded once more in silence, closing her eyes and trying to think of a way to solve the problem.

"Have you tried... Talk to them...?" A voice came from next to them, startling them both.

When they turned around, they saw Hannah standing in a corner, looking down in embarrassment.

"Holy shit! Where the hell did you come from? How long have you been here?" Shana asked in a startled voice, putting a hand over her pounding heart.

"Never moved..." Hannah mumbled, her gaze lowered.

"Okay, anyway, this is private stuff! Who the hell gave you permission to butt in?" Shana said angrily, but Liliana, her eyes open again, put a finger to her lips to shut her up and turned to Hannah.

"Could you please elaborate on what you just said, my dear? I would be very interested to hear your opinion on it." she asked gently, smiling at Hannah.

Hannah flushed and covered her face with her hair.

"The main issue... Emily is afraid for her friend... Isn't she? If... Shana... assured her that she is no danger, then... she would be calmer... right? After all, there would be fewer enemies left to watch out for..." She said, her voice getting lower and lower the more she talked.

"Uh... that might actually work..." Liliana nodded before turning her attention to Shana, who was still glaring at Hannah, "This may not be the final solution, but it's certainly an avenue for mitigating, if not defusing, the potential crisis."

Then she stood up and walked over to Hannah and gave the shy girl a big hug from behind, resting her chin on the top of her head.

"After you do that, a good follow-up would be to have a talk with Suki and try to convince her to stop her behavior, or at least moderate it. But you will have to try not to be too bossy in doing so. Even though I find the very thought of doing such terrible things to the poor dears to be highly reprehensible and disgusting, trying to force her to stop could only end in her rebelling... and that would be worse in every respect..." Liliana went on, making no effort to hide her distaste for the way Suki was acting.

Shana continued to look irritated for a few seconds before she sighed, "Well, at least it's a better idea than just waiting for the end to come... I guess. I'll give it a try. See how it goes..."

Then she averted her eyes and added, a little embarrassed, "Thank you for helping me..."

When Liliana heard Shana thank her, she hugged Hannah tighter, who let out a small squeal.

There were a lot of things she wanted to do and say to Shana, but she didn't want to spoil such a delicate moment, so with a nod and a smile, she just said, "Anytime."

Nadia stood, arms folded behind her, face expressionless.

Before her stood dozens of transparent containers, each containing one of her kind, all desperately trying to escape from where they were held. But unfortunately for them, it was to no avail. 

Their prison seemed to have been deliberately designed to make them as mentally draining as possible.

The walls, transparent and seemingly pliable, yet too hard to break through, gave them constant visions of a freedom that they would never be able to have. The enforced solitude, where their only interaction with other people was witnessing their gruesome execution. The uneven floor, with its constant bumps and pits that prevented them from finding any kind of comfortable sitting or sleeping position. And the smooth walls that tapered off in the middle, making it impossible for them to climb them...

Not that there was any need to, since they were sealed at the top in such a way that only ‘She’ could open them. But she only did so on two occasions. 

When she put her victim in... or when she decided that their time had come and took them out.

Right now, they were punching and kicking at the transparent surface of their prison, trying to find a way to escape or at least attract her attention, hoping that she would come to their rescue... But in both cases, they were just wasting their time.

It wasn't as if she hadn't tried to save them in the first few days. She did everything she could to save them from an ignominious fate. But by the dawn of the fourth day, she had had enough.

She would like to say that it was because she was so depressed by the lack of results that she couldn't go on any longer... But while that was part of the reason, it wasn't the only or even the main reason she gave up.

The real reason was... She didn't think they were worth the effort anymore.

It was a terrible thing just to have that thought in her mind.

These poor people, torn from their lives and doomed to live in terrible prisons where they were forced to watch their friends, acquaintances or even family members die horrible deaths, knowing that it could happen to them at any moment, unable to save them or themselves... all for the perverse entertainment of a monster.

But… wasn't this true for her, too?

Apparently, the prisoners didn't see it like that. They interpreted her 'freedom' as being on the monster's side and probably the cause of their misery.

Nadia understood this, too. After all, they were scared, confused... but the mental strain for Nadia was enormous.

Trying to save them all the time, in vain, and being forced to live with the knowledge that even her best efforts were useless and she couldn't do anything was exhausting, every single moment was pure despair. Every night she cried herself to sleep. Her whole body ached from the effort of trying to get them out! But did they care? No. They didn't care at all.

It was much easier for them to blame her for all of their suffering and to wish for the worst that could possibly happen to her...

It was simply too much for her.

No matter how sorry she felt for them, she had no intention of going on like this. If there was nothing she could do, and if there was no appreciation for even trying... why do it at all?

Sighing, Nadia turned away from the container. She heard a soft "Traitor!" from the prisoner inside, but she ignored it, as had become her habit, too busy adjusting the edges of her kimono, making sure she would always be presentable when her... mistress... returned.

She wasn't in the mood for another lecture about how lucky she was to have the clothes she had and how she should take better care of herself. As the keeper, or maybe better said, the jailer, she represented the monster... or Suki, as she'd called herself, and so she had to look her best.

At first, her thoughts were that... Suki, still seemed strange to her to call the monster by a name, had given her this task out of some ruthless and twisted mind game, forcing her to participate in inflicting suffering on those of her kind in order to make her life miserable... But that wasn't it.

While Nadia couldn't help but see it that way, the real reason Suki had given her this assignment was because... she trusted her.

Nadia was shocked to discover, after she had officially renounced the bonds of her old life and tried to curry the monster's favor in order to prolong her life, that... Suki had actually grown fond of her.

Nadia didn't know when that had happened, if it had been like that from the beginning or if Suki had changed her mind later, but there it was.

Although she was sure that her life would end as soon as Suki found other little people to play with, the truth was just the opposite and it seemed that Nadia was becoming more and more... special to her. All her threats to eat her or do other things that would end her life were gone, replaced by talks about their future together...

Nadia didn't really know what to make of it.

Part of her wanted to do something to show how much she hated Suki, even kill herself if necessary. But another part of her thought: It's not that bad…

Not that she was going to excuse the monster for taking her big brother and her master away from her in such a cruel way! No, she would never forget and never forgive!

Then again, it was also true that life had never been as easy as it was at this moment.

Her living conditions were infinitely better than before, even though it had only been a week.

Gone were the days when she had to go days without eating before she could find a piece of crushed fruit to keep from starving to death; now she had five warm, good, plentiful meals a day.

No more sleepless nights because of the cold or the fear of predators; now she had a nice, warm, comfortable, and safe bed to sleep in.

And no more of those uncomfortable and smelly rags that she had found in the garbage or taken from the dead bodies that she had been forced to wear. Now she had new, custom-made, comfortable, clean clothes!

All in all, her life was a lot better than it had been before... and maybe the prisoners were right to hate her and call her a traitor, but she was beyond that now. She would do whatever it took to save her own life, even if it meant sacrificing someone else's!

After all, wasn't that what her master had sacrificed himself for? And even if it wasn't, it wouldn't be a matter of concern to her. If her master had something to say about what she was doing or what she was thinking, then he’s free to come back to life and do something about it. But until then, she will continue as she is.

Her introspection came to an end when she heard the sound of a key being turned in the lock. It was something Suki had told her when explaining why nobody but her could enter the room. Then Suki entered the room, her eyes scanning the room before focusing on her.

"Mushi-chan!" Suki said, closing the door behind her and approaching Nadia with a beaming smile, "Tadaima!"

Seeing that smile, Nadia found it almost impossible to associate it with the monster that had killed her loved ones. And it was getting harder and harder every day.

Pushing such thoughts aside, Nadia performed the ritual Suki had taught her, putting her legs under her and sitting on them before bowing her head with folded hands on the ground in front of her, "Okaerinasai."

Suki gasped in surprise and covered her mouth with her hands before bringing them together and placing them on her cheek, tilting her head with a joyful smile and looking up at her in adoration before exclaiming, "Kawaii!”

After a few seconds in this position, Suki moved and knelt before the furniture she was standing on. She brought her huge face in front of Nadia, something that would probably never cease to terrify her for as long as she lived.

"Aww, that was lovely, my dear Mushi-chan! Thank you for the wonderful welcome!" Suki said, stroking her head with one of her fingers, like one would do with a pet... which was what was actually happening.

Rising to her feet, Suki went to sit on her bed and took her satchel off from her shoulder and placed it on her lap.

She rummaged inside and pulled out a small, sealed alloy box.

"Today has been a fruitful day as well, Mushi-chan. Take a look at what I found!" Suki said proudly before unlocking the clasps that held the box closed, revealing its contents.

Inside, there were two small people. Male and female, as far as she could tell from the distance she stood. It was obvious that they were both confused and frightened by the situation they found themselves in.

"Well, aren't they cute? And look at this one! Look! It's a plump one! Certainly a good candidate for today's snack position, don't you think?" Suki went on, licking her lips as she picked up the male of the two to show it to her... and Nadia gritted her teeth in disgust as she recognized him.

"Matt...!" A murmur escaped her lips, angry at him.

Matt had once been a friend of her brother's... although she had always thought that Shaun had only done it out of pity, since no one cared about that stupid good-for-nothing... except for one other person.

Mara.

Mara was older than Shaun and Matt and her. She was a kind and selfless girl who could not stand the sight of others suffering... and that was the reason why she had asked her and Shaun to take the lonely Matt into their group in the first place. She was the big sister and de facto mother of the group. She would scold them when they did something wrong, but she would also be there to support and encourage them in their most complicated and difficult moments.

Because of this, apart from Shaun and her master, Mara was the only person Nadia ever cared about...

But one day... she died.

No one ever really knew for sure what had happened. All they knew was that Matt had come running into the village one morning, screaming that the Black Titan had killed Mara while they were on a walk outside the village... But she never believed it.

There were just too many things about Matt's story that did not fit or made sense.

First of all, the Black Titan was undoubtedly dangerous and deadly, having caused the deaths of dozens of members of her kind. However, it was a phenomenon with an unchanging pattern of behavior. Every day, at the exact same time, it traveled the exact same route. There was never any deviation from this pattern in all the years it was there. All you had to do was avoid going there, and nothing happened! And everyone knew that. It was engraved in the minds of everyone in the village, so it was impossible not to know or forget. And Mara, with her reputation for being extremely careful, would never have gone there in the first place!

She even made them wash themselves with the rainwater, believing that the pond itself was too dangerous for them to even approach! Much less go into those very dangerous places! And why would she do such a thing? So she could go for a walk with Matt?

No, that made no sense whatsoever.

No, she had a pretty good idea what the real reason was!

Matt had been following her around all the time, making advances and trying to be romantic. But all he ever managed to do was be creepy!

Mara had turned him down several times, joking that it was too soon for her to think about love. Of course, these were just excuses to avoid making him feel bad about himself, but Matt never stopped coming on to her!

She did not have any proof, but she was sure that he had been the cause of Mara's death. It was probably to get back at her for having rejected him!

She had tried again and again to explain to the others that things didn't make any sense, but they ignored her words as an act of rage of a little girl who was overwhelmed by pain. And even if it was true, they should have at least listened to her!

Shaun, although not really believing her story, asked him for some details as to why they were in such a dangerous place in the first place, and the bastard had the audacity to say that he and Mara had been engaged for some time, and that they had to go there to avoid Nadia seeing them!

The bastard said that she had been nagging Mara to leave him because she hated Matt, so they had to do things in secret and far away because of her, and that it was her fault that Mara had died!

Just the thought of it was enough to make her blood boil! Even though it was true that she had never liked Matt at all, she had just ignored him! And Mara, who knew how to be authoritative, was used to stopping her from doing stupid things. If Nadia had really done what he accused her of, Mara would have given her a good spanking like she had on other occasions, not run off to her death like an idiot!

The bastard even had the audacity to feel insulted when Shaun called him out on his nonsense. He cut all ties with them as if he was the victim!

She was furious at the time. She was furious that he was able to get away with it so easily! But now, with her new beliefs and with him in such a position...

While Nadia was lost in thought, Matt, who was being held by Suki, recognized her and began to frantically call out to her, "Nadia?! Nadia, is that you? Please, you have to help me!"

"Huh? You know this?" Suki asked confusedly, looking at her potential snack with the sadness of a child who had been denied a piece of candy.

Nadia's mind was made up. She took a look at Matt's desperate and hopeful face before she turned back to Suki,

"Just in passing. I might have met him once or twice, but that doesn't matter. I wouldn't want to deprive you of a snack you're looking forward to so much... Suki-sama," she added, as if to seal her conversion.

Deeply shocked by her reaction, Matt tried to get her attention again, but was blocked when Suki covered her cheeks in embarrassment and squeezed him between her palm and her cheek.

"Really? You're okay with me eating it? Oh! You're such a sweetie, Mushi-chan!" Suki exclaimed in delight, a happy smile on her face.

Once free from that position, Matt barely had a moment to catch his breath before he lost it again when he saw Suki's smiling face, "And how about you, my little snack? Ready to join the rest of breakfast in my belly?"

Nadia knew it was rhetorical, something Suki said jokingly to lighten the situation. She still did not know if Suki was fully aware of the consequences of eating someone... but it was obvious that she did not care.

"Let's play a little game, okay?" she said, holding Matt above her head with her smiling mouth just below his shape, "In a few seconds, I'll let you go. So you're going to have to hold on to my finger as tight as you can, as if your life depends on it!"

"And it will, for when you let go..." she chuckled amusedly, opening her mouth beneath him to reveal the dank cavern leading to a dark abyss with no return.

Horrified beyond belief at the sight, he tried to wriggle free, but her grip was too strong, "Don't eat me, please! Just let me go!"

"Poorly chosen words..." Suki smiled before complying with his request.

Because Matt failed to hold on as he was instructed, he fell right into Suki's mouth.

Due to the tilt of her head, Matt fell directly into Suki's throat, causing her to start coughing like crazy and to hit her chest in order to swallow the annoying morsel.

Nadia was watching the scene with a smile on her face, thinking that justice had finally been served, but she was shocked to see that Suki was choking to death.

"You're an idiot, Suki! What were you thinking?! Drink!" she shouted worriedly before covering her mouth in shock at what she had said, her concern that she had said too much taking over in an instant, ‘I can't believe I just said that! I am such an idiot! And a dead one at that! I hope she didn't hear that!’

Suki immediately ran over to her minifridge and pulled out a small plastic bottle of orange soda and drank the whole thing.

Finally, as she felt the obstruction move down her esophagus and toward her stomach, Suki breathed a sigh of relief, "Ah, that's much better - burp!"

"Sumimasen..." Suki mumbled and closed her eyes in embarrassment.

Even Nadia heaved a sigh of relief when Suki had recovered. It would have been quite problematic for her, now that she had betrayed her species and cast her lot with Suki, if the human had committed suicide by suffocating with one of them, "Next time, be more careful, okay? Try to find a less dangerous way to eat..."

Suki looked away as she rubbed her arm, looking like a child who had been scolded, "I was just trying to look cool... But you're right, sorry..."

Then she looked back at Nadia and smiled, "But thank you for telling me to drink. Thanks to you, I was able to swallow that morsel without choking!"

Ignoring the small detail that the morsel was a person like her, Nadia froze at the fact that Suki had heard her, "Ah... did you hear what I said...?"

Suki nodded and looked down shyly, a slight blush in her cheeks, "Yes... I'm sorry I worried you so much... I will try to be more careful next time..."

Nadia was shocked by her answer, which was totally not what she had expected.

The mixture of surprise and shock, combined with the fact that the murderer of her loved ones had eaten someone she hated with her consent, plus the fear and suppressed anxiety she had accumulated over the past few days, made Nadia, who was not sure how to react... explode.

"Do you think that I am worried about you? Don't even kid yourself! It doesn't matter to me if you choke or not! The only thing I care about is that if you die, I won't have anything to eat!" Nadia said angrily before realizing what she had said and covering her mouth again, looking up at Suki worriedly to see her reaction.

But once again she was surprised when Suki just smiled and giggled, shaking her head in amusement, "Oh, you're even more cute when you're shy, Mushi!"

Then, picking up the remaining little person, who had tried in vain to escape while they had been busy with their conversation, and placing it in the bottle she had emptied earlier, Suki continued, "But I really do appreciate your concern. Thank you for that."

As she watched Suki's back, now that she was putting the new prison together with the others, a thought came to Nadia's mind.

When she acted like a normal person, she didn't seem so bad. Was Suki just... misunderstood? Someone whose drama had turned her into the monster that she was today? Someone who was... redeemable?

"Uh... having all these toys makes me want to try something new... Maybe I should try putting one of them in my vagina, like a tampon or something? Or maybe I should put it in my sweaty socks, along with my foot, while I am reading a book? Or stick it up my butt while I... I make a stink? Ooh, these are all disgusting but exciting ideas!" Suki said with excitement as she looked down at her caged prisoners.

'No... she's an irredeemable monster...' Nadia sighed, getting frustrated.

Lying on the dollhouse bed given to her by Maya, one of the subjects of her thoughts, Jane let out another sigh.

As her eyes scanned the room, which was mostly dark except for the light from a lamppost that shone through the slightly open curtain, she looked again at the bed in the room where Emily was sleeping with... no one else.

Jane grimaced in disappointment, her heart filled with sadness for a situation that had resulted from incomprehensible choices on all sides.

It had all started about three days before, when Maya had come to tell Emily that Suki, the human who had tried to eat her the first day, or rather the night before it, and had only failed thanks to Emily and Maya's combined efforts, had had a change of heart and wanted to meet them to make amends...

Jane was not a bitter person, but neither was she someone used to taking unnecessary risks, so she refused.

After all, her species had always lived by the concept: "Why confront problems when you could simply flee them?"

Emily had a different, but very similar, line of thought. There was no need for them to interact with Suki, even if she was truly sorry for what she had done.

Unfortunately, this was also the time when Maya did a very foolish thing.

Appealing to Emily's goodness and generosity, she told her to give Suki another chance... and Emily was furious.

This led to a terrible argument between the two of them. Jane, who was of the opinion that Maya was a bit naive, was on Emily's side at first. No matter how good Emily is, she doesn't have to forgive or associate with people she doesn't want.

But, once again, a terrible decision has been made: No longer finding Maya trustworthy, Emily stopped her from having any contact with Jane, fearing that Maya would turn her over into Suki's hands.

She could still see Maya's desperate and crying face, as if it was still right in front of her eyes... and Emily's sobbing from when she came back to her room after their fight was still ringing in her ears...

But she was filled with hatred as well. Hate for the one who was the cause of all this. The one without whom none of this would have happened in the first place...

Herself.

Since the day Emily brought her here, everyone in the house has been through a lot of upsetting things... and not one of them has turned out for the better.

Having her around made them behave strangely and caused them to react negatively to each other. It ate her up inside to know that she had destroyed a beautiful relationship like the one between Emily and Maya.

None of this would have happened if she wasn't here!

Jane tried in every way she could to keep the tears from falling, clenching her fists as she closed her eyes. It would be disgusting and distasteful of her to dare to feel sad for herself after causing all of this.

As she sat up on the bed, Jane looked once more at the edge of the furniture where her bed had been placed. It overlooked an abyss that was nothing to a human being, but an unimaginable height to a Little Folk such as herself.

Once again, she thought about simply letting herself fall and ending it once and for all. But once again, her cowardice prevented her from actually doing just that.

Her mind was in constant search for an answer, a solution, a way out, but the question was still there: Which was the right answer? And was there really such a thing as the right answer?

She was at a loss as to what to do.

The reason for their quarrel would disappear if she took her own life. But it could also be the reason for the complete and permanent breakdown of their relationship. After all, they both cared about her, and they would probably blame each other for what happened... Or, more likely, she was just hoping they would, grasping at straws to justify her own continued existence.

"I am worthless..." she said softly, her voice trembling, "It would have been better if that beast had eaten me as well..."

Several hours passed in silence, Jane lying motionless in bed, unable to sleep, unwilling to rise, her brain pondering, when the alarm sounded.

She watched as Emily began to wake up. She was slow and had a tired look on her face, none of the energy she had had in the first few days. It was obvious that she hadn't slept well either, which was made all the more obvious by the way she staggered to the bathroom for her morning ritual.

After a while, Emily emerged from the bathroom with nothing but a towel draped over her body. She was clean from the shower, but she looked just as tired and worn out as she had when she'd walked in.

Walking over to the dresser above where Jane's bed was, Emily immediately dropped the towel on the floor, her brain probably unable to remember that Jane herself was there, and began rifling through the drawers looking for something to change into.

Jane watched the scene in silence, not in the mood for a joke or even interaction with Emily at the moment. It was unlikely that she would have noticed at this point anyway.

Sitting down on her bed, Emily slowly pulled on her clothing before standing up and going to the door, turning the handle to open it... but the door remained closed.

Confused, she turned the knob several times. Eventually, something clicked in her brain and she turned, her eyes sweeping across the room until landing upon Jane's form.

"Oh... Jane... good morning...?" She mumbled, embarrassed and blushing, her eyes now on the towel on the floor, a reminder of her earlier behavior, "...sorry."

"Sorry for what? I just woke up! Time to get something to eat?" Jane said with false enthusiasm, trying to lighten the mood, but from the worried look on Emily's face, she did not know if she was succeeding or not.

With a slight hesitation, Emily nodded, "Er, yes, it's that time..." and then walked over to the dresser and held out her hand, palm up, for Jane to step on.

Jane accepted the implied invitation and took a seat in the middle of her hand, after which Emily walked over to the door and turned the key with her other hand to unlock it. She then opened the door and made her way to the kitchen to begin preparing breakfast.

A few minutes later, they were both sitting at the table, or on the table for Jane, eating breakfast and looking at a big thing on the wall that Emily called a TV.

It showed two people sitting at a table and talking about a variety of subjects, none of which Jane was able to understand. What they said was filled with words that meant nothing to her, so she did not know what they were talking about.

Anxious to get her mind off things, but reluctant to interrupt Emily as she stared ponderously into space, Jane returned to her self-imposed mission to find out how this thing worked.

Her first impression was that the TV contained members of her species, much to the amusement of Emily, who assured her that it did not.

Now, after a few days of observation and a little more familiarity with the thing, she had to admit that she was a little embarrassed to have said such a silly thing. These creatures must have belonged to another species, since they were bigger than the Little Folk!

She nodded, agreeing with her own interpretation, and continued to study it, trying to uncover all its secrets.

"You think I've gone too far..." a voice broke her concentration after a moment, and Jane turned to Emily, who rubbed her hands anxiously.

"I was afraid of what might happen to you, but I was completely oblivious to what her feelings might be... I'm the worst," Emily said softly to Jane.

"Huh? No, no, no! You're overreacting!" Jane exclaimed, shocked by her sudden pessimism, "It was just an occasion where you both said something silly, nothing big. You both had valid points! Why don't you just make up and get it over with?"

"Maya asked for my support, but instead of helping her or discussing with her why it couldn't be done, I yelled at her. Not only that, but I blamed her for all of it, when in fact it was all my fault. I'm the one who created a huge problem from nothing." Emily replied with a quiver in her voice and tears in her eyes.

"You did have some understandable concerns, you know?" Jane said in a serious tone as she crossed her arms, "Your reaction to Maya was indeed a bit over the top, but it was understandable. That woman tried to kill me, and Maya was somewhat inappropriate in asking you to do this. Look, you don't need to feel so guilty about it. Just make up with her! That's all there is to it! What's the problem?"

Emily shook her head, then got up and walked out the window, her eyes locked on something only she could see.

"You don't understand, Jane. I can't act like this. I have to be a better person than that. Even though I believe what I'm saying is right, the way I'm saying it is just not acceptable. How can I call myself a good person if I behave like this? I cannot impose my will on others, whether I am right or wrong! I'm not infallible, but that doesn't excuse my mistakes! I'm... I'm not like them!" Emily shouted, gritting her teeth in an uncharacteristic display of rage that shocked Jane.

After a few moments, Emily sighed to calm her nerves, looking at Jane sheepishly, "Please forgive me for this outburst… I've shown you a terrible side of me… I'm ashamed."

Jane had a look of surprise on her face for a couple of seconds before she shook her head.

"And why should you be ashamed? It's normal to be nervous sometimes, you know?" she said in an understanding tone, "Actually, it can be helpful! There's obviously something on your mind, and you need to get it off your chest. Even if I can't do anything concrete to help you, I can at least listen to what's bothering you."

"Thank you very much for your offer, Jane, but I really don't want to bore you with my problems." Emily gently declined, but Jane refused to let her refuse.

"Bore me with your problems?! Excuse me for saying that, but... are you stupid?" Jane frowned, sounding incredulous and annoyed, "Do you really think I care that little about you?!"

Now it was Emily's turn to look surprised, "Well, I... no, but... it's kind of a long story and..."

"Then what?" Jane interrupted, "I've got nothing to do, nowhere to go, and all I care about right now is you! I think I can afford to take a little time out of my life for you."

"Thank you, Jane," Emily blushed and looked down shyly. “It's just that... I don't think it's right to burden you with my personal problems... these are things that shouldn't fall on anyone else..."

"And I'll remind you that I had problems that weren't yours either, and yet you came to my aid." Jane said, sounding calmer now, but still irritated.

"That's a whole different thing!" Emily replied emphatically, "In your case, your life was at stake! I couldn't just do nothing!"

"Exactly!" Jane nodded in agreement with her words. 

"If I'm here now, it's only because you made it possible. Just one more reason why I owe you at least a couple of minutes of my attention, don't you think?", she finished her sentence with a smirk on her face.

Emily stammered for a few seconds, trying to think of something to say. But then she stopped herself and started laughing instead.

"You're really stubborn, you know?", she said with a little smile on her face.

"I try," Jane said with a shrug before looking at Emily, "Now tell me what's bothering you!"

Emily sat back down at the table and drummed her fingers thoughtfully for a few moments before she sighed, "Where to start..."

"You should start at the beginning. That would work." Jane said jokingly, drawing a small smile from Emily.

"It's truer than you think..." she replied before turning serious.

"I... I'm an orphan." Emily began, "Whether my relatives are alive or not, I don't know... nor do I care. I'm an adult now, and they were never a part of my life, so it's the same to me either way."

She looked away, embarrassed by how she had spoken and especially by the rudeness of what she had said, but not wanting to back down, she steeled herself and continued.

"I grew up in a Catholic orphanage run by nuns, and the experience was... well, let's just say it wasn't good..." she murmured softly, before shaking her head and thinking better of it.

"Forget it. It was horrible! We slept in the cold on filthy, animal-infested floors! We ate the nuns' leftovers, when there was any, and only when they had the courtesy to give it to us in the first place! They forced us to work from a very young age under the pretext of 'teaching us a trade'! And beatings were a daily occurrence, whether there was a real reason for it or not, it didn't matter!" Emily shouted angrily. "And the worst thing is that they thought they were right! They had this belief that all of their abuse was justifiable because they were the ones who took us in!"

Her hands went up to cover her eyes, which were beginning to well up with tears.

"If we asked for a blanket to protect us from the cold, they would beat us and tell us to be thankful that we had a roof over our heads. If our stomachs were still rumbling after a meal, they would make us skip our next meal and call us greedy pigs at the same time. If we collapsed from exhaustion while working, they would lock us in dark closets as punishment for being irresponsible slackers!"

Jane listened to the story with a growing look of shock and horror on her face.

Although she was unfamiliar with many of the words Emily had used, she understood the essence of the story and was appalled by what Emily had been through.

"B-but how can that be?! Why did they do that? Has anyone ever tried to stop it?" she asked, panicking, not understanding how this could be possible, but Emily shook her head, saddened.

"I don't know... Maybe they really thought they were doing something good, or maybe they knew what they were doing was wrong, but didn't have a problem with it... but who cares? They were still able to make themselves look good in the eyes of the people. If any of us tried to ask for help from the outside, they were immediately branded as spoiled brats who would tell unbelievable stories to get out of doing their chores..." she said, before laughing bitterly, "How many times have I seen some of the children forcibly returned to the orphanage as if they were disobedient animals... Sometimes people even suggested to the nuns that they should... teach us a lesson about not lying... not knowing that they were condemning them to days of beatings and deprivation..."

Jane felt herself shudder, the blood in her veins freezing to ice.

How any human could be the victim of such a thing, especially at the hands of other human beings, was beyond her comprehension.

Jane was silent as she tried to make sense of what had been revealed to her, and then she asked for clarification on what seemed to be a contradiction.

"But... Why do you want to be considered good when the people who are considered good have caused you so much suffering? I mean, you just said that you want to be a good person. But why is that? Shouldn't you just hate them or something?" she asked, unable to understand her motivations, and received a faint chuckle from Emily as she wiped away her tears.

"Believe me, I want to. But the whole point of this whole thing is to try to prove them wrong. I want to show everyone, especially them, what it really means to be a good person. That you can help those who are less fortunate without feeling superior to them. You know, to be good just for the sake of being good!" she said with conviction in her voice... but then the smile on her face faded.

"But now my true self has finally come out... And I am as bad as them. I have fallen at the first difficulty that I've ever come across." She sighed and once again looked out of the window in a thoughtful manner, "But that's what you get when you pretend to be good for the sake of revenge, right?"

But Jane didn't answer, lost in her own thoughts.

‘I would never have thought that humans could suffer like this…’ she thought, feeling ashamed.

Suffering and hardship were common among her species, but she had always thought that humans had a... better life than theirs.

Even though this week had shown her that her beliefs were wrong, she still clung to the idea that her presence was the cause and that their lives would return to normal after her departure. Hell, she thought Emily's kindness came from her naivety! An innocent girl who didn't understand the unfairness of the world and had to be protected because she had never known what it was like to suffer in life…

But she had been wrong about that. Oh, if she was wrong...

The truth was that she had a very good understanding of suffering, and she had no desire for anyone else to have that understanding. This only served to make her admire Emily even more.

"You're a wonderful person, Emily..." Jane said as she looked up at her in awe.

"Huh? Did you hear what I just said? I force myself to be a good person just to take revenge on the people I dislike! I really am not a good person at all! I mean, just look at the way I treated Maya! Is that the way a good person would act?" Emily asked, confused, not understanding how Jane could find what she was doing admirable.

"Um... that's true. A good person wouldn't act like that," Jane said, lowering her head thoughtfully.

"Right! There's nothing good in--" Emily started to answer before Jane cut her off and spoke over her.

"A so-called good person would think that since they're in the right, it's up to the other person to admit they were wrong, but not you! You are better than that! You are willing to admit your mistakes and try to find common ground, even when you are right! These good people, they would never do a thing like that!" Jane pointed out, her eyes fixed on Emily's as she tried to get her point across.

"But... I did it for selfish reasons!" Emily persisted in her attempt to prove that she was not a good person, but Jane exhaled in irritation.

Even if Emily wasn't the naive, clueless girl she thought she was, she was still far too idealistic for her own good.

"Oh, did you? Have you ever asked for anything in return when you have helped someone else?" she asked with a frown on her face, to which Emily shook her head in the negative.

"Well, no, but--" Emily tried to answer, but Jane cut her off again.

"Then what's the problem?" she shouted, throwing her arms up in the air in exasperation.

"It's not as simple as that..." Emily said quietly, "I only do this because it makes me feel good, which is hardly selfless."

"It is that simple! You are the one who is making it unnecessarily complicated!" Jane replies, raising her voice.

"You help other people without asking for anything in return, and that makes you a good person! Just because you felt good doing it doesn't make you selfish! Selflessness doesn't have to mean self-sacrifice! So stop filling your head with useless thoughts and learn to take a compliment! And don't forget about the other fool! You two need to make up, dammit!" she finished, panting after the tirade.

Several seconds of silence passed before Emily shyly said, "You're right... I'll do that... I'm sorry..."

After another few seconds of silence, she added, "You can be very scary, too. You know?"

"That's the only way I can get through a head as hard as yours!" Jane shouted again before letting out a sigh. 'I hope it really got through to her...'

In a pink-colored room, there was a bed whose blankets bulged, showing the figure of a person tucked underneath.

After a while, there was a fierce struggle before they were tossed aside, revealing the head of a little girl with dark skin and disheveled black hair. From the grumpy expression on her face, it was obvious that she had not slept well.

The little girl, Maya, rubbed the sleep from her eyes with her closed hands and sat down on the edge of the bed with a yawn.

After glancing at her alarm clock for a few seconds, which showed that it was already past 10:00 AM, she stood up and took a step... only to trip over the blanket she had just thrown over and fall with a scream.

Luckily for her, she fell on top of the blanket, which softened the blow, but the shock of it woke her up completely.

She picked up the blanket and angrily threw it on the bed, then muttered her way to the bathroom.

After doing her business and washing her face, Maya went back to her room to get dressed, but just as she was getting out of her pajamas, something occurred to her.

And why?

Frozen, she thought about what she usually did at this time of the day when she didn't have to go to school, and there were only two things that came to her mind.

Either go visit Emily... Or make something to show Emily when she visits her later...

Maya sobbed, her eyes already starting to water as they unconsciously moved to a picture of her and Emily together.

Sitting back down on the bed, Maya hugged her legs, her despair returning to her after the brief interruption of her sleep... Or, considering the nightmares she had been having, maybe not even that.

She was disappointed in herself, the thought of what she had done haunting her mind.

Suki... the one who had not only been her tormentor for over a year, but who had almost eaten Jane alive! But Suki only had to say that she was sorry for what she had done... or at least she said that she was sorry, even though she could have lied... and she instantly dumped Emily and Jane to help her.

She hugged her legs as she tried to figure out what had been going through her mind when she'd asked Emily to do that.

"Hey Emily, remember that Suki girl? The one who always taunts us and wants to eat Jane alive just for kicks? Yeah, well, she has had a change of heart lately. We're buddies now! Uh, anyway, do you mind if I borrow Jane for a while? I think Suki would kinda like to have her. I'm sure she won't try to eat her again! She promised me she would be good! And if you don't, then you are the bad one!" Maya mimicked her conversation with Emily before gagging in disgust.

"Of course she's mad at me! I'm dumb! Dumb! Dumb dumb dumb dumb!" She muttered to herself with sobs in her voice.

After she had calmed down a bit, she let out a sad sigh before she got up and went to the kitchen to get some breakfast.

With Maya not knowing how to cook, her mother not wanting her anywhere near the stove, and Emily always cooking for her, she needed an easy-to-prepare alternative.

Cereal and milk, in short.

When she opened the cupboard to see what was in there, she was disappointed to find that the only thing there was the sugar-free oatmeal, something that her mother had bought because it was healthy... But she wanted something good and sweet to boost morale!

A top-to-bottom search of the kitchen, by which she meant digging around in the back of the cupboard, hoping her hands would find something her eyes couldn't see, came up empty.

In spite of her best efforts, she was still forced to eat the cereal, "They can't be that bad, can they?"

Five minutes later, a bowl full of milk and cereal with a spoon in it sat on the table while Maya stood at the sink in the kitchen and rinsed her mouth with sugar water, "Yuck! Who eats this kind of garbage?! It makes me feel sick!”

With the bad taste finally out of her mouth, Maya looked at the bowl in disgust before tossing the whole thing in the sink and deciding to skip breakfast altogether.

‘Only little kids eat cereal for breakfast, anyway! And I'm not a little kid anymore!’ she thought, trying to reassure herself.

Once the sink was nicely clogged with cereal, she returned to her room and sat on her bed, contemplating what to do now that her normal schedule had been disrupted.

After five minutes of quietly gazing at the wall, during which she nearly dozed off twice, she abandoned this approach and began looking around her room for ideas of how to pass the time.

What about her dolls? Those were for babies! Pass!

Her dollhouse? Well, it wasn't much fun if there wasn't someone else to play with, like... Pass!

Her laptop? That was just for school work. She didn't have any games on it or access to the internet, so that was another pass...

There was nothing else that caught her attention until her eyes fell on her cell phone.

"Oh! I can call my friends and spend some time with 'em!" She said excitedly before picking up her phone and scrolling through her contacts to find someone to hang out with... all three of them.

Mama, Emily and... Shana.

"Why do I only have three numbers? Where are all my friends from school?" She wondered, ignoring the fact that she had never hung out with any of them outside of school, and that was why she had never even asked for their phone numbers.

"And why do I have Shana's number in my phone? I should just delete it..." She thought to herself, but couldn't bring herself to actually do it.

Throwing the phone on the bed with a huff, she walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. She switched on her TV, flipping through channels to find something interesting: "When in doubt, the TV is always the answer!"

Unfortunately for her, TV wasn't the answer, and all channels that weren't news or educational were locked behind parental controls.

With the TV off and her morale sapped, Maya lay face down on the sofa. She remained there, motionless, until her cell phone rang to let her know that a message had been received.

Although she did not feel like looking at the message, she forced herself to do so. Her mother always got annoyed if Maya didn't read her messages right away.

She pressed her finger down on the screen to bring it to life. She glanced at the big numbers on the screen, showing that it was after 12:30, meaning that she had lay on the sofa for over an hour.

With a groan, she checked her messages and nearly had a heart attack when she saw that it was not her mother... but Emily.

Maya looked at the message icon with concern, afraid of what it might say.

"Why is she texting me? What will her message be? Is she still as angry with me as before?” She thought worriedly, not wanting to open it to see what was really inside.

She got up and started pacing around the living room, looking down at the phone again and again in anxiety.

After ten minutes of this, she sat back down on the couch and picked up the phone, looking at the message icon on the screen.

After another ten minutes of staring at the screen in silence, she came to a decision,

"If I delete it, it's like I never got it, right?"

Uncertain of the truth, but afraid to open the message, Maya held down the icon until a menu appeared, then selected ‘Delete’.

The sound of the deletion process was both comforting and disturbing to her ears... But it was done now.

With a sigh, she put the phone down and stared at the wall, trying to calm her nerves until her stomach rumbled with hunger and reminded her that it was still empty.

With another groan, Maya realized that it was lunchtime, but the fact remained that she had nothing to eat.

Her supply of lasagna, provided by Emily, had run out the night before. Her usual weekly replenishment, when Emily gave her food to take home, had not happened because of the fight. Now she was left with absolutely nothing to eat.

Rubbing her stomach to ease her hunger, she looked at her contacts again, searching for a solution, but they were the same as before.

Her mother worked from early in the morning until late at night, and it was a miracle to see her at all, let alone prepare something to eat.

Emily... she could not ask anything of her after what she had done.

And as for Shana... Just no.

With a huff, she put the phone in her pajama pocket and decided to just eat at a fast-food place like everyone else.

When she went to her room to get some money, Maya opened the drawer where she kept the pocket money her mother had given her.

It was empty.

It was at that moment that a terrible realization came into her mind, and she slowly turned around.  

A doll of Pippa Rabbit, her favorite cartoon character, which she had impulsively bought after the fight with Emily so that she would have someone to cuddle and comfort her, was quietly judging her for her spending habits.

‘I had no idea I'd ever have a need for this money... I'm sorry.’ Maya thought to herself with a sad sigh as she closed the drawer.

She had never really needed it, her basic needs were more or less covered since she practically lived with Emily, so she just used it for whatever she wanted... But that would have to change now.

In any case, the question of what she was going to do now remained unanswered!

She had no food, no money, and most of all... no Emily!

She could see no solution... unless...

She pulled out her phone again and looked at a number once more.

Shana's.

After staring at it intensely for a few seconds, she looked away, laughing at herself, "Yeah, right! I learned my lesson with Suki, I'm not that stupid!"

"What the hell are you talkin' about, squirt? Have you gone crazy without Barbie?" A voice came from the phone and Maya realized to her horror that she had initiated the call.

As the time on the call passed, she remained silent, hoping that Shana would get bored and decide to end the call, knowing that if she were the one to end the call, Shana would call her back right away. Or, even worse, show up at her house in person.

"Hey! Answer the goddamn phone! Is something wrong? Hey! Talk, you idiot! Hey! Hey! Hey!"

When she saw that she had no intention of doing so, but only seemed to be more determined by her silence, Maya decided to say something harsh to her. Something that would force her to hang up.

"I hate you. Leave me alone." She said, causing a moment of silence on both sides of the conversation.

But instead of the click that would have signaled that Shana had hung up, a defeated sigh came from the other end,

"Yeah, I'm aware. Did you call just to tell me that? Or was it for something else?"

Maya was stunned by Shana's oddly restrained reaction and was left speechless.

Fortunately or unfortunately, her stomach decided to answer and loudly signaled its emptiness to Shana, "Are you, uh, are you hungry? Did that bitch leave you all alone at home with nothing to eat again?"

"Hey, don't call her names. She has no idea that me and Emily are..." Maya weakly protested as Shana snorted.

"Just because Barbie loves to take care of you doesn't mean she has to dump you off on someone else all the time! She's supposed to be a mother! She's gotta act like one!" She said in a heated tone, and Maya thought she had a point, so she remained silent.

With another sigh, Shana said, "Okay, well, I was going to go and get something to eat anyway, so I might as well come by and pick you up. But I'm not going to stop and wait for you to be ready! I'll come in about ten minutes, and if I don't find you there, I'll leave your ass at home. You got that?"

"Yes! I'm going to get ready right now!" Maya replied before tossing the phone on the bed and getting dressed. Shana tried to call her a few times before she realized what was happening and hung up mumbling.

Five minutes later, Maya was ready and ran out of the house to wait for Shana, who was... already there, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed.

Seeing her come out, Shana pulled herself up and started to walk away, "Let's go."

Maya, who had instinctively gone to follow her, said out of curiosity, "Why were you already out there waiting? You said it would take ten minutes."

"You were just closer than I thought. And I wasn't waitin' for you. If you hadn't been out when you were, I would have been on my way without the ten minute wait."

Maya looked away sadly, but decided to thank her anyway, since she was doing her a favor, "Anyway, thanks for helping me–"

"I'm only doing this so that the bitch won't bother me! Don't think that I'm doin' it for your sake!" Shana replied angrily, quickening her pace.

‘Silly me, being grateful…’ Maya thought, annoyed, as she hurried to follow her.

After a while, they arrived at the fast food place, and Shana walked over to one of the touch screen panels to place her order, "What are you eating? A Happy Meal? Burgers or nuggets?”

"Hamburgers are good. Oh, and can I have chocolate milk as my drink?" Maya replied, getting excited thinking about something chocolatey.

"Chocolate and burgers? What a terrible taste..." Shana said in a tone of disgust, but she went ahead and did it anyway, "Why can't we remove the apple slices...? Or at least replace it with something good? I mean, it's just stupid to waste them since you're not going to eat them anyway..."

Maya looked in surprise at Shana, who was too busy muttering to herself, trying to decide what to order, to even notice.

It was true that Maya didn't like apples, but how had she known? For years the only one she had eaten with who could have known her taste was Emily, so how...?"

"Hey! Stop dawdling and find us a seat! I don't want to be anywhere near any fat losers, all right?" Shana shouted at her and set her to work.

She looked around and saw a small two-seater table near the entrance. It wasn't close to any of the other tables, so Maya sat down and waited for Shana to join her.

Minutes later, Shana arrived with two trays. She placed them on the table before sitting down to eat.

Maya brought her tray over and excitedly eyed the surprise package, noticing for the first time that it was a new collaboration with the Pippa Rabbit cartoon. But just as she was about to open it, Shana slapped her hand,

"Food first! I only brought you here because you looked like you were hungry, but if it's because of this stupid cartoon, then I'll throw it away and take you home!"

Maya had a dejected look on her face and rubbed her hand, but she had nothing to say because she was right.

She began to eat, mixing burgers and fries with the chocolatey goodness of milk, which gave her a happy, carefree feeling.

Finally, when her belly was full, she opened the package and smiled at the contents. Inside was a smiling Pippa Rabbit doll holding a kitchen knife and dressed in ketchup-stained clothes.

Soon, though, her eyes lifted from the doll and locked with Shana's, who was picking at her fries as she looked at her, "...y-yes? What is it?"

Shana pursed her lips as if she had just swallowed a lemon before letting out a deep sigh, "You need to apologize to Emily..."

Maya gasped, shocked that Shana had called Emily... Emily! She usually called everyone but Suki by nickname. What was going on here?

"Um... you're Shana, my stepsister... aren't you?" Maya asked tentatively, causing Shana to look at her oddly.

"What kind of shitty question is that? It seems like a few days without Barbie has really turned your brain to mush..."

‘Ok... this is the real Shana.’ Maya thought with relief before she replied, "Well, you usually don't care about me, but now you're taking the time to take me to lunch and tell me to make up with Emily... It's a little strange of you... that's all."

"It's just because you've already proven that you're incapable of surviving on your own without someone taking care of you," Shana replied with an angry look. “You probably would have starved to death if I had not been there! And this was less than four days after you were separated from your keeper! That's why you two need to make up ASAP!”

Maya could only shrink back from all the truth being thrown at her, "It's not that easy... after what I did..."

"You were an idiot, what else is new?" Shana said matter-of-factly, "You're just a little girl who did something stupid. At your age, it's only natural."

“I doubt she'll hold a grudge against you for such a stupid thing." she continued, eating another fry, “Actually, I'm surprised that she hasn't gotten in touch with you to apologize herself."

"Well... she did send me a text message a while ago..." Maya said sheepishly.

"Ha, I knew she would!" Shana said with a smug smile on her face, "What did she say?"

When Maya didn't answer and blatantly looked away, Shana frowned at her, probably sensing that something had gone wrong.

"Maya," she snapped, "What did you do…?"

Swallowing hard, Maya looked down at her trembling hands, "I... I might have... deleted the message..."

There was a long silence before Shana slowly rose from the table and made her way to the door, "We're going to Emily now. If you open your mouth on the way, I swear I will strangle you and throw you in a ditch!"

"Why isn't she answering..." Emily wondered, confused and concerned, as she looked at the screen of her phone, which was on its third attempt to call Maya.

It was very strange to her that she didn't pick up the phone after the first couple of rings, since she always kept the phone close to her.

Now, Maya wasn't the type to be on the phone all the time, in fact, she hardly ever used it... or at least when she was with Emily, she only checked the time and nothing else.

No, the real reason why she did that was because of her mother, Kadri.

Kadri is... Emily had never been quite sure how to classify her.

She had always been someone who was reluctant to speak ill of someone. Until now, Suki had been the first in a decade to achieve this dubious distinction, and only after her attempt on Jane's life.

But... she couldn't deny that she felt a certain... dislike for the woman.

Maybe it was unfair of her, since she had so few encounters with her, and on only one occasion had they had any interaction with each other. But her almost constant absence from Maya's life was something that she didn't like at all.

She could understand that the woman was extremely busy with her work, but did she really have to be? Her husband, Albert, who was both Shana's and Maya's father, was a wealthy businessman who traveled all over the world. While this didn't make them filthy rich, it did allow them to live a comfortable life without having to sacrifice anything.

Of course, she knew that being a wife and a mother didn't mean that she had to give up everything except being a stay-at-home mom, but... 

Was it really any different having your parents absent from your life than not having them at all?

Emily was quick to shake her head at that kind of nonsense.

For one thing, Maya had never had to go through anything like what she had experienced. And for that, she was very grateful! She truly was!

Still... she couldn't forget their first and only conversation, a few years back, when she'd walked Maya home after spending the day together at the homeless shelter.

That day, she had been making tomato soup, and Maya had been standing behind her, watching intently as she cooked.

She had placed dozens of tomato cans, both full and empty, close to her so that they were within easy reach.

Unfortunately, she bumped into one and accidentally spilled it all over Maya's dress, making her giggle at her clumsiness.

She didn't attach much importance to the incident herself, just saying that she was sorry before she moved on... but that all changed when they arrived at Maya's house.

Seeing that her mother was home for once, Maya ran up to her with a smile on her face... and what she got in return was a slap.

Shocked, she stood still as Kadri began to scold Maya for not only dirtying her own clothes, but almost getting Kadri's dirty as well.

Of course, as soon as Emily recovered, she immediately jumped to Maya's defense, admitting that she was to blame for what had happened. However, while Kadri thanked her for taking care of Maya while she was gone, she bluntly told her that it wasn't her place to interfere and that she should mind her own business.

And even though she was technically right, Emily couldn't get over the abrupt and... unfair way she had handled the situation, reminding her of how the nuns had behaved when she was a child... but that was probably prejudice on her part, stemming from a lack of knowledge of how families actually worked in real life.

With a deep sigh, she ended the call, which had gone unanswered for more than five minutes now, and sat down hard on her bed, looking sadly at Jane, who was sitting cross-legged on her bed, looking just as sad.

"I can't reach her..." Emily said, stating the obvious, mostly to break the silence that had been building up in the room for the last hour, during which time she had gone from sending text messages to trying to call Maya directly, but getting nothing.

Jane looked at the phone with a mixture of curiosity and confusion, not sure what it was or how it worked, before looking back at Emily, "Isn't there any other way you can contact her? I mean, can't you just go to her directly?"

"I would have preferred to be able to say at least a few words of reassurance before meeting her face to face..." Emily started before she sighed, "But that doesn't seem to be happening, does it?"

Jane shrugged before falling back onto the bed, "No idea... you humans seem to have a lot more options than we do. But I think it is always best to talk in person. It is much easier to get the message across when you are face to face."

"That's true..." Emily admitted before she let out another sigh and stood up, "Well, there's no point in wasting time thinking about it. I'd better get going and-"

A series of loud knocks on her door interrupted her answer, making her curious and... alert, as this was something out of the ordinary.

"Who's there?" Emily demanded, her voice clear and firm.

"Me, Shana. We need to talk," the person behind the door, Shana by her own admission, announced in a forceful and commanding manner.

After a few seconds of silence, as Emily tried to think of something less rude to say than telling her to go away, Shana continued, her tone more hesitant, "If you want, of course, I won't force you, but I have something important I want to say, or rather clarify, because..."

Her voice trailed off as she spoke, and Emily was quite confused at how strange she was acting, "Uh... are you really Shana?"

"Fuck yeah, I am! Who in the hell do you think you are talking to? What's with the dumb questions? And you, why the fuck are you lookin' at me like that? Say something, goddammit!" she blurted out, reassuring Emily that it was indeed Shana. But at the same time, a small, frightened cry told her that there was another person behind the door... It sounded... familiar somehow...

"Emily...! I'm s-sorry! I'm stupid! Stupid! Stupid! P-please, don't hate me! I'll do anything, just please... don't..." the voice, clearly Maya's as she suspected, said before she started to cry desperately, which broke her heart.

Hearing Maya cry was something she felt was deeply wrong, something that should never happen. Even though she wanted to have a long, deep discussion with Maya about what had happened, she could not stand it any longer.

That's why she put everything else aside and hurried to the door, turning the key before opening it. When she did, she was faced with a rather... peculiar scene.

As she had expected, Maya was crying her eyes out, her face was a mess of tears and mucus. But what surprised her was that Shana was on her knees in front of Maya, with her back to Emily…

And she was topless as well.

Slowly blinking at Shana's naked back, Emily watched as she used her sports top to wipe Maya's face, "Look at yourself, for God's sake!  If this is how you end up the first time you get into a fight with your crush, how am I supposed to feel safe letting you out in the wild?"

Maya replied with a string of gibberish that Shana didn't bother to listen to, just kept wiping until her top was too dirty to clean, spreading the mess around more than anything else.

"Ugh... no fucking way I'm putting this crap back on..." Shana said in a disgusted tone, seeing the state of the garment, before instinctively throwing it behind her... right in Emily's face, who made a surprised sound.

Shana turned her head when she heard the noise and winced when she saw what he had done, "Oh shit, sorry, I..." 

But Emily, who was pulling the garment away from her face, didn't care about the matter, all of her attention was focused on Maya.

Kneeling down to Maya's eye level, Emily caressed Maya's face with her free hand.

"Maya..." she started, her voice soft and mournful, "don't cry... I'm sorry for the way I treated you... It's my fault-"

"Oh hell no, don't you fucking dare!" Shana cut her off, "She's the one who did the wrong thing, and she's the one who should apologize!"

Emily was taken aback by her reaction and looked at her with wide eyes, but they soon narrowed to a serious look, "And I was even more wrong, so I owe her an apology as well."

"Oh, please..." Shana said with a roll of her eyes, "She gave you the attitude and you set her straight, just like it was supposed to be!"

"I screamed at her! I told her to keep away from Jane! That was a very cruel thing to do!" Emily countered, trying to prove that it was her fault, but Shana looked at her like she was an idiot.

"Are you aware of the fact that normal people would simply refer to what you have done as scolding and punishing? Things that any parent in their right mind would be expected to do when a child starts to act out? You know, to keep them from growing into arrogant assholes..." Shana said as she crossed her arms under her chest, unconsciously propping up her bare breasts in the process.

"You mean the way you are?" Emily said instantly, unable to stop herself before it was too late, her words pouring out of her mouth like a torrent.

There was a brief silence, after which Shana nodded, albeit with a frown on her face, "Exactly."

The silence returned, and no one dared to break it... at least not the three of them.

"Um... can I say something?" a small, tiny voice said from within Emily's room.

All three heads turned towards the door and Shana, intrigued, walked to the door and looked in to see Jane who greeted her shyly, "Hey... nice to see you?"

She walked over to Jane and stood over her, her breasts casting a shadow over the miniature girl, "What?"

"Shana!" Emily said, startled to see her so close to Jane. "Don't..."

"Calm the fuck down." Shana huffed, "I'm not touchin' her."

Jane swallowed hard, mentally preparing what she was going to say. She also reminded herself not to make a joke or even mention the two huge things that were above her. She had no intention of being crushed by them.

"I feel like the situation is getting a little too... tense? This is a moment of reunion for them, a moment of joy. Could you... leave them alone for a few minutes? Just to let them calm down..." Jane said, trying to be as least antagonistic as possible to Shana, who was looking at her sternly.

After staring at Jane for a few seconds, Shana snorted and dropped her arms, "Fine. I know there's no point in standing here and staring, so I'm off to the shower. I kinda forgot to take one earlier. Now I'm drenched in sweat and smell like a rotten carcass..."

Then she stared at them and went on: "I want you two to be all lovey-dovey and ready for a good talk when I'm done. Anything to say?"

Maya slowly raised a hand, and Shana's eyes rolled again, "What?"

"So... are my boobs going to be big like yours when I grow up?" Maya asked shyly, trying to keep her eyes from focusing on the big boobs she didn't know Shana had.

"I'll take a shower!" Shana said with a mixture of embarrassment and surprise, before turning and walking away.

"She's oddly nice today... I'm a little worried," Maya commented to both Emily and herself as she watched Shana enter her room, presumably to get a change of clothes.

Nodding silently, Emily, still surprised to see Shana being so... civil, not only to them, but to Jane as well, put a hand on Maya's shoulder and led her back to her room.

Once inside, the two of them sat down on the bed. They were very close to each other, but they felt as if they were so far apart. They both wanted to apologize to each other, but they did not know how to broach the subject.

"Maya! I'm so glad to see you again! Won't you come and give me a hug?" Jane said out loud, as she had no intention of leaving the two of them to their own devices.

"Jane! I missed you so much!" Maya said happily and got up to walk over to her, smiling as she went.

But after taking a few steps, the smile faded from her face. She turned back to Emily, her eyes a plea for her to be allowed to greet Jane.

Stunned, but understanding the significance of the gesture, Emily smiled and nodded, tacitly agreeing that their fight was over.

With tears streaming down her cheeks, Maya hurried over to Jane. Holding out her palm for Jane to climb on, Maya brought Jane to her chest and hugged her.

There was silence in the room, each of them lost in their own world, enjoying the beautiful moment, but sooner than she would have liked, Maya broke the embrace and handed Jane over to Emily. She took a few steps back and watched them from a distance with a sad expression on her face, leaving the two of them confused.

Maya closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again, her gaze determined in spite of the tears, "Emily... Jane... I am sorry."

Emily opened her mouth to say that she had nothing to be sorry for, but before she could utter a word, Maya shook her head, "No."

As Emily looked down at her hands, she saw that Jane was doing the same thing, but she couldn't accept it, "Maya, what you did was an honest mistake. You were just trying to help-"

"No!" Maya repeated, gritting her teeth, "Don't try to make up some excuse so you can forgive me! It doesn't matter why I did what I did! I put Suki before our relationship... and before Jane's life!"

"At that moment, I really thought I was right!" she said, pressing her palms to her eyes in a vain attempt to hold back her tears, "I was angry at you for not just giving Jane to me like she was a toy! If you hadn't forbidden me to see Jane, I would have been able to give her to Suki! I could have let her get killed just so I could feel good about myself!"

"Enough is enough." Jane said with a clap of her hands, "Stop this nonsense!"

"Huh?" Maya said, snapping out of her self-pity, "But I-"

"But nothing!" Jane thundered, pointing her finger at Maya, "I let you apologize without interruption because it was something you had to do, both because it was something you owed Emily and because you needed it yourself, but being sorry for something that never happened isn't going to help anyone."

"Now it's your turn!" she continued, turning quickly to face Emily, "And stick to what really happened! You are here to make peace, not to compete with each other as to who is the one who deserves it the least!"

The two of them looked at Jane in shock, and then they looked at each other.

"She can be pretty scary..." Maya said softly, feeling intimidated, and Emily nodded, "Small but fierce..."

"I'll show you just how fierce if you don't stop wasting time!" Jane roared before clapping her hands again, "Come on, hurry up. Those apologies won't happen by themselves!"

Not wanting to upset Jane any more than she already had today, Emily nodded quickly, took a deep breath, and began to speak.

"Maya... I owe you an apology, too. The things that I said to you were unacceptable and..." Emily stopped herself and held up her hand, cutting Maya off, "I know that you think that I was right, and to be honest with you, I do too. But the way I went about this, the tone I took, was unforgivable. And while I did it for Jane's sake, I completely failed to consider how you felt. And that... that's something that's indefensible. I'm sorry for that..."

When Emily looked up, her eyes locked with Maya's. Remorse for what they had done to each other filled them both. But they were determined to be sincere in their apologies to each other. They wanted to put all this behind them once and for all and go back to being as they had been.

After several seconds of them looking at each other silently, Jane rolled her eyes and said, "Must I always be the one calling the shots?! Come on! Get up!"

The two jumped to their feet, instinctively moving in response to the command.

"Now, will you accept the apology? Are you ready to forgive?"

"Yes!" they both said at once, unable to think of any other answer.

"Excellent! Now hug! Hug each other! Hurry! Hurry!" Jane urged, and the two of them immediately threw themselves into a tight embrace, pressing themselves against each other as they did so.

"Now kiss each other, kiss!" Jane pressed, grinning as she thought her plan was finally going to come to fruition.

"Wait. What?" Emily asked in confusion after realizing her strange request, but Maya, still instinctively responding to Jane's commands, pressed her lips to Emily's in a kiss.

They stayed like this, staring into each other's shocked eyes, before Maya's brain re-connected and she realized what she had done, yelping as she threw herself back.

As Jane watched the scene unfold, she exclaimed, "Yes! That's what I've been waiting for!" to the great embarrassment of both of them.

"Now I understand why that thing wanted me gone..." a voice said before they had a chance to speak.

Emily and Maya quickly turned to the door and saw Shana, clad in a robe, with a towel on her head and a beer in her hand. She was leaning on the door frame with one arm and looking at the three of them with a weary expression that made them feel completely embarrassed.

"It's not what it looks like!" Emily said instinctively before closing her eyes when she realized it was the wrong thing to say.

"This isn't exactly what I meant when I told you to be all lovey-dovey..." Shana replied, "But as long as you don't get her pregnant, I don't give a damn." She then opened the beer can and took a swig.

After that, Shana pushed herself away from the door and walked into the room. She sat down at Emily's desk, put her bare feet on it, and leaned back. "But I think this is enough to bring this stupid story to a close, no? Now is the time to clear up a few things that have been going on for far too long..."

Emily didn't know what was going on anymore, there was too much happening that she couldn't follow. She turned to Maya, hoping to find an ally in her confusion... but was disappointed to see Maya rubbing her lips with a fingertip, eyes blank.

When Emily saw Jane looking excitedly at everyone in the room, looking like Maya on Christmas Eve, she knew that looking around for help was a lost cause.

With a sigh, she turned to Shana, who was still drinking, a few more cans having appeared on her desk.

"What's going on with you today, Shana? You're acting strange...has something happened?" she asked, ending with a worried tone, her mind searching for reasons, even things like terminal illness and such.

"Oh... you wanna know?" Shana replied as she drank, "Well, I'll tell ya!"

Looking Emily straight in the eye as she leaned forward, she said, "It's because I need someone to be Maya's keeper, and you're the only one I can trust!"

"I-- what?" Emily said in a mixture of confusion and shock, not at all expecting this answer.

"Her bitch mother always leaves her alone, like a dog!" Shana said as she went back to her former position, "Just today I had to take her out to eat because she had nothing to eat at home!"

"Hey! That's unfair! When Mommy comes back, she always fills up the fridge and the pantry with food! And she always leaves me money for emergencies!" Maya jumped to her mother's defense before looking down in embarrassment, "It's my fault... I always spend it on stupid things..."

"It's me," Shana said, taking a swig and meeting Maya's eyes before putting the can down, "I'm the one who buys you the groceries while you're with Emily. I'm the one who leaves money in your drawer so that you can buy whatever it is that you want to buy. She won't."

Maya gasped in surprise, unable to speak, so Emily took the opportunity to ask a question, "If that's true, then that means you care about Maya, right? So why don't you spend some time with her? I mean, I love being with her, but you're her big sister, so... why?"

"Cause I can't!" Shana said and slammed the can down hard on the desk, spilling half of the contents all over the place, "That bitch won't let me! Last time I tried, she told the police I was trying to kidnap her! I spent a week in jail for it when I was 18! Dad finally bailed me out, but not without telling me how disappointed he was in what I'd done and telling me to stay away from his family!"

"Was... was it when you promised to take me to the amusement park?" Maya asked in horror as a memory began to surface in the back of her mind, "But Mommy said that you forgot about it and went on vacation with your friends..."

"Friends? What friends?" Shana laughed in disbelief, "Mommy dearest made sure that she told everyone what a no-good I was. No one approached me, let alone befriended me..."

"And how come I never heard anything about it?" Maya said in an angry tone as she refused to believe it, "Someone would have asked me if it was true!"

"Sorry to break it to you like this, sis. But no one is going to give a damn about the words of a little girl." Shana said, waving the can in front of her before taking a drink, "Your mother could say you're dead and nobody would care if you start shouting that you're alive."

"This is so fake! If you're going to talk trash about Mom, at least have something believable! Am I right, Emily?" Maya said, proud to have shattered Shana's lies, and she looked at Emily with a smile on her face.

But when she saw Emily looking away, hugging herself and trying to calm down, her smile faded.

Images of her childhood at the orphanage flashed through Emily's mind, reminding her of how many times her words had been ignored, or dismissed outright as lies, while the words of the nuns had been believed instead.

"She's... right...", Emily could barely say before falling back into silence.

Shana shot her a curious look, wondering why she was reacting the way she was, but she didn't have time to dwell on it before Maya regained her attention.

"But-but why would she do that?" Maya asked as tears welled up in her eyes, "It was something I had been looking forward to for weeks! She knew how much I was looking forward to going to the park with you! She knew! Why did she do this? Why did she have to do such a terrible thing to you? She could have just said no! Forbid me to go with you! Why did she do such a thing?"

"To ruin both of our lives, maybe." Shana shrugged before taking the last sip, finishing the can and setting it down on the desk, "She always hated me as much as she hated my mother. She never made a secret of it. Sending me to prison and making you and Dad hate me at the same time was probably the best day of her life... after my mother's death, of course."

"No... that can't be true!" Maya argued back, denying what Shana had just said.

She refused to believe that her mother was such a monster that she would ruin people's lives just to spite someone who was no longer alive.

"Mom is not a bad person! She cares about me! She LOVES me!" Maya cried, begging Shana with her eyes to tell her that this was all a joke... nothing but a terrible, cruel joke.

But Shana was angry, and she was also drunk, so she was ruthless as she went on.

"Oh, really, huh? Then why the hell can't she spend five goddamn minutes with you? How long has it been since the last time she spent any time with you? How long has it been since the last time she told you that she loved you? Has she ever said that to you at all?" she pointed out as she opened a new can of beer.

Maya was shaking, trying to answer, but she could only say, "I... I don't know..."

"My thoughts exactly..." Shana said, rolling her eyes before taking another gulp of her beer.

"But I am her daughter! That's gotta mean something... right?" said Maya, trying to find something, anything, to justify what she believed.

"I am technically her daughter too..."  Shana said and tried to drink some more, but she missed her mouth and spilled the beer all over herself, which made her angry, "But that didn't stop her from kicking me out of the house on my 18th birthday with nothing but the clothes on my back, did she?"

She tried to drink again, but the can was empty now and she threw it at the wall in anger, "She doesn't give a damn about you! You're just the trick she played on Daddy so she could take his money! As soon as she has no more use for you, she will throw you out of her life, just like she did me!"

Emily, who had stood aside in silence, was horrified at such revelations, her hands over her mouth open in shock, but for Maya it was even worse.

It was as if her world had come crashing down, shaken to its very foundations.

In the blink of an eye, all the certainties in her life had vanished.

Worst of all, she couldn't even deny it, trying to cling to the false belief that her mother cared. Everything Shana was saying were things she already knew and thought, but refused to acknowledge, in the hope that if she didn't accept them, they would just remain assumptions... but that was just naive foolishness on her part.

Unaware of their thoughts, Shana tried to reach for the last can, but her hand passed through all five as if they were ghosts, "But I ain't gonna let her! I ain't gonna let her ruin your life like she ruined mine!"

Grunting, she leapt forward to catch it, but the can swerved out of the way and she fell flat on her face.

"Shana!" Maya cried in alarm, lunging for her and trying to pick her up, but she was too heavy for her to carry.

Seeing the situation, Emily shook off her worries and went to help Maya pull Shana up, leaning her against the wall.

"Big sis, are you okay?" Maya said, taking Shana's head in her hands and seeing that Shana was crying, "Big sis?"

"And that's why I... I have to train you... I have to make you strong... Maya..." Shana said in a light voice, her eyes not focused on anything in particular, "I need to make sure... you can handle it... when the time comes..."

Then Shana threw up in her lap and fainted, falling to her side.

As she watched Maya shake Shana worriedly, while Emily tried to stop her, saying that it was a bad idea to shake a drunk, Jane couldn't help but sigh, "Well, this has been quite an eventful day..."

Sunlight streamed through the window, hitting Shana's face, and she instinctively tried to cover her eyes with her hand, but the gesture sent a searing pain through her head, "Goddamn, that hurt! Why does my head feel like it's gonna fucking explode?"

"Maybe it was because you got so drunk that you threw up on yourself and passed out?" a voice answered before a hand came to rest on her forehead.

Shana tried to pull the hand away from her, but not only did her arms not budge, but the pain increased exponentially, causing her to let out another groan of pain.

As she struggled to open her eyes, which was the only thing she could do, Shana caught a glimpse of a pale, golden-haired figure sitting on the bed next to her.

"Barb..." Shana started to say before she had to stop herself. Her throat was as dry as a desert, making her cough and adding to the pain she was already in.

In an instant, the hand moved to the back of her head and lifted it slightly. A glass of cool water was brought to her lips and slowly poured into her mouth.

Shana drank each sip eagerly, feeling the soothing effect on her throat as she began to feel better.

"Thanks... I... needed that..." Shana said slowly as she looked back at Emily, her eyes able to focus on her this time.

"Don't worry about it." Emily answers in a low voice so as not to aggravate Shana's headache, "Just try to get better."

Shana tries to nod, but the pain soon makes her change her mind, and she just manages to let out a grunt of acknowledgement as Emily rests her head back on the pillow.

Several minutes of silence pass between them before Shana, bored with the silence, asks the question that has been bothering her since waking up, "Where's Maya? It's weird that she's not talkin' my ear off… especially after what I said."

"She's sleeping in your room." Emily replied, accidentally stroking Shana's head before realizing what she was doing and stopping herself, "She was worried about you, so she stayed with you for a long time. She was so tired that she fell asleep around midnight, so I took her there."

"What the fuck?" Shana yelled, trying to get to her feet, but all she managed to do was give herself a splitting headache.

After holding her head for a few seconds as the pain subsided, Shana continued, "Is she OK? And how long did I sleep for, damn it?"

"Don't worry about Maya, she's just tired and worried about you," Emily said, giving her a warm smile, "She'll be more than fine once she gets a few hours sleep and sees that you're okay."

Then, glancing at the clock on her wall to check the time, Emily continued, "And it's almost 6am. You've been asleep for over twelve hours. I have to say, I'm surprised. I thought you would be more resistant to alcohol."

"Why should I be? I'm a damn teetotaler." Shana replied in an irritated tone.

"That shit is toxic to the body and it affects my athletic performance." she pointed out before looking at Emily, "And for someone like me who lives off it, it's suicidal."

Emily let out a heavy sigh, disappointed in herself, "I'm sorry... I let my biases take over and I insulted you again..."

Shana had a hard time not rolling her eyes, "Stop acting like a goddamn saint. I'm a fucking bitch and you hate my guts. Just admit it."

Biting her lip, Emily remained silent.

Shana was correct. She did indeed hate her.

Emily had never really tolerated Shana. She found her too unpleasant to be around, but after what had happened with Jane and the discovery of her countless murders, all that was left was disgust.

"That's true. I... I hate you." Emily admitted through gritted teeth, "I've never liked you, and after you almost caused Jane to die in such a horrible way..."

Getting out of bed, Emily walked to the window and leaned her forehead against the glass. Her eyes were closed and her lips pursed as she gripped the windowsill tightly to keep her anger under control.

"There have been countless deaths as a result of your carelessness, but you don't have a care in the world! You are indifferent to all the people you've killed!" Emily shouted, tears streaming from her eyes as she turned around to face Shana, "But now you turn out to be nothing more than a poor, misunderstood victim, living a terrible life of loneliness and hardship just so your little sister could have a better life?! How am I supposed to hate you at this point? How am I supposed to feel about you? Do me the goddamned favor of explaining it to me!"

Shana sighed, barely stopping herself from shaking her head, "What the fuck am I supposed to say? I did what I did for Maya, not to be pitied. If you want to hate me or not, that's your choice... But,"

She scratched her head embarrassedly, biting her lip as she looked at a spot on the wall opposite Emily, "I ain't happy about it. Hell, the first time it happened, I discovered it when I got home. I kicked off my shoes, and... Seeing that bloodstain with... the remains..."

The thought of it made her want to throw up, but Shana swallowed it down hard, "It was... Not pretty, to say the least. I even tried to look down or change my path to avoid them, but the fucking moment I looked up to see where I was going or to avoid hitting something or someone, I inevitably ended up squashing one..."

She gritted her teeth, frustrated, "It had become unbearable. The thought of what I had done kept me awake at night. Finally, I came to the point where I would either hang myself or learn to live with it."

Her eyes were hard and determined as she looked back at Emily, "And my sister is more important to me than they ever were."

Wanting to stay angry with Shana, but not knowing how to justify it to herself, Emily began to pace around the room.

In her heart, she understood where Shana was coming from, but in her mind, she couldn't agree with her. “And what about these poor little folks? Do they really mean so little to you? Their deaths... What kind of justification can there be for that?”

Before Shana could say anything, the sound of a cough drew their attention to Jane, who was looking at them with a guilty look in her eyes, “There... might be a reason…”

“Jane? Sorry, did I wake you up?” Emily said, feeling guilty for yelling, but Jane smiled at her, although it didn't reach her eyes.

“I was already up... don't worry…” she said before lowering her eyes, “Not that I would be able to sleep after last night…”

“What are you talking about?” Emily asked perplexedly, while Shana looked at her with narrowed eyes, “Explain.”

Swallowing hard, Jane nodded in agreement, “Ok, um, it's just a theory, but thinking about it the last few days, I can't help but think that maybe… it's possible that…”

“Stop stalling! Say it!” Shana said, gritting her teeth as she wondered what it was that she was going to say.

With a sigh, Jane looked at Emily who still had a confused look on her face as she had no idea what she was talking about. It was at this point that Jane began to have second thoughts about what she was about to say. “I'm sorry, Emily, that I didn't say anything. But I didn't want to burden you with something that could only have been a speculation on my part.”

Taking a deep breath, Jane finally revealed the thoughts that had been swirling in the back of her mind for the past few days. “My species, as you well know, lives under constant threat. In order to find food, we are forced to embark on dangerous expeditions. Often these expeditions end in the death of one or more of us. Even the least violent of these options can easily end in tragedy. People who provide us with food and materials might well have ill intentions or worse, and leave us at their mercy. In other words, every resource is precious and cannot be wasted…”

And then she looks down, not wanting to admit it, but it was what she owed to both of them. “We don't have anything like hospitals or retirement homes. Our support is only for those who are useful to the group, such as hunters, craftsmen, sages. Or those with promising prospects, like young people and pregnant women. As long as they are worth the risk to us, we will support them. But the moment that someone becomes more of a burden to the group than anything else, then we…”

And then she looked away. “That is the moment when they will be left to fend for themselves.”

Emily gasps and puts her hand to her mouth, her eyes wide with shock, “Are you letting them die?!”

Jane clasped her hands in front of her and looked down. Even though it was a necessary evil for the survival of her kind, she still felt a pang of guilt... But she couldn't keep it to herself any longer, either. “Yes, that's how it is. If someone is injured or sick and can't be cured, or if they are too old to work and don't have enough experience to become a master, or if they are simply not useful or beneficial to the community, they will be exiled. Unfortunately, this often means that they are going to die. If they are still able to walk, they can choose to be sent on what is called the ‘Great Journey’. They will go on a quest in search of something that can be of great help to the community... or they will die trying. At least that is my understanding. For others, like the dying or the infirm, they are just taken out of the village and left somewhere to... What did they call it? See the last sunrise or something…”

There was a moment of silence between them. Then Shana let out a sigh, “While this is a sad matter, it is also an understandable one. It is dangerous to invest in something that is not going to pay off when you have such limited resources at your disposal…”

Shana felt the eyes on her and turned to see that both Emily and Jane were looking at her in bewilderment, prompting her to blurt, “What the hell's that look? I'm a business major! I'm not a total inbred, you know?”

Emily and Jane nodded their heads with a look that said, ‘Yeah, it's still her,’ before Emily sighed and recovered from her surprise, “You are right about that. No matter how... unpleasant the situation may be, it is still necessary for them. It's extremely unfair to them to be judged morally for doing what they need to do to survive, just because it's easier for us to live…”

“Yeah! People like that should keep their mouths shut if they don't know a damn thing about what other people have gone through.” Shana nods her head in agreement. Then she grimaces in pain and rubs her forehead, “Anyway... what does all that have to do with me stepping on them? It's not as if…”

Her eyes widened for a moment in horrible realization. Then they narrowed in anger, “You little shits! I can't believe I actually felt sorry for you for a moment!” Her forehead was throbbing with pain, but she was too angry to care about it.

Startled by the sudden reaction, Emily asked her, “Why are you so upset?! What happened?”

Pointing an accusing finger in Jane's direction, Shana replied “Didn't you hear what she just said? Those bastards are leaving their dying people all along my training path so I can squash them to death!”

“That's just a suspicion!” Jane tried to justify herself, but Shana just flipped her off. “You can take those excuses and shove them up your ass until they come out of your mouth!”

As the two argued, Emily rubbed her forehead, her head aching from all the revelations that had recently taken place. After watching them continue to argue for a few more seconds, she clapped her hands together to get them to listen. “Okay, okay! Stop it, both of you! As I have said before, even though their actions may seem cruel and irrational to us, we cannot condemn them for what they are doing in the name of survival.”

Shana's face grew angry again, and she opened her mouth to speak back, but before she could get a word out, Emily made a pre-emptive strike. “First of all, I owe you an apology, Shana. As much as I like to think of myself as a good and kind person, I have never bothered to try to understand you. Or even think about you at all, except to label you as someone that I was trying to avoid... like a true hypocrite. For that, I'm truly sorry. I hope you will give me a chance to earn your forgiveness…”

That took the wind out of Shana's sails. Her anger melted away like snow in the sun and she began to babble incoherently, “L-Like I give a damn, you moron! I have no interest in your opinion of me, idiot! It's all the same to me, you fool!”

Then she looked away, covering the bottom of her face with her blanket, “But, well... Since I'm feeling generous today, I'll accept your apology. Not that this changes anything! I still think you're lame, Emil-Barbie!”

Emily had a momentary thought of banging her head against the wall in frustration at her newfound personality, but she stopped herself and smiled at Shana, “On the plus side! At least now we know that you were never really at fault for what happened, you were more of an innocent victim of events.”

Shana nodded shyly, which made Emily smile even wider as she continued, “Now get some rest. Jane and I are going to have a little chat.”

Jane cocked her head to the side in confusion, “Huh? A chat about what-”

But she didn't get to finish the sentence before Emily grabbed her in her hand, and walked out of the room with a forced smile on her face.

Shana looked at the scene in surprise and muttered to herself, “Ok... maybe I do feel a little sorry for her now…”

Shana laid her head back on the pillow and stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before letting out a sigh of relief, ‘Well, now that I'm alone... Maybe I should take the opportunity to get a little bit of rest…’

A series of knocks rang out on the door of the room before a voice could be heard, “Big Sis? It's me! Maya! Your little sister... yes? Is it okay if I come in with you?”

‘Or maybe not…’ Shana commented in her mind before she answered, “If there has been no recent changes, then yeah. Now move your ass and come inside, you little squirt!”

Maya walked slowly into the room with an anxious look on her face. She had the look of a frightened little animal as she carefully scanned the room.

“Shut the door!” Shana said, causing Maya to jump up and run back to the door so she could close it.

As soon as she had done that, she continued her strange walk until she had reached the middle of the room. There, she came to a stop.

There were a few moments of silence, after which Maya, her eyes wandering around the room, commented nervously, “Um... lovely room, big sis... maybe a little more pink than I was expecting…”

Shana rolled her eyes at that, “This is Barbie's room, dummy... Were your eyes so focused on her the whole time you were in here that you didn't even notice it?”

Maya turned her head away and rubbed her arm in embarrassment, giggling as she did so, “Oh yeah, that was just a joke on my part... Of course I knew that!”

“Yeah, of course you did…” Shana said, not believing her at all, before tapping her hand on the bed and saying, “C'mon, sit down.”

And then Maya let herself fall to the floor with a heavy thud, letting out a small sound of pain, "Ouch..."

Shana stared at her with her eyes wide open and her mouth hanging open, not understanding why she had done such a thing, “Are you retarded or are you taking the piss out of me?”

“Eh? Why?” Maya asks in confusion as she rubs her sore bottom, not knowing why she could be mad at her again.

“I meant on the bed! Sitting on the mattress next to me! Ya know, like a normal human being?” Shana said as she rubbed her forehead, trying to relieve the headache caused by both the hangover and the disbelief at what her little sister had just done.

“Oh yeah…that makes a lot more sense…” Maya admits as she awkwardly rubs the back of her neck.

Cautiously, Maya approached the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress, watching Shana warily, as if she was afraid of being attacked.

Shana, having given up trying to understand what the hell she was doing, just looked at her in silence.

As Maya sat down, the silence became even more noticeable, and so she began to look around again, looking everywhere but at her sister.

“Uh... what an... interesting room…” Maya said again, but Shana stopped her in her tracks with a deep breath, “Maya…”

“Oh yeah, true true…” Maya mumbled and looked at the floor, not knowing how to start the discussion, too confused and unsettled since the day before.

"Treat it like a band-aid," Shana advised her in a soft voice, "Just rip it off."

Maya nodded, swallowing hard as she narrowed her eyes and clenched her hands into fists on her thighs.

After a series of deep breaths, Maya finally asked the question she had been dying to ask, “Do you… love me?”

Shana felt awkward, unsure of how she should answer the question.

On the inside, she knew what she wanted to say, but her personality prevented her from giving an honest answer.

But as she looked into her little sister's eyes, she understood that she could not answer with half-truths or lies. All she could do now was tell the truth... And as hard as it was to do, she had to do it. She owed Maya that.

“Yes.” was Shana's answer, short and simple, but it was all Maya needed to hear.

With a choked sob, Maya threw herself on top of Shana and hugged her tightly, ignoring her big sister's protests, too caught up in her own emotions, tears streaming from her eyes at how happy she felt.

After a few minutes of trying to break free, Shana gave up and let Maya go on for as long as she wanted, feigning annoyance but actually feeling a strange sense of relief. ‘Aw, man... I'm getting too soft…’

Once Maya had gotten it out of her system, she pulled away from her sister, wiping the tears and mucus from her nose with the sleeves of her dress, which disgusted Shana a little, but she didn't say anything, just watched as she calmed down.

“Feeling better now? Or you need more time?” Shana asked, worried about her sister's well-being.

“Kind of…” Maya said with a doubtful look on her face, not so convinced herself.

Then she started to shake her head, “You know what, screw this! I'm not calm at all right now!”

Maya's eyes began to water again as she lifted her head and looked at Shana, “It just feels like the whole world is changing around me! I don't know what's happening anymore!”

She pressed her hands to her eyes, trying to hold back her tears, “I used to dream that one day you would tell me that you loved me, but I didn't think it would ever happen for real! And I still hoped that Mom would care about me, even though I knew she was always angry and distant! Why does it have to be like this? Is it so hard to love me that even my own mother can't? Why is that? Why?”

“Stop being so stupid, you idiot!” Shana screamed and stopped her outburst by taking her in her arms and holding her close to her chest, “Don't blame yourself for the fact that your mother is an evil bitch! It's not your fault at all!”

Then she lifted her head a little so that she could see Maya's face, and she wiped away her tears with her blanket, “I'm sorry that I wasn't open with you, but I always cared about you... you were always my first priority... I should have acted differently. More present and... more affectionate... I'm sorry.”

“No! You have nothing to be sorry for!” Maya said firmly, “There wouldn't have been a problem in the first place if she hadn't been so determined to make everyone's life as miserable as possible!”

Then she turned away, blushing, “And even then... I was never really alone. You made sure of that…”

Shana chuckled in amusement before grinning at Maya, “Yeah... about that... Do I need to have a talk with Emily about her intentions with my little sister?”

“Big Sis! Nooo!!” Maya let out a cry of shock, “That would be too embarrassing!”

“Funny how you didn't even try to deny it…” Shana joked, her grin getting wider and wider.

“Huh? I... I mean…” Maya stammered in surprise, but Shana just shrugged, “Eh, no problem with me.”

And then, after thinking about it for a moment, she added, “Actually, it's even better for me. I mean, I'm sure she'll treat you right. And I wouldn't have to worry about you getting pregnant! This is a win-win situation! I'll ship you together!”

“Big sis... stop…” Maya groans and presses her face into Shana's chest in embarrassment before suddenly lifting her head and looking at her in confusion, “Hang on... how do you even know such a term?”

“Uh... In my defense, anime is just a little too addictive…” Shana whispers, this time she's the one who's embarrassed, “And some characters are just too good together not to... forget it…”

“And why is that?” Maya answers, a grin growing on her face at the thought of finally getting one over on her sister, “Please go on. I find this very interesting…”

Shana looked at her in shocked disbelief, “Are you... being sassy with me?”

“I prefer to think of it as a sisterly chat.” Maya said with a snicker, which elicited a snort from Shana, who couldn't help but giggle, “What a cheeky little brat you are…”

“Yup!” Maya nodded with a smile before joining in and giggling along with her sister.

They spent a few moments like this, Maya still in her big sister's embrace, before she sighed and buried her head in Shana's chest.

“Hey, big sis” Maya murmured, her voice soft.

“Yeah?” Shana's voice was just as soft in reply.

“I'm so glad that we can treat each other like sisters…” Maya said, her voice shaking, “Thank you. Thank you for always being there for me even when... I wasn't there for you... I'm so sorry.”

Shana could feel her heart ache in her chest. She'd dedicated her entire existence to doing everything she could to keep her sister from ending up like her. But all she'd managed to do was make her as miserable as she was, just in a different way.

Holding her close as she stroked her hair, Shana murmured, “I'm your big sister. Taking care of you is my first priority. There's no need to thank me.”

“Step-sister!” Maya blurted out as she looked directly into Shana's eyes.

“I'm just a step-sister. I'm only here because our stupid father was stupid enough to get married to my stupid mother! You owe me nothing at all. Damn it, even mom doesn't care about being a mom! So why on earth should you?"

Then, panting from the tirade, she added, her tone softer and more subdued, "You've done far more than you should..."

Lowering her head once more, Maya concluded, “You and Emily are my real family, the ones who really cared about me and showed it... Thank you for everything.”

Shana wanted to say something, like an insult or a sarcastic comment to lighten the situation, but when she opened her mouth, the only thing that came out was a choked up sob.

Feeling something move across her face, she ran a hand down her cheek and discovered... tears.

Shana looked down at her tear-stained hands and shivered, her emotions all over the place. Then, for the first time in over a decade, she let herself go, unable to control them. All of the walls that she had built up around herself to protect herself came crashing down.

She desperately hugged her sister, who hugged her back just as tightly. The two of them cried and held each other for a long time, completely oblivious to the outside world.

A few hours later, after she had finished talking to Jane, Emily went to check on Maya, but found Shana's room empty.

Thinking that Maya had probably gone to visit her sister after waking up, Emily grabbed a change of clothes from Shana's dresser and headed for her own room. When she opened the door, not only was her suspicion confirmed, but she was greeted with an adorable sight.

Both Shana and Maya were lying in bed, Shana under the covers and Maya on top of them, both asleep and holding each other in an embrace.

Barely able to keep herself from squealing with cuteness, Emily quietly placed the clothes on the desk before leaving the room... Only to come back a few minutes later with Jane in tow to show her the scene as well.

“Oh, they're adorable!” Jane whispered, gushing at the sight.

“Yes... that's the way they should always be…” Emily nodded in agreement... before snapping a few pictures with her phone, “And I won't give them a chance to forget it.”

Holding Jean in her right hand, Emily walked out of the room, using her other hand to close the door behind her. Her mind was already a whirlwind of emotions from the day before, but Shana and Jane's double revelations had left her emotionally devastated. Right now, all she wanted to do was barricade herself in a room and scream at someone... preferably Jane, if for no other reason than to get back at her. Nodding to herself, Emily decided on her next course of action and made her way to her room... the one she had just left. Irritated, she started to think. Where else could she go?

Her own room was a no with Shana there trying to rest.

Maya was sleeping in Shana's room and also Emily didn't want her to hear what had just been revealed, so that was another no.

Suki's room was a no-no.

Since no one lived there, the other rooms were locked and the keys were in the possession of the dormitory owner.

The living room and the kitchen were out of the question because of the lack of privacy there…

“Uh, Emily? As much as I love being cradled in your hand, could you please put me down somewhere? I'm starting to feel a little uncomfortable with all the blood rushing to my head…” Jane interrupted her thought process from the upside down position she was in in her hands.

“Hush, I'm thinking.” Emily replied sharply, trying to get her train of thought back on track, but not before repositioning Jane in her breast pocket to make her more comfortable.

After a great deal of thought, Emily finally had a destination in mind, and she smiled with satisfaction. She walked briskly to the place where she wanted to go and locked the door behind her as soon as she had reached it. Taking Jane out of her breast pocket, Emily knelt down and placed her on the surface in front of her, before standing up and looking down at her.

As she looked around at the white tiles on the walls and on the floor, Jane got an idea of where they were. She recognized it from several of the programs she had seen on television, and she became confused, “Emily? Why am I standing on a toilet?”

"Oh, well, I couldn't think of anywhere else to go..." Emily admitted sheepishly before getting serious again, "But let's leave that aside for now. What about the things you said earlier? Were they all true?"

Jane sighed, as she already knew that this was going to happen, "While the theory that I shared with Shana is just an assumption... yes. Everything I said is the truth.”

“Then why did you never tell me anything about it?” Emily asked, barely concealing her annoyance.

“Because I didn't want you to be exposed to the dark side of my species.” Jane tried to explain, but it only served to make Emily angrier, and she punched the wall, breaking a tile in the process.

“I don't need you to protect and coddle me!” she shouted angrily, “Why were you hiding this from me, Jane? Tell me!”

Jane's body shook with fear, but she did not flinch or cower because she knew that Emily would never actually do anything to hurt her. “I didn't think you would be able to handle this. And judging by the way you are reacting, it looks like I was right.”

Emily shook with anger at her words, “Do you think I'm so weak that you can't say anything to me without being afraid you'll break me?”

“Do you think Maya is weak?” Jane shot back, crossing her arms and glaring at her defiantly.

“What does Maya have to do with anything?” Emily asked in a confused tone and Jane replied, “Have you ever told her about what happened to you as a child?”

“Absolutely not!” Emily replied scandalized, “I could never tell her!”

“And why's that?” Jane asked with a scowl on her face, “Do you think she is a weak and pathetic little girl?”

“Because telling her would be pointless! It would only make her sad! Nothing she can do will change what I've been through-” Emily yelled before realizing what she'd said and muttering to herself, “Oh…”

“Exactly.” Jane nodded.

There was a moment of silence, during which no one moved a muscle, before Emily began to speak again, “But... this is different…”

“And how?” Jane asked her, tapping her foot.

“Well, Maya's still a child, while I'm an adult…” Emily tried to explain, “Surely there's something I can do to help!”

“No, there's nothing you can do!” Jane scolded her, “Don't fool yourself into thinking you can.”

“Why are you being like this?” Emily said in exasperation, “Together we can change things! Don't you believe in me?”

“Emily, it's not that easy!” Jane said with a sigh, shaking her head, “And of course I believe in you, Emily, with all my heart and soul. That is why I have no hesitation in entrusting you with my life.”

"As if you could do anything else," Emily scoffed, "and considering how easy it is for your species to throw away life - their own or someone else's - it's not a big deal."

"That's really unfair, Emily." Jane replied in an indignant and insulted tone, "It's not something that we can help with, given the circumstances of our situation."

Emily winced as she realized what she had said and tried to correct herself, "But what about other alternatives? Like... like finding someone to take care of you! Wouldn't that be a better alternative?"

But she only dug herself in deeper, and flinched again when she saw the look of disgust on Jane's face.

"Is that it, Emily? Is this how you'll solve it? Turning us into pets for the humans in exchange for food and a place to stay?" Jane asked with a sound of complete and utter disgust in her voice.

“That's not what I meant! I... I mean... You don't hate being with me... do you?” Emily tried to explain, but Jane just shook her head. 

“Emily... I like to be with you because you treat me as if I were a human being.” she replied as she sat down on the toilet seat, leaning back until she looked up at Emily, “Having an easier and safer life is certainly something I like. But if I had to give up my freedom, or even worse, if I had to be treated like a lesser being…”

She closed her eyes and shook her head in disgust at the mere thought of such a thing, “Then it's not worth it. Death would be a much better alternative.”

Emily let out a gasp of shock. Even though Jane could be a bit of a prankster and often cracked jokes, this was not one of those moments.

With her back against the wall, Emily slid down the floor until she was eye-to-eye with Jane. She was silent for a long time, just thinking about all the things that had happened today, while Jane was doing the same thing.

When the brooding was over, Emily let out a sigh and hung her head in shame, “Jane... I'm sorry. I said some awful things to you today. I... I'm so ashamed of myself. If there is anything I can do to make it up to you, I will. Anything at all!”

Tears started rolling down her cheeks, “But if you don't think that you will be able to forgive me, then I understand. What I said was-”

“Oh, stop crying... If anyone should be ashamed, it's me…” Jane rolled her eyes, angry with herself, “This is a day for celebration! I shouldn't ruin it over some petty argument! “

“But why should you be ashamed?” Emily looked up at her, surprised, “I am the one who was disrespectful to you.”

“Well... that's because…” Jane said as she crossed her arms and looked away, “I mean... You're kind of right?”

“I am what?” Emily said in shock and Jane sighed again.

“You are right. We could lead better lives if we weren't so stupidly proud... And many of my kind do indeed surrender to the humans.” Jane explained before she became embarrassed, “And... So did I... sort of.”

“But you didn't do that…” Emily whispered with a smile, “You remained strong and resolute, and-”

“I literally threw away my freedom to you the moment that creature was about to kill me!” Jane screamed, shaking her head, “That I ended up with a person who respects me instead of, I don't know, someone like Suki was just dumb luck. How can I act so proud when I'm just as bad?”

Pacing back and forth on the toilet seat, Jane continued, her voice rising in anger as she spoke, “I know I shouldn't speak, since I've been so lucky with you, but is it really so terrible to be a pet for humans? I mean... I know it is in my head and in my heart. But how can I really know what it feels like for someone to be held as a pet? Maybe I'm right. Maybe it is a worse thing than death. And yet…”

Jane stopped in her tracks and clenched her fists in anger, “What if it isn't? And even if I'm right, is it really worse than sending members of our own species to certain death?”

“Has anyone ever survived and returned from one of those… great journeys?” Emily asked, recalling what Jane had said about her own species.

“I've never seen it myself, but some of the elders on our Council of Wise Ones say they have... But is it true, though? And even if it is true, is it really worth it? All they could get was the 'Master's Blade' and the 'Lifesaver'... Which are nothing but broken scissors and the bottom of a plastic bottle we use to collect rainwater! Is this as good as it gets? Is being free really worth living like this?”

She let out a long sigh and closed her eyes, “I... I don't know anymore. To tell you the truth, I don't want to go back to my old life... not now that I've gotten to know this one. Damn it all! I would rather be eaten alive than go back to my old life!”

“Don't you have someone over there that you miss? A family member or a friend?” Emily asked again, resting her head on her knees.

“No. I was raised and trained by the elders. Whether it was because my parents had died or because they just handed me over to them, I don't know. Either way, the elders spent a lot of time filling our heads with the idea that we should only care about the community, and that individuals are expendable, preventing any relationship beyond simple camaraderie…” she said, wistfully scratching her cheeks, “For a long time I believed that all I had to live for was to work, fight and die for my people…”

But then, with a shake of her head, her eyes returned to Emily, “But even though I've only been here with you for a short while, I can't do that anymore... I don't want to live my life for the sake of others! I want to live a happy life! Just for myself! Is that such a terrible thing for me to ask?”

“No, it isn't. What's wrong with wanting to be happy?” Emily replied, smiling a little before she sighed, “But I know exactly what you mean. Because I feel the same way.”

Her eyes were fixed on the ceiling, and her thoughts were on the past, “The day that I left the orphanage for good was the happiest day of my life... I was over the moon! I danced and ran and cried and smiled... I thought there was nothing that could ruin my happiness.”

Then her eyes darkened, her smile faded to a frown, “Until it hit me: The others were still there, still suffering. It took me a long time to move on without feeling guilty that I wasn't as miserable as they were.”

Her face flushed with embarrassment, “And while I have to admit that I'm probably not the best example of someone who overcame it… If there's one thing that I've come to understand, especially in the last few days, it's this. Life isn't fair. And as long as it's not at the expense of someone else, you have to take every chance you get to be happy, because they don't come that often.”

She brought her hand up to Jane and caressed her face with her forefinger, smiling softly, “I've said this before and I'll say it again. If you're ever in the mood to help other little folks like yourself, you don't even have to ask for my help. You already have it. But at the same time, don't beat yourself up about it. Go and enjoy your life. You deserve it as much as anyone else.”

"E-Emily..." Jane mumbled softly before bursting out crying, tears streaming down her face.

Emily just let her, staying close to her in a silent show of support.

When she calmed down, Emily used her finger to wipe the tears from her eyes, "There. Feeling better now?"

“A little.” Jane nodded, smiling slightly, “Still not 100%, but better.”

“Glad to hear that!” Emily said, clapping her hands happily. Then she stood up and dusted off her clothes before looking at Jane with a slight grin on her face.

"So..." she joked in an attempt to lighten the situation, "are you offering to be my personal pet?"

"Why, yes, I am," Jane nodded, immediately recognizing her intention and feigning consideration, "I'd really like to be your pet. What would that entail?"

Emily, taken aback by Jane's easy acceptance of what was supposed to be a joke, began to stutter in panic, "W-well... if you want to experience what it feels like to be a pet, we could experiment together... I mean, m-maybe I could get you a collar, and, and..."

Then her brain re-connected and she blushed with shame and embarrassment at the realization of her words, "What did I just say?! Forget my words just now! Block them out of your mind!"

Jane was shocked for a moment before bursting into laughter, “Is that so, Emily? I never imagined you to be so... adventurous! Is there something that you would like to tell me?”

Emily whimpered, the sound of her voice muffled as she covered her face with her hands, "S-shut up! Don't say anything more! P-please."

“All right, all right, that's fine. As you wish.” Jane chuckled before continuing in a softer voice. “Uh, hey, Emily?”

“What do you want?” Emily said sullenly, still annoyed that her joke had backfired,

“I'm really glad I got the chance to meet you.” Jane said happily, smiling broadly as she said it.

"...shut up..." Emily repeated in embarrassment before moving her fingers away from her face to show her eyes and adding, "But... I'm also glad..."

“You're really milking this for all it's worth, aren't you?” Shana said with a sulky look on her face, her head resting on the table between her crossed arms.

“Oh, come on! There's no need to be such a jerk! They're a nice and sweet reminder of a happy moment, don't you think?” Maya said as she looked at the various photos that showed her and her older sister sleeping together, holding each other.

“Well... yes. But... do you really have to look so damn smug?” Shana replied, pointing at Emily, who was wearing a smug smile as she prepared lunch.

“And why not? When am I going to get the chance to see you looking so vulnerable and adorable again? I have to make the most of it!” Emily said with a laugh as she added the salt and took a taste of what she was cooking.

“Every day? Now that we're finally back to being full-time sisters, I'm going to make up for all the time we've missed together! From now on, we will have cuddles every single day!” Maya said confidently as she lovingly caressed the photo, causing Shana to cringe.

“Hell no! That was a one-time thing! A moment of weakness! I have no intention of doing this every single goddamn day!” Shana said in a panic, crossing her arms into an X.

“Eh...? Why not? You said you love me, right?” Maya said in a tearful tone, looking at her with puppy eyes.

Caught off guard, Shana jumped to her feet, worried that she might have upset her little sister, and tried to make up for her faux pas.

“Of course I do! This is only natural! I just wanted to say-" but a flash of light cut her off and she turned around to see that Emily had just taken another picture of her with her cell phone, “Can you fucking not?!”

“Um... no.” Emily replied, pretending to give it some thought before just snapping another picture.

“You dumb bitch... anyway, what the hell are you doing?” Shana said as she sat back with her arms crossed and her legs stretched out, looking at Emily with a pout on her face.

“Cooking?” Emily replied absent-mindedly, rummaging through a drawer before she pulled out a long wooden spoon.

“I know you're cooking! I'm neither blind nor stupid!” Shana said angrily, rolling her eyes.

“Then why did you ask?” Emily asked in a confused tone as she stirred the contents of the pot on the stove.

“I meant that! What are you making?” Shana said, stretching out both arms and pointing at the pot.

“Oh, that's what you mean! I'm making... something to eat, of course!” Emily replied, biting down on her cheeks to keep herself from laughing in Shana's face as she rubbed her hand over her face in desperation, “Where did the polite and kind to a fault Barbie go...?”

“Gone. Reduced to atoms.” Jane replied with a sour look on her face.

Her smile fading, Emily rolled her eyes and let out a sigh, "What are you pouting about? I thought we patched things up."

"Huh? You patched things up? Why? Did something happen?" Maya asked, wondering why Jane was so grumpy.

"Well, nothing really happened. We just had a talk, and--" Emily started to elaborate, but Jane cut her off.

"Emily just kept yelling in my face..." Jane whined, looking miserable, "and she even said that she was going to put a collar on me!"

"Th-there's context behind that! I swear!" Emily frantically tried to explain, but Shana, who smelled blood in the water, decided to use it to make up for all the teasing she had been getting.

“Seriously, Barbie? Now you're pickin' on the mini gnome? And all that kinky shit, too? And here I was thinkin' you were a good girl! Maybe... Maybe I am the nicest one around here now, huh?" Shana asked her, tapping her chin thoughtfully, although the grin on her face made it clear that she was just pretending.

"S-shut up..." Emily muttered as she realized that the tables had been turned on her.

"The only thing for sure is that I'm the most mature person here..." Maya commented with a shake of her head, drawing a snort of laughter from all three of them, "What are you guys laughing at?"

"All kidding aside," Shana continued, ignoring Maya's protests, "why are you so obsessed with making me lunch? What's the big deal?"

Looking at the water and seeing it boiling, Emily went to the pantry and grabbed a box of pasta, "Someone as athletic as you need to eat healthy, nutritious food, not the junk you find in fast food."

She took the box, walked back to the stove, grabbed a pair of scissors, and opened the box before pouring the contents into the pot, “This is something that I've been wanting to do for quite a while, and now I finally have the chance to do it.”

“Hang on! Wait a damn second!” Shana made a 'T' with her hands and called a time-out, “What do you mean by 'before'? When you used to hate me?”

Emily lowered her head sadly, “I'm still sorry about that... I-”

“Who gives a fuck about that? I deserve it and it's what I wanted anyway.” Shana dismissed the topic with a wave of her hand, “My point is... You hated me. But you still wanted to make sure that I ate well?”

“...yes?” Emily replied, not quite understanding what the problem was, “Was that inappropriate?”

Shana let out a long sigh and leaned back in her chair in lieu of an answer, “Never mind what I said earlier... You're a freakin' saint.”

“Thank you?” Emily said, confused, before she resumed cooking.

Maya spent the next fifteen minutes, while the food was being prepared, drawing up a long and complex plan to make up for all of the time she had lost with her sister.

She also proceeded to completely shut down all of Shana's unnecessary remarks, such as the fact that sleeping an hour a week was not feasible, or the fact that wearing a diaper was no substitute for going to the bathroom.

By the time Emily finally brought the dishes to the table, Shana was on the verge of having a nervous breakdown. Fortunately for her, the food was enough of a distraction for Maya to give her some breathing room.

Picking up her fork, Shana tasted the food in front of her.  After a couple of bites, she gave a nod of approval, “That shit's good…”

“Of course it is! Emily made it!” Maya answered proudly, her chest swelling with pride.

“What the hell are you so proud of...? This isn't your doing…” Shana muttered with a shake of her head before taking another bite.

When they were all done eating, Emily made tea for herself and Maya, and a coffee for Shana. Then she got some milk from the fridge and poured it for Maya, who thanked her with a smile that she returned in kind.

When she sat down again, she poured some milk for herself and while she stirred it with her spoon, she looked at Shana who was silently looking at her cup, “Hm? What's wrong Shana? Do you want some sugar? Sorry, I didn't ask you…”

Shaking her head, Shana picked up her cup, “No, no, I like it just as black as I am. It's just…”

She raised the cup to her mouth and took a sip from it before setting it back down on the table, “Why are we acting like we're buddies? It was only this morning that you thought I was the scum of the earth, and now it seems like nothing has happened at all!”

“What the heck, big sis? Where–” Maya started to speak before Emily put a hand on her shoulder and shook her head, stopping her in her tracks before turning her attention to Shana.

“Because most of the accusations I made against you were either wrong or a misunderstanding on my part. I can't continue to hate you for things you haven't done or aren't responsible for.” she said with a sigh, before taking a sip of her tea. “It's just not fair. Not to you or to anyone else.”

“And what about all the things I did?” Shana pressed, pointing at Jane, “Or have you forgotten how I tried to stop you from saving her when Suki was about to devour her?”

Emily sucked her lips at that one, which was actually still an unresolved issue, but Jane made her voice heard, “Since I am the one directly involved, I guess I should answer that, right?”

“Indeed.” Shana nodded, watching her intently.

Taking another bite of the piece of pasta she had been given, Jane took a moment to think before gulping down and answering… with another question, "Let me ask you: Why did you do that?"

“Who the hell gives a damn what the reason is!” Shana snapped angrily, “If Emily hadn't gotten away from me, you'd be dead right now! All because of me! What kind of a justification could there possibly be for that?

“You seem much more upset about it than I do!” Jane chuckled and ate another mouthful.

“Well, someone has to be, since you don't seem to be taking it very seriously!” Shana replies, crossing her arms over her chest.

“I see that you've avoided answering what I asked.” Jane replied, getting to her feet and dusting off her dress before she gave Shana a look of determination, “But I prefer it like this! Now the time has come for me to reveal the truth!”

“What the hell are you doin'?” Shana said in a confused tone, raising a questioning eyebrow, drawing a sigh from Emily, “Sorry about her... She had become a bit obsessed with crime shows on TV...”

“These are great stories, Emily! Now be quiet, please! I'm about to unveil my discoveries!” Jane admonished Emily before she cleared her voice and tried to put on a straight face.

With her arms folded behind her back, Jane began pacing back and forth on her plate, “While yesterday's revelations had given me a lot of clues, they had also been a source of great confusion for me. There were a lot of things that had happened over the past few days that didn't make sense in this new context. But after a long night of contemplation, I finally managed to put all the details in the right place!”

There was a snort and an eye roll from Shana, but Jane continued, “First of all! If it's true that she did it all for Maya, why would she do something that would destroy their relationship forever?”

Maya leaned forward, curious to know, “That's actually a good question... Why did you do that?”

She addressed the question to Shana, but instead of answering, she looked at Jane with a suspicious frown on her face, “Yes, why did I do that? Got a response, Sherlock?”

“As a matter of fact, I do.” Jane replied proudly, smiling as she said this, “And I'm pretty sure it's the right answer!”

Trying to shove her hands into the pockets of her coat, only to remember that she wasn't wearing one, Jane took a moment to feel sorry for herself before continuing, “I admit it's been hard, and it's only based on the information I've gathered by listening to you and watching TV, but it all makes sense when you connect the dots.”

"It was Maya's future, not her present, that was important to you." she said as she turned to face Maya, who was looking back at her, "If you could ensure that, then things like your relationship with her would be of secondary importance, if not irrelevant. Am I correct?"

Shana just grunted and looked away.

“You also said yesterday that you trust Emily with Maya because you know she will take care of her. Will you confirm that?”

“Yeah, yeah, but what of it? Get to the goddamn point!” Shana said angrily, her cheeks darkening with embarrassment.

“You're getting mad... Which means I'm right!” Jane said with a chuckle as she turned to look at Emily, who was thinking about the matter as well.

“The reason you did what you did is... to protect Emily!" Jane exclaimed as she spread her arms wide open, leaving everyone in a state of shock.

“Me?!” Emily said in disbelief as Shana jumped to her feet and slammed her hands down on the table, “This is bullshit! Why the fuck should I care about her?”

"Because otherwise..." Jane replied, getting back to her feet with a groan of pain from the impact, causing Shana to recoil slightly with guilt, "Maya would have been on her own..."

"Jane! Are you all right?" Emily panicked, picking Jane up in her hands and bringing her closer to her eyes for a closer inspection, but Jane waved away her concerns, "I was just surprised, nothing serious. Don't worry yourself. Now, can you put me down, please?"

After a moment's hesitation, Emily decided to do as Jane asked and placed her back on the table. However, looking at Shana with a mixture of curiosity and doubt, she asked a question of her own, “But protecting me from what? She was the only one who was a threat to me.”

“From what I have seen on television, you humans have a group called the 'police' who are responsible for protecting people... even from each other.” Jane replied as she straightened up her back, “So you could have been in a lot of trouble if you had gone after Suki and hurt her in any way.”

“But she wanted to eat you!” Emily replied with outrage.

“And that would not have meant anything to anyone but you and Maya.” Jane let out a sigh and shook her head, “And even if they did, what kind of proof would you have?”

Emily nodded silently, admitting that she was right... but she didn't let it go, "But I ended up attacking her anyway! So it wasn't all for nothing?"

“Well, not exactly,” Jane was quick to point out.

“Not only did you attack without leaving any marks, which makes it hard to prove, but even how she felt about getting attacked was different!” she explained as she pointed at Shana, “She saw you break free from Shana's grip, someone strong and whom she feared, before you attacked her. This clearly portrayed you as someone not to be underestimated or angered... Exactly how you wanted it, didn't you, Shana?”

Both Emily and Maya suddenly turned to look at Shana, who sat back down and let out a deep sigh as she bowed her head, “Ahh... cut the crap. I was just going to let you get eaten. You are only alive because of Emily.”

“I have no doubt that's the case,” Jane said as she went over to Shana and stood right before her, looking straight into her eyes, "But... Can you please tell me how an athlete like you could be so easily outrun by a little girl?"

Shana scratched her head and turned away, “She had caught me off-guard. I hadn't had a chance to catch up…”

“Enough with the lies!” Jane yelled, stomping her foot in frustration, "I was looking right at you the whole time Maya was running off with me. It would have been easy for you to catch up with her before we were even halfway there! But you didn't. Why was that?”

Shana looked around, saw everyone staring at her, and sighed in defeat, “Okay, fine, I'll fucking admit it! When I saw that Maya was willing to risk a beating for your sake, I didn't want to be the one to be the one to stop her. I mean, what good would it do?”

As she rubbed her face with her hands, she went on, “Killing you would have been pointless. Just senseless cruelty. I just couldn't.”

Maya let out a squeal of delight. Emily muttered Shana's name in astonishment. And with a satisfied smile on her face, Jane clapped her hands together, “She confessed everything! Case closed!”

Then Jane felt Emily looking at her, “...what?”

“Oh, nothing. I was just thinking that there are other things that you have kept me in the dark about. I guess we are going to have to have a round 2 of our conversation soon...” Emily said, rubbing her forehead in irritation.

Frightened, Jane turned to Shana with a whimper, “H-help me...?”

“You reap what you sow.” Shana replied, refusing to help her before getting up, “Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go. There is something I have to do.”

“Huh? Like what?” Maya asked, tilting her head to the side in confusion.

“Like having a little chat with dear slant-eye, of course.” Shana replied as she made her way out of the kitchen, “After all, I have already humiliated myself up to this point. What is a little bit more?”