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Music: play track 1

"Shiki-sama, are you able to drink by yourself?"
"Yeah, I think I can manage that."
Taking the glass from Hisui, I drink my first glass of water in a day.
"Nnnh……"
The water quenches my thirst.
The water seems to fill me completely, up to my fingertips.
I give the glass back to Hisui, and I fall down onto the bed.

"Shiki-sama!?"

"Gotcha! Haha, just kidding!"

"---No, no no, that's not it. I actually feel good, I was just relaxing. My health actually seems better."

"Shiki-sama, do not scare me like that. It would not be very surprising if you really did collapse, in your condition."
Hisui looks at me with uneasiness in her eyes.
…… That look makes me want to thank her, and also makes me feel regret.

"…… Shiki-sama? Does it hurt anywhere? If you are in pain, please do not hesitate to tell me."
"No, nothing really hurts right now."
…… Well, my heart hurts.
Hisui is worrying about me right now, just like always.
All I've done in return to her is to act stupidly.
Not even realizing her absolute devotion, all I've done is bring pain to her heart.

…… I,
I do not deserve to be cared for by Hisui.

"Shiki-sama, was the water not pleasing to you……?"
I shake my head no.
"That's not it. …… Um… thanks for everything, Hisui. I never even thought that drinking water could help me this much.

But, that's enough. I don't deserve to be treated this well by you."

...aaand a little bit of for good measure.

"---Shiki-sama, are you still saying that? I just want to help you, it doesn't matter if you deserve it or not."

After several seconds of silence, it appears she understands as she raises her head and nods.

"I refuse."
"…… Yeah, I'm sorry it had to be this way, but…… W, wait a minute. Hisui, what did you just say……?"

"I said that I refuse.
Those words are not enough, and I cannot leave you alone. Until you can give me a valid reason, I will not follow your command."
Hisui responds clearly.

<>

"Please tell me the reason, Shiki-sama. Unless you do, I will not move one step."
"Wha--"
Her eyes are dead serious.
I bet she could tell if I'm telling a lie or an excuse, and more than anything---I don't want to lie to her.

"…… I get it. So if I tell you the reason, you'll go?"
"Yes. If it is something that can convince me, then I will fulfill your command."
……… *sigh*
I take a deep breath.
…… Mentally prepared, I open my mouth.

"Hisui, I see dreams where I kill people. Every night, I dream that I kill someone I don't know and drink their blood."

"…… You see dreams…… Is that supposed to be your reason, Shiki-sama?"
"…… No, the thing is, I can't tell if they are dreams or not. Maybe it's that I don't notice, but I might be killing people in reality.
…… Just like the old man. There might be another self in me I don't know about, walking the streets killing people."

"Shiki-sama, please get a hold of yourself. Thinking that you are a blood sucking monster is surely too strange."
"…… Yeah, it's strange, but I can't laugh it off. …… Hisui, you don't know it, but I guess those of the Tohno family are different from normal people. The old man had split personalities, and even Akiha--"

---was sucking Kohaku-san's blood.

"Anyway, the people of the Tohno family are not normal. So I'm not normal either. I can't stop myself from lusting after you and Kohaku-san.
It's alright now, but if I get that headache again, for sure---I will do something terrible to you, Hisui……!"

"---Shiki-sama, Nee-san and I have known all of that from the very beginning."

"It would be difficult not to notice the bulge in your pants."

"Huh……? You knew? Knew what?"
"That the people of the Tohno are not normal. No, in other words, you were the only one that did not know.
Nee-san and I have known that since we were first brought to this mansion."
"------Wha…"
"But do not think that is anything strange. Nee-san and I, we also carry a power that is not normal. It was because of that power that Makihisa-sama brought us here.
Regarding the Tohno family, we know much more than you, Shiki-sama."

"…… I'm, closer to you……?"
"Yes. You are definitely not a killer. …… Please, just trust me for now and let me take care of you."
"…… No. It still doesn't make a difference to the fact that, um…… I still want you. If you remain here, I'll do something I can't take back."

"U---um, about this problem, will you allow me to ask a question……?"
"Eh…? Yeah, I don't mind……"

"Um, Shiki-sama, um…… Do you not like Nee-san and I……?"
"------Huh?"

"After all, they're sisters. I mean... I guess they could be vampires, but still... sisters aren't half bad."

We all know you were going to use a word other than 'thankful' for a moment there.

"Then there is no problem. Your condition has put you under a lot of stress. This caused things in your mind to come up into your dreams. That means your thoughts are your true feelings.
So it is not odd to feel that way if you have any liking toward us."
"Ah…… That's true, but…… !
Even still, it's strange to lust after the both of you like this."

Yeah, that whole 'being 17' thing is really a bitch, isn't it?

"Yes, it is a bit dangerous. But Shiki-sama, you have always endured it, right? Then it will not be a problem. You say that you are dangerous, but you are a stronger person than that.
If you have held out for this long, then you can still do so, right? Besides, it is your own will, so in no way do you have a split personality."
"Well…… That theory may be right, but……"

…… It isn't that simple.
But just seeing that trusting smile, I feel like I have to hold on no matter what.

"Hisui? Did I say something weird?"

"……………………"
Hisui just stares at me.
"--------?"
I start to feel very uncomfortable.
My heart beats faster under tension. I feel uneasy, like I got caught with something and am about to get yelled at for it.

------Thump.

------Thump.

------Thump.

------Thump.

------Thump.

"Shiki-sama? Are you suffering?"
"Eh…… Ah. Just… a little bit. But it's not serious, you don't have to worry about it."
"…… No. At this rate, you will surely die. Nee-san said that you may not last until evening."

"Wha----"

I feel a chill as I hear that.
…… It's not like I haven't thought about it.
When this body did not heal.
I've imagined many times that my weakening body will only end in death.

But still,…
…… to hear it from someone else like that sends a chill up my spine.

"…………………"
I… don't know what to say.
Should I just accept it?
Should I deny it?
"…………………"
I can't do either.
I have felt that my body would die pretty soon… but it just doesn't feel real.
It's like I'm just watching the life of some sick person on some sort of television show.

"…… Akiha-sama and Nee-san left in order to save you. …… But they may not make it in time. Even if they are successful, if your body runs out of energy before that, there is no point."
"…………… Well, I guess you're right."
I don't know what the two of them are doing.
She says they are going to save me, but are they searching for something that can cure my condition?

But, all that work……
it'll be useless if I die before they get home.

Not at all! The very best stories involve people arriving with the crucial cure just as the intensely loved character dies

I know where this is going. You know where this is going. We all know where this is going. Let's say it together now...

GODDAMMIT TSUKIHIME!!

Hisui says there is a method to save me at least for tonight.
If that is true, then I have no reason to refuse it.

"…… It isn't a matter of allowing, or not. If it can help me even a little bit, then we don't have a choice. I'd like to ask for it myself."

"---Yes. Then Shiki-sama, could you please close your eyes for just a bit?"
"Close my eyes? Well, sure…… Is this good?"

Music: stop

"…… That is fine. Please do not move."

Music: play track 8

"-------"
A tender sensation.
I feel the warmth of a human body, and it must be Hisui's lips.

----My body heats up.

Her lips hesitantly pressing up against mine.
This sensation, and the feeling of her breathing, seems to fill my body like a drug.

"Ah----"
Thump, Thump.
With just a kiss, my mind goes totally white.
I am pleasantly floating away.
All my pain, all my tiredness melts away like ice on a summer day.

"Nn……, …… ah."

…… Hisui exhales.
That small contact between us starts to get heavier.

"Nn…… ah."
Pulling her in, I seek out her lips.
"Ha…… n, n……!"
Hisui resists slightly as she might be having a hard time breathing.
"------Ha--ah."
But I can't stop.
Her breath. Her lips. Her warmth. It all feels so good.

With my eyes still closed, I slip my tongue in between her lips.
"N--n!"
Unlike before, now she really tries to pull back.
I embrace her body to hold on to her, and I continue to seek out her tongue.

So about that "You can stay, I'll control myself"...

"A…… n, n……!"
If I open my eyes, I bet I'll see her distressed face.
If I saw that, I'd let her go right away.
And so, instead,
I continue blindly twirling my tongue against hers.

"N…… a, a……"
Our wet tongues intertwine.
Just the sensation of my tongue against another's drives me wild.
Just the fact that my sensitive tongue is feeling someone else's tongue makes my rational thought about to explode.

And because it is Hisui's tongue, it crumbles completely away.

The tongue?

"A…… n, n…… ah……"
The red, tangled tongues continue their dance.
Even though our lips separate, our tongues have become one.
…… This isn't just some sort of metaphor.
Our tongues are stuck together with all our saliva.

Yes, because male saliva and female saliva form a natural epoxy. Never kiss the opposite gender or you could get stuck like that forever!

Thump.

"Ah----"

Thump. Thump.

I'm out of breath.

Thump, Thump, Thump.

"My…… body… it feels incredibly…… warm."

My heart races uncontrollably.

"…… That is the way I can help you, Shiki-sama."
"Help me---but, how?"
"I really don't know how. It is just that Nee-san and I can transmit some of our energy to those that we press our bodies against.
…… Um, if we exchange bodily fluids, we are able to recognize that person as someone like us, and it lets us share our energy and amplify their powers."



"Wha--what are you talking about?"
"Ever since we were born, we have had special bodies. We are not like the Tohno family, but we are special people born from normal people. Makihisa-sama called us 'Synchronizers'."

----Ah.
I think that word was in the old man's journal.

"Makihisa-sama brought us here to suppress his increasing 'Tohno self'. We are more suited for amplifying one's power rather than sharing our power.
…… Makihisa-sama synchronized with Nee-san with his human side, and barely stayed sane."
"……………"
No, she doesn't have to tell me all this…… but by "The exchange of bodily fluids", it must mean---

"…… Moving. Yeah, I can move……!"
My joints are a little stiff, but I can move my body with my own will.
Being able to do such a simple thing makes me so happy right now.
"Th, thank you Hisui! It looks like my body is back to normal, thanks to you!"

I throw my arms up in the air.

But, Hisui still looks uneasy. …… As I think back.
Her breath felt so good, I forced Hisui to continue kissing me.

No. Anything but that.
Being able to move like this again, I finally understand.
These past few days, my body has been terribly wrong.
So now, since I can move again, thinking about my body going back to the way it was sends shivers down my spine.

"…… What should I do? I don't ever want to go through that again. Being like a puppet with its strings cut, my head feeling like it's being split open… This time---"
Before my body would stop, I think my mind would break first.

"Shiki-sama. I do not want you to have to return to the way you were before either.
Therefore…… can you… share your body with me a little deeper this time?"
With her fingers trembling, she says this while looking directly at me.

Why can't they just have sex because they want to? Really now. _{Yeah, I know, they get to that, too.}

----My heart skips a beat.

Sharing our bodies deeper means…
Um, it means exchanging our bodily fluids, so that would mean----

"----------"
My face instantly flushes crimson.
The very thought makes me happy, but---

"---No, that's bad. I can't go back to the way I was, but that's bad. Using you like that to make me better, that's just wrong…!"
I emphatically refuse her offer.

"……………"
Hisui is still silent.
It seems more like she's hurt by my words instead of being relieved by my refusal.

"I have seen the way you look at Arihiko... the way he occupies your thoughts when you return home in the evenings. The look on your face when you talk about the time you spend with him... it is one of love."

"Ah---no, that is--"
…… Right.
That's why Hisui is suggesting this preposterous "plan".
…… Hisui, who can't even stand contact with the opposite gender, is suggesting this because my life is at stake.
So---she says all that for my sake.
She's saying I can sleep with her, with like or dislike having nothing to do with it---

"Da----"
Isn't it okay?
I don't want to die either.
I mean, all I have to do is sleep with her, and if I don't like that, then there really is something wrong with me.

Because homosexuality is an abnormal disease!

"------"

Hisui watches me quietly.
Her fingers are still shaking.
As uneasy as I am---she is still far more uneasy.
But she hides it, and tries to act normally.
She is doing so much for me, so why---

"---Is it okay, Hisui? Giving out your body like that, won't you regret it later?"

"…… I do not know. But I just have one request to ask of you."
"Request……?"

"Yes. Shiki-sama, if you were to like me even just a little bit, just for now---please, think only of that. If you are to love me just for now---I would never regret this."
…… Hisui speaks, still trembling.

"-----"
…… I'm stupid. I've never felt more stupid than I do right now.

That's pretty impressive.

"--Hisui. I"
…… What do I mean by "I don't want to if Hisui doesn't love me"? Really---I don't deserve to say that.
"---Come here. Right now, I really need you."

…… Hisui draws closer.
Reaching out my arms, I draw her towards me.

...and away we go.


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