Caught in the Act

It caught her off guard. Rio was strong, she always knew the answer and was reliable. She could find her cat when she was growing up and make food and all kinds of things for her. Rio was a pillar that didn't break under pressure and a shield that didn't break down. Rio was... asking for her support?

"Hmm."

How did she respond? To Rio of all people, Rio was the kind of person she pretended to be when she needed to offer people support. It was how she dealt with Kokoro's confession but when she had to be Rio for Rio, she was left at a blank.

"Yes... I mean, no. No. Well, I don't actually know and it'd be insincere for me to pretend to know the answer that you need."

A quick sip of tea to help her thoughts stay in order and Yugiri continued.

"You desired what is best for the family, I modelled myself off your selfless ideas even though I was incredibly selfish for me to want to take your role and go beyond it. I aspired to be the stoic person that sacrificed themselves; the most work I could take, the most training I could do, the least amount of time I could give myself if it gave the people under me relief and benefit. It was cheap of me I guess."

Another sip and back to her discussion. Trying to get past her own admission of idolising Rio.

"If I've learned anything it's that you're Rio. If you keep telling yourself that you're the Shihoin Shield then you'll stop seeing yourself as Rio. Rio's allowed to feel unsure of herself, she's allowed to be frustrated, get angry and want someone to depend on herself. The question you need to ask yourself Rio is this, what are you going to do about it?"

"It's... t-that's not cheap at all, Yugiri." She had almost struggled to get those words out of sheer flattery at Yugiri's admission. As Yugiri was a woman who kept her emotions close to her heart and never chose to openly talk about her views on things, Rio could've never imagined that she was so strong a pillar in Yugiri's life.

Indeed, the Shihoin Shield had spent so many years suppressing her own emotions that she had somewhat lost sight out of her own feelings, losing herself within a cycle of protecting the family and overseeing family matters outside of the ones that concerned her own.

Whether meetings or controlling the younger Shihoin, be it training the fledgling runts or being a mediator between those who could not see eye to eye, Rio had run herself ragged. Her cup had run dry. She questioned so much about how she could keep her own immediate family unified rather than those in the clan.

As Yugiri finished, Rio found herself so inspired that she consumed her tea entirely - burning her throat a little in the process - but that was a minor matter compared to the joy she felt as she set the cup down and embraced her cousin.


"I'm going to keep being the Rio you believed in for years, Yugiri. Mark my words, someway, somehow, I'm going to get this family to be unified... the way they should be. And, I want you to be apart of that, sister." There was a firm emphasis on that word - sister. Rio never used it lightly. Rio had always viewed this woman before her to be just that, and such a view would remain eternal.

Yes it was, she basically stole Rio's wish and made it her own. That was really cheap of her as far as she thought. It made her blush that she took the time to even argue that point, why was Rio looking at her like she was the older and wiser sibling. This was weird, another hug? Now!?

"Uhm."

She squeezed out, shyly hugging Rio to return her thanks and hearing her answer.

"R-right. Well, that's going to be really hard. Considering Chidori isn't coping and I personally think you should intervene before she does something rash that she can't recover from. I'm not good with my family's problems, I only really know how to scold them and be blunt. It'd be mean to lie to a family member, you know?"

How Rio could go about that, she did not know. Only that Yugiri couldn't do anything when she was banished and incredibly detached from being able to sympathise with Chidori's situation. It just made her mad to feel like whatever she went through could amount to her own life which she didn't even let bring her down.

"You know, help her not just as a sister but um.. as a person. If that makes sense?"

It was dancing around the really blunt way of saying she thought Chidori needed actual serious psychological help.

Rio tilted her head at what Yugiri had just said. It was odd, considering that at times, Yugiri seemed to be very harsh with anything that concerned Chidori. She had never attended the first family meeting when Chidori returned and only heard murmurs and what was mentioned from servants who wished to inform her.

For as much as Rio had always found herself disappointed by her sister and how she ran away - wounds that never properly healed even now - she had to be sympathetic for what she was going through now. She was not well-received by the family upon her return, though that was expected. She came back at the worst time. Her father had died not too long after her return.

She became pregnant with Sol's children and during some time after that... they broke up. She was a single mother with newborn children with the weight of an entire noble family on her back. Rio had never thought of ever offering her sister mercy but if she truly loved her, she knew she had to give her some remnant of sympathy.

Rio gazed at Yugiri and nodded.

"I understand what you're trying to say. As much as I've always found more disappointment than joy in my relationship with my sister, even I know how heavy a weight it must be to have what she has on her plate now.

She didn't elaborate. Only because she didn't feel like she wanted to have to see her sister's reaction to any to the news. Really, she should actually say what was on her mind but Yugiri's own first reaction was to slap her and insult her. What would Rio's be? Curiousity killed cats and Yugiri wasn't one to play that way.

"It's just for her. She's not suited to it and I doubt she will be."

It was just that way in her head. There was no point beating around the bush as to where she saw this going, especially now that Yushiro was gone.

"I never believed her to be for the longest time, Yugiri. It's not that I lack faith in my older sister but I feel that she's in pain, somehow. But given our track record, it's not as if she has made mention of any issues and seems more content in hiding behind a smile and wisecracks." Rio sighed as she crossed her arms. She wondered where they could go from here, how these issues could be solved, what could help this family move onto a better path.

"If that is how you feel Yugiri, what do you think I could do to help? Better yet, what do you think can be done? Even if I speak to her, that hardly erases the children or her duties as the head of the clan. Perhaps she could cut down on her division duties or eliminate them entire but still... I just don't know what I can do to help... you know our relationship, right? Disgruntled sisters 101."

This was too much weight. Yugiri didn't know how to fix this flustercuck. All of her thoughts came down to the conclusion of getting Chidori out of her position, psychiatric help or looking to do an actual good escape. She assumed the difference between her banishment and Chidori's running away was that she was self-reflective and looking at those hard truths she didn't want to acknowledge.

Chidori still refused to acknowledge some and then looked at the ones she did acknowledge as insurmountable obstacles, not things to overcome or change about herself.

"I don't know. That's why I'm asking you. I hoped you'd know what to do. Maybe share the role of Clan Head? Take over for her and use the excuse of Chidori seeking to obtain her bankai before she felt worthy to be the leader of the family? I don't see many ways to save face and use more aggressive methods to get her sorted with her life. I don't think it's something that can be done subversively either without people realising."

Rio nodded silently as she listened to Yugiri's suggestions. She felt a small pang of guilt in asking her what she could do when she should be self-aware enough to come to a decision on her own. She was meant to be Shihoin Shield! Why did it seem like things were so troublesome now?

If she could reverse time and pick Yushiro's brain on how he managed a family such as this, she would've given him the Nobel prize a thousand times over. It was a mess. Yugiri presented viable options although the one about sharing or taking over in her steed while she sorted her life out... left a sting.

She reflected on so many memories of the hostile envy she felt at Chidori taking the position after running away - twice. If Yugiri bothered to notice, she'd see Rio furrowing her eyebrows as if to suppress her troublesome emotions. She was proud of her sister and yet, somehow, never fully resolved the rift between them.

"I'm sorry to be asking you so much considering your time away. I really should be answering these questions on my own. I'm being unfair."

She stood in comtemplation. She was no expert. This was nothing new, but seeing Rio troubled over expecting her help didn't sit well with her.

"No you're not, Rio. You're hold yourself to really high expectations you know and it's easy to see when you're frustrated. At least to me."

Yugiri chimed. Apparently proud of her judgement and analysis of people when she met them. It was her special skill if she had to select one and ignore the fact she created Shikko. Gauging the kind of people others were.

When she was finished with her tea she left it on the table. Looking towards the door while making her way out, assuming that Rio would be close behind her.

Rio followed behind her sister with crossed arms, her mind still ruminating on how to proceed going forward. Had it been that obvious? No, Rio had likely felt Yugiri knew her more than anyone else in this family outside of her father. They spent so many days together that it was impossible not to know how she felt about her emotions towards Chidori. Yugiri had filled a void that Chidori had created in her heart. Yugiri loved and admired Rio and Rio loved and admired Yugiri. It was as simple as that. Did she have a similar affection for Chidori?

...Somewhat. They had never fully resolved their issues. Which made the idea of talking to her so troublesome. She couldn't help but feel selfish on the inside but quickly swept such emotions on the inside. Why was this so complicated? She wondered in silence as she followed Yugiri, curious to see where they would go next.