Mao Mao's Sisters

Enchained

Mao Mao shifted uncomfortably in his seat, he wanted to sprint out the door. But alas, that wasn't an option, this was a family counseling session. Mao Mao sat in a separate seat from his sisters, who were lined up on a couch.

Minori sat on one end, and Violet on the other, and Ashaki sat between them, half ready should the two find a reason to start tearing into one another. Blue proposed a session of family counseling what felt like so long ago, and now here he was, with three of them about to be asked questions by his therapist.

Blue sat in a chair opposite the couch, marking a few things down on his clipboard. Ashaki stared at him intently, so this is the therapist that Mao Mao was seeing. She saw him come into Blue's office on the day she came into the kingdom. It would be so easy to look into this therapist's head and see how he thinks of them, but that would defeat the purpose of Mao Mao bringing them here. The therapist is supposed to poke their minds, not the other way around.

"Alright, let's get started," Blue said, resting his pen on the clipboard. "Tell me what you think of Mao Mao."

Ashaki wasn't expecting such a mundane start, she had to gather her thoughts. "I believe that our brother has found his stride as a hero-", but before she could continue, Minori stepped on her line.

"He's gotten so much stronger! He's definitely climbing the ranks to be a legendary hero!"

"Mao Mao has grown as a hero since the last time we've seen him," Violet finished.

Blue jotted something down, whispering something under his breath. "Okay, now how about a real answer?" The three of them were struck silent, eyes widened.

"What are you talking about? We gave you our answers!" Minori objected, offended at Blue's response to their answers.

"You gave me your opinions on him as a hero, but what about as a brother?" Blue asked them. Minori opened her mouth to retort, but neither she or Violet and Ashaki had answer to give. Their thoughts on Mao Mao as a brother, not a hero? What does that mean?

Mao Mao was at first touched at their word of praise, but now, seeing them at a loss for words, has left him feeling crushed.

"I see, then how about your last memory you had with Mao Mao that you remember fondly?"

Minori had an answer for this! "He and I used to trick or treat together when we were kids! We would mix and match costumes and use vocal manipulation to hit a house three times in a row! It was the best!"

"That's good," Blue wrote something down on the board again. "What about you two?"

Ashaki went through her memories, each one, picking it apart to remember if Mao Mao had even been present. Most of Ashaki's time in her youth was spent reading, or honing her technique in the Mystic Arts. The time she spent with Mao Mao was mostly in passing.

Violet was in a similar predicament. Violet had actually been the one to teach Mao Mao how to use a sword. But that was only because Hinata had asked her to. The time she spent teaching Mao Mao was time she thought about doing something else, to be away from Mao Mao.

"Hmm, I see," Blue wrote down something on his clipboard again. "Mao Mao, how about you? What do you think of your sisters?"

Mao Mao felt self conscious as his sisters turned to face him, waiting to hear what he had to say. "Well, what can't I say? They're amazing, they're capable of things that most people can only dream about. They're each strong and smart in their own ways."

"Thank you, Mao Mao," Blue looked back to the trio of sisters, another question at the ready. "Now I'd like to ask, what made three of you want to become heroes?"