Amanojaku | Divine Weakness

2 | patchwork staccato family

April 6, 2095 AD | Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture: Kuroba Residence
The morning repeated in the same fashion as yesterday except a package had been delivered. Mitsuki had retrieved it before opening it at Mahiru's request.  The package contained an exquisite hair stick, neatly packed in a beautiful box. The card read from the Kuroba family, which meant that this was from her pseudo-father, Kuroba Mitsugu.

Her induction into the Kuroba family was an outlier, even in the Yotsuba family. While Mahiru was aware that her real mother was Yotsuba Maya, she did not know of her father. It was one of the reasons why her circumstances were odd even within the family. It was a detail classified even from her. The current rumor was that her granduncle, Yotsuba Eisaku, saw her potential in espionage and thus decided to appoint her under the Kuroba family. Or perhaps that was a planted lie—by this point, Mahiru had learned not to tug at that particular thread.

Other than Kuroba Mitsugu, her mother, and Mitsuki, there was no one else aware of this. Perhaps, Tatsuya had an inkling due to his odd sight, but he knew to keep his mouth shut about matters like this. Even her pseudo-siblings, Ayako and Fumiya, were not aware of the truth. In other words, to the outside world, she was the first child of the Kuroba family.

Reading the card first like any well-mannered lady, Mahiru raised an eyebrow at the congratulations and warning. Then, she burned the card with a contained spell. 

Congratulations on your entry into Third High. May you represent our branch family well to others. Stay safe.

"It's beautiful," Mitsuki remarked mildly, taking the hair stick out form the box. The hair stick fashioned into a black feather. "It is slightly ostentatious for your uniform, however."

The feather encompassed a quarter length of the stick, but the ostentatious aspect came from the hanging black clover. Unfit for a military school like Third High. 

"I was thinking the same thing," Mahiru agreed. The Kuroba family was not known for their quiet dressing habits—it was a miracle how they managed to keep under the radar. "But it is something to grow used to." She allowed Mitsuki to delicately place it into her bun. "And I can't reject such a thoughtful gift from my father."

Mitsuki appraised how it complemented Mahiru and its impeccable timing. She'd noticed how Mahiru avoided the bigger groups yesterday—the overwhelming noise being too much for her. She berated herself for not noticing the reason behind Mahiru's refusal to enter the classrooms yesterday. "The timing is impeccable."

Mahiru could feel her senses dulling ever so slightly as if a blanket wrapped tightly around her. "Yes, I think it will be easier to be in the classroom now."

While her hearing perception was an asset in performing her innate magic as well as sensing any hostile magical attacks, it was a deterrent in everyday life. Sensitivity to psions was a gift and a curse at the same time. Even if it could be easily covered up like glasses and wearing headphones, it was an obvious sign that some of the other students would catch.  

Additionally, the matriculation ceremony yesterday proved to be too much for Mahiru, giving her a headache. There was a limit to how she could act under strain, and the hair stick would prove helpful. It would also reinforce her family and take away the strain. She could forgive her father for not congratulating her on her acceptance—this was a far better gift.

It also served as one more thing to distance herself from her mother. 

Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture: Third High School
Arriving in the classroom, Mahiru appreciated her pseudo-father's gift more than ever. As second-ranked and fifth-ranked respectively, Mahiru and Mitsuki were both placed in Class 1-A. The class where the highest-ranking students of their year were grouped together, which meant that everyone had above average psions and pushions count. Having an unusual sensitivity to them, Mahiru would no doubt had been bothered by them if she didn't have the hair stick.