Siblinghood

“You’re lying,” was the first thing Yuki said.

“Ask me—ask me anything,” Maya hissed, glaring down at him, her frustration palpable.

“I—what the hell?” Yuki grunted, struggling against the restraints holding him in place.

“I said ask me anything!”

“What’s my mom’s—” Yuki started, but Maya immediately rattled off the full names of both his mother and father without hesitation.

He stared at her skeptically. His parents were renowned researchers; their names were widely known. She could’ve easily looked them up.

Maya groaned in exasperation, muttering under her breath, “Kitty caught in a ball of yarn.”

Yuki froze, his eyes snapping to her. “What?”

Her cheeks flushed slightly as she cleared her throat, her voice softening with embarrassment as she began to recite a lullaby: “Kitty caught in a ball of yarn, spinning around until the day turns calm. Rest now, kitty, the night is near. Safe and warm—”

“—there’s nothing to fear,” Yuki finished, his voice barely a whisper.

His heart pounded as he stared at her, disbelief etched into his features. “How do you—”

“I told you, I’m your sister. Their daughter. I—” Maya’s voice faltered, shaking her head in frustration before swiftly untying his restraints. “Maya Ito. Not Aoki. My name.”

As Yuki rubbed his sore wrists and got to his feet, he studied her warily. “You don’t look—”

“It’s fake,” she muttered, rubbing her temple. “My appearance. It’s fake.”

Without warning, her entire form flickered. Before Yuki’s eyes, she transformed into a mirror image of his mother—complete with the same mole under her left eye, the same long, dark hair, and the same sharp, scrutinizing gaze.

Then, just as quickly, she flickered back into her short-haired self.

“How can you do that?” Yuki asked, awe-struck.

She raised a brow, staying silent.

Yuki’s mind raced as he tried to make sense of it all. “You— you had healing powers,” he muttered. Then he remembered how she had teleported into the room earlier. “Teleportation,” he said, the realization dawning on him.

“Invisibility. Super speed…” His voice trailed off as he stared at her. “Shapeshifting.”

Maya hummed, tilting her head with faint amusement. “Smart boy. And there’s more where that came from.”

“Wait—why don’t I remember you?” Yuki demanded, pacing the room. “How is that possible?”

“I left when I was five. The night you were born.”

Yuki froze in his tracks. She didn’t look older than him—props to the shapeshifting powers, he supposed.

“You left when you were five? Why? What—”

“I was their failed experiment,” Maya said bluntly, her gaze darting toward the door before settling back on him. She moved to the bed and sat down.

“Failed… experiment?” Yuki’s voice trembled.

“Our parents—those monsters—gave me the same mods they gave you,” she said bitterly. “Except they started with me. From the moment I was born. Their plan was to create something perfect. Their goal? A child with every single genetic modification ever developed.”

She flicked her wrist, and a bolt of electricity danced across her fingers. A moment later, it turned into fire. Then water.

Yuki’s legs felt weak as he watched her. “But it worked, didn’t it? How could you be a failed experiment?”

“Because they couldn’t control me,” Maya snapped.

“I was a baby when they gave me that shit!” she continued, her voice breaking with anger. “Do you know what it’s like to grow up like that? It made my life hell, Yuki! I hated it. I hated killing nannies by accident, hated never being allowed to leave that stupid apartment! The only thing that kept me from losing my mind was that stupid lullaby Mother used to sing to stop me from hurting myself. And even that, now, is absolute hell to remember—”

Her breath hitched, and her hands trembled as she clenched them into fists. “Can you imagine living like that? They got rid of me when you were born because they thought they could get it right with you. That’s why they waited until you were seventeen. So you wouldn’t have to grow up the way I did!”

Yuki backed up against the wall, his head spinning.

“You don’t believe me, do you?” Maya hissed.

“I—I can’t,” Yuki stammered. These were his parents she was talking about.

Before he could say anything more, Maya grabbed his wrist. Yuki winced in pain at her grip, only for her to let go with a frustrated curse.

“Of course, it won’t work on you,” she muttered.

“What won’t?”

“Memory projection, smartass,” she bit out. “Nothing works on you.”

Before he could process her words, Maya pulled him out of the room.

In the living room, Yuki’s father glanced up.

“What is it, Yuki?” his father asked absently, his focus already drifting back to his tablet.

Maya exhaled a cold breath, and her appearance flickered back to her alleged original form. This time, she wasn’t invisible. She fully revealed herself.

His father froze, a strange sound escaping him. “You—you’re supposed to be—”

“Dead?” Maya asked coolly, raising a brow. She stepped forward, her gaze sharp. “Answer me honestly. Who am I?”

His father’s lips trembled as the words spilled out of him. “My daughter.”

Yuki’s stomach churned. His father’s voice sounded mechanical, as though he wasn’t in control of himself.

“Good,” Maya said, her voice steady, almost cold. “You’re going to forget the past two minutes ever happened. Go back to the sofa. Act like nothing happened. Understand?”

His father nodded robotically, his eyes blank and white.

Maya led Yuki back to the room, locking the door behind them.

“That can’t be—” Yuki began, his voice weak. “What was he talking about? You’re supposed to be dead—? What did that—”

Before he could finish, Maya kicked him hard in the stomach. He crumpled to the ground, groaning in pain, but got up only a few seconds later.

Her super strength didn’t work on him either.

“That kick would’ve killed anyone else,” she said, watching him closely. “But you’re you, Yuki.”

“What—what do you mean?” Yuki asked, taking a cautious step forward.

“You’re immune,” Maya said simply. “The genetics didn’t work on you. You’re like a cure—a counter to every modification. Think about it.”

Yuki’s mind raced, recalling every interaction he’d had. Maya was right. Shinichi’s super strength hadn’t affected him when they’d bumped into each other. He could see her even when she was invisible.

“But the—shapeshifting—” Yuki stammered.

“That’s external,” Maya explained, her tone clipped. “It doesn’t affect you.”

“But—” he murmured, staring at her, “the invisibility… shouldn’t that also be external?”

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “Because that’s something I had to master. It’s complicated—I can only choose to be invisible to people by recognizing their features. I tried, but it wouldn’t work for you.”

Yuki blinked in confusion. “So you memorized everyone at school?”

“Yes,” she replied sternly.

“Why?” His voice grew quieter. “Why did you do all of that just to find me?”

“Well,” she sighed, exhaustion creeping into her tone, “I wasn’t specifically looking for you. Though, the chances were high—since the very people designing such mods were your parents. Obviously, they’d give it to their own son.”

He shook his head, trying to piece it all together. “Wait—but why?”

“Our parents thought you were supposed to develop like I did,” Maya said bitterly. “To gain all of these new abilities, except they’d be able to control you. They didn’t know you’d turn out like this. I knew you’d end up being—”

“Immune,” Yuki murmured, staring at his hands. “Not weak—immune. You were looking for immunity.”

“That’s right.”

“Why?”

Maya’s lips curved into a faint smile. “Do you know that great scientific breakthrough everyone’s talking about?”

He paused, thinking. “Well, yeah—genetically passing down modifications through DNA. We wouldn’t need to inject them into people specifically; they’d just exist when someone’s born. My parents are associated with that—”

“Exactly,” she said softly, inching closer. Her smile turned wistful. “Can you imagine? Passing down immunity from generation to generation. All of these modifications wouldn’t exist. We’d go back to normal—how humans were meant to be.”

Yuki’s mind raced as he thought about it. His eyes darted around, trying to make sense of the implications. “You want to—?”

She hummed gently, her voice almost tender. “This was a lovely reunion, Yuki. I wish I’d met you earlier.”

His frown deepened as he watched her lift her palm.

“Which is why it pains me to do this. Again.”

Before he could react, her palm struck his neck. His world tilted, and everything went dark.