Brothers

Dashing through alleyways, I hunt for the boy I once found by sheer happenstance. He wasn't where I left him, but of course, he wasn't; he's probably out looking for his sister.
Dark hair is rare, so if anyone had seen him, they'd definitely know. No one I ask has any recollection of seeing him, so he's clearly trying to move discreetly. If so, he's using the alleyways.

In my sprint, I bump into a weasly looking man. "My dear reader! Whatever is wrong!?"
"Sorry, no time to talk!" I pass on by as Lankard voices concern. "Looking for an Eraiden!"
"I love when a person is so focused on a goal, they become blind to the obvious solution." Lankard chuckles to himself. "Hildna!"
"What?" Hearing my name being called so loudly, I stop in my tracks and face the writer. "This is serious-"
Lankard is pointing up at the rooftops. I look up, but see nothing. "Is he up there?"
"You didn't notice?" He wears a smug know-it-all expression. "The fairy of an Eraiden just flew by."
"Fairy?" Right, those were a thing in this world. I can't see them, so I completely forgot. "Which way?"
"West-" As soon as I get my answer, I sprint off in that direction.

With that disrespectful (for the establishment) exit, I bid him adieu. Behind me, Philio Lankard looks on in wonder.
Unknown to I, this question filled his mind:

"But where, dear reader, is your fairy?"

Unknown to Lankard, he looked upon an Earthling.

◇ ◇ ◇

After much searching, I found him walking, exhausted, slightly ahead. I don't even know his name, so I call out:

"Oi-! Kaina ma!"

He turns in an instant.

"Kaina!? Via ma!?"

In this kind of situation, I don't know if I have the composure to think over my spotty knowledge of the language, so I motion frantically for him to follow me. Ms. Tsa will have to translate when we get to the prison.
Just hearing his sister's name is enough for him to follow.

As we approach the castle, the boy is understandably wary. One step ahead of my plans, Ms. Tsa is, once again, waiting for me at the bridge. She asks the boy if he's Kaina's brother, to which he replies. Then, we set off down the same route I'd taken to meet with the princess before. This time, however, we head straight for the prison.
It sounds like Ms. Tsa is explaining some things along the way.

Before we make it inside, she tells me some of what the boy had told her:

Firstly, his name is Aida. He and his sister were trying to run away when they got caught up in the city's celebrations. Separated in the chaos, Aida tried looking for Kaina, but wasn't able to find her, and since he didn't know the local language and was afraid of being caught by the guards, he couldn't ask anyone for help.

Ms. Tsa questioned why he was afraid of the guards. He didn't want to answer at first, but upon being told that his sister was in jail, he gave Ms. Tsa an answer.
He and his sister had been kidnapped by a friend of their parents. He brought them here and kept them isolated from the outside world. The siblings were even locked in different rooms so that they couldn't spend time together.

Ms. Tsa didn't pressure him to explain anything further. She really is too kind. The one thing Aida said about it was that he never heard his sister screaming through the walls, so he believed he was doing a good job at protecting her. This went on for a long time.
But one day, Aida was given freedom from his room to do a job, as was his sister. It was the first time they had been let out together, so instead of doing as commanded, Aida took the opportunity to run away.

That brings us to today, to this jail cell. Kaina was found, either by a corrupt guard or by the captor himself, and made to attack the princess. Was he punishing her for trying to escape by giving her a job she could never succeed at, or... were they being trained as assassins the entire time?
There's a time and a place to ask, but for now-

"Kaina!"

A brother crashes against the bars, desperate to reach his sister. Yet the girl inside the cell shows less desperation. She's happy to see someone she knows, but... the emotional connection doesn't seem to be there, on her part.
With the princess looking on, and Ms. Tsa to translate, I do my best to figure all of this out.

"Kaina! It's me! Are you okay!?"
"Kaina... bad girl. Kaina got caught."
"It's okay. We can escape the evil man now."
"Evil... man?"
"Yes, the one who caught you!"
"The one... who caught Kaina..."

She points at Ms. Tsa.
From the brother's perspective, this conversation is about Kaina being caught after the two were split up.
From the sister's, it's about her being caught after attempting to kill the princess.
To subtly point out this misunderstanding, I ask: "Did this boy take you into the city?"
The little girl nods, so I continue. "Did a man take you back to the castle?"
She shakes her head. Does she even know what a castle is? She must do, surely.
But a brother interjects. "You got lost, right?"
Once again, she shakes her head.

"Daddy... angry."

Her dad would be angry if she ran away, so she returned.

"Kill princess... Daddy happy."

She trusted her kidnapper more than her brother. Understanding that, Aida breaks down and begins to sob.
To Aida, Kaina is the little sister he has been determined to protect. For however many years they've been trapped here, that has been his life's purpose.
To Kaina, as the 6 or 7 year old girl she is... who is Aida? Someone she sometimes hears the voice of?
The only person she ever sees is the man who took her from her parents.
It's at this point, I have to ask.

"How long have you two been here?"

The boy quietly mutters something. Ms. Tsa relays it to the princess, who does some mental maths to convert measurements of time. In a hushed tone, she replies.

"Over three years."
"Then... there's no way this girl remembers anything about her family."
"That's very likely."

If the people with morals—those who wish to protect others—become guards, then what kind of people become assassins?
There are those who wish to harm others.
There are those too desperate to maintain their morals.
And there are those who have been taught nothing else - children.

But... if all this girl knows is how to kill people. If she truly believes that killing is fine because it'll make someone happy...
Is it even safe to let her out of this cell?
I just wish I knew the answer...

".....-it's-......"

A pain rings through my head.

"......Naisha! He-!......"

The database of death shines bright.

"He took them! We trusted him and he-!"

...I know these names.
I know these memories.
I know Aida. I know Kaina. I even knew that they were siblings...
That's why I was so certain that he was an older brother and that she was a younger sister.

I watched their father die.