Chapter 24: A Council of War (and Weirdness)

The pressure of the Grand Prix was becoming a physical entity in our house. It lived in the constant hum of the sewing machine and the sharp scent of spray paint. Rina was working herself to the bone, and even her relentless teasing campaign against me was starting to lose its edge, replaced by a frayed, deep-seated exhaustion.

Finally, she hit a wall. I found her one afternoon staring blankly at a complex wiring diagram for the costume's lighting, looking completely overwhelmed.

"I can't do this alone," she whispered, more to herself than to me. She picked up her phone and sent a text: 'Code Red. My place. Bring snacks.'

An hour later, Miki and Hana arrived, armed with convenience store bags filled with potato chips and energy drinks, ready for a cosplay crisis. It was the first time they had been over for a major work session since the day at the theme park. They had no idea that the landscape of our lives had been fundamentally altered.

They were immediately confronted with the new, bizarre reality.

"Miki-chan! Hana-chan! You're here!" Rina cried, launching herself at them for a group hug. Then she saw me walk into the living room. Her eyes lit up. "And look, my darling Onii-chan is here to greet you, too!"

She detached from her friends, scurried over to me, and latched onto my arm with the tenacity of a barnacle. "Say hi to my friends, dear brother," she said, batting her eyelashes at me.

I tried to pry my arm away, my face burning. "Hi," I grumbled.

Miki and Hana just stared, their smiles frozen. They exchanged a look of pure, unadulterated confusion. They knew Rina was clingy with me, but this was… different. This was theatrical.

Rina dragged her friends into her room, leaving me to nurse my now-bruised dignity.

"Okay, so, quick update before we start on the costume," Rina said cheerfully, closing the door.

Miki and Hana expected a breakdown of construction problems. They were not prepared for the truth.

"You know how I've been in love with my secret knight, Starlight_Knight_01?" Rina began.

Miki and Hana nodded eagerly, excited for some romantic development. "Did he message you? Did you have your digital date?" Hana asked.

"Better," Rina said, a radiant smile on her face. "I found out who he is!"

"No way!" Hana gasped. "Who is he?! Is he cute?!"

Rina beamed and pointed a thumb back towards the living room. "He's my brother."

The silence in the room was absolute. Miki’s glasses slid down her nose. Hana’s jaw was on the floor.

"And it gets better!" Rina continued, completely undeterred by their shocked expressions. "I confessed my undying love to him. He completely panicked and rejected me because of the whole 'forbidden sibling love' thing, which is, you know, a classic romantic trope. But I've decided I don't give a damn about that, so my current strategy is to wear down his defenses with a relentless campaign of physical affection and psychologically damaging jokes." She clapped her hands together. "So, anyway! About this wiring diagram…"

Miki and Hana just stared at her, then at each other. After a long, painful moment, a slow, awkward laugh escaped Miki's lips.

"Rina," Miki said, adjusting her glasses with a trembling hand. "I say this as your best friend and business partner. I think I'm siding with your brother on this one. You are clinically, certifiably insane."

Hana nodded vigorously, her eyes wide with horror. "Rina-chan, he's your brother! You can't just- just seduce your brother! That's not a romantic trope, that's the plot of a very questionable manga!"

For the first time, Rina was faced with an outside perspective. But her smile never wavered. "Don't worry," she said confidently. "I'll win him over. Now, about these LEDs…"