A Sense of Uselessness

Braith’s finger flicked rapidly across his phone screen as he scrolled through row after row of names.

Beside him, Yumie clung to his arm, her head resting against his shoulder. She stared at the screen too - not that it helped, for reasons that were entirely fair. Braith was trying to find her name, but he’d quickly run into a problem.

There were fifty-four kanji variations of “Yumie”.

And he’d never specified which one she was when he named her.

He was also assuming she was even on the registry to begin with, but he’d figured it couldn’t hurt to check. Staring at the endless list, though, he knew he’d made a mistake. With a frustrated sigh, he closed the tab and opened a new one, this time searching in English.

Yumie Conway.

A result appeared almost instantly.

A Mahotona Registry.

His pulse quickened as he tapped it.

There she was.

Listed plainly, clinically, without ceremony.

The fourth humanoid Mahotona to exist.

His mind snagged on the number.

Fourth… in the world?

What about native Japanese Mahotona? Were there no humanoids among them? Questions piled up, but he forced himself onward, scrolling through the page. It contained everything - weight, height, blood type. Even measurements.

For a moment, Braith just stared.

There must be some dedicated pervert involved for them to get her bra size that accurate.

Then his eyes caught the fine print at the bottom.

This information is updated daily by the Mahoro who performed this Mahotona’s unlocking.

He exhaled slowly, dismissing the thought. Protocol, then. Still unsettling - but not personal.

What bothered him more was how much they knew without ever contacting her. Why half of the information was even necessary. He chalked it up to magic, to research, to a system trying to understand something it didn’t yet grasp.

Then his eyes stopped.

Is Pregnant: NO

His heart lurched.

He hadn’t even considered that possibility.

Slowly, he glanced down at the girl leaning against him. For just a moment, he saw her differently - hips, posture, the warmth of her body. She could bear children. That much was obvious.

Would she make a good mother?

He didn’t know.

But he was certain that together, they could-

“Are you looking at me, love?”

His face flushed instantly.

“Y-yeah…”

She smiled softly.

“I thought I could feel it. Is everything alright?”

He nodded quickly.

“Yeah…”

Her smile shifted - playful now.

“Do you want to see more?”

His heart thumped.

“I-”

He sighed, defeated by honesty.

“The website I’m on says you can have children.”

She pulled his arm tighter against her chest.

“Do you want children, love?”

A shiver ran through him.

“I mean-”

She giggled.

“Because I do.”

She nuzzled into his shoulder, and his thoughts scattered completely. He changed the subject, knowing full well he’d regret it later.

“I was trying to see if we could legally get married. Since… no one ever told us.”

He hesitated.

She tilted her head up slightly.

“But?”

He swallowed.

“The only requirement I can find is that marriage has to be between two consenting people.”

A pause.

“And nowhere does it classify you as a person.”

Her expression fell.

“I… I really am just a thing, aren’t I…”

He shook his head.

“To them, maybe.”

She fidgeted with his hand, tracing his fingers slowly.

“Well… we’re already outside the law, aren’t we?”

“Maybe,” he said quietly, “but I wanted it to be official.”

She nodded.

“So do I. It just doesn’t seem like anyone else wants that.”

His jaw tightened.

“Yumie… I promise we’ll get married. Properly. Whatever it takes.”

She nodded, but held him tighter.

“Okay… just don’t hurt yourself trying.”

He smiled and let his phone fall to the bed so he could pat her head.

“Okay. I won’t.”

She smiled back.

“So… what’s the plan for today?”

“Well,” he said, “since the government already knows where we are, I figured we might as well move somewhere nicer.”

To his surprise, his credit card still worked. He’d half-expected it to be frozen, but apparently not.

Her ears perked instantly, tail thumping against the bed.

“With a kitchen? And a bath?”

He laughed.

“Yes. And yes.”

Her smile was radiant.

“When do we leave?”

He stood, offering his hands.

“Now, if you want. We’ll catch another train.”

He helped her up - and then she suddenly leapt into his arms, tail swishing wildly. The sudden enthusiasm caught him off guard, but he laughed anyway.

If something so small could make her that happy…

Then maybe, even in uncertainty, something good could still take root.

The new hotel wasn’t as romantically indulgent as the love hotel, but it was far better suited to their needs.

A fully equipped bathroom.
A large double bed.
A small kitchen.
A table with two chairs that could be dragged out onto a narrow balcony overlooking Tokyo’s glowing sprawl below.

They’d barely been inside five minutes - there was nothing to unpack - when Yumie suddenly grinned.

“Okay! Let’s make dinner!”

Braith blinked.

It wasn’t even four.

“Isn’t that… a bit early?”

She shook her head, tail swaying behind her.

“Nope! I wanna make dinner!”

He hesitated. He’d planned to take her to a nearby shopping center - clothes, essentials, replacements for everything they’d lost. But she looked almost bouncing with excitement.

“Are you feeling alright?” he asked carefully.

Her smile wavered.

“I want to make dinner. Is that weird?”

“No, it’s just…” He trailed off. “…you’re blind.”

She nodded.

“I know. That’s why I want you to teach me. So I can do it.”

Something about the way she said it made his chest tighten.

“You’re acting a little strange, Yumie.”

Her ears flattened.

“I want to make dinner.”

He frowned, firmer now.

“Yumie.”

She glared.

“What?”

“This isn’t you.”

A pause.

“…Yes it is.”

He exhaled slowly.

“The Yumie I know doesn’t push like this. And when she does want something badly, there’s always a reason. So tell me. Why dinner? Why now? We ate not long ago.”

Her mouth opened.

Closed.

“I…”

Tears welled up before she could stop them.

“I-I’m sorry…”

Before he could react, she collapsed into his arms, sobbing.

“I just want to be useful…”

His heart clenched. He held her tightly, voice gentle again.

“There’s more to it than that, isn’t there?”

She nodded against his chest.

“I… I want to be more than a weapon…”

His throat tightened.

“But I told you,” he said softly, “you’re already enough for me. Just as you are.”

She nodded again, trembling.

“I know… but when you talked about kids earlier, I just-” She sniffed. “I felt like I had to do something. To help. To be normal.”

Her sobs soaked into his shirt.

He hated seeing her like this.

And yet… the reason hurt and warmed him all at once.

“You were doing it for me?”

She nodded.

Something in him broke - and melted.

“Argh… you’re unbelievable,” he muttered, squeezing her. “Alright. I’ll teach you how to cook.”

Her head snapped up.

“Really?”

He smiled.

“Really. But not now. It’s too early.” He thought for a moment. “How about this. We go shopping, get everything we need. Then we come back and make dinner together.”

Her tail wagged furiously.

“Okay! Okay!”

They hugged, tight and lingering, until-

Knock. Knock.

Braith stiffened.

Reluctantly, he let her go. She immediately latched onto his arm as they approached the door together.

A tall woman stood outside, dressed formally, hands empty. Her smile was warm. Polite. Almost harmless.

“Hello,” she said cheerfully. “My name is Natsuki.”

She inclined her head slightly.

“I’m from an organization called Hirogari.”

Then she winked.

“But you might know us better by our common name, the anti-purists.”

Braith’s heart nearly stopped.