Envy

Rena awoke. She was lying against the wall, outside the room that Rell had accommodated in Elena's house. A large, white cape was draped over her. She pulled it off, folding it neatly, before opening up the bedroom door. The bed was empty of course, save for the sleeping little purple haired sister. 

"Her name is Kana!" Mel declared proudly the other day. 

Kana's eyes beamed with delight, having earned herself a real name. Rell knelt down next to her.

"Nice to meet you Kana." He said, a warm smile on his face. 

"Nice to meet you, Rell!" Kana gripped onto him. 

"Ah jeez..." He stood up, the girl still hanging onto him. She had an exceptionally strong grip. 

"Hey you! Yes you, Kana!" Tia pointed. "Get down from there!" 

Rell grabbed her, placing her safety down on the ground in front of Tia. 

"You're gonna have to earn your place around her peasant!" Tia bossed. 

Kana stuck her tongue out at her. 

"Hey!" Tia readied a counter attack, only for Kana to dash behind Rell's leg. 

She stuck her tongue out again, mocking Tia. 

"I don't have to join your stupid squad. I wanna be in Rell's squad!" She shot back. 

"Oh a new recruit?" Rin popped into frame looking proud. 

"Alpha Squad isn't so great!" Rena appeared as well. "Charlie Squad has had way more combat missions." 

"Yes, but does Charlie Squad have not one, but two confirmed leviathan kills?" Rin said, holding up two fingers. 

"Why you!" Rena hissed. 

"Now, now." Mel stood in between them, pushing them apart. "It's not good for sisters to fight." 

"Hmph." They both pouted, crossing their arms and turning away from each other. 

Rena gripped the doorframe, her memories of her fight with Rin resurging into her brain. Why was her sister so annoying to her? Why is it Rin takes every opportunity to irritate her? Rena bit her lip. It was so frustrating. 

"Focus. Focus." She calmed herself. "I need to find Rell." She sighed, turning and leaving Kana asleep in the room. 

Rell was out training as before, swinging his blade. Elena sat on a tree stump, watching him. Rena approached, greeting Elena with a wave. 

"Isn't it interesting?" Elena asked, watching Rell perform his movements. "Rell told me he had to learn all those moves from someone else! It's so surprising, I'm pretty sure he's a better swordsman than me, but he didn't start that way!" 

"Yeah, it's weird." Rena sighed. "How was he supposed to know what fighting style to pick?"

"He said he picked it!" Elena laughed. "And he practiced till he was at this level." 

"Practiced it huh..." Rena muttered. 

"You guys!" Rin called out, approaching the trio. "Got news." 

"Three weeks!?" Rell grit his teeth. "I have to wait three whole weeks to find my friends!?" He cursed, throwing his sword into the dirt. 

"It can't be helped." Rin said, shaking her head. "We're planning to take on a overlord. An OVERLORD. We need to recall all the other squads. Foxtrot Squad is across the country right now in the Overlord of Rage's territory. It'll take them that long to get back here." Rin pointed out. "Plus even the closest squad, Charlie, is three days out." 

Rell was tempted to After Image and escape, but seeing the look on Elena's face stopped him. He promised her he'd help, and he didn't feel like breaking that.

"Fine." He pouted. 

Elena sighed in relief. 

"Of course we probably wouldn't need Charlie squad anyway!" Rin laughed, pointing at Rena. 

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!" Rena yelled back. 

"It means that Alpha squad is more than ready to carry the rest of the squads without Charlie's help!" Rin declared. 

"You..." Rena gripped her fists. 

"What? Can't say anything? Can't admit its true?" Rin teased. 

"You!!!" Rena charged Rin, tackling her to the ground and wailing on her with her fists. 

Rell practically pried her off, wrapping his arms around Rena in order to control her.

"What's wrong with you!" Rin shot up, her face covered in bruises and scratches, tears welling up in her eyes. 

"I hate you! I hate you!" Rena screamed, flailing her legs as Rell held her in place. "I should've have been the one to win the contest! I let you win!" She cried.  "Let go of me! Let go of me!" She kicked Rell's shins, prompting him to release her. 

Rena bolted off, tears running down her face as she left the group behind. 

"Rena!" Elena cried out to her, reaching out. 

"Don't follow her!" Rin hissed, wiping her bloodied lip, tears pouring down her face. "If she wants to be that way, fine!" Rin turned, storming off in a different direction. 

"Oh no..." Elena sighed. "Another bad fight..." 

"Should we... go after them?" Rell asked. 

"I usually do." She sighed. "But they always force me to pick sides. Now I kinda just sit on it. Does that make me a coward?" 

"I don't think so." Rell answered. "Atleast, it might be better to give them time to themselves." 

"Jeez, and you were so angry earlier... Look at you." Elena laughed. 

"I had a little sister. I know how to deal with these kind of things." Rell commented. 

"Oh? Do you think you'll be able to find her frozen too?" Elena asked, a innocent smile on her face. 

Rell's face soured. 

"No." He said, turning and returning to his training. 

Rena tucked herself away under the shade of a tree to the far edge of the Sanctuary. She cried and cried, venting her frustrations. 

"Why is Rin so stupid??" She sobbed, venom in her voice. 

Her vision drifted to the nearby brook. A log floated slowly through the water, bobbing up and down as it drifted. Rena drew one of her pistols, taking aim. After a few moments, she fired. The icicle bullet missed, peppering the water where the log was. She cursed, before focusing again. She readied her stance, letting her body's instincts take over. Taking a deep breath, she pulled the trigger. 

The round hit the log, sending up a spray of splinters as the hole it penetrated froze over. Ice branched off the log, suddenly holding it in place. She took aim once more, barraging the log with more and more shots. The ice began to stack, jagged spikes jutting out from log like a bizarre ice sculpture. 

An idea arose in her brain. Rena holstered her pistol, turning and returning into the village. She found Mira's home, letting herself in through the front door. The house was a mess; designer Sister outfits on mannequins lined the entrance hall. Thread, needles, and fabric littered the floor, with stacks old books, manga, video games, and DVD movies tucked into the corners. One of the stacks fell over, causing Rena to jump. A cat emerged, meowing and darting off after seeing her. 

Mira was passed out on her futon, an old tv in front of it. There was some anime about magical girls being tricked by a weird cat on it. 

"Mira! Mira!" Rena shook the passed out girl. 

"I won't make a contract with you!" She shot up. "Huh? Who's there?" Mira squinted, unable to make out the figure in front of her. 

Mira reached for glasses, putting them on. 

"Oh, Rena. What's up?" Mira asked. 

"Do you have any books about shooting or guns?" Rena asked in turn. 

"Huh? Yeah, in the back corner over there, behind the couch. Why the sudden interest?"

"No reason." Rena said, darting off towards the disheveled stack of books. 

Several cats laid on the couch, sleeping. She pulled a book labeled Shooting 101: A Beginner Guide to Pistols.

Rena took a seat, placing a cat on her lap and petting it, before diving into the book. She finished it by mid-day, moving on to the more advanced Guide to Competition Shooting. She was done by dinner time. 

Mira had left Rena to her own devices, opting to work several new outfits that were requested of her. It was very late when she had finished her last dress for the light. She found Rena asleep on the couch, several cats piled on top of her, a copy of West: A Holy Knight Sharp Shooter's Memoir falling out of her hand. 

Mira placed a blanket over Rena and the cats, before putting on another movie to watch for the night. 

Rena awoke in the early morning, leaving behind a sleeping Mira. She wrote a thank you note and placed it on the table near the futon. 

The next phase of Rena's plan required set up. She found Mel playing with the Tia squad. Kana was with them too. 

"Who says I have to listen to you?" Kana said, pointing at Tia. 

"You have to listen to me cause I'm the squad leader!" Tia declared. "Right guys?"

"Uh, is that true?" Vi asked. 

"I'm just here for the snacks." Hope replied. 

"See? You have no standing!" Kana yelled. 

"Why you!" Tia charged her. 

"Ah!!" Kana turned and ran. "Rell! Save me!" 

"That's too familiar..." Rena sighed, remembering the days when Rin was in charge of the little Sister squad. 

Rena just followed her around and did what she said.  That was how it always was. 

"Ah, Rena." Mel waved. 

"Big sis." She went and embraced her. 

"Wow! So affectionate." Mel commented, stroking Rena's hair. "Rena is usually a little more skittish."

"I need your help." She said. 

"Of course! Leave it to your big sister." Mel saluted. 

Rena told her the request. 

"Of course!" Mel pointed out. 

It was done half a day later. Mel was really, really good with her hands. She was the one who taught Mira how to sew after all. It was one of her many skills. 

The shooting course consisted of wooden targets set up at several intervals. Mel had even rigged a small battery operated motor to one of the targets, causing it to pop in and out from behind a ply wood barrier. 

"It's perfect!" Rena beamed. 

"No less than perfect for one of my little ones." Mel grinned. 

Rena got to work. Instead of relying on her instincts, she remembered the books she had read. She practiced her stance. She practiced shifting her grips from left to right; she practiced switching her shooting eye. She practiced aiming from standing, kneeling, and lying prone.  She practice dry firing, and moving to shoot. All these practiced, recalling everything she had read over the past day. 

The sun began to set, the orange light shimmering off the ice that had formed on the targets she had shot. An exhausted Rena collapsed against a rock, her hands raw from gripping pistols all afternoon. 

"Here you go." Mel crouched next to her, offering her a thermos of ice cold water. 

Rena took it, gulping it down greedily. 

"You did really well!" Mel praised. "You were pulling off a lot of really cool moves that I don't even think Rin knows." 

"Good." Rena said, pouting. 

"Oh no, did you two fight again?" Mel asked.

Rena turned away from Mel. 

"It's not good for sisters to fight." Mel scolded. 

"But she's just so...." Rena could barely hold it in. She wanted to scream at the top of her lungs. 

"But you two love each other." Mel noted, taking a seat next to her. "She's not only one of your closest sisters, but also your closest friend." 

"I just want to be better than her." Rena admitted. "Rin's so good at shooting. It took me a bit to recognize that my weapon talent was guns. But Rin was drawn to it right away." Rena wiped the tears from her eyes. "But i'm just not as good as her..." 

"Don't think like that." Mel shook her head. 

"Big Sis, you wouldn't understand." Rena couldn't fight it anymore as the tears rolled down her face. 

Mel smiled warmly, embracing her younger sister into a tight hug. 

"You know, when I was born, all the Sixth generations Sisters hated me." Mel said. "Even the oldest Seventh generation born right after me." 

"What? Why?" Rena asked, shocked. 

"I couldn't do anything." Mel said. "I was also the smallest Sister ever born. Hina said that I was like a human baby. I couldn't talk or walk. And it took me a really long time before I was big enough to fight."  Mel forced herself to smile, but tears were welling up in her eyes now. "But there was a problem. I didn't know how to. I couldn't shoot a gun, nor swing a sword or lance. I couldn't use a shield. And worst of all..." 

"Worst of all?" Rena asked. 

"I can't use Nin." Mel admitted. 

Rena walked back to Elena's home in the dark, memories of her conversations with Mel swirling in her head. She stopped, observing Rell swinging his sword again. This time it was Kana who was watching him, her eyes twinkling with fascination. 

"Oh, you're back." Rell said, practicing his parries. "Hadn't seen you in a couple of days." 

"Of course i'm back. Who's to keep you from running off?" Rena said. 

"Well, I uh... haven't run off while you were gone." Rell pointed out. 

"That's beside the point." She waved her finger. "Huh?"

Kana had walked up to her, hugging her waist. 

"Welcome home." She said. 

Her face turned red in embarrassment. 

"Jeez..." She sighed.