Page 95 of Kotori
She shows me a family drawing: five figures holding hands in front of the compound. Kaito tall in the center, three daughters around him, and me. Blonde hair, blue eyes, wearing what looks like a kimono. Written at the bottom in careful hiragana: "My family."
"This is beautiful, sweetheart," I manage, emotion making my voice thick.
"Because we ARE family! Forever and ever, right?" She bounces, completely oblivious to the tension. "Papa said you belong here now, and I want a mama so bad, and you're perfect!"
The casual certainty in her voice, brings tears to my eyes before I can stop them.
"Aya-chan," Mizuki says sharply, recovering first. "You can't just decide that Paige-sensei is—"
"But she IS!" Aya interrupts, turning to face her sisters with fierce protectiveness. "She takes care of us and reads stories and helps with homework and sleeps in Papa's room like mamas do!"
Kohana's face crumples slightly. "Aya-chan, our okaa-san... ourrealokaa-san..."
"Is watching us from heaven," Aya says matter-of-factly. "Papa told me. But hearts can have room for two mamas, and Paige-mama loves us now!"
The innocent logic breaks something inside me. I sink to her level, cupping her small face in trembling hands.
"Aya-chan, do you really want me to be your mama?"
"More than anything!" Her gap-toothed grin could power the sun. "You already are my mama."
I pull her into my arms, breathing in her little-girl scent of soap and crayons. This is it. This is what I never knew I was missing—the fierce, protective love that makes everything else worthwhile. "Then yes," I whisper against her hair. "Yes, I'll be your mama."
Kohana makes a sound like a broken sob.
When I look up, tears stream down her thirteen-year-old cheeks.
"Do you... would you want me too?" she asks in the smallest voice. "Even though I'm older and not as cute as Aya-chan?"
"Oh, sweetheart." I extend one arm, and she crashes into our hug with desperate force. "Of course I want you. You're brilliant and thoughtful and so much stronger than you know."
Both girls cling to me like lifelines, and I realize this moment is changing everything for all of us. They're not just Kaito's daughters anymore. They're mine too, chosen and claimed and loved with every fiber of my being.
Only Mizuki remains at the table, watching with an expression that makes my heart ache.
"Girls," Kaito's voice carries from the doorway, and everyone goes still. He enters with that commanding presence, eyes finding mine immediately, but there's something different in his gaze. Deep satisfaction as he takes in the scene before him.
"Papa!" Aya bounces while still clinging to me. "Look at my family picture! And Paige-mama said yes! She's really our mama now!"
He moves to study the drawing with careful attention, and I watch his face for his reaction. Something shifts in his expression as he takes in the details of the way she's positioned me next to him, the obvious care she put into making me look happy, the proud declaration of "family" written at the bottom.
"Beautiful work, hime," he says, using the pet name that makes her glow. "I can see how much love you put into this." His eyes find mine across the emotional tableau. "And how do you feel about this development, Kohana-chan?"
"Happy," she whispers, still pressed against my side. "Really, really happy."
He nods approvingly, then his gaze shifts to Mizuki, who's been silent through the entire exchange. "And you, Mizuki-chan?"
Mizuki's hands clench in her lap, and when she looks up, her eyes are bright with unshed tears. "I had a mother," she says quietly, voice carefully controlled. "She was perfect. She died protecting us from men who wanted to hurt Otou-san. She used to sing to us every night," Mizuki continues, voice getting smaller. "She would braid my hair and tell me stories about brave princesses. She made my lunch every day with little notes that said she loved me."
Tears start flowing down her cheeks despite her efforts to maintain control.
"When the men came for us, she threw herself between them and me and Kohana. She died protecting us because she loved usmore than her own life. And everyone just moved on. Like she never existed. Like her love didn't matter."
"Mizuki-chan," I say softly, my heart breaking for this girl who's carried so much pain alone. "A mother's love will always matter. Nothing I do could ever diminish what she gave you."
"Then why does everyone act like you can just replace her?" The question comes out broken, desperate. "Why does Otou-san look at you the way he used to look at her? Why do Aya and Kohana need someone new when Okaa-san loved us so much?"
"Because love doesn't replace love," I tell her gently. "It adds to it. Your mother loved you first and best and forever. I'm not trying to take her place. I'm trying to honor what she started."
