Anomaly

(POV: Protagonist)

I watched the brief exchange between Althea and my other little sister, Charlotte, my gaze shifting back and forth between them. After what had just happened... a brief possession? Honestly, I still had no idea what I was supposed to call it. Whatever it was, I decided to keep my mouth shut. I simply had no clue what I was supposed to say.

Besides being completely unexpected, it had been more than a little unsettling. It caught me completely off guard, especially because I never imagined I'd hear someone as timid as Charlotte answer with such unwavering confidence and conviction, someone who, by all appearances, shouldn't even understand what she truly was.

For a few moments, I simply watched the two of them in silence, trying to sort through my own thoughts as everything that had happened replayed over and over in my mind. Thankfully, my naturally expressionless face hid every trace of surprise or unease. Outwardly, I looked just as calm as ever...

Which meant my dignity as the big brother remained perfectly intact. Even so, with Althea and Charlotte still locked in that bizarre staring contest, I couldn't find a single opening to butt into their conversation. Every time I thought about saying something, I backed out at the last second, feeling like anything that came out of my mouth would only make things worse.

Charlotte's parents, on the other hand, looked absolutely horrified by the way their daughter was behaving. Their faces were a mixture of fear, disbelief, and desperation, as though they expected Althea to lose her patience at any moment.

Honestly, I couldn't blame them. It isn't every day you see an apparently ordinary little girl openly talking back to an existence capable of erasing you with nothing more than a blink. Not that Althea would ever do something like that. That would completely contradict the very concept she embodied: life.

Still, that was something only I knew. Neither Charlotte nor her parents had the slightest idea. From their perspective, Charlotte was challenging an incomprehensibly powerful being without showing even the faintest hint of fear.

What surprised me the most, however, wasn't her courage. It was the words she chose. Charlotte didn't speak to Althea like someone who was simply upset over something that had just happened. Quite the opposite.

Every word she spoke carried the frustration of someone who had been putting up with the exact same behavior for a very long time, as though this argument were merely the latest chapter in a never-ending series of disagreements.

The problem was... That should've been impossible. Unless Charlotte had lived with, or at the very least spent a significant amount of time around, Althea, there was no way she could display that level of familiarity. This wasn't the reaction of someone jumping to conclusions.

It was the reaction of someone who already knew Althea inside and out. On top of that, Charlotte herself had just admitted that she genuinely meant every single word she'd said. There wasn't even a hint of hesitation. No attempt to take it back. No excuse. No justification.

At this point, it didn't even make sense to write it off as a momentary outburst. Charlotte definitely has some kind of connection to us. I'd already suspected as much before, but that brief exchange only reinforced what was slowly becoming less of a suspicion and more of a certainty.

Then, complete silence settled over the room. Charlotte's blunt, uncompromising words still seemed to linger in the air. No one dared to speak. Everyone remained frozen in place, trying to process the absurd chain of events that had just unfolded before their eyes.

It was Charlotte's mother who finally broke the silence: "C-Charlotte..." she called, raising a trembling hand to her mouth in a futile attempt to steady herself. Her eyes remained fixed on her daughter, yet somehow looked unfocused, as if her mind was still struggling to accept what she had just witnessed: "W-What..." The words died in her throat. She swallowed hard, unable to finish the question. It was as though she was afraid of the answer.

Charlotte's father spoke next. Although he appeared slightly more composed than his wife, his expression revealed the very same concern. The tension in his shoulders was impossible to miss, and the confusion in his eyes made it painfully obvious that he was desperately searching for some explanation.

"Charlotte..." he said, his voice surprisingly calm despite the strain behind it: "What exactly do you mean by that?" His eyes never left his daughter's face, carefully watching every tiny reaction, as though even the slightest change in her expression might finally give him the answer he was searching for.

Charlotte, meanwhile, kept her eyes fixed on Althea. The calm expression on my little sister's face never changed. Althea, on the other hand, still wore that amused smile, looking as though she was silently enjoying the entire situation. Her arms remained wrapped around my neck, and her cheek was still pressed against mine in an annoyingly intimate way.

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She didn't show the slightest intention of letting go. Having absolutely no idea what was going on anymore, I simply looked back and forth between the two of them. The silence they shared was... strange. Not a single word was spoken, yet the atmosphere between them felt heavy enough to suggest an invisible battle, as though they were exchanging barbs only the two of them could understand.

After several more seconds, I finally couldn't take it anymore: "So..." I asked cautiously: "what exactly am I missing here?" Neither of them answered.

I let out a sigh before turning my head as far as I could toward Althea, who was still practically glued to me: "And you..." I said: "Mind letting go already, Althea?"

She tilted her head ever so slightly, pretending not to understand: "Hm? Why?"

"Because having you hanging off me like this is ridiculously uncomfortable" I grimaced as her cheek rubbed against mine again: "And quit rubbing your cheek against mine... it's seriously creepy" Althea's smile only grew wider, clearly delighted that she'd managed to get that reaction out of me.

I'm not entirely sure what kind of impact my words had, but judging by the expressions on both of their faces, it seemed to be something significant. Althea immediately puffed out her cheeks, the exact thing she always did whenever she didn't get her way. She shot me an indignant glare before firmly crossing her arms, making her silent protest perfectly clear.

The real surprise, however, was Charlotte. Once again, I caught that same playful gleam dancing in her eyes. The corner of her lips slowly curled upward until it blossomed into a smile dripping with pure provocation: "Hehe..."

The soft giggle slipped from her lips almost melodically as her smile widened even further. Resting both elbows on the coffee table, she propped her chin up with her hands and leaned forward ever so slightly.

The smug expression plastered across her face made it painfully obvious that she was enjoying every second of this: "So, you heard her, you spoiled little brat" she said, never losing that mischievous grin as she locked eyes with Althea: "Get lost" Her tone was shamelessly taunting.

Althea didn't answer. Instead, she narrowed her eyes ever so slightly and stared at Charlotte in complete silence, her sharp gaze filled with suspicion. Charlotte, on the other hand, didn't show the slightest hint of hesitation. She met Althea's stare head-on, the faint curve of her lips never fading, as though daring her to say something.

For a brief moment, I could've sworn tiny sparks crackled between them, appearing and vanishing far too quickly for me to be certain they'd actually been there. Maybe I imagined it... Or maybe I didn't.

Rupert, who had chosen to remain completely silent until now, let out a long sigh before muttering, more to himself than anyone else: "Yeah... this just keeps getting weirder by the second"

Victor, on the other hand, seemed oddly calm. He rested a hand against his chin, thoughtfully observing the entire exchange like nothing more than an interested spectator. After a few seconds, the corner of his mouth lifted into a small smile: "I think we finally got the answers we were looking for"

Charlotte's parents were, naturally, the first to react to Victor's implication. The color drained from both of their faces almost instantly. Charlotte's mother clasped her hands so tightly that her knuckles turned white, while her trembling lips pressed together so hard it looked like she might bite them in a desperate attempt to hold herself together.

"T-That's... that's impossible..." Her voice broke halfway through the sentence. She tried to continue, opening and closing her mouth several times, but no words came out. It was as though her mind simply refused to accept the possibility she'd just been confronted with.

Charlotte's father remained silent, standing as stiff as a statue while his gaze shifted between Victor and his daughter. The conflict written across his face was unmistakable, as though he were desperately searching for any rational explanation that could deny Victor's words.

But by now... Even he had probably begun to realize the truth he'd been trying so hard to avoid. Charlotte wasn't an ordinary child. She belonged to our world... Not theirs.

It was Charlotte's father who finally broke the silence. Yet even he didn't seem convinced by his own words. His voice remained calm, almost gentle, but there was an unmistakable hesitation beneath its controlled tone, as if he were trying to convince not only everyone else, but himself as well: "This... this has to be some kind of mistake"

His restless gaze swept across everyone's faces before returning to his daughter. His fingers unconsciously tightened around the fabric of his clothes, betraying the tension he was working so hard to conceal.

"Charlotte's just exhausted" he insisted, sounding a little more certain now as he clung to that explanation like it was the only possible truth: "I'm sure of it. She's been through so much... she just needs some rest"

He took a small step forward, shaking his head: "Yeah... that's all it is. A little rest. That's all she needs, and Charlotte will be back to normal. I'm sure she only said those strange things because she's tired"

The last few words came out with noticeably less conviction. His voice faltered for just a moment, exposing the doubt he was desperately trying to bury beneath his stubborn insistence.

Charlotte's father looked ready to say something else. His lips had already parted... But the words never came. A calm yet unwavering voice cut him off first: "Do you really believe that?"

Emily wore a stern expression. Her gaze shifted slowly between the husband and wife, studying every subtle reaction without looking away for even a second. She appeared perfectly calm. Far more intimidating than any shout could ever have been.

One eyebrow rose ever so slightly: "Even if you keep denying it now, it won't make any difference once the truth finally comes out. The energy surges have been growing stronger with each passing week. Whatever's coming... it's going to happen, whether we help or not"

She paused for a brief moment, giving the couple a chance to let her words sink in. Then she leaned forward just slightly, never taking her cold, unwavering eyes off either of them.

"The real question is this" Her voice remained steady: "Are you two absolutely sure you have what it takes to face what's coming? Are you really convinced the smartest thing you can do is keep hiding behind illusions you've created for yourselves... when your own daughter may end up paying the price for your choices?" The couple remained frozen. Neither of them could find the strength to answer. let alone argue with Emily's words.

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