[When Mia's eyes first meet the magatama, things don't go quite the way Maya may wish them to. Black smoke starts to leak from Mia's mouth as she stares at it.
But Mia remembers. Mia remembers abandonment, pride and hope and a dream, and a heavy loneliness. She remembers anger. For a moment those feelings bubble and boil up inside of her, threatening to consume her-- but she breathes in. She accepts them.
Yes, she is angry. She is hurt. And that's alright for her to be. But there's something more important, something that always has been.
Mia remembers in blurred tones the way the magatama used to nestle itself in the fabric crossed over her mother's chest. She hears the sound of a toddler crying, sees a smile on a woman's face, a camera flash. She hears giggling, whispered "I love you"s, affirmations that don't seem to amount to words anymore but still sound warm, still process in the mind as affirmations.
She sees Maya's face, years younger, as Maya sniffles and Mia wipes her teary face. She notices the way the magatama, the same size as their mother's, almost seems too big to make a little girl wear.
I'll always be here for you. I won't let you down.
She's not sure if she says these things aloud in the memory, or if she simply feels them.
One of the chains through Mia bursts the same way the others did.]
Maya.
[She remembers how being a sister felt. The locks all break.
But Mia looks alarmed at first, reaching out for her sister protectively as the fires around them start to burn the very fabric of the reality around them.]
Maya... I'm sorry! I'm sorry I ever kept this a secret from you,
I gambled myself away in that casino. I don't know how long I'll have this! But I remember! I remember you, and I remember being your sister!
[As the fires grow brighter and brighter around them, Mia takes her sister's face in her hands to make Maya keep her eyes on her and not on their surroundings. They have to fight this all with positivity, don't they?]
And being your sister-- it's the most important thing I could be in my life! I'm sorry I ever let you down. But I'm so happy to remember you.
[She smiles, still a bit terrified, but all the same genuine.]
You are one of the best things I could ever remember.
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But Mia remembers. Mia remembers abandonment, pride and hope and a dream, and a heavy loneliness. She remembers anger. For a moment those feelings bubble and boil up inside of her, threatening to consume her-- but she breathes in. She accepts them.
Yes, she is angry. She is hurt. And that's alright for her to be. But there's something more important, something that always has been.
Mia remembers in blurred tones the way the magatama used to nestle itself in the fabric crossed over her mother's chest. She hears the sound of a toddler crying, sees a smile on a woman's face, a camera flash. She hears giggling, whispered "I love you"s, affirmations that don't seem to amount to words anymore but still sound warm, still process in the mind as affirmations.
She sees Maya's face, years younger, as Maya sniffles and Mia wipes her teary face. She notices the way the magatama, the same size as their mother's, almost seems too big to make a little girl wear.
I'll always be here for you. I won't let you down.
She's not sure if she says these things aloud in the memory, or if she simply feels them.
One of the chains through Mia bursts the same way the others did.]
Maya.
[She remembers how being a sister felt. The locks all break.
But Mia looks alarmed at first, reaching out for her sister protectively as the fires around them start to burn the very fabric of the reality around them.]
Maya... I'm sorry! I'm sorry I ever kept this a secret from you,
I gambled myself away in that casino. I don't know how long I'll have this! But I remember! I remember you, and I remember being your sister!
[As the fires grow brighter and brighter around them, Mia takes her sister's face in her hands to make Maya keep her eyes on her and not on their surroundings. They have to fight this all with positivity, don't they?]
And being your sister-- it's the most important thing I could be in my life! I'm sorry I ever let you down. But I'm so happy to remember you.
[She smiles, still a bit terrified, but all the same genuine.]
You are one of the best things I could ever remember.