"Thanks for driving me to school, Kate."

Kate gave a split glance away from the road, pushing a smile to the young girl sitting behind the driver's seat, "Anything for you, Clara." The child was only eight years old, her blonde hair slightly roasted with a brown tint was tied into two pigtails with sky blue ribbons. Clara wore a white blouse, buttoned to the collar, and a skirt to match her ribbons. Kate looked back to the paved road ahead, very careful of each thing around their car, "I have an appointment today so I thought I would help out mom and pa."

She rolled her fingers over the steering wheel. Kate barely noticed how her knuckles turned white, but how could she not be nervous? She had precious cargo aboard the car. Kate stole one more look back to her sister who smiles held more light than the sun.

"So, what are you learning in school right now?"

"About rangers and stuff."

A smirk drew across Kate's expression, locking eyes with Clara in the rear-view mirror, "Oh! Have you told your class yet how your big sister is the Kate Hitomi, member of the Brighton Operation and defeated a raging legendary and put Blake Hall behind bars?"

Clara's face dimmed, shoulders shrinking as the young girl looked back out her window to see the passing city. "Not really," she said under her breath.

"What?" Kate's grip tightened on the wheel, speeding up just slightly, "I mean, that's your decision, but... You don't want people to, like, put you above them right? Like, holding too high of expectations for you since your sister was successful. I-- I understand that. Living in a shadow has no road to true happiness."

Clara still kept her eyes out the window, "That's not it."

The car was held in a drowning silence where neither head gave an inch. After a few minutes passed, Kate grumbled an exaggerated sigh, "Are you going to tell me what 'it' is?"

The small child flinched at her sister's venomous tone, "Well... Our teacher said that Blake Hall was our key to re-new-able energy in Almia. And that... When the rangers put him in jail-- that it ruined our energy system. Saying the rangers have to learn about res-s-sponsibility. And I... I don't want to tell the teacher that I am related to someone they dislike."

She's embarrassed by me! Kate growled, pulling into the school's parking lot. The fire rising into her chest was quickly swallowed when she exited the car with a slam. She kept a mechanical composure as Kate glided to the back door. 

Opening the door for Clara, Kate gave a chilling smile down to her sister. Clara's skin rose with goosebumps and tried to just focus on the pavement as she swung her legs to leap out of the car.

Her shins met a painful crash. A shriek filled the parking lot as every nerve in Clara became ablaze. Tears had already formed swollen pools when another crash came to her legs. Over and over until her legs felt like shattered glass, "Kate, stop!"

Kate repeatedly slammed the door. The metal lining tearing into Clara's skin. First came dark bruises, deep purple with a blue frost around them. Then skin popped, tearing away and leaving exposed muscle. "You weren't there; you don't know what happened! Stop lying to me, you brat!"

Clara wailed, trying to jerk her legs away, but they refused to move. The onslaught of the door came over and over. Soon, fractured pieces of bone poked out. "Sissy, please!" Clara sobbed, her face flooded with tears. She could barely make out words between her own screams. One moment she flew her arms down as the door was swung wide. She had a second. A second to pull her legs back into the car and lock it from the inside.

"I'm no sissy! I'm the bravest person here! I'll show you," Kate's misinterpretation only sent anger boiling through her own blood. Her next slam of the door coming down harder and faster than any of the last.

Blood sprayed out like popped a water balloon, running like a river underneath the car. The metal sliced into Clara's arms and her raw throat gave out one great howl. Pain overcame every sense as the metallic smell wafted through the air. In a flash, everything had gone dark for Clara.

Though it didn't stop Kate as she relentlessly continued to slam the door. The limbs caught in between were twisted and gnarled into a bloody knot. Kate wound up her arms, her muscles swelling with power, as she gave one final monstrous blow.

Her eyes flickered open, only to meet the darkness. The room felt so small when shrouded by the night. Her heart thumped like she had just run a marathon. Kate flailed forward, gasping for any ounce of air, fingers clutched around her heart. 

Sweat and tears mingled down her cheek and Kate's stomach screamed as she saw the images of her battered sister. "Oh Arceus, oh Arceus what have I done," she whispered. Her throat was as coarse as sand paper but she immediately reached for her cell phone sitting on her nightstand. It may have been 1 am, but she had to call, "Ma, pa... Please pick up. Pick up, pick up, pick up, pick up. Oh, Clara, Arceus, what have I done."

No answer.

She dials up her old home phone once more. The stone bobbing in her throat grew larger with each ring. "Arceus, I bet they're at the hospital," Kate said, pulling her phone back to hang up. Maybe she'd call pa's cell phone.

"Hello?"

The distance voice broke through the speaker just as Kate brushed the end-button. She jerked the phone back, hoping she didn't cancel the call, "Hello, Are you still there? Ma? Pa?"

"Who is this?" the grogged voice said with a yawn.

Kate flinched. The voice was strange, not one she'd heard before, "This is Kate. Kate Hitomi. Um--" She wanted to ask who she was speaking to but her moment was cut off.

"OMA, Kate! Wow, ma and pa have been hoping for you to call, but no one was expecting 1 AM," the haze of exhaustion dissipated as laughter crowed over the phone, "Sorry, this is Clara. All my friends say I sound different over the phone."

"Clara?" Kate said, batting her eyes owlishly. The voice seemed-- lower? More mature. It was nothing like her sister's sugary pitches, "Why are you awake this late?"

One could practically hear the speaker's smile through the phone as she spoke, "I mean you could say I'm just up really early depending on your perspective. Anyways, I have a big presentation I'm giving in my robotics class tomorrow and I'm putting my final touches on the project."

"Robotics?" Kate asked, her head reared back. The further this conversation went, the more her mind became cluttered. Clara's only 10 and her elementary school provides a class like that? Kate knew that the education systems were trying to reform and teach students more while school was still free, but this was preposterous.

"Yeah! My teacher even wants me to join our school team. Isn't that so cool?" the girl continued on chattering. It seemed like she wasn't even breathing as each word flew into the other, "If I'm lucky and try hard enough, he says I can probably get into the Ranger Academy with a full scholarship!"

"Woah, you're really thinking ahead there," Kate laughed quietly.

"I mean, not really. I guess things are different here in Almia than they were back in Fiore. They started having us think about college back in 7th grade and now that high school has kicked in, it's like a super huge pressure," Clara said with a babbling of high school stressors following. However, the words drifted through the air as Kate continued to run two words through her mind.

High school. 

Kate scoffed slightly. She shook her head gently with eyes focused to her crumpled covers. Just how much has she missed? "I-- I can understand though," Kate whispered into the phone, straining herself to sound as normal as possible, "Well... So the Ranger Academy? Following the steps of your older sister?"

A light laugh echoed over the line and burned a smile into Kate's cheeks as Clara spoke, "Nah. I mean, you're like super cool sis, but I wanna become a mechanic. I have like zero stamina," they both broke into laughter. Memories of the two racing in the fields of Fiore came back, Kate always lapping her little sister. "But I didn't want to be an operator. Everyone expects the girls to do that, and that the rangers and mechanics are the 'man's' job. You proved them wrong by being the best ranger. Now I'm gonna show off my skill."

Maybe Kate would've been mad. Angry that her little sister didn't want to be a ranger, just like her. But a warmth swelled up in Kate's heart as she listened to her sister gush. The ideal of someone following in her footsteps dissipated for she could hear the burning passion igniting within Clara. 

"I'm not offended in the least. That sounds amazing, Clara," She breathed, knowing the girl was going to shine brightly in the future. And if Kate could, she would lend a hand where ever she could, "You know, I can set you up to work with Elaine. She's a woman who's crushing it in the same field and you'd probably learn a lot."

Clara gasped, "Really? OMA, Kate! I'd love that. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" For once Kate's smile grew genuine. It was so hard not to around Clara. No matter what age, Clara was like a burning light that cast joy across whatever she touches.

The two chattered for a bit. Nostalgia pulled at each phrase with a hope of the future brimming with every word. Soon though, night drags people back to sleep. Or for some, work.

 Clara's yawn broke across the phone and each word was pulled along, "Alright, it's been super nice talking to you but I need to continue my project. I'd love to talk to you more another time. Ma and Pa would too."

Kate's expression fractured. Her eyes fell back to her covers as she rustled her toes between the sheets. Her voice was laced with light like a cup overflowing, she tried too hard, "Alright, make sure to get some sleep."

"You too."

The ending sound rang, filling up all that is Kate. She sighed heavily. Kate still held the phone against her cheek as if she kept waiting, her sister's voice would return. Finally, her arm fell with the phone in hand. Kate followed along and flopped back against her pillow, glazed eyes dancing over the ceiling. 

"Everything okay, hun?"

Kate shifted onto her shoulder towards the inside of her bed, eyes meeting the amber gleam of Keith's. "Yeah..." she said, her eyes shutting as the lie burned on her tongue, "No. I-I had a dream I hurt Clara. Really badly. I just called home to see if she was okay and, and, and--- It was just a dream. I talked to her." Kate's eyes opened back, with eyebrows knit together. She fought back the tears with batting blinks.

Keith reached over to brush stray hairs from her face, "That's good. I bet she's been wanting to talk to you for awhile. How are things swinging for her?"

 "Good. Really good," Kate chuckled with a small choke at the sadness crawling through her throat, "Keith, did you know she's in high school now?"

"Mhmm. She's eight years younger than you, so it makes sense."

"Arceus, that means she's 15! Where the hell did the time go?" Kate snaked her fingers with Keith's hand. He squeezed her gently. The silence dragged Kate closer as she rubbed her forehead against their interlocked hands, "I feel like I'm absent from my own sister's life."

The ranger looked down at his wife, face crinkling together with a bittersweet twinkle to his eyes. He knew. He knew that she had the opportunities, however, it was so hard for Kate these days. 

His voice sank to be like feathers as he spoke, "We were invited to her middle school graduation ceremony. Remember? But you weren't feeling well and spent the day in bed."

Kate flinched, "Oh. Did you--"

"I went. She held her diploma with so much pride. When she was on that stage, there was a fire in her eyes. But, Clara, she just about cried when I had to tell her you weren't there."

"Oh..."

The serpent of silence slid back, twisting and entangling itself around Kate until she felt suffocated. She scrunched up and tucked herself further into the blankets. A dark spiral began to paint her mind, eyes fading further into the distance as they stayed in the same place. Keith tried to hold her tighter as she faded away into her own mind. He knew. He knew if she went there, there was no telling when she'd return.

Desperately, he tried to reel her back as he said, "Did you call Erma yesterday?"

A tiny nod gave the sign that she wasn't completely gone yet, "She was nice. Really happy to talk to me too. I have an appointment with 'the best' psychologist in their network tomorrow. Erma did so much for someone like me." Someone dripped out of her mouth as if it were something wretched. 

Kate continued, "I avoid the field for years and she takes care of me like I'm her own. I--I wish she wouldn't. It just hurts so much more, Keith. I wanted her to yell at me. Tell me that I needed to do more, work harder. And-- And she just said in her sweet voice, 'I hope your pain eases soon.'"

Everything that Keith heard pulled at his heart. Worst of all, he still didn't know what else to do but pull her close and say, "There, there."

  "I feel like I've been left behind in everyone's lives."   

Kate curled into his chest. No tears tonight. Just this spanning emptiness where words just fell endlessly into. Keith's warmth radiating against her reminded Kate just for a moment that she wasn't completely gone. But she knew it wasn't enough. It wasn't a cure. This shattered feeling cutting through her being couldn't be shaken away with a simple kiss on the forehead.

From the darkness engulfing her, Kate had to breathe and tell herself there was something wrong. And she had to work for it if she wanted to change.