Her Brother's Keeper: A Story of Alpha Centauri
An Unexpected Meeting

This time Christiana wasn’t late. In fact, she had finished practice early today. However, that was not necessarily a good thing in this case.

‘Even with the painkillers, my wrist still hurts,’ the blond-haired youngster thought as she was getting dressed. Christiana was currently in the middle school’s locker room and she was having trouble fastening her top with just one hand.

“I’ll never do that again,” she muttered as she struggled to engage the last clasp. Ever since her conversation with her Mother earlier in the week, the young lady had been trying her hardest to learn martial arts. Christiana’s attempt to impress her instructor had led to the injury. During a very basic spar, she had gone on the offensive instead of simply blocking like she was told. Unfortunately, the off-guard sensei parried the unexpected lunge without thinking.

Not expecting such a fierce counterattack, the youngster hadn’t been gripping her bokken tightly with both hands. As a result, her right wrist had absorbed all the energy from the impact when her wooden sword flew out of her left hand. If she had been holding the hardwood Katana properly, or if she had had a weak two-handed grip, then she would not have been injured.

Needless to say, the teacher was not happy with her. The instructor had let the child know all about it as she bandaged Christiana’s wounded appendage and gave her a couple of mild painkillers. She had talked her sensei out of calling her home and have someone take her to a med station. She had done this by downplaying the discomfort so she could visit her secMother Karen’s apartment as planned.

‘Even Mother suggested I talk with her,’ she reflected as she closed her cubby and gathered up her belongings. ‘That’s why I will not allow a busted wrist to change my plans.’

However, between the muscle soreness from kendo and her fresh injury, she was incredibly thankful that she had tomorrow off. Sunday was the only day that she could truly rest and recuperate. Plus, she was really looking forward to her dinner “date” with Miss Harrison.

Having plenty of time to kill, she decided to explore the middle school campus. While she had been going to the gym daily, she never had the chance to just look around.

Unlike the nearby single-story elementary school, the principal building at this academy had four floors. Each of the top three levels contained classrooms for each Year’s students. To put it another way, all the instruction rooms for a particular grade were located on the same level. Meanwhile, the ground floor housed general use areas such as the reading room and cafeteria.

A covered walkway connected the gym to the main structure. They fashioned this pathway to keep the rain off of the students as they went back and forth. However, the pupils were forced to don their masks as they traveled outside. This was by design since they held some fitness courses outdoors on sunny Maindays. Because the children had to wear their filters when traveling to the gymnasium, they could not skip workouts by saying that they had forgotten their gear.

“That was a good idea,” she muttered to herself as she walked down the protected sidewalk toward the main edifice of the academy. “Everyone forgets things every now and again.”

Upon reaching the doorway at the end of the path, she tried to open it only to replace that they had locked it.

“Looks like I won’t be going in there,” she realized. “Time to explore the outbuildings.”

With this thought, she turned from the door and emerged from underneath the awning. Following the sidewalk away from the side of the school from the nearby pond, she wandered aimlessly for a few minutes. Soon she came to a large courtyard beside the main building.

A single-pole sat in the middle of the landscaped area. Upon it flew the Alliance flag. The familiar red, white, and blue banner waved in the breeze. As it fluttered, she could clearly see the star-spangled sunburst with the Union Jack in its center.

This was the symbol that represented the three Terran empires that had joined together and launched the ships to this system. As a show of loyalty and respect to their ancestors who made the long journey, the Colony still flew the streamer. That’s why a flagpole such as this one was erected at all government-owned facilities to fly this universal ensign.

It wasn’t always like this. The history buff knew that every prefecture had its own flag before The Uprising. That state’s standard was flown beside the Alliance banner. During those turbulent times, those regional emblems became the battle standards of those who were attempting to give men civil rights. All the freedom fighters were from the western prefectures, which were primarily settled by the members of the Second Wave and their progeny. Therefore, the pennants from these states were all used as the symbols of those fighting for their menfolk.

After the West lost, Congress had banned all regional flags throughout the planet. To those representatives and senators, the prefectural banners had become too divisive for continued use. Thus the Alliance flag was now the only ensign flown on Cooper’s World.

She could only sigh as she peered at the planetary colors waving in the light wind. To those from the West, like herself, seeing that rippling piece of cloth filled them with mixed emotions. On the one hand, the object in question was a symbol of those who sacrificed everything to establish the colony. On the other, it was a constant reminder that males had to live as slaves in all but name.

Just because they called the fee for possession of a man, a Dowry did not make it any different from a sale. Creds’ were exchanged for them in the same manner that people paid for other goods and services.

‘What’s the difference?’ she wondered. ‘I don’t understand adults and their way of thinking.’

Not wanting to continue her gloomy line of thought, she quickly checked the time on her com’. After seeing that she still had quite a while before her pick up time, she returned to her exploration.

‘I’ve never gone in this direction before,’ she realized, and she meandered behind the academy. First, she passed a large metal structure. Based on the shape of the building and the large air intakes, it seemed to serve as a combination storage area and air purification center. Then she came upon a single-story brick complex that bore a striking resemblance to her elementary school.

“I wonder what’s in here?” she mumbled as she approached the edifice.

Looking through the closest window, she could see that this was a classroom. Inside were neatly arranged rows of desks. At the room’s front stood a podium as well as a large screen that an instructor could use to display information to her pupils.

‘Why do they have another school behind the academy?’ she wondered as she checked the next set of windows.

The interior of this chamber contained more work surfaces, plus several musical instruments sprinkled throughout. To her inexperienced eye room’s setup was somewhat chaotic, with guitars and shamisens on stands beside a baby grand piano. There were also drums of all shapes and sizes scattered around the room, as well as several black cases which she presumed held yet more instruments.

Then the realization of what this area was came to her out of the blue. ‘This has to be the building for the males.’

Most women in the colony did not play music. It wasn’t that they didn’t have the ability or the talent; it was that there was no entertainment industry to speak of. Most people did not have the extra creds to pay for melodies or to watch performances. Instead, those resources were used to raise their children. Since there was no money to be made from playing instruments, it was not a field that most ladies pursued.

Males were different. Most households viewed the emotionally weaker gender as nothing more than a source of entertainment, so women encouraged them to learn to play music and sing. Because they had no responsibilities, it was sensible that they spend their time on learning skills to make their wives happy. That was why very, very few schools trained young ladies in the musical arts, while almost all of them taught them to members of the opposite sex.

“So this is where John-nii will attend school next Year,” she murmured as she began walking once again. “I thought Haruhi-nee would be attending class in the same building. Such a setup would make it impossible to visit with both of them regardless of the path I decide to take.”

This discovery truly unsettled the girl. She had imagined that the three of them would at least be in the same edifice. That way, she could occasionally run into the other sibling, no matter who she paired with. Attending class in two entirely separate structures blew that hope to smithereens. Whichever path she chose would leave one of the people she cared for most in the world totally alone throughout the school day.

“This blows!” she unconsciously yelled out loud. Meanwhile, she had increased her pace significantly without meaning to. That was why she was startled when a stern voice called out to her.

“This area is off-limits to all unauthorized female students!” a young woman proclaimed. “Identify yourself so that I can report you to the faculty for entering a restricted space!”

When she turned to face the direction that the sound came from, she saw a girl roughly her own age. This person was wearing a black uniform with royal blue piping. The schoolgirl had long, dirty blonde hair, the front of which was braided on each side of her bangs. The rest of her mane hung straight and free down her back. This individual’s most noticeable feature was her aqua-colored eyes. She also wore a very stern expression as she approached. Her eyes narrowed visibly over her mask as she looked at Christiana.

While at first a little concerned at the figure’s approach, Christiana’s trepidation soon melted away. A feeling of recognition immediately replaced that negative emotion.

“Samantha-senpai?” she asked as she watched the figure in front of her.

“Chris-chan?” the older party replied,

The two people examined each other’s faces for a few seconds.

It was Christiana who broke the silence, and with a happy squeal, she ran up and hugged her old friend.

“Samantha! It is so good to see you!” she gushed as she continued to hug the other lass. “I haven’t seen you since you finished primary school.”

The youngster named Samantha embraced the shorter girl just as hard. “I missed you too, chibi! How’s chibi number two?” she asked in a joking manner.

At this Christiana stepped back and playfully punched the other female lightly in the arm. “Don’t call me chibi! I’m not that short!”

Both girls burst into giggles, clearly enjoying the playful exchange.

“Seriously, what are you doing here?” Samantha inquired of the other child. “Plus, where is your shadow?”

“Well, it has a lot to do with what you’re wearing,” the vertically challenged teenager responded. “Since Haruhi-nee and I are in the same matFam she wasn’t selected to take part in the tournament.”

“Wait, your in training to become a Keeper?” the girl with the dirty blonde hair countered. “That’s great! While we probably won’t be in the same grade, we will see each other daily if they pick you.”

“Well, actually Johnathan-nii is a Year older than I am so we will most likely end up in your grade,” she replied with a hesitant smile.

“That’s perfect!” the other youth exclaimed. “There only two classes for each grade, so we would have a fifty/fifty chance of being in the same classroom. Plus, with your family’s clout, your mother could pull some strings and make that into a certainty!”

The other girl appeared to be extremely excited at the possibility of Christiana attending the same class as her. She was literally bouncing up and down with her eyes were all but beaming in happiness.

“Unfortunately, I’m not nearly as enthusiastic about this as Samantha is,” she thought while trying to keep a smile on her face. “I’d better hurry and change the subject before she notices.”

“So if you are in uniform, I take it that one of your patBrothers is with you?” she asked. She knew from past conversations that her friend did not have any matBrothers so her charge had to be a member of her patFam.

“Matthew,” her companion proclaimed in a gentle but firm voice. “It’s okay to come out. She’s as refresh as a fridge. You can’t get much cooler than she is.”

As Christiana blushed lightly at the compliment, she saw a figure emerge from behind a bush next to a nearby entranceway. This young man was fairly tall, despite his face appearing to be slightly younger than his patSister. The boy had short dark-brown hair and large red mahogany eyes. These distinctive irises were of a shade that she had never seen before, and she found her gaze drawn to them.

Noticing the nervous look on the slim boy’s visage, she put on her friendliest smile and extended her right hand for a handshake. “My name’s Christiana, but your silly Keeper likes to call me chibi,” she said in a gentle yet companionable tone. “What do you like to be called?”

The anxious youth looked first at her outstretched appendage and then at his sibling’s face. It was obvious that he did not know how to handle the social situation.

“It’s okay,” the uniformed-clad child spoke in a kindly manner. “She’s a good friend of mine and she is in training to wear the Black.”

Still, the male hesitated, his viewpoint fixed upon the outstretched hand.

“Both her and her Sister were in the history club with me,” she further explained. “We also met up in the mornings before class started and ate lunch together.”

After hearing this, his eyes shifted to the face of his sibling. “Those were the ones that treated their brother just like he was another Sister?” he asked with a hopeful expression.

“Yep, that’s her,” the girl with the braided hair responded. “Well, she’s one of the two.”

“Oh,” he replied. Then, as if something clicked in his head, he said, “Oh,” a second time. A bright grin bloomed on his face as if it were a flower. His hesitancy gone, he finally reached out and grasped the extended hand with his own. “I didn’t know why you wanted to shake hands with a male. Now it all makes sense. To answer your question, I’m called Matt by my friends.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Matt,” she responded while looking the boy directly in the eyes. Then, unintentionally falling into the speech patterns drilled into her by Ana-onee she continued. “It is always a pleasure to become acquainted with another member of Samantha’s House.”

Then she released his hand when the shaking came to a halt. However, there was a certain hesitancy on his part. She got the distinct impression that he wanted to continue touching hands beyond what was socially acceptable. This made her feel slightly uncomfortable, but she put on a friendly face nonetheless.

“I’m sorry,” he explained. “You are the first girl outside of my Family that I have ever touched. I mean someone our age.”

“Wow,” Christiana thought, “He doesn’t get out much, does he?” Then she realized that this was the situation that many members of the emotionally weaker sex were in. Even here in the West, where boys were treated better than in the East, males had very little contact with individuals external to their own House. Part of the reason the government allowed them to go to school at all was to help socialize them. If someone has no experience with people outside of their families, then how would they react to their brides? It would not be a pleasant occasion for anyone involved.

“At least they get an excellent education,” she thought as she looked at the academy beside her. That was less for the males themselves than for the girls that accompanied them at all times. Those females had to be properly trained to earn a good salary as an adult.

Of course, a bonus of having knowledgeable men was to make them appropriate companions for their Wives. Since they would be alone together for extended periods, women overwhelmingly preferred a well-educated companion. After all, it wouldn’t be pleasant to spend weeks in each other’s company every Year if the other party couldn’t hold a decent conversation.

“So, is what she said about you true?” he asked in a very shy manner, not meeting her eyes with his own.

Suddenly dragged back to the here and now Christiana was somewhat confused by Matthew’s sudden question.

“What do you mean?” she replied, genuinely bewildered by his unexpected query.

“Do you really treat your Brother the same way you do your Sisters?” he asked, this time directly meeting her gaze. The look of expectation worn on his face was unmistakable.

“Of course,” she responded with no hesitation and extremely nonchalantly. To her, it was just like someone asking her if her eyes were blue. If you simply glanced at her, the color of her pupils was obvious. Why would they bother to ask?

Therefore, she was totally taken off guard when Matt burst into tears. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you sad..” she stated, even more confused than she had been by his initial question. Unsure of what to do, she looked at her friend for help only to be met with an exaggerated shrug from the black-clad girl.

“I’m not unhappy,” the youth finally pronounced after what seemed like an eternity to Christiana. “You just made me very, very happy.”

“Why?” was the only reply that she could think of. The entire situation struck her as being quite odd.

“When Samantha-nee first became my Keeper, it surprised me how well she treated me when compared to the other Keepers I saw at school,” he explained. “It was only later that she informed me about you and your sister and how it profoundly influenced her view of males. To be truthful, I could not believe what she told me. How could not one, but two Sisters treat their Brother as an equal? How could they play with him, joke around with him, or even eat at the same table with him? To me, it sounded almost like a legend of long ago, back when our ancestors were on Old Earth and the gender numbers were practically the same.”

He then began crying once again and momentarily could not continue. Thinking that the boy had said all that he wanted to, Christiana started to speak. However, she stopped when she saw her friend hold up her hand with her palm facing towards herself.

After a minute or two, the young man was finally able to resume speaking. “Knowing that people like you and your sister exist gives me hope that there are others with similar views. Females who treat their Brothers and Husbands as equals, and not as possessions.”

“I am glad that Haruhi-nee and I give you hope,” she replied in a gentle voice. “But we are living in the West, where men are treated better than they are in the East. This is where the rebellion took place after all.”

“No Chris-chan,” Samantha interjected. “That isn’t really how things are. I thought that was the case after talking with the two of you. However, after seeing how the other Keepers manage their males here at the academy, I no longer think that way.”

“But the Uprising…” she started, merely to be cut off.

“If you notice, they don’t teach us about that event in school,” the other girl continued. “In fact, they severely reprimanded me in class when I mentioned it one day. It is as if the government doesn’t want males to know that the insurrection even happened.”

“But they mention it in almost every History book I have ever read about that period,” she replied, puzzled by what her friend had said. “After all, it was the most important event since the Founding.”

“We can’t access those books,” Matthew interjected. “Some Houses forbid men from reading any historical information.”

“I believe it’s because they don’t want to give males any ideas,” Samantha chimed in. “Of course there aren’t enough of them now to have any hope of winning if they tried to revolt.”

“I do not think that you realize how different your matFam is,” Matthew said. “In fact, I would say that they are unique.”

“But,” Christiana began, only to be cut off by the older girl yet again.

“He’s right. Your family’s way of thinking could be viewed as radical, even in the West. Most people I know don’t question the treatment of their Brothers. Instead, they seem to think that treating them as less than human is as natural as breathing.”

Suddenly Samantha’s com’ chimed. After taking it out and glancing at the screen, she announced, “I’m sorry. Our transport is here and we have to get going.”

Then the older young woman walked over to Christiana and gave her a big hug. “It was great seeing you again. Let me give you my new com’ eye-dee so we can talk on the phone later this evening.”

“Sure,” the younger girl replied as she broke the embrace and pulled out her own com.’ Then, with the click of the button, the two exchanged contact information.

“It was very nice to meet you,” Matthew stated. Surprisingly, he reached out his right hand towards the schoolgirl he just met.

“It was nice to meet you as well,” she acknowledged as she took his slender appendage into her own.

With this, the boy’s face burst into an enormous smile. Then with a slight wave, he and his patSister walked away.

After peeking at the clock on her com’ the lone child realized that she also had to get going if she wanted to catch her own ride. Then she rushed off towards the parking lot while looking forward to seeing her secMother.

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