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::: Masaru Usagi :::

The doctor answered, "Without the surgery, Masaru, she'll be permanently blind by winter's end. There's time enough to decide, however, the sooner the procedure is arranged and-"

Masaru blew his nose into the handkerchief.

"S-Sorry, y-you were saying?" asked the rabbit guy, one arm wrapped around Lillian.

"Whether sweet Lily wants a chance to see the world for the first-time ever or not, the decision is for you both," said Dr. Halflinger.

The rabbit guy wiped his tear-stained eyes and tossed the used tissue into the waste bin.

::: Masaru Usagi :::

It took a few calming breaths for Masaru's eyes to stop shedding tears and for him to think about the options some more. If Lily was given sight, there would be no need for Lily to master the use of a special walking stick, or be guided by a seeing-eye animal. She would be able to read words in books like most young children instead of reading braille by touch. There were many benefits too numerous to mention in one paragraph. Whatever the decision may be, and a major one at that, the consequences that followed would affect the siblings for as long as they were together.

Dr. Halflinger checked the wristwatch. If the time to see another visitor was drawing closer fast, he would have to remind Masaru that time is growing short.

"Oh my dear sister, it would take much more than a day to describe the joy that would come about if you were able to see the colorful world for the first time ever!" Masaru exclaimed.

::: Masaru Usagi :::

"Don't worry, little sister," the rabbit guy says to the pair of closed operating room doors, "I'll be with you through all the stages of your recovery, and every day after them."

Until now, Masaru juggled two jobs in order to acquire the funds for the eye operation. As the red light went on, he hoped and prayed that Lily would be fine once the cataracts were taken care of and the bandages applied.



Time passes, and the big brother hardly ever left the little cat girl's side since the optical surgery took place. Whenever Lily, with both eyes covered in bandages, needed a little extra help at bath time, or putting on clothes and hopping into bed for a nap, Masaru was there to guide her.

Eventually, the siblings were called to the doctor's office. The important day had arrived: Lily's bandages were coming off! The rabbit guy felt excited, yet nervous at the same time. He couldn't help but wonder how Lily, waiting as a nurse started to snip away the bandages, was going to take looking at a world of many clear colors instead of darkness.

::: Masaru Usagi :::

"Yep!" Masaru replied with a laugh shortly after Lily asked whether his appearance was very real. He cupped a hand around one long rabbit ear and pulled it gently to demonstrate that it truly was a part of him, not a costume accessory of some kind. The guy soon glanced over to the visitor the little cat girl was pointing at, saying, "And he, my wonderful sister, is Jackson. You do remember him, right?"