[She doesn't quite shake or nod her head, though it looks like she was trying to make some sort of motion. It's just neither of those are the correct answer, so she just ends up bobbing her head.]

The spells and knowledge a mage accumulates becomes their family's most valuable possession. They're passed from parent to child, but the method... [Rin touches her left arm as she says this.] The knowledge is carved into our bodies, so it can't be split. Only one child can inherit the family's magics, and receive that household's protection.

My sister and I were both born with above average potential. Naming one of us heir would mean casting the other to the curb, doomed never to learn about magic, but also to attract attention from dangerous sorts.

Father... [Rin... Laces her fingers in her lap. Threads the pink ribbon between them. Her voice is softer with affection, but also an emotion that's harder to place.] Father didn't want that for either of us. I don't know how he made his decision, but when I was five and she was four, he gave Sakura away to a mage family that was once an ally of ours. Their bloodline had worn thin, and they were in desperate need of an heir. We had an extra, so both sides were happy.

[Rin doesn't sound happy.]