Maria-sama ga Miteru Volume 11 Chapter 4
Her blue umbrella returned home.
Not returned, but returned home. Like it had the homing instincts of a lost dog, it returned home to Yumis hand.
This happened after school on Monday.
When she was leaving afternoon homeroom, as though she had just remembered, Yumis homeroom teacher informed her:
"Ah, f.u.kuzawa-san. Aota-sensei from middle school wanted to have a word with you, so stop by the staff room after youve finished cleaning duty."
"Aota-sensei?"
He had been her homeroom teacher during the first year of middle school. They hadnt really had much contact since Yumi moved to high-school, since they were in separate buildings and he didnt teach any of her cla.s.ses.
"Do you know what its about?"
"He didnt say. But I dont think its anything to worry about."
"Huh?"
"Aota-sensei was smiling when he asked."
"Ahh, smiling &h.e.l.lip; "
Good or bad. Either way, Yumi didnt even have a rough idea of what it could be about. If it had been her third-year homeroom teacher, then she could have started to guess.
For example:
To ask her to organize the cla.s.s reunion.
Or, a photo taken on the day of their graduation had finally been developed, and she was being asked to distribute it.
But even with these, it wasnt exactly clear why Yumi would be the one to be asked. It wasnt like shed been the cla.s.s representative or anything - Yumi hadnt been a particularly conspicuous student during middle school, which was neither good nor bad.
Yumi was still pondering it as she finished her cleaning duties and headed to the middle-school staff room.
"Pardon me."
Up until a year ago shed come here from time to time, but she felt out of place now and hesitated as she entered. From the entrance she confirmed Aota-senseis desk, and was walking towards him when the gentleman with the silver-gray hair looked up from his library book and noticed her.
"You havent changed, huh?"
Aota-sensei stuck a nearby tag in the open page and closed the book. Shed initially thought it was a complicated science textbook, but it looked to be a mystery novel. Aota-sensei ducked beneath the desk and placed the book in a paper bag by his feet.
Despite being j.a.panese, Aota-sensei looked exactly like d.i.c.k Bruna, the author of childrens books, and because of that he was nicknamed "Miffy-chan." An unfortunate coincidence for the school teacher whose full name was Aota Mitsuo. Well, Miffy-chan was cute, so he probably wouldnt mind too much.
"f.u.kuzawa-kun, I hear youre this years Rosa Chinensis en bouton? Do your best, okay?"
"Okay &h.e.l.lip; "
It was a bit strange to hear a middle school teacher call her Rosa Chinensis en bouton. On top of that, recently she hadnt been behaving in a manner that could be described as doing her best.
Aota-sensei probably didnt know about that as he smiled happily, then slowly and deliberately said:
"Lillians Girls Academy - f.u.kuzawa Yumi."
"Yes?"
"One should always write their name on their belongings."
"Huh?"
What was he talking about? Yumis eyes darted about as she tried to comprehend. But the answer was not forthcoming from Aota-sensei. Come to think of it, his cla.s.ses had been like this too. Hed touch down some distance away, then bit-by-bit bridge the gap as he laid out the proof.
"I wonder if you can remember, some time ago you shared your umbrella with me."
"&h.e.l.lip; Not really?"
"It was in the morning, by the statue of Maria-sama. You called out to me as I ran through the rain, and let me share your umbrella. Since I drive, it was only when I got to school that I noticed Id forgotten my umbrella."
"Mmm."
Now that he mentioned it, something like that may have happened. It certainly seemed plausible enough. It probably happened three years ago.
"Ah, I see, you dont remember it. To you, it probably wasnt that special that you would remember it."
"Umm?"
"It was a blue umbrella. You told me that your grandfather bought it for you. You said you really loved that umbrella."
"Yes."
But that umbrella was gone now too. It had disappeared from the umbrella rack at a convenience store ten days ago.
The clerk had said that it probably wouldnt come back, and shed received no call to say it had been found. There was no way someone who could steal someone elses umbrella so thoughtlessly would go to the effort of returning it.
"When you shared your umbrella with me, I praised your umbrella. In truth, I wanted to praise your actions, but I thought youd be happier if I complimented the umbrella. Because Im taller than you, you let me hold the umbrella. So I took the handle. It had your name written on it. Lillians Girls Academy - f.u.kuzawa Yumi."
"Yes."
"I asked the question that came to mind immediately. Why did it have the name of your school on it, and not your address?"
"Ahh - "
Yumi gave a big nod. She remembered. Shed definitely had that conversation with Aota-sensei.
"My grandfather wrote it."
Carved with a needle, then colored over with white crayon. After shining the outside with a cloth, the white letters magically rose to the surface of the blue plastic handle.
"Right. Your grandfather. The one who gave you the umbrella."
"Yes. He said that I should be careful about which belongings I write my address on."
Writing her name on it was to prevent someone else who owned the same thing from taking it accidentally. But if it was lost, that wouldnt help a bit. - Thats what her grandfather had said. Still, she didnt really understand why he had written "Lillians Girls Academy" beside her name.
"You know, f.u.kuzawa-kun, recently theres been some events that made me want to believe in something like fate."
"Fate?"
Another detour. Just when it seemed like the conversation had been heading somewhere promising.
"Perhaps I should call it Maria-samas guidance."
Aota-sensei stroked his mustache, which was slightly whiter than his hair.
"Ive found myself thinking back on the few minutes I spent chatting with you on the walk to the school building, and wondering why."
Yumi thought, "And in return, I forgot about it completely - sorry."
"There were other students around. If it hadnt been you, Im sure there would have been another Lillians student who would have happily shared their umbrella with me. And if theyd also asked politely, I would have held the umbrella too."
Aota-sensei continued.
"So, why, I wondered, was it you? During cla.s.s, you didnt really stand out much, but you werent overly shy either, you were the stereotypical ordinary student. You didnt volunteer answers, but youd answer when I called upon you. Nor did you forget your homework. But you werent an honors student. You made lots of careless mistakes, so your grades were always right around average."
"Umm &h.e.l.lip; "
If Aota-sensei wanted to reminisce about events in middle school, he didnt have to go to all the trouble of calling her here. Yumi reluctantly admitted that it might have been different if shed been brilliant, but she didnt understand the point of calling her here and reminding her of her inconspicuousness and numerous careless mistakes.
"Youre the kind of person whose virtues arent obvious when youre right there, but with time and s.p.a.ce they become evident, little by little."
"Huh &h.e.l.lip; "
"Hahaha, I seem to have confused you &h.e.l.lip; Well then, lets return to the fate conversation. Heres what I was thinking. The reason I shared your umbrella was, of course, because you were the first person to call out to me. But perhaps it was fate that made you the first one to call out to me."
"Perhaps."
Despite Yumis agreeable response, she only half understood what Aota-sensei was saying. Frankly, she wasnt all that good with these rambling conversations.
"Indeed."
Aota-sensei reached under the desk and quickly pulled something out of the paper bag.
"Because without that, your umbrella wouldnt have been returned to you."
"Ah!?"
Yumi cried out, seeing what flashed in front of her. But no words beyond that came out.
That familiar blue.
Grandpas umbrella.
Aota-sensei opened the umbrella and offered it to Yumi. Beneath the hydrangea.
It wasnt raining, but the umbrellas flowers bloomed in the staff room.
Instead of raindrops, tear drops fell from Yumis eyes.
Rather than starting with, "How?" she thought, "We meet again."
"Take charge of it, its your umbrella, right?"
Aota-sensei said, "See," and showed her the handle. "Lillian Girls Academy - f.u.kuzawa Yumi." There was no mistaking it, this was Yumis umbrella.
"Sensei, how did this umbrella &h.e.l.lip; ?"
It seemed unlikely that Aota-sensei had been given the umbrella by the criminal who took it from the convenience store.
"Before we get to that, you must have lost it somewhere, right? Id like to hear about that first."
Aota-sensei asked, seemingly irritated by her response. Yumi summarized what had happened, and he appeared relieved to hear it.
"I can accept that. The umbrella was so precious to you. I didnt think youd carelessly forget it somewhere. But it was taken while you were in the shops. Such a calamity."
Aota-sensei looked like he was talking to the umbrella as he ran a finger along the fabric. While Yumi had been the victim of the calamity, it seemed as though a similar fate had befallen whoever took the umbrella.
"Well, now its my turn. Yesterday evening, my daughter found it at a train station, picked it up and brought it to me."
Aota-sensei indicated the umbrella with his gaze.
"A train station?"
"Which train station do you think it was? Dont be surprised. It was f.u.kushima train station."
"Fu-f.u.kushima? "
Even with the warning not to be surprised, Yumi instinctively repeated the name loudly. f.u.kushima station, that would be in f.u.kushima prefecture, in the Tohoku region.
"Yesterday, my daughter went to f.u.kushima to attend a friends wedding. The umbrella caught her eye, leaning up against a rubbish bin. There was no-one near it, and it looked like it had been thrown away. I dont know if she sensed something, but she instinctively picked it up. And when she did, she saw the words "Lillians Girls Academy" engraved in the handle, right? Thats something shes quite familiar with. Its the name of her fathers workplace."
"Yes."
"Normally, I suppose she would have taken it to one of the station employees, but she hesitated. Suppose, for arguments sake, that Lillians Girls Academy was the private school in Tokyo and the owner was a student there, then it would be far more likely to reach the owner if she took it back to Tokyo with her. While Lillians Girls Academy is fairly well known in Tokyo, they may not have heard of it all the way up in f.u.kushima. And since she was at a train station, it seemed unlikely that the owner would still be there. Even if it had been lost at f.u.kushima train station, they might not be able to find the owner. So while it may have been against the rules, she brought it to me. Dont you think that kind of feels like fate?"
"It does."
If Aota-senseis daughter hadnt gone to f.u.kushima, then the umbrella probably wouldnt have found its way back to Yumi. Or if she had used f.u.kushima train station, but not noticed the umbrella, or picked up the umbrella, but the words "Lillians Girls Academy" had faded.
But because it made its way to Aota-sensei, who remembered the umbrella, it returned home to Yumi.
Lillians Girls Academy covered kindergarten through to university, so there were a huge number of teachers. Plus there were bound to be a number of girls with the commonplace name "f.u.kuzawa Yumi." So even if it made its way to the lost-and-found office, there was still the problem of connecting it to the f.u.kuzawa Yumi in the high-school second-year peach cla.s.s.
"But you said you lost the umbrella ten days ago. I suppose its had quite an adventure during that time."
"Thats for sure &h.e.l.lip; "
Yumi closed the umbrella and hugged it. We meet again. Youve finally come back. Aota-sensei stroked his mustache and watched on, apparently satisfied.
As she folded the umbrella, Yumi thought, "Huh?"
"Did your daughter make these repairs &h.e.l.lip; ?"
"No?"
"But these use a different thread to the repairs Ive made."
The part where the fabric joined the frame had been reinforced, using a different thread to that which Yumi had previously used to repair the frayed edges. Whoever it was, theyd done a neat job. But instead of blue, theyd used pink thread.
"Hoho, the mystery deepens."
Aota-sensei laughed as he peered at it.
How the umbrella had spent those ten days apart from Yumi were unknown. Even if she wanted to ask, the umbrella didnt have a mouth, so couldnt tell her.
"Perhaps your umbrella would like to know how those ten days were for you too."
Hearing Aota-sans words, Yumis eyes went wide and she softly stroked the umbrellas handle.
"Its been incredibly tough for me. I despaired when I lost my umbrella."
The umbrella and Sachiko-sama seemed to overlay each other. She became frightened that Sachiko-sama would disappear from before her very eyes, just like her umbrella had.
But, during this period of time when she hadnt seen Sachiko-sama, shed been touched by so many other people. While she knew the world wasnt run just for her and Sachiko-sama, this was the first time shed realized just how many people were living alongside each other.
Even in places she couldnt see, there were people going about their lives. While she couldnt see them, they were definitely there.
"But you look like youve recovered."
"Yes."
Not because her umbrella returned. She didnt think that Sachiko-samas heart would come back just because her umbrella had returned home.
She knew she had to look at the bigger picture.
Shed erred because she had been only looking at Sachiko-sama.
Because Yumi loved her so much, and didnt want anyone to steal her away, shed wrapped herself around Sachiko-sama like she was some kind of favorite toy. When it looked like Sachiko-samas hand was slipping away, shed bawled unreasonably.
Even though Sachiko-sama had never said anything. Even though shed never spoken the words, "I dont want you."
It felt like some kind of light shone down, showing her the path. Yumi turned to Aota-sensei and bowed deeply.
"Thank-you very much, Aota-sensei."
"Do your best, Rosa Chinensis en bouton."
Aota-sensei smiled, his arms folded.
"Okay."
Yumi replied cheerfully, then turned around. She felt like she wanted to sprint off, but she was in the staff room, so she restrained herself.
What was it, this feeling?
Like shed been set free, but that wasnt quite right.
Opening the door of the staff room, a refreshing breeze swept past her forehead.
Ahh, right.
Thats what it felt like.
Yumi wondered what Sachiko-sama was doing right at that moment.
" - So, you came to help out?"
Shimako-san asked, blinking.
"Right. Is there anything I can do?"
After she left the middle-school staff room she returned to her cla.s.sroom, but her excitement hadnt lessened. She had an overwhelming urge to do something, and to tell someone about it, so Yumi headed straight for the Rose Mansion.
Yoshino-san and Rei-sama were out at club practice, so once again it was just the diligent White Rose sisters steadily going about their work.
"At the very least, Im delighted that youre feeling well again, Yumi-san. As for what to do &h.e.l.lip; well."
Shimako-san shrugged her shoulders, and clipped a stack of doc.u.ments together. There was lots to do, in fact, so much that it was hard to tell where she should start.
"Sachiko-samas been absent, while Rei-samas been coming before school and during lunch. Even then, I think theres too much."
"I see, so thats how it is."
This time last year, the Roses were all third-years, three in a row. While Shimako-san was currently Rosa Gigantea, she wasnt even Rosa Gigantea en bouton a year ago, so she didnt have any direct experience in preparing for the school festival.
"While I did frequent the Rose Mansion, I refrained from involving myself directly. If I knew it would turn out like this, I would have partic.i.p.ated more actively in the meetings and preparations."
Shimako-san smiled ruefully. But it was undoubtedly because of the way she looked back on last year that she was putting all her effort into it this time around.
"Here, Yumi-sama."
Noriko-chan gently set a cup of tea down in front of her. Yumi was grateful, because shed worked up quite a thirst running all the way here.
"Thank-you."
It was delicious. The sight of Noriko-chan standing by the sink, or taking a cup from the shelf, was that of a splendid Rose Mansion occupant. She wasnt the a.s.sistant from before. She had a self-confidence that seemed to Yumi to come from the rosary she wore beneath her school uniform.
Shimako-san and Noriko-chan put down their work and sipped their tea. Without some outside impetus, it looked like theyd forgotten to take a break. Shimako-san smiled ruefully, saying that taking breaks was better from an efficiency perspective, but they were both persistent type of people.
They were both equally beautiful, but it wasnt as though these well matched soeurs didnt have their own troubles.
"Returning to our conversation."
Yumi said, after a pause.
"It seems were understaffed at the moment."
"Yes, more or less."
Shimako-san agreed.
"I wouldnt say we have enough people. Although, compared to last year, there are no fewer members of the Yamayurikai."
Last year there were three Roses, two boutons, and one boutons pet.i.t soeur (Yoshino-san) for a total of six people. Shimako-san was not officially Sei-samas pet.i.t soeur at the time.
This year, there were three Roses and three boutons. Six people, the same as last year, but getting them all together was the problem.
Rei-sama was busy with her club, like last year, but so too was Yoshino-san this year. Sachiko-sama was frequently absent. Yumi was &h.e.l.lip; planning to help properly from now on, but, well, lets just set that aside for now.
"Do you think we should ask someone to help out?"
Yumi proposed, as a way to alleviate their current staffing shortfall. Even with Yumis return, she didnt see any way that she alone could completely fill the hole left by Sachiko-sama.
"Who would we ask to help?"
Shimako-san answered Yumis question with a question. Judging by the tone of her voice, she didnt have much interest in this idea.
"I hadnt really thought that far."
Yumi shrugged her shoulders and said, "I was just putting it out there."
Although there would probably be quite a few students willing to help out with Yamayurikai work. They could choose from among the members of the school festival committee, or, if so inclined, they could recruit through the schools newspaper, the Lillian Kawaraban.
Then Shimako-san seemed to sigh as she said:
"In that case, wouldnt it be better for Yumi-san or Yoshino-san to find a pet.i.t soeur?"
"My my. Oh Shimako-san, youve become quite the Rose."
Yumi laughed, joking.
Find a pet.i.t soeur was the kind of cliché phrase that generations of Roses had said to their pet.i.t soeurs. Just recently, Shimako-san had been a.s.sailed by Sachiko-sama and Rei-sama with it.
"Its because I have a pet.i.t soeur. Im more at liberty than you, Yumi-san."
"I see."
Yumi glanced at Shimako-sans pet.i.t soeur and understood. Noriko-chan accepted Shimako-sans words with a smile.
Shimako-san had probably stepped up. Noriko-chan was now filling the position that, until recently, had been Shimako-sans, and Shimako-san had been pushed forwards.
"If Rei-sama takes a break from her club activities, and Sachiko-sama returns to school, then I think well make it. But even so, what on earth is Sachiko-sama doing, I wonder?"
" &h.e.l.lip; Yeah."
Yumi couldnt provide an answer to Shimako-sans question.
"Ah, I wasnt specifically asking you, Yumi-san. It was an innocent question."
Shimako-san frantically waved her hands, while behind her Noriko-chan murmured:
"It seems like something has happened to Rosa Chinensis."
"What do you mean?"
Two people asked simultaneously.
"Well &h.e.l.lip; I tried asking, but Touko didnt let anything slip."
" - Touko-chan, huh."
Yumi had mixed feelings uttering that name.
"It seems she knows something. She hadnt said anything, but thats the feeling I get. I apologize, but I think it has something to do with the reason Yumi-sama and Rosa Chinensis were avoiding each other &h.e.l.lip; "
Indeed, thats what would spring to mind. Yumis initial, incomplete understanding was that Touko-chan and Sachiko-sama were keeping a secret. That Touko-chan knew something that Yumi, the pet.i.t soeur, did not. So she became anxious, and felt like she was being shunned.
A secret that only Touko-chan knew. It was a bit heartbreaking.
However.
Now, looking at it objectively, it seemed likely Sachiko-sama probably hadnt chosen to confide in Touko-chan. Since they were relatives, albeit distant ones, Touko-chan may have found out through a different route.
"Sorry that I couldnt provide more help."
Noriko-chan bowed deeply, as though shed done something wrong.
"No, its alright, thank-you."
Yumi responded, expecting this to be the end of the conversation, however:
"Ah, one more thing."
"Huh?"
Noriko-chan raised her head and continued talking.
"Yumi-sama, I apologize completely for Touko-chans nastiness the other day too."
Yumi considered that to be completely unrelated to Noriko-chan. But perhaps she was acting as a friend.
If Yumi heard a rumor that Yoshino-san had unfairly insulted somebody, then she would apologize to that person. If the rumor were about Shimako-san, then first of all she wouldnt believe it, since that didnt seem like something Shimako-san was capable of doing.
"Despite what she did, at heart I dont think shes bad."
Noriko-chan was something of a worrier too.
" &h.e.l.lip; Perhaps."
Yumi already knew that.
It was just that there were times when she became too consumed with hate.
But that seemed like it could be quite an obstacle when it came to relationships with other people.
The rain fell gently all through Tuesday morning.
When lunchtime arrived, the sun didnt come out, but there was at least a break in the rain.
The morning TV weather forecast had said, "Rain, with occasional cloudy periods," so they were currently in one of those occasional times.
"So?"
The young lady with vertical hair rolls stood on the rain-slicked pavement, looking straight ahead, almost glaring. Raindrops glistened on the shrubbery leaves.
"What did you want with me?"
Was her bad mood because she couldnt stand being called out by a senior? Or was it because she didnt want to look at Yumis face?
Well, maybe it was both.
Touko-chan was being honest, and hadnt tried to conceal her displeasure ever since they left the cla.s.sroom.
"Are you going to continue where we left off before?"
She looked straight at Yumi, her eyes open wide.
"Continue what?"
Yumi asked, not immediately recalling. Touko-chan snorted, perhaps thinking she was feigning ignorance.
"Theres quite the rumor on the streets, perhaps you plan to turn that rumor into reality."
That Touko-chan had slapped Yumi, or that theyd fought over the rosary? Either way, if they got into a physical scuffle, the sisters would put a stop to it. Well, things had been quite lively up until a little while ago.
Still, even if there was a rumor doing the rounds, it was only within the high-school. To call that the streets. Touko-chan was exaggerating a bit.
"Perfect. Theres quite the crowd, were not lacking witnesses. Now to give them something."
"Witnesses &h.e.l.lip; "
Yumi discreetly glanced around. While there werent that many people in the courtyard, there were students gathering around the windows in the school building that faced the courtyard, obviously watching them.
"If you do anything to me, Yumi-sama, Ill cry. Even if it doesnt hurt, Ill bawl."
" &h.e.l.lip; Ever the actress."
Yumi thought Touko-chan was trying to make a big scene. As if that was the way to behave over a simple misunderstanding. While the rumor about her and Touko-chan was finally dying down, who knows how shed be labeled if she called a younger student out here and made her cry.
Seeking to change the mood, Yumi cleared her throat and said:
"First of all, I wonder if you could relax your fighting stance."
"Okay?"
Touko-chan asked, looking dubious. Probably trying to find some hidden meaning to her words.
"Look around. Umm, you said it yourself, Touko-chan, theres lots of people watching."
Not just from the first-floor windows either, there were students watching from the second and third-floor windows too.
"Then, why did you chose this place?"
"For the appeal."
"Huh?"
Touko-chans voice sounded strange as she questioned Yumis answer.
"You and I dont have a bad relationship. Right, Touko-chan?"
Yumi turned towards the school building, then smiled and waved at the gallery.
"Wait, hold on, what are you doing, Yumi-sama!?"
Touko-chan hastily grabbed Yumis hand and pulled it down.
As for the people watching, they had all sorts of reactions ranging from awkwardly looking away to happily waving back.
"Geeze, thats embarra.s.sing, stop it already."
"Theyre so far away that our voices wont carry. So if we smile as we talk, itll look like were friendly."
" &h.e.l.lip; Youre overdoing it."
Touko-chan sighed in exasperation. With one thing and another, her fighting stance had been completely canceled.
In truth, Yumi had chosen the courtyard because the rain had stopped and it felt good, so this had been an unintended side-effect.
"But when you said before that we dont have a bad relationship, thats not quite right, is it?"
Touko-chan muttered, her brow wrinkled.
"Oh, so youre boldly declaring that we have a good relationship? But, dont you think thats going a bit too far, too fast?"
"Thats not what I meant!"
Touko-chan balled both her hands into fists, reached up, then swung down with them. Performing such a violent action in front of the crowd would probably count against her if she pretended to cry later.
"Ah."
Whether shed just noticed this, or simply decided that her actions were improper, Touko-chan seemed to calm down and straighten herself up, then she brought a handkerchief up to her mouth and said:
"You and I do not have a good relationship. And thats fine."
She leaned in close to Yumi, as though whispering a secret. But Yumi didnt agree with that sentiment.
"Dont say that."
Right, speak plainly. Dont take a stance that prevents the message from being conveyed.
"Why not?"
"Thats, umm &h.e.l.lip; Uhh, what was it?"
The reason had completely slipped her mind momentarily, perhaps because theyd been talking too much.
"Umm &h.e.l.lip; Yumi-sama?"
Like shed just been struck by a headache, Touko-chan touched her temples and creased her brow.
"Please think things through properly before speaking."
It wasnt as though this was completely unplanned. Last night, Yumi put her usually under-utilized brain to work and eventually came up with a solution. But, since she had forgotten the main point, she still had a way to go. Having said that, shed have also looked quite stupid if she kept referring to notes during the conversation.
"Ahh, right. Now I remember. I wanted to ask you to help out with the Yamayurikai, Touko-chan. So itd be a problem if we had a bad relationship. Thats what I wanted to say."
"Huh?"
This time Touko-chan brought a hand up to her ear, like a granny that had forgotten her hearing aid. Her hand brushed a hair roll, causing it to sway like a spring.
"Just until the end of semester. Theres no pay, but theres all-you-can-drink tea. What do you think?"
"&h.e.l.lip; And thats why you called me out?"
Naturally, Yumi nodded vigorously. Other than calling her out, how would she have seen her?
"Rei-samas semesters packed, shes busy with club activities at the moment. So, just for now, we need an additional pair of hands."
The kendo club had an unexpectedly large number of new members this year, and most of them were beginners. But the number of people who could lead hadnt kept pace, so it seemed to be quite a struggle. Most of the third-years had retired, to prepare for their university entrance exams. The only remaining ranked members were Rei-sama and the club president, as well as two second-years.
Since these girls had gone to the effort of joining the club, Rei-sama wanted to watch them practice, at least while they were learning the fundamentals, which meant she was going to club activities as often as she could. Yumi thought this was because she wanted to ensure they knew the joy of kendo.
After summer vacation, focus would shift to the school festival and shed squeeze in some Yamayurikai work, but after the school festival came the autumn kendo tournament after which shed retire, well, that was the plan anyway.
"Thats quite a selfish tale."
Touko-chan responded coldly, having listened to Yumis explanation.
"How so?"
Yumi thought it best to progress the conversation as calmly as possible, and put all her effort into smiling.
"Rather than having Rei-sama and Yoshino-san stop club activities, youre looking for outside a.s.sistance. Dont you think thats a bit odd? Even if it was a farce, the Roses were elected to be the students representatives. If its an obstacle to their Yamayurikai work, shouldnt they stop their club activities? If they wanted to do something like kendo, they shouldnt have signed up for the school council."
"While they are representatives, theyre still students first of all. Even the Roses have the right to partic.i.p.ate in club activities &h.e.l.lip; umm, on top of that, each and every high-school student is a member of the Yamayurikai, an organization thats there to support the Roses - "
Yumi trailed off towards the end, but she felt like shed offered something of a reb.u.t.tal. Maybe she would have looked better if shed had more confidence and spoke more powerfully &h.e.l.lip; Speaking truthfully, she dreaded arguments.
"I understand what youre saying. But, Yumi-sama? Arent you forgetting that, much like Rei-sama and Yoshino-san are busy with club activities, Im busy with the drama club?"
"So come on the days you dont have club activities."
"In the lead up to the school festival, Im busy e-v-e-r-y day."
Touko-chan looked away.
"Has the drama club finalized their rehearsal schedule? They still havent got a script, so there shouldnt be practice every day, right?"
Yumi was, at least for now, Rosa Chinensis en bouton. Shed looked over reports and schedules from all the various clubs. Naturally, before she made the offer, Yumi had tried to understand Touko-chans situation as best she could.
"The drama club president did say that things would start in earnest during summer break."
Touko-chan seemed to sense her general position. Although she didnt say anything, she sighed as if to say, "Im beat."
"I suppose the others know about this?"
"Huh?"
"That Ill be coming to help."
"Ah, that - "
Yumi was beaming ecstatically, and Touko-chan didnt miss the chance to burst her bubble.
"However, Ill only help out while Rosa Chinensis is absent. I have no intention of helping out with Rosa Foetida or Yoshino-samas work."
"Okay, I can accept those terms."
That was what Yumi wanted. In truth, Rei-sama and Shimako-san werent really interested in the idea, so Yumi had gone out on her own to scout someone to help for a fixed term.
"But, why did Yumi-sama come?"
"What do you mean?"
"Ah, no, nothing &h.e.l.lip; Wait, what are you doing?"
Touko-chan threw herself backwards.
"Huh? I just thought we should link arms."
Yumi had only lightly brushed her arm, but Touko-chan didnt seem at all pleased by it.
"I told you, theres no need to try and be all friendly, geeze."
As she spoke, Touko-chan shook free Yumis arm that had been entwined around her elbow.
"If our conversation is finished, Ill leave."
Touko-chan walked ahead, looking angry.
Her ears were just a little bit red.