Volume 7 Chapter 3 (1/2)
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If there's a single white horse rettably it will draw attention to itself
If there's a single senbei rice cracker in a plate of sweet biscuits, it's only human nature to reach out for that first Even for those who don't like senbei that much
So perhaps this was fate
Ale er means
( … Bear?)
The bear-man that she ran into at the city zoo said, ”Do you want so to eat?” then tore off a chunk of his roasted sweet potato and offered it to Eriko
”Here”
”It's roasted sweet potato”
With his reply finished, his gaze shi+fted back to the elephant
”Umm”
He looked at the elephant as though in a daze, or deep in thought, and even when she called out to the bear-man he didn't turn to look at her
Eriko reluctantly muttered a thank-you then tasted the sweet potato
(You e men)
She'd been told this by her fahteen years Eriko broke this rule
(You have to be careful because you're so cute Eriko-chan)
However there hadn't been a single hint of danger from the man with his back to her He looked like he'd already coave half his roasted sweet potato to a feh-school student
”It's my first time with an impolite man like yourself”
Eriko kicked a pebble towards his feet
For someone with a weakness for the rare, it was impossible
Passing the tih there was an interesting ht there in front of her
Rosa Foetida alking
Staggering alone down the path beside the oval
It wasn't obvious whether she was just arriving at school or heading ho, so it was probably one or the other
Fourth period was just about to end, so there was no way to tell based on that
The teacher's whistle blew, signaling an end to the first-year peach group's PE class
”Thank-you teacher”
The heads adorned with peach colored headbands bowed down, then cas and headed back at a brisk pace
Although the calendar said it was spring, PE classes at the beginning of March were still austere Particularly on days like today, when they went long distance running outside
”I' on ahead”
Yumi split off from the rest of her class and ran in the opposite direction
”Ah, Yu?”
”I've got sos to take care of”
Yu around Probably shocked to see her still running so hard, after the marathon they'd just finished But Yumi orried, so she had to do it
”Rosa Foetida”
After calling out to her, it took about two seconds for her head to raise
”… Yumi-chan”
”Gokigenyou”
What had she been looking at? Yu
The grass on the gently sloping ground that surrounded the oval was curled in on itself due to the cold, and there weren't yet any lively insects or similar
”What are you doing?”
”Nothing”
”Huh … ?”
”There's nothing I can do, and it's eating at me”
Nothing she can do Running out of steam at a place like this was bad At the very least, she should decide whether she was going to class or going home
”Oh, is this the path you usually take to school?”
”No, it's over there”
Rosa Foetida pointed north expressionlessly For reference, they were on the oval's western side
”You're lost then?”
”So like that”
Yumi didn't kno Rosa Foetida had arrived at that point, but it was unthinkable that a third-year could get lost within the school
”So then, you're not heading towards school?”
It looked as though Rosa Foetida would continue to wander aimlessly around the area forever if she was left alone
”I guess”
Her words and behaviors all gave off a feeling of ennui
”Even if you're going hoo out through the back gate Coo”
Yu Her body had taken a break froh her 100 cotton sweatshi+rt, chilling her to the bone
”Hahhh”
As she walked, Rosa Foetida tucked her hair back behind her ears and let out a huge sigh
”Umm”
At any rate, it was Rosa Foetida that had brought about this feeling Indeed - Yumi remembered when there had been a similar sensation
”If there's soo to the school nurse”
”No, it's not a problem with my body - ah”
Rosa Foetida suddenly smiled
”Yumi-chan, you just reht?”
”Yeah”
That had been during the Yellow Rose Revolution
”That takes nant, it was pretty funny though”
It may not have been that funny at the time, but at the very least it meant they probably wouldn't say that about Rosa Foetida now
”Sorry foryou worry about me Let's head to class”
They walked in the entrance and separated to change into their indoor shoes Yumi peeked into the third-years area and saw Rosa Foetida in her indoor shoes, staring off into space
”Rosa Foetida?”
”When you think about it, continuing on to university isn't the only path”
In the tie froh another thought had highjacked her brain
Like a scratched CD, the conversation had skipped forward
”Hah”
For the ti, Yumi offered a non-co she could do was assume the role of the listener
The wisdonancy had been funny, they were going to class, but university wasn't the only path … it was all incoherent
”If not university, then … a job?”
”Ah, there's that option too”
Rosa Foetida nodded slightly, as if she'd only just considered it Whichelse
”So the answer is?”
Yuh she was speaking to herself
”I want to get married”
”Huh!?”
Yuround
”But, y-you don't have a partner That's what you told me before, Rosa Foetida”
After she said this, Yuentleraphs in her pocket had bubbled up into her mind
”I may have said that”
Rosa Foetida said as she closed her shoe box
Yu the guys you're going out with every night?”
”But anyway, e, huh”
”Ahh, I want to be the wife of a ronin umbrella maker”
This was hopeless Rosa Foetida had a faraway look in her eyes all of a sudden
Even though they both see with each other
Co she would escort Rosa Foetida to the third-year chrysanthemum classroom There she would pass the baton to Rosa Foetida's classht end up in a traffic accident, or worse
After that she'd head back to the locker rooe clothes, return to her classroom to pick up her lunch, then on to the Rose Mansion
It was a so lunch break
Ronin umbrella maker
Why that particular phrase?
It was frequently used in period dra paper to umbrella frames - was that what she meant by it?
”Hmm…”
Ronin umbrella maker
Minako typed the phrase into the word processor once more
She let it stand for now, but wasn't it an antiquated tere, the whole sae The ter to describe soet into university, or couldn't find a job after graduation, rather than the traditionalof a masterless samurai
Marriage Who on earth to?
She fretted, alone, in the club roo the conversation between fukuzawa Yumi and Rosa Foetida in the entrance had been a stroke of luck, but while she had picked up two or three jigsaw puzzle pieces, she still couldn't see the whole picture
In this kind of situation, usually she would pick up the torch and keep going until the picture appeared But, recently, even diuard -
”Ahh, geeze”
When she first heard about the Rosa Foetida scandal, she didn't think there would be this ht away But, what of it Club Members A, B, and C had provided the initial information, but after that she hadn't been able to use it at all
The problem was that the eyewitness accounts of Rosa Foetida weren't the result of a stakeout or fro her, the reality was that the three of them had just accidentally stumbled upon her while they were out
Someone had said that since it had happened three times, it must have happened more than that, and while she wasn't sure about that, the heavy cri Minako into thinking that if she waited quietly another report would just fall into her lap
While they had targeted Rosa Foetida, there were limits to what first and second-years could do to follow a third-year, who could coo as she pleased Even if it was for the school newspaper, they couldn't just openly ditch class
The club ossip, but they'd probably catch nothing today either While she'd never say it out loud, Minako herself and the first-year club iven up
How many days had it been now? … One week exactly
Minako deleted ”Ronin Umbrella Maker” from the word processor's display and typed in ”Teach Us! OO-sensei”
Speaking of material that could be readily turned into an article, the only thing available was previously shelved notes about a teacher on ain pad the next week's issue of the ”Lillian Kawaraban” with bland material
(The failure to get Takeshi+ma Tsutako on our side hurts too)
Spitefully, Minako banged away on the keyboard