Volume 20 Chapter 1 (2/2)

”But I've thought about this audition It really is like a ferry across bad waters The Newspaper Club will cooperate with the Yareatest extent possible Today after school, the Newspaper Club was supposed to meet at the Rose Mansion -- huh?”

Ma She had probably noticed Yumi's demeanor

”You don't want to do this?”

”Yoshi+no-san is the one ants to do this”

”Mmmf”

Mami-san took one look at Yoshi+no-san and replied to Yumi

”So, can I hear the reason why Yumi-san does not want to participate?”

”Why?”

Yuh

Maht her face close to Yumi's

”Wouldn't you try to explain it for me? I'm not Sachiko-sama after all”

”I see Of course”

After the two shared a laugh together, Maain

”Well now Do you oppose the concept of an audition? Or do you not want to choose your sœur in an audition?”

”I don't really know”

It wasn't as much the fact that she had been forced by her Onee-saeneral

”Let's try to analyze the situation If you don't, then you can't fory”

”What counter strategy? A way to escape from the audition?”

”To accept the audition, but to sih the Newspaper Club is ecstatic that two boutons are holding an audition at the same ti anything you don't want to”

The bell for third period rang, and Mae special in the paper,” as she found her way back to her seat

”analyze, huh”

If she thought about why she hated it so e paper on it As she was thinking, the teacher, who needed to know the word for 'leader', calanced at Yoshi+no-san, and saw that she had quickly found her word; Yoshi+no-san had closed the dictionary and put herself into a soressive position

Answer: ”I Don't Know”

During third and fourth period, Yumi listened to only half of the lecture and tried to used the re half of her brain, but could not

As she walked towards the Rose Mansion with her lunch, she could do nothing but sigh Today, everyone was talking about the sœur auditions Yu lunch in her classroom It was not as if she was invited to the Rose Mansion, or that there was much work for the Yamayurikai to finish However, she did not e as she walked up to the Rose Mansion

Yumi let out a yell of confidence, and opened the entrance to the Rosa Mansion In front of her she could see the figure of a person hurriedly cli up the stairs

”shi+mako-san”

”Uaa! You surprised me, Yumi-san”

She'd probably been cli of the staircase caused by her surprise shi+ and the other clutching her chest

”What do you think, shi+mako-san?”

Of course shi+mako-san wasn't telepathic, nor was she even in the sa about the sas as the people in her class That's why shi+mako-san's response, ”About what?” was quite appropriate

”About the audition Yesterday, you didn't say whether you were opposed to it or whether you liked the idea”

”Aaah”

shi+ up the stairs

”I'm not really in a position where I can oppose or approve of the situation”

Picking the sœur was the job of the older sister: that was shi+ain followed shi+mako-san up

”That's true But ood friend of shi+ that sort of a friend at an audition?”

”That's true”

shi+hed as she crossed the last step on the stairs

”Of course, if I say that I have no reservations about the idea, then I would be co But if the auditions do work out, thenthem out”

”Trying them out?”

Yumi asked, to which shi+ that I'm in your position”

”If I didn't have a sœur, right? Thenthen I would work together with Yoshi+no-san to look over some applicants”

Of course, shi+mako-san had recently found her cute, boisterous sœur, Noriko-chan, so she was using words like 'If I' or 'then I', which less for shi+mako-san In spite of this, Yuhts She wanted to sahts of several people about the audition idea

”But ouldn't you completely oppose it?”

shi+ the knob on the biscuit-like door

”Because maybe, in that list of candidates, Noriko would be there”

When the door opened, a first year could be seen fro autu breeze

”Gokigenyou”

It was Noriko-chan

”Oh, I see” Yumi finally understood shi+mako-san a bit shi+mako-san was sure that, even if she would not have , that she would find her so would happen

”It's better to start somewhere than nowhere at all? Is that it?”

”I wholeheartedly think so”

shi+enuinely wanted Noriko-chan by her side, so the method to acquire her was of no consequence

Noriko-chan sat down and said, ”I've prepared green tea” The steaht in front of Yumi

”How about you, Noriko-chan?”

”Huh?”

”Hoould you react to beco shi+mako-san's sœur in an audition?”

Noriko-chan ure out a way to answer the point that Yu at, but instead cleverly threw a question back at Yumi

”Yu a petite sœur, would you?”

”Maybe”

Since Yumi becauely that she would have to have her own The reason she still did not have a sœur by the second term was not because she was harshly rejected, but that she had simply missed out on chances to look for sœurs

”So then, are you siainst the concept of the audition itself?”

”That may be the case But if you look at it fro a sœur”

”Then what about Yoshi+no-sah an audition?”

”Yoshi+no-san is Yoshi+no-san, so I wouldn't object”

She'd probably even help out if she was asked to

”But it's different when it coht?”

”That's right I wonder why that is”

Noriko-chan and Yuan to think deeply about the issue shi+le

”Perhaps, Yu people”

”That's it”

Yuers, but it didn't make a sound

”I don't kno many worthy first-years there are ant to be h to pick one of theainst? What is it that separates the chosen one fro a petite sœur, so isn't it strange to run it like a knock-out coe? It feels like I'd be acting superior, looking down on them”

Right as she said that --

”Well sorry for being superior”

The door opened with a thud, and in the doorway stood Yoshi+no-san

”Letangrily into the roo superior -- we're their future 'onee-sa with that”

That's true If a person didn't have that sort of resolve inside them, they could not find a petite sœur In an audition, the final decision would be down to one of two applicants One should know their tastes if they plan to pick a petite sœur If there is some concern that a person may not be able tofor people to audition for her If anyone gave it enough thought, when a girl decides to accept the invitation to audition, itchosen their grande sœur As the grande sœur chooses the petite sœur, so does the petite sœur choose the grande sœur

”What's wrong with you! We're in the same class, but you still won't wait for me?”

Yoshi+no slalared at Yumi-san After fourth period ended, Yoshi+no went to the bathroon of her She had to ask around, and a classmate finally told her that Yumi-san had taken her lunch and headed to the Rose Mansion

”Huh? Didn't you telltoday at lunch?”

”The hters only I told you because Rei-chan wouldn't be able to come to the Rose Mansion today because of it”

”Oh, is that why”

”Hey, pay s outside of yourself, will you!”

Unfortunately, not every Kendo Club member participated in the interschool kendo tournao to the tourna to the e the tea a second year, was just a beginner The latest addition to the club would have no chance of being noenes and her upbringing, then she should have beco the club -- but reality often doesn't go as expected

”So, what's wrong? You really hate the auditions, don't you, Yumi-san?”

”Well, 'hating'--”

”What's with that look on your face? If you don't like so, just say that you don't like it! I want to have your input in the way the auditions are going to be run!”

Yoshi+no began halfheartedly putting some pressure on Yumi-san to speak her mind Yumi-san put up a face that said ”I wonder what I should tell her,” when suddenly her savior came from behind

”I understand why Yu about the auditions I also don't like having to judge people like that in contests”

shi+mako-san was the one who came to Yumi-san's defense

”So? What does that mean?”

Yoshi+no folded her arms onto her chest and raised an eyebrow

”Even though we're both students, hoould you feel if soed me over you?”

”Well, shi+ whether we should hold an audition or not, you had said that you weren't opposed to the idea, did you not?”

As shi+mako-san nodded her assent, Yu had happened between shi+h she didn't knohat it was about

”Letelse then, shi+mako-san! When people are elected to run for the student council, isn't that an issue of students picking students?!”

”The elections are different It's when every student in the school votes for a voice that will represent them in student affairs”

When shi+mako-san became forward about her opinion, it would occasionally bother Yoshi+no It wasn't enough that she disagreed; shi+s that Yoshi+no herself couldn't do easily, which would leave her ad was the opposite of what she wanted to be now

”Okaythen, if everyone in the school were to vote for who a person's sœur should be, would you agree then, shi+mako-san?”

”Everyone? Picking sœurs?” shi+mako-san tilted her head

Yoshi+no knew that what she had said was simply a hypothetical retort, but she hoped that her retort would have some effect

”But, Yoshi+no-sama”

This time it was Noriko-chan who spoke from behind ”Could a person accept a sœur who had been picked by majority rule?”

”Of course not”

It'd be troublesome to be handed someone and told, ”Here, this is your petite sœur” It wasn't like getting a ift

”Then it's useless to continue any further with this line of thinking”

”Geh,” Yoshi+no groaned, as she opened her lunch box Noriko-chan seemed as if she had been seduced by shi+mako-san, but she knew she had to stop this here

Eventually, the three others also began opening their lunch boxes It seemed that they had been so entranced by the debate that they had forgotten about their lunches

”Sachiko-sama isn't here,” shi+mako-san whispered

”That's right, huh”

Yumi-san took her chopsticks out from her chopsticks box, and inclined her head Yoshi+no hadn't heard anything from Rei-chan about this

The interschool kendo tournament obviously shouldn't have any effect on Sachiko-sama's plans, so maybe she hadn't arrived for different reasons Obviously if you had no specific invitation to come, you didn't have to But in the days before the School Festival, she had cos and paid attention to every detail, and ever since then, her regular attendance had become customary

”Can I ask you so?” Yoshi+no asked, as she put down her chopsticks

”All three of you oppose the audition happening at school, right?”

She had thought about the issue again froave her response

”Well, isn't it like picking the lead actress of the school play?”

Yumi-san looked quickly around and saw shi+mako-san and Noriko-chan nod deeply Yoshi+no steeled herself and asked again

”Well, you're doing so personal in a public place, so ?”

”Umm” Yumi made several, coot on her face when she faced the blackboard in math class and had to answer a question But honest Yu about a person's feelings, welleach person has their own internal sense of what's too little and what's too much For example, if you do this much, then it's okay If you dolike that But people don't think about this individually, and instead give vague reactions like 'I don't really like it' or 'I don't knohy, but I'ue responses”

”Yeah”

”That's why I' it 'official'”

Indeed Yu human instincts into words

”So, then, what if I decided to hold a tea party at my house? And I said that people anted to be my petite sœur elcome to attend? Would you be in that? Or not?”

”I guess I'd be in? But if you put up posters around school, or advertised in the school newspaper, that would be no good, I think”

Taking this into consideration, Yu the lines of, ”Don't do private things in public”

”So if it spread by word-of-et what you're saying”

”Yoshi+no-san, you can't mean --”

”No, I won't have an audition at hed dryly She had only asked the question in order to understand what the others in the roo

She was being more self-conscious than usual Maybe because she was used to being the center of attention with relatives and friends, Yoshi+no hadn't noticed this slip of hers Of course, there were different degrees of her selfishness She didn't treat Yumi-san and other close friends like everyone else But for people like her who loved the to put yourself before others This was eh, so she didn't want it known

But fro else to say that she hadn't

”But you know, I never really thought of the audition as a competition If everyone thinks of it like that, then obviously they'd have reservations about the audition There's no reason to treat the audition as if it were some tournament that you have to win in”

Yumi-san, shi+mako-san, and Noriko-chan immediately turned towards Yoshi+no as if bewitched

”What?!”

”It's just that, the moment you came into the room, it seemed as if some lever had been pulled, and that you were irritated from the start,” Yumi-san dryly explained to Yoshi+no

”It's because I have unwavering confidence in ed But if I have no strong personal opinion on the subject, I'll also listen to what others have to say about it”

And then

”Fine then! I'll decide, right here, right now!”

Yumi-san stood up in a sudden revelation Not only did she stand, but she balled her hand into a fist, and thumped it into her chest

”If there's no other way for ht now! Let's do it! And I'll probably understand how the audition works after I start doing it!”

Why, that Yu, that Yoshi+no could do nothing but applaud

shi+rinned

”After school today, let's hold some real talks about this, okay? We won't just discuss the big picture, but also the little things that we forgot to talk about, the things we need to do first, and other stuff like that!”

”Will you help us too?”

Yumi-san asked shi+mako-san happily

”Of course Won't we, Noriko?”

Noriko-chan's onee-sareed, so she went quiet for a second, and then said, ”Yeah” But Noriko-chan hesitated ”Yumi-sama, um, are you sure I should help out?”

”Huh? Of course! If Noriko-chan helped out, ould be that er!”

After seeing the smile that lit up Yumi-san's face, Noriko-chan could only say, ”I'll help then To all the best” Perhaps Noriko-chan had wanted to say so else

– Or so Yoshi+no thought absentination But if it wasn't her i, and it made Yoshi+no wonder what she had left unsaid

Sachiko-sama did not come at all that day to the Rose Mansion

Why did she say so like that?

Noriko was revisiting the moment when she had asked Yumi-sama if she should help out

Yu, so Noriko let it drop

”Aaah”

Afternoon classes were filled with such sighs

(I see)

She didn't want to overstep her bounds If she said what she wanted to say, then she would have to take responsibility for her statements until the very end

Because she had only done her duty halfway -- because she dropped the torch before it was all done -- she felt bad, so she kept brooding about it

She had to help out now, so there was no point in rip on the broo to Yumi-sama's request, however shi+mako-san and Yoshi+no-sama made Noriko think twice

”What's wrong, Noriko-san?”

”Ah!”

Touko brought her face close enough to Noriko to kiss her as she daydrea Touko's face made Noriko jump back

”Well, I' the same place with the broo was going wrong”

” I'”

”I see”

Touko said nothing more as she took out her dustpan and put in the dirt that Noriko had collected earlier and put it into the trash

”Touko”

”Hm?”

Her two banana curls of hair bobbed up and down as she looked up

”What do you think of Yumi-sama?”

”Hmmmm”

”Her face is never still, her mood is always plain But her heart is with the people, so her head's just a scatterbrain”

Each of her lines began with an 'H' sound, and ended with a rhyme Only the third rhyme was off [1]

”She is, but she's still pretty popular with the first years”

”It seems so”

Noriko smiled

Unlike Yumi-sama, Touko would purposefully misunderstand her questions, and would throw your questions back at you She understood what Noriko wanted to say, but she probably was dodging because she did not want to answer

But ever since she had learned that lesson, Noriko understood that she could not give up asking the questions she wanted answered

”Did you think that I had wanted to be Yumi-sama's petite sœur?”

Touko said, as she revealed an anger in her face that Noriko had not seen before

”That's why I was asking Did I do anything wrong?”

Noriko winced froer, but Touko herself did not seem to notice it It was just that, a hidden part of Touko's soul had just been opened up, which hy she reacted so violently to Noriko's innocent question

As the two eyed each other, their classan to bunch up around them Students who had stayed after school, students who had clubs to attend, and even conspicuously tall girls They would stop, say a polite ”Gokigenyou,” look down at their watch, flutter their hair around, and then run off into the hallways

”I want to help you out, Touko”

Noriko said honestly When Noriko had asked Yumi-sama ”Are you sure I should help out?” neither Kanako-san nor anyone else had come to mind and caused her hesitation -- Touko was the one

Maybe Noriko should have asked ”Are you sure I should help out?” to Touko instead of Yumi-sama She would have told Touko about the opportunity to audition sœurs and asked ”Do you want to join in?”

”I need no strength from you, Noriko-san”

As Noriko watched Touko turn coldly and leave the roo Touko's reaction

” Touko”

Noriko did not say anything else aloud, but the thought echoed in her mind

”So?”

Sachiko-sa to say

”The nas, so I wanted to clear it up”

Yumi said clearly

It was after sch