Are You a Fairy?
Shine and I returned to the office, cradling large boxes in our arms. Because the box I was carrying was so massive, I couldn't see a single thing in front of me. Fortunately, Shine acted as my eyes and guided me along, so I managed to make it back safely without tripping.
"What did you buy so much of?" Amy asked, eyeing the box in my arms with curiosity. I proudly thrust the box toward her like a child showing off a prize and pulled out the contents. "They're gifts for a friend!" I lifted a massive, vacuum-sealed owl bear paw. It was larger than my head and incredibly heavy.
"Ugh..." Amy recoiled with a grimace, clearly disgusted by the contents. But I wasn't done yet. I pulled out every single item from the box and displayed them to her one by one. "This is the owl bear paw... this is red worm tail juice... and this is a giant boar's liver..."
"...And what did you prepare, Shine?"
"I got this." Shine pulled a small medicine bottle out of her box, which was much smaller than mine, and showed it to Amy. Only then did Amy let out a small smile and nod.
"Is your friend in very poor health?"
"Yeah. She keeps fainting, so we barely even got to talk."
"She's attending school with a body that weak?"
"Seems like it."
"Hmm... Did you say her name was Appleton?"
"Yeah." Amy nodded at Shine's response and pulled out her phone. She was likely ordering her subordinates to look into Appleton.
Rain also showed interest in our boxes. I slipped a pair of slippers out of my box, hid them behind my back, and pushed the rest of the box toward her. "Whoa... they still sell stuff like this these days?" Rain marveled, flipping through the items I had ordered. Leaving Rain to rummage through the box, I exchanged a glance with Shine. She, too, was hiding a neatly wrapped chick hoodie behind her back.
"Rain~"
"Huh?" When Shine and I called her name, Rain, who had her head buried deep inside the box, turned around to look at us.
"Here. This is for you."
"A present?" Shine and I presented our gifts to Rain together. A pair of chick slippers and a chick hoodie. We really wanted her to wear them. Rain stared at us with trembling eyes. Seeing her reaction, which made her look incredibly touched, I let out a soft smile. At my bright smile, Rain's face flushed a delicate pink. Her lips curled upward as she returned the smile.
"Thank you!" Even though she didn't know what the gifts were yet, she was genuinely thrilled simply by the fact that Shine and I had prepared something for her.
"Can I open them now?"
"Yeah." Having received the gifts from us, Rain immediately began tearing into the wrapping paper. Victor and Amy also seemed curious about what we had given her, casting glances our way.
"Whoaaa..." Unwrapping the gifts, Rain clutched the hoodie and slippers to her chest. "Thank you so much!" She rejoiced like a little child, holding her new treasures close. Just like a kid who had received a gift from Santa on Christmas Day, Rain hopped and skipped around us. Watching her golden hair flutter softly, I spoke up.
"Do you want to try them on?"
"Should I?" Rain nodded eagerly and slipped her head into the hoodie. Her head disappeared inside with a whoosh and popped back out with a boop. She shoved her hands into the loose, fluttering sleeves and popped them out the ends as well.
"Tada!" Because the size was a bit too big, the hoodie draped all the way down to cover Rain's thighs. Still, it suited her. Was it meant to be worn like that? Since the sleeve length was just right, it seemed to be the intended oversized design of the clothing.
"Do you like it?"
"Yeah!" Rain spun around in circles, clearly delighted with her new hoodie. "It's comfy. And soft. I love it." She beamed, rubbing her cheek against the soft sleeve to feel the texture. Was she really that happy? Shine let out a soft chuckle at the sight.
"I picked that one out."
"Shine... thank you so much!" At Shine's words, Rain bounced over, grabbed Shine's hands, and shook them up and down vigorously. A flustered Shine tried to pull her hands away, but Rain refused to let go.
"Hey, Rain. Try on the slippers too."
"These are from you, Jeff?"
"Yeah."
"Okay!" At my words, Rain immediately kicked off her old slippers. They flew straight under Victor's desk. Victor frowned, but since this was a common occurrence, he didn't say anything and simply kicked them aside. Rain's tiny feet slipped perfectly into the new slippers. They looked a little big, but she didn't seem to have any trouble moving around in them.
Squeak! "Huh?" Rain looked bewildered at the sound coming from beneath her feet. Squeak! Squeeak! With every single step she took, a high-pitched squeaking noise echoed throughout the office.
"How is it?" Squeak! Sque-squeak! Squeeeak! "Th-this is..." "Cute, right?" "Uh..." Rain stammered, continuing to move her feet. Every time she did, a squeak rang out. Was she so happy she was speechless? I stared at her, my eyes sparkling with anticipation. Rain, who had been standing there with her mouth agape, caught my gaze and smiled once more.
"Thank you!" Squeak!Rain began to circle around me just like she had earlier. Squeak-squeak-squeak-squeak! The sound of her squeaky shoes filled the room continuously.
"Pfft..." Just then, Victor burst into laughter. As if he had held it in to his absolute limit, he chuckled before dissolving into silent, shoulder-shaking laughter. Why was he laughing? As I stared at Victor in confusion, Rain froze. Her face turned beet red, and she stood in place, trembling all over.
"Rain?" "Yeah..." "It really suits you!" I praised her. The little chick decorations sitting on top of her small feet shone adorably. Hearing my compliment, a blushing Rain walked back to her seat and sat down. Naturally, she squeaked with every step of the way.
Time flew by. Having finished our preparations for school, Shine, Rain, and I stood side by side, staring straight ahead with solemn expressions, our backpacks slung over our shoulders. Our bags were bulging much more than usual. The reason they looked like overstuffed dinosaur bellies about to burst was entirely due to Appleton's gifts.
"You'll be on your best behavior today too, right?" "Yes!" "And Rain, make sure you keep an eye on them so they don't do anything weird, okay?" "Mhm!" Amy was still anxious about us leaving for school, fussing over us and double-checking everything.
"Did you pack your handkerchief?" "Yes." I pulled out my handkerchief to show her. It was the very same one I had received at the Little Witch Theme Park.
"I hope you girls make lots of friends." "Too many will only get in the way," Shine replied to Amy as she began walking forward. Stopping right in front of the heavily rippling warp portal, Shine held her hand out to me.
"Let's go." "Yeah. We'll be back!" "See you later!" I grabbed Rain's hand and reached out to Shine. Taking my hand, Shine leapt into the warp portal. Arriving at the same spot as last time, we found Sandroi waiting for us right ahead.
"Welcome back." "Hello!" "And that is...?" Sandroi's gaze drifted to the backpack on my shoulders. Since my bag alone didn't have enough capacity to hold all the gifts, Shine's and Rain's backpacks were also stuffed to the brim.
"We brought some gifts for a friend." "Gifts?" "Yes!" "Ah, I see." Sandroi didn't pry any further. Nodding, she handed us a printed sheet of paper containing our schedule.
"Here is today's schedule. If there is anything you dislike, please let me know immediately. We can modify it right away."
I checked the schedule as we walked down the hallway.
"Oh, we have PE too?" "Do you happen to dislike it?" "No, I'd rather move my body than sit through something boring." After checking the schedule, I handed the paper back to Sandroi. Stopping in front of the staff room, we said our goodbyes and parted ways, promising to see each other later. Perhaps because we had arrived at a different time than before, many students were wandering the hallways since class hadn't started yet. The chilly morning air brushed against my cheeks. I paused in the hallway and looked out the window.
"What are you looking at?" "That." Outside the window lay a spacious tennis court. Since it was early morning, not many people were using it, but there was always that one person who practiced alone at this hour, no matter where you went. I silently watched the student practicing by themselves. For some reason, they felt familiar. Had I seen them a few times while passing through the hallways?
Thwack— thwack! Thwack! The kid, who had been bouncing a tennis ball against the wall, suddenly stared blankly at a stray ball and slumped to the ground. The tennis ball bounced off the floor and rolled away.
"Tennis?" "Yeah." "Do you want to play?" "No." I shook my head at Shine's question. It had simply caught my eye. "It just looks cool." "What? That kid?" "No, I mean the sport of tennis itself is cool." I shook my head as I answered Shine, who had asked with a hint of urgency. I actually liked tennis. I didn't know the rules, but holding a racket and using a ball to compete against an opponent... It was a true battle of pure physical ability and dynamic visual acuity. Whenever I watched the moment a fast-flying ball struck the edge of the court, something stirred deep in my chest.
"You think tennis is cool?" "Yeah." I nodded at Shine's question and started walking again. But Shine didn't move. She stood there, silently staring at the tennis court. "Shine?" "Oh, coming."
Entering the classroom, we immediately began looking for Appleton. Although there were still many empty seats, we knew what Appleton's backpack looked like, so we were able to locate her desk right away. I walked over. A crowd of students had gathered around the desks next to Appleton's, but the moment we approached, they froze like ice.
"Hey, guys," I spoke, looking at the kids. But the response I wanted didn't come. Frowning, I continued, "Is this Appleton's seat?" Once again, no one answered. They all just gulped, warily reading the room. Having no other choice, I pointed at a girl sitting right next to Appleton's desk and asked, "You there." "Y-Yes!" "Yeah, no need to be so startled. That desk next to you is Appleton's, right?" "Yes!" The girl nodded, her face turning pale.
"Then could you move aside for a bit? We'd like to sit next to Appleton." At my words, the girl bolted upright from her seat, nodding frantically. As she hurried away, I slipped a small chocolate into her hand. "Thanks~" Having received the chocolate from me, the girl stumbled away as if her legs had turned to jelly. "Is everyone at this school physically weak?" I muttered to myself, setting my backpack down next to Appleton's desk.