Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume24 Chapter3 1 (section)

===<noinclude>The Opening Ceremony's Spoiled Child. </noinclude>Part 1===

The auditorium was probably cold and silent first thing in the morning, but it had warmed up by the time the first-years and half of the second-year classes had filed in. The girls' whispered voices and occasional laughs probably helped to soften the atmosphere. 

Sitting with the rest of her class, Yumi relaxed just a little bit.

Winter vacation was over.

It was a new school term.

Even when something earth-shattering happens on the last day of the second term, there are very few students for whom the first day of the third term does not eventually arrive.

The reason for that was because time kept on flowing impartially. Well, there were some exceptions, though.

But Yumi hadn't suffered some massive injury that required long-term hospitalization. Nor had her family circumstances required her to change schools, and obviously she hadn't done something wrong and been expelled. So of course the day of the third term opening ceremony would eventually come. Although, on reflection, while she thought of it as "earth-shattering," perhaps it wasn't actually all that big a deal.

That's right. It was just a rejection by a first-year she wanted to make her petit soeur. Looking at in totality, it was probably a minor event. Yumi breathed a little sigh.

The third-years were making their entrance.

As always, when she turned her gaze to the line of third-year pine class students, she quickly found her onee-sama. 

It may just have been habit, but Sachiko-sama noticed her petit soeur's gaze and looked at her. At times like this it was typically with a scolding expression, as though to say, "Stop looking around," or, "Hey, don't do that." But even so, Yumi couldn't bring herself to stop.

Yumi wondered how many more opportunities she'd have to do that.

Because once her onee-sama graduated, she wouldn't be able to do it no matter how much she may want to. Her cautioning look when Yumi couldn't calm down, her astonished look when Yumi was being obtuse – Yumi wanted to savor all of these expressions as much as she could.

Perhaps Yumi's intentions had been conveyed, because this time Sachiko-sama favored her with a smile, saying, "You irrepressible child."

(Hehehe.)

This alone was enough to make Yumi feel satisfied, like a baby given its bottle. And, as usual, she thought, "How simple am I, if my onee-sama can change my mood with just one look?"

"…"

Next Yumi twisted her body towards the first-year camellia class. She couldn't stop herself from looking, even if it meant her good mood would wither like a deflating balloon.

Touko-chan was there.

As usual, she had ringlets hanging past both her ears. Her gaze was fixed to the front, her mouth a straight line. All around her, her classmates were chatting but she didn't join in at all, she just sat in silence.

Despite the long distance separating them, Yumi could see Touko-chan clearly.

Yumi's mood didn't wither. Quite the opposite, it swelled. Yumi didn't know why, but seeing Touko-chan moved her in a way she couldn't put into words.

Just what was it?

Still unable to come up with an answer, she returned her gaze to the front. The opening ceremony was beginning.

The change in the lineup of the choir, the lower percentage of third-years in attendance, all of these little things were mixed in with graduation, leaving a lonely feeling.

She'd already experienced a high-school graduation ceremony last year.

It was something she'd just have to get used to.