Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume24 Chapter3 3 (section)

===<noinclude>The Opening Ceremony's Spoiled Child. </noinclude>Part 3===

Even in the new year, the Rose Mansion staircase was as creaky as ever as it ushered students in. It couldn't be oiled, like a gear chain, so there wasn't much maintenance that could be done to it.

"I wonder if it'll fall down one day."

Yumi muttered and Shimako-san smiled.

"My onee-sama said it was like this when she was a first-year."

"Really?"

"Although it may have changed a little bit. But over time you get used to it, and the feeling of unease goes away."

So that was it. She'd been going up and down it every day without giving it a second thought, but after a two week break she was thinking about the sound and the swaying. So if they brought Shimako-san's onee-sama, Satou Sei-sama, here to confirm it right now, she might say, "It's swaying a lot more than when I was a first-year."

"Gokigenyou, Yumi-sama. Gokigenyou, onee-sama."

Nijou Noriko-chan had arrived at the Rose Manion ahead of them, already completed a brief tidy up and was currently preparing tea.

"Ah, sorry. I'll help."

Yumi rolled up her sleeves and went over to assist, but all the preparations were done. She was just waiting for the water in the electric kettle to boil.

"Would you two please take a seat. It's almost done."

Yumi whispered to Shimako-san:

"Your petit soeur is as admirable as ever."

"Why thank-you."

Just as they were exchanging smiles, the water boiled.

"Touko."

Noriko-chan said, abruptly.

"Came to school today. Looking as though nothing happened at the Christmas party."

It had seemed abrupt, but Noriko-chan may have planned on saying it at this point. Standing by the sink as she poured the tea, from Yumi's vantage point all she could see was her back.

"Yeah. That's how she appeared."

Noriko-chan turned around in surprise when Yumi agreed with her.

"You knew?"

"We ran into her a little while ago in the hallway … right?"

Yumi responded, looking straight at Shimako-san.

"And … then what?"

"That's all. We just exchanged greetings then went our separate ways."

"Is that so?"

Noriko-chan's expression showed a mixture of disappointment and relief. Given the choice, she wouldn't want to be caught between her friend and her seniors. But that was how it had to be, probably.

"Well, let's end this conversation here. Noriko-chan, the tea will go bitter."

"Ah, oh no."

It was only then that Noriko-chan finally remembered the tea. There was currently only the three of them present, but Noriko-chan poured four cups and, perhaps worried about the taste after all, took a sip of hers before saying, "Okay." With that, Sachiko-sama finally arrived.

"Gokigenyou, onee-sama."

Yumi hurried over to greet her onee-sama, who frowned and said:

"You're just as excitable this year too, aren't you?"

"Ah … I'm sorry."

It looked as though her onee-sama's fault-finding was in good health this year too.

"Where's Rei and Yoshino-chan? Haven't they arrived yet?"

"No. Um, the kendo club's – "

"I know that. But I thought they would be here by now."

The way she said it made it sound like she'd come here to see Rei-sama and Yoshino-san.

"Um, onee-sama?"

It did neither of them any good to remain gloomy like this, so Yumi boldly asked her about it. Thereupon:

"That's right."

Sachiko-sama answered calmly.

"I knew Rei and Yoshino-chan would be late, so I took my time getting here. Since today's meeting won't start until we're all here. It would be a waste of time to hurry here, just to drink tea and wait. So I tidied something up."

"What did you tidy up?"

"I returned a book I borrowed over the winter vacation, why do you ask?"

"But the library isn't open today … "

"That's why I put it in the book return slot."

"The book return … "

It might have been better if Yumi dropped the subject politely at this point, but she couldn't do that. Because if she dropped it now, she'd have to accept that earlier "waste of time" remark. That was why she deliberately said one thing too many.

"If you were just using the book return, couldn't you have stopped in on your way home?"

"Huh?"

It wasn't just Sachiko-sama that looked at Yumi with a startled expression – Shimako-san and Noriko-chan did so too. But since she'd started, she couldn't stop now.

"Waste of time though it may be, I'd be happy just to drink tea and chat with my friends. Do you disagree, onee-sama?"

"That's not what I said, though?"

Sachiko-sama's voice was a little tight, apparently not amused at being criticized.

"Why are you trying to start an argument today?"

Even if she was asked this.

"I don't know myself."

The White Rose soeurs had tried to intervene a couple of times so eventually they turned their backs on them. As though to declare, "Don't worry about us."

"Come with me."

Sachiko-sama took Yumi by the hand and left the room. In the hallway, she closed the door and asked once more:

"What's the matter?"

This time in a soft voice.

"I don't know."

Why was she acting rebellious towards her onee-sama? What had started it, was there a problem with her state of mind? Even if she had been able to think about it calmly, she was currently too strung-out for it to work well.

"You should know that there's days like this."

Suddenly, a voice came from the stairway. Rei-sama had just climbed up to the second floor.

"Way back when, Sachiko would get hysterical and lash out at Youko-sama. When your emotions are unstable, you can be set off by the slightest thing. Right, Yumi-chan?"

"Is that it, Yumi?"

Yumi nodded slightly.

"It's cold, isn't it? Let's go inside."

Rei-sama smiled and put her arm around Yumi's shoulder.

"I suppose."

Behind Sachiko-sama, Yoshino-san entered the scene, rattling the staircase.

"Ooh, it's cold. Geez, you just kept getting further ahead of me Rei-chan … hey, why are we stopped here?"

"I just ran into Sachiko doting on Yumi-chan. Had to butt in."

"Oh."

"I told them to continue it when it was just the two of them. Now, let's go inside already."

She was unstable, got set off, and was doted on. Rei-sama's analysis was probably on the right track. What had started it was a trivial matter. 

But if her state of mind was such that a trivial matter could affect her like this, wasn't there a bit of a problem? She felt like she shouldn't just dismiss it as "there's days like this."

When they opened the door, the White Rose soeurs greeted them with relieved expressions.