Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume33 Chapter7 6 (section)

===<noinclude>Connecting Chains. </noinclude>Part 6.===

In the end, Yoshino-san created a major scandal by taking the unprecedented step of giving her rosary to a student who was still in middle school.

But speaking of unprecedented acts, Yoshino-san was also the one who returned her rosary to her onee-sama, the so-called Yellow Rose Revolution, and then reconciled with her distraught onee-sama. So you could say that this was just another notch on her belt, and shouldn't have been surprising.

"Yoshino-chan."

Eriko-sama said as she approached Yoshino-san.

"Thanks for fulfilling the promise you made to me."

"Not at all. I wanted to show you how it's done."

"How it's done? If that's what you really wanted to say, what ever could you mean by it? I am, after all, Rei's onee-sama. And I have been a petit soeur. Yoshino-chan, you should remember who your elders are."

"What I remember is how much I want to never hear your nagging ever again."

"Hmmph."

Those two were the same as ever. Or perhaps they were both the same.

"They're the same as ever."

Next to Yumi, Sachiko-sama sighed in exasperation.

"Because they're both the same."

"…"

"What?"

Sachiko-sama asked as Yumi stared at her.

Just now, they had both been thinking the same thing. But how would her onee-sama respond if Yumi were to tell her that such a small thing had made her so happy? She would probably be even more pleased as she smiled and said, 'Don't be silly.'

"Ahh, That reminds me. Your grandfather came to the ceremony, onee-sama."

"Oh, how did you know that? Did you run into him?"

"Nope. He was the person sitting next to your mother, Sayako-obasama, right?"

"Indeed he was."

Despite Sachiko-sama's surprise, the secret behind this trick was the fact that Sachiko-sama's grandfather was the spitting image of her father, Tooru-ojisama. When Kashiwagi-san gets a bit older, he'd start to resemble Tooru-ojisama too, perhaps in more ways than one. In other words, he was that same type of man.

"I suppose they've already gone home. It's a shame, because I was hoping to meet him."

"I don't know if they've gone home, but then I didn't think they were going to be here today."

"Huh?"

"My grandfather had an important meeting at work today, but he had a high fever this morning and had to take the day off. My mother was looking after him. Don't you find it strange that they came to the graduation ceremony."

"… I suppose so."

In other words, her grandfather had been so desperate to see his granddaughter's graduation ceremony that he had faked an illness and taken the day off work. Yumi felt sorry for Sachiko-sama's father, who had been outplayed, but he had previously been guilty of skipping out on a wedding reception to watch the school athletics festival, so it probably evened out. He wouldn't be able to complain.

"So you're a great-grandmother now."

Youko-sama and Eriko-sama smiled at each other. Sei-sama purposefully walked over so that she was within earshot of those two and said.

"Don't lump me in with them. Until Nori-rin gets a petit soeur, I'm not there yet."

"By Nori-rin, do you mean me?"

Noriko-chan joked that saying such a thing was inexcusable, however the usually sensible Noriko-chan was no match for Sei-sama and in the end had to scurry back to Shimako-san to complain.

"Well, then, I think I'll call you Nana-chi."

Eriko-sama had found something interesting, and looked directly at Nana-chan. Which left only Touko-chan from the group of future boutons. 

"…"

She looked nervously at Youko-sama. 

"Oh, Touko-chan is Touko-chan."

" – Right."

Touko's face showed she was both relieved and disappointed.

That's how it happens.

That the people at this academy are connected together, as though with chains.

Yumi's onee-sama looked at her. Yumi looked back at her onee-sama.

Nothing needed to be said.

It's okay, we're connected.



–  Hoohokekyo.

The call of a bush warbler came from somewhere. When Yumi heard it, she looked up at the sky.

This was Maria-sama's blue sky.

"Well then, let's get started with the photos."

Tsutako-san's voice echoed.