Editing Maria Sama Ga Miteru:Volume12 Chapter2 (section)

===Part 3===
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Yumi arrived at the ticket gate of M Station five minutes before the meeting time.

No young lady in Sachiko-sama's age could be found there, but after two minutes of waiting, a lady approached from a corner of the North Exit.

The lady had a cream white summer sweater inside her matching cardigan, and slim jeans that flowed along her long legs. Walking in brisk steps, the lady found Yumi and waved her hands lightly.

It was so different from her usual image that Yumi did not pay attention in the first place. However.

"Yumi."

The calling voice was the same. The gradually approaching face was the same.

"O-ooooooooh?"

Without a doubt, it was Ogasawara Sachiko.

"''Doh-doh-doh...''"

Like always, the confused Yumi started to drill holes on the street under construction. Hey, in Yumi's expanding imagination, when the daughter of the Ogasawara family pays a visit to the summerhouse, she would definitely be wearing a one-piece or a flaring skirt. Yumi chose the one-piece in order to suit her Onee-sama. So why the jeans? Onee-sama's appearance now was actually closer to Yumi's usual style.

Therefore the "''doh''" in Yumi's string of "''Doh-doh-doh...''" was for "''doushite?'' (Why?)"

"Good morning."

Sachiko-sama reached out her hand to the vicinity of Yumi's chest as usual, but realized that Yumi was not wearing a tie. There was not even a lapel to Yumi's pristine collar, so instead Sachiko touched Yumi's collar and smiled.

"Good morning."

The greeting was not the usual "Good day." It might be because they were not at school. It might be because the time was actually early morning. However, such a small inconsistency was not at all irritating.

"What a cute one-piece. It suits you well."

It might just be a common compliment, but being complimented by Onee-sama was itself gratifying. Yumi barely tied down her blown-away heart, and smiled back.

"Onee-sama, those jeans suits you very well too."

The jeans, though causal-looking, were one of those expensive kinds. They looked very similar to ones that appeared in a vintage fashion show Yumi had watched on television before. The pair of jeans on the television were eye-popping expensive; so expensive that one could buy a huge fridge with the money.

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"Yes. From time to time, I wear at home the jeans you have chosen for me on our Valentine date. My grandpa saw them, and bought this pair for me."

Jeans that the president of the Ogasawara Group had requested himself -- then no doubt the jeans were the real thing.

Without any sense of pity, Sachiko-sama cut the jeans to her size and wore them. Yumi could gradually feel distortion to her sense of money.

"So, let's go."

Yumi was still digesting her Onee-sama's words when Sachiko-sama turned back and retraced her steps.

"Oh?"

Yumi cocked her head.

Let's go, Onee-sama said. The ticket gate was here.

However, Sachiko-sama walked further and further to the north. Continuing walking in that direction, she would go out of the north exit. In order to ride on the train, however, they had to pass the gate and wait at the platform for the train.

Yumi decided to chase Sachiko-sama for the time being. Then she realized.

Onee-sama's hands were empty.

No way, Yumi thought, but Sachiko-sama had already walked down the stairs. Yumi also caught sight of a black car, waiting slightly away from the north exit roundabout.

Without mistake, that car was the Ogasawara's home car. Though it is a home car, the driver was not anyone in the Ogasawara family, but a chauffeur.

"Why are you so surprised? Haven't I said that we are going by car?"

Sachiko-sama turned back and said to Yumi, whose brain was stuck due to the unmatching reality.

"No, I heard nothing of that."

Yumi had just learned of it.

However, Sachiko-sama looked very confident, and Yumi started to become unsettled.

"I have said so."

"But"

Yumi hadn't heard of it, that was the truth. Yumi could never say "I have heard it," just to save Onee-sama's face.

"I have said so."

"Never heard of it."

Neither side would give way.

Then which side was telling the truth?

No, it was too early to conclude so. Both sides were holding the unwavering belief that their standpoint was right.

Speaking of that, the same thing happened once before. In the treasure hunt event, the two had argued about how deep Yumi had dug for the hidden card. At that time, Tsutako-san intervened, and the argument was somehow cleared with everyone satisfied, even though the mystery was not solved.

Unfortunately, there was no friend here now to step up and make a judgment.

(Anybody...)

Yumi looked around, and her glance met the driver, who was in standby mode in the black car's driver seat. Yumi hastily gave a slight nod.

There was no way the driver could untie the tangled web of misunderstanding. Yumi had to put out her own effort here.

"Onee-sama, do you remember that I had asked your opinion whether I should book train tickets beforehand?"

"Yes, of course."

Onee-sama nodded.

"And I replied, 'Leave it to me, and I will ask the people on my side to settle this matter.<ref>Sachiko's understanding: 「'''その件'''はうちの者に行かせるから任せて」"Leave it to me, and I will ask the people on my side to settle '''this matter'''." </ref>'"

"Yes."

In the end, the two began to rehearse what they had said.

"Then what did you say, Yumi?"

"'Then I would leave it to you.'"

"See, you had acknowledged my suggestion, hadn't you?"

"Pardon?"

Why? Yumi's eyes began to roll.

"Wasn't it that I leave it to you to buy the train tickets?<ref>Yumi's understanding: 「'''その券'''はうちの者に行かせるから任せて」"Leave it to me, and I will ask the people on my side to settle '''the tickets'''."</ref>"

"Pardon?"

Then the two finally realized. No way--

"This matter (その件)" and "The tickets (その券)" ?<ref>The pronunciation for "This matter (その件)" and "The tickets (その券)" are the same.</ref>

"You are kidding."

"That is so silly."

Unbelievable. The two were stuck in such a clumsy misunderstanding.

"B-but, that would not equal 'going by car,' would it?"

Even if Sachiko-sama was saying "this matter" instead of "the tickets," she was telling Yumi to rely on her for arranging transportation. They could go by bike, by bus, by local trains, by Bullet train, by plane (not in this case, of course), etc. How could Yumi judge it was by car?

"But I definitely had said that we were going by car."

Sachiko-sama said with a light laugh, apparently enjoying the gradually funny scenario.

"By car, right?"

"Yes, by car."

"Car... c-a-r..."

Like solving a puzzle, the two teamed up to make it clear why such a misunderstanding took place.

"C-a-r... C-a-r..."

Yumi replayed her memory around the "This matter (ticket)" line, and searched for the keyword "car."

"Oh."

"What is it?"

Sachiko-sama asked with sparkling eyes.

"Well, at that time I was thinking about when Onee-sama should leave home..."

Yumi slowly put what she remembered into words.

"Yes. I did not know how much time it takes to travel in the morning."

"In the end, after you said that you might arrive a little before our meeting time..."

"Then?"

"You said, 'It is all right for me. If I arrive early, I would kill time before you arrive.'" <ref> Yumi's understanding: 「早く着いたら、'''来るまで'''時間つぶしているからいいわ」"If I arrive early, I would kill time '''before you arrive'''." </ref>

"Yes, I did say so. So what is about it?"

Sachiko-sama gave a blank stare.

"I was saying I would arrive a little earlier, instead of you waiting for me at the gate. It is all right with me, because I can wait in my car with air conditioning... <ref>Sachiko's understanding: 「早く着いたら、'''車で'''時間つぶしているからいいわ」If I arrive early, I would kill time '''in the car'''." </ref> Hey!"

Sachiko-sama finally got it.

This time, it was "before you arrive (来るまで)" and "in the car (車で)." <ref>The pronunciation for "before you come(来るまで)" and "in the car (車で)" are the same.</ref>

"Ha"

"Hahaha"

The funniness exploded like spring-water gushing out. The two looked at each other's face, and burst out laughing.

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"Mi'ladies, would it be alright?"

The chauffeur said as he came out from the car. It seems that he was mindful of the situation and had refrained from greeting them until after their talk had concluded.  Perhaps he couldn't come out earlier because the two of them were lightly quarreling at the time they were walking toward the car. Though now he probably surmised that the issue had been resolved since laughter had broken out.

"Good morning. Fukuzawa Yumi-sama, allow me to look after your luggage."

"Ah."

"That's how it is, you know.  Yumi, since we're going to the summer house in this car, aren't we?"

"But..."

"This is how I go every year."

Yumi, being goldfish droppings<ref>金魚の糞 -- An expression referring to a person who tags along like excrement trailing behind a goldfish.</ref> to Sachiko-sama's summer plans, wasn't in a position where she could object. That aside, it was also one of her hidden objectives to follow onee-sama's usual behavior patterns during their trip.

"...okay."

Nodding assent, Yumi gave her luggage to the chauffeur. While thinking of what to do about the travel allowance that she had received from her mother, suddenly there was something she realized.

Her parasol wasn't there.

She was wearing her shoulder bag, cardigan, and hat. In her hand she held the cooler case that the lunch had been placed into. The basket, which she had just handed over, was in the car's trunk. But, only the white parasol wasn't to be found anywhere.

"What's the matter? Hurry up and get in."

Sachiko, who had already settled into the back seat, cracked open the door and said.

"Y-Yes."

Yumi hurried up and got into the car. An onee-sama's orders are an action that winds a petite soeur's spring. Though that might be limited to Yumi.

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"What?"

Sachiko--sama asked.

"No. It's nothing."

Yumi smiled and shook her head.

After all, at this point if she said, "I can't find my umbrella," Sachiko-sama might put off the departure in order to go and search for it.

Though grateful, Yumi would also be troubled.

She didn't want to cause trouble for onee-sama, and she hated that even such a long-awaited outing should be stalled right from the start because of her. 

"Chauffeur-san, let's go!"<ref>Yumi says this in English: レッツゴー</ref>

Though she thought, ''I wonder if I over did it'', for the sake of energizing the mood she raised her fist with abandon. 

It was only a little while after the time she arrived here, but it felt that the shapes of people in the vicinity of the station had increased.

It was 6 o'clock in the morning. 

The bus that Yumi always rode to school approached the station, spit out about 30 people, and departed in a state where it was mostly empty. 

Afterwards, as if to follow, the black car left via the rotary at M Station's north entrance. 

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The parasol would be ok.

She probably just left it in her family's car. 

Better not to worry about it. When compared to convenience store umbrella stands, that place was hundreds or thousands of times safer.

But.

Yumi's dream to walk the summer resort under the white parasol with onee-sama had evaporated like dew.