Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume22 Chapter2.3

===Part 3.===

Why had this even happened?

Noriko thought to herself, as she plodded along the hallways.

Noriko herself had been the cause, she realized.

But she just couldn't get herself to accept that.

Archetypically bad things were simply bad. Even letting Shimako-san scold her would be better than saying empty words to Touko.

So she should have accepted the outcome as it was.

She understood this, but still could not so simply dispel the doubt from her heart.

In spite of turning Yumi down, she ended up being whisked into a more fundamental conflict. Noriko's show of emotion had sprung Shimako-san into action.

Shimako-san and Yumi-sama were walking about one classroom in front of Noriko. The two were talking, not even turning their heads once.

Did Noriko really want Shimako-san to turn around and look at her, or was she better off if Shimako-san didn't, Noriko pondered, as she walked along.

Bum-Bum-Bum-Bum. <ref>Sukoshi: The sound of plodding down the corridors.</ref>

Noriko had tried to present her just argument to Shimako, but had teared up. (Noriko felt depressed.)

Those tears weren't the tears of being talked into defeat, or tears of disappointment while being scolded. Rather, rather... they were tears that came out from self-pity.

Had Shimako-san understood, maybe she wouldn't have been so harsh in her rejection of Noriko's reasoning. Nobody had really understood, and so she had lost against Yumi-sama.

Shimako-san had reacted the way she did to punish Noriko. It made Noriko hang her head down in defeat.

The plodding sound her footsteps made down the corridor seemed to perfect words to describe herself now.

Bum-Bum-Bum-Bum

"I'm sorry."

The words being whispered within her heart seemed to be echoed in the air.

Noriko did not react, plodded one step forward, then stopped.

"Sorry?"

She realized that she had forgotten what was going on around her.  Next to her, Shimazu Yoshino-sama stood with a serious expression on her face.

"That this ... um ... happened between Noriko-chan and Shimako-san ... well I was thinking maybe it was my fault. I thought I should at least, um, apologize or something."

Yoshino-sama had a soft, meek expression on her face, and bent her head down. It was unbelievable that this was the same Shimazu Yoshino who only minutes ago had zealously exclaimed "How dare you talk to your Sempai like  that?". Still, the highs and lows of the passion did indeed fit Yoshino-sama's personality.

"I'm afraid I don't really know what you are apologizing for, Yoshino-sama."

Noriko-chan admittedly candidly.

This is what had started it all, Noriko had kept pondering from the beginning, and so she had rationalized that it had all come from within her. So where Yoshino-sama's apology came from, she couldn't begin to guess.

"Well, I'm the one who wanted to invite Touko-chan and Kanako-chan in the first place..."

Yoshino-sama said.

"Huh?"

"Yumi-san was just trying to do what I had asked her to."

"I ... don't really understand where you're going with this, Yoshino-sama."

"Because I had asked her to bring some underclassmen to the party."

"Right."

She had heard the whole thing. She didn't really feel like this was helping in any way, but she felt that she should listen to what Yoshino-sama was saying.

"So, you know..."

"Ah."

Noriko-chan suddenly understood. Yoshino-sama had found a person whom she wanted to claim as soeur, but bar that, she had thought that she would introduce the girl to everyone. For her, Yoshino-sama had wanted to call other guests, so the girl's presence would not stick out so markedly.

"Well ... congratulations ... is that what you're looking for here?"

Whether this allusion to the soeur oath was in fact a curse for Yoshino-sama or not, she did not know. When Noriko had accepted Shimako-san's rosary, many people had congratulated her, so Noriko felt that was an accurate response.

"Not yet, not yet. We're not going up those stairs yet."

Yoshino-sama laughed slightly and shook her head.

Obviously. Yoshino-sama's face was only filled with thirty percent happiness. The remaining seventy percent showed a face that hinted at a world of trouble yet to come.

"Anyway.... that's why when you had said that it was Yumi-sama's duty to invite Touko-chan and Kanako-chan, really it should have been my duty. But Shimako-san had stood up before I could say so, so I felt that the misunderstanding was my fault."

"No, it wasn't your fault..."

But with that, Noriko began reassessing her thoughts and actions. It would have been impolite to have said this to Yoshino-sama.

And then, Yoshino-sama began matter-of-factly discussing words that seemed to be answers to a deep secret.

"But when I heard Yumi-san speak up at you, she didn't seem very surprised."

These unexpected words stunned Noriko.

Noriko was so surprised, that she hadn't even realized that she had stopped walking.

Yoshino-sama turned her head around to look at Noriko.

"I think I sort of understand. If I had asked Noriko-chan to invite Touko-chan, then you would have done it, wouldn't you?"

"..."

"But because Yumi-chan had asked, you didn't want to, did you?"

Noriko thoughtfully nodded. Yoshino-sama wasn't simply toying with Noriko's heart by guessing at her motives. For some reason, in spite of everything, Yoshino-sama actually understood how Noriko had felt.

"I see. Well then, Noriko-chan, you would be feeling fed up with everything then, right?"

Yoshino-sama was spot on.

"That's why you're acting like that."

"Hahaha, I see."

Noriko laughed heartily, and Yoshino-sama stretched languidly.

"So then why don't we just drop the matter?"

"Huh?"

"Things just turn out the way they'll turn out. That's the way human relationships work. Or maybe, things turn out the way they should is a better way to paraphrase it."

"I know what you mean, but..."

"Well, there's nothing else we can do. They're our friends. Even if they're not asking anything of us, we still need to give them the benefit of the doubt."

Yoshino-sama spoke, as if she were talking about her own matter.

Actually, Yoshino-sama was probably explaining half of it to herself. In other words, as Yumi-sama's close friend, Yoshino-sama herself had been in a similar position. That's why Noriko-chan was just sharing sentiments with Yoshino-sama.

As the two continued walking and talking, they came up to none other than the First Year Camellia class. Yoshino-sama stopped in front of the back door.

"When I think about it, I guess we just aren't there yet."

"We?"

"Yumi-san and I. Up against Shimako-san."

Yumi-sama and Shimako-san were in front of the door, just walking out the door having called Touko and Kanako-san to step outside with them.

"I felt it, you know. Right then, Shimako-san had acted like a true Onee-sama."

"Yes. She really is an Onee-sama."

Yoshino-sama patted Noriko and whispered "Just for you". An affectionate without any second meaning.

"But Yoshino-sama will soon get there."

If Yoshino-sama actually found herself a petite soeur, then she'd have no choice but to become a grande soeur herself. Truth be told, Shimako-san at first had been a bit billowy. It's not as if Noriko had given Shimako-san some special power. Their time as soeurs together had simple made them so. So if the girl that Yoshino-san was going to bring to the party was actually going to become her soeur, then all her complaints of "not yet, not yet" would have little choice but to stop.

Noriko's remark had meant to cheer Yoshino-sama on, but Yoshino-sama's expression had clouded.

"That's true but ... I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"Even if she may become my soeur, I feel like I put too much of a burden on Noriko-chan. That's why I had apologized earlier."

"Again, I'm very sorry Yoshino-sama ... I don't really know why you are apologizing...."

That the mystery would solve itself by this evening, Noriko could not know.