Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume11 Chapter4

Welcome

Part 1

Her blue umbrella returned home.

Not returned, but returned home. Like it had the homing instincts of a lost dog, it returned home to Yumi's hand.

This happened after school on Monday.

When she was leaving afternoon homeroom, as though she had just remembered, Yumi's homeroom teacher informed her:

"Ah, Fukuzawa-san. Aota-sensei from middle school wanted to have a word with you, so stop by the staff room after you've finished cleaning duty."

"Aota-sensei?"

He had been her homeroom teacher during the first year of middle school. They hadn't really had much contact since Yumi moved to high-school, since they were in separate buildings and he didn't teach any of her classes.

"Do you know what it's about?"

"He didn't say. But I don't think it's anything to worry about."

"Huh?"

"Aota-sensei was smiling when he asked."

"Ahh, smiling … "

Good or bad. Either way, Yumi didn't even have a rough idea of what it could be about. If it had been her third-year homeroom teacher, then she could have started to guess.

For example:

To ask her to organize the class reunion.

Or, a photo taken on the day of their graduation had finally been developed, and she was being asked to distribute it.

But even with these, it wasn't exactly clear why Yumi would be the one to be asked. It wasn't like she'd been the class representative or anything – Yumi hadn't been a particularly conspicuous student during middle school, which was neither good nor bad.

Yumi was still pondering it as she finished her cleaning duties and headed to the middle-school staff room.

"Pardon me."

Up until a year ago she'd come here from time to time, but she felt out of place now and hesitated as she entered. From the entrance she confirmed Aota-sensei's desk, and was walking towards him when the gentleman with the silver-gray hair looked up from his library book and noticed her.

"You haven't changed, huh?"

Aota-sensei stuck a nearby tag in the open page and closed the book. She'd initially thought it was a complicated science textbook, but it looked to be a mystery novel. Aota-sensei ducked beneath the desk and placed the book in a paper bag by his feet.

Despite being Japanese, Aota-sensei looked exactly like Dick Bruna, the author of children's books, and because of that he was nicknamed "Miffy-chan." An unfortunate coincidence for the school teacher whose full name was Aota Mitsuo. Well, Miffy-chan was cute, so he probably wouldn't mind too much.

"Fukuzawa-kun, I hear you're this year's Rosa Chinensis en bouton? Do your best, okay?"

"Okay … "

It was a bit strange to hear a middle school teacher call her Rosa Chinensis en bouton. On top of that, recently she hadn't been behaving in a manner that could be described as 'doing her best.'

Aota-sensei probably didn't know about that as he smiled happily, then slowly and deliberately said:

"Lillian's Girls Academy – Fukuzawa Yumi."

"Yes?"

"One should always write their name on their belongings."

"Huh?"

What was he talking about? Yumi's eyes darted about as she tried to comprehend. But the answer was not forthcoming from Aota-sensei. Come to think of it, his classes had been like this too. He'd touch down some distance away, then bit-by-bit bridge the gap as he laid out the proof.

"I wonder if you can remember, some time ago you shared your umbrella with me."

"… Not really?"

"It was in the morning, by the statue of Maria-sama. You called out to me as I ran through the rain, and let me share your umbrella. Since I drive, it was only when I got to school that I noticed I'd forgotten my umbrella."

"Mmm."

Now that he mentioned it, something like that may have happened. It certainly seemed plausible enough. It probably happened three years ago.

"Ah, I see, you don't remember it. To you, it probably wasn't that special that you would remember it."

"Umm?"

"It was a blue umbrella. You told me that your grandfather bought it for you. You said you really loved that umbrella."

"Yes."

But that umbrella was gone now too. It had disappeared from the umbrella rack at a convenience store ten days ago.

The clerk had said that it probably wouldn't come back, and she'd received no call to say it had been found. There was no way someone who could steal someone else's umbrella so thoughtlessly would go to the effort of returning it.

"When you shared your umbrella with me, I praised your umbrella. In truth, I wanted to praise your actions, but I thought you'd be happier if I complimented the umbrella. Because I'm taller than you, you let me hold the umbrella. So I took the handle. It had your name written on it. Lillian's Girls Academy – Fukuzawa Yumi."

"Yes."

"I asked the question that came to mind immediately. Why did it have the name of your school on it, and not your address?"

"Ahh – "

Yumi gave a big nod. She remembered. She'd definitely had that conversation with Aota-sensei.

"My grandfather wrote it."

Carved with a needle, then colored over with white crayon. After shining the outside with a cloth, the white letters magically rose to the surface of the blue plastic handle.

"Right. Your grandfather. The one who gave you the umbrella."

"Yes. He said that I should be careful about which belongings I write my address on."

Writing her name on it was to prevent someone else who owned the same thing from taking it accidentally. But if it was lost, that wouldn't help a bit. – That's what her grandfather had said. Still, she didn't really understand why he had written "Lillian's Girls Academy" beside her name.

"You know, Fukuzawa-kun, recently there's been some events that made me want to believe in something like fate."

"Fate?"

Another detour. Just when it seemed like the conversation had been heading somewhere promising.

"Perhaps I should call it Maria-sama's guidance."

Aota-sensei stroked his mustache, which was slightly whiter than his hair.

"I've found myself thinking back on the few minutes I spent chatting with you on the walk to the school building, and wondering why."

Yumi thought, "And in return, I forgot about it completely – sorry."

"There were other students around. If it hadn't been you, I'm sure there would have been another Lillian's student who would have happily shared their umbrella with me. And if they'd also asked politely, I would have held the umbrella too."

Aota-sensei continued.

"So, why, I wondered, was it you? During class, you didn't really stand out much, but you weren't overly shy either, you were the stereotypical ordinary student. You didn't volunteer answers, but you'd answer when I called upon you. Nor did you forget your homework. But you weren't an honors student. You made lots of careless mistakes, so your grades were always right around average."

"Umm … "

If Aota-sensei wanted to reminisce about events in middle school, he didn't have to go to all the trouble of calling her here. Yumi reluctantly admitted that it might have been different if she'd been brilliant, but she didn't understand the point of calling her here and reminding her of her inconspicuousness and numerous careless mistakes.

"You're the kind of person whose virtues aren't obvious when you're right there, but with time and space they become evident, little by little."

"Huh … "

"Hahaha, I seem to have confused you … Well then, let's return to the fate conversation. Here's what I was thinking. The reason I shared your umbrella was, of course, because you were the first person to call out to me. But perhaps it was fate that made you the first one to call out to me."

"Perhaps."

Despite Yumi's agreeable response, she only half understood what Aota-sensei was saying. Frankly, she wasn't all that good with these rambling conversations.

"Indeed."

Aota-sensei reached under the desk and quickly pulled something out of the paper bag.

"Because without that, your umbrella wouldn't have been returned to you."

"Ah!?"

Yumi cried out, seeing what flashed in front of her. But no words beyond that came out.

That familiar blue.

Grandpa's umbrella.

Aota-sensei opened the umbrella and offered it to Yumi. Beneath the hydrangea.

It wasn't raining, but the umbrella's flowers bloomed in the staff room.

Instead of raindrops, tear drops fell from Yumi's eyes.

Rather than starting with, "How?" she thought, "We meet again."

"Take charge of it, it's your umbrella, right?"

Aota-sensei said, "See," and showed her the handle. "Lillian Girl's Academy – Fukuzawa Yumi." There was no mistaking it, this was Yumi's umbrella.

"Sensei, how did this umbrella … ?"

It seemed unlikely that Aota-sensei had been given the umbrella by the criminal who took it from the convenience store.

"Before we get to that, you must have lost it somewhere, right? I'd like to hear about that first."

Aota-sensei asked, seemingly irritated by her response. Yumi summarized what had happened, and he appeared relieved to hear it.

"I can accept that. The umbrella was so precious to you. I didn't think you'd carelessly forget it somewhere. But it was taken while you were in the shops. Such a calamity."

Aota-sensei looked like he was talking to the umbrella as he ran a finger along the fabric. While Yumi had been the victim of the calamity, it seemed as though a similar fate had befallen whoever took the umbrella.

"Well, now it's my turn. Yesterday evening, my daughter found it at a train station, picked it up and brought it to me."

Aota-sensei indicated the umbrella with his gaze.

"A train station?"

"Which train station do you think it was? Don't be surprised. It was Fukushima train station."

"Fu-fukushima? "

Even with the warning not to be surprised, Yumi instinctively repeated the name loudly. Fukushima station, that would be in Fukushima prefecture, in the Tohoku region.

"Yesterday, my daughter went to Fukushima to attend a friend's wedding. The umbrella caught her eye, leaning up against a rubbish bin. There was no-one near it, and it looked like it had been thrown away. I don't know if she sensed something, but she instinctively picked it up. And when she did, she saw the words "Lillian's Girls Academy" engraved in the handle, right? That's something she's quite familiar with. It's the name of her father's workplace."

"Yes."

"Normally, I suppose she would have taken it to one of the station employees, but she hesitated. Suppose, for arguments sake, that Lillian's Girls Academy was the private school in Tokyo and the owner was a student there, then it would be far more likely to reach the owner if she took it back to Tokyo with her. While Lillian's Girls Academy is fairly well known in Tokyo, they may not have heard of it all the way up in Fukushima. And since she was at a train station, it seemed unlikely that the owner would still be there. Even if it had been lost at Fukushima train station, they might not be able to find the owner. So while it may have been against the rules, she brought it to me. Don't you think that kind of feels like fate?"

"It does."

If Aota-sensei's daughter hadn't gone to Fukushima, then the umbrella probably wouldn't have found its way back to Yumi. Or if she had used Fukushima train station, but not noticed the umbrella, or picked up the umbrella, but the words "Lillian's Girls Academy" had faded.

But because it made its way to Aota-sensei, who remembered the umbrella, it returned home to Yumi.

Lillian's Girls Academy covered kindergarten through to university, so there were a huge number of teachers. Plus there were bound to be a number of girls with the commonplace name "Fukuzawa Yumi." So even if it made its way to the lost-and-found office, there was still the problem of connecting it to the Fukuzawa Yumi in the high-school second-year peach class.

"But you said you lost the umbrella ten days ago. I suppose its had quite an adventure during that time."

"That's for sure … "

Yumi closed the umbrella and hugged it. We meet again. You've finally come back. Aota-sensei stroked his mustache and watched on, apparently satisfied.

As she folded the umbrella, Yumi thought, "Huh?"

"Did your daughter make these repairs … ?"

"No?"

"But these use a different thread to the repairs I've made."

The part where the fabric joined the frame had been reinforced, using a different thread to that which Yumi had previously used to repair the frayed edges. Whoever it was, they'd done a neat job. But instead of blue, they'd used pink thread.

"Hoho, the mystery deepens."

Aota-sensei laughed as he peered at it.

How the umbrella had spent those ten days apart from Yumi were unknown. Even if she wanted to ask, the umbrella didn't have a mouth, so couldn't tell her.

"Perhaps your umbrella would like to know how those ten days were for you too."

Hearing Aota-san's words, Yumi's eyes went wide and she softly stroked the umbrella's handle.

"It's been incredibly tough for me. I despaired when I lost my umbrella."

The umbrella and Sachiko-sama seemed to overlay each other. She became frightened that Sachiko-sama would disappear from before her very eyes, just like her umbrella had.

But, during this period of time when she hadn't seen Sachiko-sama, she'd been touched by so many other people. While she knew the world wasn't run just for her and Sachiko-sama, this was the first time she'd realized just how many people were living alongside each other.

Even in places she couldn't see, there were people going about their lives. While she couldn't see them, they were definitely there.

"But you look like you've recovered."

"Yes."

Not because her umbrella returned. She didn't think that Sachiko-sama's heart would come back just because her umbrella had returned home.

She knew she had to look at the bigger picture.

She'd erred because she had been only looking at Sachiko-sama.

Because Yumi loved her so much, and didn't want anyone to steal her away, she'd wrapped herself around Sachiko-sama like she was some kind of favorite toy. When it looked like Sachiko-sama's hand was slipping away, she'd bawled unreasonably.

Even though Sachiko-sama had never said anything. Even though she'd never spoken the words, "I don't want you."

It felt like some kind of light shone down, showing her the path. Yumi turned to Aota-sensei and bowed deeply.

"Thank-you very much, Aota-sensei."

"Do your best, Rosa Chinensis en bouton."

Aota-sensei smiled, his arms folded.

"Okay."

Yumi replied cheerfully, then turned around. She felt like she wanted to sprint off, but she was in the staff room, so she restrained herself.

What was it, this feeling?

Like she'd been set free, but that wasn't quite right.

Opening the door of the staff room, a refreshing breeze swept past her forehead.

Ahh, right.

That's what it felt like.

Yumi wondered what Sachiko-sama was doing right at that moment.

Part 2

" – So, you came to help out?"

Shimako-san asked, blinking.

"Right. Is there anything I can do?"

After she left the middle-school staff room she returned to her classroom, but her excitement hadn't lessened. She had an overwhelming urge to do something, and to tell someone about it, so Yumi headed straight for the Rose Mansion.

Yoshino-san and Rei-sama were out at club practice, so once again it was just the diligent White Rose sisters steadily going about their work.

"At the very least, I'm delighted that you're feeling well again, Yumi-san. As for what to do … well."

Shimako-san shrugged her shoulders, and clipped a stack of documents together. There was lots to do, in fact, so much that it was hard to tell where she should start.

"Sachiko-sama's been absent, while Rei-sama's been coming before school and during lunch. Even then, I think there's too much."

"I see, so that's how it is."

This time last year, the Roses were all third-years, three in a row. While Shimako-san was currently Rosa Gigantea, she wasn't even Rosa Gigantea en bouton a year ago, so she didn't have any direct experience in preparing for the school festival.

"While I did frequent the Rose Mansion, I refrained from involving myself directly. If I knew it would turn out like this, I would have participated more actively in the meetings and preparations."

Shimako-san smiled ruefully. But it was undoubtedly because of the way she looked back on last year that she was putting all her effort into it this time around.

"Here, Yumi-sama."

Noriko-chan gently set a cup of tea down in front of her. Yumi was grateful, because she'd worked up quite a thirst running all the way here.

"Thank-you."

It was delicious. The sight of Noriko-chan standing by the sink, or taking a cup from the shelf, was that of a splendid Rose Mansion occupant. She wasn't the 'assistant' from before. She had a self-confidence that seemed to Yumi to come from the rosary she wore beneath her school uniform.

Shimako-san and Noriko-chan put down their work and sipped their tea. Without some outside impetus, it looked like they'd forgotten to take a break. Shimako-san smiled ruefully, saying that taking breaks was better from an efficiency perspective, but they were both persistent type of people.

They were both equally beautiful, but it wasn't as though these well matched soeurs didn't have their own troubles.

"Returning to our conversation."

Yumi said, after a pause.

"It seems we're understaffed at the moment."

"Yes, more or less."

Shimako-san agreed.

"I wouldn't say we have enough people. Although, compared to last year, there are no fewer members of the Yamayurikai."

Last year there were three Roses, two boutons, and one bouton's petit soeur (Yoshino-san) for a total of six people. Shimako-san was not officially Sei-sama's petit soeur at the time.

This year, there were three Roses and three boutons. Six people, the same as last year, but getting them all together was the problem.

Rei-sama was busy with her club, like last year, but so too was Yoshino-san this year. Sachiko-sama was frequently absent. Yumi was … planning to help properly from now on, but, well, let's just set that aside for now.

"Do you think we should ask someone to help out?"

Yumi proposed, as a way to alleviate their current staffing shortfall. Even with Yumi's return, she didn't see any way that she alone could completely fill the hole left by Sachiko-sama.

"Who would we ask to help?"

Shimako-san answered Yumi's question with a question. Judging by the tone of her voice, she didn't have much interest in this idea.

"I hadn't really thought that far."

Yumi shrugged her shoulders and said, "I was just putting it out there."

Although there would probably be quite a few students willing to help out with Yamayurikai work. They could choose from among the members of the school festival committee, or, if so inclined, they could recruit through the school's newspaper, the Lillian Kawaraban.

Then Shimako-san seemed to sigh as she said:

"In that case, wouldn't it be better for Yumi-san or Yoshino-san to find a petit soeur?"

"My my. Oh Shimako-san, you've become quite the Rose."

Yumi laughed, joking.

'Find a petit soeur' was the kind of cliché phrase that generations of Roses had said to their petit soeurs. Just recently, Shimako-san had been assailed by Sachiko-sama and Rei-sama with it.

"It's because I have a petit soeur. I'm more at liberty than you, Yumi-san."

"I see."

Yumi glanced at Shimako-san's petit soeur and understood. Noriko-chan accepted Shimako-san's words with a smile.

Shimako-san had probably stepped up. Noriko-chan was now filling the position that, until recently, had been Shimako-san's, and Shimako-san had been pushed forwards.

"If Rei-sama takes a break from her club activities, and Sachiko-sama returns to school, then I think we'll make it. But even so, what on earth is Sachiko-sama doing, I wonder?"

" … Yeah."

Yumi couldn't provide an answer to Shimako-san's question.

"Ah, I wasn't specifically asking you, Yumi-san. It was an innocent question."

Shimako-san frantically waved her hands, while behind her Noriko-chan murmured:

"It seems like something has happened to Rosa Chinensis."

"What do you mean?"

Two people asked simultaneously.

"Well … I tried asking, but Touko didn't let anything slip."

" – Touko-chan, huh."

Yumi had mixed feelings uttering that name.

"It seems she knows something. She hadn't said anything, but that's the feeling I get. I apologize, but I think it has something to do with the reason Yumi-sama and Rosa Chinensis were avoiding each other … "

Indeed, that's what would spring to mind. Yumi's initial, incomplete understanding was that Touko-chan and Sachiko-sama were keeping a secret. That Touko-chan knew something that Yumi, the petit soeur, did not. So she became anxious, and felt like she was being shunned.

A secret that only Touko-chan knew. It was a bit heartbreaking.

However.

Now, looking at it objectively, it seemed likely Sachiko-sama probably hadn't chosen to confide in Touko-chan. Since they were relatives, albeit distant ones, Touko-chan may have found out through a different route.

"Sorry that I couldn't provide more help."

Noriko-chan bowed deeply, as though she'd done something wrong.

"No, it's alright, thank-you."

Yumi responded, expecting this to be the end of the conversation, however:

"Ah, one more thing."

"Huh?"

Noriko-chan raised her head and continued talking.

"Yumi-sama, I apologize completely for Touko-chan's nastiness the other day too."

"…"

Yumi considered that to be completely unrelated to Noriko-chan. But perhaps she was acting as a friend.

If Yumi heard a rumor that Yoshino-san had unfairly insulted somebody, then she would apologize to that person. If the rumor were about Shimako-san, then first of all she wouldn't believe it, since that didn't seem like something Shimako-san was capable of doing.

"Despite what she did, at heart I don't think she's bad."

Noriko-chan was something of a worrier too.

" … Perhaps."

Yumi already knew that.

It was just that there were times when she became too consumed with hate.

But that seemed like it could be quite an obstacle when it came to relationships with other people.

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