Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume8 Chapter3 3

Just Before Graduation. Part 3

The school entrance ceremony and graduation ceremony were a given, but they even showed up for parents day, the arts festival, as well as the sports carnival and singing competition.

Whenever someone showed up to see her at one of these school events, she became determined that she wouldn't look their way. She knew the reason for that was her first painful memory.

At the time of her spring kindergarten sports carnival, even though it was just a kids sports carnival, her father and older brothers had all worn traditional hakama skirts with the family crest on them, drawing attention to themselves.

Since these these people came even when she told them not to, she didn't think twice about searching the auditorium for her family.

"But even so," Eriko thought, "today's a little bit different."

As she entered the auditorium, she glanced at the family seating area. Having spotted the most conspicuous member (the old raccoon), she surveyed the area around him. She very rarely had to look all that hard. All of it was because of love. It was often said that love was thinking of people.

(Not yet, huh.)

As she walked, Eriko slumped her shoulders. She'd spotted her mother and brothers lined up next to her father, in the front row. The only one missing was the bear of a man, Mr Yamanobe.

(Even though he told me he'd come.)

He'd said that he might be late due to work, but she believed he'd make it there on time. After all, it was a measure of his feelings. Although his affection was on a different scale to her brothers, who had cleared their schedules six months in advance and feverishly scrambled here.

(Well, Hanadera Academy is next door.)

She cleared her head and took her seat. The person Eriko was thinking of was a lecturer at the neighboring Hanadera Academy.

(He doesn't have a homeroom class, so he should be able to come as soon as lessons are over.)

Since he'd said he might be late, she'd asked her mother to reserve a seat for Yamanobe-san. Her father and brothers hadn't been too happy about that, but it was none of their business.

It would probably take a fair bit of courage to show up late, then take a seat in the front row of the family seating area. But in that case, it would be Yamanobe-san's fault for showing up late.

(At any rate, he'll be here soon.)

Hanadera Academy's graduation ceremony was tomorrow. It seemed unlikely that there would be much for a part-time teacher to do on the day before the graduation ceremony.

It was a tradition that the Hanadera Academy's high-school graduation ceremony took place on the day following the Lillian's Girls Academy's high-school graduation ceremony.

They differed in that one was a boys school and the other a girls school, as well as one being Buddhist and the other Christian, but the two schools had long enjoyed a close relationship. They coordinated with each other so that entrance ceremonies, graduation ceremonies, and other significant events like school festivals didn't overlap.

There were lots of families that sent boys to Hanadera and girls to Lillian's. It was no problem when there was an age gap, like between Eriko and her brothers, but families with children at both Hanadera and Lillian's concurrently were surely grateful for the coordination.

(Yumi-chan's family must benefit from that staggering of events.)

She remembered hearing that Yumi-chan's younger brother had been born the same year as her, and was attending Hanadera Academy.

(Ah, that's right. Kashiwagi-san's graduating too…)

When she thought about Sachiko's fiance, Eriko realized that she'd already forgotten his face.

(…)

Until just before the school festival, she'd been under the perfectly normal impression that charming princes didn't really exist.

But instead she'd fallen in love with a bear-man that didn't resemble a prince in any way whatsoever. That's what made life interesting.

(But even so.)

As she sat on the folding chair, Eriko was amazed at herself. The ceremony was about to begin – why on earth was she thinking about that?

But really, it seemed unavoidable given her complete lack of nerves.