[SS] Teenage Scents

SS: Teenage Scents

August 17th, 2:00 P.M.

District 5, Central Park

Student life is like a dream. You can go to sleep whenever you want. You can get up whenever you want. You can eat whatever you want. You can hang out with whoever you want. At least during summer vacation. What else could you want?

Take for example a summer day so nice that the only viable option is spending it outside entirely. You could go to a public park and enjoy the beautiful fauna while the clear blue sky is above you. The air fresh even though hot, but not too hot for the Japanese standard. It’s not even raining and no trace of a bad weather change incoming anytime soon. Just pick a seat on a picnic blanket somewhere on a good piece of green and lean yourself against the tree whose crown you’re using to guard yourself from direct sun exposure. Now inhale deeply the clean air as offered to you by nature and enjoy yourself to the fullest with a nice cake you bought at that cute petite bakery around the corner of the department store you tend to frequent the most.

Doesn’t that make for the perfect image of a perfect day?

«Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa~h what a good day~~!»

Exhaling in a relaxed manner, a girl  was pursuing just exactly that perfect image of a perfect day. Her name was Ichigo Ai – yes, that was truly how her parents had named her – and she was exactly standing out as much as that name would demand of her. Wearing her pink dyed hair in a bob cut, a feint hint of pink berry coloured lipstick and a prestigious school uniform consisting of a pure white blouse, red tie, navy skirt and stockings, she was both dressed adequately and fashionable. Resting right next to her were a small plate containing remains of cream with fork and a small strawberry shortcake with one slice missing. Not too distant there was also a classic picnic basket made from wicker covered by a cloth showing the same pink-white chessboard pattern as the blanket she sat on.

She was perfectly fine and perfectly enjoying herself. However, something was still lacking.

«…where is he…?»

Yes, given the size of the blanket it was obvious from the get go: This picnic was set up to be for two. However, the second guest had not arrived yet. He wasn’t even late by a few minutes, but by enough to warrant actually starting to eat the cake by herself.

Clearly, that girl with her perfect day and perfect place had been stood up.

On such a pleasant day many were gathering somewhere where they could enjoy the weather to the fullest. Central park was full of students, mostly from other districts, chatting or playing with their friends. Some had brought their own food along while others planned to head to the sophisticated restaurants School district 5 provided to get that mature feeling so many university students enjoyed. Overall, the atmosphere was relaxed and calm.

Among the students gathered in the Central Park was Haruna, drawn out from her dorm by the clear blue sky and pleading looks from Yuzu and Lemon. The two parakeets were happily stretching their wings while Haruna sat on a small blanked she had set for herself in the shade of a small tree and read an assignment they were given to be completed during the summer vacation. Garbed in the white short-sleeved dress shirt with a light brown vest on top and dark tan pocketed skirt she was easily identified as Tokiwadai student, one of if not the most renowned girl's school in the world and home of many talented ojou-samas.

Maybe it was the soft breeze, maybe the fact both birds had decided to rest on her head and were demanding food but Haruna was suddenly roused from her serene readings. She let out a soft giggle and nuzzled both birds affectionately before reaching towards her bag and brought out a container with seeds and few slices of fruits inside.

"Okay okay, just give me a minute, you two. Sheesh, it's like neither of you had any nourishment in days."

Happy their demands were met the birds dug in the food while Haruna looked at the sky with a smile, picking up a slice of melon herself and absentmindedly nibbled the corner of it. Such a nice day they were blessed with. On these occasions one almost forgot they were living inside technologically advanced city where almost every student and person had some weird power in them which could defy the laws of physics. Or that she had judgment duties later today but nothing could ruin it for now.

Any minute that passed made Ichigo Ai feel even more miserable and lonely. He wouldn’t come. She should have known. He never came, ditching the appointment last second. Something else must have come up instead. Still, she just couldn’t cope with it, given how much she had looked forward to spending some more time together.

Just when she had grabbed the knife to cut another piece off the cake, she grew aware of how miserable she had become. Eating that cake by herself would be out of question. Even looking at it and the empty space right next to it would hurt. So instead, she’d simply drop the knife and look around the area for distraction. And distraction she’d find.

Not far from her another girl had placed a blanket of their own. However, it was not her shining blonde hair or the prestigious school uniform she was wearing that would attract her attention. No, it was those two birds serving as her company.

«Awwwwwwwwww~♡ Those are so cute~♡♡♡»

In a blink of an eye the pink strawberry girl had plumply invaded that Tokiwadai girl’s territory, kneeling down to hash a close look at those two birdies. As she did her eyes wear beaming in fascination, much like a small child’s would. Actually, her entire demeanor seemed to have fallen from middle school to kindergartener. Within moments her sad grimace had faded to become one of utter joy and awe at the sight of what would be a completely ordinary sight for most people. But that was the kind of person Ichigo Ai was. A girl as sugary sweet as her name implied.

Haruna engrossed in her happy musing and the birds in their food no one noticed the pink haired girl invading their space before the excited squeal revealed her presence.

«Awwwwwwwwww~♡ Those are so cute~♡♡♡»

Lemon and Yuzu got startled by the sudden noise and in a cloud of feathers they both took off into air coupled with loud screeching noises, dropping anything they had in their beaks at that moment. In turn Haruna let out a surprised 'eep' as their sudden movements caused the rest of the seeds and fruits spill all over the blanket. This made her also drop her reading materials which added into the mess created in a span of few seconds.

After the dust settled Haruna blinked a couple of times before her eyes fell on the pinkette who had acted as a catalyst for all this. Yuzu and Lemon were now perched on top of her head again shooting vary glances towards the foreign human, not sharing the sincere adoration aimed at them.

Faster to recover than her feathery friends Haruna gave an awkward smile at Ai. One could argue this girl might lack some tact but she didn't seem to have any ill intentions and in way reminded Haruna of a small child. Besides, no one who liked animals could be completely bad.

"Ah...yes, they are, aren’t they. Sorry about the mess, these two are rather jumpy towards strangers, miss…?"

The blonde gave an inquiring look and her intonation rose at the end of the sentence. Her eyes never leaving the girl Haruna knelt down to pick her papers with one hand while she used the other to usher the two parakeets off from her hair and towards Ai. Her efforts were in vain, though.

"Come on, don’t be rude. She didn’t mean any harm. Show her how well-behaved you are."

Yuzu and Lemon puffed their feathers in indignation but then with one final look at their owner both hopped off and landed on Ai’s shoulders and stood there like waiting what the odd pink being would do next.

«Ichigo Ai!»

The pink bob cut girl would give a soft smile as her eyes would still chase after the two birds. She hadn’t been exactly surprised by their sudden departure at her intrusion, but still couldn’t shake off the disappointment over them fleeing from her just like that. Thus – momentarily – she’d pout her lips.

But watching them as they darted through the air and landed on their mistress’s head made the experience all the more delightful. After all, it entirely resembled the imagery of the movies any girl had been watching in their childhood. Fond memories indeed. Stuff that makes you jealous, too. Fortunately, it was too dazzling to leave any space for jealousy.

However, the real excitement would follow when they would leave the blonde to conquer Ai instead. And she’d gladly accept the event, not flinching when both of them landed right next to her head. Instead, she would make sure for their position to be the most comfortable by relaxing and avoiding any sudden movement.

«They’re sooooooo~ loooo~vely~♡♡♡»

Chuckling in amusement she couldn’t help be repeat the same realisation all over again.

«Really ♡ You can be glad to have companions like that ♡ Even with an Esper ability in the mix it seems like there is a close bond between you! Totally jealous about that!!! ♡»

While she may have ignored the entire impact of her intrusion under the pretext of her childish behaviour, something mixed in with these hyperactively spoken words entirely rejected the ignorant naivety she was seemingly covered in from head to toe. While not directly expressing it, she didn’t care to hide the real facts, placing them in a clearly noticeable implication: Just from watching the girl and her parakeets for a short moment, she had taken a glimpse at what was stabilizing their interaction and possibly deduced her Esper ability just from that.

And yet, that girl would sit there turning her head left and right to give both her guests childishly joyous smiles lacking any of that mental depth. That again, was the kind of person Ichigo Ai was.

As the girl introducing herself as Ai kept enforcing the first impressions people most likely got of her she said something not fitting the picture, catching Haruna's attention.

«Really ♡ You can be glad to have companions like that ♡ Even with an Esper ability in the mix it seems like there is a close bond between you! Totally jealous about that!!! ♡»

Raising her eyebrows ever so lightly, the blonde wasn't sure how exactly should she react. She had not even once in the last minute used her ability actively and the passive effects were not as easily distinguished from just strong bond between human and animal partner yet this girl had seen right through it. Either she was more perceptive than she let on or there was something else behind that airy attitude.

Haruna reached to pick the last page of her scattered assignment and shook her head. Not like her ability was a big secret or something. This girl could have easily seen her use it during judgment operations or heard about it through the extensive gossip network inside Academy city. Even if she had used some other means to perceive this it was no big issue. Haruna had just been taken aback by the seemingly random comment.

"It's nothing to be jealous about. These two have been with me since birth as they were smuggled illegally to the city while still in eggs among other poached animals. Judgment confiscated all of them and although few could be returned to their natural habitat most would have just perished without their parents and natural instincts active. While I would much rather see them living their life freely we've become close akin to a family of sorts."

Placing the stack of papers inside her bag she turned towards Ai and held out her free hand, some seeds in it.

"You can try feeding these to them." Haruna flashed a bright smile before nodding towards her two animal companions as if encouraging them to take the initiative.

«Hooo~? You managed to smuggle them past Academy City’s security? That’s impressive~! And sooooo worth iiiit ♡»

Who was Ichigo Ai? Many people had asked themselves that when encountering that girl. At times she would just be this over the top, honestly showing off her feelings much like the awe she felt at the girl’s great feat. Yet at the very same time there was this subtext to everything she said. After all, it was impossible to tell just how much she knew about the machinations of Academy City’s security. Some would assume it was just everyday knowledge she held, but what if there was more to it…?

And even once you grow suspicious of her…

«I can?! I caaan!? Thank you sooo muuuuch ♡♡♡»

She would nearly hug you even though you had been a total stranger just moments ago.

With her eyes sparkling as though she had been seated in the first row of her favourite idol’s concert, she picked up the seeds clumsily.

«Th-there you go…»

Hesitating out of fear of startling the two parakeets, she began to slowly move her shaky fingers towards one of their peckers. Just from the lack of confidence and the excitement it was fairly obvious that she had never fed a bird before. Thus, she would naturally give it her all right there!

But to what avail…?

«Excuse me, ladies!»

Just at the peak of Ichigo Ai’s personal glory, a calm but committed voice would interrupt the scene.

Turning towards the newcomer they would find another girl. She had glossy chin-length chestnut-blonde hair that was well combed and ordered by a green hairband ornamented with a paisley pattern, shining blue eyes and was flashing an adult but polite smile. Furthermore, the uniform she was wearing – a navy blue skirt with royal blue sailor top – belonged to a school just as prestigious as each of theirs: The Private Shidarezakura Academy.

Still, her most prominent feature right now was the huge stack of paper she was carrying under her right armpit.

«You wouldn’t have a minute for me. Would you?»

Haruna realized how her wording might cause confusion and waved her hands frantically while blushing, blissfully ignoring how knowledgeable Ai seemed about the going ons of what one should consider darker side of the Academy City.

"N-no, I'd never!...we apprehended the culprits and the animals would have been probably been put down so I just thought it would be better to take them in..." She then started bumbling incoherently while her blush intensified.

Yuzu and Lemon cocked their heads in confusion at their owner's fumbling but both seemed to decide this was normal and proceeded to enjoy the treats the Pink lady was providing. Both birds dug in with gusto and chirped happily while at it.

At this point Haruna was poking her index fingers together and muttering something about respecting the rules when they were interrupted by yet another new face. Collecting herself the blonde reflected the girl's polite smile.

"Yes, how may we help you?" Haruna took a quick look at the newcomer and noted the prestigious uniform she wore. Now what would someone from Shidarezakura want with students from Tokiwadai and Kirigaoka?

Oh, if only she had been given the chance to react to the cuteness the girl had just displayed. She would have hugged her right on the spot, like the invader of privacy she actually was. But unfortunately, much like the glory of a first time experience, that was also denied by the sudden intrusion.

Instead another girl had presented herself to them.

«My name is Shoudoku Moko. I’m a member of District 5’s Gardening Committee. As such, we are responsible for the composition of this park and the planning of the events hosted here.»

That girl would hold on to her polite voice, speaking each of these words as though she had been practicing them thoroughly by repeating them countless of times. Still, the way she chose her intonations as well as the glances she sent towards the other two elites, it was evident that she was trying to be an a warm, personal level with them.

«We are currently conducting a survey to base the future direction of our management activities on. And we would really appreciate it if you helped us out here!»

And as she spoke, she would pick two thick collections of paper from that enormous pile she somehow managed to stash underneath her armpit, holding them out towards the girls. Each one came with a ballpoint pen imprinted with the logo of District 5’s Gardening Committee. Of course that action would be accompanied by a soft, polite yet also slightly charming smile. Something, she – again – had obviously repeated multiple times, judging from the presence of many others going through the survey in the near and far distance.

«A survey, huh? That sounds boooring…»

Nonchalantly blocking the idea off, Ichigo Ai would instead attempt to return her attention to the two parakeets sitting on her shoulders, finally continuing on the idea of feeding them with the seed she had picked up previously.

«Say aaaaaaaaaaaa~♡»

However, that other girl would not give up so easily.

«Please. I implore you! Both of my colleagues have fallen ill all of sudden, so I alone am forced to do this! There is two more stacks I have to spread, waiting at the office! If I don’t at least work through that one stack, I cannot show my face towards them!»

Going as far as to bow before the two girls and two parakeets, that girl named Shoudoku Moko would dare to do another attempt. It was odd, how she managed to seem both desperate and still diligent at the same time. But could that really change their hearts?

At least one thing was certain: She just could not give up!

"I would be honored to contribute to the public good and help the Gardening Committee to maintain this lovely park. If one survey is all you ask I'll gladly take a look."

The switch from her earlier blight into graceful model student mode was truly a feat you could expect from the elites. Haruna's polite tone was only matched by her smile as she extended a hand to take one of those thick stack of papers. If one was not paying attention earlier they might mistake the situation as two business partners conducting negotiations for a large trade. These prestigious onee-samas were really on another level when it came to interaction with one another, even when the topic was as ordinary as filling up a simple survey.

True, Haruna had come here to just enjoy the beautiful day and catch up on some studies while at it but if she could ease somebody else's workload by filling few more papers then the answer was obvious.

On Ai's side the two parakeets were falling for the oldest trick ever and literally ate from her hand, one even being brave enough to have moved from her shoulder on the hand with the seeds on it.

While waiting for Shoudoku's reaction Haruna took a quick glance from the corner of her eye and let out a gleeful hum.

"They seem to like you, Ichigo-san. Handling animals seems to come naturally for you."

Kindness was an irreplaceable virtue.

«Thank you so much!»

Shoudoku Moko understood that. And she, too, understood that anyone helping her out of their free will had done so because they were in fact kind. However, were those who didn’t not kind at all?

Ichigo Ai had began to simply ignore the request the new girl had voiced, occupying herself entirely with the two parakeets and some silly childish play. As such, that strawberry girl had made her own choice there.

«They seem to like you, Ichigo-san. Handling animals seems to come naturally for you.»

«Hehe! You think so~? Seems like I’m a natural ♡ Or maybe it’s because of how I smell~?»

Her voice had raised once again, while she kept jollily feeding her two new friends. That smile on her face only gave a limited range of interpretation, did it simply show exactly what had been on her mind right that very moment: Her own fun and joy – nothing else.

Still…

«I must admit. I am jealous. Unlike with you, animals do seem to hate me. All my childhood I have been attacked by dogs, cats, birds, even hamsters…and if they didn’t attack me they would straight up avoid me.»

There was someone who could never experience any of that joy, standing on the sidelines. While she had only watched the cute spectacle unfold, that diligent high class lady, had decided to actually participate in the conversation. And that, even though she had been faced without any kindness by that seemingly sugar sweet girl.

«You have to cherish nature’s gifts, like these. They are quite valuable.»

Here she was, expressing an adult brand of admiration instead of pained jealousy.

«Hmmmmmmm. But why don’t they like you? Do you smell bad or something~?»

And yet that was how it would be treated.

«Thank you so much!»

Seeing the relieved expression on the other girl's face made Haruna smile slightly and begun silently flip through the survey. The first page was just some personal information like the age and the school one attended before the real questionnaire started. It was supposedly for data collecting purposes but there was also an option to answer completely anonymously. Tapping her chin thoughtfully Haruna stopped to ponder for a second before choosing and marking Tokiwadai from the list of schools.

From that point onward it was mostly easy multiple-choices questions with few additional lines to expand answers if needed.

Their owner engrossed in some human business the parakeets finally took a note of the new comer. They gave Moko an indifferent look before resuming their meal. The pink lady had food unlike this blonde one.  

«I must admit. I am jealous. Unlike with you, animals do seem to hate me. All my childhood I have been attacked by dogs, cats, birds, even hamsters…and if they didn’t attack me they would straight up avoid me.»

Moko’s words caught Haruna’s attention from the question #12 and she peered up to comment, only to be beaten by Ai.

«Hmmmmmmm. But why don’t they like you? Do you smell bad or something~?»

"I think there might be another explanation as well!" Realizing she had raised her voice to cover Ai's rather rude remark Haruna quickly cleared her throat while rosy hue spread on her cheeks.

"I mean, it's true smell plays a considerable part in how animals perceive their surroundings but their concept about how odors are associated is much less complex than ours. The rule of thumb can be summarized to 'unfamiliar and poisonous things smell unpleasant'. Of course that is rough oversimplifying but I highly doubt that is the case with Shoudoku-san either way."

Haruna stopped when she realized she had taken the discussion off course by her rambling about animals and returned to the matter at hand.

"Anyway that sounds quite unusual predicament. Are you sure it has nothing to do with your esper power, Shoudoku-san? I've heard some electromasters unconsciously produce enough current for animals to detect and thus causing them to avert those people."

The girl's situation intrigued Haruna and she found an urge to get to the root of the problem rising. She didn't sense anything fundamentally wrong in Moko so it had to be something else.

«Hardly. My ability never had that great an importance in my life…»

The girl’s reply followed surprisingly quickly, as though she was perfectly used to telling people exactly that statement. Was her ability really that unimportant?

Ichigo Ai was made to ponder about their new company in greater depth than she had originally expected. That girl named Shoudoku Moko was a weird one. It was in the way she spoke, the way she behaved and the fact that she was the only person running around, trying to gather participants for her survey. However – even weirder – she hadn’t taken any response towards that admittedly intentionally rude comment. That kind of behaviour just didn’t match what you would expect from a school girl. Even the elites.

So what was her game? Was she really just that hard working nice girl club member type?

«So what is it? There’s nothing like natural misfortune or curses. There has to be a logical explanation ♡ Maybe it’s the smell after all~!»

In the end, Harajuku idol type Ai would jump onto the curiosity bandwagon.

On the other side, cornered by the two girls, diligent hard working ojou Shoudoku would blush, lowering her head. Clearly, talking about this was something she hadn’t actually expected and preferably wouldn’t do. However, at least one of the two had helped her. Thus…

«…I…I think…it’s really related to my––OUCH!!!»

All of a sudden the girl would flinch, writhing in pain. A bee had stung her perfectly in the neck.

However, that wasn’t where it ended. Another bee approached, stinging her again. And another. And another. In fact, from one moment to another a large number of bees had gathered around the poor girl, attacking her one after the other, stinging her relentlessly, just like that.

That girl would scream. She would shout. She would cry out. And she would eventually collapse onto the floor with the gigantic stack of papers and the large collection of ballpoint pens being spread chaotically on the greens.

«Huh? What’s going on…?!»

It was only after a short moment that Ichigo Ai’s eyes widened in shock.

Normally bees were supposed to be peaceful entities, minding their own business. But now an aggressive swarm had formed, mindlessly attacking a clearly innocent girl. Yet, that wasn’t even what was the most shocking right there.

«I cannot stop them…?»

«…I…I think…it’s really related to my––OUCH!!!»

The survey girl’s meek response made Haruna feel bad she had pried on a sore subject. She almost told Moko it wasn’t necessary to answer if speaking about it made her uncomfortable when the other girl was cut short by a sudden sting from a bee.

Alarmed by the unexpected assault Haruna’s first reaction was to check she hadn’t unconsciously called them here since she had done that few times in the past. Since that wasn’t the case she did the next best thing and rushed to Moko’s side to check on her while beginning to form countermeasures.

The number of angry bees kept increasing but they were still relatively small swarm. Fortunately bees were a species she was very familiar and adept with so she didn’t need much calculations for her actions. Haruna begun emitting the Queen pheromones, also known as Queen mandibular pheromones and one particular brand with calming and stabilizing effect on the swarm while also trying her best to suppress the alarm pheromones released by the stinging bees which provoked even more of them to attack the poor girl on the ground.

"Ichigo-san, get away! " Haruna shouted at Ai. Although oddly calm about the situation, the bubbly girl seemed confused and thus might get hurt if her plan failed for some reason. To be sure Haruna made sure to have Ai appear as harmless in bees minds to prevent her from getting attacked.

Yuzu and Lemon both had perked up instantly when Moko had been stung first time and took off into air. Both started circling over the area like looking for anything suspicious while monitoring the situation from above.

There was something strange going on. Bees were usually peaceful creatures by nature and only straight provocation would cause them to act hostile. Nothing indicated Moko had done anything to warrant such hostility so the reason was some external source and Ai appeared to be innocent as well. While cradling the injured girl in her arms Haruna tried to seek the source of the disturbance.

The blonde’s plan would have worked out perfectly well, hadn’t it been for one problem:

These bees would not listen.

When Ichigo Ai had launched her attempt at commanding the aggressive swarm, she had quickly been faced with the reality that none of it had worked. Now, the parakeet girl would make a similar realisation. There was no gaining the upper hand. These bees would just keep on striking relentlessly. However, while they did, they did not seem interested in switching their target.

«There is no stopping them. Something is overriding the commands they receive through pheromones.»

It was Ichigo Ai who would speak up about this realisation. However, unlike before her voice had cooled down tremendously, assuming an odd mechanic calmness.

«It seems attacking Shoudoku Moko like this was another command placed by someone else. One that cannot be overwritten by any other. But why? Who? How? I can’t tell.»

As she continued speaking, the pink bob cut girl would move past the blonde and towards the bees’ prey or rather into the heart of the aggressive swarm itself. Arriving there, she would pull a small cylindrical container with a latch from her skirt’s pocket. Without hesitation she would tear off said latch, still keeping hold of the metallic object. Moments later the gaseous contents would leak out of the opening, quickly enveloping the entire area in a thick and heavily concentrated smoke screen.

«We need to take her to safety. There’s a public toilet nearby. That should provide sufficient shelter for now.»

The smoke’s strong scent should have dulled the surrounding bee’s sense of smell as well as possibly overshadowed whatever had led them to attack that diligent high-class lady. However, given that they were out in the open that was clearly only a temporary solution.

Haruna's eyes widened in shock when she realized her powers weren't working on the bees at all. It's as if there was something blocking their natural behavior.

«There is no stopping them. Something is overriding the commands they receive through pheromones.»

Giving a wordless nod at Ai's observation, Haruna looked at the swarming bees with sorrowful eyes. Bees do not sting unless in self defense and even then it's last resort. What could have caused the poor creatures to act like this? They must be confused and afraid. Whoever did this is not getting away without taking responsibility.

After the pink haired girl released the smokescreen Haruna took this as an opportunity and hoisted the injured girl's arm around her shoulders so she could somehow lift her up. This was a feat itself since she was also trying her best not to breath in any smoke.

If controlling the insects didn't work maybe she could still try to scare them away. Turning her usual animal attracting power into aggressive and repelling aura Haruna hoped it made the bees at least hesitate slightly before acting against them.

"I'll try to buy us some more time. Help me with Shoudoku-san!" Haruna had succeeded in lifting Moko up but was struggling in trying to move her to safety. The toilet Ai had pointed at was some distance away and she doubted she could drag the injured girl all the way alone before the smoke cleared away.

Things were looking really bad. Not only had this situation developed into one where Ichigo Ai – a girl fully devoid of anything as disgusting as athletic abilities – had been forced to help carry a girl she didn’t even care that much about into safety, but it seemed as though a real crisis had broken out around her. At least, when helping to rush Shoudoku Moko into safety, the pink haired bob cut girl would notice that numerous passersby had also been driven into a panic upon falling victim to the stingy threats. Screams could be heard everywhere. People were running. Pieces of that diligent girl’s survey and many others’ belongings had scattered all around. The entire peaceful atmosphere had been consumed by purest chaos.

«This is not normal…»

Having a hard time carrying about half that girl’s weight, she was no longer able to muster her usual cuteness, but replaced the squeaky voice with one visibly bearing the strains of physical exertion.

Fortunately the small stone building that was the public toilet wasn’t as distant. And with the support of the blonde animal whisperer’s repellant pheromones it seemed as though they were able to avoid most further complications in terms of random bee attacks. However, what did it matter when the one you were trying to protect had already been hit by a massive onslaught, actually having fallen unconscious as a result?

At the very end the three girls had made it behind closed doors, building camp right in the middle of the inner toilet area, surrounded by numerous empty cabins. At least the floor was rather clean, given the usual Japanese standards, enabling the two of them to lay Shoudoku Moko down without any additional worry.

Was that enough to warrant a relaxing break, though?

«This is bad. This is bad. This is bad. I can’t even tell how bad her state is. Nor can I say that for anyone else’s…»

Ichigo Ai’s demeanour had changed entirely. Having placed her hand on the unconscious girl’s throat to check for her faint pulse, she couldn’t hold back the worry she felt at the sight of an innocent person having been attacked for seemingly nothing at all.