Chapter 19: Chapter 18

“...”

Yuuji felt his eyes glaze over as he watched the girl before him in disbelief.

“Hmm? Hmm~!”

She tapped her chin while she squatted by the lakeside, deep in thought as she inspected her subject with clinical precision… and the occasional poke and prod.

Finally, she nodded her head confidently and reached out, grabbing the object with a self-satisfied smile, and only then rising to her feet to dust off her uniform.

“...”
“...”
“Oh? Welcome back Elis, Faolán.”

Elis held her forehead with a gloomy look as Yuuji’s eyebrow twitched, staring directly at the girl who just grabbed a frog from the lake and pocketed it nonchalantly, before wiping her hands with a wet cloth.

“Sid… this is Yuuji Ishitake, one of the most recent members of our class.”

It seemed that Elis chose the option of pretending nothing had happened, and she returned to her cheery self without any acknowledgement of what they’d just witnessed.

“I remember. Good to meet you, I’m Sidheag, but it’s easier to call me Sid.”
“Right… Uhh, can I ask you what you were just doing?”
“Hmm? Grabbing some lunch for tomorrow.”

His expression turned to stone as he glanced back over at Elis to see her covering her face with both hands, refusing to look at him.

“...Can you… eat that?”
“Of course. You just need to make sure the frog is healthy, and not carrying any nasty bacteria.”

He bent his neck once more, but Elis remained hidden behind the protection of her hands, deaf to his silent pleas for help.

“...How would you tell?”
“Years of experience.”

Sidheag shrugged casually as she played with the ears of Faolán, who had sauntered over and sniffed her now squirming pocket with great interest.

It seemed that this conversation had reached its logical conclusion.

“It’s… interesting, to meet you. You can call me Yuuji.”
“Yuuji. It’s a nice name. Faolán seems to like you.”
“Oh, Lanlan thinks you’re friendly!”

Elis had finally recovered and happily moved the conversation forward, content to never speak about what had just happened.

“That’s good~, Yuuji asked if he could join us on today’s walk! Is that alright with you, Sid?”
“Mmhmm. More company is welcome.”

Sidheag nodded with a slight smile as her face brightened. She had a pale complexion and a quiet, thoughtful disposition, but her emerald green eyes bore an enchanting air and glimmered like luxurious gemstones.

Her long, wavy hair was forest green, and as it quivered in the breeze it almost looked alive with a supernatural quality that drew the eyes. Though the sleeves of her jacket had traces of mud, her hands had been thoroughly cleaned and her clothes weren’t covered in old stains, so despite initial impressions, she actually seemed to be quite cleanly.

They walked slowly through the park making light conversation, as Faolán explored the surroundings freely, bounding about from side to side.

The more they talked, the more Yuuji felt they cared deeply about this place. Sidheag would occasionally stop to inspect wilted flowers or broken tree branches, and Elis would point out beautiful blossoms in the surroundings, sharing a wealth of knowledge about what kind of conditions various plants would thrive in.

“Hmm?”
“What is it, Sid?”
“Is something wrong?”

As they approached a wide bed of flowers, Sidheag stopped and knelt down, indifferent to the dirt that stuck to her tights. Her thick eyebrows furrowed, and she gave a light whistle that rang out sonorously.

Hearing this, Faolán immediately perked up and returned to her side dutifully.

She lay one hand on his head, the other held over the flowerbed. A faint green glow radiated from her fingertips, and there was a faint rumble in the soft ground below as the very flowers themselves began to dance and sway.

Yuuji watched on in awe as the plants ever so slightly spread apart, and from directly below her palm, a fresh green sprout broke ground. It was feeble and small but brought an affectionate smile to her face when she saw it.

“Incredible…”

He heard mention of her powers in class as Mr Pierce brought it up in passing, but watching her use her spirit to actively help an ailing sprout gain room to grow was in equal parts awe-inspiring and heartwarming.

“She’s a little odd, but she has a kind heart. Please don’t think badly of her.”

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From beside him, Elis whispered quietly so that only he could hear - her sweet voice catching him by surprise and causing his heart to thump loudly in his chest.

Regaining his composure, he returned a tender smile and nodded, causing her face to light up. Seeing their personalities up close, he couldn’t help but feel they were well-suited to be friends and was happy to have met them - brief as it had been.

As they continued to the park’s main entrance, they spotted a figure ahead of them that they recognised, causing Yuuji to pipe up.

“Isn’t that…”
“Valeriya…”

Jogging towards them in a silvery white sporty outfit that matched her hair, she glanced at the group briefly, before passing them with a silent coldness. Faolán stretched his neck slightly as he sniffed in her direction, before turning back to the others to inspect his master’s mood.

Sidheag gave a brief peek before moving on without much thought, but Elis held a forlorn look and watched the girl as she gradually shrank further and further into the distance.

“I know it’s not my place to ask, but did something happen between you two?”
“Ah! No, nothing like that. It’s just…”

Valeriya disappeared off into the treeline as Elis sighed dejectedly.

“She doesn’t really interact with anyone. We’re the ones that sit closest to her in class, but I’ve never had a proper conversation with her, and I’ve only seen her on her own outside of the academy too.”
“Maybe she just prefers to be alone?”

Her eyes remained on the point where the girl last was before she turned around, looking downcast.

“Even so… sometimes the expressions she makes seem so lonely…”
“Why not talk to her about food?”
“Sid!?”

Sidheag’s voice came from behind Elis’ shoulder, and she jumped in fright.

“Elis, you could talk about food to anyone. Everyone has to eat. Just ask if you can eat with her.”
“B-But, out of the blue like that..?”

As Elis tilted her head with a frown, Yuuji pointed out something he was curious about.

“Food?”
“Elis is a huge foodie. Even after trying one of my frogs, she wouldn’t stop talking about the squishiness, and what meals could-”
“Sid, you don’t need to tell him that!!”

Elis desperately covered Sidheag’s mouth as her cheeks burned red, and Yuuji chuckled at the new side he saw of hers.

“...My family lived very remotely, so I never got to try many different foods growing up, and it became a hobby of mine when I left home. That’s it! That’s all it is, you hear!?”

Flustered, her cheeks puffed up and she blurted out an explanation before turning silent, steam radiating from her face.

“I’m with Sid, I think it’s a good idea. Maybe without the frogs, though.”

He let out a hearty laugh as she sulked, with even Sid breaking into a small smile.

“We should have lunch together. Us three.”
“That sounds like a plan. If you don’t mind, I’ll invite Hibiki as well, I’m sure she’s looking forward to meeting you as well.”
“Muu… fine! But I won’t talk about food at all!”

They made plans as they left the park grounds, and said their goodbyes for the day. His quiet evening had taken an unexpected turn, but it was a fortuitous one, and there was now only one person in the class he wasn’t properly acquainted with.

“Valeriya, huh.”

Remembering her figure as she passed by them earlier, Elis’ words stuck with him. He hadn’t been at the academy long, but he couldn’t recall seeing her ever talk to someone else, and always seemed to eat alone in the canteen - often ignoring the shenanigans that he would be embroiled in.

The power of frost seemed fitting for her, as she was a picturesque ice queen. Her straight silver hair glimmered like moonlight, and her crimson red eyes stopped the heart with just a glare: she was an aloof and distant beauty and was certainly someone difficult to approach.

Despite not having any clear friends within the class, he couldn’t pick out any enemies either. As Elis had said, it was almost as if she didn’t interact with anyone else at all, and remained alone the entire time.

In the past, he would simply let sleeping dogs lie, and leave her to her own devices. But after meeting Hibiki, and after his afternoon with the girls in the park, the thought wouldn’t leave his mind.

He sighed weakly and looked towards the setting sun. It wasn’t his place to intervene, but even so, he hoped there would be a resolution that would leave everyone happy - if only it were that easy.

At that moment he decided: should the opportunity come, he would do what he could to reach that perfect ending.

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