Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume6 Chapter6

Rosa Chinensis' best day of her life

Part 1.

"… This sucks."

Mizuno Youko, the Rosa Chinensis, muttered to herself aboard the bus.

Luckily, the bus wasn't very crowded. There was no one within 1.5m to take umbrage at her self-pitying soliloquy.

It was already evening. The time to be going home from school.

The bus that was going from the train station towards Lillian's Girls Academy obviously wouldn't have as many people on it. Over half the seats were empty.

"– Oww."

Instinctively she winced as the pain swept through her abdomen like a wave.

(No matter how you look at it, it's completely unreasonable that only women have to suffer this kind of pain)

Her body was in a very sorry state. Because it was that time of the month.

(Oh, I give up)

It wasn't that she didn't usually suffer period pain, it was just that this month was exceptionally bad. Not only had it arrived five days earlier than expected, it was heavier than usual too. There had been no signs of it last night, but unbelievably it had shown up this morning. Consequently, she'd been suffering abdominal pain since the start of the day.

(On top of that)

The bad luck just kept piling up, as the slight case of sniffles she'd had for some time turned into a full blown case of the cold last night. Because she was shivering, she had taken her temperature this morning and it was 37.8ºC. What she was doing may have been detrimental to her health, but she didn't have any comfort margin.

If it had been a normal day, she would have given up right away. But it wasn't, for today she had a university entrance exam.

Naturally, she couldn't spare the time to see a doctor, so she took some medicine for the fever and used every trick in the book to get to the examination center. Her temperature seemed to have gone down thanks to the medicine, but she was suffering from drowsiness as a side-effect. And as an added bonus, it made her stomach ache.

It was in that kind of a state that she took the university entrance exam. She had the feeling that she'd completely filled out the answer form, but looking back at it she had no recollection whatsoever of the type of questions she'd answered or the kind of answers she'd derived.

And with that, she had no idea what the point of taking the medicine was. Those two tablets hadn't made anything better at all.

"Ahh, what was it?"

Youko was idly watching the side of her face reflected in the glass window as she thought.

Why was she being shaken around by the bus when she was in such a poor condition. Surely the right decision would have been to go straight home after the exam, wrap herself up in blankets and go to sleep.

(There was somebody)

She tried to fill in the blanks.

She looked out the window, just like she would during class, and the familiar scenery flowed past her.

(There was … something I had to come to school to do with somebody)

So she had come.

It would have been better to do it tomorrow, but tomorrow would be too late. There must have been some reason why she had to come to school today.

But what that was, she couldn't remember.

It wasn't forgetfulness, but more like her body didn't have the strength required to think about it. Her mind still seemed hazy.

What could it have been.

Inadvertently, she glanced out the window again.

"… Huh!"

Youko stood up without thinking. The view she had seen seemed wrong.

"Damn it."

The slide-show of familiar scenery had finished. Some time ago they had gone past the Lillian's Girls Academy bus stop and were now closer to the next stop.

"Ahh"

Usually there would be a lot of students getting on or off the bus, so there was no need to listen to the announcements. Even if she wasn't paying attention, she'd just be swept along when everyone else got off the bus.

With nothing else to do, Youko pressed the button to let the driver know she wanted to get off at the next stop. In all the time she had been commuting to school, this was the first time she had ever missed her stop.

Just what you'd expect, since today was probably the worst day of her life.

Part 2.

After walking back from the next bus stop, she entered the school grounds through the main gates.

Having never missed the stop before today, she didn't realize that the next bus stop was closer to the back gate until she was walking through the front gate, and by that time it was too late.

Youko's head was spinning so badly that she had come to accept that she would make these small mistakes.

Even though she was like this today, she usually conducted herself flawlessly as a senior – possessing a brilliant mind with great judgment and leadership abilities, as well as being beautiful and kind. If her juniors were to see her in such an unfocused state, she wouldn't be worthy of the name Rosa Chinensis.

But right now she didn't have the energy to put up a front.

My stomach hurts,

my stomach hurts,

my stomach hurts,

my stomach hurts.

With each step drawing a complaint from her body that her mind had to assuage, Youko slowly walked down the path lined with ginkgo trees.

Because the pain is only temporary.

Because it'll get better soon.

I'll endure it for just a little while longer.

Let's just struggle through this like we always do.

Even with her body screaming out in pain, she somehow made it to the statue of Maria-sama.

"…"

She was intending to follow her usual custom and pray, but the scene she saw when she entered into the small garden with its fenced off grove and pond took her breath away.

(…)

There weren't enough people there to call it a crowd, but there were a fair few gathered at the fork in the path.

But if that was all it was, Youko wouldn't have given it a second thought. Because students stopped to pray on their way to and from school, this place would occasionally see a 'rush hour.' But this group seemed to have gathered for some reason other than that. Although there was plenty of space in front of the statue of Maria-sama, there were only two people standing there.

(This scene is – )

She'd seen this somewhere before. Youko racked her brain and slowly reeled the memory in. One year, no, two years ago probably. It was definitely something that she'd done. She'd asked her onee-sama, who had graduated last year, and they came down here together.

"Oh, Rosa Chinensis."

The second-year student at the head of the line noticed her, and called out to her with a 'Gokigenyou.' Rosa Chinensis thought she knew her. She was one of Sachiko's classmates. And the girl standing next to her seemed to be a first year. Probably her petit soeur, Youko thought as the girl embarrassedly imitated her older sister and greeted her.

"Please, go ahead and pray."

The two girls who had been standing in front of the statue of Maria-sama had just departed.

"Are you sure that's okay?"

It would be inexcusable to cut in front of a line of people that were patiently waiting their turn. But the second year girl at the head of the queue shook her head.

"Don't worry about it. None of us want to be a bother to the students who are coming here to pray."

The first year student held a small box in her hand. When she took a better look at the line of couples, in each case one of them held something in their hands.

"Ahh – "

Youko finally remembered.

The small packages were chocolates.

"Today's Valentines Day, isn't it."

"Yeah.... Oh, isn't that why you're at school today, Rosa Chinensis?"

"It seems so."

With a nod, she stepped in front of the statue of Maria-sama. As always, the white face of Maria-sama smiled down upon her with profound compassion.

"That's why I came to school."

Just a moment ago, it had all come back to her.

Part 3.

The boutons had agreed to host a treasure hunt for Valentines Day.

Youko wasn't able to participate because it clashed with her entrance exam, but she had decided from the start that she wanted to see how it played out.

Where had the trio hidden their cards?

And who would find them?

If it was me, where would I hide it?

And who would I want to find it?

Thinking about these things was really fun. But it was something you could only do when your body was cooperating.

"…"

Youko let out a sigh.

As she entered the school buildings, she felt a heavy flow coming and rushed to the nearest toilet on the first floor. Because it was after school, the toilets were deserted. For comfort's sake, Youko chose the innermost, western style toilet. When she tried to get up after a brief moment of rest, the world around her faded to black. Helplessly, Youko sat back down on the toilet seat and waited for the feeling to pass. She hadn't really eaten much all day, so it was probably anemia kicking in.

Anyway, for now she was the sole occupant of the student's toilet block.

"… Hmm."

She didn't feel well, either. She felt queasy, but probably wasn't going to be sick.

It's just one thing after the other.

The unbearable abdominal pain was gradually starting to get better.

But it was depressing to think that this kind of pain would continue for decades to come.

Until now, Youko had never had any complaints about being born a woman. That was largely due to school policy and her home environment, so she was grateful to both her parents and teachers.

Neither men nor women were inferior. Because without both, there was no way for new life to be born.

It was simply due to the process of evolution – some distant ancestor had found an evolutionary advantage in this division of roles, and all of this was a result of that choice.

(But even so)

Menstruation, pregnancy, childbirth, menopause.

Youko sighed, thinking about the journey that lay ahead of her. The gap between the burden born by men and women felt too large simply to write off as the difference between the sexes. The reward of a slightly longer life expectancy wasn't enough to balance things out in the end.

(Ah well, dwelling on it's not going to change anything)

That's why she didn't usually think about it.

She only considered it at times like this. On days like today, when her period pain was excruciating, or when it happened while she was traveling or had PE lessons. Only at times like that.

After resting there for about ten minutes she was feeling better and started to notice the sounds that were coming from outside.

"Where have you been looking?"

"I heard that one of the cards have been found, but I don't know which color it was."

"I wonder which faculty Rei-sama's homeroom teacher is in."

"Where's the weather station?"

From the hallway, from outside. She could hear the students voices.

It seems like the treasure hunt hadn't finished just yet.

"Humm humm humm"

This time the door to the block of toilets was opened, and she felt someone enter the stall next to her. Taking a toilet break right in the middle of the game. It must have been someone who wasn't participating in the treasure hunt. Besides, no one else was humming. They must be in a really good mood.

As she was thinking this, she felt the ground tremble. It was gradually getting closer, and she thought she could hear the footsteps of a crowd of people stampeding outside the building.

(Hey, wait. Who are they chasing after …?)

The school was lively.

All kinds of things happened here, but in general it was peaceful. And fun. Because Lillian's Girls Academy was protected by Maria-sama.

When she finally started to get up, she heard a curious sound.

Bump, scratch scratch, rustle rustle, thump.

"The window! They went in through the window!"

The shout came from outside.

Thud, click, clatter clatter clatter clatter.

It sounded like the fugitive had broke in through the window and then closed and locked it so that the pursuers couldn't climb in.

Just what was going on outside the walls of her cubicle? Youko was intensely curious. But the person in the cubicle beside her shouted 'What's going on!?' and shot out, so she missed her chance.

"Yumi-san, what are you doing?"

The person from the other stall asked, after first returning to her cubicle and flushing.

(Yumi?)

It was a fairly common name, but she'd know for sure when they responded. Because Youko's petit soeur, Ogasawara Sachiko, has a petit soeur called Yumi.

She was a rare find nowadays. And she was perfect as Sachiko's petit soeur. Naturally, as the grandmother, Youko affectionately indulged her.

"… Playing tag, I guess."

As expected, the voice that answered was that of Fukuzawa Yumi. And it seemed that the person from the other stall just happened to be a friend of hers. Something like that.

"And the treasure?"

"Not yet."

So that means she was playing tag in the middle of the treasure hunt.

(Yumi-chan, what on earth are you doing?)

Youko brought her ear to the door of the stall and strained to hear the conversation.

"There we go"

The wall creaked.

(There we go?)

She couldn't fathom it. From time to time, Yumi-chan would do the most outrageous things.

"– Yumi-san?"

Yumi-chan's friend called out, doubtfully.

"After I've gone, can you lock the window? And keep it a secret that you saw me here, please."

"… Yeah, alright."

It seemed like she was planning on going back out the window again.

(I see, she's thought about this)

If it was locked from the inside, they wouldn't think that she's fled back outside.

"Well, I'll leave it to you."

After the sound of someone landing, the window was shut and locked. It seemed like Yumi had safely escaped.

"I wonder what that was all about."

Yumi-chan's friend was talking to herself as she left. Youko shook her head then left her cubicle.

After washing her hands and walking out into the hallway, she ran into the group of students who were apparently chasing after Yumi-chan.

"You girls"

Being a bit of a prankster, Youko called out to them.

"Ro.. Rosa Chinensis!"

All up there was six of them. Simultaneously, they all stopped and stood up straight, as though they had been practicing together.

"Be quiet in the hallway."

"Yes. Rosa Chinensis."

Having just been scolded, they momentarily went back to walking then almost immediately picked up the pace and rushed towards the toilets.

(Hey, don't do that)

As she heard the sound of the door closing, Youko suppressed a laugh.

Even though they had hurried there, Yumi-chan had already left.

Part 4.

The pain in her abdomen was subsiding.

However, whether it was from the fever or a side-effect of the medicine, her body seemed to be gently floating. It felt like it wasn't being held down by the usual gravity.

That's it. It felt like she was walking through water.

Like she had fallen into a giant fish tank.

The students in the hallway, in the stairwell and outside moved around slowly, as though they were fish swimming.

When she first arrived at school her body had probably been in too bad a shape for her to notice it, but there were an incredible number of students flitting about the grounds. There were more people participating in the treasure hunt than she had expected.

Youko too blended in with the fish as she walked. Like walking in a dream, she didn't go very fast. But it wasn't an unpleasant feeling.

"Gokigenyou."

A student she didn't know called out to her. A first year, or a second year. At any rate, not someone in her grade.

"Gokigenyou."

Youko returned the greeting.

"Umm, Rosa Chinensis? Is it okay if we walk together."

"Of course?"

She didn't know whether they were heading to the same place or not, but Youko agreed to travel with her. Thereupon, another student appeared from somewhere, walking in the same direction while maintaining a respectable distance. After a short while, she too came over and greeted her.

"Just like Momotarou."[1]

Youko squealed delightedly. Before she knew it, the numbers had increased and in the end she had an entourage of eight students.

"But, why? I don't have any dumplings."

"It's not like that."

The members of her entourage burst into laughter.

"We didn't come over here because we wanted your dumplings."

"Huh?"

"We just wanted to be by your side. Or maybe it is the same, and the dog, the monkey and the pheasant just used the dumplings as a pretext."

The other girls nodded.

"I've always wanted to make your acquaintance, but you always seemed so perfect that there was never any opening, Rosa Chinensis."

"No opening?"

"But I'm glad that I impulsively called out to you."

"Yeah, yeah. I don't know why, but today you seem to be gentler, or less intense. It makes it much easier to approach you."

"That's a bit rude."

"Ah, sorry."

Though she was rebuked by her friend, there was beauty to be found in that student's slip of the tongue.

"It's okay."

Youko smiled wholeheartedly.

"… Ahh, I see. That's the sort of image I usually project."

She hadn't noticed it herself. She hadn't intentionally been trying to preserve the majesty of Rosa Chinensis, but that was how she was perceived. She hadn't wanted to be an honors student. But that was the only way she knew how to be.

"You know there's always been a fondness for each other."

Us in the Rose Mansion and the regular students outside. She'd always wanted to get closer to them, to meet them halfway, but hadn't been able to do it very well.

"Hey, will you please accompany me to the Rose Mansion?"

"Yes, of course."

Thinking back on it, she'd always been busy. She'd never just aimlessly wandered the halls like this. Never had the time to stop. Never been free to take the scenic route.

Maybe being busy was her way of reassuring herself that she wasn't useless.

When she slowly looked up, the Rose Mansion that she had become accustomed to had an unusual tint to it.

Upon reaching the entrance, the door was opened from the other side.

"Ah, Youko."

Standing there was Rosa Gigantea, Satou Sei. One of her friends who was also called a Rose.

"I was worried you weren't going to make it. Did you come straight from the exam?"

Sei's usually handsome face was sprinkled with crumbs, making her look foolish.

"What have you been scoffing into?"

Wiping some of the stuff off Sei's cheek and looking at it, Youko saw that it was crumbs of brown and yellow sponge cake. Perhaps she couldn't wait until she got home and had taken a cake she received for Valentines Day somewhere and eaten it in secret.

"Ahh, nothing. Hahaha."

As she tried to deceive Youko with an insincere laugh, Sei spotted the group of people behind Youko's back and beckoned them inside.

"Come inside, cute visitors. Welcome to the Rose Mansion."

"Pardon the intrusion."

One by one, Youko's companions entered.

"Good heavens, what a lot of followers you have. Just like Momotarou."

Happily, Sei saw the situation the same sway she had.

"Although regrettably I didn't have any dumplings for them."

"Ahh, in that case we should at least offer them some tea. Shimako and the others are probably still upstairs."

Youko had warned the visitors to take care on the old staircase so that it didn't break and then urged them upwards when suddenly the entry door was flung open.

"Hey, is it true that the yellow card has been found?"

The new arrival's uniquely shaped tie was crooked. Even her trademark hair-band had faint specks of dust on it.

"Eriko... ah, Rosa Foetida."

"Ohh, Rosa Chinensis is in here."

After greeting each other with 'Gokigenyou', Eriko came over to the staircase.

"I don't know much, but I heard a rumor that Rei's card had been found, so I came here to check."

"I just got here this minute, myself."

Last in line, Youko climbed the stairs. Sei was leading them, so she wasn't worried about the students who had followed her here.

"Is that so? Oh yeah, you're wearing your coat, aren't you. That's right, you had an exam today, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"But I'm sure it was a piece of cake for you, right?"

"Hmm, I wonder."

After climbing the stairs, they arrived at the meeting room / salon on the second floor. While they were standing in front of the door they could hear the commotion from inside.

"…?"

After exchanging glances with Eriko, Youko opened the biscuit shaped door.

And then.

"–"

What was going on?

A miracle was waiting for her inside.

A warm room.

You wouldn't call it a huge space, but there must have been close to forty smiling young women inside.

Some were chatting, some were sipping tea and some were hunting for treasure.

Each of them was passing the time as they pleased.

"Eriko..."

Youko stopped dead. Standing next to her, Eriko squeezed her hand tightly.

"Yeah. Isn't it wonderful."

"There's more."

Sei, who had gone in ahead of them, took them by the hand and led them over to the window. Despite the cold, she opened the window and said 'Well?'

"This is – "

From the second floor window of the Rose Mansion, they could see into the courtyard.

In the courtyard, the number of students gathered was gradually swelling.

"To fill you in, it's because time's almost up."

Sei smiled. It had been decided that the game would end just like it started, with everyone gathered in the courtyard.

"But it's a nice view, isn't it?"

"… Yeah"

From the scattered classrooms and the school grounds, it felt like everyone was making their way towards the mansion.

"Youko's request."

"Ahh...!"

This scene was what she had wanted to see.

Before she graduated, she had desperately wanted to see the Rose Mansion alive with students. She had wanted to hear their laughter ring out, both inside and outside the building.

"Onee-sama."

The students parted, and she saw the boutons making their way over.

Joyfully she went to meet them, bringing her happiness with her.

"Onee-sama, would you like some tea?"

Sachiko inquired.

"Don't worry about us. The treasure hunt will be ending soon, right?"

"Well then, I'll skip ahead a step and give you these."

Rei put some of the bite sized chocolates that were to be given as prizes to all participants in her hand. In total there were three. She was given Sei's and Eriko's too.

"Truly, I can rest easy now."

Eriko remarked as she was undoing the silver wrapping around the chocolate. The boutons seemed busy as the end of the game drew near.

As she watched her juniors a short distance away, Youko suddenly thought of God.

A student she didn't know pulled out a chair and waved them over.

She waved back and was slowly making her way over there as the tears slowly started to fall. The chocolate she had popped in her mouth was enchantingly sweet.

Youko thought, 'This is a dream.'

"It must have been bad having your exam on Valentines Day."

Sei smiled. But Youko shook her head.

"It's the best."

"Huh?"

"Today has been the best day of my life so far."

The announcement that the game had finished was broadcast.

The best, huh?

That's probably because she still hadn't woken up from her dream.

Return to Main Page

Back to Chapter 5

Forward to Postscript