As I held my hands up to the sky, the rays of sunlight shone through the gaps between my fingers so brightly that they dazzled me. With the end-of-term exams over, life was calm again. Now it was just a case of waiting for summer vacation to begin.
Although I was on the verge of mentally checking out and going into full-on vacation mode already, one thing prevented that. We still had a very special event between now and then. Yesterday, Lady Sakura had suddenly joined the Sky Salon, so today we’d be throwing her a little welcome party. I was hurrying over to the Sky Salon with Kirara so we could make sure it was in tip-top shape.
Lady Sakura was a sweet and lovely young lady in all kinds of ways, and I was starting to look forward to serving her. Of course, she already had a Seraph, so her Seraph would be the one doing most of the serving in practice. Still, it was pretty common to make tea for other mistresses or for small errands to be given to whoever happened to be nearby, so I’d have plenty of chances to lend her a hand.
Even better was that her Seraph was my classmate and good friend Sara. I was thrilled that we’d get to work at the salon together.
Not everyone was as enthusiastic as me, however. After we were done cleaning up, Kirara slammed a hand down on the table and grimaced. “Hmph. Today’s the day, huh?”
Kirara just didn’t see eye to eye with Sara. She didn’t pick fights, exactly, but the sense of rivalry was strong. Since Lady Sakura joining the salon inevitably meant Sara joining as well, I got the impression Kirara had been putting a lot of thought into how to keep her negative feelings in check.
Her voice shifted into a low, menacing laugh. From her expression, it looked like she wasn’t upset about the arrival of her nemesis—she was eager for it.
“Bring it on. I’m her senior at the salon, so I’ll take great pains to show her the ropes.”
It sounded like she’d convinced herself that it would all be fine as long as she wielded her seniority as a weapon.
“You know it’s not okay to bully her, right?”
“How rude! Imagine accusing me of such a thing.” She looked up at me and raised her eyebrows as if the idea was totally unthinkable. “Sara and I will be getting along very well. I’ll be sure to treat her with the utmost kindness.” She chuckled again.
I guess there are a lot of different ways for people to get along, and it doesn’t sound like they’ll be coming to blows, so maybe it’s okay for now.
While I was having that thought, the bell chimed to signal the elevator’s arrival. The mistresses had finished class for today, so as each one came, Kirara and I went to greet them and guide them to the central table for today’s party. Before too long, everyone was there except Lady Kagura. She had told us beforehand that she’d go to collect Lady Sakura personally, so I figured it would be a little longer before they got here. I went and waited by Himeko’s side.
I started picturing what would happen if someone with Lady Kagura’s level of fame at the academy turned up in a first-year classroom. Even the prim and proper Societal Arts students would go crazy for her.
Then the elevator sounded again and Lady Kagura, Lady Sakura, and Sara all stepped out. As Kirara and the Kokonoe sisters went over to greet them, it occurred to me that we now had every member of the Sky Salon in one place, including the new additions.
Lady Kagura looked around to confirm this for herself, then gave a small nod. “Sorry to keep you all waiting. As you know, Sakura chose the Sky Salon yesterday, which means that as of today, this is the new home away from home for both her and Sara, her Seraph. Sakura has only just arrived in Japan, so if she’s struggling with anything, I want you all to help her out. Sakura, don’t be afraid to ask if you have any problems either.”
“I’m so grateful for your concern. I did a lot of independent study regarding Japan before coming here, but there’s a difference between learning about a place and seeing it with your own eyes, so I’ll appreciate all the advice you can give me.”
Her Japanese really was impeccable. I actually started debating whether her language usage was better than mine.
“Typically,” Lady Kagura continued, “the members here don’t all sit together, but relax in their own personal spaces instead. We’ve arranged one for you as well, so you and Sara may feel free to use it as much as you like. It’s absolutely fine to chat with everyone else, of course. It’s up to everyone to decide how they want to spend their time. However, please let me know if you’d like to invite any non-members to visit. That’s because we sometimes have conversations here that we can’t allow outsiders to overhear.”
Lady Sakura’s smile said she knew what Lady Kagura was getting at. “Yes, that makes sense.”
In the end, the Sky Salon’s members weren’t here just to enjoy a pleasant chat over a cup of tea. Lady Kagura had assembled the ladies to support her goals, which in turn led to confidential business discussions.
“Other than that, there shouldn’t be any other issues. When it comes to all the facilities and how to use them, I assume it’s okay to share this information with Sara.”
“That sounds perfect, if you don’t mind.”