Quintet Of The Boundaries

10 : Appetence

The Garden, 11:40 p.m.

The wind was quite breezy during this hour but still, Mahiru alone was waiting for Aina and Nanami outside in the garden. Sure it's no problem for her as staying up this late was her habit, to stare up the black sky. Despite the cold weather, she sat on the same spot where she usually sits on to stare up the sky.

Suddenly something just flew across the sky like cutting through it, like a bright star falling to the earth. Indeed it was a shooting star that people believe it would make a wish come true, Mahiru closed her eyes and crossed her fingers then made a wish. "I wish that I could see Kaori again."

"So who is this Kaori?" Someone spoke right behind Mahiru, causing her to be surprised.

"A-ah!! What the?! Who are you?!" Mahiru backed away from the girl with her face all red, embarrassed for making a wish like that. The girl just stood there giving Mahiru a sweet welcoming smile.

"Nice to meet you, Sergeant Major Hokusai. We'll be working together as an unit now, with Major Aina Vo-"

"W-wait a minute. Since when are we in the same unit?" Mahiru asked with her mind all confused.

"Oh? Aina didn't tell you? The General had reformed our unit based on some circumstances, so now our unit has become a five-person unit which is led by Aina."

"Ah... I see. Okay... So, how should I address you?" Mahiru then asked the girl.

"I'm Corporal Lea Alexanderson."

"Lea... I see."

"What's wrong?" Lea asked.

"Oh. Just wondering that how simple your name is, uh, I mean how easy I can remember it."

Both had reach the top of the conversation, they sat down on the bench to save some energy. Then Lea broke the silence, "What are you doing out here so late?"

"Oh, I'm waiting for Aina and her friend. They wouldn't let me in though." Mahiru answered.

"Do you know that they're already outside the interrogation room?" Lea's statement made Mahiru bit her lips accidentally.

"What?!"

"Looks like their discussion's over. Let's go over there." Both lifted themselves from the bench and walked towards Aina and me.

"Yo, Aina and uh... who?" Lea greeted Aina and beside her was me, then I introduced myself to to Lea.

"I'm Nanami Izanami."

"Oh, Nanami Izanami! I remember you. You're that scary girl who visited Aina that day, I see." Lea replied me and patted my left shoulder which had triggered the sense of pain in my shoulder.

"Aah...!"

"Eh?! I-I'm sorry! I didn't know you had a wound there! My apologies!"

"I-it's okay... It's not a big deal. It'll heal later."

Lea looked at me with one of her eyebrow lowered as if I'd said something weird. "Heal?" She then asked me. I'd answered her the word 'heal' back, then her mouth widened big enough to swallow up a ball.

"You're a Nora?!" She shouted very loudly and backed away two big steps from me. As her right hand started to produce a little amount of black mist, probably known as a process of summoning a Knight, Mahiru who was standing behind Lea immediately grabbed her hand to stop her.

"Hey, you're not seriously going to kill her, aren't you?" Mahiru spoke to Lea softly.

"Y-you've got the wrong idea, Lea... Ehehe. You see, Nanami is indeed a Nora, but she isn't a bad person." Aina continued.