Red Data Girl - Series 1 & 2

My First Familiar - 7

An American Girl in Japan

Red Data Girl: My First Familiar
By Noriko Ogiwara
A Translation

We’ve finally made it to chapter two! The chapter name is “Miyuki”.

Notes on this week’s translation:

Golden Week is a series of consecutive Japanese holidays at the end of April and then into May. Read about it on theWikipedia page.The Kagura dance which Izumiko enjoys is very much a real thing! Read about ithere, and watch a video here! 

Red Data Girl: My First Familiar
Chapter 2: Miyuki
Part 1 (1 of 2)

Due to the consecutive holidays in May, the amount of people who came to Tamakura Shrine and the mountain for worship increased.

The wild rhododendrons bloomed with giant, round flowers and the new leaves that covered the mountain ridge were speckled red with them.  This was the most beautiful season on Mt. Tamakura and hikers frequently came to admire it.

The people working at the shrine were busy with rites and rituals. During the break, Izumiko tried asking Mr. Nonomiya about Ayumi and Haruna’s basketball game, but there was absolutely no way he could get away from the mountain. She could only hope that he would bring her to cheer for the pair’s final game in July.

Izumiko might not have been able to go anywhere, but the beautiful weather continued all the same. Unsurprisingly, even Izumiko found it boring to be stuck at home day after day.

Izumiko might have been bad at sports as a whole, but she did like dancing the Kagura dance that her grandfather had taught her. Still, she was embarrassed to dance in front of people. As it had suddenly become the season where meeting hikers on the mountain was common, Izumiko could no longer use the open space on the mountain’s summit to dance during the day. She could only walk along the path that circled the edge of the shrine’s property.

I wonder if Mr. Sagara will come during the break?

She was thinking about him before she was even aware of the direction her train of thought had taken. Her class had buzzed with talk of Sagara for days after the helicopter landing. It seemed like the actual incident of Izumiko breaking the computers had been forgotten as soon as he had arrived. Ayumi and Haruna had both been very excited over the event. They agreed that Sagara looked like the sort of cool person you would see in a movie or a television drama.

Izumiko had been bombarded with questions as a result of Sagara’s appearance at school. She had desperately wished that all the gossip making her stand out would die down quickly. Unfortunately for shy Izumiko, there was just something about Yukimasa Sagara that excited people. After he had moved away from the shrine to work with Daisei, the dinner table had seemed remarkably quiet.

The one on one consultations were after the break. Sagara didn’t seem to have any free time, so Izumiko couldn’t complain if he only showed up on the day of the meeting. For some reason, she was a little nervous about talking to him again.

It’s probably because I’m lonely.

The season when the rhododendrons bloomed was the busiest time at the shrine and she had been alone constantly. She considered this. She was happy in the sunlight with the beautifully colored flowers.  Still, being on her own was strange.

Izumiko had walked around the familiar path once and was heading down the hill back towards the shrine when she spotted him. There was a boy standing around the old cedar trees as if he had come to visit them.

She had never seen him before. She was surprised to see that he was wearing his school uniform even though schools were on break. He might not have been wearing his blazer, but it was still clear which school he attended. He was wearing a white button down shirt with a narrow, red neck tie and his pants were a dark green and navy checkered print. He was tall and thin. Izumiko guessed that he was a high school student.