As the sun approached the horizon, Starlight slowly opened her eyes and stared at the familiar ceiling.
Her mind was dazed for a few seconds before she finally regained her senses. Picking up her phone, she saw that it was already around 5:30 PM.
Letting out a comfortable sigh, she gently moved Seiun Sky's hand away from her waist.
She climbed out of bed and began to tidy her clothes.
The rustling sound caused the deep-sleeping Seiun Sky to open her bleary eyes.
"...Starlight-chan, where are you going~?"
Hearing this, Starlight, who was currently changing her shoes, turned around with a smile and waved her phone.
"It's already quite late. Flower-chan should be finished with training soon. Sky-chan, I have to head out now~"
Scrambling out of bed, Seiun Sky was clearly unwilling to let her go.
She stepped forward and hugged Starlight around the waist.
"Nooo~ Starlight-chan, can't you stay? Spend more time with me... besides, you live alone anyway, right? At most, we can just sleep together tonight..."
The azure cat's coquettish tone drifted into Starlight's ears. L
ooking down at the little head nuzzling against her stomach, Starlight reached out and rubbed the girl's soft hair.
"Alright, I'll stay with you a bit longer. Don't be sad~"
Meanwhile, in the lobby of the Ritto Dormitory.
Silence Suzuka and Special Week were having a simple afternoon tea.
Picking up a milk carton, Special Week poured milk into a cup while her head hung low, whispering in her heart.
'Mom, what should I do? I lost the race...'
Taking a sip of black tea, Suzuka glanced up and immediately spoke.
"Spe-chan, the milk is spilling—"
"Ah! Sorry, sorry!"
By the time Special Week snapped out of it, milk had already splashed across the table.
Panicking, she grabbed some tissues and began to clean up the mess.
Back in her room later, Special Week picked up her running shoes.
She sat kneeling on her bed, using a small hammer to nail her horseshoes.
The clank-clank-clank sound echoed incessantly through the room.
When Suzuka, who was reading nearby, slowly turned to look, she discovered that the other girl was actually hammering her own finger.
Her poor thumb had already been hammered red and swollen.
Startled, Suzuka cried out again.
"Spe-chan! Your finger, your finger...!"
Snapping back to reality, Special Week lifted her left hand.
As the pain finally traveled through her nerves to her brain, she let out a startled shriek.
"Aaaaaah—!"
Clearly, she was completely out of sorts. Seeing this, Suzuka grew quite worried.
She looked at the small gift box on her nightstand.
After a moment of hesitation, she stood up, picked it up, unwrapped it, and offered it to Special Week.
"Spe-chan, this is a cake Starlight made. Why don't we eat it together?"
"Ah, haha, that..."
"It's okay, it's just a small piece of cake."
"Mhm... okay..."
Back at the Miho Dormitory.
Nishino Flower pushed open the door and walked in. Her training clothes were dusted with dirt, and her hair was damp, with a few strands sticking to her face.
"I'm back, Sky-chan, Starlight-senpai..."
"Oh~ Welcome back."
Seiun Sky set down the manga in her hand and gave a greeting.
Starlight, who had been sitting in a chair nearby looking at her phone, stood up and walked over.
"Let me help you."
Reaching out to take the school bag and the groceries the girl was carrying, Starlight said with a smile.
"Ah... thank you, Starlight-senpai."
After placing the items on a nearby shelf, Starlight took a tissue and gently wiped the sweat from the girl's face.
"It's nothing. Flower-chan doesn't need to be so polite. Go take a shower first~"
Feeling the gentle movements, Nishino Flower looked at the beautiful Gray-haired girl who was welcoming her home.
For once, her face flushed red.
"Mhm... okay. Oh, right! Senpai, I heard you were staying over, so I bought some ingredients on the way back. I'm planning to make some of my specialty dishes in a bit."
"Is that so? Then I'll start with some of the simple prep work for you."
"Mhm, thank you, Senpai..."
Usually, it was Nishino Flower who looked after everyone else.
Now, for a rare change, seeing the senior before her taking care of her felt like a very novel experience.
Still, her heart felt warm.
'So, being taken care of this meticulously feels this good...'
Lost in thought, her hand already took the towel handed over by Starlight.
"You'll have to get your change of clothes ready yourself, I won't help you with that~"
With that, Starlight carried the ingredients into the kitchen.
As for our fisherman, Seiun Sky?
She was leaning comfortably against her pillow, leisurely reading a manga. Beside her was a fruit platter Starlight had sliced.
From time to time, she'd pick up a small toothpick, stab a piece, and pop it into her mouth.
'With a cute girl cooking in the kitchen and another one getting dressed... who in all of Tracen can enjoy life this much?'
Having finished her bath and changed into a creamy-white dress, Nishino Flower had a white towel wrapped around her head, with a few stray water droplets still clinging to her face.
Looking at Seiun Sky nestled in bed, she asked with concern. "How are you feeling? Sky-chan, is your leg any better?"
Seeing the beauty of the girl before her, Seiun Sky nodded dizzily.
"Mm, with Starlight-chan's care, it's pretty much fine."
"That's good~ But how can you be so impolite? Starlight-senpai is a senior, after all! You can't call her 'chan'!"
Her concerned expression suddenly shifted as Nishino Flower put a hand on her hip and began to lecture.
That kind of pressure— the kind engraved into her DNA— made Seiun Sky instantly sit up straight in a kneeling position, hanging her head helplessly.
"Yes, ma'am..."
Just then, Nishino Flower felt a slight weight on her shoulder as Starlight's warm hand rested there.
"Now, now, Flower-chan, don't be so strict. I actually love it when Sky-chan calls me that."
"You shouldn't be so stiff either, Flower-chan. Just like her, you can just call me Starlight-chan~"
"Yeah, Starlight-chan is right. Flower-chan, you're being too distant!"
Between Starlight and Seiun Sky playing off each other, Nishino Flower was left in a daze, staring at the two of them with her dusty-purple eyes.
"Eh? Does Flower-chan not want to be friends with me?"
"It's not that, Starlight-senpai..."
"Hmm~?"
"Starlight... chan."
"Mm-hm, that's more like it! I've prepped all the ingredients. What are you planning to make, Flower-chan? I'll be your assistant."
"It's alright, Senpai, I can do it myself. You've already helped so much."
"Well alright then~ How about I help you dry your hair instead?"
Looking at Starlight, who was holding both her hands with an expression that said "I'll be very sad if you refuse," Nishino Flower agreed somewhat stiffly.
With Starlight's help, Nishino Flower's hair was dried in no time. Her cooking efficiency was also very high.
After the three Uma Musume finished their meal, they sat together to play a bit before reaching the final event of the day.
Starlight stood between the two beds, looking left and then right, appearing quite conflicted.
"What's there to hesitate about? Senpai, you should sleep on my side~"
After making space, Seiun Sky smiled and patted the spot beside her.
Nodding, Starlight also felt it was fine, since she had slept beside her many times before.
But just as she turned to walk over, her hand was caught by Nishino Flower.
"Starlight-chan, I think you should sleep with me. Since Sky-chan is injured, it wouldn't be good if you accidentally bumped her wound. Besides, we are both fillies..."
"That's true, Flower-chan is very thoughtful. Then I'll stay with you~"
"Eh? Starlight-chan..."
"Now, Sky-chan, just focus on recovering. I accidentally touched that scrape on your face this afternoon, if I'm not careful while fast asleep and hit a more serious injury, wouldn't that be a disaster?"
With that, Starlight and Nishino Flower snuggled into one duvet.
As the dormitory lights dimmed, Seiun Sky was left as a lonely silhouette sitting on her bed.
Her hand, raised to stop them, hadn't even dropped yet. She could faintly see the figures of the two little ones on the opposite bed.
Slowly lowering her hand, Seiun Sky lay down, two streaks of silent tears falling.
'Who in all of Tracen is this unfortunate? So close, yet so far...'