THIRTY-SEVEN
She ditched class.
They're going to notice pretty soon, but she doesn't have the energy to return to class and concentrate and tolerate the presence of others. She just wants some peace and quiet.
To think.
About her future. It's a sudden change. Something of a bizarre thought.
Here, by the koi pond, watching the fish drift, she can think.
About adoption.
They want to adopt her. Mrs. Maria and Mrs. Tsubasa want to adopt her—she already knows that. In fact, she's more or less made up her mind about what she wants.
Thinking about anything else is… well, kind of pointless, because it's not like she knows anything about how her future home will look like, or what a typical day in her new life will be like, or even whether she'll be home-schooled again or sent to a private or public school. There's a whole bunch of unknowns in the equation and she has so little information; in fact, all she has is her hope that everything will turn out alright.
But, anyway, she's done enough thinking about that. She's ditched class—which isn't something she does at all—so she might as well enjoy herself, right?
…
What do kids usually do when they've ditched?
She looks to the koi fish, but they don't tell her anything. Mr. Ren's Zen garden tells her even less. All she has with her is her backpack, but that only has her textbooks and notebooks; she planned on doing homework over the recess and lunch, so she doesn't have The Vile Village to keep her company.
Great.
Dipping a few fingers into the cool water of the pond, she wonders what she should do with her temporary freedom.
Her mind is totally blank.
She really has no idea what she can do.
She takes out her handkerchief to dry her hand, but the quarter she found a few days ago tumbles out, plopping straight into the water.
By the time she reaches out for it, the quarter's already sunk to the bottom of the bond; since the water is pretty clear, she can see it winking at her, reflecting the light of the sun. Well… now she has something to do….
She can hold her breath for about thirty-seven seconds, and that should be enough time to get her coin back, right?
Okay, then. Shoes and socks off, and… should she take off her shorts? Her shirt?
Eh, it's fine. They don't weigh much, and the pond isn't deep at all. She'll just sneak in the back door to change her clothes later.
Taking a deep breath, she inches her toes over the edge of the pond. The smooth stones ringing it are cool, and then the water is cool, too, but it's nothing she can't take.
Until she sits down on the stones and immerses her legs all the way up to her knees. Gasping at the cold of the water, she pauses. Does she really have to go after it? It's not like the coin is anything special to her.
But, she likes to think that she's not the type to give up, so she pushes forward; pretty soon, her entire body is underwater, though if she stretches on her tiptoes, her eyes can just barely clear the water.
A few more inches and she could actually breathe, but whatever.
Quickly, to get out of the freezing pond, she scoops up her quarter. The koi fish are grouped together on the other side of the pond; they're probably afraid of the intruder in their pond.
She heaves in a great breath when she launches herself out of the pond. Woo, she made it!
Grinning, she flops down on the grass to revel in her little adventure before she goes inside to change her clothes—which she will do very soon, because somehow she's even colder out of the water than she was in the water.
(Later, the matron demands to know who tracked water and mud all over the backdoor. She pretends to be very interested in her mashed potatoes.)
a/n: So, guess who wanted to write more Elfnein but had no idea what to write? That's right, me. There'll be a Tsubasa chapter coming up later today, though, so we'll get more TsubaMari.
Psst. Also. I sometimes write original vignette-like things. I guess I'd be willing to take on a few prompts for Symphogear, Madoka Magica, and RWBY, too. Find me at teddy-tries-writing dot tumblr dot com. FYI though, it updates really sporadically.
BUT WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT is that you please review and recommend this fic to your friends if you really like it ^_^