"Tabitha! Stop it!" Kirche said.
" . . . Why? Do you still believe she'll be found?" Tabitha said in a mellow voice (as usual).
"She'll be back! We'll find her!" Kirche insisted, her eyes were turning red, and watery, small circles of smoke were surrounding her.
"She's lost for almost a year, Kirche . . ."
With Tabitha's words, Saito felt his energy continuously being drained from the inside; he can't talk back anymore. To think of it in reality, Louise might really not be coming back. His mind was urging him to give up, but his heart was fervent in finding the girl he fell in love with. He looked down to see his condition, pathetic, he thought. His whole body was almost wrapped with bandages and gauze, and this also discouraged him. He was badly injured in searching for Louise; he climbed steep mountains, battled all kinds of golems and familiars, and defeated his hopeless self. He felt tingly all over, trying to hide his loneliness and stopping his tears.
Where are you Louise?
. . . .
The year before…
It was a bright sunny day, they were on a beach for vacation, and it was at the side of Mt. Luchiverre. The palm trees were swaying benevolently with the warm wind, the sand were bread white, and the best part, to see those friends in Tristain Academy having fun, especially if Louise would make an unexpected explosion again.
"You stupid servant! Idiot, idiot, idiot! I will let you eat sand for lunch if you keep on looking at Tiffa's bazoongas! You stupid, stupid, stupid!"
Here comes the pink-haired star of the show chasing around her perverted servant, Saito Hiraga. Tiffa came with them, as insisted by the old man Osmond, which displeased Zero Louise drastically. Probably because she doesn't have boobs with the size of heads, she has a nice, fresh, flat board.
"Damn it! Not you too, Riesher!"
(Okay, that was just for fun, forget who Riesher is )
Louise wore pink swimsuit with truffles on it (to hide her flatness), and white short skirt, she tied her shiny bright pink hair into ponytail; it truly matched her hair and soft pinkish skin.
"Now, now, guys, please settle down and have lunch," Siesta called out to them for lunch. When Saito turned around, he caught a glimpse at Siesta, she blushed really hard when he saw her, and so is he.
Siesta wore an aquamarine bikini that fitted perfectly to her slender body and shapely breasts. Louise looked pissed in seeing him looking at Siesta, so here she gone again, raised her wand, "Idiot. Idiot. Idiot!" she shouted. And then there was a BOOM.
Saito was burnt and knocked down under ground.
"My, my, Louise, you're too harsh!" Kirche scolded. And hugged Saito tightly, helping him to get up, Louise trembled in anger and went away with a 'hmph!'
"Tabitha! We should get lunch!" she called out for Tabitha who was under a shade of a tree, practicing spells alone.
"Yes . . . I'm coming" she answered; she got up, picked up her things and went closer to them. A faint force somewhat stopped her feet from walking, sand gathered up on her feet, burying it, she pulled his feet away, her face looked suspicious.
"Wha-"
"Tabitha! We can't wait any longer!" shouted Kirche.
Tabitha looked at her feet again, shaking it to remove dust. Strange, she thought.
"I-I cooked lunch for everyone, so if you want . . ."
They all went under a hut to have their lunch; everyone put on their shirts hurriedly and prepared to eat.
"ALRIGHT!" shouted Saito who was already munching on the fried chicken Siesta presented. "It's delicious Siesta!"
Louise pouted while holding her bowl of food, her face turned into Godzilla again, and then there was a sound of fist hitting bones. Crack.
"Who said you can eat without my permission?"
Tabitha was only staring at her food, the thing about earlier kept bugging her.
I know something weird happened, she thought.
The problem is, she doesn't remember anything.
I see sand, in my memory, there is sand, earlier, sand . . .
"Do you not like it, Ms. Tabitha?" Siesta asked. "Then should I give you just desserts, then?"
"I'm fine . . ."
In the afternoon, they continued to have fun under the sun. Montmorency stayed behind, saying she's worried about her complexion, but the truth is, she was spying on Guiche's actions.
Siesta only watched them from afar, smiling by time to time as she sees Saito laughing at certain events. Tiffa was fast asleep, she was too tired.
It was already evening when they decided to stop; Guiche brought fireworks for them to light on and Siesta had again prepared Grilled sea foods and Roasted turkey for their dinner. Louise quickly changed unto her night dress, leaving her hair flowing behind her back and her legs shown off (made all efforts for Saito), her breasts seemed bigger this time.
"Hey, aren't those breast pads?" Saito asked.
Louise turned all red.
"You baka . . . Take this!" another loud explosion stronger than the fireworks they brought.
You can't handle the truth! He thought.
They all went to the seashore to light up their fireworks. Siesta came too and so is Tiffa who was childishly enjoying the colorful sparklers lighting up the night. Kirche threw fire upwards and exploded into pictures. Tabitha watched it too, with that same emotionless face.
She looked side by side, like searching for someone. "Light of Illumination," she chanted, and her staff lit up like fluorescent, she waved her staff. After few minutes, it caught everyone's attention.
Tabitha flickered her staff and turned unto them, her cape flowing with the cool wind that passed by, she raised her face that was covered with her hat.
She opened her mouth to speak.
"Where is Louise?"