Oliver sat on the bench for a while, not sure what he should do. He watched people going past, but eventually he became bored and got up. When he asked someone what the time was, he learned it was noon.
Oliver aimlessly chose a path that took him behind the huge building. The sun was shaded by the leafy trees that arched overhead, making a dappled pattern on the ground. He was surprised that such a quiet, green place was inside the city. Was it a park?
Something flew at Oliver suddenly. He caught it before it hit him in the head. It was a red rubber ball. He looked around, trying to see where it had come from. A little girl ran out from the trees, a guilty expression on her face and leaves all over her skirt. Oliver bounced the ball to her. She caught it.
"Thanks!" she said. "Um, I wasn't trying to hit you. Sorry."
"What were you aiming at?" asked Oliver, scanning the area behind him.
"My classmate, Ryuto," the girl pouted. "He always messes with me! He threw my ball over there." She glared at the bushes and trees behind Oliver, which looked pretty funny with her childish face. "I can see you, you know, Ryuto!"
Oliver walked over to the clump of plants and peered into it. He couldn't see anything.
"Roar!" A giant green lizard exploded from the bush, shedding twigs and leaves like water.
"Ah!" Oliver jumped backward. The little girl stomped up to the bush.
"Stop doing that, Ryuto!" she said to the lizard, and pulled off its head.
"Aw," said the boy wearing a lizard costume. "I was trying to scare you, Yuki."
"It doesn't work when you've done it ten times before." Yuki passed Ryuto the lizard head. "Look, you've scared this guy over here." She pointed at Oliver, who felt as if his heart had stopped working for a second. Ryuto waved to him.
"Are you a Vocaloid?" Ryuto asked. "I think I saw you in a magazine before. We're Vocaloids too." Oliver nodded. He hadn't known that he was in a magazine.
"Stop reading my magazines!" Yuki told Ryuto. "You put them all over the place. And you cut up the backs."
"I was looking for the ads!" Ryuto protested. "Sometimes they have stuff for dinosaurs."
"Uh, which magazine is this?" Oliver asked. Ryuto turned slightly red.
Yuki answered. "Fluffy Kawaii 39," she said, looking hard at Ryuto. "Sometimes they have articles about new Vocaloids."
"Really?" Oliver said politely. He made a mental note to ask someone back home how he'd gotten in a magazine over here.
"A-anyway, since you're a Vocaloid, you could visit our school!" Ryuto proposed, climbing out of the bushes.
"Oh yeah!" Yuki's face lit up. "Our school's just over there! Please come!"
"Wait, what time is it?" Ryuto turned to Yuki.
"Why are you asking me?"
"It's a bit past noon," Oliver remembered.
"Oh," Ryuto said. "Then we're in the middle of lunch." Both children turned towards the direction of the path, towing Oliver with them.
At the end of the leafy path was a medium-sized stone building. It was in a round clearing surrounded by trees.
"We are still in the city, right?" Oliver asked.
"Mm-hm," Yuki answered. "But our school has to be close to where we record songs, and our teacher said that they didn't want us to be chased by people, 'cause tourists visit the city a lot."
"That makes sense," Oliver recalled the screaming mob that was possibly still chasing the Kagamines. Ryuto ran up and opened the door, which was slightly ajar. A couple water balloons fell and splashed on the ground. Yuki glared at Ryuto.
"Wow, I wonder who put those there!" Ryuto laughed nervously. Yuki made an annoyed noise and pushed past him. Oliver entered behind them.
