Night had fallen.
Inside the inn, Fujiwara Shirayuki sat in a chair drinking a cold beverage after finishing her bath in the hot spring.
She had really enjoyed herself today. Unlike Fujiwara Chiya, who had been dragged miserably to the director's office, she had spent the day with Special Week and Silence Suzuka hiking through the woods around the inn and picking flowers. Whenever they got hungry, they returned to the inn for the buffet, and at night they could shower and soak in the hot spring.
The inn was not expensive. A stay only cost a few thousand yen a day, something students could afford, and the food was plentiful. Besides them, plenty of other Uma Musume seemed to like coming here as well.
The only downside was that the location was a bit remote, and the food itself was only so-so. Some of it was honestly worse than what she could make herself. Still, with the price being so good, those hardly counted as flaws.
Shirayuki took a long, satisfying drink of the iced beverage. Outside, Special Week had also finished bathing. Wrapped in a towel and drying her wet hair, she walked into the room with a relaxed, cheerful expression.
"So nice~" she sighed in a soft, lazy voice. "Ah, a drink! Shirayuki, I want some too."
"I left half for you."
"Thanks."
She took the bottle without the slightest concern for the bit of saliva Shirayuki had left on the rim and happily drank from it.
"Where's Suzuka-senpai?"
"She's still in there. She'll be out soon."
As soon as the words left her mouth, a slender figure opened the door leading from the outdoor bath.
With chestnut hair reaching her waist, blue-green eyes like gemstones, and a quiet, gentle air about her, the girl stepped into the room.
She was Special Week's senpai and roommate, Silence Suzuka.
"Special Week, Shirayuki-san… you two left so quickly," Silence Suzuka said.
She had wanted to soak a little longer, but Shirayuki had suddenly said, "I'm hungry," and run out, with Special Week hurrying after her right away. In the end, to keep her two juniors company, Silence Suzuka had no choice but to leave the warm spring water and head for the battlefield herself.
"Food comes first, Suzuka-senpai," Shirayuki said with a smile.
This was the first time she had spoken with Silence Suzuka up close. She had heard Suzuka's name before and had seen her astonishing running style. There was something about that perfect posture of hers that made her seem difficult to approach, as though she never got close to anyone.
But after chatting with her a little through Special Week's introduction, Fujiwara Shirayuki found that Suzuka was actually a wonderful person. Her speech and behavior were refined and graceful, and from the inside out she carried the charm of a mature woman.
By pure coincidence, that happened to be exactly the kind of feeling Shirayuki liked.
After dinner, the three of them returned to their room. Since tomorrow was still part of the holiday, they had decided to stay the night.
Looking at the three futons spread neatly across the floor, Special Week immediately threw herself onto the one in the middle.
"So soft~" she said happily, rolling around on it.
Then, after finishing her rolling, she sat up and patted the spaces on both sides, her intention painfully obvious. She clearly wanted the full left-and-right embrace setup.
Since there was nothing to argue over, Shirayuki simply lay down beside her.
"Shirayuki." Special Week wriggled closer and took Shirayuki's hand. "Today was so much fun. We went to so many places and played with so many things together, just you, me, and Suzuka-senpai."
"Yeah."
"We should all go out together again sometime."
"Of course."
Special Week smiled and rested her head against Shirayuki's soft chest.
It was friendship without the slightest impurity, transparent and pure. Special Week had no strange thoughts at all. She simply wanted to cuddle with her friend.
Watching Special Week rub herself against her so openly, Shirayuki gently patted her head.
Whenever she came into contact with other people, Shirayuki would, more or less, end up having some rather unhealthy thoughts. But Special Week was the one exception. That innocent smile of hers felt as though it could heal her, cleanse her soul, and make her emotions perfectly clear.
Right now, she was simply happy to be spending time with such a precious friend.
"Shirayuki smells nice…" Special Week murmured softly as she sniffed the air.
"It's probably the yuzu scent. We just came out of the yuzu bath, after all."
"Yuzu? Maybe… what a shame. You can't eat the yuzu in there, right?"
"Can't you?"
"Probably not? Suzuka, do you know?"
Special Week looked over her shoulder at Silence Suzuka, who was still tidying the bedding.
"Yeah, I don't think you should eat them. They've probably been soaking in the bath for a long time, and they've definitely absorbed the hot spring water by now," Suzuka replied. "Though even if someone did eat one, it probably wouldn't cause any real problems. At least, I'm pretty sure Shirayuki-san's digestion could handle it."
After all, she had practically emptied half the buffet by herself tonight. The innkeeper was probably crying while restocking supplies.
"Then I'm turning off the lights, okay? Special Week, Shirayuki-san."
"I'm counting on you, Suzuka~"
Still half sprawled in Shirayuki's futon, Special Week answered in a lazy voice.
"Special Week, aren't you going back to your own bed?"
"It's warm here. I don't want to move."
"I see… then let it stay like this."
Shirayuki looked at the girl nestled against her chest like a child, happily talking about all the fun things they had done that day. Before the last sentence had even fully left her lips, Special Week had already drifted off to sleep.
Silence Suzuka quietly came over to the middle.
"Thank you, Shirayuki-san."
"Suzuka-senpai… what's this all of a sudden? Why are you thanking me?"
Clear moonlight streamed into the room and fell across Silence Suzuka's face. In that pale light, Fujiwara Shirayuki could see the gentle smile on her lips.
"Thank you for staying by Special Week's side," Suzuka said. "Have you heard much about her past?"
"What do you mean?"
Silence Suzuka reached out and gently stroked Special Week's hair.
"Special Week came from a very distant place, and in that place she was the only Uma Musume. Until she came to Tracen, she had never played with anyone her own age."
She spoke softly, telling Shirayuki about Special Week.
"Shirayuki-san was the first friend she made at school. On the day you met, she came running to me, all excited, and told me she had finally found another transfer student just like herself."
From that day on, Special Week's world had become much richer.
"Maybe she was always worried," Suzuka continued. "Ever since the day she transferred, she's been very uneasy. A new environment, meeting unfamiliar people, all those experiences made her nervous. Even when she's smiling, I know Special Week is actually afraid of her relationships with her classmates turning sour. She worries that one wrong thing she says might upset someone. But when she's with you, Shirayuki-san, it feels like she's found someone of the same kind. She doesn't have to be as careful with you as she is with everyone else."
Shirayuki listened seriously as Suzuka spoke, still holding the sleeping Special Week in her arms.
"Now that I know Shirayuki-san is such a good person, I feel relieved. Thank you for becoming Special Week's friend."
"No… if anything, I should be the one thanking her." Shirayuki lowered her eyes and looked at the girl sleeping defenselessly against her chest. "Because of her, I finally understood that I'm just an ordinary Uma Musume after all. I'm not that different from any other girl."
Silence Suzuka smiled softly and withdrew her hand.
"Good night, Shirayuki-san."
"Good night, Suzuka-senpai."
The three of them passed a calm, quiet, and utterly peaceful night together.