With Mina just learning to telepathy, she decided to continue using telepathy for communication with me. She's really eager to mastering telepathy, it seems. It's pretty convenient, so I definitely understand her eagerness.
(Mimin, I just want to say, I'm really happy that you're willing to be my friend, so... Thank you!)
(Don't say it like that, I'm happy to be your friend too, Mina!)
It's been about an hour past lunch, and we're still inside our room. Her telepathy is becoming clearer and easier to understand as she practices, but that's not all! Her speech is becoming more fluent as well, with less pauses in her sentences. Is this because she's starting to get comfortable with talking to me?
Mina's cat ears are pointing forward at me, and her tail is pointing up. Now that I think about this... I remember that cats point their ears forward, and their tail up, when they're happy. Mina is somehow behaving like a normal cat, in that case. That's really cute!
Suddenly, the door slams open and Daius appears, entering the room and interrupting my thoughts on Mina's cat-like behaviour.
"Oh, Mimin, there you are! Selena was looking for you!"
Huh? Selena? Why is she only looking for me now?
"Is something the matter, Daius?"
"Ah, not really? Selena simply said that she's looking for you, and told me to bring you downstairs."
Selena... That woman is behaving kind of weirdly, and I don't like her. She knows about my name, even before I introduced myself. She looks like the kind of person who knows too many things, and should be avoided as much as possible. I don't want to talk to her if that's the case.
"Can I come along, too?"
Oh, right. If I leave, then Mina is going to be left alone for a while, isn't she?
"That's... I'm not sure. Selena didn't say to bring you along..."
"...That's fine. Go ahead, Mimin. I'll be waiting for you, here."
Mina says that, but her ears and tail lowered, and she turns away her face slightly, not looking at me or Daius anymore.
"Eh? But I can't leave you here alone, Mina! Please, let Mina tag along!"
I'm not exactly sure, but Mina seems to be feeling down all of a sudden. I should try to convince Daius to let Mina accompany me.
"Well... If Selena doesn't say anything, then sure! Mina can come along as well! It's better than waiting here alone, at least."
"Alright! Let's go, Mina!"
I follow behind Daius, while gently holding Mina's hand as she follows me. Although I managed to let Mina accompany me, she still seems to be feeling down, for some reason. I don't understand why...
(Is it really fine?)
(Eh? What's wrong?)
(I mean... Is it fine for me to join you? It's probably something important... Like, a discussion about you staying here in the orphanage?)
(Well, I never thought about that being the case. Still! You shouldn't stay alone in the room to wait for me! It's better if you come along as well!)
(But if it's something important about you... I shouldn't be intruding, right? It's better for me to stay out of that...)
Mina, this is... I think I'm starting to understand why Mina has difficulties socializing with other children now.
(Mina, that's completely unrelated! We're friends now, aren't we?)
(Eh? I mean... Yes?)
(If that's the case, we should stay together, shouldn't we? If we're friends, we should be doing things together, instead of staying seperated! It doesn't matter if it's an important discussion about me, you have the right to join in as well!
What's important to me is also important to you, and what's important to you is also important to me! So, you should stop saying things like how you shouldn't be involved with me! We should help each other and support each other as best as we can instead! Isn't that right?)
As if she finally found the answer after searching for a long time, Mina's ears and tail rises up again, and her eyes start to widen. Then, she starts beaming, as a few drops of tears drip off her eyes, and fades into the air.
(You're right! Thanks, Mimin!)
With Mina cheering up, we walked down the flight of stairs, holding hands and walking side by side, following behind Daius who doesn't seem to notice anything.