"The holidays are over" … This is a very sad sentence, isn't it? Although being reunited with friends and classmates after a long period of time off is not so bad either.
That's what Rina seems to think this morning too. After a hectic breakfast, she is on her way to school for the first time in over a month and a half. She still seems half asleep, let's hope for her sake that she won't be late for Kumiai's entrance ceremony.
"These cookies were delicious, Mummy outdid herself once again. I'll have to practice more if I want to learn how to make them like this."
Rina walks nonchalantly in the small quiet streets of her neighborhood, she goes to the docks to take the shuttle that leads to Kumiai.
"I hope I didn't forget anything…anyway I'm already too far gone to go back. I can't wait to get back to Aya and Sophie."
Even as she is thinking about her two friends, Rina sees a familiar figure in the distance.
"Is it… oh oh, I'd know that hair and walk anywhere.… HEY SOPHIE !!!"
At least the neighbors who were still sleeping are awake now. In her excitement, Rina hurried to catch up with her friend.
"I knew it, even from a distance I would still be able to recognize you Sophie, ahaha"
The young girl turns around with a magnificent half-turn on the spot of a rare elegance, it is as if time stops around her. This Sophie is a real princess or I don't know… You don't forget that I'm a storyteller at heart… right?
"Good Morning Rina, I'm glad to see you but you really need to learn to keep your voice down, people will end up complaining."
Even though they live in the same neighborhood, they were unable to see each other during the holidays, as Sophie was travelling with family in Europe.
"You came home yesterday, right?"
"Yes, we managed to get back in time for the start of the school year."
"How so?"
"Well there was a terrifying storm at Helsinki airport in Finland, all flights were suspended until further notice, the winds were too strong for the planes to take off."
"Oh yeah I think my mummy told me about it, we have family there too, it was scary on the videos."
"Shuu-chan offered to clear the storm from the area so we could get back in time, luckily he was there otherwise I might have missed the first week of school."
STOP !
It is important that I clarify something before we go further.
Sophie is a very special girl who has the rare ability to see and communicate with spirits and supernatural beings.
"Shuu-chan" is a particularly strong spirit that always accompanies Sophie.
She has already told her secret to Rina, Aya and her parents but we will see later the details of this whole story.
LET'S GO BACK!
"That's the little gecko right? Is he still with you?"
"Yes, he is napping on my shoulder, if you put your hand on it you will feel a great warmth."
"AH that's right! It feels like I have my hand buried in hot sand."
"Lynn and Mister Avery are here too."
"The little fairy and the rabbit?"
"Yes but I lost sight of them a few minutes ago, they must have gone off to have fun."
…
A little further behind the girls, rabbit ears protrude from a bush and a fairy hides behind an electric pole.
"Tell me dearest Lynn, if I am not mistaken it is Lady Rina?" *Finn*
"Don't call me dearest Lynn, it makes me nauseous… but to answer you, yes it is Rina; I'm surprised you've forgotten a lady's face and name, Finn." *Lynn*
"I haven't forgotten her, of course, how could I? A young girl as pure and charming as her… I wonder what colour her panties are…" *Finn*
"There you go again, back to that kind of nonsense… how can you call yourself a gentleman with that kind of mentality?" *Lynn*
While Finn and Lynn argue about what is the gentleman's way, Sophie and Rina quietly continue their way. They seem to have finally reached the coast, the quay is not very far.
"I'm so jealous, your holidays to Europe must have been super cool."
"Yes I had a lot of fun, I was able to see old friends in France and Germany, I even went back to the wood in Scotland where I met Lynn".
"It must be at least ten years since I went to Europe with my parents. Now that they have opened a spa on Kumiai, they don't have time for them anymore."
"Look Rina, we're getting to the shuttle… oh? But wouldn't that be…"
She doesn't even have time to finish her sentence when Rina jumps up and shouts
"HEY ! AYA!"
Sophie, surprised and embarrassed by this sudden shout, takes Rina by the arm.
"Rina, don't shout like that, everyone is looking at us strangely"
In the distance, a person answers Rina's call and waves.
A beautiful young girl with black hair and tanned skin seems to wait patiently for her friends to come.
"As usual, you're pretty damn loud Rina. It's been a while, how are you two doing?"
"Good Morning Aya, I'm glad to see you again."
"Ayaaa, you've hardly been heard from in the last two weeks, I thought you'd been swept out to sea…"
"Ahaha, don't worry about me, I'm the one taming the sea and not the other way around. I'm glad to see you again too. I just got back from my trip to Hawaii."
"Eh? Were you on a trip too?"
"Sorry I didn't keep you in the loop. I just wanted to go see my brother and enjoy the beach but he wasn't even there, and he still dared to let me finish a job he started…"
While crying, Rina clings to Aya, imagining her drowning and being swept away by the ocean, while Sophie wonders about Aya's older brother's job.
"Did your big brother leave you work?"
"Yes, as you know he works for a company that develops marine sports equipment and right now they are creating surfboard prototypes."
"Yes I remember, you told us about it last year."
"Right, but when I got to his house, he had already left for Los Angeles on a business trip and left instructions for me to test some prototypes…"
"It's a shame you didn't get to enjoy your beloved big brother."
Red-faced, she replies fervently.
"He's not my beloved big brother... But in revenge I took good advantage of his apartment, I even participated in a mini surfing championship for under 18's, I finished second."
"Is that why you came home a week later than expected?"
"Yes, I didn't want to create problems for his colleagues on the spot so I tested all the prototype boards, I won second place with one of them by the way. I left the trophy at my brother's place with a note saying that if I had used my own board and not his prototype I could have finished first, ahaha"
Rina then stops crying and ends her melodrama and takes Sophie and Aya's hands.
"Well now that the reunion is done and Aya is safe, we can board."
An announcement is made that there are only five minutes left before the shuttle leaves. The girls then board the ship and use their student transportation cards to check in.
The three of them head to the front deck to enjoy the view and the fresh sea air. While reminiscing about their holidays memories, a new announcement sounds to announce the departure of the shuttle.
It's official, the holidays are over and it's time for Rina to start a new year on Kumiai.
…
A little further back.
"QUICK FINN! We're going to miss the ship, Sophie is already on it!" *Lynn*
"It's your fault, if you hadn't dared to sully my gentlemanly code of honour by denigrating my principles, we wouldn't have wasted so much time!" *Finn*
Lynn flapping her wings with all her might and Finn making the biggest leaps possible try to reach the ship before it leaves without them.
And like a cliché scene from an American action movie, Finn projects from the dock to leap onto the deck of the shuttle, does a beautiful roll and land perfectly on his two back legs before taking a break and coming out with a very cliché punchline too.
"I'm back Ladies… " *wink* *Finn*
*sigh*
"Was that really necessary as a staging?" *Lynn*
"The entrance to the stage and the class is something to be worked on, dear friend. I can't afford to lose face in front of my fans." *Finn*
"You do realize that no one can see you but me… and that kappa out of nowhere who looks at us strangely as if he finds us delicious…" *Lynn*
"Oh…" *Finn*
"Oh…" *Lynn*
…
Well, it's even less likely to be boring with all these people.