The school was sued.
And shortly afterwards Shelby could see the construction workers replacing the old rail from the window of her classroom.
Two weeks flew by and Hina Inoue never returned to school.
"Hey, did you hear?"
Shelby heard her classmates talking about it.
"Someone got withdrawn from the school!"
"!"
Shelby didn't have any friends in her class, but she didn't mind. Cause there would always be a Hinoue next door. Having one friend even if they weren't around always became bearable because of this.
Shelby rushed into class 2A only to find a startled classroom. A dozen faces stared back at her but none of them were familiar.
"No way..." Her knees sank to the floor.
Shelby scaled the school fence and ran. As she raced uphill, she slowed to a stop once in front of the golden moon-shaped gate.
She was here, but now what? She had only ever met Hina Inoue's Grandmother once. She looked good for age but the sharp and critical gaze that assessed her before dismissively looking away stuck with her.
Recalling all the stories, she heard from Hinoue, she decided to walk around the fence and listen.
"A pilgrimage?"
"That's right. Your Grandmother needs a second person to help her open the gate."
"So that's why..."
Using the trash can as a foothold she climbed to see that person and Hina Inoue talking from before. She was no longer wearing her bandages and seemed perfectly fine standing on her feet.
"So today you're going to open the gate. Once your Grandmother will secure it to a fixed space later, then the two of you will be embarking on your journey back to your motherland."
What's this gate they keep talking about? Motherland? It's true, Hina Inoue and her Grandmother had unusual violet grey eyes so everyone always figured she was some kind of foreigner.
She was withdrawn because of a pilgrimage? Her Grandmother really was as religious as Hina Inoue had always described! When would she return?!
Shelby was feeling more curious than sad. She wanted to go too. She wanted to know more about Hina's heritage. They knew each other from being in the same gymnastics club but even before then it was obvious from how good she was that she was doing other stuff at home. From the moment Shelby met her she could just tell something was different about her.
"Okay." Hina Inoue made weird gestures with her hands, were it anyone else it would have looked incredibly awkward but with her graceful moves, it looked more like a dance.
Baptiste-san absent-mindedly tapped at his drum and casually spoke.
"Tomorrow the two of you will embark on your pilgrimage together."
"Aren't you coming?"
"Nah, I already went with your Dad when we were your age. I've already seen everything I've wanted to see, besides I'm pretty hated there."
"Hated?" her movements slowed.
"We got caught up in a war and things got really out of hand. If those people try to sweet talk you into helping them don't listen! Though I'm sure that won't happen with Beni at your side."
As she danced, Hina Inoue simpered. "Father was a hopelessly kind person. I could already imagine how torn he must've been on helping everyone."
"Right? He drove me insane. He didn't see those people were trying to take advantage of his power as a Daidouji descendant and use him to scare other nations."
The conversation was slightly interesting, although she didn't quite get it. War? Daidouji descendant? Is her family that big of a deal?
Shelby could easily imagine Hina Inoue as a princess. When she stopped fantasizing it, she heard the latter half of the conversation.
"In the end, he created a holy land. Only the King and his descendants have control over it."
Holy land?
"Holy land?" Hina Inoue also seemed confused at the term.
Shelby grinned. They're on the same page!
As Hina Inoue continued to dance something in front of her began to appear. Shelby didn't notice until a purple glowing thing the size of a fist began to grow wider and wider by the second until it was the size of their front gate.
"I did it!"
"Never doubted you for a second!"
Hina Inoue beamed and did an excited twirl to look at her textbook.
"What comes next again?"
"Finding the coordinates of your Motherland, you can do that with Beni-san once she returns. For now, let's replenish your energy with some food."
"Yay!"
"What do you want to eat?"
"That spiced bun and cheese you brought the other day was delicious!"
"Really? I baked it myself."
"*gasp* Can you teach me?"
"Some other time maybe...I can give you the recipe for starters."
The second the two drifted off, Shelby scaled the fence, the drop was taller than she anticipated, she somersaulted, her body nearly colliding into the floor as she landed on all fours.
That was scary! As she calmed her beating heart she craned her neck at the glowing, pulsing moon-shaped thing left open in the corner of the back courtyard.
She didn't know what was more mind-boggling, Hina Inoue being able to use magic and never telling her or Hina Inoue going somewhere far away for a long time and never telling her either way, she was upset.
She got withdrawn from school but Hinoue didn't give her a heads up at all. Were they really friends?
They were much closer in middle school, she could understand never expecting to see her again in high school, plus they were always in different classes but... they were still friends. Right? Right?
She deserves to be clued in on things like this!
As she inspected the glowing portal, she felt a heated gaze on her back.
"Who are you?"
Shelby felt a chill and turned around to see Hina Inoue's Grandmother pointing her walking stick at her.
"I said, who are you? What are you doing here?!"
The pressure Shelby felt at that moment was hard to describe. It was hard to breathe, she felt if she didn't choose her words carefully she might get hurt, even though she was standing a good few inches away...
"I-I'm." As Shelby inched backward in fear she slipped over something on the ground. A chunky piece of chalk, Hina Inoue had used earlier.
"!"
"Shelby?" Mr. Baptiste and Hina Inoue had emerged from inside right in that moment. Hina Inoue lunged she flicked her wrist and the beaded bracelet adorning her wrist slipped onto Shelby's.
"???"
The last thing Shelby remembered was Hina's Grandmother harshly scolding her.
"Isn't that uniform from your school?! Have you been bringing your friends here?!"
"Eh?"
"My God, child what have you done?!"
A fear lingered in her mind, it wasn't of her impending fate but the fact she possibly got Hina Inoue in trouble.