Aochi
Carrying the murmuring Ululu, I went inside the ship.
The Harvester, who had gone ahead, was nowhere to be seen.
I wondered where everyone else was, but for now, I just wanted to warm my freezing, rain-soaked body with a shower.
I went back to my room with Oomi, each of us returning to our own.Ululu stayed with me.
“Hey, don’t move around so much.”
I wondered if body soap would sting him. Worried, I applied just a little to Ululu’s red skin and rubbed it gently. Surprisingly, he seemed fine.
He blinked at me, looking back and forth between my face and the arm with soap on it.
“Looks like you’re okay.”
Relieved, I put a good amount on the sponge and gently scrubbed his shoulder.
“Urururururururu—”
Suddenly, Ululu shook all over and cried out. For a second I thought it was some kind of seizure, and I panicked. When I realized he was laughing, I relaxed—but now there was no stopping him.
In the cramped shower room, he flailed his arms and legs, thrashing about. So, he’s ticklish. d been told he’d just been born, but he’s nearly my size, which makes him a handful.
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“Urururu!”
This time, he burst into tears. Apparently, some soap had gotten into his eyes.
Busy little guy…
“Hey, stay still. I’ll rinse you off properly.”
By the time I’d somehow managed to wash both myself and Ululu, I was completely drained.
I lay down on the bed, feeling terribly sleepy.
Ululu was sitting neatly at my feet. I called him over and hugged him like a hot-water bottle. His eyes were already starting to droop.
“Let’s sleep for a bit.”
By the time I said it, Ululu’s charming eyes were already closed.
In my sleep, my Tufted Puffin appeared. A nostalgic, cold winter mountain. With stately grace, its sleek black wings shimmered as it alighted on a tree before me.
I felt an inexplicable joy and reached out my arm.
“You must not sleep.”
It spoke in a strange voice. Neither a man’s voice nor a woman’s—this was a bird’s voice. The fact that my fingers couldn’t quite reach only made the longing more unbearable, and I stretched my arm out even further.
“You must not sleep, middle child.”
“What do you mean by that—”
Desperate to reach the branch where the puffin perched, I began to climb the tree. Just a little further— Then, as if in a dream’s cliché, I slipped and fell from the tree just before I could reach it. It’s fine, this is just a dream, I thought… until a searing pain spread across my back. Was this… reality?
“Aochi-san! Wake up!”
Oomi’s voice. Then I realized—he’d slapped my back with all his strength.
“Nn…? Ah, what?”
“Don’t ‘what’ me. I was worried…”
Oomi’s eyes, glistening with tears, were beautiful. What’s with him? Overreacting.
Still half-dazed, I pushed myself up to sit. Outside the small window, it was pitch black. How long had I been dozing?
“What time is it? Huh? Where’s Ululu?”
“It’s six-thirty. Ululu’s been up for a while—he’s with Silent-chan. Aochi-san, you mustn’t fall asleep.”
Was that voice in my dream just now his? I was too confused to tell. Then again, that’s not unusual right after waking.
“Why can’t I sleep? I was tired, so what’s wrong with a short nap?”
Better that than yawning at the decisive moment tomorrow morning. Why was he so wound up?
“If you fall asleep on this ship, you’ll die. That’s the rule. At least until tomorrow morning, please stay awake.”