Anima sits stiffly on Theyni’s bed, unsure of what to do with herself. Theyni herself sits comfortably, already dressed for bed in an oversized shirt. The curtains are open, letting in the moonlight, keeping the room bright enough to see. Theyni says nothing, instead just watching Anima. After a while, Anima begins to talk.

  “Theyni, can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure. That’s what we’re here for, isn’t it?”

  “Why are you a maid?” Though difficult to see in the dark, Theyni begins to turn a little red.

  “Well, there’s not really a reason, so…” Theyni snaps around as she tries to move on to another topic. “Anyway! You came here with Sion, right? I saw Regn outside in the yard. Did you two come by yourselves?”

  “We did…” Anima trails off, realizing where Theyni is driving the conversation.

  “So it seems you’re making good progress!”

  “No… it isn’t progress at all…” Anima seems much more depressed than Theyni has expected, leading her to try her hardest to stay cheerful.

  “W-well!” Theyni’s voice falters, unable to keep up her cheer very long. “Does that mean that you’re at least willing to say you really do have a crush on him?” Anima doesn’t respond. “Sorry. This was supposed to be fun. Did… something happen?”

  “No… it wasn’t anything…” Theyni gets irritated by Anima’s answer.

  “No! Something definitely happened! And it obviously matters to you! So it’s definitely something!” Anima acquiesces.

  “F-fine…” Anima takes a moment to collect her thoughts. “Scima told me to go with Sion, so I did. And it’s not like I minded, but then he told me that he was actually doing something important, and that he was going to Ecg to see a girl. But I asked him to walk around the city together anyway, and he said yes. But then he decided to help somebody, and we lost the whole day. Then he bought a present from me at my dad’s store and left to see that girl.” Theyni seems even more frustrated after hearing Anima’s story.

  “We should kill Sion!”

  “Eh?!”

  “What?!”

  “Violence is wrong! I don’t want to hurt Sion…”

  “He deserves it!”

  “He already apologized.”

  “Even if he apologized, even if he had a good reason for it, he deserves it! He shouldn’t have done that! He hurt you, so he deserves it! And, y’know, when I went down, I was really looking for Sion, but he wasn’t even there! You were waiting for him with nothing to do! Even though you’re with him, he’s rushing around like you’re not even here! So he deserves it!”

  “It’s really fine, Theyni…”

  “It’s not fine. Obviously I know that Sion didn’t want to hurt you, and obviously I know that Sion didn’t go back on his word for no reason. Obviously I know that he’s not that kind of guy. But he’s stupid. And too hard to understand. If you don’t make it clear that this matters, who knows if he’ll ever figure it out.”

  “Maybe you’re right. What should I do?” Theyni ponders the issue for a moment.

  “I have no idea!”

  “Then… what should we do now?” Theyni ponders the issue for a moment.

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  “I don’t know. Is there anything else you want to talk about? Ah! Actually, do you need something to sleep in? I have plenty of things you could borrow.”

  Before waiting for a response, Theyni stands up and goes to a closet. She pulls something out and hands a nightgown to Anima. She then walks over and unfolds a plain partition, then returns to her bed. Anima walks behind the partition and puts on the nightgown. She walks out, bashful. The sleeveless nightgown is lavender, ends below the hips, and is light and thin.

  “D-don’t you think this is too short?” Theyni ponders the issue for a moment.

  “It’s fine, isn’t it? It’s just for sleeping, after all.” Theyni has a sudden idea. “I thought of something we could do.” Anima sits back on the bed.

  “What is it?”

  “We should go find Sion, and then you can show off to him.” Anima blushes.

  “No.”

  “Aw, why not?”

  “It’s just for sleeping.” Theyni giggles.

  “Well, that should be your new plan for Sion anyway.”

  “What should?”

  “Making Sion look your way. Just make it so that he’d never want to be with another girl again.”

  “I… I’ll try my best.” Anima lets herself fall back onto the bed. “Theyni, why are you so interested in this?” Theyni pulls herself closer to Anima.

  “Well, at first, I just thought it would be fun to poke at you. But it was also that Sion is my friend, so I want good things to happen to him. And now, you’re my friend too. So I want good things for you too. So, from now on, I’ll be cheering you on!”

  “Thank you. Is there a reason you care so much about love though?”

  “Not really. I just thought it would be fun to talk about with my friends. So I’m happy I finally could.” Anima smiles.

  “Me too. I feel a lot better now, and it’s all because of you. It really is nice to be able to talk about something so normal for once.”

  “That’s true. You’re around Lady Eva, who only cares about the kingdom, Sion, and that warmonger. It must be fun being around them.”

  “It is. But there’s always too much happening around them. And my other friend is such a genius that it feels like she lives in a whole other world.”

  “Yeah. Even something as ordinary as this has been so much fun, so I wish they were all able to slow down a little for once. I could never do this with Lady Eva, and especially not with Scima, and I don’t have anyone else our age around, y’know.”

  “I get it. So, then… Theyni… do you have somebody you like?” Theyni rolls over so that her back faces Anima.

  “Not really, not in particular, no. This love talk was supposed to be more one-sided, y’know?”

  “Um, is it Scima?” Theyni shudders and curls herself up slightly.

  “No way. How did you figure it out?”

  “Well, it felt like there was somebody, and I couldn’t imagine it being anyone else. And you were the one who came all the way to Messis to tell Sion to help him.” Theyni seems almost distraught.

  “Was it really that obvious?”

  “No, I never would have realized if I weren’t thinking about it. So if you’re trying to keep it a secret I’m sure that Scima doesn’t know.”

  “That’s good…” Anima hadn’t expected Theyni to end up like this.

  “Um, I-I’m rooting for you too.”

  “No need… I already know that Scima won’t ever see me like that… He’s in love with somebody else… I just don’t know how to give up.”

  “Is Scima in love with Eva?”

  “Gah! Don’t tell him I told you. And don’t tell Lady Eva. And stop talking about it!”

  “Sorry, but it doesn’t feel right to let you stay like this after you helped me. So… um, is he the reason you decided to become a maid?”

  “Even that!” Anima watches Theyni deflate into her bed.

  “That’s a testament to how much you want to be close to him, even if you won’t be honest about it. So you really can’t give up on him. And you’ll never get anything by giving up. So if you won’t give up anyway, what’s the point in acting like you have. In the end, it’s the same thing you told me. If you aren’t giving up, then why not try to make him only want to be with you?” Theyni brightens up, then sits up and turns around. Anima sits up to match her. Theyni clasps her hands around Anima’s.

  “You’re right. Thank you, Anima. From now on, it’s time to make bold moves. It’s a secret alliance, between you and me.” Anima doesn’t understand completely, but understands that Theyni has started to feel better again.

  “Sure.”

  “Well then, let’s talk strategy!”