When I opened my eyes, Saraโs tail was right in front of me.
It seemed that while I was sleeping, I must have rolled over and ended up with my head and feet switched around.
โHmm?โ
I patted Saraโs tail and examined it.
โSo fluffy.โ
Saraโs tail was thick, stubby, and fluffy. It was mostly brown, with just the tip being black.
After enjoying the fluffiness of Saraโs tail to my heartโs content, I sat up.
As always, I grabbed Carro, who was standing upright against the headboard, and hugged her.
โGood morning, Carro. Did you sleep?โ
โKyuu~.โ
Carro said, โI slept well,โ but I was sure she hadnโt.
โCarro, you should sleep more.โ
I placed Carro on Saraโs belly. Even while asleep, Sara hugged Carro tightly.
โThere we go. And Da-uโฆโ
Da-u was sleeping on his back, as usual, near my feet.
โCarro should sleep as much as Da-u.โ
โKyuru.โ
โAnd Koruko, did you sleep properly too?โ
โKokoo.โ
The early riser Koruko seemed to have been standing by the window ledge, gazing outside.
I got out of bed and headed over to Koruko.
โDo you want to go outside?โ
When I opened the window, a breeze flowed into the room.
The spring morning wind felt cool, almost chilly.
โIt feels nice, doesnโt it?โ
โKo~.โ
The lake sparkled, reflecting the sunlight.
In front of the guardsโ quarters, the attendants were doing light exercises.
I was just thinking of doing some stretches myself whenโ
โHm?โ
I sensed something unusual in the forest.
โKoruko, are there more creatures in the forest than yesterday?โ
โKokoo~.โ
Koruko tilted his head.
โMaybe itโs just my imagination?โ
Yesterday, the forest around the villa felt less lively than the forest near the main residence. But today, it felt just as full of life.
โWell, itโs fine.โ
โKokoo!โ
More animals in the forest could only be a good thing. It wasnโt something to worry about.
โLetโs do some exercises.โ
โKokko!โ
As I started stretching, Sara, Da-u, and Carro woke up and joined me.
After that, a maid came to call us for breakfast, so I changed into my usual clothes and headed to the dining hall.
Sara put on her sisterโs clothes, and I wore my brotherโs.
Even during breakfast, Sara was still holding tightly to her wooden stick doll.
After we filled our stomachs with breakfast and cleaned up, we went with Mother to the study, which also served as a sitting room.
In the study, there were several beautiful boxes and envelopes that hadnโt been there yesterday.
โGraf, Gilberto, and Lydia sent gifts,โ Mother said.
โFrom Father, Brother, and Sister?โ
โThere are letters too.โ
โWow, Iโll start with the letters!โ
I picked up one of the envelopes.
โIt says, โTo Luria and Saraโ!โ
โFwaa~.โ
โIโll read it to you, okay?โ
I opened the envelope and began reading its contents aloud.
Not just Sara, but Da-u also peeked over at the letter.
โTo Luria and Sara: It must be a challenging time for you, but donโt worry.โ
Father had chosen simple words so even I could read them.
Throughout the letter, he kept reassuring us that there was no need to worry.
โIt also says, โSara is now our daughter, so itโs okay to rely on us.โโ
โYeah. Ehehehe.โ
Saraโs tail swished back and forth.
โNext, Iโll read Brother Gilbertoโs letter!โ
When I opened Brotherโs letter,
โHmm, hmm, hmm.โ
โDa-u, youโre too close.โ
Da-u leaned in so close that it made it hard to read.
โDa-u, sit behind Sara.โ
โWoof.โ
Da-u obediently sat behind Sara and me.
โAlright, Iโll read now.โ
โOkay.โ
โTo Luria: Your brother is lonely. Without you, this estate feels like the light has gone outโฆโ
It seemed Brother was feeling quite lonely.
He also wrote that he was sending us a picture book that he had planned to read to us.
โTo Sara: Iโm Gilberto, your new brother. I hope we can get along.โ
โYeah.โ
โMaybe Sara feels uneasy about suddenly having a bigger family.โ
Like Father, Brother also wrote repeatedly that there was no need to worry.
โAh, they also sent sweets.โ
โSweets. Ehehe.โ
โNext, Iโll read Sisterโs letter, okay?โ
After introducing herself, Sister was considerate and asked about our health and whether we were facing any inconveniences.
โIt says, โI want to meet Sara and Luria soon.'โ
โWow.โ
โOh, and it says sheโs sending toys too.โ
โToys?โ
โMaybe this? Sara, you can open it.โ
โReally?โ
โOf course.โ
Sara happily opened the box sent by Sister. Inside was a wooden figurine, small enough to fit snugly in her hand.
โWow! Luria, letโs play?โ
Saraโs eyes sparkled, and her tail wagged excitedly. She placed the wooden stick figure on the table and arranged the wooden figurines Sister had sent around it.
โAlright, letโs play.โ
Though I hadnโt played much with dolls before, seeing Sara so happy made me happy too.
โOh, but shouldnโt you write a thank-you letter first?โ
Mother, who had been working beside us, said with a smile.
โOh, right. Letโs write the letter before we play?โ
โOkay. But Sara canโt write, soโฆโ
โIโll write it, so Sara, think about what you want to say.โ
โGot it.โ
I asked Mother for paper and a pen. Sitting next to her, Sara and I began writing letters.
โBefore the thank-you letters, letโs write to Marion first.โ
โOkay!โ
Writing a letter to Marion, who was recovering from an illness, was more important than thank-you notes. Receiving a letter from Sara would surely cheer Marion up.
โSara, do you have anything you want to say?โ
โUmm, ummโฆโ
Sara hugged the wooden stick figure she had placed on the desk earlier and began thinking. While she thought, I wrote the opening lines.
โTo Marion, Sara is doing well. Luria and Mother are doing well too.โ
โAnd thenโฆ oh, right.โ
โIโm asking Sara what she wants to say to you, and Iโll write it down.โ
That should let Marion know whatโs going on.
After some thought, Sara began stroking the wooden stick figure and started speaking.
โUm, the bread was delicious.โ
โDid you eat more than usual?โ
โYeah! I ate a lot. The meat was delicious too, and I ate a lot of that too!โ
โHmm, hmm. โThe bread was delicious, and I ate a lot. The meat was alsoโฆ'โ
I wrote down what Sara said.
โAnd Luria wiped my mouth and spread jam on the bread.โ
โAlright, โLuria wiped my mouth and spread jam on the breadโฆ'โ
Sometimes, I adjusted the words to make sense in the letter. If I wrote it as Sara said, it would sound like I spread jam on Sara herself!
โIs that word โSaraโ?โ
โThis word is โbread.โ Sara is over here. Sa-ra. See?โ
โAh, I see. Sa-ra.โ
Occasionally, I explained the letters too.
โAnd then, and then, yesterday we took a bathโโ
Sara had a lot she wanted to tell Marion. She talked about everything she could think of, even if it wasnโt in order.
By the time Sara was satisfied, we had filled ten sheets of paper completely.
โPhew, that turned out to be a big task.โ
โThank you, Luria!โ
โDonโt worry about it. Oh, Iโll write my part too.โ
Finally, I added a note from myself.
โMarion, please get well soon. Sara is doing great. The bread is delicious, so letโs eat some together next time.โ
โOh, I almost forgot something important.โ
โYou donโt need to write a reply if itโs tiring. Weโll see you soon, so please donโt worry.โ
I didnโt want Marion to feel pressured to reply; I just wanted her to recover quickly.
โSince we finished Marionโs letter, next is the response to Father and the others.โ
โOkay.โ
โFor Father and the others, Iโll probably write a lot, huh?โ
Since Sara had never met Father or our siblings, she wouldnโt know what to write.
โFather, Luria is doing well. Sara and Mother are doing well too. Yesterday, weโฆโ
I wrote about how we all bathed together and how I slept with Sara.
โSara, is there anything youโd like to add?โ
โUmโฆ โPlease take care of meโ?โ
โAlright, Iโll add that.โ
As we finished writing the letters to Father and our siblings, a maid approached Mother with a troubled expression.
โMadam, someone has come requesting to meet youโฆโ