As time passed, the child would come to understand on her own.
Child's Mom told herself this over and over.
Be patient.
Everything would return to normal.
"Ah!"
The little girl couldn't help crying out.
The passersby nearby turned to look at the sound.
When they saw it was a little girl, they all smiled kindly.
A feather!
After so many days, the little girl had finally found another feather.
She hurriedly bent down to pick it up.
It was just like the scene from a few days ago playing out again.
The little girl followed the feathers scattered along the ground.
When she picked up the last one, she looked up and saw the big bird she had been longing to see.
The big bird, with its silvery-white feathers, shimmered faintly all over, like a visitor from a land of fantasy.
A delighted smile spread across the girl's face.
"Big bird!"
Maybe her voice had startled it. The big bird flapped its wings and flew away.
The little girl chased it for a long time.
But she still lost sight of it.
"Huff~ Huff~"
The little girl braced her hands on her knees and panted loudly.
"What's wrong? Why are you so out of breath?"
A familiar voice...
The little girl looked up—
"Mom?!"
"Mom, what are you doing here?"
Child's Mom was caught off guard by the question. "What am I doing here..."
"My home is right here."
"An An, what's wrong?"
"You don't recognize your own home?"
The little girl slowly straightened up.
She looked around.
Only then did she realize that somehow, she had made it back to the foot of her own building.
"...Huh?"
The little girl blinked. "I..."
She looked down at her hands. "Ah!"
The little girl