Child's Mom gently patted the hand her child had wrapped around hers.
"It's all right now."
Child's Mom kept soothing the child.
"Anna."
"Don't be scared."
Child's Mom's voice was soft and gentle.
The mushroom-haired girl gradually relaxed.
Things were different now from back then.
Back then, fierce winds had howled and rain had poured down. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled from time to time.
She had been all alone.
But now, the lights were bright, and she was warm.
Her belly was full.
Her mom and dad were both by her side.
Watching over her.
The mushroom-haired girl felt that she wasn't quite as scared anymore.
"Anna."
Seeing the child relax, Child's Mom curved her lips into a slight smile. "Couldn't you get a clear look at what that shadow was?"
It had appeared in front of the child again and again...
It was hard not to wonder what that meant.
"No."
The mushroom-haired girl shook her head.
"It was too dark."
"I wasn't very close to it..."
The first time, she had been on the back of her mom's out-of-control bike...
The jostling view had made it impossible for her to make out what the shadow looked like.
The second time...
They had been inside and outside the kindergarten.
Even through the iron fence, she still couldn't see what it looked like.
"I couldn't see clearly."
"Ah."
The little girl looked as if she'd just thought of something.
"What is it?"
Child's Mom tensed. "Did you think of something?"
The mushroom-haired girl pressed her lips together slightly.
"Mom."
She suddenly realized something...
"I saw it both times..."
"It was raining."
The sky had been dark, and visibility was poor.
"...And both times I was..."
The mushroom-haired girl tilted her head. "Kind of...