First Day as a Pet

When the alarm rang, Kiryu Yume sprang out of bed.

He glanced at his phone. 6:40. Today, he had to pick up Sakayanagi Arisu at the school gate. He went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face, then pressed down his hair in the mirror. A few strands stubbornly stuck up no matter how much he flattened them, so he gave up.

As he stepped out of the dorm building, the morning breeze carried the scent of cherry blossoms and dew. The sky was just beginning to brighten, and the clouds in the east had been dyed a pale orange. Kiryu Yume walked with his hands in his pockets, neither too fast nor too slow. His heart was beating a little faster than usual, but his shoulders were not hunched, nor was his head lowered.

Under the streetlamp by the school gate, that figure was already there. Short silver-white hair, a white cane, and a perfectly neat uniform. Sakayanagi Arisu was tilting her head slightly as she looked at her phone. Morning light fell over her profile, making her silver hair seem as though it glowed.

When Kiryu Yume saw that scene from afar, his steps involuntarily paused before he quickened his pace and approached.

"Good morning, Sakayanagi."

Sakayanagi put away her phone and raised her head. Her violet eyes swept over his face, and the corners of her lips curved upward. "Good morning, Kiryu. 6:41. You're early again."

"I'm used to getting up early."

"Used to it?" Sakayanagi tilted her head. "It's only been a few days, and you've already formed a habit?"

"I adapt quickly."

Sakayanagi gave a soft laugh and switched her cane to her other hand. "Then do you know what you're supposed to do now?"

Kiryu Yume stepped forward and stood slightly behind her. The same position as yesterday—about one step away. He knew his task was to be a proper attendant while looking for opportunities. With someone like Sakayanagi Arisu, forcing things would only leave him more tightly wrapped around her fingers.

"Let's go," he said.

Sakayanagi looked at him but did not move right away. "Do you know where Masumi usually stands?"

"I do. Directly behind you, half a step away."

"Then why are you standing so far away?"

"I'm not her."

Sakayanagi chuckled softly. It was not mocking laughter; he had genuinely amused her. "You certainly aren't." She turned around, tapped her cane against the ground with a click, and began walking. "Let's go."

Kiryu Yume followed, maintaining the same distance. One step. Not too close, not too far. He did not hunch his shoulders or look around nervously. But he knew his manner of walking was different from yesterday—yesterday, he had been escorted under duress; today, he was voluntarily escorting her. The difference was huge.

Sakayanagi did not walk quickly, and her cane tapped the ground at a slow rhythm. Morning light struck from the side, stretching her shadow long and straight across the ground. Kiryu Yume watched it and recalled the image of Kamuro Masumi's shadow overlapping Sakayanagi's yesterday—perfectly aligned, like a nail driven into her heels. His own shadow lay beside it, separated by a strip of morning light.

"Kiryu."

"Yeah?"

"What are you looking at?"

"The road."

"You're lying. You're looking at shadows."

Kiryu Yume fell silent for a second. "...My own shadow."

"And?"

"Yours too."

Sakayanagi did not turn around, but Kiryu Yume heard her laugh quietly. "Weren't you too scared to look at me yesterday? How come you dare now?"

"Yesterday, I was forced into it. Today's my first day on the job, so I need to show some initiative."

"Show some initiative?" Sakayanagi stopped and turned around. Kiryu Yume nearly walked straight into her, quickly catching himself. She looked up at him, her violet pupils like two polished glass beads in the morning light. "When you said, 'No objections,' yesterday, your voice was shaking. Today, when you said, 'Let's go,' it was steady. What happened overnight?"

Kiryu Yume thought about it. He could hardly say, I made a mental schedule for when to call you Mom.

"I figured things out," he said.

"What did you figure out?"

"If I can't run away anyway, I might as well walk properly. What you want is an attendant, not a corpse."

Sakayanagi stared at him for two seconds, then reached out and poked his forehead with her index finger. "Kiryu, you're more interesting than I imagined."

"...You said that yesterday."

"Then let's change it up." She withdrew her hand, turned around, and continued walking. "You do look better today than you did yesterday. Looks like you didn't have insomnia last night."

"I slept okay."

"What did you dream about?"

"Nothing." In truth, he had dreamed that he called Sakayanagi Mom and she knocked him on the head with her cane. But he could not say that.

The two continued forward. Kiryu Yume noticed that Sakayanagi was walking a little faster today than yesterday. He did not know whether it was because he was no longer trailing behind and slowing their pace, or because she was in a good mood.

When they reached the entrance to the academic building, a figure came down the stairs beside them—Kamuro Masumi. She held a stack of documents, likely fresh from the library or print room. Seeing Sakayanagi and Kiryu Yume, her steps paused briefly before she resumed her normal pace and walked over.

"Morning," Kamuro Masumi said flatly.

"Morning, Masumi." Sakayanagi nodded. "Are the materials ready?"

"Yeah. They're on your desk."

"Good. Go to the classroom first."

Kamuro Masumi glanced at Kiryu Yume. It was a brief glance, so brief it was almost impossible to catch. Then she turned and headed into the academic building, walking swiftly. Her black hair swayed once behind her before she vanished from sight.

Sakayanagi watched Kamuro Masumi disappear around the corridor corner, then turned her head toward Kiryu Yume. "Masumi is someone I trust. Whenever she does something for me, she never asks one question too many."

"Are you suggesting that I should learn from her?"

"It's not a suggestion." Sakayanagi took a step forward, tapping her cane against the stairs. "I'm telling you the standard. You don't have to reach her level, but at least don't hold me back."

Kiryu Yume said nothing. In his mind, he pulled up an image of Kamuro Masumi—long black hair, expressionless, incredibly capable, and absolutely obedient to Sakayanagi. He would probably never become that kind of person. But Sakayanagi had said he did not have to reach that level. That meant there was still room.

As they entered the academic building, quite a few people were already in the corridor. Several Class A students looked at Sakayanagi and Kiryu Yume walking behind her with varying degrees of scrutiny. Kiryu Yume did not lower his head. He was officially assigned somewhere now—though it was not exactly a glamorous assignment—but at least he did not need to hide.

Sakayanagi suddenly slowed down.

"Kiryu."

"Yeah?"

"Masumi said something to me that night. She said that when you called out to her, your eyes were serious."

Kiryu Yume's steps faltered. He had not expected Sakayanagi to suddenly bring that up.

"...And then?"

"Then I asked if she was angry. She said no." Sakayanagi turned her head, her violet eyes meeting his. "She just thinks there's something wrong with you."

"That sounds like something she'd say."

Sakayanagi looked at him in silence for two seconds. There was neither pressure nor sympathy in those violet eyes, only a quiet, unhurried curiosity.

"Kiryu, there's something I've been wanting to ask you."

"What?"

"That word you called Masumi that night..." Sakayanagi's voice was soft, as though she were merely mentioning it in passing. "If it were me, could you say it too?"

Kiryu Yume froze.

Sakayanagi did not wait for his answer. She turned back and continued into the academic building. Her cane tapped against the floor tiles—click, click, click. Her back was composed, as if that question had been casually tossed out and she was in no hurry for an answer.

Kiryu Yume stood where he was, his heart skipping two beats. She was giving him an opening. She was not forcing him or interrogating him; she was simply placing the question before him—you did not have to answer now, but sooner or later, you would have to answer. He remembered the crossed-out "how to call her" in his notebook. After thinking about it for so many days, the answer had always been right in front of him: it was not about how to say it, but when to say it. What Sakayanagi had just said was the perfect opportunity.

He hurried after her and walked to her side. He did not move in front of her or stop walking. As they walked, he looked at her profile and said those four words in a voice neither loud nor soft.

"Mom Sakayanagi."

Sakayanagi's steps halted for an instant. Her cane landed on the next floor tile half a beat too slowly. Then she turned to look at him. There was a glimmer in her violet eyes, much like the expression she had worn when she patted his head yesterday, though there was something more in it now.

"Say it again."

"...Mom Sakayanagi."

Sakayanagi reached out and patted the top of his head. This time, she did it twice, at a slow rhythm. As she patted him, Kiryu Yume noticed that his neck had not stiffened and his shoulders had not drawn in. He merely lowered his head slightly so her hand could rest more comfortably.

"Good boy," she said. Then she turned back and continued walking.

Kiryu Yume walked beside her. A system panel unfolded before his eyes.

[Current Moms: 2 (Kamuro Masumi, Sakayanagi Arisu)]

[New Bond: Pet Cat—When the host is near Sakayanagi Arisu, he will unconsciously make little catlike movements. It will also become harder to avoid being patted on the head. This effect will strengthen as the bond deepens.]

He glanced at it and closed it. A bond that made him more like a cat. Fine. He should have called her that sooner.

By the time they entered the academic building, people were already in the corridor. Several Class A students saw Sakayanagi and Kiryu Yume walk in side by side, their gazes carrying varying shades of meaning. Kiryu Yume did not lower his head.

He saw Katsuragi Kohei approaching from the other end, several books in hand. His eyes swept over Kiryu Yume, then Sakayanagi beside him, before he looked away and continued forward. He neither frowned nor asked questions. But Kiryu Yume noticed that after passing them, his pace slowed by half a beat, as though he were filing something away in his mind.

At the classroom door, Sakayanagi stopped and turned to him.

"You don't have to walk behind me today."

"...What does that mean?"

"You're not Masumi." Sakayanagi pushed open the door. "You're a cat. Cats don't walk directly behind people."

Kiryu Yume followed her into the classroom. Sakayanagi headed for her seat, while he headed for his own. When he passed Kamuro Masumi's desk, he instinctively glanced at her. Kamuro Masumi was flipping through a notebook without looking up. But the finger she used to turn the page paused against the paper, as if she were listening to their footsteps.

Kiryu Yume reached his seat and sat down. Morishita Ran was already there, reading a new novel. When she saw him, she lowered the book slightly.

"You came with Sakayanagi again today?"

"We'll be coming together from now on."

"You said that yesterday." Morishita Ran turned her head, her blue-violet downcast eyes sweeping over his face. "But you're different from yesterday."

"How?"

"When you came into the classroom, you were walking beside her. Yesterday, you were behind her."

"...You even remember that?"

"Observation." Morishita Ran closed her book. "Did your level go up?"

"What level?"

"Your pet level."

Kiryu Yume froze. Morishita Ran had said it casually, but she was right.

"You..." Kiryu Yume said. "Sometimes you're pretty scary."

Morishita Ran smiled and reopened her book.

Kiryu Yume sat down and took his textbook from his bag. He looked toward Sakayanagi. She was already seated, resting her cheek on one hand as she gazed out the window. Her white cane leaned against the desk. Her profile looked beautiful in the morning light, but Kiryu Yume noticed that his heart was not racing. He was used to it.

He drew a cat in his notebook. Then he drew a cane. Between the cat and the cane, he drew an equals sign. Afterward, he stared at that equals sign for two seconds without crossing it out.

Cherry blossoms continued to fall outside. The class bell rang. Mashima Tomoya entered the classroom, and his chalk left a line of words across the blackboard. Kiryu Yume opened his notebook and turned to a fresh page.

A bird flew through the cherry trees.