Outing (3k)

"Birthday?"

When Lin Xiaolu heard the word from Larkspur, she instinctively gasped, but quickly realized it was inappropriate, so she covered her mouth and looked around, afraid of being discovered.

"Yes, I've confirmed it. Xia Liang's birthday is next."

Larkspur lowered her voice, speaking in a volume so no one else could hear, "So, we should prepare a birthday party for her."

"Aren't we going to tell her?" Lin Xiaolu asked, somewhat puzzled.

"She doesn't seem to want us to know."

Larkspur crossed her arms. "I don't know what that child is thinking. Perhaps they don't want to cause trouble?"

"Then what should we do?"

Lin Xiaolu was eager to try. "If we don't tell her, it's like preparing a surprise, right?"

"Yes, I've already bought all the decorations and desserts, and ordered the cake. I'll take her out on her birthday under the guise of shopping."

Without batting an eye, Larkspur glossed over the part that should have been explained, "I'll send you a message when I get back, and then you can decorate the living room in advance."

"Is that all? Then leave it to me... wait a minute."

Lin Xiaolu suddenly realized what she meant halfway through her sentence: "Shopping? The two of you?"

As she spoke, her voice rose two octaves.

"Keep your voice down, don't let anyone hear you."

Larkspur gestured for silence seriously. "Yes, we'll probably leave in the morning and bring her back in the afternoon."

"Ah, but, this..."

Lin Xiaolu parted her lips, revealing her canine teeth. "This... this isn't fair..."

What she really wanted to say was, "I also want to go shopping with you," but the words caught in her throat and turned into these fragmented, incoherent sentences.

"Birthdays always deserve some special treatment."

Larkspur sighed helplessly and patted Lin Xiaolu's arm, "If you want to go out for your birthday, I can take you with me."

"My birthday was just a few months ago, the next one won't be until next year..."

Lin Xiaolu looked unhappy.

She really wanted to say, "Why did you take her out and leave us at home?" But a subtle sense of shame prevented her from saying it.

She didn't want Larkspur to feel like she was being temperamental.

"I'm sorry, please make an exception this once."

The Larkspur's voice softened as she gently said, "Just once, okay?"

"...Hmm." Lin Xiaolu nodded listlessly.

"Moreover, although that child has such a troublesome personality, he is actually lacking in love."

Larkspur continued, "Let's surprise her together, and your relationship will improve, right?"

"Who wants to get along better with her?"

Lin Xiaolu read a sentence reluctantly, but her expression clearly showed a hint of interest:

"Well, for your Larkspur, I'll agree this once."

"Yes, thank you."

The Larkspur thanked her softly, thus finalizing the arrangements. With that, the schedule for the subsequent trip became clear enough.

Larkspur and Xia Liang had already discussed where to go for the weekend, and their initial options were amusement parks, film studios, and aquariums.

After further discussion and considering online reviews, the two ultimately chose an amusement park as their destination.

According to Xia Liang herself, her parents once took her to an old amusement park in Fangting City when she was a child. Although the old amusement park lost a lot of popularity due to the construction of other theme parks, it is still in operation today. She wants to go and see that old amusement park.

As for the film studio and the aquarium, although these are also popular options for city outings, the former has recently been plagued by operational accidents, and the latter has some venues undergoing renovation and maintenance, so they did not become the couple's final choice.

If everything goes smoothly, Larkspur and Xia Liang will go to the amusement park together on the weekend. Unfortunately, things don't always go as planned.

It rained on Sunday.

Sitting in the somewhat dimly lit living room, gazing at the drizzling rain outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, Xia Liang lay motionless on the back of the sofa. The sudden downpour had disrupted her plans, leaving her momentarily at a loss. Even the smile that usually graced her face was almost gone, replaced by a faint sense of disappointment.

Boom!

A deafening clap of thunder suddenly rang out, and a striking flash of lightning pierced the dark sky. A short while later, another flash of lightning illuminated Xia Liang's face, making his complexion appear even paler.

Larkspur remained silent. This torrential rain was something even the previous weather forecast had failed to predict. Despite her thorough preparations, she hadn't expected to encounter such a situation on the weekend.

No one would want to go to an amusement park in a downpour, and even if they did, the experience would be a complete disaster. Undoubtedly, their original plans were now completely ruined.

All they could do now seemed to be stay in the base and hope the rain would stop soon. But the endless rain continued, and the dark clouds piled up and wouldn't disperse, showing no sign of ending anytime soon.

Unlike the gloomy atmosphere on Xia Liang's side, on the other side of the living room, Lin Xiaolu was wearing headphones, sitting in the middle of the sofa playing on her phone; Bai Jingxuan was happily frolicking with Moko, playing together harmoniously. The scene in the living room was just as it always was, as if today was meant to be this way, without any appointments or plans.

Slightly bending over, Larkspur rested her elbows on her thighs, cupped her chin in her palm, and squinted her eyes as she gazed at Xia Liang's retreating figure.

She was pondering what she should do now.

Logically speaking, since the weather was uncooperative, there was nothing she could do about it. She could simply announce that their agreement was off, conveniently decline the invitation, and treat today as just another ordinary weekend.

After all, this somewhat awkward agreement was only Xia Liang's wishful thinking, and her methods were not exactly pleasing to Larkspur. Letting it fall through might actually be in her best interest.

Besides, Xia Liang's recent pranks have indeed gone too far, and there's even a hint that she's deliberately trying to see Larkspur embarrassed. If she could take this opportunity to pour cold water on Cui Que and cool her down, it would also help Larkspur consolidate her authority as an adult and senior, making the relationship between the two clear again.

This is a great opportunity for her to indirectly "remind" Xia Liang by canceling the trip. She can take this opportunity to reinforce the idea that adults are adults and seniors are seniors, and there should be a hierarchy between them. She should recognize her own position.

If she wanted, she could easily distance Xia Liang from her current closeness once again, maintaining their relationship at the same level as before and preventing her from developing any other thoughts.

But is it really necessary to do this?

The Larkspur asked itself this question.

Delineating each other's class and status is merely the approach most in line with the perspective of "adults," but it doesn't seem to align with the perspective of "seniors."

The role of adults in front of children is to establish their authority; while the role of seniors in front of juniors is to educate and guide them to grow up correctly. This guidance should cover all aspects, whether it is the magical girl's power, or her conduct and perspective on the world.

So, in front of Xia Liang, a child, should she be an "adult" or a "senior"?

After a long period of contemplation, the Larkspur slowly closed its eyes and finally made its decision.

She stood up, supporting herself on the sofa, and walked to Xia Liang's side. She patted Xia Liang's shoulder and said, "Let's go."

The sudden call brought Xia Liang back to her senses, but she still didn't know what to do. She could only turn around and look at Larkspur with some confusion. "Where to?"

She had basically given up hope of going to the amusement park, and she didn't want Larkspur to brave the heavy rain just to accommodate her; such a trip was destined to be unhappy.

However, when her gaze fell upon the Larkspur, she noticed that its face remained calm and composed, as if it had everything under control.

Their conversation caught the attention of Lin Xiaolu, who looked up and took off her headphones. "Where can we go now?"

"The two of us are going out on an errand."

Larkspur didn't explain further, simply giving Lin Xiaolu a brief instruction before gently beckoning to Xia Liang: "Alright, stop daydreaming, we should head out."

"But..." Xia Liang glanced at the gloomy view outside the window, "There's no point in going out now, is there?"

"Why not just go somewhere else? Would you rather stay home and wait anxiously or go out now and find a different destination?"

Larkspur casually brushed aside her doubts, gesturing with her chin towards the door. "You were the one who suggested going out today, weren't you? Or was it because of the rain that you didn't want to go out?"

"Of course I want to."

Xia Liang blinked blankly for a moment, then realized what was happening and stood up from the sofa. "Why wouldn't I want to go out? I'm just a little worried..."

"Then don't worry, because I'm here."

Interrupting Xia Liang, Larkspur took two steps toward the villa's stairwell and turned back to say, "Don't ask any questions, just follow me."

Larkspur's calm demeanor ultimately gave Xia Liang confidence. So, without further hesitation, she quickly followed Larkspur, and the two of them walked into the stairwell together, heading towards the basement.

"So, where are you all going?"

Lin Xiaolu, still puzzled, asked in the living room, "It's raining heavily outside, is there such a rush?"

The only response she received was the rustling of clothes. The Larkspur in the stairwell didn't look at Lin Xiaolu; she simply raised her arm and gently tapped her pocket.

After this series of actions, she led Xia Liang into the basement and then went to the villa's garage.

A small, silver-white SUV was parked in the garage at the moment.

This SUV doesn't belong to Lin Yun. It was custom-made for Larkspur by Hong Siyu and Tuo Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau Ju while they were setting up the Secret Base. Not only was the height of the pedals specially adjusted so that Larkspur's size could drive normally, but a special driver's license was also made using Larkspur's photo.

After all, living with magical girls, it's impossible for Larkspur to specifically transform back into Lin Yun's appearance to drive.

With Xia Liang in tow, Larkspur fastened her seatbelt in the driver's seat, stretched out her foot to explore for a while, found the positions of the clutch and brake pedals, then started the engine and drove the brand new vehicle.

Xia Liang, who had followed her all the way, finally recovered somewhat. Facing the upcoming trip, she asked with a mix of doubt and anticipation, "... Senior, where are we going next?"

Do you remember where we found you in the first place?

The Larkspur suddenly asked this question.

This sentence startled Xia Liang, then she suddenly realized. "Ah, you mean—"

"That's right, let's go to the Electronics Street."

Larkspur nodded, a hint of reminiscence in her eyes, and said, "It's not just the entertainment venues you know about; there are some other places there that might interest you."

Since she had taken it upon herself to take Xia Liang on a trip to a different place, she naturally wouldn't just choose any entertainment venue.

The amusement park they had previously chosen was a place with special meaning and memories for Xia Liang. Now that they were changing their destination, she should come up with a corresponding plan.

Specifically, she should take Xia Liang to a more meaningful place to make up for the lack of something in the original itinerary.

After much consideration, the only place still existing in Fangting City that is unaffected by the torrential rain is the Central Electronics Street.

The Electronics Street, especially the Central Electronics Street in Sunset District, is the most bustling pedestrian commercial area in Fangting City, and its prosperity has a history of decades. Generations of people have left their footprints here, walking through its streets and alleys.

This generation of people naturally includes some more special individuals, such as magical girls.

"What interests you?" Xia Liang read the words aloud, and indeed showed a curious expression. "Specifically?"

"The route the Fangting City Magical Girl Squad took during their vacation to the Electronics Street twenty years ago."

Turning the steering wheel, Larkspur gazed at the road ahead of the garage, her eyes flashing slightly. "It's been a long time since I've experienced this myself. Today, I'll take you on a journey through it again."

I've been polishing it up, and it's gone from 3.5k to 3k... That's all for today.

And thank you to the reader Platinum Tower for the Silver Alliance; thank you so much, boss! I'm extremely grateful.