Fairy and Friends

Fangting City First Social Welfare Institute is located in Dawnstar District and is one of only two large welfare institutes in the city.

Many children who have lost their parents in accidents and have no one to raise them, or elderly people who have no one to care for them after they grow old, are brought here by the municipal government with their consent to receive relatively comprehensive care.

The welfare home covers a large area with nearly 3,000 beds and as many as 400 staff members. It has relatively good medical conditions, which are sufficient to provide rehabilitation and physical therapy for every disabled elderly person and child.

Bai Jingxuan has lived here for three years.

In three years, she went from being clueless to being able to understand things. Most of the other children in the orphanage came and went, and after a short stay, they were adopted and entered new families. But she was left there, like a defective product that was left over in a vegetable market.

In fact, in terms of personality alone, Bai Jingxuan is not a difficult child to get along with. She is quiet and sensible. Compared to other 11-year-olds or even older children, her speech and behavior seem more mature than usual.

As for her appearance, she is quite cute, with fair skin, pretty features, and a bob haircut that reaches her chin. Her clothing and behavior also give her a somewhat boyish air, which makes her quite endearing.

However, the medical eye patch she wore over her left eye revealed to outsiders that there was a problem with that eye.

In fact, she is missing an eye.

Moreover, she also suffers from an undiagnosed and incurable congenital disease, the symptoms of which include intermittent dizziness and weakness, and in severe cases, even partial loss of limb control.

These issues caused couples who wanted to adopt her to hesitate after learning the truth, and some even gave up entirely. Ultimately, no one was willing to take Bai Jingxuan away.

So three years passed, Bai Jingxuan still lived here.

Occasionally, people would ask her if she was sad, but she didn't actually feel that there was anything wrong with this kind of life: the caregivers at the welfare home were very friendly and took good care of her; the elderly people in the home also liked her very much and often invited her to chat; even the director of the welfare home, Aunt Liu, often looked after her.

Perhaps the only downside is that it's a bit lonely.

In the afternoons these days, she often likes to go to the shady spot in the courtyard alone and read quietly there.

This was a habit she had never developed before. In the past, she wouldn't specifically seek out such a secluded place alone; she preferred more lively venues. Whether she was with someone or someone, chatting for a bit made her feel more fulfilled.

The reason she's doing this now is because she has a little secret.

Or to be more specific, she made a new friend.

"Xiao Xuan! I'm here!"

With a call coming from above, Bai Jingxuan met the person she was waiting for on this agreed-upon afternoon.

So she put down her book, looked around to make sure no one was watching, then secretly waved to her "friend" above and whispered, "Good afternoon, Miss Fairy."

She has a Fairy friend.

This friend looks like a pink cat, but it's only the size of two of her palms. It has a pair of transparent wings on its back, which it flaps as it floats in the air, surrounded by tiny orbs of light, just like Fairy from a fairy tale.

"I've told you so many times, just call me 'Moko,' 'Fairy' sounds too formal!"

As the Fairy who called herself "Moko" descended from the sky, she said to herself, "Just like I wouldn't call you 'human,' such a form of address is actually quite impolite."

"Okay, I understand, Moko." Bai Jingxuan nodded obediently.

She met Moko a few days ago in the afternoon.

She was just passing by when she decided to linger in the shade because of the sweltering summer heat. It was this action that led her to encounter Fairy who flew down from the sky.

At that time, she didn't know what Fairy were. She just saw a cat flying in the air and found it very novel, so she couldn't help but strike up a conversation with it.

What surprised her even more was that the cat could actually talk.

Then she realized that the other person was the legendary "Fairy".

The Fairy who called herself "Moko" was very witty and willing to chat with her for a long time, telling her many fairy tale-like stories. Later, the words "magical girl" began to appear in her descriptions.

Bai Jingxuan knew about magical girls.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that her life was saved by a magical girl.

When she was eight years old, her parents took her out to the hospital for a routine check-up because of her incurable congenital disease. They happened to encounter Aberrant Beast.

At the time, Bai Jingxuan didn't even understand what was happening. She only remembered sitting in the hospital lobby with her parents, chatting and laughing with them, when suddenly a strong shock occurred around them.

An out-of-control, Aberrant Beast crashed into the hospital and began wreaking havoc and killing.

The hospital was destroyed in the attack by the Aberrant Beast, and many medical staff and patients lost their lives in the attack. Later, Bai Jingxuan heard from others that it was the most tragic casualty incident in Fangting City in nearly ten years.

In this incident, Bai Jingxuan lost her parents and her left eye, but she survived all by herself.

A magical girl arrived just in time, saving the remaining civilians and defeating the Aberrant Beast.

Although Bai Jingxuan was still young at the time and did not have a strong sense of life and death, as she grew up, she understood what a debt of gratitude she owed for being saved.

Therefore, she has a favorable impression of magical girls.

However, in Moko's words, the magical girl seemed to shed the halo in other people's eyes, becoming more real and more down-to-earth.

It told many interesting little stories about magical girls and even claimed to know the magical girls in the city. According to the examples it gave, some of the magical girls in Fangting City failed their exams at school; some were so stupid that they couldn't even learn how to use magic; and some were bullies who liked to harass Fairy.

Although she didn't know how much of what she said was true or false, and even that it contained a lot of negative comments, it didn't stop Bai Jingxuan from finding it very interesting. As a result, her admiration for magical girls grew even stronger.

She believes that magical girls are just ordinary people, and their willingness to fight and save others is all the more precious.

Just two days earlier, when she and Moko were enjoying an afternoon together, chatting happily, Moko suddenly made this suggestion to her:

"Xiao Xuan, did you know? You can actually become a magical girl too!"

I recommend a fanfiction written by a friend, <In Naruto, I am Aizen>.

This book is said to perfectly capture Aizen's personality and behavior, making it feel like Aizen himself lived in the Naruto world. Those interested should definitely give it a try.