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Mother, would you mind waiting a moment?

Of course. Go ahead.

Girls, are you alright?!

Nngh... I'm okay. Butt hurts a little, but I'm fine...

I swear I saw Miss Iris too just now...

Mmf, mrrmrmff!

A familiar voice can be heard from deep within a hay pile.

Geh... Quick, we gotta dig Iris out!

R-Right!

(Gasping for breath) I... I almost suffocated!

Weren't you two collecting children's wishes? What are you doing here?

Hee-hee! It all went better than expected. The children here are surprisingly good, you know, so we wrapped up ahead of time.

I thought I'd give driving in the countryside a shot, but then car trouble hit while I was at the wheel, and...

Not my first time repairing vehicles like this one. Hurry, let's fix this one up together.

*sigh* I can hardly tell if my luck is supposed to be good or rotten today...

I couldn't shake the worry something might happen, you know.

I didn't expect our work to proceed so well today, and I certainly didn't expect this little mishap.

I only hope we can have this fixed soon... At least then we can be on our way back by tonight.

Tonight...?

Sakiko turns to look behind her.

Not too far away, Sakiko's mother is watching her and her friends with a smile.

She notices her daughter's glance, and gives a light nod.

Would that be... your mother?

...Yes.

You very much resemble one another, especially the eyes and the mouth! I feel both a gentle warmth and a firm resolution in you.

But I... I have no resolve.

What makes you say that?

I... I...

Miss Iris, you're a fairy, if I'm not mistaken?

Yes... Is something wrong?

Fairies listen to people's wishes, and then temporarily make them 'reality' in their dreams... correct?

...Correct.

But if—if people are well and truly trapped in their dreams, never to pluck themselves out, what should be done then?

A real fairy would never permit that to happen in the first place.

If you spend too long in a dream, you lose the ability to discern between dream and reality.

What if they never wake up?

Sakiko, the worst outcome has never been the inability to wake up. Rather, it is when you accept everything in your dream as the truth, and <i>then</i> you wake, only to find that all you have experienced was a fleeting mirage.

After living a lifetime of happiness in the dream, you find yourself back in reality, back at the very beginning again.

Your body is young, but your soul is old. Your dream is well beyond your grasp. You are left with no choice but to carry on in life, utterly alone.

Can you really call that a good dream?

If it is doomed to fail, it should not be fled from in dreams; if they are destined to be missed, you must bid them farewell properly.

Sakiko looks back again.

Oh, I appear to have gone on a little long... Am I interrupting your reunion with your mother?

...No, nothing of the sort!

I apologize. Someone very important to me asked me the same question, once upon a time.

Because of my inability to give a firm answer then, things turned irrecoverable.

Hence, I now lend such concern to this...

Heeey—!

The car's all fixed up!

Vigna, no more touching! No touching ever!

Guh...

C'mon, girls, get on—

Miss Sakiko, will you be coming back with us?

I...

Sakiko turns once more to look at her 'mother'.

She's still standing there, as though she's awaiting something.

Is she awaiting Sakiko's promise? Or perhaps Sakiko's verdict?

She simply stands there, looking on at her daughter with the warmest smile.

I...

It's okay, Sakiko. You can stay here a little longer. You've been worn out lately, yeah? You're due for a vacation anyway. I'll let HR know.

Okay... Thank you.

Let me try again—

Sakiko, let's stop here for now.

Aren't you tired? I'll make us some tea, then we can take our time—

I'm just nervous, that's all—

How about a little chat, then?

Were those girls just now friends of yours?

Yes. They are my coworkers at Rhodes Island, and very good friends of mine.

Rhodes Island...

Correct. A pharmaceutical company, boasting a landship of tremendous scale.

Aboard the ship, we live and work, sailing anywhere and everywhere in the world.

The... 'world'?

...Terra.

What an interesting word for it!

Does Rhodes Island have a piano room you can use?

It does. There isn't too much entertainment while the ship is sailing. Many operators while away the time by playing instruments.

At times, I'll play a few songs on the keyboard in my dormitory room. Vigna has even formed her own band—

And have you formed your own band, too?

I have.

Is that with Miss Vigna?

No. It's with others...

Well, now I'm curious, Sakiko. What are these fellow band members of yours like?

I have a drummer who constantly clashes with me over just about everything, though her ambition and hardworking nature are second to none. We resemble sisters-in-arms more than we do friends.

I have a bassist whose technique is superb. She handles all our behind-the-scenes work, schedules included, with great diligence. As a colleague, there could be no one more trustworthy.

I have a guitarist-vocalist who excels at songwriting. She has her own work as an idol to take care of, but in spite of how busy it makes her, she never ceases to support me.

And I have another guitarist—we've been friends since childhood. She... she was always there for me, even when I left home and was all alone...

By the sound of it, you're quite the close-knit band.

No, the reality is we constantly argue. We even disbanded before.

Have you all made up since?

I got separated from everyone.

They are somewhere far, far away. Somewhere I cannot reach.

How far away? From Victoria to Ursus? Or even farther than that?

I...

Why the hesitation?

Because... Because...

...Because I'm afraid that finding them means leaving you behind.

I'm scared I won't be able to see you again—

Silly girl. I'll always be here.

But—didn't you leave me behind?!

'Ma... Mama...'