Shirayuki gently held Grass Wonder's fair, delicate ankle as she applied the medicine.
Her clean white toes stretched and curled like little bean sprouts. Sitting on the bed, Grass Wonder's face was flushed as she watched Shirayuki touch her ankle. For an uma musume, the feet were among the most sensitive parts of the body, second only to the tail.
Grass Wonder's heart felt light and floaty.
"How long has it been injured?"
Hearing Shirayuki's question, Grass Wonder steadied her breathing and answered, "Almost half a month now."
"Half a month… It isn't just a sprain. There's muscle strain too?"
In the past, the best way to deal with a strain was simply to rest. But after Yaeno Muteki's teaching, Shirayuki had come to understand the connection between muscles and blood flow. Even without making the body move, simply stimulating the cells and activating circulation could speed up recovery.
She had Grass Wonder lie flat on the bed, then rested Grass Wonder's foot on her thigh. After applying the ointment, she began carefully feeling around the meridians near her ankle.
Right now, Shirayuki was still only a beginner in the Kongou Yaegaki Style. Even if she could not guarantee how effective the treatment would be, it would certainly be better than an ordinary trainer's massage technique.
"Yuki-chan…"
Grass Wonder lay on the bed, hugging Shirayuki's pillow.
"You did this for me before too, didn't you… back when I got injured."
"Mm. It's all right, Grass. Your injury isn't too serious. Once the medicine is applied, it should heal quickly. Trainer Fumino said the same thing, right?"
"Mm. She said I should fully recover next month."
"Next month… It should be faster than that. Less than a month, probably. Remember to apply the medicine on time, and soak your feet in warm water at night. I used to have this problem too. Later, I healed it with medicinal baths and warm water."
Grass Wonder smelled Shirayuki's pillow and nodded.
"Thank you, Yuki-chan."
"There's nothing to thank me for. We're friends."
"Friends…"
Grass Wonder murmured softly.
She liked the way Shirayuki took care of others.
But at the same time, she disliked it a little.
Because no matter who it was, Shirayuki treated them this kindly. She did not give anyone special treatment. She treated everyone equally and always placed responsibility first.
Grass Wonder had always placed Shirayuki in the most important position.
If Shirayuki wanted her to do something, she would immediately put down whatever she was doing and help Shirayuki first.
But no matter how much effort she made, Shirayuki remained the same. Gentle, friendly, and never favouring anyone.
Even though Shirayuki would usually go along with her, Grass Wonder always felt that she could not truly enter Shirayuki's heart. Their relationship remained fixed at "good friends."
And the more it stayed that way, the more obsessed Grass Wonder became with Shirayuki.
Shirayuki's ability surpassed hers. She was so mature it almost seemed unreasonable. Grass Wonder could not find any opening at all.
She wanted to comfort Shirayuki when Shirayuki was feeling down, but Shirayuki would stand up by herself.
She wanted to help when Shirayuki made a mistake, but Shirayuki sought perfection in everything she did.
Shirayuki was like the perfect girl boys always dreamed about. It was difficult to find any flaws in her, and even if there were some, Shirayuki would correct them herself.
It was as if someone had always been shaping the role called "Shirayuki," making her more and more perfect, more and more captivating.
Precisely because of that, winning Shirayuki's heart was the most difficult thing in the world.
It was even harder than beating her in a race.
In Grass Wonder's heart, the most special person was Shirayuki.
Not only for her. She believed that in many people's hearts, the most special person was Shirayuki.
But what about Shirayuki?
Who was the most special person to her?
Grass Wonder could not imagine it.
She could not even find the direction she should work toward.
All she could do was act like this, secretly, while Shirayuki knew nothing, briefly satisfying her own desire under the name of being a good friend.
"Yuki-chan, can you pat my head?"
Hearing Grass Wonder's words, Shirayuki sat beside her pillow.
Grass Wonder lifted her head and rested it on Shirayuki's lap. Shirayuki's delicate palm stroked Grass Wonder's ears, and Grass Wonder narrowed her eyes, leaning a little closer to Shirayuki.
Smelling Shirayuki's scent, Grass Wonder's expression turned blissful.
It was a very charming scent, like dandelion flowers. Every time Grass Wonder smelled it, she felt reluctant to leave.
She buried her face against Shirayuki's stomach and breathed deeply.
"Grass, it's hot…"
Although Shirayuki said that, she did not stop rubbing Grass Wonder's ears.
The feeling of uma musume ears was simply too wonderful.
Grass Wonder's ears were not as soft as Rice Shower's or her own, but the little springy feedback every time Shirayuki rubbed them was so pleasant that she could hardly let go.
She enjoyed touching them, and the uma musume being touched were also very happy.
After becoming the Empress, the greatest benefit was that she could freely rua the ears of those lower-year little foals. Seeing their faces turn red as they cried out like little kittens made Shirayuki feel as if her heart was being healed.
Unfortunately, only Shirayuki could enjoy that treatment.
Chiya could not.
But Chiya could rua her ears.
With her status, in all of Tracen Academy, only Chiya had the right to do such a thing.
And having her own ears rua'd felt pretty good too.
She could make cute sounds as well.
"Yuki-chan."
Grass Wonder, her expression slightly dazed, moved away from Shirayuki.
"I'll get better. Then the two of us should race."
Grass Wonder now understood.
Even if she could forcefully occupy Shirayuki's body, she could not occupy Shirayuki's heart. If she could push Shirayuki down, then other people could do the same.
If she wanted to become someone special in Shirayuki's heart, she had to do something special.
For an uma musume, there was nothing more special than racing.
It was a conversation of the heart between one uma musume and another. Simply by seeing the other's movements, they could feel each other's feelings.
Once, Grass Wonder had clearly felt Shirayuki's will to defeat her.
Their relationship had also grown better through race after race.
If she wanted to conquer Shirayuki's heart, then she had to completely defeat her through that conversation of souls.
Then, she would convey her own feelings.
"All right. I'll help Grass recover quickly."
Looking at Shirayuki's gentle smile, Grass Wonder's heart beat faster.
She said she somewhat disliked the way Shirayuki treated everyone equally, but at the same time, that was also the reason Grass Wonder liked her.
Because of that kindness, Grass Wonder had never been able to look away from Shirayuki.
"Yuki-chan."
Grass Wonder reached out and gestured for Shirayuki to come closer.
When Shirayuki leaned in, Grass Wonder wrapped her arms around Shirayuki's neck and kissed her cheek.
"Mm… Grass?"
"This is my thanks to Yuki-chan."
"I already said you don't need to thank me, didn't I?"
"Does Yuki-chan dislike it?"
"Maa… actually, I quite like it."
Grass Wonder smiled, lying on Shirayuki's lap as she turned over.
One day, she would make Shirayuki ask her for a kiss.
And when that time came, it would not be on the cheek.