Urara's eyes lit up as she tugged on my arm.
"Wait! We get to go play together? Just us?!"
"You bet. I'd love to go with you, but I've got some 'important work' to do... Urara, what are the rules for going out?"
"Don't follow strangers! Don't buy too many snacks! Watch out for cars! Call the Trainer immediately if anything happens!"
"Good girl. Now, do you have your allowance? Your wallet?"
I patted her head and took the wallet she held out. I checked the inside. It was bone-dry.
"You bought snacks at the shopping district again, didn't you? I'm going to have to tell the old guy at the vegetable stand to cap you at three carrots a day..."
I sighed and refilled her allowance, then did the same for Rice, handing her a separate envelope for the groceries.
"Rice, you keep the grocery money. Make sure to get receipts."
"Eh? I-if Rice carries it, I might lose it..."
"If you lose it, I'll just pay for the replacements out of my own pocket. Besides, you've got Urara with you. She'll keep an eye on you, right?"
Urara thumped her chest as if to say, Leave it to me! She was surprisingly reliable when it counted... mostly. Probably.
"We're off then, Trainer! Let's go, Rice-chan!"
"E-eh? O-okay... we're leaving now, Trainer!"
Rice was led away by the hand. Despite Rice being older and taller, it was impossible to tell who was the big sister and who was the little sister in this dynamic.
I watched them go—Urara humming a tune and Rice looking bewildered but quietly happy. Once I was sure no one was looking, I sprang into action.
"...Alright, time to move."
I ducked into a nearby locker room, swapped my tracksuit for a pre-prepared business suit, put on a pair of non-prescription glasses, and traded my sneakers for leather dress shoes. It was time to tail them.
My disguise was a calculated move. Since I was almost always in a tracksuit, I figured the girls wouldn't recognize me in formal wear at a distance.
I'd initially considered the "trench coat, sunglasses, and surgical mask" look, but realized I'd just be arrested as a pervert. A suit was the perfect "urban camouflage"—just another salaryman on his way to a meeting. With a briefcase in hand, I was invisible.
The tracking went smoothly. Urara was her usual talkative self, and Rice was gradually opening up.
I had three reasons for doing this on a Sunday when I should have been working.
First: To make Rice rest. She would have refused a simple order to sleep, but "playing with Urara" was a command she could enjoy, providing vital mental refreshment.
Second: To observe her mental state in public. I needed to see how deep the scars from the Kikuka-sho went. How would she react to a crowd? Modern medicine can see a broken bone, but it can't see the cracks in a girl's heart.
Third: To give Urara a break. She'd been working just as hard, and she needed a reset as much as Rice did.
And finally: To refresh myself. Looking at them having fun was the only way I could mentally recharge. I was exhausted. I would have loved to join them, but they were teenage girls; having their middle-aged trainer hovering over them wouldn't exactly be "relaxing."
(Urara would be fine with it, but Rice would spend the whole day worrying about me...)
So, I watched from the shadows. Ahead of me, the two girls walked hand-in-hand. Urara's tail was wagging like a metronome of pure joy. Rice's tail was beginning to mimic the rhythm. Passersby softened their expressions at the sight of them.
"Ah! A kitty! Wait up, wait up!"
Urara suddenly bolted after a stray cat. Rice was yanked along for the ride, stumbling before finding her stride and joining the chase.
(Watch out for cars!) I checked the road instinctively. Clear. Good.
"Oh! Crepes! Carrot crepes!"
Urara's focus shifted instantly from the cat to a mobile crepe stand in the park. Rice was practically being dragged, but I realized that this was exactly what she needed—to be pulled along by a force of nature that didn't give her time to overthink.
"Hello! Two carrot crepes, please!"