"My dear daughter, come on out now. There's nothing to be afraid of."
A gentle, tender female voice called out, as if coaxing softly.
The one who spoke was a kind and graceful woman.
She had a youthful and benevolent face, with soft, short blue hair and eyes of the same shade. With her scholarly demeanor and beautiful features, it was hard to imagine that this young-looking girl was already past her thirty—well into the middle years of her life.
"Um… umu…"
Following her words, a soft "mm" sounded, carrying with it a tone tinged with timidity.
The woman gently turned her head, her crystal-blue eyes glancing down at the small figure clutching tightly to her coat.
It was a little girl.
A petite child draped in a deep-blue cloak adorned with snowflake patterns. She now stood shyly behind the woman's back, revealing only a glimpse of her glimmering emerald-green hair.
The little girl, though having heard the gentle coaxing, still refused to show her face. Instead, she clung even tighter and pressed herself further against the woman's back, as if trying to burrow entirely into it to hide away.
"..."
Seeing her daughter so withdrawn, the woman—Irina—let out a soft sigh.
Really though, she couldn't blame her. After all, this was the very first time her daughter, Kyouno, had been brought along by her on this exchange trip.
Her daughter was already three years old this year, yet she spent all her time shyly cooped up inside the house, never once interacting with outsiders!
This trip to the village at the foot of the mountain was also meant to be an opportunity for her to meet other children, to make some friends.
However, just seeing a group of unfamiliar kids approaching, before even getting a clear look at their faces, Kyouno had already shrunk behind her back like this.
Looking like that, how could she even say hello, let alone make friends?!
With no success coaxing her daughter, eventually Irina could only turn her helpless look to her eldest child—Mana, who was currently chatting and laughing happily with a group of children her age, completely at ease.
Seeing that, Irina fell silent.
With Mana, there was no trace of shyness at all. On the contrary, from the very first meeting with the village children, this bold little girl quickly struck up a conversation and even blended in almost instantly!
Actually, it's not that she found her girl's shyness bothersome; it's just that it wouldn't benefit the her growth. She wanted her child to grow up healthy and cheerful like her sister, like any other child.
On the other side, little Mana caught the pleading look in her mom's eyes, along with the shy demeanor of her sister. She quickly ran over to the little girl hiding behind their mom.
"S-Sis... Sister Mana..."
The little girl—Kyouno—muttered timidly upon seeing her sister approach, though she still refused to show her face.
"Come on, little sis, come out and play with me. Everyone here is super nice, they won't eat you or anything~" Mana coaxed gently.
Kyouno, hearing her sister's words, finally peeked out just a little, revealing only her sparkling emerald eyes. She cautiously glanced ahead.
There, stood a group of kids, around eleven or twelve years old—the same as Mana. Each of them had bright faces, wearing casual winter jackets. They were chatting and playing cheerfully, though a few of them looked over with curious eyes toward Kyouno and her mom.
It seem that, they didn't look scary at all.
Even so, Kyouno couldn't stop trembling. Especially when a few of the kids glanced her way, it made her clutch her mom's clothes even tighter.
"S-Sis… y-you're said they wouldn't eat me, is that true? B-But… didn't mom say strangers are dangerous? That they're monsters in disguise, ready to gobble people up at any moment?"
Hearing her daughter's nervous, serious voice, Irina froze.
So…she's scared of strangers....because of this?!Those were just silly fairy tales she used to tell to scare the little girl into going to bed early!!!
"M-Maybe next time I should tell her something a bit more gentle…"- Irina thought to herself, a bit guilty for unintentionally planting that fear in her daughter's mind.
"Um, of course not. They all eat vegetables and regular meat, wouldn't even bother eating you. So come on, my darling sister, come play with me~" Mana replied, her voice as sweet as sugarcane.
At that, Kyouno froze, her face showing hesitation.
Although, her sister's sweet words were a little… odd, but after a moment of inner struggle, Kyouno finally mustered up her courage. She shyly reached out her pale little hand toward her sister.
"C-Can you hold my hand… and lead me?" she asked in a soft voice.
"Umu! Of course I can!" Mana beamed as she took her sister's hand and quickly pulled her out.
Suddenly leaving her mom's warmth, Kyouno flinched. A wave of regret suddenly welled up inside her.
She turned around, only to see her mom gazing back at her with loving eyes, a soft, comforting smile, as if to reassure her little girl.
That she was still here, watching over her and protecting her from any harm.
Seeing that expression, the anxiety in Kyouno's heart eased just a little.
She turned back toward her sister and took her first timid steps forward, holding on to her fragile courage.
...