My cousin, Ririna came to play. We have room, so I don't mind her staying, but… "I have summer classes, so I won't be at home."

"It's okay. As long as Taka-nii-sama is here." She makes snide comments lounging on my sofa.

"Onii-sama is working on a weekday, and won't be back until late."

"…What. You're telling me to leave?" she puckered her lips, and looked away. Oh, she's pouting.

I closed my study guide and stood up to prepare tea for two. It's night, so it's herb tea without caffeine. "I didn't say that. You can stay as long as you want." I place some rose hip tea in front of Ririna and sit across from her.

"I was going to do that anyway." She's so obstinate. Even so, she sipped on the herb tea and looked around my room, bored until she stopped. "Reika-san. What's that bag in the corner of the room?"

Oh, that. "Those are supplies I use to make handicrafts. Wool felt." I bought the materials for the wedding doll for the school festival, but I've barely touched it. I need to start soon.

"Oh. So when's cram school start tomorrow?"

"I'll be going to Zuiran's supplemental classes instead of cram school tomorrow." It's a waste to skip cram school, but Zuiran's classes are more closely related to the internal entrance exams than I realized, so I want to attend them as much as possible.

"You're attending Zuiran's classes, too? You're working hard."

"Of course. I have entrance exams. If you fool around too much just because it's summer vacation, you'll have problems next term, Ririna."

"I'm fine. I was third in the last test."

"Third!?" That's right. Ririna gets good grades despite her appearance. I barely made 18th after doping and battling stomach pains… "How do you study, Ririna? You don't attend cram school, and only have a tutor, right?"

"Right. I don't really do much. I guess that I preview and review material to and from school in the car. I want to relax at home, so I always finish all my homework at in the ride home."

"I think you've told me that before." I've often heard that studying in a vehicle is effective. I've even heard of people who ride on a train the long way just to study. Ririna lives far away. Considering her family, had she entered Zuiran in elementary school, she would have almost definitely been in the Pivoine, but she was unable to attend due to regulations limiting commuting time for grade school students. She's still annoyed that she wasn't able to enter the Pivoine since junior high.

Thanks to being able to study during her long commute, she's able to achieve good grades, so some good comes out of that misfortune. Wakaba-chan gets good grades, too, and she said that studies on the train. Maybe that study method really is effective. I followed their example and tried it before, but maybe I should try it again.

"If it's Zuiran's supplemental class, maybe I should go…"

"You, Ririna? It's probably all right. Tomorrow, I'll attend classes at Zuiran and take the wool felt and drop by the club."

"Reika-san's in the handicrafts club, right? And you're the president?"

"Yes, but I'll be stepping down soon." Even if I step down as president, there's the school festival, and I intend to continue at the club. "And I'm thinking about nominating Minami-kun to replace me."

"Minami-kun?" He's ostensibly in Ririna's group. He's easy to pick on as a boy in the handicrafts club, but Rinira's protecting him since he's my kouhai. From what I heard, if anyone messed with him, Ririna stormed in and shouted, 'You guys, do you think you can get away with making Reika-san and I your enemy!?' Instead of a monster parent, she's a monster child. Should I warn her not to make me an accomplice to her?

"He's the most skilled among the juniors."

"Oh, I see." Minami-kun's too kind, though, so I'm worried that he'll be pushed around by the sports clubs like at the school festival.

"So, Ririna, how are the juniors this year? Are there any boys that are pushy or overbearing like in the sports teams?"

"Humph. They're nothing with me around. I hold the weakness of anybody important." I'll let the monster friend, Ririna handle things, then…

"Well, I've only heard of small skirmishes among the juniors, and no real problems." The junior class is fairly subdued in the Pivoine, too. "The sophomores seem to have problem children, though…"

"That reminds me, Reika-san. Is that impudent sophomore's still defying you?"

"You mean Katsuragi?" I can't think of any other sophomore who defies me.

"Right. Him."

"You get your news quickly as always." I've run into Bird Brain a few times heading to the supplemental classes or to the club. We notice each other easily, maybe because there are few students in school with summer vacation. And I have a pretty bad personality to approach him just to say, 'You're working so hard to make up the penalty of flunking.' I've avoided saying it around others, but that simple idiot cries out every time I poke him, so somebody might have overheard. No, Ririna's network might be too good.

"Shouldn't you show him who's boss? I can lend you a hand."

"What are you trying to make me do? Ririna, you should correct that habit of picking fights."

"It's important to draw a line. It's bad for discipline. If that sophomore defies you, make him pay."

"Are you a yakuza…?" This child isn't going to start calling me boss, is she? "Like I would do such a thing. You should be careful what you say, Ririna. I have an image to maintain. What if someone misunderstands?"

"I thought I suggested something that fit your image."

"Huh…?" Isn't Kisshouin Reika seen as a rococo ojou-sama?

"…"

"…"

I placed my empty tea cup on the table and bent forward on my bed. Oww…

"What are you doing?"

"Stretching before bed." It wasn't bad, but I injured the son of the Kaburagi family, so I couldn't turn him down, so once he's back in the country, I'll have to train with him at least once. I don't want him to show me a medical certificate if I defy him…

Even so, I don't want to be called pig-foot, so I stretch every day to lose weight, even a little. But this is pointless unless I continue. I'm in a sports club with my family, so do I have to go to Kaburagi's gym? I went a few times, but now, Onni-sama's the only one in the family who still goes. My entire family, other than Onii-sama just pays the membership each month, so we're just being suckered.

Now that I think about it, there's plenty that we're just paying without using. When I tried yoga, I remember entering a yoga studio, but did I sign a contract? This is dangerous… I need to better organize my paid memberships, but I always put off cancelling memberships. They're probably getting by on lazy people like me…

"Ririna, will you push my back?"

"Ugh…"

"You're spending the night, so do that much." Grumbling, she gets on my bed. "Oh, wait a moment." I almost forgot with Ririna here. I turned on the radio next to my bed.

"What's this?"

"The radio. I'd rather listen to the radio than the TV when I'm stretching."

"Don't people usually listen to music instead? The radio's so old."

"Don't mock the radio. Just listen. It's fun." I've always listened, but I didn't get hooked on it until studying for the end of term exams. When I have to concentrate on memorizing, I turned it off, but it's nice to have to refresh myself or when I'm doing simple busywork. "Ririna, pull my arm."

"Like this?"

"Ow, too much!" The radio's nice. The witty DJ's talk is fun as always. It's now my biggest stress relief.

""Next is another mail from the Magnificent Antoinette.""

I quit stretching for a moment.

""A little revenge today. I splatter that loathed guy's cell phone with my oily hands after having greasy foot. Trying to wipe it clean only spreads to oil. He keeps wiping in frustration. I smile from the shadows. What will he do? Wash it? Is it really water resistant? The more he wipes it, the more it spreads. I see a rainbow hued reflection from the black cell phone. I believe I'll touch his phone after I have fried chicken sometime. As expected of the Magnificent Antoinette. You're petty as always! The last time, you left the cap to the glue open and dried it out, but this time grease. We'll be waiting for your next message, Magnificent Antoinette. The next mail is from…""
And I became a mail worker.