Sheeta was woken up by the sound of a trumpet.
Accompanied by the upbeat "toot-toot-toot," sunlight spilled onto the quilt, and warmth seeped into her body from her palms.
The girl sat up and rubbed her eyes.
—Am I... still alive?
She held the stone in front of her heart, remaining silent.
The sound of a trumpet, passionate and fiery, still rang in her ears.
The girl pushed back the covers and got out of bed—the small hut was half-occupied by a fireplace; on the table sat a water cup and a tray containing two small golden oranges.
The chair creaked at the slightest touch; the kettle on the stove gurgled, emitting white steam.
A long wooden ladder led toward where the sound of the trumpet drifted from.
Pushing open the door above her head, she was first greeted by a flock of bustling pigeons!
Flap, flap!
"Ah!"
The girl cried out!
"You're awake!" Baru stopped playing his trumpet, two pigeons perched on his shoulders. He looked down at the dazed girl emerging from the roof: "Come here!"
He reached out and pulled the startled girl onto the roof, holding her hand and flashing a wide, familiar smile: "My name is Baru! I live here alone!"
Sunlight illuminated the Boy's profile. The pigeons took flight with a flutter and landed again on his dirty worker's cap.
This scene made Sheeta's lips curl into a smile.
"My name is Sheeta!"
"Your name sounds lovely," Baru reached into his pocket and placed a handful of small grains into the girl's palm: "I like to blow my trumpet every morning and then feed them. Do you want to try?"
"I..."
Before she could reply, the pigeons swarmed around her, wings flapping rapidly. Their tiny beaks pecked at her hair, arms, and palms, tickling her.
"Haha! Fun, isn't it? They all know me now!"
The girl pushed through the cluster of wings, poking her head out to look at Baru: "It tickles!"
"They eat very fast, look!"
Groups of small white heads sized up the newcomer. Once full, they perched on the chimney or landed on the roof, looking up at Baru and Sheeta's feet with a hint of curiosity in their tiny eyes.
Seeing the girl who had fallen from the sky finally smile, Baru breathed a sigh of relief: "Now I can rest easy."
"Rest easy?"
"Yeah, I thought you weren't human." The Boy tucked his brass trumpet under his arm and held a pigeon in one hand: "Last night, when you fell from the sky, I was worried you might be an Angel. You were plummeting down with a whoosh!"
"How could such a creature exist?" Sheeta's eyes widened. "Of course I'm human."
"A beautiful human!"
Baru loosened his grip, and the pigeon fluttered up onto the brim of his hat: "You're as pretty as my sister!"
The girl, not used to being complimented, felt a bit shy. She lowered her head but didn't forget to ask: "You have a sister?"
"She went out treasure hunting. I'm waiting for her to come back!" The Boy waved his hand, shooing away the well-fed birds so they wouldn't fly around Sheeta's face: "What about you?"
"Me?"
"I saw it!" He pointed excitedly at the pendant around the girl's neck: "Can I try it?"
Sheeta nodded, unfastened the pendant, and tied it around Baru.
"You were like this!"
The Boy held his arms out and walked to the edge of the roof. Under Sheeta's worried gaze, he stepped out into the air: "You were floating in the air like this!"
As he spoke, he stepped out with both legs.
"Baru!!"
Thud.
A mess of fabric and wood scraps.
The Boy landed in a pile of clothes, knocking over the drying rack.
Sheeta hurried through the roof opening, jumped down the ladder, and opened the door—Baru was staring blankly with a shirt on his head and a gray sock draped over his shoulder, grinning foolishly at the girl who burst through the door.
"It seems... it wasn't the stone's doing."
"Couldn't you have tested it somewhere lower?" Sheeta pouted and pulled the Boy up: "Does it hurt?"
"I fall often." Baru patted his backside and pulled Sheeta into the small hut.
After the girl sat down, the Boy brought a cup of boiled hot water and a small orange and placed them before her.
"I haven't had time to buy food yet. The meatballs I bought to save you yesterday were crushed when I stepped on them."
"Thank you for saving me."
The girl held the cup, feeling a bit guilty: "I don't have any money left..."
All she had left was this stone.
"No need! My sister left me plenty of money!"
Baru waved his hand dismissively.
Mori Tsukisa had left several bags of gold coins in Baru's small cupboard. Except for buying machine parts, he rarely used them for unnecessary things.
In his view, his sister's money should be saved for when it was needed in the future.
Clearly, now was that time.
"I'll go buy some for you!" Baru pushed away from the table and stood up energetically: "Wait for me! Do you want meatballs, small meat pies, or vegetables?"
Sheeta looked at the Boy who had saved her, so outgoing and cheerful, and was at a loss for words.
"I..."
"It's fine! Just say it! I'm very rich!"
Taking his sister's money to buy food for another young girl, young Master Baru didn't realize the humor in his actions at all. He looked at Sheeta, his enthusiastic smile never fading since a moment ago.
"You're... silly." Sheeta was stunned, not understanding why she would say such a thing: "Sorry! I didn't... I'm a bit... not fully awake?"
"Hahahaha! You're silly too!"
Baru patted the top of Sheeta's head and pointed to his own: "We look just as silly when we laugh!"
"...I'm not silly."
"See, you're just like me, hahahaha!"
The Boy and girl grinned at each other. The girl who had survived a disaster and the Boy who yearned for the sky looked at one another... Because of Sheeta's presence, Baru made an exception and began to spend lavishly: three fried eggs for breakfast; meat and white bread for lunch; pan-seared steaks for dinner, along with a large pot of bone broth, some vegetables, and a bit of light cream.
He didn't care how much money he spent, telling himself it was just to entertain Sheeta. Little did he know that once one becomes familiar with a joyful lifestyle, there's no going back to the dry, ascetic days.
After dinner, Baru, who usually liked to talk about his father and his 'dreams,' led the girl underground.
His workshop.
A streamlined, gull-wing aircraft was already finished. Compared to what Mori Tsukisa had seen when she arrived, it was now fully formed; its exterior was iron-gray, with various control levers in the center that the girl didn't understand; buckets of paint were still sitting in the corner.
"The aircraft I built!" The Boy spread his arms proudly, his face full of smugness: "How is it?"
"Sheeta?"
"Huh?" The girl turned away absently, her hands on the wall, her small face almost pressed against a photograph.
"Oh! You're looking at that..." Baru walked over to explain: "A photo my father once took."
"That's the legend of legends."
"Laputa! The castle floating above the sky!"
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