˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊

"Wakey-wakey, everyone!" The painfully cheerful greeting shattered through my peaceful sleep. Groaning, I pulled my blanket over my head, wishing someone would cover the bright morning light shining through the windows. After my little expedition last night, I'd returned to one of the three common rooms. Now, at an insufferably early hour, the kids were beginning to clamber about.

"If you're not up soon, you'll miss breakfast!" Poppy added, her gleeful voice taking on a singsong tone. "Looking at you, Y/N!"

I curled a little deeper into the warm covers of my bedding, grumbling under my breath all the while. I can get eaten for all I care, so god help me, don't make me start my second life at six in the morning.

"If you're gonna be like that, then you leave me no choice!" The elder girl huffed, standing by the foot of my bed. "Go, Ichika!"

Before I could think to move, some squirming mass collided with my back, pushing the air from my lungs. wHAT the HEll –

"Mornin' Y/N!" The squirming mass was a child, who now straddled my stomach, her nose inches from mine as she leaned in close. The child's wild red hair fluffed around her face like a mane , flecks of red freckles splattered all over her face. The gap-toothed grin she wore only made the twinkle in her dark eyes all the more mischievous.

My glare flicked to the one who'd sicced the child on my peaceful self. Poppy merely shrugged, strawberry blonde hair spilling over her shoulders, as she hoisted another child up in her arms. "Ichika needs help with her boots, and as you can see, I've my arms full." She plopped the two giggling fleshy masses down on her bed and began combing through their hair, her fingers soon weaving together braids as if it was second nature.

"Tie 'em for me?" the spine-crusher called Ichika asked, holding up her little boots.

I blew air from my lips in a huff. "Don't suppose I can go back to sleep now that my ribs have been crushed... What if you broke them?" Wouldn't be too valuable as merchandise then, would I?

"Sorry, Y/N!" the girl said through a giggle, sliding to the edge of my bed and clearly not very sorry about anything.

I worked on her boots after my own, kneeling by the bedside. As I finished the final bow, I let out a long sigh. "Aren't you getting a little old for this?" The question passed through me like a ghost, and I hadn't even realized I was speaking until after the moment passed.

"That's what you said last time," Ichika said, pushing herself off my bed. "And the day before that, and the day before that, and the day before that, and..."

"The day before that?" I finished, as she took my hand in her own. "Yet, here we are, still..."

Ichika skipped forward a few paces, swinging my arm back and forth. "But Y/N, today is different!"

"Oh? How so."

"Don't pretend you've forgotten, silly," she laughed. "It's my special day today!"

It was then that we passed by the calendar, Ichika's name scrawled and circled with a blood-red ink. Though my appetite had been growing since I woke that morning, it now dissipated in an instant. I tried for an encouraging smile, but all I could manage was a thin press of my lips. "You're right!" I managed, hardly able to speak through the rising frog in my throat. "It's special."

"That's right! So you'd better sit beside me today!"

The breakfast, while simple, was plenty, and kids dug in following Yukko's delivery of the morning prayer. It was all I could do to take a few bites here and there, pushing the food around on my plate as I cast the occasional glance to Ichika at my side.

Poppy noticed my full plate, and her lips pulled into a frown. "Y/N, you're not eating?"

"I helped make breakfast today..." Chris murmured, a flush of embarrassment burning his ears. "Sorry if the eggs are no good..."

I waved their concerns away with a hasty smile. "They're fine! I'm still regaining my appetite, that's all."

"Since you're still recovering," Reina said, "it's all the more important you eat a full meal."

Still, as mouth-watering aromas filled the room, all I could picture when I looked down at my plate was a dead-eyed expression plastered over the face of the lively girl at my side.

I couldn't be more relieved when breakfast finished, despite it being followed by the much-dreaded tests. No one seemed quite as nervous as I as we filed entered the testing room, though I suppose since they were completely unaware of the truth it was to be expected.

We made our way to the mechanical desks – the surface of which was largely a screen, with buttons lining the top edge. The lights flicked off as we pulled on the headsets connected to our desks, and a mechanical voice sounded through the muffs. "Age nine, type one. Answer each question within nine seconds. We will now begin."

I gripped the barcode scanner in my hand as the screen changed. The voice spoke again. "Question one. Of the following four figures, please select the one which cannot be a possible net of solid A."

My eyes scanned briefly over the possible answers, and before the computer could count down past eight, my pen scanned the third. As soon as I answered, a quiet beep resounded through my headphones, and the screen flashed to the next question. "Question two. Count the total number of cubes in the following composite solid..."

After over 50 questions, the type-two part of the exam started. Once that was finished, the tests were over. I slumped over my desk in mental exhaustion, my head resting on my folded arms.

"I didn't get a single one!" the children began to chatter, some more enthused than others.

"Really? I think I did pretty well!"

The mother Yukko soon made her way to stand before the blackboard, a stack of papers held against her chest. "Attention to the front, everyone! I'll be returning t exam results back now. But before that..." she shuffled through the papers with a smile, "Congratulations, Y/N! On your first day back, you've received full scores yet again!"

"Right after being sick?" A clamouring arose in the room. "I'm jealous!"

"It's Y/N, after all," another snickered.

Reina pulled her sleek black hair into a ponytail and adjusted her glasses. "Maybe if you actually studied hard, you'd have a chance of getting full-scores, too."

The room filled with a chorus of groans. "No way! That's too hard."

"Plus, Y/N doesn't study!"

Poking my head to catch glimpses of the test scores as they were handed out, I found them rather disconcerting. I recalled vaguely some of the test scores of the plant-three children in the manga, and by comparison, this plant's performance was... mediocre, as a whole. I supposed that's why Isabella's plant was referred to as The Flower Of Taste; the best of the best.

To put it less lightly: they weren't as smart as their Plant 3 counterparts. How much, I wondered, can I actually rely on them?

"Y/N, come play with us!" I was startled by one of the kids, pulling at my shirt.

"You should be it!"

"Come on!"

I was pushed along with in the stream of children heading outside. Soon, the eager-faced little buggers surrounded me. "Yeah, Y/N, come play! We missed you!"

My lips pursed into a thin line. "Well..."

"Y/N's still recovering," Reina offered in an attempt to help. "Perhaps some other time?"

"What?" Poppy complained, flipping her braids over her shoulder. "Y/N seems just fine! Right?"

"Er..." my eyes trailed across the sea of expectant-faced little blobs. "I guess I can play one round..."

Before I could even consider changing my mind, the kids shrieked in excitement and dispersed through the field, all the way through the tree line and into the expansive woods. "Close your eyes and count to 120!"

A gentle afternoon breeze rustled the picture-perfect grass. It was a beautiful day overhead, with nary a cloud in the bright blue sky. Grace Field truly was a peaceful place – and would have made a peaceful afterlife, too, if the ugliness of its intent wasn't constantly creeping over my shoulder.

"119... 120!" I yelled, removing my hands from my eyes. As soon as I did, a small hand gripped my own. "Ichika!"

The young girl grinned up at me, lacing her fingers with mine. "I wanna help!"

My cheeks puffed out, as I squinted down at her. At least that way, if I fail miserably, I can blame it on the kid. "Well, alright."

"Ready or not, here we come!"

After jogging through the field with Ichika at my side, I paused as we entered the threshold of the forest, my hand raising to the back of head. "What first?" I wondered aloud.

Ichika's face scrunched together in concentration, as she apparently took my question at face-level. "You always say to stay quiet and to listen first... Right?"

As she looked for me for confirmation, I tried not to look as uncertain as I felt. "Well, I know best, after all." Apparently.

Within a minute of our silence, I heard giggling arise from the nearby bushes. I shared a knowing grin with my mischievous little companion and raised a finger to my lips, a gesture which the girl echoed with a nod.

We crashed through the foliage together, surprising a small hoard of children. Together, Ichika and I caught five children, all aged between three and six.

"We're caught already?" they complained, little mushy faces hanging in frustration.

I propped my hands on my hips in mock disappointment, pointing back in the direction of the house. "Go wait by the tree!" I said, smothering a laugh. "And next time, keep quiet. With all the footprints and noise, it would be hard not to find you!"

"Yes, Y/N," the kids mumbled, hanging their heads in shame as they filed out of the woods.

Ichika and I continued capturing children that way until we'd rid the forest of all of the youngest ones. As we did, Ichika proclaimed she would go sit with them, not wanting to be a burden. A boy called Hayato was keeping watch over the kids after he abstained from joining in the game.

It didn't take long until I was having little progress – the forest was just far too expansive to cover all that ground searching for the handful of siblings remaining. Yet, my eyes fell on a small cave, poking out of the ground, and a strange premonition drew me to it. I took a wide berth to approach, and soon shuffled atop the entrance to lie in wait. It turned out fruitful when none other than Chris poked his head out of the cave. Immediately, my arm swung over the top, tapping him atop the head.

He wheeled over in surprise, his deep blue eyes flashing wide. "Y/N!"

I laid across my stomach, my chin propped on my fist. "Caught you," I hummed, as my legs swung idly back and forth.

Chris' shoulders slumped in defeat as he pushed himself out of the narrow tunnel. "Darn... So, who's left?"

I raised three fingers. "Poppy, Reina, and er... Who was it?"

"Who?"

I bit my lower lip thoughtfully, racking my brain for a memory that wasn't present. "The blonde one..."

"Hannah?" Chris said. "C'mon Y/N, you know she never plays... All she does is study!" That didn't surprise me much, considering I'd caught sight of a rather impressive 270 on her test sheet – that, at least, was better far better than even Gilda's average test score.

"I'm kidding!" I grinned, patting his shoulder. "Kidding... Whelp, I've got to go now! Other people to catch! See you, Chris!" Before the boy could get another word in, I slipped away through the trees. Once I was alone, I dragged a hand over my face, eyes rolling to the sky.

"Way to be subtle, Y/N..." I muttered to myself. "They're gonna find you out, at this rate..."

As I lamented my stupidity, my feet had carried me to an odd corner of the woods. I stood near a rock outcrop, much like a spot I'd seen of plant 3 in the anime. As my eyes scanned the landscape, I there was a flash of strawberry-blonde as Poppy ducked farther behind one of the rocks. For a moment, I thought she saw me, but she remained where she was, completely clueless that I'd seen her. I began to sneak toward her, first through the trees, and then flitting through the rocks.

My foot suddenly tapped against a tinny pebble, sending it skittering across the ground. It was a near-silent noice, but Poppy's ears perked, and she shot suddenly to her feet. She sprang away like a bullet from a gun.

"Crap!" I chased after her, but as we hit the forest, I could tell she was pulling ahead with ease. My legs burned with exhaustion, and each breath was ragged. I'd even begun to feel faint: so much physical activity after so much time on bed rest was clearly taking its toll on this body.

I inhaled sharply and my eyes snapped shut in a hamfisted attempt to clear my mind. Suddenly, it was as if the woods were a 3D blueprint mapped out in my mind. Just like that time at the house, I could picture everything moments before I passed it; I could see myself at all angles. I instinctively traced all of Poppy's available paths, all of the nearby trails, all of the small cliffs and the dead-ends. Then I mentally crossed off the paths; a process of elimination that took into account some strange knowledge of her habits I didn't fully understand.

I pulled away from her direct tail, tracking my own route to a point I believed her path would intersect. It was with a certainty that would've puzzled me more, if my one-track mind hadn't been so intent on winning.

I waited with baited breath, and for the first few seconds, Poppy was nowhere to be seen. I nearly lost hope when I began to make out the faint crunching of fast footsteps. Poppy suddenly ran into view, and I sprang out from behind the tree, tapping her arm before the girl could react. "Gotcha."

Poppy skidded to a stop, her jaw dropping in surprise. "Wha – Darn it!" She kicked a tree root in frustration, and then winced as pain shot through her leg. "I really thought I had you this time... So am I the last?"

I shrugged, entirely unsure. I mean, I hadn't even committed the kids' names to memory yet. "I think?"

Poppy slung an arm over my shoulder with a dejected sigh. "Of course you did... Now, let's head back to the house and tell everyone!"

It wasn't until we stepped out of the forest that I realized who I'd forgotten. "Reina!" I said, moments before I saw the girl in question waiting up on the hill. Ichika ran down toward me, giggling all the while. "You distracted me so I didn't see her, huh?"

Ichika tackled my legs with a laugh. "Time's up! Reina wins!"

With a sigh, I flopped to the ground, Ichika still hugging my legs. She shuffled to my stomach, leaning toward my face, her nose and cheeks splattered with rosy colour. "Will you play another round?"

"Ichika darling," Yukko called from near the house, one of the babies cradled in her arms. "Y/N should really be taking It easy."

I reached a finger to the girl's nose, giving it a tap. "You heard the boss lady – I'm beat! But I'll watch you play, okay?"

"'Kay!"

I took a seat against a nearby tree, watching the children as they partook in hide and seek and various other activities. All the while, alone with my mind for some time, I began to plan.

I would need to escape this place – Obviously. But I had to do it without jeopardizing the escape I knew would soon begin in the other plant. As Norman would point out in the series, escaping after someone already pulled off the feat would become considerably harder. An increase of staff could easily screw any attempt at escape over; patrols on the walls, or more likely, an increase in human staff brought into the farms to keep watch from the inside.

I couldn't escape before without screwing them over, and I couldn't count on being able to escape after them. So, that left escaping at the same time. In that case, I'd be leaving at the same day, at the same time – which would certainly prove difficult to explain. Wow, fancy meeting you out here, people who I've entirely coincidentally escaped at the exact same time as! I'm not a suspicious individual, I swear!

Yeah... even with my totally top-notch acting skills, that would be a stretch to pull off.

Having to explain how I knew about their escape and planned accordingly was also a can of worms I didn't want to open. Needing to reveal where that knowledge came from would cause way to many problems, namely:

1. Existential Crisis. You come from another dimension? What do you mean we're fictional characters in another reality!? 

2. Butterfly effect. What if by telling them, I deeply affect the future plot, and then no longer know what's going to happen?

3. Having to admit I benefited from consuming media based off of their trauma. Let's not even get into the ethics of that... 

4. It's too much damned effort! I mean, do these guys even have a concept of manga or anime? How much detail would I have to go into? No thanks! So let's move on from this problem back to the other.

Let's just say I meet up with them during the escape, I hummed to myself. I had to – in order to make it to the next arc successfully, and actually stay alive, yada yada. As such, it would be best if I could establish a relationship with them beforehand, wouldn't it?

Not because I just want to see them already... that would be stupid...

– Aside from all that, there was another elephant in the room: how the hell would I escape in the first place? What I'd need to do... gather supplies, complete an inspection – I'd need at least one other person to ensure Yukko didn't catch on. But who could I ask?

My eyes trailed to a nearby group of children, kicking a ball between each other, clueless to their fates. And can I bring them, too?

I shook my head, tearing away from the thought. No. If I affect the plot too much, it increases the likelihood the future takes a wrong turn. If I took these kids with me, what were the chances they lead horrible lives before an untimely death? Here, at least... they'd have a happy life in the meantime. That wasn't even mentioning the possibility my alteration of the timeline could affect the main group, too. It could get people who were never supposed to die killed.

My brow knit in frustration as I propped my chin on my fist. Okay, so keep it subtle. Say I brought a couple of the older kids – Reina was highly intelligent and a hard worker... Poppy was incredibly athletic, with a cheerful and loving nature that made her less susceptible to suspicion, if she could maintain it. Plus, I realized, I want her on my side.

Now the only remaining question was how – How do I get them on my side? Or better phrased, How do I get them to believe me?

It dawned on me suddenly, as my gut twisted at the sickening thought. It was my best – and potentially only – chance. And the sun that hung low on the horizon lit Ichika's burning red hair like a halo around her head.

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