lumidescence: A screenshot of Chihiro's model blushing (blushing chihiro)
I rush into my room.
Sure enough, there was indeed a helmet on top of the desk.
I gently pick it up, illuminated by the light of the already-setting moon.

It has already been six years since my father disappeared, and even though it was built earlier than that, the helmet hasn't shown any signs of deterioration in the slightest.

My mother must have carefully stored this… Just like you would handle a treasured item.

“...”

This must be a sentiment from my mother.
That if I believe my father, that if I can still say that he had been abducted, then she'll surely allow me to go to space to get him back—that’s what I think she's trying to convey.

“Yeah, I'm sure of it.”

I want my mother to be at ease and continue on the path that she believes in.
I'll be who I am, and I will continue to follow the path that I myself have chosen.

I put on the helmet and tried to look around my surroundings through the shield.
It fits just right, as if I've been wearing it for a long time. My vision was clear, and I’m able to breathe naturally, as if it had been a part of my body from the beginning.

My stepfather is a good person.
I can see why my mother chose him. I'm sure he'll be a wonderful father.
I'm sure he'll be able to make my mother happy.

However, the father in my eyes will only be that person.

He was a strange person who really loved space, but for some reason, you can't help but still love him. Only that person will be my father.

“...”

About my newborn little sister.
I was quite shocked when I found out that my mother was pregnant, but now I feel very blessed that I'm able to have a little sister.

I get to have a sibling. 
Which is why, I'll also properly take that first step towards the new chapter.
Once my little sister is born, I want to pamper her with lots of things and do all kinds of things to make her happy.

And—

Starting tomorrow, I'll wear this space helmet that my father gave me every day.
Going to space requires training. As part of that…
As it is the expression of my determination above anything else…

“Wait for me, father.”

I will definitely… become an astronaut.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Uu-chan greeted me, Kinugawa, and our little sisters when we arrived at the living room of HAMA House.

He then gave us strawberry chocolate donuts as promised. 
He seemed to be busy reading the thin book of someone he calls ‘Sensei’, so he quickly went back to our room without even saying goodbye.

“I wove Ushio-kun’s sweets! They're always so yummy!”

“Did Ushio-kun make these himself? If he did, I'm gonna become Ushio-kun’s wife!”

“No, you… can't... I absolutely… won't let you…”

Seeing Kinugawa shaking his head with a deep wrinkle forming between his eyebrows, our little sisters laughed.
“Kinugawa’s doting nature is quite impressive,” I commented with a laugh, making Kinugawa embarrassed.

After that, we gave our little sisters warm milk tea to drink after wiping their sticky mouths from eating the donuts.
I then listen to the cheerful chatter that our little sisters are having.

—A peaceful scenery.

“...”

Since the day that I decided to carry on my father's will and find him at all costs… several years have passed.
I still haven't successfully contacted someone or something in space, even to this day. There was even no new information about UFOs.

“To get my father back and get my life back on track.”

That is my long-cherished wish.

By joining the Community Revitalization Club, I have been able to focus on other things to a certain extent, however—
I feel that my time has stopped since the day my father disappeared on that grassy field.

That's why sometimes I think of something when I see a peaceful and cheerful scene unfolding right before my eyes.

If I get my father back, what happens after that…?

“...No.”

I should stop thinking about that now. I haven't even found where my father is yet.
If I keep on doing that, I'll surely waste time discovering anything in the future.
I should still have time to think about it…

“Do you like me, big brother?”

“Yes.”

“Am I cute?”

“Absolutely. You're my adorable little sister that I would want to go as far as to swallow you up whole.”

“...Your love… is scary…”

After that, Kinugawa sent his little sister home and went back to their house first. His little sister left a handwritten note for Uu-chan saying, “Thank you Ushio-kun”.

I, on the other hand, was trying to pass the time by waiting in the dorms until the archery class that my mother was teaching ended.

“Hey big brother, read me a picture book before mom’s done!”

I grant Hime’s request.

“Alright. Now, which book should I read for you today…”

“I want the one with Princess Kaguya!”

“Understood.”

After a short while, I started to read Hime's favorite picture book. That is, until…

“Oh~♪ If it isn't Princess Kaguya!”

Yowa-san appears while holding a bag with ‘Cafe369’ printed on it, like some kind of code.

“I had also read that story! The contents of it are to my liking, and it is profoundly memorable. It makes me think of a man that I met on a star juuust some time ago. He's also a descendant of Princess Kaguya, or so he claimed.”

“What?”

A flashing light filled my brain.
Questions started to swirl around in circles in my head, occupying everything inside it.

“A descendant of Princess Kaguya…?”

“Indeed, Indeed♪”

And then—Yowa-san’s smile made me feel like the pieces were starting to fall into place.

“He’s a traitor of the moon.”

I froze. I couldn't even seem to move my gaze away for a while.

—End of Track 5

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Masterlist / Track 1 / Track 2 / Track 3 / Track 4 / Track 5

lumidescence: A screenshot of Chihiro's model blushing (blushing chihiro)
“Father, do you think it’ll go well today?”

When I was a child, I thought that no there was no end to that grassy field.

That place—where my father took me to visit time after time.

“I wonder… I'll keep on going until I get a result, no matter what it may be.”

Setting up the radio, radar, and small parabolic antenna, my father abruptly muttered to himself.

With a hint of resignation, he said, “Success this time will be difficult too.”

Even I, as a child, had noticed this, and so I stopped calling out to him any more.

Following my father's instructions, I held the telescope with both of my hands, as it was a bit bigger than usual.
Considering an elementary school student’s strength, it was difficult for me to keep the telescope in place, which made my father eventually extend one arm out and return the telescope to its upright position.

I giggled, and my father also grinned behind that serious expression of his.

“I wonder what an alien looks like.”

I asked a casual question.
Then, my father decided to change his usual stiff and strained expression into a somewhat relaxed expression and—

“The alien that I saw looked something like a firefly squid.”

He replied.

My father was someone who saw “space” in his dreams.
He was someone who was adamant that he'd one day become an astronaut and go to space, and he would take me, someone who was still a small child, to a deserted grassy field in the dead of night to try to make contact with extraterrestrial life.

But unfortunately, none of those dreams came close to success.

Which is why this time too.
I thought it would be the same this time too, however…

“Huh?”

A sudden, bright light.

An impact.

The sound of my father gasping.

The communication equipment floating up in the air, rattling and shaking nonstop.

“Father—”

There was no response.

My father… was floating in the air.

I reached out my hand.
My arms were still so short that I wasn't even able to grab the hem of his pants.

My father was moving farther away.

During that time, I wondered if my father was smiling.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

“Kagu….ya…”

“Ah…”

In the classroom after class ended. Kinugawa quietly examined my face, looking a little worried.

It seemed like I was in a daze when I was recalling what happened ten years ago.
To the point that I wasn't even able to realize that someone was standing in front of me.

I look at the clock through the shield of my space helmet.
It was almost time to go pick Hime up from kindergarten.

“Apologies, I had to make you go through the trouble of waiting for me. Let's go.”

“It's, alright… let's, hurry…up a bit.”

I nodded and left my seat.
Kinugawa, perhaps relieved once he saw my appearance, nodded in the same way and followed me.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

“Kaguya, your little sister… is honest, and cute…”

“Indeed, it's almost enough for me to take the initiative and welcome it into my eyes.”

“That's a little… scary.”

“Your little sister, on the other hand, is full of energy and is a cute and mature kid, Kinugawa.”

“Really…? Tha…nks.”

After joining the Community Revitalization Club and meeting Kinugawa there, we started to frequently pick our little sisters up together.
Since both of our little sisters attend the same kindergarten and the time period to pick them up and the road to bring them home were almost all the same, our relationship naturally progressed.

“Are you… going back to the dorm… once you're done… picking your little sister up, today?”

“Yes. Uu-chan told me that he'd bake some sweets for my little sister.”

“Kurama also likes, your little sister, right? I heard that… He also calles her… ‘Hime’.”

“Yes. Before I knew it, the nickname that I gave to my little sister somehow managed to influence Uu-chan to also use it.

“I guess, he… adores her.”

“Certainly. Also…”

“Hm…?”

“I heard from Uu-chan that he also prepared some sweets for your little sister, Kinugawa.”

“Eh…”

“If it's alright with you, let's go to HAMA House together.”

“...Thank, you. I have to, give Kurama, my thanks too…”

Kinugawa delightfully smiles in a heartwarming manner.

Now, it's about time we go to Hime’s kindergarten.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

During summer vacation, when I was in my first year of elementary school, my father disappeared.

My father would always tell me about things like how he genuinely loves space, how he aims to be an astronaut, and how there are other living creatures in space besides humans whenever I talked to him.

However, he got abducted by a UFO right before my eyes.

“I'm telling the truth…! Father really did get abducted by a UFO! It happened right before my eyes!”

“But Muneuji-kun, didn't you lose your consciousness? How did you see a UFO?”

“That's… I wasn't able to see it properly, but… but I really…!”

“Aren't you just confused by the shock of losing your father?”

“Children sometimes say things that sound like dreams after all…”

I desperately pleaded. That my father had been absorbed into the light.

However, not even one of the adults there believed my words.

There was a time when my mother told me a story while I was in a state of shock and depression.

“...The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter?”

“That’s right. Since our last name is Kaguya, Papa might have returned to the moon, just like Princess Kaguya.”

But of course, even my mother doesn't actually believe in that sort of story.
She was only doing it to cheer me up.

There was a time when I woke up in the middle of the night to take care of something when I heard my mother and grandmother discussing something.

“Just forget about that man already. He probably left you for another woman…”

“But, I still…”

“More importantly, you should prioritize taking care of Muneuji's mental health. You're his mother. Get your act together.”

“...”

My mother was also having a hard time. It was only naturally so.
Which is why I decided to no longer talk about my father publicly.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

The person who comforted me during that time was Uu-chan.

“Muu-chan, have this!”

“This is… chocolate?”

“Yep, it's the very first one that I made. I wanted to give them to you first, Muu-chan.”

“Thank you…”

“I’m not saying this to cheer you up, but…”

Because of Uu-chan looking at me straight in the eyes…

“No matter what happens, I'll believe in you, Muu-chan.”

My decision became certain.
I'll find the evidence of my father being taken and the whereabouts of my father.
If my mother gets worried once she knows about it, then I'll do it in secret. However, I'll definitely do it, no matter what.

—End of Track 1

----------------------------------------------------------------------
lumidescence: A screenshot of Chihiro's model blushing (blushing chihiro)
(I'm still learning jp so please take this tl with a grain of salt!! also, pls ignore the images not fitting on mobile phones,,, idk why it's doing that and i still don't know how to fix it... pien peko)

Location: Hama Asunaro High School—Rooftop
yay

Akuta: Muneujiiii! Is it true that you've got a cat in your helmet? Lemme see lemme see!

Muneuji: Of course. Here.

Cat in Helmet: Purr.

Kikoku: Were… Were you scolded… by the teachers…?

Ushio: If anything, they were complimenting him. They said that it was wrong to bring a cat but it was alright since he left the helmet outside when attending class… or something.

Nanaki: So, when are you going to… get that cat out?

Muneuji: That's the problem. Whenever I try to place my hand inside the helmet, the cat gets violent and resists to get out. May I have everyone try to get it out?

Ushio: Ah, I don't wanna touch stray cats since they're unsanitary so I'll pass.

Kiroku: (Kurama, he says that he doesn't want to touch the cat but… he's staring at it so much…)

Akuta: Then I'll go give it a try! Slow~ and steady~…

Cat in Helmet: Meow meow meow! *attacks Akuta*

Akuta: OW OW OW OW OW OW!

Muneuji: What a terrible cat punch…!

Nanaki: It's my turn next… slowly…

Cat in Helmet: Meow meow meow! *attacks Nanaki*

Nanaki: Looks… looks like it's no good.

Muneuji: Then, Kinugawa, would you please do it next?

Kiroku: … Now.

Cat in Helmet: !? Meow…?

Akuta: WHAT!? The cat's already out before I knew it.

Kiroku: I was thinking… that… that if you slowly approach it… it'll… get scared instead…

Muneuji: What a clever… No, you were doing it in consideration, weren't you? I really appreciate it, Kinugawa.
Dear cat... Apologies however, I’ll have to put this on before you take it over again.

yay

Muneuji
This helmet is… A, haa… the most important thing to me after all… Achoo!

Nanaki: …Ah, could it be that the cat's fur inside the helmet is…

Muneuji: Therefore, everyone, I… thank you… Haa… for your cooperation… Achoo!

Ushio: …How about you go clean it once before putting it on?

—End of Part 2
----------------------------------------------------------------------

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