“Senpai.”
The automated voice of Miaya's speech aid was— supremely uncute, in Miaya Gekkogahara's opinion. But even still, Chisa Yukizome perked up at the sound of it, turning to her with a delighted smile that made Miaya duck her face into her scarf.
“Miaya-chan!”
“Too familiar.” Her fingers typed quick, heat surefire on her cheeks and chest warm. Chisa pouts, coming to poke her on her cheek.
“But Miaaayaaa!” She whined, and Miaya turned her face away. Chisa dropped the act, grinning. “Okay, okay, I won't tease. What's up, Kouhai?”
“You said you had a solution to my speech aid.” Miaya reminds.
“Ah, right!” Chisa opened her bag, grabbing papers and thrusting them at her. “You said you didn't like how uncute your voice was, so I thought… What's cuter than a mascot character! Look at these designs I did.”
Miaya did. They were extremely poorly drawn.
“A bunny?” Miaya blinked at her.
“What's cuter than that!” Chisa gushed.
“Yukizome-senpai.”
“Yes?”
“These designs are awful.”
“Ah…” Chisa deflats. “I suppose that's why I'm not the Ultimate Character Designer…”
Miaya studies her. Then, she sighs. “Give me a pen.”
“Huh?”
She held her hand out impatiently.
“Oh, a pen? Um… okay, I'm sure I have one in here somewhere…”
After rummaging around in her bag, Chisa cheered triumphantly. “Ahah! Here. A pen.”
Miaya snatched it from her, and smoothed out the paper. Then, she started drawing.
“Ah? You're editing it! I thought you didn't like it?”
Miaya paused, torn between replying and continuing drawing, but to reply was to admit that Chisa's drawings had potential, just executed amateurishly… Which Miaya didn't want to do. She continued drawing.
Chisa looked over her shoulder, humming and hahing at different swipes of the pen. Chisa was so expressive. So vocal. Sometimes, Miaya was envious of her. Even if Miaya wanted to talk, she couldn't. She wished…
It doesn't matter what she wished. She shook her head, focusing back on the bunny.
(In a way, Chisa may just be trying to give her that liveliness back. That expressiveness that is always out of reach. In a way… Chisa may just be trying to give her her voice back.)
“Oh, it's so cute!” Chisa exclaimed in delight when she finished. Miaya flushed.
“It's just a concept,” she typed on her computer once more.
“But it's adorable, Miaya-chan! As cute as you!”
“Don't be ridiculous.”
“I'm not!”
But she was. After all…
Magical Miracle Girl Usami was based on Chisa Yukizome. The miracle girl who brought life back into Miaya's own, just like magic. So really, it's as cute as her; not Miaya.
Miaya doesn't say this. “You are .” She insists instead. “The most ridiculous girl in the world.”
And the best.