Beneath the Canopy of Camaraderie

As the sun reached its peak, casting a warm glow over the refugee camp, Nanahoshi and I returned to the tent where Alphonse was and saw him carrying two stacks of clothes as he approached us.

"Ah, there you are," Alphonse greeted, his voice steady and composed despite the weariness evident on his face. "I took the liberty of finding some clothes for you both. They should help you blend in and be more comfortable while you're here."

"Thank you, Alphonse," I replied, taking the clothes from his hands. "We appreciate it."

Nanahoshi looked at the clothes with a mix of curiosity and apprehension. {"These attires are for us, right?"} she asked in Japanese.

{"Yes, and they'll make it easier for us to move around the camp without attracting too much attention,"} I reassured her.

With that dialogue established, Alphonse gestured for us to follow him. We complied and he led us to a multitude of tents until he stopped on a vacant one.

"This is where you two will stay," he declared, holding the tent flap open for us. "It isn't much, but it's a place to change your clothes and rest for the night."

"Thank you, Sir Alphonse," I repeated, grateful for the accommodation.

We entered the tent and placed our new clothes down. I looked around the interior, noticing the two separate beds and a single table with a bowl of fruits on top.

{"It's not exactly luxurious, but it will do,"} Nanahoshi remarked, inspecting the interior.

{"We can make it work,"} I agreed. {"Now, let's... Um, what are you doing?"}

Looking at Nanahoshi, I observed her taking the bed sheets and tying them from both sides of the tent's foundation, creating a fabric partition.

{"If I'm changing my clothes with you around, a border is necessary to prevent anyone from peeking on my body, especially you,"} She explained.

Her answer offended me, causing my brows to furrow. {"Oi, what do you take me for?"}

{"A pervert,"} Nanahoshi bluntly said.

Her words made my cheeks red, baffled about her accusation. My mind raced for the exact reason for her to say such a thing to me.

I narrowed my eyes and pointed at her, demanding, {"What the heck did I do to you?"}

{"Do you think I haven't felt your hand touching my chest back when we were sleeping in the floating castle?"} She exposed me, realizing that knew about my earlier blunder all along.

Feeling defeated, turned around and headed towards the entrance to give her some solitude and reflect on my actions.

{"Hey, where are you going?"} Nanahoshi called out to me.

I turned and saw the silhouette of her taking off her uniform behind the partition. Averting my eyes away from her, I responded, {"Well, you know, I thought you needed some privacy while you changed your clothes."}

{"Stay there, and guard the entrance,"} she demanded. {"I don't want any creeps to sneak in and take advantage of my lonesome."}

What the heck? She doesn't want me to look at her changing but doesn't want me to go. This woman can't make up her mind, dammit.

I sighed and turned to face the opening, fulfilling her request. {"Fine, I'll guard the entrance."}

As I stood at the doorway, I could hear giggling her to herself, Is she enjoying her new attire, or perhaps she thought that ordering a child around was funny to her? Urgh, this sucks.

After a while, Nanahoshi emerged from the partition with a new look. She is now sporting a commoner attire, complete with a long, loose-fitting shirt, ankle-length dress, headwear, and leather boots.

{"Alright, your turn, Dante,"} she declared nonchalantly. I complied and went straight toward the partition, but she grabbed my shoulder. {"Why are you going in there? That's my side."}

{"What do you think? I'm changing my clothes,"} I argued with frustration.

She pointed at her bed and countered, {"My old clothes are in there. I don't want you to look at my stuff."}

{"How low do you take me for? I'm not interested with your garments,"} I reasoned with her. She glared at me, but I stood my ground, asserting, {"If you don't want me to use your partition, make one for me."}

Nanahoshi grumbled under her breath but reluctantly complied to make a separate partition on my side. After that, she gestured for me to go inside, still glaring with contempt.

I followed her instructions, but not before I told her something she would hate. {"Don't peek, or else I will accuse you of pedophilia."}

The look on her face as I entered the partition was so priceless that I could hear her cringing on herself. Hah, got her. That's for messing with me.

Once I finished changing my clothes, I checked myself in a full mirror on the foot of my bed. I was now wearing a comfy brown sweater and shorts, completed by a red scarf. 

I emerged from the partition and saw Nanahoshi sitting on her bed with the sheets settled, currently folding her old clothes. She noticed me and hid the undergarment she was holding.

{"Pervert,"} Nanahoshi murmured bitterly.

Ignoring her comment, I retorted, {"Could you please help me take down this partition? I can't reach it on my own. Also, stop glaring at me."}

Nanahoshi sighed and got up, joining me in dismantling the makeshift barrier. As we worked together, I could feel the tension slowly dissipating. Despite her harsh words, I knew she was just trying to cope with our situation in her own way.

Once the partition was down, I looked at her and said, {"We need to focus on our mission and put this dispute behind us."}

Nanahoshi nodded, albeit reluctantly. {"Fine. But you better not pull anything funny."}

{"Yes, yes, no funny business,"} I assured her, trying to maintain a serious expression.

Just then, Alphonse entered the tent and looked at both of us. Later, he nodded, seemingly satisfied with our new looks.

"I see you both have settled in," he remarked. "There are some tasks that need your attention around the camp. Are you ready to get started?"

"Yes, we're ready," I answered, eager to prove our worth. "What are things we do?"

Alphonse handed us a list of tasks and explained each one briefly. It seems we were tasked to assist in distributing food, help with medical supplies, and lend a hand in watering crops.

"Do you think you two could do these?" Alphonse asked.

I turned to Nanahoshi, quietly translating the tasks for her. We then looked back at Alphonse and nodded. "Of course, we can."

Alphonse smiled approvingly. "Good. I'll show you where to start."

We followed him out of the tent, ready to begin our work and earn the trust of those around us. The camp was bustling with activity, and I could feel the weight of the duty ahead.

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Following the butler, we headed to our first destination, the makeshift kitchen. The individual in charge of the station is a portly chief. He noticed us approaching and glanced at us.

"New helpers?" the chief asked, his eyes scanning our faces.

"Yes, Ramdon," Alphonse confirmed. "These two are here to help with food distribution."

"Hmm, I suppose a kid is alright," he said with a curt nod. "My name is Ramdon Gorsey, you youngsters will be giving these soups to those people. Got it?"

I nodded, complying, "Understood." 

"How about you, lassie? Are you ready as this lad?" Ramdon inquired, seeing that Nanahoshi wasn't answering the question.

This is not good. If the people find out that she's an outsider, they'll most likely hate her and will not get the recognition she needs in Ranoa. So, I tugged her dress and signaled for her to lend me her ear.

She complied, and I whispered, {"Tell him, 'I understand, Sir'."}

Understanding what to do, Nanahoshi straightened up and, with a determined look, repeated my words with her accented Human Language, "I understand, Sir."

Ramdon scrutinized her for a moment before nodding. "Good. Now, both of you, get to work."

We grabbed the trays of soup and began distributing them to the refugees. As we worked, I kept on whispering to her what to say, essentially teaching her the Human Language.

After we were done distributing the food, we moved on to the next task, which was helping with medical supplies. Heading towards the open clinic, we were greeted by a nurse whose playful demeanor caught us off guard.

"Oh my~ What do we have here?" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with pleasure. "You've brought me some new helpers, Alphonse?"

"Indeed, Florence," the butler confirmed. "These two will help you with the medical supplies."

"I see~ What a cute duo," the nurse remarked friskily. "My name is Florence Nightingale. You cuties will help me sort these medical pills, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am," I complied obediently. 

Nodding lovingly, she turned to Nanahoshi who's been silent. "How about you, darling? Are you ready too?"

Not knowing what to say, she turned to me and pleaded with her eyes. I used sign language to tell her, <"Say what I said earlier.">

"Y-yes, ma'am," Nanahoshi responded, repeating my earlier response.

Satisfied with our answers, Florence kissed both of us on our forehead, leaving us perplexed and disoriented. Later, we were each given a box of unorganized medicine bottles and were told to arrange them in the right cabinets.

Nanahoshi was tasked to handle higher cabinets while mine was the lower ones. Both of us managed our jobs at our own pace but I did it more efficiently.

"Oh my~ You're doing quite well, cutie," Florence noted merrily. "Have you done this before?"

"No, ma'am," I denied before explaining. "I just saw my mother do this once when she'd took me to her clinic as a toddler."

Florence chuckled, clearly amused. "Well, I'm sure you're making your her proud."

I nodded, reminiscing the memories with my mother. Suddenly, my eyes felt stingy as tears unconsciously descended on my cheeks. 

"Oh, what's wrong, dear? Why are you crying?" Florence asked, her tone shifting to concern.

I quickly wiped away the tears, trying to compose myself. "I'm sorry, it's just... I missed her."

"It's alright, dear," Florence reassured, her expression softened as she placed her hand on my head. "You'll reunite with her soon."

Feeling a sense of comfort in her words, I quickly calm down. Nanahoshi, noticing my dismay, gave me a subtle look of concern and sympathy, which I appreciated more than she knew.

Once we were done sorting the medicine bottles, we said goodbye to Florence and moved on to the last task. Alphonse guided us to a small patch of farm field where a grouchy farmer greeted us with a mean look.

"What's all this? You're sending a brat and a lass to lend me a hand?" he grumpily groaned.

The butler sighed, "Yes, Eustace. They're here to help you out."

"Tch, whatever," the farmer grumbled, his voice hoarse and intimidating. He turned to us with a scowl etched on his weathered face. "Listen up, you two. My name is Eustace Bagge, and you wannabe helpers will do what I say, got it?"

"Yes, Sir" Nanahoshi and I simultaneously responded, surprising me with her quick response.

It appears she's getting the hang of the Human Language as the day progresses, making me proud. Moving on, Eustace instructed us to fetch buckets of water and fill up the reservoir to make watering the crops easier.

"Now, move it, you rascals," he exclaimed, nudging us to work.

Nanahoshi and I were quickly led to a nearby river and filled our buckets with water. We then carried the load to a container where we dumped all the collected water. Though eventually...

{"Urgh, this is getting nowhere,"} I complained, looking at the barely filled reservoir.

Nanahoshi, while carrying a bucket full of water, glanced at me, suggesting, {"You can rest if you're tired."}

{"No, we need to finish this task. Slacking off is not an option,"} I shook my head, determined to keep going. {"Besides, I have a much better idea."}

{"What is it?"} she asked curiously.

I smiled at her and pointed my hand at the reservoir, concentrating my mana while adjusting my parameters to zero.

"Water Ball!" I exclaimed, casting a huge ball of water.

After that, I dropped the water ball into the reservoir and cast another one and then another until my hand turned into a running faucet. 

{"Amazing..."} Nanahoshi murmured, clearly impressed.

Hearing her compliment, I couldn't help but feel full of myself. {"Yes, praise me. For I, Dante Greyrat can... cast... magic... indefinitely... Oof..."}

Unexpectedly, I collapsed to the ground, feeling rather light-headed and my body couldn't move a muscle.

{"Dante? Dante!"}

The last thing I saw was Nanahoshi's face looking at me with a worried expression, her voice echoing before I eventually passed out.

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My head hurts... What happened?

I opened my eyes and realized I was lying on a bed inside a tent. Is this our tent? No, This is different. Most likely, the clinic.

I tried to sit up, but a wave of headache washed over me, forcing me to lie back down. Yet, I steadied myself and looked around, only to find Nanahoshi resting on the side of my bed.

"Oh my, you're finally awake," a female voice called out to me.

Turning my head to the entrance, I saw Florence coming in with a bowl of soup. She appears concerned as well, approaching her carefully.

Feeling the urge to ask questions, I spoke, "What happened?"

"You fainted, darling," she replied, placing the bowl on the table beside the bed. "After using most of your mana, you collapsed to the ground, and then Lady Nanahoshi rushed you here at my clinic with a scared look on her face."

I see, she must have been worried about me. Despite her tough exterior, she truly cares.

Gently lifting my arm, I brushed her hair with my hands. She shifted a little but not enough to wake her up. Groaning softly, she uttered something.

{"Akito..."}

She mentioned a name, an individual she used to know. If I'm not mistaken, it was the name of her boyfriend from the previous world. 

Seeing her like this made me realize the weight of our situation. We're both far from our loved ones, thrust into a strange situation. Yet, here we are, trying to support each other.

"Oh dear, she's dreaming, isn't she?" Florence whispered playfully. "I bet she's together with a handsome young man."

"Yeah," I replied softly, my hand stroking Nanahoshi's head lightly.

Florence chuckled and turned around, prompting her to give us some space. "Ah, make sure you eat that soup, okay? Ramdon told me to give you that."

Nodding compliantly, I watched her exit the tent, leaving me alone with my thoughts and the gentle presence of Nanahoshi beside me. I tried to reach for the soup on the table, but due to my companion's arm pinning my body to the bed, it was rather far away.

Oh well, I'm not hungry. Might as well go back to sleep.