Amitie and the Mysterious Egg Chapter 7 - Don’t Leave Me!

Tama’s growth has no bounds whatsoever. Everyone brought in snacks, and there was lots of eating and playing. Sometimes it looks like it's up to some training... Having fun like this every day, I realized Tama's height is around my waist now! Can you believe it? In the begining, it was the size of my palm. And now, I'm really surprised it got so huge! Yet, its fluffy white feathers and little round pupils haven't changed. Tama's still sweet as always, and I'm its mom figure as always.

---

“Kyu kyu~”

Tama looked my way opening its little mouth. Looks like it wants some food. Ah, it's so cute. So adorable...

"You still want to eat~!?"

I shouted out loud. Today, Lidelle brought strawberry manju, Raffina has some smoked chicken, Klug got some chocolate cake, and Sig has some honey... Arriving at the park is Arle with pizza, and Ringo with marmalade pie. Yet, it's still not enough for Tama. You're going to get huge if you eat too much~!

"Geez. The food I brought, everyone else's snacks, Tama's eating it all up..."

Right after I said that, the food was gone in an instant. Eeeh~, being a mom is so tough!

"Kyu~..."

Tama's singing pretty downhearted. It's even looking around so restlessly...until it focused on Arle with Carbuncle eating three slices of pizza.

"Kyu~♪"

Tama's running up to him, sweetly chirping on the way.

"Gu!? Gugugu!?"

Carbuncle's in a panic, I hid my pizza behind me to protect it and stood up straight.

"C-Carby! Don't fire your beam!"

Arle rushed right in between them. With Carbuncle's whiny "Gugu~", it turned around to Tama, who wanted to make off with the pizza.

"Kyu kyuu~♪"
"Guguu! Guguuuu!"

And in an instant, a huge uproar exploded. "HEY! TAMAAAA!" I called out, but Tama's lost on me and didn't listen. In the end, Carbuncle climbed up in one of the park trees, grabbing the branches with its long tongue. It was game set once Carbuncle furiously climbed high enough to escape Tama. Carbuncle seems relieved to see Tama wander at the base of the tree, resuming its meal at the tree top.

"Tama, you're going to get so big..."

To my side, Ringo sounds a bit uneasy.

"Really now~. That's pretty exciting. And maybe, it'll be the size of my house! That sounds wonderful!"

I may be smiling, but Ringo doesn't seem to agree with me. She just rolls her eyes.

"If that's the case...what will you do?"
"What will I do?"
"Right now, you're struggling to even serve Tama's food. Once it grows uncontrollably large... let’s just say you can't even do it all by yourself, Amitie."
“R-Really now...”

Er, did she really have to say that... I'm happy Tama's quickly growing up, but thinking about it, growing too big will just escalate the trouble.

"Well then~...I can't do it alone, and my friends will also see Tama as a hassle...gah, there has to be a way!"

Even with an upbeat mood, I couldn't think of anything right now. Even then, Ringo doesn't seem to agree. Hand on her chin, she seems to be pondering about something. I wonder...

"I think we shouldn't worry too much about food though."

Arle walked up to Carbuncle, who was safe and sound from running away, and assured him with a conversation. It looks like they heard our conversation.

"Still, Tama could become the size of a house. If Tama grew double its size, wouldn't playtime be a little hard?"
".........uh."

That bothers me. Is that how it is. Is it really going to be that...

"Are you sure you two aren't being mean?"
"Uh, Amitie, we're not like that."
"Indeed! No need to worry. Tama, though..."
"Everything's fine, okay! You won't wake up to some nightmare scenario, so take it easy and forget what we just said!"

I looked away after talked. In my mind, their attitude kinda stings. And I can't bring myself to argue against them.

"Uh, Amitie...S-sorry."
"Yes...truly. We apologize."

I don't feel right, but they did apologize. It feels so wrong. They left me in a thinking mode... I just feel bothered about their apology and how they smiled so quickly. Nobody said anything else about Tama, so we just played around the rest of the way. ...And that day, peace fell apart.

---

A few days later, Tama's growth stopped completely.　Now, Tama's height is around the same height of my shoulder.

"N-Now I can't carry you around anymore, Tama..."

Arle's jaw dropped.

"I've kept a record of Tama's growth, and right now I've recorded a major height change, but I can't measure its weight..."

Ringo's folding her arms, looking frustrated.

"Kyuu?"

Tama, tilting its head, hasn't changed much besides its body size.

---

While playing at the park like usual, Tama got tired like usual. This time, we talked about going to the grassy plains outside the town. The Primp outskirts are wi~~~de and open. Other than the lone tower standing there in the distance, there's nothing here. As soon as we got here, Tama's eyes sparkled so happily. Bouncing around with a "Kyuu! Kyuu!" it's in such high spirits!

"Okay, what should we play then? How about a game of tag~?"

Arle rejected my idea though.

"Unfortunately, Tama's slow on its feet~. This might sound a bit mellow, but how about we go pick flowers to make flower crowns?"

Ringo tilted her head at Arle's idea.

"Without any hands, It'll be difficult for Tama to handle the small parts on the flower crowns. What would be easier... How about the proof of simultaneous equations?"
"No one, especially not Tama, would want to do that!"
"Guguuuu!"

The both of us stopped Ringo at the same time.

"Hmm, well then, what should we really do...ah."

I crossed my arms and looked down at my feet, totally stumped. Then I saw something familiar. It was round, squishy, and colorful...it's a Puyo! I shouted at the top of my lungs.

"I got it, let's play with the Puyo!"

Arle and Ringo rolled their eyes when they heard me.

"You want to play Puyo, then?"
"I don't think Tama can play Puyo..."

I cheerfully tell them what I was actually thinking.

"Puyo matches are fun, but~, playing Catch with Puyo looks fun too!"
"Catch with Puyo? First time I've heard of that!"
"Me too!"
"Hehe~, really now? I made it up! You take the Puyo, and try to catch it like a ball!"

"..."

Both of them looked pretty surprised... I grabbed the Puyo at my feet, took a few steps back for distance, then threw it in Tama's direction.

"Here, Tama! Catch!"
"Kyu!? Kyukyu!?"

Suddenly, Tama was in a panic as I threw the Puyo. It bounced off of Tama's head, but it dropped to the ground. It actually made a kinda cozy sound.

"Whoopsie, messed up huh?"

Then again, that was pretty sudden...looks like we need some practice.

"Kyu!"

Here comes the next one! And in one bounce, it caught the Puyo in its mouth!

"A......Amaaaaaaaaazing!"

Arle and Ringo shouted out in perfect sync.

"Kyuuuu♪"

Tama looks proud, carrying that Puyo.

"You must be really talented, Tama!"

Tama's happy, and I'm happy too. This time, I picked up a second Puyo and did it again and again.

"There, over there!"

"Kyu! Kyu! Kyuukyu!"

Whoah! Amazingly, Tama caught that one, no sweat! With three Puyo around Tama, I run up to Tama.

"That was amazing, Tama! You're really good at this!"
"Maybe we can play with everyone like this!"
"Kyukyuuuu♪"

Though, Tama thought the Puyo looked tasty, and happily tried to eat it up...!!

"Tama! You can't eat the Puyo!"

I tried to take the Puyo out of Tama's mouth as soon as possible.

---

Anyway. We played Catch the Puyo, on and on with Tama. Tama's amazing! No matter where I throw it, Tama will surely catch it! Even if it can't fly, it can still use its big wings to jump super high. So, whever the Puyo goes, it'll jump to it no matter what. It has really sharp Puyo catching senses! I even made up "Puyo catching senses" because of that! And now, it's shaking its head with the Puyo in its mouth, wanting to throw the Puyo. Looks like it's our turn to catch the Puyo this time.

"Tama, over here this time!"
"Kyu....kyuu!"
"Nice, I got it!"
"Ah, Arle! Throw it to me next!"

And so, the day came and went like a dream, us chasing down a Puyo.

---

With the sky turned orange, it was already close to night time. The bright white moon began to rise up from the horizon. We were still at the grassy outskirts at that time.

"Whew, we better get back home!"

With that said, Arle's face was covered with dirt.

"I noticed there's some dirt on you~"

Ringo started to brush it off her face.

"Oh gee. I'm kinda hungry. Hey, Tama!"

I happily turned to Tama, and it looks like Tama thinks so too... I noticed Tama looked in that general direction and quietly moved that-a-way.

"Huh?"
"Tama?"
"What'cha looking at?"
"Gugu?"

We all looked at what Tama's looking at. It's...

"...Whoa."

I gasped at the sight of it. Right there, shining in the evening sun, was a golden sparkle in the plains. It was a white bird, bordering on the ground and soaring the sky, gently flapping its wings. I can see its feathers gently moving in the distant sky. It was such a huge bird. The dusky sky was the right mix of orange and dark blue, making that flying white bird all the more mysterious. It was headed to the top floor of that distant tower.

"Pretty...Does it live over there...?"

I sighed, thinking about it. The bird disappeared kinda-sorta to the top of the tower. Nobody said a thing for a while. We were moved with emotion.

"...I wonder..."

Before long, Arle suddenly spoke up.

"Could that be one of Tama's kind?"
"Huh!?"

I shouted at Arle's idea of that bird being its family. Uhm, Tama's round and not "So beautiful!" even if its fluffy white feathers, tail feathers kinda resemble that bird's... I was a bit tense and shook Tama around a bit.

"It's not related to Tama! Tama may be big too, but not as pretty as that right!? Hey, no need to get excited about it!"
"Kyu kyuu!"

Tama answered just as cheerfully.

"Hey, do you think you'll look that cool too~?"
"Kyukyukyu~?"

Tama was mimicking me, tilting its head when I tilted my head. That's how it always is. Hah~, what a relief. Though, Arle and Ringo thought differently. They were silent too. What are they thinking? Now they've got me really wondering...

---

On that day, it was the usual after-school stuffs, heading to the park to wait for Arle and Carbuncle and Ringo. I ran alongside Tama, off to play some Puyo Catch.

"Tama, here comes the Puyo~!"
"Kyu~!"
"So skilled, so wonderful! It's, uh...the Zig-Zag Puyo!"
"Kyu?"
"Yep, it's exactly that! Gotta go return it after you run and catch it!"

Tama got a little big bigger since then, around where my back is. This makes me oh-so wonderfully happy, but I still have to keep an eye on Tama's food. Tama's still a big eater after all... The food everyone brought just now, were some fruits freshly picked from the school's back garden. I think these will have to do. Whew, mom responsibilities are tough. I'll get through it somehow! Just when things got so carefree, something was approaching the park....

"Eh?"

I heard Arle and Ringo talking about stuff. Almost instantly, I hid behind one of the bushes so I can't be seen. It looks like they're right there too. I wanted to go interrupt Arle and and say "Hey!" but that might startle her.

"Geez, handling Tama is really hard."

Eeh!? Wh-wh-what is she talking about!?

It's all totally vague. I couldn't call her out, so I continued to hide behind the park bush and listen in. I wonder what I'm eavesdropping on? Still, my heart was racing, wondering what I should do, and most of all, I'm concerned about whatever I'm listening to... Tama saw me crouched down and quietly huddled up, not saying a word. Then, Ringo responded to Arle and continued the talk.

"Yeah, unable to cradle Tama like a baby, and even its feedings is quite tough. It's hard as it is..."

That answer sounded sad. Then Arle answered.

"Exactly. Though, looking back at that great white bird-like thing... I think it's related to Tama. I think it's a good idea to show Tama to it."
"Yes, I agree with your line of thinking. But..."

The two of them went silent. After a moment, Arle broke the silence.

"Amitie would be heartbroken."
"Indeed. She's been with Tama its whole life. It would be difficult to break it to her."
"What's the best thing to do~"

I think my heart stopped. Well... they're talking about me letting Tama go.

"Wh...what do you mean!?"

I couldn't stand listening any more of that, so I jumped out and dropped the question on them. Arle and Ringo snapped to my direction and got this "Oh crud!" face on them.

"Amitie, you heard all of that just now!?"

Arle was the one to shout it out, and I nodded.

"I'm having trouble look over Tama, so that means I have to let it go, right? It's related to that white bird, so I have to return Tama to it, say good bye, and never see it again, right!?"

Ringo responded to what I'm saying.

"N-No, that's not it! But..."

But then she can't think of anything to say...

"I'm not going to! As Tama's very diligent mom, I can't!"

I turned the other way, and wanted to go away from the park.

"Let's go, Tama."
"Kyu...?"

Tama didn't understand what was going on. True to my word, I left them behind.

"A-Amitieeee!"

Arle tried to chase me down, but I didn't stop. I continued walking away, faster and faster.

---

"Tama, you don’t want to leave, d-do you?"
"Kyu? Kyu~!"

I couldn't understand it. Tama was worried and peered into my face, wanting to help out with my dilemma. I didn't have to crouch down to meet its eye level, it lines up normally to my shoulders. I hugged Tama, and it sweetly nuzzled against me. The white feathers are still fluffy as ever.

"Kyu kyu♪"
"Ahaha...it feels nice~. Hey Tama, do you remember the white bird from earlier?
"Kyu~?"
"The white bird that flew by. You want to see it, don't you?"
"Kyukyukyu?"
"Don't you!?"
"Kyuu...?"

Almost instantly, Tama kinda collapsed forward a bit. And then...

*GRUM~BLE.*

At that moment, some kind of noise, a really loud noise, came out of Tama. All this seriousness fell apart just like that. That's totally Tama-like!

"Ah gee... you're pretty hungry, aren't you?"
"Kyuuu!"

Tama looked this way with its mouth wide open. It's definitely the "Food please." sign.

"Okay! I got some...got some...oh."

I fiddled around in my pockets, but there's not even a piece of candy here. Oh that's right, I brought along food for lunchtime and Tama ate it all!

"S-Sorry~. I don't have anything on me."
"Kyukyuu? Kyuu!"

Tama didn't really get it, and still looked at me with its mouth open. Oh fiddlesticks, it's demanding food from me when I got nothing to give it! Geez. Honestly, keeping Tama satisfied is really hard. Tama does eat a lot. How much do I need anyway...

"Tama, am I not your mom anymore?"

I whispered it super quietly. What Arle and Ringo said earlier was right. Looking over Tama is getting tiring. It's hard to even feed it stuff, and all I did was hug it, almost smooshing it. With Tama so close to me, I feel ashamed it's always so hungry. I can't just let Tama go, I'll be so lonely. Still, Tama's tummy is rumbling. Ah, sorry Tama. It surely got so wide from all that food it was surrounded by. Well, no other way around it. I'm always thinking of Tama...

"Tama, do you want to go meet that white bird?
"Kyuu?"
"That big white bird. If it is one of your friends, you can spend time at that place with it with no worries. I just feel it's that. Well, let's get going!"
"Kyu? Kyuuu!"

With a cheerful call, Tama cheerfully hopped about and flapped its wings. Maybe we can stay together. Maybe it's goodbye. And even now, Tama still doesn't get it. Still, even if I'm in denial mode, I tried my best to explain it to Tama. I smiled, even if my heart grew lonelier. I can't believe this is happening...