Story Name: Break time with Bunnies
Writer: Yoshino Yuuki
Season: Spring
Location: Animal Pens
Nazuna:
So, how’s everyone doing?
Mhm, there doesn’t seem to be any kinda gunk in your eyes, and none of your noses are runny. All of your coats look glossy too; you guys look like you’re all in perfect health!
Ahaha. No need for you all to try jumping up onto my lap at once! I promise I’ll spend some time with each and every one of you guys!
Come here, you. Hm? Your nails have gotten pretty long! Come right up onto my lap. I’ll clip ‘em for you.
...
Good boy, good boy. If you keep still, I promise there’s a reward in there for ya! You want a treat, right?
...Hm? Oh, it’s the transfer student. What’s up? You lost?
You’ve got a school job around here?
Ah, so your job is cleaning! Now that you mention it, you are holding a broom.
Am I getting in your way? Just say the word and I’ll scoot.
Oh? The hutches aren’t actually part of your cleaning schedule? You just got so absorbed in your work that you ended up all the way over here?
Me? I came to see how the rabbits were doing. Though teachers are the ones who take care of cleaning out the hutches and feeding the animals, so it’s not like I have to do the same.
I guess it’s ‘cause I have a pet rabbit back home. I just find myself meandering on over here, even though I know it’s not strictly necessary.
Hm? I look cute surrounded by all of these rabbits?
Haven’t I warned you before about calling me cute?
Well, Ra*bits unit concept is all centered around cute, so I guess it’s a little illogical for me to get worked up about it…
But I am your senior, so I feel kinda awkward about being called cute by someone younger than me.
Yeah. I appreciate you apologizing about it. I’m sorry too for snapping at you; that was kinda harsh. Alright, now we’re both friends again!
Oh, I almost forgot. I’m still holding onto this little guy here.
I know, I know. Don’t you huff your nose at me, Mister! You’re a spoiled little guy, aren't ya?
Mm, since I own a rabbit back home, I’m used to taking care of them. I’ve got a good idea about how to make sure they’re happy.
That’s why they’re okay with me holding them like this.
Oh? You didn’t know there were hutches here?
Now that you mention it, it’s not like you came all the way over here on purpose. You just ended up coming this way while cleaning, right?
Want me to give you a quick rundown?
Yeah, no need to bow your head and ask that politely. Alright, I’ll start with the animals.
We keep rabbits, chickens, and parrots here at the animal pens. I already talked about it a lil’ bit just now, but it’s the teachers who look after them all.
Of course, there are students like me who come to check up on them too, so it’s not like taking care of them is exclusive to the teachers or anything.
There’s no rules about students dropping by without permission. The teachers can get busy sometimes, and that’s when students take it upon themselves to take care of animal-related chores.
Hm? This little guy’s grinding his teeth?
Oh, you don’t have to keep your distance. He’s not in a bad mood or anything; this is actually a good sign!
Rabbits will let you know when they’re upset by thumping their feet on the ground like this.
Right! Like the way when certain people get antsy, they start tapping their legs impatiently. Same sorta thing!
And when they’re nervous, their tails will stand on end and their noses will start to twitch. And when you see them stick up their ears like this, it means they’re being hyper-vigilant about whatever’s going on around them.
Rabbits express their feelings through their behavior, so you need to look at them to check what kind of mood they’re in, or whether they’re feeling nervous or not.
Take the little guy closest to you for example. He’s been nudging you with his nose this whole time. That means he wants you to pay attention to him.
Might not be the best idea to scoop him up out of nowhere if he’s not used to it, but you could stroke him somewhere he’s comfortable with. They don’t like their ears being touched, so why don’t you pat his forehead?
Yeah, looks like he likes it!
He’s so cute that you wanna take him home with you? I don’t think you’re allowed to take home any of the school rabbits, unfortunately.
If you’re serious about a pet rabbit, I’ll come with you to the pet shop. I can teach you what to look out for when buying one.
Ahaha, you were just joking about wanting one? They’re plenty cute to just look at?
Gotcha! If you feel like spending some quality time with rabbits, you can just come see the school rabbits.
You could come over to my place to hang out too. All of the rabbits here warmed up to you super fast, so I’m sure mine would too.
Alrighty then. I’ve got rehearsal with the rest of Ra*bits starting soon, so I’d best be on my way. What about you?
You’re headed to the auditorium? Oh wow, so you’re supposed to clean there too?
In that case, it looks like we’re headed in the same direction. Why don’t we walk part of the way there together?
Chapter Two
Location: Gardens (?)
Nazuna:
Whoa, don’t just stop suddenly in your tracks like that! Did you forget something?
Rehearsal with the rest of Ra*bits won’t start until after everyone’s had their lunch, so there’s still time if you need to go back. I’ll wait here for you.
Hm? You’ve got a duty as a producer to watch over Ra*bits’ rehearsal?
Ah, is that what you were mumbling about to yourself just now as we were walking along?
Just ‘cause you’re a producer doesn’t mean you have to oversee every single unit’s practice session.
Though it’s not that I don’t get where you’re coming from. As a producer, there’s an element of necessity when it comes to getting a grasp on the direction each unit is heading toward ahead of time, since you never know when you might be getting involved with us.
But you’ve got your school job today, right? So wouldn’t you be best off prioritizing that?
I’ll let you know the next time Ra*bits have practice together.
If nothing else has come up for you, you could come on over and act as producer for us.
Alright, let’s make a pinky promise!
Yeah? What kind of plan do I have in place for today’s practice session?
Hajime-chin’s still not great at dancing, so I’ve put together a menu that’ll focus on tackling that.
Mitsuru-chin’s pretty talented overall but he tends to forget his lyrics, so he’s gonna be going through the same songs over and over to get them into his head.
Tomo-chin’s fairly competent at everything, but my biggest worry is that he’s fussing over not having something he’s especially good at.
Well, it’s not as if he’s got no room for growth. And if you asked me which of the three I’m most looking forward to seeing grow, it’s gotta be Tomo-chin.
With a little skill on his part, I’m sure I can raise Tomo-chin into a superstar. Tomo-chin’s got that potential hiding inside of him.
Of course, the other two have their strong points and weak points too, so I’m trying out a couple of things that I think might help them expand what they’re capable of.
It’s pretty fun to watch over all of them growing through trial and error!
Hmm. Do I think you’ll be able to accomplish something similar? Not sure if I can answer something like that for ya. All I can say is, it all depends on what you’re willing to put into it.
I’ve no idea if I’m even going about things the right way in the first place.
I guess having a legitimate producer looking over our practice session would benefit those kids the most, huh.
Still, at this current point in time you’re the only producer around. And you’re still a fledgling yourself as a producer.
Ah, everyone starts off as a fledgling, so there’s really no need to be so apologetic about it.
It’ll do you good to just keep adding to your list of experiences as a producer.
I’ll work hard too.
I may be the leader of Ra*bits, but not too long ago has passed since our formation, so compared to other units, we’re still fledglings.
Let’s both give it our all!
Location change: School Fountain
Whoa, looks like we were so engrossed in our conversation that we made it all the way over to the fountain in no time. You’re headed to the auditorium, right? Then this is where we part ways!
Ahaha. You’re wishing me luck with rehearsal? Thanks! Good luck to you too!
Bye bye!
I’m looking forward to the day you’ll produce us Ra*bits!
Location Change: Practice Room
Hey! Is everyone here?
Hajime:
Oh, Nii-chan! Ehehe, what perfect timing. The three of us just finished changing into the practice uniforms.
Mitsuru:
Hm? Nii-chan, you smell like hay! Don’t you think that’s going a bit far, even for a Ra*bit?
Nazuna:
Don’t tell me you thought I’d go as far as to roll around a bunch of haystacks? Nah, I just came from the animal pens. The smell must’ve stuck to me.
Tomoya:
I call over there every now and then too.
My one special skill is animals being really friendly towards me, so all I have to do is show my face and they all come running... And that’s the closest I’ve come so far as to feeling like a real idol.
Nazuna:
Sure, but you’re not exclusively an idol for animals, okay?
I’ve put together a training menu for today’s practice session, so if there’s anything you don’t understand, just let me know!
This should actually be the producer’s job, so I’d like to be able to leave some of this stuff to the transfer student soon, but...
Oh well, I’m sure that day’s drawing near.
Tomoya:
She always seems so busy.
Acting as the producer for every single unit here at Yumenosaki must be an insane amount of work.
But I’d really love it if she could produce us someday.
Nazuna:
Right? So until that day comes, let’s keep on practicing.
We’ve got to avoid giving her any impression that we’re lacking in skill compared to the other units at all costs, that is, when the day comes that she finally produces us.
Alright, let me hear you guys sing! Ei, ei, oh!
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