Minori and the others said to meet... Oh, I think it's here.

(I got here sooner than expected...
But I'm sure they'll arrive early too, so I'll just wait...)

Sis...
Where are you...?

Oh...

(That girl's all alone...
Is she lost?)

Hello.
Is everything okay? Are you lost?

Oh, um...

I won't hurt you.
So, would you mind telling me what happened? You can take your time.

O-Okay...
So, I came here with my sis to go to the bookstore.

But I saw this shop with really cute plushies... Then, when I went to go see them, she disappeared.

I see...

(Did she keep walking without realizing that her little sister wasn't following her...?)

Does your sister have a phone on her? If you know her number, I could try calling her...

No, she doesn't...
But she did tell me to come here if I ever did get lost.

(I think she's around five...
I wonder how old her sister is.)

(Also, she promised to wait here if anything happened, so I probably shouldn't take her to mall security...)

When's Sis gonna come...?

Don't worry.
I'm sure your sister will come very soon. So, until she does, I'll stay here with you.

Y-You will...?

Yes. My name's Haruka.
Can you tell me yours...?

Nozomi...

Nozomi? Got it. Alright, Nozomi, why don't I teach you some special magic words?

Magic words...?

Yes. First, you place your index fingers on your cheeks, and then you...do a fist pump!

And the magic words for this are, “Poke your cheeks and pose and smile!”

Wow, that sounds like some kind of spell.

Hehe. Would you like to try it with me, Nozomi? Here we go.

Poke your cheeks and pose and smile♪

Poke your cheeks...and pose and... Smile!

Nice! That was a wonderful smile.

Hehe...

Hey, Haruka, where did you learn these magic words?

Hehe. Well...

Nozomi! Where are you?!

Oh, it's Sis!

Thank goodness. Your sister came looking for you.

Yeah! Thanks for hanging out with me, Haruka.

Nozomi! Why'd you disappear like that?! You almost made my heart stop!

I'm sorry...

Oh dear...were you okay? You must've been so lonely...

Yeah, a little...
But I got to hang out with Haruka, and she even taught me some fun magic words!

Thank you so much for watching my little sister.

You're welcome.
I'm glad your sister came looking for you like you said, Nozomi. But promise not to get lost again, okay?

I promise! Thanks for hanging out with me, Haruka!

Of course, take care.

Again, I can't thank you enough!
Wait a second...? Haruka...? As in...?

Oh, Haruka!
You're here early!

Sorry about the wait. Unfortunately, Minori and I had to help a certain someone here after we spotted her walking in the wrong direction.

Which saved me from getting lost. However, we ended up making you wait, Haruka...

No, that's okay.
Actually, that's funny... While I waited, I also had the opportunity to lend somebody a hand.

Lend somebody a hand?

Hehe. Anyway, now that we're all here, shall we?