Incubation... Incubation...?

(What do I want to do for this theme...?
I need to figure that out.)

Something being born...
Blooming... Growing...

(Wait, I want to grow as an artist...
What if I drew something that represented me trying to break out of my shell?)

(I can try drawing myself hatching.)

Yeah, not bad...
I'll try going with this.

Okay, my rough sketch is just about done...

(It's definitely not worse than what I drew the other day, and it goes with the theme...)

(Still...)

(I can't pinpoint what it is... But it's like the person that I drew isn't actually me...)

(I know I want to become an artist, and this is supposed to convey that and yet...)

(Is it the composition...?
Or maybe the perspective is messed up?)

(But the only thing that seems to stick out is “me”. The arms and legs don't look off-kilter or anything...)

Hang on...

Do I just need to have more confidence in myself?

(Knowing that my foundational skills are lacking and getting told that my drawings are bad... Am I starting to believe that there's no way I'll ever make it as an artist?)

No...

(This isn't going to end up any better than before...)

Maybe I should pick a different subject...

<Have you all started working? The new demo's ready, so I'd like for us to meet in SEKAI.>

What...?! Is it already time?
But I still haven't drawn anything I feel good about yet...

I guess I should head over to SEKAI for now. A better idea might pop into my head while talking to the others.

Hi, everyone!

Wait, huh...?

What's going on?
Did something happen again...?

So... Mafuyu saw her Mom going through her computer.

What?! You set a password, right?! Don't tell me you didn't!

I did, but I told her what it was...

She said that I should if I had nothing to hide, and she never actually looked until now...

But earlier today...

When I got home, I saw her using my computer...

Why would she do that...?

She told me that she was looking something up... But...

Why use your computer for that when she could just use her phone, right?

Uh oh...

What if she was looking for what you've been up to, Mafuyu...?

Huh...?

Remember what happened to your synth? This might be connected to that...

After she learned that you were doing something that she wasn't aware of, she decided to secretly play detective...

...!

A-And that led her to use your computer behind your back?! What's wrong with her...?!

...

Mafuyu...

Um, Mafuyu...?
Has she said anything to you since then?

No. I made sure to keep Nightcord and any song files hidden, so I doubt she found anything about all of you...

I see...
That's good to hear.

But there's a chance that she'll come snooping around again.

Hang on. What if you just changed your password...?

If I did, she'd probably be suspicious.

Why can't you just tell her to not look? She might be your mother, but she has no right to just rummage through your computer without your permission.

Yes, that may be so...

But I think she did it because she was worried about me...

Being worried about you doesn't give her permission to do what she did.

Seriously, weren't you bothered by what happened? This is usually when you have to put your foot down.

I...

...

Mafuyu...

I get that it's gonna be hard, but you really should say something if it's actually bothering you...

Granted, that's a lot easier said than done...

...

Your song...

Huh?

I'd like to hear your new demo...

Hold on! We're not done discussing this!

Ena...

*Sigh*
Okay, fine...

I'll play it now...

Okay.

(Okay, I get that it's hard for her to speak up.)

(I get that. But...)

(From where I'm standing, despite trying to suppress her feelings, Mafuyu looks visibly shaken by what happened.)

(So... Why didn't she say anything?)

(Doing as her parents say without bothering to speak up about what's on her mind... Isn't that just going to make her suffer even more...?)

*Sigh*

I've given it a lot of thought since then... But I'm still struggling to come up with a good idea.

(Ideally, I want it to be something that involves me breaking out of my shell as an artist...)

(But this is getting me nowhere.
I guess I should go back to thinking about what I actually want to convey.)

Hm? Over there...
Isn't that...?

Mafuyu...?
What are you doing here?

Ena...

I started feeling a little sick, so I decided to rest...

What? Are you sure you're okay?

I think so...
I don't have a fever, and I felt fine during my cram school lecture.

No fever...
But you definitely feel sick, right?

I'm fine...

It's just... My chest feels cold...

Oh...

Rain...

Ugh, this is the worst. The forecast didn't say anything about it raining today! You better head back home now too, Mafuyu!

Okay...
After I rest for a bit longer...

Huh? But...

Oh, geez...!

Mafuyu, come with me!

What?

You're gonna get soaked!
How do you think I'm gonna feel if you end up catching a cold!

Anyway, we need to hurry!