The first one to notice something had been out of place was Maqui.
P64-65
They cleaned up the corpses of the exterminated monsters, made emergency repairs to damaged buildings. It was already late evening by the time dinner came around [or by the time they made it to dinner]. Of course, the topic of discussion at the dinner table was monster attack. As Serah spoke of the event from start to finish, Maqui nodded, satisfied.
“Just as I thought. It was you who used it wasn't it, Serah?”
Maqui explained that the machines in the warehouse were set up so that you could tell if someone had used them even from somewhere far away. Apparently you could tell if they were being mishandled or even if they had been broken by someone.
“Because, aren't they dangerous? If the kids had messed around with them... I mean adults only come up to the field and their eyes don't reach the inside of the workshop.”
Also, the prototype monster deterring machine hadn't been mishandled or damaged, but rather, started according to procedure. Then, Maqui recalled that he had just two days ago spoken to Serah, who happened to be passing by, about the prototype.
“If it was Serah, who knew of the monster deterring machine, that started the machine, then I thought things had to be bad.”
“So, we quickly got on the airbike and hurried back here”
It was a good thing we made it, laughed Snow in relief..
“I'm sorry. We should have left more people behind. It was our fault.”
“Not at all. I was careless too. It wasn't just me or Snow, but everyone feels like that, right?”
It was [just] the other when the nests of the monsters that appeared around the settlement had been mostly destroyed. Things like the fencing they had put up and the traps they had placed all around were highly successful, and monster attacks had decreased rapidly. That's why they thought even on a day like this when many of the adults were away from the village, things would be fine.
“Yeah. I had no idea something light that would come flying. It was a monster that you wouldn't see around here so I guess its nest must be quite far away.”
There were still many more unknown monsters on Gran Pulse. It wasn't like Cocoon which was thoroughly managed by fal'Cie.
“You should get those military guys to help us find the nest. It doesn't look like they're poisonous so if you caught them when they're still hatchlings you could use them for food.”
The matured ones are pretty tough though, said Lebreau who laughed and shrugged her shoulders. It seemed she had already taken a knife to the monsters they had brought down and looked into it.
“Before that comes repairs to homes. Shall we strengthen the window frames while we're at it?”
Perhaps remembering the walls and windows broken by the aquatic monsters ramming into them, Gadot made a frown. As if that had been a sign, similar discussions on topics such as whether they should increase the number of traps around the settlement, or whether they should strengthen the nets in the open water had started. It was normal that such ideas for improvement would be exchanged after they were attacked by monsters or bad weather had caused damages.
“Um... Hey,”
Serah spoke up decisively amidst the NORA members' arguing over this and that. If i'm going to say something then it has be now, she thought.
“What's up, Serah?”
P66-67
The current Snow had forgotten about when I had spoken to him about wanting to become a teacher. Would he approve of it as he had before? Even now when we were in a far more savage place?
“I want to make a school”
It was a little different from saying “I want to be a teacher.” I wanted to make a place for the children. Somewhere that was a place for learning but at the same time also somewhere where they could feel safe about being at. A kind place where there are friends, a teacher to protect them, and where knowledge and strength needed for living could be obtained.
“Today, when we had the children take shelter, I understood. That we can't just have adults protecting them; we have to teach the children ways to protect themselves,”
Snow said “we should have left more people behind,” as if it was their own oversight, but I don't think that's the case. The exploration of remains of old settlements is a job necessary to living here. So we should have made sure that the village wouldn't have insufficient protection in the first place.
“Where should they run if things look dangerous? Who should they tell? What should they do to protect those smaller than themselves while they run away? Such are things we haven't taught them at all up until now.”
“Now that ya mention it, I guess we ourselves haven't thought about running or anything either. If a monster shows up, we just kill it for the time being,”
“Well, we've been up to our eyes with just that until now. Everything else was on the back-burner.”
Even the matter of the children's studies has been put off. But, the children here are former residents of Bodhum and subjects of the Purge. Which is to say, it's been about a year since they'd done some decent studying. Serah explained that they couldn't postpone the school life of the children any longer.
“But, rather than having an actual school, we've only got the numbers for a cram school. For now, anyway,”
About this much, said Snow who opened his arms and smiled. Serah panicked at his gesture. She hastily thought she had to find something else to talk about. She didn't want the others to see she was agitated.
“Hold on a minute, boss,”
Before Serah could change the subject, Gadot offered up a matter to discuss.
“Let's leave the fun of a huge school ‘til later. How about just the number of classrooms we'd use for now? Even if if we borrow space somewhere for now, the houses here are pretty small, right?”
Both the shelter and the houses by the beach were by no means spacious. Though the children were few in numbers, Gadot knew more than anyone that they weren't built to be suitable classrooms.
“I think the outdoors would be good for now. We've got an open area in front of Maqui's workshop, don't we? I was thinking we could use that...”
That place was quiet, and on top of that, it had no lack of places of refuge for emergencies. If something happened, they could just run inside the cave like today. Normally, adults would be working the fields at places where they could run to quickly.
“On top of that, Maqui is testing all sorts of machines and weapons so if something happens you could just have him let you use them. Or is that no good?”
P68-69
Maqui crossed his arms and started to think. Maybe he was thinking if the children were making a racket right in front of the workshop it would be noisy.
“We're not asking you to lend us your workshop, so work with us here!”
It was Lebreau who came to the rescue.
“Clean up all of the tools you were using. It's your fault they're lying all over the place,”
“Huh!? Why me!?”
When Maqui was working next to NORA House, it was something Lebreau told him off about all the time. As Maqui apologized with a “sorry,” Serah couldn't help but laugh.
“I'll tell the children that under no circumstances should they go inside the workshop, okay”
“If even Serah is willing to say that much, then I don't really mind...”
Snow placed his hand on Serah's shoulder with a “then it's settled.”
“Ms. Serah, when are you starting school?”
Asked Yuj who raised his hand like a student.
“It probably wouldn't be tomorrow, but as soon as possible. I want to do even just the evacuation drills before the events of today are forgotten,”
“Then we'll have to tell everyone first thing tomorrow morning,”
Yuj, who had a way with people, was counselor and liaison for New Bodhum's residents. If there was something the slightest bit troubling or worrying, they'd bring it up to Yuj before anyone else. On the other hand, if there was something that everyone had to know, Yuj would go door-to-door to tell them. They way you could convey the right information and above all you could see how people were responding and what they were thinking about right away.
“A school teacher, huh. It's very Serah-like, isn't it,”
Snow's words were the exact same as in the memory only Serah had. His earlier gesture of opening his arms to indicate ‘about this much' was the same too. Snow didn't know of that conversation, yet he still smiled and gave Serah strength all the same. Even if their memories were different, Snow didn't change. As she felt tears welling up in her eyes, Serah blinked rapidly in haste.
I won't cry anymore. Because I've decided to become a teacher and teach the children lots of things. Like Lightning had done for me. So I won't continue to stand still...
Serah smiled and nodded at a Lebreau who teasingly said “give it your best, Ms. Serah.”
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