Chie Harada pushed up her squarish glasses as she
strode along the walkway into the gardens, the black
haired young woman pausing to look around her warily.
Feeling satisfied that she wasn't being followed she
continued on, slipping between the shrubs into a
private corner of the sprawling flower beds.
"Chie," Aoi Sano looked up at her with one of her
sunny smiles, her long brown hair flowing down her
back. In front of her beneath the shade were their two
bento boxes, spread out on top of a blanket for them
to sit on.
"Sorry it took so long," Chie smiled as she sat down
gracefully, "I got distracted."
"Oh?" Aoi looked amused as she picked up her lunch.
"Natsuki and Shizuru were having a little... talk not
far from here," Chie explained cheerfully, "I had to
duck around them."
"What were they doing?" Aoi leaned forward eagerly.
"Talking at first," Chie related, "then they kissed."
Aoi sat back, shaking her head as she murmured, "I
guess you were right about them."
"It's a gift," Chie said modestly.
"You were certainly right about me," Aoi reached out
to gently lay a hand on Chie's.
Chie clasped that hand gently, squeezing a little.
"And I'm glad," she agreed.
Aoi giggled softly, "Do you remember when we all had
to leave and Mai said she could fall in love with you?
I nearly blurted out something right then."
Chie chuckled softly, "I noticed, it's why I reminded
her about Yuichi then."
"So you think Mai and Mikoto...?" Aoi asked.
"Maybe," Chie made a uncertain gesture, "I think they
care about each other a lot, but I don't think it goes
any farther than that."
Aoi sighed, "If so, poor Mikoto."
Chie nodded, thinking of the obvious affection that
Mikoto bestowed on Mai, affections that in her eyes at
least seemed far more than friendly. "We'll keep an
eye on her," she mused, "and if we can help..."
"Fair enough," Aoi agreed. She deftly stabbed a piece
of sausage, "Say ahh."
"Ahh," Chie opened her mouth and chewed happily on
it.
"So how's Yukino?" Aoi asked as she ate her rice.
Chie munched, "Still pining over Haruka, of course. I
wonder if she'll ever get the courage up to tell her
how she feels?"
"You know it isn't that easy," Aoi chided her.
Chie looked off in the distance, her expression
thoughtful, "I suppose you're right. I was certainly
scared stiff when I asked you out."
Aoi actually looked surprised, "You're kidding,
right?" She smiled, "You certainly seemed confident at
the time."
"All an act," Chie smiled back wryly as she
remembered, "that was a major scared witless moment
for me."
"You know me pretty well," Aoi said softly, "you knew
I'd say yes."
"I hoped you would," Chie grinned. She scowled
cutely, "Remember, that was only days after you
clamped onto Mai's little brother and wouldn't let
go."
Aoi chuckled, "He was cute and I like cute things."
"Well, yes, I remember your reaction to Mikoto too,"
Chie conceded.
"And I may like cute," Aoi took her hand once more,
"but I love you more."
"Me, too," Chie leaned forward to kiss her gently.
Off in the distance they heard the warning bell and
both cursed softly.
"Looks like we have to go," Aoi finished off her
lunch and got up, the two cleaning up with simple
efficiency. "See you later tonight?" she asked with a
smile.
"Please," and Chie kissed her again before they
bolted back to class.
In another part of the facility a young looking woman
gazes out the window, looking out at the gardens and
the warm sunlight. Her light purple hair cascaded down
her back, her fine clothes suiting the surrounding
building's fine furnishings.
"Miss Kazahana?" the soft voice asked respectfully.
Mashiro Kazahana turned in her wheelchair, smiling up
at her companion. The pink haired woman had a sweet
smile on her face, her green eyes soft and gentle as
she gazed down at Mashiro. "Yes, Fumi?" she asked.
Fumi Himeno hesitated, the young lady in a maid's
uniform seemingly unsure. "You've been very quiet,"
she asked gently, "are you all right?"
'She knows me so well,' Mashiro thought to herself
fondly. "Just thinking," she answered honestly,
"wondering if there had been anything else I could
have done." A pensive look, "If I hadn't let myself be
called away from Fuka...."
"Don't do that to yourself," Fumi said to her gently,
"you had to answer that request for a meeting, and
there's no way to know if your presence during the
early days of the Festival would have made any
difference."
"I could have at least told them more of the truth,"
Mashiro sighed.
"They weren't ready," Fumi answered, "if they had
known earlier... I don't know if it would have helped
or made things worse."
Mashiro reached up to take Fumi's hand, squeezing it
in her smaller ones. "Your faith astounds me," she
murmured, "you were a captive of the enemy for so
long, forced to serve... how could you carry on like
that?"
"Because I knew you would save me," Fumi said firmly,
"and I knew that people like Mai Tokiha, Natsuki Kuga
and the others wouldn't let them win."
Mashiro squeezed her hand, smiling slightly, "And I
think it was your faith as much as anyone's that
sustained me, too." She looked amused, "I remember how
gleeful Nagi was when Mai came... I wonder if he knew
she would be key to beating him?"
"I doubt he'd have been that eager," Fumi sounded
like she was fighting a laugh. She paused a moment,
"Have you decided if you're going to tell them about
their powers?"
Mashiro looked thoughtful, "I don't know... right now
they think they're free of the burden of being HIME.
Do I have the right to tell them that's not true, that
the only things that are gone are the Orphan and
Childe?"
"I'm sure you'll make the right decision," Fumi said
sincerely.
"No," Mashiro shook her head, "I think that decision
to tell may be yours, Fumi."
"Eh?" Fumi looked startled.
Mashiro looked up at her with a sad expression, "With
the Festival over for good Nagi and my time here is
done. It's time to leave this world to the decisions
of the HIME."
"But..." Fumi looked heartbroken as she knelt beside
Mashiro to look into her eyes.
"If we stay it's possible the cycle may begin all
over again," Mashiro said gently, "and I don't want to
see that happen."
"I don't want to lose you," Fumi said softly, tears
in her eyes.
Mashiro leaned forward to kiss her, a soft brushing
of their lips. "And I don't want to either," she
agreed, "but I won't let others suffer for my
selfishness."
Fumi cupped her face in her hands, kissing Mashiro
gently. "Before you go, could we...?" she asked
softly, a blush to her cheeks.
Mashiro smiled through her gently falling tears,
sounding much older than her years as she said, "I'd
love to."
End
Notes: This fanfiction is set just after the battle in
the final episode of Mai Hime but before the last wrap
up scenes where we found out what happened to each
character. It's an attempt to resolve a few issues I
had with Mai Hime, including why nobody grilled and/or
beat up Nagi over his role, as well as why everyone
acted so strange in the final storyline. The "red
star" theory is mine, not something from the anime....
The Chie and Aoi pairing is mostly fan based, but I
liked it and decided to slip it in. I'm also tossing
in a plot thread for a continuation, maybe, depending
on how ambitious I get.
Back to Answers and Questions Index - Back to Mai HiME Shoujo-Ai Fanfiction