Fujino Shizuru's attention was always on the details. From chartering her family's fastest business jet, to recruiting a classmate to take notes for her while she was away from university for the overnight trip, the former-student council president took care to solve all of life's little problems. It gave her time to ponder the larger problems. Such as why her breakfast companion and love of her life, Kuga Natsuki, was staring off into space with a clearly unhappy expression. Shizuru watched as Natsuki absently toyed with the fresh fruit on her plate. She would occasionally pick up a strawberry and bring it tantalizingly close to her lovely lips, but then change her mind and put it back down. The former student council president was at a loss as to what was bothering her love. Were the fresh flowers, hand-made tablecloth, silver tea service and fully liveried butler too much? Shizuru didn't believe so. Perhaps it was the strange looks the couple was getting from the other diners, in the middle of the Fuuka Gakuen cafeteria. "I might have over done it again," Shizuru said aloud. "Huh?" Natsuki awoke from her ruminations. "Oh, it's not that...but next time, I think we can do without the violin player." Shizuru winced as if wounded in the heart. *I KNEW I should have ordered the viola instead.* "You should let me spoil you more often," she said as she picked up a croissant and buttered it before offering it to her raven-haired companion. "Th-thanks." Shizuru thought Natsuki's blush prettily set off her ivory skin. She was quite Pleased that *she* had been the one to put it there. "Natsuki, what is it?" Shizuru asked, all hints of teasing gone from her voice. "It shows that much?" "You were also distracted last night," Shizuru replied. "Despite all my efforts to keep you...focused." Natsuki squirmed under Shizuru's soft interrogation. Her love would never force the truth from her, but Fujino Shizuru would likewise never give up easily. If something was bothering Natsuki, Shizuru would not allow her to suffer in silence. "It's Tokiha Mai," Natsuki said quietly. "I think she's in serious trouble. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- For Tokiha Mai, sewing was much like life. If it tore mend it. Mai was good at mending things. New hems for skirts, new buttons for blouses and sweaters, she could even darn socks if needed. But what happened when something didn’t tear along the seam? "Do what you can to repair the damage and try to hide your stitches," Mai recalled as she sewed. It was before classes and Mai was in the home economics sewing lab mending uniforms. While she could just as easily have worked in her room, Mai preferred the larger machines here. Besides, she preferred the solitude here. Nothing but the toneless hum and click of the machines. She searched her sewing box for another button. Mikoto seemed to be loosing a lot of those lately. She'd have to talk to the feral girl about it later. "Routine communication," Mai said bitterly to herself. "That's what we're reduced to." She and her closest friend barely spoke to each other now. When Mikoto would come home she'd regale her roommate with news from her classes to the antics of her fellow students. No more. Mai was lucky to get a good morning out of her. But there was more. Sometimes the younger girl would come home late with no explanation. She'd simply take a bath and go to sleep. She was losing Mikoto, and it was her own fault. With the realization came pain, a pain that seared Mai's heart. After the HiME Festival, Tokiha Mai had done her best to mend the pieces of her life into something resembling a complete tapestry. However, the image that emerged was a jumbled collage of patterns; none of which seemed to match. She had unconsciously traced one pattern which kept reappearing, Mikoto. Then, in a moment of emotional confusion, she'd done a terrible thing. A tear papered on her very life. Yet, the tear on her life was not along the seams. She'd done her best to mend it and only succeeded in widening the tear. Now, as she tried to hide her stitches she'd done another terrible thing. One that she couldn't take back. Mai picked up another skirt, whose hem was unraveling. A thread had come loose and the more it was pulled, the worse the damage became. "It was fine," Mai whispered. "Why did I have to pull that thread? Why couldn't I leave it alone?" The light-grey fabric darkened to black as moisture seeped through. Mai hugged the skirt to her breast. "Forgive me..." ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Natsuki sat quietly contemplating her breakfast while Shizuru was busy on her cell phone. After hearing about Natsuki's evening encounter with Mai, Shizuru had been on the phone for the last ten minutes. "What exactly are you doing?" Natsuki finally asked. Shizuru paused and turned her lovely red gaze upon her love. "Tokiha-san isn't the type of person to say what's bothering her. I'm afraid the situation is too volatile to wait for her to say it on her own." Shizuru smiled pleasantly. "Since investigations like these aren't my forte' I'm calling in reinforcements." "Reinforcements?" Natsuki queried. "You don't have to go that far." "I'll do everything I can for one of Natsuki's beloved friends," Shizuru answered. "I'm a bit ashamed really." "Why?" Natsuki asked as she watched Shizuru's lips form a frown. "Because my heart was only big enough for Natsuki, I hurt people, made them suffer." Shizuru's smile returned as she reached over to caress Natsuki's cheek. "But your heart is big enough to let others in. That's just another reason why I love you so much." Shizuru went back to her call, leaving Natsuki with a small pang of loss. Right then, she'd wanted to pour her feelings out in front of everyone. Shizuru had that effect on her. *I made the right choice, letting her in.* Yet, the question of exactly *whom* Shizuru was calling for "reinforcements" nagged at Natsuki. An army of detectives perhaps? Shizuru never could do anything on a small scale. "I'm delivering a speech to the Tea Ceremony Club this afternoon, but I could put them off..." Shizuru said into the phone. "All right, that will be lovely. I'm glad to have an investigator of your caliber working on this case." *Is it Scotland Yard?* Natsuki wondered incredulously. "Thank you for your kindness in this matter Harada-san. Give my best to Senou-san." Shizuru closed her phone and resumed her meal.
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