Arisugawa Juri awoke to the sound of footsteps behind her. During the night, she had fallen asleep in a waiting room easy chair. With a short yawn, she turned her head to see a black-clad woman walking by. Woman...? "Himemiya...Anthy? Is...that you?" She quickly stood up and went after her, accidentally waking up Wakaba, who then sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Huh...? What’s going on? Sempai?" Wakaba’s head suddenly shot up over the back of the couch and watched as Juri caught up with Anthy. "Who...Himemiya-san?" Across the way, Juri curiously peered at the nearly unrecognizable Hanayome. "Himemiya-san, why are you here?" "Please, sempai, don’t tell Shintaro-sama that I came to see her! Please!" "Huh?" Juri, for once, looked dumbfounded. "Why would I tell that irresponsible jerk anything?" "You won’t tell?" "Of course not! Now, how did you know to come here?" "I heard the explosion last night. It occurred shortly after Shintaro-sama left the dorm. I just had a dreadful feeling about it and thought I should find out. Unfortunately, he’s forbidden me to see or think about her." "You’re going against your fate, aren’t you?" Anthy’s purple locks draped around her face as she lowered her head, almost looking as if she were ashamed. "I...I had to know. I had to sneak out during the late hours. I got here and they said it was her and I had to see her." "Are you positive that Keingo-kun is behind this?" Juri was positive, herself, but a little reassurance wouldn’t hurt none. "The facts are all there. He never leaves so late at night." Anthy stuttered a moment, seeing dreadful flashbacks as to why he never left at night. His evenings were spent in self-pleasure. How sickeningly violent he was, too. The Bride’s slender arm crossed over her chest protectively as she shuddered. "Himemiya-san, what’s wrong?" "Hmm? Ah...nothing...I’m fine..." The golden-locked captain could see the remorseful, far away look in the girl’s eyes, one she had seen on Utena’s face. This poor girl was suffering, somehow. "Oh, you were saying...?" The Bride’s eyes snapped back to attention, quickly shaking off the flashbacks. "Oh, yes...sorry. I was saying that he never left so late. It wasn’t only a coincidence that something like that bombing would occur shortly after his departure." "I see..." Juri’s long fingers cradled her chin thoughtfully, considering the facts. "He leaves for the first time in a long while after his usual hours; the explosion occurs thereafter. Utena was the only individual present at the scene. This was no coincidence. That bastard targeted her!" "Y...you believe me!?" "It makes so much sense! How can I not!? I must report this to the Seitokai, immediately." The Bara no Hanayome’s eyes suddenly went wide with fear. "W...wait!! If you tell...he...he’ll know I went out. Punished or not, he’s still the Kettou no Shioushia and I’m still his ‘prize’...sempai...please..." Arisugawa Juri did promise not to tell, but it was the only proof. "Damn...either way one of you gets hurt. All right. I’ll figure out something else, I hope." "Oh, thank you so much, sempai. Besides, it’ll give Utena-sama time to heal if he doesn’t know that she’s okay." "She’s okay!?" "Of course...I spoke with her before I left." Before another word could be exchanged, the sound of breaking glass was heard in the distance as Shinohara Wakaba bolted down the hallway, bound for Utena’s room. "Umm...perhaps I shouldn’t have said that quite so loud." The fencing captain’s hand covered her face in mock annoyance. "It’s quite all right. Shinohara-san loves Utena-sama like a sister. It’s better that she knows. And anyway, she needs a good pick-me-up. Who better to do so than Shinohara-san, right?" "I suppose you have a point." Anthy’s smile suddenly disappeared after glancing to a wall clock. "Sempai...I apologize, but, I have to return to the dormitory before Shintaro-sama finds me missing." "Of course." Juri smiled, placing a creme-colored hand to Anthy’s shoulder. "For Utena-san’s sake, please take good care of yourself." "I will, sempai. Until we meet again..." Then, the mysterious Anthy exited, leaving Juri slightly bewildered. "How I feel for her. Is there no believable miracle that can set her free, for Utena is still recovering." With a sigh, she walked down the halls. Inside the Planetarium, or better known as the Rijichou Shitsu, of the Ohtori Gakuen Observation Tower, Ohtori Akio sat behind a desk, pen in hand, impatiently filling out the financial papers concerning the bombing of the gymnasium. Each paper receiving his signature and then being filed, but... "What’s this? An accident form? I thought the gymnasium was closed at that hour? Who could have..." Reading further, he came across the name he’d hoped he wouldn’t. "Tenjou Utena?? Impossible! I told Shintaro to get her out of the way, not kill her!!" Standing quickly, he ran to the dorm next to his dwelling and barged through the door, eyes scanning for a certain boy who had some explaining to do. "What’s going on here? Tea...?" Akio’s hand grasped the cup and brought it to his nose, taking in the scent of a familiar supplement. "Drugged. Must have been Anthy. She’s not around." Taking the boy by the hair, he jerked upward, waking him right away. "Hey!! What the hell’s the matter with...ah...Akio-san? Wha...what’re you doing here?" "What the hell were you thinking?" Akio spoke calmly, yet with a tone that showed obvious irritation. Shintaro’s face looked slightly confused as Akio’s hand released his hair. "Huh? What’re you talking about?" "The bombing. What did you hope to accomplish?" "Geez! You wanted her out of the way didn’t you!?" "You’re not hearing me, boy. I wanted her temporarily out of the way, not permanently." "She’s not dead...I saw it last night. Shinohara Wakaba was with her. I’m sure she’s fine...in a coma...but fine." "For your sake, she’d better be. Without her, there’s no way to obtain Dios no Chikara and this will all have been for naught." The Rijichou turned away, looking about the cluttered room. "It’s a mess in here...where’s Anthy?" "Anthy? Huh...she was...well....where the hell is she!?" Akio’s face suddenly turned back to the boy, angered to an extent. "You are hopeless! I knew she did it. I found you passed out at the table with a drug in your drink. She must have run off!" "Last night...? That stupid little...!!" Speak of the Devil. At that time, Anthy walked through the door. "You! You left me last night, didn’t you!?" "I just went out for awhile. I...couldn’t sleep over your loud snoring." Keingo wasn’t exactly amused, Akio, on the other hand, stifled a laugh. "You drugged my tea and deliberately disobeyed my! I know you went to see her last night!" "Her? ‘Her’ who? I’m very sorry, but I don’t know who ‘her’ is." "Don’t play stupid with me! Admit it!!" Anthy suddenly began to have flashbacks with each loud outburst he threw at her, every one of them producing an image all pertaining to the suffering of her beloved Utena. The cuts, the bruises, the burns, the blood, and...the scar. For the first time, Himemiya Anthy’s composure went, *snap*. "I can’t do this, anymore. I don’t know how much more I can take! Admit it? Admit what!? That you are a weak and incompetent liar that had to cheat in the game of Revolution to gain victory? That you’re violent and abusive to not only your title and myself, but to Utena-sama, as well!? That you lied to the Seitokaichou!? That you tried to kill Utena-sama!?" Anthy’s head whipped around, her velvet locks following like a wave, and faced her brother, visibly outraged. "Onii-sama...you can’t let him get away with this, you can’t!!" "Anthy...there isn’t much I can do. Shintaro-kun is Kettou no Shioushia by call of the Sekai no Hate. The only way I could enforce his punishment...is if he were defeated and stripped of his title." "Then...Utena-sama will defeat him and he’ll get what he deserves." "Anthy, I can’t have that. My plan is working and with a new twist. I won’t even have to take advantage of your beloved Prince, either. You may even benefit from it, yourself." "I...I don’t understand." Akio’s face lit up in satisfaction. Taking Anthy by her arm, he began to pull her along with him, then he stopped for a moment, looking back to his ‘apprentice’. "Shintaro-kun...I’ll base your personal well-being of this incident on Utena’s condition." Once again, he began to pull the Bride behind him, a low chuckle escaping his twisted smile. "Come along, Anthy...it’s time I paid my respects to the ‘Bara no Oji-sama’ in her time of healing." Once more, Tenjou Utena’s infirmary room was occupied with visitors, only, these ones were looking for answers. "...and that’s what happened." Shinohara Wakaba and Arisugawa Juri listened intently as Utena, still tired and weak, told them about what had happened the night prior. "Utena-sama, I’m sorry, I should have known someone as stubborn as you would go against a doctor’s orders. This game of Revolution is really hard on you, isn’t it?" "Yeah, it is. I just...wait! How did you know...about...? Wakaba...?" The hazel eyed girl looked sympathetically to her bed-ridden best friend and sighed. "Yeah. Himemiya-san took me to the Kettou Hiroba and she explained everything to me, about your duels and how they came about." "She...did? So, you know everything, now?" "Mm-hmm. I thought a lot about it, too." "...w...what...did you think about?" "I...well...oh, Utena-sama! This is all my fault!!" The girl cried out, bursting into shamed tears. "What!? No, no, no, Wakaba..." "It is! Anthy-san told me that you challenged Saionji-sempai because you were trying to avenge me! It was all a mistake! You wouldn’t even be here like this if it hadn’t been for me!" "Wakaba-chan...please don’t cry. It’s not your fault, it never was. C’mon, please?" Utena looked to the girl who still cried, a pained expression on her face. "Come here..." Wakaba sat down and leaned into Utena’s embrace. "Sshh...it’s okay...it is.." Utena’s chin rested upon Wakaba’s head, her arm around her, comfortingly. Next to them, Juri still sat. "Do you want me to go, Utena?" "No, no, sempai...she’ll be okay. You can stay." Juri nodded slowly. "By the way, I never had a chance to ask how you were feeling." Utena smiled mentally to herself before looking up to answer the question. "To be blunt, sempai, like roadkill twice run over." A toothy, lop-sided smile spread on Utena’s face at her comment. "Oh, I see." The corners of the fencer’s lips turned up at the remark. "Well, it’s nice to know you haven’t lost your sense of humor." The Prince merely nodded and smiled. That much was true. She looked down to Wakaba, who was merely smiling back at her. "You okay, now?" "Yeah, a little. I still feel bad." "You shouldn’t. I had the chance to get out of this long ago, but I chose not to because this was my big opportunity to become the prince I set out to be, and protecting Himemiya gave me that chance, so I stayed in the game." "I guess, but you know what I mean." "Well, you say what you want, but I’ll never blame you for any of this. In some way, I should thank you. If you hadn’t picked Saionji as such a lousy choice for a crush, I probably wouldn’t have met Himemiya." Wakaba’s eyes widened. "Utena-sama! I can’t believe you said that! You’re so cruel!" "Hey, hey, I was just kidding. I always kid you." To top that off, Utena flashed that smile that Wakaba simply could not resist: The Noble Prince’s smile. "I...I know you were! I...I was just going along with it." "Oh, were you now? I guess you know me pretty well, don’t you?" Wakaba smiled triumphantly, her chest puffing out in pride. "I most certainly do! I know everything there is to know about Utena-sama!" Utena merely arched an eyebrow before placing her hands on Wakaba’s sides before a grin pulled one side of her mouth up. "...everything...?" The Oji placed her face close to her now blushing friend’s own. "Ah, Utena-sama, se...sempai is watching..." "...so? Let her..." Wakaba’s heart beat rapidly in her chest. What was going on here?? "...Utena...sama..." The frosted pink of Utena’s lips were mere inches from Wakaba’s own...then...the smaller girl erupted in a childish fit of laughter, squirming helplessly underneath the prince’s cruel fingers which were torturing her sides. "Hey...qu...quit it!! Utena-sama, it tickles, c’mon!! Stoooop iiiiiiiit!!" "You still sure you know everything!?" "Okay, okay! I give! I don’t know everything!" Utena’s ‘attack’ then ceased, another lopsided grin on her face. "Did you really think I was gonna kiss you?" Wakaba was still blushing profusely. "N...no...of course not! Utena-sama...I was...that wasn’t fair!" Utena then started laughing. Beside the two girls, Juri just smiled and shook her head. "You really are a tease, Utena-san." The room then went silent, Utena staring blankly at the grinning captain. "Oh, thanks a lot, sempai...I mean it, really." Utena muttered, smugly. Suddenly, Wakaba stood up, pinching Utena’s cheek before walking to the door. "Ah, Wakaba-chan...where are you going?" "I’m going out to collect the homework you’ve missed." She replied, a sadistic smile playing it’s way onto her features. "My wha...!? Wha...what for!?" "Wouldn’t want you falling behind in your classes, now would we?" "You truly are cruel, Wakaba-chan..." "Payback sucks, doesn’t it?" Juri said as Utena bowed her head in defeat when Wakaba disappeared out the door, a small laugh ringing in the hallway. "Awww...homework? It’s not fair! I’m sick!" Juri stood from her seat, finally, and walked to the ailing Utena, a humored expression on her face. "Oh, poor, poor Utena-san. I hate to be honest, but it sucks to be you." "Se...sempai! That was blunt!" Juri just laughed lightly. "Hmph, I guess I deserved that. At least she isn’t sad, anymore." After that, the conversation became silent. Juri took the chance to sit on the edge of Utena’s bed, her ringed hand toying with a sheet. "Since you were so upset last time I saw you, I didn’t ask, but how did you take seeing that...scar?" "Oh, that? I was pretty upset when I first saw it. I was afraid that Himemiya would forever blame herself for all of this whenever she saw it. Naturally, I was right. After a lot of persuasion, I convinced her it wasn’t her fault." "Is she okay, now?" "Well, I believe so. When she was here, she didn’t really pay much attention to it at all. Speaking of being here, she was risking a lot doing so." "She certainly was. I talked with her earlier. It seems the Victor she’s with isn’t exactly innocent. What happened while she was with you?" The young Prince was silent for a moment. What had happened before she woke up? Considering a moment longer, she began. "I was comatose in the beginning. I don’t know much of what happened then. I do remember a dream. A dream about being alone in a black void as a child. I felt scared and lonely as I cried. The next thing I know, Himemiya’s standing before me. When she knelt down, she dried my tears and began to ask me some things. But then, she had convinced the dream-me that it was the part of me that made up my noble mind. Apparently, everything that has happened really made an impact on my nobility and it began diminishing, slowly. Each question I answered, I felt as though I was regaining my noble heart and mind, while my child form aged to my current one. After that, I awoke in her arms." Having listened carefully, Juri nodded and embraced the prince, a sigh leaving her. "I’m glad you were able to find yourself. Welcome back, Utena." "Thanks, sempai." Upon parting, they stayed silent, almost uncomfortably. What was left to say now? Juri’s azure eyes suddenly hardened as she looked to Utena once more. "Now, that you’re up and conscious, your rehabilitation begins tomorrow. I’ll be here to get you in the morning, so get some sleep." "You will? How come?" "I am not letting you out of my sight until all’s well. So, I hope you’re tolerant of me, because you’ll be spending the next week under my watchful eye." Utena’s jaw dropped slightly and her eyebrow twitched, nervously. "Ah...heh heh...gee, thanks...Arisugawa-sempai..." ------------------------------------------------------------ Author’s gibberish: Ahhh, that was great fun...ah, that it was. *sings horribly off-key to the conga line song* Anthy got a back-BONE, Anthy got a back-BONE, Anthy got a back-BONE! Yeah, I just got sick and damn tired of seeing her being so submissive, dag-nabbit! What can I say? A little OOC, but it's fiction for a reason ^^;
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