Yuuji waited patiently as the girls around the table stared at him. If this wasn’t such a serious situation, he would have been amused at the look on their faces. Maya was obviously absolutely confused, Kaori’s eyes were wide with shock, while Fuu looked like she wanted to strangle him. The only one who kept a straight face was Haruna, who was sitting at the far corner of the room.
“So,” Haruna started, “what’s the punchline again?”
Yuuji rolled his eyes. Typical for Haruna to think that this was a joke.
“If this is a joke, Yuuji, it isn’t funny.”
“This isn’t a joke, you guys,” he said as he leaned on the table. “Haven’t you been listening to a word I just said? This is it! This what we’ve been trying to find out for years!”
“And how are you sure that this is the real thing?”
“Fuu…”
“You know that I’m not usually one to doubt you, Yuuji,” Fuu said, “but do you really expect us to believe that Mai-sama and Kazetenshi Aiko are sisters?”
“It explains why they look alike, doesn’t it?”
“So what do you plan to do? Just go up to Mai-sama and say, ‘Hey, guess what? You have a sister’?”
“Of course not. If we do that, Mai-sama will just go to Youko and ask him what’s going on. Meanwhile, the silver-haired moron will go to us, crush our puny lives, and all our efforts will be fruitless.”
“Look, I know you want to help the Princess, but…” Fuu paused, organizing her thoughts. “You told me once that we’ll tell her the truth once you get the facts straight. You don’t have the facts straight.”
“Yes, Fuu, I do,” Yuuji said, practically throwing the book he had been holding at Fuu’s face. “What more evidence do you need? These are four accounts written by four Roses hidden in four different places in the library. None of the writers were in the same lifetime, none of them read the others’ work, but they all say the same thing about the history of Deathrose! Youko was the survivor of the overthrown clan, not Mai-sama.”
“OK, so let’s say that thing is true. It also says there that this ‘Ran’ was the one who overthrew the clan in the first place. He’s Youko-sama’s—”
“Don’t call him Youko-sama in front of me, Fuu, he doesn’t deserve that honorific.”
Fuu sighed before continuing. “He’s Youko’s brother, yet he killed every Elemental there is. Now, he’s the sensei of the Stars. Doesn’t that make them the bad guys? So why would we want to ‘free’ Mai-sama from Youko if he’s the good one, anyway?”
“Just because someone’s not a member of ‘the bad guys’ doesn’t mean he’s good. He’s the antagonist in his own way. I mean, Youko lied to Mai all her life. He lied to all of you! Besides, don’t you see that he’s making us kill people? Don’t you want all this to stop? Don’t you want all this to end, Fuu?”
“Of course I want this to end,” she answered quietly.
“Consider this: Ran may have killed all the Elementals before, but according to these accounts… It says here that a group of power-hungry Elementals were the real culprits, and that they just used Ran to eliminate the other Elementals.”
“And he killed those power-hungry Elementals, too.”
“Well, yeah, but the point is: he hasn’t killed anybody since then!”
“You mean… You mean you’re siding with Blue Star, Yuuji-kun?”
“I guess you can say that, Maya. I don’t see anything wrong with what they’re doing. From where I’m standing, add the recent discoveries, I’d actually prefer to be a Star than a Rose,” Yuuji answered honestly. “Provided, of course, that Hino isn’t a Star anymore,” he added as an afterthought. “If the Ice Maiden wasn’t a Star, that’d be a bonus, too.”
“Then why didn’t you leave earlier?”
“I can’t. I promised myself I was going to take Mai with me when I do that, and I can’t take her with me without a good reason,” Yuuji explained. He glanced at Fuu, and found her staring at her hands with her eyebrows knit together.
“So…” came Kaori’s voice, catching his attention, “what are we going to do? I mean, we’ve all left the lives we had. Our families think we’re dead. Where are we going to go after this?”
“Start over,” Yuuji said simply. “We can easily live somewhere else in Japan… Or maybe even in other countries. You guys are all intelligent, able and resourceful. I don’t think we’ll have a hard time living back on the Ground.”
Silence ruled the room. No one spoke, but Yuuji saw that everyone was thoughtful. Perhaps they were weighing their options.
“I haven’t seen the Princess in a while,” Haruna suddenly pointed out.
“I saw her earlier tonight– I mean, last night,” Yuuji said, only then noticing that it was already past midnight.
“So when do you plan to confront Youko?”
“I was planning to do it tonight.”
“Tonight!” Haruna exclaimed. “Why so soon? We barely have time to prepare for it!”
Yuuji hesitated. “I… I didn’t want to tell you this yet, but… Youko told me to gather all of you in the throne room tonight.”
“The throne room? Why the throne room?”
“That’s the point. Youko’s never gathered all of us there before.”
“So you think Youko already knows that you know?”
“Maybe he does. Heck, maybe Mai-sama already knows the truth, too. But, whatever it is, at least we’re not in the dark. We have to be ready for anything.” Yuuji paused, taking time to look each girl in the eye. “Well, Roses, what do you say? I know this is a pretty big decision, and, believe me, I didn’t want to rush you into it… If you aren’t with me, then I won’t leave. It’s all of us or none of us.”
After another lengthy pause, Haruna spoke. “I joined Deathrose just because I didn’t want to die yet. But since there’s still life even after I leave… I’m in.”
“I joined because I thought I’d be fighting the bad guys,” Kaori said, following suit. “Turns out I was actually working for the enemy I thought I was fighting with… And I just have to say that I’m feeling really guilty for almost killing Mai-sama’s sister… Count me in.”
Yuuji nodded, then turned to Fuu and Maya. Fuu was still staring at her hands, while Maya was looking back and forth the two eldest Roses in the room.
“Uhm…” she started, “I guess I’m in, too. Although I don’t think I’m siding with Blue Star… If Youko-san was really a good guy, then he wouldn’t be keeping things from us, would he?”
“That doesn’t automatically follow, Maya,” Yuuji said, giving the girl a benefit of the doubt. “Some things are just better left unsaid.”
Maya glanced at Fuu, waiting for her opinion. But the other blue-eyed girl didn’t speak. Maya bit her lip, not knowing what to do. She had always depended on Fuu or Yuuji when she had to make life-changing decisions. Now, it seemed like she had to make one on her own. But she didn’t know what to decide! Then, realization struck.
Why am I even here, anyway? Why did I join Deathrose in the first place? Why did I even stay?
She looked at Yuuji, and saw his purple eyes looking at her encouragingly. Out of everyone in the whole world, he was the only one — aside from Fuu, of course — who always looked at her like she was significant. After years of living in her older sister’s shadow, after being looked down upon, she actually felt important whenever he looked at her.
“Even so,” she finally said, gaining confidence, “I want in. I have no reason to stay in Deathrose. The only reason I could possibly think of is that I’ll miss this palace.”
Again, Yuuji nodded, and Maya felt like she wanted to smile all day long. Shallow as it may seem to other people, she felt utterly proud that she had made a decision, and that she had determined that she was going to face the consequences. Sure, she was already 15, but… She supposed her previous home environment really made her indecisive.
Now, only one Rose was left…
And Fuu was aware that all eyes were on her.
“Whatever,” she said quietly, surprising everyone.
“Fuu-chan?” Maya asked tentatively. “What did you say?”
“Whatever,” Fuu repeated. “Since you guys all decided to go with this plan, then I guess I have no choice.”
“But you do have a choice, Fuu-san,” Kaori said.
“Fine. I’m choosing to be counted.”
Everyone exchanged glances silently. Whenever the Gale Rose was being like this, it only meant one thing…
“Fuu, can I talk to you for a second?”
…Yuuji was going to try to talk with her alone…
“No.”
…and she would refuse…
“Everyone, can you leave us for a while? You can start preparing for tonight if you wish.”
…then Yuuji would ask for privacy. Fuu wouldn’t protest, but in a few minutes, the two older Roses would be shouting at each other for sure.
Obeying their leader, Haruna, Kaori and Maya all nodded and left.
“Do you think they’ll be done quickly?” Kaori asked the two girls with her once they were outside. “They need to prepare, too.”
“Hm…” Haruna hummed, thinking, “Considering that this could be the last time they’ll get to talk, I’d say it might take them a while…”
“Do you think they’ll really fix things, this time, Haruna?”
“Let’s hope so, Maya. Let’s hope so…”
Inside the room, Yuuji was standing by the window, his arms crossed. The brown-haired girl hadn’t moved from her spot.
“Tell me what’s on your mind, Fuu,” Yuuji finally said, facing her. “Although you’re mostly silent, you were always the opinionated one. I find it hard to believe that you wouldn’t have your own decision about such a serious thing.”
“I’m still at a dilema,” Fuu said.
“Why?”
“Although leaving seems to be the most logical choice, all good things have a bad side, too.”
“And what would that bad side be?”
“Why do you always ask me so many questions?”
“Well, duh. Because I want to know.”
A pause.
“Well, I don’t.”
“You don’t what?”
“I don’t want you to know.”
“Why?”
“Because!”
“Because what?”
“Just because!”
“What do you—”
“Stop it, Yuuji!” she yelled, slamming her fist on the table as she stood up. “Stop acting like you actually want to know me! I am NOT Maya! I don’t need you to make me feel like I’m loved because I know I’m not!”
“What?!”
“Just… just… Just free your Princess, ride off into the sunset, and leave me alone!”
Fuu spun around to run out the room, but Yuuji acted quickly. Literally flying to the door, he intercepted her, took her shoulders and practically planted her on her seat.
“Sit down!”
“I don’t want to!” she yelled, standing up.
“I’ve had enough of this, Hiroguchi!” he countered, pushing her back down on the chair.
“Well, same here!” Fuu replied, standing up again. “So just let me—”
“Dammit, Fuu!“
Fuu’s eyes widened when Yuuji suddenly took her in his arms, hugging her so tight she could barely breathe. Or maybe she couldn’t breathe plainly because he was holding her. In any case, she felt stiff with shock, at the same time feeling like her legs had just been turned to jelly.
“I am not letting you go, Fuu,” he said firmly, “not anymore…”
Oh, my god…Ohmygodohmygodohmygod…
Her heart thudded in her ribcage, her face reddened tremendously, and her tongue seemed to have been stuck in her throat. Shocked, ecstatic, and confused, Fuu felt like her energy had been sapped out. She suddenly felt exhausted, and she couldn’t stop herself from leaning her chin on Yuuji’s shoulder as her eyelids slid shut. For a few moments, they just stood there, his arms enfolding her like there was no tomorrow. Well, maybe there wasn’t a tomorrow…
Yuuji finally loosened his arms without releasing her.
“I don’t act like I want to know you, Fuu,” he whispered, “I really do want to. Sometimes, I feel like I don’t know you anymore. We didn’t have secrets from each other when we were still in high school. Three years ago, we told each other everything…”
“Things have changed over the last three years, Yuuji,” she replied. Inwardly, she marveled at how she could still construct a complete sentence even though her brain had turned to mush.
“No, they haven’t,” he said, his arms slightly tightening around her again. “They haven’t… I’m still me. You’re still you. What’s the difference?”
Fuu bit her lip. How was she supposed to answer that?!
Yuuji pulled away, but only enough to look at her face. “What’s the difference?” he asked again, his eyes searching her own.
“Mai,” Fuu blurted out before she could stop herself.
Yuuji blinked, a surprised look taking over his features. He pulled away completely, holding her at an arm’s length.
Figures he’ll wake up to his senses at the mention of her name, Fuu thought.
“Mai?” he asked, his eyebrows furrowing. “What about Mai?”
Fuu scoffed. “You really want to torture me, don’t you?”
Yuuji ignored the comment. “What about Mai?”
“Everything about Mai!” Fuu exclaimed. Yuuji was still looking at her cluelessly, all the while still standing close to her, so she turned away to stand by the window.
“Fuu, we’ve been playing this stupid guessing game for three years. I’d appreciate it if we stopped now.”
Fuu sighed before speaking. “Mai-sama is your reason for joining Deathrose, isn’t she?”
“Uh… Yeah…”
“Well, there you have it.”
A pause.
“I don’t get it.”
Fuu rolled her eyes. “Will you please use the stuff you have in here?!” she said, angrily poking at Yuuji’s forehead.
“I am! But I don’t get it!”
“Do I have to spell it out for you?!”
“Well, I’m sorry for being so stupid, but YES!”
“You’re in love with her!”
Yuuji suddenly stopped, blinking. “I am?”
“YES!” Fuu said, throwing her hands in exasperation. “You joined Deathrose because of her, you stayed in Deathrose because of her, you promised yourself that you weren’t going to leave Deathrose without her… Everything you do is because of her! Why on earth are you grinning?!”
“You’re too cute sometimes, do you realize that?” Yuuji said, chuckling.
“No, I don’t! And stop smiling! The least you could do is pretend like you’re not amused with me!”
“Why do I need to pretend? I am amused with you.”
“ARGH! Can’t you at least hide the fact that you are?!”
“Why?”
“Because it’s painful! Imagine what I’ve been through!”
“Well, what have you been through?”
“Oh, not much,” Fuu said sarcastically. “After a pretty frighteningly heart-felt talk with one of my friends, he suddenly disappears the next day, which is the very same day I realize that I’ve been in love with him for the last two years — heck, maybe even longer — and so I go on thinking that he was dead, only to find out a few months later that he was still alive, and as an added bonus, he’s in love with another girl, which is the self-same girl who’s practically his reason for living! Well, I’m glad that I’m able to put a smile on your face today, but it’s really not helping right now, so—”
“Fuu,” Yuuji said, taking her by her shoulders. “Fuu, calm down.”
“I am NOT going to calm down! Can’t you see I’m baring my soul here? Girls are supposed to be all panicky and talking non-stop without pausing to breathe when they’re baring their souls! Either that or bawl our eyes out, take your pick! And why are you still smiling?!”
“Fuu, calm down,” Yuuji repeated, taking her face in his hands as he looked straight into her eyes. “Listen to me.”
“Can’t I listen without your face being so close to mine?”
“No.”
“Fine.”
“OK, listen… Are you listening?”
“Yes.”
“Fuu, I am not in love with Mai.”
A pause.
“You’re not?”
“No,” Yuuji said, smiling, as he released her. “I never told you about my sister, did I?”
“I didn’t know you have a sister…”
“I had one,” Yuuji said, sitting down on the table. “She had been six years old, and I was 10. She died the same day I became a Rose. You see, Youko said that I had, and I quote, ‘an impressive Seed’. So, he collected my sister so she would collapse in the middle of the road on our way home that day, so that I would stop walking in shock, so that an incoming car would hit me and kill me on the spot.
“When Youko himself told me about this. I wanted to kill him. I even tried. I jumped at him, put my cute little 10-year-old hands around his neck and seriously attempted to strangle him. Needless to say, I failed. I fainted right after; I suppose it’s because of stress. Imagine that, huh? A 10-year-old suffering from stress. When I woke up, Mai-sama was sitting by my bed. I hated her the instant she introduced herself to be the Deathrose Princess. I figured that my sister died because of her. But then Youko told me the truth that she wasn’t who she thought she was. So, I thought that if I could set Mai-sama free, then my being taken won’t be in vain. My sister’s death won’t be in vain. You were right. Mai is the reason why I stayed. She’s the reason why I decided to let Youko train me.”
Yuuji paused, studying Fuu. She didn’t look surprised at all, but at least she didn’t look hurt or angry or anything. Nonetheless, blank and unreadable was still a bit scary, even if Fuu almost always had a blank and unreadable face on. But then, who cares? It was about time he stopped being so spineless.
“I do want to free the Princess,” he said. “And after that, if I’d ever ride off in the sunset…It’d be with you.”
A pause.
“Me?” Fuu choked out, her eyes wide.
“Yes, Hiroguchi. You.”
She blinked. “Wh…Why me?”
Yuuji rolled his eyes. “Will you please use the stuff you have in here?” he said, poking Fuu’s forehead, imitating what she did earlier.
“But you hate me!”
“What on earth gave you that idea?”
“I–… The first time I saw you here in the palace, you looked like you didn’t want me here.”
“Well, to be honest, I didn’t want you here that time. Having you here meant that I’d die of embarrassment.”
“Embarrassment?”
“Remember that night before I left for Deathrose? You laughed in my face when I told you that I liked you.”
“You told me—? When did you—…” Fuu’s jaw dropped in realization. “Oh, you mean… You mean that?!”
“Depends on what you mean by ‘that’.”
“Personally, Yuuji, I don’t call asking a girl ‘What would you do if you were forced to be my fiancée’ as telling her that you liked her!”
“Well, what was I supposed to say? I didn’t know you liked me, then, too!”
“You could’ve asked!”
“Why are we even arguing about this?”
“I don’t know!!!”
Fuu frowned, looking away, as she crossed her arms in irritation. Yuuji rolled his eyes again, but, at the same time, he couldn’t help but grin. So Fuu was in love with him, eh? That was the best news he’d heard in days. In years, in fact.
“So, Fuu,” he said after a while, remembering the ’situation’ they were in. “You’re still with us tonight, aren’t you?”
For a minute, Fuu just looked at him. Then, she closed her eyes, sighing, as she leaned on the wall behind her.
“The reason I agreed to be a Rose, Yuuji, is you. And it hasn’t changed. I go where you go.”
Yuuji raised an eyebrow. “Me? Your reason was me? I was your ‘unimportant reason’? Gee, thanks a lot.”
“The ‘unimportance’ doesn’t lie with you, per se. I mean, just look at everyone’s reason for being a Rose! Haruna wanted to live her life to the full and continue doing something for others. Kaori wanted to help out, thinking that she was doing the right thing. Maya probably just joined because I told her to. You joined because you wanted to free Mai-sama… But me, I was utterly selfish.”
“We’re all selfish, in a way, Fuu. We all became Roses because we chose to.”
Fuu said nothing and turned her gaze out the window instead. In the next few moments, no one spoke. Suddenly, the (relatively) light mood was gone.
“Yuuji… Do you really think we can pull this off tonight?”
“…I’m not sure. But I’m ready to put up a fight if I need to.”
“As am I. But…” Fuu paused, worry taking over her features. “I’m scared, Yuuji… Not everyone gets a happy ending…”
For a moment, Yuuji said nothing, and she could only wonder what was going on in his mind. Then, without turning her eyes from the window, she heard Yuuji’s feet lightly touch the ground as he hopped off the table.
“I’m going to have to disagree,” he said as he walked towards her. “Though it may be true that some lives don’t end the way people want to, everyone still has a happy ending. Everybody deserves one.”
“I suppose so…”
Fuu almost jumped when Yuuji’s fingertips touched her chin, making her look up at him.
“Yuuji–”
Fuu suppressed a surprised gasp when Yuuji’s lips brushed hers for a split-second. The kiss was over before she even realized that it had started. She stared at him, wide-eyed, as he smiled at her again, his purple eyes only inches away. Randomly, Fuu thought it was unfair that Yuuji could still smile like that when she was scared out of her wits.
Yuuji pulled her close again, and, in the next moment, uncertainty, doubt and fear were all erased from Fuu’s mind. Everything that troubled her flew out the window behind her. She closed her eyes and leaned her head on Yuuji’s shoulder as a soft wind blew from outside.
“You know what, Fuu?”
“Hm?”
“This is our happy ending.”
————–
Next on Blue Star
Groundbreaking discoveries lead to even more groundbreaking discoveries. Some people, no matter how much you think you know them, are still hiding behind a mask. Confessions, conclusions, and connections. Just how many revelations in one week can Mai handle?
“Would ja let me be honest for one freaking second?!”
Episode 24: Elements
————–
From the Author
Weeeeeeee! Yuuji and Fuu are so cute, ne? I thought they were cute. If you didn’t understand Fuu and Yuuji’s past, then email me. If a LOT of you are confused, then maybe I’ll rewrite that part so it’ll be clear. Maybe I’ll most likely release a short side story for Yuuji and Fuu’s background… What do you guys think? Or do you think it’s not needed?
-ahem- So… I know that a lot of people expected that Yuuji was in love with Mai… I hope you weren’t disappointed with this ep. Actually, the original plan WAS to have Yuuji like Mai, but towards the middle of BS, the plan changed. Ehehehe.
For those of you who haven’t noticed, this is an EXTRA episode. This was supposed to be included in Episode 24, but the scene got way too long. Originally, the Yuuji-Fuu argument isn’t even given that much time in the series, but I couldn’t help it. Hehe. So there. This is an extra because I think the next episodes will still make sense even without this ep. Even so, I think you’ll appreciate some details in Eps 24 and 25 better if you’ve gone through this one.
Earlier eps related to Yuuji-Fuu:
Episode 14: Fever — This is the episode where Yuuji admits that Mai is his reason for joining Deathrose. Also the episode where Fuu says that her reason for being a Rose is unimportant.
Episode 20: Switch
To the Reviewers:
Maggy d – A loophole is, originally, an ambiguity that makes it possible to evade a difficulty or obligation. Ehehe. But, in terms of stories, a loophole is a small detail that is not consistent with the other details. It’s basically a hole in the loop. Hehe. -ahem- So Kaji’s reminding you of someone… Hope you remember who it is. I hate it when that happens to me…being reminded of something you can’t remember. Haha! What an oxymoron. Oooh, you’re for Kaji-Aiko and Kamui-Mai, huh? Hehe. I’m glad you liked the previous chap. Get well soon!
Bentfender – Wow. -BIG SMILE- Long review! Girl, I practically fell off my chair laughing while I was reading the part where you were trying to figure out the Kaji-Aiko/Mai-Kamui situation. Heck, I laugh every time I remember it. :Þ About Kaji and Kamui’s argument/sparring: You thought it was very true to character? YEY! -jumps around- Sometimes I wonder if my characters are even different anymore. As an author, sometimes I think their personalities are blurred and smudged into one… I mean, like, sometimes I begin to think they’re all the same person, but have different names. … OK, I’m not making sense anymore. Oh, and your review ain’t pointless.
