A/N: So here it is, my first chapter of the first story I will be writing. I found myself thinking that this was something I expected to see in the anime, especially during the Carmen play. I kept thinking "Chikaru may never act like she wants someone, but I bet she does. And poor Tamao deserves someone after what happened."

So, here it is!

The Poet and the President

The night before:

A distant giggling from the Secret Garden, the library of choice for girls at Astrea Hill who wanted to get away with each other. From this, in a dim corner of the giant building, on the wall and deeply concentrating on one another, were two girls. One from Miator, and one from Lulim.

"You really think this will work?" Ask the Miator girl. Her eyes darted from side to side to ensure privacy.

"Trust me, Suzumi," The Lulim girl said, "If you want Nagisa, just follow my lead."

"B-but Chikaru-sempai?" Asked Tamao, nervously allowing herself to fall back against the wall in hops that she could crawl away if things got out of hand.

"Hm?" Chikaru's expression was cheerful, not in the slightest bit malicious or perverse. It seemed like, to her, this was merely a fun way to spend her time.

"W-why are we discussing this here? And why are you leaning over me like that?" The bluenette asked, her voice ever quieter than before. The raven haired Lulim Student Council President leaned in closer, blocking both their faces from view, and whispered.

"It's more believable this way."

In the morning:

The day was bright and promising at Astrea Hill on this February morning. All the girls of all three schools seemed anxious over something, but nobody could place their finger on what. The air bit coldly at the lungs of those who went outside, though the sun was radiating a feeling of joy on the campus. Among those who were anxious, the poet Suzumi Tamao was no exception.

"Tamao-chan, you seem more upbeat than usual today." Spoke a red head, barely conscious enough to blink. Still in her pajamas, and slurred in speech, Aoi Nagisa attempted to get out of bed. To no avail, as she plopped back down and sighed.

"Oh, Nagisa-chan!" Tamao had found herself sitting above Nagisa on her bed, pushing on her shoulders in an attempt to wake her up. Leaning down to whisper gently to the red head, Tamao's expression show mischief.

"Please don't sleep in too late today, Nagisa-chan. I need you with me for something today." The bluenette giggled and proceeded to poke her room mate's shoulder, pretending to check if she was dead. Nagisa, reluctantly, opened her eyes and yawned. She may have been the only tired girl in the entire building.

"Alright, alright. Geez, Tamao-chan, I've never seen you this full of energy." Said the red head, slowly rising from her bed. The poet removed herself from her perch above Nagisa and allowed her the time to get ready. Meanwhile, she herself was already dressed, treated, and ready for her day. Though, her day was something new entirely to her. If Chikaru's plan works, this day could be the beginning of a long, winding story of how she finally captured her Nagisa.

During the day:

Now, with Nagisa ready and Tamao leading the way, the two headed out of their dorm and down into the theater. Their destination at least a few minutes away, Nagisa decided to fill her curious mind with the details of the day.

"Tamao-chan, what exactly are you doing today?" Asked the red head, her eyes turning over to her room mate. The February cold had turned their faces a light shade of pink, as Winter often does to one outside in the snow. The poet smiled, and a sense of excitement crawled over her. This would be the first step.

"I need you to be there for me with this, Nagisa-chan. I've been wanting to do this for a very long time now, but I was always afraid." The bluenette's cheeks were already pink, so it was impossible to see that she was blushing madly. The theater was within sight, and to Nagisa, this meant one thing.

"Are you going to see a play today? But I don't remember there being one today..."

"No." Tamao said, her eyes now holding a fire Nagisa was unfamiliar with. Whatever it was her room mate was looking for, the red head now understood was vital to her. She nodded, an encouraging smile finding itself to her, and continued along the path her friend was intending to walk. Whatever she was needed for, Nagisa could tell it was important.

In the theater, there were several students from all three schools. Each of them looked busy, preparing something or another for what Nagisa believed to be a project for class, or maybe a new play. One in particular, a Lulim uniform accented with Raven hair and flower accessories over that, seemed especially energetic.

"Tamao-chan, look! It's Chikaru-sempai!" Said Nagisa, happily turning to her room mate.

"I know." The poet gave a small smile, her face still red from the cold. She began to walk forward, towards the raven haired president. Nagisa only followed, deciding she would let Tamao do whatever it is she needed to do. It seemed like she needed Chikaru for something. Maybe the poet had written a script, and was passing it along? But then, Nagisa wasn't needed for that at all. Why would Tamao need Nagisa for something about a play?

"E-excuse me, Minamoto-sempai..." Tamao began quietly. Her eyes seemed full of emotion, something that was unexpected. The girls around all stopped and checked what was going on, silently whispering to each other. Some spoke of the library, and others spoke of a hidden affair. Nagisa stood back, bewildered by the other girls' rudeness towards the two. The red head doubted they would sneak around like that, as she knew her poet room mate was far too open to do that.

Of course, Nagisa was also unaware of exactly how much sneaking Tamao was capable of.

As if for dramatic effect, Chikaru had yet to reply. The poet nervously bowed and began speaking more loudly than she normally would, as if she were forcing herself to say those words.

"I-I like you very much, Minamoto-sempai! Please go out with me!"

Silence.

Nagisa's expression went through a number of things, from surprise, to joy, to confusion. All the girls began to whisper more and more, some saying they knew this would happen. The red head decided she knew why she was needed here now. She was here as a support in case things went wrong. Due to the silence, she assumed the worst, and began approaching the two.

Chikaru's keen ears picked up footsteps, and she turned around. They did indeed belong to Nagisa, and Tamao had fulfilled step one. To keep going with the situation, the ravenette put a finger under the poet's chin, which stopped Nagisa in her tracks. Gently, Chikaru lifted the poet's head to her own, and locked eyes with her.

"Call me Chikaru." She said, taking a pause in her words. The obviously intended dramatic tension was stirring up all the girls in the building.

"And it's about time you asked. I thought I'd have to do it."

The words echoed within the walls of the theater, and before long the two were swarmed with praise and jealousy from those in the room. It was so much that poor Nagisa couldn't even see them anymore. The red head smiled, taking a seat in one of the rows of the theater, and sighed. She never expected that her best friend would hide a crush from her.

Ironic, because the poet and the president had arranged to show the red head just that. Tamao's smile turned to a devious smirk, and Chikaru began to wade through the crowd, holding onto the poet's hand to help her out. As they made their escape, the crowd followed, leaving Nagisa alone in the large, echoing theater.

"Congratulations, Tamao-chan."

The night:

The poet couldn't get herself through the door before her room mate jumped on her with questions. All of them relating to how long and why she had developed her crush on the Lulim president. Tamao thought she would never get to bed at the rate things were going, and Nagisa knew that she wouldn't, because she would be trying to get information out of her all night.

"Nagisa-chan, I told you already, I used to live alone." Began the poet. "But Chikaru was always around to help me through everything, and I guess it just sort of happened."

Unsatisfied, Nagisa prodded more at the question.

"Oh, but that was so much more loving than a 'Just sort of happened', Tamao-chan! You sure there wasn't more to it~?"

"I'm sure. I had harbored those feeling for too long and I just needed to get them out. I am so glad things worked out for me though, because I went there today without expecting them to at all." The bluenette closed her eyes, thinking back to what happened after they escaped the crowd.

"We lost them, Tamao-chan." The ravenette said, smiling her usual, uplifting smile. The outdoors were certainly cold, but they would at least mask the two girls for now. "As the only two members of the 'Make Nagisa fall in love with Tamao' club, we have a lot of work ahead of us. Are you sure you can handle all this?"

The poet nodded eagerly. Her eyes lit up as if the plan had already succeeded, and she couldn't possibly see any reason as to how they wouldn't.

"I'm ready. I knew I could count on you, Chikaru-sempai." Said the bluenette. Chikaru just smiled brighter, and nodded.

"Then best you get back to your dorm for tonight. We've done all we can for today. Tomorrow, we begin step two, alright?"

"Yes!" Tamao shot up from where she was, bowed in thanks to her sempai, and dashed back to her dorm.

The night (In Chikaru's room):

The ravenette sat back on her bed, smiling and writing in her little black book. It was so hard to believe that she was always like this, but it was the image that everyone knew, and it was the only image there was. The day brought Chikaru a new activity, and she was already enjoying herself more than usual.

"Step two: Act lovey-dovey in front of Nagisa." She said aloud, alone in her room at the moment. Sighing and smiling brightly, the president lay back and began to drift off to sleep.

"I'll enjoy this little game. Too bad Tamao-chan and I are just acting..." Smiling and curling up, Chikaru fell asleep.

A/N:

So there you have it. There's the setup for Chikaru's clever plans to get Tamao what she wants most: Nagisa. I really have no idea where this story will go, but here is how it begins. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.