Disclaimer: I do not own Mari-Mite or Glass Mask
A/N: I posted the beginning of this little diddle last year-ish, but before I got very far into it the document was deleted from my HDD. Since then I have been meaning to re-do it, because everybody needs a little yumi-centered smut. I was able to find a copy I had smuggled away in a USB so I actually didn't have to start over from scratch. Joy.
I want to thank TheBigN for keeping this little travesty fresh in my mind so I could restart it.
Cheers~
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Mask of Glass
Part 1
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"So, onto new business. I believe it is time to discuss the play for the upcoming school festival."
The words were spoken out of nowhere, bringing all attention to the speaker— Shimako Toudou. She was sitting, her back straight against her chair, a warm, perfect smile blossoming on her face. She blinked a few times, as if to say 'What? Did I say something wrong?' and simply looked back at everyone, meeting each and every one of their stares.
Yumi Fukuzawa met her expectant gaze with a bewildered one of her own, her large brown eyes blinking in rapid succession as she tried to process what her friend had said. 'The play for the school festival? Wasn't that after the sports festival? And before the school trip, right? Was that coming up? Just what time of the year was this, anyway?'
"Uh… Shimako-san," Beside Yumi, Yoshino Shimazu brushed a dark-brown braid behind her ear and made a move as if to stand up, but changed her mind halfway through, simply choosing to lean forward in her chair. "That isn't for a few good weeks now… Like, a month at least."
Shimako shrugged. Her wavy, chestnut-hued hair bounced slightly with the gesture. "Well, it is true we have a while to prepare. But I believe it is a good idea to plan ahead." she smiled wider. "Especially because of the other duties we have to do in the meantime."
Yoshino pursed her lips, clearly trying to come up with some kind of excuse as to why they shouldn't start talking about it. She looked pointedly over at Yumi, who shrugged helplessly, and then let out a heavy sigh. "Alright. I guess you're right, Shimako-san." she acquiesced, if a bit more grumpily than she usually sounded. "So what's the plan?"
Shimako looked thoughtful for a moment, her head cocked to one side. "Well, I don't have anything specific in mind…" she mumbled softly. "But I think we should keep up with our tradition of doing something… a little outside of the box."
Nana Arima, the newest member of the Yamayurikai, chose at that moment to speak up. "Outside of the box? What does that mean?"
"It means that the past couple of years we have done something… well… a little odd with our cultural festival activities." Yoshino said with a roll of her eyes. Yumi had to agree with her on that one. After all, last year there was that whole debacle with the cross-dressing in Torikaebaya Monogatari. And the year before that was Cinderella, where the cast was all women… with the exception of the-then president of the Hanadara School's student council, Suguru Kashiwagi.
The Yamayurikai's previous attempts at plays had been anything but 'normal'.
"So you want to do another play with an interesting gimmick?" Touko Matsudaira, Yumi's Petite Souer and the Yamayurikai's resident actress, asked from Yumi's other side.
"I think that would be expected of us." Shimako said simply.
"Oooh, that sounds fun!" Nana chirped, clapping her hands together happily. Yoshino rolled her eyes and grunted at her petite soeur's enthusiasm.
"What sort of gimmick?" Yumi asked guardedly.
Shimako's grin widened as she shook her head. "Nothing quite as outlandish as cross-dressing, Yumi-san. You needn't worry." Apparently, the White Rose remembered the previous year's play just as clearly as Yumi did.
"Well, at least there's that." Yumi sighed softly in relief, holding her chin with her hands.
"Indeed." Shimako agreed. She then turned her attention towards Touko. "Perhaps we should ask our resident 'actress' if she had any ideas?"
At once, all attention turned towards Yumi's soeur, who instead of wilted under the attention, seemed to thrive in it. She leaned back in her chair and reached up to grasp at one of her hair-drills with her fingers, tugging at it gently in thought. "I may have one or two ideas…" She said slowly, looking around the room.
"Such as?" Prompted Yoshino from Yumi's other side.
Touko was silent for a moment, tapping her index finger on her upper lip. "I did come across a play a few months ago that caught my attention. It is fairly simplistic – at least in terms of dialogue involved—and the set itself is easy enough." She paused, clicking her tongue in thought. "Although, it might be beneficial to borrow some older set pieces from the drama club."
"Can you help with that?" Asked Yumi. Touko shot the older girl a patient look.
"Of course, Onee-sama. I am in the drama club, after all." She replied dryly. Yumi shrugged and stuck her tongue out at her soeur.
"So, can you tell us about this play?" Shimako cut in kindly.
Touko nodded. "The play is called 'A Stone's Smile'. The basic premise is that a rich widow passes away, and leaves her entire fortune to her doll."
"A… doll?" Nana echoes softly.
"Yes. Her doll. The doll itself is not alive, of course; it is simply a doll. And you can imagine that this does not sit well with the widow's family. The majority of the play is based around her family fighting for the right to the widow's vast fortune."
"Sounds interesting." Yumi said, leaning forward to pick up a small notebook from the table. She opened it and began to write the information about the play. "I think it's cute that she left all that money to a doll."
"Something you'd do, Yumi-san?" Yoshino snickered.
Yumi rolled her eyes. "Oh, you know it, Rosa Foetida."
"So then, Touko-chan, why do you think this play would work for our cultural festival activity?" Shimako asked. "I mean, it sounds fairly straightforward."
"Well, the interesting thing about this play is the doll." Touko explained. "Throughout the entirety of the show, the doll is onstage; usually in the middle of the action. It is always in view, and is the entire draw of the play."
"A doll is the center of the play?" Yoshino arched an eyebrow incredulously. It was clear that she was skeptical of how a simply doll would be so important. Sure, it was an important plotline, but…
"Not a doll, Yoshino-sama." Touko said with a shake of her head. "In actuality, the doll is acted out by a person."
"The- uh—the what?" Yoshino stammered out after a beat.
"A person? What do you mean?" Yumi asked.
"I mean the doll in the play is acted out by a person—an actress. The main character of the play is the doll. And an actress plays the doll—exactly how a doll is supposed to be. The actress does not speak… does not move… does not blink… does not even give the illusion of breathing for the entire time she is onstage." Touko watched the others in the room with her usual aloof gaze. "She is a veritable doll in the middle of the stage at all times."
There was silence in the room for a long moment as the others took in Touko's idea. It was hard to wrap their minds around. One of them… playing as a doll? A real doll? That meant to not move, speak, blink or do anything at all while the show went on. For likely more than an hour. Was that even possible?
"Um… wow." Yoshino finally let out. "That sure is… well… interesting."
"Yea." Yumi agreed, still trying to understand her soeur's idea.
"I think it will work perfectly." Shimako said, slightly surprising Yumi. Though, in actuality, she shouldn't have been all that shocked by her friend's preference. She did like things that others might consider odd. Gingko nuts… Buddha statues… you name it. It was just like her to find this idea intriguing, as well. "Let's do it."
"Very well." Touko said with a nod. "Is everyone in agreement?"
"I guess so." Yoshino said tiredly.
"I like it." Nana said a beat after her grande soeur.
Noriko Nijou, Shimako's peitie soeur, nodded and finally spoke up for the first time since they started talking about the play. "It sounds fun."
"Alright…" Yumi agreed, though a bit hesitantly.
Touko nodded and laced her fingers together in front of her on the tabletop. "Good. The first thing is for me to get the script. It shouldn't be hard to find—I will bring an original manuscript tomorrow." She paused again, blinked a few times in thought. "Although, I think we should first decide the most important detail about the play."
"What's that, Touko-chan?" Shimako inquired.
"Who shall be playing the doll?" Touko answered airily with a wave of her hand. "It is extremely important that the person playing the doll knows as early as possible in order to prepare for the role. It's…. well… suffice it to say that the role is challenging, and needs no small amount of dedication."
"I think you should take that one, Touko." Yumi said, nudging the younger girl with her shoulder. "I mean, you are the experienced one among us in terms of acting."
Touko shook her head. "Unfortunately, I cannot, Onee-sama." She said. "I am the lead in the Drama Club's production for the cultural festival this year, and it would be… unprofessional of me to also be the lead in our own production at the same time. I am sorry."
Deflated, Yumi sat back and sighed. Yoshino snorted and crossed her arms over her chest. "Yea… bummer."
"What about Rosa Gigantea?" Nana said quietly, her large eyes blinking owlishly. Everyone turned towards her and she wilted under everyone's attention. "W-well… I-I-I mean, she kind of looks l-like a doll…" Her voice cracked and she lowered her head, going silent.
Yoshino snickered, reaching over and placing a comforting hand on her soeur's back. "You know, Shimako-san, the girls got a point. You do already look like a doll, after all."
Shimako cocked her head to the side, blinking a few times. "Really?" She asked. "Hmm… I never considered that, honestly."
"What about Yumi-sama?" Noriko said suddenly, causing everyone to stare at the second-year girl. After a moment, she cleared her throat. "Well, pardon my saying so," She looked guiltily at Yoshino. "I think Yoshino-sama would not be able to sit still for that long."
"True dat," The girl in question snorted.
"And Neither I or Nana-chan really, well, fit the doll persona. So that essentially leaves either Onee-sama or Yumi-sama."
"So, why me, though?" Yumi asked, honestly curious of why Shimako's soeur would suggest herself to play as a doll.
Noriko looked down at her lap uncomfortably for a moment, but then looked back up at Yumi. "I don't know, actually. It's just a feeling I have." She smiled lightly. "That you would be able to do it perfectly."
Yoshino sent a deadpan stare over at Noriko, leaning on her elbows with her chin in her hands. "Really? This is Rosa Chinensis we're talking about here. You know… Yumi Fukuzawa? The girl with 1000 faces?"
Yumi ignored the nickname and leaned back in her chair. In truth, she herself had doubts if she would be able handle something like this. A doll would have to be still; unmoving and rigid. A doll would have to be a single emotion; unchanging and expressionless. It was everything Yumi was not. And everybody knew that. Everyone in the school knew just how expressive Rosa Chinensis was. So just how on Earth would that be possible?
It wasn't. That was the simple truth.
"Maybe." Noriko said softly, seemingly unconvinced.
Shimako let out a giggle, her hand moving up to cover her mouth delicately. "It seems as though we are in competition, Yumi-san."
Yumi smiled uncomfortably, rubbing the back of her head with her hand. "I guess so."
After a moment, Shimako reached down to her skirt and put her hand into her pocket. "In this case, I think we should let fate decide." She said, pulling out a one-hundred yen coin from her pocket. It shined in the light as she held it between her thumb and index finger. "Shall we flip for it?"
"I don't see why not…" Yumi replied, letting her shoulders fall. She didn't really want to be the lead in the play. She had been the lead the previous year, and while the show went over exceedingly well… she wasn't truly confident in her abilities in playing something like a doll. But Shimako was her friend, so she felt as though the lead for the play should be decided fairly.
Nodding, Shimako grinned and flicked the coin high in the air. As the coin reached its apex, she called out, "Tails", and the piece fell back down, which she snatched out of the air with her fist.
Swallowing, Yumi leaned forward, along with everyone else. "H-heads… I guess." She whispered.
Shimako opened her hand, revealing the outcome of the coin toss. Yumi felt her stomach flip and she set her head onto the table with an audible thump.
"Oh man…" She groaned.
"Good luck, Doll-chan!" Yoshino almost-cackled.
"I suppose we can't do two-out-of-three?" Yumi hazarded, only to feel someone's hand (likely Touko's) on her back comfortingly. "Great."
Just how was she supposed to get through this, now? Last year she was all-but forced to cross-dress with her brother, Yuuki. Sure, the costumes were traditional and therefore weren't exactly unisex in their design, but still, she did it. And this year was shaping up to be something just as odd.
A doll? Could Yumi even act like a doll? As a girl she had more than a few toy dolls. Most were gone now; given away or lost to time, but she remembered them clearly enough. They had stiff limbs, faces of plastic or china, and never moved without being moved by something else. Could Yumi do that? Could she even sit still for more than a minute?
Sitting there with her head on the table, she tried to see how long she could stay frozen there. She willed herself not to blink, not to twitch her fingers, not to scratch that itch on her nose. She didn't even make it ten seconds before a shiver went up her back and she shot up, grunting in frustration.
"Touko!" She suddenly called out, reaching out to her soeur still beside her.
"Yes, Onee-sama?"
"I need your help."
Touko stared at Yumi for a few moments, and then the corner of her lips twitched a little. "I assumed you would." She said, mirth coloring her tone. "As I said, I am already playing the lead in the Drama Club's production. But—" She cut off Yumi as the other girl opened her mouth to complain. "But, I am also a member of the Yamayurikai. And you are my Onee-sama. I will naturally help you prepare for the role."
Yumi felt a weight lift from her chest, and she breathed a sigh of relief. If Touko was going to help her, then it didn't matter how difficult the role of a doll was, Yumi would be able to nail it. She just knew it. "Oh, thank Maria-sama…" She sighed, leaning back in her chair.
"You may thank me, as well, Onee-sama." Touko said sardonically, and then turned back towards Yumi, a smirk on her face. "Although, you may want hold your thanks until afterwards."
Yumi blinked. "Why?"
Touko was silent for a moment, choosing her words. "Because, Onee-sama," She finally said. "I am not known to be a lenient acting coach." Her smirk returned fully, and her dark eyes bore deep into Yumi's. "And just because you are my Onee-sama does not mean I will go easy on you."
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End of Part 1
This wont be a super long fic... but the first couple will just be... setting the stage, for lack of better words.
Hah. Funny.
Peace!