Kitase-chan: Hehe... I wrote this to take a break from the other stories I'm working on, though I think this will become a work-in-progress. This is only the prologue, and is fairly short. I didn't want to spend too long on it. X3
Haha. Somehow I love the idea of Rima and Tadase being partners in crime. I can totally picture Rima getting up to mischief, and Tadase somehow getting unwittingly involved in it. Anyway, well, if you don't like Amuto, you'll enjoy this, and if you do like Amuto, you'll also enjoy it. And if you like random crack pairings (I know I do xD), you might possibly be pleased later on. Basically there will be something for everyone. XD
The smaller hand of the clock in the Seiyo High School student council's office struck five, and Rima hit the send button, apathetic to the fact that the email was only half typed. She was done for the day. She stretched out and leaned back in her chair, satisfied after another afternoon of extra credit for very little extra work.
Rima looked up in surprise as the door opened – she thought all the other students had gone home for the day. She rolled her eyes when she saw that her surprise was wasted. It was Tadase.
"Why are you here?" she asked him bluntly as he hung up his coat. "You have this afternoon off – remember? You work too hard," she added disdainfully.
Tadase sighed heavily and plonked himself down in a nearby chair. It was a change from his usual perky 'Good afternoon, Mashiro-san!' – in Rima's opinion, a welcome change.
But when he continued to look pensive for longer than a shouta ever should, she figured she'd better ask what was up. She tried to do that sympathetic thing that girls were supposed to be good at. "What's wrong?" she asked. "You look upset."
Tadase glanced up, as if surprised that she was in the room. "Oh – hello, Mashiro-san." He beamed at her.
Rima's eyes narrowed. "You look stupid. Don't smile if you don't want to. What's the problem?"
"Oh... um... it's nothing much." He scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. "It's, well... I know Amu-chan and Ikuto are dating now. I guess I'm just having a little trouble getting used to the idea of them actually going on dates." He shrugged and glanced away, and for a moment Rima's heart almost went out to him. Almost.
Two months ago, Amu and Tadase had broken up. More specifically, Amu had dumped Tadase for Ikuto. Personally Rima couldn't see why. Tadase was younger than Ikuto, and had better personal hygiene. And while his naivety was something awful, his sincerity made up for it in leaps and bounds. Rima's opinion was based on her strictly objective evaluation, of course. Well, Tadase had taken the break up pretty hard. He had refused to come out of Kukai's bedroom for a whole three days. He had gone from a vegetarian to a vegan, to a person who only ate junk-food, to a meat-eater, to a person who didn't eat at all, and finally to a pescetarian. He had started reading books written by all kinds of strange philosophers, and he had decided to 'strengthen his human-to-chara bond' with Kiseki by dragging him along to several arts-and-crafts classes attended mainly by women in their late thirties and forties. The women were pleased; Kiseki was far from it.
Yes, his road to recovery had been long and winding. But Rima had thought that it'd been coming to an end. She raised a dainty eyebrow. "I thought you were getting over that."
He turned his hands upwards. "I thought so too."
"Hmmm." While Tadase was lost in thought, Rima's mind started working. Clogs started turning, levers pulling. A small smile appeared on her face as she stared at the spring in her pen, and an idea began to form. While Rima had been just about to give up on the waking hours and give in to tempting sleep only minutes ago, she was now wide awake. School was about to get a lot more interesting, it seemed.
Rima leaned forward. "Tadase."
He looked up at her. "Yes?"
"Are you still in love with Amu?"
"I beg your pardon?" he looked a little insulted at the question.
"Just answer. Are you still in love with her? Do you want her back?"
"I – yes, I'm still in love with her, you know that. And of course I want her back, but how does that –"
"Tadase! Concentrate, man! How much do you want her back?"
"What? A lot."
Rima nodded, her eyes beginning to glint with some emotion that Tadase found unnerving. "Well, we, my perpetual-poster-boy-for-the-stereotype-of-blonde friend, are going to get you back together with Amu."
Rima watched as confusion came over his face, and also the slightest bit of hope. "I don't really... I mean... how do you intend to do that?" He stared at her questioningly.
"Ah." Rima smiled placidly and sat back in her chair, spinning on it slowly. She gestured her hands at nothing in particular, other than her own magnificence. "We're going to break up Amu and Ikuto, of course."
She watched as her words made their impact. Tadase sat back, shocked. Horrified at the very idea. "That's... that's..." He struggled to find the words. It was wrong. It was terrible. It was shameful. And yet... it was perfect. Slowly, a small, devious smile began to appear on Tadase's face, and he looked more alive than he had in months. He spoke quietly, but surely. "I like it. Let's do it."
Rima felt a strong emotion tugging at her heart-strings and threatening to blur before her golden eyes. It took her a moment to realise that this strange sensation was pride. She had trained her King's Chair well. Rima smiled, brimming with joy at this small accomplishment that would in time become so much more. "Tadase, there's hope for you yet."
Kitase-chan: So, there's the prologue. XD What did you think? Should I continue? If I do, the next chapter will definitely be more interesting... ohyes. Muahaha. XD
So, thanks for reading! Also, I don't own Shugo Chara! X3