Chapter 3


Chapter 3.1: Chisame and Natsumi

"How about this one?" Natsumi held up a dress.

"Too frilly." Chisame gave the redhead a thumbs down. "If I wanted to go Gothloli I'd just get clothes from Evangeline."

"This one?" She held up a biker-style leather corset and miniskirt.

"Nah. I just did a biker-themed photoshoot last week." She shuttered. "Last time I ever as Haruna for help..."

"Okaaaay..." Natsumi tossed the outfit onto the ever-growing pile of rejected costumes and continued to rummage around the clothing racks. "Do you have any idea of what you're looking for?"

"Nope." Chisame shrugged. "I couldn't think of any more ideas. That's why I needed your help. I thought maybe the theater department would have something I hadn't thought of yet."

"Oh, I'm sure there's something in here somewhere." Natsumi let out a frustrated groan into the rows of costumes. She wasn't supposed to be in the wardrobe storage at all, but as a favor to Chisame she had used her position in the drama club to get the key to the club room. Her assumption had been that they would sneak in, grab something, and abscond. But now they had been in the room for almost an hour, and there were a good two dozen reject costumes sitting in a heap in the corner. One missing costume would get written up as an inventory error, but if someone found a mess like this, somebody was going to get in trouble.

"Find anything yet?" Chisame's voice echoed from the other end of the room. Natsumi's eye twitched. She grabbed a random hanger off the rack and spun around to face Chisame.

"How about this?"

"Are you kidding!" Chisame gaped at the outfit Natsumi was holding. The redhead turned to see what it was that she was holding.

"Oh..." On the hanger dangled what could charitably be called a set of bra and panties. The bra had a sheer silken material draped underneath, and the panties likewise seemed to have a transparent skirt hanging from the edges. What threw the "bra and panties" definition into doubt was the fact that the non-transparent part of the getup consisted of maybe half a dozen square inches of fabric. Each so-called "cup" of the bra was a dark green fabric cut in the shape of a leaf. Similarly, the only part of the panties that wasn't a thin strip of elastic was another small leaf-shaped section of fabric.

"Why they hell does the theater department even have that!" Chisame pointed at the costume indignantly. "Were they planning on putting on a burlesque act or something?"

"I...uh..." Natsumi honestly had no idea why such a risque piece of clothing was in the wardrobe. "I'm not sure..."

"I'm not wearing that!"

"Oh come on, Chisame..." Natsumi giggled at Chisame's. "I think it would look good on you!"

"Are you serious! I can't do a photoshoot in that thing!" She put a hand to her forehead. "I'm a net idol, not a cam whore!"

"But it would be really sexy!" Natumi grabbed a pair of fake antennae off of a nearby shelf. "You could do like a wood nymph set of pictures or something!" She took that antenna hairband and stuck in on Chisame's head.

"Listen, I'm not going to wear that thing. Thousands of people look at my pictures every day..." Her face reddened slightly. "I wouldn't want people to see me dressed like that. I mean, how would you like it if you had to go on stage with that thing on."

Natsumi looked at the costume in her hand, and then down at her body. She patted her chest with her other hand. "I couldn't, I don't have the boobs for this outfit."

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah, I guess that would be pretty embarrassing." Natsumi sat down on the bench next to Chisame. "But getting up on stage like that would be more embarrassing than doing it on the internet. I mean, it's not like everyone on campus would recognize you."

"I know. And I want to keep it that way." Chisame sighed.

"I don't get it..." Natsumi gazed into space.

"Don't get what?"

"If you don't want any attention, why do you put so much effort into being a net idol?"

"You know..." Chisame leaned back. "Sometimes I wonder that myself. I guess I just like knowing that all those guys out there think I'm cute. It's stupid." Natsumi stifled a laugh. "What?"

"So you do like the attention."

"What!" Chisame's cheeks were starting to redden. "No, it's just...uh...not like that!"

"Don't be so embarrassed!" Natsumi put a hand on Chisame's shoulder. "There's nothing wrong with wanting people to like you..."

"I know that. I just like being normal most of the time. Blending into the background, you know?"

"I figured." It was Natsumi's turn to sigh. "I wish I enjoyed being a wallflower as much as you do. Sometimes I just wish I would get noticed."

"Really?"

"Yeah, that's why I joined the drama club." Natsumi looked at the floor. "I figured that maybe I'd get lucky and get a lead role. Then people would see me and go 'Hey, it's that girl from the play!' Maybe eventually I'll actually get to do that... Maybe next year..."

There were a few moments of silence before Chisame answered.

"So what part are you playing now?"

"Chorus Member #3." She groaned. "I just wish that somebody would notice me..."

"Well..." Chisame put her arm around the redhead's shoulder. "I noticed you. That's a start, right?"

"Yeah, I guess..." She looked up at Chisame. "Can we get out of here? I'd rather not lose my chance at getting my chance at stardom because I messed up the club room."

"I guess you're right..." Chisame stood up. "I'd hate to ruin everything for you. I think we're done here anyway." She grabbed one of the costumes out of the pile on the floor and hung it on a nearby rack.

"Do you mean that you'll wear the costume!" Natsumi grinned widely, holding up the "leaf-kini".

"No."

Natsumi's face fell.

"Pleeeaase?"

"Okay, fine!" Chisame snatched it out of her hand. "But only on one condition!"

"What is it?" Natsumi was smiling broadly again.

"I get to pick out one of my costumes, and you have to wear it for me."

"Oh...Okay." Natsumi swallowed nervously.

"And I'm wearing something else for my photo shoot..." She scanned the rows of costumes. "You said you liked this one, right?" She held up a French Maid outfit.

"Yeah."

"Alright, let's hang the rest of these up and get back to my room." She turned towards Natsumi and smirked. "I have a certain bunny costume that will fit you quite nicely."


Chapter 3.2: Chisame and Hakase

"Hakase, remind me why I'm doing this again."

"For science!" The scientist girl lowered her goggles over her eyes. "Don't worry, Chisame! You aren't the first test subject, and all previous test subjects responded positively."

"What the heck are you wearing goggles for!"

"Safety reasons."

"Safety reasons! If there's a possibility that this can go wrong in a way that requires you to have safety goggles, I want out!"

"Chisame, please relax. I assure you that the testing process is perfectly safe. The goggles are simply protocol that must be followed. A mere formality, if you will. Now just lean back and try not to move around too much."

Chisame leaned back into the apparatus in which she was sitting, which appeared to be half recliner and half dentist chair. This would be less terrifying if I wasn't naked...

"Hakase, can't I at least put a shirt on? It's freezing in here!"

"Sorry, clothing might inhibit the testing process. Even if it didn't, all the other test subjects were also naked, so giving you clothing would skew the data."

"Whatever, just hurry it up."

There was a whirring beneath her as the chair leaned back, and a footrest popped out, lifting her legs into the air.

"Okay, Chisame. Please move your legs so that they are resting in the indentations."

Chisame shivered as she slid her ankles into the dents. Her feet were uncomfortably far apart.

"Um...Hakase, this is kinda painful..."

"Just a moment, I'm adjusting the seat to your proportions." There was another whirring noise as the footrest moved a bit closer to the rest of the chair, allowing Chisame to bend her legs a little. "Better?"

"Yeah..."

"Okay, I'm initiating the sequence!" Hakase sounded unusually excited about this. Normally, the mad scientist would have considered experiments on such a base subject to be beneath her. Maybe she had experienced it firsthand...

Chisame jumped as two handholds popped out of the arms of the chair.

"Hakase, what are these for?"

"Get a good grip on those. If you move around too much we may have to repeat the experiment. That's also what the belt is for."

"Belt?" Before she finished saying the word, Chisame felt a wide band of fabric being stretched across her midriff, pressing her against the chair.

"Initiating final sequence!" Hakase's voice was practically ecstatic. She was enjoying this way too much.

There was a dull mechanical roar as a massive mechanical arm descended from the ceiling, bearing the experimental device.

"Is the giant robot arm really necessary!" Chisame's nervousness was evident in her voice. "Couldn't you just hold the damn thing yourself?"

"While the device is indeed intended for handheld use, and would in fact be quite useless if it were not, we are using a mechanical application system to assure an accurate data set. Your reactions will, of course, be monitored."

"Monitered! You're recording this!" There was a clang as the arm moved to it's final position. There was a moment of silence before Hakase's voice echoed throughout the testing chamber.

"Activating!"

Chisame heard a loud buzzing sound. Knowing exactly what it was coming from and what she was about to experience didn't make her any less anxious.


Chisame lay breathless in the chair, completely drenched in a mix of her own sweat and a few other bodily fluids. There...there are no words...that...that was...I don't even know...

"Now then..." She turned to see Hakase walking toward her, clipboard in hand, goggles pushed up to her forehead. "On a scale of one to ten, how pleasurable would you rate this experien-"

"Twelve."

"Alright..." She scribbled some notes and walked up next to the chair and tilted her head as she looked down at Chisame. "Let's see...rate of breathing...face appears flushed...pulse..." She took hold of Chisame's wrist. "Ok, good." She turned her gaze to a small lcd screen on the side of the chair, continuing to jot notes on her clipboard. "Overall duration from activation to climax...grip strength on the handholds...maximum volume of subject's vocal response to stimulation..."

"Volume?" Chisame lifted her head slightly.

"Yes. It's important to monitor all forms of response in the subject." Hakase was still grinning from ear to ear. "I never expected you of all people to vocalize with such vigor..."

Chisame let her head fall back down.

"Is that it?"

"Yes, the testing is complete. You are free to go."

The chair lowered back to the floor. Chisame made her way to her feet, staggering slowly along on wobbly knees. Hakase held out a bathrobe.

"You may want to cleanse yourself before putting your clothes back on." She laid down the clipboard and threw her labcoat over a chair. "I guess we're done for today. Thank you for your willingness to participate in the test."

"Wait." Chisame caught Hakase's hand. "We're not done yet."

"What do you mean?"

It was Chisame's turn to grin.

"It's your turn."


Chapter 3.3: Chisame and Setsuna

Chisame sat on her favorite bench, overlooking the lake upon which Library Island sat. Before long, the sun would begin to dip below the horizon. Until then, Chisame planned on reading a book, and maybe snaking on the bagel that she had wrapped up earlier that day. She had just settled into her usual reading position when she heard slow footsteps coming down the path.

She looked up to see Setsuna shuffling towards the bench, head down, clutching herself and shivering as if was the dead of winter rather than a balmy spring evening. Setsuna was practically next to her before she even realized that the bench was occupied. She jumped a little as she noticed the orange-haired girl.

"Oh...Chisame..." Her eyes were hidden by her hair, which she had allowed to flop down in front of her face. "I...I guess I didn't see you there..." Her voice was uneven and scratchy, as if it was beginning to fade away.

"Are you alright?" Chisame couldn't remember the last time she had seen the demon girl so unsettled before. Even when they had been trapped in the magic world facing hordes of enemies, Setsuna had always at least been able to put on a brave face. "Why don't you sit down for a few minutes?"

She really didn't like sharing her bench; it always irked her when she was trying to read, only for some random person to drop in and try to start a conversation. But chances were that Setsuna needed to sit down more than Chisame needed the bench to herself.

"Ok..." Setsuna slowly lowered herself onto the far end of the bench. She pressed her legs together and hunched over, still holding herself tightly, as if she was trying to shrink. Chisame could hear her breathing slowly; not the long breaths of someone who felt relaxed, but the labored and paced breaths of someone who was trying not to hyperventilate.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Chisame looked up from her book to see that Setsuna was balling herself up even more; she had drawn her feet up to rest on the bench and was pressing her face into her knees. Setsuna wasn't exactly what she would call a close friend, but they had been through enough together that it bothered her to see her classmate so distraught. "Did something happen?"

Setsuna nodded wordlessly.

"What is it?"

As Setsuna turned to face Chisame, finally revealing her reddened eyes. Her voice cracked as she forced it out of her mouth. It was barely audible, but it struck Chisame like an explosion.

"...Konoka"

Chisame felt the blood drain from her face. If there was one constant in the chaotic hodgepodge that was her life, it was that Konoka and Setsuna were together. Best friends. If something had happened to that...

"What happened! Is she alright!"

"She's...she's fine..." Setsuna hung her head and gazed blankly into the sunset's reflection off of the lake.

"W..what do you mean?" Chisame could feel her own voice wavering a little. Setsuna looked back at her.

"Promise not to tell anyone?"

"Of course. You know I can keep a secret."

Setsuna turned back to face the water before answering, as if it were easier to pretend that she wasn't talking to anyone.

"Well...I...I did something really stupid..." She rested her chin on her knees and took a deep breath. "It's just that me and Konoka had been friends for so long, and we getting so close, and we had been through so much together. I wanted to...I mean...I thought that..." She bit her lip for a moment as she tried to force the words out. "I thought that we could be more...than just friends...that we...that we could be lovers... So I worked up the courage, and I finally got up the nerve to tell Konoka how I felt...what I wanted to do..."

There was a moment of silence before Chisame spoke up. This was delicate ground, and she wasn't very good at being tactful. But she made her best attempt.

"You mean that..." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "..you asked her to...uh...do that?"

Setsuna nodded slowly, still staring into the water.

"And she...turned you down?"

"No." She buried her face in her knees once again. Chisame could barely make out her muffled voice. "It would have been better if she had." She inhaled slowly. "We...we tried to do it right. We went out to a nice dinner, had rose petals scattered around the bed, candles, everything. But...but she..." Setsuna choked on her words.

"Here." Chisame held out a water bottle. The demon girl uncurled slightly as she accepted the drink. "What happened?"

Setsuna untwisted herself further, putting her feet back on the ground. She clenched her fists to keep her hands from trembling.

"We...we went back to the room, and we got into bed and Konoka...she" Chisame could see wetness beginning to leak out of Setsuna's tightly closed eyes. "She hated it. I could tell. She tried her best enjoy it, to look like she wanted it... She smiled, moaned, called my name... But when I looked in her eyes..." Tears began to trickle down her cheeks. "She didn't want to be there. She didn't want to be in bed with me...she...she already had everything she ever wanted from me. But..but I couldn't see that."

She rested her elbows on her knees and pressed her face into her hands. Her whole body shook as she struggled to breathe evenly.

"She didn't want to admit it to me...I had to drag it out of her. She never wanted a lover...just a best friend..."

Chisame edged cautiously towards Setsuna, reaching out slowly to place a hand on the girl's shoulder. She was at a loss. It was if someone had just pulled a rug out from under her. But she knew that her mild uneasiness couldn't even be compared to whatever tangle of feelings Setsuna had in her head. She could think of only one thing to say.

"Well...don't you still have her as a friend?" She tried to smile, but it undoubtedly looked fake. It didn't matter; Setsuna wasn't looking at her anyway.

"I...I don't know." Setsuna pushed her voice out of her mouth through gritted teeth. "That's the worst part. Maybe...I ruined it...everything. I...I spent so long...wishing I could be her friend..but now...but now that I finally had it...I ruined it."

Her whole body began to tremble as she began to spit out the words. "Now when she sees me, she won't see her best friend anymore. She'll see that night. She'll see me doing things to her that she never wanted to experience. She'll remember a night that she should have shared with someone else..someone she wanted... Her first...my first...they..they're gone because I...because...I..."

Setsuna's voice died away as her body was wracked with sobs. Chisame felt like she was frozen. She could think of nothing to say. And only one thing that she could do. She leaned closer and wrapped her arm around to the sobbing girl. Setsuna slowly rocked forward and buried her face against Chisame, convulsing as she wept into the orange-haired girl's shirt.

Chisame didn't know exactly how long she sat there, listening to Setsuna's muffled cries. The sun had almost disappeared beneath the horizon when Setsuna was finally still. She patted the girl on the back.

"Are you alright?"

Setsuna sluggishly pushed herself upright. She sniffed loudly and wiped her face with her arm.

"Yeah...I guess..." She looked down at Chisame's shirt, now damp with tears. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to...to unload on you like that..."

"It's alright." She tried to smile again. This time it was genuine. "Sometimes you just need to cry, you know? Just get it out." She paused for a moment as she heard a subtle rumbling sound. "Was that your stomach." Setsuna nodded sheepishly.

"I haven't felt like eating since...you know..."

"I understand." Chisame stretched hear arms above her head. "When did it happen?"

"Last night."

"You haven't eaten since yesterday?" Chisame reached into her bag and rummaged around for a few seconds before retrieving her bagel. "You need this more than I do." She pressed it into Setsuna's hand. "That's probably not enough." She looked thoughtfully into the darkening sky as Setsuna began munching. "You want to go get cheeseburgers or something? Just hang out for a little while?"

"Yes." Setsuna nodded and for the first time that day, smiled a little. "I'd like that."

"Come on." Chisame stood up. "I know a good place that isn't too far from here."

Setsuna slowly rose to her feet and began to gingerly walk alongside Chisame. She turned to face the other girl.

"Um..Chisame..."

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

"Think nothing of it." Chisame threw the strap of her bag over he shoulder. "Listen, if you ever need to talk, you know where to find me."

Chisame smiled as she walked alongside Setsuna down the lakeside path. Maybe she had found someone she could share her bench with.


.


Well, that's another chapter down. Turned out being a bit longer than I though. The next chapter may start revisiting earlier sections; I haven't decided yet. I'll definitely start doing continuations of previous sections at some point, I'm just not sure whether I want to start that already or save them for later.

3.1: I tried to find some common ground between Chisame and Natsumi based on their respective attempts for attention. I don't think it's ever stated in canon that Natsumi joined the theater club to try to get noticed, but given that she's always worried about being a "side character" I thought it wasn't too great of a leap. I was planning on having them discuss their respective views in more depth, but it was kinda forced, so I left it as is. I'm not exactly sure why Natsumi is so dead set on getting Chisame into the "leaf-kini". Maybe eventually it'll go somewhere. Maybe.

3.2: Yeah, this is by far the most explicit thing I've written for this compilation, and I don't know if I'm going to top it anytime soon. It was a lot of fun to write, especially Hakase's dialogue. It's a bit of mystery why Chisame would let Hakase test this kind of invention on her, but it's (hopefully) funny, so it doesn't have to make sense. And apparently Hakase has a personal interest in seeing how this particular experiment turns out. If I do a continuation of this section, I might identify some of the other "test subjects"; I would like to write a section to this story with more than 2 or 3 characters.

3.3: I have a feeling that I'm going to be drawn and quartered for this, seeing as the famous KonoSetsu pairing had to be dealt with in order to isolate Setsuna. I would just like to note that I put a lot of thought into finding a way to eliminate the potential romance in an amiable fashion rather than the commonly used "Want to break up a pairing? Turn one of them evil!" technique. I would also like to note that as far as canon goes, I am a KonoSetsu supporter and hope they have a happy ending. But in the context of this fic, that just didn't work out. Although I do find the idea of Chisame incorporating herself in Konoka and Setsuna's relationship to have potential. In any case, while writing this I realized that it is really really tough to find a lot of different ways to describe crying without coming across as saccharine or making Setsuna seems too weepy. I figured that given her previous characterization and stoicism, she'd try to hold back the emotions, but if there's anything that could crack her exterior, it's Konoka. So hopefully her breakdown at the end doesn't seem like overkill; she's just letting out her repressed emotions. Also, I would like to apologize for any emotional whiplash that I caused by placing this section immediately after the Hakase one. Hopefully the next chapter will be a little bit more balanced.

I don't know exactly when the next chapter will be up; I have a major paper and a number of minor assignments due in the coming weeks. Hopefully I'll be able to upload something before thanksgiving, but don't get your hopes up.

Please review; advice is welcome. If you have suggestions for characters you want to see in the next chapter, drop that in the review as well.