Notes:
Ohoho, one last update before I lock myself in my room with piles and piles of books. I'm really too kind. :) Well, honesty obliges me to say that I find writing during the late evening rather relaxing (if it's on the laptop), especially when it's warm outside.
To the dear readers who take the time to leave a review: you guys rock, seriously. But you probably already knew that.
Disclaimer: I am not Konno Oyuki, therefore I do not own Maria-sama ga miteru.
IV. Revelations
Sachiko was walking around the premises of Lillian Girls' private school. It was still early in the morning and there was no-one to be seen, but she had to bring back some books to the library. The sun was shining rather hard for a fall day, and the girl did not cope with the heat that well. Reaching the statue of the Virgin Mary, she stopped to say her prayer (make Yumi mine as soon as possible), but then a movement caught her attention. Turning her head, she realized there was a chicken scratching behind a bush. Sachiko's mouth fell slightly open; what in Maria's name was a chicken doing here at school? Before the girl could even begin to question her own sanity, she heard clucking. A lot of clucking. Sachiko now turned her entire body around and was faced with chickens as far as the eye could see.
"What the..."
From behind her, she heard a voice calling out to her.
"Gokigenyou," Yumi greeted when she came standing next to the older girl. "I thought there would be no-one else here, since it is so early in the morning."
"Yumi..." Sachiko whispered with a trembling voice, not even feeling the urge to strip Yumi from all of her clothes, "are you not surprised by all the chickens you see before you?"
Somehow more chickens had joined the already gigantic group of birds. They were just standing there, making clucking sounds, yet something in their eyes made Sachiko grow increasingly nervous. But the main reason for her anxiety was of course the fact that there were chickens in a place where there normally would not be any.
"Chickens? Sachiko-sama... What are you talking about? What chickens?" Yumi was slightly worried about her friend. If Sachiko became insane right here on the spot, what would she have to do? Cell phones did not exist in this era, she had not seen one nun since arriving here and Sachiko was way too heavy to carry to the main gate all by herself.
"Yumi, look at the chickens! Can you not see the chi-" Sachiko failed to finish her sentence, as the ground trembled beneath their feet. Seconds later she could see the dark shape of a giant chicken, standing only metres away from them behind some trees. The trees were big, but the monstrous bird was even bigger, as its head popped up about three metres above the crowns of the trees. Out of the blue, it screamed "Pok!" and with its feathery wing pointed at the two girls, of which one of them was staring at it with her eyes practically bulging out of their sockets.
"Yumi, please tell me you see that enormous beast standing there!"
Panic swept through Sachiko as Hikaru Genji through a stack of young maidens. The girl did not wait for an answer however, as the giant chicken somehow said "Catch those two girls, and bring them to me!" in a human voice. Sachiko let out a high-pitched scream, grabbed Yumi's hand and darted to the main building of the school, forgetting about Lillian's most important rule: walk slowly. Considering the situation, Sachiko was pretty sure the nuns wouldn't mind if she just ignored the rule as it might save their lives; it was not every day that one was being chased by murderous chickens. Yumi had no choice but to run along, still she had no idea what was going on; had Sachiko just asked her if she saw an enormous beast?
"Sachiko-sama, are you feeling alright..?" she gasped with much difficulty, feeling the air being pushed out of her lungs as they were running seemingly meaninglessly across the grounds of Lillian. Sachiko let out another scream when the ground trembled beneath their feet again; over her shoulder she saw millions and millions of chickens with sharp beaks chasing them.
"Maria-sama, what have I done to deserve this?!" Sachiko cried out in fear before speeding up, still dragging Yumi along with her. If they could just reach the library, they could hide behind a pile of books and defend themselves. Wasn't it common knowledge that chickens hated literature? The girls had almost reached the entrance of the building, when a huge chicken foot blocked their way.
"There's no escaping me! I will enjoy this meal, as Kentucky Fried Human!" The giant chicken roared with a thunderous voice. Behind them a bazillion chickens, in front of them one heck of a scary monster chicken with a big appetite; Sachiko was sweating like a horse in a sauna; this was definitely the end. Never in her life could she have imagined that a giant chicken would bring an end to her. The only positive thing about the whole situation was that Yumi was with her, but the girl merely stared at Sachiko with confused, worried and frightened eyes. She was thinking that the Rose had indeed gone mad.
"Yumi," Sachiko murmured hastily, "before I die, there's one thing I would like to do..." She lowered her head to capture Yumi's lips for a dazzling kiss...
Sachiko woke up with a start, totally disorientated. As the adrenaline slowly ebbed away, her senses came back to her; she was sitting in her classroom, so it had just been a dream..?
"Finally, you're awake," came a voice from behind her. Sachiko turned her head; Rei was standing there with a handkerchief in her hands.
"Rei...?" Sachiko was still shaken and clammy from her nightmare. Rei smiled, sat herself on a chair and offered the handkerchief to Sachiko.
"Not very tidy is it, when you go to the Rose Mansion all covered in sweat," she remarked. Sachiko smiled weakly, accepted the hanky and wiped off the sweat from her forehead.
"I had never expected you to fall asleep during class," Rei said, the smile still dancing on her lips. "It was weird how the teacher and the other classmates didn't wake you up." Rei herself had also not woken Sachiko up, but that was because she hadn't been looking forward to dealing with Sachiko, the low blood pressure monster. As for the others: for her classmates it had been easier to stare at a sleeping Rosa Chinensis en bouton than an alive and kicking one, and who knows why the teacher hadn't said anything.
"I actually fell asleep during class?" was Sachiko's perplexed comment. Rei nodded. "Well, it was not that surprising to be honest. After all, we were seeing the history of corned beef. There's only a fairly small limit of what you can learn and find interesting about corned beef," she said. Then she furrowed her eyebrows. "Sachiko, what on earth were you dreaming about? Because after a while you started yelling 'Chickens' all the time, and you're all sweaty."
Sachiko didn't answer immediately, but wiped the last drops of sweat off her forehead. She folded the handkerchief neatly and gave it back to Rei. "Thank you for lending me your handkerchief. And about your question... I had a dream that involved chickens, though they were no normal chickens." Sachiko had muttered the last part barely comprehensible; she was not in the mood to tell what she had dreamed about. "I feel ridiculous for my behaviour, it was just a silly dream," the girl said with more force. But she was disappointed to have woken up just when things were getting a bit more interesting in a pleasant way; she had been only millimetres away from touching Yumi's soft-looking lips.
"Hmm, okay then," Rei said while standing up, startling Sachiko who had been thinking about a certain girl's lips, "but let's hurry to the Rose Mansion now, because we are already late for the meeting."
At the Rose Mansion...
"So everyone agrees with this idea?"
Rosa Foetida looked around. The other members of the Yamayurikai who were present nodded their head.
"Good. Then we will propose this to the headmistress." Eriko looked quite pleased with herself. She was about to say something again, when the door of the meeting room opened quite forcefully and Rosa Foetida en bouton as well as Rosa Chinensis en bouton entered the room, looking a bit flustered. Both girls bowed their head and apologized for their coming late.
"Sachiko, what's this?" Youko said, feeling more curious than irritated because of her soeur's lateness. "It's not your habit to come late. Or did you forget we had a meeting today?"
Sachiko forced herself to produce a serene smile and apologized again. "I had fallen asleep, and Rei is late because she had been waiting for me. I'm sorry for the trouble I might have caused."
Satou Sei grinned but motioned the two boutons to sit down. "It doesn't matter," she said with twinkling eyes. "I guess even Sachiko needs sleep after all. Or maybe you just had a tiring weekend?"
There was something in Sei's tone that was very suggestive and Sachiko didn't like it at all. As she carefully seated herself on the chair opposite of Shimako, she could sense Sei's eyes watching her as well as her onee-sama's.
"My weekend had nothing to do with this, if you really wish to know. I hope this answer is enough to satisfy your curiosity," Sachiko answered coolly, but not entirely truthfully; her rather disastrous date with Yumi had been, without a doubt, the reason for having this bizarre dream involving chickens. Rei, however, who was seated next to Sachiko, shifted her feet uncomfortably; her weekend had been tiring indeed, with Yoshino coming over every night. It was quite the miracle that she had been able to stay awake during class, even more when it became clear that they were going to discuss corned beef.
"It doesn't matter," Youko quickly said while giving Sei a look that totally screamed 'watch it...'
"The meeting is almost over already. We have agreed on this event that will hopefully take place in a few weeks. Eriko, Sei and I will go to the headmistress' office tomorrow to propose our idea to her."
"What event are you talking about, onee-sama?" Sachiko asked. If she recalled correctly, there weren't any events planned for the rest of fall.
"Oh, it's something new," the Red Rose answered, a little smirk visible on her face. "We thought it would be fun if a fancy dress party was organised here at Lillian. Actually, it was Eriko's idea."
Rei and Sachiko turned their head to Eriko, who was nodding her head calmly.
"Onee-sama? How did you come up with the idea of a fancy dress party all of a sudden?" Rei asked.
"I know we third-years have a lot on our mind right now, with almost being graduated etc.," Eriko explained, a bored expression on her face, "but I thought it would be interesting for us to have one more evening where we can just enjoy ourselves. With the sports and school festival being over now, there are no more events to look forward to. That's really boring." Then her face lit up and the corners of her mouth curled upwards. "Yes, we will be busy with organizing this fancy dress party, but I'm sure it'll be interesting," she continued fiercely now, "not only for us, but also for the rest of the school."
"Is this why you proposed this idea then? So you would feel less bored?" Rei asked.
"Basically, yes," Eriko answered, "but the main reason for proposing this fancy dress party, is that I met this really cute girl from 2nd year Cherry Class, and I would like to ask her to come with me to the party."
Deafening silence followed upon this revelation, until Rei finally opened her mouth.
"Onee-sama... I don't know, but weren't you supposed to like men?" The other members of the student council nodded their head vigorously in agreement.
"Oh no, that's really quite a misunderstanding," Eriko said, looking amused. "What made you think I like the opposite sex? Really, I'm just as gay as any other person in this room."
A short period of silence, in which everyone except Sei shifted their feet uncomfortably, ensued once again, until-
"But I'm not-"
Shimako's objection was interrupted by Eriko, who let out a pretty unladylike snort.
"Oh, don't worry," the Rose said after she had composed herself. "You'll eventually become like that, just like everyone else at this school. Really, Lillian is no more than one massive lesbo-production centre, where occasionally lessons are being given too."
While everyone was dumbstruck and trying to fully understand the meaning of Eriko's words, she continued her speech.
"Maybe it's because of the fact that there are hundreds and hundreds of young girls crammed into this one school. ... Or maybe it's because of the soeur system, which is quite an unique tradition in this country. If you watch them properly, many of those soeur relationships are filled with sexual tension all the way. Just look at Rei and Yoshino-chan, and you have proof enough. You just wait until you find a petite soeur of your own, Shimako."
Shimako, who was sincerely surprised by Eriko's words because she honestly could not see herself making out with another girl (but then again, she was only to meet Noriko the next year), opened her mouth to question the girl's theory but was cut off once again, this time by Youko, who cleared her throat rather loudly.
"Thank you, Eriko, but we should really not talk about irrelevant things right now," she said to the Yellow Rose, the red colour on her cheeks barely noticeable. "Anyway, this meeting is over. I'd suggest we all go home now. Except for you, Sachiko," she added when her petite soeur got up from her chair. "I would like to talk to you for a moment."
After the usual "Gokigenyou's" everyone except for the members or the Red Rose family left the room. There hung an atmosphere in the room now, which Sachiko could not completely comprehend; she only knew she felt like someone being interrogated by the police for a crime he did not commit. But why was she feeling that way? Her onee-sama merely wanted to talk to her in private, right?
Sachiko almost jumped when Youko put down a cup of tea in front of her.
"Relax, Sachiko. I can feel you're all tensed up now. Don't worry, nothing is going to happen, I won't bite. Can't I have a talk with my adorable petite soeur?"
Youko smiled sweetly and seated herself next to her petite soeur, with an own cup of tea in her hand. A mischievous glint, not detectable for the common man, but certainly noticeable for the trained eye (and Sachiko's eye was definitely trained), was present in Youko's eyes. The girl took a sip from her tea, and began the conversation innocently.
"How was your day?"
"It was fine, thank you."
Silence. The tension Sachiko had felt from the instant they were alone, only increased in power now. An image of her onee-sama bringing out handcuffs and using them on her, was floating in Sachiko's mind before Youko spoke again.
"Still planning on making Yumi-chan your petite soeur?"
"Yes, of course."
"I see."
This was definitely leading somewhere; why had her onee-sama started talking about Yumi all of a sudden? Sachiko was not afraid of Youko, she loved her very much; but the girl's aura at the moment was driving her mad. It was certainly not of Sachiko's habit to lose her tranquillity, but something about the whole situation made her feel uneasy. Maybe Youko had put something in her tea..? But she hadn't taken a sip from it yet, so that couldn't have been it.
"How was your weekend?"
"... Rather interesting."
"Ah? Does that mean you have seen Yumi-chan naked then?"
There you had it.
"Excuse me? Onee-sama," Sachiko said with as much dignity as she could put in a voice that trembled of agitation, "I'm sorry to say this, but do you even realize what you've just said? Now, could I ask of you to kindly stop beating around the bush and tell me what you wanted to tell me?"
Sachiko's facial expression was a mixture of many emotions, going from anxiety to cold anger; her onee-sama's words had shocked her so much, that her face just could not be still at the moment. And hearing the words 'Yumi' and 'naked' in one sentence was also not the best remedy for keeping a calm composure. If Sachiko hadn't been so dismayed, her mind had surely been in overdrive now, making up scenes including Yumi that are just not fit to be described in a story that is rated 'T'.
Youko, however, simply wore a satisfied expression, and she was smiling. She had told Sei that -they- shouldn't involve themselves in Sachiko's affairs, but that didn't mean that -she- could not meddle in her petite soeur's life. After all, she was Sachiko's onee-sama. An evil onee-sama, it seemed, as teasing the girl a bit before getting to the point was something Youko just could not resist. But she had made Sachiko agitated now, and that was enough. Youko suddenly became serious.
"Sachiko, I know of your desire to make Yumi-chan your petite soeur, you have made yourself clear that day we first met her. However, it seems there is more to your actions than you want to share with me?"
Sachiko stared at her onee-sama, who was staring at her in return, a knowing smile on her face. Of course, Youko was her onee-sama, she knew everything.
"So you know of my feelings?" was the only thing that came out of Sachiko's mouth. She honestly did not mind that Youko knew of her feelings, as long as the girl did not know what she wanted to do to Yumi as soon as they became soeurs. That was definitely private.
"I know of your true intentions, yes. Is that the reason why you want to make Yumi-chan your petite soeur, so you could 'play' with her?"
"Onee-sama!"
Rather than being shocked about Youko's use of words, Sachiko felt uncomfortable with the fact that the older girl was closer to the truth than she had expected her to be. If more people knew of the lustful Sachiko that existed within the ladylike Sachiko, things weren't looking too fabulous for her. What if it became a known fact at school? Then all those fangirls would try and awaken that side of her, God knows by doing what. Sachiko was really not looking forward to that; Yumi was the only person who was allowed to experience what ever she might do because of her increasing inability to hold down her desire.
"Ah, so it is true, okay then. I know enough," Youko said content. Her petite soeur, feeling tired all of a sudden, slumped slightly before finally taking a sip of her tea. It tasted revolting.
"Tell me of your date with Yumi-chan," the older girl continued. Sachiko put away her cup and without further ado began telling about her date. The power Youko had over her was definitely great.
"Is that why I haven't seen Yumi-chan today? Because she's still too ill to come to school?" Youko asked after Sachiko had finished her story.
"There is no other explanation," Sachiko answered. "So I had planned on visiting her after our meeting with the Yamayurikai was over." She gave her onee-sama a look that meant 'Now please let me go, so I can visit a weak and probably defenceless Yumi'.
"Ah, of course," Youko said when she saw the terrifying look on her petite soeur's face. "Then go ahead, Sachiko. But I'm glad we had this conversation."
Sachiko nodded stifly, said "Gokigenyou" and left the room.
Chez les Fukuzawa's...
"Yumi-chan, you have a visitor..."
After those words, Ogasawara Sachiko, the current Rosa Chinensis en bouton, the most wanted person of Lillian Jogakuen, entered Yumi's room. Yumi, who had been in bed reading a book, looked up in surprise before saying "Gokigenyou" politely.
"I'll leave you two alone then," Miki, Yumi's mother, said before leaving the room and closing the door quietly.
"Yumi, how are you feeling today?" Sachiko asked while walking towards Yumi's bed. Although she was visiting someone who did not feel well, Sachiko felt thrilled that she was in Yumi's bedroom at the moment. Everything in here smelled like Yumi, and it was a scent that was very arousing. Plus, a Yumi in her pyjamas was way too adorable. Sachiko scolded herself; this was really not the proper moment to be feeling horny.
"I'm actually feeling fine now, thank you" Yumi answered, closing her book. "I had been feeling a bit weak this morning, but it's over now. Of course, Mom wants me to stay in bed just to be sure."
"Ah, I'm glad. So tomorrow you'll probably be healthy enough to go to school again, how wonderful," Sachiko said, happy that Yumi wouldn't stay away from school too long. Her presence was something Sachiko always looked forward to, when going to school.
"Thanks for visiting me, Sachiko-sama," Yumi said all of a sudden, a bit shyly. "You really shouldn't have-"
"But of course I should have," Sachiko cut in. "Before I forget," she continued, "I have brought this for you." She took out a small box of Chinese tea, seated herself on Yumi's bed and gave it to her. "If you drink a cup of this before you to go bed, you'll be able to sleep well. It's very healthy, and it's said that this tea gives you a pleasant feeling." Yumi smiled and coloured ever so slightly while saying "Thank you" all over again.
"It's nothing. I'm happy that you're feeling fine again, Yumi," Sachiko said before standing up. "I'm sorry, but I have to be home before dinner, so I have to go already."
"Eh?"
"Yes, I'm afraid so. Take care and I'll see you tomorrow. Don't forget to drink that tea." Sachiko gave the other girl one last seductive smile before exiting the room, wiggling her bum while doing so. Or had that just been Yumi's imagination? (But why had she been staring at Sachiko's rear end in the first place?!) A short conversation between Miki and Sachiko could be heard in Yumi's room before it was quiet again. The visitor had left the building, and Yumi felt her body relax a bit. She had acted perfectly normal in front of Sachiko just now, but that didn't mean she had forgotten the last time they had parted. The tingling sensation caused by that slight brush of lips on her hand, and the confusion afterwards, hadn't given Yumi a good night's rest, quite the contrary. Lack of sleep when one needed it to recuperate, was definitely not salutary; hence being not fully recovered by the time it was Monday again.
Yumi sighed and opened her book to read a bit and ban the thoughts out of her head, but then Yuuki entered her room.
"So, that was Sachiko-san?" he said, placing himself on his sister's chair. Yumi nodded, and showed Yuuki what Sachiko had given her.
"Oh, looks fancy. Say, Yumi, Sachiko-san really is very beautiful, you know." The whole world had come to that conclusion already, and if Yuuki had not felt the same way, his sexuality would surely have been questioned. Yumi made a funny face while thinking that, but she kept her mouth and simply nodded.
"She seems like a very nice person, too. She came all the way here to give you tea? Looks like you're quite an important person to her." Hearing those words, Yumi was momentarily at loss. "Hey, Yumi," her brother continued, oblivious to the girl's slight change of mood, "why was it actually that you declined her rosary?"
Yumi opened and closed her mouth a few times before she could answer properly.
"Well, I did not know her at all, back then! And I had no intention of becoming anyone's petite soeur…" Yumi fell silent as she remembered why she would have declined anyone's rosary. She had not wanted to be bound to someone like that, and have such a close and intimate relationship with that person. It was odd, but that thought made Yumi feel unpleasant. However, wasn't she getting closer and closer to Sachiko now? Didn't she enjoy spending time with her? It certainly seemed like the beginning of a very intimate friendship.
Yuuki's voice made Yumi snap out of her thoughts. "So, you say 'back then' and 'had no intention'… Does that mean it's all in the past now? What are you going to do if she offers you her rosary again?" Yuuki had no idea what his words were doing to his sister.
"I…"
Yumi didn't know what to say. Because she honestly didn't know what she would do.
The following day…
"The headmistress rejected our idea. She said that 'we were not some kind of public school, organising events that could lead to giant orgies'. Those were her exact words. A nun can sure be harsh."
It was another meeting at the Bara No Yakata. The members of the Student Council were all present and they were listening to Youko.
"But, haven't you told her that only girls from this school are allowed?" Shimako asked.
"Yes, but she still wouldn't know of it-"
"And I think I know why," Eriko said, interrupting her friend. She stared at Shimako with a rather smug expression, but the other girl did not go in on the obvious provocation. After all, she was not Yoshino.
"Anyway," Youko continued, as if she hadn't been interrupted, "the fancy dress party will not take place. But I can also immediately tell you that another happening will occur. Minako-san, the editor-in-chief of the Lillian Kawaraban, said she 'accidentally' overheard our conversation with the headmistress. Hearing that our idea had been rejected, she offered to organise some other event. And with this one, we do not need the headmistress' approval."
The so-called event was basically no more than a treasure hunt. Youko explained that three cards, each with a colour from one of the Roses, would be hidden somewhere on the grounds of Lillian. Everyone could participate, and whoever found a card, would get a date with the bouton the colour of the card matched with. It would be a sort of Christmas Date, because that was what Christmas was all about: fulfilling your dream of having a date with the object of your obsessive admiration. Apparently.
"Too bad that I can't go on a date this way, but this will be interesting too," Eriko said. "We are telling you this so you can agree with Minako-san's idea yourselves."
As expected, Yoshino exploded and she found herself having a heated argument with the onee-sama of her sex toy – erhm, sweetheart. Sei simply told Shimako to participate and Sachiko also agreed, yet with great reluctance; she did not like the idea of any girl being able to go on a date with her. But Sachiko knew that they had no chance of defying the Roses' will, so it was useless to waste energy on arguing; busy with her own thoughts, the girl did not even notice how Yoshino practically crawled on top of Rei to protect her from Eriko's evil plans -- or molest her, what's the difference. There was always that chance of Yumi finding her card -- a chance that would certainly increase if she helped her out a bit -- and that prospect weighed much more than the prospect of having to date some unknown fangirl. Because a date (one that did not end with a freaky allergic outburst) where she could completely woo Yumi, was just the thing Sachiko needed.
A/N:
A fancy dress party is nothing more than a costume party. But 'fancy dress party' sounded fancier, so I just used that word. :p Oh, and Hikaru Genji is the protagonist from 'The Tale of Genji', in case you were wondering.
I don't think Lillian Jogakuen is a massive lesbo-production centre. Those are Eriko's thoughts, not mine. Honestly!
Okay, something irrelevant to the story now, but my favourite character is Yoshino. She's fun and I really like her, even though she can be hotheaded sometimes and extremely possessive of Rei. (Or perhaps that's why I like her so much..?)
Thanks for reading! It would be even more awesome if you also left a review. :)