Chapter 4: From Momomi's Mouth
The next day, the wind blew through the bare tree branches. Shizuma had received a text message during school. After she got out of French class, she made her way toward the stables. Amane could be seen in the distance, practicing on the race track. As Shizuma walked, her phone continued to buzz insistently. She wasn't in a very good mood. She wasn't looking forward to seeing the person she was about to meet.
When she arrived in front of the stables, she saw both Kaname and Momomi, waiting by the white fence made of wood slats surrounding the pasture. Shizuma sighed and shook her head. She didn't have time for this.
"Hey," she yelled over to them, "I got your text messages already-what do you want?"
Shizuma finally reached the fence. The two women looked a little too relaxed. They wore their usual cheshire grins.
Kaname looked up at Shizuma, "Momomi and I just thought you'd want to know a little more about Aoi Nagisa before you invest your time…"
Shizuma froze. She remembered the things they had done to Hikari and wondered if she needed to leave right now to go find Nagisa and make sure she was safe. What did they do? What if she's in danger? Shizuma worried.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
The two women chuckled. It was visible that the normally unshakeable Shizuma-sama was nervous. Then Kaname responded in the sweetest tone she could muster, "We didn't think an ex-Etoile would want to be seen with poverty-stricken trash."
Momomi added, "Mm. Nagisa's parents are divorced now. A broke, single father. A drunk, from what I've heard. A shabby home. In Kabukicho, Tokyo of all places..."
"Ah, the red-light district..." Kaname continued, "...and a dangerous part of town. Could be bad for your reputation, Shizuma."
"Now you know the real reason Nagisa didn't go home over summer break!" Momomi sang.
"Stop!" Shizuma spat, and kicked a snowy stone toward the fence post. She balled her hands into tight fists at her sides. She took a few steps toward Momomi, until their faces were within grazing distance. "I can make you regret mocking Nagisa in front of me," she threatened.
"I can make you regret you ever made that threat," Momomi snarled.
Shizuma swallowed and stepped back. Momomi was right. As much as Shizuma wanted to kick their asses, the truth was that if word got out, it wouldn't only damage Shizuma's reputation for her future school, it would damage Miator's reputation. Shizuma didn't want to take Miator down with her.
During the scuffle, from the racetrack Amane could hear some voices coming from the pasture area. She turned Star Bride around, "Let's go check it out," she said, and kicking up dust and snow, they rode in the direction of the sounds. When she was able to make out who the figures were, Amane thought it best to make herself inconspicuous. In a wooded area with plenty of trees and shrubbery, she climbed off of Star Bride and roped the horse loosely to a tree. Quietly, she made her way toward the pasture, trying not to crunch snow too loudly beneath her boots. As she got closer, she could see an angry, red Shizuma ready to pummel Momomi.
"—You know what, maybe I don't care so much about reputation after all!" Shizuma provoked. Drawing her fist back, she prepared to jab Momomi in the jaw. Then, suddenly, her jab broke in mid air, and she felt a strong force holding her fist back. It held her back with great tension.
"Shizuma. Let this go," a voice said.
Shizuma's entire body had flooded with adrenaline. She looked to her right to see where the voice was coming from. Reality had become a blur, but as it rematerialized, she realized that Amane was the one standing there with her own hand clenched around her fist. Once she could see Shizuma had backed down, Amane dropped her hand and narrowed her eyes at Momomi and Kaname. "What are you two doing?"
But Amane knew it was nothing good. They only smirked, and offered no answer. "We're so sorry to have disturbed you, Etoile-sama," Kaname apologized in an ironic tone to Amane.
Then, the two walked away. When they reached the main path leading back to the Strawberry Dorms, and Momomi made sure no one was around to hear, she whispered to Kaname, "I will be the first to talk Hanazono Shizuma out of $100,000." With that, she began to cough violently and Kaname took her in her arms, "Momomi! What is it? Are you okay?" Then, as the coughing racked her body, Momomi began to vomit up a white, translucent liquid with what appeared to be flecks of silver in it. The substance reminded Kaname of nail polish. "I've never been better," Momomi said, grinning and wiping her face.