Chapter 4

It was two days later, after breakfast, that Ruisu discovered the plain, white envelope under his door. It puzzled him, since it was the academy's custom to deliver student correspondence to only one place - an assigned mailbox in the main lobby of the dorms. He picked it up, wondering when it had been placed there; his roommate had gone to attend his own classes an hour ago and had ignored the note, or else missed it.

Turning the envelope over, his eyes widened to find it sealed with the official Ohtori Academy emblem and he quickly tore into its contents. The letter inside had been typed onto some sort of stationary with the same Ohtori design in the corners, and a blood red border tracing the outer edges. Like almost anything else in the school, it smelled somewhat like fresh rose petals. Ruisu shook his head. How predictable.

It read:

Masamori Ruisu,

This is to inform you that your request to temporarily replace Saionji Kyouichi as captain of Ohtori Academy's Kendo Club has been approved. You are free to organize the training schedule as you see fit, and accept all powers of responsibility that come with this position. If you or anyone in your group has any questions about this arrangement, please leave us a note with the secretary in the main office building.

We congratulate you and wish your group success in its efforts.

Sincerely,

Kiryuu Nanami,

Acting President of Ohtori Academy Student Council

It looked as though some rumors at least were true. Well, so what if it was Touga's little sister passing on the good news? He was also, in effect, the acting chief now. If Nanami was up to handling her duties on the council then he had to be just as prepared to deal with his own role, and give the girl the credit she was due.

After contemplating the situation, Ruisu tossed the letter onto his desk and proceeded to get dressed for class. Briefly running a comb through his hair, he picked up his schoolbooks and ran out the door, hoping to get to class a bit early.

News of any kind tended to travel fast at Ohtori. If there was one place guaranteed to get it rolling, it was the notice board just outside of the student dining hall. Its main purpose was to provide information about part-time jobs, peer tutors and club bulletins, but imaginative minds never failed to create some new bit of gossip from anything available to them. It gave people something to do during the duller periods of scholastic pursuit.

As usual, there was a small crowd surrounding the wall, trying to get a look at a small, printed notice tacked neatly in the center. Somewhere in the distance, the bell chimed for classes to begin, and the students standing around began to depart in chattering groups, allowing a new cluster of students to gather. Among them was Utena, who strolled through the hall listening to remarks here and there.

"Did you hear about the guy replacing Saionji-sama?" said a girl. "Who does he think he is?"

"It won't last," a boy replied with a dismissive tone. "Let's see how well they do without the real captain. I think I'll get a laugh and catch his practice tonight with the team."

As curious as she was to learn the identity of the student everybody was talking about, lunch was a priority. These days, Utena didn't just turn down a good meal. Living with the Rose Bride did that to you.

Upon entering the dining hall, she noticed Wakaba sitting at their favorite table with a slightly sour look on her face. Her eyes were focused on a small, black notebook - some kind of day planner, maybe - and her hand was idly turning the pages. Whatever she was doing, she seemed a million miles away from her eagerly cheerful self.

"Hey, Wakaba," she greeted her. "Why aren't you eating anything?"

Big brown eyes slowly looked up. "Hi, Utena. I was just waiting for you."

Utena raised an eyebrow. "You didn't seem to be expecting me, or anyone else." She playfully moved to grab the notebook for closer inspection. "Whatcha reading?"

"Oh, don't bother with that," Wakaba scolded, quickly shutting it and placing a protective hand on top. "I'm just managing my budget for the month."

"Managing your budget?" Utena asked with concern. "Did your parents forget to send you the usual allowance? I know things have been rough for your Dad lately…"

"It's not that. Mom and Dad are doing fine right now...I just used a little more than I expected. I didn't plan ahead too well."

Utena gave her an understanding smile. "It happens. You know, I have a little extra saved up if you're short on something. I'm sure Aunt Yurika wouldn't mind my using it."

Wakaba sat upright suddenly, jutting out her chin a little. "No, Utena. I'll be OK. I'm just trying to keep track of the numbers."

"Well, if you're sure..."

Thinking of a way to change the subject, Utena took her cue from the people chatting at the tables around them. "I guess you've heard about the Student Council electing a new captain for the Kendo Club…"

"Masamori Ruisu," Wakaba stated with authority. She crossed her arms in front of her on the table and rested her chin on them. "He's NOT the new captain - just a temporary solution until Saionji-sama is allowed to return to school."

"Masamori," Utena repeated with curiosity. "I met him last night, just before I got back to the dorm. Kind of built, blonde..."

"Yeah," Wakaba replied, with a clear attempt at indifference. "One of Saionji-sama's regular students. Fourth in the country at his sport."

"Not bad," Utena said, nodding with approval. "So why do I get the feeling you don't like him much?"

"What's not to like?" Wakaba frowned. "He's a nice guy, knows what he's doing in a match. I'm sure Saionji-sama would have picked him, if he'd been consulted…"

Utena grinned. "So that's what it is. You think he doesn't deserve the position because he wasn't handpicked by Saionji."

"I'm not the only one."

"Apparently not," Utena said, looking around.

"Everyone here knows that the Kendo Club should only be headed by a strong captain. The team was scheduled for a meet next month, way before the council expelled him." Wakaba threw her hands up in exasperation. "I'm not sure how Masamori-san will take this kind of responsibility, but I hope he remembers he's just filling in. For now."

"I know," Utena said with a chuckle. "Why don't we both get some food before our break is over? I don't want to take the chance that I'll run into that teacher again and be late for math."

Wakaba giggled. "What's her problem, anyway? Someone as cool as you deserves to wear different clothes. You're just too dashing for words!" she added, with a mock swoon.

"Yeah, thanks." Utena lightly swatted her arm. "C'mon, Madame President."

"President?"

"Of the Saionji fan club," Utena replied, rolling her eyes.

Wakaba blushed. "Right." She slowly rose from her chair. "Hey, Utena?"

"Hmmm?"

Wakaba looked like she still had something on her mind, but quickly shrugged it off. "Thanks for the offer, earlier."

"Not a problem."

He shifted his weight to his right foot, nearly feeling the metal tip of the shinai as it missed connecting with his head by a couple of inches. His muscles were tense, but one with his mind as it tried to anticipate a counter move faster than that of his opponent. He was thankful that the young man he was dueling made clean, straight strokes; they challenged his hold on the weapon and kept him from executing his own thrusts with too much of an angle or arc. He was careful of his footwork, and observed that his teammate seemed to glide over the floor in the steadiness of his own rhythm.

Ruisu was able to break free of the continuous dance by swinging upward, as if to try the difficult score on the throat-guard. His opponent found the blow lacking power and an easy deflect. He was correct, except that his proxy captain quickly drew back his shinai to deliver a true strike at the wrist of his left gauntlet.

Point.

That ended the match. Breathing hard, both young men returned to their starting positions and bowed to each other. Ruisu could hear a light burst of applause from somewhere outside the doorway of the dojo, but the grill on his headgear did not allow much of a view on either side of him. It didn't really matter, as he was determined to keep facing the starting mark of his opponents. It would project a sort of indifference and strength to his teammates, so they all could see his seriousness in the practice and stay focused themselves.

"Good," he said to his latest adversary. "Very good. Keep your footwork and posture as clean and balanced as you have them now. Next time, don't make assumptions about the force of the next blow. Keep your eyes on my posture, and the position of my hands on the shinai. I could surprise you by aiming for an unexpected, less tactical place."

His opponent nodded and walked away to join the seated group, chatting amongst themselves on the other side of the room.

"Next!"

There were still a few minutes of practice left, after all. Ruisu bowed to the young woman who had just joined him on the floor and assumed the Sonkyo, the ready stance.

"I wanna learn to do that," the young boy said, with more than a hint of admiration.

"I think you should stick to safer things, Mitsuru-kun," the girl next to him tauntingly replied. "Like baseball or track."

"Aww, Mari-chan. You can be so bad for a guy's ego sometimes."

On Mitsuru's other side, Utena leaned against the doorway and chuckled, keeping her eyes on the match playing out in front of her. "I wouldn't worry too much about it, Tsuwabuki-kun. I don't think kids your age are allowed to participate anyway. Perhaps after you've got enough money to buy the equipment…"

"Or can beg it off of your parents…" Mari giggled.

Nanami's young henchman of sorts merely glared at her, but thought the argument unimportant enough to stay distracted from the practice. "I don't care what the others say. This guy's just as good as Saionji-san. Maybe better."

"I don't know much about this sport," Utena admitted. "But I've seen Jury-sempai in practice enough times to know what control is. Judging by the people Masamori-san has beaten tonight, he's got enough of it."

The duel champion marveled at how fast Ruisu and his classmates were moving. The shiny, black armor didn't seem to slow them down one bit, and the long skirts completing the uniform made it nearly impossible to see the position of their feet. It all looked very precise and safe, since the blows that each side was receiving didn't seem to be a major cause for concern. Perhaps all of that padding made it that much easier to have free movement, plus a good workout. It was much different from the short bout she had witnessed between Touga and Saionji. The discipline and lack of obvious dramatics made the sport seem pretty elegant.

A couple of matches later, the practice was coming to an end and the students seated away from the action began to collect their belongings. The people standing by the doorway took that as their cue to get out of the way, so the team could exit and head to their dorm rooms for a much-deserved rest.

Ruisu reached up behind his neck to untie his facemask and slowly slid it off. The towel he had wrapped around his head was soaked with sweat, and he wore an obvious look of relief as he scratched and ruffled his white-blonde hair.

"That was cool, Masamori-san," Utena remarked, entering the room. "With the impression you're leaving on the school so far, I think Saionji-sempai would do well to practice his own skills."

Ruisu chuckled and waved a dismissive hand at her, but she could see his brown eyes light up with pride. "I'm only a replacement, Tenjou-san, but thank you. Saoinji-san was very prone to warming up and going over technical details on his own, but I think that every time we practice as a group, we all improve significantly. Kendo has a wonderful way of developing self-discipline and humility. Our captain has taught me plenty about that over the years."

They laughed, and Ruisu smiled at the rose-haired girl. "Why don't you give it a try sometime? I think you'd enjoy it a lot. If you want, I can even schedule a time for us to duel with the dojo to ourselves."

"I'll think about it, Masamori-san. I've only had a little bit of practice, and that was a long time ago. You know how it is - school, sports and stuff. It would be nice to improve, but you should probably use your time to get ready for the Kyoto meet."

"Believe me Tenjou-san, it would be my pleasure to show you the ropes. And call me Ruisu."

"Only if you call me Utena," she said with a grin.

Abruptly, someone stood in the light of the doorway, casting a shadow over Ruisu's form. "Hello," he greeted the newcomer. "I'm afraid our practice is over for the day."

Utena turned to find Anthy standing there with a cheery smile on her face, and her hands clasped primly in front of her. "Oh, it's you, Himemiya. Ruisu-san, this is my roommate, Himemiya Anthy."

"Masamori Ruisu," he said, giving her friend a warm smile and bowing slightly. "Pleased to meet you."

Anthy bowed, then looked to Utena. "I didn't mean to disturb the two of you. I just wanted to know if Chuchu and I would be waiting on you for dinner."

"I was on my way home just now to get it started. Hang on a sec, I'll be right with you."

"That's alright. I'll just wait out here."

So saying, the Rose Bride smiled once more at Ruisu and walked out of the room. The sun was beginning to set, and the rose-haired duelist watched the sky turn red and yellow with bemusement.

"She seems shy," he remarked. "Are you two really the only ones living in East Hall?"

"Yeah," Utena said with a sigh. She lazily scratched the back of her neck. "It's pretty quiet most of the time, but I guess the Council likes the arrangement."

"I can't imagine what that's like. My dorm is always crowded at anytime of the day. It can get a little hectic in the evenings, so I come out here sometimes to put in some practice. It helps me clear my mind."

"What's that?" Utena asked, noticing something small and shiny sitting on a blue handkerchief by the sword racks.

Ruisu turned to look where she was pointing. "Ah, that's my good luck charm. It's a hakata doll."

"May I hold it a second?"

"Uhh…sure. Go ahead."

Kneeling down, Utena carefully laid the small ceramic figure in the palm of her hand. It was in the form of a Kendo fighter striking out, complete with miniature blue-black armor and a tiny shinai. Its colors were luminous and polished, but the paint blurred a few of the details in some places and thickened them out in others.

"I got that as a gift years ago," Ruisu said, gently taking the doll into his own hands. "It's kind of…special to me."

His gaze drifted momentarily, and his shoulders slumped. Utena watched, wondering about the sudden change.

"Look," he continued. "If you stare into its mask, here, you can see tiny brown eyes peering out at you."

The duel champion's own eyes narrowed, as she stared at the spot Ruisu was pointing at. "Really?"

Her companion chuckled. "No."

Utena smirked as Ruisu deftly wrapped the figure up in its handkerchief and tucked it under his arm. Not knowing what else to talk about, Utena looked out past the doorway, knowing Anthy was still waiting for her.

"I'd better go and let you get cleaned up."

"Okay. I'm glad you had time to watch us work today. It's good for the team to feel that their fellow students are aware of their development."

"Hey, it was fun. You guys are gonna draw quite a crowd of supporters when the time comes to go to the tournament." Especially since they were going to be there for the whole team, and not just the star attraction, in more ways than one.

"Well, I'll be seeing ya." She waved back at him. "Goodnight, Ruisu-san."

"See you around, Utena-san."

The evening meal had been quite good. In almost no time at all, Utena had quickly whipped up a small pot of yosenabe with the frozen shrimp, chicken and spinach that they'd been able to procure from the school kitchen. So much the better: In all of the years that she could remember being the Rose Bride, Anthy had never gotten around to mastering cooking.

Content and somewhat at peace, she found herself with arms outstretched on either side of her, sitting with Utena on the soft rise of grass by Ohtori's main entrance. Chuchu had stayed at the dorm, preferring to watch some sort of nature documentary on their small television set, so they were alone on the grounds.

Alone? She knew better than that.

The open air carried a plethora of voices along with the rustle of the trees and the calls of insects. One voice that rang deep and clear in her head, and others that ever circled her, ever shouted their hate and murderous intent. She could almost feel the gentle breeze whip and slash all around as they got closer…

"Hey," said a familiar voice.

Anthy looked to the right at Utena, who was now lying on her back, eyes to the heavens.

"You can't properly take in the view sitting up."

Anthy smiled and obligingly pulled back, feeling the cold, tough earth press up against her spine.

"I'll bet you've seen them all closer than this," her companion waved a hand upward, "thanks to Akio's telescope."

The Rose Bride closed her eyes. "Some of them, yes."

"That's something I never had time to do as a kid. Too busy climbing trees and making a mess of myself. Being out at night scared me, you know? It made me think about my parents sometimes. About how much I missed them."

Utena paused for a moment. "What were you like as a kid?"

"I can't say I remember."

"Not at all?"

"It was a long time ago, Utena-sama."

"So…I guess you never looked up at the stars much either. With Akio or your parents."

Anthy opened her eyes. "I never shared my brother's enthusiasm for them. He says they burn eternal, millions of miles away from the world. But at that great a distance they seem as cold as anything else."

So cold. The night sky with its wide, open mouth lay at the ready, waiting to swallow her whole. If it would only do so, all would be right.

She wasn't aware of the hand that reached out for her own until thin, warm fingers entwined with hers. It surprised her not to see it coming, but she could hear Utena wishing (as she often did), for something she could do. Some way she could understand. It was a wish that could never be granted.

Still, their eyes met like dozens of times before. Here the darkness was a blessing, as it would hide anything she didn't want Utena to see. Anything she wanted to feel. She had no trouble fighting the tears that wanted to bleed from within her heart, but she couldn't keep from tightening her grip on the duel champion's hand, just a little.

Feeling a slight tug on her arm, she let go of Utena's hand and scooted the few inches between them to be right next to her. Before she could think about it too much, she found herself curling an arm around the other girl's waist. She then laid her head on the duel champion's shoulder and closed her eyes once more.

"I'm sorry," Utena said in a low voice. "It looked like you needed this."

She nearly sighed in gratitude. "You know best, Utena-sama."

"Do you feel like going home?"

"Is that what you want?"

She could feel Utena's nervous chuckle. "No."

"Then let's stay a little longer."

Anthy didn't care if he was watching. It would only be part of the greater plan to him, as everything else was. Utena's arms held her so protectively that she wholeheartedly wished that she could remember that childhood long gone. She wanted so much to share just one memory of it with her friend.

Her friend.