Chapter 11


Well, it was a hopeless endeavor. He had failed the LME auditions spectacularly. Thankfully, he had Akatoki in his pocket. Certainly he'd have to work a little harder to get to the top, but at least he would have his foot in the door and the manager they assigned him was a bombshell. Aki Shoko, she was perfect for the image he was trying to project. Too bad he wasn't able to get with that little fox Setsuka Heel. She would have been perfect for his image. Maybe when he got to the top she would see that he was perfect for her. He smirked at the thought of having that one on his arm. Beautiful, rich, and stylish. Who could ask for more? She was perfect and no matter where she was, he would make sure that she saw only him.


Maria Takarada was a little overwhelmed with her personal duties she'd taken on. She carried on with her standard, "protecting Ren-sama from stupid leeches", but she'd added on "protecting Oba Setsu from cootie-infested playboys", to her curriculum. Before now, she'd never realized that men were just as squeamish about spiders, insects and snakes as most women were. Although her Oba Setsu was not. She was fascinating. She didn't seem to be afraid of anything and had even helped her name her new acquisition, Gertrude the Goliath Bird Eating Tarantula. Gertrude would live up to 20 – 25 years and have several thousand children if Maria decided on breeding her later. It was definitely something that made Ren-sama a little squeamish when she'd brought her to LME.

Maria laughed as she thought back on the image of Setsuka with Gertrude perched on her shoulder, walking through LME while holding Maria's hand and talking as if it were an everyday occurrence. Yes, her Oba Setsu was awesome.

"I don't care Danny. I really don't know why you're calling me. I'm in Tokyo right now. Besides, weren't you the one that said I was just like every other girl you've dated?... Look, I really don't care anymore. You said it. You didn't want us to be exclusive anymore and I don't have a problem with it. I've moved on. You have the little bird you wanted to shag and I have other things I want to do." She was silent for a moment listening to him. "Sure, we can still be friends. I never said that we couldn't." She sighed. "Well, I'm sure she's just what you're looking for. She's Japanese and she seemed sweet enough when I met her... No, I will not check her out for you and get back... What the bloody hell? If you want this Kimiko bird, you can find out her information yourself." She rolled her eyes. "Fine..." She groaned. "I'll do it just this once and call you, but don't you ever think of asking me to do something like this again. Of course I'm not jealous." She sighed. "No... The one I've always had eyes for doesn't even remember me." She laughed at his response. "Well, believe it. He forgot about me completely." She nodded at something he'd said. "Alright Love, but don't make this a habit. I find it distasteful that she's actually made you pathetic enough to ask your ex to investigate your future prospects." She laughed. "Okay Love, chat later. Toodles." She hung up her phone and sighed, then smirked. Maybe I will, maybe I won't. Wanker. Have one of your mates do it for you.

Maria looked up at her inquisitively. "Oba-chan, is everything okay?"

Setsu nodded. "Just a friend that was asking a favor." She glossed it over. His request actually hurt a little, made her feel inadequate. She hated the fact that men could never see her as more than just a friend. Maybe that's why Kuon didn't remember her. Her little ordeal with Danny Bennett or "Cedric", didn't bother her as much as it would most women; however, she had gotten a little attached to him towards the end.

She'd only really dated him out of curiosity. You know, just to see what it was like to have a boyfriend. She'd heard other girls gushing on about it and wanted to see what the fuss was. If anything, it was boring. She didn't like it. He started treating her differently and it was awkward, especially the snogging. She shivered at the thoughts. She supposed that other girls actually liked it, but it just wasn't her style. It was messy. His hands were everywhere and he was a sloppy kisser. It was nothing like she'd imagined or how they made it look in the movies. She supposed that if they'd both had more experience, it would have been more pleasant, but it was not meant to be. She laughed a little inwardly when she remembered how repulsed Em had been at her description of the numerous events. No, she would wait and hopefully, find one that was a little more pleasant next time.

"Oba-chan? Are you sure everything's alright?" Maria asked a little worried.

Setsuka smiled softly and nodded. "Everything's fine." She assured her. "Should we check out the newcomers?"

Maria smiled mischievously and nodded. "Can we see Ren-sama?"

Setsuka groaned internally and plastered a fake smile on. "Of course. I'm sure he's looking forward to seeing you."


Kuon was seriously confused. I would appear to him and Yashiro, that Maria's aunt really didn't like him much or was she always that apathetic? He still hadn't heard the little doll mention her aunt's name.

"I'm very sorry, but I don't believe we've been properly introduced." He said as politely as he allowed himself now. "I'm Ren Tsuruga, it's a pleasure to meet you."

The beautiful, stylish blonde's eyebrow twitched in irritation as she cocked it. "Well Mr. Tsuruga, it's nice to finally meet you. I'm Maria's unofficially adoptive aunt, Setsuka Heel." She really tried to sound friendly, but it just wasn't coming out how she'd intended. She still sounded a little flat and uninterested.

Kuon looked at her in surprise then schooled his shock. "It's nice to make your acquaintance."

She smirked. Now it was going to get fun. "I'm sure it is. Good to see you again Mr. Tsuruga... I think." She paused and turned away. "Maria, I have something I need to do. Ruto is just over there if you need anything. Do you mind if we meet up in say... maybe an hour?" She really needed to walk away before she allowed herself to reveal that she knew him. He was obviously forgetting her for a reason.

Maria looked up at her, then at Ren. "I'll meet you in the new LoveME Section later." She wanted to check out the new initiates and make sure that they weren't there to try and take away Ren. One day she would take her grandfather's place, she did not want entertainer's that weren't serious about what they were doing, especially when it came to working with the people she cared about.

Setsuka nodded in assent, grumbling inwardly. She really hated that room. The color was so garish it was offensive.

The trio watched as the beauty left their company. Maria and Yashiro were staring quietly at Ren, wondering what exactly had happened and Kuon was essentially browbeating himself inwardly in shame. I really need to fix this. He groaned internally. He honestly didn't want her hating him as Kuon or Ren. Sure she wasn't supposed to know Ren, but he honestly didn't want to leave the situation like this. The relationship he'd had with her was just as important to him as his with Rick, perhaps a little more. She had actually been his very first and one of his best friends. Some of his most cherished memories had been with her. She had treated him as another human being and although she was younger, she had gone through much of the same as him in regards to family influence. Only she handled it quite differently by embracing it. He felt horrible about how he hadn't been there for her when her parents died.


When he was fourteen, he knew he had parents that loved him unconditionally. He couldn't fathom ever losing them. She was completely inconsolable. He had actually tried to comfort her, but what could he do? He couldn't come close to relating to her situation, he'd never lost anyone in his life. After experiencing the situation with Rick and being witness to Maria's loss, he knew that Setsuka's response was actually quite normal for a child that had just lost both parents. The only family she had was her dog. He realized that Lory had only been able to pull Maria from the darkness, because he had experience with Setsuka's loss and did the same with her. The only difference being, Setsuka chose to return to England a year later and Maria was too young to make that choice. Maria chose to cling to Ren instead.

He couldn't help, but feel the crushing guilt of not being there when she needed him, not returning her calls or answering her letters. He sighed. "I was such a selfish, spoiled child." He murmured not realizing that it really wouldn't have made a significant difference. He'd had problems at the time too. He probably wouldn't have been much help in her situation. Was it too late to say he was sorry? Could this be his chance to repair at least one relationship from his past?