"It was a good idea to make you rehearse in private so I could see it" Kyoko and Kuon had been interrupted for the third time. She had been studying the script following Moko-chan's guidance on her speed-technique, and she had arrived a day earlier, as the president had requested, and quietly just so Lory Takarada coul give his approval before letting them rehearse in front director Ogata and the production team "I am going for a walk. I'll be back in a couple of hours, so you better do something about this" he said. Kuon and Kyoko were a little bit frustrated. When the president left the studio room where they had been secretly rehearsin, Yashiro and Takaki-san decided to give them some space too.

"I am sorry" Kyoko knew she would be scolded by Kuon, but she had to admit the fact the rehearsal was such a failure was her fault.

"He's right" Kuon said. The president had told them that instead of interacting as they should, they were battleing "You're refusing to follow my lead"

"That's because I don't like to get tricked by your killer act" Kyoko spoke without realizing, that was what she felt, and Kuon's eyes froze when he heard that. Noticing that she had let it out, Kyoko's gaze lowered "I wasn't that self-conscious when we were the Heel siblings, I was just that much exited that I only looked to follow your reactions, and try to do as Setsuka would" she tried looking back at his eyes "But today it feels like that other time"

Kuon laughed. Kyoko looked at him a little bit annoyed. She truly felt like before they became attached as kouhai and senpai "That is exactly what I thought" his eyes were mischievous.

"I guess I am not there yet. I am not willing to fall for Ren Tsuruga's famous co-star killer skills" she felt powerless. Admitting that was admitting she had accepted a challenge she couldn't fulfill.

"It's not only you" Kuon's words surprised Kyoko "I do that on purpose" he looked embarrassed "I keep doing it all the time because it's the way I enjoy performing, to make my co-star and cast-mates follow my lead" Kyoko remembered when he had that trial for Dark Moon, and he told director Ogata that he'd made Momose-san follow his lead "I forget that some acts don't need that" Kyoko had never thought about it. She was just focused into achieving the skill that would allow her face his powerful performance "When we were the Heel siblings, even when at the beginning I was the one guiding, you got to blend with my own acting. I guess that is what the president meant"

"I am also obsessed into not letting you lead me" Kyoko confessed too "It feels like a matter of living or dying" Kuon laughed but Kyoko was serious "It got stuck in my…" she couldn't finish what she wanted to say because Kuon's lips interrupted hers.

They kissed for a long time "Here" he said as they parted "We were both too tense and stubborn" Kyoko was trying to catch her breath "Is no good that we meet with all those people surrounding us. Not after that long" he laughed again.

Kyoko's gaze lowered. She was still concerned by the fact she disliked being defeated by his acting. She knew she needed to get a grip, because they needed her for the movie, but she wasn't feeling fine with it.

"Kyoko" he held her "Is not a matter of winning or loosing" he made her face him "You make me freak out too" Kyoko didn't want to believe him "you disappear inside your own roles, and I am afraid I don't do it the same way" she fixed her gaze into his, still not believing that he was admitting not having a skill she had "I understand my roles, I understand their emotions, but I don't let them take over" he said.

"You do" Kyoko was serious "You did it with BJ" Kuon's eyes froze.

"That…" Kyoko knew she had found a weak spot. He would never admit that was the role, but his own dark past taking over "That was different"

"No" She let go of his arms "Stop blaming it all to your trauma" Kyoko had left the humble kouhai back at Tokyo " Your emotions were similar, but you did let the role take on you" he kissed her again. Kyoko was confused.

"All right" he said with a weak smile "I'll believe you" his eyes were scanning hers "I'll try forgetting about leading and I'll just let Genji take over" Kyoko's smile was warm "But you need to stop trying to defeat me" she blushed.

Kyoko added a timid nod. Ren told her to start again, at the part the president had requested them to do. Kuon begun his lines and Kyoko replied with hers, trying to just relax.

We can do it. If we both forget about anything else but our roles, we can do it.

At first, their performance was still a little bit awkward, but as they kept going, Kuon's personality begun to fade away, behind the mask of Genji. Kyoko wasn't sensing any attempts to fool her with a made up line, or an unexpected gesture, and slowly, she also begun to let Lady Murasaki's feelings take over.

Kyoko had been trying to understand her new role. Kanae was repulsed by the role, but they both had tried to know why on Erath, a woman could fall in love that madly with a man who still bedded other women. While trying to get into Lady Murasaki's skin, Kyoko had wondered so many times how could Kuon get to understand Genji's life and the decisions he made. She knew that this role was hard for even someone like Ren Tsuruga, but once she'd got there, she'd only worried about her own security as an actress.

They continued their rehearsal not noticing that their private audience had returned "Amazing" the president was there "That is what I was expecting from the beginning" but Kyoko and Kuon kept on unaware that they had a crowd "Cut!" the president called, and then they stopped, looking confused.

"When did you arrive?" Kyoko saw a disorientated Kuon that was getting out of his role, something he didn't do often.

"A few minutes ago" the president's eyes were feline.

After giving them his approval, the president left them, taking Takaki-san with him "We have a few things to dischuss" she told Kyoko.

Kyoko spent part of the evening having dinner with Yashiro-san and Kuon, and then they went secretly to Kuon's parent's house, so nobody at the hotel could gossip "You were right" Kuon told her once they were under the bed-sheets "I can do it. In fact I would do it more often if I wasn't that much obsessed into being the lead"

"It's not bad to be the lead thought" Kyoko made his gaze froze "I always admired that ability of yours. I envy it, to be honest" she had caught him by surprise "I guess perfection is between letting your role take on you and being still able to lead the rest of the cast. When I am at the stage, my colleagues are still leading my actions most of the times, and that's because I am way too lost into Juliet. They say they enjoy the way I perform because that allows them to shine even more, but I can see I still need to learn a lot" and it was right. Kyoko had only tried the lead thing when she was in Clover, trying to push her cast-mates around, with her own acting. But whenever she encountered more experienced actors, with years ahead of her, she felt that she still needed to control her own skills.

"I've got the feeling that this movie will turn out into another great lesson" he kissed her forehead.

The day after, Kyoko was taken to Osaka by Takaki-san. The president had arranged her official arrival of Kyoko from Osaka, where she would be staying and performing at nights, with a mandatory visit to Ogata, who had already been discharged and would be at the studio, and to her filming crew, including Ren Tsuruga. Kyoko was tired, but if she still wanted to keep the secret of her relationship with Ren, it would be better faking she hadn't been there last night. Also, the president didn't want the producers to know he wanted to test his choice before letting them watch a rehearsal.

Kyoko's arrival at Osaka caused a little bit uproar. There were photographers waiting at the hotel she would be staying with some of the cast from the play, and she had to wave and smile, and to keep quiet, because it hadn't been announced that she'd be taken the role at the movie yet. When she reached Kyoto, there weren't photographers or any other journalists, but Takaki-san had warned her that it'd be only a matter of time to see them there as well. She had been on the spotlight ever since she premiered the play, in a way she had to be really carefull with her moves to not reveal where she was living in Tokyo. But now she would just have to bear with it "It's a good way to promote the movie" Takaki-san had told her.

She went straight to the studio to greet Ogata-san "Kyoko-chan!" he seemed happy to see her "When Takarada-san told me you'd be coming to become Murasaki, I recovered quickly" he said to her ear "But I am still intrigued to see how you'll portray her" director Ogata had seen her Juliet, so Kyoko knew he wouldn't doubt her ability to portray more than just bullies.

Then she was introduced to the rest of the crew, and she was extremely polite with the producers. When Kuon arrived, she greeted him casually, so people could see they had a close relationship, and then director Ogata made them start the rehearsal, so they could see if she was fit for the role.

"Relax" Kuon told her "Let's do it like we did yesterday" he told her in a low voice, so anyone else could listen.

The rehearsal would proceed with any customs or any sceneario from the movie, as one of the producers had specificly requested he wanted to be convinced by her acting, and not by her ability to transform under make-up and clothes. It seems that the video the president had shown them had also revealed how much those tricks helped Kyoko's surface become any of her roles.

Director Ogata was nervous, but he approached them and told Kyoko and Kuon what he wanted exactly from that scene. When they call in for the rehearsal to start, both disappeared inside their own roles. Kuon kept sticking to his lines as Genji took over him, and Kyoko let Lady Murasaki become his partner. It was just like when they were the Heel siblings, with him acknowledging her version of Murasaki, and her only interested into reacting according to her role. At some point, both roles connected with each other, making the scene become something real that their audience could feel.

"Cut!" director Ogata said with a big smile. He looked realy relieved "That's been beyond my expectations!" he seemed satisfied "Even with the short hair and the casual western clothes, I could totally see Lady Murasaki in you"

"I didn't need to be convinced" the producer who'd been on Kyoko's side from the beginning approached to praise them too "but it was good to presence she has chemistry with the lead" he directed his gaze to his team, waiting for their approval "We better reach a conclusion because there's no more time to waste"

For the movie's sake, the producers agreed to take Kyoko in. They've been a little bit cold, but later, Ogata had told Kyoko that they were taken by surprise and had no excuse to refuse her, even if she wasn't as famous as the previous actress was "But good thing you aren't that big-headed" Yashiro-san had added.

At the afternoon, Kyoko went back to Osaka, for the first rehearsal at the theatre. They needed to try out the stage before opening, so it would take a week before the premiere there. When she finished that night, as she was leaving the theatre building, reporters cornered her exit, making Takaki-san back off a little.

"Is it true you'll be replacing Maki Sonoda?" one asked

"How did you get the role, Kyoko?" another question came in

"How do you feel about getting to star with Ren Tsuruga?" someone else inquired.

Kyoko felt dizzy, suddenly, everything she feared was blowing on her face.

Will I be able to put on a smile and just answer them properly?

But the thing that worried her most was all those questions concerning how had she obtained the role.