Chapter 21:

Forty-five minutes later...

Usagi returned to her friends' table juggling two large plates, both piled high with a random assortment of dishes. "That lineup is way too long! It took me forever to get this, and all that standing around is killing my feet!"

"That is your third trip to the buffet, Usagi-chan. My mistake, it's your fourth."

"It is?" the blonde grinned. "Oh. I guess I lost track, Mako-chan! Anyway, this isnt all for me." She slid one of the plates in front of Minako. "Here, Minako-chan, try this delicious food. You haven't eaten a single bite since the buffet opened."

"Thanks, Usagi-chan, but I'm still not hungry." Appearing more depressed than Usagi had ever seen her before, the usually bubbly, upbeat girl promptly pushed the plate back. "You can have it."

Hana softly spoke, "It's not your fault all the boys were already taken, Minako-san. How could you possibly have known?"

"Hai! Cheer up, Minako-san!" Yukari urged her with her brightest smile, though she and the other Anglerfish girls still felt growing pangs of disappointment within their hearts. "Maybe next time things will be different!"

Minako's mood darkened even further. "Hai... next time..."

. . . . .

After ensuring they were alone inside the large wheeled washroom facility hidden behind the main tent, Ami stood beside the one of the porcelean wash basins and asked, "This is about as private a place as we'll find here, Rei-chan. What did you want to talk to me about?"

"I've been getting really strange vibes since this whole thing started, Ami-chan. The exaggerated opulence, the seperation of Ooarai students from their hosts, the whole boyfriend thing... not to mention all of us sitting around like wallflowers later, watching the St. Gloriana couples dancing... something just doesn't seem right."

"Perhaps this is nothing more than standard practice for a large and famous school such as St. Gloriana" Ami suggested. "We are newcomers to this world after all."

"I know. But still..." An idea began to take shape in the young miko's mind. "Ami-chan, how do you think the other girls, Miho and her team especially, feel right now?"

"Well... it's safe to assume they're disappointed, because many of the girls from our school had hoped to meet and even make friends with a boy this evening... a condition that will undoubtedly worsen during the dance later... and after witnessing such precise organization and lavishness as we have experienced here, perhaps even a touch of... self doubt?"

Rei nodded. "Hai. Exactly."

"Rei-chan, are you suggesting this is all an attempt to demoralize our teams before tomorrow's event? Miho told us that St. Gloriana is a very respectable institution, with a long track record of fair play. I'm finding it difficult to believe that they would even consider stooping to such a level as playing psychological games with their competitors."

"Maybe you're right, Ami-chan" the raven-haired girl mused. "I could very well be over-analyzing things. But I still have my suspicions."

. . . . .

At the table, Minako abruptly stood up. "Minna, I'll be back soon. I just need a few minutes alone outside to collect my thoughts." She briskly walked away, and Makoto placed her hand on Usagi's shoulder when the other blonde also began to stand. "Stay here, Usagi-chan. Give Minako her private time, ok?"

"But I want to help-"

The brunette shook her head. "No. Sometimes the best thing a friend can do in a case like this is to do nothing at all. Let her work it out. Trust me. She will."

"Are you sure, Mako-chan?"

"Hai. It's a road I've travelled down many times before."

. . . . .

Inside the smaller of the two tents, a St. Gloriana third-year student wearing the only red Sensha-do competition jacket at the party walked quietly through the busy kitchen towards a closed flap at the rear of the structure, cup and saucer in hand. She brushed the flap aside, entering a much smaller room containing a tiny folding field desk and two other third year students, both of whom were sipping coffee.

She regarded the other girls silently for a few moments before she spoke, her tone neutral but with just the slightest hint of anger behind her words.

"Why was I not informed of this earlier?"

One of the teens replied, "If you're referring to Operation Demoralize, it was, and remains none of your concern, Darjeeling."

"Is that so?" The overall commander of St. Gloriana's Sensha-do teams paused to sip her tea. "I had assumed that the presence of our school's intelligence agency at this event was one of providing any necessary security. It now appears I was mistaken."

The second agent smiled. "You should be grateful for our work, Commander. If we achieve success this evening, many of the Ooarai girls will be performing under some small measure of duress during tomorrow's match, which should make victory that much easier for you to attain."

Darjeeling frowned. "I am most decidedly not grateful. Rather, I am disappointed that our school should think it necessary to adopt such measures. Success on the Sensha-do battlefield should be earned by gallantry, by skill and tactics, not through your cloak-and-dagger skullduggery. You dishonor us."

"We were requested to conceive and carry out Demoralize by none other than our Student Council" the first girl pointed out. "It was said that the loss of face to St. Gloriana if we are finally defeated by such an insignificant school as Ooarai was entirely unacceptable."

"Oh?" Darjeeling smiled. "Need I remind you who won the National Tournament mere days ago? It begs the question then, of how the Council would feel about a forfeit of tomorrow's match by my teams. I will not knowingly compete in bad faith. Not now. And not ever."

"You can't do that!"

"Can I not?" Darjeeling again sipped her tea. "Try me."

The room fell silent for a short while, until one of the girls eventually relented. "Very well. We shall terminate Operation Demoralize, effective immediately. But please bear in mind, much has already been accomplished."

"I will. And I will personally accept full responsibility for the outcome of tomorrow's match, which I intend to win fairly and entirely above board. Arigatou." With that, Darjeeling spun on her heel and left the room.

. . . . .