My goodness, I wrote this story mid-2020 and it's been waiting quite some time for its turn to be published! The way it ended up was that it sort of worked best being put into 2 parts; Part 1 being chapters 1-5 and Part 2 being 6-12. I've treaded into the mobile game territory a bit for this one, at least in terms of the Korosu and whatnot.

I called this story High Stakes AU, so please understand it may get a bit intense at some points.

Disclaimer: I do not own Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight.

The Trials Of Time

Part 1

Chapter 1. Churning Shadows

With only a little over one week left before Seishou's next play, both Classes A and B have been working hard to prepare and rehearse. Most of them have heard of, seen, or even been a part of Into The Woods themselves at least once before, but this will be the first time they'll all be able to perform together, and the girls are bubbling with excitement.

There are already promotional posters all over town inviting people to come see the performance, and the murmur through the school is that they're going to have a full house within the first five minutes of the doors being open. Such is the appeal of a more modern play, and one that dabbles in fairytales and princesses put on by an all-female cast.

While Class B has been working diligently on finishing up the costumes, set, and lighting cues, Class A has been staying late after lessons on a nightly basis to practice their lines and scenes. And typically, these are all things they would do in the weeks before any play they were performing. But there's just a bit more excitement around this one for some reason that makes them all the more eager to finally get up onstage next Friday.

Presently, it's Tuesday night the week before the performance. Claudine, Maya, and the others had spent an extra two hours at school rehearsing before coming back to the dorms to eat and get dressed and ready for bed. But they're all in such a chatty and giddy mood they decide to hang out in the lounge room for a short while.

Karen, Hikari, and Mahiru have one couch, Junna and Nana are sharing the love seat, and Futaba, Kaoruko, Maya, and Claudine share the other couch.

It's the usual easygoing, 'tired but happy' kind of conversation, talking about their roles, humming the songs to the musical, laughing about how they'd messed up or forgotten a line in rehearsal. Most of the rest of them are already slouching against their partners and roommates to listen to the more energetic of the bunch ramble on.

"Oh! Oh!" Karen is saying. "And then when I was practicing with Jun-Jun, I slipped and ended up yelling in the middle of my line. Just 'Waaaah!' right in the middle!'"

"Yeah, that was interesting, to say the least," Junna laughs.

"I heard you from across the room!" Futaba says. "She was all 'du-waah!' The heck was that?"

"Our Little Red Riding Hood is a bit of a klutz, huh?" Nana teases.

"Karen-chan," Mahiru says. "If you need help with balance and coordination, just ask me anytime."

"Sure thing, Mahiru-chan!"

"Heehee. That role suits you perfectly, Karen-chan," Mahiru smiles. "All of them do! Hikari-chan is definitely Sleeping Beauty! Futaba-chan and Kaoruko-chan are definitely the Baker and the Baker's wife! And Saijou-san and Tendo-san are definitely Cinderella and Rapunzel! And I like seeing Banana as the Witch and Hoshimi-san as the Wolf! I think that's super cool for you guys to have those roles!"

"I agree!" Nana says. "I especially love the little ears on Junna-chan's costume!"

"H-Hey, Nana!"

As they all continue talking, somewhere along the lines, Claudine finds herself leaning against Maya's shoulder. Normally, she might've opted to lean back against the couch, or simply stay in her own spot, but with Kaoruko taking up most of the space on her other side by lying on the cushions with her head in Futaba's lap, Claudine is limited in where she can go.

And besides, at this point in the night, everyone is starting to snuggle up to each another, and to be honest, she's so pleasantly exhausted from the day of hard work that she doesn't really care about pride right now.

She closes her eyes as she rests her head against Maya, and in only seconds she feels a welcoming arm being draped across her back, pulling her a little closer to support her. She lets out a sigh, but there's a smile on her lips as she rests her head and her eyes just for a moment…

And then, past the idle chatter of her friends' voices, she can make out a distinct, familiar sound. The sound of a certain ringtone…

"Wha!"

"Eh?"

"Wh-What's going on…?"

At the same time as everyone else cries out in shock, Claudine's eyes fly open wide and she gasps.

Rather than sitting comfortably on the couch in the lounge with her friends, now Claudine finds herself standing on a familiar stage beneath a bright spotlight, dressed in her revue costume and with a sword at her hip. Her friends are all dressed the same way around her with their weapons in their hands, looking equally as puzzled and dismayed as she's feeling.

If not for the exhaustion still pulling at her muscles from the day of work, and the beat of dread in her heart at being made to stand upon this stage again, Claudine might've just thought this was a dream.

But as the seconds tick by and everyone else seems to deny that possibility, Claudine is forced to accept that it's real. Though that doesn't mean she has to like it.

"Wh-Why?" Karen yelps. "Why are we back at Auditions again?"

"N-No…" Mahiru clutches her mace in her hands and begins to tremble. "I-I don't want to… I don't want to fight any of you anymore!"

"Ehhh?" Kaoruko whines. "Why are they doing this to us now? After such a long day?"

"Seriously…" Futaba grunts from beside her.

"I am suspicious as well," Maya says, tightening her grip on her rapier. "But if there's anything I'm certain of, it's that we will be provided an explanation shortly."

"W-Wait a sec-" Junna raises her hand to get everyone's attention. "Do you guys hear that…?"

Everyone else falls silent for a moment. And when they do, a sort of scraping sound can be heard echoing from within the shadows of the stage curtains.

"She's right," Claudine says. "That sound… It's-"

"Korosu."

Everyone looks up sharply now as a new, but still very familiar voice, speaks. Elle is standing at the edge of the stage, and far behind her seated in the audience is the giraffe.

The sight of both of them sends all nine stage girls' hearts into a panic. Before anyone else can react, Maya is already taking a step forward to confront them.

"What is the meaning of this? I refuse to fight and rob any of my friends of their radiance."

Claudine scoffs.

"Hmph. Took the words right out of my mouth, Tendo Maya."

Everyone else murmurs their agreement.

However, Elle puts up both of her hands in a pacifying gesture.

"Please, hear me out. You don't have to fight one another."

"Really?" Futaba challenges. "Why do I feel like you guys would say somethin' like that, and then halfway through tell us it was just a lie and we actually do have to end up fightin' each other?"

"I get that feeling as well," Kaoruko huffs. "I don't really like the idea of trusting either of you, or that Abominamole creature, wherever he is…"

"Now, now…" Nana walks up between both of them, nudging them each with her elbows, as her hands are occupied by her swords. "Futaba-chan, Kaoruko-chan. Let's hear Elle-san out at least."

Elle nods. "You won't have to fight one another. In fact, this isn't really a revue at all. Rather…" She looks back to the giraffe, who has been quiet all the while, observing from afar. Now, he flicks an ear and speaks up.

"Indeed. There are no revues set to take place here for the time being. These are special circumstances. I understand."

Elle sighs and turns back to the stage girls, hoping his input has put them at ease a little.

Claudine is still on-edge about whatever is going on, but she has to admit hearing the words straight from the giraffe himself that this wouldn't be about trying to steal radiance from one another has made her feel just a little bit better.

It seems to be the same for the others as well. Everyone sighs and mumbles little 'thank goodness' comments. Elle lets them have a moment to relish that relief, but urgently continues after that.

"We called you here tonight because we need your help. As you can tell, Korosu have arrived once again."

"So is this a ReLive then?" Hikari wonders.

"Eh?!" Karen wails. "Oh no! Is Into The Woods in danger of disappearing? The play we're working so hard on right now?"

"No." Elle shakes her head, but then pauses. "Well, actually, that may be the case. To be perfectly honest with you all, we aren't exactly certain right now."

"Quoi?" Claudine crosses her arms, keeping her sword pointed downward. "Even the ones in charge of this stage don't know what's going on? What's that supposed to mean?"

Elle shakes her head.

"I'm sorry. I wish I had a better explanation for you. But all we know right now is that, for whatever reason - or perhaps it's even for no set reason at all - there seems to be an influx of Korosu appearing here."

Just as she says as much, the distant screeching of the monsters gets a little louder, and the shadows behind the curtains begin to shift. The nine girls onstage ready their weapons and crouch low.

"So we just have to fight the Korosu?" Junna clarifies. "Not each other?"

"Yes," Elle affirms. "That is all we're asking of you tonight. It seems the Korosu have yet to take hold of any particular play to begin eating away at it. However, I believe at this point, we all know it could begin happening at any moment if we don't stop them soon."

"'We', she says," Kaoruko scoffs. "As if she's one of the ones putting her life at stake up here…"

"Hey, easy," Futaba says. "I know you're tired and stuff, but let's just handle this quick so we can go back to bed."

"That sounds like a good plan," Junna agrees.

"Yes! Bananice!" Nana readies her swords above her head, and one by one the others turn away from Elle and face the oncoming Korosu as they start to appear.

Claudine gives herself a bit of a shake to wake herself up as she steps closer to her partner.

"Are you up for this, Tendo Maya? Don't fall asleep on me here. If you do, I can't guarantee I'll be able to save you."

"I won't be needing any saving, Saijou-san. Please take care to look after yourself, as I also may not be able to lend you a hand if you start slacking."

"Slacking- Why you insufferable-"

"Oy, save it, you two!" Futaba shouts back at them.

Just then, the red curtains are thrust aside as a wave of black, foggy shadows comes pouring out over the stage. The girls charge forward with a unanimous battle cry at the onslaught of Korosu.

At first, it's as simple as ever to handle the pesky little shadow figures. After all, this is hardly anything the girls aren't already used to.

But the thing they really aren't used to is just how many Korosu there are.

Especially with all nine of them present, it feels like this fight shouldn't take them longer than a couple of minutes.

But even after ten minutes of nonstop fighting, more Korosu continue to appear. And it's becoming clear that the Stage Girls are really feeling the aftereffects of the long day at school, and now the added exhaustion of a battle they were unprepared for so late at night.

They quickly shift from individualized fighting styles to partners or groups, but not just the usual ones. Those with longer-ranged weapons begin migrating toward those with shorter-ranged ones to keep them guarded. Nana defends Hikari in particular, and Kaoruko keeps close to Mahiru, while Claudine, Maya, Futaba, and Karen band together to cover each other's blind spots. Junna remains at the back of the group, firing her arrows and providing cover for the rest from farther away.

Five more minutes drag on by, and there's nothing but the sounds of fighting, of grunting and yelling and metal clashing above the ever-persistent hiss of the Korosu.

And even if they hadn't had such an eventful day today, by now any of them would start to be feeling the effects of such a relentless battle.

Claudine's swings are becoming a bit weaker, and all around her she can tell her friends are struggling to aim well and move swiftly at the same time. Kaoruko stumbles, and Mahiru struggles to help her back up while still swinging her mace at their attackers. Nana has exhausted herself to the point where Hikari is now handling most of the fighting with her dagger. Junna has rushed in to provide backup for them, but her arrows are running low and she has no choice but to use her bow to deflect some of the Korosu.

As Claudine continues to swing her own sword at the monsters, she doesn't get a second to catch her breath. Futaba and Karen are back-to-back, being pressed in by another wave of shadows. When Claudine glances over her other shoulder, she can see Maya is panting almost as hard as she is now, her clothes and hair all disheveled.

Claudine gives another shout and slices through a couple more Korosu, and immediately two more take their place. She grits her teeth, quickly ducking her face into her sleeve to wipe the sweat from her eyes as she swings at the figures again.

"What is this?" she cries. "Where do they keep coming from-?"

She steps back, only to find more Korosu moving in from behind. She whirls around to cut them too, but her arms are beginning to shudder beneath the weight of landing so many continuous blows. And clearly, she isn't the only one.

"Kya-!"

A gasp from nearby has Claudine whirling around just in time to see Kaoruko get slashed across the waist by one of the Korosu's weapons. Futaba is being swarmed by several of them at the moment, and it's all she can do to keep that cluster at bay with her halberd as she turns to look back at her roommate.

"Kaoruko!"

Futaba can't move as she is, but Claudine is closer anyway. With a grunt she jumps forward, dropping her sword without a second thought to catch Kaoruko and bring her to a less painful landing. She's whimpering and trembling, and the naginata drops from her grip. Claudine cries out.

"Kaoruko!"

But the Korosu are already upon them, and she has no weapon. She just turns her back to them and shields Kaoruko with her own body.

But right at the last second, she feels a rush of air as a furious battle cry sounds from above her.

Claudine looks up just as Maya skids in front of them, slashing left and right at the monsters. And even though her swings are weighted with fatigue, she still has plenty of anger left to keep swinging over and over again.

And by some miracle, Futaba handles her Korosu and is able to join Maya in the fight.

Claudine does her part too, and scrambles back with Kaoruko in her arms, trying to get her out of range of the demons. When one slips past Maya and Futaba's defenses, Claudine still has no weapon to fend it off with, so she has no choice but to lie Kaoruko down and push herself up to kick at it. Luckily, she lands a good blow and sends it spiraling.

But she fails to find her footing after that. Her knees cave, and her legs give out beneath her. Claudine wheezes as she tries to get back up.

Mahiru is on the floor as well now, hunched over panting and unable to get back up. Hikari drops a few seconds later, and then Junna.

Stop… Claudine shakes her head, heart pounding in her ears. Stop it… This is crazy… just stop-!

She hears another cry, and Futaba collapses, spitting curses. Karen falls next-

And then without warning, all of the remaining Korosu suddenly chitter and screech before vanishing into a dark mist. No more pour out from behind the stage.

There's a loud clattering sound as both Nana and Maya drop their swords and fall to their knees beside the others.

For a long moment, no one can move or even speak as they all attempt to catch their breath. Junna helps Karen sit back up, who in turn helps Mahiru, who has begun to cry. Nana is supporting Hikari, who is barely conscious at this point. It takes all of Nana's remaining strength to keep her from falling over.

"What…" she demands. "What in the world was that…? Why were there so many-"

"And there were more coming!" Junna cries. "I don't know what happened that made them vanish, but if they hadn't…"

A short distance away from them, Maya and Futaba check each other over before turning back to their partners. Claudine manages to give a nod to tell them she's all right, but she glances down at Kaoruko worriedly. She's still breathing hard - clearly in pain - and little whimpers keep slipping out. Futaba crawls over to her friend, and Claudine gently transfers Kaoruko into her lap instead. Futaba uses her sleeve to wipe more sweat from the injured girl's forehead.

"Kaoruko…? Oy…"

"I don't think she's bleeding…" Claudine huffs, inspecting the spot on Kaoruko's stomach where she'd seen her get scratched. The clothing isn't torn, and she can't see or smell any blood. She rests her hand on Kaoruko's stomach for a moment, but can't feel any heat oozing underneath either.

A few seconds later, Maya manages to push herself to her feet, using her sword as a crutch before staggering over to them. She drops down beside Claudine and leans rather heavily against her side.

"Perhaps…" she suggests. "That blow was just what pushed her past her limit…"

Futaba swallows a bit thickly and nods.

"Yeah… I think she'll be okay…"

"Only if we don't have to do this sort of thing again," Claudine growls. She keeps her arms gentle around Maya, but whips her head sideways to glare harshly at Elle now. "What the hell was all this? Why were there so many-?"

Everyone else slowly turns back to look at her, their gazes all variations of being weary and angry and upset. Elle wears an expression of shock; clearly, even she hadn't expected things to get this bad.

"I'm sorry." She bows to them all. "As I said, we don't know why this is happening… All we knew was that there was a much greater number of them than usual, and that we would need all of your assistance."

"And what about the other schools?" Junna snaps. "Why didn't you call them in to help us?"

Elle shakes her head. "I tried. But for some reason the connection was interrupted. In the end, I could only contact you girls of Seishou."

"This is messed up-!" Karen wails. Mahiru is still sobbing, and Karen pulls her into a tight, protective hug. "No one's ever gotten hurt like this before!"

"Karen-chan's right," Nana says in a low, almost threatening tone. She gently nudges Karen to get her attention. Both Karen and Mahiru part for a moment as Nana gently turns Hikari over to them. Hikari moans, barely able to keep her eyes open. Mahiru bursts into tears all over again, and Karen starts wailing too as they both hug their roommate close.

Nana uses one of her swords to get herself up onto one knee, and then Junna crouches beside her and slings her arm around Nana's shoulders. Together, they slowly manage to stand and face Elle.

"Elle-san," Nana says firmly. "I understand you had to call us here on short notice, and that you aren't even sure what's going on. But this was too much."

Elle dips her head.

"I know. I'm sorry. But it appears you all really have put a dent in the Korosu's numbers. I'm afraid we may have to keep calling you back here over the next few nights, but their numbers shouldn't be anything like they were tonight."

"Screw that!" Futaba barks, cradling Kaoruko against her chest. "You better not be callin' us back after all this!"

"I don't think we have much of a choice in the matter," Claudine huffs. "Whenever they want us here, they get us one way or another."

"As I said," Elle restates. "Should we require your assistance again in coming days, the fighting should not be as intense as it was tonight."

"I should hope so." Now, with Claudine's support, Maya manages to get to her feet with her. She turns a stern gaze upon Elle first, and then the giraffe. "I would be so bold as to say that if these battles can become grave enough to actually endanger our health and wellbeing as we saw tonight, that we may just be better off allowing whatever play to disappear and be lost to the Korosu."

There's a small gasp from the rest of them, but no one disagrees. Maya doesn't waver as she continues.

"I understand we have a duty as Stage Girls to protect the plays. But above all else, we must protect each other."

Claudine nods her approval.

"Well said, Tendo Maya. I whole-heartedly agree."

"Me, too."

"As do I."

All of their classmates who are able to voice their agreement do so.

Elle dips her head.

"Of course. Should things ever get out-of-hand, I will end the fight myself and send you all back, even if it costs us a play."

Far behind her, even the giraffe dips his head.

"I understand."

And so it seems they've all come to an agreement of sorts. Claudine lets out a long breath, gripping a little more tightly to Maya's back. She closes her eyes for a moment, and shortly afterward the spotlights all go dark.

The next thing she knows, she's opening her eyes to find herself back in the lounge room right where she'd left it. Only now, as she gets ahold of her bearings and slouches heavily against Maya's shoulder, she can feel the ache and enervation from battle like a disease coursing through her body.

All around her, her friends are suffering similarly. As soon as Maya opens her eyes, she gets dizzy and slumps back to lean against the couch. Claudine goes with her, flinching at a pain in the back of her head brought on by the overexertion.

It's troubling for her to see even Maya this affected, to the point where she can barely even open her eyes. Claudine sits herself up a little and covers Maya's hands in her lap.

"Don't get up yet," she murmurs. "Just take a minute…"

On the loveseat to the side of them, Junna is brushing her fingers through Nana's hair.

"You okay?" she asks.

"Mm… yeah." Nana slumps forward against her in a loose embrace, nuzzling into her shoulder. "What about you, Junna-chan?"

"I'll live. But we're all going to be dead-tired tomorrow in classes thanks to this…"

On the couch across from Claudine, Karen, Hikari, and Mahiru all begin to stir as well. Karen shakes herself off slowly as if she's just woken from a bad dream.

"Mn… Hikari-chan, Mahiru-chan… are you okay…?"

Hikari can only moan softly in response, rubbing her eyes. Mahiru already has tear trails down her cheeks, and as she opens her eyes now, fresh tears begin to fall.

"That was horrible…" she hiccups. "I-I don't ever wanna have to do something like that again… Even if it's just fighting the Korosu… everyone was in danger…" She brings both hands to her face and starts to sob all over again.

Hikari just whimpers and wraps her arms around Mahiru. Karen gets up and moves to sit on Mahiru's other side and hug her as well.

Claudine's heart clenches at the sight of everyone looking so exhausted and defeated, even though they'd beaten the Korosu tonight.

Finally, she hears Futaba and Kaoruko stir on the couch next to her. Kaoruko is still lying with her head in Futaba's lap as she'd been before the fight, only now her expression is one of great discomfort instead of lazy relaxation.

"Ah…" She moans, turning onto her side and curling in on herself, crossing her arms over her stomach. "F-Futaba-han…"

"Kaoruko…" Futaba rests a hand on her shoulders and rubs gently. Claudine can tell she's torn between still being pissed about the fight and being concerned about her friend. "How're you feeling?"

"Nn… my stomach hurts…" And everyone can tell it isn't just her usual complaining. She's genuinely in pain, which really makes tonight's battle hit home for all of them.

"This is bullshit," Futaba growls, though in spite of her harsh words, she's started to gently rub her hand over Kaoruko's stomach. "They better not be callin' us back to do that crap again."

"I hope not," Junna sighs. "Especially with our play coming up next week. We can't afford to lose sleep and risk getting injured because of this."

"But I have a feeling we'll have to go back," Nana mutters. "Elle-san made it sound that way…"

Everyone dreads it, but they know she's right. Karen looks up from Mahiru's shoulder, leaving Hikari to take care of her for a moment.

"Maybe Elle-san is right, though," she suggests. "Maybe we beat enough of the Korosu tonight so there won't be as many tomorrow."

"Even so," Maya says. "Having to expend the time and energy just to go to that stage and fight at all is rather troublesome…"

The ensuing silence shows they all agree.

"In any case…" Nana says finally. "Let's all just wait until tomorrow night and see if we're brought there again, and how bad it is if we are. Like Maya-chan said, if need be, we can just refuse to fight and make them send us back. Even if it means sacrificing a play…"

She flinches just to say as much, and everyone else looks down rather guiltily as well. But they're all in agreement that if that's what must be done, they'll do it.

With this, Junna encourages them all to get back to their rooms and rest.

Mahiru's sobs have finally died away into sniffles and hiccups, and she manages to stand together with Hikari and Karen. The three of them hobble off slowly, murmuring words of encouragement and comfort all the while.

Junna and Nana get up and go to help Futaba with Kaoruko, deciding that if she's still in pain in the morning, they'll take her to the nurse.

Claudine and Maya get up last. And Claudine is shocked to feel her partner sway the second they're on their feet. Maya falls back, and it's all Claudine can do to lunge forward and keep hold of her, guiding her slowly back down onto the couch.

"H-Hey! Tendo Maya-"

"I apologize," Maya sighs. "I'm fine. Please just give me a moment…"

Claudine bites her lip.

She doesn't like this. She doesn't like any of it one bit.

She, too, already has that creeping suspicion that they're all going to get summoned back to that underground stage tomorrow night, and maybe even the night after that as well. And maybe it won't be as bad as it was tonight, but she doesn't even like the idea of them going back at all.

Maya must be reading her thoughts, because she offers a tired little smile to her.

"Do not worry, Saijou-san. We were all just taken by surprise tonight. But now that we know we may be called upon again tomorrow, I'm certain we will be much more prepared."

"I guess…" Claudine pouts a little and looks down at the carpet. "But I still don't like this…"

"None of us do," Maya agrees. "But in spite of all I said tonight, as Stage Girls, we did make a vow to at least try and protect the plays. So as Daiba-san said, let us wait and see what tomorrow brings us, shall we? We can draw conclusions then."

Claudine heaves another sigh.

"Fine. Let's just get to bed for now. Here, lean onto me."

She has Maya sling an arm across her shoulders, and Claudine keeps a firm grip on her wrist. She drapes her other arm across Maya's back and moves with her to stand.

Slowly, they make their way out of the lounge and down the hallway to the dorm rooms. Claudine passes right by her own door without a second glance. When Maya turns her face and gives her a curious look, Claudine doesn't meet her gaze.

"As if I could leave you alone tonight when you're in such a sorry state, you infuriating woman…"

Maya says nothing more, but manages another tiny smile.

Claudine takes her to her room and goes in with her, bringing Maya to the bed and letting her lie down. Once she's settled, Claudine crawls in beside her; thankfully, it isn't the first time she's slept in her bed with her, so she isn't particularly hesitant about it. She lies her head on the pillow beside Maya with a huff. Maya turns onto her side to face her.

"Try not to fret too much, Saijou-san. We will all find a way through this together. Let us keep a positive outlook, shall we?"

Claudine closes her eyes

"Right."

Maya smiles a little worriedly, knowing that Claudine is still going to continue worrying until she falls asleep. So she slowly reaches out her hand and rests it gently over Claudine's for reassurance.

Claudine makes a tired little humming sound, but can't deny that the warmth of Maya's touch helps put her heart at ease a little.

But even as she drifts off to sleep, Claudine finds her mind still haunted by images of shadows.

A/N: I'm never too sure how I should go about describing the Korosu, since we never see that much of them even in the game, and they're very different in the live shows. So I tried to write them as a mix of each; with the appearance they have in the games, but with the malice they have in the lives. Either way, I hope I conveyed them well enough to get the sense of danger across.

I'm also not too sure about how well I depicted Elle and the giraffe interacting, but I tried. I didn't want to bother with Andrew though.

I felt it was only right to have Maya and Nana be the last ones on their feet during the fight, being they were the final two to do battle on the revue stage so many repeated times.

Please review!