AN: This chapter just kept going on and on, so I just sort of cut it off before it got too much more out of hand. Thanks to everyone who's reading and reviewing, and especially those who are bearing with me in spite of the Saionji/Juri thing. Trust me, I find it as weird as you do, and I didn't plan it- sometimes these things just happen.
I'm wrapped up in
the warmth of an unforgiving game,
I'm on vacation in the land of shame.
When the pigs are flying,
And it's freezing cold in hell,
Maybe we'll forgive the children, baby,
Only time can tell...
-Vast, "Land of Shame"
Kitty came back up in the elevator, and Saionji stepped in holding Juri, who weakly handed Kitty her sword.
"I'm going to kill that guy," Kitty growled.
"Is he gone?" Saionji asked. Juri's head was nodding, she seemed about to go to sleep. "Stay awake Juri!"
Juri's head snapped up.
"Are you okay?" Kitty asked. Saionji looked grim.
"She's lost a fair amount of blood, I'll take her to the infirmary."
"No you won't," Juri said.
"Don't be stupid," Saionji growled at her.
"I'm not going to that infirmary," she said.
"You haven't got any say. So shut up."
"I'm not-"
"One more word and I'll drop you," Saionji snapped.
"Go right ahead!"
They reached the bottom floor and the elevator opened. As Saionji stepped out, arguing with Juri the whole way, something metal clattered to the floor.
"Grab that, would you?" Saionji said to Kitty. She leaned down and scooped up the gold locket, which had fallen open. On the left, there was a thin faced young man with indigo hair that Kitty didn't recognize. He was laughing, and looked very happy. On the other side… Kitty glanced up sharply.
Saionji?
Juri shot her a look, and Kitty snapped the locket shut, following.
"Congratulations, Touga-san," Kozue said, draping herself over his shoulders as she dabbed his wounds. There was a scratch on his face, several cuts on his arms and torso, and one cut which, had it been just a little deeper, which would have pierced his jugular vein. "Looks like Juri was going for the kill."
"If she'd put as much effort into trying to cut off the rose as she did into trying to kill me, she might've won. But her hatred of me clouded her precision. And now we have a new addition to our happy home."
All eyes turned to the girl in the standard uniform, her hair braided and pinned to her head.
"You may ask any questions now, Maigo."
Maigo, who supposed she must respond to that name if that was all they intended to call her, looked up.
"Why did you choose me?" she asked. Jean smiled and answered.
"You were an empty thing to begin with, Maigo," she said. "Your gift was to fill the void inside you with the power of others. What better sheath for the sword of Dios?"
Maigo seemed to accept this answer, though she made no reply.
"Kozue and Kanae will duel at noon tomorrow to determine who will be engaged. Jean will challenge the victor, and Scott the victor after that."
"What if someone from the outside challenges us?" Scott asked.
Touga smiled.
"They very likely will," he said. "I've already given Kitty Pryde a ring. The old duelists still qualify. Perhaps Utena herself will come to call. We'll just have to wait and see, now won't we?"
"There's no reason for me to be here," Juri said, her arms crossed in her infirmary bed.
"Be quiet," Saionji said crossly. "You have holes in you where there shouldn't be any."
"Touga isn't here."
"Good. Maybe he'll get gangrene."
Juri smiled at this, but then remembered how irritated she was.
"It was very gallant of you to carry me to the infirmary Saionji, but don't you have someplace else to be?"
"No."
"Don't you have someplace you'd rather be?"
"No."
Juri sighed crossly and began to get up.
"Get back down," Saionji growled at her.
"I've had enough of your macho posturing, Saionji, and my irritation is defeating my gratitude in spades at the moment," she replied, standing up and going behind the curtain where her clothes had been left.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Saionji said, standing up himself.
"I'm going home, to my own bed, to have a hot bath, and to practice so that the next time I challenge Touga Kiryuu I won't miss his rose or his throat."
"But your cuts-"
"Have been stitched up," she snipped. "No more holes where there oughtn't be holes."
She emerged from behind the screen, her sword in her hand.
"I am going home. You may walk with me back to Byron Hall if you like, but if you get in my way I'm going to have to kill you."
Saionji made a face and moved to put her back in the infirmary bed, only to find the point of her sword, still stained with Touga's blood, leveled at his eye.
"You have made me repeat myself far too many times today, Saionji. I will not do so again. I have not had a particularly good day. Now are you coming with me or not?"
Saionji threw his hands into the air, shoved them into his pockets, and stalked after her.
"Stubborn bitch," he muttered.
"I heard that, you overbearing fool," she retorted. The nurse tried to protest their exit, beseeching Saionji to reason with Juri when the latter just swept past her.
"Mister Saionji sir, please talk to her, she's not well enough-"
Saionji gazed at the nurse with a sour face.
"One cannot reason with the unreasonable," he said darkly, following after Juri. He took a few longer steps to catch up with her.
"At least rest," he snapped. Juri ground her teeth and glared straight ahead.
"I fought like the basest amateur, Saionji. There is no excuse for that kind of failure. I won't rest until I've undone the damage."
"You're not going to do anyone any good by tearing your stitches apart," Saionji replied. He'd been right, and she was blaming herself, and would drive herself to ruin rather than accept failure. Saionji had lately come to dislike being right.
"Touga sent a ring to Kitty," he said after a moment. Juri stopped and looked at him. "It's not Akio's rose, though. This one is red."
Juri scowled.
"So Touga really does fancy himself the End of the World? Fine. I'm not out of lessons yet."
Saionji winced as she threw open the doors to Byron and stormed in like a wild fire up the stairs to the third floor. He growled outwardly when he heard the door of her apartment slam.
"Hello?" another voice came at the door.
"Will it ever fucking end?" Saionji grumbled, turning. "What?"
He found himself face to face with Utena, a bunch of white daisies wrapped in green paper in her hand
"Oh, it's you," he said. She rolled her eyes as she reached his level.
"Big fuzzy hugs to you too, sunshine. Is Juri home?"
"Up the stairs," he said. "She's in an even better mood, so watch out."
Utena just smiled and shrugged and made her way up the stairs.
"And may I come in as well?" another voice said from the doorway.
"Why the hell not, it's your damn campus!" Saionji shouted. "Since when does anyone listen to me anyway, god knows that stubborn marmalade haired bitch upstairs won't listen to reason!"
Anthy walked in and crossed her arms.
"It's this kind of behavior that makes me wish I wasn't chairwoman."
"It's this kind of behavior that makes me wish I were dead," Saionji replied. "Or that I still had the energy to kill the rest of you."
"Don't whine, Saionji. Utena will smooth Juri's feathers, now invite me up for tea, we need to talk."
Saionji grudgingly walked up to the second floor, where he kept his quarters, and let Anthy inside, putting a kettle on for tea.
"You'll have to settle for tea bags, I'm not in the mood for ceremony," he said. Anthy had already folded her legs beneath her and sat on the floor at the low table.
"Are your feathers ruffled on Juri's behalf, Saionji?" Anthy asked, picking a tea bag and placing it in her cup.
"No. I am merely irritated at all the carrying on I've seen in the past hour," he said shortly, sitting down himself.
"Carrying on is not entirely inappropriate. All hell has broken loose after all."
"What do you want me to do about it?"
Anthy sighed, folding her hands on the table as though she were praying.
"Even if Juri becomes the victor, it won't end the duels. We have to see this through to the end, now."
"There's only one way to end it," Saionji sighed. "And I don't know if I'm ready to go through that again."
"Actually, there are two ways. We can see the duels through to the end and bring the castle down once more, and risk falling prey to Touga's revolution, or Kozue's, or Kanae's, or anyone's."
"Or?" Saionji said.
"Or we can kill the Rose Bride, put her out of her misery, and put a stop to this."
Saionji looked at Anthy for a moment.
"You're serious," he said.
"I'm honest," she answered. The kettle began to whistle, and she stood up to get it, returning to the table and pouring hot water into both her tea cup and Saionji's.
"How can you suggest that? You of all people-"
"Only if it comes to that, a very last resort," Anthy said evenly. "She would be better off dead than trapped in a shell of herself."
"Would you say the same if Touga had captured Utena instead?" Saionji said. Anthy's fingers tightened on her tea cup.
"You know very well that I wouldn't."
"Then you're a hypocrite!" he snapped. He shut his mouth as Anthy's eyes bored through him, green made sharper and harder by her glasses.
"Yes. I am a hypocrite, Saionji. Anyone in love would be. But I will do the same for this girl that I would do for Utena, short of laying down my life or my love's."
"What does that mean?"
Anthy set down her tea cup.
"Juri is injured, and will not win if she fights too soon, and may do herself permanent damage."
"Go ahead and try telling her that, she won't listen to me, that's for damned sure."
"She is ashamed, Saionji, of her failure. Everything was hinging on that fight. It's no kindness to her to pretend that it wasn't. I will not allow Utena to take up any sword or set foot in the arena ever again. I don't want to know what could happen if the Sword of Alma collided with whatever sword this new Rose Bride holds inside her. I may take up a sword myself, but never Utena.
"I came to ask you to challenge the next victor, Saionji," Anthy said plainly, placing her hand on his. "I am not ready, neither is Miki, and this child who knows the Rose Bride will not be ready to fight for some time. You are all we have, and you are the strongest."
Saionji was stunned, and when he opened his mouth to speak, he heard himself say,
"I will do whatever you ask."
His trance was broken when a sharp knock came on the door.
"Hey, can we come in?" Utena called.
"It's open!" Saionji called back, desperate for someone else to be in the room. To be alone with Anthy was agony for him, to be pinned down by those deep green eyes which had once looked at him blankly and with absolute obedience, to remember his cruelty towards the girl he thought he'd loved, and to see her indifference towards it. Utena bounded in and pounced on Anthy, whose face lit up.
"Hi!" Utena chirped, throwing her arms around Anthy's shoulders.
"You're cheerful," Anthy said, withdrawing her hand from Saionji's.
"Well, I was trying to cheer up Juri and that didn't work, so I guess I just cheered up myself. How about you Saionji, do you want to be cheered up too?"
"Dear god no," Saionji replied, looking off at Juri. "How are you?"
"Fair," she replied flatly. "Stiffer than I thought I'd be." Her fingers twitched over her chest, and Saionji knew she must be feeling for her locket for reassurance.
"Saionji's agreed to challenge whatever victor turns up," Anthy said. Juri's head snapped up.
"No. I will challenge the victor, Anthy, this is my fight!" she hissed.
"It's nothing of the sort and you know it," Anthy replied sharply, standing up. "This is not some grudge match between you and Touga, and it is not about us. Don't you understand? This is about an enslaved child, not revolutionizing the world or teaching Touga Kiryuu his place. You know better, Arisugawa."
Anthy's fists were clenched. While no longer a doll, she was nonetheless fairly even tempered, and the tension in the room was palpable as the two stared each other down.
"I apologize," Juri said tightly. "Please excuse me."
She walked swiftly out of the room, too swiftly to be anything but on the verge of tears.
"So much for cheering her up," Utena sighed from her spot on the floor.
"You didn't have to be so harsh, Himemiya," Saionji said. Anthy looked at him with absolute indignation.
"You're one to talk, you're cruel to her all the time!" she snapped. "Utena, would you go after her?"
Utena looked uneasy.
"I think she's had enough of me today. Five more minutes of Tenjou-psychology and she's liable to take a swing at me."
Saionji got up.
"Where are you going?" Anthy asked.
"To talk to her."
"I don't think-"
"Drink your damned tea," he snapped, slamming the door.
Exactly what we need. Himemiya losing patience, Juri losing face, Tenjou forbidden to fight, me trying to fix things and Touga thinking he's the End of the damned World. This is not what I had planned for today.
He stalked up the stairs to Juri's apartment and banged on the door.
"Open up, Arisugawa."
"Go away," a voice from inside replied.
"No. Open the door."
Silence.
"Don't be stubborn!"
Silence. Saionji was about to declare that he could wait all damned day for her to come out and that there was a fire axe ten feet away and maybe he'd just hack through the damned door, when he heard the soft clearing of a throat behind him. Miki smiled meekly, then stepped past Saionji to knock softly on the door.
"Juri? It's Miki, may I come in?"
The locks came undone, and the door opened partway. As Miki slipped inside, Saionji caught a glimpse of Juri, not her face, just her hair, and the glint of the light off her locket in the open collar of her jacket. The door shut and locked with an air of finality.
Saionji sighed and slunk back down to his own apartment.
"Any luck?" Utena asked. She'd made herself comfortable while Anthy paced anxiously, sprawling next to the table and drinking tea.
"Miki's in there. He'll bring her around."
"I'm sorry," Anthy said, stopping in mid-pace. "I shouldn't have snapped at her, and I shouldn't have snapped at you for snapping at me about it."
She pushed her hands through her hair and heaved a frustrated sigh.
"I am in charge, aren't I. I do have to decide the course of action," she glanced at Utena. "Are you certain we can't just go back to me calling you Utena-sama and doing everything you wanted before you knew you wanted it?"
Utena made a face.
"I'm positive," she answered. "And you know you don't mean it anyway."
"At the moment it seems preferable. Fine. We won't worry about Juri at the moment, if she's talking to Miki she'll be fine," Anthy said. "Our primary concerns at the moment are the new Rose Bride, and her friend."
"Kitty has a ring," Saionji said suddenly. "I forgot till just now, but she does. Touga gave it to her."
"I expected as much," Anthy said, taking off her glasses and pinching the bridge of her nose. "And she took it of course, not realizing the implications, to try and save her friend."
"Someone had better teach the brat to use a sword," Saionji said. Utena and Anthy both turned to look at him. "What?"
"I've failed everyone," Juri said in a dead voice, her knees drawn close to her chest, arms around her legs. "I don't understand what happened. I should have beaten Touga easily. I was perfectly focused the night before. I don't understand what went wrong."
Miki put his arm around her shoulders.
"It's a temporary setback, Juri. You weren't expecting the Rose Bride to be there."
"That's no excuse," Juri said. "He didn't use the Sword in her. He didn't even draw it."
"There's no undoing what's happened, Juri, we just have to see it through and fix it."
Juri curled up tighter.
"Come here," Miki said, tipping the Juri-ball into his arms. "It'll be all right."
"How can you even look at me?"
"It will take much more than losing a duel to make me lose any respect for you, Juri," he said, holding his friend tightly.
"I don't know how, Kitty, get over it."
"Come on, this is important."
"No. I'll lose an eye."
Kitty looked at her with giant puppy eyes.
"Please?"
Lily snapped her book shut and looked down at Kitty from the top bunk.
"Kitty. That umbrella is not a sword, and your friend is clearly in the hands of insane people, and based on what you've told me I'm kinda afraid that the entire board is psychotic."
"Weirder things have happened. Do I have to put my hand through the wall again to prove it?"
"Please don't."
"Then pick up that broom and come on!"
"Absolutely not. Get one of your Highlander teachers to show you."
Kitty plunked down on her bed and sighed, twirling the umbrella.
"I suppose I could drop in on Juri-san," Kitty said. "I haven't seen her since she went to the infirmary."
"Then why don't you do that," Lily said, a trifle impatiently from behind her algebra textbook. It was only Saturday, and Kitty had only been going on about this magical world of swords and dueling and the secret identities of their teachers for that long, but for Lily, that was plenty long enough. "I realize that you have to save the world from the English teacher, but I still have to pass math."
Kitty sighed and got up, putting down the umbrella.
"Okay, I'll be back soon."
"Take your time. Please," Lily replied dryly. Kitty stuck her tongue out at her and walked out, shoving her hands into the pockets of her sweatshirt.
"Hi Kitty,"
"Hello Kitty," two voices said the second she emerged from Marlowe.
"Great," she said angrily, as Jean and Scott stepped in front of her. "What do you two want?"
"Just to talk," Scott said gently. "We're friends, aren't we?" Kitty's eyes narrowed.
"Yeah, funny you should mention that, cause I had this other friend once, maybe you remember her," she said, walking through Jean and Scott's roadblock. "Brown hair, white streak, used to have free will!"
"Kitty, you have to understand," Jean said, both of them following after her. "This is the best chance we have to make the world a better place!"
"We're only doing what the Professor wants."
"The Professor wanted you to stab Rogue, Scott? Oh, well that makes it okay then! God, what is wrong with you two?"
"Kitty, do you have any idea what the final victor of the duels gets? Did the chairwoman and her friends even tell you that much?" Jean asked.
"Don't care," Kitty replied.
"The power to revolutionize the world, in the most real and true sense. When that castle comes down, we can make the whole world accept mutants, without a drop of blood being shed," Jean continued. "No one would have to die. No more mutant kids being disowned and left to fend for themselves. No more innocent people being massacred by Magneto. It could all be okay."
"And all you had to do was stab one of your best friends in the back. I'm sorry, in the chest," Kitty replied.
"Think of the bigger picture, Kitty," Scott said. "Is the price really that high?"
Kitty turned around and slapped him, nearly knocking his glasses off his face.
"You two," she seethed. "Are both sick. I don't know when you started thinking like this, or what Professor Xavier and Professor Kiryuu told you, but you're sick. If I'm the only X-Man who hasn't lost her mind, then fine, I'll stop you myself."
Jean and Scott stopped as Kitty continued walking.
"You and what sword, Kitty Pryde?" Jean muttered, too quietly for anyone but Scott to hear.
"Should we tell the Professor?" Scott said.
"It's just Kitty, Scott, she's nothing we can't handle on our own."
Kitty continued her path over to Byron as before, except now she felt a new hatred burning in her heart. The Professor, Scott and Jean had entirely one-eightied on the philosophies they'd all fought so hard for, in favor of a quick, magic fix. All they had to do was sacrifice a friend whose trust had been so hard won. Sick. She shivered.
Kinda cold for September, she thought as she reached the doors of Byron. She reached out and pressed the button next to Juri's name.
"Yes?" Juri's voice said over the speaker.
"Juri-san, it's Kitty. If you're not busy, could I come talk to you?"
"Third floor," Juri replied, followed by a metallic buzz heralding that the door was unlocked.
Kitty had never been inside Byron and was shocked at the size of it. It was like the time Kurt had dragged her into that Cathedral and wait while he went to confession, all high ceilings and huge windows and open space that made you feel like you were being watched. She hurried up the stairs to the third floor, where she found Juri waiting in the only doorway.
"Hi. Thanks for seeing me," Kitty said as Juri stepped back inside and gestured for Kitty to follow.
"It's no problem. I've been bored, Miki keeps chasing me out of the fencing gymnasium."
"How's your arm?" Kitty asked. Juri rotated her shoulder and sighed.
"Healing, slowly but properly I'm told." She walked into her living room and sat down on a divan made of white velvet. "Take a seat wherever you like. What did you need to speak to me about?"
Kitty sat down in an armchair and tried to think of where to begin.
"Well," she said. "I have this ring, you know? And I have two friends who've turned into total psychos, and one who's turned into a zombie. And the only way to fix her seems to be these duels, so… could you teach me to fence?"
Juri leaned forward and sighed.
"I don't know," she said. "You're a little old to start now."
"Come on," Kitty protested, "I was a superhero for like, three years. It won't take much for me to get back into shape."
Juri looked at Kitty dubiously.
"Please?" Kitty said.
"Are you sure you don't want to take kendo?" Juri asked. "Saionji could-"
It was Kitty's turn to look dubious.
"Fine," Juri sighed, standing up. "We'll start with foil."
Kitty jumped up.
"I'm so ready!" Juri stepped out of the room.
"Let me change, we'll go see if Miki's at the gymnasium."
When Juri reemerged, Kitty noticed her tucking her locket into her fencing jacket.
"Why do you keep hiding that?" Kitty asked. "It's so pretty."
Juri gave her a stern look.
"You saw what was inside at the dueling arena, yes?"
"Well, yeah-"
"Then you know exactly why," she said, ushering Kitty out the door and locking it. Juri was mistaken, however if she thought that ended the line of questioning, which continued all the way to the gymnasium.
"Who's the blue haired guy?" Kitty asked.
"Ruka."
"Who's he?"
"My dead friend," Juri replied.
"I'm sorry."
"It happened a long time ago."
Kitty stretched her arms into the air, fingers interlaced.
"Were you in love with him?" she asked.
"Not while he was alive."
"Oh… was he in love with you?"
"Where in God's name did you learn to be so nosy?" Juri exclaimed.
"My blue haired friend Kurt."
"Is he dead?" Juri asked.
"No."
"Were you in love with him?"
"No! Ew!" Kitty replied.
"Was he in love with you?"
"No fair changing the subject!" Kitty protested. "Back to you locket."
Juri sighed irritably.
"So why is that other picture in there?" Kitty asked, not at all subtly.
"That's enough."
"Come on, you can tell me!"
"Don't push me, Kitty."
"Are you in love with him?"
"Kitty," Juri said, stopping where she stood. "You, a girl who has never picked up a foil before, are about to go toe to toe with me, a seasoned sword fighter. Do you really think it's in your best interests to upset me?"
"I'm not fighting you, you're injured, I'm gonna fight Professor Kaoru. Anyway, you and Mister Locket are always so crabby with each other. Or is it one of those love-hate things?"
Juri sighed, her hand on the door handle of the gym.
"I am an impeccable dresser. My apartment is beautifully designed. I have an eye for color, detail, and form. However, there is one arena in which my taste is questionable. That is all I have to say on the matter."
"Does he know?"
"No."
"Do you want him to?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because the knowledge would disagree with him," she said. Her hand tightened on the door handle as she recalled Utena dragging her into his apartment the day before, seeing him dumbstruck by Himemiya. "His interests are elsewhere."
With that, Juri opened the door, Kitty shut up, and they walked in.
"Stop! Time out, time out," Miki shouted to his opponent when he saw Juri. "Juri, you're my dearest friend, but I'm not letting you fence today! Please don't make me call Utena for back-up," he pleaded, walking over.
"Oh you're not fighting me," Juri said. "You're fighting Miss Nosy here." She headed into a closet as Miki looked vaguely panicked.
"I thought Saionji was-"
Kitty gave him a look.
"Right," Miki said. "No Saionji, okay."
"How tall are you?" Juri called.
"Five one," Kitty said, only to have a jacket thrown at her.
"Try that. It should be snug but not restrictive."
Over the next several hours, Miki taught Kitty the basic forms of fencing, Juri critiquing and correcting minutia in her form. She'd learned the most basic of thrusts and parries, what was a legal target in foil, making her practice each until they'd pounded out any flaws in these basics.
"How many more times do I have to do this?" Kitty asked, stepping forward and thrusting for what felt like the millionth time.
"Until your arm falls off," Juri said, relaxing in a chair. Miki sighed.
"Don't discourage her!" he said. "Kitty, these are the basics. Everything else builds on this, so it's vital that you learn it correctly. Fencing is less about thinking than knowing instinctively what to do. If you have to think about what to do next, your opponent will take advantage of your hesitation. So your whole body has to know what comes next, not just your mind."
"Like muscle memory?"
"Exactly," Miki replied. "Juri, do you want to call it quits for today and go get some dinner?"
Kitty's head came up sharply.
"What time is it?" she asked. Miki checked his stop watch.
"About six. The sun's going down."
Kitty's sword arm fell.
"I didn't say stop," Juri said, but didn't chastise further when she saw the look of fear on Kitty's face.
"Do you think they've had another duel?" Kitty asked in a small voice. Miki and Juri looked at one another.
"Only one way to find out," Miki said grimly.
All three changed out of fencing clothes and walked over to Beaudelaire in silence, and Miki knocked on the door. A few moments later the door swung open, and a disheveled Kozue, her shirt halfway open.
"My my my," she smiled when she saw who'd come calling. "My precious brother. What can I do for you?"
Miki swallowed hard, trying to ignore his sister's attire.
"Was there a duel today?"
"There was, Miki. Are you here to challenge the victor? Oh, how's your arm Juri?" she asked, glancing at the other woman.
"Healing nicely, thank you Kozue. How's Touga's throat?"
"No one's challenging anyone yet," Miki snapped. "Who is the victor?"
Kozue leaned against the doorframe, exposing more cleavage to Miki's chagrin.
"You're looking at her, big brother. Now if you'll excuse me, Touga and I were just celebrating."
The door slammed shut in Miki's face. He turned grimly and looked at the other two.
"There's our answer. We should go tell Saionji."