Episode Three: Anthy's Friend




Anthy smiled at her reflection in the full-length wall mirror in the bathroom. She had paid for a room for a few nights, which luckily didn't cost too much. She looked herself over and ran her hands lightly down her body, her thoughts involuntarily drifting to her brother. She thought about all the nights she had spent with him…out in the planetarium, on the couch, in his arms, while Utena slept by herself, thinking Anthy was there with her. She really did feel guilty for that…for everything she had done to Utena. But now was no time for regrets. She had found Utena, and she was going to make everything right. They were going to be together again, and this time, maybe, they could be even closer than before. Now, that there was no dueling, no school, no student council, and no Akio.
Anthy stepped out of the bathroom, wearing a dark green sweater and a light blue skirt that twirled around her legs, cutting off just above her knees. ChuChu looked up from where he had been tracing the pretty patterns of the bed covers and admired her outfit.
"Chu, chu!" he complimented her as she turned gracefully for him.
She smiled and giggled slightly.
"Thank you, ChuChu."

Ruka Tsuchiya stood in the doorway of the garage area, leaning against it with his arms crossed. He watched Utena as she worked away with a wrench on the underside of a light pink car.
"You're working fast today," he remarked.
"Yeah," Utena grunted. "I'm showing this new girl, Anthy Himemaya, around the town when I get off."
Ruka watched her work for a few more minutes.
"That thing is never going to run, Tenjou."
Utena slid out from underneath the car and smiled at him.
"Well, not if you work on it, it won't. But I'm going to fix it."
Ruka smirked at her and left the garage. Utena held out her arm and looked at her watch. She still had a few minutes to kill before six, so she slipped back under the car and kept working.
"Um, Utena?"
Utena's eyes widened a little and she quickly scrambled out from underneath the car.
"Oh, uh, Anthy! You're early!" she said, embarrassedly rubbing the back of her head.
Anthy looked at her. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair was slightly tangled, her face was dirty, and she had quite a few oil stains on her shirt and jeans. Anthy had never seen Utena quite like this before, and it gave her an odd feeling of contentment. She smiled and waved.
"Hello, Utena!"
Utena smiled awkwardly.
"Hi, Anthy. Why don't you wait out here for a minute while I go change, okay?"
Anthy nodded and watched Utena as she went inside the back door to the shop.

After Utena changed, she and Anthy got into Utena's car. She drove through Katalia Town, the colorful lights of buildings, restaurants, and clubs flashing by them. Utena pointed out all the important places like the hospitals, the stores, the libraries, and such.
"So where did you say you were from?" Utena asked.
"Actually…I've lived in the Ohtori Academy campus all my life."
Utena glanced at her oddly.
"Really? That's…interesting. Why is that?"
"My brother is the chairman of the school."
"Oh."
Utena didn't say anything else about it. There had been something in Anthy's voice that told her Anthy didn't like talking about it.
They stopped at a little quiet café called Rose Petal. When Anthy walked inside, she was reminded slightly of the chairs and tables at Ohtori's dining area. Utena bought both of them croissants, cookies, and tea. Anthy smiled as she bit into her cookie.
'This is what Miss Utena and I promised each other. To have cookies and tea again, just like before. Only we promised we would do this ten years from now.'
Utena leaned back in chair.
"So, how do you like Katalia?"
"It's very pretty out here. I think I may stay here for a long time. I love roses."
Utena's eyes sparkled.
"Yeah? They kind of have a soft spot with me, too. Can't really think of why, though…"
Anthy just smiled and sipped her tea.
"There's a lot of things I can't figure out, actually," Utena continued. "It's really weird. It's like I find myself thinking there is something I've forgotten. Like there's this promise I'm trying to keep, but I'm not sure if I have…"
Anthy paused as she lifted a cookie to her lips. Miss Utena had promised to save her, to be her prince. And she had done it, Anthy knew. It made her so sad that Utena didn't know…not that it mattered at this moment, it's not like she could tell her yet. Utena blinked and rubbed her head sheepishly.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. "You probably don't want to hear about my weird memory problems."
"Oh, it's all right, Utena. I'll listen to you whenever you want to talk."
Utena's eyes widened slightly. Hearing that from someone she just met was just a little shocking. But it was nice to hear, still. She took a sip from her tea and smiled sweetly at Anthy.
"Thank you, Anthy."
"Anytime, Utena."
"Chu!"
Anthy giggled.
"ChuChu saves you can talk to him, too."
Utena chuckled and reached over to tickle ChuChu lightly under his chin, making him squirm and laugh. Anthy smiled and her eyes grew slightly moist.
'This is just like before, Miss Utena. I wish you could remember it.'

Utena drove Anthy back to the gas station where she had left her car. While she walked Anthy to her car, she wrote down her phone number and handed it to her.
"Here you go. That's my number. If you ever want to hang out again, you can just call. If I'm not there…"
She stopped and motioned her head towards the gas station.
"You'll know where to find me."
Anthy smiled at her.
"Thank you, Utena. I will call you."
Utena smiled back and watched Anthy until she was in her car and out of sight. For some reason, she just felt so…normal with Anthy. And they had only just met! But, and she knew this was so clichéd, she felt like she had known her forever.

ChuChu lay on the bed on his stomach, pushing the little buttons on the TV remote to surf through the channels. Anthy stepped out of the bathroom in her long nightgown and brushed out her long purple hair. She sat down next to ChuChu and patted his head.
"Utena is just the way she was before, isn't she, ChuChu?"
"Chu!" ChuChu nodded.
Anthy lay down and rested her head on the fluffy pillows.
"Tomorrow I'm going to start looking for a job," she said to the distracted little monkey. "Maybe at that Rose Petal place."
"Chu," he murmured.
Anthy cuddled into the silky soft covers and closed her eyes. ChuChu turned off the TV and snuggled up close to her, and was quickly snoring softly.

To be continued…

*********************Author's Thanks************************

Utena Tenjou-- Doesn't if fit her, though? ^_^ Thanks for your review!

keiko-chan-- Hee hee, I know it took me awhile. *sheepish smile* Sad thing is, I don't even have an excuse for not working on it. Anyways, I'm glad you're enjoying the story! Thanks so much!

CrazySunshine-- Yes, we WILL see! Hehehe! Thanks for reading, and I'm glad you like it so far. *many hugs n' kisses*