(please refer to Chapter 1 for the Disclaimer etc.)

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ACT 2

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Sakura and Sumire were left alone in the dining room. Sakura was open to wonder. 'Now where did Maria-san go?' A small frown covered her face. Sumire, who was just right in front of her, noticed the sudden change in her mood. The prideful woman frowned back. "Why are you looking at me in such a gloomy manner? Is there something wrong with my face?"

Sakura felt Sumire's attack upon hearing her unmistakably irate tone. She quickly got on defense by raising her hand in front of her chest. "No, Sumire-san, it wasn't about you. I was just thinking of something else."

"Well, stop thinking of that, whatever it was, especially when you're in front of me like this. You're just making me feel paranoid!" Sumire stood up and left her unfinished meal.

Sakura heaved another sigh. "Oh, girl. Why am I acting this way?"

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Ayame's Office.

After hearing Ayame's explanation about her unplanned absence, Ohgami and Maria nodded in understanding.

Ayame rose from her seat. "So I guess I'll leave all the responsibilities to both of you."

"Don't worry Ayame-san. It will do just fine," Ohgami said with an earnest smile.

"I'm counting on that," Ayame smiled back to him but it suddenly faded when she saw the seriousness in Maria's face. The Russian was in deep thought. "Is there something wrong, Maria?" she asked.

"I was just thinking. . . " Maria started as she cupped her chin. "What if the enemies attack us while you're gone?"

Ayame suppressed again a smile on her lips. "That's undeniably possible."

"They will take this chance and it's too dangerous."

"Isn't the team capable enough?"

Maria found herself unable to reply.

Ohgami placed his hand on her shoulder like she did that morning. "Don't worry, Maria. I'm right here."

As if by accident, they met and held each other's concerned gazes. After several long moments, they quickly turned away from each other, realizing with discomfort that, as teammates, they should not be doing that kind of thing.

Ayame noticed the act and chuckled, her hand covering her mouth. "I think I don't have any more problems here," she teased.

Maria felt uncomfortable about what happened but she quickly regained her composure unlike Ohgami who was still blushing.

"Taichou, I wonder when you will release your hand off my shoulder," Maria said in her usual tone.

"HA. . .!" Ohgami almost forgot about it and quickly removed his hand. He didn't want a gun in front of his nose anyway.

"That's better." Maria made a side glance to him looking how much he flushed at the moment.

Ayame couldn't help but to chuckle by watching the two. "I think this is the best time to leave both of you together."

Maria crossed her arms. Judging by the look on her face, she did not appreciate the joke. Ayame was further amused by this. "Ah, come now, Maria, you know I didn't mean that," she said half-jokingly.

"Of course, Ayame-san," Maria said coldly, though with a hint of annoyance.

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Sakura moaned to herself as she stared at the properly arranged flowers in the vase. It was on the table she was sitting at. She had an elbow resting upon the table, her hand supporting her cheek. A petal fell and she sighed again.

"A flower's life is brief but I guess it's not worth to mourn for them." Kanna's voice distracted the girl in pink kimono. She was also there watching Sakura the whole time.

"I'm not mourning for them," Sakura said convincingly. "I'm just not happy that's all."

Kanna scratched her head. "And why is that?"

"I'm not sure." Sakura placed her chin on the table. Her brown eyes were still on the flowers.

"Oh, well if there's something I can do to help." Kanna thumbed her nose.

Sakura turned to face Kanna. "I think I'm just fine. Thanks for asking."

Kanna just shrugged and after a while she left her without a word.

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After a couple of hours.

At the Stage.

Ohgami and Maria came late at the practice. Although Sakura wanted to ask why, she has no guts to do so. Luckily, Sumire did the job for her.

"So why on earth are you late?" Sumire asked in her usual demanding tone.

Sakura was also waiting for the answer.

"The two of us had a meeting with Ayame-san," Ohgami answered. "And it seems that Maria and I would be in charge of the Imperial Theater for a while."

"I heard that from Miss Ayame too," Kohran interrupted. "She said we will be leaving tomorrow morning. I will spend this remaining time to practice with you though."

After hearing their answers Sumire dismissed the interrogation and turned to her script.

And so did the rest.

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"I give him curses, yet he gives me love," Sumire recited Hermia's lines as passionately as possible. She waited for Sakura to answer, as was written in the script.

Sumire eyed her, still waiting.

"Ah. . . Oh!" Sakura gathered herself again from a moment of distraction. "That my prayers could such affection move?"

Sumire narrowed her eyes at her but continued her lines anyway. "The more I hate, the more he follows me."

Sakura frantically turned the page and delivered the next line. "Um. . . the more I love. . . the more he hated me?"

"AH! THAT'S IT!" Sumire yelled. "I can't stand to hear you any longer! You don't even know how to project emotions!"

Sakura bowed down for an apology. "Sumimasen. I know it's my fault. Please forgive me."

"I'm tired of your excuses."

Kanna placed her hand on her head, "Uh-oh, here we go again."

"I'm sorry."

"Enough," Sumire snapped back.

Sakura slowly turned to look in Ohgami's and Maria's direction. They were busy in a corner by themselves. Maria was teaching Ohgami the right way to deliver his lines. It looked as if they were in a world of their own. She felt jealousy touch her heart again. 'Why won't it be the other way around?' Sakura muttered to herself. 'Maria is my partner not Ohgami's.'

"SAKURA-SAN! Are you going to daydream there!" Sumire spoke out loud.

"Ah, no. . ., " Sakura said quite taken aback.

"Stupid country girls. . ."

Kanna observed how peculiar Sakura's been acting so lately.

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"How now, spirit? Whither wonder you?" Ohgami said firmly not denying that he was a bit nervous. "How's that sound?" he quickly asked.

"Not bad for an amateur," Maria commented. She was almost smiling.

Ohgami felt his cheeks burn.

"But try to ease your tension; it's affecting your voice."

"Uh, I know." Ohgami scratched his head and laughed at himself.

Iris was looking intently at him. "You're great Oniichan. Now we can go and practice together."

"Right Iris." Ohgami smiled at the French girl.

A sudden raise of voice distracted the three.

"SAKURA, that's the fiftieth time you pronounced it SO idiotically wrong!" Sumire's voice echoed the stage.

"I'm sorry," was Sakura's constant reply.

"Will the two of you stop that?" Kanna interjected. "You're going nowhere."

"Right, you must be helping each other not fight-" Kohran stopped for a while when Sumire glared at her.

Maria stood up when the argument finally got her nerves. Ohgami followed close by. Iris remained in her position while hugging tightly her teddy bear.

"Now what happened here?" Maria asked her voice louder than usual.

Sumire crossed her arms quite annoyed to answer any questions.

"It's my fault entirely," Sakura answered. "I'm not making any good progress on my lines." Her voice almost broke and she was nearly crying. Maria turned her attention to her, unsure of what to say at first.

Ohgami clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "Okay, I think what we need now is a break. Isn't it Maria?"

Maria nodded, though she still kept looking at Sakura. The young girl was now weeping, and had buried her face in her hands.

Sumire abruptly left, not wanting to discuss the matter anymore.

"I think Sakura has a problem," Kanna whispered to Maria's ear before she left and followed Sumire.

Ohgami nodded to Maria before leaving with Iris and Kohran.

Maria returned his nod, indicating that she could handle the situation with Sakura alone.

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Maria placed her hand on the younger girl's shoulder. "Sakura?"

Sakura sobbed for a while and tried to wipe away her tears. "I know I'm clumsy. . .a-and stupid."

"No. . . that's not what I wanted to hear. Now, look at me."

Sakura slowly faced her. She could clearly see the pretty green eyes of the blond Russian she admired. "Maria-san. . . I'm so sorry!"

Sakura couldn't hold her emotions back any longer and she quickly hugged Maria and burrowed her face into the Russian's bosom. "Sa-" Maria didn't manage to complete her name as Sakura cried and cried without saying a single word. Maria didn't know what else to do except comfort Sakura by hugging her back.

Sakura could feel the warmth of Maria's embrace. She hoped for it to last. She could also smell her perfume and it enticed her to tighten her grip.

"S-sakura," Maria stammered uneasily.

Sakura regained her senses. "Oh. . . I'm sorry. . ." She released her grip and wiped away a tear. Sakura couldn't seem to be able to look Maria straight in the eye.

"Please tell me what's wrong," Maria asked.

Sakura hesitated to speak which intrigued the blond woman. "Well? Aren't you going to say it? There's nobody here but you, and I. If you have a problem you can address it to me."

Sakura was staring at nowhere while tears flowed again from her eyes uncontrollably. "I-I. . . ,admire you. . . In a way I couldn't describe," Sakura said, trying to hide the blush from her cheeks.

Maria remained silent and allowed her to continue.

"I like you because you are strong, collected, calm, intelligent and mature . . . unlike me, who always commits mistakes."

Sakura asked herself, 'Is that what you really wanted to say? What if she...?' She closed her eyes and waited for the worst.

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Maria sat down on the audience chair and motioned for Sakura to sit beside her. Sakura obeyed immediately without saying a word.

"Is that all?" Maria said not looking at her.

Sakura didn't move. 'No! No! There's more to it dammit! Why can't I find the right words?'

"In that case you should start to believe yourself. I can't be you and you can't be me," Maria spoke softly. "We admire the qualities in other people that we ourselves might not have, but you must realize that there are good qualities that others admire in us. Take yourself, for example. Try to use your talents and enhance them so that people will start to appreciate you. There's no point in pitying yourself because others might think less of you for it."

Sakura was totally drawn in by every word she said. "I-I'll try my best."

Maria gave her a warm smile. "Sakura, make your father proud. Make the Flower Division proud."

The younger woman blushed at her smile. "I-I'll try Maria-san."

Maria stood up knowing that the crisis was finished.

"Ah. . . Maria-san?" Sakura called.

Maria turned to her. "Yes?"

Sakura was unsure what to say first. "Ah, uhm. . . Do you remember the first time we talked like this? In a serious manner I mean."

Maria nodded. "Yes, I remember that day when you ruined the play and ran off." As far as she recalled it was the play about 'Romeo and Juliet' starring her and Sumire. Sakura was still new to the team and because of her ineptness everyone became mad at her. Sakura's only impulse is to ran away.

"Well it was you who taught me to value the importance of being given another chance," Sakura said, now able to look directly at the Russian.

Maria silently listened to her.

"And the play in Cinderella. . . you taught me patiently even though I kept making the same mistakes. There were many times when I thought that you were cold, and that I was so stupid. I thought that even though I knew in my heart that it was not entirely true."

Maria could see the sincerity in Sakura face, and hear it in her words. "Sakura, am I affecting your behavior in some way? Why do you see me that way?" the Russian suddenly asked.

Sakura gulped and gazed at her for a while. 'Is this it? Am I going to confess right here? Right now? But in what words? This is insanity. I should stop this!'

But. . . no she couldn't stop it.

"Th-that if you ever were a real man. . . I-I would have fallen in love with you."

'Oh damn! Was that the right word?' Sakura yelled at herself.

Maria's eyes widened. "S-sakura?"

Seeing Maria's reaction, Sakura smiled suddenly, pretending that it had all been a joke. "I'm. . . only fooling around. I don't think that will happen. . ."

'NOOOOOOO! That's not true! I was not fooling around. Oh, please can somebody help me? Maria-san, I LOVE YOU!' Sakura's heart was screaming in pain.

"Very well. . . If that's the case," Maria managed to utter. The Russian sounded as though there was nothing else to it, but truthfully, Sakura had given her some thoughts to ponder. 'If I were a man. . .' she reflected. Several ideas came to her.