"Oh no, I'm going to be late!" a petite jet black-haired girl wailed as she dodged around the occasional pedestrian, hastily shouting gomennasai! in passing.

She picked up her pace, frantically consulting the watch adorning her left wrist for the seventh time in the hopes that the god of time might take pity on her and either pause or turn back the clock. A bead of sweat trickled down her back, hidden under the polyester layers of her winter seifuku as she sprinted toward the school gate. Her rapid breaths created tiny, desperate clouds that vanished quickly in the crisp morning air. Much like her chances of making it on time.

A school staff member began drawing the heavy metal gate closed.

But Kyoko Mogami refused to be late on Valentine's Day. Not when she'd stayed up late after finishing all her work at the ryokan and homework for school to painstakingly make homemade chocolates for her prince and her friend Mei.

The tree!

The teen altered course, turning sharply towards the old barren oak tree whose large branch stretched ominously over the tall brick walls encompassing the school grounds as though it was looking for children to snatch up.

The clang of the latched gate sounded in the air as Kyoko leaped with strength and agility belying her slender form, successfully snagging a lower-hanging branch. Hours upon hours of laborious work at the ryokan had toned her body into a vessel capable of many incredible feats. Kyoko moved swiftly through the tree to the target branch, like a panther slinking through the jungle.

She carefully balanced atop the branch, fingering her Makeni Neko key chain and jumped. The world blurred as she dropped like a stone from the tree, landing heavily in the hard, frozen grass with her backpack clutched protectively in her arms. Phew.

Glancing towards the gate, she saw Mr. Morimoto gaping at her in disbelief. His glasses slid down the bridge of his nose and their eyes locked as the man reached an arm towards her in an eerie imitation of the gnarled tree at her back. He seemed to notice his mimicry because he startled and let his arm drop awkwardly to his side. Kyoko bowed deeply, flashed the man her most respectable smile, and took off before he could even blink, silently promising to make a larger offering at the shrine than usual in atonement.

The classroom was buzzing in hopeful excitement when Kyoko slid open the door and rushed to her desk. As she gratefully sank into her seat, the homeroom instructor walked in and began the morning meeting.

"Ohayo gozaimasu!" came Mei's cheerful whispered greeting as she leaned slightly out of her seat. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to make it."

Kyoko exaggeratingly wiped at her brow and two girls exchanged grins.

Mei Watanabe was a transfer student who'd arrived shortly after the new year, befriending Kyoko who had, once again, given up all hope of any friends thanks to her close association with Shotaro. Kyoko thought Mei was a very attractive girl, unlike herself, and noticed that several boys in the class seemed to share her opinion. She'd catch them peeking at Mei through the corners of their eyes and was surprised that none had approached her yet. Her flawless skin and thick, shoulder-length hair coupled with full lips on a heart-shaped face made her look like a princess come to life. A very well-endowed princess at that.

Kyoko looked down at her own chest and sighed before peering around the room through sidelong glances, ignoring the usual daggered gazes of the other females. For some reason, they'd left her alone, aside from the usual hateful looks. Regardless of the reason, Kyoko discovered she was grateful for the respite. It never occurred to her that the timing was a bit too coincidental.

Many girls had fancily wrapped chocolates with bright red bows from one of the three popular confectionary shops in the area, but Kyoko found those kinds of chocolates to be a bit banal. Probably because Sho came home with at least a box full of them every Valentine's Day.

A few others seemed to share Kyoko's belief, nervously fiddling with their less tidy, but more individualistically covered packages. The teen's leg bounced rapidly for several seconds before she caught herself, stopping the erratic movement. Kyoko planned to give the chocolates to Mei during the lunch break. She'd learned to wait to give Sho his box years ago.

Time passed slowly, crawling along the face of the clock like an algae-covered sloth up a cecropia tree until it was finally time for lunch. Wrapping her scarf around her neck for warmth, Kyoko headed outside.

She was supposed to meet Mei on the side of the school hosting several mature maples, though they were far from a pretty sight in the current season.

Oh! There she is, Kyoko thought, spotting the back of Mei's head. She pranced closer, a large anticipatory grin on her face, but abruptly stopped dead at the sight before her.

Mei stood tall on her tippy-toes with her eyes closed. Her wool scarf was gripped in one of Sho's large hands, pulling her into his embrace. Her prince was kissing her friend. Her friend was kissing her prince. Suddenly, Mei's eyes snapped open, meeting Kyoko's widened amber eyes over Sho's shoulders.

She drew back. "Oh, Sho. You're such a good kisser," she praised loudly. Kyoko could only assume it was for her own benefit, which Mei confirmed with the triumphant expression that settled on her face as she wove her devious fingers into Sho's silky locks for a deeper kiss.

Kyoko's lips settled into a familiar grim line as she stared at the girl formerly known as her friend with dead eyes. She'd seen similar sights before and each time it felt like she was sinking into a gaping maw that threatened to devour her whole. With each kiss the prince pushed her in a little deeper.

The teen spun on her heel and trudged on autopilot back to homeroom through a dull, grey world. A neatly wrapped box lay on her desk. Kyoko carefully pulled at the ribbon, untying the bow with one easy motion, and lifted up the lid. Dried white chrysanthemums were inside instead of chocolates and part of her mind recognized the symbolism. Funeral flowers.

Kyoko got up and deposited her formerly precious package in the trash bin. She blinked back the tears trying to burst through the dam of her resolve. As long as I can support my prince, I'm happy. As long as I know he cares about me. She repeated the mantra over and over until the smile on her face grew genuine.

When Kyoko arrived at school the next day she saw that a stump was all that remained of the old oak tree, which was still more than she could say was left of her friendship with Mei Watanabe.

"Wow, babe. That's dark. Girls can be so vicious," Kuon finally said after Kyoko finished telling her tale about her worst Valentine's Day ever.

He'd confessed his had been only part of the day- when he thought she had handmade chocolates to give to Sho Fuwa. He'd fluctuated between miserable and enraged like one of those actors on an anti-depressant commercial.

"Yeah," Kyoko agreed with nonchalance. "But that's life. Especially at that age. It was really awful, but in the end it's part of the story that led me to you. To that fateful day when I hurled the contents of a Number Three at Sho's head."

He sat up suddenly and his shining emerald eyes blinked at her, making him look like a mythical blonde owl in the soft afternoon sunlight. "You did what?"

"Didn't I tell you?"

He shook his head slowly from side to side with exaggeratedly slow movements.

"Well, when I heard he only invited me to come with him because I was like a maid and that I was basically paying for everything for him when he should and could have been doing that himself, I chucked the burger meal I'd brought (and bought) right at his head.

"Did you hit him?"

"I can't believe I've never told you this before. No, I missed. It splattered all over the room instead. I can still picture the pickles oozing down the beige wall."

"Mmm, that's too bad," he tucked her tighter against her side. Kuon took a deep breath. "I would have made him eat it."

Kyoko looked over, noticing the shadowed glint of the demon lord in her husband's eyes.

"I've no doubt you could have."

The couple was silent a moment, playing imaginary events out in their heads. Kuon began to laugh first, cackling like a hyena. Soon they were both teary-eyed and weak-limbed from too much laughter.

Kyoko sighed contentedly. "I love you Kuon."

"Not as much as I love you princess."

A/N

This just kinda popped in my head from some research I was doing on another Skip Beat matter combined with reading I Love Yoo and thinking about awful those middle school years can be. However, there is always a light at the end of a dark tunnel. :)