What are the repercussions of Claudine's selfless actions? After all, no good deed goes unpunished...

Disclaimer: I do not own Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight.

Chapter 3. Malfunction

The following morning, Maya wakes before Claudine, which isn't all that uncommon. But considering yesterday's events, she can't help but start worrying within minutes.

Propping herself up, Maya brushes the backs of her fingers across Claudine's forehead. At the very least, her expression doesn't seem to be pained or distressed like she'd been yesterday after the Korosu had struck her.

Maya keeps an eye on the time as Claudine rests, petting through her hair gently. When it's about time for them to get up to start getting ready for classes, Maya touches her shoulder and gives her a light shake.

"Saijou-san?"

Claudine doesn't respond. Maya swallows, leaning closer to listen just to ensure she's breathing. She waits a moment, trying not to let her thoughts get carried away.

"Saijou-san?"

Maya tries to rouse her a second time, and this time Claudine lets out a tired little moan. Maya is both relieved that she's responsive and a bit guilty for having to wake her when she's clearly still very exhausted. As Claudine groggily opens her eyes, Maya eases back a little to give her some space.

"Good morning, Saijou-san. How are you feeling today?"

Claudine seems puzzled at first, as though she can't remember where she is or what had happened yesterday. But the second she tries to push herself up, a stabbing pain jolts across her back, causing her to groan and flop back down.

"Sore."

"Please do not push yourself." Maya rests a hand on her shoulder. "Saijou-san, should you need to take the day to recover, please do so. Everyone will understand."

"There's no need for that," Claudine insists. "It's nothing a bit of stretching won't be able to fix. Especially with the right partner." With this, she gives Maya a hopeful look. Maya gives a small smile.

"If you're certain. Then I shall do my best to help you recover. But should it prove to be too much, please take a break, Saijou-san."

"I will," Claudine agrees. "I wouldn't want to cause problems for everyone."

"Please also consider your own wellbeing, too."

They're quiet for a moment as Claudine gathers her bearings. When she's ready, Maya eases an arm beneath her back and slowly helps her sit up. Claudine winces, biting back several gasps as the stinging sensation spreads through her back to the front of her chest and stomach. Once she's sitting up, Maya rubs her back for her softly as she catches her breath.

"Saijou-san? Are you certain you wouldn't like to take a day of bedrest?"

Claudine considers the idea seriously. But it feels like the pain is already beginning to subside now that she's moving around a bit.

"I can manage. I think being dormant for so long was the issue."

"That would make sense. Do you have an appetite?"

"Probably about as much as you do."

Maya smiles.

"Then let us get dressed so we may go eat."

Maya gets up first, then helps Claudine out of bed.

Maya gets dressed and ready for the day as quickly as she can, then helps Claudine back to her own room so she may do the same. She waits for her, noting she takes a bit longer than usual, but that's to be expected with how stiff she is. When Claudine reappears dressed in her uniform, Maya begins walking with her toward the common room.

"Now then," she says. "Other than the residual soreness, would you say anything else feels out-of-place?"

Claudine considers for a moment, then shrugs.

"Not particularly."

"That is good."

This morning they are the last ones to arrive, and as soon as they do, all of their friends perk up.

"Kuro-chan! Tendo-san!"

"Good morning."

"Kuro-chan, how're you feeling?"

Claudine is flattered by their concern, but she does her best not to flinch at the slight pain in her back.

"I'm just fine. I'm ready for rehearsal; hopefully it's the same for all of you!"

A chorus of cheers goes up.

"Yes!"

"Of course!"

"Thank goodness!"

As the nine of them settle down in the kitchen for breakfast, conversation about the play naturally starts up.

"So today we should try to pick up where we left off."

"The Dwarfettes' intro, yes?"

"And we should try to get through the scene where Snow White bites the apple, as well."

"We'll have our afternoon dance block to go over things, and we can stay a bit later if we need to."

Maya listens as she eats, but notes that Claudine doesn't seem to have much to say on the matter. Maya assumes she must still be tired.

When breakfast is finished, they all begin the walk to school together. It's a bright day, so much so that Kaoruko complains that she should have brought a parasol.

They file into Seishou together and begin their day of lectures. Maya can't help but steal glances at her partner every now and then, but to her relief, Claudine seems to be just fine, save for a bit of shifting around in her chair due to her unseen injury. She participates as well as ever in their math, history, and grammar lessons, and eats her fill at lunch.

When their dance lessons come around, the girls are encouraged to use the time to rehearse for the play. So they change into their track suits and meet up in the rehearsal room.

They first split into groups to stretch out a bit. Maya helps Claudine, being mindful of her injury. But as Claudine had mentioned earlier, moving around must be doing her some good, because she seems much more agile by now. Lowering her tone, Maya speaks to address her privately.

"I trust you're feeling better?"

"Immensely." Claudine lowers herself easily down into a perfect split without so much as a single wince. Maya nods.

"Very good."

"Was I asking for your approval?"

Maya laughs, then offers her hand to help her back to her feet.

"All right," Junna says. "Let's pick up from yesterday, shall we?"

The nine actresses get into position, while the rest of their classmates gather around to observe. Maya falls into place beside Claudine, while the others form a group opposite them to play the Dwarfettes.

"Okay," Nana says. "Has everyone memorized their lines for this scene?"

"Yes!"

"Yeah."

"More or less."

"Good!" Nana claps. "Then let's go without the scripts so we can start adding in gestures."

They each put their scripts down or hand them off to other classmates for the time being.

Maya readies herself beside Claudine and casts her a smile. However, Claudine is looking down at the floor, eyes closed as she murmurs to herself. But before Maya can get the chance to inquire, Nana gives the command.

"All right, start!"

There's a brief moment of pause, and Maya has to give Claudine a small nudge to remind her that she has the first line in this scene. Claudine snaps her head up and delivers the line hastily.

"A-Ah. We've got to find shelter before sunset, or else we'll get lost in the forest."

And Maya can tell right away there is something off with her. Both Claudine's tone and her delivery of the line are a bit awkward, and it's clear that their classmates are also a bit puzzled. Maya tries not to indicate her confusion, and instead gives her own lines with the usual flare and intonation.

"Fear not. I'm certain there must be a light at the end of this dark tunnel. We must continue forward, lest that tyrant catch us." She takes Claudine's hand, not just for the sake of their roles in the play, but also to give her a bit of a reminder of where they are right now and what they are doing.

By now, their characters spot the Dwarfettes' cottage, and Claudine is meant to give her next line. Maya has to nudge her again to do so.

"There," Claudine says a bit flatly. "Do you see it, too?"

Maya continues on as she normally would.

"I do. It would appear to be some kind of cottage. But why so small…?"

At this point, Hikari stumbles forward and looks up drowsily at the lost travelers.

"Hm…? I must still be dreaming…"

"I wish you were," Junna says. "But for once you aren't."

"Who in the blazes are they?" Kaoruko spits. "Trudging onto our property like this! Chase 'em off!"

"Now, now," Nana beams. "No need for that! Let's see what they want!"

The seven of them shuffle forward toward Maya and Claudine. Once again, Claudine gives her lines rather monotonously.

"Well, well… what have we here? Elves?"

"Dwarves!" Kaoruko snaps.

"Dwarfettes!" Futaba sneezes.

"We beg your pardon," Maya says with a bow. "Might you ladies be of assistance to us?"

There's another pause as they wait for Claudine to give her line. Maya looks to her expectantly. Her lips part, but no words come. Claudine shakes her head, and her brow furrows.

"I'm sorry. Line, please?"

Instantly, the sense of unease that has been gradually filling the room until now suddenly crackles into a murmur of shock. It had been strange enough for the second-ranked student in the whole school to be delivering her lines so lifelessly, but for her to need to ask for a line is completely unheard of.

It's such a surprise that the onlooking girls don't even comprehend the request for a few seconds. One of them stutters and quickly flips through the script in her hands before speaking up.

"'We are fleeing the king. He seeks to kill the Princess and marry me, his own step-daughter.'"

"Right… thank you." Claudine turns to face the others and tries again. "We are fleeing the king. He…" She tapers off, as if the words have quite literally escaped her.

Maya watches with dread in her heart as Claudine's eyes glaze over slightly. She staggers back a step and lifts her hands up to her head.

"I'm sorry-"

"Saijou-san-?" Maya calls out for her and quickly puts an arm around her. At the same instant, their friends and classmates gasp and start to mutter even more frantically.

"L-Let's take a quick break," Junna says. "Could someone bring us some water?"

"Kuro-chan, come sit down," Nana says, pulling a chair over.

Maya eases her partner down, and a moment later someone hands her a bottle of water. Maya opens it and offers it to her. Claudine blinks, her eyes bleary as she curls her fingers around the bottle.

"I'm sorry."

"No big deal," Futaba assures her, patting Claudine's shoulder.

"Try to drink a little bit," Mahiru coaxes.

Claudine brings the water to her lips and takes a few sips. All around them, their other classmates are chattering away, sounding flustered.

"What was that?"

"Saijou-san forgetting her lines?"

"And she sounded so dull…"

"That's not like her."

"I heard she collapsed during practice yesterday."

"Really?!"

Maya remains standing by her partner's side, lifting her head to give a stern glare at the other girls. They clam up, dip their heads in apology, then hurry away. Now, only the nine of them remain in the room.

"Kuro-han…?" Kaoruko frowns, clearly perturbed by what had just happened. "Do you think perhaps you should go to the infirmary?"

"This isn't like you at all," Mahiru whimpers. "C-Could it be because of what happened yesterday…?"

No one responds, which is proof that they'd all been thinking the same thing.

Claudine fiddles with the water bottle in her lap.

"I'm not sure what's going on… The moment I had to act I just… forgot. No… it was almost like I… never even knew at all…"

"Eh…?" Maya almost can't fathom what she's hearing. "You forgot? Forgot what, exactly...?"

Claudine shakes her head again, and when she lefts her face, her expression is stark, helpless.

"Everything. My tone, my lines, my emotion… I know how I should be acting, but I…"

Maya can't understand. Her partner, who has always stood at the top beside her, who has always been nothing but radiant and confident in all she does, suddenly being unable to deliver a line properly…? It's beyond her comprehension.

"I thought so."

Everyone looks up at the sound of a voice that has been oddly quiet all this time. Karen's expression is uncharacteristically grim.

Mahiru gulps.

"Karen-chan…?"

But Karen doesn't break out into a smile or put on a hopeful expression. She just continues looking glumly at Claudine.

"I thought that might be it, Kuro-chan... Because I've felt that before, too. And so have you, right, Hikari-chan?"

Now, Hikari takes a step up beside her roommate, bowing her head in a nod.

"Yes… Back in England in the giraffe's revues… after I lost for the first time…"

Karen nods.

"Yeah… And I felt it after Hikari-chan disappeared for so long… Even though no one stole it from me directly, it was still missing."

"'It'?" Nana whispers. "You don't mean-?"

"Radiance," Hikari answers. Her expression is serious, and her eyes are hard from remembering. "It was taken from me once before when I lost my revue in England. After that, I couldn't convey any emotion onstage. I forgot my lines, my confidence…"

"It was the same for me," Karen mumbles. "When Hikari-chan was gone, I lost my motivation to act… I almost lost everything…"

A heavy moment of silence hangs over them. All of the girls can remember seeing Karen like that, fumbling her lines much more than she usually did, becoming so distraught to the point where she'd break down into tears and be unable to continue.

Maya's chest tightens. With every word that's spoken, she feels her insides twisting tighter and tighter. When she looks back to Claudine, her vision blurs.

No… That can't happen to her… Not to Saijou-san…

But with each passing second as Maya gazes at her, she can see the undeniable truth for herself. Claudine is entirely helpless against this. Her face has gone pale, and her eyes tremble with dismay.

"No…" she mutters. "That can't be it. I know my lines. I know them-!"

"Easy-" Futaba holds up her hands to try and calm her. "We know that, Kuro. We know you've worked yourself to the bone for every performance you've ever been a part of, and especially this one."

"Perhaps just a bit more rest will do the trick?" Kaoruko wonders. "In a few days' time, it might all come back to you."

"No."

Everyone looks up as Hikari gives a definitive denial to that theory.

"That won't work. If anything, doing nothing will only make it worse."

"Hikari-chan is right," Karen says. "Kuro-chan, you've just gotta keep practicing. We'll go over everything with you until you can do it on your own again, okay?"

"Agreed," Junna says. "We'll take it slowly. Just go at whatever pace is best for you, Saijou-san."

Maya pulls herself out of her trance. Claudine needs her now. Resting a hand on her partner's shoulder, Maya offers her support as well.

"Do not fret," she says. "With all of us to assist you, and how passionate your feelings for the stage are by nature, I'm certain you will be back to normal in no time at all, Saijou-san."

Claudine meets her gaze again, eyelashes fluttering as if the room is suddenly too bright for her to bear.

"But… I shouldn't have to slow down and relearn it all. I know everything-"

"Even if that's the case," Hikari says. "You have to consider how your radiance was taken from you. It wasn't taken by another Stage Girl, who has the same feelings and aspirations and love for the stage as you do-"

"It was taken by a Korosu," Karen finishes. "A faceless creature whose purpose is to destroy the plays we love."

"Since it happened like that," Nana mumbles. "Since Kuro-chan's radiance was taken by such a malicious creature… this might be even more severe than it was with Karen-chan or Hikari-chan…"

Both Karen and Hikari share a look, then regretfully nod their agreement.

It's a lot to take in all at once. Maya can hardly make sense of it, so she can only imagine Claudine's frustration, her fear.

When she tightens her grip on her partner's shoulder, she can feel her trembling.

"Saijou-san…"

"No." Claudine snaps her head up sharply and stands from her seat, crushing the water bottle in her hand. "I won't let it happen. I'm not going to lose anything. And even if I did, I don't regret saving Elle-chan."

"Of course not!" Nana cries. "And you won't lose anything! We'll be supporting you one-hundred percent, Kuro-chan!"

"That's right!" Karen finally gives a little grin, making a triumphant fist. "Hikari-chan and I both got our radiance back, so you'll definitely be able to also!"

"We got your back, Kuro!"

"Don't worry!"

As all of them pour in their words of support, Maya quietly lets go of Claudine. Of course she intends to support her more than all the rest of them combined. But she just can't get rid of this awful feeling churning in her stomach.

It is as Kagura-san and Aijou-san said… Saijou-san's radiance was not taken by another Stage Girl who shared her love and passion for theatre. It was stolen by a monster…

She doesn't like it. Even though she knows better than all others that Saijou Claudine works harder than anyone else in the world, and that she'll work even harder now to regain her radiance as quickly as possible, with all of her friends to support her… Maya can't shake this foreboding dread that clutches at her heart like claws.

We must do everything we can to help her get her radiance back as soon as possible. No matter what.

After a moment, the other girls finish offering their support, and Claudine naturally turns to her. Maya pushes down her misgivings and puts on a smile.

"Of course I will do everything within my power to offer my support as well, Saijou-san. As I've said, if it is you, then I'm certain you will be back to your old self in no time at all."

Claudine's eyes remain hazy, and her expression is a bit unreadable, as if she isn't sure if she believes her or not. But in the end she dips her head to Maya to show her gratitude.

"All right." Junna clears her throat. "So let's go over that same scene again. Saijou-san can just read from her script if she has to."

They're all in agreement as they get back into position. Maya stays close beside Claudine, who is now gripping her script tightly enough to crumple the paper.

"Saijou-san," she murmurs. "Let us take it slowly from here, shall we?"

Claudine sends her a look that was probably meant to be a glare that implies she doesn't need to be fussed over. But it ends up wavering into something more honest and scared.

"Right…"

So the nine of them continue practicing with just their group. When Claudine reads her lines, the others gently chime in to give her advice of how to change her pitch or tone, and recommend when to alter her expression.

For Claudine, it's embarrassing. They're treating her as if she's a novice to all of this, but it isn't like she can blame them; as she is now, she's no better than a beginner.

Even though I've been doing this my whole life… Even though I've worked so hard to be able to stand where I am now…

She bites back tears and screams of frustration for the remainder of the session. With every line and every scene, her body and voice simply don't behave as she wants them to. Her tone remains flat, and her movements lack any sort of flare or passion.

This is ridiculous. This isn't who I am-

At the very least, Junna ends their session when other girls begin filing into the room again, most likely to spare Claudine more humiliation of floundering in front of people who know nothing about the revues or the Korosu.

And just as it pains Claudine to be unable to act as she knows she can, it pains Maya to watch her struggle. Even though Claudine's voice and face are lacking emotion, Maya can tell she is trying with everything she's got, but the results just don't come through.

By the time they've finished for the day, the girls are trying to stay positive and thank each other for their hard work. But Maya can tell that Claudine doesn't accept a single word of their praise, because she feels as though she doesn't deserve it.

They get changed, then head to the exit to make the walk back to Starlight Hall.

To everyone's dismay, the clear sunny day has unexpectedly turned to a dark overcast rainstorm. They're forced to grab spare umbrellas and huddle together in pairs or groups as they trudge all the way back to the dorms.

Once there, Claudine is quiet all evening, and she doesn't touch much of her dinner. The others continue to offer their optimistic words without letting it sound forced.

By the time they've said their goodnights and Maya has brought Claudine to bed with her, she can tell Claudine is even more miserable now that they're alone. It pains Maya, but she's at least a little glad that Claudine isn't trying to force herself to conceal her true emotions anymore.

They lie down quietly together, and Claudine turns away from her, as though she can't bear to look her in the eyes. Maya's heart sinks, but she doesn't want to force her. At the very least, she just reaches out to touch her shoulder.

"Saijou-san… You will be all right. I'm certain of it."

She hears Claudine draw in a deep, shaking breath before her voice comes in a whisper.

"But I'm not…"

At last, Claudine breaks down into tears. Everything she's been holding back all day finally comes spilling out into the pillow.

Maya feels as though her heart is being pulled apart in opposite directions, slowly and agonizingly. She inches closer, gently wrapping her arms around Claudine from behind.

"You will be," she murmurs. "You will get your radiance back, Claudine. No matter what, I shall do everything I can to help you get it back. You have my word."

Even if it meant giving Claudine half of her own somehow, Maya would do it in a heartbeat for her.

Claudine trembles and sobs well into the night before finally growing still. Maya holds her close, willing some of her strength onto her.

"I swear it, Saijou Claudine," she murmurs. "I swear it on my own life."

Maya isn't scared of this vow, though she knows she probably should be.

She simply closes her eyes and follows Claudine into a dark and dreamless slumber.

A/N: I was curious about how different a Stage Girl's loss of radiance might be if it wasn't taken by one of her own, but a Korosu instead. And it was refreshing to have Karen and Hikari give serious advice for once, and to highlight their previous struggles.

Please review!