This is a dumb fluff idea I came up with and wrote like a year ago but I needed it to exist cuz I said so.

Disclaimer: I do not own Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight.


Chapter 43. Physicals

The day for physicals at Seishou is always a bit hectic.

Every girl within the designated year lines up around the gymnasium to wait her turn. The whole gym is set up with certain curtained sections for things like height, weight, and measurement recording, as well as vision and hearing tests.

And then there are stations set up for dashes so the girls can get recorded on their running time, and stations for fitness, for stretches, sit-ups, and so on. While the nurse sees every single student for certain crucial exams like blood pressure and eye exams, things such as size measurements and weight recording are done by other staff or students to help things move along a bit more quickly.

It takes a little while for each individual student to get to every station and make sure everything gets recorded properly, therefore extra-curricular activities had been canceled for the afternoon, and an air of ease settles about the room where the second-year girls are currently having their physicals.

Claudine knows she isn't the only one who's been cutting out the sweets for the past few days just to ensure she's in tip-top shape for this. Nana had still made treats yesterday, but even Maya had refrained from taking one, which everyone knew was sort of a big deal.

As the nine of them are standing out in the hallway to wait their turns to enter the gym, Claudine notes that Maya is looking a little distracted, so she nudges her side.

"Thinking about those muffins you missed out on? Or are you just nervous?"

Maya straightens up right away, glad for Claudine's comment as an excuse to display her confidence.

"I'm not nervous in the slightest. I assure you, my numbers today will be perfect."

"Oh? We'll just see about that." Claudine accepts the friendly challenge with a playful spark in her eyes. "If your weight is even one ounce off, then we'll have to run even more warm-up laps every day."

"And the same goes for you, Saijou-san," Maya retorts good-naturedly. "After all, I can't have my partner, who is supposed to keep up with me, lacking in the slightest in any department."

"As if I'd be lacking in anything." Claudine tosses her hair over her shoulder, and the end curls bounce against Maya's nose. Maya chuckles.

"I'm certain we'll both have perfect results for everything."

"Of course we will."

In front of them, all of their friends are chatting similarly.

"Nana, have you grown even taller since our last physical?"

"Huh? Maybe I have…"

"Geez, could you stop growing for a minute?"

"I think you got a little taller too, Junna-chan!"

"But~" Kaoruko interjects. "Do you know who certainly hasn't gotten any taller?"

"Oy, not another word outta you, Kaoruko," Futaba growls. "At least I got muscle. Look at all that jiggly arm flab you've got on you."

"Heeeeh? Futaba-han, so cruel!"

"I think Mahiru-chan got a bit taller, too!" Karen announces.

"E-Eh? Did I? As long as I didn't get any wider…"

"No way," Hikari shakes her head. "Mahiru, you look great."

"Really? Thanks, you two…"

"Aijou Karen is as energetic as ever! Improving day by day!"

"You sure do get plenty of sleep, that's for sure, Karen-chan."

"Though she might need her ears checked since she never listens…"

"Eh? What was that, Hikari-chan?"

"Exactly."

"Heehee! And I think Hikari-chan's health has improved a lot since she transferred," Mahiru says. "She's been smiling a lot more!"

At her words, Hikari blushes and can't stop a tiny smile from curling her lips.

Everyone talks and laughs together as they slowly make their way up the line. When the next wave of girls is let into the gymnasium, the nine of them go to a curtained area to shed their uniforms and change into the light tank-tops, shorts, and flats provided.

Though a major part of their career involves wearing different costumes and outfits, and changing in front of each other often, Claudine still can't help but steal glances at Maya. It isn't often at all she gets to see her in a tank-top, which is a different feeling and image entirely than a leotard or swimsuit. She makes sure not to stare too much though, or else she knows she'll never hear the end of it.

Just as she's looking away though, she catches Maya glancing at her as well. Claudine crosses her arms over herself and huffs.

"What are you looking at?"

"I believe I could ask you the same question, Saijou-san."

"Wh-?! Mechante va!"

They stretch out a bit to pass the time before their names are called to bring them to different stations for various physical exams. Everyone is always at the same station as at least one of her friends so she won't feel too nervous or pressured.

Claudine achieves an excellent score on all of her stretch exams, which comes as a surprise to no one. Of course everyone at a theatre school would score fairly well, but for the girls in her range of height and weight, Claudine is second only to one person, of course.

Maya is always one station away from her if not in the same one at the same time. And as always, her scores are always just a bit better. She can stretch just a centimeter further, her waist is just a bit slimmer, her weight just a little more perfect.

Claudine huffs every time, but she isn't particularly angry. She's always known that Tendo Maya was perfect in just about every way. So did everyone else. But being her partner, there are plenty more things Claudine knows about Maya that no one else does, and she's more than content with that covert knowledge.

At the very least, they achieve the same perfect results for their vision and hearing tests, so Claudine takes a little pride in that. When Claudine is beckoned over for a few more measurements, Maya is called by the nurse.

Claudine watches Maya go until the curtains hide her from view. She does as she's asked and moves as she's told by the girls running tape measure around her shoulders and arms, who hum approvingly all the while.

"As expected, you're in perfect shape, Saijou-san!"

"Oui, bien sur~ Are we finished here, ladies?"

"Yes! Please just see the nurse for a few final things and you're all set!"

"Merci."

Claudine moves the curtain aside and exits the area to head for the nurse's station. Right on time, Maya emerges from the other side with a smile already on her face. Claudine smirks back.

"I take it everything else about you is perfect as well, then?"

"Naturally," Maya replies with playful smugness. "Please try to get scores equally as flawless, Saijou-san."

"Oh don't you worry. I will."

"Then I'll be waiting for you to finish."

Claudine heads over to where the school nurse is waiting and greets her. It's the usual questions about her diet and routine as the nurse looks over Claudine's medical records and asks a few more basic health questions.

All the while Claudine catches glimpses of her friends around the room. She sees Futaba poking Kaoruko to boost her confidence, probably about something weight-related. She sees Nana getting her height measured with a big grin on her face. And she watches Karen attempt to touch her toes without bending her knees, though she can only go as far down as her shins. The noises of effort Karen makes can be heard from across the room, and Claudine has to refrain from chuckling.

The nurse checks her blood pressure, and Claudine is grateful that she isn't the only one here. The pleasant chatter and giggling of the other girls all around creates a calming atmosphere for something most people would consider a bit nerve-wracking. But she's perfectly at-ease about it.

"All right," the nurse says, flipping through her clipboard. "Just one last thing and you're all set, Saijou-san. I just need to check your pulse."

"Yes, ma'am."

Claudine straightens up as the nurse pulls her chair in beside hers and readies her stethoscope.

Claudine's eyes wander once more, and she spots Maya, still dressed in her lighter clothes. She's doing her final exam for the day, which is a sprint across the gym and back where a teacher will record her time.

As soon as the command is given, Maya takes off sprinting, her hair flying out behind her as she races with powerful strides. The second Maya reaches the other side, she crouches to touch the line and then pushes off to propel herself back the other way. A dozen other girls stop to witness the beauty and grace of Tendo Maya.

And of course, Claudine finds herself being mesmerized by Maya's performance as well. She has to remind herself she's also in the middle of a physical examination right now. Claudine breathes in deeply as the nurse tells her to, feeling the slight chill of the stethoscope on her collar.

She continues watching Maya to entertain herself as the nurse moves on to listen from her back.

Maya finishes her sprint in what Claudine can only assume to be record timing. She tosses her long hair over her shoulder, wiping a bit of sweat from her forehead as she accepts a small hand towel to cool down with. She just so happens to turn at that very moment and catches her partner's eye.

Claudine quickly looks away just as the nurse finishes and begins writing more things down on her clipboard.

Claudine runs through all of the day's exams in her head, and she believes she's all finished now. She can already see the rest of her friends gathering around Maya to commend her on her run, and then the eight of them begin making their way over to wait for Claudine to finish up.

"That was great, Tendo-san!"

"A little bit of entertainment on such a boring day."

"Might be boring, but this stuff's important."

"Is everyone done with everything?"

"Just Saijou-san."

"She is with the nurse. I believe she is almost finished."

As her friends all turn in her direction, Claudine smiles and begins to stand. She looks back to the nurse and dips her head.

"Thank you, Sensei."

But as she turns to take her leave, Claudine is a little surprised to hear the nurse call her back.

"Just a moment please, Saijou-san."

Claudine pauses, and by now her friends have ventured close enough to hear the conversation.

"Eh-?" Karen says loudly. "Is something wrong with Kuro-chan?"

"Shhh!" Mahiru hushes her. "K-Karen-chan, quiet down a little."

"Oh my," Kaoruko says. "This is quite unusual. Usually Kuro-han will pass everything with flying colors the first time."

"Calm down," Futaba grunts. "I'm sure everything's fine."

"Indeed it is," the nurse says for all the girls to hear. Then she looks at only Claudine again. "I'd just like to take your pulse one more time, Saijou-san."

"Eh? Sure…" Claudine waves her friends off in the 'I'll be done in a moment' sort of way, then turns back to the nurse and takes her seat again. The nurse hands her a bottle of water.

"Drink this for me. Are you feeling nervous about the physicals today?"

Puzzled, Claudine opens the water bottle and takes a sip.

"Not particularly."

"And you say you don't take any medication of any kind?"

"That's right. I don't take anything."

"I see."

By now Claudine has become fairly confused. Her friends linger at the edge of the curtain screen. Their faces are all painted with worry, which Karen voices in a softer tone.

"Sensei, is Kuro-chan okay?"

"Karen," Hikari says. "We can't ask about personal stuff like that..." She says as much, but she's clearly just as worried.

The nurse smiles at all of them.

"Saijou-san is just fine," she replies, looking at Claudine as well to reassure her. "It's just that her pulse was a little off. I want to check it again. But I'm sure it's nothing to worry about."

But of course, her friends continue to fret.

"Eh?"

"Her pulse?"

"Like her heart?!"

"That's what a 'pulse' is, Bakaren."

"Her pulse is off? What does that mean?"

"Kuro-chan…?"

But before it can become complete chaos, Junna pushes her way to the front of the group and gets control over them.

"All right, everyone. Saijou-san will be fine, but we can't all be clustering around here when she's having her exam. Give her some space."

"Thank you, Hoshimi-san," the nurse says pleasantly. Then she turns back to Claudine. "It'll just be another moment or two."

Claudine just nods. Once she's drank most of the water, the nurse holds the stethoscope to her collar once more.

Claudine lets her eyes wander across the room again, and naturally they find her friends, who are all standing and chatting softly together. In order to pass the time waiting, Nana invites Junna to a small dance, and Futaba does the same for Kaoruko, while Karen, Hikari, and Mahiru stretch out a little.

Maya is now doing an assortment of basic solo dance moves. Several other girls are looking on, so Claudine can only assume they had asked the top student to demonstrate a few things while she waited for Claudine.

Maya twirls, her long hair fluttering all around her as she extends her arms. Claudine has seen her do the very same moves a million times before in dance practice. But somehow it's very different seeing her do these things in those clothes. Her legs are almost completely bare, her tank-top often flutters up to expose her stomach or back, and her lighter clothes contrast nicely with her dark hair, which her blue leotard never could quite do.

Claudine snaps back into the moment as the nurse instructs her to inhale again. She does her best to focus on herself as she watches Maya rise onto the tips of her toes to do a few ballet movements, encircling her arms above her head and moving with poise. It's astounding, and almost a little unfair, how she can still look so graceful doing this in such casual underclothes in such an undecorated space.

Right at the end of Maya's little number, she looks up to catch her partner's eye once again. Claudine huffs just a little bit right as the nurse pulls away and looks over her clipboard a second time. Claudine looks at her hopefully.

"Will that be all?"

Her friends begin wandering back over, assuming she's finished as well. But to everyone's shock, the nurse shakes her head.

"I'm still a bit unsure, Saijou-san. I think I might like to have you lie down for a little while."

"Huh?!" By now, Karen can't contain herself, and she rushes over to grab Claudine's hands as she drops to her knees dramatically. "Kuro-chan, are you okay?! What's going on?!"

"K-Karen-chan!" Mahiru and the others shuffle over as well. Futaba puts her hand against Claudine's forehead.

"You got a fever or somethin', Kuro? What's up?"

"Maybe you should eat something," Nana whimpers.

"Guys," Junna says. "Sensei is the professional here. If she says Saijou-san needs to rest, then we should just let her rest."

"But why?" Claudine inquires. "I don't mean to sound rude, but I feel perfectly fine, Sensei."

The nurse dips her head.

"I don't doubt that. Just about everything about your health seems to be in outstanding condition. But your heart rate is quite fast. It's a little troubling."

"What?"

"Her heart again?"

"'Troubling'?"

"What does that mean-?"

"Like arithmetic?"

"Aijou-san, I think you mean 'arrhythmia.'"

"No! That can't be it, right-?"

By this point, everyone is even more confused and worried, most of all Claudine. She tries to feel her pulse for herself, but there's so much going on now with everyone here fretting over her.

But out of the bunch, Maya has stayed quiet the longest until now. She comes forward wearing a frown, and everyone else moves aside to let her by. Even Karen picks herself up off the floor and lets go of Claudine's hands for the moment.

"Saijou-san." Maya's voice is a bit tight as she addresses her, reaching out to take one of her hands. Claudine looks up at her, exasperated more by the situation than by Maya herself for once. Maya turns to the nurse.

"Sensei? Would it be all right if Saijou-san and I went for a brief walk?"

The nurse considers for a moment, then nods.

"That should be fine. Saijou-san, just take it easy for a little while, then come back to me when you're ready."

"Right…"

With this, Maya helps her up and keeps ahold of her hand. The others decide it'd be best to leave them alone for the moment.

"All right," Nana says. "Everyone, let's all get changed and wait for Maya-chan and Kuro-chan in the lounge. I'll make us some snacks!"

"Banana-han, please!" Kaoruko whines. "No carbs!"

"It's fine, the physicals are over~"

So the others take off together to wait for Maya and Claudine, who exit the gym and head in the opposite direction.

Claudine has to admit she's a bit flustered by all of this. She has no idea what might be going on to worry the nurse that much. And all of her friends are worried too; clearly Maya most of all.

As they walk, Maya keeps a gentle hold on her hand. When she'd suggested going for a walk, Claudine expected they might go outside for a moment to get some fresh air. But instead, Maya takes her down another hallway.

"Please, this way."

Claudine follows without protest.

In only a few minutes, Maya has brought her to the actual nurse's office, which is vacant at the moment due to the physical exams happening in the gym. Maya brings them inside and closes the door behind them. She leads Claudine to one of the beds and releases her hand.

"Please have a seat."

Claudine huffs, but nods and does as she's told. Maya keeps the lights off, but goes to open one of the windows which is already letting in a good amount of sunlight. Then she returns to Claudine's side and sits on the bed next to her. Maya puts a hand on her back softly.

"Saijou-san, are you feeling all right?"

Claudine grimaces.

"I thought I was. But now I don't know what's going on anymore."

"Indeed…" Maya falls into a state of contemplation. "As you said, you do not take any medications that might affect your heart rate. And you didn't seem to be nervous at all about the physical exams today. So what could be causing your pulse to be unusual enough to warrant the nurse's concern?"

"That's what I'd like to know…"

"You don't have a fever," Maya recites. "Nor any other signs of any potential sickness. Did you perhaps do your running exercises right before seeing the nurse?"

"No. I did them at the beginning."

"Hmm…" Maya looks her over again, and she really can't find any hints of anything that might be wrong. Therefore, she makes a request. "Saijou-san, may I have a listen for myself?"

"Eh? What for?"

Maya smiles a little.

"Because it would be nothing out of the ordinary for the two of us. Being we do that sort of thing often, I should imagine that by now it wouldn't have much of an affect on you, right?"

"Of course it wouldn't…"

"Very well."

Maya gets up from the bed and instead moves to the floor, kneeling in front of her. Claudine moves her knees apart and lets Maya in.

Maya wraps her arms around her waist and inches as close to her as possible. Thinking of nothing else she can do with her own arms, Claudine folds them around her shoulders in a soft embrace.

Maya turns her face to one side and closes her eyes as she rests her head against Claudine's chest.

Right away, a quick, resounding rhythm fills her head. As she'd said, they've done this sort of thing many many times before on their nights and mornings cuddled up together in bed. And every time she listened to Claudine's heartbeat, it always moved at such a pace. Maya had never thought anything of it.

But now, with her mindset being in a medical state of thought, she has to wonder if such a speed is actually typical. As far as Maya knew, Claudine's heart would almost always thump this quickly when they were together.

"I wonder if it was beating at this pace during your exam…"

"What are going you on about?"

Maya has a theory for this mystery, but she has a few questions to ask first.

She eases back a little bit, then turns her head to the other side to press her other ear to Claudine's pulse instead.

"Breathe in?" she asks. "Deeply, please."

Claudine draws in a breath and holds it for a few seconds. Maya nods.

"Breathe out."

Claudine exhales.

Maya listens to her pulse all the while, and it still remains quite lively. She listens for a moment longer, wondering how exactly to go about wording this.

"Saijou-san?"

"What is it?"

"If it were anyone else doing this with you right now, Hanayagi-san, or Tsuyuzaki-san for example, do you think your heart would be beating quite so quickly?"

"Haah? Why in the world would I ever be doing such a thing with Kaoruko?"

"Humor me," Maya says. "Would your heart be beating this fast?"

"What-?" Claudine is completely lost. She hugs Maya a little closer, resting her chin on top of her head with a pout. "Is it really that fast right now…?"

"I would have to say so, yes. Though I must admit, I assumed this was its normal pace, since it seems to be the same speed I often hear when we do these things together."

Claudine fidgets her fingers through Maya's hair.

"Well… if it was anyone else, of course it would be different…"

"Would it be safe to say that when you are around me, your heart tends to beat a bit faster?"

"Well, of course it would!" she snaps. "After all, you and I are-"

"Lovers?"

"Mechante va! Don't use such a misleading word! Just say 'dating'!"

Maya chuckles.

"Of course. And since we are dating, I should know better than anyone else that being with me would naturally make your heart beat faster, yes?"

"Aren't you just answering your own questions now? What are you getting at, Tendo Maya? Just spit it out already."

"Very well." Maya shifts her head again, once again pressing her other ear to Claudine's pulse. "Saijou-san? When Sensei was trying to take your pulse, were you perhaps looking at me…?"

There's a beat of silence in the room. Even Claudine's heart beneath Maya's ear doesn't make a sound for a split second. And then, all at once it's hammering in a fluster.

"I-! Th-That-!"

Maya squeezes her around her waist a little harder and smiles.

"I see… so that's all it was, then…"

"H-Hey! Now hold on just a second-"

Claudine desperately tries to think of another explanation. Maybe she was sick, after all. Maybe she had taken some kind of medicine beforehand.

But no matter what she tries to come up with, the answer is clear as day in front of her eyes. Literally.

Even now she is looking at and touching Maya, and that's why her heart is racing. And both times when the nurse had been trying to measure her pulse, she'd been watching Maya, too.

"No way… That can't be it-" She tries to pry Maya away, but Maya refuses, cuddling closer against her chest.

"My, Saijou-san, I must say that is quite adorable."

"No-"

"Even though we have been seeing each other for quite some time now, your heart still pounds so much when you look at me from afar."

"I'm telling you, that's not-!"

"Even now, your heart really is beating quite quickly."

"Why you- Tendo Maya!"

Maya lets out a laugh, then pushes her forward, down onto her back. Maya climbs on top of her and cuddles her into the bed, while Claudine struggles in blushing protest beneath her.

"Hey!"

"I suppose I should apologize," Maya coos. "For unintentionally tampering with your exam."

"That's not it! I'm telling you there's no way!"

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about," Maya chuckles, kissing her collar. "It's simply because you are so smitten with me, even after we have been dating for so long."

"Who's smitten? You're full of it."

"Saijou-san, you're very cute."

"Shut the hell up!"

Maya supposes she has teased her quite enough by now. So she leans down over Claudine and kisses her lips, both to soothe her and to apologize. She hears a growl, and a second later Claudine nips her and sends a glare up at her. But she's blushing too hard right now, so the intimidating look Maya knows she's going for really isn't there.

Maya kisses her a few more times, on her cheek and on her forehead, and all the while Claudine struggles. But her words of protest fade away more and more until she's admitted defeat. At that point, Maya lies her head on Claudine's chest again to enjoy the fluttering rhythm of her heartbeat.

"Unbelievable…" Claudine huffs. "You're messing with me even when you're not even trying to…"

"It's because you simply couldn't keep your eyes off of me, no?"

"I'm never speaking to you again."

"I truly do apologize," Maya purrs. "I just can't help being as incredible as I am."

"All right, enough! As if your ego wasn't big enough already…"

Maya laughs and cuddles up against her.

They stay that way for a few more minutes, with Claudine's pulse continuing to race a bit.

"I can't believe it… It really was just because I was looking at you…"

"I'm honored."

"You're annoying, is what you are."

"My apologies." At last, Maya gets off of her and helps Claudine sit up again. She smoothes out her hair for her and keeps her arms looped around her waist in a loose hug. "But in all honesty, I'm just glad it wasn't anything serious."

"I almost wish it was…" Claudine huffs. Then she sends an intense glare up at her. "Now you listen to me. If you breathe a word of this to anyone, I'll-"

"I would never," Maya says honestly. She pulls Claudine into a fuller hug to put her at ease. "Do not worry. We can simply tell the others it just ended up being that you were a bit nervous about the exams, after all. And especially when everyone came over and started worrying and asking questions. Who wouldn't get flustered at that point?"

Claudine curls her fingers into Maya's tank-top and hides her face for a moment.

"Fine. But that's all we tell them."

"Of course. After all, I wouldn't want anyone else knowing of such an adorable truth about you, Ma Claudine~"

She switches over to the pet name without warning, which effectively causes Claudine to stiffen and lose her breath again.

"Wh- Tendo Maya-!"

"My apologies." Maya squeezes her tightly again. "I promise I've had my fun now. I'm finished."

"And I'm exhausted…"

"I shall take full responsibility," Maya vows. "Once you've finished your exam and we've had something to eat with everyone, please join me for a nap this afternoon."

"You know what? I just might at this point…"

Maya smiles and kisses her again, genuinely relieved that it was nothing serious at all.

She gives Claudine another few moments to compose herself, then when she's ready begins leading her back to the gym. Only this time, Maya waits outside as Claudine sees the nurse again.

When she emerges a few minutes later, Maya gives her an inquisitive look.

"Well? How did your heart fair this time?"

"It was totally normal..."

"Because you were not gazing at me-"

"Would you be quiet?! Honestly…"

With this, the two of them head off to change back into their usual clothes, then join their friends in the lounge. Everyone is relieved to see them, and Maya explains Claudine had just been nervous the first few times to start, but that she'd been just fine in the end.

"See?" Junna says. "It's because you were all making a fuss about it."

"Sorry, Kuro-chan!" Karen wails. "We were just worried!"

"There's no need for you to apologize, Karen," Claudine says, patting her head. "I'm flattered you'd all be that concerned."

"Of course we would!" Mahiru says. "We're glad you're okay, Kuro-chan!"

"Hmm?" Kaoruko mutters. "So that's all it was then? You were just nervous? I thought it might be something interesting, like you were distracted by Tendo-han or something. To the point where your heart just started racing all on its own~"

Claudine almost chokes a bit on the muffin she'd been eating, but Futaba comes to the rescue.

"Geez, Kaoruko, would you give it a rest? Course it wasn't anything like that."

"Surely not," Maya agrees, leaning into Claudine's side.

Claudine grumbles under her breath; she knows she won't be hearing the end of this one for a while.

As promised, once they've finished their snack, she joins Maya in her room for a nap. And of course Maya insists on listening to just how quickly her heart continues to thump when they are alone together. Claudine huffs and closes her eyes as she hugs her close.

"Tease all you like," she yawns, too tired to fight anymore. "It's a miracle I still like you in spite of how infuriating you are. You should be thankful."

"Oh, I very much am," Maya purrs. "Thank you for putting up with me. I love you very much, Claudine."

"Idiot. Me too… je t'aime."

They close their eyes and cuddle up.

Maya leaves one more kiss on her lips before letting sleep take her.

Claudine is close behind, letting the rhythm of Maya's pulse mix with her own to lull them both to sleep.


A/N: I really have no excuse for this one... Just wanted more blushy, embarrassed Claudine and excuses for fluff.

Please review!