"Smite him gently, for he doth be a man of meek!" Hideyoshi exclaimed, slightly out of breath. Why he had thought of that phrase, he was unsure, but surprises rarely came to him unannounced. Unfortunately, he would find much later that he had just foreshadowed his own near future.
Besides, the heavens cracked open that night, and rain sheeted down as if a madman chased after them with a whip. Nonetheless, no matter how great a storm, Hideyoshi always felt calmest in rain. The fury of wind and wetness didn't help the sprinting beauty much, however; he was carrying a portfolio composed of documents that was of utmost importance.
Well, it really was just important to him.
It was of no surprise then when, as he leaped over puddle after puddle of mucky rainfall, he composed a string of particularly choice words to toss at the rock he tripped over.
"Anything but the folder, anything but that," he cried with fervor as he patted himself down to check for injuries. He found a scratch or two, but the script was safe, and that was all that mattered. Despair lasted for a moment, and soon he felt the same bliss he had experienced earlier.
Regardless of his unfortunate situation, Hideyoshi found himself giggling to nothing in particular. It must've been the list of actors that caused this giddiness. But one thought led to the next, and he found his face morph through several emotions before reaching mild contempt.
"If only the printer didn't break. Well, if the bus was there, too, methinks that my abode would've been reached earlier."
But soon, his discomfort would reach an end. After all, he was only a few feet away from the tender warmth that was his home.
Hideyoshi hurriedly skipped up the steps, sprinting the distance from the front gate to the main entrance. He stopped for a moment to catch his breath, and then rung the bell.
"Now why did I stop for a moment there?" He pondered. He would've taken longer if his sister didn't cut in from the other side of the house.
"Who's there?" A voice inquired, easily ringing over a sudden crash of unexpected thunder.
Right. He had forgotten his nosy, demanding sister. Hideyoshi cradled himself in self-pity, but perhaps in self-contempt too. Oh well. It wasn't like there was any other legal way inside.
"Hello? Who's there? Hurry up and answer before I break you!"
He was going to die, either now or later. Hideyoshi preferred to live a bit longer.
"It's me, aneue," he replied as he mentally signed his will.
Hideyoshi took a few steps back as the smooth mahogany door opened to a stormy complexion. His sister's rage lasted for only an instant, however, and soon he faced a blank expression of content.
"Aneue, I'm sorry I'm late," Hideyoshi bowed as he attempted to step in.
He was blocked by an extended hand. Confused, he looked upwards, and once again came within sight of his sister's calm expression.
"Sis, let me in, please. It's raining hard outside," he whimpered.
His sister raised one eyebrow.
"Sis, it's cold outside," he explained nervously.
She folded her arms.
"Let me in aneue, what's wrong with you?!" Hideyoshi exclaimed, his voice bordering between fear and urgency.
"Your papers. Let me see them," she kindly asked, extending her left arm. Yuuko's open palm awaited for his compliance.
"Sis it's just, they're just my new script and stuff," Hideyoshi stuttered.
"Hand it over," she smiled gently.
"Sis I'm, it's not that important I-"
"Hand. It. Over."
If looks could kill, Hideyoshi would've died that cold, wet, and unfortunate day.
"Sis, you know how important the theater club is to me," he begged. Hideyoshi didn't usually resort to nagging and begging, but this was a drastic situation.
"If that's so, why not just let me take a peek?" Her innocent smile did little to hide her obvious intentions of malevolence.
"I fear for the extent to which you plan to use this info," Hideyoshi admitted, casting his head to one side.
"Oh, is that so? I've noticed you've given up on your Shakespearean way of speaking. Besides, you seem to clutch that folder pretty closely," she analyzed, leaning ever closer towards him.
"It's as if inside that folder lies something you treasure and safeguard with all your life," she concluded, her face only a few inches from his.
"You're right," Hideyoshi laughed nervously. When his sister didn't join in, he knew that he was just footsteps away from triggering a mine field. He was going to have to face a murderous kami if he didn't hand it over.
"Here, sis," Hideyoshi forfeited. "Please, let me through."
Yuuko slowly stepped aside, and allowed him in.
He trudged into the long awaited comfort of green tea scent and firewood warmth. None of it did anything to melt the ice that had frozen over his heart.
"Are you just going to stand there?" His sister rolled her eyes as she called after him. "Hurry up and take a shower or something, you dimwit."
"Yeah, uh, I guess I'll go warm myself up," Hideyoshi stumbled up the stairs to the bathroom.
Yuuko waited until she heard the sound of water hitting flesh and marble before she finally decided to open the envelope.
"That baka," she quietly whispered. "How can I show him any love when he can't even take care of himself?" It was this rhetorical question that triggered the classic battle between angel and devil.
"Well, maybe if you weren't so cold and just let him in, he wouldn't have walked off like a zombie," the angel smirked.
"That idiot deserved it. He didn't even call home to tell his sis what was happening!" the devil negotiated.
"Yeah, well, didn't you notice how cold and rainy today was? And the fact that he cherished that portfolio so dearly?" the Angel reminded the devil.
"Hm...Angel-Yuuko, do you think Yuuko was jealous?" the devil grinned widely.
"Talk about it! A script receiving more love than a sister!" the angel laughed.
"Shut up!" the real Yuuko shouted, tossing a pillow onto the ground. The two apparitions instantly disappeared, leaving behind a brightly flustered Yuuko.
I suppose I'll just put everything back in order, she casually shrugged. But humans are curious beings, and soon Yuuko found herself immersed within the script.
Yoshii Akihisa as Chopin
Yuuji Sakamoto as Tytus Woychiechowski
Mizuki Himeji as Maria Wodzinska (tentative)
Hideyoshi Kinoshita as Clara Sands
Minami Shimada as Amandine Aurore Lucille Dupin
The torrent of water came to a halt. Thumping footsteps echoed throughout the house as Hideyoshi attempted to dry himself. Yuuko had originally planned to put everything away by the time he came downstairs. However, there were still some things that she needed to address.
"Ah...sis..." Hideyoshi cried as he saw his sister holding the papers. His peaceful face was once again replaced by fear and embarrassment.
"So you're supposed to be in love with Aki? Chopin? Whatever?"
"It's just a play," Hideyoshi explained in an attempt to downplay the situation.
"Isn't it uncanny how these relationships happen to echo real life?" Yuuko asked, storming closer to Hideyoshi. "Don't you think it's funny how the playwright set Yuuji and Aki up as supposed male lovers?"
"Well, a play is all the better if it reflects some part of actuality..."
"Doesn't this seem a bit too coincidental?" Yuuko frowned as she leaned her weight onto the balls of her right foot. "Do you even know who the playwright is?" She sighed, placing a hand on her hips.
"Not really. I'm just in it for the thrill of performing." Hideyoshi admitted.
"With your way of thinking, no wonder you're in Class F."
"Methinks thou ponder much, sis."
There was more to that, and Yuuko knew it very well.
"Well, if this is but another play, let's go over it, shall we? I'll be the tragic composer. You can be Dupin."
Hideyoshi gave off an obvious gulp. He hesitated for a while before he gave off a terse nod.
"I'll start then," Yuuko exclaimed as she coughed. "Erm...here we go."
'My dear friend, I fear it is not long before I lay to waste,' Yuuko reflected as Chopin.
'I...I...uh, do believe it's still much too early for you to be on your deathbed,' Hideyoshi whispered.
"The time is near. I fear that with this prelude finished, too will my soul expire."
"Don't think of such saddening thoughts, my dear Chopin."
"As long as I have you, I believe life, no matter how terrible, is beautiful in the end."
"I...be-believe the same, Frederic."
Yuuko turned her face to Hideyoshi, and tenderly gazed into his soul.
"I love you, Clara. Even if you ruined my life and crippled me, I'll forever see you as my other half."
"And I... and I... I... Can't do this," Hideyoshi whispered. His face was beet red; odd considering the fact that Hideyoshi was always a great actor.
"What's wrong?" Yuuko slyly smiled.
"First time. Looking at the script. Caught me. By surprise," he panted.
"Sure."
There was a moment of silence as Hideyoshi attempted to say something. His impatient sister didn't let it sit for long.
"Out with it!" Yuuko demanded. "You look like a beached fish struggling for air!"
"Do you approve of same sex relationships?" Hideyoshi called out, closing his eyes to brace for his sister's reply.
One second passed.
Two.
The third one waved goodbye.
When he noticed that there was no response, he carefully opened them again.
Yuuko, who had been dominating previously, now sat flabbergasted to the side of him. She drew her arms and knees close to her chest and quickly shook her head several times.
"Oh god, this can't...no I'm, I, I just heard wrong..."
"Sis?" He snapped in her face in an attempt to break her out of her trance.
"No...no...no..." She mumbled, with tears in her eyes. "It's gotta be from all those yaoi books I've read...it probably spread to him or something..."
Yuuko nervously glanced around the room, her hands noticeably shaking as her eyes scoured for the pile of ero-manga she had collected.
Hideyoshi grabbed her floundering arms with one hand and with the other attempted to turn her face to his.
"What's wrong, aneue?" He asked tenderly, frowning slightly at the spectacle that was now his sister.
"No...You're kidding, right?" Yuuko's absentminded gaze was laced with dementia.
Hideyoshi reached forward, and carefully brushed a few strings of hair aside from her face. He had never seen this side of his sister before. Yuuko had never demonstrated her soft, weak side. Maybe his initial guess was wrong; his sister did have this side to her, but it was well hidden below a thick veneer of pride and glory.
"I'm just kidding, of course. I'm a man, and nothing can change that," he confided, smiling a bit at the ease it was in comforting his sister. It was this stupid comment that brought the return of fire in Yuuko's eyes.
"Baka, I know you're a guy!" She softly punched his chest. Was this an action of relief? Or was she, like always, still angry at him?
"I was asking if you really liked another man." Her voice was noticeably softer.
"Aha, uh, no, I don't really," Hideyoshi patted her head. His sister squirmed a little bit, and he glanced down to see Yuuko forming a fist in one hand.
"Aneue, uh, what's wrong now?" Hideyoshi quickly asked. Yuuko glared up at him, and, through gritted teeth, warmed him never to do that again.
"Don't worry about that!" Hideyoshi quickly brushed it off. "It won't happen again."
"It better not," she threatened. "I'm not done yet. If I catch you in a relationship with another boy…"
"I, uh...Don't worry about that!" Hideyoshi nervously laughed.
Was that convincing?
There was a deep frown on his sister's face, and her lips were pressed tightly together. She eyed something, something that was near the vicinity of his pants. Hideyoshi squirmed a bit, uncomfortable at the thought of what his sister was going to do next. His obvious movement didn't go unrecognized, and once again he found himself in point-blank range of Yuuko's glare.
"What the hell are you thinking, pervert?" Yuuko yelled, but a hint of a smile formed on her lips. "I just want to lie on your soft thighs."
"I, what?"
"Raise your arms."
"Okay!"
Yuuko laid her head on his thighs.
"Just don't put them anywhere scandalous," she demanded.
"I'd rather just keep them up here," Hideyoshi admitted.
"Whatever."
They sat like that for quite some time before Yuuko spoke again.
"Hideyoshi?"
"Aye."
"Promise me you'll do well in the play?"
"As always."
"But I swear, if that thing gets to your head..."
"Thou need not worry! Thy brother pure shall find a lady to his likings!"
"I didn't mean that, but whatever."
The poor boy found himself collapse from exhaustion, a result of the physical and mental abuse he had suffered today. Yuuko, however, found herself plotting for the next event. She was still unsure at what she was even planning, but once she found her mind set on something, nothing else could prevent her from obtaining her goal.
