0 - 0 - 0
Mask of Glass
Part 2
0 – 0 – 0
The bell rang, signaling the end of classes for the day. Students took their time either chatting with friends, gathering their things or finishing up their notes as the class slowly emptied. Yumi packed up her bag as quickly as she could and, glancing at her wristwatch to double check the time, walked out of her classroom as quickly as she could without disrupting the pleats in her skirt.
Waving to a group of classmates she walked past, Yumi smiled brightly as she made her way through the halls of Lillian Academy. She had been a student here for almost two-and-a-half years now; starting from a normal student, to Rosa Chinensis en bouton's petite soeur, to Rosa Chinensis en bouton, and now Rosa Chinensis herself. It was safe to assume that everyone in the school knew about Yumi, at the very least knowing her by name alone, and Yumi could still not get over that fact.
Honestly, could anyone really accept the idea that they were actually popular? And not just popular; but perhaps the most popular person in school? Yumi still wasn't used to it.
If Rosa Chinensis had to pick a particular instance that first thrust the fact that she was popular into her face, it had been when a second year girl confessed to her not three months ago.
For one, Yumi hadn't expected anything like that when she got a message that a second year girl had something to ask her. In fact, she didn't know what she expected at all. Maybe the girl wanted to know something about the Yamayurikai's plans for the upcoming months? Or maybe she just wanted to ask something about Touko, or the other students that frequented the Rose Mansion. And Yumi, being the most well-known and most easily-approachable of the three roses –a far cry from the previous Rosa Chinensis—was the one to be tapped.
However, when Yumi arrived in the school greenhouse to find the lone second year, her school bag clutched tightly in her hands and her face as pink as the flowers around her… it was safe to say that Rosa Chinensis was struck speechless.
It wasn't even the fact that it had been a girl that confessed to her that made Yumi hesitate. Yumi herself didn't care about things like gender in relationships— love was love. What sex you were didn't really matter in the long run.
It was just the idea of being confessed to for the first time –ever—that really drove the point home to her. She was popular. And she had admirers. That was going to take some getting used to.
It had been pretty difficult, letting the girl down easy like Yumi had. It wasn't as though Yumi found the girl unattractive or anything. She was pretty… but it was simply because Yumi had no idea what she was looking for in a relationship. Honestly, she had never even thought about it before.
No. That was a lie. Yumi had thought about it at times, but always had come up dry with any sort of conclusion. Just what kind of person did she want? What kind of personality attracted her? What did she prefer? She just didn't know. And it was what indecisiveness which led to the poor second year student being turned down by Rosa Chinensis.
Though she had done so as painlessly as she could.
Finally reaching her destination, Yumi took a deep breath and opened the door to the Social Studies Prep room.
Touko, already having arrived in the room, looked up from her book to see who opened the door. Upon seeing it was Yumi, she shut her book and stood.
"Onee-sama." She greeted softly, a warm smile gracing her lips.
"Hey Touko." Yumi replied, setting her back down on the desk beside her Soeur. "Have you been waiting long?"
"Not long." Touko said, shaking her head. "Only a couple minutes."
Yumi nodded and went back to the door, shutting it. "Good. What are we going to be working on?"
Touko's suddenly almost-feral grin gave Yumi pause. Swallowing, she sat down opposite her soeur, wondering just what she had gotten herself into by asking Lillian's own self-proclaimed diva for help.
0 – 0 – 0
Over the following two weeks, Touko had agreed to meet with Yumi for an hour each day after classes in order to prepare her for her role in 'A Stone's Smile'. While the rest of the Yamayurikai were preparing for the day's jobs, Yumi suffered until the harsh tutelage of Touko Matsudaira. Yumi had known, ever since first learning about Touko from her friends the previous year, that the younger girl was an avid actress. But, before now, she had no idea just how intense Rosa Chinensis en Bouton could actually be when preparing for a role.
The first day, the moment Yumi arrived in the Social Studies Prep room Touko ordered the older girl to sit in a chair and stay as still as possible. Yumi agreed, pausing to stow her bag away in a corner, and sat dutifully. Touko merely observed the older girl for a while as Yumi fidgeted under her gaze. With Touko there, watching her every move, her every twitch, Yumi could clearly feel the way her own body moved. She could sense, with an eerie clarity, every part of her body.
Her feet, itchy and tired from the day, tapping lightly on the floor.
Her knees, knobby and thin under her pleated skirt, lightly touching.
Her legs crossing and uncrossing uncomfortably, quite unsure of what was the best way to sit still.
Her behind hurt from a full day of sitting, too. It was already going a little numb.
Her chest rose and fell with each breath she took, and it showed clearly from underneath her shirt.
Her neck itched, knowing that she couldn't scratch without moving.
Her lips twitched, not sure if she should smile of frown. Or wear some kind of blank expression she had seen on a doll once a few years ago.
At least her hair was kind of motionless. Until she tilted her head to look at Touko, of course.
"You are very bad at this, Onee-sama," Touko finally said after watching Yumi sit for a full ten minutes.
"I know…" Yumi sighed, holding her face in her hands in embarrassment. "I'm not sure I can do this."
"Nonsense." Touko said simply. "With enough practice, you will be a veritable statue by the dress rehearsals."
"Great."
Touko ignored Grande Soeur's sarcastic comment and went on to point out areas she noticed Yumi could use improvement in for the remainder of the hour.
0 – 0 – 0
A few days later Touko brought a large doll to the Social Studies Prep Room. The doll was a beautiful creation; about half as tall as Yumi, curly golden hair, large glass-like blue eyes, a purple and white frilly dress, and a clear placid smile. From just the attention to detail alone it clearly was a masterpiece.
Yumi gasped in awe when her eyes fell upon it.
"Where did you find it?" She breathed, reaching out to feel its face and hair.
"I found her in the attic in my home." Touko said, shifting from foot to foot. Her cheeks colored slightly. "She was mine when I was a girl. I guess she still is, but…" she shrugged. "I haven't seen her in years. I was pleased to find her intact last night; we can use her to study from."
Grinning with the knowledge that she just learned some insight into Touko's younger life, Yumi nodded excitedly. "Great! So I just have to copy her?"
"Pretty much." Touko said, nodding in agreement. "I'll set her up across from you, Onee-sama, and then make corrections to your form."
Taking her seat a full meter away from the doll, Yumi made adjustments to herself that Touko taught her the day before. Touko set the doll up, taking great care not to damage the piece of veritable artwork, and Yumi was surprised to see that the dolls arms and legs were splayed out, as if the joints in the knees and elbows were stiff and tight. Interestingly enough, it looked like the doll was simply being held up by the chair, as opposed to being sat in by her.
"Hold your arms and legs out like hers." Touko instructed the older girl. "Dolls are put places, and they don't mold to surfaces like humans do. During the play you will be seated, but you won't be sitting. So your arms and legs won't be touching to the chair."
Yumi nodded slowly, stretching her arms and legs out, and began to imitate the doll's posture. She didn't make it long before her arms became heavy, and she had to lower them.
Touko's eyes narrowed in disapproval, "That was barely ten seconds, Onee-sama. Do it again."
By the end of the hour, Yumi could barely hold her arms straight for thirty seconds.
Progress.
0 – 0 – 0
After Yumi had gotten the doll's posture down to heart was when Yumi started to truly understand Touko's devotion to the craft of acting.
Loud clattering brought Yumi's attention to the younger girl's entrance to the Social Studies Prep room, and she was shocked to find Touko enter the room, her arms laden with what looked to be pieces of, strangely enough, particle board.
"Uhmmm…" Yumi started, but her voice trailed off, not knowing what to say.
"Sit, Onee-sama." Touko commanded, her tone laced with authority. Yumi found herself in her chair before she even realized she had moved, her eyes blinking rapidly.
What… was that?
Touko smiled in satisfaction and dropped the wood on the floor. Placing her bag on the table in the corner of the room, she opened it to retrieve a coil of thin cord.
W-what? What does she need that for?!
Yumi opened her mouth to ask what Touko had planned, but snapped it shut just as quickly. She was supposed to be a doll, which meant she had to be silent and unmoving. Well, as unmoving as she was able with only a week of practice. And after spending the last week being scolded by Touko for talking when she should be mute, Yumi wasn't too keen on bringing the younger girl's glare back down on her.
Touko took note of Yumi silence and picked up two pieces of particle board. They were thin and long; a similar length to Yumi's arms, she noticed.
"Stretch out your arms like the doll, Onee-sama." Touko said, her tone clear and sharp. Yumi did so, and Touko went to work. She placed the wood on either side of Yumi's left arm, like bread on a sandwich, and deftly fastened the pieces with a length of rope. She repeated the action with Yumi's right arm.
Blinking rapidly, Yumi tried to adjust her arms to a more comfortable position, only to find that she couldn't; they were effectively stuck in that position. Suddenly, Yumi realized what Touko had in mind by bringing the wood. By supporting her arms and presumably her legs with lengths of particle board, she was forced to have them stiff and unable to move using her joints. It was just like the doll's arms!
Yumi grinned in pride. By Maria-sama, her Petite Soeur was a genius!
"Excuse me, Onee-sama."
Suddenly, Yumi stifled a surprised gasp. Touko's murmur was followed by the girl gently lifting up Yumi's pleated skirt.
Touko!?
She blinked wildly, her breath catching in her throat and her heart suddenly stopping in her chest as Touko lifted the older girl's skirt up to her knees.
Her sudden shock at Touko's action was quieted as the younger girl quickly attached the particle board to Yumi's legs, skillfully wrapping the rope around the wood and binding her legs. She finished the second leg quickly enough, and then dropped Yumi's skirt back down to her shins.
As Touko returned to her feet and walked back to her bag, Yumi's heart began to restart, beating hard and fast in her chest.
What on earth just happened? Touko had… lifted up Yumi's skirt! Of course it was to attach the wood to her legs, as she did to her arms… but it truly caught Yumi off guard. She hadn't expected Touko to actually lift up her skirt to do it.
S-she could have warned me! Yumi thought, the sudden pounding in her chest slowing back to a steady rhythm.
She just hadn't been prepared for that.
But, really, she should have expected that. It wasn't like Touko could put the wood on her legs outside her skirt! That could damage her uniform! But the inward chiding didn't stop the warm flush that Yumi knew was covering her face.
Her thoughts were drowned out by Touko's throat clearing, "Now that you properly can't move your arms and legs, let's get to practice."
She too, but Yumi didn't notice with her own embarrassment, had a bright pink coloring splashed across her cheeks.
0 – 0 – 0
"Onee-sama, turn your head a little to your left." Touko commanded softly.
Yumi tilted her head, her serene smile keeping in place.
"Your right arm is a bit too low. Raise it."
Yumi did so.
Touko frowned. "Your eyes are too wide. Narrow them." In response, Yumi lowered her eyelids a little, as though she was simply reading a book instead of staring off into space. Touko nodded in satisfaction.
"Good."
Yumi sat as still as she could, propped up in her chair in the Social Studies Prep room, taking steady, shallow breaths so it wasn't too obvious. She was still wearing her arm and leg braces, because she wasn't too confident in her ability to keep her limbs stiff without them, but after two and a half weeks of solid practice it was easy enough to follow Touko's instructions while keep the rest of her body as still as possible at the same time.
The past two weeks had been probably the most challenging time in Yumi's school life. Before, if somewhere were to have told her that she would learn something more difficult than ballroom dancing in a week, or cross-dress with her twin brother and act a boy, she would have laughed and said "No way!"
But now, sitting still as a statue – or a doll – against a chair with her Petite Soeur glowering over her like an omen, pointing out her every mistake, she could admit she had been very, very optimistic.
God… I really need to pee.
All Yumi had to distract herself was her mind, and her own words flowing through them. As she was a doll in the middle of a play, Yumi literally had no lines, or places to be. She had to stay where she was put, and she couldn't look at or talk to anyone. With nothing to pay attention to or follow along with in the play, it didn't take Yumi long to start an inner dialogue with herself as she followed Touko's commands.
And my knee itches. I wonder what the others are up to? Think they have begun to practice the script? It's been two weeks… I can't imagine they have been neglecting that while I have been with Touko. It's only another week until dress rehearsal, so there isn't a lot of time yet.
I wonder when I can join the others in their practice…
I don't have any lines, and all I do is sit there. So I guess it makes sense for me to concentrate on acting like a doll instead of following the others' dialogue. But I still wonder how they are doing.
God… I really need to pee!
"Onee-sama!" Touko snapped, jerking Yumi's attention from her own thoughts. Her eyes swiveled to the younger girl, and Yumi inwardly winced.
Damn!
"Don't move your eyes!" Touko said, her tone sharp as a razor. "You cannot move your eyes or blink. You know that!"
I know, Touko… sorry.
Touko stared at Yumi for another minute, as if anticipating her Souer would budge. When she didn't, Touko's grim look softened to a smile and she nodded. "Good," She said. "Now I'm going to remove the wood and move parts of your body, and I want you to play along – just like a real doll." Just as Yumi was trained, she didn't respond to Touko's declaration. She simply sat there, staring off into a corner of the room.
Touko worked silently and diligently at the robe binding the wood to Yumi's arms, and after only a few moments the fell away, leaving her arms free. It would have felt somewhat liberating, Yumi guessed, if her uniform's sleeves weren't crumbled and stiff in the wake of being bound for the better part of thirty minutes.
So far so good. I can hold my arms still now for a while, but no longer than twenty minutes or so. I may have to get the others to periodically move my arms or legs in the play to give them a rest.
"I am going to lower your arms now, Onee-sama." Touko said, accompanying her words with by gently putting pressure on Yumi's arms. The Red Rose slowly lowered her arms at the younger girl's touch, just as if she were a real doll. She made sure to keep her fingers and wrists stiff and taught, though natural enough to not seem too fake.
Although, now that I think about it, I wonder how dolls hands are supposed to be? I can't quite remember how Touko's doll held her hands. Should I clench them into fists? Stick my fingers out? Hold my hands loosely? I should ask Touko after we're finished today.
What time is it, anyway? Classes finished about half an hour ago, so it's likely around three… I wonder if the others are getting todays work done. She laughed inwardly, though her serene expression showed no indication of her mirth. Knowing them, they are probably sitting there, drinking tea and eating biscuits.
Distantly, as if for a moment it felt like it was happening to someone else, Yumi felt Touko lift up the older girl's pleated skirt. It only lasted for a moment, however, and Yumi's attention was jostled back to the here and now, with Touko working silently at the wood binding her legs. Her fingers tugged and worked at the cords binding the boards to her legs. They made short work of the articles, and soon they fell away and were placed securely to the side.
Yumi felt instead of saw Touko turn her attention back to Yumi, and reached up to place her hands gently on the older girl's knees, just barely covered by her bunched up skirt. From there Touko knelt, Yumi knew her Petite Souer couldn't see up her indecently askew uniform, but that didn't stop the embarrassed flush from spreading across her cheeks.
Just… lower the thing, Touko. This is getting a little awkward.
But Touko didn't put her skirt right, as she did before. This time, she left the skirt pulled up to her knees and let her hands linger there, their warmth seeping through the thin fabric. Yumi noticed that no part of her hands had actually touched her skin.
Um….. okay? This is… weird. Yumi swallowed slowly, practice making it easy for the action to remain undetected. Under normal circumstances being touched like Yumi was would be simply odd. What made it even stranger was that Touko was generally a really taciturn girl. Nor was she very 'toucy-feely'. The fact that she was being so forward with touching Yumi, even during practice, was just…
Odd.
Then, suddenly, Touko's face filled her vision. Yumi fought the initial reaction to focus on the younger girl's eyes and kept her stare fixed at some point past Touko's face, but with the girl right there, it was difficult.
What are you looking for, Touko? For me to give up and blink? Not gonna happen.
The girl in front of her stayed there silently for a few long moments, as if gauging her reaction to her proximity. Yumi stayed as still as she could, taking her slow, shallow breaths. She was determined to not fail this time.
Eventually, she heard Touko take a deep breath and felt the air around them shift as she leaned forward, closer to Yumi.
What is she—
All thought process ceased as Touko pressed her mouth against Yumi's in a kiss. It was a soft, gentle touch of the lips, but it was unmistakably a kiss.
Touko?!
As Yumi's brain struggled to understand this new development, she forced herself to remain still through sheer force of will. It was tough, perhaps the toughest thing she had ever done up until this point, but she succeeded in schooling her features so she remained stoic and serene in the face of Touko's surprise attack.
The kiss, as it was, ended quickly enough with a soft sigh from Touko. Her lips stuck a little to Yumi's, probably from sudden dryness, and snapped back into place as Touko pulled away. She pulled back and, what Yumi could guess apart from the mad pounding of her heart in her ears, stared at the older girl for a long moment.
What… Touko… Why? Yumi's voice was breathy and faint, even in her own head. She was sure that even if she was permitted to speak aloud, she wouldn't be able to.
"Onee-sama," Touko's voice could be heard – a soft whisper as opposed to her usual frosty, sardonic tone. "If you move, then the scene is over. Blink if you understand."
If I move…? Scene? What are you talking about?
Yumi's thoughts were chaotic, rampant. The pounding in her chest was and painful, but manageable. She didn't know what Touko planned to do with kissing her out of the blue like that. Was this a test? Was this still part of the doll training? What would happen if she were to move? What would happen… if she were to stay still?
As if answering her unspoken question, she felt Touko's hands tighten their hold on her knees, grasping the fabric of her skirt in her fingers. Yumi's heart leapt into her throat and she felt the soft linen of her pleated skirt slid upwards past her knees, onto her thighs.
At once, along with the sudden goosebumps that prickled along the pale skin of her thighs, she knew came a sudden understanding of Touko's intent, and it took great strength of will to keep her gaze from locking onto her Soeur's in shock.
Touko wanted to—
Oh my…
"Onee-sama…" Touko's voice sounded again, this time breathy and soft. "If you move… then the scene is over. Blink if you understand me."
Swallowing minutely against a suddenly dry throat, Yumi suddenly knew that the last— the last thing— she wanted to do now, was break character now. If she did… then this… whatever this was… it was over.
She couldn't fail Touko now.
She would live up to her Soeur's expectations.
Slowly, she blinked her understanding.
Touko's fingers grasped the fabric of her pleated skirt, and Yumi could practically hear Touko's smirk as she whispered, "Very well, Onee-sama. Then it is time for rehearsal."
0 – 0 – 0
End of Part 2
A/N: Just what does Touko have in store for our Yumi? Tune in next time to find out!
