2. The Pawns Move
"I am Nishikado Katsuki, and I will be your form teacher for the rest of the year. I hope to work well with you."
Mio glared coldly at the tall teacher, already hating him for the friendly smile he flashed at the class. Did he really think just smiling would place him in her good books? Though, expectedly, his charismatic demeanor had already endeared him to the rest of the class, undoubtedly earning him more than a few fangirls. His chiseled face didn't hurt, either. Her classmates were such naïve and shallow idiots. Mio herself knew better than to be tricked by the overabundance of charm he displayed; after all, if anyone were to know just how sinister the human nature could be, it would be her. There was no such thing as a purely good person. Everyone had a dark side, an ulterior motive. The nicer a person seemed to be, the more double-faced they were in reality.
The scar that mapped the left side of her face was proof of that very fact.
-
Katsuki had instantly picked up on the distinct glower and loathing vibes Hongo Mio had shot him in class. It was hard not to, when that dark aura was fairly palpable, so much so that some of her classmates were staring at her in alarm, slowly inching their chairs away to give her a wide berth.
He observed her from the corner of his eye as he took attendance; making a mental note to keep an eye on her as her hand lifted almost sullenly in response to her name. Dark hair was tucked behind her ears, displaying the grotesque scar that spanned almost the entire left side of her face. Strange, that a girl would be so open about such an obvious facial blemish. Mio's lips were pressed thinly together, eyes shooting poisonous glares he was pretty sure were directed at him.
Katsuki was no pushover, and a student's inexplicable hatred did not intimidate him. His easy smile remained on his lips, as he completed attendance marking and started on his first lesson.
Though, admittedly, she troubled him a little.
-
Apparently, Hongo-kun's notoriety extended beyond her classroom, spilling into the boundaries of the staff office and teachers' lounge.
Hideki Kato, 1-C's homeroom teacher, patted Katsuki's arm sympathetically, upon seeing him pore over the student identification photos of his new students. "I expect you've already… met Hongo-kun?"
He gave a wordless nod, still busy trying to match faces to names and committing them all to memory.
His silence was taken as a disturbed reaction to meeting Hongo-kun, for Hideki-sensei had replied delicately, "If I were you, I'd just leave her alone. Trust me; it's best to not understand how the mind of that one works."
Katsuki had glanced up then, smiling genuinely at the well-meaning man. "I plan on treating all my students equally."
Hideki-sensei had smiled bemusedly then, with the air of one who knew he had to let another experience failure to learn.
"Good luck, Nishikado-sensei."
Katsuki's eyebrow quirked, eyes shining contemplatively.
Hongo Mio, eh?
-
"Okay, cut and wrap!" Director Ogata cued the end of the scene, normally soft voice authorative and approving. He approached Ren and Kyoko, grinning, "As expected, no NGs from the two of you. You really are pros!"
Kyoko snapped out of her dark mood, having learnt how to do so during the filming of Dark Moon and Box R. She beamed, delighted with the lavish praise from Director Ogata, whom she highly respected. Ren merely smiled and inclined his head gracefully.
To the rest of the cast and production staff, he shouted, "Okay, we're done for today. Good job, everyone! I'll see you back tomorrow, we'll be filming from 11 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon."
He turned back to the costars, smiling softly. "Good job today. Hopefully tomorrow's scenes will be equally successful." Both Ren and Kyoko smiled at that, and bid the director a friendly goodbye.
Director Ogata thoughtfully watched the staff clear the backdrop and props. Maybe whatever President Takarada intended wasn't as bad as he had thought. But one could never tell when it concerned the eccentric President.
-
"Yes, today's filming was a minor scene and very short, given the expertise with which they acted – as expected, they made no errors."
"Did they leave together? When is the next scheduled shooting?"
"Yes, they left together. I overheard Yashiro-san saying that they were going to give Kyoko-san a lift back to LME. The next filming is scheduled for tomorrow, from 11 to 3… Will you be coming to observe?"
"No, but keep me updated. Remember, Ogata, give small breaks in between, and ensure that the two of them spend time together."
"… I understand."
Ringmaster Takarada Lori rested the telephone receiver in its cradle, before caressing the lion that was sprawled lazily on the rest of the sofa. The lion growled sleepily, but made no move to attack. Such was the hypnotic power of the circus ringmaster.
Lori picked up the gaming console, returning his undivided attention to the television screen. An auburn-haired girl stared shyly at a tall, dark-haired man.
An option list popped up: Friends or More than Friends?
More than Friends.
Lori smiled smugly, even as he watched the girl simulation blush as her hand accidentally brushed the man's.
It may have been one baby step, but everything was going according to plan.
-
AN: Really slow, I know, and I suppose I was kind of on an unofficial hiatus. But inspiration struck, so unsuspecting!Ren and Kyoko are back, together with manipulative!Lori. As you can tell, I don't really have a specific plot in mind, so ideas are always welcome :D