Sideline Leaders

Dress-Up Games and Teatime with Dolls

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"Nana!" Kaguya cried, "It's so good to see you!"

Nunnally giggled, "Kaguya, it's been too long!"

The two girls laughed for a moment, sharing little compliments and trite gossip about servants and classmates that only one of the girls had met. It had been a few months since Nunnally's last summon to Kyoto, but the way the girls were acting one might confuse them for schoolgirls in the same clique.

As neither one really wanted to keep the other girl waiting, it didn't take too long for the girls to get down to business.

"Oh! Did you hear about my cousin?" Kaguya began, whispering in the tone her maids used when they talked about such-and-such sleeping with the new kitchen boy. "He got arrested!"

"Oh, I did!" Nunnally whispered back in an equally eager, yet subdued tone. To anyone listening in, it would look like she was sharing a juicy secret she knew should be kept hidden, yet couldn't help herself in taking some perverse delight in this very fact. "But didn't the court find him innocent?"

Kaguya nodded with a grin. "It's because-"

She suddenly stopped, and looked around as though she was keeping an eye out for nearby eavesdroppers. The only other people in the room were Nunnally's two maid/bodyguards and Kaguya's own protectors, but she still kept up the façade of fearing she would be overheard.

In a much quieter tone with a smaller smirk, Kaguya leaned over the table and whispered in Nunnally's ear. "It's they found undeniable proof he didn't do it."

The Black Knights.

Both girls knew this already. This was the least of the information they'd heard. Still, Nunnally gasped as though she'd it was news. "No!"

Kaguya nodded. "Really?" Nunnally asked.

"Really." Kaguya said. "And that's not all. The-"

Once again, Kaguya dropped her voice and leaned over to whisper. "The people responsible are going to be visiting Fuji soon."

The atmosphere hadn't changed. The girls were still giggling as though they were exchanging simple gossip. But until that moment, the meeting hadn't held any real information.

Kyoto is going to start supplying the Black Knights. Nunnally grinned. "That'll be exciting!"

I approve. "Really?" Kaguya giggled. "You don't think it's… weird?"

"Of course not!" The grin fell off Nunnally's face, but the serious expression that replaced it was too exaggerated to be genuine. This time, Nunnally leaned over the table to whisper: "In fact, Sayako told me she'd seen them once, and they sound amazing!"

I've been keeping my eye on them, and I approve of this group. I might have even contacted them myself.

Kaguya gasped, hand covering her mouth. "Sayako?"

That was is risky.

Nunnally nodded, "One of the roads had some construction on it, so she went down some back alley to get home in time, and she did some window shopping along the way. She even talked to the cashier at a convenience store they hang around."

I'm aware of the dangers, but it was worth it. I have made indirect contact with them, but they don't know it was me.

The brown haired girl added, "She told him that he should give them discounts on the drinks."

I made sure they got information that would benefit them.

"The Orange juice?" Kaguya guessed. Nunnally nodded, although neither girl expected anything else. Kaguya hadn't even known that word held any value until she saw it on TV.

I was responsible for Jeremiah Gottwald's recent unexplained actions during Suzaku Kururugi's rescue.

Kaguya said, "That's a popular item, isn't it? A discount is going to hurt the store's business."

Gottwald was your best contact in the government. Why did you sacrifice him?

Nunnally shrugged. "Honestly, I didn't think they'd abuse it. I guess Sayako was too vague, but she didn't want to make a scene." In an attempt to maintain my anonymity, I gave away as little information as possible. The Black Knights misunderstood the message or underestimated the gift I gave them and acted in a way I hadn't anticipated.

"Well, what did she expect to happen?" Kaguya asked.

Nunnally said, "I thought they'd buy a pack for each week or so, or one of those big jugs, not throw a party and empty the store." She smiled at Kaguya. "I guess that tells you what to expect: lots of fun, appropriate behavior, or at least well-meaning fun, but someone else will have to tell them how to clean up."

The Black Knights are talented and powerful. They do not turn to terrorism. They have morals they uphold. But they lack a strong political thinker and they don't understand the public. If you use them, you should treat them like a group of well-behaved foot soldiers.

Kaguya looked thoughtful. "In that case, do you think it'd be better if they stayed at my uncle's place?" Should we try to incorporate them into the JLF?

Nunnally made a thoughtful 'hm' noise before responding. "It's up to you. I think if you sent someone to look after them they'd be alright, and maybe a few of them wouldn't mind staying with your uncle, but mostly 'cause they tend to hang out together. If they're your guests, you could just lay down some rules for them."

You can, or you can try to put your own people in the Black Knights to control them. Some might join the JLF if given the opportunity, but they work best as a group. You could also exchange support for having them obey Kyoto, or simply use your power over them to veto some of their actions.

"Really?" Kaguya asked. "Why would they stay together?"

Nunnally grinned. "I think they have a bit of a reputation on the streets, 'cause they can handle themselves and nobody's arrested any of them yet. You know- 'street cred' and all that stuff guys tend to worry about." Both girls burst out in giggles.

The Japanese public has seen the Black Knights perform the impossible on live television. They have a reputation for doing the right thing, ever since the Hotel incident. The most useful thing about keeping the Black Knights together is that they're new and flashy and impressive, and they inspire hope in people.

Kaguya smiled and said: "Oh! Have you heard about what happened last week?"

Anything else you want to say about them now?

Nunnally shook her head. "No, I didn't! Tell me, tell me!"

Nothing for now.

And so they continued talking about who was wearing what, and which boy was the cutest, and other such things. To any onlooker, it would look like two rich girls with too much time on their hands spending an afternoon together.

To the girls, half of the conversations were of vital importance and contained helpful or precious information to be hoarded carefully. It was a strange affair, but the benefit was that very few people would be able to understand their talks.

It was less then a code, but more then the hidden implications so often used in tense political situations where a mask of civility was required. When the two girls had first met, Kaguya was just starting to learn her way around the dangerous world of socialites and businessmen, and Nunnally had just discovered a place she could escape the barbs and traps of the royal court. Their friendship was genuinely innocent, and innocently genuine.

Now, there was still a genuine element of friendship and goodwill in their relationship, but the innocence was all but gone. Kaguya would help Nunnally only if it was beneficial to her own interests, and Nunnally was willing to advise Kaguya only if it furthered her own plans. For now, the two girls were working towards a common goal. Should that change, they would consider their friendship over.

Yet both girls dearly wanted to avoid that situation. Nunnally might not be willing to draw up complex battle plans for Kaguya to manipulate her way around presenting, but she would give her an honest opinion.

Kaguya in turn would never support funding her friend in council meetings between the six houses without just cause, but she would give Nunnally a heads up on who disapproved of the Western Wisteria plan and why.

Their meetings were half politics, but they made a show out of gossiping and giggling like schoolgirls because they could. Because there was no other time or place where either girl could act in any way that felt even remotely normal without living a lie or being taken for a fool. This was the only time either girl could feel relaxed and ordinary with someone they…

Well, perhaps not someone they trusted. With someone who understood what it was like to have to switch between being a child and being an adult all the time, never wavering in either mask. Their little talks let them mix the childhoods both girls had been forced to cast away too soon, and the maturity they'd worked so hard to cultivate.

For two children living in the world of adults, life was like a switch. Either they were seen as immature little girls given too much power, or they were overestimated as prodigies beyond reproach. Either way, a single mistake no matter how small would cost them dearly.

So it was fun for them, to every once in a while be with someone who understood that balance. Two girls so used to holding up masks, they felt more comfortable using an exaggerated mask they both knew was false then abandoning all pretenses.

They didn't have to feel exposed, but they didn't have to feel fake, assured that neither girl needed to spend their effort convincing anyone.

It was a strange friendship between Kaguya Sumeragi and Nunnally vi Britannia. But for the two of them, it was the closest thing they had.