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Seven months. According to Karen, it had been over seven months since shehad been knocked off that tower and woke up to find the class missing its transfer student. It still didn’t quite feel real to Hikari, that she had spent over half a year lost in that endless desert, endlessly quoting the play engraved in her heart and futilely piling up stars. However, seeing how everyone had reacted to her and Karen emerging from the front doors into the courtyard, hand in hand, she had to admit that perhaps it was real after all.
That night, Hikari left the hot pot dinner hosted by her classmates early. More accurately, everyone else had kicked her and Karen out as the rest of them began to clean up, saying that two must be qutite tired after everything they had been through that day. As Hikari stepped into the room she shared with her two roommates, the first thing she noticed was how… clean it looked. Karen’s desk was just- well, okay, even more cluttered than she remembered, but there was a conspicuous empty spot between the two beds where her futon had been. And none of the haphazardly strewn about clothes she had to constantly be reminded to put away were there either. Before the black-haired girl could really take in the sight, she heard Karen shouting behind her.
“Ah, that’s right! I completely forgot! Your futon just disappeared after you… left.” An awkward silence filled the room, neither of the two really comfortable with addressing Hikari’s disappearance, even now that she had returned.
“Karen? It… disappeared?” Hikari asked, not quite understanding what exactly that meant.
“Yeah. We woke up and it was just gone. All those clothes you left lying around too. The only thing left was your suitcase!”
“I… I see.” It didn’t look like her friend was lying. And she couldn’t say it was the strangest thing to have happened in her life.
“I-It’s fine! We’ll just buy another one over the weekend. You’ll just have to share with me for a bit, okay, Hikari-chan?” Karen suggested, putting on a slight smile.
“W-What!?” Hikari yelped, taken back the suggestion. “N-No, I can just take a spare blanket and sleep on one of the couches!” She quickly countered. It would be quite cramped trying to fit the two of them onto that tiny bed and they were both somewhat restless sleepers and she had just finished spilling her heart out to this girl and she just wasn’t ready and-
“Come on! It’ll be like old times!” Karen shouted, grasping Hikari’s hand and staring into her eyes.
Well, she didn’t dislike the idea of sleeping in the same bed as Karen...
Surprisingly, Hikari was much less flustered than she imagined she would be, and found herself dozing off almost immediately after crawling in after Karen. She hadn’t slept at all for the past few months, so perhaps it was catching up to her?
Before she could drift off completely, she was snapped awake by two hands wrapping around her and pulling her close.
“...Karen?” She whispered to the girl pressed to her back, slightly confused.
“You’re here. You’re really here.” Came the soft reply. “...Sorry. Let me hold onto you tonight.”
“Okay.”
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“You’re slightly too tense. Try relaxing your core a little. And remember to breathe.”
“Right!”
Hikari’s smiled as she saw Karen recollect herself and quickly apply the advice she had been given. The final round of auditions for the 100th festival’s Starlight were to be held soon, and, unfortunately, practice had been the last thing on Karen’s mind for the last few months. Back in May, she had made great progress under Hikari’s tutelage, but the long period of disuse afterwards had left herout of practice. Thankfully, Hikari had been more than willing to restart their lessons, and watching Karen keep up with her more and more as time passed was something Hikari looked forward to every day.
Even now, it still felt strange to her to actually be excited at the prospect of practicing. Hikari remembered all too clearly those long, torturous days of apathy she had experienced back in London. It was only thanks to the endless persistence of this girl before her that she found herself liberated from those dull times.
“Karen.”
“Huh? Did I do something else wrong? Sorry!”
“Thank you. For everything.” Even if she had said similar words countless times already, even if words themselves could never truly convey her gratitude, she still had to say it.
“Hikari-chan...” Karen sighed, shaking her head and waking over to the black-haired girl. Before Hikari could react, Karen reached out and squeezed her nose. “What do you mean by that!? That makes it sound like you’re leaving forever!”
“What!? No! I didn’t mean-” Before Hikari could retort, her friend had already begun giggling.
“Sorry, I was just kidding. Unless you actually were planning on leaving me behind?” Taking Hikari’s passionate shaking of her head as a positive sign, Karen continued on. “Listen, Hikari-chan. Back then, you said I could have your everything, right?”
“Right...”
“Then, that includes your gratitude. Don’t worry. I know how you feel.”
“But-” Even so, she wanted to do more. She wanted to express these feelings overflowing within her, shout them out to the whole world if she had to.
“Come on! Even I can tell that I’m still really rusty!” Karen interrupted, showing a big smile on her face that would accept no objections, “Right now, I need your guidance more than anything else!”
“Okay...”
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There it was. At long last, all their hard work had paid off. Right in front of her, posted on the board, were the final casting decisions.
Claire: Kagura Hikari
Flora: Aijo Karen
Their destined stage. The fulfillment of that promise they had been living their lives for. In just a few short months, it would finally come. Provided, of course, that they could live up to the expectations for the roles they had been assigned.
Ignoring the sea of congratulation and vexation all around her, Hikari turned to the girl next to her, her fellow star.
“Karen.”
“Hikari-chan!” From the sound of Karen’s voice, Hikari could tell that she was on the verge of tears.
As Karen turned, Hikari pulled her partner into a hug.
“We did it. The two of us, together.” As Hikari spoke, she felt her own tears coming forth. But, before they could burst out, she forced them back. Karen was already bawling enough for the two of them. Someone had to remain calm.
They had both been waiting years for this stage, and it would not be found wanting. Claire’s gratitude towards her friend that refused to abandon her. Her connection to the girl who had guided her when she lost herself. Her affection for the girl that made her complete. On the stage, she would make sure to express them all.
“Let’s make this the best show we can.” Hikari whispered. One star alone could not shine enough to make an entire performance. It was only with the support of her fellows on the stage that the radiance grew enough to illuminate the audience. “You and me, together.”
“Okay!”