Chapter Text
Yuu stares at her reflection, and concludes that the person staring back at her is most definitely a stranger. Her nails are the only recognizable feature of her ensemble, painted to represent each of her boys as they always are. Everything else, however, belong on someone far more glamourous than she feels like she is. Her hair is held together with over fifty bobby pins to form a rose just starting to bloom. Her dress, a form hugging piece with a high neck and long sleeves, would not look out of place on a bride (ignoring the fact that it's all black). Her makeup exaggerates the softness of her eyes, makes her cheeks look rounder, and fills out her lips. The combination has her looking like the fairy princess she technically isn't yet.
It is this reminder more than anything that leaves Yuu feeling insecure. She turns to Vil, who is waiting for her verdict. "Well?"
"There is no way I can pull all of this off."
He rolls his eyes as he approaches. "You can, and you will."
"But what if I stumble? Or stutter? What if I forget all the etiquette you taught and all the poses I need to hit? What if-"
A perfectly manicured hand takes her chin and guides her gaze up toward purple eyes. "Do you truly think I would let you flounder? That if I saw you starting to struggle I would leave you to your fate?"
"No but-"
"But nothing love. This is your grand reveal to the public as my partner. I would never let your debut be anything short of perfection. I will be by your side the entire time. I will guide you through everything if you need me to. But you won't need me to, because you are ready for this."
"If you say so."
"I don't just say so, I know so." Vil leans down and plants a kiss on her nose, just to watch her cheeks flush. "It's not like you to worry about things like this. What happened to the girl brave enough to propose courtship in front of a whole crowd of teenage boys?"
"That was different. I knew Malleus would say yes back then. Right now, I have no guarantee that the media will like me."
"Trust me Yuu, they'll adore you."
"How do you know?"
"Because I adore you, and everyone else will follow my lead."
Finally she relaxes and looks at herself in the mirror again. This time she can recognize herself, and that's all she needs to be able to bolster her confidence. "Okay, I'm ready, let's do this."
. . .
The limo ride is uneventful. It's just Yuu and Vil sitting in the back, sharing an amicable silence. Rook drove to the venue ahead of them to do what he always does at these events, play paparazzi to make sure Vil is asked the questions he wants to answer.
When they pull up to the carpet Yuu grabs his hand and squeezes it once. Her favorite actor squeezes back, before letting go and opening the door. "Remember to brace yourself for the flashing lights." The blonde exits the car to a chorus of cheers, accompanied by a harmony of shutter clicks. He flashes his (literal) award winning smile, before turning around and offering his girlfriend his arm. She takes one last deep breath, and exits the vehicle. An echo of 'wow's and 'whoa's resound around the entrance, as the couple slowly makes their way toward the building.
Just as he predicted, Yuu manages to effortlessly recall the poses she's supposed to do alongside Vil, so that they form a cohesive looking pair. They make sure to draw subtle attention to her nails in a few of them. Just enough that it's not noticeable in the moment, but later when all of the photos get posted online, a pattern will be obvious. Halfway down the carpet they spot Rook, who is grinning at both of them with such adoration that if anyone was paying any attention to him, his plan to keep his own name out of the papers would be foiled instantly. As it is, all eyes are on the two who want to be in the spotlight. The model guides his lover towards the ropes so that they can talk with the reporters on the other side.
"Vil! Vil over here!"
"You with the feather in your hat."
"Oui, thank you! Who is this gem on your arm tonight?"
"This is my partner Yuu, who is eager to support me at this award show tonight, and was gracious enough to let me play dress up." She flashes her best smile at the cameras and lets Vil do all of the talking.
"Your partner? How exciting! How long have you two been together?"
"Give or take four years now."
"Really? Then you met during highschool?"
"Correct, we both went to Night Raven College."
"Highschool sweethearts, how romantic! You two look marvelous together."
"Thank you. Next is... you, from The Apple Orchard."
"Who are you two wearing tonight?"
"Both of our ensembles were hand made for us by a mutual friend who we went to school with. His name is Cater Diamond and you can find him on Magicam. Cater, I know you're watching this right now, and I must thank you again for the impeccable job."
Vil continues to answer the usual questions for a few more minutes, before saying goodbye to the group and urging the both of them along. He makes sure to flash Yuu a genuinely soft expression when she isn't looking, so that Rook has a picture to anonymously send out to the papers later that night. By the time they reach their seats in the auditorium, the former prefect has fully relaxed and is properly embracing her role of eye candy for the night.
She talks and jokes with her boyfriend until the show starts, and even then she doesn't stop herself from dropping a quip or two in-between each award. When they reach the final trophy for Best Actor, Vil gets an idea so off script for himself that he has to laugh under his breath. Yuu hears the sound and turns to him as they read out the nominees, such that when the camera pans over to him after reading his name, it looks as if the two are locked in a deep conversation, oblivious to the rest of the world.
"Thaumark for your thoughts?"
"I was just thinking how funny it would be, if I won the award, and then I just didn't go up to accept it, because I was preoccupied with you."
"Haha, yeah that is pretty funny, as if you would ever."
"But I could."
"You wouldn't though. It's too important to you."
"And the winner is..."
"I don't know, I think right now you are more important to me."
"Vil..."
"Vil Schoenheit!"
The applause is thunderous as the camera pans back to Vil, seemingly still in that same deep conversation. For the fun of it the award winning actor takes an extra second to 'snap out of it' and realize what's happening around him. Yuu gives a playful smack on his shoulder, going along with the act. Finally the blonde stands up and struts to the stage, gratitude swirling in his eyes.
"I always say the same thing when I come up here to receive an award. That I'm grateful to my fans, my father, my coworkers, my agent. And those are all still true, but tonight I'd like to add that I'm grateful to my partner Yuu, who let me doll her up to come here when I'm sure she had six other things she'd rather be doing. Your support means the world to me, love. Everyone's support means the world to me. So I'll say what I always say. It is only because of all of you that I'm on this stage right now. I love you all, thank you."
The clapping comes back with a vengeance, aided by whistles and cheering that seem to bounce off the walls. The camera lingers on Vil for a while longer, letting everyone see the enthused hug Yuu gives him, followed by the beginning of the kiss he starts in response.
. . .
It's an hour later, after they're pulling away in the limo to go back home, that the pair turn their phones back on, and get flooded with texts and calls and voicemails from Cater, who's freaking out about the 100,000 and counting new followers he's gotten. It's a jumbled mess of keysmashes, disbelief, and gratitude. Yuu laughs and goes to call him back, but her partner stops her by taking her phone, and putting both hers and his in his bag on the floor.
"Vil?"
He knocks on the divider between them and the driver, who simply raises the window in response. In a flash the former prefect finds herself on her back, with her lover hovering above her, a certain fiery look in his eyes. "You were flawless tonight. Absolutely stunning. A performance worthy of being rewarded." As he talks he walks two fingers across her lips, down her cheek, under her chin, over her throat where he can feel her swallow. "Will you let me reward you?"
"Yes please."
The ride to get home is similar to the ride to the event. There is very little talking.