Work Text:
Set on Episode 5: The house wars.
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Yumeko stood solemnly as she watched her fellow students mourn the loss of her roommate, well ex roommate that is. She noticed all of their unique reactions. A few tears here and there, a sympathetic nod to those close to Blake. And the most interesting of all, were those who harboured no reaction at all.
Yumeko was lost in thought, taking Blake's death in her own way. She was never supposed to be involved. Despite Yumekos efforts, she didn't have to lift a finger to seal Raymond's fate. If it wasn't her, who could it have been?
"Perhaps we should keep the funeral decorations up year round..."
Kira Timurov, student council president, took place at Yumekos side. Watching her eyes flicking open at her sudden presence.
"Hard to believe this could happen."
She responded, Kira wasted no time to speak.
"Nothing surprises me."
Kira stared forward at the organised chaos that had become of Blakes death. Unplanned yet dealt with in such a uniform fashion. Typical.
"Except you."
She stared forward, calculating. She turned to face Yumeko.
"You were there when the bomb went off."
Her eyes were sharp, interrogating. Expectant of a reaction that would give everything away.
"So were you."
Their eyes met. Intense. Challenging eachother silently, waiting for one of them to crack or break.
"Ten seconds earlier we'd have been killed. Sloppy work."
Kira remarked, almost to get a rise out of Yumeko. She glanced at the ground infront of Kiras feet. Even if she had pressed the button she wouldn't have reacted to the snide remark. She knew what Kira was trying to do. She turned back to look forward again.
Kira looked to Yumeko, scanning almost accusingly. Attempting to catch a glimpse of guilt or a tell she missed. Nothing but an unknowing glance from her.
"Raymond Row has mob associates, I'm told this was their way of... settling accounts."
Kira recounted.
"She should've never been in that car."
Yumekos voice was taut with anger, a knowing that she could've survived. A want for justice.
"Of course."
Kira was calculated, Yumeko knew. She knew that this wasn't a way to offer her condolences. There was always another move with the Student council president.
"To lose your roommate like this? You must be shattered."
She feigned sympathy, the only reason she was there was to get an answer out of the girl she stood next to.
Yumeko. A name repeated in Kiras mind every time she made a decision. She was a curveball that always hit the weakest points of the carefully balanced system that Kira ruled over. There was never a way to know what she was going to do next. Never a way to predict when and where it could all come crashing down.
"I'm fine."
Yumeko replied. A reassuring curve to her lips, not exactly a smile. It got the point across.
"Mary's moving in with me."
Kira's breath stopped. For a second a thought.
"Right."
She thought about something. Anything she could do to keep Yumeko close. She was a strategist if anything. They always say to keep your friends close. But Kira wanted her enemy closer.
"You're in a vulnerable time."
Kira stepped forward, brushing a stray hair from Yumeko's shoulder.
"I'll be keeping my eye out for you."
Kira walked off, returning to her little clique of council members. Watching her. Micheal approached her; they spoke. Faces tense.
"If you stare at her any longer she'll probably have your eyes burned into the back of her head."
Dori remarked. Kira didn't break her gaze. Or reply.
"I will know what you're up to Kawamoto."
She said in her mind. That was slowly being taken over by the new girl at Saint Doms.
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Yumeko opened her door, Mary following to check out the room. Kira stood menacingly; an intimidation tactic no doubt.
"There's your flag."
Yumeko stood across from Kira, opposing energies clashing like flint and steel. Bound to start a fire. Mary could feel the tense atmosphere building.
"I'm going to go pack my stuff."
Mary swiftly made her escape while she could. Knowing that the conversation wouldn't exactly be friendly. Yumeko gave her a nod and smile as she did. She turned to Kira, hands neatly folded behind her back. As if she were physically hiding her intentions, Kira thought.
"Is this you looking out for me?"
The puzzle. Kira would never admit how much time she really spent trying to decipher that damned wooden box. In truth she'd spent every waking moment attempting to find a way to break into it. It was impossible.
"A puzzle with no solution. Just like you."
Kira stared at Yumeko. She was looking for a crack, a chance, anything in her demeanour or facade to zero in on and find out what was really going on in her mind. Her solution; her intentions. Much like the box that was driving her insane. Kira couldn't find the answers she so desperately seeked. Not that she knew what she was even looking for in the first place.
Yumeko's sultry, sickeningly sweet voice sliced through the air.
"Where would the fun be in that?"
The two never broke eye contact. Piercing blue into almost red, dark eyes. Kira began to shake her head,
"New girl. Doesn't play by the rules, doesn't cheat and just will not lose."
Yumeko could see the built frustration in Kira. With the slight clench in her jaw and slight white in her knuckles as she spoke. Yumeko took a moment to take Kira in. Her eyes snapped back up. She circled Kira. Stopping in her peripheral, leaning in slightly.
"And our Student Council President... rules with an iron fist, ruthless, and won't play me herself..."
Kira laughed, bitter.
"In this world you rule or you obey. Here I make the rules."
Yumeko remained behind her. Kira turned to face her, Yumeko stepped closer to Kira. Breaking her attempt at intimidation. They were an inch apart.
"And I like your games."
Yumekos gaze flicked to Kira's lips. When she looked up she'd caught Kira doing the same. Neither breaking eye contact.
"Speaking of which... A wager."
Kira was taken slightly aback at the proximity. She'd never had any issues with closeness before, to intimidate. She'd always been the one to threaten; unsettle. But with Yumeko, she was unpredictable. There was no telling what she'd do; she was on her level. Though Kira would never admit that out loud.
"A wager? For the house wars?"
Kira scoffed as she smirked.
"You'd never win, the odds are stacked against you. Spade always wins. "
Yumeko was still close, too close.
"But that means I still have a chance, yes?"
She spoke with a mischievous calm, it infuriated Kira. Yumeko finally took a step back, cleaning papers at her desk. Kira released a breath she didn't know she was holding.
"Besides your reluctance speaks volumes Kira-san. If you're afraid to play me, there's no shame."
She giggled. God that laugh, it inflamed her.
"It's just us here after all..."
Kira fumed. Storming towards the desk, slamming a hand onto the wood veneer.
"The stakes."
Yumeko didn't flinch, didn't even react. Just cocked her head to reveal a slight glint in her eyes. Kira's hand, balled in a fist was still on the table. Yumeko took a seat on the desk, her skirt riding slightly up and grazing Kira's thumb and knuckle. Kira tried to hide her shock, but Yumeko saw it. The way her eyes flickered - just slightly- upon the contact.
"Hmm, let me think..."
She'd rested her arms lazily around Kira's neck. Kira expected that she would wrench herself away from her, but she didn't. It horrified her that she didn't,
"Whoever wins..."
She was practically whispering in her ear, feeling the slight radiance of warmth from Kira.
"Can ask for one thing from the other, and they must follow through."
Yumeko pulled away first, gracefully leaving an absence beneath Kira.
"What do you say President? You up for a little wager?"
She lowered her tone and gaze, Kira picked it up whenever she was about to be brash and impulsive. Yumeko offered a hand.
Kira had everything to lose and everything to prove.
"I'll enjoy having you as my housepet Kawamoto."
They shook hands.
"Don't threaten me with a good time Kira!"
She teased. As she skipped out of the room, leaving Kira in her stunned silence. Repeating the whole encounter in her head, she mentally slapped herself.
"Game on. Yumeko."
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