Mai-HiME Fan Fiction ❯ The Tide ❯ Adjuvant ( Chapter 5 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

This is a short sort of Sub-Chapter. It came to me rather suddenly. I hope you enjoy it.

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The Tide
by Monikku



"Kanzaki-san," she paused waiting for a response and received none. Kanzaki stared over the roof-top's
makeshift balcony down to the students below; two people in the crowd, obviously the sole proprieters
of his attention. "How do you feel... about Mai and Tate, Kanzaki-san?"

"Kaichou-san, we are not in a meeting nor are we in class, Reito is fine."

Shizuru smirked, "Ah, how people would talk if they heard me address you in such a way."

He continued to watch as Mai giggled, touching Tate on the shoulder. "People will talk, Shizuru-san;
they do that."

There was a period of silence as Reito prolonged avoiding answering Shizuru's question. She didn't think
he would respond at all. It was rude, if not anomalous, of her to assume that kind of familiarity while still
referring to someone by their surname. Somehow she felt it was apropos, their relationship was a private,
quiet kind of paradox.

Shizuru willed to stone her face, as she pondered with great perplexity how anyone could find Tate
charming. Her head tilted ever so slightly as Mai blushed. The attraction, to Shizuru, alienated any common
sense. Tate was so... inexplicably plain.

Reito snickered audibly, "Kuga-san must be brushing off on you."

Shizuru's line of vision rose at the mention of Natsuki, her eyes lingering where the tree tops gently kissed the
horizon. "Mmmm, she has a way of doing that."

"Honestly," Reito began, "I am not certain how I feel about Mai and Tate." He stared diffidently up at the sky,
"I am uncertain of my whole life since the dawn of the red star. It is difficult to accept that I may not have ever
been in control of my life for such a long period of time." Reito looked back down at Mai and Tate, his eyes squinting
in thought. "But when I see them, I do feel a pang of... something."

"Jealousy?" Shizuru provided.

"Perhaps, envy... and absence." Reito closed his eyes, "I think I might have genuinely liked Mai." There was
silence between the two as a breeze cut through the stillness of his sentiment.

"It is most convenient," Reito broke.

Shizuru had some difficulty following his train of thought. "Mmmm?"

"Having something to shirk the blame to; the red star, the festival. A part of me must have taken part in it. Some
memories are so sharp while others... they come to me like static."

"It is a bit like losing a part of your life." Shizuru spoke quietly.

"Or a part of yourself." Reito's words were a stark contrast, dampening the canvas of her emotions. Zanzaki turned
to the student body president, "What now, Kaichou-san?"

Shiziru continued to stare at the horizon, "For some people, the festival gave them answers. For others," she amended,
"for us, well, it gave us questions."

"Wise as always." Zanzaki flashed his most winning smile at Shizuru, "Well then," Reito held out his arm for Shizuru
to take as escort, "As they say, the fun is in the journey."

Shizuru wrapped her arm around Reito's, her voice tinkled with humour, "Ah, Reito-san, stepping into school like this,
people will talk."

Reito laughed with a sincerity that put Shizuru's tensed heart at ease, "People will talk, Shizuru-san; they do that."


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Author's Notes:

kae- I hope I can update any of my stories in the near future. lol Thanks for reading. :)
Edge-Keen Blade- Another chapter for your enjoyment. :D I am always happy to pick up new readers.
I hope you continue to enjoy this piece!
Hoppy-chan- I'm happy that you enjoy the nuances of my work. It's these parts of a character that I think
are so significant, and really make them easy to identify with. My goal is to highlight the minutiae in a certain
hope to reflect... their humanity.
Krampus- This story is the aftermath of Action! I find it so fascinating that these characters supposedly
peacefully picked up the pieces, so this is a dissection of that act. I agree with you, though. My stories
in general kinda suck at the Action! aspect. I'm so enamoured with the human psyche that I think I might
be better off writing essays instead of stories. lol
Sakura cc- All in due time. ;)
Littleleaf89- I hope I can portray their feelings realistically as well. I hope you enjoyed this exchange between
Reito and Shizuru. I plan on their being many, many more between the two. Fear not, though, this is a Natsuki/Shizuru
story.
Volk83- Ask and yee shall receive. :P



And juuuust because I <3 this song, and was listening to it while writing this part of the story:


Good Things,
Sleater-Kinney


got this feeling when i heard your name the other day
couldn't say it, couldn't make it go away
it's a hard place, can't be friends, we can't be enemies
it's just too much, feel the weight crushing down on my face

the hardest part is things already said
getting better, worse, i can not tell
why do good things never wanna stay?
some things you lose, some things you give away

broken pieces, try to make it good again
is it worth it, will it make me sick today
it's a dumb song, but i'll write it anyway
it's an old mistake, but we always make it, why do we

the hardest part is things already said
getting better, worse, i can not tell
why do good things never wanna stay?
some things you lose, some things you give away

this time, it'll be alright
this time, it'll be okay
this time, it'll be alright
this time, it'll be okay

the hardest part is things already said
getting better, worse, i can not tell
why do good things never wanna stay?
some things you lose, some things you give away
some things you lose, some things you give away